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Issued
under the joint auspices of the Durban Corporation, the Durban
Publicity Association and the South African Railway and Harbours
Administration.
Foreword
THE ensuing
chapters tell their own story and tell it with restraint as
well as with pride. In commending them to those in whose hands
this book may fall, I should like, on behalf of the Durban
Publicity Association, to stress that aspect of Durban's growth
which, more than any other, ought to commend the town to the
notice of industrialists the world over. Figures and statistics
tell a partial tale; a changing and evolving tale; a tale
that is almost out of date before the last pages of to-day's
brochure are off the press. What rather, should commend Durban
to those who study its chronicles is the fact that Port Natal
has been created during the lifetime of men still with us.
It is a living and growing monument not only to unsurpassed
natural potentialities but to the character, imagination,
prudence and faith of a generation of remark-able men. Sixty
years ago the urchins of those times used to wade across the
bar at low tide. To- day those same urchins, now elderly men,
sit in their own homes on the Berea and watch
"The
stately ships go on
to their haven under the hill."
knowing
that, at low tide as at high, the largest vessels that visit
this sub- continent can make their way with ease and security
down the deep water channel to Maydon Wharf This surely bespeaks
resolution, vision and industry of the blithest traditional
kind; and should satisfy the would-be industrialist that in
Durban he will breathe the authentic air of overseas progress.
With all Africa for its hinterland, and India and the Far
East opposite it beyond the sea, Durban occupies one of the
key positions on the world's coastline; and no other port
in the British Empire has had a sturdier and rapider growth
or can look forward with serener hope to a great and assured
future.
Harold ??illegible??
Chairman,
Durban Publicity Association.
Message
from The Hon. A. P. J. Fourie
UNION
MINISTER OF MINES AND INDUSTRIES.
THE
PROGRESS OF DURBAN
THE industrial
progress of Durban, since the beginning of the present century,
has been remarkably rapid, and the Great War (1914-1918) ,
which threw the country very much more on its own resources
than had been the case any time before, marked the beginning
of a period of development which very soon raised Durban to
the position of one of the most important industrial centres
in the Union.
This development
has, by no means, been artificial, for it is based on the
natural advantages which Durban offers for the establishment
of manufacturing industries.There is a cheap and abundant
supply of coal, water and labour , and large areas, eminently
suitable for manufacturing establishments, are available at
reasonable rates.
Furthermore,
Durban has a fine harbour, and on the basis of tonnage handled,
it is to-day the premier port of the Union, largely because
of its coal bunkering facilities and the proximity of the
coal-fields, and also because it is one of the principal ports
of call for vessels en route to India and the Far East, and
the trading ships of Japan on their way to Brazil and the
Argentine.
The above
factors in addition to Durban's progressive industrial policy,
have brought her by rapid stages to the front rank of South
Africa's industrial and manufacturing centres, and support
the claim that Durban is an eminently suitable place for the
establishment of industrial enterprises.
Message
from the Mayor of Durban
(Councillor THE Rev. ARCHIBALD LAMONT M.A., B.D.)
In our
beautiful and progressive town of Durban there has been a
certain conflict in recent years - sometimes audible, sometimes
merely implied - between utilitarian and aesthetic ideas.
Yet many of us are optimistic enough to believe that the two
main interests of the borough, as pleasure resort and industrial
centre, can be reconciled in a blend of beauty and utility.
Durban
is animated by a spirit of progress and development. It stands
on
the threshold of a new era of expansion and prosperity. The
term "Greater Durban," now so commonly used in reference
to the proposed extension of the borough boundaries, is both
descriptive and prophetic, foretelling a Durban that shall
be greater not merely in area but in industry and commerce
and in its already assured position as the premier commercial
port of the Union of South Africa.
Message from Mr Morris Kramer
PRESIDENT, SOUTH AFRICAN FEDERATED CHAMBERS OF INDUSTRIES
SOUTH
AFRICA has made great progress industrially. The gross output
of its factories - £106,000,000 sterling for 1927-28
is proof of its advance. In my opinion, however, this development
will be more marked in the future The resources of the great
African Sub-continent have scarcely been touched yet.
There
are enormous fields of consumption awaiting exploitation,
and the Union, with its developing ports and fine railway
system, linking it up with the various African territories,
is the natural geographical centre for manufacture and supply.
All this is apart from the possibilities within the Union
itself, in the production of commodities not manufactured
here at the moment. The richness of the Union, and other African
territories, in raw materials, both agricultural and mineral,
is also a most important factor which will have a stimulating
effect upon the country's future.
It is
gratifying to see the continued campaign to advertise South
African towns as industrial centres. Durban, in common with
other places, offers special advantages from the industrial
point of view and it is only logical that these should be
brought to the notice of firms who are interested in South
Africa as a possible field for the extension of their manufacturing
interests.
A CENTURY of GROWTH
DURBAN'S
ROMANTIC RISE
Where
a century ago wild creatures still roamed at will, where thick
bush rioted almost to the water's edge, there stands to-day
the modern city of Durban, replete with every twentieth century
advantage in lighting and transport, and in all the refinments
of civilized life. It has been a wonderful metamorphosis.
A century ago the site whereon Durban stands was practically
unknown to Europeans; to-day it constitutes the third largest
centre of population in South Africa.
What is
more, this phenomenal growth is continuing. It is cumulative
.Every decade in Durban's history has registered a long stride
forward; every successive census bears testimony to this fact.
Very largely this is due to the town's growing importance
as a seat of commerce and industry.
Although
famous throughout the Sub-Continent as a health resort, the
realisation has long on since been borne in upon the municipal
authorities of Durban that business, rather than pleasure
must be the metier of the borough in the years to come. Rather
must Durban be the Liverpool-cum-Birmingham of the Union than
the Brighton or Blackpool of South Africa, as it is so frequently
called.
No disadvantage
is it, however, to carry on one's business amid pleasant,
healthful surroundings The first Lord Leverhulme made that
discovery at Port Sunlight, as did the Cadburys at Bournville;
and many more instances might be quoted of industrial enterprises
established amid rural amenities, greatly to the advantage
of all concerned. In Durban we have port and pleasure resort
combined in a town that is backed by a hinterland of scenic
splendour scarcely excelled anywhere in the Union. It is significant
that one of the most thriving manufacturing businesses already
established here advertises its premises as "The Factory
in a Garden." And where better could a factory be placed?
Natal,
of course, owes its name to that famous navigator of old Portugal,
Vasco da Gama, who in 1497, voyaging around the south of Africa
in quest of a sea route to the Golden East, sighted our coast
on the day of the Lord's Nativity. For centuries, however
Natal remained merely a name on a map. Its real history may
be said to date from 1824 when Lieutenant Farewell, of the
King's Navy, hoisted the Union Jack on the Bluff, the commanding
headland that screens from southern squalls the harbour of
Port Natal.
Durban
Bay, as we call it to-day, was then but a shallow, reed-grown
lagoon, its shores lined with mangrove swamps, where lions
and elephants roamed at large. At the present time, on the
balks of this once desolate and dangerous sheet of water,
vast industries are developing and harbour works have been
brought into being at a cost exceeding seven millions sterling.
The harbour
entrance, with a depth of water at low tide of 37 feet, admits
the largest ships trading to the Southern Hemisphere. Deep-water
berths are available for vessels of the largest tonnage. Here
is a floating dock, capable of effecting repairs or overhaul
at short notice; yonder at Congella is the Prince Edward Graving
Dock, the largest south of "the Line," and about
the third largest in the world.
All around
the Bay are seen evidences of Durban's pre-eminence as a port.
On the Bluff side one sees the whaling factory, also the very
modern and efficient coaling appliances; at Island View, the
extensive oil sites, where mammoth tanks have been erected
, storing many millions of gallons of petrol, paraffin and
crude oils; at Congella, the great terminal grain elevator,
where South Africa's harvests of maize are fed into the holds
of steamships calling here for that purpose. From this elevator
grain can be poured forth at the rate of a thousand tons an
hour, and its total storage capacity is 42,000 tons.
Not without
strife and adversity was Natal wrested from barbarism to become
a thriving modern settlement. Lieutenant Farewell, as the
result of negotiations with the Zulu despot, Chaka, secured
the cession of 25 miles of the coastland of Natal, together
with 100 square miles of its hinterland. Here was established
the first white settlement, with Durban (originally named
"D' Urban in honour of the then Governor of the Cape
Colony) as its port. Hither came pioneer settlers from the
Cape and from overseas, bringing with them habits of industry
and thrift, and gradually winning from the wilds the wherewithal
to establish themselves and their families and to lay the
foundations of the Durban of to-day .
Permanent
memorials of those strenuous days are among the cherished
possessions of the borough. On the Esplanade, facing the waters
of the Bay, stands an equestrian statue of Dick King, "the
saviour of Natal," who rode 600 miles through dangerous
country to the nearest British garrison at Grahamstown, Cape
Colony, to bring relief to the beleaguered force at the Old
Fort, a building which is preserved to this day as one of
the historic show-places of the borough.
Natal
was finally declared British territory in 1843; Durban was
incorporated as a borough, and then began the era of progress,
both civic and commercial, which has culminated in a modern
city that is destined to become infinitely greater as time
goes on .
lt is
to this home of industry and commerce that the attention of
the modern world of affairs is directed. To the industrialist
seeking new worlds to conquer, to the manufacturer of world-commodities
seeking to extend his trade, we say emphatically, " Come
to Durban."
Windjammers
in harbour 40 years ago (1890s??)
Land
reclamation and wharf extension, Congella.
INDUSTRIAL
DURBAN'S CALL
To the
industrialist seeking expansion for his energies in the exploitation
of new markets Durban must strongly appeal. There can be no
question as to the advantages the town derives from its unique
geographical position, its splendid harbour, its transport
facilities linking it up with every quarter of the Union.
Durban
is the essential port, not only for the whole of Natal and
East Griqualand, but also for large portions of the farther
hinterland. It is the commercial centre of the sugar industry,
a great and valued asset; it is admittedly the premier port
for coal shipments; it is a principal centre for the export
of maize wool, wattle bark and other Union products.
