AUSTRALIA AND POLYNESIA. 



45 



The population was found by the census to ex- 

 ceed 750,000, showing an increase of 250,000 

 in the ten years. Owing to its vast area of 

 attractive land, it has gained upon the much 

 smaller but still more populous colony of Vic- 

 toria, the difference between their populations 

 having fallen in the ten years from 250,000 

 to 100,000. The debt of New South Wales 

 amounts to about 15,000,000 ; but of this at 

 least 12,000,000 is invested in railroads. 



The enormous railroad construction which 

 has been carried out by the Government in 

 New South Wales received its first impetus 

 from the circumstance that the Government 

 found coming into its hands large sums of sur- 

 plus revenue derived from the sales of public 

 lands which the prosperous sheep-graziers, who 

 had rented them of the Government at %d. an 

 acre, commenced to buy in vast blocks at the 

 upset price of 1 per acre. The railroad sys- 

 tem, well started with these means, has been 

 extended by loans raised in London. At the 

 beginning of the year, 679 miles of new road 

 were under construction, and surveys for 

 further extensions had been made. 



The railroad earnings in 1880 were 1,594,- 

 000, being 89,000 more than the Treasurer's 

 estimate, and yielding 4f per cent on the capi- 

 tal invested. A still larger profit was expect- 

 ed in 1881. 



Victoria has for the last four years been pass- 

 ing through a constitutional crisis. Conflicts 

 between the two Houses of the Legislature mark 

 the advances in popular self-government made 

 in the British colonies. In the transition from 

 crown administration to autonomy, the Council, 

 composed of appointees of the crown, is the 

 vehicle through whicli the Government re- 

 fuses the popular demands emanating from the 

 representative hall. Under responsible govern- 

 ment the Legislative Council is balanced against 

 the popular Assembly as the representatives of 

 the property-holding class, the conservators of 

 the interests of wealth, and the only repository 

 of the veto-power and check upon immature 

 and democratic legislation. This branch thus 

 represents an entirely different constituency 

 from that of the Assembly, which body is elect- 

 ed on the broad basis of universal suffrage. 

 Party majorities in the Upper House for this 

 reason, and because the Councilors hold their 

 seats much longer than delegates in the Assem- 

 bly, do not change with the transfer of power 

 in the Lower House and the consequent change 

 of ministers. Frequent " dead -locks " are the 

 unavoidable result. The whole political ma- 

 chinery is clogged, useful legislation is ren- 

 dered impossible, and political passions are 

 excited simply through this defect in the Con- 

 stitution. This unwholesome condition of af- 

 fairs has become chronic of late years in the 

 prosperous and democratic colony of Victoria. 

 Mr. Berry, the Premier and Liberal leader, has 

 brought in various bills for the popularization 

 of the Legislative Council. An active Reform 

 League has kept the question before the pub- 



lic, and pressed it in the Legislature. The 

 Liberal party made it their sole issue, and were 

 supported by a great popular majority. The 

 Legislative Council and their electors were 

 naturally loath to abandon the only conserva- 

 tive safeguard the right of those who hold a 

 stake in the country to control the will of the 

 absolute numerical majority. 



For four years the ministry were supported 

 by the people in demanding a reform, until all 

 grew tired of the fruitless agitation. An ap- 

 peal had even been made to the Imperial Gov- 

 ernment. In March Mr. Berry introduced into 

 the Assembly a final compromise measure, re- 

 ducing the tenure of seats in the Council, one 

 third of which should be refilled every three 

 years, from ten to six years, and lowering the 

 limitations of the franchise. The bill passed 

 the Legislative Assembly but was rejected by 

 the Council, March 25th, on the ground that a 

 bill affecting the powers and composition of 

 that House should originate there. The Coun- 

 cil had itself passed a reform bill of its own. 

 The subject was next discussed in a joint com- 

 mittee, but without result. The Berry bill 

 was finally, considerably altered by the amend- 

 ments, passed by the Council in the middle of 

 May. The measure reduces the property quali- 

 fication for Councilors to 100, and fixes the 

 qualification for freehold electors at 10, and 

 for occupiers at 25 annual rental. The quali- 

 fications for electors and candidates under the 

 old law were respectively a freehold of 50 

 and one of 250 annual value. The number 

 of electors is increased by this sweeping reform 

 from 32,000 to 108,000, and the number of 

 members from thirty to forty-two. There are 

 supposed to be only about 80,000 citizens, who 

 vote for members of the Lower House, that are 

 not possessed of sufficient property to qualify 

 them as electors of members of the Council. 



The reform act which was the final outcome 

 of the long struggle was not satisfactory to the 

 people. The Legislative Council had given up 

 the limited franchise to the extent of reconsti- 

 tuting itself on nearly as broad a basis of popu- 

 lar representation as the Lower Chamber. It 

 had abandoned the controlling voice of proper- 

 ty ; but it had not sacrificed any part of its co- 

 equal legislative authority. The public looked 

 upon the reform act as an extension rather 

 than a curtailment of the powers of the Coun- 

 cil. It was supposed to contain no remedy 

 for the "dead-locks," which were the actual 

 ground and reason for reform. As a result of 

 the popular disappointment in the measure, the 

 Legislative Assembly in the beginning of July 

 passed a vote of want of confidence in the min- 

 istry. The Governor refused to dissolve Par- 

 liament, and, upon the resignation of Berry and 

 his colleagues, called upon Sir Bryan O'Logh- 

 len to form a Cabinet, in which, after some dif- 

 ficulty and delay, he succeeded. 



The returns of the decennial census place 

 the population of Victoria at 845,977, com- 

 posed of 438,186 males and 407,791 females. 



