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The original publication details are as follows:

Title: Handbook for emigrants proceeding to South Australia : with a map of the Colony / by William Harcus.

Author: Harcus, William.

Published: Published under the authority of the South Australian Government, Adelaide, 1873

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HANDBOOK FOR EMIGRANTS

PROCEEDING TO

SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

BY WILLIAM HARCUS, ESQ., J.P.

With a Map of the Colony.

[Published under the authority of the South Australian Government.]

ADELAIDE:

PRINTED BY AUTHORITY, BY W. C. COX, GOVERNMENT PRINTER.

1873.

PREFACE.

THIS Handbook is prepared under the authority of the South Australian Government. It was thought that a short description of the Colony, written in a popular style, showing its resources as a field for intending emigrants might he useful. The work of preparing such a description was, without solicitation on my part, entrusted to me. Unfortunately the time I had in which to prepare the little work was very limited; and it is possible that the arrangement of the materials is not such as I should have adopted if I had been allowed more time. It is very desirable, however, that the work should go to England by the next mail, and I have been obliged to send the sheets to the press as they are.

I wish to state the object which I set before myself when I was first commissioned to prepare the Handbook. I was anxious to show, as briefly as was consistent with accuracy, the advantages which South Australia offers to working men and men of small capital, as a future residence; how to get to the Colony; and, having got here, how to obtain possession of the land; and having obtained possession of it, what to do with it. It will be seen that what I have written hears either immediately or incidentally on these points. I tried to put myself in the position of a working man, in Engla nd wishing to emigrate; and the information I have attempted to supply is just that which I should have been anxious to obtain had I been in such a position. It would have been easy to make the work larger, but a large work would not have answered the object which, I believe, the Government had in view. A "handybook," which a man could put in his pocket and read in the course of an evening, as full as possible of useful information about the Colony, was my conception of what the work should be. How far I have carried out this idea, I must leave others to judge.

This little work makes no pretensions to literary finish; it is not crowded with hard-looking statistics; nor does it aim at taking the place of larger works on the Colonies.

In the appendix will be found a well-written description of the Colony, in German, by Mr. W. Eggers, Editor of the Adelaide German newspaper, intended chiefly for the German people, which has been courteously placed at the service of the Government, and a brief report on Gold Mining in South Australia, by Mr. Peterswald, Warden; also, "Notes on the capabilities of the Province for Fresh Industries," by Dr. Schomburgk, Director of the Adelaide Botanic Garden.

My thanks are due to several gentlemen who have assisted me in the preparation of the Handbook, amongst whom I ought especially to mention Mr. Goyder, the "Surveyor-General, and Mr. Jos. Boothby, the Government Statist.

Adelaide, March, 1873.

CONTENTS.

THE PROVINCE OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA.
CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTORY.

THE vast Island Continent of Australia, formerly known as New Holland, comprises somewhere about 3,000,000 square miles of territory—only a little less than the territory of the whole of Europe. It is at present divided into five Provinces—New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland, and Western Australia, with an aggregate population of considerably over a million and a half souls. It is one of the richest countries in the world; and the settlers, principally British, Irish, and Teutonic, have shown all the high qualities of courage, perseverance, industry, and hopefulness which characterize the race from which they spring.

South Australia is neither the oldest nor the youngest of the Australian sisterhood of Colonies. It was founded in the year 1836, and several of the first colonists still remain to see the results of their early labors. As originally settled, the Colony contained 383,328 square miles, or 245,329,920 acres; but since then it has received two large accessions of territory— the first, a strip of land lying between its western boundary and the eastern boundary of Western Australia; and the second, a large tract of country stretching northwards from the 26th parallel of south latitude to the Indian Ocean, and from the 129th to the 138tli degrees of east longitude. The first addition was known as " No Man's Land," and the second is now known as the Northern Territory. The Colony may be regarded as comprising three divisions—South Australia proper, Central Australia, and the Northern Territory, and it stretches across the whole continent from ocean to ocean—the total area comprising 914,730 square miles, or 585,427,200 acres.

A country so large, covering so many square miles, lias, as a matter of course, a great diversity in its physical features. Magnificent plains of agricultural land, mountain ranges, stretching for hundreds of miles, and often covered with large timber, chiefly eucalyptus, and lovely and enchanting valleys, through which in winter creeks —in some instances deserving the name of rivers—run. On the other hand, there are in several parts of the Colony long stretches of arid plains on which vegetation is stunted and cultivation difficult, if not impossible. On these plains, however, the greatest mineral wealth of the Province has been found, and there is every reason to believe that the earth is still full of riches, which only wait the employment of capital and labor to develop.

For many years, indeed ever since Stuart completed his journey across the continent, it was supposed that Central Australia, as a whole, was a wretched country, which could never be turned to any profitable account. One result, however, of the spirited enterprise of South Australia, in carrying a telegraph line from Port Augusta to Port Darwin, has been to prove that there is an immense territory fully capable of carrying large herds of horses and cattle; and already some spirited young men have gone out far beyond the formally recognized frontier to commence pastoral pursuits, with every prospect of success.

The southern part of the Colony is wonderfully productive. The finest wheat ever grown in the world has been grown within a few miles of Adelaide. At international exhibitions, both in England and on the Continent, South Australian wheat obtained the gold medal for the finest exhibited by any country. But wheat is only a part of our produce. All the fruits that flourish in England will grow well in this Province. Apples, pears, almonds, cherries, strawberries, currants, raspberries, gooseberries, rhubarb, and filberts have been produced in the southern part of the Colony. But, in addition to these, we can grow in abundance those fruits which are only produced in hothouses in England. Grapes, peaches, apricots, nectarines, and figs grow in the open air with a small amount of culture. Oranges do wonderfully well in the Colony, with only a little care. I have seen whole acres of healthyorange trees laden to the very ground with the golden fruit. At the same time may be seen, on the same tree, the lovely orange blossom, the green fruit, and the oranges fully ripe. Some of the colonists have gone to great expense in the cultivation of the orange, and their labor and enterprise have been amply rewarded. All these fruits, which are luxuries to the poor—and even to a large section of the middle class—in England, are, during the season, the daily food of the poorest in South Australia. When the fruits are ripe, there are but few tables on which several pounds of grapes or dozens of peaches and apricots are not found. A dozen pounds of grapes can be bought in the market for sixpence, and a dozen peaches for threepence or fourpence. Another delicious luxury in hot weather is the water-melon, which grows freely and is eaten with avidity to any extent—especially by children—without the slightest evil effect. It would do an Englishman's heart good to look upon the breakfast-table of a South Australian of moderate means, groaning under the weight of the most luscious fruits.

In the northern part of the Colony tropical fruits can be produced to any extent, and tropical industries carried on with suitable labor. The pine-apple and banana, amongst fruits, and the sugar-cane, the cotton plant, rice, tea, and coffee may all be produced there—in fact, all tropical products will flourish: and the time is not far distant when these industries will be cultivated to a large extent with the facilities which are now offered to settlers by the Government, and to which I shall refer at greater length by-and-by.

The climate of South Australia is, unquestionably, salubrious. For eight months in the year, nothing can be more delightful. During the summer months, from December to March, the heat is sometimes intense: on many days the thermometer registers from 105° to 110° in the shade. But the heat is dry, and therefore does not produce the same exhausting effect upon the colonists that a moist heat would do. On such days people wisely doff their woollen clothing, and dress all in white—even to their helmets and boots. Cases of sunstroke sometimes occur in spite of all precautions; but these are very rare compared with the large number of persons who, without due precaution, expose themselves to the fierce rays of the burning sun. As the result of experience and observation I can say, that even on the hottest day men can follow their ordinary employments without excessive exhaustion: indeed, to be fully employed appears to be necessary to enable them to bear the great heat. On a very hot day, the worst thing is to lie kicking one's heels and doing nothing else. But a hot wind, attended with a duststorm, such as we have twice or thrice during the hot season, cannot be apologized for—it is an unmitigated nuisance. These hot north winds, however, are happily rare, and they never continue more than a day or two. When the change comes, the temperature is sometimes lowered thirty or forty degrees in the course of an hour or two: and the unhappy wight, who was melting in the morning, may be shivering in the evening. This is what we have to expect occasionally in our hot months.

But nothing can he more delightful than the other eight months of the year. Even when the heavy winter rains come, which flood our streets and swell our rivers from contemptible waterholes to mighty torrents, South Australians can afford to be jolly. In this Colony rain is always a blessing. It gives the promise, and is the cause, of future wealth; and the more rain we have, the more abundant is our agricultural and horticultural produce. The average rainfall at Adelaide is about twenty-three inches during the year, falling principally in the months of May to October, on about 110 days. In the hilly districts the fall is from eight to ten inches greater. In England the average is twentyfour inches. On the days during the months when it does not rain, the climate is unsurpassably beautiful; the air is pure, soft, balmy, and ccol— such as one might imagine would blow over "the plains of heaven." On such days mere existence is enjoyment. And the climate has been found to be most beneficial in chest complaints with persons of tender lungs: medical testimony of the first class has shown that the Australian climate is quite equal, if not superior, to that of Madeira for persons with weak lungs. Several invalids have come to the Colony suffering from asthma, bronchial affections, and consumption, whose days have been lengthened if their lives have not been ultimately saved by the dry, pure, and salubrious atmosphere. Of course persons do die of consumption in South Aus tralia; but this is generally when they arrive too late, the disease having taken too great a hold upon their system.

CHAPTER II.
NATURAL RESOURCES OF THE COLONY.

THE three great staple industries of South Australia, which to a large extent have made the Colony what it is, are agriculture, pastoral pursuits, and copper mining.

When the first colonists arrived, the country was parched up, the ground hard baked and apparently unworkable. For some time the early settlers were content to sit down with the conviction that agriculture on such a soil, and with such a climate, was impossible. A great deal of suffering resulted from this false inference. The most important of all the necessaries of life had to be imported at a ruinous cost from Tasmania, and flour was actually sold in Adelaide at £100 per ton. Some daring colonists, however, thought they would honestly try whether wheat could not be produced on the Adelaide plains. The land was tilled, the seed deposited, and the result anxiously looked for. Happily, wheat-growing became a success from the beginning. "Writing, as I do now, when the result of the last harvest will enable us to export something like 200,000 tons of breadstuffs, after supplying our own wants, it seems almost absurd to think that the eqrly fathers and founders of the Colony should even have entertained a doubt as to the productiveness of the soil and climate. For a long time, agriculture was confined within a radius of say twenty miles of Adelaide, and persons " who ought to know" gravely asserted that beyond that radius agriculture was impossible. These persons, however, proved to be false prophets. During the last harvest, country 150 miles and more to the north of the metropolis has, without the cultivation necessary in England, produced splendid wheat, averaging from fifteen to sixteen bushels to the acre. And along the whole distance from Adelaide to these northern areas, the land is covered with industrious and nrosnerous farmers.

Up to the close of the year 1871, the total area of land alienated from the Crown amounted to 4,621,956 acres—4,202,306 acres having been purchased in fee

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

DIAGRAM SHOWING

—THE—

POPULATION - ACRES SOLD-ACRES CULTIVATED

ACRES IN WHEAT A WHEAT REAPED - IN QUARTERS

SURVEYOR GENERALS OFFICE ADELAIDE Frazer S. Crawford, Photo-lithographer

simple for cash, and 416,650 acres under the system of deferred payments—showing twenty-two and one-third acres per head of the population. Through the kindness of the Surveyor-General, I am able to bring down these figures to the present date. The total area alienated by cash sales is 4,319,102½ acres, for which has been realized £5,452,581 9s. 5d. Selections of land on credit have been made to the number of 2,076, comprising an area of 714,2321½ acres, the purchasemoney of which amounted to £934,519 13s. At the close of the year, there were 1,044,656 acres under cultivation, of which there were under wheat nearly 700,000 acres. There were then five and a half acres of tilled land per head of the population, or sixteen and a half acres for each male of fourteen years of age and upwards. I question whether any other country in the world can show such a wide distribution of the land amongst the people as this. The climate is capricious for wheat, and the average yield per acre from year to year varies considerably. The plagues from which farmers suffer are drought, red rust, takeall, and—during the last season—locusts. The following table gives for ten years the number of acres under wheat, the produce in bushels, the average per acre, and the average price per bushel in Adelaide:—

The figures are not yet made up for the late harvest, but it is estimated that there were about 750,000 acres under wheat, and that the average per acre will be from twelve to fourteen bushels. At any rate, it is believed we shall have nearly 200,000 tons for export,— a considerable portion of which has already been shipped. 200,000 tons of breadstuff's, at the very moderate estimate of £10 per ton, gives £2,000,000 sterling as the result of the harvest, after supplying all local wants. This fact shows how important the agricultural interest is to the Colony generally. To this it must be added that South Australian wheat and flour are the finest produced in the world. This is seen by the fact that in London it brings the very highest price, and in the other Colonies it is bought to mix with their own cereal produce.

The cost of cultivating wheat in couth Australia is very small compared with that of other countries. Anything like scientific farming is rarely, if ever, attempted in the Colony. The old saying " Tickle the soil and it laughs with plenty," is almost literally true here. Virgin soil is ploughed up three or four inches deep, and often, without even fallowing it, the seed is thrown in, and should the season he moderately favorable, a fair crop rewards the small labor of the husband man. This goes on from year to year—anything like a rotation of crops is never attempted. There are farms in South Australia which have been annually cropped with wheat for twenty or twenty-five years, and yet last harvest they produced as abundantly as ever. Though the farming is what would be called slovenly, in England, yet as a whole, and over a series of years, it answers the purpose of the agriculturist. There are many farmers who have grown rich in this way. Beginning on a small scale, with a section or two of eighty acres, they have, from the profits of one year, enlarged their free holdings for the next, until several of them now have very large and valuable estates, which yield them a handsome income.

From the table published above, it will be seen that the average price of wheat is low, and nothing could enable the farmer to thrive, with his comparatively small average per acre, and the low price at wliieh he is compelled to sell, but the cheapness of production. The expense of cultivation is small, and the gathering in of the crop, when it is fully ripe, costs a mere trifle. The greatest invention ever produced for the agriculturists of South Australia, is Ridley's reaping machine, which reaps and thrashes the wheat by one simple process. A machine of this kind could be used only where the climate is dry, and where the grain is allowed to ripen and harden in the ear. In some of the Australian Colonies the machine cannot be used, in consequence of the moisture in the air. In South Australia, however, as soon as the crop is fully ripe, the machine is put into the field, and the wheat is reaped and thrashed with amazing rapidity, and at a very small expenditure, It may safely be said that the cost of farming has been reduced to the minimum in South Australia.

It is curious to find that some of the most successful farmers are men who have been brought up to other trades. They seem to pick up the art and mystery of the business almost instinctively, proving clearly that in this Province, no very great skill or experience are required to make a successful agriculturist^ One result of this is, that there is a class of independent yeomanry settling on their own freehold lands, where they enjoy all the comforts of independence and abundance. Below we explain at length the provisions of the existing Land Acts, showing the easy terms on which any industrious man may get on the land, and, in the course of a few years, make it his own.

CHAPTER III.
THE LAND LAWS.

ONE principle on which South Australia was started as a Colony, was the sale of the Crown Lands at a price not under one pound per acre, the proceeds from the sale to be devoted to the introduction of immigrants.

This principle, however, was soon modified, and a large portion of the money obtained for the lands was devoted to the construction of roads, and other public works, and subsequently to meeting the claims of the National Debt. But until two or three years ago, the minimum price of one pound per acre was strenuously adhered to. Waste Lands, as the unsold Government lands are called, divided into Hundreds, and subdivided into sections of about eighty acres each, were offered at auction at the upset price of one pound. Competition often ran up the price much beyond this amount, and hard working farmers had but little chance in competition with mere speculators, who bought the land at a price which the farmer could not afford to give in cash, and subsequently let it to him at a good rental, with a right of purchase at twice or three times the amount of what it had originally cost. On the fall of the hammer, twenty per cent, of the purchase money had to be paid down, and the remainder in one month from the sale.

Several attempts were made to alter the whole system of the land laws, which had been worked so as to benefit only a very small class of speculators at the expense of the agriculturists. The average price per acre which the Government had received for the large territory alienated from the Crown, was under 25s., hut the price to the farmer, who had in many instances to purchase second hand, was 50s, or 60s., or more, the difference between the two prices going into the hands of the speculators, for the accommodation they gave to the agriculturists who had no money. Objectionable as the system was, it is only fair to say that many farmers have grown rich under it, and several speculators have done both themselves and the farmers good, by rendering assistance to poor men who wanted to get on the land.

It was felt, however, that the Government might do for moneyless farmers what the capitalists and speculators had heen doing, and might do it on much more reasonable terms. Instead of demanding cash, it was resolved to sell the lands on credit, with deferred payments, taking sufficient precautions, of course, that the land so disposed of should be occupied and cultivated. After great consideration, a measure was at last carried through the Legislature for this purpose, and became law. It is not necessary that I should encumber these pages with a minute description of what is known as "Strangways's Act," which has been set aside for one more liberal, and better adapted to the requirements of poor men. It will be better to give a popular description of the law now in force, which will show intending emigrants how, on their arrival in this Colony, they can get possession of the land.

THE LAND ACT OF 1872.—Under this Act the whole of the Waste Lands of the Colony, south of what is called "Goyder's Line of Rain-fall"—in other words, all land that will grow wheat—forms one area, from which, as fast as it is surveyed and declared open to the public, intending purchasers can make their selections. There is no selection before survey, but an efficient staff of survey officers is always at work surveying the land as fast as it is required. Hundreds of thousands of acres are always open for selection, and the work of the surveyors is still going forward.

PRICE.—All waste lands, other than township and suburban, will have a fixed value put upon them by the Commissioner of Crown Lands, not less than £1 and not more than £2 per acre. Should they not be taken up at the fixed price, that price will be reduced every seven days by not less than 2s. 6d. nor more than 5s. per acre, until it is reduced to £1 per acre. After it has reached this minimum price of £1 per acre, it can come down no lower until the end of five years. Those lands which have been open for selection, or which have been offered at auction, and neither selected nor sold, may at the end of five years be offered for sale in blocks of not more than 3,000 acres, on lease for ten years, at an annual rental of not less than 6d. per acre, with a right of purchase at any time during the currency of the lease at £1 per acre.

How TO GET ON THE LAND.—When any lands are declared open for selection, by proclamation in the Government Gazette, at a fixed price, a day is appointed for receiving applications for sections, not to exceed in the aggregate 640 acres, or one square mile. The person making the application shall pay at the time a deposit of ten per cent, on the fixed price, which sum shall be taken as payment of three years' interest in advance upon the purchase money. If the price of the land is £100, the selector would have to pay 'a deposit of £10, which will he all he will be required to pay to the Government for three years—about three and three-quarters per cent per annum. At the end of three years he will have to pay another ten per cent., which will also be received as interest for the next three years. If at the end of six years he is not prepared to pay the whole of the purchase money, he can obtain other four years' credit, on payment of half the purchase money, and interest in advance on the other half at the rate of four per cent, per annum.

OCCUPATION AND IMPEOVEMENTS.—A credit selector may reside on his land either personally or by substitute. The personal resident, however, has advantages which he who resides by deputy has not. In cases of simultaneous applications for the same block, the personal resident has the preference over the other; and at the end of five years, the selector, who has resided on the land and made all the required improvements, and complied with all the conditions, may, by paying his purchase money, obtain the fee simple of his selection. The selector who occupies by substitute cannot get the freehold until the end of six years.