For factories
there are suitable sites available; also there is an abundance
of labour of a necessary type. Factory land for sale on either
a leasehold or freehold basis is being gradually added to
the industrial area already laid out; and there are good and
economical services of electric power, light and water.
At Congella,
already a thriving industrial area, a further large extent
of land has been marked out for development for factory purposes.
A large area is available here for addition to the now recognised
industrial zone.This land enjoys dequate railway facilities,
with the provision of special sidings, and, in certain cases,
access to a water frontage.
Durban
is "The gateway to the East," but more important
to the industrialist, it is also the gateway to the African
interior, thus affording immense possibilities for trade.
If industrialists will turn their eyes to that - Greater Africa
north of the Limpopo and visualise the requirements of the
millions of native people there, to say nothing of the rapidly-growing
white population, they will see vast possibilities for an
extension of their activities, with Durban as their industrial
base.
That Durban
is growing phenomenally is beyond all question. Within
ten years the population has increased from 93,000 to nearly
130,000, while the rateable value of property has risen from
£14,000,000 to over £27,000,000.
Ten years
ago electrical consumption was 28,000,000 units. This year
it has risen to 84,500,000 units, with the prospect of a further
enormous increase in the output of its giant power station
at Congella should the proposed electrification of the railway
line from Durban to Maritzburg be carried through. Ten years
ago, 2,307 licenses for motor vehicles had been taken out.
To-day the number exceeds 8,500. These are facts that speak
volumes. Durban's foundations have been well and truly laid.
lts status as an outstanding centre for industries is assured.
The Durban
Town Council is anxious to consider the needs of the small
manufacturing business as well as those of larger concerns.
Every application for land, either on a freehold or a leasehold
basis is carefully and sympathetically considered.
Of paramount
importance to industrialists is an adequate water supply.
Durban's waterworks rank among the most modern and most efficient
in the world. There is a daily supply of 15,000,000 gallons
available from the Umlaas River. The Shongweni scheme, which
includes the great Vernon Hooper dam, 30 miles from Durban,
was completed in 1928 at a cost of £960,000. The dam
has a storage capacity of 2,600,000,000 gallons, and is provided
with flood diversion works for the disposal of silt, a special
feature in tile design. The filtration system consists of
both slow-sand and rapid-gravity filters.
Judged
by British standards Durban holds a premier position in the
weekly bacteriological and chemical analyses of its water.
The tariff of charges for industrial supplies is exceptionally
low.
POINTS
TO REMEMBER.
1. Durban
Harbour is an enclosed bay, capable of admitting the largest
vessels, and with adequate wharf accommodation at its Point
and Congella quays.
2. The
total tonnage of cargoes landed and shipped during 1929 was
5,282,477 tons. The coal exported in the same period amounted
to 1,532,689 short tons; bunkered coal 1,214,784 short tons.
Wool exported for the same period totalled 105,672 tons.
3. There
are special industrial areas with access to wharves and railway
sidings.
4. There
are plenty of available industrial sites for future development.
5. The
specially reclaimed area of 80 acres at Island View for oil
sites, and having its own water frontage, is already furnished
with privately-owned tanks, the total storage capacity of
which is approximately as follows:-
Petrol
- 17,000,000 gallons,
Paraflin - 4,000,000
Oil Fuel - 6,000,000
6. An
amount exceeding £7,000,000 has been spent on the development
of Durban harbour.
7. The
Durban graving dock is the largest in the Southern Hemisphere.
8. The
most extensive electrical power station in the Union is situated
at Durban.
These
are facts deserving the close attention of the industrialist
anxious to establish new markets and create new contacts.
The advantages Durban is able to offer open up a vista of
future profits based upon sound economic conditions. The town's
facilities for distribution alone should claim special attention.
It has been predicted that well within ten years from now
the town will be the most flourishing centre of general industry
in the South African Union.
Ground
storage of coal at the Bluff
Durban's
Coaling Appliances
DURBAN
A WORLD CENTRE
IMPORTS
AND EXPORTS
FROM every
view-point, industrial, commercial and maritime, Durban"s
position is one of the greatest value and importance. Consider
it, for example, as a port of departure for Great Britain
and Europe, Australia, India and the Far East.
The steaming
distance from Southampton to Durban is 6,809 miles via Capetown
and 8,380 via the Suez Canal. From Capetown the port of Durban
is distant 822 miles by sea; from Port Elizabeth 384 miles;
from East London 253; from Lourenco Marques 295; from Beira
767 and from Mombasa 2,002.
As showing
the extent of the world-markets open to Durban one class of
export, coal, may be taken as a typical example. Recent coal
shipments have been consigned to the following places:-
East
African and Red Sea Ports: Lourenco Marques, Beira, Chinde,
Dar-es-Salaam (Tanganyika Territory), Mozambique, Tanga, Mombasa,
(Kenya), Massawa, Basra, Djibouti, Aden, Port Sudan and Port
Said, also to the islands of Madagascar, Mauritius and the
Seychelles.
West
African Ports: Dakar, Burutu (Nigeria), Seccondee, Mossamedes,
Las Palmas.
Indian
Ports: Bombay, Karachi, Madras, Colombo, Rangoon.
The
Far East: Singapore, Penang, The Philippines, Java and
Siamese Ports.
South
America: Rio de Janiero, Santos, Monte Video, Buenos Aires,
Bahia Blanca, Rosario.
South
Shetland Islands, Kerguelen Islands, Island of South Georgia.
Mediterranean
Ports: Alexandria, Piraeus, Trieste, Genoa, Naples and
Gibraltar.
In addition
coke shipments have been made to certain of the ports mentioned
in the foregoing list.
In considering
the centres quoted one should remember that there exists,
in many cases, a teeming population of natives in occupation
of the hinterland, and capable of offering an enormous trade
in almost every description of raw material. In addition,
and lying nearer home, there are vast potentialities in the
way of trade with the native populations of the Union, Rhodesia,
and the East and Central African territories.
In the
year 1929 Durban shipments, in addition to the coal and wool
exports quoted elsewhere in this brochure, totalled 2,306
tons of timber;and in general cargoes, 1,090,410 tons, including
266,477 tons of maize, 12,706 tons of citrus fruits, and large
shipments of other produce.
The imports
consist largely of machinery, timber, railway material, oil
fuel, explosives, and industrial raw materials of many kinds.
An interesting
feature of the South African import trade is the remarkable
increase in the number of motor car parts arriving here, to
be assembled locally in factories established for that purpose.
The construction of motor car bodies, also the body-work for
lorries and 'buses, is becoming a flourishing South African
industry. In these developments Durban is destined to bear
her part, and an interesting possibility of the near future
is the inauguration of a local assembling plant for British
motor trucks, for which there is an ever-growing demand. Important
assembly plants for agricultural implements have already been
established.
Harbour
trade provides a fairly accurate barometer of a country's
progress and development as a whole. It is possible by this
means to observe the effects following upon expansion in such
staple industries as mining and agriculture. In the former
case, we have the larger or smaller importations of machinery
and material of all kinds required for the mines, and of the
various commodities consumed by an army of mining employees.
The growth
of the port of Durban has been facilitated since the time
when the difficulties in the way of securing a safe entrance
for shipping were overcome. The arduous engineering work undertaken
in clearing the formidable sand-bar at the harbour's mouth
constitutes the story of a stern struggle against the forces
of nature, and the harbour of to-day stands as a tribute to
the skill and perseverance that brought the task to a successful
issue. Names to be honoured in this connection are those of'
Mr. John Milne, Captain Vetch, Mr. Edward Innes, Mr. C. W.
Methven Mr. C. J. Crofts, and the eminent British Engineers,
Sir Charles Hartley and Sir John Wolfe Barry. Deep waterways
have been dredged from the harbour mouth to Congella, where
ships of the Imperial Navy and mail steamers of 13,000 tons,
and even greater tonnage, are now successfully docked.
At the
height of the grain season one may see quantities of maize
in bags being handled at the Point, as distinct from bulk
export via the giant elevator at Congella. Easily the largest
share of the Union maize export falls to Durban.
The water area at H.W.O.S.T. of Durban Harbour is approximately
6.5
square miles. The harbour entrance has a depth of 37 feet
at low water, the navigable width of the entrance channel
between the North Pier end and the South Breakwater being
450 feet, Widening immediately on entering to 500 feet. Work
is now in progress for an extension of the southern arm by
some 300 feet.
The depths
of water alongside the Point wharves vary from 38 feet 6 inches
to 23 feet, in each case calculated at low water. The wharves
are supplied with eleven spacious goods sheds and Bond store,
with a total floor area of 723,497 square feet, and a capacity
of 9,278,187 cubic feet. The capacity of the outside storage
accommodation is 7,278,139 cubic feet.
The coaling
appliances and the special coaling bins on the Bluff side
of the harbour have a total storage capacity of 70,000 tons
and are capable of coaling several ships simultaneously at
the rate of 1,000 tons per hour. In addition, considerable
bunkering operations are undertaken at the wharves on the
Point side, the work proceeding concurrently with the loading
or landing of cargo. There is ample cold storage accommodation,
with a capacity of 2,000 tons, at the Point and Congella,
including up-to-date and extensive pre-cooling facilities
for the export of fruit.
The graving
dock has a length (divided into two compartments) of 1,150
feet, the width at entrance being 110 feet, width at coping
138.5 feet, depth over sill at low water 35 feet. Filling
time, 47 minutes, emptying in 4 hours. The volume of water
content is 38,118,000 gallons.
Maydon
Wharf at Congella is steadily increasing in length as further
areas of foreshore are reclaimed and enclosed.
In the
course of the year larger tonnages are landed and shipped
at Durban than at all the other ports of the Union of South
Africa put together, a fact which entitles it to be regarded
incontestably as South Africa's premier commercial port. Of
the cargo handled at all Union ports during 1929, no less
a percentage than 59.5 can be accredited to Durban.
INCOMPARABLE
SHIPPING FACILITIES
SHIPS
from the seven seas find sure and ready anchorage at Durban.
Both at the Point wharves and at Maydon Wharf, Congella -
eventually to be linked up in a continuous scheme of wharfage
- there is ample berthage for passenger and cargo vessels,
large and small.
