AUSTRALASIA. 



the attempt to apply communistic principles in 

 the management of these settlements has resulted 

 in total failure. The settlers received (government 

 advances amounting to 85,000, of which they 

 have paid back only 9,465. 



Western Australia. The Legislative Council 

 contains 24 members, who are elected for six years 

 by householders and occupants of property; the 

 Legislative Assembly of 44 members, who are 

 elected by adult males who have resided six 

 months in the district or who own or rent prop- 

 erty. The Governor is Col. Sir Gerard Smith, 

 who was appointed in 1895. The Cabinet at the 

 beginning of 1900 was composed as follows: Pre- 

 mier and Colonial Treasurer, Sir John Forrest; 

 Commissioner for Railways and Director of Public 

 Works, F. H. Piesse; Commissioner of Lands, 

 George Throssell ; Minister of Mines, H. B. Le- 

 froy; Attorney-General, Richard William Penne- 

 father; Colonial Secretary, George Randell. 



The people of the gold fields started an agitation 

 in the beginning of 1900 for separation from the 

 older part of the colony. They declared that they 

 had been viewed with suspicion by the earlier 

 settlers from the time when they began to come 

 in upon the discovery of gold in 1892; and that, 

 although they had converted what was looked 

 upon as a worthless desert into the largest gold 

 fields in the world, in which over 100,000,000 of 

 English capital was invested, the older colonists 

 persistently used the powers granted them under 

 responsible government to the detriment of the peo- 

 ple who had created this industry and settled and 

 improved a country four times the size of Great 

 Britain. At a conference of representatives from 

 all the settlements east of 119 of latitude and 

 south of 24 of longitude a demand for separation 

 was carried almost unanimously, and a monster 

 petition w T as sent to the Imperial Government, 

 setting forth that although numbering over 80,000 

 persons, nearly half the population of the colony, 

 they had only 3 members in the Legislative 

 Council and 6 in the Assembly. This proportion 

 would be changed, but in a ' very inadequate de- 

 gree, by the redistribution act recently passed, 

 increasing the Legislative Council to 30 and the 

 Assembly to 50 members. Under the new law the 

 gold fields have only C members in the Council 

 and 10 in the Assembly. The Government in the 

 last four years had spent, it was asserted, over 

 six times as much on the coast districts as on 

 the eastern part of the colony, had spent, in fact, 

 all the money raised by loans, all the revenue of 

 the coast district, and in addition half a million 

 of the revenue collected from the gold fields. This 

 statement was controverted by the delegate from 

 Western Australia, who said that nearly all the 

 revenue drawn from the gold fields had been ex- 

 pended there and some of the loan money as well. 

 The residents of the eastern districts found fault 

 also with the tariff by which food, clothing, and 

 other necessaries must pay. duties for the benefit 

 of the farmers and manufacturers of the coast. 

 Differential railroad rates are paid on all that is 

 brought to the gold mines and a pi'ogressive tax 

 is levied on the value of ore sent away. Recently 

 a dividend tax had been imposed. The people of 

 the mining districts were denied their natural 

 harbor of Esperance and a railroad, line to the 

 south coast. A petition for a referendum on the 

 question of federation, in favor of which the gold 

 fields were unanimous, had been rejected by the 

 Legislative Council by a majority of 13 to 4, al- 

 though the signatures of 18,000 voters of the east- 

 ern district had been re-enforced by 5,000 names 

 from the coast. The petition to the Queen was 

 signed by 26,000 persons. Mr. Chamberlain sug- 



gested that under federation their complaints 

 could be dealt with in Australia. The representa- 

 tives of the Western Australian Gold Fields Kc- 

 form League in London pointed out that the divi- 

 sion of Western Australia into two colonies, which 

 was the condition on which the British Parlia- 

 ment had granted self-government in 1890. could 

 no longer be dealt with by the Imperial Govern- 

 ment if federation became a fact. Mr. Chamber- 

 lain nevertheless declined to receive the deputa- 

 tion. A congress of workingmen sitting at Perth 

 called for the total exclusion of colored and other 

 undesirable aliens from the future commonwealth. 

 The Western Australian ministry induced the 

 governments of the eastern colonies to consent to 

 having the mail steamers call at Freemantle, al- 

 though this lengthens the voyage a full day. 

 Although the revenue of the colony for 1900 wa* 

 only 1,875,395, a decline of nearly a third, the 

 previous deficit was wiped out and a surplus was 

 expected. The regular session of Parliament be- 

 gan on Aug. 15, a special session having been held 

 to enable Parliament to authorize a referendum 

 on the commonwealth bill. Federation having 

 been approved, the Government petitioned to have 

 Western Australia admitted into the common- 

 wealth as an original state, and the Imperial Gov- 

 ernment took the necessary steps to have this 

 colony included. The session was a short one 

 because it was necessary to dissolve the Legisla- 

 tive Assembly in order that members might be 

 elected under the extended franchise. Bills were 

 discussed concerning municipalities, the public 

 service, and conciliation and arbitration in indus- 

 trial disputes. The Government desired to en- 

 courage immigration and the settlement of land. 

 The farming population is so small that the colony 

 is a large importer instead of an exporter of agri- 

 cultural produce. The railroad company to which 

 large strips of land had been granted retarded 

 settlement by leaving the land unimproved. 

 Nevertheless, under the liberal laws of the colony, 

 land settlement is making progress. The tin and 

 coal mines are being rapidly developed. The ex- 

 port of timber shows signs of improvement. 

 Western Australian timber suitable for street 

 pavements is in growing request in Europe. Rail- 

 road business has been very satisfactory, and the 

 railroads in the gold fields are being duplicated. 

 The Government did not ask Parliament to sanc- 

 tion public works of magnitude on account of tin- 

 impending dissolution. The Coolgardie water 

 scheme is nearing completion. 



Tasmania. The Legislative Council consists 

 of 19 members, elected under a property qualifica- 

 tion for six years; the House of Assembly of 38 

 members, elected for three years, also by a quali- 

 fied franchise. The electors for the Council in 

 ]899 numbered 9,406; for the House of Assem- 

 bly, 34,528. The Governor since 1893 has been 

 Viscount Gormanstown. The Cabinet was com- 

 posed as follows at the beginning of 1900: Pre- 

 mier and Attorney-General, X. E. Lewis: Chief 

 Secretary, G. T. Collins: Treasurer, B. S. Bird; 

 Minister' of Lands and Works, E. Mulcahy : with- 

 out portfolio, F. W. Piesse. In Tasmania the im- 

 ports in 1899 were 119,000 in excess of those of 

 1898, and the exports showed an increase of 

 774,000, the exports of minerals in particular 

 having increased 590.000 in value. Deposits in 

 savings and other banks and investments in Gov- 

 ernment bonds attest the growing wealth of the 

 people. The Government closed its accounts for 



1899 with a surplus of 72,500, the revenue hav- 

 ing been 36,000 in excess of that of 1898. In 



1900 a revenue of 1,040.000 was anticipated, and 

 the expenditure was expected to amount to 



