3 
point that the eyes of the (Government 
ought to be fixed and not on the ques- 
tion of the minimum from which an 
individual can extract a decent living. 
13. By way of illustration of the 
foregoing it may be worth while to 
mention that we saw in Queensland 
several artesian bores, yielding some 
hundreds of thousands of gallons of 
water per day. The water is distri- 
buted over the sheep stations in 
shallow surface drains. This is no 
doubt a cheap method of distribution, 
but there must be heavy losses by 
seepage and evaporation. The cost of 
distribution by pipes to the points 
where the water is most required may 
be prohibitive to-day, but it suggests 
itself as an improvement. which capital 
might be induced to effect, given suffi- 
sient security of tenure, 
14. In the case of cattle-ranching, 
the arguments for freehold tenure and 
large areas are even stronger than in 
the case of extensive sheep grazing. 
Cattle-ranching on a large scale, as 
distinguished from the more intensive 
occupation of breeding and fattening 
store cattle, is pursued in more 
remote and inaccessible areas than 
even the most extensive sheep grazing; 
and the history of most countries com- 
parable with Australia shows that it 
generally precedes sheep raising in 
such areas by many years and, in a 
sense, prepares the way for it. Cattle- 
ranching is practically confined to 
North-West Queensland, the Northern 
Territory, and the north and north- 
west of Western Australia. It is an 
undertaking which, properly con- 
ducted, involves very heavy capital ex- 
penditure on fencing and paddocking 
large tracts of country, and on the de- 
velopment of water supplies, and in- 
volves a long walt before profits can 
be expected. Indeed, we believe that 
the experience of most ranching com- 
panies is that profits in the end are 
to be expected rather from the appre- 
ciation in land values brought about 
by ranching operations than directly 
from the sale of ranch cattle. In our 
opinion, fresh capital is very unlikely 
to be attracted to cattle-ranching in 
Australia on a serious scale unless 
those providing it can be granted very 
larce areas with an option exercisable 
ifter a reasonable period, say, ten 
rears, from the commencement of their 
perations to obtain freehold at a 
orice fixed at the commencement. 
15. Given these conditions, we see 
20 reason why Australia should not 
ake her proper place among the 
sattle-ranching countries of the world, 
ut the industry appears to De 
languishing at the present time, and 
0 be unable to support the large 
aumber of meat export works that 
rave been established to deal with its 
oroducts. These, indeed, seem to us 
50 be excessive in number. We were 
somewhat astonished to learn from a 
nemorandum submitted to us by the 
representatives of the Queensland 
reef cattle industry that, whereas 
shere are in the Argentine Republic 
30,000,000 head of cattle and 11 ex- 
dort works with daily killing capacities 
of from 800 to 4,000 cattle, there are 
‘n Queensland the same number of ex- 
sort works, namely, 11 (several of 
hem, as we saw for ourselves, situated 
lose to one another on the Brishane 
River), with a total daily killing 
apacity of about 4,000, and only 
3,200,000 head of cattle in the State. 
The average actual yearly killing for 
she period 1914 to 1920 in the Queens 
and export works was stated at 
372,441 head of cattle, or rather more 
shan 1,000 head a day, representing 
only rather more than one-fourth of 
‘he total killing capacity of the 11 
vorks. It seems obvious that the 
cilling industry should be concen- 
rated either by the amalgamation of 
sxisting undertakings or by the 
slimination of the less efficient. 
16. Lest it should be thought that 
we have too little sympathy with the 
deal of closer settlement we will ob- 
serve that we have laid stress in our 
nain report (Part II, paragraphs 40 
ind following) on the desirability of 
he more intensive development of land 
ready settled or partially settled in 
Australia, rather than of further ex- 
ensive development. It is to the 
‘ormer rather than to the latter oh- 
ect that we think that effort and 
rapital should be devoted. The spread 
of closer settlement should follow by 2 
natural process. As the productivity 
nf Tand intensively develoned increases