The development of the pastoral industry of South Australia hinges on the provision of adequate and reliable water supplies, as the vegetation of the interior, though sparse, is largely edible, and practically any of the country could, in normal years, be lightly stocked, as far as fodder is concerned. Throughout the pastoral regions natural surface waters are, as a whole, very poorly developed. Under suitable conditions waterholes may be present in creek channels, but those that can be regarded as absolutely permanent are very few i.n number, and serve but a trifling proportion of the pastoral country. Both the large and the small waterholes are of very great use in fair to good seasons, and they are supplemented by tanks or dams excavated to depths of 20ft. or more. Even with this provision for surface storage the danger of failure of the water supply is not wholly removed, and underground resources have been sought and arc being increasingly developed.