PATER'S CHATS WITH THE BOYS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2949, 21 September 1910, Page 88

PATER'S CHATS WITH THE BOYS.

FOSTER FRASER ON AUSTRALIA

IMPERIALISM VERSUS PAROCHIALISM.

In my two Chats I have referred to the immense area' of Australasia and the paucity of-its population, to the nearness of dense populations seeking outlets and seeing suitable unoccupied territory they are not allowed to use, to the concentration of about half the population in a few towns, to the awakening going on and the recognition of the need of a navy, and to the concentration of railway traffic on to a few lines. I may say a word or two again upon railways, but I want to say first a few words "about the narrow outlook Fraser noticed in Auehalians—and many of us have noticed it in New Zealand. And in this Australians are contrasted"" with the Canadians. In his "Foreword" he says:—"A year or two ago there was a Franco-British Exhibition in London. Australia made a brave and interesting display at that great fair. Yet the visitor smiled. Here is an account written good Australian of what took place: 'A farmer goes into the Australian Court for information, and he is immediately struck by the different information he gets. He calls at the New South Wales Court, and receives pamphlets, and is told that that is the country for him. He goes on to Victoria, and hears that New South Wales is subject to droughts, and that he had better go to Victoria. He then drops into New Zealand, and is told that that is "God's own country." He winds up with Queensland, and tells the man in charge what he has heard. That individual iau«hs at him, and says, "Look here, read these cuttings from recent Australian papers." The headings are as follow:

"Rsodue of New Zealand farmers to Queensland." "New South Wales farmers ~e!l out and go to Darling Downs," "Victoria and South Australian Exodue to South Queensland." He need not barrack for his State; he has knocked out his rival* without a word. The farmer next hear* that every Canadian-Australian steamer leaving Queensland is booked full of people for British Columbia. The farmer leaves disgusted, and goes and see 3

the Canadian Court, where all are for Canada, and none for Quebec or Manitoba, or any particular province.' An Australian wrote that. This parochialism is seen in our provincialism. AUSTRALIA IS THE LAND OF PROBLEMS. So says Mr Fraser in his chapter, "The Problem of Immigration." And one of the problems is, How to people the continent. "Japan is packed to the bursting point. Japan must have somewhere to send her surplus population. Japan is looking round the Eastern world and marking the spots where her statesmen want that population to go." It will be argued, probably, that Saghalien (the, southern half), Korea, the Liaotung Peninsula, and Formosa, being Japanese possessions, will form an outlet for some time together with Manchuria, which no doubt will be "Japanised" as much as possible. But it must be remembered that these are already populated, and cannot absorb a Japanese surplus very long. On page 25, by means of squares and oblongs containing dots, each representing a million, and each figure representing area on the same scale, we get a vivid conception of Australia's size and the paucity of its population. Turn up the table I gave you a fortnight ago, and you will see that India, with an area of about half that of Australia, has 300 millions against about four millions in Autralia ought to not four milought to have over 500 millions. China, about the same size as India, has lions; Japan, about one-eighteenth, has 46 millions; and Java, one-sixteenth, has 30 millions. Taking Java as the basis, Australia ought to not four millions, but 1800 millions! Of course, figures like these must be considered before they can be justly applied, for so many factors come into consideration. Much of Australia is desert, but none of Java or Japan. Making all allowances. however, the contrast is startling, and ought to make Australians—and, if Australians, New Zealanders, too—to think seriously. " AN ABSENCE OF SENSE PROPORTION." In a chapter, "Stray Notes," reference is made to the fault found by Australians with British papers because they do not give enough space to Australia. This Mr Fraser meets with a statement something like this: ' 'Australia's population is less than that of the County of Lancashire. Yet, in general, more news appears in the London papers about Australia than about Lancashire. Besides, if, because of Australia's position in the Empire, she should receive more space in oversea journals than she does, she, in return, should give more space, sa>, to Canada, where the population is half as much again as in Australia. Yet very rarely does even a single paragraph appear in the Australian papers about what is happening in the North American Dominion." The truth is that Australians and New Zealandei's, being so far away from the great Powers, are apt to use the little end of the telescope when viewing others, and the big end when viewing themselves or their own works ; and we are perhaps in more danger of becoming insular in thought than Australians, because we are more isolated. ARE AUSTRALIANS DETERIORATING?

