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diff --git a/39495-8.txt b/39495-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..89f2c3b --- /dev/null +++ b/39495-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,15053 @@ +Project Gutenberg's Our First Half-Century, by Government of Queensland + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Our First Half-Century + A Review of Queensland Progress Based Upon Official Information + +Author: Government of Queensland + +Release Date: April 21, 2012 [EBook #39495] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OUR FIRST HALF-CENTURY *** + + + + +Produced by far Nick Wall, Lesley Halamek, and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This +file was produced from images generously made available +by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) + + + + + + +[Illustration: GOVERNMENT HOUSE] + + + JUBILEE MEMORIAL VOLUME + + + + + OUR FIRST HALF-CENTURY + + + A REVIEW OF QUEENSLAND PROGRESS + + + + + BASED UPON OFFICIAL INFORMATION + + + [Illustration: QUEENSLAND JUBILEE 1859-1909] + + + BY AUTHORITY OF THE GOVERNMENT OF QUEENSLAND + + + + + BRISBANE + + PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY ANTHONY J. CUMMING, GOVERNMENT PRINTER + + 1909. + + + + +PREFACE. + + +The object of this work, as the title implies, is to furnish the +reader with a succinct review of the salient facts of Queensland +progress, first as an autonomous British colony of the Australian +group, and second as a State of the Commonwealth of Australia, +retaining all constitutional rights unimpaired save in so far as they +may be qualified by the provisions of "The Commonwealth of Australia +Constitution Act of 1900." In treating of federation as thus +accomplished the object has been to set forth dispassionately, yet +clearly, the general results of the change upon the well-being of the +State, and the reasonable anticipations of its future when the objects +of federal union have been more completely attained. + +This is not a volume of statistics, yet in a fifty-year review it +would be impossible entirely to avoid the use of figures. These, +however, have been availed of sparingly; and, to avoid encumbering the +text, tables compiled by the Government Statistician contrasting the +progress made, by presenting the figures for the first, middle, and +last (available) years of the fifty-year period, have been included +as appendices. Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, and to +embody in the volume all the information possible without overloading +it with detail. + +For the series of diagrams illustrative of the subdivision of +Australia into separate colonies between 1787 and 1863 acknowledgment +is due to the Under Secretary for Lands of New South Wales, under +whose authority they were compiled from data in the Public Library, +Sydney. + + + + +TABLE OF CONTENTS. + + + PAGES. + + PREFACE iii + + TABLE OF CONTENTS v-x + + LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xi-xiv + + INTRODUCTION xv-xx + + THE SUBDIVISION OF AUSTRALIA xxi-xxiv + + JUBILEE ODE--"QUEEN OF THE NORTH" xxv-xxviii + + + + +_PART I.--OUR NATAL YEAR._ + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE BIRTH OF QUEENSLAND. + + Issue of Letters Patent and Order in Council.--Appointment + of Sir George Ferguson Bowen as First Governor.--Continuity + of Colonial Office Policy.--Instructions to Governor. + --Munificent Gift of all Waste Lands of the Crown. + --Temporary Limitation of Electoral Suffrage.--Responsible + Government Unqualified by Restrictions or Reservations. + --Governor-General of New South Wales Initiates Elections 1-4 + +CHAPTER II. + +INITIATION OF RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT. + + Arrival of Sir George Bowen in Brisbane.--The First + Responsible Ministry.--Injunctions to Governor by + Secretary of State in regard to Choice of Ministers. + --Ex-members of New South Wales Legislature take Umbrage. + --The Governor on the Characteristics of Various Classes + of Colonists.--The Governor a Dictator.--The Microscopic + Treasury Balance.--Gladstone as Site of Capital. + --Mr. Herbert as a Parliamentary Leader 5-7 + +CHAPTER III. + +DIFFICULTIES OF EARLY ADMINISTRATIONS. + + Meeting of First Parliament.--Amendment on Address in + Reply defeated by Speaker's Casting Vote.--Adoption of + Address in Reply.--Compromise between Parties + Indispensable.--Successful Inauguration of Responsible + Government.--The Governor's Egotism.--Mr. Herbert's + Retirement.--Mr. Macalister Succeeds.--Financial and + Political Crisis.--Proposed Inconvertible Paper + Money.--Governor Undeservedly Blamed 8-10 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE FIRST SESSION OF PARLIAMENT. + + Work of the First Session.--Four Land Acts Passed. + --Summary of Land "Code."--Pastoral Leases.--Upset + Price of Land £1 per acre.--Agricultural Reserves. + --Land Orders to Immigrants.--Cotton Bonus.--Lands + for Mining Purposes.--Renewal of Existing Leases. + --Governor's Laudation of "Code."--Praises Parliament. + --Abolition of State Aid to Religion.--Primary and + Secondary Education.--Wool Liens.--First Estimates and + Appropriation Act 11-14 + +CHAPTER V. + +QUEENSLAND IN 1860. + + Rush of Population.--High Prices for Stock for occupying + New Country.--Sparse Population.--Rockhampton most + Northerly Port of Entry.--Navigation inside Barrier Reef + Unknown.--Tropical Queensland Unexplored.--Ignorance of + Climate, Resources, and Conditions.--Primary Industries + in 1860.--Primitive Means of Communication.--Public + Revenue, Bank Deposits, and Institutions 15-18 + + +_PART II.--FROM NATAL YEAR TO JUBILEE._ + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE LEGISLATURE. + + The Governor.--His Functions: Political and Social. + --His Emoluments.--Administrations that have held + Office.--Number of Members of Council and Assembly. + --Emoluments of Assembly Members.--Good Results of + Responsible Government in Queensland 19-32 + +CHAPTER II. + +PUBLIC FINANCE (1859-1884). + + Importance of Sound Finance.--A Great Colony Starts upon + a Bank Overdraft.--First Year's Revenue.--Land Sales as + Revenue.--Deficits in First Decade.--Transfer of Loan + Moneys to Revenue to Balance Accounts.--Heavy Public + Works Expenditure.--Crisis of 1866.--Inconvertible Paper + Currency Proposals.--Flotation of Treasury Bills. + --Higher Customs Duties.--Wiping Out a Deficit by Issue + of Debentures.--Transfer of Surplus to Surplus Revenue + Account to Recoup Loan Fund.--Incidental Protection. + --Railway Land Reserves.--Proceeds Used as Ordinary + Revenue.--Three-million Loan.--Condition of Affairs at + Close of First Quarter-Century.--Phenomenal Progress; + Prospects Bright 33-38 + +CHAPTER III. + +PUBLIC FINANCE (1884-1893). + + The Ten-million Loan.--Ministers Practically Granted + Control of Five Years' Loan Money.--Vigorous Railway + Policy.--Effect of Over-spending.--Inflation of + Values.--Increased Taxation.--Succession of Deficits. + --Second McIlwraith Ministry.--A Protectionist Tariff. + --Temporary Increase of Revenue.--Heavy Contraction + in 1890.--Another Big Loan; Failure of Flotation. + --The First Underwritten Australian Loan.--Amended + Audit Act Limiting Spending Power of Government 39-42 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +PUBLIC FINANCE (1893-1898). + + Sir Hugh Nelson at the Treasury.--Credit of Colony + Restored.--Assistance to Financial Institutions and + Primary Industries.--Savings Bank Stock Act.--Public + Debt Reduction Fund.--Treasurer's Cautious and Prudent + Administration.--Money Obtained in London at a Record + Price 43-45 + + +CHAPTER V. + +PUBLIC FINANCE (1898-1903). + + The Philp Ministry.--Large Surplus.--Loan Acts for Seven + and a-half Millions Sterling.--Drought Disasters and + Sacrifices for Federation.--Accumulated Revenue Deficits + of over £1,000,000.--Rebuff on London Stock Exchange. + --Resignation of Philp Ministry 46-48 + + +CHAPTER VI. + +PUBLIC FINANCE (1903-1909). + + The Morgan-Kidston Ministry.--Economy in Revenue + Expenditure.--Great Reduction in Loan Outlay. + --Equilibrium Established at the Treasury. + --Retrenchment and Taxation.--Improvement of + Finances.--A Record Surplus for Queensland.--Land + Sales Proceeds Act.--Abstention from Borrowing. + --First Loan Floated since 1903.--Sound Position + of Queensland.--Value of State Securities. + --Reproductiveness of Railways Built out of Loan + Money.--Public Estate Improvement Fund.--How + Recourse to Money Market has been Avoided 49-53 + + +CHAPTER VII. + +THE BOOM DECADE (1880-1890). + + A Great Boom Decade.--Causes of Inflation of Values. + --Excessive Rating Valuations.--False Basis of + Assessing Capital Value.--Prodigality Succeeded by + Financial Stringency and Collapse of Boom. + --Difficulty in Determining Real Values.--Sir Hugh + Nelson's Legislation.--Sound Finance.--Stability of + State.--Prospects Good To-day 54-56 + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +CROWN LANDS LEGISLATION. + + The Code of 1860.--Crown Lands Alienation Act of + 1868.--Pastoral Leases Act of 1869.--Homestead Areas + Act of 1872.--Crown Lands Alienation Act and Settled + Districts Pastoral Leases Act of 1876.--The + Griffith-Dutton Land Act of 1884.--Co-operative + Communities Land Settlement Act.--Land Act of 1897 + --Forms of Selection.--Act to Assist Persons to + Settle on Land by Advances from the Treasury. + --Extension of Pastoral Leases.--Closer Settlement + Act.--Land Orders 57-65 + + +CHAPTER IX. + +APPROPRIATION OF LAND REVENUE. + + Land Sales Receipts; not Consolidated Revenue. + --Arguments used in favour of Treating Proceeds as + Ordinary Revenue.--Auction Sales have now Practically + Ceased.--Certain Proceeds Payable into Loan Fund. + --Special Sales of Land Act; Appropriation of Receipts 66-68 + + +CHAPTER X. + +LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN QUEENSLAND. + + First Municipality Established.--Brisbane Bridge Lands. + --Grant for Town Hall.--Consolidating Municipalities + Act.--Provincial Councils Act.--Government Buildings + not Rateable.--Brisbane Bridge Debentures and Waterway + Acts.--Municipal Endowment.--Local Government Act of + 1878.--Divisional Boards Act of 1879; Success of the + Act.--Local Works Loans Act.--Two Pounds for One Pound + Endowment Repealed.--Rating Powers Extended by Local + Authorities Act of 1902.--Cessation of Endowment. + --Valuation and Rating Act.--Decline in Land Values. + --Unequal Incidence of Rates Levied.--Efficiency + of Local Authorities 69-77 + + +CHAPTER XI. + +PUBLIC INSTRUCTION. + + Primary Education: Board of National Education; Education + Act of 1860; Board of General Education; Education Act of + 1875; Department of Public Instruction; Higher Education + in Primary Schools; Itinerant Teachers; Status of + Teachers; Statistics.--Private Schools.--Secondary + Education: Grammar Schools Act; Endowments, Scholarships, + and Bursaries; Success of Grammar Schools; Exhibitions to + Universities; Expenditure.--Technical Education: + Beginning of System; Board of Technical Instruction; + Transfer of Control to Department of Public Instruction; + Statistics; Technical Instruction Act; Continuation + Classes; Schools of Arts and Reading Rooms.--University: + Royal Commissions; University Bill; Standardised System + of Education 78-85 + + +_PART III.--OUR JUBILEE YEAR._ + + +CHAPTER I. + +GENERAL REVIEW. + + Good Seasons and General Prosperity.--Land Settlement and + Immigration.--The Sugar Crop.--Gold and Other Minerals. + --Reduction in Cost of Mining and Treatment of Ores. + --Vigorous Railway Extension.--Mileage Open for Traffic. + --Efficiency of 3 ft. 6 in. Gauge.--Our Railway Investment. + --The National Association Jubilee Show.--The General + Election.--The Mandate of the Constituencies.--Government + Majority.--Practical Extinction of Third Party.--Labour a + Constitutional Opposition.--Federal Agreement with States. + --Federal Union Vindicated 86-91 + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE FEDERAL OUTLOOK. + + Proclamation of the Commonwealth.--The Referendum + Vote.--Queensland's Small Majority in the Affirmative. + --Representation in Federal Parliament.--The White + Australia Policy.--Temporary Effect on Queensland. + --An Embarrassed State Treasury.--Assistance to Sugar + Industry.--Continued Protection Necessary.--Unequal + Distribution of Federal Surplus Revenue.--The + Transferred Properties.--Effect of Uniform Tariff. + --Good Times Lessen Federal Burden on State.--The + Agreement between Prime Minister and Premiers.--Better + Feeling Towards Federation.--National Measures of Deakin + Government 92-96 + + +_PART IV.--THE PRIMARY INDUSTRIES._ + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE PASTORAL INDUSTRY. + + Importance of Industry.--Small Beginnings in New South + Wales.--Extension of Industry.--Stocking of Darling Downs + and Western Queensland.--Rush for Pastoral Lands. + --Difficulties of Early Squatters.--Influx of Victorian + Capital.--Changes in Method of Working Stations.--Boom + in Pastoral Properties.--Checks from Drought.--Discovery + of Artesian Water.--Conservation of Surface Water. + --Introduction of Grazing Farm System.--Closer Settlement + of Darling Downs.--Cattle-Rearing.--Meat-Freezing Works. + --Over-stocking.--Dairying.--Station Routine.--Charm of + Pastoral Life.--Shearing.--Hospitality of Squatters. + --Attraction of Industry as Investment and Occupation 97-112 + + +CHAPTER II. + +AGRICULTURE IN QUEENSLAND. + + Tripartite Division of Queensland.--Climate.--Development + of Agriculture in Queensland.--Wide Range of Products. + --Early History.--Exclusion of Farmers from Richest Lands. + --Origin of Mixed Farming.--Extension of Industry Westward. + --Inexperience of Early Settlers.--Cotton-growing.--Chief + Crops.--Dairying.--Cereal-growing.--Farming in the Tropics. + --Farming on the Downs.--Farming in the West.--Irrigation. + --Conservation of Water.--Timber Industry.--Land Selection. + --Assistance Given by the Government.--Immigration. + --Attractions of Queensland.--Defenders of Hearth and Home 113-131 + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE SUGAR INDUSTRY. + + Sugar-cane in the Northern Hemisphere.--The Rise of the + Beet Industry.--Abolition of Slave Labour in West + Indies.--Reorganisation of Industry on Scientific + Basis.--Establishment of Industry in Queensland. + --Difficulties of Early Planters.--Stoppage of Pacific + Island Labour.--Evolution of Small Holdings and Erection + of Central Mills.--Reintroduction of Pacific Islanders. + --Stoppage of Pacific Island Labour by Commonwealth + Legislation.--Bonus on White-grown Sugar.--Benefits + Arising from Separating Cultivation and Manufacture. + --Contrast between Past and Present Methods.--Scientific + Cultivation.--Recent Statistics.--The Future of the + Industry.--Queensland Leading the Van in Establishing + White Agriculturists in Tropics 132-143 + + +CHAPTER IV. + +A HALF-CENTURY OF MINING. + + The Quest for Gold a Colonising Agency.--Earliest + Discoveries of the Precious Metal in Queensland.--Port + Curtis.--Rockhampton District.--Peak Downs.--Gympie. + --Ravenswood.--Charters Towers.--Palmer.--Mount Morgan. + --Croydon.--Later Discoveries.--Yield at Charters + Towers and Mount Morgan.--Copper Mining.--Tin.--Silver. + --Queensland the Home of All Kinds of Minerals and + Precious Stones.--Mineral Wealth in Cairns Hinterland. + --Copper Deposits in Cloncurry District.--The Etheridge. + --Anakie Gem Field.--Opal Fields.--Extensive Coal + Measures.--Railway Communication with Mining Fields. + --Value of Queensland Mineral Output.--Prospects of + Industry 144-152 + + +CHAPTER V. + +OUR ASSET IN ARTESIAN WATER. + + Erroneous Judgment of Western Queensland.--Scarcity of + Surface Water.--Water Supply Department.--Discovery of + Artesian Water in New South Wales.--Prospecting in + Queensland.--Difficulties Experienced by Early Borers. + --First Artesian Flowing Bore.--Dr. Jack's First + Estimate of Artesian Area.--Revised Figures.--Number of + Bores and Estimated Flow.--Area Capable of being + Irrigated with Artesian Water.--Cost of Boring.--Value + of Artesian Water.--Extent of Intake Beds.--Waste of + Water.--Necessity for Government Control of Wells. + --Value of Water for Irrigation, Consumption, and + Motive Power.--Artesian Water a Great National Asset 153-161 + + +_APPENDICES._ + + APPENDIX A--READJUSTMENT OF WESTERN BOUNDARY 162-163 + + APPENDIX B--THE FIRST PARLIAMENT 164 + + APPENDIX C--THE EIGHTEENTH PARLIAMENT 165-166 + + APPENDIX D--FIFTY YEARS OF LEGISLATION 167-183 + + APPENDIX E--LAND SELECTION IN QUEENSLAND 184-195 + + APPENDIX F--IMMIGRATION TO QUEENSLAND 196-197 + + APPENDIX G--SOME STATISTICS AND THEIR STORY 198-209 + + APPENDIX H--DIGEST OF HYDRAULIC ENGINEER'S REPORTS 210-230 + + APPENDIX J--CLIMATIC CONTRASTS 231-237 + + APPENDIX K--EDUCATION STATISTICS 238 + + APPENDIX L--INAUGURATION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND 239-257 + + + + +INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS. + + + Government House (_C. E. S. Fryer_) _Frontispiece_ + Facing Page + + First Gazette, 10th December, 1859 xiv + + Writ of Summons for First Election xx + + Governors of Queensland (_C. E. S. Fryer_) xxiv + + Premiers of Queensland " " xxviii + + Houses of Parliament, Brisbane " " 4 + + View from River Terrace, Brisbane " " 8 + + Barron Falls, Cairns Railway, North Queensland " " 12 + + Treasury Buildings, Brisbane " " 16 + + Coal Wharves, South Brisbane " " 20 + + Executive Buildings, Brisbane " " 24 + + Views of Rockhampton, Central Queensland " " 28 + + Townsville: Flinders Street, looking West " " 32 + + Hinchinbrook Channel, North Queensland " " 36 + + The Narrows and Mount Larcombe, near Gladstone " " 36 + + Barron Gorge below the Falls, Cairns Railway " " 40 + + On the Road to Market, Central Queensland (_W. E. Perroux_) 44 + + Fat Cattle, Central Queensland " " 44 + + Maroochy River and Ninderry Mountain, N.C. Railway (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 48 + + Scene on Barcaldine Downs, Central Queensland (_W. E. Perroux_) 52 + + Barcaldine Downs Homestead, Central Queensland " " 52 + + Swan Creek Valley, near Yangan, Warwick District (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 56 + + Surprise Creek Falls, Cairns Railway " " 60 + + Forest Scene near Woombye, North Coast Railway " " 64 + + Hauling Timber, North Coast Railway " " 68 + + Stony Creek Bridge and Falls, Cairns Railway (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 68 + + Timber Getting, North Coast Railway " " 72 + + Cairns Range and Robb's Monument, N. Queensland " " 76 + + View of Gympie from Nashville Railway Station " " 80 + + Coke Ovens, Ipswich District " " 80 + + Gulf Cattle Ready for Market (_H. J. Walton_) 84 + + Brigalow Country, Warra, Darling Downs 84 + + Hereford Cows, Darling Downs 84 + + Above Stony Creek Falls, Cairns Railway (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 88 + + Mount Morgan: Open Cut and Dumps (_Mount Morgan G.M. Co._) 92 + + Mount Morgan: Mundic and Copper Works " " 92 + + Cattle Country, West Moreton 100 + + Fat Cattle, Central Queensland (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 100 + + Horses at Gowrie, Darling Downs 104 + + Sheep at Gowrie, Darling Downs 104 + + Horses, Western Queensland (_H. J. Walton_) 104 + + Fat Cattle, Burrandilla, Charleville " " 104 + + Wool Teams, Wyandra, Warrego District (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 108 + + Hauling Cedar, Atherton, North Queensland " " 108 + + Dairy Cattle on Darling Downs 112 + + Sheep, Jimbour, Darling Downs 112 + + Horses, Ivanhoe Station, Warrego 112 + + Harvesting Wheat, Emu Vale, near Warwick (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 116 + + Surprise Creek Cascade, Cairns Railway " " 120 + + Pineapple Farm, Woombye, North Coast Railway " " 124 + + Sugar-Mill, Huxley, Isis Railway " " 124 + + Field of Maize, Eel Creek, Gympie " " 124 + + Threshing Wheat, Emu Vale, Killarney Railway " " 128 + + Coffee Plantation, Kuranda, Cairns Railway " " 128 + + Sugar-Mill, Childers, North Coast Railway " " 132 + + Sisal Hemp and Cane Fields, South Isis " " 136 + + Canefields, Isis Railway (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 136 + + Sugar Cane and Mill, Huxley, Isis Railway " " 136 + + Cambanora Gap, Head of Condamine, Killarney " " 140 + + Minto Crag, Dugandan, Fassifern District " " 140 + + Mount Morgan: Copper Works, looking North (_Mt. Morgan G.M. Co._) 144 + + Mount Morgan: General View of Works " " 144 + + Charters Towers: Plant's Day Dawn (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 148 + + Gympie: Scottish Gympie Gold Mine " " 152 + + Gympie: No. 1 North Oriental and Glanmire " " 152 + + Flowing Artesian Wells, Western Queensland: + + 1. Beel's Bore, Cunnamulla (_Kerry_) 156 + + 2. Bore on Thurulgoona Station " " 156 + + 3. Charleville Bore (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 156 + + Aberdare Colliery, Ipswich District " " 160 + + Cocoa-Nut Palms, Johnstone River, North Queensland " " 164 + + Custom House and Petrie Bight, Brisbane " " 164 + + In the Scrub Country, Kin Kin, North Coast Railway " " 168 + + On the Blackall Range, North Coast Railway " " 168 + + Barron Gorge, Cairns Railway, North Queensland " " 176 + + Farm Scene, Blackall Range " " 184 + + Sisal Hemp, Childers, North Coast Railway " " 184 + + Wool Teams, Longreach, Central Queensland " " 184 + + View on Barron River, Cairns Railway " " 192 + + Hauling Timber, Barron River, North Queensland " " 200 + + Falls near Killarney " " 208 + + Aboriginal Tree Climbers " " 208 + + Scene on Logan River, South Queensland " " 216 + + Cooktown and Endeavour River, North Queensland " " 224 + + Pearling Fleets off Badu Island, Torres Strait 224 + + Government House, now Dedicated to University purposes + (_C. E. S. Fryer_) 238 + + View of Dedication Ceremony (_H.W. Mobsby_) 242 + + The Premier (Hon. W. Kidston) Opening the Proceedings " " 244 + + His Excellency Sir W. MacGregor Addressing the Audience " " 248 + + His Excellency Unveiling the Dedication Tablet " " 250 + + Lady MacGregor Planting the University Tree " " 256 + + +MAPS. + + (_Prepared by Survey Office, Department of Public Lands._) + + Subdivision of Australia xxii, xxiii + + Australia before Captain Cook 96 + + Australia, Showing First Settlement 96 + + Queensland in 1859 96 + + Queensland in 1909 96 + + Australia in 1859, Showing Self-Governing Colonies 96 + + The World, Showing Relative Position of Australia 96 + + Queensland, with British Islands Superimposed 232 + + + + +[Illustration: Royal Coat of Arms] + + + QUEENSLAND + + + =Government Gazette.= + + + PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY. + + No. 1.] SATURDAY, 10 DECEMBER, 1859. + + + + +PROCLAMATION + + By His Excellency SIR GEORGE FERGUSON BOWEN, Knight Commander + of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George, + Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief of the Colony of + Queensland and its Dependencies, and Vice-Admiral of the same, + &c., &c., &c. + +WHEREAS by an Act passed in the Session of Parliament holden in the +eighteenth and nineteenth years of the Reign of Her Majesty, entitled, +"_An Act to enable Her Majesty to assent to a Bill as amended of the +Legislature of New South Wales 'to confer a Constitution on New South +Wales, and to grant 'a Civil List to Her Majesty,'_" it was amongst +other things enacted that it should be lawful for Her Majesty, by +Letters Patent, to be from time to time issued under the Great Seal +of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to erect into a +separate Colony or Colonies, any territories which might be separated +from New South Wales by such alteration as therein was mentioned, of +the northern boundary thereof; and in and by such Letters Patent, or +by Order in Council, to make provision for the Government of any such +Colony, and for the Establishment of a Legislature therein, in manner +as nearly resembling the form of Government and Legislature which +should be at such time established in New South Wales as the +circumstances of such Colony will allow; and that full power should +be given in and by such Letters Patent, or Order in Council, to the +Legislature of the said Colony, to make further provision in that +behalf. And whereas Her Majesty, in exercise of the powers so vested +in Her Majesty, has by Her Commission under the Great Seal of the +United Kingdom, bearing date the sixth day of June, in the year of Our +Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, appointed that from +and after the publication of the said Letters Patent in the Colonies +of New South Wales and Queensland, the Territory described in the said +Letters Patent should be separated from the said Colony of New South +Wales and be erected into the separate Colony of Queensland: Now, +therefore, I, SIR GEORGE FERGUSON BOWEN, the Governor of Queensland, +in pursuance of the authority invested in me by Her Majesty, do hereby +proclaim and publish the said Letters Patent in the words and figures +following, respectively. + + + + +QUEENSLAND. + + _LETTERS PATENT erecting Moreton Bay into a Colony, under + the name of_ QUEENSLAND, _and appointing_ SIR GEORGE FERGUSON + BOWEN, K.C.M.G., _to be Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief + of the same_. + + VICTORIA, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great + Britain and Ireland, Queen, Defender of the Faith, to Our + trusty and well-beloved SIR GEORGE FERGUSON BOWEN, Knight + Commander of Our most distinguished Order of St. Michael and + St. George,-- + + GREETING: + + WHEREAS by a reserved Bill of the Legislature of New South + Wales, passed in the seventeenth year of our reign, as amended + by an Act passed in the Session of Parliament holden in the + eighteenth and nineteenth years of our reign, entitled, "An + Act to enable Her Majesty to assent to a Bill, as amended, of + the Legislature of New South Wales, to confer a Constitution + on New South Wales, and to grant a Civil List to Her Majesty," + it was enacted that nothing therein contained should be deemed + to prevent us from altering the boundary of the Colony of New + South Wales on the north, in such a manner as to us might seem + fit; and it was further enacted by the said last recited Act, + that if We should at any time exercise the power given to Us + by the said reserved Bill of altering the northern boundary of + our said colony, it should be lawful for Us by any Letters + Patent, to be from time to time issued under the Great Seal of + our United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to erect into + a separate Colony or Colonies any territories which might be + separated from our said colony of New South Wales by such + alterations as aforesaid of the northern boundary thereof, and + in and by such Letters Patent, or by Order in Council, to make + provision for the Government of any such separate colony, and + for the establishment of a Legislature therein, in manner as + nearly resembling the form of Government and Legislature which + should be at such time established in New South Wales as the + circumstances of such separate Colony would allow, and that + full power should be given by such Letters Patent or Order in + Council to the Legislature of such separate Colony to make + further provision in that behalf. Now know you, that We have, + in pursuance of the powers vested in us by the said Bill and + Act, and of all other powers and authorities in Us in that + behalf vested separated from our colony of New South Wales, + and erected into a separate Colony, so much of the said colony + of New South Wales as lies northward of a line commencing on + the sea coast at Point Danger, in latitude about 28 degrees 8 + minutes south, and following the range thence which divides + the waters of the Tweed, Richmond, and Clarence Rivers from + those of the Logan and Brisbane Rivers, westerly, to the great + dividing range between the waters falling to the east coast + and those of the River Murray; following the great dividing + range southerly to the range dividing the waters of + Tenterfield Creek from those of the main head of the Dumaresq + River; following that range westerly to the Dumaresq River; + and following that river (which is locally known as the + Severn) downward to its confluence with the Macintyre River; + thence following the Macintyre River, which lower down becomes + the Barwan, downward to the 29th parallel of south latitude, + and following that parallel westerly to the 141st meridian of + east longitude, which is the eastern boundary of South + Australia, together with all and every the adjacent Islands, + their members and appurtenances, in the Pacific Ocean: And do + by these presents separate from our said Colony of New South + Wales and erect the said territory so described into a + separate Colony to be called the Colony of Queensland. + + And whereas We have by an Order made by Us in our Privy + Council, bearing even date herewith, made provision for the + government of our said Colony of Queensland, and we deem it + expedient to make more particular provision for the government + of our said Colony: Now know you, that We, reposing especial + trust and confidence in the prudence, courage, and loyalty + of you, the said Sir George Ferguson Bowen, of our especial + grace, certain knowledge, and mere motion, have thought fit + to constitute and appoint, and do by these presents constitute + and appoint you, the said Sir George Ferguson Bowen, to + be, during our will and pleasure, our Captain-General and + Governor-in-Chief in and over our said Colony of Queensland, + and of all forts and garrisons erected and established, or + which shall be erected and established within our said + Colony, or in its members and appurtenances; And we do hereby + authorise, empower, require, and command you, the said Sir + George Ferguson Bowen, in due manner, to do and execute all + things that shall belong to your said command and the trust + We have reposed in you, according to the several powers, + provisions, and directions granted or appointed you by virtue + of our present Commission, and of the said recited Bill, as + amended by the said recited Act; and according to our Order + in our Privy Council, bearing even date herewith, and to such + instructions as are herewith given to you, or which may from + time to time hereafter be given to you, under our Sign Manual + and Signet, or by our Order in our Privy Council, or by Us, + through one of our Principal Secretaries of State; and + according to such laws and ordinances as are now in force in + our said Colony of New South Wales and its dependencies, + and as shall hereafter be in force in our said Colony of + Queensland. + + 2. And whereas it is ordered by our said Order, made by Us + in our Privy Council, bearing even date herewith, that there + shall be within our said Colony of Queensland a Legislative + Council and a Legislative Assembly, to be severally + constituted and composed in the manner in the said Order + prescribed; and that We shall have power, by and with the + advice and consent of the said Council and Assembly, to make + laws for the peace, welfare, and good government of our said + Colony in all cases whatever: And it is provided by the above + recited Act, that the provisions of the Act of the fourteenth + year of Her Majesty, chapter fifty-nine, and of the Act of the + sixth year of Her Majesty, chapter seventy-six, intituled, + "An Act for the Government of New South Wales and Van Diemen's + Land," which relate to the giving and withholding of Her + Majesty's assent to bills, and the reservation of bills for + the signification of Her Majesty's pleasure thereon, and the + instructions to be conveyed to Governors for their guidance + in relation to the matters aforesaid and the disallowance of + Bills by Her Majesty, shall apply to Bills to be passed by the + Legislative Council and Assembly constituted under the said + Reserved Bill and Act, and by any other Legislative body or + bodies which may at any time hereafter be substituted for + the present Council and Assembly: Now We do, by virtue of the + powers in Us vested, hereby require and command, that you do + take especial care that in making and passing such laws, with + the advice and consent of the said Legislative Council, + and Legislative Assembly, the provisions, regulations, + restrictions, and directions contained in the said Acts of + Parliament, and in Our said Order made in Our Privy Council, + bearing even date herewith, and in Our instructions under + Our Sign Manual, accompanying this Our Commission, or in such + future Orders as may be made by Us in Our Privy Council, or in + such further instructions under Our Sign Manual and Signet as + shall at any time hereafter be issued to you in that behalf, + be strictly complied with. + + 3. And whereas it is expedient that an Executive Council + should be appointed to advise and assist you, the said Sir + George Ferguson Bowen, in the administration of the Government + of our said Colony: Now We do declare Our pleasure to be, that + there shall be an Executive Council for Our said Colony, and + that the said Council shall consist of such persons as you + shall, by instruments to be passed under the Great Seal of our + said Colony in Our name and on our behalf, from time to time, + nominate and appoint, to be members of the said Executive + Council, all which persons shall hold their places in the said + Council during Our pleasure: But We do expressly enjoin + and require that you do transmit to Us, through one of Our + principal Secretaries of State, exemplifications of all such + instruments as shall be by you so issued for appointing the + members of the said Council. + + 4. And we do hereby authorise and empower you, the said Sir + George Ferguson Bowen, to keep and use the Great Seal of our + said colony for sealing all things whatsoever that shall pass + the Great Seal of our said colony. + + 5. And we do hereby give and grant to you, the said Sir George + Ferguson Bowen, full power and authority, by and with the + advice of the said Executive Council, to grant in Our name + and on Our behalf, any waste or unsettled lands in Us vested + within Our said Colony, which said grants are to be passed + and sealed with the Great Seal of Our said colony, and being + entered upon record by such public officer or officers as + shall be appointed thereunto, shall be effectual in law + against Us, Our heirs or successors: provided nevertheless, + that in granting and disposing of such lands you do conform to + and observe the provisions in that behalf contained in any + law which is or shall be in force within our said colony, or + within any part of our said colony, for regulating the sale + and disposal of such lands. + + 6. And we do hereby give and grant unto you, the said Sir + George Ferguson Bowen, full power and authority, as you shall + see occasion, in our name and on our behalf, to grant to any + offender convicted of any crime in any court, or before any + judge, justice, or magistrate within our said colony, a + pardon, either free or subject to lawful conditions or any + respite of the execution of the sentence of any such offender, + for such period as to you may seem fit, and to remit any + fines, penalties, or forfeitures which may become due and + payable to us, but subject to the regulations and directions + contained in the instructions under Our Royal Sign Manual + and Signet accompanying this our Commission, or in any future + instructions as aforesaid. + + 7. And We do hereby give and grant unto you, the said + Sir George Ferguson Bowen, full power and authority, upon + sufficient cause to you appearing, to suspend from the + exercise of his office, within our said colony, any person + exercising any office or place under, or by virtue of, any + Commission or Warrant granted, or which may be granted by Us, + or in Our name, or under Our authority, which suspension shall + continue and have effect only until Our pleasure therein shall + be made known and signified to you: And We do hereby strictly + require and enjoin you in proceeding to any such suspension, + to observe the directions in that behalf given to you by Our + present or any future Instructions as aforesaid. + + 8. And in the event of the death or absence of you, the + said Sir George Ferguson Bowen, out of Our said colony of + Queensland and its dependencies, We do hereby provide and + declare Our pleasure to be, that all and every the powers and + authorities herein granted to you shall be, and the same are + hereby vested in such person as may be appointed by Us, + by Warrant under Our Sign Manuel and Signet, to be Our + Lieutenant-Governor of our said colony, or in such person + or persons as may be appointed by Us, in like manner, to + administer the government in such contingency; or, in the + event of there being no person or persons within our said + colony so commissioned and appointed by Us as aforesaid, then + Our pleasure is, and We do hereby provide and declare, that in + any such contingency the powers and authorities herein granted + to you shall be, and the same are hereby granted to the + Colonial Secretary of our said colony for the time being, + and such Lieutenant-Governor, or such person or persons as + aforesaid, or such Colonial Secretary, as the case may be, + shall exercise all and every the powers and authorities + herein granted, until Our further pleasure shall be signified + therein. + + 9. And We do hereby require and command all our officers and + ministers, civil, and military, and all other the inhabitants + of our said colony of Queensland, to be obedient, aiding and + assisting unto you, the said Sir George Ferguson Bowen, or, in + the event of your death or absence, to such person or persons, + as may, under the provisions of this our Commission assume + and exercise the functions of Captain-General and + Governor-in-Chief of our said colony. + + 10. And We do declare that these presents shall take effect so + soon as the same shall be received and published in the said + colonies. + + In Witness whereof we have caused these our Letters to be made + Patent. Witness Ourself at Westminster, the sixth day of June, + in the twenty-second year of Our Reign. By warrant under the + Queen's Sign Manual. + + C. ROMILLY. + + + Given under my hand and Seal at Government House, Brisbane, + this tenth day of December, in the year of our Lord one + thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-third + year of Her Majesty's Reign. + + (L.s.) G. F. BOWEN. + + _By His Excellency's Command_, + + R. G. W. HERBERT. + + GOD SAVE THE QUEEN! + + + + +PROCLAMATION + + By His Excellency SIR GEORGE FERGUSON BOWEN, Knight Commander + of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. + George, Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief of the Colony of + Queensland and its Dependencies, and Vice-Admiral of the same, + &c., &c., &c. + + WHEREAS Her Majesty has been graciously pleased, by Letters + Patent, under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great + Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the sixth + day of June, in the twenty-second year of Her Majesty's Reign, + to separate from the Colony of New South Wales the territory + described in the said Letters Patent, and to erect the same + into a separate Colony, to be called the Colony of Queensland, + and has further been pleased to constitute and appoint me, + + SIR GEORGE FERGUSON BOWEN, _Knight Commander of the Most + Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George_, + + to be Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief, in and over + the said Colony of Queensland and in Dependencies: Now, + therefore, I, the Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief, + aforesaid, do hereby proclaim and declare that I have + this day taken the prescribed oaths before His Honor, + Alfred James Peter Lutwyche, Esquire, Judge of the + Supreme Court, and that I have accordingly assumed the + said office of Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief. + + Given under my hand and seal at the Government House, + Brisbane, this 10th day of December, in the Year of Our + Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, and in + the twenty-third year of Her Majesty's Reign. + + + (L.s.) G. F. BOWEN. + + _By His Excellency's Command_, + + R. G. W. HERBERT. + + GOD SAVE THE QUEEN! + + + + + _Government House, + Brisbane, 10th December, 1859._ + + HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR will hold + a Levee at Government House, on + WEDNESDAY, December 14th, at 11 o'clock, + a.m. + + _By Command_, + C. E. HARCOURT VERNON, + Commander, R.N., A.D.C., + + REGULATIONS FOR THE LEVEE. + + All gentlemen attending the Levee, to be + dressed in uniform or evening costume. + + Each gentleman to be provided with two + cards with his name legibly written thereon; + one card to be left in the Entrance Hall, and + the other to be given to the Aide-de-Camp. + + + + + _Colonial Secretary's Office, + Brisbane, 10th December, 1859._ + + HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR has been + pleased to appoint + + ROBERT GEORGE WYNDHAM HERBERT, ESQ., + + to be Colonial Secretary of Queensland. + + _By His Excellency's Command_, + R. G. W. HERBERT. + + + + + _Colonial Secretary's Office, + Brisbane, 10th December, 1859._ + + HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR has been + pleased to appoint + + + ABRAM ORPEN MORIARTY, ESQUIRE, + + to be His Excellency's Acting Private Secretary. + + + _By His Excellency's Command_, + R. G. W. HERBERT. + + + + + _Colonial Secretary's Office, + Brisbane, 10th December, 1859._ + + HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR has been + pleased to appoint + + COMMANDER CHARLES EGERTON HARCOURT + VERNON, R. N., + + to be His Excellency's Acting Aide-de-Camp. + + _By His Excellency's Command_, + ROBERT G. W. HERBERT. + + + + + _Colonial Secretary's Office, + Brisbane, December 10, 1859._ + + HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR has been + pleased to appoint + + RATCLIFFE PRING, ESQUIRE, + + of the Inner Temple, Barrister-at-Law, to be + Attorney-General of Queensland. + + _By His Excellency's Command_, + ROBERT G. W. HERBERT. + + + BRISBANE: By Command: T. P. PUGH, Printer, + George Street. + + + + +INTRODUCTION. + + Terra Australis: The Fifth Continent.--Dampier lands on + North-west Coast.--Cook lands at Botany Bay.--Annexes entire + Eastern Coast North of 38 deg. S.--Phillip annexes whole + of Eastern Coast and part of Southern Coast, including + Tasmania.--Fremantle annexes all the rest of the Continent. + --Erroneous Impressions of Early Explorers regarding + Australia.--Discovery of Bass Strait.--Completion of Coast Map + of Australia.--Six Colonies constituted.--Queensland's Natal + Day.--Proclamation of Commonwealth.--Inland Exploration. + + +Without disparagement to the adventurous foreign navigators who +for centuries earlier than the British occupation had suspected the +existence of "Terra Australis," the "fifth continent" of the globe, +and had done their best to discover it, it may be safely contended +that the honour of the delineation of the coast-line belongs to +Englishmen, the chief of whom were William Dampier and James Cook. In +1688 Dampier, as super-cargo of the "Cygnet," a trading vessel +whose crew had turned buccaneers, landed on the north-west coast of +Australia in lat. 16 deg. 50 min. S. In the year 1699 he again visited +the coast in charge of H.M.S. "Roebuck," landing at Shark Bay, and +sailing thence northward to Roebuck Bay.[a] Afterwards Captain James +Cook, in voyages which extended until 1777, delineated the eastern +coast-line, and opened up the continent to European enterprise +and settlement. On 29th April, 1770, Cook, in the little barque +"Endeavour," 370 tons burthen, entered Sting-ray Harbour (Botany Bay), +remaining there until 6th May, when he sailed northwards, and, not +entering Port Jackson, named Port Stephens, "Morton Bay," Bustard +Bay, and Keppel Islands, landing at several places for the purpose of +obtaining fresh water and making observations. Thus, coasting along +for nearly 1,300 miles, on 11th June he narrowly escaped the total +loss of his vessel when north of Trinity Bay by striking a coral reef. +After enduring great hardships, and jettisoning all surplus gear, the +vessel was sailed into the mouth of the Endeavour River, and there +careened. During the succeeding two months she was thoroughly +repaired. In August the captain set his course again for the north; +and on the 23rd of that month, after navigating among the dangerous +rocks of the Barrier Reef Passage, he safely reached open water and +landed on Possession Island, near Cape York. There he took formal +possession, "in right of His Majesty King George III.," of the land he +had discovered from lat. 38 deg. S. to lat. 10 deg. 30 min. S. +Sailing through Torres Strait, Cook reached the English Channel in +the "Endeavour" on 18th June, 1771[b]. It was not until 7th February, +1788, however, that Captain Phillip, as Governor-General of the vast +territory then called New South Wales, read to the people whom he had +brought to Port Jackson in the first fleet his commission proclaiming +British sovereignty over the whole of the eastern coast of Australia +and Tasmania, and also over the then unknown southern coast as far +west as the 135th degree of E. longitude.[c] On 2nd May, 1829, Captain +Fremantle, hoisting the British flag on the south head of the Swan +River, took possession of all those parts of Australia not included in +the territory of New South Wales. + +Thus a new continent was added to the British Empire. It was occupied +by only a few score thousand native blacks, and was believed to be +uninhabitable by civilised people unless possibly along a strip of +land south of the Tropic of Capricorn on the eastern, western, and +southern shores of the continent. Of the north-west Dampier had +written: "The land is of a dry, sandy soil, destitute of water, +unless you make wells, yet producing divers sorts of trees." Cook +occasionally found difficulty in getting water unless by sinking in +the shore sand; he made no attempt to penetrate the fringe of coast +or even to explore its inlets. It was not until 1798 that Flinders +and Bass discovered the channel through Bass Strait, and the former's +discoveries may be said to have completed the coast map of Australia. + +By successive proclamations six colonies were subsequently +constituted, the last being that of Queensland on 10th December, +1859. On 1st January, 1901, Queen Victoria's proclamation of the +Commonwealth of Australia was formally made at Melbourne, the +prescribed place for the sitting of the Parliament until the federal +seat of government had been determined. This important step was +taken 131 years after Captain Cook had annexed the eastern coast +at Possession Island, and 72 years after Captain Fremantle made the +possession of the continent as British territory complete by hoisting +the flag at Swan River. + +The story of Australian land exploration is a long one, and it would, +if complete, reveal many a startling tale of privation and death. +The earliest exploring expeditions were those of Governor Phillip, in +1789, when he set out from Sydney to discover Broken Bay first, and +then explore the Hawkesbury River.[d] At that time the undertaking no +doubt seemed great, but to-day Broken Bay may almost be regarded as a +suburb of Sydney. In the same year Captain Tench discovered the Nepean +River. By the end of the eighteenth century, despite many expeditions, +the total of the discoveries were the rivers Hawkesbury, Nepean, +Grose, and Hunter, and the fertile Illawarra district to the south of +Sydney. In 1813 Blaxland, Lawson, and Wentworth discovered a pass over +the Blue Mountains, and opened the way to the interior. Later in +the same year, following in their footsteps, George William Evans +discovered a river flowing inland, which he named the Macquarie, and +that led to the discovery of the Bathurst Plains, and other country +beyond the Blue Mountains. John Oxley, who in 1817 penetrated the +country until he struck rivers flowing to the south-west, found +himself in shallow stagnant swamps, with no indication that the rivers +reached the sea. Oxley and Evans made further discoveries to the +north-west of Sydney during the next seven years, the principal result +being the finding of Liverpool Plains. Cunningham, the botanist, +also was in the field of exploration in 1823. In the year 1824 Hume, +accompanied by W. H. Hovell, crossed the Murrumbidgee River, and some +time afterwards saw the snow-capped mountains of the Australian Alps. +In their progress to Port Phillip they discovered the Murray River, +and ultimately reached their destination, which proved to be the +seashore near the site of Geelong. + +In 1828 Captain Charles Sturt discovered the Darling River. In the +next year he reached the Murray near its confluence with the Darling; +in 1830 he went down the stream by boat, and finally reached the sea +at Encounter Bay, east of St. Vincent Gulf. In 1826 Major Lockyer +founded King George Sound Settlement; in 1828 Captain Stirling +examined the mouth of the Swan River, and was afterwards, in 1831, +appointed Lieutenant-Governor at Perth, the settlement established in +1829 by Captain Fremantle. Other explorers traced the country for some +distance to the northward, and a settlement, called Port Essington, +which had an ephemeral existence, was formed on the northern coast. In +1831 Major Mitchell explored the country north-west from Sydney, and +in 1845-6 he traversed the Darling Downs, afterwards penetrating as +far north as the Drummond Range. Allan Cunningham had previously, in +1827, discovered the Darling Downs, and in the next year, by locating +Cunningham's Gap, he connected the Downs with the Moreton Bay +Settlement. A year later he explored the source of the Brisbane River, +that being his last expedition. + +In 1831 Major Bannister crossed from Perth to King George Sound. +In 1836 John Batman landed at Port Phillip, and permanently settled +there. The same year Adelaide was founded by Captain Sir John +Hindmarsh, the first Governor of South Australia. In 1838 E. J. +Eyre discovered Lake Hindmarsh on his journey from Port Phillip to +Adelaide. Next year George Hamilton travelled overland from Sydney to +Melbourne, and Eyre penetrated from the head of Spencer's Gulf to Lake +Torrens. + +In 1840 Patrick Leslie settled on the Condamine; in the year following +Stuart and Sydenham Russell formed Cecil Plains station. In 1842 +Stuart Russell discovered the Boyne River, travelling from Moreton +Bay to Wide Bay in a boat. In 1844-5 Captain Sturt conducted his Great +Central Desert expedition. In the same year Dr. Ludwig Leichhardt +started on his first expedition from Jimbour station to Port +Essington; and in the next year Sir Thomas Mitchell went on his Barcoo +expedition. In 1846 A. C. Gregory entered upon his first expedition in +Western Australia. In 1848 Leichhardt set out upon his last journey, +from which he never returned. In the same year Kennedy made his fatal +venture up the Cape York Peninsula, and A. C. Gregory explored the +Gascoigne. Next year J. S. Roe, Surveyor-General of Western Australia, +travelled from York to Esperance Bay. In 1852 Hovenden Hely, in charge +of a Leichhardt search party, started from Darling Downs. In 1855 +Gregory and Baron von Mueller started on an expedition to North +Australia in the same search, and discovered Sturt's Creek and the +Elsey River. + +In 1858 Frank Gregory reached the Gascoigne River, Western Australia, +and discovered Mount Augustus and Mount Gould. A. C. Gregory in the +same year, when searching for Leichhardt, confirmed the identity of +the Barcoo River with Cooper's Creek. In 1858 also McDouall Stuart +started on his first expedition across the continent; in the following +year he started again, and one of his party, Hergott, discovered and +named Hergott Springs. In 1859 G. E. Dalrymple discovered the main +tributaries of the Lower Burdekin, also the Bowen and the Bogie +Rivers, and in the year following Edward Cunningham and party explored +the Upper Burdekin. + +In 1860 the ill-fated Burke and Wills expedition left Melbourne, and +reached the Gulf of Carpentaria, but their return journey resulted in +the death of Burke, Wills, and Gray. + +In 1861 McDouall Stuart crossed the continent; Frank Gregory +discovered the Hammersley Range, and the Fortescue, Ashburton, de +Grey, and Oakover Rivers in Western Australia. In the same year +William Landsborough left the Gulf of Carpentaria in search of Burke +and Wills; and Alfred Howitt started from Victoria on the same errand. +Edwin J. Welch, Howitt's second in command, found King, the only +survivor of the expedition; and McKinlay, with W. O. Hodgkinson as +lieutenant, started from Adelaide in the search, and crossed the +continent, reaching the coast at Townsville. In 1863 John Jardine +formed a settlement at Somerset, Cape York; and in the next year +his adventurous brothers, Alexander and Frank, travelled overland to +Somerset along the Peninsula, which Kennedy had failed to do. + +In 1864 Duncan McIntyre travelled from the Paroo to the Gulf of +Carpentaria, and died there. Next year J. G. Macdonald visited the +Plains of Promise, and Frederick Walker marked the telegraph line from +Rockingham Bay to the Norman River. In 1869 Mr. (now Sir John) Forrest +made his first expedition to Lake Barlee; in 1870 he travelled the +Great Bight from Perth to Adelaide, and in 1871 took charge of a +private expedition in search of pastoral country. In 1872 William +Hann, a Northern squatter, led an expedition equipped by the +Queensland Government, and discovered the Walsh, Palmer, and Upper +Mitchell Rivers, and found prospects of gold which led to great +mineral discoveries in North Queensland. Hann reached the coast at +Princess Charlotte Bay. In the same year J. W. Lewis travelled round +Lake Eyre to the Queensland border. Ernest Giles also made his first +expedition in 1872, discovering Lake Amadeus, and on a second trip in +1873 discovered and named Gibson's Desert, after one of his party who +died there. In 1873 Major Warburton crossed from Alice Springs, on the +overland telegraph line, to the Oakover River, Western Australia. In +1875-6 Ernest Giles made a third and successful attempt from Adelaide +to reach Western Australia. In the same year W. O. Hodgkinson started +on a north-west expedition to the Diamantina and Mulligan Rivers, on +which he officially reported. + +In 1878 Prout brothers, looking for country across the Queensland +border, never returned. In 1878 N. Buchanan, on an excursion to +the overland telegraph line from the Queensland border, discovered +Buchanan's Creek. In 1878-9 Ernest Favenc, starting from Blackall +in charge of the "Queenslander" transcontinental expedition, reached +Powell's Creek station, on the overland telegraph line; four years +later he explored the rivers flowing into the Gulf, particularly the +Macarthur, and then crossed to the overland telegraph line. In 1878 +Winnecke and Barclay, surveyors, started to determine the border lines +of Queensland and South Australia, returning in 1880 with their work +done. In 1879 Alexander Forrest led an expedition from the de Grey +River, Western Australia, to the overland telegraph line, discovering +the Ord and Margaret Rivers. + +By this time there was little left of the continent, save Western +Australia, to explore, though men in search of pastoral country still +found occupation in expeditions to discover the unknown in Queensland +and the Northern Territory. In 1896 Frank Hann, younger brother of the +explorer, who had left Queensland, traversed the country to the +north of King Leopold Range, discovering a river which he named +the Phillips, but which was afterwards renamed the Hann by the +Surveyor-General of Western Australia. Afterwards Hann travelled from +Laverton, Western Australia, to Oodnadatta, in South Australia. F. S. +Brockman is another explorer who was leader of a Kimberley expedition +a few years ago, and discovered in North-west Australia 6 million +acres of basaltic country clad with blue grass, Mitchell and kangaroo +grasses, and other fodder vegetation. The Elder expedition, projected +on an ambitious scale in 1891 to complete the exploration of the +continent, started under David Lindsay, but the results were less +valuable than its generous and enterprising originator anticipated. +From a second Elder expedition under L. A. Wells no great results were +recorded. The same may be said of the Carnegie expedition in Western +Australia. Yet the sum total of the information obtained was valuable. +Australia owes much to her adventurous explorers, as well as to +the men who, following up their tracks, placed stock on much of the +country that produced great wealth to the people, though as a rule +neither explorers nor pastoral pioneers personally benefited much by +their labours and privations. + + [Footnote a: See Dampier's "Collection of Voyages, 1729."] + + [Footnote b: See Cook's "Journal during his First Voyage Round + the World, 1768-71." W. J. L. Wharton, 1893.] + + [Footnote c: Historical Records of New South Wales, vol. i.] + + [Footnote d: See "History of Australian Exploration," 1888; + and "Explorers of Australia," 1908, both by Ernest Favenc.] + + +[Illustration (hand-written letter): + +Victoria by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain +and Ireland, Queen, Defender of the Faith, &c. + +In pursuance of Our Order made by and with the advice of our Privy +Council on the 6th day of June in the year of Our Lord 1859, We do by +these presents summon and call together a Legislative Assembly in and +for Our Colony of Queensland to advise and give consent to the +making of Laws for the peace, welfare and good Government of our said +Colony.---- + +And we do enjoin and require Our subjects, inhabitants of Our said +Colony, and being duly qualified in that behalf, to proceed to the +Election of Members to serve in the said Legislative Assembly in +pursuance of Our Writs to be issued in Our name, in the first instance +by Our Governor of Our Colony of New South Wales, and thereafter by +Our Governor of Our said Colony of Queensland.---- + +----And We do further enjoin and require the Members who shall be so +elected, to assemble and meet together and to be and appear before Us +for the purposes aforesaid at the Court House Buildings Brisbane on +the 22nd day of May in the present year. + +----In testimony whereof we have caused the Great Seal of Our Colony +of Queensland to be affixed to this Our Writ.---- + +----Witness our trusty and well-beloved Sir William Thomas Denison, +Knight Commander of the Most Honorable Order of the Bath, Governor +General in and over all Her Majesty's Colonies of New South Wales, +Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and Queensland, +and Captain General and Governor-in-chief of the Territory of New +South Wales and Vice Admiral of the same &c. &c. &c. at Government +House Sydney, in New South Wales aforesaid this twentieth day of March +in the Twenty third year of Our reign, and the year of our Lord one +thousand eight hundred and sixty-- + + +W. Denison + +By His Excellency's Command + +Robert G. W. Herbert + +God save the Queen!] + + + + +THE SUBDIVISION OF AUSTRALIA. + + +(MAPS 1 AND 2.) + +Since the issue of Captain Arthur Phillip's Commission as Governor +in 1786 there have been no less than ten successive modifications in +Australian boundaries, all internal save the first, which severed +Van Diemen's Land from New South Wales. Map 1 represents Australia as +depicted before the time of Captain Cook. Map 2 shows the territory as +divided into two parts by Governor Phillip's Commission. The continent +was severed by a north-and-south line along the 135th meridian of east +longitude, and all the eastern part declared to be the territory of +New South Wales. + + +VAN DIEMEN'S LAND (MAP 3). + +Under an Imperial Act of 1823 a Royal Commission was issued to +Governor Arthur on 14th June, 1825, erecting Van Diemen's Land into a +separate colony, as shown in Map 3. + + +NEW SOUTH WALES--ALTERED BOUNDARY (MAP 4). + +On 6th July, 1825, a Commission appointing Sir Ralph Darling Governor +of New South Wales, after describing the boundary of the colony as +then existing, declared that the western boundary should be extended +6 degrees further west to the 129th meridian of east longitude, +including all the adjacent islands in the Pacific Ocean. + + +WESTERN AUSTRALIA (MAP 5). + +Although Western Australia had been occupied in 1826 by Major Lockyer, +and a settlement had been established at Swan River in 1829, the +boundaries of the colony were not definitely described until 1831, +when Sir James Stirling's Commission of appointment as Governor gave +him authority over all that part of the continent to the west of 129 +degrees east longitude. A supplementary Commission issued in 1873 +included all the adjacent islands in the Indian Ocean. + + +SOUTH AUSTRALIA (MAP 6). + +South Australia was proclaimed a British Province by Letters Patent on +the 28th December, 1836; bounded on the north by the 26th parallel of +south latitude; on the south by the Southern Ocean; on the west by the +132nd meridian of east longitude; on the east by the 141st meridian. + + +VICTORIA (MAP 7). + +In 1851 the territory previously known as Port Phillip was separated +from New South Wales. In July, 1851, the legal symbol of the fact was +found in the issue of writs of election for members of the +Legislative Council. This was done under an Act of the New South Wales +Legislature, passed to give effect to the Act passed in 1850 "for the +Better Government of Her Majesty's Australian Colonies." Boundaries: +On the north and north-east by a straight line from Cape Howe to the +nearest source of the River Murray; thence by the course of that river +to the eastern boundary of South Australia; and on the south by the +sea: the River Murray to remain within New South Wales. + + +NEW SOUTH WALES--ALTERED BOUNDARY (MAP 8). + +By a later statute passed in 1855, the boundaries of New South Wales +were defined as follows:--"All the territory lying between the 129th +and 154th meridians of east longitude, and north of the 40th parallel +of south latitude, including all islands and Lord Howe Island, except +the territories comprised within the boundaries of the province of +South Australia and the colony of Victoria as at present established." + + +[Illustration: Map 1 (1770).] + +[Illustration: Map 2 (1786).] + +[Illustration: Map 3 (1825).] + +[Illustration: Map 4 (1825).] + +[Illustration: Map 5 (1831).] + +[Illustration: Map 6 (1836).] + +[Illustration: Map 7 (1851).] + +[Illustration: Map 8 (1855).] + +[Illustration: Map 9 (1859).] + +[Illustration: Map 10 (1862).] + +[Illustration: Map 11 (1861-3).] + +[Illustration: Map 12 (1863).] + + +QUEENSLAND (MAP 9). + +In 1859 Queensland was severed from New South Wales by Letters +Patent issued to Sir George Bowen, the boundaries being given as +follows:--"So much of the said colony of New South Wales as lies +northward of a line commencing on the sea coast at Point Danger, in +latitude about 28 degrees 8 minutes south, and following the range +thence which divides the waters of the Tweed, Richmond, and Clarence +Rivers from those of the Logan and Brisbane Rivers, westerly, to the +Great Dividing Range between the waters falling to the east coast +and those of the River Murray; following the Great Dividing Range +southerly to the range dividing the waters of Tenterfield Creek from +those of the main head of the Dumaresq River; following that range +westerly to the Dumaresq River; and following that river (which is +locally known as the Severn) downward to its confluence with the +Macintyre River; thence following the Macintyre River (which lower +down becomes the Barwan) downward to the 29th parallel of south +latitude; and following that parallel westerly to the 141st meridian +of east longitude, which is the eastern boundary of South Australia; +together with all and every the adjacent islands, their members and +appurtenances, in the Pacific Ocean; and do by these presents separate +from our said colony of New South Wales and erect the said territory +so described into a separate colony to be called the 'Colony of +Queensland.'" + + +ANNEXATION TO QUEENSLAND, 1862 (MAP 10). + +On 12th April, 1862, the Duke of Newcastle advised Governor Bowen that +Letters Patent, of which a copy was enclosed, had been issued annexing +to Queensland the following territory--namely, "so much of our colony +of New South Wales as lies to the northward of the 21st parallel of +south latitude, and between the 141st and 138th meridians of east +longitude, together with all and every the adjacent islands, their +members and appurtenances in the Gulf of Carpentaria." The area thus +annexed added to Queensland about 120,000 square miles of territory, +which now comprises such centres as Birdsville, Boulia, Cloncurry, +Camooweal, and Burketown. + + +ANNEXATION TO SOUTH AUSTRALIA (MAP 11). + +An Imperial Act of 1861 enacted that "so much of the colony of New +South Wales, being to the south of the 26th degree of south latitude, +as lies between the western boundary of South Australia and 129 +degrees east longitude, shall be and the same is hereby detached +from the colony of New South Wales and annexed to the colony of South +Australia, and shall for all purposes whatever be deemed to be part of +the last-mentioned colony from the day in which the Act of Parliament +is proclaimed." + + +THE NORTHERN TERRITORY ANNEXED TO SOUTH AUSTRALIA (MAP 12). + +There still remained, nominally belonging to New South Wales though +detached from that colony, the country now known as the Northern +Territory and forming part of South Australia, lying northward of +the 26th parallel of south latitude, and between 129 degrees and 138 +degrees east longitude. That area was by Letters Patent, dated 6th +July, 1863, issued under the Imperial Act of 1861, annexed to South +Australia until it was "the Royal pleasure to make other disposition +thereof." + + + + +[Illustration] + + +GOVERNORS OF QUEENSLAND. + + + (1) SIR GEORGE FERGUSON BOWEN, G.C.M.G.: Dec. 1859--Jan. 1868. + + (2) COLONEL SAMUEL WENSLEY BLACKALL: Aug. 1868--Jan. 1871. + + (3) MARQUIS OF NORMANBY: Aug. 1871--Nov. 1874. + + (4) WILLIAM WELLINGTON CAIRNS, C.M.G.: Jan. 1875--Mar. 1877. + + (5) SIR ARTHUR EDWARD KENNEDY, G.C.M.G., C.B.: April 1877--May 1883. + + (6) SIR ANTHONY MUSGRAVE, G.C.M.G.: Nov. 1883--Oct. 1888. + + (7) SIR HENRY WYLIE NORMAN, G.C.B., G.C.M.G., C.I.E.: May + 1889--Dec. 1895. + + (8) LORD LAMINGTON, G.C.M.G.: April 1896--Dec. 1901. + + (9) SIR HERBERT CHARLES CHERMSIDE, G.C.M.G., C.B.: Mar. 1902--Oct. + 1904. + + (10) LORD CHELMSFORD, K.C.M.G.: Nov. 1905--May 1909. + + (11) SIR WILLIAM MACGREGOR, G.C.M.G., C.B.: Dec. 1909-- + + + + +QUEEN OF THE NORTH. + + +ESSEX EVANS. + + Stand forth, O Daughter of the Sun, + Of all thy kin the fairest one, + It is thine hour of Jubilee. + Behold, the work our hands have done + Our hearts now offer unto thee. + Thy children call thee; O come forth, + Queen of the North! + + Brow-bound with pearls and burnished gold + The East hath Queens of royal mould, + Sultanas, peerless in their pride, + Who rule wide realms of wealth untold, + But they wax wan and weary-eyed: + Thine eyes, O Northern Queen, are bright + With morning light. + + Fear not thy Youth: It is thy crown-- + The careless years before Renown + Shall load its tines with jewelled deeds + And press thy golden circlet down + With vaster toils and greater needs. + Fear not thy Youth: its splendid power + Awaits the hour. + + Stand forth, O Daughter of the Sun, + Whose fires through all thine arteries run, + Whose kiss hath touched thy gleaming hair-- + Come like a goddess, Radiant One, + Reign in our hearts who crown thee there, + With laughter like thy seas, and eyes + Blue as thy skies. + + Ah, not in vain, O Pioneers, + The toil that breaks, the grief that sears, + The hands that forced back Nature's bars + To prove the blood of ancient years + And make a home 'neath alien stars! + O Victors over stress and pain + 'Twas not in vain! + + Jungle and plain and pathless wood-- + Depths of primeval solitude-- + Gaunt wilderness and mountain stern-- + Their secrets lay all unsubdued. + Life was the price: who dared might learn. + Ye read them all, Bold Pioneers, + In fifty years. + + O True Romance, whose splendour gleams + Across the shadowy realm of dreams, + Whose starry wings can touch with light + The dull grey paths, the common themes: + Hast thou not thrilled with sovereign might + Our story, until Duty's name + Is one with Fame! + + Queen of the North, thy heroes sleep + On sun-burnt plain and rocky steep. + Their work is done: their high emprise + Hath crowned thee, and the great stars keep + The secrets of their histories. + We reap the harvest they have sown + Who died unknown. + + The seed they sowed with weary hands + Now bursts in bloom through all thy lands; + Dark hills their glittering secrets yield; + And for the camps of wand'ring bands-- + The snowy flock, the fertile field. + Back, ever back new conquests press + The wilderness. + + Below thy coast line's rugged height + Wide canefields glisten in the light, + And towns arise on hill and lea, + And one fair city where the bright + Broad winding river sweeps to sea. + Ah! could the hearts that cleared the way + Be here to-day! + + A handful: yet they took their stand + Lost in the silence of the land. + They went their lonely ways unknown + And left their bones upon the sand. + E'en though we call this land our own + 'Tis but a handful holds it still + For good or ill. + + What though thy sons be strong and tall, + Fearless of mood at danger's call; + And these, thy daughters, fair of face, + With hearts to dare whate'er befall-- + Tall goddesses and queens of grace-- + Fill up thy frontiers: man the gate + Before too late. + + Sit thou no more inert of fame, + But let the wide world hear thy name. + See where thy realms spread line on line-- + Thy empty realms that cry in shame + For hands to make them doubly thine! + Fill up thy frontiers: man the gate + Before too late! + + Prepare, ere falls the hour of Fate + When death-shells rain their iron hate, + And all in vain thy blood is poured-- + For dark aslant the Northern Gate + I see the Shadow of the Sword: + I hear the storm-clouds break in wrath-- + Queen of the North! + + + + +[Illustration] + + +PREMIERS OF QUEENSLAND. + + + (1) SIR R. G. W. HERBERT: Dec. 1859--Feb. 1866; July 1866--Aug. 1866. + + (2) HON. ARTHUR MACALISTER: Feb. 1866--July 1866; Aug. 1866--Aug. + 1867; Jan. 1874--June 1876. + + (3) SIR R. R. MACKENZIE: Aug. 1867--Nov. 1868. + + (4) SIR CHARLES LILLEY: Nov. 1868--May 1870. + + (5) SIR A. H. PALMER: May 1870--Jan. 1874. + + (6) HON. GEORGE THORN: June 1876--Mar. 1877. + + (7) HON. JOHN DOUGLAS: Mar. 1877--Jan. 1879. + + (8) SIR THOMAS MCILWRAITH: Jan. 1879--Nov. 1883; June 1888--Nov. + 1888; Mar. 1893--Oct. 1893. + + (9) SIR S. W. GRIFFITH: Nov. 1883--June 1888; Aug. 1890--Mar. 1893. + + (10) HON. D. B. MOREHEAD: Nov. 1888--Aug. 1890. + + (11) SIR H. M. NELSON: Oct. 1893--April 1898. + + (12) HON. T. J. BYRNES: April 1898--Sept. 1898. + + (13) SIR J. R. DICKSON: Oct. 1898--Dec. 1899. + + (14) HON. A. DAWSON: 1st Dec. 1899--7th Dec. 1899. + + (15) HON. R. PHILP: Dec. 1899--Sept. 1903: Nov. 1907--Feb. 1908. + + (16) SIR A. MORGAN: Sept. 1903--Jan. 1906. + + (17) HON. W. KIDSTON: Jan. 1906--Nov. 1907: Feb. 1908 (still in + office). + + +[Illustration] + + + + +PART I.