Further Industrial Development.

Alimentary Products.—As already shown, the Colony now grows far more food than it can consume, and its capacity for further development is very great. We are on the right track in this matter, and nothing is wanted to increase our production to an enormous extent but a better market.

If it only continues, the trade in frozen and preserved meats of all kinds will be a great impetus to the pastoral industries. The arable lands will be broken up more rapidly and laid down in English grass. Instead of having three acres for a sheep there will be three sheep on the acre. The old race of squatters, whom I have heard derisively styled "tussockers," will give place to sheep-farmers, tillers of the soil, like their humbler brethren, the "cockatoos." Before we reach the full measure of our productiveness our flocks must be doubled, and the number of cattle and other domestic animals increased about twenty-fold.

As shewn by Mr. Stead, the by-products of the pastoral and agricultural industries are important items in our exports, and. it would be well to devote more attention to them, for it is questionable whether the New Zealand farmer will ever again get a good price for his wheat in London. The price, which has long been falling, is now only 57 per cent, of the average for the five years ending 1869. Wheat is delivered into granaries in Dakota for 1s. 9d. a bushel, and it can be raised in the interior of India for 9d. a bushel. The carriage from these places to England is probably a little higher than from New Zealand, but the difference cannot be very great, for the total carriage on wheat between Chicago and Liverpool is only 9d. a bushel. With such formidable rivals I am afraid that the glories of the grain years have departed never to return. It will be many a long day before we again see a dozen reaping machines following each other in the same paddock, and three dozen ships loading grain together at Lyttelton.

There was no portion of the Industrial Exhibition more attractive than the food section. Animal and vegetable products and preparations of all kinds were shown in great profusion, and in every conceivable shape and form. The conclusion come to, after an inspection of them, is that New Zealand can hold its own with any country in the variety and excellence of its food supplies. With so many advantages there seems no reason why we should not extend our trade to other countries and climes.

Many of the imports under this head, such as rice, sago, and arrowroot, are grown only in tropical countries, consequently they can never be replaced by the products of New Zealand. The largest item connected with ordinary breadstuffs is seeds, which must always remain a considerable import if agriculture is to progress. We import upwards of £100,000 worth, but export about a third as much.

Another large item is fruit and nuts, of which we import annually £130,000 worth. So far as soil and sun are concerned the greater portion of these might be grown in the Colony. Why they have not been so grown is probably due to the fact that we have not yet settled down to the systematic cultivation of anything but the "staff of life."

The largest food import now existing is sugar, which in the raw and manufactured state amounts to upwards of £350,000 a year. The question of producing this article in the Colony has received considerable attention, and the cultivation of both sorghum—sugar grass or cane—and sugar beet has been practically tested in the North Island.

Although scarcely known in international trade, sorghum is much cultivated in America for Home con-sumption. It grows in a much colder climate than the ordinary cane of the tropics, and is said to produce an equally good sugar; the plant is also useful as fodder, being of the nature of maize. Some of the sorghum page 50 extract produced in America is manufactured into syrup and sugar, in large works, but the greater portion is worked up by the farmers themselves. About £1,500,000 worth is produced annually. Sorghum is grown in Auckland in considerable quantities, and the cane has been crushed and otherwise experimented on. The results are so far favorable, so is also the chemical analysis; but further experiments are required before the extract can be pronounced of the proper quality, for sugar boiling, like brewing, is a process which very little upsets. It is supposed that the climate of the isthmus of Auckland, where the greater portion of the sorghum has been tried, is too moist to give rich juice. If this is the only objection it is not a serious one, for any number of places can be got where the climate is much drier though quite as warm.

After a number of trials sugar beet of the proper quality has been successfully grown in various parts of the Colony. Considerable quantities have been grown in the Waikato, which contains 12 per cent. of sugar. This is something like 3 per cent. more than is common in the beet from which the sugars of Continental Europe are manufactured. Beet sugar is almost unknown in New Zealand as an ordinary article of food, but this is not the case in other countries. According to Mulhall the annual consumption of sugar in the world is estimated at 3,671,000 tons, of which 1,811,000 is beet and 1,860,000 cane. Nearly all the beet sugar is produced in France, Germany, Austria, Holland and Russia In those countries it is used almost exclusively for home consumption, and large quantities are exported.

