Agricultural and Commercial Society. 33 
clear of those alleged large paying concerns. It was 
quite true that where advantage had been taken of a large 
amount of capital invested in by-gone years, where 
very little had been spent in up-keep and nothing on 
improvements, considerable profits had been realized ; 
but this was exceptional, and they could quite 
understand that it was making a profit more or less 
out of the large capital invested in past years. Thanks 
to the action of the United States Government in 
imposing countervailing duties, the sugar estates in 
this colony had been able to go on and to make a 
small profit. But his experience had been that where 
the full amount had been spent in up-keep, and the 
necessary sum upon the necessary improvements to 
keep our sugar produce on a line with modern 
undertakings in other sugar-producing countries, very 
small profit indeed had been made. And taking into 
account the average season's crop and the average 
price, the strictest possible economy had had to be 
exercised to give a margin of profit at all. On every 
sugar estate it was necessary to expend very large 
sums in appliances every year if the estates were to 
keep up in the sugar-producing race with other 
countries. There were now in the coloiiy several very 
successful cane -farmers who were growing canes and 
selling them to sugar estates, and who were doing very 
well indeed. They were quite satisfied with the 
results. Any man with a small capital and a knowledge 
of agriculture, who was willing to work, could make a 
very decent living for himself by growing canes. It 
was absolutely certain that when his crop was grown 
lie could sell it. The market was at his door waitincr 
for it, and that was a very great consideration tndeed. 
E 