Purchasers upon credit will he required to reside, either personally or by deputy, upon the land at least nine months in the year, and absence for any longer time than three months in one year renders the agreement liable to forfeiture.

The credit purchaser will be required to make substantial improvements upon the land before the end of the second year, to the extent of 5s. per acre; before the end of the third year, 7s. Gd. per acre; before the end of the fourth year, 10s. per acre. "Such improvements to consist of all or any of the following, that is to say:—Erecting a dwelling-house or farm building, sinking wells, constructing water tanks or reservoirs, putting up fencing, draining, and clearing or grubbing the said land." The fences must be of a substantial character.

CULTIVATION.—The credit purchaser is required, during each year until the purchase-money is paid off, to plough and have under cultivation at least onefifth of the land; but in the event of his not cultivating this quantity during the first year, he will be required to cultivate two-fifths during the second year.

These are the principal provisions of the Land Act necessary to be known by persons wishing to settle upon the land on the most favorable terms. The land is cheap, the terms of payment are easy, and the amount of cultivation required not more than any man intending to farm would attempt if the matter were left to his own option.

Suppose an immigrant arriving in the Colony with a little capital, who is anxious to take up land. He will first of all see what lands are open for selection; and having examined them, and made himself acquainted with the sections, the quality of the soil, the water privileges, the average rain-fall, and what he regards as the actual value of the land, he will see what is the upset price the Government has put upon it—which cannot be more than £2, nor less than £1, per acre. If he thinks the upset price is too high, he will wait a week or two until it is reduced to what may be regarded as its real value. He will then put in his application at the Land Office for the section or sections he wishes to obtain, with a deposit of ten per cent, on the whole amount; stating at the time whether he intends to reside personally, or by his servant. Should there be no further applications for the same blocks, he will at once he accepted as the purchaser; and he will then have to sign an agreement, binding himself to the conditions under which land is taken up on credit. He will then enter upon the land, and make the necessary improvemerits—either by fencing, erecting a house or farm buildings, or making reservoirs or water tanks—to the value of two shillings and sixpence per acre for the first year. He will then have to plough, and have under cultivation, one-fifth of the land during the first year, or two-fifths during the second year. At the end of five years, if a personal resident, and he can afford to pay the purchase-money, he will obtain the fee-simple of his selections, and henceforth they will be his own to be dealt with as he thinks proper.

If, however, the immigrant be without means on his arrival in the Colony, he should take such employment as offers itself—and, in a Colony where labor is in demand, an industrious man, accustomed to handicraft, will have no difficulty in finding employment. After working a short time as a servant, and economically husbanding his earnings, he will be able to take up land on his own account: but he should not attempt this until he has got some little money which will enable him to purchase agricultural implements—and also to live until he gets his first crop off the land. For the first year he may have to struggle; but his labors and privations will be sweetened by the hope of an honest independence in the course of a very few years. Under all circumstances, he will at least be able to get good nutritious food for himself and his family, and he can wait for luxuries until he has fairly earned them. If it were necessary, it would be easy to give many instances of men who have taken up land with no capital but the thews and sinews of themselves and children and their own brave hearts, who have successfully battled with, and conquered, difficulties, and are now wealthy men: but the men who have done this have worked hard, have been saving and enonomical in their habits, and have practised the great virtues of industry and self denial. Such men are sure to succeed in a new colony like South Australia.

CHAPTER IV.
WHAT TO DO WITH THE LAND.

HITHERTO wheat-growing has been the great pursuit of those who have taken up land in South Australia. But other industries are forcing themselves upon the attention of the settlers. It has been found that during some years wheat is an uncertain crop. Certain diseases have shown themselves at intervals, which have made sad havoc with cereals. The most fatal of these are what are called "red rust" and " takeall." The former, especially, has more than once blighted the farmers' hopes. Crops which, until a few weeks before reaping, promised an excellent yield have, by some mysterious law of Nature not yet discovered, sickened and died; and, instead of fifteen or twenty bushels per acre, the yield has been four or five. The expediency of having resort to various products has, therefore, been pressed upon the agriculturists. It has been pointed out that it is not wise to have all one's eggs in the same basket. Wheat-growing will undoubtedly continue to be the great staple industiy of our farmers, but it is suggested that additional and subsidiary to that other pursuits might wisely be followed. A good deal of the land will produce potatoes of excellent quality, flax, beet, and peas, while olives, almonds, and almost any kind of English fruit will grow anywhere. The cultivation of the grape has become a large industry, and excellent wines, sound, pure, and wholesome, have been produced, some of the better kinds of which have obtained a high character in the English markets. In another part of this work I shall give statistics, showing the extent to ivhich vine-culture has been carried on in the Colony. Sericulture, or the breeding of silkworms for the production of silk, has also taken root in the Colony, although up to the present time it has not been pursued to the extent it might have been. One thing, however, has been proved—the silkworm does well here, the mulberry tree on which it feeds grows luxuriantly, the labor required is very small, and the silk produced is of high quality. The wives and children of settlers, with a very little trouble, can make a handsome addition to the family resources by sericulture; and I believe it will take its place as a recognized and valuable industry in the Colony.

CHAPTER V.
MINES AND MINING.

THAT the Province of South Australia was rich in mineral deposits was believed very early in its history. Soon after the City of Adelaide was laid out, a rich vein of silver-lead ore was discovered a few miles distant, which, however, in its subsequent working has signally disappointed the expectations which were formed of it. Other mines of a similar character were discovered in the southern district, on which large sums of money were expended, hut they have not been worked with success. Gold has also been discovered in several parts of the Colony, which have attracted a large number of diggers, and where considerable quantities of the precious metal have been obtained. So far, however, gold digging has not taken its place as one of our great staple industries. Hundreds of diggers have made good wages in several proclaimed districts, and some very handsome specimens have been obtained. It is generally believed that gold will be found in larger quantities than have yet been obtained, and that by the expenditure of adequate capital, the auriferous treasures which are believed to exist will be brought to light. Some half-a-dozen very likely districts have been tried, and, in_'f every instance, with encouraging results. Bismuth has also been found at Balhannah, a place about twenty miles from Adelaide, and the property promises to become a very valuable one.

But copper has been our great mineral product, and some of the richest mines now worked appear to be almost inexhaustible. The first copper mine in the Colony was discovered on a sheep run at Kapunda, and has been worked since its discovery with a fair amount of success. It was soon thrown into the shade, however, by the discovery of the'famous Burra Burra mine, which for its richness has obtained a world-wide celebrity. Copper was discovered there in 1845, and a company, called the South Australian Mining Association, was formed to work it. The capital of the Association was raised by the issue of 12,320 shares of £5 each, and the total dividends paid have amounted to £782,320. For several years past but little has been done at this once famous mine, but under new management, and by improved means of working, a dividend amounting to £6,160 was paid during the last vear.

This mine, however, great as it was, was eclipsed by the marvellous discoveries made on Yorke's Peninsula in 1860. A shepherd, employed on the run of Mr. W. W. Hughes, on the Peninsula—an enthusiastic searcher after copper—found a specimen in the beginning of that year. Claims were immediately taken out, and the Wallaroo Mines were commenced. The Wallaroo has been a private company from the beginning, and no report of its actual earnings has been made public. It is well known, however, to have greatly enriched its fortunate proprietors, and it is now a property of immense value. Only last year the proprietors agreed to pay a fine of £18,000 to the Government for the renewal of two of their leases, and it is said that the profits of one year more than covered the amount of the fine.

This discovery was followed up by one of even greater value about ten miles south of the Wallaroo Mines, and now known as the Moonta Mines. From the time that ore was first found the mine was sufficiently remunerative to pay all expenses of working. Mot a penny of capital was ever subscribed; and, within two years a dividend was paid. The company is a public one, and the property is divided into 32,000 shares. Their price is nowquoted at £22 5s. per share. Thus a property which cost the shareholders nothing is now valued at £712,000. On these mines dividends have been paid amounting to £728,000; and last year six dividends were paid—two of 20s„ one of 15s., and three of 10s., amounting for the year to £136,000. In addition to this, very expensive buildings and machinery have been constructed out of the profits, and at the present time a very large population is employed on the mines. The most successful of the other mines on the Peninsula are the Paramatta, with 5,000 shares—2,600 with 5s. and 2,400 with £1 paid up—and which has returned in dividends £37,500—£12,500 of which was paid last year; and the Yelta, with 3,920 shares, on which £7 has been paid up, and which paid in dividends £7,840, last year. The Doora is the private property of Mr. W. W. Hughes, and gives the promise of equalling any of the Peninsula mines in value. It has only been worked, however, a year or two.

On other parts of the Peninsula a large amount of money has been expended in legitimate and illegitimate mining. At the present time some of the more recent ventures give the promise of remunerative results. A dozen years ago Wallaroo was an almost uninhabited sheep run, on which there were only a few shepherds' huts; now it has large smelting works, railways, jetties, three large and increasing townships, a whole fleet of colliers carrying coals from Newcastle, New South Wales, for the smelting works, churches, schools, reading-rooms and libraries, two newspapers, and a population of about 20,000 souls.

There can. he no doubt that the Colony is only on the threshold of its mineral discoveries. It is believed that copper is freely scattered over a large portion of this immense territory. In the North mines of great wealth have been discovered, and some of them worked at a profit, although the cost of carriage to the seaboard is very great. The mines in the neighborhood of the Blinman have been worked even when the price of copper was unusually low. Two hundred or more miles north of Port Augusta the country is full of copper; and if some cheap means could be discovered for getting it to a port, a large population would settle there. Attempts have been made to get the Government to construct a light railway 200 miles northward, but the)' have not yet been successful. It is somewhat confidently expected, however, that before many years elapse a work of this kind will be completed. Indeed, a far more ambitious project has been mooted in England, and is now engaging the attention of enterprizing men in South Australia and Victoria. It is to make a railway across the continent from Adelaide to Port Darwin; and it is not unlikely that the question will shortly be brought before Parliament.

Iron ores of a rich percentage of the best iron exist in great abundance within an easy distance of the seaboard. Recent attempts have been made to smelt and work the iron; and on a small scale, they have been very successful. Pig iron, of a quality said by judges to be equal to the best Swedish, was exhibited the other day in Adelaide, and was very highly spoken of. In many places the ironstone is found in the midst of large timber, from which charcoal for smelting purposes could be obtained without stint. Now, when the price of iron has risen so high in Europe, the question of investing capital in iron ore smelting in South Australia is worth consideration. The supply both of the ore and of timber for reducing it is practically unlimited for years to come. This is an industry which ought to be turned to profitable account. It would add to the wealth of the Colony while it would assist in meeting the growing demand in Europe.

The terms on which leases of Waste hands may be obtained for mineral purposes are very liberal. The payment of a small annual fee gives a right of search; and leases of lands to be worked by bonâ fide miners are obtained for ten shillings an acre. Indeed every facility is given for developing the mineral resources of the Colony, both in copper and gold. What has already been accomplished in this respect shows how easy it is for enterprizing men to take up and work mineral sections. Very large fortunes have been made, and the resources of the Colony in this respect seem almost illimitable. A great drawback at present is the comparative scarcity of labor. If the price of copper keeps up to its present quotation (£92 per ton) thousands of miners might be profitably employed in this important enterprize. Hundreds of families are now living in the mining townships on Yorke's Peninsula in respectability and comfort, which could hardly be dreamt of in the old country. And every day new ventures are floated on the Exchange, some of which are certain to turn out successful. There is every reason to believe that copper mining will be one of the most permanent and productive of our industries.

The following table gives a return for ten years of the quantity and value of metals, minerals, &c., the produce of the Colony, exported: —

The following table completes the information which necessary to give on the subject:—

CHAPTER VI.
PASTORAL PURSUITS.

THE outlying districts of the Colony were very early taken up as sheep and cattle runs. The native grasses, which grew in much luxuriance, were found to be admirably adapted to the sustenance of cattle, great and small. Lands which are now covered with thriving townships and smiling homes, surrounded with cultivated farms, were, only a few years ago, unpeopled sheep runs. Pastoral leases are granted to sheepfarmers, of immense extent of territory in some instances, at a very moderate rental, and an assessment according to the number of sheep or cattle they are estimated to carry. These leases may be granted for fourteen or twenty-one years, with a distinct condition that, when the runs are wanted for agricultural purposes, the Government can resume them on giving six months' notice, and paying the value of the improvements which have been made upon them. The underlying principle of the arrangement is, that the agricultural settler, who is prepared to cultivate the soil, has the first claim to the land. So long as it is not required for settlement, the squatter, as the sheepfarmer is called, can have the use of it; but, so soon as there is a demand for it for agriculture, the squatter must clear out. It is believed to be better for a young country to have a hundred farmers each with a square-mile of land, which he is prepared to cultivate, on a hundred miles of territory, than one squatter with, perhaps, a dozen or a score of shepherds.

I need hardly say that, under this arrangement, many squatters, who began in a humble way, have grown rich. Some began as shepherds, and, in course of time, got a few hundred sheep of their own, took up a run, lived for a few years in the most unpretentious way, suffered many privations, and at length became rich in flocks and herds. The enormous wealth acquired by Australian squatters has become proverbial.

The pastoral lands out of districts, and within the defined districts known as A, B, and C, are as follows:—

OUT OF DISTRICTS.

IN DISTRICTS A, B, AND C.

The following table, giving the total exports of wool from the Colony during a period of ten years, including 1871, is taken from the Statistical Register, and it shows how the value of this industry has been gradually increasing, year by year, and of what importance it is now to the Province: —

TOTAL EXPORT OF WOOL.

CHAPTER VII.
IMMIGRATION.

IN former years the Government of South Australia imported at their own expense a considerable number of immigrants. The system, however, did not work satisfactorily, and for some time back no public provision has been made for immigration. It was felt, however, that a large Colony like South Australia, with untold wealth waiting development, could never prosper as it ought by the mere natural increase to its population from the excess of births over deaths. Petitions were presented to Parliament in considerable numbers, praying the Legislature to adopt some kind of immigration, and a very moderate Bill was introduced by the Government, and carried through both Houses, during the last Session. The Act which was then passed is the only law now in force in the Colony providing for immigration. A brief explanation of its provisions, and especially of the regulations for carrying it out, therefore, may be of use.

PERSONS COMING OUT TO THE COLONY AT THEIR OWN EXPENSE.—Emigrants who have been approved by the Emigration Agent in England, and paying the whole cost of their passage, or persons paying the passages of such persons, will be entitled to a land order warrant. On their arrival in the Colony they will receive from the Commissioner of Crown Lands a land order, in exchange for their warrant, of the value of £20 for each adult, and £10 for each child between the ages of one and twelve years. This order will be immediately available in cases where the holder desires to occupy, reside on, and cultivate the Crown land, and will be received as payment, or part payment, of interest on the purchase money of any land then open for selection. The land order will be available for the purchase of any land open for sale, after two years' continuous residence in the Colony. An emigrant and his wife and four children, between the ages of one and twelve years, paying their own expenses to the Colony, would be entitled to land orders of the value of £80 in all. If they wished to take up land on credit under the system of deferred payments, their orders would become immediately available as payment of the interest; but, in that case, they must reside on the land and cultivate it. If they wish to purchase the fee simple of any lands open for purchase, they can use their land orders for this purpose after they have been two years in the Colony.

LAND ORDERS GEANTED TO SHIPPERS, COMPANIES, ASSOCIATIONS, OR SOCIETIES.—The following is, in full, the clause in the regulations which refers to this provision:—"Any person or persons, company, association, or society desirous of bringing out to South Australia, at his or their own expense, suitable emigrants from Europe, approved by any Emigration Agent, for the purposes of settling on the Crown lands thereof, and cultivating the same, or for engaging in any colonial industry, and who shall enter into an agreement with the Commissioner of Crown Lands and Immigration for the conveyance of such emigrants from Europe to South Australia for the purposes aforesaid, and also enter into a covenant with the said Commissioner that such emigrants shall reside continuously in the said Colony for two years, at the least, from the date of their arrival, shall be entitled to receive, on the arrival of such suitable emigrants in the said Colony (and, if aliens, after naturalization), a land order, in the form contained in the Third Schedule hereto, which land order shall he of the value of £16 sterling for each adult emigrant, and a land order of the value of £8 sterling for each child between the ages of one and twelve years; and every such land order shall he immediately available for the purchase of any waste lands of the Crown which may he offered for sale, or which may he open to selection for cash or on credit, in any part of the said Colony." This regulation is intended to encourage the employers of labor in any new or established industry to bring out suitable labor to assist them in their enterprise.

ASSISTED EMIGRATION.—Under the Act, the classes of persons eligible for assisted emigration are—Artisans, agricultural and other laborers, miners, and gardeners, under fifty years of age; single female domestic servants, or widows (without children under twelve), not exceeding thirty-five years of age; the rvives and children of married emigrants. Eligible candidates are further described as being "in the habit of working at one of the callings mentioned above, and must be going out with the intention of working in one of these occupations. They must he sober, industrious, of good moral character, in good health, free from all mental and bodily defects, within the ages specified, appear physically to be capable of labor, and have been vaccinated or had the small pox."

INELIGIBLE CANDIDATES.—Passages cannot be granted to persons intending to proceed to any other Australian Colony than South Australia, to persons in the habitual receipt of parish relief, to children under twelve, without their parents, to husbands without their wives, or wives without their husbands (unless, in the last three instances, the parents, husband, or wife be in South Australia), to single women who have had illegitimate children, or to persons who have not arranged with their creditors.

Towards the expenses of the passages of eligible candidates, the following sums must be paid:—Under twelve years of age, £3; twelve years and under forty, £4; forty years and under fifty, £8. This amount may be paid either in London, to the Emigration Agent, or in Adelaide, at the office of the Commissioner of Crown Lands and Immigration. The candidate for assisted emigration, or the person who nominates him, must apply to Mr. F. S. Dutton, C.M.G., Agent-General of the Colony, 37, Great George-street, Westminster, from whom all necessary information will be obtained. Ho must fill up a form which will be supplied by Mr. Dutton, giving the Christian and surname of the persons nominated, or their proposed transferees, the names of all children under twelve, whether they have been nominated in the Colony or not, the ages of each person at last birthday, the day and year when each person was born, whether single or married, and, where the husband or wife does not emigrate, the reason must be stated; the trade or calling, whether the applicant has been in the Colony before, whether he has any relations in Australia, or in any other Colony, and if in Australia, the other Colonies where they reside. In addition to this, there must be a certificate by a physician or surgeon, testifying that after examination, the applicants show no signs of heart disease or pulmonary affections, that they are of sound mental and bodily health, that they are entirely free from every disease usually considered infectious or contagious, and that each person appears to be of the age set against his or her name; that none of them are either lunatic, idiotic, deaf, dumb, blind, mutilated, or deformed in person, or otherwise infirm, and that they are capable of earning a livelihood in the Province, at their declared callings. A certificate is also required, from a magistrate, clergyman, or Roman Catholic priest, testifying that the applicants are of good moral character. In the case of any difficulty arising, the intending emigrant should place himself at once in communication with Mr. Dutton, at the address mentioned above, from whom all necessary information will be obtained.

