1 Ave., 1899.] QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 125 
For my own part, I would be very sorry to see white men trashing and eutting 
cane in North Queensland. I greatly prefer to regard it as the future paradise of the: 
industrial and frugal working man of the South, who, with their three or four years’ 
wages saved up, shall cover the North with small farms on which the black man will 
perform the labour which is unfit for the white. That the influx of alien coloured 
races which might compete with us in all the walks of life should be forbidden, and 
that kanakas should be kept solely at tropical and semi-tropical field work, I claim to be- 
very right; but I maintain thatit is the duty of every Queenslander to see that the great 
industry—the only possible industry—of the Northern coastal districts shall not be: 
lightly jeopardised. Just now people are a little hysterical over federation and 
ready-made Constitutions, and it would be well if they were to pause and reflect that 
federation may be too dearly purchased. I beg to move that: “In the opinion of 
this Conference federation will seriously imperil the continuance of tropical and 
semi-tropical agriculture in Queensland unless there is some guarantee that no obstacle: 
shall, for the next twenty years, be placed in the way of the importation of 
Polynesians or Papuans for tropical and semi-tropical field work.” : 
At the conclusion of the paper, Mr. Cuaraway said: With regard to the 
motion at the conclusion of Captain Henry’s paper, I understand that, with the 
consent of the writer, it has been withdrawn, and stands so accordingly. There 
was a widely expressed wish this morning that the discussion first of all on Mr. 
Denman’s paper, and then on papers of cognate subjects, should stand over. I 
. now find that on Thursday we shall have time to discuss the particular question 
that is really raised in all these papers—namely, the question of labour. It is: 
desirable that those who wish to discuss these papers should see them in print, 
and I propose now to meet their views, so that sugar shall not run on and get 
into every day, by postponing the discussion on these three papers till Thursday, 
the 29th June. For this afternoon I propose two things. Two matters haye 
been mentioned to me as worthy of discussion, one of which I omitted to refer 
to in my address this morning. This is coffee. It was pretty fully dealt with 
at the Rockhampton Conference, and since that time a large area has been 
brought under coffee in Queensland. In fact, it appears to be an industry that 
is coming to the front with considerable rapidity. Since the Conference last 
year, a gentleman has been brought from India by the Department, and 
appointed as an instructor in coffee-growing. The other subject which we 
might discuss is tobacco. ‘This is a very valuable product, and one that yields a 
large amount per acre. We have in the room, Mr. Nevill, the instructor in 
tobacco, and no doubt we have also in the room many farmers who have made: 
tentative plantings of this weed, and who will be anxious, perhaps, to state 
their difficulties, or their reasons why they fail to get such returns as might 
be expected. I ask anybody who .is anxious to speak on tobacco to address. 
the meeting. 
TOBACCO. 
Mr. T, Mackay (Cairns) said: All I have to say, Mr. Chairman, is gained 
from practical experience, and, I may add, that that experience has been only 
gained in the district from which I come. I have read no books on the subject 
of tobacco. What I have to say may not be applicable to the whole colony, but 
perhaps it will with a little variation. In the first place, people in Cairns, eight 
or ten years ago, in trying to make a living from the land, tried several things, 
and they were compelled to do this especially as there were no mills where they 
could have their sugar-cane crushed, as they now have to a certain extent. 
Amongst the crops tried was tobacco, and with a considerable amount of 
success. ‘The great drawback, however, was, that when they grew the oIeE they 
were entirely in the hands of the manufacturer, who practically gave what he 
liked for the leaf, and eventually, on that account, the growers were starved 
out. When we entered upon tobacco cultivation, we were led to believe we 
could get from 10 to 15 ewt. per acre; but when we came to grow it the 
most we could get was from 4 to 5 ewt. per acre, and when we got a small 
price for that it practically shut us up. The reason of the small return per 
acre was the fact that the climate would only grow fine leaf, even though the 
land might be rich. When we sent our crop down to Brisbane, and the manu- 
facturer gave us the smallest price possible, we knocked off growing it. Now, 
