234 Australian Life 



upon the everyday life of Australia at the present 

 time. The Australian Natives 1 Association was 

 founded at a time when British statesmen re- 

 garded the Colonies as a burden, and the word 

 "colonial" was employed as conveying a meaning 

 of inferiority. Even in Australia, where the 

 proportion of British-born folk was then greater 

 than at present, colonial wines, colonial boots, 

 and colonial customs were openly despised. 



To combat this tendency to undervalue Aus- 

 tralian things, a number of young men, who were 

 proud of their Australian birth, formed the Aus- 

 tralian Natives' Association. Among them were 

 Sir George Turner, Treasurer in the first Com- 

 monwealth Ministry, Mr. J. I,. Purves, leader of 

 the Melbourne Bar, and a number of others 

 afterwards prominent in Australian political and 

 professional life. The avowed object of the asso- 

 ciation was to make the native-born Australian 

 proud of his country, and to encourage Australian 

 manufactures, Australian art, Australian litera- 

 ture, and everything else Australian. 



Each branch of the Association combines the 

 functions of a benefit lodge with those of a debat- 

 ing society. Meetings are arranged at regular 

 intervals, when the members first transact the 

 business of the branch and then discuss some 

 chosen subject, usually Australian in interest. 

 Every member who shares the benefit system of 

 the Association pays a weekly levy, amounting 

 to a little more than a shilling. This assures 