VOYAGE AND OUTFIT.— Supposing the candidate and his family accepted, the next matter is to prepare for the voyage, which will occupy about ninety days— during which every extreme of climate will be experienced. Suitable clothing must therefore be provided, at the expense of the emigrant. The outfit will be inspected before sailing by an officer appointed by the agent. The smallest quantity that will be allowed is— For each male over twelve, six shirts, six pairs of stockings, two warm flannel shirts, two pairs of new shoes or boots, two complete suits of strong exterior clothing, four towels, and two pounds of marine soap: and for each female over twelve, six shifts, two flannel petticoats, six pairs of stockings, two pairs of strong boots and shoes, two strong gowns (one of which must be of warm material), four towels, and two pounds of marine soap. Two or three colored shirts for men, and an extra supply of flannel for women and children, are very desirable. The quantity of luggage for each person over twelve must not exceed twenty cubic (or solid) feet, nor half-a-ton in weight: it must be closely packed in one or more strong boxes, or cases, not exceeding fifteen cubic feet each. Larger packages and extra luggage, if taken at all, must be paid for. Mattrasses and feather-beds, fire-arms and offensive weapons, wines, spirits, beer, gunpowder, percussion caps, lucifer matches, and any dangerous and noxious articles cannot be taken by emigrants. I would suggest, however, that in addition to the articles of wearing apparel actually required by the regulations, emigrants would do well to provide themselves with materials for increasing their stock. A few extra yards of flannel, calico, and print, with an extra pair or two of shoes or boots, would be found very useful on the voyage. Where there are children, a number of cheap caps should be provided, as young people are apt to lose their headcoverings overboard. A good ham and a cheese would also be found very useful as a change from the ship's diet; and a few pounds of jam would be acceptable to the children.

There is no doubt that a three months' voyage in an emigrant ship, under the most favorable circumstances, will make large demands upon the patience, temper, forbearance, and hopefulness of the emigrants. Inconveniences such as they may not have suffered before will have to be endured; and the best thing emigrants can do is to make up their minds to bear them cheerfully. As a rule, in well-appointed ships, the food is good and the accommodation as fair as can be expected. Emigrants too, generally, enjoy excellent health. They would do well to provide themselves with useful and interesting books — especially school books for their children: intelligent parents may lay the foundation of a respectable education in the minds of their children during the spare hours of the voyage.

On their arrival in the Colony immigrants will probably feel somewhat strange. The consciousness that they are 15,000 miles away from the land of their birth, and from the friends whom they have left behind— the conviction that they are amongst entire strangers, and that they will, probably, see the old land no more, may sadden them for a moment. But on the other hand they will find that in many respects the new country is but little different from the old. The streets, wharves, railways, telegraph lines, gas lamps, water fountains, public buildings, shops, carriages, omnibusses, and cabs, will all remind them of what they have been accustomed to at home. If they are careful, industrious, and respectable they will soon make friends, and find associations which will bring back the scenes of the past. They will find that our political institutions are most liberal; and very soon after their arrival they will be able to exercise their voting power for members of Parliament, and to exercise some influence on the public affairs of the Colony. With whatever religious body they sympathise they will find representatives of that body in almost every part of the Colony: the Anglican Church with its bishop, priests, and deacons; the Roman Catholic Church with its handsome edifices and charitable institutions; the Presbyterian Church with its able and energetic ministers; the Congregationalists and Baptists, who have some of the handsomest churches and most eloquent preachers in the Colony; the Methodists as full of fire and zeal as they are in the old country—the sisterhood of denominations who trace their parentage to the old Methodist stock; Unitarians, New Church, and Jews are all found in the Colony; so that the stranger, whatever his religious views may be, is certain to find members of his own body with whom he can sympathise and hold fellowship. Connected with all these religious institutions there are well-attended and well-conducted Sunday Schools, with a noble band of earnest and devoted teachers.

He will want education for his children, and he will find day schools all over the Colony, in which a fair education may be obtained; or, if he aims at something higher than these, there are many excellent private schools, which would do no discredit to the old country. From St. Peter's Collegiate School several young men have gone home and taken good positions in the English Universities; and, as we have intimated elsewhere, our own University will be in full operation before long.

Does the newly-arrived immigrant wish to keep himself acquainted with the literature of the world? He will find means of doing so in the local institutes which are kept well supplied with the hest works of modern times. Does he wish to know what is taking place in the Colony which he has made his new home? He will find it in the morning, evening, and weekly newspapers published in the city, and in the journals published in the country.

If he feels an interest in the drama he will find a pretty little theatre, respectably conducted, and in which, from time to time, actors and actresses of high professional standing are found. If he loves music, he will occasionally get a taste of English and Italian opera ably rendered, while amateur performances of music are frequent enough. If he has a penchant for the turf, for manly sports and pastimes, he will find racing well encouraged, hunting during the season, cricket, football, and boating. If he is a freemason, an oddfellow, a forrester, or an ancient druid, he will find lodges, courts, and other trysting places. If he likes his beer, he will find respectable inns, or if he takes kindly to colonial wine, he will be able to get it almost as cheap as ale. If he is a teetotaller, rechabite, or good templar, he will find brothers and co-workers all here before him. It is really curious to see how soon and how carefully the people of South Australia have reproduced the institutions of the mother-country. In cases of accident or misfortune the hospitals, asylums, and public charities, as in the old country, are easily accessible.

There are three things to be carefully avoided by the newly arrived immigrant—the immoderate use of strong drink, which leads to poverty; gambling which leads to dishonesty; and idle loafing which leads to disgrace. The great thing is to get to work soon, to eat plenty of good food, which is cheap enough, to cultivate habits of industry and economy, and so to encourage the pleasant conviction that he is getting on, and surely working his way to independence. That conviction will be one of the greatest luxuries a working man can enjoy.

CHAPTER VIII.
MATERIAL PROGRESS.

AS I have already said, the Province was founded in 1836, and is therefore thirty-seven years old. The first settlers who arrived consisted of a mere handful, and they set themselves to work to subdue the earth, and to reproduce in the southern seas (but in an improved form) the institutions of the old land from which they came. The vast territory which is now called South Australia was then peopled only by a few scattered tribes of blacks of the lowest type, who obtained a wretched and precarious living by the chase. They had never acquired the art of tilling the soil, or of building houses. Their wants were few, and easily supplied. They were too helpless to oppose, and too few and scattered seriously to annoy, the first settlers. Very early they learnt the power of the white man, and they quietly submitted to their fate. Although, on the whole, they have not been treated unkindly, they have gradually become fewer.

The handful of people who first came here little more than a generation ago, have grown into a population of nearly 200,000 souls, and they have done a great work. The city and suburbs number upwards of 60,000 persons.

This few people obtained from the Crown 4,622,000 acres of land, of which 2,560,000 acres are held by freeholders. The quantity of enclosed lands, including pastoral runs, is about nine and a-half millions of acres, and of this about 1,050,000 acres are now under cultivation. This year there will be about 800,000 acres under wheat cultivation. At the close of 1871, 5,823 acres were planted with vines, from which 869,000 gallons of wine were made, being an average of 154 gallons pbr acre. Valuable and productive gardens are connected with almost every house in the country, within 150 miles of Adelaide; and market gardeners, living among the hills, supply the city and suburbs abundantly with fruit and vegetables at a cheap rate. There are 85,000 horses, 145,000 head of cattle, and 4,500,000 sheep in the Colony, which are a source of wealth to many persons.

The colonists have constructed 770 miles of macadamized roads leading from and converging in the city. These roads are the admiration of every visitor. They are beautifully kept, and are as good as any roads in Europe. They have cost a large amount of money, some of them being cut out of the solid rock and carried over ranges of lofty hills. In addition to this, the Colony has constructed 133 miles of railways, and 33 miles of tramways, at a cost of many thousands of pounds per mile. Luring 1871 the receipts from the railways amounted to £111,000, and the expenditure was £88,000; from the tramways the receipts were £6,138, and the expenditure was £5,470.

At the period mentioned there were 1,130 miles of telegraph line, and since then, the greatest work ever accomplished by an Australian Colony—the transcontinental telegraph line from Port Augusta to Port Darwin, a distance of nearly 2,000 miles—has been successfully finished. There are, over the Colony, 87 telegraph offices, and 111 clerks, besides messengers, wire men, and others.

The postal system is very complete. At the close of 1871 there were 286 post-offices, employing 372 persons, and a mail route of 94,438 miles. There passed through the post-offices in that year nearly 3,200,000 letters, and upwards of 2,200,000 newspapers. Letters are carried for twopence each, and newspapers published in the Colony, pass free by post. In addition to contributing our share, amongst the other Colonies, of the mail service with Europe, we support at our own expense, a monthly branch service with King George's Sound, in Western Australia, the cost of which is about £1.100 ner month.

There are nearly 300 post towns and villages in the Colony; about 600 churches and chapels, all erected and supported by voluntary contributions, which contain sitting accommodation for 117,000 persons. In addition to these, there are 250 other buildings used for public worship, with sittings for 10,710 persons. There are upwards of 500 Sunday schools, having 33,500 scholars, and 4,750 teachers. There are also upwards of 300 Government schools, with nearly 16,000 scholars, and about 300 licensed teachers, under the management of the Board of Education. Besides these there is a considerable number of private schools and two collegiate institutions, in which a superior education is given. Steps have already been taken for commencing a university—Mr. W. W. Hughes having contributed £20,000 for this purpose. There are institutes in all the considerable towns, with good lending libraries connected with them, and at which popular and instructive lectures are delivered from time to time. The Museum and Botanic Garden in Adelaide may also be regarded as valuable educational institutions. The latter is the most delightful place of public resort in the Colony: under the superintendence of Dr. Schomburgk, the accomplished Director, it has become quite " a thing of beauty." It is an institution of which the colonists have good reason to feel proud.

Along the seaboard, at the various ports, there are jetties for the accommodation of shipping, all of which have been constructed out of the public funds. There are also, for the safety of shipping, several lighthouses along the coast, which are handsome, costly buildings, and well kept; the coast, in fact, is as well lit as the shores of Eneland.

During 1871, 620 vessels, with an aggregate register of 187,314 tons entered the ports of the Colony. This year, however, owing to the abundant harvest, this number will be largely increased. The great demand for ships to carry off our surplus breadstuffs, and the high rate of freights ruling, have attracted, a magnificent fleet of merchant vessels, which have crowded our waters, and created a large amount of activity at all the chief ports.

During the same period our exports (the actual products of the Colony) amounted in value to £3,582,358, of which agriculture supplied £1,254,444; pastoral operations, £1,317,966; and mineral industries, £654,686. Miscellaneous products amounted to £62,766. This, divided amongst the population, gives nearly £19 per head of the whole. The imports during the year referred to amounted to £2,160,864, or nearly £12 per

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

DIAGRAM SHOWING

— THE —

POPULATION, SHIPPING, EXPORTS, IMPORTS

& COMBINED IMPORT & EXPORT TRADE

SORVEYOR GENERAL'S OFFICE, ADELAIDE Frarer S. Crawford, Photo-lithographer.

head of the population. A large portion of our imports came from Grea; Britain; and this fact shows that the colonists of South Australia are amongst the best customers which the mother country has.

The revenue of the Colony for 1871 was £785,489, of which amount there was raised through the Customs £234,980. This is absolutely all the taxation South Australians have to pay—equal to 25s. per head. We question whether there is any other country where the amount of taxation is so small. The whole cost of government is paid through the Customs, in addition to the support of all the charitable and penal institutions, including hospitals, lunatic asylums, destitute asylums, prisons, reformatories, and such like.

This is a portion of what the handful of South Australian colonists have done in thirty-seven years. The result is given in the most condensed form, because my space will not allow me to do more than this. It would have been easj' to amplify by going more minutely into details, but the object I have in view is to give only general results, leaving details to larger works, such as Mr. Boothby's admirable Statistical Register—a work of immense labor and rare utility. From the slight sketch here presented 1 think it will be seen that the colonists of South Australia have shown a wonderful amount of patient industry and courageous enterprise; nor does there seem to be any limit to her future progress and prosperity. Immense resources are waiting for development; and, as the people come and the population is increased, the Colony will grow in substantial comfort and wealth.

CHAPTER IX.
WAGES, PRICE OF FOOD AND CLOTHING.

MOST persons who come to South Australia are induced to do so by the hope of bettering their condition. The man who works with his hands, whether his labor be skilled or unskilled, has a right to expect that he will be better paid than he was in the old country, and we have no hesitation in saying that the general rate of wages is higher in this Colony than it is in Great Britain and Ireland. In another part of this work there will be found a carefully prepared table giving the average rate of wages in the Colony for ten years, from materials supplied by Mr. W. R. Hunt, who has for many years had a labor office in Adelaide, and who will be regarded as a competent authority on the question. From that table it will be seen that during the ten years wages have fluctuated to a certain extent and within certain limits.

Beginning with domestic servants, I find that males have received from £40 to £48 per annum, with board and lodging; female general servants, £25; cooks, 14/- to 15/- per week; house and kitchen maids, from 9/- to 11/- per week; and laundresses, from 11/- to 12/- per week. At the present time the wages of domestic servants are quite up to the average, if not beyond it. On farms, a man and his wife will get from £60 to £60 per annum, with board and lodging; single men, £42. On sheep and cattle stations, married shepherds, with double rations, £37. Tradesmen and mechanics got during the last year:—blacksmiths, 8/-; bricklayers, 9/-; cabinetmakers, 8/-; carpenters, 8/-; carriage builders, 9/6; coopers, 9/-; masons, 9/-; millers, 9/-; painters and glaziers, 9/-; plasterers, 9/6; sawyers, 9/6; saddlers, 7/6; shoemakers, 6/9; tanners, 8/6; wheelwrights, 9/-; and day laborers, 6/per diem. Tailors get -/10 per hour.

It is not enough, however, to know what wages working-men obtain; we must also know what these wages will purchase of the necessaries of life. The

AVERAGE RATES OF WAGES, IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA, FOR TEN YEARS.

THE PROVINCE OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA. RETAIL MARKET PRICES AT ADELAIDE EACH MONTH OF 1872.

actual necessaries are food, clothing, houses, fuel, and education.

With reference to the price of food, I shall give another carefully-prepared table of the retail market prices at Adelaide for each month during the year 1872. From the table it will he seen that all the necessaries of life are comparatively cheap. Tea averages from 2/to 3/-, coffee 1/- to 1/6, sugar -/4 to -/5, and rice -/3 to -/4 per lb.; bread runs from -/3½ to -/4 the 2-lb loaf; beef -/2½ to -/5, and mutton—fore-quarters -/1½ to -/2, hind-quarters -/2 to -/3 per lb. I have known cases in which half a sheep—or a side of mutton as it is called —has been sold for from 3/- to 4/-, and half a lamb for 3/6. Veal runs from -/3 to -/5 per lb, and pork from -/4 to -/6. Poultry is quite as cheap as it is in England; while butter and cheese, except in two or three months in the year, are very moderate. Potatoes run from 2/6 to 10/- per cwt. Fruits are luxuries: and it will be seen, from a table I publish, that their prices are exceedingly low: —grapes may be obtained for a -/I per lb., and peaches for -/3 to 1/- a dozen. A working man, therefore, may obtain the very best food at a very moderate price. Mutton at -/1½ to -/3 per lb,, and beef -/2½ -/5 per lb., will enable him to get two or three meals of food a day for half—dozen shillings a week, And it must be remembered that both mutton and beef are of excellent quality—equal to what is sold in the English markets. Bread is cheaper than it is at home, and potatoes and other vegetables are the same, taking the whole year round. In the fruit season, what are regarded as luxuries in England may be obtained for a few pence. There are few families near the city in which grapes, peaches, apricots, and nectarines are not found on their tables every day during the season. A working-man earning, say, 36/- or 40/- per week, will be able to afford twenty pounds of meat at a cost of 4/- or 5/- per week; bread, 3/-; potatoes, 2/-; groceries, 3/6; and fruits, say 1/6 per week.

House rent will cost from 6s. to 8s., fuel, 3s. It is impossible to put a value upon clothing, because that depends upon the taste of the person. Slop goods and hoots and shoes made up in the Colony, however, are as cheap here as in England. Education is rather expensive, as three children at school will cost about 2s. a week. In this calculation, I have taken a wide margin. I have no hesitation in saying that a man, his wife, and four children, can live in South Australia as no working people would think of living in England, for about 25s. a week. I have set down nothing for beer or wine in this calculation. Industrious, careful, and economical people, even amongst the working classes, will be able to keep themselves and their families in comfort, and still be able to save something against adverse circumstances. There can be no doubt, either, that working men can pursue their avocations here during more working days than they can in England. Hot. days are trying, but they do not prevent labor as wet days do in England. If mechanics and laborers do not obtain regular employment, at least as regular as in the old country, it is their own fault. Good men are always in demand, and always obtain the highest rate of wages. Hundreds of working men in South Australia, have raised themselves from the class of workers for others to that of employers of labor; and it would be easy to point to gentlemen occupying high positions, both in commerce and in Parliament, as illustrations of this assertion.

On the whole, it may be safely said, that—perhaps with the exception of house rent—money will bring in this Colony more than it will bring in England. If the absolute necessaries of life are confined to food, ten shillings will go farther here, than twenty shillings in the old country. A leg of mutton, which would cost 7s. or 8s. in England, may be purchased in South Australia for 3s.; and the poorest man need not feai obtaining two or three meals of good animal food every day. It may be said that " The life is more than meat, and the body more than raiment," but meat and raiment enter very largely into the necessities and comforts of the working classes, and these they can obtain in South Australia on very moderate terms.

CHAPTER X.
THE NORTHERN TERRITORY.

The Northern Territory comprehends the immense tract of country which was made over to South Australia as one of the results of the exploration of Mr. J. McDouall Stuart. It contains an area of 531,402 square miles, or 340,097,280 acres. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Ocean; on the south by the 26 th parallel of south latitude; on the east by the 138th meridian of east longitude; and on the west by the 129th meridian of east longitude. The area surveyed is 653,804 acres; the number of land orders issued, 1,523. There have been selected for country sections, 857 blocks, representing 274,240 acres, and 861 township allotments, representing 430£ acres; making a total selection of 274,6701 acres. Of pastoral claims 150 have been selected, comprising an area of 36,000 square miles.

This is a territory larger than several European states; and, so far as we may judge, the land and climate are admirably adapted for the growth of tropical products, besides being full of mineral treasures, including gold.

For years the settlement made but little progress; and it was not until the grand project for the construction of an overland telegraph line to Port Darwin was undertaken, that any serious idea of settlement appears to have been entertained. As early as 1858, Mr. C. Todd, the Superintendent of Telegraphs, had urged the importance of carrying a telegraph line across the continent from south to north. The proposal, however, received but little encouragement at first, and it was only when the British Cable Construction Company sent out Mr. Noel Osborne to arrange with the South Australian Government for landing the cable on their territory, that Mr. Todd's old project was revived. This is not the place to write the history of the Transcontinental Telegraph; all that is necessary to say is, that in spite of many difficulties and much opposition, the work was undertaken at the sole cost of South Australia; and after discouragements which might have checked the zeal of a larger community, the work was accomplished, and now all the Australian Colonies are, through our enterprize, in the receipt of daily telegrams from every part of the European Continent and from America.

The construction of the telegraph brought to light the fact that North Australia was an important part of the Colony. Gold was discovered in various places, and something like a rush on a small scale took place to Port Darwin. As in other rushes, however, the would-be settlers had not counted the cost or made allowance for the necessary difficulties. Intending diggers, in spite of the warning of the Government, went out utterly unprepared for the trials which awaited them, and many of them returned in disgust. They, however, who went out fully equipped, and who honestly devoted themselves to prospecting, met with an ample reward. In the neighborhood of Yam Creek the land is undoubtedly auriferous, and very handsome specimens of gold quartz have been sent to Adelaide, which lias caused the formation of several companies for sold mining.