--OUR NATAL YEAR. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE BIRTH OF QUEENSLAND. + + Issue of Letters Patent and Order in Council.--Appointment of + Sir George Ferguson Bowen as First Governor.--Continuity of + Colonial Office Policy.--Instructions to Governor.--Munificent + Gift of all Waste Lands of the Crown.--Temporary Limitation + of Electoral Suffrage.--Responsible Government Unqualified by + Restrictions or Reservations.--Governor General of New South + Wales Initiates Elections. + + +Fifty years ago an emphatic expression of confidence in the +self-governing competence of the people of North-eastern Australia +was given by the British Government of Lord Derby. On 6th June, 1859, +Queen Victoria in Council adopted Letters Patent--which had been +already approved in draft on 13th May--"erecting Moreton Bay into +a colony under the name of Queensland," and appointing Sir George +Ferguson Bowen to be "Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief of the +same." On the same day an Order in Council was made "empowering the +Governor of Queensland to make laws and provide for the administration +of justice in the said colony"; also to constitute therein a +Government and Legislature as nearly resembling the form of Government +and Legislature established in New South Wales as the circumstances of +the colony would allow. This meant that representative and responsible +government had been granted to the people of the new colony to the +full extent that it was enjoyed by the people of New South Wales under +the epoch-making Constitution Act of 1855. It meant also that the +whole of the unalienated Crown Lands of the colony were vested in the +Legislature. + +Next day, the 7th June, the annual session of the Imperial Parliament +was opened, and four days later an amendment upon the Address in Reply +was carried in the House of Commons, whereupon Lord Derby and his +Conservative colleagues forthwith resigned, and were succeeded by a +Liberal (or Whig) Ministry under Lord Palmerston. The new Government +included men of such distinction as Mr. W. E. Gladstone, Lord John +Russell, and the Duke of Newcastle, the last-mentioned assuming the +office of Colonial Secretary. The change of Ministry, however, caused +no interruption in the continuity of Colonial Office policy; and no +time was lost in despatching Sir George Bowen to discharge the highly +responsible duties imposed upon him by the Queen's Commission. + +In notifying Sir George Bowen of his appointment, Sir Edward Bulwer +Lytton tendered him some friendly advice. He said that Sir George +would experience the greatest amount of difficulty in connection with +the squatters, and he went on in these words:--"But in this, which is +an irritating contest between rival interests, you will wisely abstain +as much as possible from interference. Avoid taking part with one +or the other.... The first care of a Governor in a free colony," he +continued, "is to shun the reproach of being a party man. Give +all parties and all Ministries formed the fairest play." In +public addresses Sir George was advised to "appeal to the noblest +idiosyncracies of the community--the noblest are generally the most +universal and the most durable. They are peculiar to no party. +Let your thoughts never be distracted from the paramount object of +finance. All states thrive in proportion to the administration of +revenue." A number of excellent maxims followed, among them--"The more +you treat people as gentlemen the more 'they will behave as such.'" +Again, "courtesy is a duty which public servants owe to the humblest +member of the community." And, in a postscript, "Get all the details +of the land question from the Colonial Office, and master them +thoroughly. Convert the jealousies now existing between Moreton Bay +and Sydney into emulation." All these generous didactics from the +great novelist and Tory statesman, followed by congratulations and +good wishes, must have been stimulative to the aspirations of the +embryo Governor charged with the foundation of a new colony at the +Antipodes. + +The value of autonomous government is generally appreciated; but +the free gift of land made by the Imperial authority to the various +self-governing colonies has no parallel in human history. In the case +of Queensland the recipients were a mere handful of people, mostly +settled at one end of a vast territory, at least half of which was +unexplored. Plenary authority was in fact given to manage and control +the waste lands belonging to the Crown, as well as to appropriate the +gross proceeds of the sales of any such lands, and all other proceeds +and revenues of the same from whatever source arising, including all +royalties, mines, and minerals, all of which by the Letters Patent +and the Order in Council were vested in the Legislature. This vesting, +however, was subject to a proviso validating all contracts, promises, +and engagements lawfully made on behalf of Her Majesty before the +proclamation took effect. The proviso also stipulated that there +should be no disturbance of any vested or other rights which had +accrued or belonged to the licensed occupants or lessees of Crown +Lands under any repealed Act, or under any Order in Council issued in +pursuance thereof.[a] This reservation was really for the protection +of a number of people in the colony, and not for the benefit of the +Imperial Government. The licensed occupants would be subject to the +mandates of the Legislature; while the reservation in favour of the +owners of freehold lands was of a comparatively trivial nature, the +total area alienated from the Crown a year after the establishment +of the new colony amounting to only 108,870 acres, which had yielded +£305,250 as purchase-money chiefly to the New South Wales Treasury. +Taking the 670,500 square miles within the colony thus handed over to +be worth five shillings per acre, or £160 the square mile, the total +value of the Imperial gift to Queensland would be £107,280,000. Of +course that price was not immediately realisable, and before much of +the vast area could be utilised millions of capital must be expended +in reclamation and development; but as some indication of ultimate +value it may be pointed out that the land sold up to 31st December, +1860, realised at the rate of nearly £3 per acre. That the "waste" +land was not a dead asset was shown by the fact that the public +revenue of the colony for the first year of its existence was +£178,589, to which rents and sales of land contributed a substantial +proportion. It was not surprising, therefore, that Sir George Bowen's +early despatches to the Secretary of State testified to the grateful +and enthusiastic loyalty of the people of the colony to the Queen and +the mother country. + +When the previously established Australian colonies were severally +constituted the people were kept for years in a state of tutelage, so +to speak, power being exercised in each case by a Governor advised by +Ministers appointed by and responsible only to the Crown. The single +Chamber of the Legislature, if not wholly nominated, included a +prescribed number of members appointed by the Governor, and was +practically under his control. It had therefore been supposed by +many colonists that separation having been hotly opposed by some +influential residents of the territory concerned--and having been +emphatically condemned by an official despatch received in England +from Sir William Denison, then Governor-General of New South Wales, +almost at the last moment--conditions in restraint of popular +government would have been imposed on the establishment of Queensland. +For the separation struggle had been long continued, and marked by +much personal and party bitterness. The agitation had been originated +and chiefly maintained by people on the seaboard led by ardent +patriots introduced a few years previously under the auspices of Dr. +John Dunmore Lang, who while undoubtedly a great Australian patriot +was unhappily not a _persona grata_ with the controlling authority at +the Colonial Office. The movement was from its initiation protested +against by the enterprising Crown tenants who had driven their flocks +and herds overland from New South Wales, and had, taking their +lives in their hands, adventurously formed stations in the remote +wilderness. They not unnaturally dreaded the effect of popular +sovereignty upon what they deemed their vested interests. But British +statesmen, whether Conservative or Liberal, appear to have felt that, +responsible government having been granted to and enjoyed by the +people of New South Wales--and consequently to the people of that part +of its territory about to be separated--any Imperial limitation of +popular rights already conferred would be regarded as an unjustifiable +encroachment upon public liberty achieved after many years of ardent +struggle in the parent colony. True, the language of the Letters +Patent and Order in Council was afterwards construed to involve some +temporary limitation of the manhood suffrage which had been affirmed +by the Parliament of New South Wales; but whether this limitation +was actual or inadvertent does not clearly appear. It was not of much +practical consequence, perhaps, in a new country that was rapidly +multiplying its scant population, whether or not the electors for +the first Legislative Assembly were required to have some other +qualification than adult age and six months' residence; but the +incident operated prejudicially against the Government, and gave a +rallying cry to Opposition politicians. + +A somewhat singular course adopted by the Home Government was the +authorisation of the Governor-General of New South Wales to appoint +the first members of the Queensland Legislative Council, with a term +of five years, although subsequent appointments were to be made by the +Governor of Queensland for the term of the members' natural lives. +Sir William Denison was also empowered to summon and call together the +first Legislative Assembly of Queensland; to fix by proclamation the +number of members; to divide the colony into convenient electoral +districts; to prepare the electoral rolls; to issue the writs of +election; and to make all necessary provision for the conduct of the +first elections. It was required, moreover, that the Parliament should +be called together for a date not more than six months after the +proclamation of the colony, and should remain in existence, unless +previously dissolved by the Governor, for a period of five years. Yet +there was practically no limitation of popular authority except +in respect of the preliminary arrangements, for the Queensland +consolidating and amending Constitution Act of 1867 reaffirmed all +rights and privileges conferred by the New South Wales Constitution +Act. + + [Footnote a: These powers were given in the New South Wales + Constitution Act, 1855, Sect. 2.] + +[Illustration: HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT, BRISBANE] + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +INITIATION OF RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT. + + Arrival of Sir George Bowen in Brisbane.--The First + Responsible Ministry.--Injunctions to Governor by Secretary + of State in regard to choice of Ministers.--Ex-members of New + South Wales Legislature take Umbrage.--The Governor on the + Characteristics of Various Classes of Colonists.--The Governor + a Dictator.--The Microscopic Treasury Balance.--Gladstone as + Site of Capital.--Mr. Herbert as a Parliamentary Leader. + + +When on 10th December, 1859, Governor Bowen, accompanied by Mr. Robert +George Wyndham Herbert, his private secretary, had landed amidst great +popular rejoicings at Brisbane, read the Queen's proclamation of the +new colony, and been sworn in as Governor by Mr. Justice Lutwyche (the +Resident Supreme Court Judge for Moreton Bay), he was compelled to +choose Ministers and then govern the colony for nearly six months +before they could be constitutionally approved by the representatives +of the people in Parliament assembled. Sir George Bowen was faced by +the dearth of seasoned public men, and by the dread of enlisting the +services of strong partizans whose opinions and personal qualities +were alike unknown to him. But as a constitutional Governor he could +do no executive act until he had secured responsible advisers, and +therefore the immediate appointment of Ministers was imperative. Hence +on the day of the official landing a "Gazette" notice contained the +proclamation of the Queen's Letters Patent, and notification of the +appointment of Mr. Herbert as Colonial Secretary with Mr. Ratcliffe +Pring as Attorney-General. Thus with the Governor and his two +Ministers an Executive Council was at once formed; and five days later +Mr. (afterwards Sir) Robert Ramsay Mackenzie was gazetted Colonial +Treasurer.[a] + +These appointments gave umbrage to certain colonists, particularly to +those who, having represented Moreton Bay constituencies in the New +South Wales Assembly, were deemed in many respects most eligible as +advisers of the Queen's representative. Mr. Herbert had come out from +England with Sir George Bowen as private secretary at the moderate +salary of £250 a year. He was a scholarly young man of 28 years, and +among other advantages had enjoyed the privilege of holding for a +time the post of private secretary to Mr. Gladstone. Indeed, both the +Governor and his secretary, although the former had been selected +by Sir E. B. Lytton, Colonial Secretary in the superseded Derby +Administration, may be classed among the Gladstone school of +politicians. Sir George Bowen probably recollected the injunction of +Sir E. B. Lytton against partizanship, and the danger of identifying +himself with the "squatters." For not only were they, speaking +generally, partizans of a pronounced type, but the reservation of +tenant rights made by the Order in Council of 6th June was calculated +to taint them with a strong personal, or at least class, bias in land +legislation and administration. + +In his official despatches to the Colonial Secretary Sir George Bowen +did not mention at length these initial difficulties; but to Sir E. +B. Lytton he wrote more fully. "I have often thought," he said, under +date 6th March, 1860, "that the Queensland gentlemen-squatters bear a +similar relation to the other Australians that the Virginian planters +of 100 years back bore to the other Americans. But there is a +perfectly different class of people in the towns. Brisbane, my present +capital, must resemble what Boston and the other Puritan towns of +New England were at the close of the last century. In a population +of 7,000[b] we have 14 churches, 13 public-houses, 12 policemen. The +leading inhabitants of Brisbane are a hard-headed set of English +and Scotch merchants and mechanics; very orderly, industrious, and +prosperous; proud of the mother country; loyal to the person of the +Queen; and convinced that the true federation for these colonies is +the maintenance of the integrity of the Empire, and that the true +rallying-point for Australians is the Throne." + +To the Under Secretary for the Colonies (Mr. Chichester Fortescue) +Sir George Bowen wrote on 6th June, 1860:--"At the first start of all +other colonies the Governor has been assisted by a nominated Council +of experienced officials; he has been supported by an armed force; +and he has been authorised to draw, at least at the beginning, on the +Imperial Treasury for the expenses of the public service. But I was an +autocrat; the sole source of authority here, without a single soldier, +and without a single shilling. There was no organised force of +any kind on my arrival, though I have now, by dint of exertion and +influence, got up a respectable police on the Irish model, and a very +creditable corps of volunteers. And as to money wherewith to carry +on the Government, I started with just 7½d. in the Treasury. A +thief--supposing, I fancy, that I should have been furnished with some +funds for the outfit, so to speak, of the new State--broke into the +Treasury a few nights after my arrival, and carried off the 7½d. +mentioned. However, I borrowed money from the banks until our revenue +came in, and our estimates already show (after paying back the sums +borrowed) a considerable balance in excess of the proposed expenditure +for the year." + +Sir George Bowen's initial difficulties were not chiefly financial, +however; neither was the lack of material force to give effect to the +law a serious embarrassment. He was empowered practically to select +the seat of government by determining where the Parliament should +first assemble. Among the opponents of separation had been certain +squatters who sought to place the capital of the new colony in some +more geographically central place than Brisbane. Of these Mr. William +Henry Walsh, of Degilbo, Wide Bay, one of the most able and virile of +the Moreton Bay ex-members of the New South Wales Parliament, was very +prominent. Offended by the Governor's selection of Mr. Herbert for +the Premiership, Mr. Walsh refused a seat in either House of the new +Parliament, and sought to create an agitation in the more northerly +ports of Maryborough and Rockhampton, each containing about 500 +inhabitants, in favour of Gladstone as the capital--a place which +Sydney political influence had always indicated as the future seat of +government when a new northern colony came to be established. But +each of the towns mentioned had ambitions of its own, and regarded +Gladstone as a rival. The movement therefore failed; but the colony +for years lost the benefit of Mr. Walsh's services at a time when +every capable man was needed to assist in organising the government +and directing the Parliament of political novices who took their +seats a few months later. Mr. Arthur Macalister, solicitor, another +ex-member of the New South Wales Parliament and an excellent debater, +was perhaps equally disappointed, but he was at least more diplomatic. +As member for Ipswich he took his seat on the Opposition benches, and +after two years' service in the Assembly was invited by Mr. Herbert to +join the Government. This invitation he accepted, and four years later +he became the party leader. The sequel proved that the Governor had +made no mistake in selecting Mr. Herbert for his Premier. He proved +a first-rate parliamentary leader, and succeeded in giving the +new colony the inestimable advantage of over six years of stable +government at the outset of its career, in marked contrast to the +kaleidoscopic Administrations which so greatly hindered political +progress in more than one of the southern colonies. + + [Footnote a: For personnel of first Ministry and Parliament, + see Appendix B, post.] + + [Footnote b: The census of 1861 showed that then the + population was only a little over 6,000.] + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +DIFFICULTIES OF EARLY ADMINISTRATIONS. + + Meeting of First Parliament.--Amendment on Address in Reply + defeated by Speaker's Casting Vote.--Adoption of Address in + Reply.--Compromise between Parties Indispensable.--Successful + Inauguration of Responsible Government.--The Governor's + Egotism.--Mr. Herbert's Retirement.--Mr. Macalister + Succeeds.--Financial and Political Crisis.--Proposed + Inconvertible Paper Money.--Governor Undeservedly Blamed. + + +On the 7th of May, 1860, the 26 members of the first Legislative +Assembly--among them the three Ministers of the Crown--having been +returned, Parliament was summoned to meet at Brisbane on the 22nd +of that month, just a few days before the maximum limit of delay +specified by the Queen's Order in Council. On 1st May Sir William +Denison had appointed 11 members for a five years' term to the +Legislative Council, and three weeks later Sir George Bowen, +conceiving the number insufficient, appointed four members additional +for a life term, raising the total number to 15. Thus the first +Parliament of Queensland was at length fully constituted, and all +preliminaries had been completed for entering upon the work of the +first session.[a] + +On the 22nd of May the session opened, and after members had been +sworn in Sir Charles Nicholson, for some years Speaker in the Sydney +Parliament, was elected President of the Council, and Mr. Gilbert +Eliott--formerly an officer of the Royal Artillery--the member for +Wide Bay, Speaker of the Assembly. Both Houses then adjourned for a +week. + +The Governor's Speech, which was of great length, having been +delivered, the Address in Reply was moved in both Houses. In the +Council the leadership had been entrusted to Captain Maurice Charles +O'Connell, Minister without portfolio, who had long been in the +Port Curtis district as a trusted official of the New South Wales +Government, and in early life had served with great distinction as +a British soldier in Spain. In the Council no difficulty arose in +adopting the Address. But in the Assembly an amendment moved for the +adjournment of the debate at an early stage was only defeated by the +Speaker's casting-vote, one member being absent. It thus appeared that +the Assembly was almost equally divided. This was a dangerous position +to be faced by a new Premier without a day's previous experience in +Parliament, and with the two most formidable debaters in the House, +Mr. Macalister and Mr. (afterwards Sir) Charles Lilley, in active +opposition. Mr. Herbert made a diplomatic speech, however, and the +Address passed without much further contention. The division list +showed that, despite the efforts of the Governor and his Premier to +avoid identification with the squatters, the votes of the latter were +essential to the existence of the Ministry, since the members of the +Opposition consisted almost exclusively of town representatives. The +following day (30th May) the Government nominee for the Chairmanship +of Committees, Mr. C. W. Blakeney, was defeated by 15 votes to 7, and +Mr. Macalister, who was nominated by the Opposition, was thereupon +elected on the voices. The division of parties evidently made +compromise indispensable to the passing of much-needed legislation. +But much had been gained by the Government. All its members had +been elected by the constituencies, and the Assembly had practically +acknowledged that it was entitled to a fair trial. Seeing that +for nearly six months Ministers had held their portfolios without +parliamentary sanction, and had naturally made many executive mistakes +during that time, it may be held that the first session of the first +Parliament had been inaugurated successfully from the Ministerial +standpoint. In his official despatches, as well as in private letters +to friends in England, Sir George Bowen revealed himself as a genial +though apparently unconscious egotist. His assumption of what must +strike the discriminating reader as a dominating influence in the +political and executive affairs of the colony was scarcely consistent +with his position as a ruler representing the Queen, and competent +to act only on constitutional advice. An impartial survey of Mr. +Herbert's six years of office as Premier leads to the conclusion +that chiefly to his judicious counsel and incomparable tact in the +management of men the Governor owed the exemplary success attained in +the organisation and government of the colony. + +[Illustration: VIEW FROM RIVER TERRACE, BRISBANE] + +The Governor's complete if rather florid reports to the Colonial +Office, however, justly evoked cordial responses from the Secretary of +State. Sir George Bowen was a most capable man, but sometimes betrayed +want of both reticence and dignity. He was enthusiastic as well as +optimistic, and his retention in Queensland for the unusually long +period of eight years is an unanswerable certificate of his official +merit. Yet it is undoubted that when bad times overtook the colony in +1866 both the Governor and his Premier appeared to have outlived their +popularity, though their combined action at that time for restoring +the public credit was perhaps the most eminent service that either of +them had ever rendered. Mr. Herbert had formed no ties in Australia; +he had exercised supreme influence in the local Legislature; but +now that there were several members with both natural capacity and +parliamentary experience aspiring to the Premiership, believing that +he had better prospects of preferment in the Imperial service, he +determined to return to England. His subsequent long career at the +Colonial Office justified his anticipations, and it may be safely +said of his departure from Queensland that the colony's loss was the +Empire's gain. + +The ex-Premier did not leave the colony abruptly, however, on handing +over, on the 1st of February, 1866, all ministerial responsibilities +to Mr. Arthur Macalister, his senior colleague in the Cabinet. He +occupied his seat for nearly six months, in fact, and conducted +himself with native dignity and becoming self-effacement as an +unofficial member of the Assembly. Unhappily he was not to leave +Australia without having a wholly unexpected shadow suddenly cast over +his long administration of affairs. In mid-July the news reached the +colony of the catastrophic failure of the Agra and Masterman's Bank, +which had undertaken to finance the Queensland railway loan then being +rapidly spent. The financial crisis of 1866 played havoc in London; it +was of crushing effect in Queensland, for the Treasurer could not +meet his obligations, and the railway workmen threatened a riot +in consequence of non-payment of their hard-earned wages. In this +emergency, Parliament being in session, the Treasurer, Mr. (afterwards +Sir) Joshua Peter Bell desired to adopt the recent American expedient +of issuing an inconvertible paper currency. The Cabinet approved, but +on the Governor being consulted before the introduction of the bill he +emphatically declined to promise the Royal assent to the measure, if +passed. This he did for the all-sufficient reason that his Imperial +instructions compelled him to reserve the assent to all measures +affecting the currency. Ministers immediately resigned, and the +Governor became the victim of irrational public obloquy for a time.[b] +Mr. Herbert consented to lead a stop-gap Administration, and under his +guidance a bill was at once passed empowering the Government to raise +£300,000 by the issue of Treasury bills bearing not more than 10 +per cent. interest per annum. They were forthwith disposed of at a +premium, and the credit of the Government was restored. The temporary +Government then resigned, and Mr. Macalister resumed office. Thus +Queensland was saved from the double peril of paralysed credit and a +debased paper currency. + + [Footnote a: The names of the first Ministers, and of members + of both Houses of the first Parliament, will be found in + Appendix B. It may be of interest to mention that of all these + representative men one, Mr. A. W. Compigne, who resigned his + seat in the Council in 1864, alone survived till the Jubilee + Year; and that he died at his residence, Brisbane, on Sunday, + 4th July, 1909, in the 92nd year of his age.] + + [Footnote b: Sir George Bowen, writing to the Right Honourable + Robert Lowe, afterwards Lord Sherbrooke, said:--"Several + leading members of Parliament were ill-treated in the streets; + and threats were even uttered of burning down Government + House, and of treating me 'as Lord Elgin was treated at + Montreal in 1849.'"] + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +THE FIRST SESSION OF PARLIAMENT. + + Work of the First Session.--Four Land Acts Passed.--Summary + of Land "Code."--Pastoral Leases.--Upset Price of Land £1 + per acre.--Agricultural Reserves.--Land Orders to Immigrants. + --Cotton Bonus.--Lands for Mining Purposes.--Renewal of + Existing Leases.--Governor's Laudation of "Code."--Praises + Parliament.--Abolition of State Aid to Religion.--Primary + and Secondary Education.--Wool Liens.--First Estimates and + Appropriation Act. + + +The first session closed on the 18th of September, having extended +over nearly four months. On the 28th of August, Sir Charles Nicholson +having determined to retire and go to England, Captain O'Connell +was appointed President of the Legislative Council by the Governor's +Commission. Mr. John James Galloway at the same time accepted the +appointment of Minister without portfolio, and held the leadership of +the Council for the remainder of the session. Without other change in +the personnel of the Cabinet the session was brought to a close with +the position of the Government considerably improved. They had not +carried all the measures promised in the Opening Speech, but the +new Acts passed numbered sixteen, some of them important, and all +necessary. Seeing that both Houses were new to their work, the result +went to prove that the confidence of the Imperial Government in the +self-governing competence of the colonists had not been misplaced. +Even the "Moreton Bay Courier," then hostile to the Government, +admitted that much good work had been done, the chief exception taken +being to the Act authorising the granting of a five years' additional +term for existing pastoral leases. The Act reserved power of +resumption during the currency of the lease, but the Opposition +contended that the power would never be exercised. + +No less than four Land Bills were passed during the session, and the +Governor, writing to the Secretary of State, said, referring to them, +that these Acts might be called "The Land Code of Queensland." The +first of the "Code," which was entitled the Unoccupied Crown Lands +Occupation Act, repealed the New South Wales pastoral leasing law of +1858, and the Orders in Council then in force in Queensland in so far +as they were repugnant to the new Act. Any person was to be permitted +to apply for an occupation license for one year for a run of 100 +square miles, and if there were more than one applicant for the same +run preference was to be given to any person who had occupied it for +two months previously. Within nine months after the granting of the +license application might be made by the occupier for a 14 years' +lease conditionally on the run having been stocked to one-fourth its +assumed carrying capacity of 100 sheep or 20 head of cattle per square +mile. An absolute power of resumption at any time during the lease +on 12 months' notice was given. The second was the Tenders for Crown +Lands Act, authorising the issue of 14 years' leases to lessees of +runs already liable for rent; also authorising the acceptance of +tenders (which had been held over awaiting legislation) for runs +occupied since 1st January, 1860, and the granting to the tenderers of +14 years' leases. + +The third measure of the "Code" was the Alienation of Crown Lands Act, +which fixed the minimum upset price at auction or otherwise at £1 per +acre; and which provided for the setting apart, within six months from +the bill becoming law, of not less than 100,000 acres on the shores +or navigable waters of Moreton Bay, Wide Bay, Port Curtis, and Keppel +Bay, and also within five miles of all towns with upwards of 500 +inhabitants, as agricultural reserves of not less than 10,000 acres +each, which should not be for sale by auction, but surveyed and opened +to selection as farms of not less than 40 nor more than 320 acres +at the fixed price of £1 per acre; the purchase money to be paid in +advance, and the Crown grant issued at the end of six months if the +selector had occupied the land and commenced to improve it during +that term. If a selector failed so to occupy and improve, the +purchase-money was to be returned to him, less 10 per cent., and the +land again opened for selection. A selector was also entitled to lease +three times the area of his farm--but so that the whole should not +exceed 320 acres--in one lot or conterminous lots within the same +reserve, for a term of five years, at sixpence per acre rent, with +right of purchase, if fenced in, at £1 per acre at any time during the +currency of the lease. A further provision of importance in the +same Act was the granting of a land order for £18 on arrival to each +immigrant from Europe who paid his own passage, and a further land +order for £12 at the end of two years' residence in the colony. It was +also provided that two children between the ages of four and fourteen +should be reckoned as one statute adult. Further provision was made +by which a bonus in land was to be paid during the next three years of +£10 per bale of good cleaned Sea Island cotton, and for the two years +next following £5 per bale. And finally any person or company was +empowered to purchase land not exceeding 640 acres in one block for +mining purposes, other than for coal or gold, at the upset price of +20s. per acre. + +The fourth measure of the "Code" was the Occupied Crown Lands Leasing +Act, which enabled the lessee of any Crown land held under previously +existing regulations, or under the Tenders for Crown Lands Act of the +current session, to get a five years' renewal at the end of his term. +The principle of compensation was recognised in these leasing Acts, +but no provision was made for the continuance of the pre-emptive right +of purchase, conferred by the old Orders in Council. + +[Illustration: BARRON FALLS, CAIRNS RAILWAY, NORTH QUEENSLAND] + +Sir George Bowen wrote to the Secretary of State in terms of exalted +laudation of these four Acts. "I regard them," he said, "as a +practical and satisfactory settlement of this much-vexed question, +which is still embittering the social life and retarding the material +advance of the neighbouring and elder colonies." To a friend in +England he wrote,--"The legislation of our first Parliament has +settled the long quarrel between the pastoral and agricultural +interests which has raged in all new countries ever since the days of +Abel, the 'keeper of sheep,' and Cain, the 'tiller of the ground!'" To +the Secretary of State he added,--"This Parliament may fairly boast +of having passed, with due caution and foresight, a greater number +of really useful measures, and of having achieved a greater amount of +really practical legislation, than any other Parliament in any of +the Australian colonies since the introduction of parliamentary +government." Sir George quotes a Sydney journal,[a] which before +separation was antagonistic to that movement, as saying,--"The +Government of Queensland has been either very fortunate or very +judicious. The last to enter the race, Queensland has shot ahead, and +taken the first place. While in Melbourne the popular rage has been +worked up by its guardians into riot, and while in Sydney the tactics +of the popular party have succeeded in placing the land question in a +position of chronic blockade, in Queensland it has been settled on +a moderate and reasonable basis, and without so much as a single +ministerial crisis." + +In the prorogation speech Sir George Bowen reviewed at length the work +of the session. From that and other sources it may be stated that +the limitation of the number of salaried officials capable of being +elected to the Legislative Assembly had been fixed so as not to +exceed five; the collection of parliamentary electors' names had been +discontinued, and facilities provided for self-registration; State +aid to religion had been abolished, the rights of existing incumbents +being preserved; the existing system of primary education had been +abolished, and provision made for the appointment by the Governor in +Council of a "Board of General Education," a body corporate authorised +to expend such sums as Parliament might vote for primary education. +The Board was empowered to assist any primary school that submitted +to its supervision and inspection, and conformed to its rules and +by-laws; but it was forbidden to contribute to the repair or building +of any school unless the fee-simple thereof had been previously vested +in the Board. And nothing in the Act could be held to authorise any +inspection of or interference with the special religious instruction +which might be given in such school during the hours set apart for +such instruction. Not more than 5 per cent. of the Board's funds might +be applied to granting exhibitions at any grammar school to primary +scholars who had passed the competitive examination prescribed by the +Board. + +The Board was also authorised to devote a portion of its funds to +assist in the establishment of normal or training schools, or to +industrial schools. The Grammar Schools Act of 1860, which with a few +amendments is still in force, was passed. An Act for taking the +census of the colony on 1st April, 1861, became law. An Act for the +appointment of Commissioners to adjust accounts with New South Wales +was another measure of the session. It may be remarked, however, that +an adjustment was never reached, but the amount in dispute became +so comparatively small when mutual credits had been allowed that the +question was permitted to lapse. Another measure of some practical +importance was the Liens on Wool Act, which extended also to mortgages +on sheep, cattle, and horses; and the Scab in Sheep Act, the main +provisions of which are still in force. The gold export duty was +abolished by an Act which merely validated the then official practice +of omitting to collect the duty imposed by a New South Wales Act +passed seven years previously. + +It must be admitted that this record of work done by a new Parliament, +in a colony that had no existence as a self-governing entity twelve +months before, deserved much of the approbation expressed of its +proceedings by the Governor. Indeed, the "Courier" of the day, in +commenting upon the work of the session, gave honourable members +of both Houses hearty credit for the assiduity with which they had +attended to public duty, even to the neglect in many cases of their +own personal and business affairs. There was then no payment of +members in any form. And there were other matters than legislation +which deserve notice. The Estimates had been passed, totalling +£220,808 for the service of the year; and the Governor had +congratulated the Assembly upon having appropriated one-fourth of the +total estimated revenue to roads, bridges, and other public works, +besides ample sums to hospitals, libraries, botanic gardens, and +schools of arts. No less than £31,261 was voted for police, of which +£13,516 was absorbed for the native troopers then necessary for the +protection of the adventurous pioneers who were conducting what may be +termed exploratory settlement in the remote interior. + + [Footnote a: "Sydney Morning Herald," September, 1860.] + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +QUEENSLAND IN 1860. + + Rush of Population.--High Prices for Stock for occupying New + Country.--Sparse Population.--Rockhampton most Northerly Port + of Entry.--Navigation inside Barrier Reef unknown.--Tropical + Queensland Unexplored.--Ignorance of Climate, Resources, and + Conditions.--Primary Industries in 1860.--Primitive Means + of Communication.--Public Revenue, Bank Deposits, and + Institutions. + + +Thus was Queensland fairly launched on her career as a self-governing +state of the Empire. The very announcement of impending separation had +caused a rush of population from the southern colonies; while even the +Crown tenants, who had for years regarded the movement with aversion, +found much compensation in their escape from the operation of the +imminent Robertson land law which threatened free selection before +survey throughout the entire area of New South Wales. The rush for new +pastoral country not only attracted the most adventurous bushmen in +Australia to the new colony, but also sent up the prices of sheep and +cattle to fabulous rates, as country tendered for could not be held +unless stocked to the prescribed minimum number. At the time a large +area of coast country was occupied by sheep, and symptoms of disease +were so menacing that the sales for stocking up new country proved the +salvation of some of the "inside" squatters; although looked at in the +light of experience it may be doubted whether the too rapid occupation +of the wilderness country, then inhabited solely by the aborigines, +was not partly accountable for disastrous results when the demand for +stocking up ceased, and the natural water on most runs proved wholly +insufficient to carry stock through the mildest drought. Still, at the +time Queensland attracted a population of seasoned Australians whose +colonising value was inestimable; and these in addition to many +immigrants from the mother country. Consequently the colony made +phenomenal progress. + +A glance at the official statistics for the year 1860--the earliest +available--will illustrate the insignificance, compared with the +vast area of the territory held, of the population, trade, and liquid +capital of the community. The total population on 31st December, +1860, was estimated at 28,056, most of these people being more or less +concentrated in the towns. The rest were scattered sparsely over the +country between the southern boundary and the tropic of Capricorn for +a distance of about 250 miles back from the coast-line. Rockhampton +was then the most northerly port of entry; the site of the present +town of Bundaberg was virgin forest, the entrance to the Burnett +River from Hervey Bay being as yet unknown; Mackay, Bowen, Townsville, +Ingham, Geraldton, Cairns, Port Douglas, Cooktown, and the Thursday +Island settlement were non-existent; and of the coast waters beyond +Keppel Bay little more was known than the narratives of Captain +Cook and Lieutenant Flinders at the close of the eighteenth century +disclosed. + +The existence of the magnificent natural harbour of 1,000 miles in +length formed by the Great Barrier Reef was undreamt of; the passage +was regarded rather as one of Nature's traps for the unwary navigator +than the future safe and easily traversed route of great steamship +lines along a coast dotted with prosperous ports kept busy as the +outlets of a richly productive hinterland. + +The tropical climate of the northern coast lands was then supposed to +be deadly to members of the white races; the interior was declared to +be almost entirely devoid of surface water--for the greater part of +the year a fiery furnace, and at intervals of capricious periodicity +ravaged by destructive floods. It was assumed to be a country where +the white man would wither and the coloured man thrive--a land wholly +unfit for the home of civilised peoples, and only adapted to the wants +of the degraded aboriginal native. It was ignorantly affirmed that the +sheep stations intended to be formed in the far western country must +be failures, and English experts held that under the tropical sun the +sheep, if it could live in Queensland at all, would soon carry +hair instead of wool. Even in Southern Queensland the agricultural +possibilities of the land were sadly unappreciated. True, in the +population centres there were loud preachers of the gospel of +reclamation of the wilderness so that it might bud and blossom as the +rose; but their homilies for the most part fell upon deaf ears--the +seasoned bushman, like the great squatter, tenaciously held that even +the Darling Downs would not grow a cabbage. + +So backward was the farming industry that in 1860 the total area under +cultivation was 3,353 acres in a country of greater extent than France +and Germany combined. Of this trifling cultivated area only 196 acres +were under wheat, and not an acre under sugar-cane. True, there were +nearly three and a-half million sheep, half-a-million cattle, and +24,000 horses finding subsistence on the limitless but ill-watered +natural pastures. But at that time the annual clip from the sheep, +though wool was the chief export of the colony, totalled only +5,000,000 lb., or equal to about 1½ lb. to each fleece. Mining, +except for coal, of which 12,327 tons was raised in 1860, was almost +non-existent, although 2,738 fine ounces of gold are shown by the +statistics to have been won during the year. + +[Illustration: TREASURY BUILDINGS, BRISBANE] + +In 1860 there was not a mile of railway either open for traffic or +under construction; not a mile of electric telegraph wire; nor, save +between Brisbane and Ipswich, was there a formed or metalled road, the +only avenues of transport being along the bridle path or the +teamsters' track. The country was destitute of culverts and bridges +over watercourses, and the so-called roads were impassable for days, +weeks, or even months in succession after the seasonal rains. The +northern shipping trade was limited to a small steamer running once a +fortnight between Brisbane, Maryborough, and Rockhampton, but even +that had been arranged after the proclamation of the colony, partly to +meet administration exigencies, with the assistance of the new +Government. A fortnightly steamer from Sydney ran direct to +Maryborough, and another to Rockhampton, with the apparent object of +discouraging mutual intercourse among the ports. A weekly steamer ran +between Brisbane and Sydney, in addition to a few small sailing craft +for cargo purposes. + +Although Sir George Bowen declared that on arrival he found nothing in +the Treasury save a few coppers, the revenue for the first year +reached £178,589. The expenditure for the year 1860 was £17,086 less +than the revenue, yet, through the Government having to lean upon the +banks in December, 1859, there was an overdraft of over £19,000 at the +end of the first year. But the banks themselves had little money among +them, the net assets slightly exceeding half a million sterling, and +the aggregate deposits totalling less than a quarter of a million. At +the end of 1860, out of the 28,000 people in the colony 163 were +"small capitalists" with an aggregate of £7,545, or about £46 per +depositor, in the Savings Bank. Yet there were six charitable +institutions in which 397 persons found relief. Of subscribers to +"public libraries" there were 538, and they had at their disposal +5,000 volumes from which to select reading for the leisure hour. There +were 41 schools, with a total of 1,890 pupils. The number of letters +posted showed a low degree of cultivation, for the average number +posted as well as received by each person was just seven a year, or +slightly more than one every two months. Of newspapers a rather fewer +number passed through the post office. Surely all these things were on +a microscopic scale, recollecting that the people of Queensland had +been endowed with autonomous government, and had unfettered control of +more than one-fifth of the total area of Australia. + +Old Queenslanders who still survive, and can meditate retrospectively +upon the past, will be impressed with the marvellous optimism of all +classes of the population 50 years ago. The townspeople, enfranchised +with most political power by reason of their numbers, knew little of +the dormant resources of the inland country or its climatic vagaries. +They could not realise the privations, the hard labour, and the deadly +monotony of early settlement upon the land. The farmer had usually no +market, and in raising his produce he had to contend against droughts, +floods, pests, and isolation, and he was fortunate if his produce +brought from the store-keeper the cost of rations on which his family +could frugally subsist. The squatter, too, incurred enormous risks, +though he had a market for his wool at all times; and, if there was no +domestic consumption of sheep and cattle upon which he could rely, his +surplus stock brought a fair return from the boiling-down pots. But he +had to get his produce to port before a money return could be secured; +and as pastoral settlement pushed further out transport obstacles were +often crushing. It was no unusual occurrence for one wool clip to +be detained on a remote station until the next year's shearing had +commenced. A lien had therefore usually to be given on the clip, and +the rate of interest, including agent's commission, was commonly +12 per cent. per annum, while the high carriage rate made rations +extremely costly; so that even with good seasons the margin of profit +was small. In bad years ruin became well-nigh inevitable. The pioneer +squatter spent most of his strenuous life in the saddle, alternately +worried by bad seasons, low prices, and his bank overdraft. It is +easy, therefore, to understand the temptation which assailed him to +regard as his own the country which he had reclaimed at the expense of +his vitality as well as his capital. When he visited town after a +term of voluntary exile human nature often asserted itself, and +the holiday-making squatter disbursed his hard-earned money with a +prodigal hand, a fact not forgotten by his political opponents. The +shepherd, too, yielded to temptation, and at the end of a year's +solitary life in his bush hut longed for nothing so much as an +alcoholic stimulant or a bottle of pickles and gay human society. Thus +he prodigally knocked down his cheque in town, and in a week or two +again abandoned civilisation at the call of the bush. Fifty years +ago the urban people perhaps lived almost as comfortably as they +do to-day, but the bushman, whether farmer, squatter, shepherd, or +stockman, had usually a life of exhausting labour, bad food, dull +surroundings, and often in consequence indifferent health. Still the +landless colonist of 1860 had unbounded faith in his country; and if +he fought earnestly, sometimes passionately, against what he termed +squatting encroachment, it is now apparent that had not the pastoral +tenure been jealously limited by Parliament insurmountable obstacles +would have been placed in the path of progress. In future pages of +this work it will be seen that the often too sanguine anticipations of +individual colonists of Queensland's natal year were rudely shattered +by stern experience; while, on the other hand, the opening up of +unsuspected resources as often enriched the general community. + + + + +PART II.--FROM NATAL YEAR TO JUBILEE. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE LEGISLATURE. + + The Governor.--His Functions: Political and Social.--His + Emoluments.--Administrations that have held Office.--Number + of Members of Council and Assembly.--Emoluments of Assembly + Members.--Good Results of Responsible Government in + Queensland. + + +In a self-governing dependency of the Empire the King's +representative, while competent to take official action only on +constitutional advice, is not a mere figurehead in the Government. +He is, so to speak, one of the three branches of the Legislature. +No expenditure can be voted by Parliament except after receipt of a +message of appropriation from the Governor; and no bill can become law +without the Royal assent, which he, subject to certain reservations, +is empowered to give. As President of the Executive Council, too, +the Governor has a voice in administration, although the actual +power vests in the Ministry so long as it commands the confidence of +Parliament. But the Governor is in constant touch with his Premier, +and therefore, apart from the official intercourse at meetings of the +Executive Council, His Excellency exchanges ideas informally with the +executive head of the Government. The Governor has social duties, too, +and these are not unimportant as bringing the King's representative +into personal contact with his Majesty's colonial subjects of both +sexes and various classes. The Governor's attendance at public and +social functions also furnishes a touch of sprightly colour to the +drab shade which would otherwise often characterise public +gatherings. He carries with him a distinctive atmosphere of Imperial +comprehensiveness which usefully neutralises a narrow parochialism +that might tend to induce men and women to forget that they, while a +politically independent community, yet form an integral part of the +great Empire of the Mistress of the Seas. Thus it is that our most +experienced public men have emphasised the importance of maintaining +direct communication with the Imperial authority through a Governor +appointed by and responsible to the King. + +Pending the decision of Parliament, the Imperial Government +provisionally fixed the salary of the first Governor at £2,500 a +year. In the session of 1861, Parliament, representing a population +of 34,000 persons, not only voted an increase to £4,000, but also by +statute made the payment retrospective as from 1st January, 1860. At +this sum the salary remained until 1874, when Mr. Oscar de Satge, a +member of the Opposition, carried a motion affirming the principle of +an increase. This motion the Government accepted, and the salary was +increased to £5,000 a year, at which figure it remained from that +time until 1904, when it was reduced to £3,000. Three Governors +successively filled the office for the fifteen years ending with +November, 1874; and six for the thirty years between 1874 and October, +1904. In the latter year an amendment of the Constitution Act was made +by a bill introduced by the Government, reducing the salary of future +Governors to £3,000, for reasons exhaustively set forth by the Premier +in moving the second reading. The chief grounds of reduction, it may +be mentioned, were the altered situation created by the establishment +of the Commonwealth, and the steps of a similar character already +taken in the Southern States. + +Twenty-five Ministries have held office during the fifty-year period. +On that led by the late Sir Robert Herbert comment has already been +made. It ended a useful Queensland career in 1866, after more than +six years of office. The succeeding Macalister Ministry, with an +interruption of eighteen days by a second Herbert Ministry of an +ephemeral nature, and with reconstructions, lasted until August, 1867, +when it was displaced by the Mackenzie-Palmer Administration. Mr. +Macalister was a clever politician; a concise and trenchant speaker; +and a capital parliamentary leader in so far as the House work +was concerned. But he was lacking in force, and his Ministry was, +moreover, much in the nature of coalition representing both squatting +and anti-squatting interests at a time when bitter controversy +prevailed. Mr. (afterwards Sir) R. R. Mackenzie, who was held in +general respect for his personal qualities, likewise lacked strength +as a politician, and the real force behind him was Mr. (afterwards +Sir) Arthur Hunter Palmer. His Ministry was at the time termed "pure +merino," every member of it, save Mr. Pring, the Attorney-General, +being identified with the pastoral industry. + +In November, 1868, the Lilley Ministry was formed. It lasted only till +April, 1870, and was more than once reconstructed during its tenure of +office. It included Mr. Macalister, between whom and the Premier +there was inconvenient rivalry, but its members were all Liberals by +reputation. The Premier, however, was Radical rather than Liberal +in his opinions, and his abolition of primary school fees without +parliamentary authority, and the ordering of the steamer "Governor +Blackall" in Sydney, with the object of fighting the A.S.N. Company, +without the consent even of his colleagues, brought about the downfall +of the Ministry as soon as Parliament met in 1870, only one supporter, +the late Mr. Henry Jordan, voting with them in a division on a want of +confidence motion. Mr. (afterwards Sir) Charles Lilley was perhaps +the most accomplished debater that ever spoke in the Queensland +Parliament, and throughout most of his public career, as the member +for Fortitude Valley, he was a popular hero. As an educationist he was +undoubtedly both sincere and enthusiastic, but his colleagues found +his imperious moods difficult to contend against. + +[Illustration: COAL WHARVES, SOUTH BRISBANE] + +The Palmer Ministry met Parliament in May, 1870, and held office for +more than three and a-half years, although for a great part of the +time the Government had no working majority. Indeed, for months it +fought, with a majority of one in a full House of 32, a determined +Opposition in the Assembly ably led by Mr. Lilley. All business was +blocked for many weeks, and eventually 13 members of the Opposition, +headed by Mr. Lilley, waited as a deputation upon the Governor +(Colonel Blackall) requesting his intervention on the ground that +Ministers did not possess their confidence or the confidence of the +House. The Governor declined to interpose, and subtly remarked that he +had known many Oppositions in Parliament, but never yet knew one that +had confidence in the Government of the day. The interview did not +assist the Opposition cause. A second session opened on 5th July, +1870, and, being defeated two days later by 17 to 11, Mr. Palmer +was granted a dissolution.