11

D.—2d

PROBABLE NUMBER of EMIGRANTS to be Despatched between 1st October and 12th November, 1872.

No. 31. The Agent-General to the Hon. the Colonial Secretary. (No. 479.) 7, Westminster Chambers, Victoria Street, AVestminster, S.W., Sir,— 4th October, 1872. I have the honor to enclose tho report of Mr. H. AY. Farnall, and in doing so have to express my regret, that owing to the scarcity of shipping and consequent high rates of freight, and tho little prospect of obtaining anything like a full complement of emigrants, I do not see my way to despatching a vessel direct from Belfast; but I purpose, if necessary, as in other cases, paying the cost of passage to London, and add the amount to the promissory notes to bo taken from tho emigrants. I have applied to the other Agents for their reports, and hope by the next mail to be able to forward them. I have, Ac, I. E. Featherston, The Hon. the Colonial Secretary, Wellington, N.Z. Agent-General.

Enclosure in No. 31. Mr. H. AY. Farnall to the Agent-General. Report of Proceedings. (No. 444.) Sir, — 2\, Corporation Street, Belfast, Ist October, 1872. In compliance with the request contained in your letter of the 19th ultimo, I herewith beg to furnish you with a report of my proceedings since receiving your instructions to proceed to Ireland for the purpose of promoting emigration from that part of the United Kingdom to New Zealand. Immediately on receiving my instructions from you in the early part of July, I proceeded to Ireland, and on my arrival iv Belfast I found two courses were open to me, one of which was at once to start on a tour through Ireland for the purpose of delivering lectures on New Zealand, which was my original intention ; the other course was by, in tho first place, opening an office in Belfast, and by well advertising it to give those desirous of obtaining information on the Colony of New Zealand a place to which they could at once refer and obtain reliable information ; and when tho office was well established, and I had had time to become better acquainted with the country, and had also had time to communicate with the various sub-agents appointed in Ireland, I should then be in a better position to judge of the best way to proceed in order to advance your views. I adopted the latter course, and sco no reason to regret my having clone so, as the inquiries have been even more numerous than I had anticipated; and I find that my personal knowledge of the capabilities and of the wants of New Zealand is of great use in giving confidence to those proposing to emigrate. I also put myself at once in communication with the various district agents, and afterwards visited their districts, for the purpose of finding out what success they had had since receiving their appointments, and also for the purpose of receiving suggestions from them for my future guidance, suggestions which, from their local knowledge, would have great weight with me. I found that hitherto their labours had not been attended with any great success, owing to several causes, the chief of which are the strong counter attractions, and in some instances apparently better terms, offered to emigrants by the other colonies of Great Britain and by the agents for the United States; also the fact of rates of agricultural labourers' wages being much higher than in former years; and also because New Zealand emigration was not extensively advertised in this part of Ireland. I recommended to your consideration that a New Zealand emigration advertisement should be more extensively inserted in the Irish papers, and you were pleased to comply with my request, and I havo reason to know that this more extended system of advertising has been the means of gaining some most eligible emigrants. I also entered into an arrangement with W. H. Smith and Sons (tho publishers) to frame and hang up the large New Zealand emigration poster in all the railway stations in the north of Ireland. This system of advertising is, I am convinced, at once the most economical and the most thorough that could be adopted in this country. I have made arrangements with some of the sub-agents to hold lectures in their districts during the present month of October, and trust that by so doing, together with the more extensive system of advertising adopted, that the scheme will meet with more success during the next few months. On receipt of your letter requesting me to furnish you with a report of my proceedings, I communi-

Ship. Tort. Dato of Departure. Souls. Adults. "Zcalandia" ... 11 Crusader" A. Ship '"Warwick" " Forfarshire " ... Duncdin and Bluff... Canterbury... Otago Auckland ... Wellington 1872. 4th October ... 10th October ... 29th October ... 31st October ... 12th November 320 200 300 150 420 2G7 175 250 120 350 Total ... 1,390 1,162