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The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 85

South Australia

page 38

South Australia.

Fifteen times the size of England and Wales. Founded, 1836. Capital, Adelaide.

Some of the Colonies have obtained wealth by the discovery of goldfields; but the progress of South Australia has been achieved by patient industry and enterprise.

The Granary of Australia; The great wheat-growing colony. Wheat, 68 lbs. to the bushel is grown. See exhibits of Flour and Grain.

In South Australia two million acres of corn have to be harvested in three or four weeks, and labour is expensive and scarce. The "Stripping Machine" enters the field, in ten hours strips off the heads of the ripe com from ten acres and, brushing out the wheat, leaves the straw standing on the ground, to be burned or gathered at leisure.

Stump Jumping Plough.—After the scrub has been rolled down and burnt, stumps of trees still remain; whenever the "stump jumping plough" comes against a stump, it causes the plough to lift until it slides over and takes the ground on the other side. See the Plough.

The Horticultural Colony.—See photographs representing natural size of fruits of the Colony, among which is a bunch of grapes, seven of which would have weighed a hundredweight. In a case near this was exhibited a pear weighing 2 lbs. 12 ozs.

The Olive Oil is equal to any in the world. The Mulberry Tree thrives, and if labour were cheaper the rearing of Silk-worms would be an important industry.

Notice the Wine Trophy, and the exhibits of Preserved Fruits.

Until the establishment of jam factories and fruit-preserving works, it was a common thing to see peaches, apricots, and apples carried in cartloads to the pigsties. There are about 600 market gardeners within a few miles of Adelaide. Pumpkins over one and a quarter hundredweight have been grown, and cauliflowers forty pounds in weight.

The nature of the soil around Adelaide, and the warm and dry climate bring the fruit of the vine and olive to great perfection.

First comes the corn harvest, then the vintage follows, and then the olive harvest. This succession of harvests adds greatly to the profit of the colonists.

Honey.—Notice the exhibits from the Fairfield Apiary, which has yielded in one year nearly six and a half tons of excellent honey.

page 39

The great Copper producing Colony.—See Copper Trophy from the famous Wallaroo Mine. The copper in this trophy is worth £1,6oo. See also specimens of Malachite or Carbonate of Copper.

Not rich in precious metals, nor in iron, nor coal.

Two once valuable mines, the Kapunda and Burra-Burra, are no longer worked. The value of the copper obtained from these mines was nearly £6,000,000. A teamster first noticed the red oxide of the Burra-Burra copper.

Merino Sheep.—See the Merino rams in the pens, some of which, if alive, would fetch two hundred, guineas each.

Camels.—The map will show you that South Australia stretches from the south to the north of the island. The interior of the Colony is very arid and the heat semi-tropical. Without the camel, the inland district could not have been explored, nor could the Adelaide and London telegraph have been constructed except at a ruinous cost. South Australian camels have been known to travel twenty-five miles a day for nine successive days without a drink of water.

The Emu is an Australian bird resembling the ostrich. See specimens.

Ostriches.—Colonists wish to establish farms for ostriches as at the Cape.

Two most instructive group scenes.

A sea-side scene, and The scene on the Murray River.

Notice the suitable decorations of the Court, viz., paintings of native flowers and fruits.