[a] The Premier had proved himself an +indomitable fighter, and his appeal to the constituencies was not +wholly unsuccessful. Obstruction continuing in the new Parliament, Mr. +Palmer was granted another dissolution in June, 1871, and from that +time had a fairly effective majority at his back for two years, when +being defeated he was granted another dissolution, from which his +party came back unsuccessful. If the Opposition of those days did not +obstruct by means of the "stonewall" to the same extent that has been +the case of recent years, they attained their end in another way. In +the session of 1871-2 for a period of five weeks the Government failed +to obtain a quorum except on two occasions, on both of which there was +a "count out." The Opposition were desirous of forcing the Government +to pass a Redistribution of Seats Bill before Supply was granted, and +by persisting in these tactics they compelled the Government to agree +to a compromise. + +The Palmer Ministry on assuming office had found the public finances +in a bad way, but partly through good management and partly with the +help of good seasons and improving markets for exports, they retired +in January, 1874, after a succession of surpluses, and with railway +construction being vigorously pushed on both in Southern and Central +districts. + +In January, 1874, when the new Parliament met after the general +election, Mr. Palmer and his colleagues found themselves in so +hopeless a minority that they resigned without awaiting a debate +on the Address in Reply. Amidst great hilarity in the Assembly, and +despite the vehement protests of the candidate, Mr. William Henry +Walsh was elected Speaker, although a member of the Palmer party; and +on his refusal to accept the office was humorously threatened with +the penalty of disobedience to the order of the House. But after +consideration he assumed the Speakership, and while in the chair +discharged his duties with credit. + +The Macalister-Hemmant Ministry forthwith assumed office, Mr. Lilley, +who made the announcement in the Assembly on their behalf, declining a +portfolio. Shortly afterwards he was appointed a Judge of the +Supreme Court. The Ministry was initiated with Mr. MacDevitt as +Attorney-General, but in August following he retired, and Mr. S. W. +Griffith, who had proved an inconvenient supporter of the Government +as the leader of a subsection, accepted the portfolio. Mr. (afterwards +Sir) Thomas McIlwraith was Mr. Macalister's Minister for Works, but +at the close of the first session he differed from the Premier on the +question of a great private railway scheme, and therefore resigned +office. On the House reassembling in 1875 Mr. McIlwraith took the +front cross-bench seat next the gangway on the Opposition side, and, +while not approving of all the tactics of the party led by Mr. Palmer, +gave it his general support. The first session of the Parliament had +been distinguished by the passing of a Customs tariff incidentally +protective, Mr. Hemmant, the Treasurer, showing uncommon qualities as +a financial speaker. He closed his first year at the Treasury with +an apparent deficit of £200,762. His predecessor, when making his +Financial Statement in 1872, had anticipated a deficit. To prevent +this he proposed--and Parliament agreed to the proposition--to +transfer £350,000 from the Loan Fund to the Consolidated Revenue +Fund to meet the Treasury bills floated or authorised to cover the +accumulated deficits of earlier years. Mr. Hemmant disapproved of +this method of financing, and rectified matters as far as possible by +transferring to a Surplus Revenue Fund £240,000, which left him with a +deficit of £200,762. This was equivalent to recouping the Loan Fund to +the extent of £240,000, as the money was to be used for public works +which would, under ordinary circumstances, have been constructed out +of loan moneys. In the next year, 1876, soon after the opening of +Parliament, the appointment of the Premier as Agent-General was +announced. Ministers consequently resigned, and the Governor (Mr. W. +W. Cairns) sent for Mr. George Thorn, who to the surprise of political +circles succeeded in forming a Ministry including Mr. Griffith +and most of the late Cabinet. Mr. Thorn was personally a general +favourite, but not conspicuously fit for the position which he had +fortuitously attained. Mr. Griffith became the actual leader, however, +and the session was completed without disaster. During the recess Mr. +Thorn retired, to visit England, and was replaced in the Cabinet +by Mr. John Douglas, whose scholarly speeches had given him a high +reputation in the House. As Premier, however, Mr. Douglas was less +successful than had been anticipated. Conspicuously fair in debate, he +appeared invariably to feel the force of his opponents' arguments more +than those on his own side of the House, and therefore his leadership +wanted decision; but the sessions of 1877 and 1878 were passed through +without any defeat compelling a premature dissolution. + +The Liberal Ministries from 1874 to 1878 had been fertile in +legislation, but after the retirement of Mr. Macalister they were +badly led, Mr. Griffith, who attained the Attorney-Generalship at the +age of twenty-nine, having been unwisely kept in the background on the +plea of political immaturity. It was evident, however, that chiefly to +him the passage of all important measures of legislation had been due. +The colony suffered severely from drought during the years 1876-7-8; +financial depression was the inevitable result, and, as usual under +such circumstances, the Government lost popularity. + +In November, 1878, the general election resulted in the return of +a House determined to effect a change of Administration. On the +new Parliament assembling in January, 1879, Ministers were at once +defeated, and Mr. McIlwraith was sent for by the Governor. He met +Parliament a few days afterwards with colleagues representing all +parts of the colony, and obtained a four months' recess in which to +mature his policy. On Parliament reassembling in mid-May, however, the +position of the Government was less strong than had been anticipated. +During the recess they had been retrenching sharply, and a number +of dismissals from the Ipswich railway workshops were declared to be +tainted with partizanship. At no time in the first session, in a test +division, did the Government sit with a majority of more than six, and +usually they commanded only two or three. The Opposition, led by +Mr. Griffith, were always at their posts, and the Government were +frequently on the verge of defeat. The passing of a Three-million +Loan Act and of the Divisional Boards Act, however, strengthened the +Government's position, and in the following session the Torres Strait +mail contract, making Brisbane the Australian terminus, though opposed +by stonewalling measures for six consecutive weeks, added to their +popularity. + +In the session of 1880 grave accusations were made against the Premier +by Mr. Hemmant, who had taken up his residence in England. Mr. +Hemmant presented a petition to Parliament charging the Premier with +complicity in certain transactions connected with the purchase of a +large quantity of steel rails for the Government which had involved +Queensland in a heavy loss. The matter was referred to a select +committee, on whose recommendation a Royal Commission was appointed +to take evidence in England. Mr. Griffith visited London during the +recess, and acted as honorary counsel for Mr. Hemmant. The Commission +exonerated the Premier, but a great deal of party animosity was +engendered, which did not die out for several years. + +In 1883 Sir Thomas McIlwraith ordered the British flag to be hoisted +at Port Moresby, in Eastern New Guinea, annexing to the Empire that +portion of Papua not already claimed by the Dutch, an act which showed +true statesmanship and prophetic vision. Unfortunately, the Secretary +of State for the Colonies, Earl Derby, repudiated the annexation on +the ground that it was a usurpation of the sovereign rights of the +Imperial authorities. At the same time he acknowledged the patriotic +motives which had inspired the Premier of Queensland, and declared +that the British Government would regard any attempt at annexation by +a foreign Power as an unfriendly act. Whatever may have been the views +of political parties at the time, matured judgment formed in the light +of subsequent events endorses the action of Sir Thomas. The hoisting +of the German flag on the northern portion of the territory annexed +by Sir Thomas has brought a foreign Power almost to our doors, and too +late the home Government endeavoured as far as possible to retrieve +their blunder by annexing the south-eastern portion of Papua, which +was handed over to the Commonwealth after federation. + +In the same year, the Premier, who had for many years been a strong +advocate of railway construction by private enterprise on the +land-grant principle, brought forward a bill authorising the +construction of what was commonly called the Transcontinental Railway, +from Charleville to Point Parker, on the Gulf of Carpentaria. Against +this proposal great popular clamour arose; the majority of the +squatting members of the Assembly combined with the Opposition, and +the second reading of the bill was negatived by 27 votes to 16. Sir +Thomas McIlwraith, rightly regarding the rejection of the measure as +equivalent to a vote of want of confidence, advised the Administrator +of the Government, Sir J. P. Bell, to dissolve the Assembly. His +Excellency accepted the advice, and the Premier asked for five +months' Supply. Mr. Griffith, the greatest constitutional authority +in Queensland, approved of the decision of the Administrator of the +Government, only objecting to Supply being given for such a length of +time. However, the House, by 24 to 19, agreed to pass the Supply asked +for, and the dissolution took place in the middle of July. + +[Illustration: EXECUTIVE BUILDINGS, BRISBANE] + +The Opposition, led by Mr. Griffith, were returned with a large +majority. Being defeated on the election of a Speaker and in two +subsequent divisions, the Government resigned. Mr. Griffith was sent +for, and formed a strong Administration. Parliament adjourned from +November to January, when some pressing legislation was passed at +once, including the repeal of the Railway Companies Preliminary Act, +under which proposals were made by railway syndicates. On 6th March +Parliament was prorogued until 8th July. + +The Premier had chosen as his Lands Minister Mr. Charles Boydell +Dutton, a Liberal Barcoo squatter, with no previous experience of +parliamentary life, but a determined land reformer. With the Premier's +aid Mr. Dutton got the Land Act of 1884 safely through, and the +Government secured credit for passing a most important measure of +reform, one important change being the introduction of grazing farm +leases, and another the resumption of the halves of all runs included +in a comprehensive schedule of the unsettled districts. But the +historical measure of the session and the decade was the Ten-million +Loan Bill, which embodied a grand scheme for providing the entire +colony with railways. The Opposition protested against the loan as +unconstitutional on the ground that it covered a programme of railway +construction which could not be completed for several years, but they +dared not oppose any specific railway, and the bill passed without +amendment. Sir Thomas McIlwraith retired from the Assembly in 1886, +and during the whole life of the Parliament the Opposition found +themselves helpless to resist the domination of the Ministry. But as +the Administration aged its political force waned, and in 1887 +the Treasurer, Mr. (afterwards Sir) J. R. Dickson, and Mr. +Macdonald-Paterson retired from the Ministry because of their +disagreement with a land tax proposed in Cabinet by the Premier. +Despite the large loan expenditure, too, there was a portentous +succession of deficits, due to unfavourable seasons, and Sir Samuel +Griffith found in 1887 that his Government and party had outlived +their popularity. + +Like his great rival, Sir Samuel gave abundant proof during his +tenure of office of broad statesmanlike conceptions. No public man in +Australia has done more to foster the federal spirit and bring about +the union of the Australian colonies. He played a foremost part in +creating the Federal Council, and to him is due the credit of drafting +in 1887 the measure which was passed by all the colonial Parliaments +granting a subsidy to an auxiliary Australasian naval squadron, +although parliamentary vicissitudes robbed him of the honour of +passing the bill in his own State until 1891. He is also entitled to +the credit of making provision for the administration of British New +Guinea by Queensland. + +In April, 1888, Parliament was dissolved, and when the new Parliament +met in June the enfeebled Griffith Government were promptly ejected +from office. Sir Thomas McIlwraith came in with a strong following, +and he at once formed a Ministry which seemed likely to endure for +several years. But at the close of the first session Sir Thomas +retired from the Premiership with a view to visiting England on +business. Mr. Boyd Dunlop Morehead then succeeded to the leadership. +In September, 1889, Sir Thomas McIlwraith resigned his seat in the +Ministry, and the following session he appeared in the Assembly as an +open opponent of his late colleagues. To make provision for a revenue +deficit, the Government brought down a proposal for a general property +tax. This quickly brought Sir Thomas McIlwraith into concerted action +with Sir Samuel Griffith, then leading the Opposition, and caused the +resignation of the Ministry in August, 1890. Almost immediately the +Griffith-McIlwraith Ministry was announced. A year or two earlier such +a fusion of parties would have been deemed impossible, but the two +leaders had fought away their mutual differences, and the financial +outlook was so alarming that the coalition was generally admitted to +be imperative. The new Government carried many important measures, and +effected material improvement in the finances. + +In March, 1893, just before the banking catastrophe occurred, Sir +Samuel Griffith accepted the Chief Justiceship, and Sir Thomas +McIlwraith assumed the Premiership. A dissolution followed, the +Government securing a commanding majority in the new Assembly. But +the Premier's health failed, and in October following his Ministry +was merged into that of Mr. (afterwards Sir) Hugh Nelson. Sir +Thomas retained office without portfolio until March, 1895, when his +connection with the Government ceased, though he retained his seat as +a member of the House until the dissolution in 1896. After resigning +office he left the colony, and died in England on 17th July, 1900. + +The new Premier proved a most capable financier, and although the +depression in financial, commercial, and industrial affairs continued +with great intensity he turned successive deficits into annual +surpluses, and was soon enabled to negotiate loans in the London money +market on unprecedently favourable terms. In April, 1898, Sir Hugh +Nelson resigned Ministerial office and accepted the President's chair +in the Legislative Council, that post having just become vacant by the +death of Sir Arthur Palmer. Mr. Thomas Joseph Byrnes succeeded to the +Premiership, and with Mr. Robert Philp as Treasurer it appeared as +though the reconstructed Government had before it a life of several +years. Five months afterwards, however, the young, brilliant, and +much-esteemed Premier was removed by death, and Mr. Dickson was +called to the Premiership. Fifteen months later the Dickson Government +suffered defeat, and resigned office. + +Mr. Anderson Dawson, the Labour leader in the Assembly, being sent +for, assumed the Premiership with six other Labour colleagues, but was +defeated immediately he met Parliament a few days later, and resigned. + +He was succeeded by Mr. Philp, who assumed office on 7th December, +1899. There had been a drought in most parts of the West for a year +or two previously, but wool prices were high, and better seasons were +anticipated. The country had almost recovered from the blow sustained +in 1893. Federation threatened some loss of revenue, but compensation +was looked for in the enhanced prosperity resulting from interstate +free trade. But for the two first years of the twentieth century there +was everywhere in the State a very deficient rainfall, and in most +inland parts absolute droughts. The double loss to the Treasury +through Federation and parsimonious Nature was very serious. Mr. +Philp made reductions in public service expenditure, but kept loan +expenditure at the normal level, sanguine that when the change +came there would be a swift recovery, and hesitating to add to the +depression by suspending the construction of railways and other +public works. Though by the end of June, 1903, the accumulated deficit +exceeded a million sterling, and the general election of 1902 had +given the Government a rather diminished majority, there appeared to +be no apprehension of a crisis even when Parliament met for its second +session in July, 1903. But the weight of successive deficits and the +protracted tenure of the "Continuous Ministry" inspired a general +desire for change; and, in September, Mr. Philp suddenly found himself +without adequate support as the result of a number of influential +Government supporters joining forces with the members of the Labour +party. + +A new Ministry was at once formed, the Speaker, Mr. Arthur Morgan, +resigning the chair and assuming the Premiership, Mr. William Kidston +joining him as Treasurer. With a policy of retrenchment and reform +the new Administration entered upon its career sustained by a strong +backing of public opinion. Retrenchment had already been initiated +by the late Government, and it was continued by Mr. Morgan and his +colleagues. The bottom of the depression having been touched with +the break-up of the drought, the financial year 1903-4 closed with +a merely nominal deficit. In the next session, which opened in May, +1904, the Government encountered so much opposition that a dissolution +was granted in July. So strongly were the constituencies in favour of +the retention of office by Ministers that their party numbered 55 in +a House of 72 when the new Parliament met in September, and the +Government in that and the three following sessions were accordingly +able to carry many of their measures of reform. + +In January, 1906, the death of Sir Hugh Nelson created a vacancy in +the Presidency of the Legislative Council. The Premier, who had earned +a reputation during his four years' occupancy of the Speaker's +chair for an intimate and comprehensive knowledge of parliamentary +procedure, was generally designated as peculiarly fitted to succeed to +the position of President; and, having resigned both the Premiership +and his seat as a member of the Assembly, he was translated to the +Legislative Council. + +Mr. Kidston then became Premier. On the 11th of April, 1907, the +Assembly's term having almost expired by effluxion of time, a +dissolution took place, and a general election followed. The two chief +objects for which the coalition between Liberals and Labour members +had been brought about in 1903--sound financial administration and +electoral reform--having been secured, disintegration had commenced to +set in in the Government ranks. On the one hand some of the Liberals +were desirous of reunion with their former associates led by Mr. +Philp, and on the other the more extreme section of the Labour party +adopted a socialistic platform, thereby causing their more moderate +colleagues who followed Mr. Kidston to break with them before the +election. The respective manifestoes of the Premier and the leader of +the Opposition, issued some weeks before the dissolution, were found +to embody practically the same policy in so far as vital measures of +legislation were concerned. Both emphasised the necessity of having +in office a Ministry possessing the steadfast support of a united +following if full effect were to be given to their programme. The +result was disappointing, for when the new House met in July the Philp +party numbered 29, the Government party 25, and the Labour party +18. After a fight over the choice of the Speaker and Chairman +of Committees, the Labour members gave a general support to the +Government, but comparatively little progress could be made in +consequence of the uncertainty of that support. The Legislative +Council rejected several measures which both the Government and the +Labour party were very anxious to see placed on the Statute-book. With +a view to taking concerted action to overcome the veto of the Council +on democratic legislation, Mr. Kidston made overtures to the Labour +party for an offensive and defensive alliance in Parliament and at +the polls. The Labour party replied that they were unable to give any +assurance on the subject. Mr. Kidston then advised His Excellency, +Lord Chelmsford, to recognise the principle that there resided in the +Crown the power to nominate to the Legislative Council such a number +of new members as might be required to overcome obstruction, and that +the power should be exercised if, in the opinion of His Excellency's +responsible advisers, such a course became necessary. The Governor +declined to accept this advice, and the Premier resigned on 12th +November. + +[Illustration: ROCKHAMPTON 1. Quay Street, from the North Side. +2. Custom House, Quay Street. 3. East Street.] + +Mr. Philp, being sent for by His Excellency, formed a Ministry, +which was at once met in the Assembly by successive votes of want +of confidence, the members of the Labour party uniting with the late +Ministerialists in the divisions. A dissolution was granted, even +though the House refused to vote Supply to the Government, and early +in the new year (1908) a general election took place, Mr. Philp losing +four seats, the Labour party gaining that number, while the Kidston +party were again returned with the same following. The effect was that +the Philp and Kidston parties each numbered 25 and the Labour members +22. As the two latter parties had in most cases assisted one another +at the elections, the Philp Government resigned, and Mr. Kidston being +recalled found his position practically unchanged, so far as relative +numbers were concerned, and yet greatly strengthened as regards the +constitutional reform he desired to effect. A short session was at +once held. A reform of the Constitution limiting the vetoing power of +the Legislative Council by providing for a referendum on any measure +which the Council rejected twice, and also a number of democratic +measures rejected by the Council in the two preceding sessions, were +passed with the aid of the Labour party. When, however, the Government +turned to legislation affecting the material progress of the State, +and introduced two bills to authorise the construction of railways to +mineral fields (to Mount Elliott in the Cloncurry copper area and to +Lawn Hills in the Gulf district) on agreements made with two private +companies who undertook to provide in one case one-half and in the +other case three-fourths of the capital required, despite the fact +that the railways were to be constructed, worked, and managed by the +Railway Commissioner, that the companies were to receive no interest +on the money they advanced until the railways earned it, and that +when at the end of fifteen years the Government repaid the advance the +companies were only to receive a sum equal to what their investment +was then earning capitalised at 3½ per cent., the bills were +obstructed by the Labour party, and were only passed with the +assistance of the Philp party, under the closure, the Estimates being +forced through by the same means at the close of the session. Before +leaving on a mission to England, Mr. Kidston publicly intimated that +he could no longer work with the Labour party. He returned in +October, and the Philp party, recognising the mischievous futility of +three-party government, agreed to accept the programme enunciated +by Mr. Kidston at the election in 1907, and to join the Ministerial +party, the Premier being granted a free hand, both by his colleagues +and followers, in reconstructing the Government. + +The fusion of the two parties led to the immediate resignation of +two Ministers and the formation of an Independent Opposition by +these gentlemen and four more seceders from the Kidston party. A +reconstruction of the Cabinet followed, three members of the Philp +party taking office under Mr. Kidston. Mr. Philp declined to accept +a portfolio, but undertook to give the new Government support as +an unofficial member of the Assembly, an undertaking most loyally +observed. Dissatisfaction was naturally felt by several members at the +composition of the Cabinet, and when Parliament met on 17th November +it was evident that the fusion had not had the desired effect of +reducing the number of parties to two. On the Opposition side of the +Chamber were the Labour party in direct opposition and the Independent +Opposition of six sitting on the cross-benches, while on the +Government back cross-benches were three or four members who joined +forces with the Opposition in every division. The cohesive majority +was still large enough to enable the Government to pass several +railways, two or three bills, and the Estimates; but, unfortunately, +it was found necessary to have recourse again to the closure to get +the Estimates through the House before Christmas. + +Further defections took place during the recess. The sudden death of +the Speaker, Mr. John Leahy, and the election for Bulloo of a Labour +member in his stead, reduced the Government majority to two. Such a +condition of affairs rendered it impossible for any party in the House +to carry on public business. A trial of strength took place over the +election of a Speaker when the House met on 29th June, the Government +having a majority of two. Two days later Mr. Bowman, the leader of the +Labour party, moved a want of confidence amendment on the Address in +Reply. A very protracted and acrimonious debate took place, and +the motion was only defeated by a majority of one in a full House. +Arrangements had been made earlier in the year for the holding of a +conference of Commonwealth and State Premiers and Treasurers with +a view to making a final effort to arrive at a mutual understanding +regarding the financial relations of the Commonwealth and the States +after the expiry of the ten-year period provided for by section 87 of +the Commonwealth Constitution. As it was considered highly important +that Queensland should be represented at this Conference, which was +to be held in mid-August, the Government secured an adjournment for a +fortnight, but only by applying the closure. + +The Conference came to a unanimous agreement with regard to the future +division of the surplus Customs and Excise revenue, justifying the +determination of the Government of this State to be represented. But +the efforts of the Opposition to defeat the proposal of the Government +to adjourn furnished additional evidence, if any were needed, that no +business could be done in a House so evenly divided. When the Premier +returned from the Conference, which had been held in Melbourne, after +consultation with his party, he advised the Lieutenant-Governor to +dissolve the Assembly, provided it agreed to grant temporary Supply. +His Excellency accepted Mr. Kidston's advice, but stipulated that the +Supply must be for the shortest time in which it was possible to hold +an election and summon the new Parliament. After another fight, the +Government closured through an Appropriation Bill covering Supply for +ten weeks, and the House was dissolved on 31st August, the election +being fixed for 2nd October. + +The result of the appeal to the country has been to bring about a +practical restoration of two-party government, an ideal for which the +Ministerialists have been striving ever since the session of 1906. +The Government have won 41 seats and the Labour party 27, while the +Independent Opposition, which went out 12 strong, have been reduced +to 4. The Government have thus a majority of ten over the combined +Opposition parties, and should be able to carry to a successful +issue their policy of railway construction, immigration, and land +settlement, and to steer the State through the temporary difficulties +arising from the pending rearrangement of the financial relations +between the Commonwealth and the component States. + +It may be of interest to add that the last was the seventeenth +Parliament of Queensland, which gives to each an average of about +three years, the present maximum statutory term of the Legislative +Assembly. The explanation is, of course, that in the earlier years +of the colony the limit of the Assembly life-term was five years. +As already stated, the Legislative Council when first constituted +comprised 15 members. Since then the number has been periodically +increased to correspond with the enlargement of the other Chamber. The +present number of members of the Council is 44. Until 1865 the number +of members of the Assembly was 26; thence till 1873 it was 32; +thence till 1875 it was 42, increased in 1875 by the creation of the +electorate of Cook to 43, at which number it remained until 1879, when +there were 55 members. In 1886 the number was increased to 59, and +in 1887 to 72, at which it still remains. Payment of members of the +Assembly was first sanctioned in 1886 by an allowance of two guineas +a day for attendance, and 1s. 6d. a mile for travelling expenses, the +total in any one year for attendance not to exceed £200. In 1889 the +payment was fixed at £300 a year, with a mileage allowance for one +journey to and fro each session, unless where an adjournment exceeded +thirty days, when mileage was again payable. In 1892 the salary was +reduced to £150 a year. In 1896 it was again raised to £300, at +which amount it still remains. The members of the Legislative Council +receive no payment. + +In the foregoing sketch of the Legislature of Queensland many +omissions will probably be detected by the careful reader. But as +a rule mention of the names of public men has had to be confined to +Premiers and such other Ministers or members to whom for some +usually apparent reason it is necessary to give prominence. Had space +permitted, many interesting character sketches of prominent men of the +past, as well as of the present, might have been written; and it must +not be forgotten that some of the services most worth recording have +been rendered by men whose names have not become household words, and +whose reward has been found in the lifelong consciousness that they +have unobtrusively done their duty to the State. Enough has probably +been said to prove that responsible government in Queensland, +initiated among a mere handful of people fifty years ago, and carried +on amidst discouraging difficulties until to-day, has been attended by +results of which no patriotic subject of the King need feel ashamed. + + [Footnote a: An interesting incident occurred at the opening + of the second session. The Speaker announced the receipt of a + writ of election endorsing the return of the Right Honourable + John Bright as member for Kennedy. As Mr. Bright had not been + present during the preceding session--which had only lasted + from 26th April till 4th May--the seat was declared vacant. + This was not the first instance of an Australian constituency + voluntarily disfranchising itself by electing a prominent + British statesman by way of protest against some real or + fancied injustice.] + +[Illustration: TOWNSVILLE: FLINDERS STREET, LOOKING WEST] + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +PUBLIC FINANCE (1859-1884). + + Importance of Sound Finance.--A Great Colony Starts upon + a Bank Overdraft.--First Year's Revenue.--Land Sales as + Revenue.--Deficits in First Decade.--Transfer of Loan + Moneys to Revenue to Balance Accounts.--Heavy Public Works + Expenditure.--Crisis of 1866.--Inconvertible Paper Currency + Proposals.--Flotation of Treasury Bills.--Higher Customs + Duties.--Wiping Out a Deficit by Issue of Debentures. + --Transfer of Surplus to Surplus Revenue Account to Recoup + Loan Fund.--Incidental Protection.--Railway Land Reserves. + --Proceeds Used as Ordinary Revenue.--Three-million Loan. + --Condition of Affairs at Close of First Quarter-Century. + --Phenomenal Progress; Prospects Bright. + + +Sound finance is the sheet anchor of any Government, whether despotic +or democratic. Without a prudent guiding hand at the Treasury the ship +of State might as well be rudderless. In the fifty years of Queensland +history financial mistakes have been made, from which much public loss +as well as individual suffering has resulted. If those mistakes, or +some of them, are laid bare in this book, the object is not to reflect +upon Governments or individual Ministers, but to treasure the lessons +thus taught for future use. + +Queensland began its career with a bank overdraft, for with "7½d. +in the Treasury" on the date of the Queen's proclamation of the +colony it was necessary to provide funds in anticipation of revenue +collections. But at the outset borrowing was indulged in on a modest +scale. For 1860 the revenue was £178,589, and the deficit only £1,514. +For the second year there was a revenue surplus of £2,442 over the +expenditure of £235,796. But there had been during the period an +outlay of £63,210 on loan account. Besides this, of the total revenue +for the two-year period--including the twenty-one days of 1859--the +cash receipts from land sales, which strict political economists +hold to be capital, were £114,803, equal to 27 per cent. of the total +revenue. It may be assumed that the loan expenditure was entirely for +permanent or reproductive works; but only 73 per cent. of the money +spent for the service of the year was strictly revenue, the remainder +arising from land sales. Yet as New South Wales practice had lent +sanction to the use of land sales receipts as revenue, the Treasurer +(Mr. R. R. Mackenzie) may be admitted to have managed well, since at +the outset the estimates of revenue and expenditure were both wholly +conjectural. Mr. Mackenzie's successors were less fortunate; for +during the first decade, although the annual revenue had quadrupled, +there were only two years with surpluses. + +There was another scarcely defensible transaction during the first ten +years' term. In 1864 the Treasurer, finding he would otherwise have +a relatively heavy deficit, balanced his budget by transferring from +Loan Fund to Revenue the total expenditure incurred upon immigration +since the foundation of the colony. In that year the loan outlay was +£401,421, including the transfer to revenue, an increase of £337,950 +in a single year. Thus the loan expenditure was at the rate of about +£5 10s. per head of the population as ascertained by the census of the +year. The deficit of 1864 seems less excusable because the revenue had +increased by over 25 per cent. for the year. The incident illustrates +the danger of suddenly increasing loan expenditure, which produces +industrial and commercial activity, but at once adds to the cost of +public administration in various ways. Loan money spent on the same +scale per capita in Queensland to-day as in 1864 would mean a total +sum of about £3,000,000 a year, whereas, even with the numerous +railways lately started, the loan disbursements for 1908-9 did not +quite reach 1¼ millions. Another consideration is that up to 1865 none +of the loan works had become reproductive, and the 21¼ miles of +railway then open for traffic did not earn working expenses. Further, +the Government had been borrowing at 6 per cent. interest, which meant +that the 1¼ millions of loan indebtedness at the end of 1865 imposed a +burden upon the taxpayers of about £75,000 a year, or not far from £1 +per head of the population. + +In 1866, the time of the great crisis, the revenue expenditure +increased by £241,690, creating a deficit of £200,653 for the year. +The loan expenditure for the year was £965,346, bringing the total +debt up to £2,214,123, equal to over £23 per head of the population. +The total expenditure for the year, including loan, reached nearly £17 +per head. It is not surprising that a mere handful of people, +plunging into debt at that reckless speed, found their credit suddenly +shattered. In 1869, the last year of the decade, though the revenue +had advanced to nearly three-quarters of a million, there was a +deficit for the year of £37,217. For the ten years the net accumulated +revenue deficit was £386,527, and the aggregate indebtedness nearly +3¼ millions. The interest charge was then about £225,000 per annum, +and the entire weight of it fell upon consolidated revenue. The +population being 109,897, the interest burden was at the rate of over +£2 per head. It may here be remarked that in 1907-8 it was only +£2 16s. 9d. per head, less railway net earnings of about £1 12s., +reducing the net burden to about £1 5s. per head. Recurring to the +debacle of 1866, it should be mentioned that the catastrophe was +largely due to the failure of the Agra Bank, when all railway works +were suddenly suspended, and the colony was plunged into the depths +of extreme depression. During the two preceding years the loan +expenditure had been largely in excess of revenue disbursements, no +less than £685,246 of borrowed money having been spent in 1865. This +was at the rate of nearly £8 per head of the total population, and its +sudden cessation threatened thousands of the people of the colony with +ruin. For not only had their sources of income been suddenly cut off, +and landed property become almost valueless, but increased taxation +had to be imposed. + +Yet the catastrophe was not wholly the fault of the Government. It was +the consequence of the monetary and commercial crisis in the mother +country in 1866. The Sydney branch of the Agra and Masterman's Bank +had engaged to furnish £50,000 monthly to the Queensland Government +for the prosecution of railways and other reproductive works pending +the negotiation of the loan authorised by Parliament. The bank was of +good standing, and under ordinary conditions its contract would have +amply secured the position of the Treasury. Its failure could not have +been foreseen; but the incident proves the unwisdom of a Government +leaning upon any banking institution for heavy advances which can +only be made on the assumption that normal deposits are maintained. +In Queensland the position was intensified by the proposal of the +Macalister Government to issue inconvertible legal tender notes, +because it gave countenance to the economic fallacy that any +Government can make money to an indefinable amount with the aid of the +printing press. The resignation of Ministers because their advice had +been refused by the Governor shook for the moment the very foundations +of authority; and had not Mr. Herbert's services been available on +the eve of his departure for England the consequences might have been +grave indeed. But he consented to take office without portfolio for +a few days with several other members, and, by getting authority +from Parliament to issue Treasury bills, he saved the country from +financial chaos. As it was, the ordeal proved a severe test of the +loyalty of the people of the colony. + +On the establishment of Queensland a Customs tariff imposing light +revenue duties was inherited from New South Wales. Under it spirits +bore a duty of only 7s. per gallon. In 1865 the Treasurer, Mr. +(afterwards Sir) Joshua Peter Bell, introduced a bill to raise the +spirit duties by 3s. per gallon, and the duty on other intoxicants in +proportion. The bill passed the second reading without debate, for it +must have been felt that with the rapidly increasing interest charge +further taxation ought years before to have been imposed. After the +crisis of 1866 had subsided, further increased duties for temporary +purposes were passed, as were also stamp duties, so that the revenue +for the following year, despite the depression, showed the important +increment of about £120,000. Happily the Crocodile goldfield, near +Rockhampton, was discovered towards the close of 1866, and the Gympie +goldfield during the next succeeding year. Hence for the remainder +of the decade revenue, despite prolonged stagnation in business, +steadily, if not rapidly, increased. + +In 1869 authority had been obtained from Parliament to liquidate the +accumulated deficits by the issue of Treasury bills for the sum +of £350,000, the increased duties of Customs imposed for temporary +purposes in 1866 being at the same time continued for twelve months. +In January, 1872, the Treasurer (Mr. Bell) referred in committee of +the Assembly to the accumulated deficit, stating that the Treasury +bills which had temporarily provided for it were falling due, and that +there was no hope of paying the amount out of revenue. He therefore +announced the intention of the Government to retire the bills and fund +the debt by issuing long-dated debentures. That having been done, the +effect was to produce a surplus for the year 1872 of £487,333. This +indicated that had the Government exhibited a little more confidence +the whole amount of the deficit might have been paid off out of +revenue; for in the next year, shortly before the Palmer Government +went out of office, a further surplus of £158,874 was realised. This +sum, with the excess surplus of £137,333 for the preceding year, +totalled £296,207, leaving only £53,793 short of the entire amount of +the Treasury bills. In the next year there would have been a surplus, +but the Macalister Ministry, which assumed office early in January, +1874--Mr. William Hemmant being Treasurer--carried £240,000 to a +surplus revenue account, and ended the year with a revenue deficit of +£200,762. While the revenue of that year only increased by £40,913, +the expenditure, in addition to the surplus revenue item, increased by +£160,550. The Macalister Ministry could not keep down expenditure, +and in 1875-6--the end of the financial year having been changed from +December to June--with a revenue slightly exceeding 1¼ millions, they +had a further deficit of £51,663. The same party continued in power +for a further two years under the leadership successively of Mr. +George Thorn and Mr. John Douglas. Revenue continued fairly elastic, +and the deficit period was followed by two years showing small +surpluses. + +[Illustration: HINCHINBROOK CHANNEL, NORTH QUEENSLAND] + +[Illustration: THE NARROWS AND MOUNT LARCOMBE, NEAR GLADSTONE] + +Early in 1879 the McIlwraith Ministry assumed office, at a time when, +as the Premier himself admitted in his Budget speech of 1880, the +colony was "emerging from a state of depression induced by three bad +seasons of an extraordinary character," so that the year 1878-9 +closed with the considerable deficit of £216,808. This was partly due, +however, to the operation of the Western Railway Act and the Railway +Reserves Act, by which the most saleable land in the colony had been +included in railway reserves, and the proceeds of sales, instead of as +previously going into consolidated revenue, were placed to the credit +of a special fund. Mr. (afterwards Sir Thomas) McIlwraith while in +opposition had predicted that this course would produce a revenue +deficit; consequently on attaining office he induced Parliament +to sanction the transfer of all these sums, totalling £382,346, +to consolidated revenue. Mr. McIlwraith argued that it would be +impossible to construct a tithe of the railways needed in different +parts of the colony out of the proceeds of land sales, and that it +would be sufficient if the interest on railways, until they became +fully reproductive, were defrayed from that source. Parliament +accepted that view, and forthwith authorised a loan of 3 millions for +a comprehensive schedule of railways proposed by the Government in +1879-80. Between August, 1879, and May, 1883, loans amounting +to £5,553,000 were floated and a further sum of £1,233,000 was +authorised, but not placed on the market. During the McIlwraith +Administration of 1879-83 the revenue increased from rather less than +1½ millions to 2½ millions. The period was characterised by +two deficits and three surpluses, showing accumulated surpluses of +£272,412, without taking into account the sum of £382,346 transferred +to revenue. During these years the colony was prosperous, the +fair seasons, large loan expenditure, the establishment of the +British-India service _via_ Torres Strait, and the free introduction +of immigrants, all combining to push the country along the path +of progress; but prosperity had compelled a _pro rata_ increase of +expenditure. + +At the end of the quarter-century in 1884 the public debt was +£16,570,850, on which the interest charge was £701,565. Of this amount +£9,417,318 expended on railways was earning £2 18s. per cent. The +length of lines open for traffic totalled 1,207 miles. The population +was 309,913. About £2,350,000 had been spent on immigration, of which +nearly a third of a million had come from revenue, £1,778,000 from +loan, and the rest from "special receipts"--partly contributions +from immigrants. The year's imports were of the declared value of +£6,381,976, and the exports £4,673,864. Joint stock bank assets +exceeded 11 millions, liabilities were nearly 7¾ millions, deposits +exceeded 6 millions, and savings bank deposits were over 1 million. Of +cattle there were 4¼ millions, of sheep less than 9½ millions, while +horses numbered 253,116. There were 6,979 miles of telegraph line +constructed. There were over 7 million acres of land alienated, which +had produced over 4¾ millions sterling of revenue. The value of +minerals won for the year was £1,325,624. There were 528 schools with +60,701 scholars, 5,185 subscribers to public libraries, and 60,257 +volumes. Comparing these figures with those of 1860 it will be seen +that, despite droughts, floods, and financial crises, the progress +attained had been phenomenal. + +Thus in a financial aspect the first quarter-century closed glowingly, +despite a severe Western drought in 1883. There had been rapid and +apparently solid progression, and the disasters of 1866, which seemed +at the time to threaten the solvency of Government and people alike, +had become an unpleasant memory--a catastrophe very unlikely to recur +for various reasons, among them being that the railways were beginning +greatly to facilitate transport, as well as to show considerable net +earnings; while instead of the Government borrowing at 6 per cent., as +formerly, money in abundance could be got at 3½ per cent. Moreover, +mortgage loans and bank overdrafts bore a greatly reduced rate of +interest. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +PUBLIC FINANCE (1884-1893). + + The Ten-million Loan.--Ministers Practically Granted Control + of Five Years' Loan Money.--Vigorous Railway Policy.--Effect + of Over-spending.--Inflation of Values.--Increased Taxation. + --Succession of Deficits.--Second McIlwraith Ministry. + --A Protectionist Tariff.--Temporary Increase of Revenue. + --Heavy Contraction in 1890.--Another Big Loan; Failure of + Flotation.--The First Underwritten Australian Loan. + --Amended Audit Act Limiting Spending Power of Government. + + +At the end of 1883 the Griffith Ministry succeeded to office with a +strong following. It was early in March, 1884, that the Appropriation +and Loan Acts for 1883-4 became law, but the regular session of the +year did not begin until 7th July. It was in this session that the +Government introduced their colossal railway extension scheme, and +their famous "Ten-million Loan Act"--actually, however, the amount was +£9,980,000. This sum was to be spent during the following five years, +which meant that the members of the Assembly voted in a lump sum, and +on an unprecedented scale, the loan expenditure for the maximum term +of the Parliament. The effect was also to ensure the life of the +Ministry for the same term, as it was intended to expend about 2 +millions sterling a year, or about £6 10s. per annum per head of +the population. This was equal to about three-fourths of the total +consolidated revenue for 1884. + +The Ministry no doubt meant well, and their preparation of a schedule +of works to extend over five years was in the abstract commendable. +But the expenditure of so much loan money provoked inflation in +values, and led to unhealthy speculation in land. Although Ministers +did not in any one year quite reach their 2-million conventional +limit of loan outlay, the 10 millions were exhausted soon after their +retirement from office, and a further loan had to be authorised to +finish their uncompleted works. While such railways as the "Via Recta" +(Ipswich to Warwick) and the Cloncurry to the Gulf lines were both +on the 1884 loan schedule--the amount set down for each being +£500,000--they have never been even commenced to this day, a quarter +of a century since they were passed by the Assembly. Other lines then +authorised absorbed more than the amount voted, and necessarily had +afterwards to be completed to make them reproductive. + +The revenue not proving as expansive as the necessities of the +Treasury required, an Act passed in 1885 imposed 5 per cent. ad +valorem duties upon most kinds of industrial machinery, increased the +spirit duties to 12s. per gallon, and levied upon log and undressed +timber a duty of 1s. per 100 feet superficial and upon dressed timber +of 1s. 6d. per 100 feet. In the following year the ad valorem duties +were increased to 7½ per cent., except as to machinery, which +remained at 5 per cent.; but small levies like these were as drops in +the bucket by comparison with the constantly expanding needs of the +Treasurer. + +The 10-million loan schedule did not exhaust the list of what were +deemed necessary works. In 1886 a special Act was passed appropriating +£123,000, to be raised by Treasury bills having a term of five +years, for the duplication of the Brisbane-Ipswich railway, and the +completion of the lines from Mackay to Eton and Hamilton, and from +Ravenswood Junction to Ravenswood, respectively. In the year following +an Act was passed authorising the issue of further Treasury bills +amounting to £349,834 for the construction of eight small lines, and +the extension of the Brisbane and Southport line, with a branch to +Beaudesert, thus bringing the railways and works loan schedule of the +Griffith Ministry up to £10,452,834. + +By the advent of the financial year 1888-9, most intelligent public +men felt gravely disturbed. The bank deposits, which had been trebled +in a decade, had to earn interest on the additional 7 millions of +money held and advanced. When the Griffith Ministry retired from +office in June, 1888, they had recorded four successive annual +deficits aggregating £968,313, although between 1884-5 and 1887-8 the +revenue had increased by £456,861, and there had been spent over 1¾ +millions of loan money per annum in addition. During the year 1888-9, +after Sir Thomas McIlwraith assumed office, the expenditure increased +by £128,922, but he obtained a revenue increase of about £437,000. +This increase chiefly arose from the heavier duties levied under the +protectionist Customs tariff of 1888; but in 1889-90 there was an +almost equivalent shrinkage in both Customs and total revenue. Bad +times partly accounted for the subsequent inelasticity of Customs +receipts, for not until 1895-6 were the total revenue figures of +1888-9 again touched. + +The year 1889-90 was characterised by a deficit of £483,979, for the +drop of £402,857 in revenue and the increase of £197,969 in +expenditure dislocated the finances, and caused the retirement of the +Morehead Government after an ineffectual attempt to impose a general +tax of 5 per cent. on all property, both real and personal. The +coalition Griffith-McIlwraith Administration followed, but could not +in such a time of value shrinkages materially increase revenue, while +expenditure was thought to be irreducible. Despite a Loan Act for 1½ +millions passed in 1888-9, to provide for works temporarily met by +floating Treasury bills during the two preceding years, another large +loan was authorised in 1890, its total being nearly 3¾ millions +sterling. This money was needed to retire debentures maturing on 1st +July, 1891, amounting to £1,170,950, and no less than £422,850 +deficiency loss on the loans of 1882, 1884, and 1889, thus leaving +little more than 2 millions for railway and harbour works. This 3¾ +million Loan Act did not receive the Royal assent until December, +1890, and the stock was issued a few months later at a most +unfortunate time. The monetary tension which culminated in 1893 was +already felt in the London market, and the credit of Queensland had +become much impaired by the fact that during the preceding decade +(1880-81 to 1889-90) the colony's obligations had increased by +£16,706,834, bringing the funded public debt up to £28,105,684--nearly +£70 per head of the population--while railway net earnings were +steadily dwindling. + +[Illustration: BARRON GORGE, BELOW THE FALLS, CAIRNS RAILWAY] + +The cable soon flashed the unwelcome news that only £1,554,834 was +subscribed. After some difficulty a Stock Exchange syndicate was +formed to underwrite £1,182,400 of the balance, the price realised for +the whole amount taken up averaging £87 6s. 1d. per £100 of 3½ per +cent. stock. Thus the net proceeds of the loan of £3,704,800 were only +£3,234,376, a depreciation loss of £470,424. The interest charge on +this new loan was £129,668; so that the interest, while nominally +3½ per cent., was really just 4 per cent. on the money received, +and, in addition, at due date (1930), £470,424 depreciation will have +to be made good. But the tragedy did not end there, for the money +borrowed, or the greater part of it, had not reached the Treasury +in 1893, but ranked among the "suspended bank deposits" which then +paralysed both Government and private depositors. + +That the time chosen for going on the money market was not opportune +may be gathered from the fact that in 1889 Queensland 3½ per cent. +stock had brought £96 0s. 11d. per £100, and in 1894--three years +after the forced sale at £87 6s. 1d. in 1891--an issue of our stock +of the same denomination brought £98 14s. 0¼d. per £100. It may be +noted that the Queensland loan of 1890-91 was the first underwritten +Government loan issued by an Australian colony, though since that time +all Government loans have been underwritten. Heavy as our sacrifice +in 1891 may have been, it was infinitely less disastrous than making +default must have proved; and perhaps after all the experience gained +was worth its cost, for, although the colony staggered under the blow, +its progress was checked only for the time. + +In 1890 an amending Audit Act was passed--Sir Thomas McIlwraith being +then Treasurer--section 4 of which made the important provision that +it should not be lawful for the Colonial Treasurer to expend any +moneys standing to the credit of the Loan Fund Account except under +the authority of an annual or special Appropriation Act, in like +manner as moneys were expended out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund +for the current expenses of government. By section 6 it was provided +that, when it was necessary to expend for any work money in excess +of the appropriation, then, if such sum were included in any +Appropriation Act, the Governor in Council might authorise the +additional expenditure from the Loan Fund. By section 8, annual Loan +Estimates, specifying the nature of the work proposed, were to be +submitted, as in the case of the Estimates of ordinary expenditure. +This Act was passed to avoid the evil of placing large amounts of +borrowed money at the uncontrolled disposal of the Ministry of the +day. + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +PUBLIC FINANCE (1893-1898). + + Sir Hugh Nelson at the Treasury.--Credit of Colony Restored. + --Assistance to Financial Institutions and Primary Industries. + --Savings Bank Stock Act.--Public Debt Reduction Fund. + --Treasurer's Cautious and Prudent Administration.--Money + Obtained in London at a Record Price. + + +When the banking crisis occurred in 1893, Mr. (afterwards Sir) Hugh +Nelson, who had previously held office with distinction as Railway +Minister for about two years, reluctantly took charge of the +embarrassed Treasury. Entering Parliament after the general election +in 1883, he had from the first given evidence of more than common +knowledge of public finance. Mr. Nelson was an exceedingly modest man, +and an indifferent public speaker at best; but he possessed courage, +thoroughness, and scholarly knowledge. In public matters he always +aimed at taking the line of least resistance; but knowing what he knew +in March, 1893, his assumption of office as Treasurer must be regarded +as an act of heroism dictated by regard for the public welfare. +Quietly and unobtrusively he worked, refusing all invitations +to appear on public platforms, and while affecting contempt for +politicians who constantly apostrophised "the people," he determined +to set the affairs of the colony straight. Revenue at that time had +almost touched bottom, and was very inelastic; and Mr. Nelson followed +the example of his immediate predecessor in keeping a tight hand upon +expenditure. For 1892-3 there had been a reduction of outlay of about +£70,000 only, as compared with the preceding year, the June deficit +having been reduced to £111,676; but in the next year he realised +rather less revenue, yet reduced expenditure by £206,000, closing the +year with a small deficit of £8,467. As this was the time in which +most commercial and financial disaster was suffered from the crisis, +this economy was a feat worth accomplishing, although the drastic +reduction of expenditure tended to aggravate the crisis by delaying +the restoration of confidence. After 1893-4 followed six surpluses. + +In the midst of the bank reconstructions of 1893 there had been a +general election, and Parliament met on 25th May. Between then +and 18th October, 1893, Mr. Nelson, as Treasurer in the McIlwraith +Ministry, passed those financial measures which were the greatest +achievements of his career. An unpopular measure was his Civil Service +Special Retrenchment Act, but it was imperative, and civil servants +were indeed fortunate, when so large a number of their friends +in private life were left destitute, in being able to draw their +diminished salaries month by month. The Queensland National Bank +Limited Agreement Act enabled that institution to resume business, +though the public sacrifice was great. Acts were also passed for +encouraging meat and dairy works; for advancing guaranteed loans by +the Treasury to sugar works companies; for Treasury advances upon the +notes of suspended joint stock banks; for the issue of Treasury notes, +made legal tender throughout the colony save by the Treasury; and +for the imposition of a yearly tax of 10 per cent. on notes issued +by banks. In the same session was passed an Act for giving relief to +public depositors, such as treasurers of hospitals and other public +institutions, by making Treasury advances upon the amount of their +locked-up deposits. + +Another important measure of this period was the Government Savings +Bank Stock Act of 1894, under which any savings bank depositor may +exchange his deposit for £10, or any multiple thereof, of Government +stock redeemable in 1945, and bearing not more than 3½ per cent. +interest. In 1897 the amount of such stock issuable was increased +from £1,000,000 to £2,000,000. The object of this measure was to give +depositors the opportunity of making investments in small amounts of +Government stock, for which there would always be a buoyant market in +the event of cash being required; and also to safeguard the Treasury +by reducing the amount of money held on account of savings bank +deposits repayable at call. In 1897 the total deposits did not exceed +2½ millions; to-day they total over 5 millions. It is therefore +satisfactory to note that the Treasurer (Mr. Hawthorn) early in the +current year made arrangements for enlarging the sale of savings bank +stock in the manner intended by the author of the Act. + +In 1895 Mr. Nelson passed the amended Audit Act under which, if it +appears by the Treasurer's annual statement that there is a surplus of +receipts for any financial year, the money shall, before the 31st +day of December following, be paid to the trustees of the Public Debt +Reduction Fund created by the Act, and by them applied, first to the +purchase of Treasury bills, and then to the purchase of inscribed +stock at the current market price, stock so purchased to be cancelled. +As a Treasurer with a deficit is bound to make provision for its +liquidation at the end of a financial year, the effect of the Act +has been to start every year with a clean sheet. By this practice an +ingenious Treasurer is deprived of the opportunity of juggling with +accumulated surpluses. + +[Illustration: ON THE ROAD TO MARKET, CENTRAL QUEENSLAND] + +[Illustration: FAT CATTLE, CENTRAL QUEENSLAND] + +In April, 1898, when Sir Hugh Nelson retired from active politics, he +had just completed five years' service as Treasurer. During that time +he had gone to the London money market only twice, and had issued +stock to the amount of only 3¾ millions. Of that sum, moreover, the +2 millions asked for in 1894 was for retiring Treasury bills, and for +the liquidation of the deficit on account of previously issued loans. +In 1896 the Loan Act totalled £2,324,480, though it was not all placed +by Sir Hugh Nelson. It provided for further railway extensions, and +included half a million sterling for loans in terms of the Local Works +Loans Act under the Sugar Works Guarantee Act; £600,000 was applied to +the purchase at par of savings bank stock for cancellation, only 1½ +millions being placed on the London market. Of these two loans issued +subsequent to the 1893 crisis, the first, bearing 3½ per cent. +interest, realised £98 14s. 0¼d. net per £100 of stock, and the other, +floated in 1897, bearing 3 per cent., brought £95 15s. 10¾d., the +record price for money obtained by the issue of Queensland Government +stock in London. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +PUBLIC FINANCE (1898-1903). + + The Philp Ministry.--Large Surplus.--Loan Acts for Seven and + a-half Millions Sterling.--Drought Disasters and Sacrifices + for Federation.--Accumulated Revenue Deficits of over + £1,000,000.--Rebuff on London Stock Exchange.--Resignation of + Philp Ministry. + + +When Mr. Philp took charge of the Treasury in March, 1898, the credit +of the colony appeared to have been fully restored. True, the funded +public debt had grown to 33½ millions, but the population had also +increased to 484,700, so that the public debt proper was slightly more +than £69 per head. The year 1897-8 closed with the small surplus of +£20,724 at the Treasury, and revenue was steadily improving. In June, +1899, Mr. Philp had the largest surplus realised for seventeen years, +nearly £150,000, but then an era of drought began. Still revenue +continued to advance until the establishment of federation in 1901, +when financial trouble was accentuated. The year 1899-1900 had shown a +small surplus of £47,789, to be followed by three successive deficits +aggregating £1,151,469. Mr. Philp, an old colonist, an experienced +business man, and with a full knowledge of its varied resources, had +unbounded confidence in the future of the State. Soon after he became +Premier at the close of 1899, he essayed a bold public works policy, +and during his first three years of office he induced Parliament to +sanction the borrowing of nearly 7½ millions sterling. But he did not +issue the whole of the last 2¼ millions. Owing principally to the +South African war, colonial stocks were not high in favour in 1900, +and the Queensland Government, acting on the best advice, decided to +call for tenders for the £1,400,000 of 3 per cent. stock placed on +the English money market in July of that year. The loan only realised +£91 5s. 1½d. per cent., about the same price that was obtained by New +South Wales and West Australia in the same year. Of the balance of +the loan, £900,000 was taken up in Queensland by the trustees of the +Government Savings Bank at £97 per cent., and £46,600, sold locally +and bearing 3½ per cent. interest, realised £99 10s. 8¼d. net, the +local market not being affected by the adverse influences and the +choice of investments which operated in London. In October, 1901, +for £1,374,213 offered in London at 3 per cent., the extremely low +price of £88 12s. 4d. was obtained; and in 1903, when the then +Treasurer (Mr. T. B. Cribb) again sought to enter the London market +with 3½ per cent. stock, he could only place £750,000 worth at the +low rate of £92 19s. 11¾d. Times had indeed changed, and for the +moment the State was practically excluded from the London money +market. The balance of the loan has been, and is being, issued in +Queensland, about £456,000 being still unsold. + +The year 1899-1900, from the revenue standpoint, was the record year +of the century. Wool brought extremely high prices in London, and loan +expenditure had been maintained during the previous two years at an +average of a little over £1,000,000 per annum. For the next year, +one-half of which was subsequent to the proclamation of the +Commonwealth, revenue showed a decline of nearly half a million +sterling, although loan outlay had been increased rather than +lessened. Two reasons could be assigned for this shrinkage--a bad +season in the West, and the dislocation of accounts resulting from +federation. Still, in 1899-1900, the expenditure from revenue was +fully maintained, with the result that on 30th June, 1901, the deficit +exceeded half a million. + +In the next year, 1901-2, there was a further decline of about half a +million in revenue, arising (1) from one-fourth of the State's Customs +revenue and the whole of its postal revenue being retained by the +Commonwealth, and (2) from the sparse rainfall and the heavy drop in +London wool prices. Thus, although the apparent expenditure showed a +decline of about £650,000 due to the cost of the transferred +departments being defrayed by the Commonwealth, the financial year +ended with a deficit of £431,940. The year 1902 was the most +disastrous with respect to rainfall that Australia ever experienced, +and the drought struck Queensland with cruel intensity. The revenue of +1902-3 was maintained at nearly the level of the previous year, good +rains having fallen early in 1903, while the expenditure was cut down +by about a quarter of a million; yet there was a further deficit of +£191,341, despite the fact that an income tax had been imposed and a +Public Service Special Retrenchment Act passed which resulted in a +saving of £87,000. + +The Philp regime practically ended with an accumulated deficit, as +above mentioned, of £1,151,469; for, about two months after the close +of the financial year 1902-3, the Ministry were compelled by a schism +in their party to resign office. They had been long popularly +stigmatised as the "Continuous Government." The work of the coalition +of 1890 having been accomplished, Ministers had exhausted their +popularity; yet the probability is that but for the financial debacle +the end would not have come quite so soon. The drought having by this +time broken, a return of prosperity was naturally expected; but on the +one hand Ministers had made enemies by severe retrenchment, and on the +other hand they were blamed for having failed to balance their budget. + +When Parliament met on 21st July, 1903, Mr. Philp appeared still to +command a working majority--though somewhat diminished by the general +election of 1902-3 compared with that which had followed him for three +years previously. But on the 8th of September the Treasurer, Mr. T. +B. Cribb, carried his taxation resolutions in Committee of Ways and +Means, after an acrimonious debate, by a majority of only two votes in +a House of sixty-five, several prominent Government supporters voting +with the Noes. Mr. Philp then moved the adjournment of the House, and +next day announced the resignation of his Ministry. + +[Illustration: MAROOCHY RIVER AND NINDERRY MOUNTAIN, NORTH COAST +RAILWAY] + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +PUBLIC FINANCE (1903-1909). + + The Morgan-Kidston Ministry.--Economy in Revenue + Expenditure.--Great Reduction in Loan Outlay.--Equilibrium + Established at the Treasury.--Retrenchment and Taxation. + --Improvement of Finances.--A Record Surplus for Queensland. + --Land Sales Proceeds Act.--Abstention from Borrowing. + --First Loan Floated since 1903.--Sound Position of + Queensland.--Value of State Securities.--Reproductiveness of + Railways Built out of Loan Money.--Public Estate Improvement + Fund.