AUSTRALASIA. 



51) 



reduction of the rate. Railroad traffic and re- 

 ceipts showed a continuous increase. Progress 

 was made in the construction of the main trunk 

 lines. The Government intended to manufacture 

 iron and steel and all rolling-stock for the rail- 

 roads and to improve the technical schools. The 

 system of making advances of money to settlers 

 at a low rate of interest is popular and works 

 satisfactorily. In six years 2,007.000 were so 

 advanced, and the Government intended to raise 

 2.000,000 more for the purpose in London, but 

 on account of the state of the money market 

 applied for only half that sum. A commission 

 was appointed in January to consider the advisa- 

 bility of federation with Australia. The Govern- 

 ment and the people generally were opposed to 

 federation. The Labor leaders considered New 

 Zealand to be more advanced than Australia; 

 manufacturers were of the opinion that, paying 

 much higher wages, they could not compete with 

 Australian manufacturers; and all New Zea- 

 landers felt confident of their future as a separate 



vessels of the British navy in Australasian waters. 

 There would be disadvantages to New Zealand in 

 regard to postal and telegraph matters under fed- 

 eration, and the advantage to the commerce and 

 industries of New Zealand would be very slight, 

 since Australia offered little demand for New Zea- 

 land products. The possibility of moderate trade 

 reciprocity was recognized, but without any san- 

 guine hope of securing it immediately. The re- 

 fusal of the commission to sacrifice the independ- 

 ence of New r Zealand was quite in accord with the 

 popular sentiment. 



Fiji. The Governor of Fiji, Sir George T. M. 

 O'Brien, has under him 6 European commission- 

 ers, besides the one in the island of Rotuma, and 

 11 native chiefs at the head of the different prov- 

 inces, and 175 inferior chiefs serving in various 

 civil capacities. The area of the group is 8,045 

 square miles, including Rotuma. The population 

 was estimated on Dec. 31, 1809, at 122,673, com- 

 prising 67,788 males and 54,885 females. There 

 were 4,373 Europeans, of whom 2,759 were males 



WOOL TEAMS, DARLING DISTRICT, NEW SOUTH WALES. 



nation, a vigorous island folk who would absorb 

 in their dominions not only the Cook Islands, but 

 the Fijis, the Tonga group, and all the lesser 

 islands of their part of the Pacific. The federa- 

 tion commission reported unanimously against 

 federating w T ith Australia, since federation would 

 seriously prejudice the finances and hamper its 

 Government in the prosecution of any policy for 

 the development of the resources of New Zealand. 

 The commissioners were of the opinion that im- 

 perial unity would be better safeguarded by the 

 existence of two British powers in the Pacific. 

 Neither of them would be likely in a gust of popu- 

 lar passion or prejudice to break away from the 

 empire without inquiry into the attitude of the 

 other, and by such inquiry time would be gained 

 for reflection and a catastrophe probably averted. 

 In regard to defense, they believed that so long as 

 Great Britain retains command of the sea New 

 Zealand will be able to undertake its own land de- 

 fense, and that should Great Britain lose command 

 of the sea, Australia and New Zealand would not 

 be able to render material assistance to each other 

 against a foreign power, and that what assistance 

 either of them could render to the other would 

 be forthcoming if they continued to be separate 

 colonies. A long time must elapse before Aus- 

 tralia can build up a considerable navy, and they 

 suggested that the subsidy to the Australian 

 squadron be increased on the condition that the 

 Imperial Government provide more and better 

 cruisers. They were in favor also of the train- 

 ing of an imperial naval reserve for service on 



and 1,614 females; 13,282 East Indians, of whom 

 8,875 were males and 4,407 females; 98,478 Fijians, 

 of whom 52,354 were males and 46,124 females; 

 and 6,540 Polynesians, Rotumans, half-castes, and 

 others, of whom 3,800 were males and 2,740 fe- 

 males. The European, or white, population con- 

 sists mostly of Australians and New Zealanders. 

 There were 64 births and 26 deaths among Euro- 

 peans, and 3,395 births and 3,871 deaths among 

 Fijians in 1899. 



The revenue in 1899 was 98,621, and expendi- 

 ture 95,568. Of the revenue 52,631 were de- 

 rived from customs; native taxes, paid in prod- 

 uce, 20,768. The expenditure for salaries was 

 40,035. There is a debt of 250,000. The value 

 of imports in 1899 was 263,044, of which 256,- 

 761 came from British possessions; value of ex- 

 ports, 481,856, of which 426,703 went to Brit- 

 ish possessions. European planters cultivated 

 sugar-cane on 23,160 acres, coconuts on 20,891 

 acres, bananas on 2,228 acres, rice on 714 acres, 

 tea on 210 acres, pineapples on 157 acres, and 

 peanuts on 230 acres. The value of sugar ex- 

 ported was 340.603; of copra 77,330; of ba- 

 nanas, 30,607; of spirits, 16,343; of peanuts, 

 3,182; of pearl shells, 3,092; of trepang, 2,- 

 344; of corn, 1,366; of vanilla, 1,050. 



A petition from Fiji for annexation to New 

 Zealand that was put in circulation after a visit 

 from Mr. Seddon, the New Zealand Premier, 

 evoked a warning to the natives from Sir George 

 O'Brien, who said to them in a speech that wher- 

 ever there was a Government like that of New 



