Soon after the English settled in Australia they introduced merino sheep, and during the last quarter of a century the breed has been constantly improved.
It is estimated that now there are not less than seventy-five million sheep in Australia. The two great drawbacks to this thriving industry are drought and disease. Some years, owing to the scanty rainfall, millions of sheep have starved for lack of food.
Two seasons prevail, the dry and the rainy, the climatic conditions being similar to those of California.
The eastern section of this continental island is the only part that is adapted both to grazing and to agriculture. New South Wales outranks all the other Australian colonies in sheep raising, and Queensland in cattle raising.
Almost the entire eastern shore section is well adapted to the production of lemons, oranges, and figs, while in the southeastern part all kinds of temperate-zone fruits flourish. The production of wheat also deserves important attention.
The development of cold-storage transportation has given a great impetus to the exportation of frozen mutton and beef to England.
Melbourne, the capital of Victoria, situated on Port Philip Bay, near the mouth of the Yarra River, is the largest city of Australia and contains nearly half a million people. It is built chiefly upon two hills and the intervening valley. The streets are broad and cross each other at right angles. Many of the squares are devoted to public parks and gardens. There are splendid public and private buildings, including an excellent library and an art gallery, both of which are free to all. Although less than sixty years old, this young city will compare favorably in regard to its buildings and general management with the largest cities in both Europe and America.
The oldest city in Australia, Sydney, is the capital of New South Wales and has a population of four hundred thousand. It is situated on Port Jackson and is said to have the finest harbor in the world. This is a completely landlocked sheet of deep water which can be entered only through a narrow passage, thus affording protection to the shipping, even during the most violent storms, and so large that it could accommodate all of the fleets that sail the ocean and have room to spare.