--How Recourse to Money Market has been Avoided. + + +On the 15th September, 1903, the Speaker's resignation was announced, +and on the 17th Mr. (now Sir) Arthur Morgan announced the formation of +a new Ministry with himself as Premier, his colleagues including the +leader, (the late Mr. W. H. Browne) and another prominent member of +the Labour party (Mr. W. Kidston). The new Ministry came in expressly +to restore the financial equilibrium, the Treasurer being Mr. Kidston. +Retrenchment became the order of the day, although the Estimates of +the late Government were adopted, having regard to the fact that +the first quarter of the financial year had practically expired. The +pruning-knife was applied with vigour, and loan expenditure rapidly +lessened, although existing railway contracts had of course to be +completed. + +On 30th June following, revenue showed an increase of £69,000, while +expenditure had been reduced by £110,000, the financial year ending +with a deficit of only £12,424. Loan expenditure had been brought down +to £603,805, a reduction of no less than £418,600 compared with +the previous year. In the middle of the session of 1904 the Premier +advised a dissolution, which was granted; and after the general +election the Ministry returned in such strength as to warrant +Parliament in treating their policy, especially the financial part of +it, as practically a mandate from the constituencies. + +In 1904-5 the revenue being within £41 of the amount of the preceding +year, while the expenditure was about £26,000 less, a surplus, the +first for five years, was recorded for the nominal sum of £13,995. +Seeing that loan expenditure had been reduced to less than a quarter +of a million, that general retrenchment had been carried out, and that +a recovery of trade and industry was not yet clearly apparent, +the result must be deemed highly satisfactory; also, the Treasurer +refused, after his first year of office, to continue the practice of +charging to loan fund the amount spent by the Commonwealth Government +on new works and buildings. The amount was not large, but even the +£20,000 to £30,000 per annum so expended would, if transferred to +loan, have improved the appearance of the State revenue account. + +In 1904 the obnoxious but necessary Special Retrenchment Act was +re-enacted for the nine months of the financial year still remaining, +the rate of deduction being diminished by one-half, while provision +was made that any surplus revenue for the financial year should +be paid to the public servants. The year closed with a surplus of +£13,995, which was at once distributed _pro rata_ among the retrenched +officers. The continuation of the Act was not popular among public +servants, but it was deemed necessary in the interests of the wider +community; and, as the net result was that a public officer only lost +7s. 6d. for every £1 deducted from his salary during the two previous +years, it can hardly be considered unfair, having regard to the +losses sustained by the general public during the same period. Another +unpopular measure was the Income Tax Amending Act, which exempted +from taxation incomes of £100 and under, but in regard to the larger +incomes somewhat increased the taxation then levied. In 1906 a further +Income Tax Amending Act was passed, adding to the taxation in some +cases, but raising the exemption to £160 and granting an exemption of +£120 on incomes between £160 and £200. In 1907 another amendment of +the Act increased the exemption to £200 on all incomes, and reduced +certain imposts, which had the effect of relinquishing revenue to +the extent of £40,000 to £50,000 for the year. But times had then +improved, and the Treasurer could afford this grateful relief to the +poorer classes of the community. + +Early in 1906, owing to the death of Sir Hugh Nelson, Mr. Morgan +retired from the Ministry, Mr. Kidston becoming Chief Secretary in +his stead, while still retaining the Treasurership. Mr. Morgan then +accepted the Presidency of the Legislative Council. In the year +1905-6 the revenue had become buoyant, the increase for the year being +£258,124. The expenditure had also increased by over one-half that +amount, the year closing with the surplus of £127,811. Loan outlay +also showed an increase, totalling nearly £300,000. In 1906-7 there +was a revenue jump of £454,389, with an increase in expenditure +of £186,085, the record Queensland surplus of £396,115 being +realised.[a] For 1907-8 the revenue increase was £180,486, while the +expenditure increase was £461,299, and the surplus only £115,302. +Loan outlay also advanced to £1,033,676. Including the Commonwealth +collections the total revenue for 1907-8 approached 5½ millions, +or nearly 1 million in excess of the most fruitful year before +federation. + +In November, 1906, a brief but important Act was passed providing that +all moneys received in payment for auction sales of town, suburban, +and country lands, or of such lands if subsequently purchased by +selection, should hereafter be paid into the Loan Fund Account. But +proceeds of the land sold under the Special Sales of Land Act of 1901 +were not included, those moneys having been already appropriated to +the repayment of sums borrowed upon certain Treasury bills issued +in aid of revenue in former years. It is the policy of the Kidston +Government, however, not to alienate lands under the Special Sales +Act; therefore the deficits of former years which had been liquidated +with the proceeds of Treasury bills, and practically formed a floating +debt, are being gradually compensated for by the transfer of annual +surpluses to the Public Debt Reduction Fund, the total amount of stock +thus cancelled having on 30th June, 1908, reached the respectable +amount of £942,641 since the inception of the fund. + +One of the wise determinations of Mr. Kidston as Treasurer was to +keep off the London money market for several years at least after the +rebuff received by his predecessor in 1903. Consequently he abstained +from making any attempt to float a loan till March, 1909, when +£2,000,000 worth of 3½ per cent. stock was disposed of. The net +proceeds were equal to £94 9s. 6½d. per cent., a price about +equivalent to that obtained by New South Wales a little earlier in +the year. This, although dearer money than was obtained by issues of +Queensland stock in the closing decade of the last century, compares +not unfavourably with the prices obtained earlier in the financial +year for other gilt-edged securities on the London market. + +The net average rate of interest payable on the public debt of +Queensland on 30th June, 1908, was £3 14s. 1d. per cent., but this +rather high rate arose from the fact that more than a moiety of the +total debt was incurred many years ago, when all Australian stocks +bore 4 per cent. interest. The lowest average rate now paid by any +Australian State is £3 8s. 9d. by Western Australia, most of whose +stock was issued during the closing decade of the 19th century, and +bears from 3¼ to 3½ per cent. + +Speaking generally, Queensland stands well on the London money market +at present, as, according to the "Commonwealth Year Book" quotations +from the "Economist" newspaper, the "middle price" of her 3½ per +cents. quoted on 'Change on the 25th September of last year was £100, +a figure only equalled at the time by Victoria among the Australian +States; and in December following £99, which was on a par with New +South Wales stock on the same date, and only 10s. per cent. below the +quotation for Victorian stock. These prices, however, for comparative +purposes seem to need slight adjustment on account of the interest +respectively due at date of quotation. + +Having regard to the fact that the public debt of Queensland is higher +than that of any other Australian State per head of the population, +the policy of abstention from further borrowing from 1903 until 1909 +has been vindicated in a most gratifying manner. A pregnant fact is +that more than one-half the entire public debt has been invested in +railways which in 1908-9 returned £883,610[b] in net earnings, all +available for the payment of interest on capital, or equal to about £3 +7s. 6d. per cent. per annum, which meant that our railway system was +almost self-supporting, besides being the source of a large indirect +gain to the Treasury by providing facilities for transport over 3,498 +miles of line. It is no exaggeration to assert that directly and +indirectly the railways assist the Treasury to the amount of the +annual interest charge on the entire public debt of the State. Instead +of the railways being a burden upon the taxpayer, as in former years, +they have undoubtedly now become the backbone of the public credit. +Seven years ago the interest charge on railway capital falling on the +taxpayer amounted to £513,128. To-day, as shown by official figures, +there is practically no such burden, and the existing state of the +investment not only forms a complete justification for the railway +policy of the past, but also for the vigorous way in which the +construction of new lines is being pushed forward. With a continuance +of good management it is apparent that the time is within measurable +distance when the Railway Commissioner will, unless rates be reduced, +hand to the State Treasurer a large annual surplus which will be +available for lightening the public burdens. + +Among other minor financial reforms for which the Morgan and Kidston +Governments have earned credit is the creation of the Public Estate +Improvement Trust Account, to which is charged the cost of roads, +water supply, and other improvements made to Crown lands about to be +thrown open for settlement, such cost being afterwards added to the +selling price of those lands. Up to 30th June, 1908, 1½ million +acres of Crown land had thus been made available for selection by +a total expenditure of £85,784, the value of which has thus been +enhanced, it is estimated, by more than half a million sterling. This +amount will ultimately find its way into consolidated revenue. And all +this with a debtor balance of the account on 30th June, 1908, of +only £58,287. Allowing that the profit is shown in figures yet to be +realised, the estimated margin is so large that the result cannot be +doubtful. + +[Illustration: SCENE ON BARCALDINE DOWNS, CENTRAL QUEENSLAND] + +[Illustration: BARCALDINE DOWNS HOMESTEAD, CENTRAL QUEENSLAND] + +Loan expenditure on public works, though greatly reduced, was never +entirely stopped by the Morgan and Kidston Governments. In 1903 +they inherited from their predecessors a loan cash balance of +1¼ millions. By compelling the local bodies to pay up arrears of +redemption on local loans, by investing about £603,000 of revenue +surpluses in unissued stock, with the help of interest accruing on +public loan cash balances, and the annual instalments paid by the +Queensland National Bank in liquidation of its extended deposit debt, +nearly 3½ millions sterling was spent on loan account during the +five years ended 30th June, 1909, without placing on the money market +any part of the then unissued balance of the 1902 loan. + + [Footnote a: The so-called surplus of £487,333 in 1872 + was obtained by the transfer of £350,000 from loan fund to + revenue.] + + [Footnote b: These net earnings are Treasury cash figures. + They differ somewhat from the departmental figures, which do + not deal with cash, but with book receipts and expenditure.] + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +THE BOOM DECADE (1880-1890). + + A Great Boom Decade.--Causes of Inflation of Values. + --Excessive Rating Valuations.--False Basis of Assessing + Capital Value.--Prodigality Succeeded by Financial + Stringency and Collapse of Boom.--Difficulty in + Determining Real Values.--Sir Hugh Nelson's Legislation. + --Sound Finance.--Stability of State.--Prospects Good + To-day. + + +The prospects of Queensland had seldom been brighter than they were at +the opening of the 1880-90 decade. The seasons were good, the outlook +was regarded as brilliant, and a general air of confidence reigned. +The Government were spending loan money lavishly, and large amounts +were being spent in introducing a stream of immigrants from Europe. +These and other causes contributed to the prevailing over-confidence +and the consequent excessive values put upon fixed property. One +was the influx of capital for investment on private account, for the +confidence felt in Queensland mortgage securities not only extended +to the other colonies of Australia, but also to the mother country. +Another was the discovery of subterranean water in Western Queensland, +and the opinion expressed by geologists that more than one-half the +total area of the colony, and that in the driest parts of the far +West, was artesian water-bearing country. The discovery, it was +argued, had added a new province to Queensland, and one whose +fertility, water once provided, would not be excelled, despite a +normally light rainfall, by any other part of the continent. One +consequence was the sale of Western stations at high prices, and +the investment by their late owners of the proceeds in city and town +properties. They had experienced the risks of the far inland climate, +and they wanted to invest in land in the seaport towns, which must +quickly become centres of extensive trade. + +Another cause was the raising of rating values by the local +authorities, of whom those having jurisdiction in suburban or country +areas were endowed with £2 from the Treasury for every £1 raised by +rates. To augment the claims for endowment, although the rate levies +were in a few cases raised to the maximum legal limit, in most the +valuations alone were raised, and the rate levy left untouched. It was +held that it paid the property owner to contribute a high rate when +with the endowment it meant three times that sum, most of which would +be spent in improving his land by making roads and carrying on other +local works calculated to enhance property values. A further cause +of inflation was the cutting up of suburban land into 16-perch +allotments, and selling them on long terms to working men and to +speculators. A still further cause was, as already mentioned, the +influx of external money at reduced rates of interest through the +financial institutions. At first rents were so high as apparently to +justify an advance on true values; but as the expanding process went +on vendors ridiculed a capital value based on income-earning capacity. +"What is the use of talking nonsense!" the agent would exclaim; "it is +not what this property will bring in annually now, but what it will be +worth in twenty years' time." + +Even conservative loan institutions accepted valuations based on +actual sales. Prices in many cases doubled and quadrupled in a few +months without much regard to the income-earning power. Then people +were told that Brisbane would by and by, with an immense railway +mileage finding its terminus at the wharves, be as big as Sydney or +Melbourne; that land in George-street and Collins-street was realising +£2,000 per foot frontage, bare; and that therefore choice sites in +Queen-street could not be worth less than £1,000 per foot frontage. +Thus prices advanced until the second half of 1888, when the demand +for real property almost ceased. From that time until 1893 values were +as far as possible upheld by the mortgagees, for they believed that +the stagnation must be but temporary. Then came the crisis in the +world's money markets, and it smote Queensland with prostrating force. +The gradual reduction of local authority endowments, followed by their +abolition in the year 1902-3, and the consequent increase of rate +burdens, had a depressing effect upon property values, so that even +to-day, more than sixteen years after the collapse of the boom, city +lands do not realise more than one-half the prices demanded and often +obtained in 1888. + +It is easy to blame the leading parliamentarians of the time for their +prodigality in expenditure; but, when the most experienced bankers of +the time threw prudence to the winds under pressure of a flooded money +market, we may at this distance of time judge public men less harshly +than they were judged in 1893. Confidence was universal, and the +man who raised a warning voice found himself figuratively "sent +to coventry." An epidemic of swollen values pervaded the entire +continent. Even so late as 1893, two skilled and disinterested +Ministers of the Crown, and both possessed of banking experience, who +were commissioned by the Government to report confidentially on the +securities of the Queensland National Bank soon after its suspension, +failed to realise the full extent of the inflation of past years, +or the depreciation in land values that had taken place despite the +efforts made to maintain them. For they gave such a report of the +values of the bank's securities as induced the Legislature to sanction +an abortive scheme of reconstruction and the retention of Government +moneys. It is, however, to Sir Hugh Nelson's credit that, three years +later, he passed through Parliament an amending Act, embodying the +scheme which has since restored the bank to the status of a "national" +institution. + +Nineteen years have elapsed since the close of this period of +extravagant borrowing and reckless expenditure, both public and +private. For some years past Queensland has been enjoying almost +unexampled prosperity, and the question naturally arises whether +that prosperity may not be followed by another crisis. On this point +examination of fixed property values, which are a good index, leads to +a favourable conclusion. Of city or town lands there has of late years +certainly been no inflation. Farming and dairying land values have no +doubt risen rapidly, but not more, perhaps, than in proportion to the +enhanced stable income-earning value arising from the success of the +sugar and dairying industries and the enlarged markets available since +federation to farmers all over Australia. In pastoral country there +has certainly been no such inflation as occurred in the 1880-90 +decade. Buyers discounted the future when, to justify their +anticipations, the 372,105 square miles of artesian water-bearing +country should have been already opened up and the country made +increasingly productive by the streams from thousands of bores. +To-day, as shown elsewhere in this book, artesian water is flowing +to such an extent in Queensland that it would, with complete +reticulation, supply 12,000,000 people with 40 gallons a day each. +This in a country, too, which formerly was almost destitute of surface +water. More bores are every year being put down, while geological +research has lately added considerably to the area of artesian +water-bearing country in Queensland. Generally trade is sound to-day, +while banking deposits have made but gradual progression in volume +during the last twenty years. Close settlement is rapidly going on, +and the pastoral industry, which furnishes about 50 per cent. of our +exports, is in a most prosperous condition after several good seasons +capped by recently advancing prices. Wool alone, whose producers are +realising highly satisfactory profits, formed 28·55 per cent. of our +exports in 1907. Over gold mining there may be a fleeting cloud, but +every year's laboratory research extends the area of remunerative ore +deposits by reducing the cost of treatment. The cost of production and +transport in all the primary industries is being gradually lessened. +Happily there is no boom, present or prospective, to disturb the +steady progress of the country; and it is reassuring to learn from +recent public speeches by eminent Australian bankers that they are +refusing to make advances for other than legitimate development. + +[Illustration: SWAN CREEK VALLEY, NEAR YANGAN, WARWICK DISTRICT] + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +CROWN LANDS LEGISLATION. + + The Code of 1860.--Crown Lands Alienation Act of 1868. + --Pastoral Leases Act of 1869.--Homestead Areas Act of 1872. + --Crown Lands Alienation Act and Settled Districts Pastoral + Leases Act of 1876.--The Griffith-Dutton Land Act of 1884. + --Co-operative Communities Land Settlement Act.--Land Act + of 1897.--Forms of Selection.--Act to Assist Persons to Settle + on Land by Advances from the Treasury.--Extension of Pastoral + Leases.--Closer Settlement Act.--Land Orders. + + +The land code of the session of 1860, so enthusiastically eulogised +by Sir George Bowen in his despatch to the Secretary of State, +unfortunately by no means settled the complex questions involved in +the management of public lands extending over 15 degrees of longitude +and 18 degrees of latitude. Indeed, to-day the land laws are probably +as complicated as ever they were in the history of Queensland, +notwithstanding the desire of the Legislature to make them as simple +as possible, and to meet the wants of every description of settler, +whether he be a homestead selector with his 320 acres, a grazing +farmer with his 20,000 acres, or a pastoral lessee with his 1,000 +square miles. + +During the first decade several Land Acts, amending the Acts of 1860, +were passed; but by the advent of the year 1867 it was found that +the facilities offered for settlement were inadequate, and that new +methods, especially in the direction of mixed farming adapted to the +country and climate, and demanding holdings of increased area, were +indispensable if there was to be close settlement on a more extensive +scale than that contemplated by the pastoralist. Among the members of +the Assembly in 1867-8 was Mr. Archibald Archer, of Gracemere, then +member for Rockhampton, who earnestly voiced the popular contention +that the upset price of £1 per acre was excessive, and that the +holdings permitted to the settler by law were too restricted in +area. In October, 1867, the Minister for Lands was Mr. E. W. Lamb, an +old-time New South Wales land office official, and then a Peak Downs +squatter. He introduced a Crown Lands Alienation Bill, which, +after discussions showing its futility, was, on the motion of Mr. +Macalister, then in opposition, referred to a Select Committee +comprising the Minister and Messrs. Archer and Fitzgerald, the latter +member for Kennedy. In the next session a new bill was introduced, +giving effect to the recommendations of the Select Committee, which +provided for the resumption of the halves of all runs within the +Settled Districts, and for making available such resumed areas +wherever required for settlement. The bill also provided for the +opening of these areas to free selection before other than a +feature survey had been made. This land was to be classified as (1) +agricultural, in areas not exceeding 640 acres and at 15s. per acre; +(2) first-class pastoral, in areas not exceeding 2,560 acres, at 10s. +per acre; and (3) second-class pastoral, in areas not exceeding 7,680 +acres, at 5s. per acre. The purchase was to be conditional upon actual +occupation and improvement, the payment being spread over ten +annual instalments, called rents, of 1s. 6d., 1s., and 6d. per acre +respectively. Provision was also made for homestead selections not to +exceed 80 acres of agricultural land or 160 acres of pastoral land, +at a yearly rental for five years of 9d. an acre in the case of +agricultural land and 6d. an acre for pastoral country. This measure, +having become law, caused a tremendous rush for land, and in some +cases, no doubt, too large areas were taken up, regarded from the +standpoint of the public interest, the abuse partly arising from +faulty classification by the Government Commissioners. By at least one +of these officers it was held, for example, that land, no matter how +accessible or good its quality, was only second-class pastoral if +destitute of surface water. But, whatever abuses crept in, there can +be no doubt that the Act of 1868 was the first legislation to place +the people on the land in areas of such extent, of such quality, +and at such prices as were then deemed requisite for successful +occupation. Many of the most prosperous farmers of to-day, or their +parents, settled under the 1868 Act, and now form most valuable +members of the community. + +In 1869 the Pastoral Leases Act was passed by the Lilley Government, +and gave the lessees in the unsettled districts a better tenure +than they had before enjoyed--21 years in respect of new country and +renewed leases, and 14 years in the case of existing leases, with +septennial automatic reappraisements of rent in all instances. The +Liberal members of the Assembly assented to a pre-emptive purchase +clause in this Act by which a lessee was empowered to purchase on his +run without competition an area of 2,560 acres, containing permanent +improvements made by him, at the price of 10s. per acre. But it was +only discovered by many members after the Act had become law that a +run might mean a block of 25 square miles, and that a lessee with a +dozen blocks could secure strategic freeholds in as many different +parts of his holding. However, the provision remained unaltered until +in 1884 the Minister for Lands in the Griffith Ministry (Mr. Charles +Boydell Dutton) refused to sanction further purchases of the kind, and +during the same year endeavoured to sweep away the privilege by new +legislation. Parliament, however, refused to repeal the provision, and +would only consent to withhold the privilege of pre-emption in +respect of leases acquired after the passage of the Land Act of 1884. +Altogether 363 pre-emptive selections in respect of as many runs were +made. By the Act of 1868 the pastoral lessees in the settled districts +had also been granted ten years' leases for the unresumed halves of +their runs; but in both cases the Minister was empowered to resume +part of any run on giving six months' notice. + +The Homestead Areas Act of 1872 provided for the setting apart of +special areas as "homestead areas," to be exclusively settled as +homestead selections, or selections taken up by virtue of land +orders issued under the Immigration Act of 1869. A departure from the +generally accepted principle of "homestead" settlement--that the +land is granted at a nominal price in consideration of the selector +personally residing on it--was made in providing for increased areas +up to 320 acres at conditional purchase prices. This anomaly was +corrected by the Act of 1876, which styled such larger homesteads +"Conditional purchases in homestead areas." + +In 1876 Mr. Douglas, as Mr. Thorn's Minister for Lands, introduced +an amending and consolidating Land Bill, repealing all existing +alienation Acts. Extended powers were given to Land Commissioners to +expedite settlement. Monthly Commissioners' Courts were provided +for, but no decision of a Commissioner's Court, except in case of +certificates of performance of conditions, was to be final until +confirmed by the Minister. The most noteworthy provision reduced the +maximum area that one person might select. The area conditionally +selectable by one person was made not less than 40 acres nor more than +5,120 acres. The Act declared all leased land reverting to the +Crown on the Darling Downs to be homestead areas, and empowered the +Government to establish such areas elsewhere. Within these areas +conditional purchase selections were restricted to 1,280 acres and +homesteads to 80 acres. Personal and continuous residence by the +selector was made compulsory, and, before the fee-simple could be +acquired, permanent improvements to the value of 10s. per acre were +required to be made. A homestead was protected against claims for +debt. A Settled Districts Pastoral Leases Bill also became law this +year, providing that on the expiration of the ten years' leases then +held runs should be offered at auction on a five years' lease at a +rental of not less than £2 per square mile, an outgoing lessee being +allowed six months' grace in which to remove his stock. In 1882 the +Act of 1876 was amended so as to abolish the sale of runs by auction +unless when there was no application for re-lease by the existing +lessee, and lessees under the Act of 1876 were given the right to an +extension of their leases for a period of ten years instead of five +years. The rent, however, was to be subject to appraisement. + +The next great land measure was the Griffith-Dutton Act of 1884. Its +main features were the abolition of the pre-emptive rights of pastoral +lessees; the creation of a Land Board consisting of two members--an +independent tribunal acting like Judges of the Supreme Court, and, +like the Judges, holding office during good behaviour; and the +introduction of the leasehold tenure in connection with grazing and +agricultural farms. The object of the Government was to bring about +close settlement. As it was recognised that it was not feasible at +that time to devote the lands of Western Queensland to agriculture, +provision was made for the gradual substitution of a smaller class of +graziers for the pastoral lessees with their many hundreds of square +miles of territory. Accordingly inducements, by way of fixity of +tenure and compensation for improvements, were offered to pastoral +tenants to surrender their existing leases and bring their holdings +under the Act. The Crown was thereupon entitled to resume one-half, +one-third, or one-fourth of such holdings, the proportion varying +inversely with the length of time the leases had to run. These resumed +areas were then divided into smaller holdings called "grazing farms," +the maximum area being 20,000 acres, which were to be opened to +selection on a thirty years' lease, with periodical reappraisements +of rent by the Land Board. It was believed that the lessees of these +smaller holdings would so improve the country that its carrying +capacity would be greatly increased, and the Crown would derive a +larger revenue from its pastoral lands, whilst at the expiration of +the leases agricultural settlement might be possible. The success of +the grazing farm system has amply justified the expectations of +the framers of the Act. The leasehold principle was also applied +to agricultural farms, the maximum area of which was fixed at 1,280 +acres, with a fifty years' tenure, but the selector was given the +right to acquire a freehold after ten years' (later reduced to five +years) personal occupation. Although dropping the name of "homestead," +the Act maintained the homestead principle by providing for the +freeholding of agricultural farms not exceeding 160 acres in area at +2s. 6d. per acre after five years' personal residence by the selector. +The Act, which practically superseded the Pastoral Leases Act of 1869, +continued the right of pastoral lessees to depasture their stock on +the resumed areas until they were required for closer settlement. +It also repealed existing alienation Acts, and provided for all the +contingencies which might be expected to arise. Among the repealed +Acts were two which had given rise to much party contention in +previous Parliaments--the Western Railway Act and the Railway Reserves +Act, to which allusion is made in the parts of this work dealing with +"Public Finance" and "Fifty Years of Legislation." + +[Illustration: SURPRISE CREEK FALLS, CAIRNS RAILWAY] + +Amending Acts were passed in 1885, 1886, 1889, 1891, 1892, 1894, and +1895, but these do not call for mention except to say that the Act +of 1891 introduced a new mode of selection called "unconditional," +providing for selections up to 1,280 acres at prices one-third greater +than those for agricultural farms, and payable in twenty annual +instalments. + +In 1890 an Act was passed providing for a five years' extension of +leases held under the 1869 Act and not affected by the Act of 1884. In +1892 an Act (extended in 1894, 1895, 1897, and 1898) was passed giving +a seven years' extension of term to pastoral lessees, and an extension +of five years (afterwards increased to seven years) to the lessees +of grazing farms selected before the introduction of the bill and +situated in the southern part of the State, who should enclose their +holdings with rabbit-proof fences. + +In 1893 the Co-operative Communities Land Settlement Act was passed +at a time of stress, with a view to enabling men of good character +but without capital to settle on the land with the aid of Government +advances. In all, twelve "self-governing communities" were formed with +a total adult male membership of 485. In no case did the venture +prove successful, and by an amending Act passed in 1895 the several +communities were dissolved, the members thereof were absolved from all +liability to the Government for advances made, and the land and assets +were suitably apportioned among the remaining members of the dissolved +groups, to the number of 88. They were assigned an area aggregating +13,491 acres to be held on a five years' tenure at a rental of ¾d. +per acre per annum, subject to a condition of personal residence and +to the purchase of the land during the fifth year at 2s. 6d. an acre. +Only three-fourths of these 88 settlers brought their selections to +freehold, and the last transaction was not closed till ten years +had elapsed, instead of five, from the dissolution of the groups. +Consequent on another period of depression, Parliament in 1905 +authorised another experiment by way of Government assistance to +would-be settlers without means, but the communal element is not so +prominent in the new measure, and the "self-government" principle is +excluded. Only one settlement has been formed under the Act of 1905, +and it is under Government control. While holding out some promises of +success, these are not so tangible as to lead to further ventures of +the sort. Indeed, the need for them has disappeared with the return of +prosperity. + +The last comprehensive Act, extending over 101 pages of the +Statute-book, was passed in 1897, and it still remains the principal +Land Act, upon which all subsequent amending measures have been +grafted. + +It is fitting to set out briefly what are the modes by which it is +sought to secure settlement on the public lands of the State after +half a century of legislation.[a] There is, first, the agricultural +farm, in areas up to 1,280 acres on a tenure of twenty years and +paying an annual rental of one-fortieth part of the purchasing price, +such rentals being actually instalments of the price, and leaving only +one-half of the price to be paid at the end of the term. The price +cannot be lower than 10s. per acre, and there are conditions of +occupation and improvement to be performed. There is the agricultural +homestead in areas ranging up to 640 acres, the area varying inversely +with the quality of the land. This form of settlement is subject to +conditions of personal residence and improvement. The homesteads are +capable of being converted into freeholds after five years and up to +ten years for a total price of 2s. 6d. per acre, payable at the rate +of 3d. per acre per annum. There is the unconditional selection in +areas up to 1,280 acres, with no conditions to perform but the +payment of rent during twenty years at the rate of 5 per cent. of +the purchasing price each year, the purchasing price being one-third +higher than that at which the land was available for agricultural farm +selection. There are the grazing selections in the remoter districts +in areas up to 60,000 acres. These selections are not capable of being +made freehold, but are held on leasehold tenures of 14, 21, or 28 +years, at rentals ranging from ½d. to 6d. per acre per annum, and +subject to conditions of occupation and fencing. There are the scrub +selections not exceeding 10,000 acres each, intended to secure +the destruction of useless scrub in the remoter districts and the +conversion of the land into good pasture. The tenure is purely +leasehold, with a term of thirty years and at a peppercorn rental +for a period having relation to the extent of scrub to be destroyed. +Leasehold tenures are preferred for the remoter lands, and they +have the advantage of leaving the settler's capital free for the +development of his land. In case any should prefer a leasehold tenure +in the more closely settled districts, the law now provides for the +substitution of "perpetual leases" for the agricultural farm tenure. + +The rapid spread of the prickly pear in some parts of the State has +been a peremptory call for the occupation of the threatened country +on any terms. Provision has accordingly been made for prickly pear +selections under conditions of eradicating the pest, the value of the +land being assessed at rates ranging from a sum paid by the Government +to the settler in addition to a free gift of the land, to a sum +perhaps as high as £1 per acre to be paid by the settler to the Crown, +such payments being in annual instalments of one-fifth or one-tenth, +and commencing ten or five years respectively after the commencement +of the lease, the period of exemption from payment having to be +devoted to the task of eradication. + +Until 1901 the competitive principle was general in the selection of +Crown lands, but in that year provision was made by a special Act to +allot land non-competitively to bodies of settlers coming from abroad, +who naturally desired to be assured of obtaining land in proximity +to each other before pulling up their stakes and migrating to a new +sphere of activity. Successive amendments have been made in this law, +and, while in its inception it had application only to agricultural +homestead selection, it has since been extended to all forms of +selection tenure. + +The great drought, which ended in 1902, has stamped its mark indelibly +upon the land legislation of the State. The earliest cry for relief +came from the far West, where the remaining tenancies under the +Pastoral Leases Act of 1869 chiefly lay. Large tracts of country had +become forfeited, and the Crown tenants, unable to hold on to the +remnants of their runs at the rents chargeable under their leases, +applied for relief. To meet their case, the Pastoral Leases Act of +1900 was passed, which required the reoccupation of the abandoned +country at nominal rents, and reduced the rents of the retained +country to an extent that secured the reoccupation of 13,000 square +miles. In the following year the Pastoral Holdings New Leases Act +promised the relief of extended leases to the holders of pastoral +country in the rest of the State, where the Act of 1884 operated; but +the drought still continuing, a further appeal was made to Parliament, +and in the Pastoral Leases Act of 1902 opportunity was given to +lessees to secure extensions of leases up to forty-two years according +to situation, subject to reappraisement of rent and to certain rights +of resumption reserved to the Crown. The chief desideratum of the +lessees was extended tenures to enable them to finance on more +favourable terms and recover from their immense drought losses. In +consideration of this concession and the surrender of resumption +rights which it involved, the State had to look for increased rentals. +The reassessments of the rentals under the new leases, however, +have not compensated the State for the large concessions made to its +tenants. + +The Closer Settlement Act of 1906 superseded the Agricultural +Lands Purchase Acts, 1894 to 1901. These statutes provide for the +acquisition by the Government of private estates for the purpose of +subdivision and sale in areas adapted for closer settlement, payments +being extended over twenty-five years. The principle is not quite +impervious to criticism, for unless great prudence is exercised the +acquisition of these large estates has a tendency to raise the value +of agricultural land; but a few figures showing the settlement which +has taken place furnish convincing proof that the primary object of +the Legislature has been achieved, and that rich arable lands, which +previously produced nothing but natural grasses for the sustenance of +sheep and cattle, have become the homes of many hundreds of thriving +yeomen farmers and the support of numerous rising townships. Since the +passage of the first of these Acts in 1894, a total area of 537,449 +acres has been repurchased at a cost of £1,490,489. Of this area +456,742 acres had been surrendered by the former owners at the close +of 1908. By the same date 364,334 acres had been selected at an +aggregate price of £1,050,864, and 10,677 acres, with the improvements +thereon, had realised £70,727 at auction, the purchasing price of the +whole area disposed of amounting to £1,144,081. The area remaining in +the hands of the Government, after deducting roads and reserves, was +78,781 acres, valued at £264,200, almost entirely consisting of land +only recently acquired and not yet offered for settlement. On 31st +December last, no less than 1,654 agricultural selectors, the majority +with families, and holding among them 1,909 selections, were settled +upon what but a few years ago were twenty-six sheep and cattle +stations, with a mere handful of employees. + +It has been mentioned that the Alienation of Crown Lands Act of 1860 +provided for granting to any immigrant who had paid his passage-money, +or to any other person by whom it had been paid, an £18 land order +on arrival, and a further land order for £12 after he had resided two +years in the colony. These land orders were made receivable as cash at +any Crown land sale, and they led to a large traffic, as the fact that +land orders could be bought from immigrants at a discount stimulated +the demand for land, especially for town lots. At first these +instruments could be bought at very low prices, but after a time the +£18 land order had become of the recognised market value of £15 to £16 +cash, and could be readily purchased at those prices from agents in +Queen-street, Brisbane. But the effect upon land sales revenue alarmed +the Government, and after a time they refused to receive land orders +as payment in lieu of cash at sales of other than country land. In +1864 an Immigration Act was passed providing for the appointment of +an Agent-General for Emigration in London, and for the repeal of the +land-order sections of the 1860 Land Act. A new provision was made +by which the Agent-General was empowered to issue to an approved +passenger in London who had paid his passage-money a land-order +warrant for £30. On arrival in the colony the passenger was granted in +exchange for the warrant a non-transferable land order receivable as +cash at face value at sales of suburban and country lands only. These +restrictions lowered the market price of the instrument, although by +means of a power of attorney the non-transferable provision was for a +time evaded. Eventually, however, the restrictions were made so +severe that for market purposes the land order was worth little, and +immigrants who had come out and failed to settle on the land found +themselves in possession of a document of no practicable value. The +extent to which the land-order traffic prevailed will be understood +when it is mentioned that, in 1865, of £218,431, the total revenue +from land sales, only £59,461 was cash, the remainder being +represented by land orders. By 1875 the system had become discredited, +and was abolished by legislation, but outstanding land orders were +still used. In 1883-4 the amount so received had fallen to £16, while +the cash receipts for sales were £378,637. The total value of land +orders received as cash between 1861 and 1883-4 was £853,583. Some +public men have contended that, if the initial practice of receiving +the land order at face value in payment for any Crown land sold at +auction had been continued, the Treasury would have been recouped by +the larger demand and higher prices realised, but obviously a system +which stimulated speculation in land was not good for the country, +besides which it encouraged dummying. In 1886 the Griffith Government +determined to give the system a further trial, and in the Crown Lands +Act Amendment Act of that year power was given to the Agent-General +to issue land-order warrants to persons paying their own passages to +Queensland. Each member of a family of twelve years of age and upwards +was entitled to a £20 land order, and each child between the ages of +one and twelve entitled the parent to a land order for £10. The land +orders were not transferable, except in case of death, and were +available for ten years for the payment of rent of Crown lands +acquired by the immigrant. The Act authorising the issue of these land +orders was repealed in 1894. The value of land orders issued under the +Act amounted to £62,140, and of this sum only £8,956 was utilised. The +great majority of the immigrants who received the orders had no desire +to go on the land, and as the orders were not transferable they lapsed +at the expiration of their currency to the extent of 85 per cent. of +the whole. + + [Footnote a: For fuller details regarding various forms of + land selection, see Appendix E, post.] + +[Illustration: FOREST SCENE NEAR WOOMBYE, NORTH COAST RAILWAY] + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +APPROPRIATION OF LAND REVENUE. + + Land Sales Receipts; not Consolidated Revenue.--Arguments used + in favour of Treating Proceeds as Ordinary Revenue.--Auction + Sales have now Practically Ceased.--Certain Proceeds Payable + into Loan Fund.--Special Sales of Land Act; Appropriation of + Receipts. + + +The revenue from sales of land for the first quarter-century was +£4,672,659, besides £853,583 representing grants made in consideration +of land orders issued to immigrants but not included in the revenue +and expenditure returns. Nor does it include the sum of £382,346 +received in cash for land sold within railway reserves and afterwards +transferred to revenue. The latter amount must, however, be added to +the cash receipts for land sold, which therefore totalled £5,055,005. + +The practice of treating proceeds of land sales as ordinary revenue +has already been incidentally alluded to, but it may be well to refer +more fully to the subject. It is held that the taxpayer ought annually +to provide for current expenditure, and that if land is alienated +from the Crown at all the net proceeds, after defraying the cost of +administration, should be applied to the construction of public works +that would otherwise be of a character to justify charging their cost +to the Loan Fund. + +This principle in the abstract is unexceptionable; but in a new +country much work is expected to be done by the Government for +posterity in the nature of "invisible improvements"; in fact, it is +so done, and cannot well be provided for by loan. Roads have to be +cleared and formed, and buildings erected for the benefit of posterity +as well as of those who so invest their money. + +Moreover, the advent of population enhances the value of both public +and private estates, while the maintenance of great public works like +railways involves in most cases a heavy revenue loss for years after +the lines are open for traffic. Only in very recent times have our +railway earnings approximated, after payment of working charges and +maintenance, to the amount of the interest charge upon the capital +invested in them; but they have immensely benefited the country by +providing facilities for internal transport, and by enhancing the +value of the land, Crown and other, which they intersect and make +accessible. Years ago, when the railway debt of Queensland stood at +about 17 millions, an official estimate showed that, in making good +the annual deficiency of interest and working expenses on the various +open lines, at least as much had been spent by the Treasury as +the entire first cost of their construction. So that contemporary +colonists have still a charge against posterity for public works to +be handed down, even though the first cost remains a liability in the +form of interest upon inscribed stock held by the public creditor. + +Further, it has to be said that, since the railways have begun nearly +to defray interest upon capital, the auction sale of Crown land, +except in small areas, has practically ceased. The receipts from +auction sales in 1907-8 totalled only £33,391, and much of that +sum would be absorbed were it charged with its share of the cost of +administration. By the Land Sales Proceeds Act of 1906, all moneys +received in payment for land sold under the authority of Part VI. of +the Land Act of 1897--by auction sales of town, suburban, and country +lands, or of such lands sold by selection after having been so +offered--must be paid into the Loan Fund Account, and be applied to +defraying the cost of such works as Parliament may from time to time +determine shall be executed out of moneys standing to the credit of +that fund. True, receipts for lands sold under the Special Sales of +Land Act of 1901, being applied to the special purpose of retiring +Treasury bills issued to make good revenue deficits, are excluded from +the general law in this respect. But it is satisfactory that, even +though the recognition of the principle that land is capital and not +revenue has been tardy, it has now in Queensland the full force of +statute law. + +As to the past, it has been argued with much reason that small areas +alienated were for farming purposes, and soon became far more valuable +than when held for grazing purposes by tenants of the Crown. As to +the future, what Parliament seems determined to guard against by every +possible means is the alienation of large areas of the public domain +to persons who will use the land for speculative purposes, or who by +locking it up will seek to check the wave of closer settlement which +it is obviously in the best interests of the State to foster and +stimulate. + +As the Special Sales of Land Act of 1901 still remains upon the +Statute-book a few words in explanation of its provisions and objects +may be useful. The first Act of this kind was passed in 1891--(1) to +provide for maturing Treasury bills for £500,000 authorised but not +issued in 1887; (2) to make provision for meeting Treasury bills for +£500,000 floated to cover a revenue deficit in 1890; (3) to make good +an anticipated deficit of £300,000 for the financial year 1891-2; and +(4) to retire £120,945 worth of Brisbane Bridge debentures--a total +of £1,420,945. Despite any statute to the contrary, country lands, not +within twenty miles of a railway or the permanent survey of one, or of +any navigable stream, were authorised to be sold by auction in areas +of 320 acres to 5,120 acres, at the upset price of 10s. an acre. +Payments might be extended over three years, but the unpaid +instalments must bear 5 per cent. interest. Any land so offered and +unsold would remain open for six months for purchase at the same price +and on the same terms. + +The proceeds of these sales were to be applied (1) to payment of the +sums appropriated by Parliament for the service of the financial years +1891-2 and 1892-3 respectively, and (2) to the payment of interest +upon and retirement of the Treasury bills before mentioned. In 1901 +the Philp Government were in financial trouble through federal charges +and the unexampled drought, and they passed a Treasury Bills Act and a +Special Sales of Land Act, the former for the sum of £530,000; and the +proceeds of the latter to be applied (1) to making good any revenue +deficiency during the years 1901-2 and 1902-3, and (2) to the payment +of interest upon and retirement of the bills issued under the Treasury +Bills Act. In 1902 another Treasury Bills Act covering £600,000 was +passed by the same Government. The Auditor-General in his report for +1907-8 showed that there were still outstanding £1,130,000 in Treasury +bills issued under the 1901 and 1902 Acts, and maturing in 1912 and +1913 respectively. In the same report the Auditor-General refers to +the sum of £8,148 received from special sales of land during the year, +and appropriated to the payment of interest on Treasury bills. For +some years past these special sales of land have been stopped, +but instalments of payments were received annually until last year +(1907-8), when they amounted to £3,279; but none are now outstanding, +and the Act is practically a dead letter. + +[Illustration: HAULING TIMBER, NORTH COAST RAILWAY] + +[Illustration: STONY CREEK BRIDGE AND FALLS, CAIRNS RAILWAY] + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN QUEENSLAND. + + First Municipality Established.--Brisbane Bridge Lands.--Grant + for Town Hall.--Consolidating Municipalities Act.--Provincial + Councils Act.--Government Buildings not Rateable.--Brisbane + Bridge Debentures and Waterway Acts.--Municipal Endowment. + --Local Government Act of 1878.--Divisional Boards Act of + 1879; Success of the Act.--Local Works Loans Act.--Two Pounds + for One Pound Endowment Repealed.--Rating Powers Extended by + Local Authorities Act of 1902.--Cessation of Endowment. + --Valuation and Rating Act.--Decline in Land Values. + --Unequal Incidence of Rates Levied.--Efficiency of Local + Authorities. + + +When Sir George Bowen proclaimed the establishment of Queensland there +was only one municipality within the boundaries of the new colony. +Brisbane had been incorporated just three months earlier, probably +with the view of having the Mayor of a local authority to take his +part in the inaugural celebrations. At that time the New South Wales +Municipal Institutions Act of 1858 was in force, but it was quite +inadequate to the needs of the country. Sir George Bowen, coming from +residence among the crowded populations of Great Britain and several +European countries, and recognising what powerful safeguards to +public liberty municipal corporations had proved, publicly urged the +establishment of local government in Queensland on every favourable +opportunity. + +In 1861 two Municipalities Acts were passed, one empowering the +Brisbane City Council to build a bridge across the river, and +providing for endowment in the form of grants of Crown land not +exceeding two-thirds of the unsold town and suburban allotments of +Brisbane; also empowering the council to borrow for the purpose +of erecting the structure. The other Act gave extended powers to +municipal councils generally. It defined the rateable value of +unoccupied lands to be 8 per cent. of their actual capital value, but +the minimum rate of any allotment was not to be less than 10s. per +annum. It also provided that unoccupied land might be leased for +fourteen years by a council when rates had been permitted to fall into +arrear for a term of four years. It further empowered a council to +borrow on mortgage a sum not exceeding the estimated revenue for the +ensuing three years. As additional endowment, it was provided that +the Governor in Council might pay to a municipal council every year +one-third of the proceeds of land sold within its jurisdiction; and +where one-half of the land in a municipality had been sold the council +were to be entitled to one-half of the proceeds of future sales. + +In 1863 an Act was passed giving the Brisbane Council power to erect a +town hall on allotment 4 and part of allotment 3 of section 12, with a +frontage to Queen street and Burnett lane respectively of 99 ft., and +a depth of 138 ft., to be granted by the Government on the passing of +the Act. The council were empowered to borrow £20,000 for the purposes +of the hall. The Brisbane Waterworks Act empowered the Government to +grant a site for the proposed works on the heads of Enoggera Creek, +but the Government were to borrow the sum necessary for construction, +and to hand over the money to the council as it might be required. + +In 1864 an amending and consolidating Municipal Institutions Act was +passed giving larger and more specific powers to municipal bodies. +In the same year a Provincial Councils Act was passed, empowering +the Government to appoint such councils in the country districts, and +place at their disposal money from time to time voted by Parliament +for roads and bridges within their jurisdiction. But the members, not +being elective, had no power to levy rates, so that the councils would +at best have been no more than bodies delegated with power by the +Works Department to carry out works with which the Government could +not conveniently grapple. The only provincial council established +under the Act, however, was one for the Peak Downs district, of which +all the members were Crown lessees. That council had its place of +meeting at Clermont, and on first assembling it resolved not to admit +the Press to its meetings. This exclusive policy, combined with the +class character of its members, made the council at once unpopular, +and after spending £2,000 which had been placed to its credit by the +Government it ingloriously collapsed. + +In 1865 an Act was passed dividing the Brisbane Municipality into six +wards, each returning two members. In 1868 an amendment of the 1864 +and 1865 Acts was passed enabling councils to forbid the erection of +inflammable buildings. In the following year an Act was passed which +forbade the levy of rates upon Government buildings. An Act of the +same year enabled the Governor in Council to rescind any proclamation +of town or suburban lands. + +In 1870 the Brisbane Bridge Debentures Act and the Brisbane Waterway +Act were passed. By the former the council were empowered to issue +debentures, bearing 5 per cent. interest and covering £121,250, for +the payment of its bridge liabilities. The preamble recited that +a contract had been entered into with Mr. John Bourne for the +construction of the bridge; that owing to alterations in the plan +assented to by the Government the cost had been largely increased, and +the work had in fact been suspended; that the bank overdraft, secured +upon all the bridge lands and the rates, exceeded £100,000; and +that Thomas Brassey, having supplied the ironwork of the bridge, had +undertaken to complete the structure on certain conditions involved +in the issue of the debenture loan above mentioned. The Waterway +Act provided for the repayment to the council of the cost of certain +waterways by the sale of lands specified in the schedule. + +In 1875 another Act was passed providing for the payment to the +Brisbane Council of the cost of certain drainage works by the sale of +city lands specified in its schedule. In the same year the Rockhampton +Waterworks Act, being the first for a provincial body, was passed. In +1876 an Act was passed for endowing municipalities to the extent of +£2 for £1 on the rates collected for the first five years after +incorporation and £1 for £1 in subsequent years. + +In 1878 was passed the ponderous Local Government Act, adapted from +the recent Victorian legislation, but denounced by the Opposition +in the Assembly at the time as far too cumbrous save for town +municipalities. It formed, however, one of the bases of the Local +Authorities Act of 1902. In 1879 a new departure was made by the first +McIlwraith Government by passing a rudimentary measure--the Divisional +Boards Act--in which the Government took power to apply the Act +simultaneously to all parts of the colony. It gave power to levy +rates, and therefore excited popular anti-tax demonstrations. But +much that was said against the bill proved on investigation to be +inaccurate, and the endowment it provided of £2 for £1 collected in +rates for the term of five years ultimately went far to neutralise the +hostility expressed towards the measure. Also the bill provided that +to give the boards a start an additional £100,000 should be divisible +among them as soon as their respective valuations had been made and +a certified copy of each had been forwarded to the Treasury. After a +stern and protracted struggle in the Assembly the bill was passed, and +immediately the Colonial Secretary of the time (Mr. A. H. Palmer) cut +into "divisions" the entire area of the colony outside the boundaries +of existing municipalities, and proclaimed seventy-four local +governing areas under that name, each in three subdivisions with nine +members for each body. Then every division was invited to elect its +first members, and rather more than one-half of them did so. +Within four months from the passing of the Act--on 13th February, +1880[a]--the whole of the members were gazetted, the Government having +taken advantage of the power given to the Governor in Council to +appoint the first members where no action had been initiated to elect +them within ninety days after the passing of the Act. Thus the names +of between 600 and 700 members were proclaimed on one day, and the +new boards forthwith proceeded to put the Act into execution. In a +comparatively short time valuations were made, and on receipt of a +copy the Treasurer placed to the credit of the board, in the branch of +the Queensland National Bank nearest to the division, an amount equal +to 1s. in the pound of the valuation. This done, works were forthwith +commenced in all parts of the country, and a few years later visitors +from the South were wont to compliment the people of Queensland on the +vast improvement made in their bush roads. + +In the following year (1880) the Local Works Loans Act was passed, +and attracted attention in different parts of the Empire as the first +measure that provided for advancing local loans by a Government on the +scientific basis of a term measured by the life of each work, and in +accordance with an actuarial scale set out in a table in the schedule. +The longest term was forty years, that being given for the most +durable works, the rate charged being 5 per cent. interest, with +16s. 8d. per annum redemption money. Thus a council could borrow for +waterworks on a forty years' loan, and redeem the principal as well +as defray the interest charge, by payment of regular half-yearly +instalments of £2 18s. 4d. per cent. during the term. This Act +soon became very popular, and with slight amendments--one being the +reduction of the interest charge to 4 per cent., and the half-yearly +instalment in the case of a forty years' loan to £2 10s. 0½d. +per cent.