46 



AUSTRALIA. 



the residence condition and on payment of the 

 balance of their passage-money. The amount 

 to he paid toward an assisted passage has also 

 been reduced, and liberal provision has been 

 made for the introduction of free immigrants. 

 The Government of the colony intends to ex- 

 pend 50,000 on immigration during each ot 

 the next three years. 



The re venue and expenditure of the colonies, 

 in 1869, were as follows : 



The following table exhibits the imports 

 and exports (inclusive of precious metals) : 



The merchant navy of the colonies, in 1871, 

 consisted of 1,740 vessels, with an aggregate of 

 200,106 tons. The entries and clearances in 

 the Australian ports, in 1869, represented an 

 aggregate of 4,500,361 tons. The greatest 

 progress in the construction of railroads has 

 been made by New South Wales, where the 

 first railroad went into operation in 1850, and 

 where the total length of railroads, in 1871, 

 was 403 miles. Victoria, in 1870, had 271, 

 Queensland 218, South Australia 173, Tasma- 

 nia 63, and New Zealand 44 miles. In Western 

 Australia the introduction of railroads was 

 soon expected to take place. Bills for the 

 construction of a " Transaustralian Railroad" 

 were, in 1872, discussed at length in the Par- 

 liaments of several colonies. 



The electric telegraph has been introduced 

 into each of the colonies. The length of the 

 wires, in 1871, was 5,053 in New South Wales, 

 3,368 in Victoria, 1,617 in South Australia, 

 2,182 in Queensland, and 2,777 in New Zea- 

 land; and about 15,500 in all the colonies. 

 Telegraphic connection of all the colonies 

 with England, by means of the submarine ca- 

 ble connecting Java and Port Darwin, was 

 completed in the course of 1872. In New 

 Zealand the completion of the telegraphic 

 line to Auckland, at the beginning of the year 

 1872, gives to all the important towns and set- 

 tlements of this colony the advantages of tele- 

 graphic communication. For years the work of 

 connecting Auckland with the rest of the colony 



had been embarrassed by the jealous natives, 

 through whose lands the wires had to pass. 



The cause of education is rapidly advancing, 

 and in several colonies it is aided by " compul- 

 sion." Each has a board or council of edu- 

 cation, consisting of a number of members 

 appointed^ by the government. The system 

 of education greatly resembles the national 

 one of Ireland. The government provides for 

 the establishment of common schools, and also 

 grants aid to other schools, in case they com- 

 ply with certain regulations. The following 

 statistics are gleaned from the "Australian 

 Hand-book and Almanac " for 1872 : 



New South Wales. The number of schools 

 is 1,304, with 82,821 scholars. Under the con- 

 trol of the Board of Education there are 846 

 schools. This class comprised 359 public, 164 

 provisional, and 82 half-time schools. Tbe de- 

 nominational schools in connection with the 

 board, numbered 264. (Church of England 130, 

 Roman Catholic 98, Presbyterian 20, Wesleyan 

 15, Jews 1.) There are also under the control 

 of the board 6 orphan and industrial schools. 

 The University of Sydney has 41 students ; St. 

 Paul's College and St. John's College each 7 

 students. The Deaf and Dumb Institution has 

 35 scholars. Toward the support of these 

 educational institutions, 134,000 were con- 

 tributed by the Government, and 49,000 re- 

 ceived in the shape of fees and voluntary con- 

 tributions. The average yearly cost of each 

 child's education is 2 14s. 



Victoria. The day-schools, including the 

 "common school" and private educational es- 

 tablishments, number 1,722, with an attend- 

 andance of 151,844 scholars. There are 1,239 

 Sunday-schools in the colony, with an attend- 

 ance of 90,092 pupils. Of these schools, 251 

 belong to the Church of England, 171 to the Ro- 

 man Catholic Church, and 301 to the Wesleyans. 

 There is a university at Melbourne, and several 

 colleges, of which the principal are the Scotch, 

 Ballarat, and Geelong Colleges, Presbyterian ; 

 Wesley College, Wesleyan ; St. Patrick's Col- 

 lege, Roman Catholic, and the Melbourne 

 Grammar - School and Geelong Grammar- 

 School, both Church of England. The public 

 libraries of the colony, including the 81 Me- 

 chanics' Institutes, possess 162,767 volumes. 



South Australia. The Sunday-schools in 

 connection with the various religious denomi- 

 nations number 469, with 30,580 scholars. 

 The number of licensed schools open was 330, 

 and the average number of scholars 16,328. 



Western Australia. The total number of 

 schools under the Board of Education was 55, 

 with 2,188 scholars, the average attendance 

 being 1,569. 



Tasmania. The number of schools support- 

 ed by the Government is 116; the total num- 

 ber of children receiving instruction 15,127. 

 Four superior colleges, and the private schools, 

 send up pupils every year to pass an examina- 

 tion for the degree of Associate of Arts, which 

 entitles the holder, among other advantages, to 



