The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1855-11-20 00:00:00

AUSTRALIA.

By the Overland we have Western
Australian newspapers to the 31st August. The new gover-
nor, Captain Kennedy, had been favourably received by the
imposing a tax on land
colonists, and was commencing his duties by a syyisdetaeermrbaoinfeddreei-t.
re-
trenchment in the government expenditure. Ons examining
towns. The Legislatureebtyfhlunednsa.uienogn
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country, and
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were to meet on the 2nd of September, to re-consider the bill
r
was reported that the latter would most probably be reduced
some £6,000 or £B,OOO.
The advices were delivered at Ceylon on the 13th ultimo,
in 39 days from Melbourne, by the White Star" ship Ara-
bian. This vessel's run from Liverpool to Ceylon, via Mel-
bourne, where she landed a full complement of passengers and
discharged upwards of 1,000 tons of cargo, occupied only four
months and 20 days, the quickest on record.
The Oliver Lang sailed from Melbourne on the 23rd of
August, and the White Star on the 30th, for Liverpool. The
Kent was announced to sail positively on the 13th of Sep-
tember. These ships will bring on freight gold valued at
£1,000,000 sterling. Besides 80,000 ounces of gold, the
White Star has on board 70 tons of South Australian smel-
ted copper for Birmingham and London, via Liverpool, 1000
bales of wool, and 150 passengers.
The Merlin arrived at Melbourne on the:2oth of August.
The Donald M`Kay, with the mails of the 6th of June,
reached on the 26th of August, from Liverpol.
As regards the gold-yielding qualities of Australia, we
learn that the quantity being produced was decidedly on the
increase, not only at the older fields, • but also at those more
recently discovered, and not merely was the gold produce in-
creasing in amount, but the prospects in regard to the supply
were almost daily improving, not only by an extension of the
area of those fields which were familiar, but by the successful
working of others lately opened. The progress of discovery
was principally in the direction of the north-west portion of
the colony, although accounts had lately been received of a
favourable character from parties who had-been " prospecting"
to the eastward.
As regards immigration, we find from the returns that the
balance of arrivals over departures for the portion of the year
which terminated on the 25th of August, was 40,172, or about
5,000 a-month, a rate of increase which, omitting natural
causes, would double the population in four years.
The exports of gold and other produce from Melbourne for
the second quarter of 1855 were of the value of £2,952,692
against £2,286,565 for the same period in 1854. The quantity
shipped to Great Britain was of the value of £2,765,998 in
1855, and £1,723,187 in 1854. The total value of the exports
from the colony of Victoria for the second quarter of 1855 was
£3,025,822 against, for the same period in 1854, £2,500,580.
We also perceive that in the increase of the total exports of
the colony of Victoria there is an increase of the quantity of
the staple productions, and not simply of the value of the
goods reshipped ; and also that the increase has not been to
the neighbouring colonies—not to America and other foreign
states—but consists of bong fide shipments of produce to the
United Kingdom. The contrast exhibited by the imports is
also most favonrable. Instead of those exceeding the exports
by an amount which used to be disheartening, they are now
so reduced in amount that the exports much more than balance
them. This must eventually improve the internal trade and
commerce of Australia.
The Melbourne markets generally during the month of
August were characterised by an extent of dulness to which
the past three years of colonial experience afford no parallel.
Hides were a shade lower the vessels now on the berth
being full, and shippers inactive.
There was a marked improvement in ironmongery generally.
In dry goods very little was doing, but there were numerous
inquiries for spring goods, 'on which a fair profit could be
obtained.
For timber there was not much demand. The prices were
unaltered.
The quotations for wool were 6d. to Bd. per lb. in grease ;
ls. 34d. to ls. 51d. for superior fleece; is. 2d. to ls. 3d. for
,good to middling ; and ls. to
Is ld• for inferior fleece. There
4was very little offering. Tallow was offering at £5B to £6B
,per,ton for mutton, and at £3B for beef tallow.
.Liverpool coarse salt was sellinc, at £5 10s. to £6 per ton;
£8 to £8 10s. for fine ; and at £4 £4 10s. for inferior.
.In freights the rates quoted were :—To London : Wool, id.
per, lb, ; talloEv, 40s. per ton ; gold, in quantities of or above