--it still remains on the Statute-book as part of the Local +Authorities Act of 1902. Several millions sterling have since been +lent by the Government under this Act, and scarcely a local authority +has defaulted except for a short period. The principle has also been +extended to sugar works and other loans not contemplated originally; +yet with firm administration, such as the Government for several years +past have insisted upon, the future losses, if any, will be slight, +and the benefit of the Act continue to be great. + +[Illustration: TIMBER GETTING, NORTH COAST DISTRICT] + +In 1887 Sir S. W. Griffith passed an amending and consolidating +Divisional Boards Act in which many defects of the original measure +were corrected. About the same time he passed an Act to relieve the +Treasury from the excessive burden of the £2 for £1 endowment, which +had been extended in 1884 for a second five-year period. Under the +amended law only such sum as Parliament might vote in each year was to +be rateably divided among all local authorities. After that time +the endowment diminished until in 1893 it reached a very small sum. +Afterwards the amount remained at about 6s. in the pound until 1902, +when, in passing the new amending and consolidating Local Authorities +Act of that year, the Philp Government made no provision for +continuance of the endowment. In 1903, therefore, owing to the +embarrassment of the Treasury in consequence of heavy deficits for +several years in succession, the endowment altogether ceased, and +since that time the Government have steadfastly refused to listen to +proposals for renewing the payment, on the ground that each governing +authority should raise its own revenue by taxation or otherwise, and +not depend upon endowments collected by any other governing authority. +The stoppage of the endowment was in some degree compensated for by +the extension of the rating powers of the local authorities, but the +exercise of these has no doubt accentuated the drop which occurred +in assessment values after the crisis of 1893. Some councils, +through failure to make use of their powers of rating, have had an +insufficient income, so that in parts of the country the roads are now +in a less traffickable condition than they were a quarter of a century +ago. In other cases, however, the local bodies have so used the +powers conferred upon them that they make no complaint of insufficient +income. + +From the day of the presentation to Parliament of the Divisional +Boards Bill there had always been an outcry, among the farming +ratepayers chiefly, against the taxation of improvements. In 1890, +therefore, after ten years' experience, the Government of the +coalition, whose leaders had long been severed by difference of +opinion on the subject of land taxation, perceived in a universal levy +on the unimproved value, so called, a method of mutual reconciliation +which would meet the demands of many true exponents of local +government principles, and they agreed to introduce the new system. +The "unimproved value" is by no means an accurate definition of what +either the taxpayers or the Legislature at the time desired. But no +one has yet discovered a more satisfactory definition, and therefore +it stands. + +Up to 1890 the assessment had been on the net rent a property might +be reasonably expected to yield after deducting the cost of rates +and insurance and the amount necessary to maintain the property in a +condition to command such rent. This was, in short, the old basis of +assessment in the mother country; but to meet the objection to the +assessment of improvements the Government, in introducing the first +Divisional Boards Bill, had modified the valuation clause by the +proviso that the improvements on land should be assessed at one-half +their value. This was a modification of the New Zealand assessment +method, and it gave fair satisfaction for a time. + +Country ratepayers for the most part approved the change to the +unimproved value assessment; but speculators in unoccupied city, +town, and suburban lands regarded it as a gross injustice. They not +unnaturally complained that an allotment bare, or with a mere hut upon +it, would pay as much in rates under the new system as the adjoining +allotment which might be the site of spacious business premises or +of a palatial dwelling. To this the reply was that the speculative +holding of city and suburban lands inflicted gross injustice upon the +man who wanted at existing value an allotment for his own use. + +The Valuation and Rating Act of 1890 passed, however; and the law as +it stands has the undoubted merit of simplicity in valuations. On the +other hand, the rate levied under the unimproved value assessment upon +vacant lands is sometimes oppressive, and appreciably reduces their +capital value. Another unforeseen effect has also been realised. The +value of a highly improved allotment tends to become depressed to +the value of the unproductive and unoccupied allotment contiguous or +adjacent to it. Hence an intending buyer is apt to ascertain the local +authority valuation of any land he needs, and to regulate his price +accordingly. In a buoyant land market this might not much affect the +selling value, but for twenty years past the land market for city or +suburban properties has been the reverse of buoyant. So the unimproved +value mode of assessment has apparently assisted to make a substantial +reduction in the market value of city and suburban properties. But +that is perhaps a less evil than may at first sight appear. The +speculative inflation of land values is simply a tax upon the user +for all time; and the moment the income-earning value is exceeded the +excess must be regarded as an unjust charge upon posterity. + +Of course land values will eventually find their true level, whatever +law of rating may be in force. It may be conceded that the unimproved +assessment has caused distress among landowners who had no means of +improving their properties, and could only find a market for them at +a heavy sacrifice. Still there is no disposition on the part of the +majority of ratepayers to revert to the old annual value system, and +there is not likely to be any alteration in the law in this respect +unless for the removal of some obvious administrative anomaly. For, +as the coalition leaders agreed nineteen years ago, the local rate has +become a land tax pure and simple, and if it be held that more money +is wanted for development the simpler course is to allow the local +authorities to give another twist to the rating screw. This, as a +matter of fact, most of them have of late years done, and in many +local jurisdictions the rate is now 3d. in the pound, when twenty +years ago only 1d. or 1½d. was levied. In 1884 the total local +rates levied were £120,479; in 1908 the total was £452,052 for, it +must be remembered, an identical aggregate area. A local authorities' +rate has the distinct advantage in a young State like Queensland that, +whereas a Treasury land tax would reach only the freeholders of +less than 20,000,000 acres, the local government rate is levied upon +460,000 square miles. + +The subjoined table is compiled from Statistics of Queensland for 1884 +and 1908 respectively:-- + + +AMOUNT LEVIED BY LOCAL AUTHORITIES. + + ------------------------+-------------------------+------------------------ + Year 1884. | Year 1908. | Increases, 1908. + ------------------------+-------------------------+------------------------ + CITIES AND TOWNS-- £ | CITIES AND TOWNS-- £ | CITIES AND TOWNS-- £ + General Rates 46,208 | General Rates 150,744 | General Rates 104,536 + | | + Separate 4,845 | Separate} | Separate or + | } 87,155 | + Special 7,583 | Special } | Special 74,727 + ------- | -------- | -------- + Total £58,636 | Total £237,899 | Total £179,263 + | | + DIVISIONS-- | SHIRES-- | SHIRES-- + Total £61,843 | Total £214,153 | Total £152,310 + ------- | -------- | -------- + Grand Total £120,479 | Grand Total £452,052 | Grand Total £331,573 + ------------------------+-------------------------+------------------------ + +Thus, since the unimproved value system came into force, the levies +of the local authority rates have multiplied about three and a-half +times. In 1884, when the first quarter-century closed, the divisional +boards drew £2 for £1 as Treasury endowment, which, assuming the +rates were all collected, made their incomes from the combined sources +£185,529 for the year. In 1908, without a penny of endowment, their +successors'--the shire councils--rate levy totalled £214,153, or +£28,624 in excess of both rates and endowment in 1884. In 1884 the +city and town councils levied rates amounting to £58,636, which with +endowment added should have given them £117,272. In 1908 the cities +and towns levied an aggregate of £237,899, an increase upon 1884 of +£120,627, despite the loss of the £1 for £1 endowment. + +These figures are interesting in view of the agitation for a Treasury +land tax. They show that in 1908, with a total of 53,948 city and town +ratepayers, their rate contribution was on the average £4 8s. 2d. per +ratepayer. At the same time 97,553 shire ratepayers contributed the +average of only £2 3s. 11d. each. The wide discrepancy between the +payments of town and country ratepayers seems anomalous, but when +it is recollected that the urban councils, of which there are only +thirty-five, undertake many public services, and that the entire area +of incorporated cities and towns is only about 354 square miles, it +will be realised that the circumstances widely differ from those of +the shires, whose various jurisdictions embrace almost the entire area +of the State, the official estimate being 669,901 square miles. This +area includes 210,359 square miles of unoccupied country, much of +which is traversed by roads, but which presumably yields no rate +revenue. Hence no useful comparison can be made between the rate +levies of town and country local authorities respectively. At the same +time a local "land" tax--which ranges from the general-rate of ½d. +in the pound in the case of shires, to 3d. in the pound, besides +special and separate rates, in cities and towns, and which makes the +average total contribution of town ratepayers more than twice the +amount levied upon country ratepayers--may at no distant time call +for rectification, especially if a so-called bursting-up tax should be +deemed necessary to meet the wants of close settlement. + +Meanwhile there is room for congratulation in the fact that every +square mile of the vast area of the State--coastal islands alone +excepted--is incorporated, and that 160 local authorities with 1,310 +members carry on the entire local government work of the country. +These men, unlike members of Parliament, are unremunerated by the +State, even free railway passes not being conceded to enable them to +attend the periodical meetings. The alderman or shire councillor gives +purely honorary service, and relieves the State Government of a vast +amount of worry and expense. + +[Illustration: CAIRNS RANGE AND ROBB'S MONUMENT, NORTH QUEENSLAND] + +One good effect of local self-government is the exclusion from +Parliament of the pestilent road-and-bridge member who in former +years made himself so troublesome to Ministers and so often twisted +the decision of the Assembly on important questions. + +It would be a bad thing indeed for Queensland if the local +authorities, or any substantial percentage of them, became +inefficient. There may be room for anxiety at evidences of decadence +which at times come to the surface; but that local government in +Queensland is a vigorous and living entity is fairly evident from +the fact that with very few exceptions the 160 city, town, and shire +councils are members of the Local Authorities' Association which +annually makes itself heard in conference in Brisbane. Manifestly the +spirit of decentralisation is not dead in Queensland. The manner in +which the various bodies have survived the stoppage of the Treasury +endowment, simultaneously with the thrusting upon them of many new +responsibilities by the Act of 1902, must be regarded as a clear +indication that local government in Queensland retains undiminished +vitality. + + [Footnote a: See "Queensland Government Gazette" of date + mentioned.] + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + +PUBLIC INSTRUCTION. + + Primary Education: Board of National Education; Education Act + of 1860; Board of General Education; Education Act of 1875; + Department of Public Instruction; Higher Education in Primary + Schools; Itinerant Teachers; Status of Teachers; Statistics. + --Private Schools.--Secondary Education: Grammar Schools Act; + Endowments, Scholarships, and Bursaries; Success of Grammar + Schools; Exhibitions to Universities; Expenditure.--Technical + Education: Beginning of System; Board of Technical Instruction; + Transfer of Control to Department of Public Instruction; + Statistics; Technical Instruction Act; Continuation Classes; + Schools of Arts and Reading Rooms.--University: Royal + Commissions; University Bill; Standardised System of Education. + + +From 10th December, 1859, the date of the founding of Queensland, to +30th September, 1860, primary education was under the control of a +Board of National Education appointed by the Governor in Council. That +board consisted of Sir Charles Nicholson (chairman), Messrs. R. R. +Mackenzie, William Thornton, George Raff, and D. R. Somerset; the +secretary was William Henry Day. There were then only two national +schools in the whole of Queensland--namely, one in Drayton and one in +Warwick. The system of primary education obtaining in New South Wales +was continued, but the subject of education was one of the earliest +matters which received the consideration of the first Parliament of +Queensland, and in 1860 an Act to provide for primary education was +passed. The Bill was initiated in the Legislative Council by Captain +O'Connell, and Mr. R. G. W. Herbert had charge of the measure in the +Legislative Assembly. The object of the Bill was to provide primary +education under one general and comprehensive system, and to afford +facilities to persons of all denominations for the education of their +children in the same school without prejudice to their religious +beliefs. + + +PRIMARY EDUCATION. + +The Act provided for the appointment of a Board of General Education +to consist of five members, together with a Minister of the Crown who +would, _ex officio_, act as chairman. The members of the first Board +were:--Mr. R. R. Mackenzie (chairman), Dr. W. Hobbs (vice-chairman), +and Messrs. W. H. Day, J. F. McDougall, W. J. Munce, and George Raff. + +The scheme of primary education which the board framed was based +generally upon the national system in operation in Ireland. Schools +were divided into two classes--vested and non-vested. The vested +schools were unsectarian in character. The aid granted by the board +towards the establishment, equipment, and up-keep of schools varied +from time to time, and ranged from one-half to two-thirds. The board +appointed the teachers. The salaries of teachers were supplemented +by school fees, ranging from 3d. to 1s. 6d. per week for each scholar +according to his standard in the school work. When the board took +office there were 10 teachers, 493 pupils, and 4 schools--Drayton, +Warwick, Brisbane (boys), and Brisbane (girls). The total expenditure +in 1860 was £1,615 2s. 3d. School fees were abolished by the Premier, +Mr. Lilley, from the 1st of January, 1870, and since that date primary +State education has been free, Queensland being the first of the +Australian colonies to adopt the principle of free public education. + +The Education Act of 1860 was superseded by the State Education Act of +1875, which came into operation on 1st January, 1876, and is still +in force. When passed it was regarded as the most progressive Act +in Australia. Its author was Mr. S. W. Griffith, the present Chief +Justice of the Commonwealth, and he was the first Minister for Public +Instruction. The first Under Secretary was Mr. C. J. Graham. On 31st +December, 1875, there were 230 schools in operation, the aggregate +enrolment for the year being 33,643, and the average attendance +16,887. The number of teachers employed was 595, and the total +expenditure for the year was £83,219 14s. 9d. + +The new Act provided that the whole system of public instruction in +Queensland, formerly administered by the Board of General Education, +should be transferred to a department of the public service, to be +called the Department of Public Instruction. + +The Act provided that one-fifth of the cost must be contributed +locally in the first instance towards the purchase of a school +site, the erection of the necessary buildings, and the providing of +furniture; thereafter the State bore the whole expenditure. Thus the +State defrayed the total cost of repairs and maintenance, renewals, +additions, and the like. State aid to non-vested schools was withdrawn +as from 31st December, 1880. + +In 1895 a resolution was agreed to by the Legislative Assembly in +favour of the establishment of superior State schools with a view to +providing higher education for children in towns and populous centres +where grammar schools did not exist. The ultimate result of this +action was the passing of the State Education Act Amendment Act of +1897, which gave the Governor in Council power to prescribe that any +subjects of secular instruction might be subjects of instruction in +primary schools. The department immediately took advantage of this +amending Act, and provided for the teaching of mathematics, higher +English, and science in the fifth and sixth classes. + +So far as the resources at its disposal have permitted, the Department +of Public Instruction has done what it could to bring primary +education within the reach of all the children of the State, and it +may be safely claimed that wherever twelve children can be gathered +together there exists a school. But where the children cannot be +gathered into groups the department goes to the homes of the pupils. +Itinerant teachers, fully equipped with buggies, camping outfits, +school requisites, and other necessaries, traverse the sparsely +settled districts in the far West and North where the establishment of +schools is not possible. The travelling teachers look for the homes +of the pupils, be those homes rude wayside inns, log cabins, or even +tents, and an effort is made to visit each home not less than four +times a year. Under this system the little ones are at least taught +to read, to write, and to count. The itinerant teacher system was +initiated in 1901, when one teacher was appointed. There are now +twelve of these teachers, and the expenditure in this direction has +risen from £411 per annum to £5,129 per annum. + +In 1906 the department began to appoint trained teachers to the charge +of all schools where the attendance exceeded twelve. By this process +properly qualified teachers will soon be in charge of 90 per cent. of +the schools of the State. One of the most difficult problems which +has to be faced in England, Scotland, America, and also in some of our +sister States, is the adequate staffing of small country schools by +efficient teachers. Queensland has solved that problem, and it is +doubtful if any country has done better in that respect. + +Primary school teachers are officers of the State, and are not +subject to the caprices of boards or local committees; they enjoy the +protection and privileges of the Public Service Act, and the interests +of no branch of the public service are more zealously protected by +Parliament. They stand high in public estimation in Queensland, +and that estimation is steadily rising. The pay on the whole is +good--particularly that of head teachers, and the conditions of +service are by no means unattractive. + +In 1908 the total expenditure on education (including school +buildings) was £393,378 1s. 8d.; the total number of departmental +schools open during that year was 1,141, the net enrolment of pupils +being 94,193, and the average daily attendance 67,309. + +[Illustration: VIEW OF GYMPIE FROM NASHVILLE RAILWAY STATION] + +[Illustration: COKE OVENS, IPSWICH DISTRICT] + + +PRIVATE SCHOOLS. + +The number of private schools in operation in Queensland during 1908 +was 157, namely:--Church of England, 8; Roman Catholic, 61; Lutheran, +2; undenominational, 86. These schools are not subsidised by the +State. The number of teachers employed in them during the year +totalled 665. The total enrolment of scholars was 14,098--males, +5,934; females, 8,164. The total average number of scholars attending +the schools was 11,928--males, 5,114; females, 6,814. + + +SECONDARY EDUCATION. + +In 1860, that is within one year of the founding of Queensland as a +separate State, an Act was passed to provide for the establishment +of grammar schools, in which was to be given an education higher than +that which could be given in the elementary schools. The following +remarks made by Mr. R. G. W. Herbert, who introduced the bill in the +Legislative Assembly, are very interesting. He said: "The question of +education might be considered under three heads as primary, grammar +school, and collegiate. The bill introduced into the other branch +of the Legislature was intended to provide for primary education, +principally under the national system, and would make adequate +provision for imparting fundamental instruction at a cheap rate to all +classes of youth without distinction of creed or religious profession. +The bill he now introduced was intended to provide for a higher order +of instruction of a useful and thoroughly practical character by +establishing grammar schools easily accessible to the colonial youth +of all denominations throughout the colony.... It was desirable +that the instruction to be afforded in the grammar schools should +be afforded at a cheap rate, so that as many as possible might avail +themselves of it, and that it should be such as would best qualify the +youth of the colony for discharging the duties that would devolve upon +them in after life." + +Captain O'Connell, who had charge of the measure in the Legislative +Council, said: "It was merely a sequel to the Primary Education Bill, +and was designed to give those who might desire it a higher education +than could be afforded by the primary schools. It was a matter of the +greatest importance that a system of this kind should be established +on a broad and permanent foundation, and therefore it was not +difficult to perceive that the creation of primary schools such as +were contemplated under the other bill would be found extremely useful +in carrying out the great objects now proposed to be accomplished." + +Under the provisions of the Grammar Schools Act a school may be +established in any locality where a sum of not less than £1,000 has +been raised locally, and the Governor in Council may grant towards +the erection of school buildings and a residence for the principal a +subsidy equal to twice the amount raised locally. An amending Act +was passed in 1864 providing that when certain conditions had been +complied with an annual endowment of £1,000 might be granted to each +grammar school. Each school is governed by a board of seven trustees; +of these, four are appointed by the Government, and three are +nominated by the subscribers to the building fund; they hold office +for three years. + +There are ten grammar schools in the State--seven in Southern, two +in Central, and one in Northern Queensland. The Ipswich Boys' Grammar +School was the first to be established; it was erected in 1863. The +last established was the school for girls in Rockhampton, which was +founded in 1892. + +Each of the schools has qualified for the annual endowment of £1,000; +of this amount the State pays £750 a year unconditionally, and £250 +on the understanding that the school will receive a certain number of +State scholars per annum, the scholarships held by these pupils being +known as district scholarships. Queensland has always been liberal +in the granting of scholarships, and at the present time no less than +102, including the district scholarships, are granted every year; of +these, 70 are available for boys, and 32 for girls. Each scholarship +has a currency of three years. The State also grants seven bursaries +to boys and three to girls. A bursary entitles the holder to free +education at an approved secondary school for three years, together +with a cash allowance of £30 per annum. The trustees of the various +grammar schools also grant scholarships in addition to those provided +by the State. In 1908 the aggregate enrolment of pupils in attendance +at the grammar schools was 1,101, with an average daily attendance +of 970; and of these pupils fully one-third were the holders of +scholarships. Free railway passes to the nearest grammar school are +granted to the holders of scholarships. + +To assist the children of poor parents to avail themselves of the +scholarships which they may win, the Government grant a living +allowance of £12 per annum to the winners of scholarships, provided +that the income of the parents does not exceed £3 per week, or £30 +per annum for each bona fide member of the family. This rule came into +operation on the 1st of January, 1909. + +It is generally recognised that the Queensland grammar schools do +good work; the success of their students in the junior and senior +examinations of the Sydney University abundantly justifies this +conclusion. Each school constructs its own programme, but, broadly +speaking, the curriculum of the several schools is designed to lead +up to the Sydney University. As each school practically shapes its own +course, the success of the institution depends very largely upon the +personality, efficiency, and vigour of the principal. In addition to +the State-endowed grammar schools there are several other secondary +schools. Some of these are denominational, and others are conducted by +private persons. Schools of this class are not endowed by the State, +but the winners of State scholarships or bursaries may attend these +institutions if the Governor in Council is satisfied that they are of +a sufficiently high standard. + +Queensland has not so far placed the coping-stone on her educational +system by establishing a University, but each year she grants three +exhibitions to Universities outside the State. The exhibitions +are open to competition, and the test examination is the senior +examination of the Sydney University. Each exhibition has a currency +of three years, and is worth £100 a year. The winners may attend any +University approved by the Governor in Council. + +It will thus be seen that Queensland has been fairly liberal in +providing the means of higher education for her children. A comparison +with her sister States of New South Wales and Victoria emphasises this +fact. During the year 1906-7 New South Wales, with a population of +1,528,697, and a revenue of £13,392,435, granted £12,945 towards +secondary education; Victoria, with a population of 1,231,940, and a +revenue of £8,345,534, granted £5,874; Queensland, with a population +of 535,113, and a revenue of £4,307,912, granted £12,909, this +amount being exclusive of the £900 per annum granted on account of +exhibitions to Universities. In 1908 the amount granted by the State +towards secondary education in Queensland was £14,272 11s. 11d. + + +TECHNICAL EDUCATION. + +The system of technical education in Queensland is in its infancy, but +no branch is likely to make more rapid and lusty growth or to have a +more important bearing upon the industrial and commercial development +of the State. + +The Brisbane Technical College has been in existence as a distinct +institution since 1882. It is only since July, 1905, that the +Education Department has been closely associated with the +administration of technical education. Previous to 1902 technical +colleges, with the exception of the Brisbane College, were carried on +in connection with schools of arts under the control of local +committees, the State subsidising the colleges to the extent of £1 for +each £1 paid in fees or subscribed for technical college purposes. + +In 1902 a Board of Technical Education was created; the board held +office until 1905, when this branch of education was placed under +the control of the department, and a special officer was appointed to +supervise the work. Endowment is now paid upon a differential scale, +the distribution being based on the general and practical utility of +the subjects taught, the subsidy ranging from 10s. to £3 for every £1 +collected in fees. There were seventeen colleges in operation during +1908. The progress which has been made during the past five years is +shown in the following table:-- + + ---------------------+---------------------+---------------- + Year. | Number of | Endowment. + |Individual Students. | + ---------------------+---------------------+---------------- + 1904 | 3,600 | £4,732 4 6 + 1905 | 3,892 | 5,460 4 11 + 1906 | 4,321 | 7,930 13 5 + 1907 | 4,702 | 9,610 4 2 + 1908 | 5,187 | 10,719 12 7 + ---------------------+---------------------+---------------- + +The importance of a highly developed system of technical education has +been fully realised in this State, and in 1908 a Technical Instruction +Act was passed. It provides for the establishment of a central +technical college in Brisbane which shall be maintained by, and be +under the direct control of, the State. It is intended that this +college shall be the recognised technical institute of Queensland, +and it is hoped that it may ultimately be one of the most important +institutions of the kind in Australia. The colleges outside the +metropolis will be affiliated with the central college, but will +remain under local control. + +In addition to liberal assistance to technical education, provision +has been made for evening continuation classes. These classes are to +enable pupils who have left school before completing their primary +education to continue their education; to assist persons to obtain +instruction in special subjects relating to their employment; and to +prepare students for the technical colleges. The classes are liberally +endowed by the State, and very comprehensive regulations have been +framed for their administration, the system being probably the best of +its kind in the Commonwealth. + +[Illustration: GULF CATTLE READY FOR MARKET] + +[Illustration: BRIGALOW COUNTRY, WARRA, DARLING DOWNS] + +[Illustration: HEREFORD COWS, DARLING DOWNS] + +Schools of arts and reading rooms are also fostered by the State. A +grant of 10s. is made for each £1 of subscriptions or donations, but +the grant to any one institution cannot exceed £150 per annum. + +The State subsidises reading rooms at shearing sheds, sugar mills, +and meat works to the extent of £1 for £1, with a view to assisting +to provide reading matter, and such suitable recreation games as +draughts, chess, &c., for the workers in those industries. + +The amount contributed by the State towards schools of arts and +reading rooms is £5,000 per annum, and in 1908 there were 181 of these +institutions. + + +UNIVERSITY. + +The question of establishing a University has been under consideration +from time to time for the past thirty-five years, and more than one +Royal Commission has been appointed to inquire into and report upon +the subject. In 1874 a commission recommended the immediate foundation +of a University. In 1891 another commission was appointed, and made a +similar recommendation. For various reasons, however, but principally +financial stringency, no action was taken until September, 1899, +when the Government introduced a bill for the establishment of a +University. Unfortunately the bill did not become law, and Queensland +remained without a University for another decade. + +The Government programme for the first session of 1909 included a +University Bill, but owing to the untimely dissolution of the Assembly +nothing was done in the matter. When Parliament met again on 2nd +November, the bill was the first measure proceeded with. Both Houses +being unanimously in favour of establishing a University on modern, +democratic lines, it was speedily passed, and on 10th December, +the jubilee of the foundation of Queensland, Government House was +dedicated to the purposes of the University by His Excellency the +Governor, Sir William MacGregor, in the presence of a large and +representative gathering of citizens. With the State system of primary +education established on a sound basis; technical education placed on +a firm foundation and progressing steadily; secondary education +linked to the other branches, and all leading towards the University, +Queensland will have a system of education which will place her on a +level with the most progressive of the nations. + + + + +PART III.--OUR JUBILEE YEAR. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +GENERAL REVIEW. + + Good Seasons and General Prosperity.--Land Settlement + and Immigration.--The Sugar Crop.--Gold and Other + Minerals.--Reduction in Cost of Mining and Treatment + of Ores.--Vigorous Railway Extension.--Mileage Open for + Traffic.--Efficiency of 3 ft. 6 in. Gauge.--Our Railway + Investment.--The National Association Jubilee Show. + --The General Election.--The Mandate of the Constituencies. + --Government Majority.--Practical Extinction of Third + Party.--Labour a Constitutional Opposition.--Federal + Agreement with States.--Federal Union Vindicated. + + +During the half-century of Queensland's existence she has never +experienced a more prosperous year than that of her Jubilee. Not only +have the seasons been good, the rains well distributed though in +some parts light, but prices of staple products have been high in the +world's markets. The increase of sheep, cattle, and horses has +been unusually large this year; the clip of wool has been highly +satisfactory both in respect of quality and market value; the yield of +butter and cheese has been above the average; and crops generally +have been remunerative to the farmer. The wheat crop at the time +this chapter is being written promises well, the area showing a +considerable increase upon last year, while prices are certainly +above the average. Trade and commerce have consequently been brisk and +sound, and nearly all classes of the community have participated +in the prosperity that has prevailed. Settlement upon the land has +progressed by leaps and bounds; immigrants have begun to flow into +the country in encouraging numbers, and, with few exceptions, the new +arrivals have found a market for their labour at wages contrasting +favourably with their earnings in the mother land. + +Of all staple products sugar alone shows declension in yield this +year, but that arises, not from the season of 1909, but from the +unprecedentedly severe frosts of the previous year. Yet, despite +the lessened yield of cane, the sugar-growers do not complain of bad +times, nor is their outlook discouraging. + +The gold yield has continued to fall off, but that is partly due to +the prosperity of the pastoral and agricultural industries, which have +attracted both capital and labour that under other circumstances would +have been employed in prospecting for the precious metal. Silver and +the baser metals have also exhibited a shrinkage in output, but that +is explained by the low prices which have ruled since the American +crisis of two years ago. Two of the great mining companies in Central +Queensland--the Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company and the Great Fitzroy +Copper Mining Company--have both had a prosperous year, having +found in simultaneous mining for gold and copper abundant scope for +enterprise and energy; and improved methods of raising ore, as well as +constantly lessened expense of treatment, have made the prospect for +the future reassuring. Large profits are being made to-day in the +treatment of the less rich but more abundant ores, which could not +have been utilised even ten years ago except at ruinous loss. It is +now recognised that a well-organised laboratory is as essential in the +equipment of a great mine as a corps of skilled miners or a range of +smelting furnaces. Hence it is that the mining outlook is encouraging, +and that in the opinion of scientific experts the industry in +Queensland has scarcely yet passed the infantile stage. + +It is natural that in accordance with the progressive spirit of the +times the Government should have induced Parliament to authorise the +expenditure of much more than the recent average amount of loan money +in the construction of railways and other public works. No less than +eleven railways, as stated in the Commissioner's report recently +published, have been under construction this year. These lines are +expected to be completed within a few months, so that nearly 4,000 +miles will be open for traffic before the close of the financial year. +Besides this large mileage for a population of 568,000 persons, 446 +miles of other railways and tramways, more or less under the control +of the State, are available for public traffic. Being of the same +gauge as the State railways, they have been the means of developing +large areas and materially improving the position of the Government +lines. Thus the length of railway which will be open for traffic +before 30th June, 1910, will amount to 4,320 miles of the standard 3 +ft. 6 in. gauge, which will be equal to the traffic of a comparatively +dense population. The increased breadth of rolling-stock has been +found to conduce to comfort without imperilling the safety of +passengers, and by the use of heavier rails and more powerful engines +the carrying capacity of the narrow-gauge lines has of late years been +greatly increased.[a] + +The Commissioner puts the total cost of our railway system on 30th +June last, including £1,139,405 spent on lines not yet open, at +£24,534,727. The total authorised outlay is, however, given as +£27,221,805, so that at the rate of expenditure of last year the +balance unexpended will enable construction to be continued for over +two years. The net revenue available for the defraying of interest +accruing on capital for the financial year 1908-9 was £883,610,[b] +equal to £3 7s. 6d. per cent. The mean rate of interest payable on +the total public debt of Queensland, which includes much stock bearing +more than 3½ per cent., is £3 14s. 1d. per cent., so that our +railways may be deemed almost directly reproductive; and, what is +still more satisfactory, they are rapidly improving in net earning +capacity. As every extension adds to the volume of traffic, apart +altogether from the added value given to Crown lands by providing them +with railway communication, every inducement is held out to maintain a +vigorous policy of construction. There is every reason to believe that +in a few years our railway system will be the greatest and most +stable of all contributors to the Consolidated Revenue; and when it is +recollected that forty-five years ago there was not a mile of railway +or tramway open for traffic in Queensland, the progress made in +providing transport facilities is brought out in bold relief. + +One of the most noteworthy events of the Jubilee Year was the +thirty-fourth exhibition of the National Agricultural and Industrial +Association. This exhibition is the occasion of the most generally +observed holiday of the year in the metropolis, and attracts thousands +of visitors from all parts of Queensland, and many from the Southern +States. It has come to be regarded as the annual meeting-ground of +friends from widely separated localities. Year by year the attendance +of visitors has grown, and the interest taken in the display has +increased. This year special efforts were put forth by the council +of the Association; and, fearing that their own resources would prove +unequal to the strain, they applied to the Government for a jubilee +grant. But the Government refused to do more than provide jubilee +medals for certain classes of successful exhibitors, and enter some +splendid exhibits from the State farms and others illustrative of the +mineral wealth of Queensland. They held that to accede to the request +would be to supply a precedent for similar applications from kindred +associations in provincial towns, and that one of the glories of the +metropolitan exhibition is that it is a self-supporting, self-reliant +institution. The sequel proved the correctness of this view, for the +exhibition far exceeded all predecessors in magnitude, and gave a +handsome profit to the National Association, which richly deserved +such a reward for months of self-sacrificing work. + +[Illustration: ABOVE STONY CREEK FALLS, CAIRNS RAILWAY] + +The official opening was attended by unusual pomp and ceremony, the +Governor-General of the Commonwealth, the Earl of Dudley, performing +the task of declaring the exhibition open. His Excellency took +advantage of the opportunity to impress upon the people of Queensland +the urgent need for a vigorous immigration policy if the country is to +be successfully developed and its well-being maintained. + +To attempt a detailed description of what was not inappropriately +termed "Our Jubilee Carnival" would be beyond the province and the +scope of this volume. When it is mentioned that the exhibits numbered +over 8,000, the magnitude of the undertaking will be realised. It will +be sufficient to mention a few salient points. For example, there +were no less than 1,580 exhibits of live stock; and as, in the case of +sheep and cattle, an entry often included pens and not single animals, +the provision made for this attractive and paramount feature of +the show was taxed to its utmost capacity. These pastoral exhibits +represented stock yielding more than a moiety of the £14,000,000 worth +of annual exports; and the industry connected with grazing stock on +the natural pastures of the country not only employs much labour and +contributes largely to the revenue of the State directly in the shape +of Crown rents and railway freights, but it assists the Treasury +indirectly in many other ways. The magnificent display of stud and +pedigree stock and their products spoke volumes for the value of +the indigenous grass crop which costs nothing to raise and only wire +fencing to protect. + +Among the exhibits was a trophy of that world-commanding product, +wool, of which the value exported from Australia in 1908 is given +in the Federal Treasurer's Budget delivered in August last as +£22,914,236. The Commonwealth returns do not differentiate between the +various States, but, assuming the average value of the fleece to be +the same throughout Australia, the value of Queensland's share of the +clip was about £5,000,000. Another product which has the world for +its market is cotton. Of this article there were three splendid +exhibits--one from West Moreton, in Southern Queensland; another from +Rockhampton, in Central Queensland; and the third from Cairns, in +Northern Queensland. Nothing save the cost of labour in picking +prevents cotton being classed among the staple products of our State, +and it is hoped by experts that as families upon the farms increase +this difficulty will be removed. The Cairns exhibit was of Caravonica +cotton, a variety of the valuable Sea Island species, concerning the +extensive cultivation of which the most sanguine anticipations are +expressed. In agricultural products emulation was greatly stimulated +by the district exhibits, of which there were five, and on the +whole they were superior to any that had ever before been shown in +Queensland. Almost every product of the temperate and torrid zones +appeared among the exhibits, though, of course, many of them are not +yet being cultivated on a commercial scale. Among the most prominent +of those of commercial value may be mentioned sugar, butter, cheese, +hams, bacon, wheat, maize, fodder crops, potatoes, pineapples, and +citrus and deciduous fruits, in all of which the displays were a +revelation, not only to visitors from other parts of the continent and +oversea, but also to many of our own people. The same may be remarked +of the magnificent exhibits of gold, copper, tin, coal, and other +minerals, which form so large a proportion of our wealth-producing +exports. Statistics relating to the production and export of these +commodities will be found in the appendices to this volume, and need +not be further referred to here. Another attraction meriting special +notice was the collection of gems and precious stones, the industry +represented by which is at present struggling against the want of +access to profitable markets; but the great interest aroused at the +Franco-British Exhibition of last year by the magnificent display of +Queensland gems is calculated to remove this disability, and to place +the industry on a prosperous and permanent footing. The great variety +of foods manufactured in Australia was another feature of the display, +while in the machinery section the entries surpassed any previous +exhibition in Queensland. Consequent upon the removal of border duties +and the adoption of a uniform tariff, Queensland has suffered keenly +from the competition of the Southern States. Statistics abundantly +prove that some of our nascent manufactures have been checked +seriously by such competition, although these losses are being +gradually compensated for by gains in the form of enlarged free +markets for products in which Queensland is safeguarded by natural +conditions; but even freetraders must admit that our protective +Customs duties are stimulating what are called native manufactures +in a surprising degree, and that year by year Queensland and the +Commonwealth at large are becoming less dependent upon the outside +world for the products and manufactures which are essential to the +existence of a civilised nation. + +Politically, 1909 has been rather a trying year, but the result of the +general election on 2nd October seems to give promise of better things +in Parliament. Both the Premier and the Leader of the Opposition agree +that the practical extinction of the third party by the appeal to +the electorate will be beneficial to the country. The election also +ratifies the fusion of parties carried out towards the end of last +year, with the consequential placing of the Labour party in the +position of a constitutional Opposition. These salutary changes are +held to be equivalent to a restoration of responsible government, +which had been practically suspended by the impossibility of any party +carrying on the work of legislation without making humiliating terms +with an irresponsible section. It was contended that there were three +parties in the country, and that the existence of the same phenomenon +in the Assembly proved it to be a true reflex of the electorate at +large; but the late general election has dispelled that illusion, for +on no occasion since the splitting up of parties had the issue been +put in so clear-cut a form to the country. Another result of the +election has been to add somewhat to the strength of the Labour +members, who are now sufficiently numerous in the Assembly to give +them a reasonable expectation of being called upon in due time to +assume the responsibilities of government. The State must gain from +the resolution of the House into two parties, for the purity and +effectiveness of party government demand that His Majesty's Ministers +shall always be faced by an Opposition fitted and prepared to become +the advisers of the King's representative whenever the existing +Administration loses the confidence of the Parliament and the country. + +As mentioned elsewhere, a most satisfactory event of the year is +the prospect of a settlement of the financial relations between +Commonwealth and States on a durable and mutually acceptable basis. +Public opinion throughout the continent is so clearly in favour of +the agreement that its ratification seems certain during the present +financial year, and it seems also certain that it will come into force +on 1st July next. From that date there is reason to hope that the +benefits of federal union will become so conspicuous as to silence +cavilling opponents and justify the aspirations of its advocates. The +general opinion throughout the Commonwealth with respect to the vital +question of national defence has undergone a marvellous change for +the better during the past twelve months, the unanimity displayed +justifying the most sanguine anticipations of future unbroken concert +between Great Britain and her self-governing dominions, and the +supremacy of the British Empire on the ocean, a supremacy which means +the protection of the world's trade routes and unimpeded maritime +commerce. + + [Footnote a: As indicative of the progress made in the local + manufacture of railway stock, it may be mentioned, on the + authority of the Commissioner, that one Brisbane engineering firm + has this year completed its 100th locomotive for the Department.] + + [Footnote b: Treasury figures. The Commissioner's figures differ + somewhat from those of the Treasury. In estimating the percentage + return the Railway Department takes into account only the + expenditure on open lines, whilst the Treasury bases its + calculations upon the expenditure on all lines, and charges the + Railway Department with its proportion of loan deficiencies and + flotation charges.] + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +THE FEDERAL OUTLOOK. + + Proclamation of the Commonwealth.--The Referendum + Vote.--Queensland's Small Majority in the Affirmative. + --Representation in Federal Parliament.--The White + Australia Policy.--Temporary Effect on Queensland. + --An Embarrassed State Treasury.--Assistance to Sugar + Industry.--Continued Protection Necessary.--Unequal + Distribution of Federal Surplus Revenue.--The Transferred + Properties.--Effect of Uniform Tariff.--Good Times Lessen + Federal Burden on State.--The Agreement between Prime + Minister and Premiers.--Better Feeling Towards Federation. + --National Measures of Deakin Government. + + +After several vain attempts on the part of Australian statesmen to +bring about federation, the Commonwealth Constitution Act was adopted +by the several States in 1899 and ratified by the Imperial Parliament +in 1900; and Her Majesty Queen Victoria issued a proclamation, +declaring that on and after 1st January, 1901, the colonies of New +South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland, Tasmania, +and Western Australia should be federated under the name of the +Commonwealth of Australia, the several colonies being thereafter known +as "States." The union took place by the freewill of all the colonies, +a popular vote being taken in each. The poll was small, only 583,865 +electors recording their votes, of which number 422,788 voted for +federation and 161,077 against, the majority in favour being 261,711. +In Queensland 38,488 voted in the affirmative and 30,996 in the +negative, giving the narrow majority of 7,492, equal to only 10·78 +per cent. of the total votes polled. That majority was obtained by an +almost block pro-federation vote throughout the Centre and North of +the colony, the majority in the Southern district, which contained +about two-thirds of the population, being adverse to union. There was +no objection to the abstract principle or to the wisdom of a federal +union--rather the reverse; but Queensland had not been represented at +any of the Conventions at which the Constitution was drafted, and no +provision was made, such as was made in the case of West Australia, +to meet the peculiar geographical, industrial, and financial +circumstances of this State. In the absence of legislative safeguards +and guarantees, the unsatisfactory experience of New South Wales +administration in pre-separation days led the people of Southern +Queensland to doubt whether the vaunted fraternal spirit would +withstand the actual attrition of business competition. They feared +that the great urban populations of Sydney and Melbourne would, +under the proposed democratic Constitution, secure for themselves +industrial, commercial, and administrative advantages at the expense +of their brethren, but none the less rivals, in the more remote +parts of the continent. Believing that, though their occupations +and products were the same as those of the Southern States, their +interests were conflicting, the majority in Southern Queensland cast +their votes against the union. Finding themselves in a minority, many +of the opponents of federation deliberately refused to exercise the +franchise in the first election, held in 1901. Instead of taking steps +to secure the return to the Commonwealth Parliament of men who would +try to avert any evil consequences arising from non-representation at +the Conventions and who would oppose any unfair discrimination, the +short-sighted abstention of these people from voting enabled the +Labour party, who certainly did not comprise a majority of the +electors, to return nine out of our fifteen representatives in the two +Houses. + +[Illustration: MOUNT MORGAN: OPEN CUT AND DUMPS] + +[Illustration: MOUNT MORGAN: MUNDIC AND COPPER WORKS.] + +One of the first results of this predominance of Labour representation +was the early passage of legislation abolishing Pacific Island +labour in the sugar industry--which is almost exclusively confined +to Queensland--and requiring all the islanders to leave Australia for +their native homes not later than 31st December, 1906. With a view +to compensating the cane-growers for the added cost of labour, and to +induce them to abandon all forms of coloured labour, a bounty, ranging +at the present time from 7s. 6d. per ton of cane in the extreme North +to 6s. per ton in Southern Queensland and on the Northern Rivers of +New South Wales, was offered upon all cane grown exclusively with +white labour; while to provide funds for payment of the bounty an +excise duty, first of £3 and then £4 per ton, was imposed. These +radical changes occurred at a time, unfortunately, when the State +was suffering from severe depression resulting from an unprecedented +succession of adverse seasons and the substitution of a uniform +protective Customs tariff for the State tariff, which had for years +previously yielded a large revenue per head while affording protection +to many native industries. The abolition of interstate Customs +duties caused a further loss to the Queensland Treasury; so that the +Government felt compelled to ask Parliament to impose new taxation as +well as sanction severe retrenchment in order to check the alarming +series of revenue deficits which, despite large loan expenditure, +marked the stressful period. All this tended to make federation +unpopular, and obscure the benefits the union under the Commonwealth +Constitution was calculated to confer eventually. + +The popular sentiment was, however, overwhelmingly in favour of the +White Australia policy; and even most of its opponents took exception +to the hasty methods of enforcement rather than to the principle +itself. Much difficulty was at first experienced in securing reliable +white workers, but the remuneration year by year attracted, in +increasing numbers, men accustomed to farm work, until, in 1908-9, the +owners of about 90 per cent. of the cane grown found themselves in a +position to claim the bounty. Pacific Island labour is now almost a +thing of the past, though a few islanders who were not repatriated +still engage in field work. In the more severely tropical of the sugar +districts some Asiatic labour is also employed, the planters alleging +that white men will not, unless at prohibitory wages, face the muggy +heat of the cane-brake. The bounty, together with the £6 import duty, +appears at length to have re-established the industry on a durable +basis; but many growers look forward with some apprehension to the +gradual extinction of the bounty and the possibility of a reduction +in the import duty, holding that without the protection at present +afforded Australian cane sugar cannot compete against the product of +the cheap coloured labour of Java, Fiji, and Mauritius, or the beet +sugar of Europe. + +A further objection to federation was found in the mode adopted of +distributing the Federal surplus revenue among the States. The 87th +section of the Constitution required that for ten years the Federal +Government should not expend on its own purposes more than one-fourth +of the net Customs and Excise revenue of the Commonwealth, and that +the balance of such revenue should be returned to the States. Prior +to federation this had been interpreted to mean that each State would +receive back not less than three-fourths of the net Customs and Excise +revenue collected within its jurisdiction. But the Commonwealth Crown +law officers placed a different construction on the section, and held +that, so long as at least three-fourths of the net Customs revenue was +distributed collectively, the Commonwealth had no obligation to +return that proportion to any individual State. This has caused great +uncertainty and embarrassment to the Queensland Treasurer, and has +impelled many public men to stigmatise the union as a curse instead of +a blessing. + +In illustration of the unequal division of the surplus Federal revenue +among the States, it may be mentioned that, according to a table +published by the Commonwealth Auditor-General, while the aggregate sum +beyond the three-fourths of Customs and Excise revenue returned to the +States amounted to £6,059,087, Queensland actually received £44,951 +less than her three-fourths during the eight and a-half years ended +30th June, 1909; and her Treasurer was much embarrassed by the +uncertainty of the return owing to tariff alterations and the +determination of the Federal Government to defray from revenue +otherwise accruing to the State under the Constitution Act the cost of +permanent buildings, which the State had formerly provided for out of +loan moneys. + +Another grievance of the States--especially of Queensland, which +borrowed largely to construct its 10,253 miles of telegraph lines, +and incurred a heavy annual charge upon revenue in providing postal +communication throughout its vast and scantily populated territory--is +that the Commonwealth Government treat section 85 of the Constitution +as a dead letter. This provision expressly enacts that "the +Commonwealth shall compensate the State for the value of any property +passing to the Commonwealth under this section"; but not a penny of +compensation has ever been paid, although there is a considerable +interest charge to be met annually by the State Treasuries on account +of money borrowed for the purposes of these transferred properties. + +The chief revenue loss suffered by the Queensland Treasury under +federation arose from the passing of the uniform tariff, which drew +considerably less than the former State tariff from the pockets of the +taxpayers. Of course the remedy had to be sought in other taxation, +and it could only be found in direct levies much more objectionable +than the indirect charge imposed by Customs duties. However, the feat +was ultimately accomplished, despite the depressed condition of the +State through years of scanty rainfall and the enormous losses of live +stock consequent thereon; but successive State Governments have had to +bear much unmerited odium and have suffered in popularity on account +of their efforts to restore financial equilibrium when the principal +disturbing element was the advent of federation and not State +mismanagement. + +Since times began to improve throughout Australia, the Federal burden +has been less in evidence; and at the late Melbourne Conference, held +to confer with the Commonwealth Government with the view to adjust +mutual relations, no State Premier recognised more frankly than did +Mr. Kidston the claims of the Federal Government to increased revenue +to defray the cost of old-age pensions, naval and military defence, +and other great national objects. The provisional agreement entered +into by the Conference was recognised by all the Premiers as less +advantageous than they had desired, but they were unanimous in +admitting that under the altered conditions it was the best they could +now hope for. On the Commonwealth side it was recognised that the +States had made a large voluntary surrender, and that the position of +the Federal Treasury would be greatly strengthened under the operation +of the agreement. The apparent dread of diminishing Customs revenue +in after years was clearly not well founded, because the Commonwealth +Parliament can easily, by readjustment of duties, make up any +deficiency. On the other hand, an immense advantage will be gained by +both parties to the agreement from the separation of Federal and State +finances except in respect of the liability of the Commonwealth to +hand over, and the right of the States to receive, a fixed annual +contribution of 25s. per head of the population. The representatives +of the States granted a further concession to the Commonwealth by +permitting the retention of an additional £600,000 of the Customs +revenue for the current year to reimburse the cost of old-age pensions +not already provided for by the Commonwealth Trust Fund created by the +Surplus Revenue Act of 1908. The bill embodying the agreement received +the approval of the statutory majority in both Houses of Parliament. +It now rests with the electors of the Commonwealth to accept or reject +the necessary amendment of the Constitution; and there is every reason +to hope that the compact will be made as permanent as any other part +of the Constitution. In that event, the relations between Commonwealth +and States will undoubtedly improve, and harmonious co-operation for +the public welfare may be safely anticipated from the Parliaments. +The Federal session of 1909 has been distinguished by the passage +of epoch-making bills for the appointment of a High Commissioner +in London and for naval and military defence, measures which are +calculated to raise the Commonwealth to an exalted position in the +scale of young nations. + +[Illustration: QUEENSLAND 1859] + +[Illustration: QUEENSLAND 1909] + +[Illustration: AUSTRALIA 1859 SHOWING SELF-GOVERNING COLONIES] + +[Illustration: THE WORLD Showing relative position of AUSTRALIA.] + + + + +PART IV.--THE PRIMARY INDUSTRIES. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +THE PASTORAL INDUSTRY. + + Importance of Industry.--Small Beginnings in New South + Wales.--Extension of Industry.--Stocking of Darling Downs and + Western Queensland.--Rush for Pastoral Lands.--Difficulties + of Early Squatters.--Influx of Victorian Capital.--Changes + in Method of Working Stations.--Boom in Pastoral Properties. + --Checks from Drought.--Discovery of Artesian Water. + --Conservation of Surface Water.--Introduction of Grazing + Farm System.--Closer Settlement of Darling Downs. + --Cattle-Rearing.--Meat-Freezing Works.--Overstocking. + --Dairying.--Station Routine.--Charm of Pastoral Life. + --Shearing.--Hospitality of Squatters.