The Dominion. THURSDAY, JANUARY 25, 1915. RECORD EXPORT FIGURES

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2370, 28 January 1915, Page 4

The Dominion. THURSDAY, JANUARY 25, 1915. RECORD EXPORT FIGURES

In. the course of a speech at Dune--1 din on Tuesday the Prime Minister of Australia (Mr. Andrew Fisher) : stated that he considered it a lAiracle that in the midst of the greatest struggle in history ,the over- ■ seas- Dominions have been practi- . cally untouched by the ravages of the war. This miracle has become so familiar to us thai/ W6 arc OG&sing to wonder at it. We take it as a matter of course. The actual fighting is a long way off; no raids have been made on the coasts of New Zealand ; we have never heard the sound of the enemy's, guns; and there has been no great interruption of our commerce or our industrial life. Our people are kept employed, and our exports show no sign of falling off. This is a more or less familiar story, but it is none the less satisfactory on that account. A statement made at Levin yesterday by the Prisie Minister of New Zealand provides a striking illustration of the point to which Mr. Fisher called attention. _ Thanks to Britain's overwhelming sea power, New Zealand is able to act upon the principle of "business as usual." Indeed, our export business is even better than usual. Mr. Massey informed his hearers that the drought had some effect upon the . farming industry, but notwithstandthis adverse influence, the indications are that' the present year's figures will exceed those of last year both in quantity and value—and 1914 was a record year for our exports. For the year ending December 31, 1914, produce to the value of no less than £26,261,447 was exported. This is a remarkable achievement for a young country inhabited by not much ovc-r a million people. The total for the year 1913 was £22,577,890. This, was an increase of over £3,000,000 over the average for the quinquennial period 1908-12, and the increase for 1914 over 1913 was no less than £3,683,557. The above figures disclose a most satisfactory state of affairs, and are an impressive proof of the richness of the country and the industry of the They also put to conthe wild predictions of certain disgruntled politicians, who declared that under Reform rule the prosperity of tho Dominion would receive a severe check. The statistics which,the Prime Minister was in the happy position of placing before his audience at Levin provided a most complete and convincing reply to the gloomy prognostications of his pessimistic' opponents. In spite of the war, the prosperity of the country continues and increases, and there is every reason to look forward to the future with tbe fullest confidence. With the increase of settlement, with improved facilities for agricultural education on the best modern lines, and with the adoption of the latest scientific ideas, our land industries should become more and more flourishing, to tho mutual benefit of the settlers and the town populations. The resources of New Zealand have not yet been developed to anything like their full extent. Old industries jwe being made more successful, and new ones are springing up, Friit-farming has a great future. The Prime Minister remarked yesterday that it is probable that before many years go by the Dominion wil' bo sending aiway something like £1,000,000 worth of 'apples yearly, _ and there are equally great possibilities of progress in other directions. In the quinquennial .period 1863-67 the average annual value of our exports wa'S only £3,754,500. There has been enormous expansion between then and now, and it is not unreasonable to expect that the coming fifty yee.rs will show an equally remarkable advance. There is no. finality in the matter of scientific discovery and invention, and their piactical application to the needs of mankind. Modern experience has, shown that agriculture is_ one of the most progressive of sciences, and by making the best use of the latest methods and appliances, New Zealand's output of farm and dairy produce might be in-creased-to an almost unlimited extent. There is plenty of scope for the operations of the newly-estab-lished Board of Agriculture, which should exercise a powerful influence in the direction of greater efficiency in the development of our agricultural resources.