H.— 29

Tun Wallacuvillu Laboratory. During the: latter period of the war the: work at the Wallaceville laboratory necessarily fe:ll off considerably, the only operations being of a more or less routine character. The members of the staff doing duty at the outbreak of the war, all of whom answered the' Empire's call, returned to duty during the, year. Mr. C. S. M. Hopkirk, Laboratory Assistant, applied for and was granted leave of absence for four years, to enable him to proceed to the Veterinary School erf the Melbourne University, for the purpose of qualifying for the degree issued by that institution. An important feature of the' we>rk at the laboratory was the preparation of blackleg vaccine', 180,000 doses being supplied for use by Inspectors. Examination of samples of milk for both contagious mammitis and tubercle bacilli, and of pathological and bacteriological specimens, and some feeding experiments, were undertake:!).. Other general work of a more or less varied nature, was also carried out. It is hoped to go further into the question of contagious mammitis and contagious abortion during the current year, with a view to further enlightenment on these two diseases. The operations on the laboratory farm have been well carried out by the, Farm Overseer during the' year, and the experiment with a. view to testing the effect of manures applied to pastures in regard to the production of mutton was continued. An account of the results of these, experiments up to last year was given in the Journal by Mr. B. C. Aston, who is responsible for the scheme. Importation of Animal Manuhks. The: importation of animal manures again failed to meet requirements, although the quantity imported was e;onsiderably greater than has been the case for some years. The embargo placed on the exports from Australia, and the want of shipping from there and India., were the main factors in the situation. Competitors from the East have also had to be contended with in both India and Australia,, and in some cases considerable quantities of bone manure which Intel actually been prepared under the provisions of the New Zealand regulations for export to New' Zealand ultimately found its way to the East. The matter of the embargo by the Commonwealth Government was taken up by the: New Zealand Government, and as a result of representations made: permits were granted, although in some, cases quantities of manure were lost to Ne:w Zealand erwing to the delay experienced in obtaining the permits not allowing for shipping before the departure of the steamer on which space had been secured. 1 append the report of the Inspector erf Manure-sterilizing, Sydney, who has carried out his duties with great satisfaction, anel has at all times kept the Department well advised of the position in Australia : - New South Wales was the only State within the Commonwealth whence animal manure was exported to the Dominion during the period under review. Seven mills carried out the- preparation and manufacture of animal manure under the requirements of the New Zealand Stock Act, 1908, regulations. The, names of the licensees and the location of those works are shown hereunder :—

The system of inspection has been carried out on the same lines as hitherto followed ; little or no difficulty has been experienced in obtaining the full treatment required under the regulations for all animal material intended for export. Regarding the licensed buildings, appliances, and surroundings generally, these lam pleased to bo able to report on as satisfactory. The great increase in the cost of production has compelled the proprietors of these mills to install more modern appliances than hitherto used—in the way of artificial-drying machinery, conveyors, and dustcollecting appliances, all of which are beneficial in the further protection of sterilized material from contamination during manufacture. The recent closing-down of many of the meat-packing works in the vicinity of Sydney has considerably reduced the supply of raw material formerly obtained from this source. A reduction in the quantity of bone refuse from butchers' shops is also being noticed ; this is owing to tho State Meat Board instituting a new method for the distribution of meat by boning the forequarters of beef at the abattoirs, and supplying the meat direct to the public in a minced form. The bones in this case are treated at the State abattoirs. The supply of dry country bones has of late been greater than usual, no doubt attributable to the effect of the drought, which is still severely felt in a large section of this State. During the past year the exporters of manure have laboured under many difficulties in the way of numerous strikes, shipping shortage, influenza epidemic, and tho Federal embargo against exportation—the latter being found the most grievous. Notwithstanding these handicaps it is gratifying to be able to record that the quantity of animal manure exported to New Zealand was almost three times as much as that sent the previous year. The total quantity for which declarations were countersigned by me was 91,005 bags, weighing 4,028 tons. (if this 4,447 tons was bonedust, 31 tons desiccated blood, and 150 tons blood-and-bone. With the exception of 295 tons this manure was all shipped during the last eight months of the year. Buyers of fertilizers for the East are now competing very strongly hero for all classes of manure, and a continuance of this competition will probably cause a great shortness in stocks. The demand from the Dominion for animal hair this year has been larger than formerly. The only exporters from this State were Messrs. D. Leo and Sons, of Botany, whose works wore regularly visited during the preparation of consignments for export. lat all times found the treatment to which the hair was subjected fully in accordance with the demands of the regulations dealing with this article. I would suggest in the. ease of consignments of mixed fertilizer described by the shippers as " other than animal manure " as defined by the Stock Act, the desirability of a statutory declaration accompanying the same, setting forth all the ingredients of such manure, and that during its manufacture it was not in contact with any animal material or any other substance or matter likely to convey disease. The package of the same, in new bags should, I think, be demanded, as in the case of animal manure. I wish to place on record my appreciation of the efficient manner in which Mr. Pearson, my assistant at Botany, carried out his duties, and also to express my thanks to Mr. S. T. D. Symonds, M.U.C.V.S., Chief Inspector of Stock, Sydney, and members of his staff, for assistance and advice on many occasions.

12

a So 3 Name of Mill. Licensee. Name of Mill. Location. 1 o 3 4 5 0 8 Metropolitan .. ..' M.'O'Riordan and Sons Kitchen and Sons, Limited, Kitchen and Sons, Limited No. I. Excelsior . . . . M. Gearin and Sons Pyramid .. .. Paton, Burns, and Co. Paragon . . .. It. S. Lamb and Co., Limited. . Riverstone Meat-works .. B. Richards and Sons, Limited Newcastle Abattoirs .. Newcastle District Abattoir Board Alexandria, N.S.W. Alexandria, N.S.W. North Botany, N.S.W. Alexandria, N.S.W. Alexandria, N.S.W. Riverstone, N.S.W. Newcastle. TV ote.—The above-mentioned mills, with the exception of Nos. 6 and 8, have ; Iready applied for a renewal of licen si