Here great
tramp steamers discharge their varied freights from Britain
and the Continent, from America and Canada, from India and
the Farther East. Here also vessels from the Baltic, the Gulf
and the Pacific Coast disgorge great stores of timber for
the Congella wood-yards and saw-mills, whence supplies are
sent to Johannesburg for the mines, and to all quarters of
the Union for manufacturing purposes.
And here,
at the water's verge, with shipping facilities second to none
in the world, any industry entailing the use of raw materials
from overseas, or intending to utilise South African raw materials
for manufacturing and export purposes, is ideally placed.
In any
list of the steamships trading to Port Natal, pride of place
must be apportioned to the Union-Castle Mail Steamship Company,
whose fine fleet of passenger and cargo vessels has played
no inconsiderable part in the development of modern South
Africa. For many years past the "Castle" liners
have carried the South African mails, rendering faithful service.
Majestic
vessels all, their distinctive colour-scheme marks them out
on the high seas and familiarises them in the minds of men
as units of the most famous fleet trading to the Southern
Hemisphere.
Of great
publicity value to South Africa are such ships as the Carnarvon
Castle, the Arundel, the Windsor, the Dunbar and others, for
wherever these are seen they give rise to thoughts of South
Africa, and serve as a constant reminder of the forward strides
the Union is making in commerce and industry.
The Government
of South Africa, seeking equitable conditions in regard to
shipping in the best interests of all concerned, has devised
certain measures aiming at the regulation of cargo rates.
An agreement
between the Government of the Union of South Africa, the Perishable
Products Export Control Board and the Union-Castle Steamship
Company is now in force, whereby freight rates, refrigerated
space, etc., are fixed. The agreement is for ten years, but
at the end of five years can be terminated on twelve month's
notice from either side. The freight arrangements included
in this agreement apply also to goods shipped by the steamers
of what are known as the Conference Lines.
By the
creation of the Union Shipping Board the Government has taken
further steps to ensure that shipping conditions shall be
fairly adjusted and from time to time revised in the interests
of fair treatment for all sections concerned.
SHIPPING
LINES AND PORTS OF CALL
A glance
at any shipping map of the world is sufficient to show Durban's
predominance in the Southern Hemisphere as a port enjoying
direct communication with virtually every portion of the globe.
Even a direct passenger service to America, hitherto impracticable
save by favour of an occasional cargo boat, is now supplied
by the inauguration of the American- South African Line, with
monthly sailings to and from the States, thus effecting a
saving of time and money as compared with what has hitherto
been the prevalent practice of voyaging to America via England.
Hereunder
are given the principal shipping lines trading to Natal, with
their offices or agents in Durban:-
American-South
African Line - J. T. Rennie & Sons, Smith Street.
Blue Funnel
Line - Wm. Cotts & Co., Ltd., Smith Street and the Point.
British
India Line - W. Dunn & Co., Commercial Road and the Point.
Clan Line
- Clan - Houston (Pty.) Ltd., Smith Street.
Deutsche
Africa Dienst - (Embracing the several German services to
South Africa.) Offices, Gardiner Street.
Ellerman
& Bucknall Line - Ellerman & Bucknall (Pty.) Ltd.,
Field and Smith Streets, and the Point.
Hall Line
- Ellerman & Bucknall (Pty.) Ltd., Field and Smith Streets,
and the Point.
Harrison
Line - J. T. Rennie & Sons, Smith Street.
Holland-Afrika
Lijn - Holland-Africa Line Agency, Smith
Street.
Houston
Line - Clan-Houston (Pty.) Ltd., Smith Street.
Indian-African
Line - J. T. Rennie & Sons, Smith Street.
Natal
Direct Line - King & Sons, Smith Street.
Navagazione
Libera Triestina - J. T. Rennie & Sons, Smith Street.
Nippon
Yusen Kaisha - Wm. Cotts & Co., Ltd., Smith Street and
the Point
OSAKA
Shosen Kaisha - Ellerman & Bucknall (Pty.) Ltd., Field
and Smith Streets, and the Point.
Union-Castle
Mail Steamship Co. - The Union-Castle Company's offices, West
Street and the Point.
White
Star-Aberdeen Line - J. T. Rennie & Sons, Smith Street.
Coasting
Vessels - Messrs. C. G. Smith & Co., Ltd. run coasting
vessels between Durban, Port St. John's and the Cape ports.
Thesen's
Steamship Company - Have a regular coasting service between
Durban, Capetown and South West African ports. Agents, Clan-Houston
(Pty.) Ltd., Smith Street.
Government
Ships - Three vessels owned and employed by the Union Government
are engaged in the coal export trade to the East.
Virtually
every port of the seven seas is touched by one or another
of the lines of steamships enumerated. Not in all the Southern
Hemisphere is there a harbour more efficiently covered than
Durban in either passenger or cargo service.
Should further information be desired we commend to the reader's
notice the offices and agents whose names are quoted and by
whom all enquiries will be promptly and courteously answered.
LABOUR
CHEAP AND ABUNDANT
SOUTH
AFRICA, a land of many races, offers the industrialist this
supreme advantage, that there is available at all times a
large reservoir of native and Indian labour for rough work
and routine factory tasks.
This labour
is cheap as well as abundant. Its existence has assisted,
and is still assisting, in a marked degree the development
of the country's mining, agricultural and industrial resources.
The prosperous sugar-growing industry of Natal, originally
established by the help of imported Indian labour, finds its
chief mainstay in an army of mill and field-workers drawn
from the Asiatic and Bantu races.
Not the
least of Durban's attractions for the industrialist is its
large force of native and Asiatic labour. Of the present estimated
population of "Greater Durban," i.e., the municipal
area and its surrounding districts, approximately fifty per
cent. are of the coloured races. Resulting from the presence
of this army of non-European workers, the white man, as a
labour unit, is restricted in a considerable degree to the
more highly-paid lines of the skilled trades or to the work
of supervising and controlling the unskilled labourers.
In Durban
Borough alone there are over 30,000 working natives, and they
are a body that can be reinforced at will from the Natal hinterland,
and, if necessary, from further large reserves in the adjoining
territories of East Griqualand, Pondoland and the Transkei.
Natives,
Asiatics and Europeans are of course employed according to
their gifts in an ascending scale of intelligence. While the
native, usually a good, honest worker, cheerful and industrious,
is necessarily restricted to the lower and rougher forms of
work, the Asiatic is, as a rule, capable of performing duties
calling for a far greater measure of skill and intelligence,
while the positions of responsibility, entailing duties of
supervision and organisation, are naturally allocated to European
employees.
One outstanding
difference marks the employment of natives and Asiatics.
While the native, as a general thing, prefers to fend for
himself in the matter of food and drink, the Asiatic is commonly
employed on inclusive terms- wages plus rations.
The Durban
Corporation provides four large eating-houses for natives,
native quarters with dormitory accommodation for 8,000 and
a married natives' village of 120 cottages. The native women
have a hostel with housing provision for 250 at their disposal
and at the Point and Congella there are barracks for togt
boys (natives who work by the day) and for rickshaw pullers.
Moreover, a scheme for a new native village and location outside
the Borough is being rapidly developed, besides other quarters
within the municipal area. The native, a healthy fellow, can
show a death - rate lower than that of the European.
During the year the death- rate figures per 1,000 of the population
were:- Europeans 8.42, Natives 6.75, Asiatics 14.54 and Coloureds
10.25.
Since
liquor is prohibited to the natives, its sale to them being
a criminal offence, the Durban Corporation has established
a municipal native brewery where kafir beer, similar to that
prepared by the Bantu people in their kraals, is manufactured
for sale at the native eating-houses. It is a healthful, unharmful
drink, with an alcoholic content of only 2.28 per cent. and
can be described as a nourishing food.
Fairly
treated, both natives and Indians make loyal and willing workers.
The prevailing rates of pay are approximately as follows:-
Natives, 2/6 to 3/- per day, with living quarters; Indians,
1/6 to 1/9 per day, plus rations and quarters.
On an
entirely different plane is the question of the housing of
European employees, since individuals of the white races,
especially men and women with family responsibilities, naturally
prefer to make their own arrangements. Nevertheless a word
must be said as to the Housing Schemes of the Durban Corporation.
Fourteen of these schemes have been inaugurated comprising
344 dwelling houses, 268 of them detached and 76 semi-detached.
The houses consist of two, three, four and five rooms, together
with kitchen, pantry, bathroom and outhouses. All have been
erected by private contractors on town lands and sales have
been effected at cost price plus the value of such land. The
average size of each building plot is about 1/9th of an acre.
With the
exception of 39 houses erected for the purpose of letting,
all these dwellings have been sold to the occupants on an
instalment basis spread
over a generous term of years. The terms of purchase have
been an initial payment varying from £25 to £187
and, thereafter, monthly payments varying from £2:19:8
to £8:7:10 spread over terms ranging from 22 to 29 years.
Apart
from these municipal housing schemes the town is rapidly overtaking
the shortage of accommodation that became so acute in the
years following the European war. Houses of a desirable type
are being erected in plenty.
Numerous large blocks of residential flats have been supplied.
For the protection of tenants paying weekly or monthly rentals
for unfurnished accommodation there is a Rent Board, functioning
under Government authority, and armed with full powers to
reduce or adjust such rental conditions as are, in their judgment,
harsh and unconscionable.
Thus both
in labour supply and in the housing accommodation that is
its essential corollary Durban can claim to be remarkably
well equipped. Much of the increased activity in building
work that has been a feature of the past few years is, in
fact a direct result of the industrial expansion that has
taken place in the Durban area. At the present time the industrialist
setting up a plant here may rest assured that his staff will
find ready accommodation and will be in a position to enrol
themselves as citizens of Durban in the happiest conditions.
DURBAN FOR INDUSTRY
IN no
centre in the Union are better facilities offered than in
Durban to the industrialist anxious to open works in South
Africa. Here are cheap power and light, cheap coal, a cheap
and unlimited water supply, and power and unrivalled sites
within easy distance of the harbour and railway.
Maydon
Wharf, Congella, has become an important factor in the working
of the harbour. It is named in honour of a well-remembered
statesman, the Hon. J. G. Maydon, who initiated the scheme
of land reclamation in that area. Here are situated many desirable
industrial sites.