"Certainly," says a doctor whom Mr Fraser quotes. The doctor's experience extends over 50 years, and he asserts that where both parents are Australianborn, the weakening effect of the climate shows itself more and more strikingly with each successive generation. After making this statement. Mr Fraser' quotes verbatim : "It is, therefore, my firm belief that the number of children born will steadily decline as the distance from the European family stock increases. An absolute necessity exists, then, that we should once more secure a continual stream of European immigration, if only for the sake of self-preservation. Were it possible to cut the Australian Continent off from the rest of ithe world for a few centuries, I am convinced that not a single descendant of its four million white population would be living. The race would have become extinct." Continuing his remarks on deterioration, the doctor says that the same happens to plants and animals introduced from Europe. Plants, animals, and humans are exotics, and therefore to retain their original vigour they Tequire a continued influx from Europe to prevent deterioration. SHEEP, WOOL, AND MUTTON.

is the heading of one chapter, and it opens thus:—"There are 100,000,000 sheep in the Commonwealth. Over 500,000,0001 b of wool are exported. Roughly speaking this means-a gross value of wool exports of £25,000.000. In the year closing June 30, 1909, the number of sheep slaughtered in the Commonwealth was 11.094,397." It is interesting to read how these figures spring from a few sheep sent from Ireland and India afterwards added to and improved by crossing with Cape sheep and by the introduction of a few which belonged to George 111, who had received some as a present from Spain. In those days an ancient statute made it a felony to export live sheep from Britain ; but that difficulty was overcome. The result of care in breeding is shown by the following:—"No other sheep in the world carry so much wool as do those of Australia. It is thick, matted, long, and beautifully fine, and is accepted as the best product which goes into the mighty woollen mills of Yorkshire as well as the woollen centres of France, Germany, and the United States."

In the early days it was foreseen that the wool industry would become a large one, and far-sighted men possessed themselves of large areas. One squatter rented 400,000 acres for £BO, or 5000 acres for a pound ! In 1807 the export of wool began with—24slb! In 1835 it had be- . come 3,776,1911 b ; and in the laat official 1 year 500,000,0001 b!

DENMARK AND VICTORIA: A J CONTRAST. Australians were evidently proud of their enoromus output, but Mr Fraser, in dealing with Victoria —each State ' has a separate chapter, though he did Tasmania and the Northern Territory by deputyshows that the output is nothing to what it could be. Denmark is only oneseventh as large as Australia, but it has twice the population. There are 165 persons to the square mile in Denmark, but only 14 in Victoria. " Denmark has nothing like the climate Victoria has. Denmark, however, goes ahead; Victoria lags." Amazing figures are given, says Mr Fraser, of Victoria's exportation of frozen mutton and frozen beef, Tabbits, I and hares, bacon and ham, and all the ! rest of it, "But when you lump all these together they do not nearly approach the ; value of Denmark's exportation of eggs alone. In Melbourne there is talk about j the wool industry and the millions of money it reaps. That is true. But | Denmark exports a greater value in bacon than Victoria does in wooL Lump Jhe exportation of Victorian wool, wheat, butter, and cheese together, and then the State only exports two-thirds of the value of Denmark's exportation of butter." " Australia: The Makings of a Nation," is an interesting book in that it lifts Australia and us out of themselves, and ourselves, and lets them and us know what an observant, travelled outsider thinks—that sentence reads awkwardly, but let it pass. On the whole, no fault, I think, can be found with the general statements made by Mr Fraser, though when he comes to detail he cannot always be trusted. It is a fiction, for instance, to say that the mallee country gives a gross return of from £2O to £3O an acre. £2 to £3 would, I think, be an optimistic estimate. Is a- "ringer" ait shearing one who can shear a hundred sheep a day? Isn't he the one who shears more than any other shearer on the floor? Has Tasmania 20,000,000 acres given over to the growing of fruit?