--Attraction of + Industry as Investment and Occupation. + + +The pastoral industry in Queensland is, in point of duration, well +within the compass of a single life. In about seventy years it has +attained its present dimensions, and, as progress in the early years +was very slow, its magnitude to-day supplies striking testimony to +the energy and enterprise of two generations. The description +of Queensland as a huge sheep and cattle farm with contributive +industries, which without very great extravagance might have been +offered forty years ago, has long ceased to be applicable. But +though other industries have grown into importance, reducing its +pre-eminence, the pastoral still retains its unquestioned lead and is +deservedly regarded as the main source of the State's wealth. Bearing +in mind that the total exports from Queensland for 1907 were rather +over fourteen and a-half millions sterling, of which pastoral produce +claimed more than half, it will be seen that this title to +precedence cannot be challenged. With an abatement of £529,000 for +butter--dairying being associated with agriculture--this imposing +sum is the direct product of the natural grasses. It can hardly +be surprising then, after realising the potential wealth of +these pastures, that visitors should be struck with the fact that +rainfall--past, present, and prospective--is a constant and very +prominent topic in all grades of social intercourse. + +That a continent so suited to the abundant propagation of animal life +should have been so poorly equipped by Nature with an indigenous fauna +can only be accounted for by Australia's primeval isolation. Similar +vast prairie lands, which in America sustained countless herds of +bison and in Africa literally swarmed with antelope and many species +of game, were in Australia almost uninhabited. The absence of large +rivers and a general scarcity of water had doubtless much to do with +this destitute condition of the great pasture lands of the interior, +but still the wonder remains that a continent which now carries more +sheep than any other country in the world should have been in its +original state, except along its coastal belt, almost tenantless. The +fierce carnivora of the older world were entirely unrepresented, the +principal denizen of the lonely land being the timid kangaroo; but the +curious problems presented by the Australian fauna have compensated +the naturalist for its modest numbers. + +In Queensland what is recognised as the Western Interior occupies +about half the area of the State and is distinct in its geological +formation from the coastal belt, the waters of which run into the +ocean to the east and north. The region of these watersheds, with the +exception of some comparatively limited areas of downs country on the +heads of the rivers, is regarded as unsuitable for sheep, the rainfall +being more abundant than on the Western waters and the grass coarser, +so that cattle are almost exclusively run there. In the Western +Interior are the true sheep pastures. The farther one goes west the +more treeless the country becomes. Here undulating downs for the most +part stretch to the horizon, intersected by watercourses fringed with +timber, and although in summer many of these creeks shrink to a chain +of disconnected waterholes, few of which are permanent, they offer +abundant opportunities for water conservation. In the last few years +many for several miles of their course have been converted into +running streams by artesian bores. + +Before, however, dwelling on the present position, we must briefly +glance at the origin of pastoral enterprise in Australia and its tardy +extension to Queensland. + +As soon as settlement was established, the new land had to be stocked +with the domesticated animals of the old. Captain Phillip, the first +Governor, in 1788 made a very modest start. He brought with him from +England 7 horses, 7 cattle, and 29 sheep, besides pigs, rabbits, and +poultry. Remembering that in those days England was from six to nine +months distant from the new settlement, it is not perhaps surprising +that pastoral progress was slow. In 1800 there were only 6,124 sheep +and 1,044 cattle in Australia. But five years prior to this the seed +destined to produce a giant growth was already germinating. A shrewd +young soldier had detected the germ of Australia's future wealth. +With a strange prescience, unaided by experience, Captain Macarthur +recognised that the dry climate of Australia was peculiarly adapted to +the growth of a fine type of wool. Starting from most unpromising ewes +from India, he gradually improved the strain by the introduction of +Spanish blood. He was fortunate at the start in getting three rams +from the Cape, part of a gift from the King of Spain to the Dutch +Government, and by sedulous culling with a bold disregard for +carcass, although fat wethers at the time sold for £5, he succeeded +in establishing a good merino flock the wool from which created +an excellent impression in England. English manufacturers, who had +hitherto drawn their limited stocks of clothing wool from Spain, +welcomed the promise of a new source of supply. + +Macarthur had taken some wool with him to England, when deported in +consequence of a fatal duel in 1803, and its fine quality was at once +recognised and appreciated. He was fortunate in being still there in +the following year, when George the Third, in the hope of encouraging +the production of fine wool, sold a portion of his Kew stud flock, the +progeny of Negretti sheep, another gift of the Spanish King, so that +they might be distributed amongst his subjects. Macarthur was the +principal buyer, securing seven rams and a ewe at very moderate +prices, the highest being under £30. He was an enthusiast, and could +see the enormous possibilities of the virgin continent he had left, +with its mild dry climate and almost limitless pasture lands, for the +maintenance of great flocks, the wool of which could be improved to +the finest type. He asked the British Government for a grant of land +to feed his flocks, assuring them that he was "so convinced of the +practicability of supplying this country with any quantity of fine +wool that it may require that I am earnestly solicitous to prosecute +this important object, and on my return to New South Wales will devote +my whole attention to accelerating its complete attainment." This +request--in spite of the adverse opinion of Sir Joseph Banks as to the +suitability of the new land for wool-growing--was granted, Lord Camden +instructing the Governor of New South Wales to grant Macarthur such +lands "as would enable him to extend his flocks in such a degree as +may promise to supply a sufficiency of animal food for the colony +as well as a lucrative article of export for the support of our +manufactures at home." Macarthur selected near Mount Taurus, and the +Camden estate, long famous as the source from which many studs were +either formed or replenished, was established. How limited at this +time was the world's production of this superfine wool--suited to the +manufacture of the finest fabrics--may be gathered from the fact of +one bale of Macarthur's being sold at Garraway's Coffee House in 1807 +at 10s. 6d. per lb., the cloth from which provided England's Farmer +King with a coat. + +But not till the merino had passed beyond coastal influences was +the improvement of growth due to an eminently suitable habitat fully +realised. Wentworth and others had in 1813 pushed across the Blue +Mountains, and the occupation of the interior began. In the Mudgee +district, which was stocked with sheep about 1824, the clip improved +so distinctly on the original Spanish stock as to form almost a new +type. Increasing in length and gaining in softness and elasticity, it +has commanded ever-increasing attention from manufacturers, and has +long been recognised as the premier fine wool of the world. + +Tasmania, starting with Macarthur's stock, and following on his +breeding lines, had proved peculiarly adapted for the growth of a +dense fleece of fine wool. As numbers rapidly increased in this small +island, flockmasters had to look about for an outlet. This was easily +found on the mainland, and sheep were soon pouring across the narrow +strait into the district of Port Phillip, which in 1851 was proclaimed +the colony of Victoria. + +After Macarthur's death in 1834, his system of breeding was carefully +followed by his widow, and when in 1858 the flock was dispersed the +stud ewes numbered about 1,000. These, passing into the hands of +flockmasters of New South Wales and Victoria, were the foundation of +many of the noted studs of to-day. The Victorian flocks, starting +from the Tasmanian, early competed with the island of their origin in +excellence, and, though Tasmania still maintains its reputation as +the home from which the studs of the other States are constantly +replenished, it has of late years gone largely into crossbreds. The +most noted studs, however, are still maintained undefiled, except that +the introduction of the American Vermont blood has been in some cases +cautiously tried, with results that have provoked much controversy. + +Other pioneers of the industry, the Rev. Samuel Marsden for one, +started with the same Spanish blood, crossed with the hardy and +prolific Indian ewe, but unlike Macarthur they found the temptations +of the fat stock market irresistible. Remembering the great price fat +wethers commanded in those early days, it must be admitted that the +temptation was considerable. Macarthur, however, by steadily rejecting +all mutton breeds and making a fine description of fleece his one +object, deserves grateful recognition as the founder of the Australian +merino. + +[Illustration: FAT CATTLE, CENTRAL QUEENSLAND] + +[Illustration: CATTLE COUNTRY, WEST MORETON] + +Although the settlement of Moreton Bay was started in 1824, it was +long before the pastoral industry made any progress in the territory +which is now Queensland. In that year Governor Brisbane sent Oxley +to explore Moreton Bay and report on its suitability for a convict +out-station. From information given by two white castaways living with +the blacks, he found the river which Cook in 1770 and Flinders ten +years later had failed to discover--though both, confident of its +existence, had spent days in the Bay searching for its embouchure. +Sheep and cattle were sent as supplies. But in a few years the +settlement was abandoned, the officials and prisoners returning to +New South Wales; and in 1842, when Moreton Bay was proclaimed a free +settlement, the Government live stock were dispersed by sale amongst +the settlers. Blacks were numerous and very hostile, and, though +cattle throve well, the country was found unsuitable for sheep, so +that expansion from the Moreton district was very slow. + +But already in 1827 one man had been favoured with a glimpse of what +is still regarded as the garden of Queensland. Allan Cunningham, +starting from the Hunter, had pushed steadily North for 500 miles till +he emerged from the broken highlands of New England on to the famous +Downs which he named after Sir Charles Darling. He was enraptured with +the country, which he described as clothed "with grasses and herbage +exhibiting an extraordinary luxuriance of growth." Yet it was thirteen +years before anyone took advantage of his discovery. To a later +generation acquainted with the great value of the lands, which as a +distinguished botanist Cunningham could not have failed to recognise, +this appears one of the most astounding facts in the history of +exploration. Many a time he must have discoursed to his friend Patrick +Leslie on the rich vision he had been privileged to look on, yet it +was not till 1840 that the latter with a small flock followed in his +footsteps. What increases the surprise at this apparently strange lack +of enterprise is that the year after Cunningham had found the Darling +Downs he visited Moreton Bay, and succeeded in crossing the range from +the coast by a gap since known by his name and reached the vicinity +of his old camp, thus demonstrating that the natural port of this rich +region was little over a hundred miles distant. Leslie, who settled in +the neighbourhood of where the flourishing town of Warwick now stands, +was rapidly followed by others who established the fine squattages +that have since become famous. Although a few sheep had previously +been introduced in the Moreton district, Leslie and his confreres must +be regarded as the fathers of sheep-farming in Queensland. + +Difficulties of carriage long retarded any attempt to occupy the +splendid territory farther West which Sir James Mitchell had explored +in 1846 and Kennedy had farther penetrated a year later, crossing +the Barcoo and discovering the Thomson River. Though the existence of +these vast rolling plains was known, the presumption that no industry +requiring a fair amount of labour could pay, handicapped with five +to six hundred miles of land carriage, checked any attempt to occupy +them. Nor was this unreasonable. The difficulties and uncertainties of +such an undertaking might well prompt hesitation. Yet, in view of +the rich returns from flocks elsewhere, it was impossible that +these solitudes should for very long await easier conditions. A few +adventurous spirits pushed out to these great undulating plains. Their +example was quickly followed. In the early sixties a general migration +westward began, and wherever water was met with the country was taken +up. In 1869 an Act was passed granting 21-year leases to applicants +who had taken up areas and stocked them to the extent of twenty-five +sheep or five cattle to the square mile. It was found that on these +Western pastures, rich with succulent grasses and saline shrubs +all the year round, and in winter abounding in herbage of many +descriptions, all stock grew and fattened amazingly. The climate, too, +falsified all predictions, and instead of converting the wool to hair, +which experts had prognosticated as the inevitable result of an ardent +summer, grew an excellent fleece of fine lustrous combing wool. A +frantic rush for country set in. Flocks and herds were hurried out by +jealous owners anxious to forestall one another in the scramble for +leases. In a few years the whole territory, except where absence of +water forbade settlement, was parcelled out in sheep and cattle runs. +It had not yet been recognised how country destitute of surface water +could be utilised. On these neglected areas are now many prosperous +sheep-runs, the pioneers little suspecting the inexhaustible supplies +awaiting the magic touch of the boring-rod to provide the abundant +streams they longed for. + +With such easy conditions of tenure and lands of unsurpassable quality +for grazing, it might naturally be expected that these pioneers +amassed easy fortunes. The falsification of such expectation is a +melancholy story. Though the cattle-men in many cases managed +to struggle on, the majority of the sheep-owners went under. The +difficulties were enormous. Railways had not yet penetrated the +country, though a small start had been made. Wool took from six to +nine months reaching the coast by bullock dray, and the carriage +of supplies to the station cost more than the goods themselves. +Frequently the next clip was awaiting carriage ere the previous one +had left the station. Wages were high, and all forms of labour scarce. +The quality of sheep, too, was poor, many of them being the culls from +Southern flocks, bought at high prices. The depression in the wool +market, with high rates of interest on borrowed money, strained the +pioneer's resources to breaking point, and in too many cases years of +strenuous endeavour and hardship ended in ruin. + +But brighter days were in store. As railways pushed out, the attention +of Victorian capitalists was attracted by the potentialities of +Western Queensland. The phenomenal gold production of Victoria had +produced a plethora of money seeking investment, which constituted +Melbourne the financial capital of Australia. This accumulated wealth, +after fructifying New South Wales, flowed into Queensland. A Victorian +invasion began. The knell of the shepherd had sounded, wire fences +taking his place. Sheep that had hitherto been run in flocks of 1,500 +to 2,000, tended during the day by a man and a dog and yarded at +night, were now turned into large paddocks by tens of thousands with +only a boundary rider to look to the fences. It was found by this +method that the carrying capacity of country was enormously increased. +Yarded sheep, driven to and fro twice daily, destroy more grass than +they can eat, whereas when left to themselves it is all utilised. The +smaller the paddocks, the less the sheep wander and the larger the +number that can be carried on a given area. It was found, too, that +stocking greatly improved the water. On the spongy surface of virgin +country, untrodden by any hoof, there was little "run" off the +surface after rain, but when hardened by the tread of stock the creeks +received a fairer share of the downpour. The best rams procurable +from the Darling Downs and noted Southern studs rapidly improved the +flocks. In 1873 wool rose to a price not touched for many years; a +boom in Queensland stations set in, and the remnant of the pioneers +who elected to do so sold out at prices that gave a rich though tardy +reward for long and toilsome enterprise. + +Although the general course of the industry has been one of great +prosperity, it has not been without its serious checks. A severe +drought throughout nearly the whole of Australia, culminating in +1902, inflicted terrible losses of both sheep and cattle. Waterholes +supposed to be permanent dried up; and pastures within reach of those +which proved permanent were trodden into a desert condition till the +stock were too weak to travel back to the surviving pasturage. The +outlook was so gloomy that almost universal ruin seemed impending. +It is sad to think that whilst stock were perishing in multitudes +abundant subterranean streams, flowing southward to discharge +uselessly in the Great Australian Bight, might have been available to +avert this national calamity. The uses of adversity have never been +more strikingly exemplified than by the number of artesian bores +put down since that hard experience. These, as the cost of sinking +decreases, are multiplying yearly. The artesian basin exists +throughout nearly three-fifths of Queensland, and whilst the origin +of these subterranean stores is still somewhat of a mystery they are +apparently inexhaustible. The supply and the depth at which water +is obtained vary considerably; the former runs as high as 3,000,000 +gallons per diem, and the latter averages about 1,600 feet. + +Whilst artesian boring has been prosecuted with commendable +enterprise, the storage of surface water on an extensive scale has not +yet received the attention it deserves. Many schemes have been mooted +for conserving a portion of the huge volume of water that in the rainy +season flows through regions which would gladly retain a share, to +waste itself in the Southern Ocean. Doubtless in the future a problem +of such fascination will attract the best engineering skill, and a +number of inland lakes will result. But that day may yet be distant. +One such scheme only need be noticed. The Diamantina River, which +in time of flood stretches out to many miles in breadth, flows +south-westward through several degrees of Western Queensland. At a +point known as Diamantina Gates it finds an exit through a narrow +gorge in a low range. Although never yet tested by accurate survey, +competent judges have surmised that a substantial dam at this spot +would throw back an amount of water which would constitute a veritable +inland sea. Other large rivers--the Thomson, Barcoo, Hamilton, +Georgina--also offer to the hydraulic engineer splendid opportunities +of winning distinction. + +In 1884 a notable change of land policy was adopted. The 1869 leases +were expiring, and it was recognised that the big squattages could +not longer be allowed to monopolise the country. Room was required for +smaller holdings. All available country was already occupied under +the 1869 leases, and, although under another Act 5,120 acres could be +acquired with conditions of improvement and residence, there was no +way of getting an area capable of carrying 10,000 sheep. There did +not exist a small squatting class. The Minister for Lands, Mr. C. +B. Dutton--himself a large squatter--recognised the desirability of +creating such a class, which would stand in the same relation to the +"squattocracy" that the yeomen of Britain do to the large landowners. +In granting a new lease to the original lessee, Dutton's Act required +him to surrender a portion of his run, from a half to a quarter +according to the length of time his lease had been running. A Land +Board independent of Ministerial control was appointed to arrange an +equitable division of the runs and to fix the rent of the new lease, +which was for fifteen years. Two years later this was increased to +twenty-one years, on condition of the lessee surrendering another +quarter of his area at the end of the fifteenth year. The portions +resumed from the old squattages were surveyed into areas up to 20,000 +acres and thrown open to selection. The old lessee--who regarded any +area under 400 square miles as a paltry holding and counted his crop +of calves by thousands and his yearly lambing increase by tens of +thousands--ridiculed the new departure, maintaining that any man must +starve on such an absurdly inadequate area as 20,000 acres. But +these sinister predictions did not deter selectors from testing the +question. At first grazing farms were only very gradually applied for, +but a few years' experience justified Mr. Dutton's expectations, and +a great demand set in, till now, as soon as opened to selection, there +is a keen competition for them. The difficulty is to survey them fast +enough to provide for requirements. The maximum area has since been +increased so that now as much as 60,000 acres can be held by an +individual, provided the total rent does not exceed £200. It is not +unusual for three or four grazing farmers to combine and manage the +combined leasehold as a co-partnership, which, although not provided +for in the Act, is sanctioned by the Land Court. + +[Illustration: HORSES AT GOWRIE, DARLING DOWNS] + +[Illustration: SHEEP AT GOWRIE, DARLING DOWNS] + +[Illustration: HORSES, WESTERN QUEENSLAND] + +[Illustration: FAT CATTLE, BURRANDILLA, CHARLEVILLE] + +A new Act in 1902 offered those who elected to take advantage of it +a fresh lease, at the expiration of the current one, of from ten to +forty-two years, according to classification; and farther resumptions +were made for closer settlement. The classification, which was decided +by the Land Court, was governed by the degree of remoteness from +railway and the demand for land in the neighbourhood. + +The low range of hills surrounding the Darling Downs encloses over +2,000,000 acres of land of a quality that invites the plough to +convert it into the granary of the State. As the railway to the New +South Wales border takes its rather serpentine course southwards, +coasting round many of the undulations to avoid cutting through them, +the traveller looks upon a land which he must recognise as capable +of maintaining a large farming population. What he actually saw till +quite recently was paddock after paddock of sheep on each side, then +a paddock of cattle and horses, and again more sheep. It was palpable +that this could not continue indefinitely. The railway built at the +cost of the general taxpayers had greatly increased the value of these +estates and rendered their working more profitable. The owners +of these flocks and herds had done good service to the State, and +deserved the most generous treatment. Successors of the original +pioneers, they had bred the stock that helped to occupy the West, and +had founded studs that enabled others to replenish their flocks and +herds from the purest sources. It was important above all things that +no legislative interference should harass men who deserved so well of +Queensland, and that no step should be taken to dispossess them which +could be suspected of any taint of harshness. In time, doubtless, they +would themselves have parcelled out their estates for tillage, but the +process would have been slow, the easy terms of payment possible to +a Government borrowing money at a low rate of interest not being +generally convenient to an individual, and time in the development of +a young country is important. Parliament therefore took the matter +in hand and decided that where possible these landholders should be +bought out on a valuation made by an independent tribunal. A number +of properties have been bought by the Government, cut up into farms of +from 80 acres upwards, and sold to farmers on liberal terms, payment +extending over twenty-five years. Mixed farming and dairying are the +chief purposes to which the land has been put, and busy townships +have sprung up at the railway stations where a few years ago the +stationmaster, his family, and an assistant porter formed the bulk of +the resident population. Breeding lambs for export is found to be +a profitable branch of the pastoral business on the Downs, and the +breeding of crossbreds is consequently increasing, the Lincoln or +Leicester being mated with the merino. Southdown and Romney rams have +also been tried, but the Lincoln cross has been generally preferred. +Crossbred lambs three to four months old bring 10s. in Brisbane, the +railage costing from 1s. to 1s. 3d. + +So far little mention has been made of cattle. It may be generally +stated that where country is suitable for sheep, or, more accurately +speaking, where they can be profitably run, cattle are only depastured +in very small herds. The coastal belt and the Northern Gulf region are +exclusively cattle country, and in the extreme West, although sheep +thrive excellently, the long carriage causes cattle to be preferred, +the expense of cattle management being much below that of sheep. The +product of these distant pastures travels on the hoof to market, the +Western cattle being noted for their great weight of flesh and the +distance they carry it without great waste. Most of the herds have +been improved to a high degree of excellence by importation of some +of the best blood in England, and high-class stud herds have been long +established in the different States from which drafts of herd bulls +are drawn as required at from about 10 to 15 guineas per head. + +With a population of little over half a million occupying a territory +of 670,500 square miles, it will be realised that the yearly cast of +"fats" greatly exceeds local requirements. The Southern States take a +large number. New South Wales and Victoria are the best customers, as, +with a combined population of roughly five times that of Queensland, +the total of their cattle is only slightly in excess of the Queensland +herd. South Australia is also a regular buyer of "fats." The "stores" +that go South to be fattened beyond the State are almost exclusively +bullocks of three to four years. Amongst the "fats" of ripe ages is +a proportion of dry cows, and a limited number of breeders and mixed +cattle also find sale with Southern buyers. But these outlets would +have been quite inadequate for the absorption of the Queensland annual +surplus had not meat-preserving come to the rescue of the stock-owner. +Before freezing works were established, boiling down was the one +resource, the tallow, hides, and sheepskins giving a meagre return, +whilst the valuable carcass went to the pigs. The late Sir Arthur +Hodgson, a leading pastoralist, used to relate with humorous comments +his experiences with a first draft of sheep from his Darling Downs +station (Eton Vale), brought to Brisbane to be boiled down at the +Kangaroo Point works. During the process the owner--educated at Eton, +and subsequently a Minister of the Crown in Queensland--went round +daily with a handcart selling the legs of mutton at sixpence apiece. +Such commercial enterprise has long fallen into desuetude. + +To bring the surplus meat of Australia within reach of the eager +millions of Europe has not been an easy problem, but it has at length +been fairly solved by freezing the carcass, though much has yet to be +done in discovering the best method of distribution of so perishable +an article and its proper treatment from the freezing chamber to the +spit. The various works buy cattle at about 18s. to 20s. per 100 lb., +the weight of bullocks averaging about 750 lb., though many mobs, +notably the huge beasts from the West, go as much as 200 lb. beyond +this. The works are also buyers of fat sheep, a 50-lb. wether two or +three months after shearing bringing from 9s. to 10s. In the six years +1901-6 the exports of frozen meat from Australia totalled 353,514,135 +lb. of beef and 371,692,090 lb. of mutton. + +An occupation the profits of which are capable of such large additions +by increasing numbers is apt to foster a spirit of gambling. In a +season of bountiful rainfall it is almost impossible to over-stock +country, and owners too often take the risk of availing themselves +to the full of Nature's prodigality. Such a policy is most dangerous. +When the time of more limited rainfall comes the owner of over-stocked +pastures pays a heavy toll for his improvidence, whereas he who has +regulated his numbers on the assumption of fair average seasons comes +scathless through the time of trial. + +Dairying comes more within the department of agriculture, as crops +must be grown for feed, the dairy-farmer being necessarily the +occupant of a very limited area. The benefit dairying has been to the +small stock-owner can hardly be exaggerated. In old days the owner of +a herd of 50 to 100 head could look only for a poor living, working +for wages for part of the year whilst his family looked after the +herd. Now he is a rich man. The monthly cheque from the creamery for +a man milking 25 cows easily reaches an average of £20. Except in +the few cases where the business has been conducted in a large way +by capitalists, it is mostly an enterprise for small men. The work is +unremitting, the herd having to be milked twice a day, but the rewards +are sure and ample. Butter and cheese factories have sprung up like +mushrooms in the last few years, there being now 79 in the State. The +yield of butter for 1907 totalled 22,789,158 lb. As returns depend on +the amount of butter-fat produced, owners have converted the ordinary +breeds of cattle to good dairy herds by plentiful introductions of +the true milking strains--Jersey, Alderney, Ayrshire, Holstein, and +milking Shorthorn. + +Many will probably wonder how cattle grazed over an area of many +hundred square miles of country, which in the outside districts is +probably unfenced, can be mustered or even kept on the run. Cattle +are docilely subservient to custom, and once broken into "camps" will +voluntarily seek repose in these shelters. On a well-managed station +the crack of a whip will start any mob within hearing trotting for +their camp, formed in a clump of shade on the creek, or, if shade is +available, on some better galloping ground. Others, seeing them on the +move, head towards the same well-known resort, there to pass the day +till the shadows lengthen, only moving off in the cool of the evening +to feed. If they are being mustered for branding, the cows with calves +are "cut out" and brought to the stockyard to be dealt with; if for a +butcher to select a draft of fats, these only are taken and delivered +either on the spot or where arranged. At the general muster, which is +only made every few years, as the cattle are brought in they are put +through a lane in the yard, the long lock at the tip of the tail being +cut short; they are thus easily distinguished on the run, so that +only long-tails are brought in subsequently. A "bang-tail" muster is +recorded in the station books, and, as all sales and other disposals +are carefully noted and an allowance made of from 3 to 5 per cent. for +deaths, it is not necessary to repeat an operation taxing horseflesh +so severely at nearer intervals than three to five years. Stock-horses +become very clever, and will turn and twist with a beast through the +mob, the rider's whip playing on either side till the animal is run +out. Large tailing yards are maintained in different parts of the run +to avoid much driving, and at weaning time the weaners are herded for +a month or six weeks and yarded at night, which has a quieting +effect they never forget. A well-managed herd is noted for absence of +rowdyism amongst its members. On a well-improved station the bullocks, +heifers, and weaners will be in separate paddocks, and at a certain +season the bulls are taken out of the herd and put in a paddock by +themselves. + +[Illustration: WOOL TEAMS, WYANDRA, WARREGO DISTRICT] + +[Illustration: HAULING CEDAR, ATHERTON, NORTH QUEENSLAND] + +Much has been written of the Australian squatter's life, both in fact +and in fiction; yet the charm it exercises remains unexplained. The +invigorating influence of perfect health doubtless has something to +do with it, as well as the utter freedom and escape from all +conventionality. Much of the bushman's time is passed in the saddle, +and his dress consists of moleskin trousers, the sleeves of his shirt +rolled up to the elbow, and a soft shady hat. He rises at daybreak and +after an early breakfast starts his day's work. As frequently he +will not return to the homestead till nightfall, his lunch is in his +saddle-pouch, to be enjoyed in the shade by some waterhole, where he +boils the quart "billy" that dangles all day from a dee on his saddle, +and makes the inevitable brew of tea. Probably he has companions and +is mustering a paddock half the size of an English county; bringing +the sheep to the drafting yards, it may be to draft out the fats from +a mob of several thousand wethers, or perhaps to take lambs from +their mothers for weaning, or to separate the sexes in a mob of mixed +weaners, or to bring sheep to the shed for shearing. + +Shearing is of all times the busiest. At this season men, each usually +riding one horse and leading another packed with his swag, roam the +country in gangs and undertake the work at contract rates, which of +late have been raised from 20s. per 100 to 24s. There will be from +ten to forty men on the shearing board, according to the size of the +flock; and in most of the large sheds men write beforehand to bespeak +a stand. Shearers earn great wages; a good man will do from 100 to +200 per day, though the latter number is of course exceptional. The +introduction of shearing machines has helped to increase the shearer's +daily tally. A host of other men are employed in the shed. Boys gather +the fleeces which they throw on a table where they are skirted, the +trimmings being divided into "locks and pieces" and "bellies," and +the rolled fleece is thrown on another long table at which the +wool-classer presides. He is an expert, and orders each to its +respective bin, according to quality--judged by condition, length of +staple, and brightness. From the various bins so graded men feed the +wool-press worked by two wool-pressers, who turn out, sew, and brand +the bales, of an average weight of from 3 to 4 cwt. Wagons are waiting +to convey these to the railway, horse and bullock teams being almost +equally used. A whip cracks like a pistol shot, and with lowered +heads, the bullocks straining at the yoke, the first team draws slowly +off to the incomprehensible objurgations of the driver, an incredible +number of bales in three tiers piled on the wagon and securely roped. + +But this bustling activity is not confined to the shed. Shorn sheep +have to be returned to their paddocks, fresh mobs brought in, and the +morrow's shearing housed in the shed to escape the night's dew or a +chance shower. From daylight to dark during this harvest time everyone +is at full stretch. The shearers have their own cook and "find" +themselves, sharing together in a general mess; and as they earn good +money they "do themselves" really well, denying themselves no delicacy +obtainable at the station store. The whistle sounds at 6 p.m.; the +last fleece has been gathered, and the men stroll to their camp to +discard sodden shirts and moleskins and clean up generally before +supper. The twilight is short, night chasing it swiftly from the +world. The weird charm of a Queensland night in the bush penetrates +with a calm satisfaction difficult to analyse. It is, let us suppose, +spring or summer, and the stars appear to hang low from the deep clear +indigo vault. The silence is unbroken, appealing to some indefinable +emotion. No cry of beast or bird ruffles the stillness, save perhaps +the faint tinkle of the bell-bird or the solemn plaint of the mopoke +from some distant scrub. The men are sitting outside their hut +smoking, or with tired limbs stretched on the short dry grass lying +full length drawing the quiet night into their blood, its cool +soft breath soothing the fatigue of the arduous day's toil. Very +entertaining to a listener would be the symposium of experiences +and amazing political theories of these rough good-humoured toilers, +whilst in the pauses one might perhaps enjoy the fantasia executed by +the musician of the party on his concertina. + +Life at the homestead of many of the old-established stations differs +little from that of a wealthy country home in other parts of the +world. Froude in his "Oceana" draws a diverting picture of his +anticipations of a bush home and its reality. He had pictured a +log-hut in the wilderness, and was taken to Ercildoune, where he was +amazed to find a mansion amidst splendid gardens, with conservatories, +elaborate drawing-rooms, well-dressed ladies, and all the +appurtenances and customs of refined life. Expecting chops, damper, +and tea, the culinary triumphs of a skilful _chef_ would strike an +author in quest of the barbaric life with a keen reproach. Had Mr. +Froude visited Queensland, he might have found something more suitable +for literary treatment. Although in the older settled districts, +especially on the Darling Downs, the lessees live in comfortable, +well-furnished homes, many bush homesteads are still very primitive. +The farther a station is from the railway the more the owner is +inclined to dispense with the superfluous, till in many cases he +restricts himself to the absolutely necessary. But every year sees +an improvement in this respect. Hospitality is unlimited, any visitor +being sure of a welcome and a night's lodging; he turns his horses +into his host's paddock, and, if there are ladies of the household, +his evening is enlivened with music and cultured talk. + +Some of the more gigantic enterprises are conducted by squatting +companies, the sheep numbering several hundred thousand and the cattle +up to thirty or forty thousand. But these stupendous figures need not +deter small investors. In the purchase of a station the goodwill is +an asset to be paid for, and in many cases this is valued at a high +figure. The selector who takes up a grazing farm pays nothing for +goodwill, and gets into what is possibly a going concern from the +outset with no other payment than the year's rent and the value of the +existing improvements erected by the former lessee before the area was +resumed from his holding. It may happen that the country is bare of +all improvements, in which case he has to fence it before he gets a +lease, his neighbours being liable for half the cost of this work, +which forms their common boundary. He pays a higher rent than the +representative of the pioneer who created the goodwill which has +descended by purchase. What more desirable opening can be found for a +young man of limited capital than a farm that will carry 10,000 sheep +or 1,500 cattle? He leads the healthiest life in the world, and, +although it is full of hard work and includes what would be thought +hardships in the home he comes from, a manly youth takes the latter +with a frolic welcome, and if he works hard he also plays hard when +the occasional races, cricket carnival, and festivities in the nearest +township or perhaps at some neighbouring station give the occasion. +But above all things it is important that he should not invest till +he has gained experience. There is no difficulty in acquiring this, as +stockowners are without exception glad of the assistance of a willing +young fellow who accepts the knowledge acquired and perhaps a trifling +salary as an equivalent for his time and work. After a couple of years +of this novitiate as a "Jackeroo," he will be equipped for facing the +future on his own account, which with ordinary steadfastness, energy, +and forethought he may regard with confidence. + +[Illustration: DAIRY CATTLE ON DARLING DOWNS] + +[Illustration: SHEEP, JIMBOUR, DARLING DOWNS] + +[Illustration: HORSES, IVANHOE STATION, WARREGO] + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +AGRICULTURE IN QUEENSLAND. + + Tripartite Division of Queensland.--Climate.--Development of + Agriculture in Queensland.--Wide Range of Products.--Early + History.--Exclusion of Farmers from Richest Lands.--Origin of + Mixed Farming.--Extension of Industry Westward.--Inexperience + of Early Settlers.--Cotton-growing.--Chief Crops.--Dairying. + --Cereal-growing.--Farming in the Tropics.--Farming on the + Downs.--Farming in the West.--Irrigation.--Conservation of + Water.--Timber Industry.--Land Selection.--Assistance Given by + the Government.--Immigration.--Attractions of Queensland. + --Defenders of Hearth and Home. + + +Situated between 10½ degrees and 29 degrees South latitude and 138 +degrees and 153½ degrees East longitude, Queensland covers 670,500 +square miles, or 429,120,000 acres--greater than the combined areas +of France, Germany, and Austro-Hungary. Of this immense territory 53·5 +per cent. lies within the Tropics, and 46·5 per cent. within the South +Temperate Zone. + +The State may be divided into three belts--the tropical, stretching +from Cape York to the 21st parallel in the neighbourhood of Mackay; +the sub-tropical, between Mackay and Gladstone, about 24 degrees +South; and the temperate, from Gladstone to the 29th parallel on the +border of New South Wales. + +These three zones lend themselves, in turn, to a tripartite +subdivision of littoral, tableland, and Western plain. Running +generally in a North and South direction, and distant from the Eastern +coast 30 to 100 miles, the Great Dividing Range separates the littoral +from a series of tablelands having an altitude of 3,000 ft. at the two +extremes, with a lesser elevation between Herberton in the North and +the Darling Downs in the South. Almost imperceptibly the intermediate +plateau sinks into a vast plain, which extends westward for hundreds +of miles and into South Australia. + +The mountain barrier between coast and tableland, though rarely +exceeding 4,000 ft. in height, is still sufficiently lofty to cause +the clouds of the Pacific to deposit most of their moisture on the +Eastern slopes. The precipitation in this coastal belt ranges from +a yearly average of 135 in. at Geraldton (at the foot of the +Bellenden-Ker Mountains, in the North) to 40 in. between the Tropic of +Capricorn and Brisbane, with a heavier fall wherever the mountains +are in close proximity to the ocean. On the Western side of the Great +Divide the rainfall decreases from 40 in. to about 30 in. at the +Western limit of the tableland, and, gradually diminishing with +increasing distance from the seaboard, averages only about 10 in. in +the extreme South-west. + +Temperature, rainfall, and soil necessary for the successful +cultivation of almost every known crop are to be found in Queensland. +Pastoral pursuits and mining have been the principal wealth-producers +in the past; but steadily agriculture is coming to the front, and, +long before the present generation has passed away, will occupy first +place among the primary industries. That it has not done so already +is due partly to the comparative youth of the country and its small +population, and partly to its rich natural pastures and vast mineral +resources. For many years the fascination of a pastoral life and +the search for gold, with the hope of winning fortunes in those +avocations, proved more attractive than the regular, uneventful life +of the farmer, with its prospect of a competence; but the old-time +glamour of grazing and mining is passing away, and the independence +of the farmer is now preferred to the lot of station hand or working +miner. + +On the inestimable value of a rural population to the permanent +well-being of a nation Mr. Roosevelt, the late President of the United +States, lays stress in these pregnant words:-- + + "I warn my countrymen that the great recent progress made in + city life is not a full measure of our civilisation; for + our civilisation rests at bottom on the wholesomeness, + the attractiveness, and the completeness, as well as the + prosperity, of life in the country. The men and women on the + farms stand for what is fundamentally best and most needed in + our national life. Upon the development of country life rests + ultimately our ability, by methods of farming requiring the + highest intelligence, to continue to feed and clothe the + hungry nations; to supply the city with fresh blood, clean + bodies, and clear brains that can endure the terrific strain + of modern life; we need the development of men in the open + country, who will be in the future, as in the past, the stay + and strength of the nation in time of war, and its guiding and + controlling spirit in time of peace." + +Too large a proportion of the people of Australia is already +congregated in the capital cities on the seaboard, and this +centripetal tendency constitutes one of the problems most difficult +of solution in our young communities, as it is proving in the older +countries of the world. Here, however, we are not confronted with the +obstacle of high-priced land, and no effort is being spared to turn +the tide of settlement to the true source of national virility and +prosperity--the land. + +The suitability of the State for agriculture is amply demonstrated +by the condition of those engaged in that industry, for there is no +considerable class in the community so prosperous. Comfortable homes, +well-stocked farms, overflowing barns, and other evidence of labour +richly rewarded, bear witness to this fact. The abundance of a series +of fat years more than compensates for the loss of crops and stock +in occasional years of drought, and these losses it is possible to +minimise by devoting attention to afforestation, the conservation of +water, irrigation, and the storage of fodder. + +Diversity of products is to be expected in a country stretching +through 18½ degrees of latitude, possessing an infinite variety +of soils, and divided into a hot and humid coastal belt, an elevated +tableland with cool climate and moderate rainfall, and a huge plain +with light rainfall and dry, invigorating atmosphere. There is +probably no country in the world with so wide an agricultural range. +To mention crops which can be, and are being, grown with gratifying +results would be to set forth in detail nearly every crop of economic +value found in the torrid or the temperate zone. Wherever Nature is +so generous with her gifts there must be accompanying drawbacks in +the shape of vegetable and insect pests, but, by the application +of intelligence and industry, the farmers of Queensland are able to +combat these petty foes. + +Some of the principal objects of culture have a remarkably extensive +distribution. Citrus fruits, fodder crops and artificial grasses, +pumpkins and melons, flourish in every part of the State. Maize is +very prolific throughout the littoral and on the tableland. Sugar-cane +and tropical fruits grow luxuriantly on all the coastal lands. Most +of the fruits of the British Isles and Continental Europe are at home +everywhere except on the coast north of the Tropic of Capricorn, and +reach perfection on the elevated lands of the Darling Downs. Cereals +and root crops are produced in the Southern and Central West districts +equal in quality and yield to the crops in the Southern States and +oversea countries. + +"Agriculture," says Professor Robert Wallace, of Edinburgh University, +"is one of the oldest of human arts, dating from long before the dawn +of history. The savage who lives on the roots and fruits he finds +ready to his hand stands lower in the scale than the huntsman living +by the chase. The herdsman leading a nomadic life belongs to a higher +stage of human culture; but civilisation in any full sense only begins +amongst men with settled habitations, who till the soil for their +sustenance." Judged by this standard, Queensland has passed through +the evolutionary stages. Eighty-five years ago, when the first British +settlers landed on the shores of Moreton Bay, the country was sparsely +inhabited by savages of the lowest type, dependent upon native +roots and fruits and the chase for a subsistence. For a quarter of a +century, settlement on the coast was confined to a few convicts and +military guards stationed at Brisbane and Ipswich, and a handful of +free settlers. In the year 1840 some adventurous spirits, searching +for sheep country west of the Main Range, found themselves on the +magnificent tableland which Allan Cunningham had discovered in 1827, +and which, during the intervening years, had remained untrodden by the +foot of a white man. Soon the whole of the Darling Downs was parcelled +out into large sheep stations. Agriculture, until the advent of small +selectors many years later, was only represented by garden patches +of cereals, vegetables, and fruit trees, grown for the use of the +station-owners and their employees. + +On the Eastern side of the Range the industry was in almost as +backward a state before the arrival of the first shipment of +agriculturists in the ship "Fortitude" in January, 1849. Gangs of +convicts felled the scrub on the banks of the Brisbane River adjacent +to the barracks; with the hoe they planted maize among the stumps and +tree-trunks under the constant surveillance of armed guards, and, +when the corn was ripe, dragged it in carts to the windmill on +Wickham terrace, still a conspicuous landmark, though now used as an +observatory. There the maize was ground into "hominy," an important +item in the menu of those days. + +A band of Moravian missionaries settled at what is now known as +Nundah, and they and the majority of the "Fortitude" immigrants were +the real pioneers of agriculture in the infant settlement. + +Land orders, free immigration, and the discovery of gold were all +factors in the development of the country, and the demand for farm +lands led to the unlocking of areas previously given over to grazing. +The pastoralists regarded agriculturists with disfavour, and in some +cases with open antagonism. By the exercise of "pre-emptive rights," +which their influence in the Legislature secured for them, they +converted into freehold large blocks of the best land, as well as +strategic areas by the possession of which they were able to close +against settlement immense tracts preeminently suitable for farming. +This was particularly the case in the settled districts of Moreton, +Darling Downs, Wide Bay, and Burnett, and to a lesser degree in +Maranoa. To such an extent was the right of preemption used that many +squatters seriously crippled themselves, the price paid being too high +for grazing to be remunerative on their freehold lands. + +[Illustration: HARVESTING WHEAT, EMU VALE, NEAR WARWICK] + +When, in after years, it would have been to their advantage to +subdivide and sell to farmers, it was not in their power to give +titles. In the course of time railways were built through some of +these large estates, but their earning power was seriously hampered +by country capable of supporting a very large agricultural population +being devoted to pasturing sheep and cattle. As the most satisfactory +solution of the difficulty, successive Governments have repurchased +a number of properties at a cost exceeding a million sterling, and +resold them in small areas to farmers, with highly gratifying results +both to the settlers and to the State. + +The immediate effect of the exclusive policy adopted by the +pastoralists, however, was to force many selectors to take up land in +dense scrubs on steep mountain slopes and in river pockets which were +useless to stockowners. They had literally to hew their homes out +of the jungle. Having no roads, they were thrown upon their own +resources, and were obliged to live very largely upon the produce of +their farms. Erecting a rude makeshift fence around a clearing of a +few acres, the "cocky" or "cockatoo farmer," as he was contemptuously +styled by those who regarded him as an interloper, planted maize and +pumpkins among the remains of the scrub. Despite the ravages of bird +and beast, he persevered, until at last success began to crown his +efforts. A cow or two provided him with milk and butter, any surplus +butter being sold to the storekeepers in the towns which quickly +followed in the wake of settlement. Lucerne, sorghum, and other fodder +crops formed part of his husbandry, live stock multiplied, and thus +commenced that system of mixed farming to which thousands of the +farmers of Queensland owe their prosperity. The coming of neighbours +and the making of roads rendered life less lonely. With increasing +prosperity, improved implements and methods were adopted. The plough +succeeded the hoe; the harvester or the reaper and binder took the +place of sickle and scythe; and the slab humpy or bark hut gave way to +the comfortable farmhouse. + +Though these early selectors were driven into almost inaccessible +scrub, they were at least within the region of heavy rainfall, and, +even where some distance from permanent streams, suffered little from +drought. Settlers who went over the Range, profiting by the experience +of the pastoral pioneers regarding the vicissitudes of climate, +avoided the mistake of relying upon a single crop, or, to use a +homely phrase, of putting all their eggs in one basket--an error which +brought ruin to thousands upon thousands of the people who, between +thirty and forty years ago, flocked from the Atlantic seaboard to the +arid regions of America, west of the Mississippi. Mixed farming became +the general rule on the further side of the Main Range, so that, if +wheat and maize failed, the farmers had their flocks and herds +and their shearing cheques as a standby until the next harvest was +garnered. + +It is sometimes said with scorn that there is comparatively little +real farming in Queensland; but the conditions peculiar to +settlement in the State are responsible for the trend of agricultural +development. In the United States and Canada, the flood of immigration +and the part played by the great railway companies as land-owners and +promoters of settlement to provide traffic for their railways led +to the creation of small holdings, which, in turn, led to intense +cultivation of field and orchard crops. In Queensland, immigration has +never been conducted on an extensive scale, and, indeed, for over a +decade almost ceased. There was no great demand for land, and, as the +mistaken belief long prevailed that the quantity of arable land was +small, the area of so-called agricultural farms was made sufficiently +large to enable a man to make a living from stock-raising, dairying, +and pig-breeding. Field labourers being scarce and stock cheap, the +farmer's aim has rather been to grow feed for his stock than crops for +human consumption. He has followed the line of least resistance, so +using his land as to carry on his operations with family labour and a +little casual assistance during the busy seasons. + +Events have justified this mixed farming from the point of view of +the farmer, and doubtless the monthly returns from dairying will cause +most of the farmers of Southern and Central Queensland to rely chiefly +upon that industry so long as high prices continue, and to look to +pig-breeding and lamb-fattening as subsidiary branches. But for the +swelling tide of newcomers the supplies of rich scrub, alluvial flat, +and volcanic downs country must sooner or later prove inadequate. +Indeed, within the last few years settlers have been turning their +attention to land which was once regarded as inferior. From the +lighter soils of plain and upland larger and more certain crops of +grain are being won, and on these lands dairying will take second +place to cereal production. + +Since an enlightened Legislature has resumed many millions of acres +previously held under pastoral lease, and repurchased large estates in +districts enjoying the advantages of railway communication, there +has been no need to go far afield, and settlement has been chiefly +confined to the lands adjacent to the rivers and railways in the +coastal belt, on the Darling Downs, and, of recent years, in the +Burnett district. + +Still, within the last thirty years, from one cause or another, groups +of settlers have made their homes far beyond those limits. Thus the +wheat lands of Maranoa were settled when there was no farming more +than a few miles to the west of Toowoomba. Over eighteen hundred years +ago Tacitus wrote of our Saxon forefathers: "They live apart, each by +himself, as woodside, plain, or fresh spring attracts him." And +this racial characteristic is strong in many of their descendants in +Queensland. Better results and greater profits might have accrued from +concentration, but the wonderful development of the British +Empire owes much to this centrifugal impulse and to the spirit of +independence and self-reliance which it has fostered; and as the flag +has followed the adventurer in so many parts of the globe, so are the +scattered pioneers of our Western lands nuclei around whom settlement +is gradually gathering. + +To people coming for the most part from the mother country, experience +constituted no safe guide to the agricultural possibilities of their +new home in the South. Naturally, mistakes were made and time +and money lost before they discovered which crops were the most +profitable, and on what kind of land those crops could be grown with +greatest certainty of success. + +When Dr. Lang induced the "Fortitude" immigrants to cast in their lot +with the Moreton Bay settlement, in whose welfare he took so deep an +interest, his desire was to establish the cultivation of cotton, to +which he believed the climate and soil were specially adapted. But, +despite the heavy crops produced on the river flats, cotton did not +prove remunerative until, after the outbreak of the American Civil +War in 1861, the Lancashire spinners were reduced to such straits +that they gladly paid high prices for all that could be obtained from +Queensland. The product was of excellent quality, but the cost of +picking precluded competition with countries where cheap labour was +plentiful, and, with the return to normal conditions in the United +States after the termination of the war, cotton passed almost out +of cultivation, and has never since become a crop of commercial +importance. An effort was made some years back to resuscitate the +industry by the offer of a Government bonus upon manufactured piece +goods. The bounty was earned by a mill at Ipswich, but the industry +did not long survive the stoppage of the bonus. Since the drought +of 1902 cotton has again been grown, principally in West Moreton +and North Queensland, as a subsidiary crop, and farmers have been +encouraged to extend their operations by the recent offer of a +bounty by the Commonwealth; but, until machinery takes the place of +hand-picking, farmers are likely to prefer crops which are not subject +to competition with the cheap labour of other lands. + +The first European colonists in America found there two valuable +native products--maize and tobacco. Australia, on the other hand, +presented a virgin field to the agriculturist. Like the rest of the +Commonwealth, Queensland, blessed with the richest natural pastures, +possesses no indigenous food plants of proved economic value. The +early settlers naturally availed themselves of the wealth of native +grasses and edible shrubs, and became graziers. When a commencement +was made with agriculture, farmers sowed the crops to which they had +been accustomed in Great Britain. Though these grew well, it was soon +found that they were, on the whole, better adapted to the elevated +downs than to the forcing climate on the coast. Maize, sugar-cane, and +the fruits of the tropics, on the other hand, revelled in the sunshine +and moist atmosphere of the seaboard. + +The farmer's first consideration is how he may utilise his land to the +best advantage. The most profitable crops are those for which there +is a world-wide demand but only a limited area of production, and +therefore little competition for the grower; or, alternatively, crops +which, by reason of natural advantages, he can produce more abundantly +and at less cost than his competitors. Next in value are crops for +which he has a monopoly in a limited but protected market, or enjoys +natural advantages which give him a partial monopoly in such a market. +Of less value, but still profitable, are crops which he can place on +the market as cheaply as his rivals. + +In the first-mentioned category the Queensland farmer has butter, +cheese, hams, and bacon. With good stock, cheap land, unrivalled +pastures, and a climate which permits production to go on +uninterruptedly from January to December, Queensland is most +favourably situated, and farmers have not been slow to profit by their +natural advantages. + +Large as are the present dimensions of the dairying industry, they are +small compared with the possibilities of expansion. Already the value +of butter, cheese, and milk is well over £1,000,000 per annum, the +butter export alone being worth considerably more than half that +sum. The export has multiplied tenfold in the last six years; and, as +Queensland is the leading cattle State, there is every justification +for believing that in dairy produce she will soon become one of the +principal exporting States of the Commonwealth. + +[Illustration: SURPRISE CREEK CASCADE, CAIRNS RAILWAY] + +So late as twenty years ago, much of the butter consumed in Queensland +came from the Southern States. The local product was inferior in +quality, although an agreeable change from the imported salted butter. +The passage of the protective tariff of 1888 gave a great impetus +to the production of butter and cheese. A heavy impost was placed on +dairy produce, and the Government lent further aid to the industry by +sending experts through the farming districts in charge of travelling +dairies. Valuable instruction was given; the cream separator came +into general use, and there was soon a noticeable improvement in +both butter and cheese. Factories sprang into existence in every +agricultural centre, and by degrees the farmers became suppliers of +cream instead of manufacturers of butter. Speedily production overtook +the local consumption, importations ceased, and manufacturers began +to look oversea for a market for their surplus stocks. Difficulties +at once arose in connection with refrigerated space and freight rates. +Regular shipments and rapid transport involved transhipment at +Sydney from the coastal steamers, increased expense, and risk of +deterioration. A State subsidy induced first one and then another +shipping company to make Brisbane its terminal port in Australia, and +to provide refrigerated chambers for butter at reduced freights; and +now Queensland, in respect of these matters, is on precisely the same +footing as the other States. + +On the first appearance of Queensland butter in London, lower prices +were obtainable than were paid for other brands with an established +reputation, and some dissatisfaction was expressed by buyers on +account of variations in quality. To remedy this, legislation was +passed providing for Government inspection and grading of all butter +intended for export. Whether grading and price do or do not stand in +the relations of cause and effect, it is beyond dispute that it is +only since the initiation of the system that Queensland butter has +been on a parity with the butter of the Southern States and New +Zealand, and the general standard is undoubtedly higher than in +pre-grading days. + +Coincident with the improvement in the quality of the butter, a great +change for the better has taken place in the dairy herds. Good milking +strains have been introduced, and more attention is paid to the +feeding of the cows, with the result that it is by no means uncommon +for the milk from one cow to bring as much as £8 or £9 a year. + +The tariff of 1888 and the educative policy of successive Governments +have also been largely responsible for the establishment of the allied +industry of bacon and ham curing on a firm basis, and local brands are +favourably known in many parts of the world. + +Under the heading of crops for which our farmers enjoy a monopoly in +a limited but protected market--or natural advantages which are +equivalent to a partial monopoly--are sugar, maize, tomatoes, tropical +and citrus fruits, and cigar tobacco. The Commonwealth tariff gives +Queensland a practical monopoly in Australia for sugar. She has a +virtual monopoly for tropical fruits, being the only State in which +these are produced in excess of local requirements. The warmer climate +and earlier crop give her temporary command of the Southern markets +for citrus fruits, tomatoes, maize, and a number of minor products, +before they mature in the cooler South, an advantage that will extend +in time to many other crops, with the increasing interchange arising +from interstate free trade. + +Chief among products which can be placed as cheaply on the market as +in other countries are the cereals. Queensland has all the essentials +of a great grain-producing country. Her name does not yet figure +among the list of exporters of foodstuffs, but the reasons for her +backwardness are not far to seek. + +At the close of 1908 the number of people in the State, scattered over +its 670,500 square miles of territory, was only 558,000--little more +than the population of Sydney or Melbourne, and less than that of +several second-class cities in the mother country. Probably not more +than ten per cent. of the people are engaged in farming, but, acre for +acre and man for man, Queensland compares favourably with countries +that are regarded as primarily agricultural. The lands most sought +after have been scrub, deep alluvial flats, and black and chocolate +loams; and, until recently, it was on land of this kind that most of +the wheat and barley was grown. Heavy crops were harvested, as a +rule, but the results were not uniformly satisfactory, and it is now +recognised that these highly fertile lands are better suited for other +forms of cultivation than the growth of cereals. For several years, +incoming selectors--many Southern wheat farmers from preference--have +been settling to the west of the heavy Downs country on the lighter +soils of ridge and plain. From these lands, of which Queensland has a +practically unlimited supply, but which the settlers of twenty or even +ten years ago regarded as poor, more and more of the wheat crop is now +coming. With less labour and at less expense than on the heavy soils, +the farmer has greater certainty of a payable yield. + +Sugar has first place among agricultural products from Port Douglas +to the Mary River, followed by maize and the luscious fruits of the +tropics. From Maryborough to the Tweed, maize takes precedence of +sugar. Crops of less importance are potatoes, pumpkins, citrus fruits, +pineapples, and bananas. In the Central and Southern divisions of the +coastal belt, where dairying is the chief industry, large areas are +under fodder crops and permanent grasses. From the Northern section +of the littoral, thousands of bunches of bananas are shipped weekly +to the South. Mangoes and pineapples are also sent South in very +considerable quantities. Citrus fruits and tomatoes ripen at least +two months earlier in North Queensland than in New South Wales and +Victoria, and this fact has led to an important and profitable trade +in these commodities being opened up with Sydney and Melbourne. The +spices and food and other economic plants of the tropics grow to +perfection north of Mackay. Cigar tobacco of good quality is being +grown in small quantities in several parts of the North, and the +Commonwealth bounty and the willingness of manufacturers to take +the leaf should lead in time to the bulk of the cigars consumed +in Australia being made from Queensland leaf. Despite the heat and +humidity of the climate, dairying is being carried on with success as +far north as Cairns, and at Atherton on the hinterland it promises to +become an important industry. + +Except on the Darling Downs, progress on the tableland has been +retarded until a comparatively recent date through the land being +locked up in pastoral leaseholds. At Atherton in the North and on +the Burnett lands in the South, however, agricultural settlement is +proceeding by leaps and bounds. Following the usual practice on scrub +land, maize and grasses are the principal objects of culture, as they +can be planted among the fallen timber and converted into milk long +before the land can be put under the plough. + +The Darling Downs, famous for their beauty and fertility, well deserve +their title of "Garden of Queensland." Other districts, notably +Atherton and the Burnett, have as good land, and the latter may +have an equal area; but nowhere can there be seen 4,000,000 acres of +splendid agricultural country requiring so little labour to bring it +under cultivation. Far beyond the horizon stretch these fine lands, +formerly clothed with nutritious natural grasses, but now passing into +cultivation and dotted over with prosperous homesteads. More than 70 +per cent. of the wheat, oats, and barley of Queensland comes from the +Downs, which are capable of supporting a population far larger than +the whole State now contains. Shipments of malting barley grown on +the Downs attracted such favourable notice in England a few years +back that offers were made to buy large quantities, and modern and +well-equipped malting houses have since been built at Toowoomba and +Warwick by a leading firm of English maltsters. Oats are grown for +hay, no grain being ground into meal. There is an increasing tendency, +founded on experience, to look to the lighter soils for cereal +production, and to put the heavier volcanic soils of the Eastern Downs +to uses for which they are better adapted. To dairying much of the +prosperity of the Downs farmers is due. Butter and cheese factories +have been erected every few miles along the railway line, and the +number of cream-cans awaiting transport on every platform bear +striking testimony to the importance of the industry. Most of the +fruits of Northern and Southern Europe flourish, and the many fine +orchards between Stanthorpe and the New South Wales border are giving +handsome returns to their fortunate owners. In the neighbourhood of +Texas, to the west of Warwick, pipe tobacco of fine flavour is being +cultivated. The extension of the railway from Warwick to Goondiwindi +has rendered available additional areas suitable for this crop, and +circumstances favour the creation of a great industry. + +The boundless plains of the West, where the annual rainfall varies +from 30 inches to 10 inches, are the seat of the pastoral industry, +and agriculture is still in its infancy. In the vicinity of Roma, on +the Southern and Western Railway, wheat is the staple crop. Further +West, on river banks and adjacent to artesian bores, vegetables, +grapes, and oranges are grown. The oranges at Barcaldine, in the +Central West, have been pronounced by the Government Fruit Expert +to be the finest he has seen. In the same locality areas of grain, +lucerne, and other hay crops show the capabilities of the plain lands +when irrigated; but these small patches do not constitute an +industry. The soil has in it all the elements of fertility, and is +of inexhaustible depth; but, unhappily, the rainy season does not +coincide with the period of growth of the cereals for which these +lands seem otherwise intended by Nature; and until science becomes +the handmaid of husbandry, and irrigation is demonstrated to be both +practicable and remunerative, agriculture is likely to make little +headway in the West. + +[Illustration: PINEAPPLE FARM, WOOMBYE, NORTH COAST RAILWAY] + +[Illustration: SUGAR-MILL, HUXLEY, ISIS RAILWAY] + +[Illustration: A FIELD OF MAIZE, EEL CREEK, GYMPIE] + +The farmers of Queensland may well lay to heart the experience +of America. Forty years ago disaster overtook every attempt at +cultivation west of the Mississippi basin until the aid of irrigation +was invoked. The response to the application of water was immediate, +and millions of acres are now under intense cultivation in the dry +belt, and supporting a population far outnumbering that of Australia. + +These are the words in which an American writer graphically describes +the wonderful work that has been done on lands that bear a striking +resemblance to those of Western Queensland both in regard to climate +and soil:-- + + The actual amount of