Some 3,000
acres of the adjacent Clairwood land have been acquired by
the Durban Corporation. This is land specially suitable for
industrial purposes, being bounded by the railway and the
main road, with the Umlaas River on the southern boundary.
This river-way will afford natural drainage for any excess
water from factories erected on the estate.
All the
factors necessary for the successful conduct of industrial
undertakings are here present - healthful surroundings, a
satisfactory and economical labour supply, cheap and plentiful
mechanical power and close proximity to an up-to-date port,
with wharfage in the immediate vicinity, as well as ideal
transport facilities to every quarter. It will be strange
if the near future does not see this busy area extending until
the whole of the available space is occupied by productive
industries.
Keeping
pace with the reclamation of the swamps, the Maydon Wharf
has been extended from time to time, and leases have been
entered into between the Railways and Harbours Administration
and business firms for various industrial and commercial enterprises,
thus providing employment for a large number of people and
stimulating manufacturing industry. At the Maydon Wharf many
activities are in progress: near-by raw products from the
tropics are manufactured into soap and its allied articles
for household use; in the huge cold storage, South African
and Rhodesian meats are stored ready for shipment to the overseas
markets.
For the
purposes of the building trade there are stores and factories
in this area, to which timber, cement, galvanised iron, etc.,
are consigned from overseas sources. Other premises are devoted
to the importation and storage of structural steel, machinery,
tubing, piping, etc., or serve as storehouses of local merchants.
Site-holders
in this area are restricted to the loading or discharging
of goods consigned to themselves and are not permitted to
undertake the functions of general forwarding agents, that
work being in the hands of the Railway Administration. Reclamation
is still going on. The present site-holders number 30, and
occupy approximately 344 acres. The diversion of a large volume
of imports and exports to this new area has naturally averted
abnormal congestion in the main centre, the Point.
Practically
the whole of the harbour development was once centred at the
Point, the entrance to the harbour. As already stated, wharves
comprising berths for some 30 steamers, according to size
are provided. There is a large complement of stationary and
travelling cranes, steam, hydraulic and electric, and it is
proposed shortly to establish a powerful floating crane, capable
of lifting 25 tons, for shipping anchored in the harbour,
also an 80-ton wharfside electric crane. A floating 15-ton
crane is supplementary to the wharf cranes. The hydraulic
cranes are being gradually replaced by electrical power, so
as to give more rapid work.
It should
be mentioned that the port of Durban enjoys a high repute
among those great interests in England connected with the
insurance of goods, owing to the comparative freedom from
trouble regarding damage or thefts in cargoes shipped to this
destination. Lloyd's Annual Report has commented favourably
on this feature of Durban harbour work.
Landing
a loco boiler
Offloading
a locomotive chassis of 42 tons.
A glance
at the map will show that Durban is the natural port of ingress
from the African East Coast, India and the Far East, and also
from Australia, while the shorter rail route to the great
centres of industry in the Transvaal places it in a most favourable
position for the importation of goods from Europe, the United
States and Canada. There is an increasing volume of imports
from East Africa, mainly of tropical produces such as rice,
coffee, copra, ground-nuts, etc.
From India
and Ceylon are imported rice, tea and all the grain-bags and
woolpacks required for Durban's cereal and wool requirements.
From Australia comes chiefly wheat, of which large shipments
are constantly arriving for distribution to the various milling
companies in Durban and the interior, indicating that most
of our flour is milled in the Union, where wheat is not grown
in sufficient quantities for home consumption, although the
country is self-supporting in regard to meat and dairy products.
The most notable importations from America are motor cars
and accessories, hardware and many items of engineering equipment.
Canada sends agricultural machinery, heavy consignments of
news-print and wheat and certain other cereals. Of goods coming
from Europe, the greatest volume emanates from Great Britain,
the largest cargoes coming direct to Durban.
During
1929 the cargoes landed at Port Natal represented 38.5 per
cent.
of the total incoming cargoes at all Union harbours.
The principal
exports, exclusive of coal, are maize, wool, skins, hides,
mohair, sugar, wattle-bark and cotton. Recently gold in increasing
quantity has been leaving the port for India, and a strong
trade has been growing up in the base metals and in minerals
such as fluorspar and chrome ore, while arrangements have
now been completed for regular weekly exports of manganese
ore from the special quay at Congella of the Manganese Corporation
Limited.
The Port
Captain controls the tugs, lighters and other craft concerned
with port work, and also the efficient pilot service. The
maintenance of the system of buildings, quays, wharves, railways
and equipment comes under the care of the Harbour Engineer,
while a Harbour Advisory Board tenders its counsel to the
Administration from time to time.
RAW
MATERIALS AT DURBANS DOORS
DURBAN
is in the most favourable position possible for supplies of
raw materials from areas in close proximity to the town, from
the interior, and from overseas. For convenience, some of
the principal raw materials of South African origin may be
classified under animal, vegetable and mineral sections.
ANIMAL
RAW MATERIALS
WOOL.-The
breeding of woolled sheep is one of the most important industries
of South Africa. As nearly all the suitable country for sheep-
rearing in Natal ,the Cape and the Orange Free State is already
fully stocked, future development in wool production may be
expelled principally in the Transvaal, with Durban as its
export port. The Union's exports of wool last year were of
a total value of £ 14,521,088.
MOHA1R.-
This is obtained from the Cape and Orange Free State, the
latter Province shipping overseas via Durban.
HlDES.
-The South African output of hides, large quantities of which
are handled in Durban warehouses, has considerably increased
during late years. The South African exports during 1929 were
valued at £1,123,798.
SHEEP
and Goat Skins. - These are mainly exported to the London
market for the manufacture of gloves and leather of fine texture.
The consignments sent overseas from the Union last year had
a value of £1,939,198.
WHALE
OIL.- Durban as the leading centre of the whaling industry
in South Africa, is a very large producer of whale oils. During
1929 there was a total export of nearly 4,000,000 gallons.
In addition, large quantities of whale meat are used locally
for various industrial processes, one of these being the manufacture
of fertilisers. In the past season 1798 whales (sperm, hump,
blue, fin, and sei) were landed at Durban.
VEGETABLE
RAW MATERIALS
MAIZE.
- This one of the principle agricultural products of the Union
and last year there were 3,103,000 morgen under maize cultivation.
The most fruitful maize fields of Natal are in the Midlands.
There is still much scope for maize-growing. The by-products
include samp, flaked maize, table mealie meal, mealie rice,
cattle food, cornflour starch, glucose, maize oil and oil-cake
meal. The exports of maize during 1929 amounted to 728,900,543
lbs., valued at £2,311,542 and of maise meal 160,840,555
lbs., valued at £512,009. The lion's share of this export
business falls to the lot of Durban.
POTATOES.-
The Transvaal high-veld and the Eastern Free State are the
largest producing areas, although potatoes grow well all over
the Union. The exports in 1929 were valued at £19,018,
and there is, of course, a large local demand.
COTTON
(Unginned). - This industry is yet in its infancy, but it
is steadily growing. A total of approximately 100,000 pounds
of cotton lint is used in the Union, the remainder being exported
through Durban. There are ginning plants in Natal and Zululand.
TOBACCO.-
The Transvaal is the largest producer of good quality leaf.
Natal grows a medium dark type, used in the manufacture of
cigars, and a cheap grade pipe tobacco is also produced. The
total exports from the Union last year amounted to 1,099,178
pounds valued at £73,507. In Southern Rhodesia there
is an increasing output of leaf, large exports of which pass
through Durban.
TEA.-The
only South African tea is grown in Natal, in the neighbourhood
of Stanger. Although of excellent quality, with a savour peculiarly
its own, the product is principally used for purposes of blending.
The quantity exported during 1929 was 147,325 pounds valued
at £7,964.
GROUND-NUTS.-
This crop is grown principally in Natal and the Transvaal,
also in great quantities in the East African territories.
It is anticipated that the cultivation of ground-nuts in the
future will grow extensively, owing to the increasing demand
for oil-producing nuts.
PAPER-MAKING
GRASSES. -In the Union the grasses suitable for the manufacture
of paper are Johnson Grass (Transvaal), Dek Grass (Transvaal),
Tambookie grasses (Union), Schiza Chyrium Semibeele (Transvaal)
and Papyrus (Union). Spent wattle-bark (Natal) has been found
suitable for the making of news-print and packing paper, but
the industry cannot be said to have emerged from the experimental
stage, so far as this country is concerned.
SUGAR.-
A very important industry of Natal and Zululand, employing
a capital investment of many millions sterling. There are
important by-products in treacle, wax, raw spirit and fertilisers.
In 1929 there were exported from Durban 236,664,426 pounds
of sugar, valued at £1,194,751. ndustrialists should
note that the sugar industry of Natal is required by statute
to supply sugar as a raw material for such industries as confectionery,
jams, jellies, etc. at a price materially lower than that
at which it is sold to the general consumer.
WATTLE
BARK.- The cultivation of the wattle has long been a leading
industry of Natal. The average output of Natal trees is about
60,000 tons of dry bark per annum. Wattle extract is also
prepared and exported. For the year 1929 bark valued at £513,542
and wattle bark extract valued at £241,695 were exported,
the whole being shipped through Durban.
OS1ERS.-
These are grown in Natal and parts of the Transvaal. The entire
available supplies are at present taken up locally for wickerwork
and basket-making.
FRUITS.-Although
much of the fruit raised in the Union is used locally in various
industrial enterprises, there is a large export of both citrus
and deciduous fruits, the figures for 1929 being: citrus,
1,092,907 boxes, valued at £545,651; deciduous, 1,154,735
boxes, valued at £248,059; grapes, 516,661 boxes, valued
at £150,868. Durban enjoys a commanding share of the
citrus exports and also handles large consignments of grape-fruits,
apples, pears and apricots.
MINERAL
RAW MATERIALS
COAL.-
Nata1 and the Transvaal are the principal producing areas.
The total output of the Natal collieries is about 5,000,000
tons per annum. Durban is the premier port for coal exports.
In 1929 the shipments were 1,832,249 tons, valued at £940,117.