The proximity of New Zealand to cane-growing countries, and our prejudice in favour of that kind, will retard the production of beet sugar in New Zealand; but it is certain to become an important industry some day, for this article is rapidly superseding all others of the kind in the principal markets of the world. Beet sugar is not so agreeable to the English palate as that made from cane, but this is mere insular prejudice; any page 51 difference in the flavour is due entirely to defects in the manufacture. When properly refined it is almost identical in every respect with cane sugar.

The recent discovery of the chemical sweetener—saccharin—will give beet sugar a further advantage. Although not quite so sweet as cane sugar it is more wholesome; the addition of saccharin therefore will completely turn the scale in its favour.

About 7,000,000 gallons of spirits are also distilled every year in France from beet root. This is the source of much of the famous pale brandies so popular in the Colonies.

The liquor bill of New Zealand is a very large one. The gold we extract from the bowels of the earth barely pays for the spirituous liquors we imbibe.

I have already referred to the large consumption of imported beer. There is no territorial reason why this beverage should not be made of as good a quality in south New Zealand as on the banks of the Trent. This state of affairs must either be due to defects in the local manufacture or the prejudice of the consumers. As previously shewn, the cultivation of hops has become an established industry in the Northern districts of the Middle Island. Like many other crops in the virgin soil of the Colony, the yield is very large—nearly double of what it is in Kent. There is an impression that the quality is inferior to the English article; but on making inquiries of experts I find that this is not the case. There is no inherent defect in the plant, but it is not always harvested and dried in the best manner.

With the advantages that the Colony possesses in cheap barley, and hops, good water, and a suitable climate, we should not only brew all the beer that we drink ourselves, but have a considerable export trade.

As you know, the distillation of spirits was begun in New Zealand some years ago, but it was shortly afterwards discontinued on account of the loss to the page 52 revenue by the concessions made to the promoters. They got a remission of half the duty, which at that time amounted to six shillings per gallon. It is difficult to say what amount of encouragement, if any, is required to again start this industry. In "Victoria, where every local manufacture is supposed to be thoroughly protected the concession only amounts to four shillings, and there are six distilleries at work, producing about 250,000 gallons annually. I do not know what quality of liquor is manufactured, but, from the number of establishments, it is reasonable to conclude that the industry is financially a success. New Zealand is better adapted for this manufacture than any of the Australian Colonies:—we have all the materials required, down even to peat, which gives the peculiar flavour so much affected alike by Celt and Saxon. That we can or ought to make spirits cheaper than our neighbours across the water is evinced by the fact that one of our few exports to Victoria is barley and malt, the principle ingredients in the manufacture of spirits.

Vine culture and wine making as a local industry in New Zealand is a subject which has received considerable attention, the conclusion being that it is well adapted to the country. When we consider how well the industry is succeeding at the Cape of Good Hope, and in Australia, and California—all new countries—there can be no doubt of a similar result in New Zealand. There are many places all over the Colony where the vine grows freely; but the future wine country par excellence will, in all probability, be the interior of Otago, notably the Upper Clutha Valley. In addition to other advantages, a uniformity of climate can always be depended on. The appearance even of the country favours the idea; the slopes of the ranges in the Dunstan district always remind me of views I have seen of the wine districts in Spain and Portugal.

Several proposals have been made to the Government to begin a tea plantation in Auckland; I believe the only real difficulty in the way is the labour question. page 53 The various experts who have investigated the matter are satisfied that the soil and climate are quite suitable.

