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owing to freedom from customs duties, attract the business
from Chefoo and become the centre of the trade.
11.
The agricultural possibilities of the
country have probably already been exploited to the fullest extent. The soil is not rich and it is unlikely that it
could be made to bear more than it does now.
There would, however, seem to be possibilities of profit in the manufact- ure of ground-nut oil. At present not much oil is made, the muts or kernels being exported in bulk. If new mills were established in Weihaiwei the local supply of kernels would no doubt be largely supplemented by imports from the adjoining Chinese territory.
12. The cultivation of fruit for export is also a possibility. The experiments made some years ago by Mr. Gibbons showed that practically all varieties of European fruit can be grow very successfully and no doubt a considerable market could be found for it in Shanghai, Tientsin and other Treaty Ports and even in Hongkong. The Chinese agriculturalists have not, however, shewn any inclination to take up the industry and it is probable that foreign capitalists would experience difficulty in obtaining sufficient land to grow fruit on a large scale. Possibly, however, if a plantation were once established and the trade organised, the planter would be able to extend it by supplementing his own crops by the purchase of fruit from the Chinese, who would doubtless be ready to grow it on their own lands if it were shew to be profitable.
13.
The industries to which I have referred are
all matters for private enterprise and private capital. Whether such capital would be forthcoming is of course uncertain but it is not improbable, given the one essential condition of security of temure.
There are two industries in which the Government might interest itself directly
-
Timber and Salt.
14.