There is a growing demand for coke and other by-products.
A cheap and dependable supply of coal is an important asset
of "Industrial Durban," about I6s. 6d. being an
average price per ton of 2,000 pounds delivered.
ASBESTOS.-Enormous
deposits of asbestos exist in the Union, which holds the world's
record as to variety and length of fibre. Asbestos sheets
used extensively in building construction are manufactured
locally in large quantities. The exports (valued in 1929 at
£183,645) pass in the main through Durban.
CORUNDUM.-
The largest known deposits in the world are situated in the
Transvaal and the Cape. The output has shewn a sharp increase
in recent years, the exports for 1929 being valued at £33,632
as against £16,914 in 1928.
MANGANESE.
- Large deposits are known to exist in the Union. Extensive
marketable quantities have been discovered in the Postmasburg
District, near Kimberly, and regular exports through Durban
are now in progress.
SALT.-Large
quantities of coarse, medium and fine salt are produced in
the Transvaal, the Cape and the Orange Free State, Durban
receiving a large share of the Transvaal and Free State outputs.
CLAYS.-Fire
clays are found in the coal measures of the Union. Pottery
clays are derived from the Transvaal coal fields, while common
clays, for brickmaking, pipes and tiles, are produced on a
large scale in many parts of the country.
CHROME
ORE.- This Transvaal ore is winning its way into the markets
of the world. Durban already handles large shipments and will
be the port benefiting from future developments. In 1929 the
quantity shipped was 42,291 tons, valued at £72,111.
WHERE
INDUSTRIAL SITES ARE AVAILABLE
PLOTS
WITH RAILWAY SIDINGS
Within
the confines of Durban's own municipal estate very little
industrial land remains unoccupied. All told, there are only
130 acres available for further factory accommodation within
the civic boundaries, exclusive of certain reclaimed land
bordering on Durban Bay, the property of the South African
Railways and Harbours Administration. By reference to the
Durban map issued with this brochure, the available municipal
sites may readily be located and their advantages as to position
and facilities appreciated.
At Congella,
in the heart of the industrial area of Durban, only an area
of about 35 acres remains to be taken up. This land abuts
on the main line of railways. The whole of this area is served
by railway sidings constructed by the municipality. Blocks
of land from 1.5 acres to 10 acres can be obtained.
AT
CONGELLA AND ELSEWHERE.
About
20 acres of industrial land stand vacant between the Congella
railway station and the municipal stone yard, and between
the Congella road extension and the South Coast line. This
land, upon application, also could be served by railway sidings.
Another small area of 12.5 acres is situated immediately opposite
the Stamford Hill railway station, on the east side of the
North Coast railway line, and adjoining the Agricultural Show
Grounds. Here again railway sidings are available.
Nearby
is a limited area of some 2.5 acres of land, admirably adapted
for factories, between the Umgeni Road and the North Coast
railway line; these sites are served by railway sidings. Lastly,
so far as land within the borough is concerned, there is an
area of some 75 acres situated on the east side of the North
Coast line between Athlone Drive and the Umgeni River. Sites
located here could be served with railway sidings from either
Umgeni or Stamford Hill stations.
All these
sites within the borough boundaries, including a number of
estates privately owned, enjoy the advantages of Durban's
remarkably efficient civic services, including light and power
supplies, water service passenger transport hardened roads
and so forth.
In private
ownership outside the borough, there are large areas of land
admirably adapted for industrial use, such areas are already
or can be in the future linked up with the municipal lighting
power and water supplies.
The Durban
Corporation has purchased from time to time, with a view to
various municipal purposes, sundry areas of land outside its
own jurisdiction. At Wentworth, for example, the Corporation
owns some 30 acres of perfectly flat land which could participate
in the benefits of all municipal services with the exception
of sewerage.
NEW
INDUSTRIAL ESTATE
In view
of the rapid industrial development now in evidence, the Corporation
has felt for some time past that it should acquire further
extra- municipal land with a view to its development on the
best lines for factory use. Negotiations for the purchase
of some 3,000 acres at Clairwood in close proximity to the
main line of railway, have now been completed. Not only are
600 acres of this block of land eminently suitable for industrial
establishments, but the upper slopes provide ideal sites for
residence.
Inevitably
in the very near future Durban must break down the barriers
that circumscribe her civic jurisdiction. The 8,210 acres
comprising the municipal area are all insufficient for the
borough's growing needs. A Government Commission has this
matter under inquiry at the time of writing. With the town's
boundaries extended - a probability of the very near future
- the civic amenities and facilities will apply to the many
industrial undertakings that are springing into life in the
outer areas.
SALES
IN FREEHOLD
While
it is impossible to quote hard-and-fast prices for industrial
land in the Durban area - for so much must depend upon location
and the class of industry concerned - it may be stated that
recent sales in freehold in the Congella district have been
on the basis of £1,500 per acre freehold.
LEASEHOLD
TENURE.
In the
case of leasehold land acquired from the Corporation, the
terms are a 93 years' lease, the first period of the lease
being for 30 years with three renewals of 21 years each. The
fixed rental per annum for the first period of lease is subject
to arrangement with the Town Council or by arbitration. The
lease is purchased on an upset bonus, and not on the rental.
The value of the land for leasehold tenure is assumed to be
approximately £1,00 per acre, which, calculated at 6%,
gives a rental of £60 per annum per acre.
POSSIBILITIES
EXISTING
INDUSTRIES AND OTHERS THAT MIGHT BE ESTABLISHED
It is
important that the industrialist whom this brochure may interest
should know what industries already exist in the Durban area,
not necessarily for the reason that there may be no further
openings in the same lines of business, but rather as information
likely to play a useful part in the plans to be formulated
in connection with any new local enterprise. For how often
we find that industries are inter-dependent in these days
of specialisation. Manufacturers co-operate; or they specialise
in particular "parts" or special processes essential
to other industrialists; or they are out to attract the actual
consumer by means of "branded" goods exhaustively
advertised; or again, they restrict themselves to what is
known as "work for the trade."
According
to figures quoted in the latest industrial census, there were
1,180 industrial factories already existent in the Province
of Natal, the majority of which would be situated in Durban
and its close vicinity. The kinds of industrial establishments
already working are listed under the following classifications:-
Treatment
of Agricultural Raw Materials.- Wool scouring, corn crushing,
poultry food, cotton ginning. wattle bark (grinding and
compressing).
Processes
in stone clay earthenware and glass, asbestos, asphalts,
bricks tiles etc., modelling in cement, lime, glass, marble,
stone and masonry, crushed stone and macadam-making.
Wood-Working.-
Baskets, brushes and brooms, carpentry and joinery saw mills
packing cases.
Metals.-
Engineering, machinery and cutlery, agricultural implements,
brass and copper works, knife grinding enamelling, blacksmithing
engineering works and steel works, tramway workshops, railway
workshops mine workshops, galvanised iron works, plumbing,
gunsmiths, wire works, gates and fences, typewriter repairs,
scale repairs.
Foods,
Drinks Condiments and Tobaccos.- Bacon, ham, butter, cheese,
ice works, cold storage, bakeries biscuits, jam, jelly powders,
canned fruit, sweets coffee roasting, pickles, sauces, vinegar,
macaroni, flour and grain mills, sugar mills and refineries,
tea factories, aerated waters, breweries, tobacco and snuff.
Clothing.-
Textile fabrics and similar articles, millinery, dressmaking,
tailoring, clothing factories, dyeing and cleaning, bats
and caps, mats and matting, tents and tarpaulins.
Books,
Paper, Printing and Engraving.- Printing and book-binding,
paper bags, photo engraving.
Vehicles (mechanically propelled and otherwise), also fittings
for and parts of vehicles. Coaches and wagons, cycles and
motors, coach-painting, ricksha building, carriage upholstering.
Furniture,
Bedding and Upholstering.- Billiard tables, chairs, furniture
and cabinet-making, mattresses, picture frames.
Drugs,
Chemicals, Paints, Varnishes And Allied Products.- Baking
powder, candles and soap, explosives, matches, fertilisers,
oil and grease, paints and varnishes, chemists' manufactures,
tanning extras, tar.
Jewellery.-
Watches and clocks, plated ware, electroplating.
Heat,
Light And Power.- Electric light and power, electrical engineering,
acetylene gas, coke, telephones, telegraphic construction,
motor and other spirits for fuel.
Leather
and Leather Ware.- Boots and shoes, harness and saddlery,
leather bags, tanneries.
Building
AND Contracting.- Building, contracting, painting, decorating,
sign- writing, elevators.
Other
Industries.- Musical instruments, rubber goods, toys and
whaling.
Large
and varied as this list appears, there is an abundance of
room for further industrial activity, in view of the unique
opportunities that this centre can offer in shipping, overland
transport, light, water, power, and a vast reservoir of cheap,
unskilled labour. In this connection the list, given elsewhere
in these pages, of raw materials of African origins available
in many cases within short distances of the Durban industrial
area should be of interest and value.
WITHIN
TARIFF WALLS
PROTECTION
FOR DURBAN INDUSTRIES
For many
years past the trend of Government Policy in South Africa
has been in the direction of a "scientific tariff'' designed
to give adequate protection, not only to infant industries
struggling to secure a foothold in the world's markets, but
also to establish industrial undertakings whose operations
are of advantage to the country. Little by little "tariff
walls" held to be adequate to the purpose in view have
been built up. In addition, "dumping duties'' are imposed
in all cases where these are shewn to be necessary.
These
are points of paramount importance to the industrialist intending
to open up works in Durban.
Shielded
by tariff wails, and protected against unscrupulous dumping
tactics on the part of overseas rivals, a Durban industry
may be said to be in the fullest sense a protected industry.
Nor does this apply only to manufactured goods. The State,
in its wisdom, has decreed that its policy of encouragement
shall be extended to what one may term the "packing"
and "assembling" industries.
Tea importers
and dealers, for example, pay a less duty on tea shipped to
South Africa in bulk than if the same commodity were landed
here in pound, half-pound and other packets, ready for distribution
to the retail trade. Proprietors of well known and advertised
blends of tea have been quick to perceive their opportunity
in this matter, and by the inauguration of their blending
and packing plants in South Africa, a local industry has been
created, resulting in the opening-up of a useful avenue of
employment.
