THE GROWTH OF SYDNEY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11634, 23 April 1901, Page 4

THE GROWTH OF SYDNEY.

For many years "Marvellous Melbourne" outgrew its older but slower rival Sydney. It was the old story of the hare and the tortoise, for Sydney seems do have caught up at last. The census returns of Melbourne are not yet to hand, but during the past decade it has made but little progress and was estimated at 475,380 at the beginning of last year. The Sydney returns show a population of 488,968, being an increase of 101,637 since the 1891 census—an amazing proportion for an old and large city. These figures are par-

Licularly instructive now that federation is completed, for ii" Sydney could thus overtake Melbourne under the old colonial system sho will in all likelihood leave her only Australian rival far behind now that-inter-State Customs lines are to be swept away. SJ'loourne has been inflated in size by; the ■ protective tariff which will no ; longer hold good against the federated ; States, what ever fiscal policy may be decided upon. New South Wales has the main coal beds, all lying along the coast, and manufacturing industries naturally trend to the locations where fuel and material are cheapest. This inevitable drift of Australian manufacturing to the coal-bear-ing districts will seriously *detract from the status of Melbourne and as markedly appreciate the position of Sydney. .'; In fact, there can be but little doubt that Sydney will notonly be the largest and most important city in Australia, but will gradually ■'; assume a pre-eminence beyond rivalry 01- competition. This will indirectly advantage our own port of Auckland, for with the growth of Australian trado to 'Frisco and through the future Panama Canal to the Atlantic, we shall still lie in the fairway to and from Sydney and be the natural call'ng-porfc of every liner. '. ■