oducing upwards of
40 tons of butter per week in the height of the season. Where the farm
is close to the factory the milk is taken to the creamery, where it is
separated, and the corresponding quantity of skim milk is returned to
the farmer. In other cases the farmer owns his separator, the milk is
passed through the machine as soon as the cows are milked, and the cream
is sent to the factory by road or rail every day or two, according to
the size of the farm.

[Illustration: Dairy Factory--Refrigerating Butter Train.]

Government Assistance to the Farmer.

Every branch of the producing interests is steadily fostered by the
Government of Victoria in a way that may sound strange to the British
farmer. Besides the facilities for acquiring farms and homes, the
Government employs dairy supervisors, who assist the farmer with
information and advice on matters relating to the farm and herd. The
produce is conveyed by the railways (which belong to the Government) at
special low rates. It is received into the Government cool stores, where
it is graded and frozen ready for export. The State has contracts with
the principal lines of steam-ships, securing regular despatch, a minimum
temperature, and a very low rate of freight for the British markets. It
costs less to send butter from a farm in Victoria to London than it does
to send it from a farm in Ireland.

[Illustration: "Miss Prim," Champion Ayrshire Cow.]

QUEENSLAND.

Queensland as a Dairying Country.

Queensland, especially in its southern portions and along its coastal
areas, is particularly well adapted for dairying. Large areas of
magnificent soil exist, such as the Darling Downs, Lockyer, Stanley,
Rosewood, Fassifern, Logan, Albert, Wide Bay, Burnett, and other
districts, which, in addition to being well watered by rivers and
creeks, enjoy a perfect winter climate. It is in these localities that
dairying principally flourishes.

While in Southern Queensland and on some of the northern tablelands it
is desirable to rug milch cows during the winter months, up north, along
the eastern coastland, it is not necessary.

Along the eastern seaboard, which is well watered by running rivers and
creeks, the Blackall Range is becoming an important dairy centre. This
district lies to the north of Brisbane, and is a mountainous region
containing exceedingly fertile soil.

Further north again, on the coast, there are large areas in the Burnett,
Gladstone, Rock