Textile Industries.—The wool mills now in operation and building are quite up to, if not in advance of our present requirements in the particular class of goods for which they are adapted, but there seem to be wide openings in other directions. Independently of the large quantity of woollen manufactures included in drapery and slops—the total of which for 1885, amounts to £1,233,306 we still import about £200,000 worth of blankets, carpets, hosiery, and other goods which are or ought to be wool. The value of the woollen articles imported under the head of drapery and slops is at least £400,000, consequently we are still importing about £600,000 worth of clothing, the raw material for which is the staple of New Zealand. It is of course impossible to meet all this by the local manufacturers, but many more of the articles just mentioned might be made here as well as lighter fabrics for dresses. The Roslyn mill has recently erected machinery for manufacturing twilled coatings which is a step in this direction.

The question of exporting our cloth manufactures demands a passing reference. There is only one obstacle in the way, the "demon adulteration." to which I shall allude further on. But for this potentate we might find a market for our woollen manufactures in London itself.

The imports under the head of linens are comparatively small, being only about £25,000, but that "Maelstrom of attire"—drapery—undoubtedly includes considerable quantities of linen goods. We are now cultivating European flax for the sake of the seed, which is used in making oil. The plant grows freely; so there is only one step to be taken in establishing the cloth industry—the utilisation of the fibre. Formerly the two industries of oil-pressing and linen-weaving could not be worked together for the flax had to be cut at different times to suit the two purposes. But the difficulty has quite recently been overcome by improvements in machinery, page 54 and the two industries now go together. Independently of the home consumption there is a large market in England for the fibre in a raw state. With so many outlets I have no doubt the cultivation of flax and manufacture of linen will ultimately be established in New Zealand. It is rapidly becoming a large industry in the United States where there are fewer natural advantages.

At this early stage of our history it is premature to consider cotton manufactures further than to say, that our proximity to the South Sea Islands, and the fact that we will have an extensive trade with them, gives us a locus standi in the matter. If New Zealand is to work up to the ambitious future of the Britain of the South she cannot do without a Manchester. The cotton trade is as natural to New Zealand as to England, and if our textile industries are to advance we must manufacture mixed fabrics, cotton and wool.

A number of experiments have been made in growing mulberries and breeding silk-worms. They show that nature has done all that is required for the successful production of silk in New Zealand. It will be many years before we can support a silk mill in the Colony; but there is no reason why the raw silk should not be produced for exportation. A small quantity will also be taken at once by the wool mills for silk mixtures. Producing silk is an industry that requires little capital, it can be earned on to a considerable extent as a pastime like bee-keeping.

Household and Personal Requisites.—Reference has already been made to the large imports of furniture and other household appliances. If we only had the courage of our opinions in these matters the Colonial manufactures would soon supersede the imported ones, for the native materials can scarcely be excelled, and we only require to attract the eye of fashion to make our wares acceptable in a foreign market.

China, and glass, and earthenware is another class of goods of which an immense quantity is imported, although page 55 we have the raw materials for them in the country. The imports of china and earthenware alone amount to about £50.000. There is no physical reason why a large portion of the commoner articles should not even now be manufactured in the Colony.

Referring to tobacco, the principal item to be dealt with under the head of personal requisites, the Colonial Industries Commission's Report says:—"The evidence establishes the fact that any quantity of tobacco, equal in quality to the first American, can be grown in New Zealand, and that there is no reason why the whole of the tobacco consumed in the Colony should not ultimately be produced and manufactured in it." This opinion is borne out by the official testimony to the excellence of the native tobacco at the Industrial Exhibition previously quoted.

Building Materials.—In 1885 about £500,000 worth of building materials of all kinds was imported; and of this amount at least £300,000 worth could be produced in the Colony forthwith, and £100,000 worth more when our resources are further developed. In fact, all the articles in this class might be produced here except a small portion of the metal work and some of the painting materials. There are three items particularly that ought to have disappeared altogether or become much less long ago—timber and cementing and roofing materials. The former is fast disappearing, and it becomes a question whether we cannot further extend our exports of timber and woodware.

I do not think it will pay to send ordinary building-timber to England in competition with the supplies from the Baltic and North America; but it is possible that a small trade in furniture woods might be established, and there is said to be a large market on the continent of Europe and in South Australia for cask staves, for which birch is suitable. A small quantity of timber was exported from Westland to Melbourne when the communication was more direct; but for some years the trade page 56 has entirely ceased. It is probable, however, that it will revive when the harbours are made and direct communication resumed.

