348 A'Bir SOUTH WALES. 



being built on the wide peninsula bounded on eacb side by the Parra- 

 matta River, the north shore of Port Jackson, and the Hawkesbury 

 River, called '' Walumatta " by the Natives, which for suitableness 

 and beauty of situation would bear favourable comparison with and 

 resemblance to similar positions either on the Potomac River or the 

 Ottawa River, alongside whose waters the capital of the United States 

 or the capital of Canada has been placed. 



Much of the opposition to the federation movement of late years 

 has arisen from advocates for dealing forthwith with local legislation ; 

 who, however, forget that if the various Parliaments were relieved of 

 much of their present work they would be more likely to consider 

 domestic and social questions than at present. Other opponents of 

 federation object to surrender the control of the Customs, post and 

 telegraphs, the defences, the influx of aliens and paupers, the regula- 

 tion of the currency, banking, navigation, shipping, and other admin- 

 istrative arrangeinents of a federal nature ; although it has been well 

 pointed out by Mr. Edmund Barton that this control is only a transfer 

 by the provincial parliaments and governments to the Australian 

 Parliament and Government, at the dictation of the citizens, who will 

 gain far more as Australians than they give as provincialists. 



It is generally admitted that the federal union must necessarily be 

 of a character not easily to be changed ; so that it is highly desirable 

 no colonial federation should be entered into without knowing its 

 nature, nor any national constitution adopted without a full conception 

 of its responsibilities. The discussions which have taken place, the 

 addresses which have been delivered, and the articles which have 

 been printed on the federation question, have done much to disarm 

 many avowed opponents in various sections of the community ; and 

 especially to remove misconceptions of some working men as to the 

 purport of the movement, as it was shown to be truly '^ one of the 

 people, by the people, and for the people." 



One of the principal objections urged against the proposed federa- 

 tion of the Australasian Colonies is that they are not yet ripe or 

 important enough for union. But it will be seen by the following 

 comjDarison made between them and the Dominion of Canada — the 

 only country under the British Crown with a similar union — that 

 these Colonies are in many respects greater than even the magnificent 

 British provinces on the North American continent. The figures 

 given also show the great material wealth contained within the 

 borders of Australasia, which often hitherto has not been fairly con- 

 trasted by the figures published solely for New South Wales or some 

 other settlement of the Australian group being compared with total 

 figures of federated countries such as Canada, containing as they do 

 the total statistics for neai'ly all the North American provinces ; so 

 that strangers, unacquainted with the geography cf the Australasian 

 Colonies, sometimes gain a wrong impression of their collective 

 progress and resources through no recognised political union existing 

 between them. 



As the other Colonies of the Australasian group are mainly off-shoots 

 from New South Wales it is only reasonable their j^i'ogress should be 

 .noted in connection with that of the parent settlement. The Colonies 

 of New South Wales, Tasmania, Western Australia, South Australia, 