When a tide of population was evidently setting in towards the Northern Territory, the Government, with the assistance of Parliament, passed a Bill to regulate the dealing with the lands there. The object of the Bill was to throw the vast territory open to the public on the most liberal terms.

PROVISIONS OF THE ACT.

All country lands in the Northern Territory, after survey, are open to selectors on credit at 7s. 6d. per acre, the quantity which any one selector can hold on credit being limited to 1,280 acres. Any excess of this quantity, however, necessary to complete a block, may he purchased for cash. A lease of ten years will he given, the person taking up the land paying a rental of 6d. an acre,.payable in advance. The lessee will be required, within six months after date of his lease, to erect and maintain boundary posts at the corners of the lands comprised in his lease; and at any time during the currency of his lease, he may pay the purchase money and obtain the fee simple of the land.

Country lands may be also sold for cash on advantageous terms at a price of not less than 7s. 6d. per acre. The following provision for special surveys is worth noting:—"If any person shall apply in writing to the Commissioner, pursuant to any regulations made as hereinafter mentioned, for a special survey of 10,000 acres of waste lands, and shall specify the locality of such waste lands, and shall, at the time of making such application, deposit with the Commissioner an amount to he fixed by the Commissioner as the cost of the survey, such person shall be entitled to have the said waste lands surveyed by the said Commissioner, and, after the survey shall have been made, to purchase the same for cash, at the price of 7s. 6d. an acre, and the actual cost of survey; and the said Commissioner shall thereupon deliver to him a grant of such lands: Provided always, that the Commissioner may refuse to entertain any such application." This provision will avail men of capital to obtain the fee-simple of large blocks of land at a very moderate price. Ten thousand acres of land for £3,750, plus the cost of survey, in a productive country like the Northern Territory, ought to he regarded as cheap enough.

But, to encourage the starting of tropical industries, which it is believed will yield a handsome return, very liberal terms are offered by the Government. Any person intending to grow rice, sugar, coffee, tea, indigo, tobacco, or cotton, or any other tropical or semi-tropical production, will be allowed to select a block of land in area not less than 320 acres, nor more than 1,280 acres, at an annual rental of sixpence an acre, payable annually in advance. If he can show at the end of five years that at the expiration of two years he had cultivated in a husband-like manner one-fifth of his area, and after the second year he had cultivated annually one-tenth, and at the end of the fifth year he had one-half of the entire area selected under cultivation, and that the whole of the area of land was enclosed with a good substantial fence, the whole block of land will become his own without further payment. The condition, however, under which this provision is available is that application for such blocks of land must be made before January, 1, 1876.

This provision oilers great inducements to industrious and intelligent men of small capital. They may, by simply putting their labor and skill on the land, in the course of ten years make it their own—the only payment required by the Government being the almost nominal one of sixpence per acre. This counts for interest, rent, and purchase-money. Persons starting new tropical industries will get the land practically for nothing; and every year, as the work of cultivation goes on, it will yield increased profits to the planter. A liberal provision of this kind only needs to be seen and considered to induce suitably-qualified persons to take up land in the north, for the cultivation of sugar, cotton, tobacco, indigo, and such like products. In ten years an industrious man, starting with a very little capital, may have an estate of 1,280 acres, fully planted and bearing valuable crops, which in actual cash paid to the Government has cost him only £34 per annum.

This is a very wise and liberal provision on the part of the Legislature; and I shall be much surprised if, when it is fully known, it does not attract a very considerable population to North Australia. Few, if any, land laws in any country present such liberal terms to persons wishing to make the land their own, by simply improving and cultivating it.

PASTORAL LEASES.

In addition to the provisions made for taking up land for cultivation, there are also regulations for granting it on lease for pastoral purposes. A person applying for and describing to the Commissioner any country not previously applied for within the Northern Territory, shall be entitled to a preferential right to a lease for a period not exceeding twenty-five years, of a block of not less than twenty-five nor more than three hundred square miles in area, at an annual rental to be paid in advance of sixpence per square mile for the first seven years, and ten shillings a square mile for the remainder of the term, subject to certain conditions which are fully set forth with respect to stocking the run. The run must be declared stocked within one year, or, with the permission of the Commissioner, one year and six months, from the first days of January, April, July, and October next succeeding the date of the application, at the rate of at least three head of great cattle, or ten head of small cattle, for every square mile of the country applied for. Until the country has been stocked, no lease will be granted, and simultaneous applications will be decided by lot. Leases will be granted subject to all taxes and assessments which may be imposed by the Legislature, and with such conditions for the protecting of the aborigines, and of the rights of the public in travelling, and of the Crown with reference to minerals, as the Governor in Council shall think necessary. All leases may be resumed by the Governor on giving six months' notice, in which case compensation will be given for real improvements.

The object of this provision is obviously to encourage the settlement of those vast portions of the Territory which will not be required for many years to come for plantation operations. A large portion of the waste lands in Queensland has already been taken up by pastoral lessees, and there is no doubt it will soon be the same with the Northern Territory within the Province of South Australia. The terms on which sheep and cattle runs are offered are so liberal as to encourage an early settlement. As it has been in other parts of Australia so it will be there—the squatter will be the. pioneer of the freeholder.

GOLD MIKING REGULATIONS.

Gold has been found in the Northern Territory, chiefly in the neighborhood of Yam Creek, about 100 miles from Port Darwin, and there is every reason to believe that a large tract of country is decidedly and richly auriferous. The object of the Government and the Parliament has been to open out this country to bond fide gold miners on liberal terms, and already a considerable number of claims have been taken out. The reef specimens which have been discovered, sent to Adelaide, and assayed, give the promise of one of the richest goldfields in the world. A large number of companies have been formed, representing great capital; and in the course of a few months men and machinery for developing the auriferous capabilities of the country will he on the ground, and experienced gold miners are very sanguine as to the result.

The regulations issued by the Government nnder which auriferous lands may be taken up begin with a definition of claims. A single claim is such a parcel of ground as may, by virtue of one miner's right, be held for mining purposes, and a united claim shall be any number of such parcels of land as shall have been taken possession of conjointly, or shall have been amalgamated. The claims are classified as alluvial and quartz. On taking possession of land for mining purposes the claimant will be required to peg it or.t by boundary posts, and define it by trenches, and shall display a white flag in the centre of the claim, with the name of the holder written thereon. The length of the alluvial claim is not to exceed twice its breadth.

A person discovering a quartz reef, not less than 700 yards from the nearest occupied quartz claim, may occupy, as a prospecting claim, an area not exceeding 200 yards in length hy 250 yards in width. He must then immediately register his discovery, and within seven days after registration proceed and continue to work with one man on the claim. He will also have to give due notice, in a way prescribed by the regulations, that he has taken it up as a prospecting claim. Ordinary quartz claims must not exceed 100 yards in length on the supposed course of the reef, hy a width not exceeding 250 yards across its course. The person holding the claim will be required to register it with the warden without delay, and within seven days of the registration to have one man continuously working on it for one month, and afterwards not less than two men. Eight or fewer holders of separate claims adjoining each other may amalgamate and unite their claims as one, but such amalgamation will have to be registered.

In alluvial diggings a prospector may obtain a protective claim, securing to one or more licensed miners the right of search over 100 yards by 50 yards of ground, less than half-a-mile and not less than 100 yards from any officially known payable claim; or 250 x 250 yards of ground two miles or more; or 500 x 500 yards of ground five miles or more from any payable claim. A prospector's working claim, securing to the prospector discovering gold 30 x 30 yards, less than half-a-mile, and not less than 100 yards from any payable claim; or 100 x 100 yards, two miles or more; or 200 x 200 yards, five miles or more, may be obtained.

Full provision is made lor protecting the rights ot miners to their own claims, to water privileges, and such like; and ample powers are given to the Warden to enforce the rights of all. Miners also may obtain grants of land for the purpose of residence, not exceeding a quarter of an acre each, on which cottages may be erected, which will be secured to them by the Gnvprnmpnt

In addition to all this, provision is made for granting mineral licences and leases to persons searching for minerals and metals other than gold. For this purpose licences for twelvemonths may be granted to search over 640 acres on payment of a fee of one shilling per acre—provided that no licence he issued for a less sum than £2—and such licence may, at the discretion of the Commissioner, he renewed from time to time for further periods of twelvemonths, on payment for such renewal of a further fee of one shilling per acre. A person holding such a licence will he authorized, himself or hy his servant, during the currency of the lease, to mine and work on the land described in the lease, and to remove metals or minerals therefrom. All blocks of such land applied for must, except under special circumstances, be in the shape of a rectangular parallelogram, of which the length of the longest side shall not exceed twice the length of the shortest side, and one of such sides shall run, as_nearly as may be, in a due north and south direction.

the following regulation shows how leases for mineral lands may be obtained:—"Applications for a lease of mineral lands, not exceeding 640 acres in one block, may be made to the Commissioner at any time during the term of the licence, and the first year's rent of 2s. 6d. per acre, must be paid at the time of such application, together with a fee of 10s. 6d. for the lease; and if such application is made by the licencee of the land, he shall forward to the Commissioner, within three months from the date thereof, a map of the survey, made by a licensed surveyor, at the cost of the applicant, fixing and showing the position and boundaries of the land applied for; such survey to be subject to the approval of the Commissioner, to whom all disputes respecting the precise position or boundaries of mineral lands must be referred, and whose decision in all cases shall be final: Provided that if such application is made by a person not being the licencee of the block, such application shall be accompanied by a map of the survey made as aforesaid, but shall not be entertained until after reasonable notice to the holder of the licence, and until after the expiration of such licence. Xo lease will be issued until the plan of the survey has been approved."

In the first place, therefore, a man may take out a licence for prospecting for twelve months, at one shilling an acre, and after that he may apply for a lease which, if granted, will secure him a possession of the property for fourteen years, at an annual rent of 2s. 6d. an acre; and after that, two further terms of fourteen years each, on payment for renewal of a sum not to exceed £100 per acre. The actual amount of the price is to he fixed by the Governor in Council.

During the currency of the lease, the lessee will he required to employ three men at least for not less than six months in every year, working on the land, and searching for or raising ores; but the land so leased is not to be used for any other purpose than mining, except with the written permission of the Commissioner.

These are the regulations of principal interest to the general public respecting the taking up and occupation of the lands in the Northern Territory, for plantations, pastoral pursuits, and gold and other mining. Provision is also made for miners,' occupation, and timber licences, all of which are conceived in a liberal spirit, and are intended to facilitate settlement on the land.

I have gone at greater length into this subject than I thought it necessary to do on others, because 1 believe that the conditions under which land can he taken up for industrial pursuits in the Northern Territory are such as, when fully known, will induce settlement there, with a fair prospect of success.

Vessels have been occasionally laid on between Adelaide and Port Darwin; but, hitherto, only at intervals of several months. It is not unlikely, however, that in the new service which is to be started from Queensland through Torres Straits, the South Australian Government will make some arrangement for the steamers calling at Port Darwin. But if this is not feasible, the Government will probably purchase a small steamer, which will run monthly with a mail between Palmerston and Timor, whence there is a monthly mail to Singapore. In the absence of a mail the telegraph line across the continent is of great value to us in Adelaide, as" the news of any important event occurring in the Territory may be flashed to us here in the course of a few minutes.

Some very line rivers have been discovered, one of. which—the Roper—is navigable for vessels with considerable draught of water for about 100 miles. At that distance from the mouth a township has already been surveyed, and it is believed that settlement will speedily take place within an easy distance of this fine river. Should gold mining operations turn out as well as they now promise to do, there will be one great town in the neighborhood of Yam Creek, and probably others a few miles off.

CONCLUSION.

They who have carefully followed me in the foregoing pages will, I think, come to the conclusion that few, if any, of the British Colonies present greater attractions or give a higher promise of success to careful, industrious, and hopeful settlers than South Australia. It has a magnificent and salubrious climate, a fruitful soil, an abundance of mineral wealth, millions of acres of unoccupied land, inviting the industry of man. It has a free government, liberal institutions, the smallest possible amount of taxation, and the necessaries of life are obtainable at the cheapest rate. Its land laws will enable any industrious man to get on the soil, and in the course of a few years to make a handsome estate his own with only hard work and moderate self-denial. No man in South Australia who has health, and willing to work, need be poor, as poverty is understood and felt in the older countries of Europe. There are hundreds who came here with nothing who are now wealthy men, whose families are growing up around them in positions of respectability and honor. Some have returned to the old country to educate their children and to show them something of the refinements which belong to the more settled states of society; but most of them, after a few years' absence, return to the land where they have acquired their wealth, made their homes, and formed those associations which are most abiding. With a wise forethought, the Imperial Government have from time to time recommended some of the most useful of the colonists to Her Majesty for special distinction, as those who have served their .country well; and, as a rule, honors thus conferred, have been worthily worn. Some names have already taken root amongst us, brought by worthy settlers in the beginning of the Colony's history, which will go down with honor to the coming generation as the names of the Pilgrim Fathers are now honored in New England.

While large fortunes have been acquired by a special class, the savings of the poorer have been considerable. In the year 1848, the number of depositors having money in the Savings Bank was only 214, the total amount being £5,414; at the close of 1871 the number of depositors was 14,270, the total amount deposited being £517,000. Of this amount, £299,933 was lent on mortgage at seven per cent., and £141,900 invested in Government securities. The rate of interest allowed to depositors has run from two and a-half to five and ahalf per cent. Most of this half a million deposited in the Savings Bank belongs to the humbler classes, and represents a portion of their savings. It is, however, only a small portion. Many of the artizan class have, through the aid of building societies, erected for themselves comfortable cottages, surrounded by pretty, fruitful gardens, and they are thus able to live rent free—a matter of no small moment in a country where house rent is high. For real substantial comfort there are few countries more highly favored than South Australia. The large sums of money which have been raised voluntarily for the building of churches and the support of religious and educational institutions, show a well-to-do people, who, after supplying their own wants, can spare considerable sums for such objects.

I have been many years in the Colony, and I can honestly say I have never seen anything approaching to the terrible poverty and consequent suffering which I remember existing in such towns as Liverpool, Birmingham, Newcastle-on-Tyne, and London. When I have seen the comfort in which the poorest, who can work and are willing to work, live in this Province, the abundance of good food—not to mention the luxuries—which they enjoy, I have wished that we could transport to our shores such of the sufferingEnglish poor, as are willing to work if they could only obtain remuperative employment.

All nationalities thrive here. Not only do the English and Scotch, with their proverbial industry and thrift, get on, but the Irish and Germans equal them. When the Irish settler, who may have lived in a cabin, and never known the luxury of an honest meal of beef or mutton, or of a new suit of clothes, once gets to South Australia, and sees a fair prospect before him of making money, he becomes a new man. The national improvidence with which he is charged, gives place to the higher virtues; and many an Irishman, who came out as an emigrant, is now the proud owner of many a hundred acres of land, with a thriving farm-and comfortable homestead around him. The Germans, too, are excellent colonists. They are industrious, economical, and saving in their habits, and wherever they have settled they have formed neat homes, and, being somewhat clannish, they have concentrated themselves in pretty villages, and reproduced, as far as possible, the institutions and ways of life of the Old Fatherland. For holiday fetes and national celebrations they stand alone. They have two newspapers published in German, which are well conducted. We want more representatives of all the nationalities amongst us— English, Scotch, Irish, and Germans. We have room for them all, and comfortable homes for as many as will come. When they are once here they are no longer men of different nations, so far as their public interests are concerned, but South Australians.

APPENDIX.

NOTES
UPON THE
CAPABILITIES OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA
FRESH INDUSTRIES,
BY R. SCHOMBURGK, DR. PHIL.,
DIRECTOR OF THE ADELAIDE BOTANIC GARDEN.

THE observations contained in the following pages have been extracted from papers read before the Chamber of Manufactures, in Adelaide, with the object of giving greater publicity to several undeveloped resources of South Australia.

The following vegetable productions, which, although not yet forming articles of export, or of much colonial consumption, might be raised with advantage by immigrants who may not be in possession of large capital. The lands, especially the gullies in the hilly districts, are adapted for many other branches of agriculture than the all-engrossing object—the cultivation of cereals— and from amongst those mentioned the less wealthy cultivator can make his selection.

SERICULTURE.—The importance of introducing sericulture into South Australia is undeniable, as we have clear evidence of the adaptability of our climate to the production of an excellent quality of silk, for which the demand is now unlimited, in consequence of the disease amongst the silkworms prevailing in the silk-producing countries in Europe, and unknown here. Considering how the silk manufacture has increased for centuries, and still continues to do so, the demand can never fail. For many years, with all my energy, I have advocated sericulture as a paying industry, and advised the extensive planting of the mulberry. To facilitate the scheme, 1 made inquiries in Europe as to what kind of mulberry was now considered the best for feeding the silkworm, and introduced the seeds, and offered for distribution the young plants of the most approved kinds; but I am sorry to say the demand for these was very limited, and I hailed with delight the judicious act of the Government to provide the means for laying out the first mulberry plantation in South Australia at the Magill Orphanage, where my surplus stock could be used. The object aimed at in this scheme will prove in future most advantageous to that establishment. There is no doubt that the production of silk will become one of our future and most important industries, which will at the same time be a practical and useful aid to the ordinary occupation of our farmers. As the silk manufacturers now prefer the cocoons to the reeled silk, this will save a good deal of the tedious work of sericulture. Many will say 1 am too sanguine in regard to the result of sericulture in South Australia, but I think I see my way clearly; and I am more and more convinced by the favorable letter Mr. G. Francis received the other day from the Silk Supply Association, London. This gentleman had sent different cocoons of his raising to that body to test their value, and received the gratifying news that they were worth from 3s. to 5s. 6d. per pound. If we consider that Cs. per pound is the highest price obtainable for the best cocoons in England, is not 5s. Cd. per pound a most encouraging fact in regard to the quality of the South Australian cocoons? I am informed by another gentleman, an enthusiastic sericulturist, Mr. Wurm, that by receiving 6s. per pound cocoons would pay him well. In regard to the growth of the mulberry throughout the Colony, we may say they grow everywhere. We find the trees growing at Glenelg and Brighton, close to the beach in sand, so luxuriant even as in the hills or elsewhere. In Italy, as I understand, sericulture is divided into three different branches— namely, the growing and selling of the mulberry leaves, the rearing of the cocoons, and the reeling of the silk; and, in comparison with the work spent, one pays as well as the other. But as it is not my intention to treat on a scientific description of the manufacture of silk, or the culture of the mulberry, and in order not to trespass too much on your time, I will also not go into the dry details of figures as to the enormous amount of money which is spent in producing silk, but will only call your attention to the extraordinary fact that the sum paid for silkworm eggs from China and Japan is about £100,000 yearly. Although I feel aware that in giving bonuses great caution must be exercised, yet I feel confident that a bonus for the first half ton of cocoons, in four bales of 2501bs. each, would be worthy of the consideration of our Parliament. 1 have mentioned half a ton, feeling that, limited to a smaller quantity, it might only lead people to cultivate for the bonus, without an earnest desire to promote the industry. I am expecting by every mail a quantity of mulberry seeds, and probably next season will be prepared to distribute a number of mulberry plants. This, I find, is a good plan to lay the basis of new industries. There are many people who shrink from the trouble to procure seed and raise the plants, hut if they can get trees they will plant them. I may also mention here that, after many trials of different kinds of mulberries for the food of the silkworm in the silkproducing countries have been made, the white mulberry (Morus albu) is now considered the best; but a variety (Morus multicaulisj is used for the youngworms, beginning to leaf four weeks earlier than Morus alba, and this kind should not be omitted in any mulberry plantation.

