34 NATIONALITY OF TONNAGE. and Hull. In the following table the tonnage and trade for the British Ports as well as Australasian are for 1891 : : Tonnage of Sydney. The yearly movement of tonnage in the ports of Melbourne Melbourne and and Sydney far exceeds that of any other British possessions, except Hong Kong. Two other exceptions might be mentioned those of Gibraltar and Malta, but as these are important naval stations, and the trade is very limited compared with the tonnage, they can hardly be placed in the same category. Nationality of The shipping trade of Australasia is almost entirely in British hands, as will be seen from the subjoined table. Although in recent years direct communication with continental Europe has been established, and several splendid lines of steamers have entered on this trade, the proportion of the total shipping belonging to Great Britain and her dependencies has fallen only from VESSELS REGISTERED IN THE COLONIES. 92.9 to 870 per cent. during the period covered. The nationality of the tonnage engaged in the total trade was as shown below. Later figures with regard to shipping will be found on page 64 : Percentage of Tonnage of each Nation Australasia. Under the term "British," used in the foregoing table, are included vessels owned in Australasia. The returns published by the various colonies are not in a form such as to admit of the purely local tonnage being distinguished from the other shipping of the empire. In the following table the number and tonnage Vessels of vessels registered in each colony are given; the statement, registered in however, does not include the whole of the shipping. Few of the large class of vessels employed in the intercolonial trade have been built in Australasia, and consequently the registrations may not include the whole volume of the trade engaged in local waters. The number and tonnage of vessels registered in each Colony during 1891, is given in the table herewith. The Queensland 35 Total trade. IT COMMERCE. T would be only natural to suppose that the commerce of these countries would increase in an equal ratio with the population. For many years, however, the expansion of trade was far more rapid; and Australasia now shows a larger ratio of trade compared with population than any other country. If an exception is to be made to this broad statement it is only in favour of Belgium, half of whose trade consists of goods in transit to or from the north of France or the Rhine provinces of Germany. Prior to 1825 no complete returns of commerce are available for Australasia. The following table, commencing with that year, gives the trade, value per inhabitant, and rate of annual increase for each successive period : per AUSTRALASIAN EXTERNAL TRADE. commerce. Although the preceding table shows an increase of £1 4s. 9d. Increase of inhabitant during the past twenty years, the amount per head in 1891 was only 10s. 10d. larger than that of 1881. The small progress exhibited is more apparent than real, for the volume of merchandise has largely increased, though the monetary value in proportion to population exhibits only a slight development. The small increase in the trade per inhabitant is attributable to a depreciation in the value of wool, which is now, and has always been, the staple of Australasian products. real trade, 37 The figures just given refer to the apparent trade, but as the Apparent and outlets of various important districts of some of the colonies are through other colonies, the real trade is less than shown. Thus the whole of the Barrier District of New South Wales is reached through South Australia, and the exports of this district first appear correctly as exports from New South Wales, then they figure as imports into South Australia, and lastly as exports from that province. Other examples of a similar nature might be given. Viewing Australasia as one country, and eliminating the intercolonial traffic, the balance, which may properly be called the external trade, was as follows :— By far the greater part of the external trade of Australasia is External trade. with the United Kingdom; and of the remainder the larger proportion is carried on with foreign countries, principally the United States, France, Germany, and Belgium, while the trade with other British possessions has of late years considerably declined. 38 TRADE WITH THE UNITED KINGDOM. The subjoined table shows the distribution of the external trade in the three divisions to which reference has been made : : Imports 18,451,499 16,633,691 33,343,706 41,408,315 Total, External Exports 16,609,783 23,095,325 31,210,972 43,243,173 Trade ......... Total... 35,061,282 39,729,016 64,554,678 84,651,488 Trade with Prior to the year 1883 the European trade of Australasia was principally carried on with the United Kingdom. Since that date direct commercial relations have been established with the leading continental countries. Notwithstanding the heavy shipments of wool to the Continent, and the return trade therefrom, the British trade has only declined relatively, while the |