Of the total imports in 1883, 65 per cent. were from the United Kingdom, 19 per cent. from the Australian Colonies, 5 per cent. from the United States, 2 per cent. from India, and 4 per cent. from Mauritius. Of the exports, 75 per cent. went to the United Kingdom, 16 per cent. to the Australian Colonies, 6 per cent. to the United States. The duty levied on imports amounted to 1,414,181. in 1883. The leading imports in 1883 were iron and steel goods 1,184,6887., apparel of all kinds 1,973,307., sugar 638,0577., wines, beer, and spirits 401,700l., tea 230,4241. leading export is wool, 68,149,430 lbs., valued in New Zealand at 3,014,2117. in 1883; other native exports are grain and pulse and flour 1,351,6517. in 1883 (mainly oats and wheat); skins (mainly sheep and rabbit) 166,1321.; gum 336,6067.; tallow 233,5577.; timber, 149,256l.; frozen meat, 118,3287. The The commercial intercourse between New Zealand and the United Kingdom is shown in the subjoined tabular statement, according to the Board of Trade Returns for each of the five years 1879 to 1883 : The staple article of export from New Zealand to the United Kingdom is wool, the quantities and value of which in England were as follows in each of the five years from 1879 to 1883 : Next to wool, the most important articles of export from New Zealand to Great Britain in 1883 were grain and flour, of the value of 1,055,2991., gum, of the value of 215,0677., and tallow and stearine of the value of 271,6237. Among the other exports are fresh mutton, amounting in value to 15,6407. in 1882, and 207,0697. in 1883; preserved meat, 81,8227.; and leather of the value of 74,7761. in 1883. The British imports comprise mainly iron, of the value of 570,9541.; apparel and haberdashery, of the value of 536,9791.; woollens, of the value of 288,159/.; and cottons, of the value of 330,1577. in 1883. In 1883, 805 vessels of 494,926 tons entered the ports of New Zealand, and 851 of 507,565 tons cleared. All but 78 vessels of the former and 81 of the latter belonged to Britain and her colonies. Agricultural and stock-raising are the two most important industries of the Colony. The total extent of occupied holdings over one acre in 1881 was 26,845,466, of which 10,309,170 acres were freehold, and 11,638,569 acres rented from the Crown for pastoral purposes. The following table shows the number of holdings of various sizes, and number of acres held in freehold and leasehold, exclusive of Crown lands held for pastoral purposes : : The total acreage under crops (including sown grass and 184,198 acres broken up but not under crops) in New Zealand, 1884, was 6,072,949, of which 673,567 were under grain crops, wheat and The bulk of this acreage (78 per cent.) is under grass. The production of wheat in 1884 was 9,827,136 bushels, and of oats 9,231,339 bushels. oats. The live stock of the colony consisted, in April 1881, of 161,736 horses; 698,637 cattle; 12,985,085 sheep (13,834,075 in 1883); 200,083 pigs; and 1,563,216 head of poultry. The greatest increase of live stock in recent years was in sheep. They numbered 1,523,324 in 1858; 2,761,383 in 1861; 4,937,273 in 1864; 8,418,579 in 1867; 9,700,629 in 1871, and 11,704,853 in March 1874. Extensive gold fields were discovered in the spring of 1857. The gold exports amounted to 355,322 ounces, valued at 1,407,770l., in 1875; to 371,685 ounces, valued at 1,496,0801., in 1877; to 230,893 ounces, valued at 921,6647., in 1882; and to 222,899 ounces, valued at 892,4457. in 1883. The total value of the gold exported from the colony up to March 31, 1884, was 40,707,0741. The bulk of the gold mining is on Government land. There were 99 coal mines in New Zealand in 1883; the produce for 1883 being 421,764 tons. The construction of a comprehensive system of railways connecting the chief towns of the colony was commenced, at the expense of the Government, in the autumn of 1872. On Dec. 31, 1883, there were 469 miles open for traffic in the North Island, and 926 in the South Island, besides 91 miles of private lines-1,486 miles in all. For the year ending March 31, 1884, the surplus receipts were 305,3147. The total expenditure on construction of all the Government lines to March 31, 1884, had amounted to 12,057,9721. The profits were equivalent to an interest on the gross outlay on railways opened of 21. 