FLAX AND HEMP.—We may say, with gratification, that the energetic and enterprising farmers in the South have laid the basis of a new and probably remunerative industry—that of flax-growing. If we consider the unfavorable season the flax-growers had to contend with, the first result is in every way most encouraging; and 1 hope for the well-doing of the Colony that other districts will follow the example, as there is no doubt that flax will grow in most of our districts, and yield a fair return. I would also call the attention of the farmers to the growth of the hemp plant, another saleable article, much sought after in the home markets, both for its fibre and its seed. The latter is noted in the last price current at 44s. to 48s. per hundredweight: and, considering the heaviness of the seed, it yields a remunerative price. The hemp plant will grow in any kind of soil, and could probably be grown throughout the Colony with profit; and, to show what an important plant hemp is, which produces one of the best cordages, during the last three quarters 1,050 tons of cordage and rope have been imported. This result shows the great importance of the attention of our colonists being called to the subject.

BEETROOT.—I am convinced that the soil and climate, especially in the neighborhood of Mount Gambier is most admirably adapted for the growth of the beetroot, for the manufacture of sugar and other purposes. According to the latest statistical news from home, there are at present 1,184 beet sugar works on the Continent of Europe, and the total produce of these is about four and a half million hundredweights of sugar annually; upon an average about 4,0001bs. is obtained from 500 cwt. of beet, and this quantity is the yield of about two and a half acres. The refuse, after the sugar is extracted, forms an excellent article of food for cattle, and is considered even better than any specially cultivated for the purpose; also a good quality of paper is made from it. The molasses is also used up for fodder, not being fit for sweetening on account of the mineral salts it contains. As mentioned before, there is no doubt that the beet will grow in many districts of the Colony; and if we can produce the beet sugar for the same price as cane sugar imported, it will become a flourishing industry; and then we must consider the fact that with a beet sugar manufactory the fattening of cattle must be connected, which will also produce a fair return. But this is not alone —the farmers, by beet growing, will have the advantage of a rotation crop, as the want of such is severely felt in South Australia. In Prussia, where beet sugar manufactories are established, no cereal fields are observable for miles around—the eye only meets beet fields, such paying the farmer far better than cereals.

HOPS.—Of this very important plant we have already proof of successful growth in the samples of hops grown at Lobethal, Encounter Bay. Mount Barker, and Mount Gambier, at the latter locality it is already cultivated extensively, with satisfactory results. It is true we have not many favorable districts in the Colony for the profitable growth of this valuable plant; but there is no doubt that in other districts besides the above-named, suitable soots will be found.

TOBACCO.—There is no doubt that many districts of the Colony are well adapted for the culture of tobacco. Much attention was given to its cultivation in the early days of the Colony, and superior tobacco was made; but its culture became entirely neglected when the high prices of wheat which have since ruled, made that culture more remunerative than that of tobacco. I remember in the year 1851, seeing at Lyndoch Valley a tobacco-field which not alone attracted my attention, but created my surprise and admiration, having scarcely s een better plants during my travels on the Orinoco. I will not maintain that the South Australian tobacco would, or ever will, surpass the South American or West Indian in flavor; but we shall produce, no doubt, a fair sample, just as good as is produced on the Continent. I was so much astonished at seeing this Lyndoch Valley field of tobacco that I measured some of the leaves, and, on referring to my note-book, I find that their average size was twenty-one inches long, by twelve inches wide. I am convinced that having gained experience in its manufacture, we shall produce a failsample; and should we even fail in this the first or second year, the produce could be used for sheepwash, and remunerate the grower. If we consider the great sum which the Government derives from the duty on imported tobacco, I think we should endeavor as much as possible to retain at least one part of the money in the Colony, which is yearly sent away for tobacco. I may repeat, there is not the slightest doubt that a great many districts of our Colony are adapted for the growth of this, I may say, indispensable luxury—namely, the South, neighborhood of Adelaide, Hope Valley, Mount Barker, Gumeracha, Blumberg, Lyndoch Valley—and many more favorable spots would be found. At the Botanic Garden good plants may be seen growing, notwithstanding the late unfavorable season, producing good leaves, without the slightest attention being paid to them. Local tobacco and cigar factories have been established, but at present mainly depend on imported leaf tobacco for their supply.

ZANTE CURRANT, SULTANA, AND OTHER RAISINS. —Is it not a gratifying fact to observe that our first sample of Zante currants sent to Melbourne are considered by our neighbours as of most excellent quality, superior, cleaner, and of better quality than that of the imported ones? And we in South Australia till now have thought little of them. The proverb, "A prophet is not thought much of in his own country," is here applicable. We produce an article which is considered superior to that we import, and yet so very little has been done in the culture ot the Zante currant and other raisins. If we consider that the annual import of dried fruits into the Australian Colonies is generally more than £120,000, and as we know that our climate is in every way favorable to these productions, is it not surprising that no more attention has been paid to these sources of profit? I would strongly recommend all the vignerons, especially the smaller ones, having from one to three acres of vineyard, to graft all the worthless kinds of grapes with Zante currant, Sultana, and other raisin grapes. It is gratifying to me to have added something to this extensive branch of industry by the introduction of the Sultana grape, which is regarded by the vignerons with extreme satisfaction. I may say that, from information received, probably more than two-thirds of the 1,1 CO grafts I distributed last year have grown; and this valuable raisin, which commands the highest prices in the European markets, may be considered as established in the Colony. I may mention here that I am prepared to distribute grafts of the Sultana vine on July 1st. Very little attention has also been paid to the drying of apples, apricots, plums, figs, and some other fruits, from which some profit could be derived, but which, unfortunately, are frequently left to rot on the ground.

ALMONDS.—Of these till now very little has been thought, and in consequence these trees have been utterly neglected, because, as the phrase goes, " they won't pay;" but I am of a different opinion, since I have seen that the almonds will form a profitable export. In. the last London Prices Current, the Jordan almonds are quoted at 85s. to 240s. per ctvt. — and in their shells, GOs. to 70s. Is this not an encouragement to pay more attention to this, till notv, neglected tree, which will grow in every locality — a tree which is satisfied-with every soil, and will produce every year a bountiful return? We see hundreds, I may say thousands, of almond trees scattered over the Colony —we see trees in nearly every garden; but their fruits are worthless. I think two-thirds of the trees grown here are only seedling plants. Naturally such never will produce a marketable fruit: the grafting knife should be used, and I would recommend the Jordan and Brandis varieties, which are much sought after by the trade. I hope horticulturists, as well as agriculturists, will take this into their consideration; and it must be plain to them that almonds will pay for export for the little trouble bestowed on them. There may be many nooks and corners on their property where almost nothing will grow. I can assure them the almond tree will be satisfied with such spots—only they must not neglect trenching the ground first.

OLIVES.—I think there is scarcely any country where the olive thrives better than in South Australia. Having been largely planted by the early colonists in a variety of situations, and in diverse soils, there is abundant evidence, in the fine growth of those trees, yielding large quantities of fruit, which is eagerly sought for by manufacturers of oil, now carrying their operations on with success. The samples produced are considered as fine as the best Italian oil, and, being pure, are of course far better than that usually imported. But little labor is required in the cultivation of the olive after the seedlings (which can be procured in abundance) are planted and grafted, and the picking of the fruit is easily done by women and children. The market price of the berries is about 5s. to 5s. Cd. per cwt., and oil in quantity has been sold at auction at from 6s. Gd. to 10s. per gallon, the retail price being 12s. for best quality. Large plantations have latelybeen made and this industry may be considered established. There is a large home consumption and an unlimited export market.

RICINUS OR CASTOR-OIL PLANT.—This tree, considered as worthless as the almond, we see thrive in every locality, in every soil, poor or rich. We see it grow close to the coast in almost pure sand, covered with seed, and generally regarded as a nuisance. But, gentlemen, the hundredweight of seed of this nuisance is noted, according to the last Prices Current, worth 10s. to 12s. The ricinus, as I remarked, will grow where no other vegetation scarcely will grow, and such spots are generally found on farms. Why not plant them with ricinus? After planting, there is little or no trouble except gathering of the seeds, which can he accomplished by children: and if a tree brings only 3s. to 4s. a year, it is worth the little attention bestowed on it.

MUSTARD furnishes, I may say, a very important, and, I helieve, a paying article of commerce, and I am satisfied would thrive with us in all our districts if it were not for the aphis. The mustard plant belongs to the same natural order as the cabbage plant—the Cruciferœ—whose representatives are, without exception, so unmercifully attacked by this scourge that I fear the mustard plant would not escape its ravages; but, as Australia is the land of anomalies, my fear may be premature, and the aphis may after all do not so much harm to the plant as I fear. Our farmers should at least make some trials. The northern plains would probably be well adapted for the growth of the mustard, as the plants in too rich a soil would grow too luxuriant in their stalks and leaves. If we consider the great quantity of mustard imported into this Colony, there is no doubt the cultivation of the plant would pay.

RAPE.—If I did not fear the ravages of the aphis, as this plant belongs to the same natural order as that of the mustard, I would strongly recommend the culture of this most valuable oil-producing plant, as its oil maintains high prices in the European markets, in consequence of the crops on the Continent not being with surety depended on, as they are often destroyed by frost or snow, which calamity we have not to fear in South Australia.

SUNFLOWER.—The extensive culture of the sunflower, especially in Russia and Germany, is a fact. The chief profit from this plant is gained from the seed, which contains forty per cent, of a sweet oil only second in value to the olive oil. It is now more than 200 years since this valuable plant, a native of Peru and Mexico, was introduced into Europe; and, strange to say, until now its valuable qualities were never brought to account. The Russian husbandmen were the first who bestowed their attention on the useful oil which the seeds contain. They commenced the cultivation of the sunflower first on a small scale, planting the seeds in nooks and corners, on the sides of walks, &c. The value of the oil soon became known, and was more and more appreciated, so that at the present time the cultivation of the sunflower in Russia is carried on to such an extent that already, in the year 1866, more than 100,000cwt. of sunflower oil was manufactured, the value of which was one and a-half million roubles. The third part of this oil was exported to the Prussian' port of Stettin, where it was rapidly sold with rising prices. This export from Russia, and the stead}' increase of the culture of the sunflower there, opened the eyes of the German farmers, and they began the cultivation of the sunflower, with the same profitable result. The oil, as I have already mentioned, is only second to the olive oil, and is not only used in housekeeping as the former, but mostly as a lubricator for the delicate machinery of textile fabrics which increase throughout Europe, and which in consequence have increased the demand for the expensive olive oil. From the stalks of the plant the Russians manufacture a valuable potash, the residuum is used as oil-cake for fattening cattle, and the leaves of the plant for manure. Should not this profitable culture of the sunflower in Russia and Germany also be an inducement to our farmers to introduce this payable branch of industry to our Colony? Climatic difficulties in the way of the growth of the sunflower do not exist in South Australia. We see the sunflower, with its smiling face, in our gardens, thrive most luxuriantly in every kind of soil. The only fault that could be found with it is that it exhausts the soil; yet this could be remedied by manure. Would it not be desirable that experimental trials should be made this season? Let us begin like the Russians, and plant the seeds first in nooks and corners; and should it succeed, cultivate it more extensively. The result should be freely discussed in our Farmers' Clubs. It may become in the future as profitable to South Australia as it is at the present time to Russia and Germany; and it is to be hoped that the farmers will give their earnest attention to this most important branch of industry.

The following extract from the new Land Act, lately brought into operation, shows the importance attached to this industry, and the special facilities granted to those who may intend planting olive, almond, and other trees mentioned herein:—

Cultivation of Olives. &c.

46. If any selector shall be desirous of engaging in the cultivation of osiers, olives, mulberries, vines, apples, pears, oranges, figs, almonds, or hops, or such other plants as the Governor in Council may define by Proclamation in the Gazette, the planting and cultivating in a husbandlike manner of one acre of land with any of the above trees or plants shall, for all the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be equivalent to the cultivation of six acres of such land as hereinbefore defined: Provided that such cultivating be bona fide continued and kept up to the satisfaction of the Commissioner until full payment of the purchase-money, hut not otherwise: Provided that if such selector shall wish to grow artificial grass, as a rotation of crops, he may, every third year, plant and cultivate lucerne or artificial grass for such purpose, and in that case the planting of three acres of land with lucerne or artificial grass during such third year shall be deemed to be equivalent to the cultivation of one acre of cereal or root crops.

CANARY-SEED.—This is another plant whose culture till now has been entirely overlooked by our farmers, and which I am sure will thrive all over the C'olonv. It is a fact which is to be wondered at, if we consider the enormous prices often paid for this seed in the Colony, which not seldom have risen to 2s. and 2s. 6d. per pound. I think the generally ruling price—3d. to 4d. per pound—would leave the grower a fair margin for the little trouble in cultivating it, and it is a plant which would be satisfied with any soil and situation.

GRAM, VETCHES, Yellow Lupin, and Maize.— With the exception of oats and barley, very little attempt has been made by our farmers to grow other grain for cattle. I am most sanguine of the profitable growth of gram in this Colony. " Gram" (says the Inglewood Advertiser) " bids fair to be ranked among our profitable products before long. Its value as horse-feed has long been acknowledged, and the possibility of growing it is now beyond a doubt. Some time ago Mr. J. Roberts, who cultivates one of those little patches of ground that dot the clearings made from the scrub here and there, planted a few rows of this valuable East India pea, and now he has a capital crop nearly ripe. The plants look strong and healthy, the drought notwithstanding, and are covered with fitted pods. On one plant, covering not over four inches of ground, no less than 139 full-grown pods were counted." The successful cultivation of this plant would be a great good, and the attention of farmers can be very fairly directed towards it. The yellow lupin has for some years gained on the Continent a high fame with the farmers. In fact it has supplanted the oats, vetches, and other horse-feed, as a plentiful and wholesome fodder, in its green state as well as the seeds. The cultivation of maize is also overlooked, which I am sure will thrive in the South profitably.

LENTILS.—This is a plant, I believe, very little known for food in England, but thought much of on the Continent, where it is cultivated to a great extent as one of the most profitable crops, as it thrives well even on stony and barren soils, and may be admirably adapted for certain districts in our Colony. The lentil has a traditional history, not alone on the Continent, but also in Arabia, where it is grown still more extensively, being considered as used in the preparation of the dish for which Esau sold his birthright to Jacob, as stated in the 25th chapter of Genesis. I am glad to see, in the last number of the " Journal of the Agricultural Society of New South Wales," a gentleman (It. Wynne) also recommends the plant for extensive growing in Sydney. He says, " I saw hundreds of acres sown with the lentil in the neighborhood of Bethlehem. The soil where I found the lentil flourishing with such abundant growth was of the poorest description, and so stony that it was a wonder to me how any kind of useful plant could thrive there at all. Having myself, as an invalid, derived very great benefit from it in the form of Dr. Barry's Revalenta, I can honestly recommend it as the most wholesome article of diet of which I have any experience, the most essentially valuable property of it being the facility with which it can be assimilated, and its great power of nutrition. I need hardly say it would be a source of real gratification to me if my humble efforts to introduce it to this country should have succeeded in calling the attention of agriculturists and all wellwishers of the Colony to its valuable properties as a health-restoring food; and I am not without hope of seeing it become one of the ordinary products of this Colony." The Continental people in this Colony know its value, and large quantities of lentils are imported by our German merchants.

CAPERS.—There is no doubt we could produce this so-much-sought-after luxury equally well as in the southern part of Europe. In the neighborhood of Toulon it is cultivated in the orchards in the intervals between figs and olive-trees. As a pickle the flowerbuds of the caper are in great esteem, and form a great article of commerce throughout Europe. In the Mediterranean the flower-buds of the caper are gathered just before they begin to expand, which forms a daily occupation for children during six months, when the plants are in a flowering state. As the buds are gathered they are thrown into a cask, among as much salt and vinegar as is sufficient to cover them, and, as the supply of capers is increased, more vinegar is added. When the caper season closes the casks are emptied, and the buds assorted according to their size and color —the smallest and greenest being reckoned the best— and put in smaller casks of fresh vinegar for commerce; and in this state they will keep for five or six years. Considering the little work the growing of this important commercial article involves, it would he worth while that our horticulturists, especially in the gullies, where this plant will grow most luxuriantly, should make the attempt to cultivate the true caper (Capparis spinosa).

CHICORY.—Since the introduction of this plant in the Colony it has become in some places so prolific as to be considered a nuisance, and of this we import yearly great quantities, as shown in our import returns, viz.:—Total for the last three quarters, 54,960lbs., say at 23s. 4d. per cwt., £629 15s. The manufacture of chicory is so simple and inexpensive, that we might easily produce sufficient not alone for our home consumption, but also that of the neighboring Colonies.

OSIER.—Not alone that this so very useful shrub keeps the embankments of rivers from falling in, but would give also a profit to the grower, having the advantage of giving employment to the basketmakers. I need only mention the great number of baskets and various other osier work yearly imported into this Colony from Europe and America. As for favorable places for the cultivation of the osier, I mention only the banks of the Onkaparinga, the Murray Flats, and Inman Valley; but many other localities undoubtedly would be found.

BROOM MILLET, which supplies the material of a not unimportant article, viz., American brooms, which are so much imported, and for which we send a large sum of money away, which could he retained in this Colony, as there is not the slightest doubt that the broom millet will grow just as well with us as the Sorghum saccharatum does, and the skill of manufacturing the broom might soon he obtained. The millet will grow especially in the hills and the Southern Districts. It should be sown in the latter end of August, hut rather thin,, so that the plants may grow vigorous, and produce a greater development of inflorescence, which part is used for the manufacture of the broom. This industry has already been introduced into Victoria and New South Wales; and in the latter Colony, especially Newcastle, the brooms are largely manufactured, and already exported to South Australia.