The same
may be said of the importation of machinery and motor car
parts for assemblage in the Union. The important inducement
of a reduced duty has led to the establishment of large assembly
plants in the country, more particularly in regard to motor
cars and agricultural implements. Alternatively, the Director
of Publicity, Durban Publicity Association, P.O. Box 1904
Durban, Natal, will be happy at any time to answer inquiries
with regard to the inauguration of any particular industry.
With but
a few exceptions, there is a free exchange of commodities
as between the Union of South Africa and Northern and Southern
Rhodesia. Under the Customs agreements recently concluded
between the Union and the Rhodesias, duties are leviable on
ale, beer, stout, cider and sherry (exceeding 3 % of proof
spirit) wines, cigarettes and tobacco manufactures and motor
vehicles assembled in the Union upon importation into Southern
Rhodesia, and the importation of such goods into that territory
will not be allowed unless they have previously been entered
at a duly appointed Customs port of entry in Southern Rhodesia.
Similarly,
duties will be leviable upon the importation into the Union
of the classes of goods referred to above when manufactured
in Southern Rhodesia, and delivery of such goods will not
be granted unless they have previously been entered at a duly
appointed Customs port of entry in the Union.
The foregoing
conditions also apply to the above-mentioned classes of goods
(except motor vehicles) when imported into Northern Rhodesia
from the Union and vice versa.
A
landmark of Durban: The mammoth grain elevator
The
Prince Edward Graving Dock
THE
INFLUENCE Of THE SOUTH AFRICAN RAILWAYS AND HARBOURS ON DURBAN'S
INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT.
THE history
of the industrial development of South Africa is nowhere more
clearly reflected than in the annals of the railway and harbours.
In a country of such vast distances, transport must play a
dominant part in every important sphere of activity, and the
numerous services operated by the Railways and Harbours Administration
have been of inestimable value not only in providing easily
accessible markets, but also in opening up the country, and
thereby facilitating the obtaining of raw materials from producing
centres.
The national
prosperity of South Africa is mainly dependent upon its two
greatest industries, mining and agriculture, and in order
that these two vital features in the country's welfare may
be encouraged to the utmost, the Administration has instituted
a scale of remarkably low tariffs, whereby the vast quantities
of coal and farm produce can be transported to the various
harbours for export overseas, or for use in internal manufacturing,
at rates that compare more than favourably with those in existence
abroad.
The great
State-owned organisation comprising South African Railways
and Harbours does not confine its activities merely to internal
transport services. At the present time it operates over 13,000
route miles of railway, in addition to 11,000 miles of road
motor services, the latter acting as feeders for the former
in those areas where the number of population and quantity
of traffic do not at present justify the construction of a
railway line. The Administration also operates all harbours
along the South African littoral, together with their various
subsidiary services; it controls the numerous lighthouses;
and, further, has a fleet of three steamships, which are chiefly
engaged in the export of coal and the import of railway material.
In furtherance
of its policy of promoting and fostering industry, the Administration
some years ago erected a chain of thirty-seven elevators in
important grain-producing centres, Durban and Capetown also
being served in this respect. Besides facilitating the transport
and export of grain in bulk, these great storehouses have
proved of material benefit to the farmer in that they afford
him an opportunity of storing and marketing his grain to the
best advantage. Further, the receipts issued for grain delivered
to an elevator are negotiable documents in commercial circles.
The Administration has likewise helped largely in the development
of the coal industry, and in this direction the various co-operative
measures that have been introduced have proved a considerable
stimulus in the general industrial advance of Durban, which
is the most important coal port in the Union.
In view
of the enormous quantity of traffic, from the coal-fields
of Natal and the Transvaal, also the continual and heavy consignments
of various crops such as Sugar Cane, Maize, etc., and because
of the mountainous nature of the country traversed by the
railway, inland, the Administration has electrified over 170
mile of the main line in Natal, and as a result of this undertaking,
the service has been accelerated and its carrying capacity
greatly increased. As a further incentive to a phase of industrial
development, the Administration has erected in the Durban
harbour area coal storage bins, with a total capacity of 70,000
tons and up-to-date coaling appliances capable of loading
at the rate of 1,400 tons per hour. These are naturally important
features of the port.
But the
giant grain elevator at Congella, with its capacity of 42,000
tons and able to ship 1,000 tons per hour, and the thoroughly
modern coaling appliances and storage bins at the Bluff, constitute
only a part of the Administration's material efforts in the
fostering of industry. At Island View there is a timber wharf
1,000 feet in length, while near-by are the oil storage sites
where petrol, paraffin and fuel oil can be discharged in bulk
into tanks having a total capacity of over 25,000,000 gallons.
From these tanks, pipe lines are laid which enable the bunkers
of oil-burning ships to be replenished readily and speedily.
Further, an enormous pre-cooling store, for use in connection
with the export of citrus and deciduous fruit, is in course
of construction, and this, when completed, will have a total
capacity of over 2,000 tons.
Durban
Harbour constitutes, to the industrialist, the town's most
vital undertaking, and as behoves its importance it is provided
with every modern facility for the loading, discharging and
storage of cargoes, and with all other essentials such as
quays, tugs, lighters and repairing facilities. Among the
last-named, pride of place must be given to the huge graving
dock, divided into two compartments, which is 1,150 feet long
and 138.5 feet wide at coping and 110 feet in width at the
entrance. In addition, there are the floating dock with a
lifting capacity of 5,000 tons, a floating crane, and a patent
slip capable of lifting small craft. As a result of these
facilities, the shipping industry at Durban embraces an additional
sphere of activity over and above the customary operations
pertaining to the handling of passengers and cargo.
For many
years extensive operations in connection with the reclamation
of low-lying land in the neighbourhood of the harbour have
been carried out, with the result that additional industrial
sites are now available. The Railways and Harbours Administration
is prepared to lease these sites for varying periods, all
particulars with regard thereto being obtainable from the
System Manager, South African Railways and Harbours, Durban.
The variety
and magnitude of the undertakings controlled by the Railways
and Harbours Administration have certainly played a considerable
part in the industrial development of the country generally,
and the rapid growth of Durban to its present high position
is due in no small measure to the progressive and up-to-date
activities in connection with transport by land and sea.
DURBAN
AS AN AIR PORT
In common
with other South African centres, Durban is steadily acquiring
an air sense, and if the town has lagged a little behind certain
of its rivals in aerial development, a fair excuse may be
advanced in the fact that there have been difficulties in
the way of making provision for an aerodrome adequate to the
needs of a first-class aerial port.
Map
of possible airship routes.
Click picture to view enlargement.
That Durban
is destined to become an essential link in Africa's aerial
chain cannot be doubted. Her geographical position ensures
it and her commercial needs demand it.
Rapid
transit by air for passengers and mails has long been recognised
as an essential need of a country like South Africa, a land
of magnificent distances. A first air mail service in 1925,
connecting Durban with Capetown and other coastal centres,
was of an experimental character; but the service inaugurated
last year presents every appearance of permanence. It links
Durban up with East London, Port Elizabeth, Capetown, Bloemfontein
and Johannesburg for air mail purposes, and provides a passenger
as well as a letter-carrying service.
From these
beginnings large developments must spring. It is to the aeroplane
that we must look for the speedy transport of the future.
Supplied, as the town will be before long, with an extended
aerodrome, capable of accommodating the largest 'planes, Durban
will be able to assume a worthy part in the future aerial
progress of the country.
The air
mail from Capetown speeds up the delivery of oversea letters,
via the Cape-Durban railway, by a matter of two days. It is
an important saving of time in a business man's correspondence.
A speedy, direct service to Johannesburg is needed to complete
the chain of aerial services and this undoubtedly will come
in the near future.
PORT
AND PLEASURE RESORT
THE
AMENITIES OF DURBAN
On the
principle that "all work and no play makes Jack a dull
boy" it is important, even when considering a site for
a new industrial establishment, to inquire what are the facilities
for rest and recreation, for entertainment, education, etc.,
in the vicinity. Those who live and work in Durban are favoured
with amenities such as one seldom finds associated with an
industrial centre.
The town
is in the unique position of being both an important business
centre and a pleasure resort of infinite interest and charm.
One hears it spoken of as the "Brighton'' or the "Blackpool''
of South Africa. For the holiday-maker from the hinterland
and for the tourist from overseas there is no populous centre
in the Sub-Continent to exceed Durban's all-the-year-round
attractiveness.
Bathed
in almost perpetual sunshine, the picturesque town nestles
like a gem in its luxuriant setting of greenery. In the town
itself all the resources of modern civilisation are available,
yet in the thick bush of the suburbs monkeys may still be
seen disporting themselves: utterly unafraid of man. In such
places as Riverside, whence a delightful view of Durban is
obtained, the small grey creatures venture among the visitors
in quest of peanuts and bananas.
West and
East are found in a bizarre juxtaposition in Durban, which
is one of the most cosmopolitan towns of the Southern Hemisphere.
Artistic brassiere from India; Kafir curios from the hinterland;
and the latest modes from Paris may be seen in shops placed
side by side, while the call of the Muezzin from the minarets
of Moslem mosques mingles with the church bells of the Christian
faith.
The first
impression visitors receive of Durban is of the extreme cleanliness
of its streets. Everywhere, both in the business centres and
in the beautiful residential suburbs, the roads and sidewalks
appear to be constantly swept and burnished. In the suburbs
stand strikingly attractive private residences, all with their
beautiful gardens. In their various seasons, the tree-lined
roads are resplendent with the beautiful blue blossom of the
jacaranda trees or the brilliant scarlet of the flamboyant,
these being followed in due course by the crimson glories
of the pointsettia, and the flaming orange of the golden shower,
while the bougainvillea and other colourful creepers lend
their allurement to the scene.
The air
is refreshingly cool and exhilarating during the winter season,
and the summer is, except, on a few rare days, not oppressively
hot. The mean maximum and the mean minimum temperatures for
the year are respectively 81 degrees in summer and 63 degrees
in winter. The Durban death-rate among Europeans is very considerably
under that of most European centres.
