Another important industry _associated with defence was launched this week when the Commonwealth Government agreed to ce-operate with the Government of New South Wales anda private enterprise to develop the shale oil deposits Newnes. Australia. is now almost entirely dependent on imported all, and, though the deposits at Newnes were known to possess great possibilles, the cost of extracting the oil was considered excessive.
Another obstacle to the proposal was that the Commonwealth, by. 93- sisting the production of all in Australia, would lose the considerable revenue it now derives from the (tariff on imported oil, In view, however, of the importance of local supplies of oil for defence purposes, these dimeulties have been sct aside, and rites of the venture have been appeased by the fact that the industry will provide employment for at Toast 600 men, drawn mostly from the coal Industry'in which unemployment has been acute, twelve Hours to Leave Because of the rather anomalous regulations then in force, the commander of the Larrakia' communi-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.