In the case of cement there are two reasons why the import should diminish—First, because we have a good substitute in the hydraulic limes that are found in the country; and second, because the manufacture of cement is preeminently a Colonial industry.

Cement is used in New Zealand so extensively simply because the ordinary rich limes in the market have not the necessary strength, and do not set in a damp situation. With the exception of some special cases, where quick setting or extra strength is required, there are few works in New Zealand for which the native hydraulic limes are not quite suitable. These limes could possibly take the place of nine-tenths of the cement. On the imports of 1885 this represents about £75,000.

The reason hydraulic lime has hitherto not been made in the South Island is that it costs a little more, and the general public are indifferent to quality. This is not the case in the North; the superior quality of the material is recognised on all sides, and as a consequence the industry has become of considerable importance. The lime is carefully manufactured and prepared; it is first calcined, then broken by stampers or rollers, and finally ground like flour, the process followed in the manufacture of cement. Auckland lime is fast superseding cement in the local market; it has even found its way to Christchurch and Dunedin, but strength for strength, it is not, at this distance, as cheap as the imported article.

The existence of hydraulic lime obviates to a great extent the necessity for manufacturing cement. If the former is properly utilised there is little room for the latter; but if the present system of burning nothing but common lime is continued in the Middle Island a good opening is left for cement works. We have the page 57 raw materials in profusion—it is a low-priced article, the price of which is doubled by the charges of importation, and little skilled labour is required in the manufacture, all of which are in its favour as a Colonial industry.

As you all know, the ingredients of English Portland cement are chalk and clay, in the proportion of seven of the former to three of the latter. After being mixed together the raw materials are burned in a kiln and thoroughly pulverised in the manner just described. In Germany, where there is no chalk, hard limestone is used. The quality of the cement is the same in both cases, but the latter process is somewhat more expensive.

On account of the chalk and the proximity to the Malvern coalfield the best place in the Middle Island for cement works is Oxford, and after it the Kakanui and Otautau districts. The mud from Lyttelton Harbour and Lakes Ellesmere and Forsyth would, I have no doubt, do to mix with the Oxford chalk, but a supply may possibly be got nearer—in the Malvern Hills or the low-lying swampy lands on the coast.

Our bill for roofing materials of all kinds in 1885 amounted to about £140,000. As already stated the native slate is equal to the best imported kinds, and the supply is practically inexhaustible; still the attempts hitherto made to establish the industry of slate-quarrying have not been successful. This is due to a variety of causes—want of sufficient capital, the inaccessible situation of the quarries, and the prejudice of buyers, more particularly as regards the size. To save freight nothing but the largest and the lightest slates are imported; this has established a fashion in the Colony for the large size, and no other will be taken although the smaller sizes are in reality more serviceable. Had there been a ready market for all the produce of the quarries the industry might possibly have pulled through. Notwithstanding its drawbacks and previous failures, I have no doubt slate-quarrying will ultimately be an important page 58 Colonial industry, not only to supply our own wants, but for exportation, as the New Zealand slate is much superior to anything hitherto discovered in the other Australasian colonies.

An important item in building materials is glass, more particularly if we include the bottles and other glass wares in the classes already noticed, which bring up the total imports to about £50,000. The glass works at Auckland produces first class articles, but it is on too small a scale to affect the imports. We trust that the operations of the Kaiapoi works will ere long tell a different tale.

Mining and Mechanical Industries.—Although our historical sketch shows that the mineral resources of New Zealand have been developed to a considerable ex-tent, gold and coal-mining are really the only two industries that have been fairly established on a satisfactory basis. The others have not yet passed the experimental stage, and the failures in the past have been so numerous that there is not much confidence in the future. These failures are not attributable so much to deficiencies in the natural supplies as to the want of means and experience on the part of those who tried to develop them, and in not a few cases to the cupidity of speculators.