Sparkling
sea and verdant shore; a splendid beach thronged with bathers
and surf-riders, backed by the Marine Parade with its vista
of stately hotels; the picturesque Esplanade flanking the
bay and offering a two-mile promenade, lined with graceful
palms, reminiscent of a scene on the Riviera; the bold green
headland of the Bluff on the opposite side of the bay, forming
a strong barrier against equinoctial gales, with its lighthouse
flashing its triple warning far out to sea - all these make
up a scene that is charming and colourful, and will linger
long in the memory of visitors when recalling their impressions
of this delightful holiday resort.
Scenic
drives by motor car, 'bus and char-a-banc over good roads
are a popular feature. Picturesque native ricksha-pullers
ply for hire throughout the town. These stalwart Zulus, fantastically
arrayed, are a never-ending source of wonder and interest
to visitors.
Durban
has an efficient municipal tramway service, covering over
40 miles of track, and serving all the necessary termini for
business people; while there is a regular train service for
visiting points of interest on the North and South Coasts.
Entertainments
are lavishly provided. The famous municipal orchestra gives
symphony and popular concerts. For lovers of the drama there
is the Theatre Royal, which has housed many of England's most
famous players. This theatre is shortly to be replaced by
a palatial edifice, to cost £80,000. There are several
excellent cinemas. A broadcasting programme of musical and
vocal numbers, together with the latest news is put "on
the air" daily.
Wireless
plays an important part in Durban life, telegrams via "Overseas"
system being received at any telegraph office at a rate of
1/4 a word for the British Isles. Messages to ships at sea
may be sent through the General Post Office at 11d. per word,
except to vessels of the Argentine, Belgian, Dutch, German,
Greek, Norwegian and Portuguese lines, on which a charge of
3/4 for 10 words is collected, in addition to the Union tariff.
On the
beach is situated the great open-air swimming bath, 300 feet
by 75 feet, depth from 3 feet to 7 feet, with a continuous
flow of sea-water. This is open all the year round and is
the venue for numerous aquatic festivals. Along the beach,
ocean bathing is a great attraction, especially surfing, and
the bathers are under the supervision of an efficient body
of life-savers. Chairs, tents and umbrellas are provided for
the thousands who take the sun-and-air cure along the soft
sands close to the surf.
Durban
has seven picturesque public parks. In the heart of the town
are the Town Gardens, containing memorials to those who fell
in the Anglo- Boer War and the Great War, the latter an impressive
monument with its overturning flame of remembrance, the whole
having for background the magnificent Town Hall, a building
erected at a cost of £352,000. Mitchell Park, on the
Berea, has a splendid collection of aviaries of South African
birds of great value to the ornithologist. No charge is made
for admission.
One historic
spot merits special mention - the Old Fort, rich in memories
of Dick King's famous 600-mile ride to Grahamstown in 1842,
to secure assistance for the beleagured British garrison.
The place has now been converted into a beautiful old-world
garden, with quarters for ex-service veterans, and contains
many interesting relics of the early days, as well as an impressive
Memorial Chapel to those who fell for their country.
Durban
possesses two race-courses, three golf-courses, the finest
grassed polo ground in the Union, many bowling greens, several
football, athletic and cycling grounds, also a number of first-class
tennis courts: including a fine set of municipal courts on
the beach. There are five social clubs - the
Durban, the Royal Natal Yacht, the Mercantile, the Southern,
and the
Union. The Durban Country Club, also on the beach, provides
facilities for golf and other forms of sport, and is also
a joyous social rendezvous.
The Durban
Municipal Library is situated within the Town Hall, as are
also the interesting Museum and Art Gallery. The library contains
about 60,000 volumes on a wide range of subjects, as well
as the principal Empire and South African newspapers. A separate
section caters for the needs of the children.
Durban
has many excellent educational institutions, the largest being
the Natal Technical College: with a site 2.5 acres in extent.
The buildings contain chemical, physical and engineering laboratories,
workshops, cookery kitchens, a large lecture hall and art
school: besides many class-rooms, lecture rooms, and the like.
The Institution is conducted on the lines of a British public
school, its day and evening classes providing a wide variety
of subjects of a technical and cultural nature. It includes
a flourishing day School of Commerce, a School of Art, a Domestic
Science department, and a day school for apprentices. In the
evenings, large numbers of students attend for instruction
in all branches of science, engineering, art, literature,
commerce, accountancy, domestic science, etc.
The cost
of the Natal Technical College to date has been £91,000
and further important extensions of this valuable educational
centre are in contemplation.
Durban
students, by arrangements with the Natal University College
at Maritzburg, can pursue full-time courses for a degree of
the University of South Africa without leaving the town. A
site of 50 acres, commanding splendid views, has been granted
by the municipality for the purpose of giving Durban its own
University College, which is now in course of erection.
Among
other educational establishments may be mentioned the Durban
High School for boys, the Technical High School (for boys
preparing for engineering, industrial, chemistry and commercial
life), the Maris Stella Convent High School for girls, the
Girls' High School, the Girls' College, the Durban Business
College and the Marist Brothers' School for boys. There are
a large number of Government Schools where primary education
is provided free of charge, while many other institutions
are Government-aided.
Inquiries
relating to scholastic facilities in the Durban area may be
addressed to the Director of Publicity at the Publicity Bureau,
P.O. Box 1904, Durban, who will be happy to supply information
on this or any other subject.
KEY
INDUSTRIES OF NATAL
OUTSTANDING
among the industries at present flourishing in Natal, and
worthy perhaps to be distinguished as the "key"
industries of the Province, are the coalfields of Northern
Natal and the vast and fruitful sugar plantations that now
extend almost from end to end of the coastal belt.
The discovery
of coal deposits of high quality may be said to have been
one of the determining factors in the prosperity and the growing
industrial importance of Natal. As a port Durban owes much
to this valuable development. Its cargo and bunker business
in coal, referred to elsewhere in this brochure, is of great
importance to Port Natal and the shipping community.
Of the
highest quality to be found anywhere in Southern Africa the
coal of Natal has proven itself a boon to the industrialists
of Durban and other centres. Supplies for all factory purposes
are available here at short notice, in unlimited quantities,
and at a price that compares most favourably with the fuel
costs of other centres.
In the
manufacture of those byproduct that have coal as their basis
the Natal colliery companies have shown themselves fully abreast
of the times.
Sugar, the second but it would not be fair to say the secondary
"key" industry of Natal, is an undertaking of growing
importance and an industry in which a capital aggregating
many millions sterling has been embarked.
The sugar
farmers and millers, as is abundantly necessary nowadays,
are protected as fully as possible against overseas aggression
by heavy import duties. It is an industry that is carried
on with remarkable acumen and ability by the firms engaged
in it, firms whose verdant plantations and flourishing factories
are conspicuous along the whole of the coastal belt from its
southern extremity to the Zululand littoral.
Both in
planting and in milling methods the industry has shown a constant
vigilance and forethought and is now reaping its reward in
constantly increasing crops and a highly satisfactory average
of sucrose content.
As against
the protection extended to it in the form of import and anti-
dumping duties the industry is bound down by the Government
of the Union to deal fairly by its home consumers. Under the
Sugar Prices Act a maximum retail selling price for the commodity
is immutably fixed.
Furthermore,
the industry is required to supply its commodity at special
rates to industrial users like the manufacturers of sweets
and general confectionery, the factories engaged in the production
of jams and jellies, the pickle manufacturers, and many others.
This last
is a point of prime importance to the industrialist whose
products are in any way based upon sugar.
DURBAN
COMMENDED BY PUBLIC MEN
STATESMEN
and publicists, great captains of industry, leaders of public
thought in every walk of life, have lauded Durban and its
future possibilities. Their words, extracts from which are
published hereunder, offer valuable testimony to the town's
rapid progress and unique potentialities as a great industrial
city of the future.
GENERAL
SMUTS.
General
J. C. Smuts, ex-premier of the Union and one of the world's
outstanding personalities, says of Durban that "it is
rapidly becoming one of the great industrial centres of South
African," and very confidently predicts that "Durban
is going to be one of the great cities of the world."
LORD
MELCHETT.
Speaking
in Durban at a banquet of the South African Sugar Association,
the Right Hon. Lord Melchett paid a cordial tribute to the
town's amenities. "I have been immensely struck with
Natal, and with Durban in particular," he said. "What
puzzles me is how you manage, on such a small white population,
to build up such magnificent cities as this. You have here
superb public buildings, beautiful streets, and apparently
all the luxuries the world affords displayed in most attractive
shops. I do not think I have known a place of similar size
which impressed one so much with its beauty, and equally with
its great commercial prosperity.''
WHAT
LORD KYLSANT SAID ON THE OCCASION OF HIS LAST VISIT TO DURBAN.
"I
cannot help being greatly impressed by a first-hand impression
of what has taken place in the last 15 years, both in the
city itself and its delightful environs, and in the trade
and commerce of the Port.
Such a
record of progress in 15 years is, indeed, remarkable, and
one of which the people of Natal in general and the residents
of Durban in particular may justly feel proud. It proves that
the race is as virile as ever.
Once more
I would express my gratification at again visiting this progressive
port. Greatly as the volume of overseas trade passing through
Port Natal has grown, the harbour and port have kept pace
with modern requirements, and the facilities it affords to
shipping, combined with its favoured geographical situation,
should ensure for Durban a still brighter and more prosperous
future."
SIR
JOHN THORNYCROFT.
"Durban
is the finest industrial centre I have visited in South Africa,"
said Sir John E. Thornycroft, K.B.E., Managing Director of
John I. Thornycroft & Co., Ltd., in the course of his
recent tour of the Union.
ALDERMAN
WEST OF MANCHESTER
Alderman
F. J. West, a former Lord Mayor of Manchester, has formed
the opinion that Durban presents great possibilities in the
way of industrial expansion.
"Durban,'' said he, "is essentially a suitable town
for the development of industries. In the first place, it
is the finest port in the Union, boasting a harbour with a
depth of 35 feet at low water, and capable of accommodating
the largest of vessels. Her capacity for harbour extension,
coupled with her close proximity to the Natal coal-fields,
provides her with the immediate essentials for successful
industrial development."
MR.