The ESPARTO GRASS (Macrochloa tenacissima)— A native of Spain, Portugal, Greece, and North Africa. It has gained during the last few years a great mercantile reputation in regard to the valuable fibre, not alone for the manufacture of ropes and other articles, but as contributing also an excellent material for the best writing paper, without any other admixture, and thus, from the great use now made of it by the papermakers, it has become an essential article of import into England and other places, and a source of wealth to the countries producing it. The import in 1871 into England alone is considered about 140,000 tons, and that of Esparto grass, ropes, and other articles manufactured from it, about 19,000 tons. Notwithstanding this large importation of the raw material for papermaking, and that the paper-makers use of late a good many other substances for paper-making not used before, the scarcity of material becomes more evident every day, and the consequence is the constant rise in the price of paper. According to the Gardeners' Chronicle, June 15th, 1872, it is said" It is with some concern that we learn that both in Algeria and Spain, instead of mowing the Esparto grass at the proper season, the natives pluck it up in the most reckless manner." Consul Turner, of Cartagena, says —" It is very evident to all concerned that these people are destroying the growth of the grass by their manner of plucking it." From the above-named port there was a falling off during the past year in quantity exported to the amount of 5,000 tons, which in a great measure is to be accounted for by the present reckless system of collecting it. Here again is an instance of natural production being wantonly destroyed by man, in spite of his deriving a benefit from it; we may thus say the progress of civilization is the occasion of waste and destruction. The value of dry Esparto grass is about £5 to £5 10s. per ton; and it is said that, under favorable circumstances, as much as from six to eight tons can be obtained from an acre. It grows on the poorest soil, especially limestone or sand; in fact, where the soil will produce no other vegetation the Esparto grass will grow. It grows even in the sands of the Sahara, on stony hills, and on the very brink of the coast. I have not the slightest doubt that the grass will thrive with us, and that the many thousands of acres of arid land, of a limestone or sandy nature, which is scarcely fit for pasture, may, by sowing with Esparto grass, become useful. Considering the similarity of our climate with that of Spain, and, in fact, the north of Africa, we have nothing to fear that our droughts would affect its growth—and how its introduction would benefit South Australia if our deserts could be changed into productive districts! For a long time past I have endeavored to introduce seed of this valuable grass as an experiment, but without success. I communicated with the Botanic Gardens and seedsmen in Europe on the subject; the answer was—" Not obtainable, the seed is not in the trade; the Spaniards won't part with it"—and I had already given up the hope of obtaining any. The more agreeably was I surprised by receiving, by the December mail, one ounce of seed from Mr. Bull, of London. I am glad to say this seed arrived in good condition, though it is said the Spaniards, before parting with the seed, destroy its power of germinating, to prevent its introduction into other countries. My seed must have escaped such manipulation, as it has nearly all grown, and I am now in possession of about 1,000 plants, all of which I intend to plant out to procure as much seed as possible for distribution next year. It is now most extensively planted in the south of France; and, it is said, that no other crop will pay better, so much the more considering that it will grow on the poorest soils. It is propagated by seeds, and also by dividing the roots. The question will naturally be asked— Suppose we succeed in growing the grass here, where shall we find a market for it ? Our enterprizing and go-ahead neighbors in Victoria have already established a paper mill, and a second one is contemplated in Sydney; so that, if we succeed, the market for the grass is close at hand, and even, I think, it would pay to export to England, as a hydraulic press would reduce the bulk materially.

OPIUM.—South Australia, as far as climate and soil are concerned, offers no difficult)' to the cultivation of the poppy, as we see it thriving in any part of the Colony, and probably we could produce a good sample of the drug. Mr. G. Francis exhibited not longago at the Agricultural Show opium prepared by him, which was considered as fair a sample as could be derived from the first experiment. If we consider the enormous sum which is yearly expended in opium, and as the cultivation and manufacture can be undertaken by young people, this renders it highly desirable that an attempt should be made for the cultivation of the poppy.

COCHINEAL.—I am sure every one of us is acquainted with the cochineal insect, which produces the splendid, valuable, and much-used dye called " carmine," and of which Mexico and the West India Islands export large quantities every year. The trade is likewise supplied with the same article from Brazil and East India, but Mexico furnishes the largest quantity, and at the same time the finest quality. Till the year 1725 the breeding of the cochineal insect was entirely confined to Mexico; and the Government, with the strictest care, kept it a secret; and till then it was generally believed in Europe that the cochineal was not an insect, but a kind of seed. In the year 1785, Theirre de Menonville, a Frenchman, with the greatest danger of his life, brought a few living insects to French Domingo, where they soon were acclimatized. During 1827 the insect was, by Bertholet, introduced to the Canary Islands, and lately with the best results in Corsica and Spain. If the insect thrives well in Spain and Corsica, why should it not do the same in Australia? Both kinds of the cochineal plant, Opuniia tuna and Opuntia caccinellfera which I introduced by raising from seed, grow luxuriantly in the borders at the garden, without having bestowed the slightest care upon them; this gives the fact that the plant will thrive in South Australia. The second and most important question is how to introduce the insect. This could be done only on living plants, in so-called Wardian cases. It is not the place to give a description of the treatment of the cochineal insect and the preparation of the carmine; but to give you only one instance of the greatness of the cochineal trade, I will only mention that the export of cochineal alone of the Mexican Province Oaxaca amounts to three-fourths of a million dollars annually. Now assuming that one pound of cochineal is worth 810, and that 70,000 insects make a pound, they must rear an immense quantity of insects. Not that I am sanguine of its success in this Colony, but we should try it. It is true the discovery of the splendid anoline colors have done the carmine trade some harm; notwithstanding, it is still a most flourishing trade.

PERFUMES.—An abler pen than mine has already drawn the attention of the public to this, I may say, one of the great industries. Mr. S. Davenport, in his able pamphlet on this subject, has spoken already of the great benefit to be derived from this source; and I have much pleasure in commending its perusal to you all. If we consider that British India and Europe consume about 150,000 gallons of handkerchief perfume yearly, and that the English revenue from Eau de Cologne alone is about £8,000 a year, and that the total revenue from imported perfumes is estimated at about £40,000, and that one great perfume distillery at Cannes, in France, uses yearly about one hundred and forty thousand pounds of orange blossoms, twenty thousand pounds of acacia flowers {Acacia Farnesiana), one hundred and forty thousand pounds of rose flower leaves, thirty-two thousand pounds of jasmin blossoms, twenty thousand pounds of tuberoses, together with a great many other sweet herbs, we may judge of the immense quantity of material used for perfumes. Most of the flowers which provide the material for perfumes grow luxuriantly with us, namely, mignionette, verbena, jasmin, rose, lavender, acacia fernesiana, heliotrope, rosemary, peppermint, violets, wallflowers, laurel, and oranges, from which alone three different scents are produced. I may say these plants thrive probably in greater perfection here than in any part of the world. ATo doubt South Australia should be a perfume-producing country. We see flourishing here some of the most valuable scent plants. We have the wattle, myall wood, and other native plants, yielding valuable scents. But two things are needed to encourage the enterprize. First—Freedom of the still, so as to license distilling in vessels of less than 25 gallons capacity; and, secondly, the bond fide advertisement of a capitalist manufacturer, that he will buy any quantity of specified flowers, leaves, roots, or plants at a marketable price. Then some farmers might be tempted to plant a few acres of lavender or mint, another geraniums or rosemary, another aniseed, whilst plantations in hedgerows or otherwise of roses, cassia, together with contributions of gardens, would lay the foundation for an export trade. Then it must be also noted that whatever the value which the plants yield in flower, fruit, leaves, and stems, it is increased threefold under manufacture, and this manufaeture again consumes other local produce, called into existence by it, such as olive and other oils, fats, alkalies, wheaten flour, coloring matter, pottery, and glassware, which combine to make the farmers and the manufacturers contribute largely te the maintenance of population and the wealth of the perfume countries. To advance this highly remunerative industry, as I have already mentioned, a modification in the law of licensing stills should he made to bond fide perfume distillers, as the present law restricts stills to a range of capacity between 25 and 50 gallons. Perfume stills for the finer perfumes are best at about 8 to 10 gallons. It is, therefore, hoped that our legislators would take this into their earnest consideration. Te encourage the development of new industries every facility, with respect to distillation for perfumes, should he given, even at the sacrifice of a small amount of revenue. To show you the value of perfumes to the countries adapted for their production, the following table, compiled from the publications of Piesse and Brande and the Cornliill Magazine, October, 1864, may show why it is so:—

Further, without knowing the produce per acre, I add the otto per cwt., which the following plants arc said to yield:—Rosemary, per cwt., will yield 24ozs. of ottc oil; aniseed, 35ozs.; carraways, from 3lbs. to 41b 12ozs.; fennel seed, 2lbs.; pachouli, 28ozs.

THE NORTHERN TERRITORY.

In the foregoing remarks of Mr. Harcus, who has given a general outline of the Northern Territory, it is now my intention to state how far its capabilities and resources might prove to advantage to colonists and the Mother Country in regard to its capabilities for tropical agriculture.

I will say first a few words on the great importance of my scheme proposed to the late Government, namely, the establishment of a standard experimental nursery for tropical commercial plants at our young settlement, Port Darwin. My idea is to lay out about eighty acres of land adapted to the growth of tropical commercial plants, so that at least plants or cuttings may be available for cultivation by the settlers; and it would be a matter of very considerable moment to new settlers who contemplated tropical agriculture to obtain from such an establishment suitable plants, seeds, kc., for a low price to commence with. If the grower had to import his own, the delays would be great, as there would be, at least the first few years, little opportunity to import such plants from other countries. The cost of such an establishment would not be great; and in a few years, if the Government charges a trifle for such plants, probably the Garden would pay its own expenses. I made the following proposal to the late Government:—"Sir—I have the honor to lay before you a scheme for forming at Port Darwin a standard experimental nursery of tropical commercial plants for the benefit of future colonists who may settle there as tropical agriculturists. Of all the vegetable productions capable of being propagated within the tropics, a very large proportion are objects of commercial value in Europe. The favorable report of competent judges who have visited the country leaves no doubt that Port Darwin is eminently suited for the cultivation of sucli productions. Having had now an opportunity of examining various soils from the Northern Territory, I find they are very similar, and by no means inferior, to the soils which I have received from Java, Plongkong, Ceylon, Mauritius, id other tropical countries with which I am acquainted., am strongly of opinion that the soils of the Northern Territory would prove appropriate for the same tropical productions as are cultivated in the countries abovenamed, and the climate may be also considered very favorable for their growth, leaving every prospect of success for tropical agriculture. With respect to the mode with which these objects might be usefully carried out, I would suggest that about thirty acres of land should be selected as a standard nursery. In making a choice of such land it would be very desirable that due regard should be had to the variety of soil and undulating character of the country, as suitable to the various physical requirements of the plants intended to be cultivated. The following plants I have good reason to believe could be cultivated with success, viz., sugar, cotton, coffee, tea, rice, cassava, arrowroot, indigo, ginger, cardemon, nutmeg, cocoa, tobacco, maize, pepper, castor-oil plant, pimento, vanille, sarsaparilla, rhea or Chinese grass plant, cocoa-nut palm, and many more. From the information I have received I think that the tableland situated about thirty miles from the coast would prove favorable for the cultivation of the chincona or quinine tree; the importance of which is so well known that most of the Governments of tropical and subtropical countries are now turning their attention to its cultivation, the demand for quinine now exceeding the supply rendering it a matter of great consideration. I would beg to add in laying out such a standard experimental nursery the success would greatly depend upon the ability and experience of the superintendent appointed. It would prove highly important, if judiciously managed, to the future settlers by enabling them to procure from such an establishment plants, cuttings, seeds, &c., only to commence the cultivation of such as are suitable to the country. As Director of this Garden I could materially assist the carrying out of this project, as being in constant communication with the Botanic Gardens of tropical countries, I could readily procure from them such plants, seeds, &c., as might be required, and conveniently forward them when the intended communication with the new settlement is established." We have the proof how important and necessary such an establishment would be for the development of the resources of our new Province. It would be useless to dwell upon the importance of the cultivation of sugar and cotton, which has been the foundation of the prosperity of many Colonies; and I do not hesitate a moment to say that all kinds of cotton, from the best long staple down to the finest short staple, might he cultivated, which would vie with the best in the world; and I am also not hesitating to say that sugar and cotton will become in future the great staples of Port Darwin.

But the fertility of the soil is adapted for numerous other branches of tropical agriculture, and a safe return for the investment of capital in the cultivation of other crops demanding less capital and less manual labor than sugar and cotton, of which I will enumerate a few.

Of the cereal grains the Indian corn deserves more attention than it has hitherto received. Indian mullet, which under the name of Guinea corn, is so extensively cultivated in the West Indies, might be raised to a large extent. Cocoa, the cultivation of, will he most suitable to the less wealthy individual, as it demands so little labor and outlay. Alexander Humboldt observes, in alluding to Spanish America, that cocoa plantations are occupied by persons in humble condition, who prepare for themselves and their children a stow but certain fortune. A single laborer is sufficient to aid them in their plantations, and thirty thousand trees assure competence for a generation and a half.

Of equal interest would prove the cultivation of cinnamon and nutmeg, of which the average home consumption is estimated at one hundred and twenty thousand pounds weight per annum. Pepper, pimento, could undoubtedly be cultivated with great success in Port Darwin, and form an article of export. A rich soil in mountains, valleys, or along the banks of rivers which are not subjected to inundations, is considered to be the most eligible for the growth of ginger, cardamoms, and turmeric.

These valuable commercial plants I am convinced will grow in marshy situations. Also the valuable dye Indigo, which thrives so well in a moist climate, would pay the cultivator most handsomely.

Numerous other articles might be recommended to he raised, viz., senna and numerous species of cassia, to which genus that drug belongs; sarsaparilla, and many other medical plants, for all of which the Northern Territory would afford proper soil for cultivation.

Before closing I must say a few words in regard to the cultivation of the chichona or quinine tree, of which every possible attempt should he made at Port Darwin. It is a well-known fact that the consumption of quinine has increased enormously, but in consequence of the wanton destruction of the quinine-tree forest in South America, the demand has exceeded the supply during the last few years; and any effort that can be made to increase the supply, and thus reduce the high price, is well worthy the attentive consideration of every one interested in alleviating the sufferings of humanity. Thousands of people died in the late fever in Mauritius and East Indies for want of quinine; they had not the means to give the enormous prices asked for it. Probably the tree might thrive at Port Darwin. Why should we not make the attempt to grow the quinine there, and thus become benefactors to ourselves and others? It is well known that most of the Governments of tropical and subtropical countries are now turning their attention to its cultivation. About 1,000 quinine trees have lately been planted in the Island of St. Helena. The quinine trees do well in Mauritius, Queensland, Ceylon. Probably it can also be successfully accomplished in the first instance at Port Darwin.

REPORT ON GOLD MINING IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

BY W. J. PETERSWALD, WARDEN OF THE GOLDFIELDS.

IN comparison with the sister Colonies, South Australia cannot as yet be said to rank very highly as a gold producing country, although the discoveries that have been made, both in alluvial and quartz, encourage the belief that at some future time, gold mining will be looked upon as one of her most important branches of industry. At present it has to contend against many obstacles—a sparse population; the want of a class of experienced miners, with moderate means to follow up discoveries; and the unpractical way in which mining operations have hitherto been carried on.

The first discovery of any importance was made in 1852, near Echunga, about twenty-three miles southeast of Adelaide; but although the yield of gold was considerable, the startling news from the Victorian goldfields, which were then just heing opened up, and the excitement which ensued in consequence, caused an exodus of our small population, who, on their return, for the most part invested their gains in land, and turned their attention to agricultural pursuits.

Very little more was heard here about gold mining until 1868, when some fresh discoveries in the neighborhood of Echunga, followed by others at Barossa, (about thirty-five miles north-east of Adelaide), gave a fresh impetus to the pursuit, and caused it to be followed as a means of livelihood by a small section of the population.

Other finds have been made on Crown lands from Cape Jervis to Ulooloo, about 128 miles north-east of Adelaide, in most cases with payable results; and news has recently been received of the discovery of gold (although not yet in paying quantities) at Yudnamutana, about 300 miles north of Adelaide.

The richest yields, however, have been got in the Mount Pleasant district, on private property. Had there been any extent of Crown land adjoining, a large population could have been remuneratively employed for years; but as it is, with the exception of a few Sections, whose owners arc more enterprizing than their neighbors, nothing has been done. A nugget weighing 136 ounces was lately found here, on Mr. James Scott's Section.

The discoveries that have been made have been mostly confined to alluvial patched in the various gullies and hills, containing auriferous cement (a compound of quartz and ironstone) which is found similarly to alluvial deposits, but which requires the aid of machinery to extract the gold. Auriferous reefs have not yet been discovered, or if so, have not been worked with that energy necessary to test their gold-bearing capabilities.

It is the opinion of most practical men that this country lias at some period been subject to great upheavals; and that the alluvial gold found in the gullies has been emptied from the upper portions of the adjoining reefs—at the same time leading to the supposition, that the main body of the reefs, still containing gold, must be sought for at a considerable depth in settled country. Recent experience in Victoria has proved such to be the case—gold-bearing reefs having been found at a depth of over 800 feet.

Any attempt at reefing which has been made here hitherto has been at the expense of a few individuals, whose patience and capital have given out long before a fair trial could be made of the reef; but, as the success that has attended deep sinking in Victoria has shown what can be done by combined energy and capital, I have no doubt that we will ultimately be successful in developing this, the most permanent and profitable branch of gold mining.

OLD ECHUNGA DIGGINGS.

Discovered in 1852; situated twenty-three miles south-east of Adelaide; gold of a reefy character; about £600,000 worth raised; average depth of sinking about fifteen feet. Nothing larger than six or seven ounces discovered.

JUPITER CREEK.

Discovered in 1868; situated about three miles from Echunga Diggings; gold of a waterworn character, mixed with ironstone; ahout £30,000 worth raised. Largest nugget found, weighed twelve ounces.

BAROSSA.

Discovered latter part of 1866; situated thirty-five miles north-east of Adelaide; gold found in the gullies of a waterworn character, and in the hills, embedded in a conglomerate of ironstone and quartz, at a depth varying from 20 to 150 feet; about £200,000 worth raised. Largest nugget found weighed eight ounces.

ONKAPARINGA RIVER.

Running through Echunga District; opened up in 1869; worked steadily for one summer; about £10,000 worth of gold raised, of a light and scaly character, but very rich. No large nuggets discovered.

BURTON'S GULLY, MOUNT PLEASANT.

Discovered in 1869; situated about thirty-seven miles east of Adelaide; gold reefy, mixed with quartz and ironstone; about £12,000 worth raised. Largest nugget, three ounces.

SAWMILL GULLY, NEAR HAHNDORF.

Discovered in 1872; about three miles south-west of Echunga Diggings; gold of a very rich reefy nature; aobut £5,000 worth raised. Finest specimens of gold in quartz of any goldfield in the Colony found here.

SAILOR'S GULLY, NEAR HAHNDORF.

Discovered in 1872; half a mile north of Sawmill Gully; gold of a waterworn character; about £6,000 worth raised. Largest nugget weighed eight ounces.

ULOOLOO CREEK.

Discovered in 1870; situated about thirty miles north-east of the Burra, and 128 miles from Adelaide; gold of a nuggety character, strongly impregnated with ironstone. Largest nugget weighed thirteen ounces; about £8,000 worth raised.

Unhang.

Die COLONIE Siid-Anstralien im Jahre 1873.

Beim Berlaffen des alten deutschen Baterlandes, um sich in dem fernen Australien eine neue $^etntatl) ju fudjen, giebt mob I jcber ermadjfene ganbbmann fcinen «er= manbten, preunben unb '-Befannten bab SSerfpredien, recbt balb einen aubfii(jr(id)en SBrief ju fenben, unb barin cine genaue 93efd;vcifcung beb ganbeb $u gebeit,;u bout cr feine -Sdjritte ju tenfen itn SJegviffc fteljt. fMer in biefer Soionie angefommen nebmen ii)n aber bie neuen 93erl>altniffe unb bie 5)iitl)en, fid) cine paffenbe Saufbaffn ju griinben, bcrart in binfprucb, bafi bab eben ermdbnte S8erfyred)en mobi nuv in bcit fcltcnften (ballet Jbaflen mirfiid) crfiittt mitb. Itm nun alien benen, bie ein foldjeb ®evfptecben gemad)t, aber biblang nod) nid)t gebjaltcti baben, ju .fjitlfe ju font; iiten, ift bie nad)ftebcnbe turj£, aber ooflfoinuten roal)rbeitbgetreue S3efd)veibung biefer Solonie ©iibaujiralien entroorfen unb fann — trie ber SBerfaffer iiberjcugt ift — jecer beutfd)e ©iibauftraiiev bic= fen 33rief niit guteiit ©cmiffen an feine fyreunbe in 3>utfd)ianb fenben, um beniclben menigftenb ein uber|id)tlid)eb SMib bicfeb 9tu= i'trafcSanbeb tu aebett.

