AUSTRALIA, COMMONWEALTH OP. 



ship owners and a remonstrance from the Indian 

 Government when applied to lascar sailors on 

 mail-steamers. The emigration restriction act, 

 which became law in the beginning of 1901, is 

 so worded that it can be used to exclude any 

 immigrants, white as well as colored, British- 

 born as well as alien. No person shall be al- 

 lowed to land in Australia who, when asked to 

 do so by an officer one specially appointed or 

 any customs officer fails to write out at dicta- 

 tion and sign a passage of 50 words in a Euro- 

 pean language dictated by the officer. The only 

 exceptions are Australians returning from 

 abroad, ambassadors, soldiers, and seamen in the 

 British service, and crews of trading vessels dur- 

 ing their stay in port. Any person found at 

 large contrary to the provisions of the act may 

 be fined 50 or imprisoned for six months. The 

 act was enforced only against Hindus, Japanese, 

 and other colored immigrants. 



The principal subject of discussion in Parlia- 

 ment during the early months of 1902 was the 

 tariff, which was intended by the Government to 

 provide revenue in the first place, but to have a 

 decided protectionist incidence. The free-traders 

 in the House of Representatives were strong 

 enough to abate the protective features, and the 

 result was in most cases a compromise between 

 the 'proposals of the Government and those of the 

 Opposition. Thus the duty on Oregon timber 

 used 'in mines was lowered from Is. to Qd. per 

 1,000. feet, and that on boots and shoes was re- 

 duced one-half to 30 per cent, ad valorem. New 

 Zealand timber was placed on the free list. An 

 import duty of 14s. a gallon was placed on spir- 

 its alongside of excise duties of 11s. on domestic 

 brandy and 12s. Gd. on domestic whisky and rum. 

 Wines above 40 per cent, of alcoholic strength 

 pay the same duty as imported spirits. Instead 

 of 20 per cent, an import tax of 12i per cent, 

 was imposed on machinery. Imported cottons 

 and linens were taxed only 5 per cent, of their 

 value. Kerosene was made free, and the tea 

 duties collected hitherto by the colonial govern- 

 ments were abolished, entailing heavy losses of 

 revenue to some of the states. The protected 

 manufacturers of Canada complained of the ef- 

 fects of Australian protection, and so did Eng- 

 lish manufacturers, but the Government made 

 no attempt to discriminate in favor of parts of 

 the empire, lest it should come into conflict with 

 other nations. The Canadian provision was 

 adopted for suspending duties in cases where they 

 lead to the formation of trusts or combinations. 

 After much discussion as to the policy and con- 

 stitutionality of the measure it was decided that 

 imports by the governments of the states should 

 be dutiable. The Senate made amendments in 

 over 100 duties, reducing the rates in all cases. 

 The House of Representatives accepted half the 

 amendments, the less important ones, and sent 

 the bill back to the Senate, which abandoned 

 some of its proposals, but repeated its request 

 as to the others. This raised a constitutional 

 question. The Federal Constitution empowers 

 the Senate to ask the House of Representatives 

 to make amendments in bills dealing with taxa- 

 tion. To press its requests after they had been 

 considered was regarded by some as an assump- 

 tion of coordinate powers with the House over 

 money bills. The House of Representatives there- 

 fore, in agreeing to receive a second message from 

 the Senate, made the reservation that it should 

 be without prejudice as to its constitutional pow- 

 ers. In regard to the remaining items some 

 minor concessions were made, and the tariff bill 

 was finally passed by the Senate on Sept. 9. 



An electoral bill was passed providing for 

 woman suffrage. Proportional representation 

 was rejected by the Senate. All colored aliens 

 were disqualified. 



The bill to establish a Federal High Court, 

 consisting of the Chief Justice and four other 

 judges, was not passed. The Senators examined 

 various sites for the future Federal capital, but 

 deferred the final selection in view of the im- 

 mense cost of land and buildings involved. It 

 was decided that in the mean time Parliament 

 should sit alternately in Sydney and Melbourne. 

 Lord Hopetoun requested an additional allow- 

 ance to provide for the extra cost of keeping up 

 residences in both capitals. Parliament voted 

 10,000 to recoup him for his expenses in en- 

 tertaining the Duke of York, but rejected the 

 Government bill to grant a supplementary allow- 

 ance of 8,000 a year in addition to the annual 

 salary of 10,000 pending the selection of a per- 

 manent capital. The postponement of this selec- 

 tion was considered a breach of the Constitution 

 by the ministers, who intended to make the ques- 

 tion the first business of the next session. Inas- 

 much as the salary of the Governor-General is 

 fixed in the Constitution and can not be increased 

 during the continuance in office of a Governor- 

 General, such an allowance appeared to be un- 

 constitutional. Besides, it is the present policy 

 of the Australian governments to reduce ex- 

 penses. The salaries of the state governors 

 have been cut down, and the members of the 

 state parliaments are to be reduced in number, 

 especially in the legislative councils. Lord Hope- 

 toun, who as Governor-General and when he was 

 Governor of Victoria has spent more than his 

 salary, sent in his resignation to the Colonial 

 Secretary when Parliament declined to increase 

 his pay, and it was accepted. Before he entered 

 upon the Governor-Generalship the agent-gen- 

 eral for New South Wales led him to expect that 

 an extra allowance would be voted to enable 

 him to reside in Sydney when Parliament was 

 not sitting. Statesmen of some of the other colo- 

 nies were in favor of such a dual residence, and 

 the New South Wales Parliament passed a reso- 

 lution that he should have an allowance of 

 10,000 in addition to his salary for the purpose. 

 Hence Lord Hopetoun considered the action of 

 the Commonwealth Parliament a breach of prom- 

 ises that had been held out and derogatory to 

 the dignity of his office as representative of the 

 sovereign. Before selecting his succcessor Mr. 

 Chamberlain asked to have a provision made for 

 the maintenance of Government houses in both 

 Sydney and Melbourne, and Parliament agreed to 

 allow the next Governor-General 5,500 per 

 annum. Meanwhile Lord Tennyson was appoint- 

 ed acting Governor-General, and sworn in on 

 July 17. After returning to England Lord Hope- 

 toun was advanced in the peerage by having con- 

 ferred upon him the title of Marquis of Linlith- 

 gow. 



Subjects of legislation to be considered at the 

 next session are a decimal coinage system based 

 on the sovereign, a bill dealing with industrial 

 disputes, and a banking law which would render 

 unlikely a financial crisis such as that of 1893. 

 Old-age pensions can not be dealt with by the 

 Commonwealth Parliament at present. State 

 property connected with the transferred services 

 will be valued and the Commonwealth will be- 

 come responsible to the individual states for a 

 portion of the state indebtedness equivalent to 

 the transferred property and interest at the rate 

 of 3J per cent. For public works the Federal 

 as well as the state legislators made appropria- 