W. SEALS WOOD (Lever BROS., LTD.)
It is
a fact of high significance that the great house of Lever
Brothers, Limited, has decided henceforth to make its Durban
branch the headquarters of its business in South Africa. Mr.
W. Seals Wood, who will be in control of the Company's South
African business, with Durban as his base, has frequently
testified to the town's brilliant industrial prospects.
Speaking
some time ago as President of the Chamber of Industries, Johannesburg,
Mr. Seals Wood said:-
"Without
the opportunity of visiting factories and seeing their products,
it is almost impossible to visualise the many commodities
which are being efficiently manufactured in the Union. Durban,
as one would expect, is very much in the van of progress,
and its industrial undertakings are among the most efficient
in South Africa. It has been said that efficiency in Durban
cannot be so great as in other parts of the country, owing
to the climatic conditions; but not only are the workers themselves
most efficient, but in machinery and plant - vital factors
in industrial development - Durban is probably more up-to-date
than any other town in the Union."
AN
EDITORIAL VIEW.
The well-known
journal, South Africa, published weekly in London, recently
wrote thus of Durban as an industrial centre:- "No other
town in South Africa can offer quite the exceptional facilities
that Durban can to the industrialist anxious to open works
in that country.
Cheap
power, cheap light, cheap pure water, and an unrivalled site
within easy distance of the harbour. There is nothing like
it in the Union, and in very few other countries.''
A CANADIAN
TRIBUTE.
Mr. Fred.
E. Robson, of Toronto, recently visited Durban in the course
of a world-tour in the interests of an influential group of
British and Canadian manufacturers. At a luncheon of the Durban
Rotary Club he spoke of Durban as being a Liverpool and a
Blackpool in one. Of the Congella industrial area Mr. Robson
said it was an example of wonderful foresight. It reminded
him of his home city of Toronto, which he coupled with Durban
as being, in his opinion, in the first flight of the progressive
cities of the world. "Durban," he said "combines
delightful residential districts with a marvellous foresight
in civic administration and industrial development."
COSTS
TO BE BORNE BY THE INDUSTRIALIST
In addition
to land, a subject already dealt with at length in this brochure,
the essential services concerning which the industrialist
will desire information are lighting, power and water. These
services in the Durban area are entirely municipal.
LIGHTING.
The normal charges for the lighting of business premises are
2d. per unit between the hours of midnight and 6 p.m., and
3d. per unit - if more than 2,000 units per month are consumed
- during the evening hours from 5.30p.m. to midnight. In addition
the borough Municipal Electricity Department enjoy discretionary
powers in the matter of large consumers. The following special
arrangements are to be noted:-
Supply
to large buildings.- In the case of buildings requiring very
large amounts of current the Corporation have the right to
supply such buildings through a transformer, and the consumer
must, if called upon, provide proper space in the building
for such transformer.
Contracts
for special consumers. - Contracts may be made to meet special
circumstances, such as those in which the consumer binds himself
to consume a minimum quantity of electricity, or to take it
only at certain hours, or both.
Power.
Motive power for industrial processes is supplied at rates
varying from 1.5d to 0.5d per unit. For all supplies of current
totalling over 5,000 units per month the charge sinks to 0.5d
nett per unit. For the first 15,000 units a discount of 10
per cent. is allowed for payment within seven days of the
rendering of the account, provided that any balance outstanding
is paid at the same time; but all units charged at one-halfpenny
are strictly nett.
For water
heating on a large scale current is supplied at four-tenths
of a penny nett.
WATER.
Complete tariffs issued by the Municipal Water Department
detail the charges per quarter for all quantities of water
(by meter) from 1,000 up to 3,000,000 gallons. The charge
for places within the borough is graded down from 1S. 3d.
for 1,000 gallons to 1s. 0d. per 1,000 on a basis of a consumption
of 3,000,000 gallons within the quarter. Above that quantity
there is a flat rate of 1s. 0d. per 1,000 gallons.
Users
outside the borough are quoted 6s. 0d. for the first 1,000
gallons, and £250 1s. 8d. for 3,000,000 gallons. On
a quarterly consumption above that quantity there is a flat
rate of 1s. 8d. per 1,000 gallons.
RATES.
The borough rate of Durban is differentiated as between land
and "improvements.'' Rates are assessed and levied on
immovable property on the basis of 6d. in the £ on the
value of land and 3d. in the £ on the value of the buildings
erected thereon. Out of the rate so collected an amount equivalent
to seven-eighths in the £ on the freehold value of immovable
property is credited as water rate.
As an
indication of the growth of the borough, it is interesting
to note that the values of building plans passed by the Borough
Building lnspector during the last ten years are as follows
:-
| YEAR |
VALUE |
| 1920 |
£729,628 |
| 1921 |
£492,905 |
| 1922 |
£829,279 |
| 1923 |
£842,970 |
| 1924 |
£936,563 |
| 1925 |
£1,075,966 |
| 1926 |
£1,116,752 |
| 1927 |
£1,068,006 |
| 1928 |
£1,000,003 |
| 1929 |
£972,955 |
The above
figures do not include plans for Government and Municipal
buildings erected during the specified years.
During
recent years the rateable values of lands and buildings within
the borough boundaries have shown the following upward movement,
reflecting the steady growth of the community :
1926
Rateable Value of Land - £8,912,180
Rateable Value of Buildings - £12,068,940
Total Rateable Value - £20,981,120
Value of Exemptions - £922,930
Net Rateable Value - £20,058,180
1927
Rateable Value of Land - £9,757,430
Rateable Value of Buildings - £12,958,180
Total Rateable Value - £22,715,160
Value of Exemptions - £1,261,030
Net Rateable Value - £21,454,580
1928
Rateable Value of Land - £10,197,533
Rateable Value of Buildings - £14,085,160
Total Rateable Value - £24,282,693
Value of Exemptions - £1,070,140
Net Rateable Value - £23,212,553
1929
Rateable Value of Land - £10,371,840
Rateable Value of Buildings - £14,914,310
Total Rateable Value - £25,286,150
Value of Exemptions - £1,106,230
Net Rateable Value - £24,179,920
DURBAN
AS A FACTOR IN IMPERIAL TRADE
In no
portion of the Union of South Africa is the view more strongly-
held than in Natal that the future well-being of the British
Commonwealth of Nations must largely depend upon the fostering
of closer trade relations between Great Britain and the Dominions.
In Durban particularly is this vision of a great Imperial
development cherished by the commercial and industrial communities,
who look forward to a day when speedier communications by
sea and air will bring them into closer touch with the great
capitals of Europe.
With problems
of a political character this brochure has no concern, but
it is permissible to say that Durban, in common with other
cities of the British Dominions, watches with close and sympathetic
attention all those movements that have for their object the
encouragement of closer trade relations.
Throughout
the Empire there are vast resources - the primary products
of the soil no less than the products of organised industry
- awaiting development. And with a new spirit of co-operation
and co-ordination animating industrialists and men of commerce
in all parts of the world the future should be full of promise.
In such developments Durban is ambitious to play her part,
not only as port and as entrepot, but also in the role of
an industrial producer on an ever-ascending scale.
Here,
in Durban, are conditions favourable to the creation of a
great industrial centre, admirably served as to transport
and communications and replete with every factory facility
that modern practice can suggest. Here is land in abundance;
here are water, lighting and power of the best; here are shipping
facilities second to none, and, moreover, a geographical position
that marks Durban out as destined to play a great part in
any and every forward movement of Southern Africa in relation
to the growth of inter-Dominion trade.
It is
with the design of making these advantages and facilities
widely known among industrialists and leaders of trade throughout
the world that this brochure on "Industrial Durban"
making manifest the opportunities that present themselves
at Port Natal, has been compiled.
For Port
Natal is not merely a gateway of Africa - an ever-open gateway
welcoming all legitimate trade and commerce from beyond the
seas. It is also a window of Africa - a window from which
the traders and agriculturalists and manufacturers of the
sub-continent scan with eager appreciation every movement
making for greater co-ordination in the commerce and industry
of the great Commonwealth of Nations to which South Africa
belongs.
WHAT
CAN WE TELL YOU FURTHER?
ADDRESSES
FOR INQURIES
THE compilers
of this brochure feel that they will have failed in their
duty unless they provide the industrial inquirer with every
facility for obtaining such further information as he may
desire on the subject of "Industrial Durban." An
attempt is made hereunder to supply a list of addresses from
which information may be sought on various lines of inquiry.
Sites
for Factories, etc.- Industrial sites are to be obtained by
negotiation with the Durban Corporation or the South African
Railways and Harbours Administration. Inquiries may be addressed
either to the
Town Clerk, Municipal Buildings, Durban, to the System Manager,
S.A.R. & H., Durban, or to Messrs. Webster, Steel &
Co. (London Agents of the Durban Corporation), 9 St. Helen's
Place, Bishopsgate, London, E.C. 3.
On any matter of general commercial interest affecting Durban,
address
the Secretary of the Durban Chamber of Commerce, Salisbury
House,
Smith Street, Durban.
On matters
specifically relating to industrial conditions, the Secretary
of the Natal Chamber of Industries, 84 Club Arcade, Durban,
will be happy to answer inquiries.
Questions
relating to architecture and buildings may be addressed respectively
to the Secretary, the Natal Institute of Architects, Poynton's
Chambers, 339 Smith Street, Durban, and the Secretary, the
Master
Builders' Association, 37-38 Anglo-African House, Smith Street,
Durban.
Newspaper
Offices:- The offices of the morning and evening newspapers
of Durban, if needed for purposes of publicity or advertising,
are as follows:- Natal Mercury (morning) Smith Street, Durban.
Natal Advertiser (evening) Field Street, Durban.
Both newspapers are keenly alive to the importance of industrial
development and inquiries addressed to their managerial departments
will be assured of a prompt and courteous response.
All other
inquiries may be addressed to the joint compilers and publishers
of this brochure, the Durban Publicity Association, Church
and West Streets, Durban, and the Publicity and Travel Department,
South African Railways and Harbours, P.O. Box 1111 Johannesburg,
who are most anxious to render any assistance in their power.
Information may also be obtained from the offices quoted on
the front inside cover of this brochure.
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