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AJer ncue 'jtntemntimg Pcftnbet |tcli ]eBt tit ittbclaibe, bcrfmuvt® ftabt ber (iolonte Sufcauftvalicn,;ur,fcit etroa 27,000 SBcmpijner cnttjattcnb, unb aub bent '-Babnbpfc auf bir 9ictb=Icrraffe (bic 9torb= grpnte beb fitblidjen Stabttfieilb tvetenb) blicft cr untfjer, um fid) e turns ju prientiren. (vin mit bent iBabnjuge gcfpmmcner Slbclaiber tfieilt ifjrn nun mit, baft bic Stabt aub unci ficmlid) gleid) grpfjen Xbeilen Ocftebt, nantlidt:'iotb= unb 2iib4lbelaibe, rocidje burcl) ein faft cinc fialbe ongl. Sfleile brcites Stitcf 2anb, bab iparflanb ge= nannt, in beffen SDcitte fid) bcr Xprrcnbsftlujj lunjicfyt, gctrennt mer= ten. 9ipvb=9ibclaibe liegt auf cincm XUateau, beffen nad) bent $arf= lanbe ju abfallenbe «eitc mit biibfcbcn epdufern gefriint tit, fp baft bet 9lnbiicf fid) alb cin red)t frcunblidjer barbtetet. ®ub=9lbeiaibe ift ein red)tininfIigc-5 Sliererf, in feber fRidjtung genau cinc engl. -SJfeilc lang, unb bat uen SBcft nad) Cft ncun, 'unb »pn 9iprb nad) ©itb bra fid) in redjten SBinfeln fdjneibcnbe, ppu 90 bib 120 $ufj incite ajaupfc unb jaf)ircid)c nicbt fp in cite Sflebenftrajien. Xic bier Seitcn beb 2tabt=Ouabrateb ivcrben Xerraffen genannt unb gren= jen an bab mit Saunten bcpflangte ffkrflanb, weldjcS in 11 cr bins bung mit fiinf grpjien, mit Wartenanlagcn pcrfeiicnen freten tfildgen — Squares • • fp ju fagen bic bungen bcr Stabt bilbett unb jum 28pf)lfein ber Surger v>ici beitragen. ®cr fiiblidtc Stabttbcil ift ber (fiefd)aftbtbeil unb baben bier alio iiauf unb bic meiftcn ®efd)aftb= leute ibre bpeafe, tvenn ftc aud) fpnft ibre ipripalmpbnungen in ben Sorftabten abet auf bemJJanbe befigen. 3torbs2lbelaibe ift eben= falls rait graben brciten ©tra§cn acrfebcn, bie fict> recbtrainflig freu= jen, obraof)! btc ©runbflctdje beg ©tabttbeilb bet Sobengeftaltung racgen nidjt fo int ©euicrt rait .fiaufern bebccft iff, rate bios in ©iib; Slb'elaibe bet gall. ©cr XotrenSsgluf), raeldtev — rate crreatmt — 5toifdgeribciben ©tabttlfeilen fid) binjiefjt, I>at ettt iiber 200 gujj breiteb, 40 gujj ticfeS Sett, raogegen bic ffiaffermaffe be§ gluffes int Sornmer nut raenige gufj breit unb taunt cin paar 3att tief ift. SBenn ittt SBintcr abet bic 9lcgenjcit cintvitt, fa rallt ^uroeiien cine gan; gcraaltige SBafferntenge a an ben naben Sergcn fttnab, bie baS bvcite Sett beS gluffeb fait ganj aubfiittt. rairb t ■0 bcabftd) tigt, burcfc Jlnlcgung eineS ©aritnteS ant untevn ibeiie be3_Stabt= gcbictb ben gtuf) ju ftauen unb babuvd) einen fiinftlid>en ©cc ber= fufteflen, bet bent ©arfianbe tut grofiten Hierbc gcveicbcn raiivbe.

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(sin Unt|tant>, roeldjer bcm gremben tn tec .^auptitact touts auftralienb aufftoyt, ift tic atojie ijaiji son jum Xhcil (d)onen Mil's d;cn unb Mapctlcn, unb erfldrt ficb bic§ baburd), bafi jcbe ber sic* len bier ber'inblicbcn dteligionbgefetlfcijaften ike befonbcrcn gottebs bienftiicfyen ©ebaubc Ijat. Die Dcutidjert beftgen in Slbelaibe aud) brei Mirdjen, son benen befonberS bie erft unldngft erbaute Settis lebcm=Mird)c in glinberSsitreet nenncne-rcertb it't unb cine;iicrb>e Slbelaibcd bilbct.?ln offentlickn 23ergnugung<Sloca(en ja^lt bie Stabt cin fei)t elegantes XI>eatcr, in reelcbem abet nteiftend nut int SBintet gefpielt nurb, bann mebrcre grefse vtdle, morunter bte febt fcbtnc unb gerauntige Xottnballe (Snodlmung tetbient, fcrcie aud? tiele ©aftbaufer mit grbjjcren ©alonS junt Sibbalten ten 23aQen unb ©oncetten terfeben ftnb. (Sin .fjauptoergnugunabort bet 2ibelaibcr ift bet am SJorbofMsnbe bet ©tabt belegcne/50 Sftotgen gtojje 23o= tanifdje ®arten, bet fdibn aubgelegt ift unb tsurjiiglidj iin ©tanbe gebalten reirb unb in bent fidf aud) alb iBeginn citieb joologifcben ©attend eine intereffante Collection voilbcr unb fettener £biere be= finbet. Diamentlicb an ©onntagen ift bet ©arien mit £aufenben ton S>efud)etn gefiitlt, unb bet gtembe rcirb angenebnt iiberrafdjt, unter bet gut, fa mcift febr elegant unb reidi geflcibeten 3Jienge aud? nidtt einen SSetttef ju bemerfcri.

Die Deutschen in Adekaude zäblen etwa 1700 Bewohner, wahrend in der ganzen Colonie ungefähr 10,000 derfelben wohnen, und hat der deutsche Theil der Bevölferung es verstanden, sich eine geachtete und einfluszreiche Stellung in diefer britischen Provinz zu erringen. Zur Zeit, wo diese Zeizen geschrieben werden, ist ein Deutscher Mitglied des Parlaments und hat derselbe schon einen Ministerposten bekleidet; ein anderer Landsmann ist je$$Unclear$$zt zum zweiten Male zum Manor (Bürgermeister) Vdelaides gewählt; in allen gelehrten und geschäftlichen Branchen giebt es herv orragende deutsche Mitglieder und ist das Berhältnisz der Deutschen zu ihren englischen Mitcolonisten das freundlichste, was sich nur denken läszt. Als rein deutsche Institute zählen wir hier auszer den Rirchen mehrere gute Schulanstalten, einen Deutschen Berein, dem fast alle Landsleute angehören und der eine schöne Bibliothek von nahe an 3000 Werken, ein gienes Theater und ein Capital von vielleicht 15,000 Thalern besilzt, so dasz er im Stande ist, seinem Mitgliedern und deren Jamilien viel Bergnügen zu bereiten. Dann haben wir hier den ebenfalls sehr zahlreichen Jortschritts-berein, einen Turn-Berein, eine gute Liedertafel & c., in denen allen der hierherkommende fremde Landsmann leicht und gern Zutritt findet. Das geistige Band zwischen den hier wohnenden Deutschen und ihrer alten Heimath bildet die „Güd-Australische Deutsche Zeitung'', ein wöchentlich einmal erscheinendes Journal von der Grösze, wie etwa die Wochenausgabe der “Rölner Zeitung''. Da in den anderen Colonien trolz ihrer vielen deutschen Bewohner keine deutschen Zeitungen erscheinen, so vertritt dies Adelaider Blatt deren Stelle und hat deshalb einen sehr groszen Leserkreis in allen australischen Provinzen.

Dicht bei Adelaide liegen eine Anzahl Borstadte, in denen sich meistens hübsche mit Gärten umgebene Häuser und Billen befinden, die zum Theil von Geschäftsleuten bewohnt werden, welche am Lage in ihren Bureaus in der Stadt beschäftigt sind. Namentlich sind die an der Ostseite der Stadt belegenen Guburbs Rent Town, Norwood und Rensington zu erwähnen, die zusammen eine Minizipalität bilden und eine Bevölkerung von ca. 5000 Seelen haben Da der Passagier-Berkehr zwischen diesen Orten und der Stadt sehr stark ist, so sind die Wege dahin stets mit Wagen, Reitern und Juszgängern belebt. Am entgegen geselzten Stadt-Ende führt eine hübsche $$Unclear$$haussee nach Glenelg, einem sechs engl. Meilen von Adelaide entfernten Seebadeorte, woselbst sich an schönen Sommerabenden Tausende von Städtern einfinden und sich das Bergnügen eines Seebades gönnen. In den ersten Monaten dieses Iahremmraben eine $$Unclear$$isenbahn von Adelaide nach Glenelg eröffnet werden, wodurch sich natürlich der lelztere Ort sehr heben wird.

Bereits im Eingange dieses Berichtes erwähnten wir einer östlich von der Stadt liegenden Bergkette, die nach der höchsten ihrer Spizen Mount Loftn Range genannt wird und von Adelaide etwa vier engl. Meilen entfernt ist. Die romantischen Thäler dieser Bergfette vieten den Städtern namentlich im Jrühjahr und Sommer Gelegen-heit zu angenehmen Excursionen und an Jesttagen trifft man häufig dort zahlreiche Picnic-Parthien an. Da die Höhen mit den australischen Euchalnpten, den Gummi-, Shea-Oaf und Peppermint-Bäumen bedecft sind, deren Stämme und Laub einen von den deutschen Laub-und Nadelholz-Bäumen ganz verschiedenent Character haben, so gewährt ein Ausflug in diese Berge dem neuen Ankönnkubg eubeb eugebtgümlichen groszen Reiz. Ueber diese Bergkette führen mehrere vorzüglich gebaute Runststraszen, so die eine nach dem ca. 18 Meilen östlich von Adelaide belegenen rein deutschen Ort Hahndorf, einem ganz in deutschem Stnle gebauten freundlichen Dorfe, von wo aus der Weg weiter östlich nach Mount Barker, Nairne, $$Unclear$$allington, Bremer & c. geht, alles Orte, in denen Deutsche wohnen. Rechts von Hahndorf liegen Eschunga und Macclesfield, und in der Nähe des erstern Ortes befinden sich Bergthäler, in denen seit 1853 ansehnliche Quantitäten Gold gefunden sind. Eine zweite Chaussee geht nordöstlich von Adelaide nach dem ebenfalls deutschen Dorfe Blumberg [20 Meilen von Adelaide] und weiter nach Mount Pleasant und Mannum, wo der gröszte Strom der Colonie, der 300 Meter breite Murran durchflieszt. Rechts und links dieser Chaussee liegen mehrere gröszere Orte wie Woodside, Mount Torrens, Eden Ballen, u. s. w. in denen man viele deutsche Vnsiedler, namentlich Jarmer [oder Landbauer] antrifft. Ueberhaupt hat die Colonie in der kurzen Zeit ihres Bestehens überraschend viel für die Communications mittel gethan und können sich viele ihrer $$Unclear$$unststraszem dem bestem Europas wohl an die Seite stellen.

Bon seinem sehr lohnenden Ausfluge nach Ost und Rordost wieder nach Adelaide zurückgekehrt, beschlieszt Iremde, auch dem Rorden einen Besuch zu machen, wozu ihm hauptsächlich die RordEisenbahn — 92 Meilen lang — und die Zweiglinie nach Rapunda — 42 Meilen — zu Gebote steht. Morgens mit dem Irühzuge abgehend, führt der Zug ihn zuerst durch das hübschgelegene Salisburn, 12 Meile vonn Adelaide, dann passirt er Smithfield (18 Meilen) und trifft in etwas über einer Stunde in Gawler ein (26 Meilen von Adelaide), dem Hauptorte des wichtigen Barossa Districts, in welchem viele Deutsche angesiedelt sind und hauptsächlich Landwirthschaft getrieben wird. Gawler selbst liegt am Jusze einer Hügelkette, zählt ca. 2700 Bewohner und ist namentlich durch seine groszartige Jabrication landwirthschaftlicher Maschinen, besonders der für Südaustralien so wichtig gewordenen Ridlen's Grndte-Maschinen (eine die Weizen-Aehren abschneidende und sofort ausdreschende Maschine) nennenswerth. Der Ort zählt mehrere Rirchen, grosze Dampfmühlen, zahlreiche Läden und andere Geschäfte, grosze Roornniederlagen, ein ausgezeichnetes Jnstitutsgebäude mit grozer Bibliothek und naturhistorischem Museum, und macht Gawler auf den Iremden einen sehr angenehmen Eindruck, welcher durch seine hübsche Lage erhöht wird.

Deise Ridlen 'sche Grndte- (oder, wie sie hier genannt wird, Reaping-) Maschine ist der Colonie von ungemeinem Rulzen gewesen, da obne sie der Ackerbau wahrscheinlich bei Weitem nicht den jelzigen Umfang erreicht haben würde. Diese Maschine streift die Aehren von den durch die trockene Wärme des Climas sehr spröde gewordenen Halmen ab, die dann in der Maschine durch passende Borrichtungen gleich gedroschen werden, so dasz beim Herausnehmen die Rörner nur noch durch eine Reinigungsmaschine zugehen haben, um zum Berpacken in Säcke fertig zu sein. Jast jeder Jarmer hat jelzt eine derartige Maschine und ist Mähen oder Schneiden des Rorns, wie das Dreschen desselben durch den Gebrauch dieser —aber auch nur für ein Clima wie das südaustralische passenden —Maschine fast ganz überflüssig geworden. Welche Hülfe aber dieselbe gewährt, mag daraus erhellen, dasz z. B. dieses Jahr unsere 6781 Buschel (à 60 Pfund Gewicht) Beizen eingeheimst haben.

Da der neue Ankommling die Gegend östlich von Gawler besichtigen will, so verläszt er diese Stadt zu Wagen, um auf guter Chaussee zuerst nach Lyndoch Balley zu fahren, einer ansehnlichen Ortschaft, die — wie fast alle südaustralischen Plälze — ein frisches wohlihäbiges Aussehen hat. In der Rähe dieses Ortes wurden vor einigen Iahren ziemlich reiche Diggings — die s. g. Barossa Goldfelder — aufgefunden, welche viele Tausend Unzen Gold gegeben haben und heute noch bearbeitet werden. Links von hier liegen Concordia, Rosenthal und Reu-Mecklenburg, sowie Rowl$$Sord$$d's Flat. Weiter östlich kommt unweit des hoch emporragenden Berges, der Raiserstuhl genannt, der ca. 500 Bewohner enthaltende, fast ganz deutsche Ort Tanunda, in welchem sich ganz im Beginn dieser Colonie viele aus Schlesten ihrer religiösen Ueberzeugung wegen ausgewanderte und hierher gekommene Landsleute niederlieszen. Es erscheinen hier zwei deutsche Blätter, die s. g. „Australische Deutsche Zeitung'' und das „Rirchen- und Missionsblatt,'' lelzteres alle 14 Tage einmal. Rechts von Tanunda liegen Bethanine, weiterhin der ansehnliche Ort Angaston, dann Stockwell und andere Plälze und ist der gesammte Barossa District ein reicher und wohlhabender Landstrich. Bon Stockwell nördlich gehend führt der Weg durch Nuriootpa, Greenock, Daveystown — in allen diesen Orten wohnen Deutsche, namentlich Mecklenburger — nach Ireeling, einem an der Rapunda Gisenbahn befindlichen Dorfe, woselbst viel Rornhandel getrieben wird, da hier die Farmer des umliegenden Districts zum Theil ihren Ueberflusz herbringen und verkaufen. Bon Freeling führt die Bahn den Reisenden rasch nach dem 49 Meilen von der Hauptstadt belegenen Rapunda, einer 3300 Bewohner enthaltenden Stadt, welche ihrer Rupferminen wegen einen Ramen hat. Der Ort ist hübsch gebaut und kommt hier eine englische Wochenzeitung, der „Herald,'' heraus. Unweit von Rapunda liegt das deutsche Dorf Bethel, sowie nach Often zu verschiedene gröszere und klei$$Unclear$$ere Ortschaften.

Mit der Bahn nach Gawler zurückgekehrt, fährt der Reisende am nächsten Tage nach dem 92 Meilen von Adelaide entfernten Rooringa, bei welchem sich die weltberühmten Rupferminen des Burra Burra Bergwerkes befinden. Im Iahre 1845 wurde hier das erste Rupfererz Südaustraliens gefunden und eine Actiengesellscjaft zum Betriebe des Bergwerks gebildet. Die Zahl der ursprünglich ausgegenen Actien bestand aus 2464 à £5, jedoch hatte jeder Actionär nur etwa die Hälfte dieses Betrages einzuzahlen, indem das sofort gewonnene Grz alle Auslagen deckte. Die Bearbeitung der Mine war nach deutschen bergmännischen Begriffen ein wahrer Raubbau und dennoch betrugen die gezahlten Dividenden der glücklichen Actionäre £782,000, somit über fünf Millionen Thaler. Bor einigen Iahren hörte die Bearbeitung der Mine auf, weil die Egenthümer die Rothwendigkeit einsahen, das Raubbau-System aufzugeben und eine rationellere Bearbeitung eintreten zu lassen, und so sind die Arbeiten an diesem Bergwerke erst in neuerer Zeit wieder aufgenomem worden. Die £5 Burra Actien standen zuweilen auf £150 und haben auch jelzt wieder einen Cours von über £12 erreicht.

Etwas südwestlich von der Burra liegt Clare, die Hauptstadt des gleichnanigen, sich hauptsächlich mit Acterbau beschäftigenden Districts und ist die Legend um Slare eine sehr hübsche und von wohlhabenden Farmern bewohnte, woselbst sich auch viele Deutische angefidest haben. Dicht bei Clare haben die Iesuiten eine Erziehungs-Anstalt unter dem Ramen Sevenhill College errichtet, welche von vielen Iöglingen besucht wird.

Geht der Reijende nun von Clare westlich, so tommt er zu der zwischen den Golfs Spencer und St. Bincent I belegenen, in der Form Italien ähnesnden Horse's Beninsula, an deren obern Theil, dicht an Spencer's Golf die reichen Rupferminen Ballaroo, Roonta, Baramatta & c. aufgefunden find. Roch vor ca. 12 Iahren war die ganze Horse's Halbinsel ein groszer Schaf-Beidegrund und nur von einigen Schäfern und deren Familien bewohnt. Da fand einer dieser hinter seiner Heerde hergehenden Leute ein Stücf Rupfererz und gab damit den Anstosz zu der Brosperität, deren sich der District heute rühmen fann. Seit 1860 find hier vier Städte aufgesprungen, Wallaroo, Moonta, Radina und Port Wallaroo, die zusammen über 15,000 Bewohner haben. Die Löhne, welche heute an die Minen-Arbeiter gezahlt werden, besaufen sich auf ca. 50,000 Ihir. wöchentlich und die seit 1860 allein von der Moonta gezahsten Dividenden werden auf mehr als £700,000, somit auf 5 Mill. Thaler veranschlagt. Da die zuerst entdeckte Mine, die Wallaroo, sich in den Händen weniger Privatversonen befindet, ist die Summe der von dieser gezahlten Dividenden nicht bekannt geworden, wird sich jedoch wohl auf even so viel, wenn nicht mehr als die Dividend der Moonta Mine belaufen.