land that may be reclaimed and cultivated + in the semi-arid region furnishes no measure of the value of + irrigation in this vast district. By enabling thousands to + engage in farming, irrigation has made it possible to use the + surrounding plains as the pasture for great numbers of beef + cattle. In many instances small herds are owned by the farmers + themselves, but to a large extent their crops are bought by + those whose sole business is cattle-raising. Thus all the + resources of the region are brought into use, and a wonderful + prosperity has followed as the logical result. + + From Canada to Mexico the revolution of the Great Plain is now + in full tide. It is the most democratic page in the history + of American irrigation. It has saved an enormous district from + lapsing into a condition of semi-barbarism. It has not only + made human life secure, but revolutionised the industrial and + social economy of the locality. + + To a considerable extent it has replaced the quarter-lot + with the small farm, and the single crop with diversified + cultivation. It has transformed the speculative instincts of + the people into a spirit of sober industrialism. It has raised + the standard of living and improved the character of the + homes. It has planted the rose bush and the pansy where only + the sunflower cast its shadow, and it has twined the ivy and + the honeysuckle over doors which formerly knew not the touch + of beauty. It has made neighbours and society where once there + were loneliness and heart-hunger. It has broken the chains of + hopeless mortgages and crowned industry with independence. + +The history of irrigation in the United States reads like a romance. +Competent authorities have expressed the opinion that truly scientific +farming is only possible where irrigation takes the place of rain, +and where the elements of fertility are retained in the soil. American +experience supports this view. Farms of from ten to forty acres +support whole families in comfort, if not in affluence, and one acre +yields as much as five of the best land in the rainfall belt. Whether +land is used for mixed farming or crop cultivation, the best results +are achieved when moisture can be applied or withheld according to the +needs of the crop. Without irrigation, crops may be more certain +in the coastal belt and on the intermediate tableland, but with +irrigation the advantage will undoubtedly lie with our Western lands. +A downpour may do irremediable harm to a ripening crop or at harvest +time, and to that danger the plain lands of the interior are less +liable than those in the region of heavier rainfall. + +In some parts of Queensland, principally near the coast, irrigation +has already attained some prominence. In 1907 water was applied +artificially to 9,612 acres. Of this area, 4,492 acres were in the +Burdekin Delta, the water being drawn from the Burdekin, from lagoons, +and from wells. The rainfall is comparatively light, and the marked +increase in the cane crop on the irrigated lands is apparent to the +most casual observer. In the Bundaberg district 2,350 acres were +irrigated from the Burnett River and from wells; the vegetable and +fruit growers of Bowen irrigated 356 acres; and water was applied +to 482 acres in the neighbourhood of Rockhampton. Artesian water was +supplied to 100 acres at Barcaldine and 240 acres at Hungerford far +out on the New South Wales border. + +In the Western States of America, where water is measured out +with mathematical accuracy and applied with clockwork regularity, +agriculture has been raised almost to the rank of an exact science. +The soil of Western Queensland is quite equal to that of the States +in fertility, and similar methods should here produce similar results. +When even the sterile Sahara is gradually disappearing before the +irrigation works of French engineers, there is no need to despond +regarding the future of the very driest parts of Queensland. + +In Egypt and Spain and in several of the American States, the water +for irrigation is obtained from perennial streams drawing their +supplies from distant snow-clad mountains. Kansas differs in this +respect from other States. The description of the rivers of Western +Kansas by an American humorist might have been penned with equal +appositeness of the rivers of Western Queensland: "They are a mile +wide, and an inch thick; they have a large circulation, but very +little influence." Fortunately for Kansas, water is everywhere +procurable by sinking shallow wells. In Dakota and Texas, thousands of +millions of gallons are poured on to the land daily from thousands of +artesian wells. Though lofty mountain chains are lacking, with summits +high above the line of perpetual snow and giving birth to rivers +rivalling Nile and Mississippi in volume, both of these latter sources +of supply are available in Queensland. East and west of the Great +Divide, abundance of water has been obtained from wells. Our western +rivers may flow intermittently on the surface, but sub-artesian water +is plentiful in many localities, and the great artesian basin, with +its area of no less than 372,000 square miles, coincides generally +with that part of the State which has a rainfall of 20 inches or less, +a wise Providence having apparently created this huge subterranean +reservoir to guard against excessive evaporation and to compensate for +the light rains. + +There is still another supply open. Allowing for a very large +percentage of the water that finds its way into the watercourses of +the West sinking into the earth or being lost through evaporation, a +tremendous quantity that now runs to waste could be conserved by works +such as the Government of New South Wales are constructing in the +Murrumbidgee basin. Irrigation on a large scale is beyond the means of +individuals--it must be undertaken either by private co-operation +or by State enterprise; and preferably the latter. Irrigation and +afforestation are both necessary for the successful development of +the West. If water can be supplied to settlers at a cost which is +not prohibitive, whether it be drawn from storage reservoirs or from +subterranean sources, the face of the country will quickly be changed. +Instead of a handful of pastoral lessees controlling in some instances +areas of hundreds of thousands of acres, a much larger population of +grazier farmers will be settled on much smaller holdings, enjoying +all the benefits--educational, social, and civic--which result from +concentrated settlement. + +A product of the land which is intimately connected with settlement, +if somewhat outside the scope of this chapter, is timber. The forests +of Queensland are very extensive, and contain numerous timbers of +great value for building and cabinet-making. Chief among the former +are several species of pine, hardwood, beech, and ash. The most +beautiful and valuable of the ornamental woods are red cedar, silky +oak, bean-tree, and maple. In the earliest settled districts in +the South most of these have become comparatively scarce. The +timber-getter has been through the scrubs and forests, and much that +could not be converted into lumber has been destroyed by fire, to make +the ground ready for the plough. In North Queensland there are immense +quantities available, especially of the ornamental varieties, and +a profitable trade has been opened up with the southern part of the +State and with Sydney and Melbourne. Formerly the timber became the +property of the selector, but now a royalty is charged, which yields +the Crown a considerable revenue, and selection is deferred until the +marketable trees have been removed. To prevent the exhaustion of the +supplies, and as a preliminary to reafforestation, reserves have been +proclaimed in several parts of the State to act as nurseries. + +Of the 429,120,000 acres contained in Queensland, at the close of 1908 +some 21,500,000 acres--or just one-twentieth of the total area--had +been selected as agricultural farms and homesteads; 31,000,000 acres +were held as grazing and scrub selections, 56,000,000 acres were under +occupation license or depasturing right, and 186,000,000 acres under +pastoral lease, the remainder consisting either of reserves, mineral +lands, or unoccupied land in remote localities. + +From every district where land is open to agricultural selection, +however, comes the report that the demand is keen. No sooner is an +area thrown open to selection than it is eagerly applied for, and the +number of those who signify their desire to become personal residents +in order to obtain priority is fast increasing. The Australian States, +New Zealand, the British Isles, and Germany are all furnishing their +quota of seekers after the cheap and excellent lands Queensland has to +offer. + +Provision has been made by the Legislature for all kinds of +settlement--purely agricultural, mixed farming, and grazing. The +areas vary, being governed by the quality of the land, rainfall, the +presence or absence of permanent water, and proximity to a market or a +railway--in other words, by the amount required to provide the settler +with a comfortable income. The State is a generous landlord, and every +allowance is made for the difficulties of selectors in the earlier +stages of their occupancy. The man who wishes to acquire a freehold +has the opportunity of gratifying his desire. The man who objects to +that tenure has it in his power to obtain a lease in perpetuity. The +best settler being generally the man who intends to earn his living +entirely from the soil, and is prepared to reside continuously upon +the land, men of that class are very properly accorded priority over +those who do not intend to reside in person. Particulars regarding the +different tenures and the conditions upon which land may be obtained +from the Crown will be found in Appendix E. + +The State assists the agriculturist in many ways. The Agricultural +College at Gatton is doing valuable service in training young men and +in carrying on experimental work. Six State farms, at two of which +apprentices are taken, have been established in as many widely +separated districts to ascertain by experiment the crops and methods +of cultivation most suited to local conditions, and impart the results +of their labours to the neighbouring farmers. Some of these farms have +valuable stud flocks and dairy herds, from which settlers can obtain +high-class stock. At Cairns tropical products are being tested and +propagated at a State nursery. Useful educational work is also being +done at the Sugar Experiment Station at Mackay. These institutions are +under the direct supervision of the Department of Agriculture, which +also employs experts in dairying, fruit culture, and tobacco growing +and curing. A botanist, an entomologist, and an agricultural chemist +are highly necessary and valuable members of the departmental staff, +and much useful information is disseminated through the medium of the +"Agricultural Journal," published by the Department. + +[Illustration: THRESHING WHEAT, EMU VALE, KILLARNEY RAILWAY] + +[Illustration: COFFEE PLANTATION, KURANDA, CAIRNS RAILWAY] + +In addition to giving instruction, the Government have built sheds in +the principal farming centres on the Darling Downs for the storage of +wheat and other grain until the farmers can dispose of their crops +to advantage. Cheap money is supplied through the medium of the +Agricultural Bank. There are trust funds from which advances are made +to those who desire to build co-operative flour or sugar mills, butter +and cheese factories, or meat-preserving works. Railways have been +constructed in the older farming districts, produce is carried at +moderate rates, and subsidies are given to steamship companies for the +carriage of produce to oversea markets. + +All this has been done for the man already on the land. Much is +likewise being done to help the man who wishes to become a settler. +Railways are being built into districts in which the Crown owns large +areas fit for close settlement. In other localities roads are made, +land is cleared, and wells and bores are sunk. Money is advanced on +liberal terms and at a low rate of interest by the Agricultural Bank +for the making of improvements and the purchase of stock, implements, +and machinery. Land is cheap, and special concessions are given by +the Railway Department to new settlers when taking up their land. The +annual rent forms an instalment of the purchase money, and payments +may be deferred during the initial years of occupancy, when the +selector is under heavy expense and is getting little or no return +from his land. + +North and south along the coast, and west to the setting sun, long +stretches of thick wood or grassy plain present themselves to the eye, +solitary as in the dawn of creation, only awaiting the advent of the +settler to be transformed into a scene of bustling activity. + +Endowed with a sunny and salubrious climate, a fruitful soil, an +immense territory, Queensland has room for many millions of people; +but those people must be of European birth or descent. For many +years the settled policy of the country in regard to immigration was +conservative. Now, however, all political parties are agreed upon the +need for a larger population--but primarily an agrarian population. +The great obstacles to immigration from Europe on any considerable +scale are distance and expense. America is distant but a few days' +sail, and the cost of a passage is correspondingly low. To place +Queensland on an equally favourable footing, the Government have +arranged with the British-India Steam Navigation Company to bring +adult males from the United Kingdom to the State upon payment by the +immigrants of £4 each. The rate for adult females is £2 per head, +and £8 for males and females over 40 and under 55 years of age. Free +passages may be granted to agricultural labourers introduced under +contract if the employer pays a fee of £5 and guarantees a year's +employment at approved wages. The balance of the passage-money in +every case is paid by the State. Female domestic servants, and the +wives and children of contract or part-paying immigrants, are carried +free. Immigrants may select land before leaving the old country, with +the option of getting a refund if not satisfied with their choice +after their arrival in Queensland. Full particulars of the various +forms of immigration will be found in Appendix F. + +In 1908 the number of those who came from the British Isles was only +2,584, but the numbers are increasing since the inauguration of the +B.I.S.N. service _via_ Torres Strait, 2,737 immigrants having arrived +during the first nine months of this year. Hundreds of desirable +settlers and their families are coming every year from the Southern +States and New Zealand, attracted by the cheaper land and brighter +prospects. The stream of newcomers is now but a tiny rivulet; but, +when each proclaims to his friends his success in the land of his +adoption, that rivulet will swell to a mighty river. + +Cheap passages and the cheap land across the Atlantic have till now +turned westward the eyes of the millions of Europe anxious to become +their own masters and to live a wider, freer life than is possible +in their native lands. Queensland is taking steps to bring her +attractions more prominently under the notice of the British and +European public in order to secure a share of the rural populations +of the Old World for herself. She has advantages--natural, material, +social, and political--in no way inferior to those presented by other +countries. Life and liberty are nowhere more secure. A wide expanse of +sea divides us from the nearest foreign Power. Living is cheaper and +existence easier than in those lands to which the people of Europe are +flocking. The sun is always shining, and winter, instead of being a +period of enforced idleness, is a season when labour is greatly in +demand. Crop succeeds crop without pause, and seed-time and harvest +follow each other in quick procession. Stock feed in the open +throughout the year, and winter brings little diminution in the yield +of dairy produce. + +With free institutions, individual liberty, and great natural +resources, Queensland is destined to become the home of a numerous and +prosperous people. It is our manifest duty to see that it forms part +of a strong, self-reliant, British nation beneath the Southern Cross, +linked in the bonds of affection with the Motherland and our brethren +across the seas, with arms open in welcome to our kin and colour, but +ready to defend ourselves against aggression. In the great work, the +men who are subduing the wilderness and converting it into a smiling +garden can be relied upon to play their part. Nature is a tender +foster-mother; freedom is in the air. Stalwart in frame, courageous +in heart, true scions of the race from which they spring, rejoicing in +their manhood, grateful for their heritage, the yeomen of Queensland +are the pride of their country. + + "Not without envy Wealth at times must look + On their brown strength who wield the reaping-hook + And scythe, or at the forge-fire shape the plough + Or the steel harness of the steeds of steam; + All who, by skill and patience, anyhow + Make service noble, and the earth redeem + From savageness. By kingly accolade + Than theirs was never worthier knighthood made." + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +THE SUGAR INDUSTRY. + + Sugar-cane in the Northern Hemisphere.--The Rise of the + Beet Industry.--Abolition of Slave Labour in West Indies. + --Reorganisation of Industry on Scientific Basis. + --Establishment of Industry in Queensland.--Difficulties + of Early Planters.--Stoppage of Pacific Island Labour. + --Evolution of Small Holdings and Erection of Central + Mills.--Reintroduction of Pacific Islanders.--Stoppage of + Pacific Island Labour by Commonwealth Legislation.--Bonus + on White-grown Sugar.--Benefits Arising from Separating + Cultivation and Manufacture.--Contrast between Past and + Present Methods.--Scientific Cultivation.--Recent Statistics. + --The Future of the Industry.--Queensland Leading the Van in + Establishing White Agriculturists in Tropics. + + +Long before the Christian era classical and sacred writers made +mention of that "sweet cane" whose product plays so important a part +in the everyday requirements of modern life. + +Sugar-cane was introduced into Spain by the Moors early in the eighth +century. The Moorish empire sank before the combined might of Spain +in 1492, and in that year Columbus added a new world to the realm of +Castile. Within a few years the sugar industry had taken firm root +in the West Indies, and on every isle dotting the Spanish Main waved +countless fields of cane, yielding crops beside which the production +of Andalusia, already waning under the dead hand of Spain, paled into +insignificance. + +To the first Spanish planters is due the system upon which the sugar +industry was conducted in the tropics for more than three hundred +years. The haughty hidalgo, scorning to labour with his own hands, +forced into his service the unresisting natives of the West. Unused +to strenuous toil, they sank beneath the burden. Touched with pity for +their sad lot, and anxious to save them from extirpation, Las Casas, +"the Apostle of the Indians," urged the substitution of the children +of Ham, whom he and all good Christians believed to have been doomed +to perpetual bondage; and African slavery thus became an established +institution in the West. + +Whether under Spanish or British rule, the sugar industry of the West +Indies, and of all other tropical countries to which it was extended, +was carried on under a system of large plantations, owned as a rule +by men of good family, who, deeming personal control beneath their +dignity, deputed to overseers of meaner rank the supervision of their +servile labourers. The profusion of Nature, coupled with vicarious +management and the absence of competition, engendered extravagance, +improvident husbandry, and wasteful and unscientific manufacture, the +while there rose to Heaven-- + + "Steaming up, a lamentation and an ancient tale of wrong, + Like a tale of little-meaning, tho' the words are strong; + Chanted from an ill-used race of men that cleave the soil, + Sow the seed, and reap the harvest with enduring toil." + +[Illustration: SUGAR-MILL, CHILDERS, NORTH COAST RAILWAY] + +Until well on in the nineteenth century little progress was made +either in cultivation or manufacture. For more than three hundred +years the history of the industry was one of slave labour, crude +methods, and planters to whom life in the tropics meant exile from +Europe, and whose sole object was to amass wealth to be spent in the +pleasures of the courts of St. James, Versailles, or Madrid. + +The first blow struck at the old-time theory that the tropics were +created solely to supply the needs of dwellers in temperate climes +was dealt by Napoleon when he took steps to establish the beet-sugar +industry in France. His object was twofold--to render Continental +Europe, which was then lying at his mercy, independent of Britain and +the British colonies; and to cripple the trade of the only Power which +had never stooped to his sway. Unconsciously, at the same time he laid +the foundation of a tropical Britain peopled by the British race. + +The successful establishment of the beet-sugar industry called for the +application of industrial, scientific, and organising capacity of +the highest order, and the Governments of France and other European +countries fostered its development by heavy bounties. + +The abolition of slavery in the British West Indies in 1834 and the +later emancipation of the negroes in the United States so disorganised +the sugar industry of the West that those engaged in it were too +engrossed with their own affairs to heed the progress of the beet +industry of Europe. The output of beet sugar steadily forged ahead +until, in the early eighties, it was almost equal to the output of +cane sugar. Tropical planters and manufacturers then found themselves +engaged in a life-and-death struggle for which they were ill-equipped. +Forced by inexorable necessity to face the situation, they realised +that only by following the example of their rivals--by calling in the +aid of science both in cultivation and in manufacture, and by +paying the strictest attention to the financial side of their +enterprise--could they hope to hold their own. + +Just at the time that the Southern States of America were fighting +desperately in defence of the slave system, the foundations of the +Queensland sugar industry were being laid. Despite the high prices +then ruling for sugar, the profits were not large, owing to the +primitive methods of cultivation and manufacture adopted on the +plantations. In time, even in this remote quarter of the globe the +growth of the beet industry compelled the planters to make radical +changes. Antiquated husbandry, crude processes, and wasteful +management were superseded by modern scientific methods. The +subdivision of large estates, the substitution of small white growers +for gangs of unskilled coloured labourers, and the establishment of +co-operative central factories were Queensland's contribution to the +solution of the problem of Beet _versus_ Cane. + +As Napoleon in his wildest dreams had no conception that his +anti-British policy would ultimately lead to the expansion and +evolution of the sugar industry of the tropics, so the Queenslander +who first planted a few sticks of sugar-cane on the shores of Moreton +Bay half a century ago little foresaw that from that humble beginning +would develop the greatest agricultural industry of this State--an +industry which, if treated with continued consideration and sympathy +by the Commonwealth, bids fair to revolutionise the hitherto accepted +view of the relations of the white races to the tropics. Yet, if we +read aright the brief history of the Queensland sugar industry, and +appreciate its present position, that first planter commenced a work +which is likely to lead to permanent settlement in the tropics by men +of European descent. + +There was little to distinguish the establishment of our sugar +industry from similar ventures in other parts of the tropics where +the supply of cheap coloured native labour was insufficient for +the requirements of the planters. The men who opened up the first +plantations in Queensland were not Australians, except by adoption. +Their experience had been gained in Java, Mauritius, the West Indies, +and elsewhere. They came to this country imbued with the old notion +that the best and most economical means of carrying on tropical +agriculture was to cultivate large estates by the aid of gangs of +coloured labourers; and it is a moot point whether, fifty years ago, +any other method of establishing tropical industries in Queensland +was possible. Certain land concessions were given to encourage the +newcomers, and they were permitted to import Pacific Islanders, under +Government supervision, as contract labourers for work in the fields. + +Not all the early planters had been sugar-growers previously. In the +Mackay district, which has always been one of the chief sugar centres, +the first settlers grew cotton, tobacco, and arrowroot. But early in +the sixties it was recognised that the production of sugar offered +the most satisfactory and profitable field for their enterprise. +Generally, they were representatives of that class of whom Benjamin +Kidd, in his "Control of the Tropics," says: "The more advanced +peoples, driven to seek new outlooks for their activities, will be +subject to a gradually increasing pressure to turn their attention +to the great natural field of enterprise which still remains in the +development of the tropics." + +It was not sufficient for these early planters to take up land and +plant their crops; they had to erect mills, where the cane could be +converted into sugar, and this required capital. The cost of labour, +provisions, and supplies was enormous. Communication along the coast +was such that goods were taken North in small sailing vessels, and the +pioneers were quite accustomed to travelling in a small steamer which +anchored under the lee of a convenient island during the darkness +of the night. Those who see the condition of the industry which has +evolved from these first efforts must, in justice to the pioneers, +recall the difficulties and risks which were faced by them. + +Forty years ago the industry was an infant struggling with its +teething troubles, still liable to premature death. In 1871 there were +only 9,581 acres under sugar-cane in the whole of Queensland, and the +production of sugar was only 3,762 tons, not equal to half the output +of one of our large modern factories. The industry was then chiefly +confined to the South, but it soon made its way northwards, and +expanded so rapidly that, in 1881, the area under cane had increased +to 28,026 acres, and there were no less than 103 mills in operation. + +The industry then entered upon the first of its great reverses. Owing +to the enormous increase in the output of beet sugar in Europe, prices +fell rapidly. The first of the larger class of factories, conducted on +modern lines, with improved appliances, came into existence, and small +mills, unable to compete successfully, began to close. Labour supplies +from the South Sea Islands became more expensive, and a class of white +men, originally labourers who had saved money, took up selections +as sugar farms, and sought to dispose of their crops of cane to the +planter-proprietors of existing mills. The latter, alarmed by the +passage of legislation decreeing an end to the employment of coloured +labour, planted larger areas with the object of taking off as much +cane as possible before they were deprived of the services of the +Polynesian labourers then under contract. The immediate result was +that the small farmers were unable to sell their crops at reasonable +rates; and to help them the Government of the day, whose avowed policy +it was to have the industry carried on by white labour, decided to +advance money to groups of these farmers to enable them to erect +co-operative factories for the treatment of their cane. As an +experiment, two such factories were built in the Mackay district, +where the need was most clamant; and thus was laid the foundation of +the central mill system, which has given such an impetus to the growth +of the industry, conducted on the basis of white labour. Tentative +though the experiment was, and though for many years not a complete +financial success from the point of view of the mills, the erection of +these mills at least showed that the interests of the farmer and the +factory were mutually interdependent. + +It was seen almost at once by the large planter that the farmer, +working in the field beside his employees, was more eager for success +than when he worked as labourer or overseer for another. The control +of the factories, under directorates of farmers, was found to be more +satisfactory and more economical than when in the hands of planters +or managers with old-fashioned ideas of organisation--with managers, +sub-managers, and large administrative staffs. Five years after the +first loan was granted by the Government, and barely three after the +rollers were started in the first of the two pioneer mills, these +facts had become manifest. It says much for the sense and courage +of the planters that this revolution in established methods did +not dismay them, and their wisdom was shown in setting to work +energetically to put the new methods into practice in the conduct of +their own business. + +In 1891 the Colonial Sugar Refining Company set the example by cutting +up one of its large estates into farms of moderate size. Ten years +earlier that estate was a cattle station, employing a couple of white +men and a few aboriginals. Before the first six months of 1891 had +passed, it was the home of fifty or sixty settlers, a number trebled +within the next few years. + +The new departure largely overcame the labour difficulty; in addition +to that, it went far to meet the low prices for sugar. Many of the +factories still continued to make sugar for sale in the open market, +and a considerable quantity found its way, profitably, to London. + +In 1892 a special Commissioner of the London "Times" (Miss Flora Shaw, +now Lady Lugard) travelled through the sugar districts, and noted the +evolution which was taking place. She seemed to foresee the future +more clearly than many of those actually engaged in the industry. +"Even the sugar industry," she wrote, "appears as a whole to be +half-unconscious of the results of the reorganisation through which it +has passed, and lies, as it were, still asleep in the dawn of its own +prosperity." + +[Illustration: SISAL HEMP AND CANEFIELDS, SOUTH ISIS] + +[Illustration: CANEFIELDS, ISIS RAILWAY] + +[Illustration: SUGAR CANE AND MILL, HUXLEY, ISIS RAILWAY] + +The middle nineties saw the fuller development of the central mill +system. More groups of farmers were formed, loans were obtained +from the Government, and further factories, mostly large and all +well-equipped with the most modern machinery, were erected. A sudden +demand arose in all parts of the coastal belt for sugar lands. The +wiser of the planters subdivided their estates; owners of lands +hitherto unutilised cut them up, and sold them to the inrush of +farmers. The financial crisis of the early nineties and the action +of Parliament in removing the embargo on the introduction of Pacific +Islanders were no doubt contributing factors to the rapid increase in +the number of would-be sugar-growers; but, whatever the cause, certain +it is that at this time the spurt in cane cultivation and white +settlement was greater than at any other period in the history of the +industry in Queensland. + +The year 1898 saw no less than 111,012 acres under cane, with a sugar +production of 163,734 tons. The factories employed 3,709 men, nearly +all Europeans, and the declared value of the sugar sent away +from Queensland exceeded £1,300,000. The actual number of farmers +cultivating cane in that year is not ascertainable, but it +approximated 2,500. + +It may fairly be claimed that Queensland has conquered her tropical +littoral. Between Nerang in the South and Port Douglas in the North +stretches a coastline of nearly 1,000 miles. At intervals along this +great distance are large areas under cane and a number of considerable +towns almost entirely dependent upon the sugar industry--including +important centres like Bundaberg, with over 10,000 inhabitants, and +Mackay and Cairns, each containing over 5,000 souls. Uninhabited +swamps and forests and mountain lands--covered with rank tropical +grasses or dense growths of trees and creepers--have given place +to cultivated fields, in which stand thousands of comfortable homes +rendered accessible by well-made roads, while many districts are +provided with most of the adjuncts to modern civilisation. In fact, +the white settler and worker live under conditions in no way inferior +to those prevailing in agricultural centres in other parts of the +world. European brains and European labour have brought into being +a flourishing industry, and converted into one of the healthiest +portions of Australia, fitted to become the permanent home of millions +of our own race, a malarial belt where it had for long been thought +none but coloured people would ever be able to labour and live. + +The latter end of the nineties and the opening years of the present +decade saw a further development of the principle of white settlement +in our tropics. The federation of the Australian States offered the +sugar-producer some escape from the keen competition of the world's +markets through its fiscal policy of unhampered interstate freetrade, +with protection against the world. + +The Commonwealth Parliament, in its first session (1901), decided that +the eight or nine thousand Pacific Islanders employed in cultivation +should be returned to their islands, granting, by way of compensation +for the increased cost of production, a bounty upon all white-grown +sugar. As was the case under somewhat similar circumstances nearly +twenty years before, this withdrawal of coloured labour gave a great +impetus to planting. There was naturally some anxiety as to whether +the supply of white labour in the future would be sufficient; but the +profits made in the industry enabled the farmers to pay high wages at +harvest time, and men flocked to the sugar districts from all parts of +Australia. + +One result of the labour legislation has been that many of the growers +on large areas have considered it to their interest still further +to subdivide their holdings, and their action has had the effect of +increasing largely the number of farmers. It was estimated that last +year the registered white growers of sugar-cane in Queensland numbered +no less than 4,425. In addition to these, there is still a small +number employing casual coloured labour. Of the whole output of +151,000 tons of sugar, fully 93 per cent. was produced without the aid +of any coloured labour. In other words, white men almost exclusively, +whether as employers or as workers, are now engaged in developing +our tropical resources, and peopling with our own race solitudes +previously untrodden save by a few aboriginal natives. + +Less than thirty years ago it was the belief of most of those engaged +in sugar production that the work of the mills was one of extreme +complexity, and that success depended upon the possession of some +special secret in the working. At that time the planter was also the +miller. Now the work of cultivation is generally dissociated from the +manufacture of sugar. Principally owing to the proprietary interest of +the farmers in the various central mills, every stage of the work +is openly and intelligently discussed, results are compared, and an +efficiency attained which in many respects is equal to any in the +sugar world. The factories no longer make sugar for the open market, +but sell to the refiners. Analytical chemists check the work at every +stage in the factory, and labour-saving appliances are the rule and +not the exception. A modern factory is a wonderful illustration of +the application of science, mechanical invention, and organisation to +human industry. + +Nothing can better indicate the evolution of the Queensland sugar +industry during the past forty years than a comparison between one of +the first mills established in the State and one of the most modern. + +Forty years ago the sugar-cane was drawn in a cart close to the single +set of crushing rollers, flung on the ground, and then fed, stick by +stick, through the rollers, emerging with less than half the juice +extracted. The crushed sticks were taken out and spread on the ground +in the open, until dry enough to be collected and brought to the +furnaces for use as fuel. In the modern factory the cane arrives by +tram or train, is mechanically placed on a long endless carrier, and +passes, at the rate of twenty tons or more per hour, through several +sets of rollers, the refuse, caught by strainers, returning to the +rollers, while the megass, or exhausted fibre, goes direct to the +furnaces. + +The old mill crushed enough cane during six months to make two or +three hundred tons of sugar. The modern factory deals with sufficient +to produce anything from six to ten thousand tons, and in some cases +more. + +Steam has taken the place of fires at the boiling stations, and +boiling _in vacuo_ has been as fully adopted in Queensland as in other +parts of the sugar-producing world. In the old mill the _masse cuite_, +the last stage of the product before the sugar is dried off, had to +be dug out from tanks, men standing up to their knees in the sticky +substance, and handling it in buckets. Now, the _masse cuite_ goes +direct from the vacuum pans to the receivers, and thence into the +centrifugals. There the molasses is separated, and the sugar is +carried automatically to the bags standing on weighing machines only a +few feet from the railway trucks which are waiting to take the product +to the ship's hold. + +The old-style factory carried on its operations solely by day. The +present-day factory is lit throughout with electric light, and works +day and night (Sunday excepted) for five or six months, employing, +according to its capacity, from 100 to 150 men. Around each factory +has sprung up a small settlement of artisans, storekeepers, and +others, while, under a statute passed by the Queensland Parliament, +the employees are decently housed, fed, and assured of good +sanitation, their mental, moral, and financial welfare being provided +for by the institution of reading and recreation rooms, and the +establishment of branches of the Government Savings Bank. + +Turning to the agricultural operations, similar evidence of the +evolution of the industry is to be found. Time was when a visitor +could stand on some slight eminence and look over vast areas of cane, +the vista unbroken save for a few trees, or the plantation roads +running like ribbons through a sea of waving green. Now the prospect +discloses the homes of farmers standing out amongst the cane, with all +the evidences of a closely settled and thriving population. The large +gangs of labourers tending the cultivation have for the most part +disappeared. Instead, the farmer and his sons, with possibly one or +two labourers, work side by side in the fields. + +At harvest time long lines of carts drawing cane to the mills no +longer make a picturesque feature in the landscape; locomotives now +haul cane-trains over the hundreds of miles of narrow-gauge tramline +which radiate from the factories to all points from which supplies of +cane are drawn. Where but a few years back was naught but the lonely +bush, its silence broken only by the lowing of a few cattle, the +occasional passing of an aboriginal stockman or a party of drovers, +carriers, or a chance swagman--birds of passage between the inland +stations and the ports on the coast--townships have sprung into being, +and every half-mile reveals the home of the farmer nestling among his +fields of emerald green. + +During the past few years, mainly owing to the satisfactory prices +received for their cane, the farmers have been profitably employed. +They have learned in the school of experience that cane cultivation +requires practical knowledge, and that in many cases their land needs +special treatment, which they must study for themselves. Nothing has +brought this fact home to the farmers more thoroughly than the work +of the Sugar Experiment Station at Mackay, and the valuable reports +published by the late Director, Dr. W. Maxwell. + +In the early seventies the sugar-planters of Mackay awoke one morning +to discover the whole of their crops destroyed, as if a fire had +passed over them. They then grew only one variety of cane, which had +become diseased. Fresh varieties had to be introduced from abroad, +with all the risk of introducing canes that were worthless, or, +worse still, of bringing in pests or diseases. So far, sugar-cane +in Queensland has been singularly and fortunately free from +natural enemies. Thanks to the work of Mr. H. Tryon, the Government +Entomologist, the grower readily recognises the presence of insect +pests, and knows how to deal promptly with them on their first +appearance. + +The farmer is learning to know his cane; he studies its habits, and +is quick to appreciate the good and bad effects of his operations. The +analyses at the mills have directed his attention to the importance +of cane being a good sugar-producer, and, as he is in many cases a +shareholder in a factory, he is alive to the fact that weight of cane +is not the only essential to success. For many years the need for +securing canes richer in sugar was largely neglected all over the +world, but recently efforts have been made to repeat in the case of +cane the splendid results won by such men as the late Sir J. B. +Lawes and the French chemist, Vilmorin, in connection with the +sugar-producing qualities of the beet. The officials at the Queensland +Sugar Experiment Stations have tested fully sixty varieties of cane, +including some from Papua, to discover the agricultural and milling +value of each. + +[Illustration: CAMBANORA GAP, HEAD OF CONDAMINE, KILLARNEY] + +[Illustration: MINTO CRAG, DUGANDAN, FASSIFERN DISTRICT] + +It is only natural that in an industry whose operations extend over so +many degrees of latitude conditions must greatly vary. Irrigation is +necessary in some districts, notably in the Burdekin Delta, which +lies in a dry belt. Drainage is the prime requisite in other places. +Fertilisation varies with the soils, and information as to the latter +has been compiled in a series of exhaustive analyses made by Dr. W. +Maxwell at the laboratory in Bundaberg. In South Queensland the cane +frequently takes two years to mature, while in the extreme North +fifteen months after planting it is fit for the rollers. + +According to the official estimate of the Commonwealth Treasurer for +1908, 4,825 farmers were then engaged in the industry in Queensland, +91·7 per cent. of whom employed white labour only, the number of +employees being in round figures 30,000. In 1902 the number of farmers +was only 2,496, showing the rapidity with which closer settlement is +taking place. It is true that of late there has been a reduction in +the area under cultivation, but this is probably attributable to the +tendency to make "intense cultivation" a feature of the industry in +order to solve the labour problem. Some of the larger areas under crop +have been curtailed, and the reduction has not been made good by the +increased settlement; but, as in the eighties those engaged in the +industry found, possibly unconsciously, a remedy for the dearth of +labour, so we may reasonably expect that the present difficulty in +obtaining men for the ordinary work of cultivation will be met by new +developments. + +What does the future hold for us? Can we continue the work of building +up a white nation beneath a tropical sun--a task which in many parts +of the world is considered quixotic? The areas available for cane +cultivation are still enormous, and, though hesitancy and doubt may +for a time join hands in checking expansion, the main facts remain +that there is room for the people and that there is a demand for the +product. Australia, in her fiscal policy, has recognised that the +sugar industry is a national industry, and our statesmen realise that +it is doing for the Australian tropics what no other industry on the +coastal lands has yet seriously attempted--what, indeed, no other +country in the world is as yet prepared to try. + +Assuming, as we have a right to assume, a sympathetic Australian +Government, we can turn to the future with eyes full of hope. There +are many directions in which we may look for the expansion of the +industry. The increasing population of the Commonwealth involves +an added capacity to consume the product. The field of invention +in regard to the harvesting of the cane has yet to be explored and +exploited. At present the cost of cutting and loading a field of cane +is from eight to ten times that of harvesting an equal amount of +sugar beets. Experiments are constantly being made with mechanical +appliances for cutting and loading and unloading cane, and this is +one direction in which Queenslanders may look forward hopefully to the +time when they will not only lessen the volume of labour required, but +when they will reduce the burdensome nature of the work, and place +the cane-sugar industry in a position to compete successfully with the +great beet-sugar industry of Europe. + +Some 250,000 gallons of rum are distilled annually at Bundaberg, but +we are told officially that 4,000,000 gallons of molasses go to waste +every year. The conversion of this product into foodstuffs for live +stock as an adjunct to the main industry would add materially to the +profits. + +In some sugar districts, dairying is finding a footing, and possibly +the time is not far distant when a form of mixed farming will enable +the cane-grower to utilise more of the by-products of his industry, +at the same time rendering him more independent of unfavourable +meteorological conditions. Generally speaking, improvement in +the quality and quantity of the cane, intense culture, mechanical +inventions, and the use of by-products are all within the bounds of +possibility, and will make for further progress. + +But all these things are of secondary importance compared with the +need of a settled working population. Back from the coast lies a range +of mountains, rising often 3,000 feet above the level of the sea. +Along and behind these mountains are excellent lands, well suited for +close settlement and for the production of cereals, and the fruits and +vegetables so greatly needed in the more humid areas of the littoral +belt. The climate of this elevated hinterland is excellent, and the +close settlement of these lands will furnish one of the safeguards +of the sugar industry, seeing that a permanent population within easy +reach will always be available for employment in the canefields and +sugar-mills. To a large extent, the populations of the lowlands and +the highlands will be mutually dependent upon each other. + +In the early days of settlement in East and West Moreton and on the +Darling Downs, the small selector, with no capital in many cases save +a pair of strong hands, a courageous heart, and a tireless energy, +made his way every year to the squatter's shearing shed. No thought +had he of "knocking down" his hard-earned cheque. Labour disputes +never entered his mind. With his earnings he paid his rent and +improved his land. It was men of this stamp who built up the great +agricultural industry of Southern Queensland, and they and their +descendants of the second and third generations are the very cream +of the farmers of to-day. It is to a similar class of settlers in +the sugar districts and their hinterland that we look for the +proper settlement and development of our tropical lands. And in our +aspirations for a great white agricultural population we are entitled +to expect the sympathetic assistance of our kinsmen in the South and +of the Empire at large. For not only are we doing what we can to make +a prosperous and contented people, but we are doing a great work for +the whole of the white races. We are proving that the tropics can +be conquered and permanently settled by people of our own race and +colour; we are holding one of the gateways of the East; and we are +garrisoning an important outpost of the Empire. Kipling's stirring +words, written of Queensland, find an echo in the hearts of +Queenslanders-- + + The northern stirp beneath the southern skies-- + I build a Nation for an Empire's need, + Suffer a little, and my land shall rise, + Queen over lands indeed! + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +A HALF-CENTURY OF MINING. + + The Quest for Gold a Colonising Agency.--Earliest + Discoveries of the Precious Metal in Queensland. + --Port Curtis.--Rockhampton District.--Peak Downs. + --Gympie.--Ravenswood.--Charters Towers.--Palmer.--Mount + Morgan.--Croydon.--Later Discoveries.--Yield at Charters + Towers and Mount Morgan.--Copper Mining.--Tin.--Silver. + --Queensland the Home of All Kinds of Minerals and Precious + Stones.--Mineral Wealth in Cairns Hinterland.--Copper + Deposits in Cloncurry District.--The Etheridge.--Anakie Gem + Field.--Opal Fields.--Extensive Coal Measures.--Railway + Communication with Mining Fields.--Value of Queensland + Mineral Output.--Prospects of Industry. + + +The quest for gold, to say nothing of other minerals, has had much to +do with the settlement and development of Queensland, apart from the +direct advantages conferred on the State by her mining industry. +It has brought to our shores many thousands of people who would not +otherwise have come here; it has helped to open up for occupations +other than mining previously unknown and unexplored regions that, but +for the prospector, might have lain dormant for many more years; +while the successful development of the territory's rich and almost +unlimited mineral wealth has aided in making our State known in other +parts of the world, and thus assisted in attracting hither the people +and capital that have been the chief contributing factors to our +wonderful progress. + +Fifty years ago, when what is now Queensland, casting itself free +from the parental skirts of New South Wales, began to walk alone, its +mining industry did not exist. It would not be correct to say that +gold--here, as elsewhere in Australia, the first to be sought and +found of the numerous minerals that have since proved a source of +so much wealth to the State--had not been then discovered upon +our shores. Fifteen years before, men attached to an official +establishment at Gladstone, Port Curtis, found "colours" of the yellow +metal; and in 1858, the year preceding "Separation," occurred the +Canoona "rush," which proved so disastrous to the 15,000 or 20,000 +adventurers who then swarmed to the Rockhampton district in search +of the "saint-seducing gold." But the so-called "colours" detected at +picturesque Gladstone were nothing more than can to this day be traced +in scores of places in Queensland; while the find at Canoona proved a +fiasco so great as to spread abroad the impression that this part +of Australia, as a prospective field for mining enterprise, was a +delusion. But was it? Within a dozen miles or so of the scene of the +Canoona disappointment was situated the "mountain of gold" that has +since earned world-wide fame under the name of Mount Morgan; and +by the end of Queensland's first half-century the Rockhampton (or +Central) district has turned out gold to the sum of nearly 3,500,000 +fine ounces, representing a money value of over £14,500,000--the bulk +of it won within the last moiety of the half-century. + +[Illustration: MOUNT MORGAN: COPPER WORKS, LOOKING NORTH] + +[Illustration: MOUNT MORGAN: GENERAL VIEW OF WORKS] + +Three years after the foundation of the colony of Queensland gold +in payable quantities was discovered on the Peak Downs, inland from +Rockhampton; but it was not till the finding of the Gympie field +late in 1867--eight years after severance from New South Wales--that +Queensland first definitely took rank as a gold producer. Within six +months from the time when the wandering digger Nash, fossicking in +the gullies running into the upper Mary River, found the promising +specimens in his dish which made him hasten to Maryborough to report +his discovery, 15,000 men had flocked to the spot from all parts of +Australia. The place had hardly been heard of before. Pressmen in +Brisbane did not even know how to spell the name "Gympie" when first +the news arrived; but within a very few weeks its fame spread far +and wide. The gullies in the vicinity of Nash's claim were rich +and numerous. One nugget brought to light weighed nearly a thousand +ounces, and was worth £3,675. Soon alluvial gave place to quartz +mining, and within five years gold to the value of more than +£1,500,000 had been won. Up to the end of 1908--that is, in forty-one +years--the field had produced gold worth £10,350,000, and is still +"going strong." Like all other fields, it has of course had its +ups and downs, and just now is recovering its feet after one of +its "downs." Last year Gympie produced gold to the value of nearly +£270,000; the grade of its ore is improving, and its monthly yields +are now showing comparative increases. + +Since the discovery of the Gympie goldfield there has been no +cessation in the progress of mining in Queensland. From one end of the +territory to another the existence of gold and other minerals has from +time to time been disclosed. For many years-- + + "Gold! Gold! Gold! Gold! + Bright and yellow, hard and cold--" + +but still much to be desired--was the magnet which attracted the +peripatetic prospector away from the comforts of civilisation into +the rugged wilds of the coastal ranges and the gullies and stony +stream-beds of the eastern watershed; and for a long while it was only +the gold discoveries that attracted much attention. A year or so after +the Gympie find, the Ravenswood goldfield, south-west from Townsville, +"broke out," to use the phrase of the old-time digger. In 1869 the +precious metal was found on the Gilbert River, and the Gilbert, +Etheridge, and Woolgar fields were proclaimed. Then came Charters +Towers, our premier goldfield, in 1872; the Palmer, inland from +Cooktown (then the very far North), in 1873; the Hodgkinson, a little +more to the south, in 1875; the great Mount Morgan in 1882; Croydon in +1886; and other discoveries, until Dickie, a veteran prospector, found +the Hamilton and Alice River fields in the Peninsula--the former in +1899 and the latter as late as 1904. + +In its thirty-six years of existence Charters Towers has turned out +over 5,800,000 ounces--more than £24,600,000 worth of gold; last +year's output was of the value of £700,000; and to-day the indications +in the deeper ground of the field are such that there is reason to +expect that both the term of its existence and the volume of its +output will be greatly extended. At Mount Morgan--the show mine of +Queensland, and one of the greatest in the world--there has been +quarried out of the hill and dug from the depths beneath stone that, +under treatment by works in every way worthy of such a mine, has, in +a little over twenty-two years, yielded gold to the value of over +£13,760,000; has paid in wages and other expenditure about £7,000,000; +and has given to the fortunate holders of its 1,000,000 shares some +£7,230,000 in dividends. That is what the big mine has done. What is +it doing now? True, the phenomenal yields of gold and the high grade +of its auriferous ores that characterised the earlier years of its +history showed signs of diminishing as time went on; but diminishing +yields were counterbalanced by improved methods of mining and +treatment, with consequent reduction of costs; and a few years since +copper as well as gold was found in the lower levels, with the result +that the mine has become at once the most productive copper and the +most productive gold mine of the State. It has already turned out +copper to the value of about £1,500,000, which has to be added to the +gold yield, given above, to arrive at its total product; while the +value of the mine's aggregate output for 1908 (over £1,017,000) was +greater, with perhaps one exception, than that of any previous year in +its history. + +Though for some years gold was the only string to the bow of +Queensland's mining industry, that state of things has long since +changed. In the early sixties copper was mined in the State, but then +and for many years afterwards only to a limited extent. Tin came +on the scene in 1872. During the first forty years of Queensland's +existence the gold won within her borders was four times the worth +of all other minerals and coal produced; but so rapid has been the +increase during the past ten years in the production of the industrial +metals--or "other minerals," as they are officially termed, to +distinguish them from gold--that in 1907 their value exceeded that of +the gold yield by over £170,000. Indeed, during the five years ending +with that year there was an almost phenomenal expansion. The output +of 1902 was of the value of only £589,960. In the following year it +increased to £846,280, and then for four years jumped up by leaps and +bounds, until in 1907 the yield was worth no less than £2,153,226. + +The known mineral-producing country of Queensland extends over an +immense area. It begins on the southern border, where the Silver Spur +mine maintains a constant output of silver and other mineral products, +and where the Stanthorpe district, our first stanniferous field, still +materially assists, with the aid of dredges, in the tin production of +the State; and extends northerly a hundred miles beyond the goldfield +of Coen, in the Cape York Peninsula. Over this immense distance of +some 1,300 miles from south to north, and extending inland from 50 +to 200 miles from the eastern coast, are located at varying intervals +fields producing gold, silver, copper, tin, coal, lead, sapphires, +manganese, wolfram, molybdenite, bismuth, and graphite; while further +to the west are the opal fields of Jundah, Opalton, and Kynuna, the +copper deposits of the vast Cloncurry district, the silver-lead mines +of Lawn Hills in the Burketown district, and the Croydon goldfield, +also on the Gulf waters. Queensland, with a huge area of 670,500 +square miles and a scant population of little more than half a million +of people, has a hundred proclaimed gold, mineral, and coal fields, +having a combined area of about 50,000,000 acres. + +Apart from goldfields, by far the most important and productive of +these areas is the tract of country which forms the hinterland of +the port of Cairns--a tract which includes the tin-mining centres of +Herberton, Stannary Hills, Irvinebank, Nymbool, and Reid's Creek; +the copper and silver-lead mines of Chillagoe and Mungana; the copper +mines of Mount Molloy and O.K.; the wolfram, molybdenite, and bismuth +mines of Wolfram Camp, Bamford, and Mount Carbine; and the antimony +deposits of the Mitchell River. The two large mineral fields into +which this portion of the State is now officially divided--Chillagoe +and Herberton--have together an area of over 8,500,000 acres. The port +of Cairns was not established till 1876--seventeen years after the +foundation of the State. Now there yearly pass through it from the +area mentioned minerals worth from £600,000 to £800,000, exclusive of +the mineral product from the Etheridge and Croydon fields, which also, +for the most part, finds an outlet through the same channel. Copper +and tin are responsible for more than half the amount named, but the +potentialities of the district as far as other minerals are concerned +are almost unlimited. Of wolfram--taking only one example--this part +of the State alone can supply the world's demand, and have a good deal +to spare afterwards. The Queensland Government Geologist has estimated +that the wolfram-bearing country in this portion of Queensland extends +over an area of 3,500 square miles. Given anything like a permanent +demand and a fair and steady market, wolfram production would soon +take a prominent position in our mining industry. The historical tin +mine of the district is the Vulcan, at Irvinebank, which has attained +the greatest depth (1,450 feet) reached by any tin mine in Queensland, +and where the appliances for recovering the metal are more up-to-date +than at Dolcoath, the most famous tin mine of Cornwall. During the +twenty-five years of its existence, the Vulcan Mine has from 106,000 +tons of tin ore produced over 9,790 tons of concentrates, worth +something approaching £500,000, and has paid its lucky shareholders +dividends to the extent of £160,000. The opening up of this large and +prolific district is largely due to the enterprise of the Chillagoe +Company, which not only has developed extensively its several mines +and erected large ore-treatment works, but has built the railway--in +length 93 miles--which connects those mines and numerous others with +the Government railway at the top of the Coastal Range at Mareeba, +and is building a further extension to the Etheridge field, nearly 150 +miles further inland. + +Queensland is known as a country of magnificent distances, and one +example of its vast expanse is the extent of the copper area of the +Cloncurry district, which is tapped by the Great Northern Railway 480 +miles westward from the port of Townsville. This district is by far +the largest tract of copper-bearing country in Australia, and one +of the largest in the world. As the crow flies, it extends north and +south for more than 150 miles, and east and west some 80 or 100 miles. +Over this large area, covering at least 15,000 square miles, copper +has been proved to exist. At the close of 1907 there were on the +Warden's books over 800 mineral leases, besides some hundreds of +claims and several freeholds. The outcrops throughout the district +have been described by one of the Government Geologists as innumerable +and phenomenally rich. But the district is still in the prospecting +stage, and it is yet too soon to pronounce an opinion as to whether +the deposits generally will live at depth, or of what value they will +be if they do, although it may safely be said that the developments +in the more important mines during the past twelve months have been +distinctly encouraging. Smelting operations are already in progress +at two, if not three, of the principal mining centres of the district, +and a railway extension from Cloncurry 74 miles southward is now +in course of construction. Another Queensland mineral field of +vast extent is the Etheridge. It has an area equal to half that +of Scotland, and the Warden for the field, when he undertakes his +periodical patrol, has an itinerary of about 400 miles. + +[Illustration: CHARTERS TOWERS: PLANT'S DAY DAWN] + +Passing reference has been made to the sapphire field of Anakie, in +Central Queensland, and to the opal to be found in her trackless West. +As a matter of fact, isolated finds of many kinds of gems besides +these two have been made in widely separated parts of the State, but +as a recognised branch of the mining industry opal and sapphire mining +has for years occupied an important place. In the Anakie field, 190 +miles from Rockhampton, on the Central Railway, the existence of +gem-stones was officially reported as early as 1892. Ten years later +the Government Geologist, reporting on these sapphire fields, stated +that "the total distance along which deposits are found ... is +altogether about fifteen miles. Of an area of 400 square miles +examined, fifty square miles contain deposits carrying sapphires of +more or less value." In 1905, another member of the Geological staff +reported that the most important recent development had been the +opening up of a second bed of the sapphire wash at a depth of 25 feet, +and that excellent stones, freer from flaws than those nearer the +surface, were being obtained from the lower deposit. Mining for these +precious stones, many of which are of the most beautiful description, +has been to a considerable extent detrimentally affected by the +difficulty experienced in getting a regular market and what is +considered a fair price for the gems; but, notwithstanding this +drawback, there was a large expansion in the industry during the four +years preceding 1907--the annual production having increased in that +period from £7,000 to £35,000 in value. In 1908, however, there was +a considerable falling off, mainly because miners were not satisfied +with the prices obtainable; but, with an improvement in this respect, +renewed activity on the field, which even now supports a population of +over 1,000 persons, may be looked for. + +The opal-bearing country extends over a much wider area than +sapphires. The width of this country is, roughly, about 250 miles, +while in length it extends right from the New South Wales border +half-way up the State in a curve bending towards the South Australian +border. The chief centres of production have been Kynuna (near +Winton), Opalton and Fermoy (in the Longreach district), Eromanga, and +Yowah (near Thargomindah). The Queensland opal is recognised as being +unsurpassed for its brilliance and iridescence, and there is reason to +believe that much more will be found than has yet been unearthed; but +the quest for it is difficult owing to the arid nature and vast extent +of the western plains where it occurs. In good seasons men in those +regions find ready employment on the pastoral stations; in very dry +ones, they cannot prospect for the precious stone, and the result has +been that the industry has fluctuated even more than that of sapphire +mining. The highest point was attained in 1895, when the value of the +opal product reached nearly £33,000. Of late years Queensland has been +blessed with good seasons, and the uncertain occupation of opal +mining has, with many men, given place to the more regular and more +comfortable station life. While the opal, the sapphire, and other +precious stones have been dug from Queensland's earth, her Northern +waters have for years yielded the lustrous pearl, and in 1908 +pearl-shell to the value of £71,000 was exported. + +Sir William Ramsay, speaking as a scientific authority, lately stated +that the day will come when Great Britain, if she continue to be +dependent on her own coal supplies, will find it difficult not only to +carry on her manufactures but to provide fuel for household purposes. +Well, when that day does come, she can send to Queensland for what +coal she wants. Here there are coal measures in abundance--in the +South, Central, and Northern divisions of the State, and on the +Darling Downs. True, we have not yet done much in the way of +production, but all that is wanted is a market, and coal, both +bituminous and anthracitic, can be dug out of the earth and sent away +in practically unlimited quantities. Of ironstone, also, there is an +abundance, and that, too, in such close proximity to the coal supplies +that when the time arrives for Australia to enter earnestly into the +enterprise of iron and steel manufacture Queensland should play an +important part both in producing the raw material and in preparing the +product for the market. + +With only one or two exceptions, all the important mining centres of +Queensland are now connected with the eastern coast by rail, and +those that are not are being rapidly linked up. During the year 1908 +thirteen new railways were authorised by Parliament, five of them +to serve mineral districts. Four of these lines are now under +construction; and in addition the railway to the Etheridge field is +completed for two-thirds of its length. + +To sum up: Queensland during the half-century of her existence has +produced gold to the value, in round numbers, of over £69,000,000, +and other minerals, coal, and precious stones worth more than +£21,000,000--or an aggregate of £90,000,000. Last year's mineral +production was worth £3,844,000, so that, even at the same rate +of output, in less than three years we shall have topped the +£100,000,000. The number of men obtaining employment in connection +with the industry during 1908 was just upon 21,000--only 4,000 less +than Queensland's total population in 1859. The value of machinery and +plant used for mining and ore reduction purposes throughout the State +is over £2,000,000. The worth of the coal output of the West Moreton +district alone last year (£193,000) was more than the total revenue of +Queensland during the first year of her existence; while the mineral +product of the Herberton district during the same period was nearly +four times as great. + +In the space available for this article it has been possible to take +but a cursory view of the mineral progress which has characterised the +first half-century of Queensland's life, but enough has been written +to show that that progress has been remarkable, if not phenomenal. And +who shall say what strides will be made during the next fifty years, +or venture to predict what will be the value of our mineral wealth in +the year 1959? It is a safe rule "not to prophesy till you know," but +even the most timid prophet could hardly hesitate to predict expansion +for Queensland's mining industry. Where there has been so much growth +in the past, and where there is such an unlimited field for greater +growth in the years to come, it would be absurd to suppose that there +will be no further advance. As a matter of fact, many well qualified +to judge do not hesitate to say that the industry is as yet in its +infancy. It has been truly said of gold that "what it is, there +it is"; and what you have to do is to find where it is. When it is +remembered, however, that the prominent hill known as Mount Morgan, +with its millions' worth of golden ore, was within a day's journey +of the populous town of Rockhampton, and remained undiscovered until +1882, although alluvial gold had been found at its base for years +previously and the disappointed miners from Canoona had twenty-three +years before swarmed in its vicinity; when we recollect that only +quite recently nuggets have been found in the streets of some of the +oldest of Victorian mining townships, who shall say what has yet to be +unearthed in the wide expanses of Queensland's bush, a great deal of +which is already known to be "rich with the spoils of Nature"? + + "Full many a gem of purest ray serene, + The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean bear;" + +and the experience of the last half-century amply justifies the belief +that untold millions lie hidden in the earthen depths of Queensland. + +[Illustration: GYMPIE: SCOTTISH GYMPIE GOLD MINE] + +[Illustration: GYMPIE: No. 1 NORTH ORIENTAL AND GLANMIRE] + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +OUR ASSET IN ARTESIAN WATER. + + Erroneous Judgment of Western Queensland.