In the immediate future the most tangible prospect is the possibilities of the coal trade. As previously shewn, the coal-mines of New Zealand depend almost entirely on the home consumption, which has hitherto been more than sufficient to absorb the supply. It is evident, how-ever, that the home market is not sufficient to cause any-thing like a proper development of the industry, no matter how rapidly the colony may progress, or how much local manufactures are extended. Furthermore, the nature of our trade with New South Wales enables the imported coal to compete with the native product in all the larger centres. The New Zealand steamers have less cargo offering from Sydney than New Zealand, consequently they can carry coal at a very low freight.

All these circumstances point to the necessity for finding a market for the New Zealand coal outside the colony. I believe that the only real difficulty in the way is the West Coast harbours, and that a large export trade will spring up so soon as vessels of large draught can come in. For gas purposes the Greymouth coal is worth about 2s. 6d. per ton more than Newcastle; and this opens the door to all the colonies that have no coal of their own. With improved means of transport, I see no reason why New Zealand coal should not compete all round, and for all purposes, with the coal from New South Wales. The amount of coal imported into Victoria, South Australia, and Tasmania during 1884 was over 600,000 tons; and these are not the only markets open to the New Zealand coal, if it can only be supplied cheap enough. Including the colonies just mentioned, it is estimated that the demand for coal in the southern seas and other places commanded by New Zealand, is over 4,000,000 tons per annum, of which Newcastle only supplies about 1,700,000, the remainder being obtained from England. This shows that the possibilities of the coal industries on the West Coast are very great.

As for the non-bituminous coals, which it will not pay to export, they must still depend entirely on the Home market.

Next to coal and gold the most important mining industries in future years will be those connected with the manufacture of iron and steel. Including corrugated iron, fencing wire, tram-rails, pipes, and other articles that have only been through the first processes of manufacture, we import annually about 50,000 tons of iron, valued at about £450,000, which is sufficient to keep one or two small furnaces and mills at work.

As already stated, the numerous attempts made to utilise the iron sands have signally failed—marketable iron cannot be produced at anything like a reasonable price. The reason is, simply, that the proper way of page 60 dealing with the ore has not been discovered. There is, however, no necessity to confine our attentions to iron-sand; hæmatite, which occurs in such profusion, is the ore most used in making steel by the new processes now everywhere adopted. This ore is not plentiful in England, and large quantities are imported from Spain, the amount for 1885 being 2,533,938 tons, valued at £1,688,234. There are large deposits of hæmatite in America, hence the wonderful success of the steel manufactures.

Steel is made direct from the hæmatite ore in one operation, the process being exceedingly simple and cheap. There is a large hill of the ore at Para Para to quarry straight into—coal and lime are in the neighbourhood, and there is a tolerably extensive market in the Colony for the products; we may therefore assume that there is a fair prospect of our having, at no distant date, a supply of the material most wanted in the mechanical arts.

It is impossible to consider individually the future prospects of the various branches of the mechanical industries; and, indeed, it is unnecessary to do so, for there are few of them untried. All that is required is to develop those that are now in existence—to build on the foundation already laid.

Minor Industries.—I have in this section considered in detail the more important industrial developments attainable in the immediate future, and others have been referred to in previous sections. I shall now simply enumerate minor industries and manufactures that it is possible to establish or extend, and which, although small individually, would in the aggregate contribute largely to the local trade of the Colony. Products:—Mimosa Bark, Osiers, Pea-nuts, Currants, Oranges, Olives, Mustard, Castor Oil Plant, Saffron, Perfumery, Opium, Honey, Teazles, Garden Seeds, Buckwheat, Maize and Peruvian Bark and other medicinal plants. Manufactures: — Preserved Milk, Preserved Fish, page 61 Vinegar, Felt, Mats, Starch, Maizena, Whiting, Blacking, Ink, Glue, Basketware, Brushware, Paint, Varnish, Oils, Fuse, Type-founding, Matches, and Tobacco Pipes.

It is thus possible to produce and make three-fourths of the goods we buy from other countries, and in some eases there is every prospect of an export trade.