Report of Society's Meetings. 43 
local consumption. The most important of our agricul- 
tural industries next to sugar is that of rice. This in- 
dustry has made considerable progress in our midst 
recently, and further progress may be looked for. Rice 
is grown here and there on the alluvial lands near the 
seashore and rivers, all over the Colony. Considerable 
areas are under cultivation without the slightest provision 
having been made for drainage or water supply. This 
will make the industry a very uncertain one and at times 
lead to disaster. A se6lion of suitable land say 5,000 
acres should be sele6led, provided with dams, canals, and 
machinery for irrigation and drainage. The land, with 
guaranteed water supply and drainage, could be let to 
rice growers at a sum sufficient to cover interest on 
capital, wear and tear, &c. Private capital should find 
this a good investment, but as the Government is ex- 
pe6led to do everything in this Colony, it might be 
necessary for it to guarantee the capital or interest. 
Unless something of this kind is done, rice growers will, 
from the effe6ts of deluges and droughts, suffer grievous 
disappointments and loss, and rice famines may occur 
after our imported supplies have been discontinued. 
Next in importance to rice comes cocoa. The cocoa 
tree is suited for cultivation on well drained land on the 
banks of our rivers, but extreme caution and care have 
to be exercised in sele6ling the soil, injudicious eele6lion 
having already proved very disheartening. The tree 
will not thrive if exposed to the dire6t a6lion of the sea 
breeze, nor will the more valuable varieties thrive in stiff, 
heavy clay soils. The growers must be prepared to 
exercise patience, as it takes from 7 to 10 years after 
planting before a full crop is obtained. If our farmers, 
¥i 