Rordlich von der Burra ist das Lano meistens in den Händen von Rron-Pächtern, die dort grosze Schafheerden halten; jedoch hat man auch hier reiche Rupferadern entdeckt und nur die Schwierigkeit des Transports der Grge zum berschiffungsplake hindert deren kräftige Inangriffnahme. Gs ist deshalb auch bereits mehrfach die Rede gewesen, von Port Augusta, der Spike des Spencers Golf, eine Gisenbahn nordwärts eine Strecke von 200 Meilen anzulegen, um alle die nördlichen Mineralschälze heben zu können; bis heute ist dieser Plan freilich noch nicht ausgeführt: dagegen wird jelzt von einem weit groszartigern Projecte geredet. Roch vor wenig mehr als zehn Iahren war der mittlere und nördliche Theil des australischen Gontinents ein unbekanntes Land und die Geographen glaubten, dasz sich im Gentrum Reuhollands ein groszer Landsee befinde. Berschiedene mehr oder weniger erfolgreiche Gntdeckuugsreisen wurden zur Aufhellung dieses geheimniszvollen Innern unternommen, auf deren einer der deutsche Reisende Leichhardt seinen Tod fand. Auch Süd-Australien sandte mehrere Entdeckungs-Expeditionen aus, doch nur einem der kühnen Reisenden, John McDouall Stuart glückte es, den ganzen Continent zu kreuzen und eine ihm zu diesem Iwecke von Adelaide mitgegebene Flagge auf der Rordküste in der Rähe von Port Darwin aufzupflanzen. Rurz darnach fügte die englische Regierung den ganzen von Stuart entdeckten ungeheunen Landstrich dieser Colonie bei, der jekt unter dem Ramen,, RordTerritorium'' von Adelaide aus- in Besisz genommen ist und wo sich bei Port Darwin eine Riederlassung gebildet hat. Gs stellte sich nun bald die Rothwendigkeit herasus, die 2000 Meilen lange Strecke von Adelaide bis zu dieser Riederlassung duch einen Telegraphen zu überbrücken, um dann mittelst eines unterseeischen Rabels nach Iava in Anschlusz an das grosze Telegraphennesz der Best zu kommen. Mr. Charles Todd, der hiesige Telegraphen-Director, führte die Unternehmung aus, und wo noch vor wenigen Iahren ein geographisches Räthsel seiner Lösung harrte, da fliegt seit Dctover vorigen Iahres täglich der electrische Funke hin, der die australischen Colonien in stündliche Communication mit dem Reste der Belt bringt. Aber ``es wächst der Mensch mit seinen Zielen''. Benn noch vor Rurzem die Idee der Anlage einer Telegraphenlinie quer durch den Continent als unausführbar verlacht und Südaustralien vor drei oder vier Iahren von den übrigen Colonien als unklug und vorwiszig betrachtet wurde, ganz allein sich an ein so riesiges und zweifeschaftes Unternehmen zu wagen, so haben sich die Ansichten seitdem gewaltig geändert und ist jeszt schon ganz ernsthaft die Rede davon, dem Telegraphen die Locomotive folgen zu lassen und die Regierung beabsichtigt, unserm Parlament in seiner nöchsten Siszung eine Bill vorzulegen, um die Grmächtigung zur Anlage einer Gisenbahn von Adelaide nach Port Darwin zu erhalten! Weil seit Rurzem an der Linie des Telegraphen bei Yam Sreek goldreiche Quarzriffs aufgefunden sind und wahrscheinlich noch weitere Metallschäke angetroffen werden, so erscheint der Plan der Anlage dieser über 2000 Reilen langen Gisenbahn gar nicht so abenteuerlich und würde derselbe, falls er zur Ausführung käme, Südaustralien die erste Stelle unter den Solonien Reuhollands erringen.

Gin anderer Theil der Colonie, in welchem sich viele Deutsche niedergelassen haben, ist der südöftlich von Adelaide gelegene Mount Gambier District, der auch wohl der Garten Südaustraliens genannt wird und dessen Hauptstadt der hübsche Drt Gambiertown ist. Hier hat in den leszten Iahren die Regierung bedeutende Gntwässerungsarbeiten vornehmen lassen und soll auch nächstens eine Gisenbahn erbaut werden, um die Inland-Districte mit der Seeküste in leichtere Berbindung zu bringen Die Bewohner dieses Districts beschäftigen sich fast ausschlieszlich mit Acterbau oder Biehzucht und da hier das Clima etwas kühler als in den übrigen Theilen der Colonie ist, so werden auch meistens gute Grndtecrträge erzielt.

Um zu Lande nach Mount Gambier zu gelangen, hat man den gröszten Flusz Süd-Australiens zu passiren, den Murrah, der nach einem Laufe von mehr als 700 Meilen zwischen den Territorien von Rew South Bales und Victoria die Ostgränze von Süb-Australien überschreitet und in südlicher Richtung dem Meere zuströmt Leider ist die Mündung dieses Siromes durch eine s. g. Barre and Sandbänke gehemmt und schwer zugänglich, so dasz die füdaustralische Regierung den See-Hafen Port Victor durch eine Gisenbahn mit dem am Murray nahe seiner Mündung liegenden Fluszhafen Gpp;wa verbunden hat, um in dieser Weise die Gin- und Ausschiffung der auf dem Murray hinauf- und hinabgehenden Waaren zu erleichtern. Seit Anfang der fünfziger Iahre hat der Handel auf dem Murray stets zugenommen und heute ist eine zahlreiche Flotte speciell für den Fluszdienst gebauter Dampfer und Schleppschiffe beschäftigt, die Wolle, Häute, Talg, Rnochen & c. von den zahlreichen am Murray und dessen Rebenströmen, dem Murrumbidgee, Darling, Lachlan & c. belegenen Heerden-Stationen abzuholen und nach Goolwa and Port Bictor zu schaffen, und die fur die Stationen bestimmten Provisionen wieder hinaufzubringen.

Süd-Australien ist ein Land, in welchem alle Fruchte der gemäszigt-warmen Zone sehr gut fortkommen und wenn bis heute nur die Cultur des Weizens als Hauptsache betrieven wird, so liegt dies an der Iugend des Landes und dem hohen Preise, welchen jede Arbeit verlangt. Trolzdem wird hier ein sehr guter Wein, ausgezeichnetes Olivenöl, Flachs & c. producirt und diese sowie Seide werden in wenigen Iabren schon die Liste der Export-Artikel vergröszern. Der Haupt-Nachtheil, an welchem die Colonie periodisch zu leiden hat, sind die trockenen Sommer und wenn monatelang kein Regen fällt, so kommt es vor, dasz die Heerden decimirt werden und der Landmann seine Saaten vertrocknen sieht. Dann hat der Farmer zuweiten mit einer andern, durch climatische Einflüsse bedingten Plage, der auch in Deutschland bekannten „Rost-Rrankheit'' des Weizens zu kämpfen und wurde z. B. vor einigen Iahren ein groszer Theil der Erndte hierdurch vernichtet. Sonst ist das Clima angenehm und so gesund, dasz sich wenige Länder in dieser Hinsicht mit Süd-Australien vergleichen können.

Soweit ist der Berfasser dieses Briefes mit seiner kurzen Beschreibung der Colonie Südaustralien gekommen und glaubt nun, um das Bild so viel wie möglich vollständig zu machen, auch einige statistische — aus officiellen Quellen geschöpfte — Angaben anführen zu müssen. Er·hält dies für um so nöthiger, als die vorstehenden Aufzeichnungen leicht als zu rosenfarbig betrachtet werden könnten, wenn solche nicht durch das Gewicht von Zahlen unterstülzt würden.

Was zuerst die Bevolkerungszahl betrifft, so betrug diese im Iahre 1836 etwa 200 Personen. Zehn Iahre später war sie auf 25,893 gestiegen; wieder 10 Iahr darnach im Iahre 1856 zählte man hier bereits 104,708 Bewohner, und 1866 hatte sich diese Zahl auf 169,866 vermehrt, während heute ca. 193,000 Personen hier wohnen. Bon diesen sind 6781 Farmer mit eigenem Landbesilz und 7221 Landarbeiter. Berg- und Hüttenleute giebt es 3338, und 6000 Personen sind mit Biehzucht beschäftigt. Im Ganzen wirken jelzt 27,874 Leute an den drei groszen Grwerbszweigen Ackerbau, Biehzucht und Berabau.

Wie stellt sich nun das Resultat der Arbeit dieser Classen? Während im Iahr 1836 alle Lebensnothwendigkeiten für die Colonisten importirt werden muszten, konnte dieselben schon bald den Ueberschusz ihrer Arbeit exportiren und zehn Iahre nach Gründung der Colonie fürten die Bewohner derselben heimische Producte zum Betrage von £287,059 (oder ca. 77 Thlr. pr. Ropf) aus. Im Iahre 1856 betrug der Werth der Ausfuhr £1,398,567 (order 86 Thlr. pr. Ropf), wieder 10 Iahre später war die Ausfuhr auf £2,739,723 (oder fast 100 Thlr. pr. Ropf) gestiegen und in diesem Iahre 1873 ist alle Aussicht vorhanden, dasz die Ausfuhr die Höhe von 5 Mill. £ erreichen wird, wozu Mehl und Rorn allein mehr als 2 Mill. £ beitragen.

Das Berhältnisz des Werthes der Einfuhr und Ausfuhr pro Ropf der vier Hauptcölonien Australuiens stellt sich folgendermaszen:

Hieraus ist ersichtlich, dasz Südaustralien auch in Bezug auf die älteren Rachbar-Provinzen gut gestellt ist. Man sieht aus den obigen Zahlen, dasz die Colonisten iu den 36 Iahren des Bestehens dieser Provinz die Hände nicht in den Schosz gelegt haben. Schon jelzt sind 4,623,256 Acker Land von der Regierung gekauft und als freies Eigenthum in die Hände von Privatpersonen über gegangen, wonach etwas über 22 Acker auf jeden Bewohner kommen, und an 80,000 Quadratmeilen Land sind an Heerdenbesilzer verpachtet und werden als Biehweiden benulzt. Mit Beinstöcken waren im lelzten Iahre 5455 Acker beselzt und betrug die Quantität des gewonnenen Weins 852,315 Gallonen à 4 Masz.

Was den Heerdenbesisz betrifft, so enthälf die Colonie zur Zeit 85,000 Pferde, 143,463 Stück Hornvieh, 96,900 Schweine und nahe an 5 Millionen Schafe, deren ausgeführte Wolle im vorigen Iahre einen Werth von £1,170,885 hatte.

Wenn der Leser in Deutschland aber fragt: Was verdienen denn nun die Leute in Südaustralien täglich over wöchentlich, so beantwortet sich dies wie folgt: Gute Handwerker wie Tischler, Schmiede, Maurer & c. erhalten täglich von 2/2 bis 3 Thlr.; Tagelöhner bekommen von 1⅔ bis 2 Thlr.; Farmarbeiter haben nebst ganz freier Station 5 bis 7 Thir. wöchentlich; Dienstmädchen, die etwas kochen, waschen und plätten können, find gesucht und erhalten bei freier Station 2½ bis 3 Thlr. pr. Woche. Bergleute verdienen von 12 bis 15 Thir. pr. Woche u. s. w.

Hiergegen stellen sich die Breife der Lebens-Rothwendigkeiten etwa wie folgt: Miethe ist in den Städten theuer und wird z. B. in Adelaide für eine s. g. Cottage von drei Räumen, Wohnzimmer, Schlafkammer und Rüche, wöchentlich 2 bis 3 Thlr. Miethe verlangt. Rleidungsstücke find nicht viel theurer als in Deutschland, Feuerungs-Material kostet ebenfalls nicht sehr viel, etwa 4 bis 5 Thlr. die Tonne Holz von 2200 Bfd., und musz hierbei bemerkt werden, dasz fast nur zum Rochen Feuer gebraucht wird, weil das Clima erlaubt, beinahe das ganze Iahr ohne Heizung zuzubringen. Brod (das beste Weizen-) kostet pr. 2-Bfd.-Laib 3 Sgr.; Rartoffeln 1⅔ Thlr. pr. Centner; Butter 10 Sgr. pr. Bfd.; Gier 6 Sgr. pr. Duszend, Schinken 9 Sgr. pr. Bfd.; gutes Rindfleisch 4 Sgr. pr. Bfd.; Hammelfseisch desgl., Ralb-und Schweinefleisch 6 Sgr. pr. Bfd.; guter Thee 2½ Thlr. pr. Bfd.; Raffee 15 Sgr. und Iucker 3 bis 6 Sgr. pr. Bfd. Rohl 10 bis 25 Sgr. pr. Dusz. Röpfe, Rüben 7 Sgr. pr. Dusz. Bund, u. s. w. Hieraus geht hervor, dasz Rahrung hier iedenfalls billiger ist, wie in Deutschland, während der Berdienst sich bei Weitem höher stellt. Dazu kommt noch, basz die Colonisten an die Regierung keine directen Abgaben zahlen, und die Revenue aus indirecten Gingangssteuern sowie aus Bachtgeldern & c. und den Grträgen von den Aronland-Berkäufen erhoben wird. Diese Landes-Revenue betrug nun im leszten Iahre £697,442 und wurden hiervon für öffentsiche Bauten £139,011, für Boft-und Telegraphen £73,629, für Wohlthätigkeits-Anstalten (Hospitäler, Ashle & c.) £48,758, für Iugenderziehung £28,110, für Häfen und Leuchtthürme £10,976 verausgabt.

Fur feden Auswanderer nach einem fremden Lande ut die Frage der Grwerbung von Grund und Boden eine sehr wichtige und so glaube ich ganz recht zu thun, wenn ich etwas weitläufiger die Bestimmungen des südaustralischen Landgeseszes mittheise. Alles nicht verkaufte Land der Krone kann nach von der Regierung beforgter Bermessung auf Credit zum Preise von λ1 pro Acker erstanden werden, mit Ausnahme s. g. ``verbesserter'' Ländereien (wie entwässerte & c. Districte), für welche ein höherer Preis verlangt wird. Wird Land zu einem höheren Preise als λ1 pro Acker ausgeboten und nicht gleich gekauft, so sinkt der Preis von Woche zu Woche von 2s. 6d. bis 5s., bis der Minimum-Preis von λ1 pro Acker erreicht ist, vorausgeseszt, dasz sich nicht früher ein Räufer gefunden hat. Räufer von Land haben sich schriftlich deshalb an den Landminister (in bestimmten Formularen) zu wenden und 10 pSt. der Rauffume anzuzahlen, welches Depositum als Pacht für die ersten drei Iahre betrachtet wird. Rein Creditkäufer kann mehr Land in einem Stücke als 640 Acker erhalten. Melden sich mehr als ein Räufer fur dasselbe Stück, so wird es dem Meistbietenden von ihnen gegeben, wobei jedoch derjenige von ihnen den Borzug erhält, welcher selbst auf dem Lande zu wohnen erklärt. Innerhalb einer Woche nach geschehenem Raufe hat der Räufer einen Contract bei dem Landminister zu zeichnen, in weschem die folgenden Bedingungen enthalten find: der Räufer nimmt innerhalb drei Monaten von dem Lande Beslsz und musz selbst (oder ein Berwandter oder Diener) neun Monate im Iahre auf dem Lande wohnen. Bor dem Gnde des ziveiten Iahres müssen auf dent Lande Berbesserungen zum Werthe von 5s. für jeden Acker gemacht sein, im dritten Iahre zum Werthe von 7s. 6d. und im vierten Iahre zu 10s., und bestehen solche Berbesserungen in Grrichtung von Gebauden, Brunnen, Fenzen (Ginfriedigungen) und Gultur & c. Fenzen müsslen stark genug sein, um Groszvieh abhalten zu können. Diese Berbesserungen werden zeitweilig von bazu beauftragten Personen inspicirt. Ferner hat der Räufer jedes Iahr ein Fünftel des Landes zu cultiviren und musz — falls dies ein Iahr versäumt wird — die Cultur im folgenden Iahre zwei Fünftel betragen. Bis der Räufer sein Raufgeld abgezahlt hat, kann er das Land nicht verkaufen oder übertragen, es sei denn, die Regierung habe ihm hierzu die Grlaubnisz gegeben. Gin Bruch dieser Bedingungen läszt die Pachtung verfallen und verliert der Räufer alle von ihm gemachten Berbesserungen. Innerhalb vierzehn Tagen nach Ablauf des dritten Iahres hat der Räufer wieder 10 pCt. des Raufpreises zu erlegen, welche Summe für die nächsten drei Iahre als Iinsen betrachtet wird. Rach Ablauf der sechs Iahre stecht es dem Räufer frei, den ganzen Raufpreis zu entrichten und sein Land als völlig freies Gigenthum zu erhalten, oder aber er kann, gegen Grlegung des halben Raufpreises, das Land noch auf vier weitere Iahre auf Credit erhalten, wobei er aber die halbe nicht gezahlte Rauufsumme mit 4 pCt. zu verzinsen hat. Hat aber ein Räufer fünf Iahre auf dem Lande gewohnt und Berbesserungen darauf zum Werthe von 10s. pro Acker angebracht, so kann er nach diesen fünf Iahren den Raufpreis erlegen und freier Gigenthümer werden. Gs ist dies eine Art Belohnung für Denjenigen, der felbst auf feinem Lande gewohnt hat. Ausgebotenes aber nicht verkauftes Land kann zum Ginsaszpreise entweder gegen gleich baare Bezahlung oder auf Credit im s. g. Privatwege erstanden werden, sowie dies auch (in Blöcken bis zu 3000 Acker) auf zehn Iahre gepachtet werden kann zu mindestens 6d. pro Acker Pacht. Bestellt ein Räufer Land mit Obstbäumen oder Hopfen, so gilt solch ein Acter so viel wie sechs mit sonstigen Früchten bestellte Aecker, doch musz diese Cultur bis zum Ablauf der Creditfrist fortgeseszt werden.

Man ersieht aus dem Obigen, dasz die hiesige Landgesszgebung eine liberale ist und hauptsächlich das Ziel verfolgt, eine Classe freier Landeigenthümer zu schaffen, als Hauptstüsze colonieller Wohlfahrt.

Da diefer, ``Brief in die Hermath'' für unfere deutschen Freunde bestimmt ist, denen beim Durchlesen desselben einige der darin vorkommenden Ausdrücke unverständlich sein möchten, so follen nachstehend einige kurze Grläuterungen gegeben werden: Der englische Acker ist bedeutend gröszer als der preuszische Morgen, und hat 160 Qua. dratruthen. Das Pfund Sterling [oder &] ist gleich 6⅔ Thaler; der Shilling [oder das Zeichen s hinter einer Zahl] ist gleich 10 Sgr.; der Penny [oder d hinter einer Zahl] ist nicht ganz 1 Sgr. Das Wort ``Fenzen'', welches in Borstehendem einige Mal vorkommt, bedeutet ``Ginfriedigung', von Gärten oder Ländereien, und das Wort ``Farmer'' wird hier für den Begriff eines Landbauers angewendet. Die engl. Meile hat 1760 Yards [oder Meter] und gehen deshalb ea. 4¼ engl. auf eine deutsche Meile.