14s. 3d. per cent. for the year ending March 31, 1884. This rate is smaller than the profit for previous years owing to a lowering of tariff. The whole of the above railways are to cost, when completed, with their equipments, about 16,000,0007. On January 1, 1884, the colony had 4,074 miles of telegraph lines, and 10,037 miles of wire. The number of telegrams despatched was 1,599,400, of which total over a million and a quarter were private messages. The total receipts from telegrams amounted to 81,4017. The total number of telegraph offices in the colony was 289. The post office in the year 1883 received 33,588,408 letters and 13,030,563 newspapers. The total revenue of the post office amounted to 172,6647. in 1883. Agent-General of New Zealand in Great Britain.-Sir Francis Dillon Bell, K.C.M.G. QUEENSLAND. Constitution and Government. THE form of government of the colony of Queensland was established December 10, 1859, on its separation from New South Wales. The power of making laws and imposing taxes is vested in a Parliament of two Houses-the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly. The former consists of thirty-four members, nominated by the Crown for life. The Legislative Assembly comprises fifty-five members, returned from forty-two electoral districts, for five years, elected by ballot, a six months' residence qualifying every adult male for the franchise. Owners of freehold estate of the clear value of 1007., or of house property of 101. annual value, or leasehold of 101. annual rent, or holders of pastoral lease or license from the Crown have the right of a vote in any district in which such property may be situated. At the end of 1883 there were 60,025 registered electors. The executive is vested in a Governor appointed by the Crown. Governor of Queensland.-Sir Anthony Musgrave, K.C.M.G., born 1828; entered as student in the Inner Temple 1851; Lieut.Governor of St. Vincent, 1862; Governor Newfoundland, 1864-69; Governor of British Columbia, 1869-72; LieutenantGovernor of Natal, 1872-3; Governor of South Australia, 1873–7; Governor of Jamaica, 1877-83; appointed Governor of Queensland, April 1883. The Governor is commander-in-chief of the troops, and also bears the title of vice-admiral. He has a salary of 5,000l. per annum. In the exercise of the executive authority he is assisted by an Excutive Council of six ministers, consisting of the following members: Premier and Colonial Secretary and Vice-President of the Executive Council.-Hon. Samuel Walker Griffith. Colonial Treasurer.-Hon. James Robert Dickson. Without Portfolios.— { Hon. Richard Bingham Sheridan. Each of the ministers who holds a portfolio has a salary of 1,000l. per annum. The Vice-President of the Executive Council receives 3007. per annum in addition. They are jointly and individually responsible for their acts. There is a volunteer force of between 500 and 600 officers and men, and two gunboats and one small torpedo-boat are for the defence of the colony. Church and Education. There is no State Church. Previous to 1861 valuable grants of land had been made to the principal religious denominations, which they still retain, free of taxation. The following are the proportions the various religious denominations bore to the total population at the last census taken in 1881:-Church of England, 34-62; Church of Rome, 25-47; Presbyterians, 10:59; other Protestant churches, 19.48; other religions, 9.07. Education is compulsory, but no steps have been taken to enforce the law. There are seven grammar or middle-class schools, with 35 teachers and 557 pupils in 1884. These receive Government grants under certain conditions. In 1883 there were 387 public elementary schools, with 1,027 teachers, and an average daily attendance of 24,247 pupils. There are besides 87 private schools, with 306 teachers and an average daily attendance of 5,966 in 1883. Elementary education is entirely free, the cost to the colony for the year 1883 being 119,5977. At the census of 1881, 29.44 per cent. of the total population could not read nor write, and in 1883, 6.88 per cent. persons married signed by marks. Revenue and Expenditure. The public income of the colony nearly doubled in the decennial period 1868 to 1877, while the disbursements increased at the same rate. The following table shows the revenue and expenditure of Queensland during each of the five years from 1880 to 1884 : The following were the chief sources from which revenue was received during 1883-4-Customs, 866,4741.; excise, 34,4417. ; stamp duty, 88,1657.; licenses, 46,4017. From land-Rent, pastoral occupations, 254,4247.; other rents and sale of land, 365,5361. From railways, 582,6411. From posts and telegraphs, 155,9947. Includes a sum of 245,040l. transferred to surplus revenue. |