--Scarcity of Surface + Water.--Water Supply Department.--Discovery of Artesian Water + in New South Wales.--Prospecting in Queensland.--Difficulties + Experienced by Early Borers.--First Artesian Flowing Bore. + --Dr. Jack's First Estimate of Artesian Area.--Revised Figures. + --Number of Bores and Estimated Flow.--Area Capable of being + Irrigated with Artesian Water.--Cost of Boring.--Value of + Artesian Water.--Extent of Intake Beds.--Waste of Water. + --Necessity for Government Control of Wells.--Value of Water + for Irrigation, Consumption, and Motive Power.--Artesian Water + a Great National Asset. + + +Fifty years ago the white population of Australia, including Tasmania, +scarcely exceeded a million persons. At that time the theory was +generally accepted that only a fringe of the coast south of the +tropic of Capricorn would be found habitable by a British or European +population. The reports of explorers led to the conclusion that the +vast inland area of our continent was an irreclaimable arid desert, +save when, at long and uncertain intervals, it was ravaged by +destructive floods, the water from which, licked up by a fiery sun +or absorbed by a porous subsoil, disappeared from the surface with +marvellous rapidity. A little more than forty years ago squatting +occupation had been pushed towards the interior of the continent +with not only rapid strides, but it was held by many explorers with +a presumptuous boldness that could only be followed by disaster. So +deeply had this conviction been driven into the minds of experienced +men that a distinguished Australian explorer, the late Sir A. C. +Gregory, declared in his late maturity, little more than ten years +ago, that on what is now some of the richest and most productive +country in Western Queensland a bandicoot could not live; and on the +statement being challenged he said he spoke from personal experience +as an explorer after two visits separated by an interval of nine +years. The country more particularly so condemned was the well-known +pastoral run, Wellshot, a little to the south of Longreach, and one of +the largest and finest wool-growing properties in Australia. + +It must be frankly conceded that the occupation by flocks and herds +nearly forty years ago of what was then known as the Barcoo and +Thomson country was venturesome to the point of recklessness. Except +in the sandy beds of these rivers there was practically no surface +water of a permanent nature; and the average rainfall was so +inadequate, not to mention its capriciousness, and the ground in many +places so porous, that any attempt to provide artificial water by the +construction of dams or tanks seemed almost tempting Providence. Yet +there arose a persistent belief, afterwards more than justified, that +underneath the arid surface was flowing water in great abundance. The +rainfall, however copious in exceptional seasons, certainly did not +reach the sea, and the hypothesis that great subterranean rivers would +disclose themselves to a systematic search attracted much notice. In +the dry year of 1883 the necessity of an improved water supply if +the country was not to be denuded of stock forced itself upon the +attention of our leading public men. The Premier, the late Sir Thomas +McIlwraith, decided to constitute a Government Hydraulic Department +with a competent engineer at its head. There had previously been +so-called hydraulic engineers, but their work was chiefly confined to +the water supply of a few towns and of the more settled districts on +the coast. But Sir Thomas McIlwraith, as a runholder in the Far West, +realised that nothing but heroic efforts, assisted by the Government, +would save the country from desertion, with appalling loss to its +adventurous occupiers and their flocks and herds. Mr. J. Baillie +Henderson was at the time in the Queensland public service, and the +Premier knew that he had served with distinction as an engineer in +the Water Supply Department of Victoria. That gentleman was therefore +selected to organise a Water Supply Department in Queensland, and on +1st February, 1883, he was gazetted Hydraulic Engineer, an appointment +which he has ever since held with credit to himself and advantage to +the country.[a] + +At that time the existence of artesian water in Queensland was no more +than suspected. It had been tapped four years previously in New South +Wales, but the boring appliances were so inadequate as to make the +process tedious and of questionable practicability on an extensive +scale. In Queensland some prospecting work had been done, and in some +places fair supplies of water obtained by sinking ordinary wells. +But in the Far West there was little scope for enterprise in +that direction. Hence some extensive dams were constructed across +watercourses ordinarily dry, but without conspicuous success. For +often the rush of flood waters either carried away the embankments, +or the reservoirs they created quickly silted up, or the porousness of +the subsoil could not be entirely combated by "puddling." Then streams +at times complaisantly abandoned their old channels and formed new +ones, leaving the intended reservoirs high and dry after the most +deluging rains. After a time it was found that better sites than +the beds of main watercourses could be found for dams, and that +the construction of tanks would suffice in many places to provide +sufficient water for a scattered population and the increasing numbers +of live stock, although the expense of this mode of conservation was +great for the limited supply obtained. Evidently, if the Far West +was ever to be completely utilised, its almost illimitable areas of +splendid pastures must be watered by some more effective means. + +Attention was at this time attracted to the success of the few +artesian bores in New South Wales, and to the vast scale on which +water had been tapped by that means in the United States of America. +The chief obstacles, however, were the great depth at which artesian +water might be expected to be found, and the utter inadequacy of the +boring machinery then in use in Australia; moreover, the search was +most needed in the areas practically inaccessible by reason of the +absence of surface water. For a considerable time, as is disclosed in +the digest of the Hydraulic Engineer's annual reports reproduced in +Appendix H, little progress could be made. + +It was not until October, 1884, in fact--just twenty-five years +ago--that information was obtained of the striking of sub-artesian[b] +water by the Messrs. Bignell at Widgeegoara Station, close to the New +South Wales border. The place was visited by Mr. Henderson, and by him +reported upon encouragingly. In the same month the Treasurer received +a letter from the late Hon. George King, of Gowrie Station, Darling +Downs, directing attention to the "Walking Beam Rig" machine, an +American well-boring apparatus, by the use of which it had been +ascertained that his firm might have saved £4,500 out of the £6,000 +spent by it in well-sinking in the Warrego district. The letter being +referred to the Hydraulic Engineer, that officer recommended the +introduction of American bore-sinking machinery, and the engagement of +American skilled drillers who would undertake to give instruction in +the use of the machinery as well as engage in drilling work for the +Government of Queensland. Delays occurred, however, apparently through +the unwillingness of the Government to adopt the advice tendered. It +was not until December, 1885, that Mr. Arnold, an American well-borer, +was despatched to Blackall to sink a bore there. The first attempt +failed, but afterwards water was struck in abundance, though not by +him, or until after the first Queensland flowing well had been sunk by +the Government at Barcaldine in December, 1887. + +In April, 1887, the Hydraulic Engineer had visited Thurulgoona +Station, and there found that Mr. Loughead, with the "Canadian Pole +Tool" boring apparatus, had obtained a supply of excellent fresh +artesian water from a depth of 1,009 feet, the flow rising 20 inches +above ground. From that date boring went on apace, and the exploratory +success of the Government encouraged private persons to follow their +lead. There were failures to strike artesian water, of course, both on +the part of the Government and private persons, but on the whole the +results have been such as to add to Queensland occupiable country +equivalent to a great new province in the Far West. + +[Illustration] + +The map presented herewith shows the area of artesian water-bearing +country in Australia as estimated by Dr. R. L. Jack, formerly +Government Geologist. Since 1893 Queensland has been credited with the +area of 376,832 square miles, this being equal to 56 per cent. of +the estimated total. But that total has since been reduced to 569,000 +square miles, and late information shows that the approximate area of +the Queensland artesian basin, as ascertained by scaling off the +most recent map issued by the Hydraulic Engineer, is 372,105 square +miles--4,727 square miles less than the area given in his report for +1893. Yet the revised figures bring the Queensland artesian area up to +65 per cent. of the Australian total. The difference is accounted +for by later information acquired in the field. Of the 372,105 square +miles mentioned the area of 146,430 square miles has been tested and +found to be less or more artesian or sub-artesian. Mr. Henderson +says: "The flows from many of the artesian bores which at one time +or another yielded artesian water have failed, but owing to the +suspension of the hydraulic survey the available data are quite +insufficient to admit of a trustworthy estimate being made of the area +so affected." + +[Illustration: FLOWING ARTESIAN WELLS, WESTERN QUEENSLAND] + +The total supply of bore water has not been ascertained by actual +measurement except from Government bores. But all possible reports of +reputed flows have been obtained from the owners of private bores, and +the figures cut down to 47 per cent. of the furnished estimates. This +reduction is not an arbitrary one, however, but is the equivalent of +the difference found to exist between the average estimate and the +measured flow of such bores as the Hydraulic Department has been +enabled to test. + +Information from the Hydraulic Engineer's office shows that up to the +end of May last there were 716 flowing bores in Queensland, pouring +forth an enormous supply of sparkling water estimated at slightly over +479¼ million gallons a day, equal to a discharge of 175,000 million +gallons per annum.[c] This flow, if conserved in tanks and pipes, +would furnish a population of nearly 12 millions with 40 gallons of +water per capita a day. It would irrigate 644,366 acres of cultivated +land with 12 inches of water per annum.[d] An area so irrigated, +utilised solely for wheat-growing, would produce, at 20 bushels per +acre, nearly 13 million bushels of grain, which is equal to 28·87 per +cent. of the entire Commonwealth wheat crop for the year 1907-8. +The average Commonwealth yield for the last five years, however, was +61½ million bushels. The average area under wheat for the same +period was 5,864,114 acres, the average yield for the Commonwealth +therefore being slightly over 10½ bushels to the acre. As much +wheat is cut for fodder, and as irrigated land should produce a +largely increased crop, 20 bushels per acre for such land seems a +moderate estimate. Moreover, in 1902-3, the Commonwealth crop was +under 12½ million bushels, or less than one-fifth of the mean +average for the succeeding five years. At the same time the area +of land under crop was in 1902-3 but little below the succeeding +five-year average on an acre of land.[e] + +The presumably perpetual daily flow of 479¼ million gallons of +artesian water--the quantity named being equal to only 47 per cent. of +the reputed flow in the case of unmeasured wells--has cost, so far as +an estimate can be made, £1,873,515. This works out at the average of +£2,616 per flowing bore, supplying 669,369 gallons a day. Calculating +on the basis of 5 per cent., including interest and redemption +payments, the annual charge for this money is equal to £131 per +well, spread over a forty-one years' term, the average cost to each +well-owner being thus £1 for 1,865,000 gallons of water a year. Thus, +although much money has been lost in sinking unsuccessful bores, the +investment has on the whole been amazingly profitable, even allowing +that a further annual charge for maintenance must be added. + +It need hardly be said, however, that in practice this enormous +flow of artesian water could not be utilised solely either for human +consumption or for irrigation. Under existing conditions the first +claim upon it may be said to be for the sustenance of live stock, as +the domestic consumption in the region of the flow is comparatively +trifling. And here arises a problem of vast importance. Will this flow +be perpetual, or will it gradually decline until exhaustion of the +sources of supply ultimately takes place? The latter contingency there +seems to be little reason to fear, for the area of the intake beds, +estimated by Dr. R. L. Jack at 5,000 square miles, affords the +assurance that our artesian springs will be constantly replenished by +the rainfall over that large extent of country. Yet, when the existing +number of artesian wells has been doubled or trebled, it seems not +improbable that many of them will become sub-artesian, and only +yield their fertilising streams in response to pumping-power. On this +question, however, expert opinions widely differ. But, taking the +experience of America and other countries in which artesian springs +have been tapped, it may be said that the flow steadily decreases as +the number of bores multiplies. + +The Hydraulic Engineer estimates that about two-thirds of the artesian +water at present tapped flows to waste. As to the definition of +"waste," however, there is sharp conflict of opinion. A pastoralist +who distributes a supply of a million gallons of bore water a day +by replenishing dry creeks or constructing artificial channels may +contend that in his case the loss by evaporation or soakage is not +waste, but an expenditure of water necessary to make his artesian +well serve its desired purposes. To control and distribute by means of +reticulating pipes the product of all Queensland's flowing bores would +involve a heavy investment of capital, and one not warranted by +the existing population in the artesian area--a population mainly +dependent upon sheep-raising and wool-growing for subsistence. But the +time may come when it will be deemed indispensable that flowing +wells should be brought under Government control, or their product +be subject, as in the case of surface water, to riparian rights. +The pastoralist who has spent several thousand pounds in sinking a +successful bore not unnaturally claims the water issuing from it as +his own property; but public policy may require that after diverting +so much as may be requisite for his reasonable individual uses the +remainder shall be made available for the occupiers of neighbouring +lands. + +The information that little more than one-half the area of the +artesian basin in Queensland has yet been explored is in some respects +disappointing, but it is reassuring in others. For if the unexplored +country yields as much water per square mile of surface as is now +pouring forth from the wells on the tested area--which is not yet +fully developed--the total daily yield will ultimately approach 1,000 +millions of gallons. Never, according to official information, was +bore-sinking more active than it is during the current year, and +the thoughtful reader will sympathise with Mr. Henderson's repeated +expression of regret that want of money some years ago compelled the +department to discontinue both exploration on scientific lines and the +periodical measurement of all artesian flows. For with careful surveys +of the entire water-bearing area much capital might be saved by +teaching where copious springs might or might not be expected to be +met with; while with measurement and registration of all flows the +question as to the perpetuity or the contrary of the supply would be +placed beyond controversy. In that case legislation could be initiated +with confidence, and the public interest safeguarded with the least +possible disturbance of private interests. + +An important consideration in connection with the artesian area +is that the land watered by bores is as a rule more than commonly +fertile. Its pastures produce some of the most nutritious natural +grasses and herbage found on the face of the earth; and, what is of +immense significance, they are grasses and herbage that either would +not live or would deteriorate under a tropical sun, with a rainfall +equal to the coastal average. Thus it may be argued that artesian bore +water--at any rate, when so free from mineral impregnation as to be +unquestionably potable--is more valuable, gallon for gallon, than the +supply direct from the clouds. + +In several of his numerous reports the Hydraulic Engineer makes +reference to the subject of irrigation by means of artesian water. +It is certain that the water from some bores, while useful for live +stock, is not fit for either domestic use or for irrigation. The +Hydraulic Department many years ago began what was intended to be +a systematic analysis of bore water with the view to providing an +official record that would be highly useful for public purposes. But +in one case at least water pronounced by the Government Analyst as +useless even for stock was highly esteemed on the run whence it was +obtained; and evidently much has yet to be learned as to the value of +subterranean waters not regarded as potable by scientific standards. + +Some of the most copiously flowing bores, however, discharge water +of unexceptional quality, whether for domestic use, manufacturing +purposes, or irrigation. The Hydraulic Engineer doubts, having regard +to the immense quantity of water required for irrigation, whether it +will ever be found useful for that purpose in so far as the greater +agricultural industries are concerned; but for intense cultivation +around the homestead he thinks bore water might well be utilised. In +some cases it would be in sufficiently large supply for the raising of +green fodder for stud stock--perhaps even for protection against minor +local droughts. An irrigated crop needs three or four waterings of +3 inches each, and as each inch means 22,614 gallons, the quantity +required for a crop, with four waterings, would be 271,368 gallons per +acre; so that a cultivation plot of 20 or 30 acres would absorb from +5 to 8 million gallons a year, according to the seasons, the nature of +the soil, or the soakage. + +While doubtful as to the suitability of bore water for irrigation on +a large scale, Mr. Henderson strongly advocates its being applied to +machinery of small power. Many years ago he directed attention in +one of his annual reports to the extensive use of water power +in competition with steam in certain parts of America; and it is +satisfactory to note that in some inland towns of Queensland the +American example has been followed. In quite a number of towns the +public water service is artesian, and in a few it is the motive power +of electric lighting systems. The information that the flowing wells +of Queensland are discharging daily 320 million gallons of water "to +waste" indicates that when population in the artesian area becomes +more dense bore power will become an invaluable aid in economic +manufacture. The water so harnessed would not be wasted, as every +gallon would still be available for human or animal consumption. + +[Illustration: ABERDARE COLLIERY, IPSWICH DISTRICT] + +The money value of the water annually discharged from the flowing +bores of Queensland runs into stupendous figures, even at the rate +of 6d. per 1,000 gallons. At that rate its annual value would exceed +4¼ millions sterling. Capitalise this sum at 4 per cent., and the +artesian water flow of Queensland becomes worth upwards of 109¼ +millions sterling, less, of course, the cost of maintenance and +supervision similarly capitalised. And this colossal endowment is the +result during the last quarter of a century of a total expenditure of +less than 2 millions sterling. Granting that to utilise all this water +already under pressure would mean a very large additional expenditure +in tanks, aqueducts, and pipes, that expenditure may be calculated in +advance to a minute fraction in every case, and it would of course +be disbursed gradually as the demand for the delivery of water +under pressure developed with the increase of population and the +multiplication of industries. It must be apparent, therefore, that any +needful public expenditure to ascertain whether the flow diminishes or +increases as the years go on, and to prevent waste if waste there +be, is more than justified. Indeed, should any great public loss be +suffered for want of State control of this life-giving national asset, +it might be difficult for Parliament entirely to clear itself from +blame if charged with neglecting the reiterated advice of its own +responsible officer in this respect. + + [Footnote a: For digest of Hydraulic Engineer's reports, 1883 to + 1908 inclusive, see Appendix H, post.] + + [Footnote b: "Sub-artesian" is a term applied when the water in + a bore rises to or near the surface, but does not automatically + flow along it.] + + [Footnote c: It will be seen on reference to Appendix H that + since the Hydraulic Engineer supplied his figures a number of + additional flowing bores have been sunk, and have substantially + increased the aggregate flow, although, the figures not having + been officially verified, the aggregate flow remains in the + text as from the 716 bores recognised by the Hydraulic Engineer.] + + [Footnote d: The quantity of water deposited on an acre of land + by an inch of rain is 22,614 gallons.] + + [Footnote e: See "Commonwealth Year Book," 1909, page 382.] + + + + +APPENDICES. + + + + +APPENDIX A. + +READJUSTMENT OF WESTERN BOUNDARY. + + +The following summary of correspondence between Governor Bowen and the +Secretary of State for the Colonies gives information in addition to +that furnished in "The Subdivision of Australia," page xiv., relating +to the readjustment of the Queensland western boundary:-- + +On 30th September, 1860, Sir George Bowen--in transmitting an Address +passed by the Queensland Legislature asking that "the western boundary +of Queensland should be declared to extend at least so far as to +include the Gulf of Carpentaria, without which declaration the +Legislature would not feel authorised in taking steps towards the +development of the colony in that direction"--referred to the opinion +of Mr. A. C. Gregory, then Surveyor-General, that "a boundary at the +141st meridian would just cut off from Queensland the greater portion +of the only territory available for settlement, _i.e._, the Plains of +Promise, and the only safe harbour, _i.e._, Investigator Road, in the +Gulf of Carpentaria." The Governor added that until receipt of the +Duke of Newcastle's despatch of 21st October, 1859, enclosing the +opinion of the Law Officers of the Crown, the general belief here was +that the western boundary of Queensland was identical with the eastern +boundary of Western Australia, that is, with the 129th degree of east +longitude. But now the Law Officers had declared expressly that the +141st meridian was the western boundary, he urged that the prayer +of the local Legislature should be complied with by extending the +boundary to the 138th meridian of east longitude. + +On 8th December, 1860, Governor Bowen again wrote to the Colonial +Office urging that the boundary should be extended, and contending +that the question was of Imperial as well as colonial importance. +Replying on 26th February, 1861, the Duke of Newcastle said that South +Australia had asked for the territory desired by Queensland, and that +certain gentlemen in Victoria were desirous of forming a settlement +on the northern coast of Australia. His Grace added that there were +doubts whether the Government had the power to annex the territory as +desired, and if these doubts had any foundation he would submit a Bill +to the Imperial Parliament to remove them. In September, 1861, Sir +George Bowen again urged the annexation of the territory, remarking +that "Queensland can gain little but trouble and expense from +undertaking the management and protection of any future settlement on +the Gulf of Carpentaria; for it is certain that so soon as it becomes +self-supporting it will demand to be erected into a separate colony." +On 14th December following the Duke of Newcastle wrote to the Governor +stating that he had "no objection to the proposal that this territory +should be temporarily annexed to the colony of Queensland, and +accordingly that Letters Patent would be issued for giving effect to +this arrangement under 24 and 25 Vict., cap. 44." But his Grace warned +the Governor that the annexation would probably be revoked when +the growth of population or other circumstances rendered separation +desirable in the interests of the new territory. He closed with these +words--"I am not prepared to abandon definitely, on the part of +Her Majesty's Government, the power to deal with districts not yet +settled, as the wishes or convenience of the future settlers may +hereafter require." + + + + +APPENDIX B. + +THE FIRST PARLIAMENT. + +(First Session, 1860.) + + +THE GOVERNOR: + + His Excellency Sir George Ferguson Bowen, K.C.M.G. + + +THE MINISTRY: + +_With Seats in the Legislative Assembly._ + + Colonial Secretary--The Honourable Robert George Wyndham Herbert. + Attorney-General--The Honourable Ratcliffe Pring. + Colonial Treasurer--The Honourable Robert Ramsay Mackenzie. + +_With Seats in the Legislative Council._ + + Minister without Portfolio--The Honourable Maurice Charles O'Connell.[a] + Minister without Portfolio--The Honourable John James Galloway.[b] + + +MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL (15). + + President--The Honourable Sir Charles Nicholson.[c] + Chairman of Committees--The Honourable Daniel Foley Roberts.[d] + + [c] Balfour, Hon. John. + [c] Bigge, Hon. Francis Edward. + [c] Compigne, Hon. Alfred William. + [d] Fitz, Hon. Henry Bates. + [c] Fullarton, Hon. George. + [c] Galloway, Hon. John James. + [d] Harris, Hon. George. + [c] Laidley, Hon. James. + [c] Massie, Hon. Robert George. + [c] McDougall, Hon. John Frederick. + [c] O'Connell, Hon. Maurice Charles. + [d] Simpson, Hon. Stephen. + [c] Yaldwyn, Hon. William Henry. + + +MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY (26). + + Speaker--The Honourable Gilbert Eliott (_Wide Bay_). + Chairman of Committees--Arthur Macalister (_Ipswich_). + + Blakeney, Charles William (_Brisbane_). + Broughton, Alfred Delves (_West Moreton_). + Buckley, Henry (_East Moreton_). + Coxen, Charles (_Northern Downs_). + Edmondstone, George (_East Moreton_). + Ferrett, John (_Maranoa_). + Fitzsimmons, Charles (_Port Curtis_). + Forbes, Frederick Augustus (_Ipswich_). + Gore, St. George Richard (_Warwick_). + Haly, Charles Robert (_Burnett_). + Herbert, Robert George Wyndham (_Leichhardt_). + Jordan, Henry (_Brisbane_). + Lilley, Charles (_Fortitude Valley_). + Mackenzie, Robert Ramsay (_Burnett_). + Moffatt, Thomas de Lacy (_Western Downs_). + [e] Nelson, William Lambie (_West Moreton_). + O'Sullivan, Patrick (_Ipswich_). + Pring, Ratcliffe (_Eastern Downs_). + Raff, George (_Brisbane_). + Richards, Henry (_Brisbane South_). + Royds, Charles James (_Leichhardt_). + Taylor, James (_Western Downs_). + Thorn, George, sen. (_West Moreton_). + Watts, John (_Drayton and Toowoomba_). + + [Footnote a: Captain O'Connell resigned on 28th August, and + became President of Legislative Council.] + + [Footnote b: Appointed 28th August, 1860; resigned 10th + November, 1860.] + + [Footnote c: Appointed for five years by Sir William Denison.] + + [Footnote d: Appointed for life by Sir G. F. Bowen.] + + [Footnote e: Unseated on petition in June, 1860--disqualified, + being a minister of religion; succeeded by Joseph Fleming.] + +[Illustration: COCOA-NUT PALMS, JOHNSTONE RIVER, NORTH QUEENSLAND] + +[Illustration: CUSTOM HOUSE AND PETRIE BIGHT, BRISBANE] + + + + +APPENDIX C. + + +THE EIGHTEENTH PARLIAMENT. + +(1909.--Second Session.) + + +THE GOVERNOR: + + His Excellency Sir William MacGregor, G.C.M.G., C.B. + + +THE LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR: + + The Honourable Sir Arthur Morgan. + + +THE MINISTRY: + +_With Seats in the Legislative Assembly._ + + Vice-President of Executive Council and Chief Secretary + --The Honourable William Kidston. + Secretary for Public Lands + --The Honourable Digby Frank Denham. + Treasurer + --The Honourable Arthur George Clarence Hawthorn. + Secretary for Public Instruction and Secretary for Public Works + --The Honourable Walter Henry Barnes. + Home Secretary and Secretary for Mines + --The Honourable John George Appel. + Secretary for Railways and Secretary for Agriculture + --The Honourable Walter Trueman Paget. + +_With Seats in the Legislative Council._ + + Minister without Portfolio--The Honourable Andrew Henry Barlow. + + Attorney-General--The Honourable Thomas O'Sullivan. + + +MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL (44). + + President--The Honourable Sir Arthur Morgan. + Chairman of Committees--The Honourable Peter MacPherson. + + Annear, Hon. John Thomas.[a] + Barlow, Hon. Andrew Henry. + Beirne, Hon. Thomas Charles. + Brentnall, Hon. Frederick Thomas. + Brown, Hon. William Villiers. + Callan, Hon. Albert James. + Campbell, Hon. William Henry. + Carter, Hon. Arthur John. + Clewett, Hon. Felix. + Cowlishaw, Hon. James. + Davey, Hon. Alfred Allen. + Deane, Hon. John. + Fahey, Hon. Bartley. + Gibson, Hon. Angus. + Gray, Hon. George Wilkie. + Groom, Hon. Henry Littleton. + Hall, Hon. Thomas Murray. + Hart, Hon. Frederick Hamilton. + Hinchcliffe, Hon. Albert. + Jensen, Hon. Magnus. + Johnson, Hon. Thomas Alexander. + Lalor, Hon. James. + Marks, Hon. Charles Ferdinand, M.D. + McDonnell, Hon. Frank. + McGhie, Hon. Charles Stewart. + Miles, Hon. Edward David. + Moreton, Hon. Berkeley Basil. + Murphy, Hon. Peter. + Nielson, Hon. Charles Frederick. + Norton, Hon. Albert. + O'Sullivan, Hon. Thomas. + Parnell, Hon. Arthur Horatio. + Plant, Hon. Edmund Harris Thornburgh. + Power, Hon. Francis Isidore. + Raff, Hon. Alexander. + Smith, Hon. Robert Harrison. + Smyth, Hon. Joseph Capel. + Stevens, Hon. Ernest James. + Taylor, Hon. William Frederick, M.D. + Thomas, Hon. Lewis. + Thynne, Hon. Andrew Joseph. + Turner, Hon. Henry. + + +MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY (72). + + Speaker--The Honourable Joshua Thomas Bell (_Dalby_). + Chairman of Committees--William Drayton Armstrong (_Lockyer_). + + Allan, James (_Brisbane South_). + Allen, Barnett Francis Samuel (_Bulloo_). + Appel, Hon. John George (_Albert_). + Barber, George Phillips (_Bundaberg_). + Barnes, George Powell (_Warwick_). + Barnes, Hon. Walter Henry (_Bulimba_). + Blair, James William (_Ipswich_). + Booker, Charles Joseph (_Maryborough_). + Bouchard, Thomas William (_Brisbane South_). + Bowman, David (_Fortitude Valley_). + Brennan, James (_Rockhampton North_). + Breslin, Edward Denis Joseph (_Port Curtis_). + Bridges, Thomas (_Nundah_). + Collins, Charles (_Burke_). + Corser, Edward Bernard Cresset (_Maryborough_). + Cottell, Richard John (_Toowong_). + Coyne, John Harry (_Warrego_). + Crawford, James (_Fitzroy_). + Cribb, James Clarke (_Bundanba_). + Denham, Hon. Digby Frank (_Oxley_). + Douglas, Henry Alexander Cecil (_Cook_). + Ferricks, Miles Aloysius (_Bowen_). + Foley, Thomas (_Townsville_). + Forrest, Hon. Edward Barrow (_Brisbane North_). + Forsyth, James (_Moreton_). + Fox, George (_Normanby_). + Grant, Kenneth McDonald (_Rockhampton_). + Grayson, Francis (_Cunningham_). + Gunn, Donald (_Carnarvon_). + Hamilton, William (_Gregory_). + Hardacre, Herbert Freemont (_Leichhardt_). + Hawthorn, Hon. Arthur George Clarence (_Enoggera_). + Hodge, Robert Samuel (_Burnett_). + Hunter, David (_Woolloongabba_). + Hunter, John McEwan (_Maranoa_). + Keogh, Denis Thomas (_Rosewood_). + Kidston, Hon. William (_Rockhampton_). + Land, Edward Martin (_Balonne_). + Lennon, William (_Herbert_). + Lesina, Vincent Bernard Joseph (_Clermont_). + Macartney, Edward Henry (_Brisbane North_). + Mackintosh, Donald (_Cambooya_). + McLachlan, Peter Alfred (_Fortitude Valley_). + Mann, John (_Cairns_). + Maughan, William John Ryott (_Ipswich_). + May, John (_Flinders_). + Morgan, Godfrey (_Murilla_). + Mulcahy, Daniel (_Gympie_). + Mullan, John (_Charters Towers_). + Murphy, William Sidney (_Croydon_). + Nevitt, Thomas (_Carpentaria_). + O'Sullivan, James (_Kennedy_). + Paget, Hon. Walter Trueman (_Mackay_). + Payne, John (_Mitchell_). + Petrie, Andrew Lang (_Toombul_). + Philp, Hon. Robert (_Townsville_). + Rankin, Colin Dunlop Wilson (_Burrum_). + Roberts, Thomas Robert (_Drayton and Toowoomba_). + Ryan, Thomas Joseph (_Barcoo_). + Ryland, George (_Gympie_). + Somerset, Henry Plantagenet (_Stanley_). + Stodart, James (_Logan_). + Swayne, Edward Bowdick (_Mackay_). + Theodore, Edward (_Woothakata_). + Thorn, William (_Aubigny_). + Tolmie, James (_Drayton and Toowoomba_). + Walker, Harry Frederick (_Wide Bay_). + White, John (_Musgrave_). + Wienholt, Arnold (_Fassifern_). + Winstanley, Vernon (_Charters Towers_). + + [Footnote a: Acting Chairman of Committees.] + + + + +APPENDIX D. + +FIFTY YEARS OF LEGISLATION. + + +In the following epitome of Queensland legislation during the last +half-century no mention is made of Land Acts, Local Government Acts, +Revenue or Loan Acts, or Education Acts, those subjects being dealt +with in the text of the book. The rule has been to notice in this +appendix the first legislation of the Parliament on each subject +exclusive of those above mentioned, and only to refer to amending Acts +of a consolidating and extending character. Nor is any attempt made to +furnish a digest of the Acts mentioned, but only to direct attention +to what are deemed the salient points of each. + +The first session of the first Parliament has been specially dealt +with in "Our Natal Year." + + +THE FIRST PARLIAMENT: 29th May, 1860-22nd May, 1863. + +It may not be generally known that in 1861, before Government railways +were authorised in Queensland, an Act was passed incorporating the +Moreton Bay Tramway Company, formed to construct a railway "from +Ipswich to the interior of the colony." The company failed to raise +the capital required, however, and the project fell through. In the +same year a Loan Act was passed, but it made no provision for railway +construction. In 1861 an Act was passed giving facilities for the +naturalisation of aliens. A Fencing Act, a Carriers Act, and a Masters +and Servants Act also found a place on the Statute-book. There were +also passed a Savings Bank Act, a Supreme Court Act, and, among +several others, twenty-two in all, the Real Property Act of 1861, +which adopted the Torrens system of registration of titles, and may be +regarded as one of the most useful reforms of the fifty-year period. +An Act to facilitate the incorporation of religious and charitable +institutions also became law. In 1862 an Act to provide for the +appointment of a second Supreme Court Judge, at a salary of £1,500 a +year, was passed, the result being the introduction of the late Chief +Justice Cockle, much to the dissatisfaction of the late Mr. Justice +Lutwyche, who, having been sole Judge before separation, preferred a +prior claim to the appointment. Interference with political and party +affairs was the alleged cause of this non-recognition of seniority; +and the charge had some justification, as his Honour once issued an +address to the electors through the Press urging them to vote for a +Liberal candidate. Another noticeable measure was an Act to provide +for the introduction of labourers from British India. In all +thirteen measures were passed in this session, the last of the first +Parliament. + + +THE SECOND PARLIAMENT: 22nd July, 1863-29th May, 1867. + +In 1863 the second Parliament passed twenty-seven Acts, among them +one empowering the Government to construct a railway from Ipswich to +Toowoomba, "and such other lines as may hereafter be specified," and +providing generally for the management of railways. The Inquests on +Fires Act, the Liens on Crops Act, the Trading Companies Act, +the Queensland Bank Act, the Civil Service Act--providing liberal +allowances for retiring public officers--Police, Publicans, and +Quarantine Acts, and other measures, made this a very fertile session. +In 1864 no less than thirty Acts became law, including the Gold Export +Duty Act, imposing a duty of 1s. 6d. per ounce on the precious metal. +The Immigration Act of 1864, providing for the issue of land-order +warrants by the Agent-General, instead of land orders, and generally +restricting the traffic in these instruments, was passed. The Marriage +Laws Act, the Military Contribution Act, appropriating £3,640 towards +the cost of Her Majesty's troops in the colony, the Volunteer Corps +Act, the Small Debts Act, the Roads Closing Act, the Bank of New South +Wales Act, and the Brisbane Gas Company Act, with several others, +became law. The publication of "Hansard" was begun in this year. + +Twenty-two Acts were passed in 1865, among them one for the Prevention +of the Careless Use of Fire, a Selectors Relief Act, the Industrial +and Reformatory Schools Act, and eight measures amending the Criminal +law. In 1866 twenty-six measures were passed, including the Friendly +Societies Enabling Act, the Inquests of Deaths Act, abolishing +coroners' juries and providing for magisterial inquiries at a cost +of two guineas each as a fee to the presiding justice. The Standard +Weight for Agricultural Produce Act and an Act declaring Port Albany, +Cape York, a free port also became law, as well as a number of legal +statutes. + + +THE THIRD PARLIAMENT: 6th August, 1867-27th August, 1868. + +The third Parliament commenced its career in 1867 with a list of +forty-eight Acts. The Constitution Act of 1867 and the Legislative +Assembly Act of the same year laid the foundation of the Queensland +Legislature, while the basis of our judiciary is the Supreme Court +Act, the District Court Act, the Small Debts Act, and the Jury Act, +all passed in the same session. Other important measures which +were passed were Probate Act, Succession Act, Statute of Frauds and +Limitations, Equity Act, Trustees and Incapacitated Persons Act, and +the Polynesian Labourers Act, the latter the first of a long series +of statutes legalising and regulating Polynesian labour. Most of the +others were amendments of Acts passed in previous sessions. In August, +1868, the Parliament was prematurely dissolved. + + +THE FOURTH PARLIAMENT: 18th November, 1868-13th July, 1870. + +The fourth Parliament opened in November, 1868, and the first session +lasted till April, 1869. Only nineteen Acts were passed in the two +sessions of 1868 and 1869. In the latter year two measures were passed +to encourage the establishment of industries, one by means of grants +of land, while the other authorised bonuses for the manufacture of +woollen and cotton goods--the growth of cotton having attained some +prominence during the American Civil War in the early sixties. +The principal work of the session, however, was the passage of the +Pastoral Leases Act, and an Act to repeal the Civil Service Act of +1863, on the ground that it was imposing undue liabilities on +the Treasury. The session of 1870 only lasted for a week, and was +consequently barren. + +[Illustration: IN THE SCRUB COUNTRY, KIN KIN, NORTH COAST RAILWAY] + +[Illustration: ON THE BLACKALL RANGE, NORTH COAST RAILWAY] + + +THE FIFTH PARLIAMENT: 16th November, 1870-21st June, 1871. + +The fifth Parliament lived only seven months. It met in November, +1870, and passed twenty-two Acts, among them being the University +Act of 1870, giving the Governor in Council power to establish local +examinations for degrees in connection with universities in Great +Britain and Ireland. In this year an Act legalising the collection +of border duties was passed. An Act providing for a pension of £400 +a year to the Assembly's first Speaker also became law, but has not +since been used as a precedent. By the Country Publicans Act a license +for a house not within five miles of any town in which the Towns +Police Act was in force was reduced to £15. The Gold Fields Homestead +Act authorised the granting of agricultural leaseholds not exceeding +forty acres on any proclaimed goldfield. A Wages Act enabled an +employee to claim six months' pay from a mortgagee on taking over +a property. In the session of 1871 only six Acts were passed, one +repealing the proviso to section 10 of the Constitution Act of 1867 +which required a two-thirds majority of both Houses to a bill altering +the number or apportionment of members of the Assembly. The other +measures of this session demand no notice here. + + +THE SIXTH PARLIAMENT: 8th November, 1871-1st September, 1873. + +The sixth Parliament met in November, 1871, and passed six measures in +its first session, none of them of more than temporary importance save +the comprehensive Brands Act, which received the Governor's assent in +the following year. The main session of 1872 was fertile in practical +legislation, the Health Act and a Railway Act--providing for the +fixing of compensation for land resumptions by a railway arbitrator, +and empowering the Governor in Council to accept proposals for railway +construction from private individuals or corporations--becoming law +with twenty-four other measures. An Act of this year provided for the +gradual abolition of the export duty on gold; another provided for +homestead areas on liberal terms; and another for the sale of mineral +lands. A number of legal measures, all of an amending character, also +became law. And finally, a Loan Act, authorising the Government +to raise £1,466,499 for railways from Ipswich to Brisbane and from +Westwood to Comet River on the Central Railway, and other public +works, gave a new impetus to development. In 1873 the Parliament met +at the end of May, and after the session had lasted two months the +Houses were prorogued for the purpose of a dissolution. Only six Acts +were passed during the session, and those of no permanent significance +except, perhaps, an equally elaborate and Algerine Customs Act. + + +THE SEVENTH PARLIAMENT: 7th January, 1874-2nd October, 1878. + +The seventh Parliament opened on 7th January, 1874, and the Palmer +Government, being defeated on the election for the Speakership, at +once retired. After nearly three months' adjournment to enable the new +Ministry to formulate its policy, the session was resumed at the end +of March, and eighteen public and six private Acts were passed. Among +the most important was the Audit Act, which, among other provisions, +altered the opening date of the financial year to 1st July, instead of +1st January, with the object of getting the work done during the cool +weather. But the Act failed in this respect, for Governments seldom +care to call Parliament together much before mid-July, in time to +provide for the first Treasury payments of the new financial year. +On the other hand, the Assembly members usually protract the sittings +until close to Christmas week, at whatever date the session opens. +Among the other measures passed in 1874 were the Insolvency Act, +of which Mr. S. W. Griffith was the author; the Crown Remedies Act, +providing for the conduct of suits on behalf of the Crown; a Supreme +Court Act, making provision for the appointment of a third Judge to be +stationed at Bowen, and fixing the salaries and pensions of the Judges +at the amounts still payable; a comprehensive Goldfields Act; an +Act for the protection of oysters and the establishment of oyster +fisheries; and an Act to encourage the manufacture of sugar. In 1875 +sixteen Acts were passed, one of the two most important being the +Western Railway Act, providing for the reservation of the land for +fifty miles on either side of a straight line drawn from Dalby to +Roma, and the sale of such lands to pay for the construction of a +railway to connect the two towns. The other and great measure of the +session, however, was the State Education Act, the scope of which is +elsewhere explained. + +In 1876 twenty-three Acts were passed, two of them being temporary +Supply Acts, measures which first became necessary with the alteration +of the date of the financial year. A Crown Lands Alienation Act, +passed this year, is noticed elsewhere, as is also the Customs +Duties Act, introducing a tariff incidentally protective. Mr. +Groom's Friendly Societies Act became law, as also did Mr. Griffith's +Judicature Act, and the Fire Brigades Act. A Municipality Endowments +Act provided a £2 for £1 endowment for municipalities during the +first five years after their establishment, and then £1 for £1. The +Department of Justice was provided for, enabling a layman to hold +the portfolio of Minister for Justice in a Ministry, and, so far as +official practice was concerned, to qualify such Minister to discharge +the duties of the Attorney-General. + +In 1877, twenty-eight measures were placed on the Statute-book, +including the Navigation Act, Bank Holidays Act, Chinese Immigration +Regulation Act, an Act to punish disorderly conduct in places of +religious worship, the Victoria Bridge Act, and the first of a series +of enactments for the destruction of marsupials and the protection +of native birds. But the most important piece of legislation was the +Railway Reserves Act, which, before it was finally repealed, caused +considerable trouble in regard to the disposal of the moneys received +from the sale of land within the reserves which were set apart in the +various districts to provide funds for the construction of railways in +the several reserves. + +In 1878, the last session of the seventh Parliament, only a few +measures were passed, among them, however, being the Deceased +Wife's Sister Marriage Act, the Intestacy Act, a comprehensive Local +Government Act, and a Volunteer Act. An Electoral Districts Act +redistributed the electorates of the colony, and increased the number +of members of the Assembly from 43 to 55. + + +THE EIGHTH PARLIAMENT: 15th January, 1879-26th July, 1883. + +In January, 1879, a new Parliament opened, and the ensuing five years +contributed but a moderate number of Acts to the Statute-book. First +in political importance was the Divisional Boards Act of 1879; then +the Licensing Boards Act; the Orphanages Act; the Bills of Exchange +Act; and the Life Insurance Act, providing among other things +that after an insured person had held a policy for life assurance, +endowment, or annuity for three years his age, unless in the case of +fraud, should be deemed to have been admitted by the company, and also +protecting the interest of the assured in the event of his insolvency. +A short Act was passed requiring all moneys received under the +Western Railway Act and the Railway Reserves Act to be paid into the +consolidated revenue fund; and a Loan Act for £3,053,000 was also +placed on the Statute-book. The Local Works Loans Act, referred to +elsewhere, was also passed. The Rabbit Act, passed on the initiative +of a private member, Mr. E. J. Stevens, was the forerunner of several +measures having for their object the extermination of this national +pest. In 1880, out of the twenty-four Acts passed, four were for +appropriations, and four for private purposes. A new Pacific Island +Labourers Act became law, providing for the engagement of all +islanders under the inspection of a Government agent travelling in +the recruiting vessel, restricting the employment of the islanders to +tropical and semi-tropical agriculture, and making provision for their +payment and treatment. The Post Card and Postal Notes Act provided for +the issue of those instruments. The greatest political measure was the +Railway Companies Preliminary Act, passed with the view of inducing +capitalists to undertake railway construction in consideration of land +grants. + +In 1881 fifteen Acts, exclusive of appropriations, were passed, among +which were the Macalister Pension Act, authorising the payment to +the ex-Agent-General of a pension of £500 a year; the Pearl-shell +and Beche-de-mer Fishery Act; the Sale of Food and Drugs Act, and the +United Municipalities Act. In 1882, with the exception of the Tramways +Act, nearly all the measures passed were amending Acts. + +In 1883 only two measures were passed--the Queensland Stock +Inscription Act and an Appropriation Act--dissolution following +upon the defeat of the Government on the second reading of the +Transcontinental Railway Bill, which was introduced to ratify an +agreement made with a company, represented by General Feilding, under +the provisions of the Railway Companies Preliminary Act of 1880, for +the construction of a railway from Charleville to Point Parker on the +Gulf of Carpentaria. + + +THE NINTH PARLIAMENT: 7th November, 1883-4th April, 1888. + +The ninth Parliament opened on 7th November, 1883, and the Government +resigned after being thrice defeated. Mr. Griffith became Premier, and +he at once set to work to reverse the policy of his rival in several +respects. The Assembly passed a bill to repeal the Labourers from +British India Acts of 1862 and 1882, but the Council rejected it. The +passage of the Chinese Immigrants Regulation Act (introduced by Mr. +Macrossan as a private Opposition member), which restricted the number +of Chinese passengers arriving by any vessel to one to every fifty +tons register, and imposed a landing fee of £30 per head on such +passengers, had a salutary effect in limiting this form of Asiatic +immigration. The Pacific Island Labourers Act Amendment Act further +safeguarded the interests of white workers in Queensland. The Railway +Companies Preliminary Act was repealed, and its repeal put a stop +to the negotiations which had been going on in connection with the +Transcontinental Railway under the previous Government. + +The chief measure passed in the regular session of 1884 was the +Crown Lands Act, which has been dealt with elsewhere. A comprehensive +Defence Act established the principle of compulsory service in time +of war. Among other measures passed were a comprehensive Health Act, +a Bills of Exchange Act, a Wages Act, a Pharmacy Act, and the Native +Birds Protection Act; also the Patents, Designs, and Trade Marks Act. +Many of the other Acts were legal measures, but one may be mentioned +as of interest--the New Guinea and Pacific Jurisdiction Contribution +Act, which provided for the amount of annual contribution by +Queensland in the event of a British Protectorate being established +over Eastern New Guinea and other islands in the Western Pacific. An +Act of interest to civil servants was that which required all fees +thereafter received by them to be paid into the Treasury. The Acts of +this single session--the first of Mr. Griffith's Premiership--extended +over 405 pages of the then quarto Statute-book. + +The Officials in Parliament Act--passed to create an additional +Minister, to readjust the division of portfolios between the two +Houses, and to render officers in the Imperial and Queensland military +and naval forces eligible to sit in the Legislative Assembly--had the +effect of bringing about an innovation not intended at the time the +Act was passed, and which had no parallel in parliamentary government +in the Empire. The passage of section 3 involved the repeal of +sections 5 and 6 of the Legislative Assembly Act of 1867, the latter +of which made it obligatory for members of the Assembly to submit +themselves for re-election upon taking office as Ministers. Curiously +enough, the effect of this repeal was not discovered until certain +Ministerial changes were made in 1893. The members of the McIlwraith +Government in 1888 and the members of the Griffith-McIlwraith +Coalition in 1890 went before their constituents for re-election; but +since the latter year the practice has ceased, and the electors have +now no opportunity of showing by their votes whether they approve or +disapprove of Cabinet changes. + +The session of 1885 was also productive of much legislation. There +were a new Licensing Act containing local option provisions, a Federal +Council (Adopting) Act, and an Undue Subdivision of Land Prevention +Act, making the minimum width of new streets 66 feet, and of lanes +22 feet, and buildings were not to be erected within 33 feet of the +middle line of a lane; while suburban or country lands could not be +sold in areas of less than 16 perches. This measure put a stop to +subdivisions which could only be regarded as a grave abuse. The law +relating to parliamentary elections was consolidated and amended. +Another Act prohibited the introduction of Pacific Islanders after +31st December, 1890. Altogether eighteen measures, irrespective of +appropriations, were passed. During this and the following session a +series of conflicts arose over the power of the Legislative Council +to amend bills dealing with appropriation and taxation. In 1884 a bill +was introduced which made provision for granting to members of the +Assembly payment of expenses at the rate of £2 2s. per sitting day, +with a maximum amount of £200 per annum, and in addition payment of +travelling expenses to and from electorates once a year at the rate +of 1s. 6d. per mile. The bill was laid aside by the Council. It +was reintroduced in 1885, and again laid aside by the Council. +The Government thereupon included a sum of £7,000 in the annual +Appropriation Bill for the payment of members' expenses, and the +Council took the extreme step of amending the Appropriation Bill by +omitting this vote. After communications had passed between the two +Chambers, it was agreed to submit to the Imperial Crown Law Officers +two questions to settle whether the Council possessed co-ordinate +powers with the Assembly in the amendment of all bills, including +money bills, and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council decided +against the Council. The following year, the Members' Expenses Bill +was passed by the Council without any attempt at amendment. The +Council having also amended the rating clauses of a Local Government +Bill in 1885, the bill was laid aside by the Assembly. It was +reintroduced next year, and again amended by the Council. Warned by +the fact that a Divisional Boards Bill had been laid aside by the +Council because the Assembly claimed that the Upper House had no +power to amend rating clauses, the Assembly accepted the Council's +amendments, but at the same time asserted their sole power of altering +taxation provisions. + +In the year 1886 no less than thirty-two Acts, exclusive of +appropriations and private measures, were passed. Among them was the +Elections Tribunal Act, which gave to a Supreme Court Judge, assisted +by a panel of members of the Assembly acting as assessors, the +decision of election petitions, as the trying of such petitions before +an Elections and Qualifications Committee consisting of members of +the Assembly had proved unsatisfactory. The Members' Expenses Bill was +also passed. The important Justices Act was a measure of this session. +The Labourers from British India Acts were repealed, the repealing +measure having been rejected by the Council in the 1883-4 session, +thus closing the door to the long-desired importation of coolie labour +for pastoral holdings. Two measures of great importance to workers +which were placed on the Statute-book in this session were the +Employers Liability Act and the Trade Unions Act. The Offenders +Probation Act embodied a new departure in the treatment of first +offenders, which has since been copied by many other countries. +Another Act which proved of material assistance to the working +classes was the Building Societies Act. Several of the measures were +amendments of the work of former Parliaments. + +The session of 1887, though less fruitful than the three preceding +sessions, was by no means barren. Twenty-one bills were passed, one +of which made provision for a contribution to the British New Guinea +civil list. The Divisional Boards Bill, which had been laid aside by +the Council in 1886, was reintroduced. The taxation clauses were +this year embodied in a separate bill--the Valuation Bill--and both +measures became law. An Electoral Districts Bill was also passed, +increasing the number of members of the Assembly to 72. No change has +since been made in the representation of the State. The passage of +this bill was urged as a reason for not passing the Australasian Naval +Force Bill, the Opposition contending that no important legislation +should be attempted after Parliament had agreed to a redistribution +of seats, and Sir S. W. Griffith was in this way prevented from giving +legislative force to the agreement which he had drafted, and which was +passed into law in all the other colonies before its author finally +succeeded in securing its passage in Queensland in the year 1891. The +session closed in December, 1887, but the Assembly was not dissolved +until four months later. + + +THE TENTH PARLIAMENT: 12th June, 1888-5th April, 1893. + +The tenth Parliament opened on 12th June, 1888, and the Griffith +Ministry gave place to that of Sir Thomas McIlwraith. Only ten public +measures were passed, however, exclusive of appropriations. +The struggle of the session arose on the Customs Bill, imposing +protectionist duties, and increasing the complexity of the tariff. On +entering Parliament in 1874, Mr. Macrossan had earnestly demanded, on +behalf of the Northern miners, effectual anti-Chinese legislation, +but the attitude of the Imperial Government compelled the Queensland +Parliament to proceed warily. In 1877 an Act was passed requiring the +master of any ship to pay £10 for each Chinese passenger landed, and +forbidding more than one to every 10 tons burthen, a penalty of +£10 being imposed in each case of breach. In 1884 the number to be +introduced was further restricted to one Chinese for each 50 tons, +with a landing payment of £30, and £30 penalty for each landed in +excess of the prescribed number. In 1888 the representatives of the +various Australasian Governments met at Sydney, as, owing to the +unwillingness of the Imperial Government to give the Royal assent +to the legislation desired, there was doubt as to whether a measure +passed by an individual colony would be assented to. The conference +agreed to a bill, and the Queensland Parliament passed it in 1888, but +it did not become law until February, 1890. It placed the limitation +at one Chinese passenger to every 500 tons registered, made the +penalty on the master £500 for every Chinese landed in excess of the +number, and, in default of payment, twelve months' imprisonment, and +£100 for a master failing to report at the Customs. For failure +to supply a correct list of Chinese passengers the master rendered +himself liable to a penalty of £200 for each act of default, and £30 +for permitting Chinese to land without payment of the landing tax. A +Chinaman landing illegally, either overland or by ship, was himself +liable to a penalty of £50, and, in default of payment, to six months' +imprisonment. A comprehensive Railways Act was passed, its main object +being to entrust the control of the railways to three Commissioners. +The other measures were not of permanent interest. + +The session of 1889, under the Morehead Administration, was more +productive. The Totalisator Restriction Act was among the measures +passed, as was also the Trustees Act. The Civil Service Act, which +embodied superannuation provisions on the basis of a 4 per cent. +contribution from salary, was passed, but the superannuation sections +were repealed in 1894 chiefly because of the representations of +junior officers who alleged that the system was unjust. The Payment of +Members Act repealed the Members' Expenses Act of 1886, and under +it members were paid an annual salary of £300. The session was also +notable by reason of the passage of the Defamation Act, introduced +by Sir S. W. Griffith as a private member, by which journalists +were relieved of the Algerine law under which their profession had +previously been carried on. + +The session of 1890 was marked by the formation of the +Griffith-McIlwraith Ministry, and the passing of twenty-seven Acts, +many of importance, one of them being the Married Women's Property +Act. The dividend duty was first imposed in this session, and +sketching fortifications was made a penal offence; but the more +important measures of this year are elsewhere noticed. + +In the session of 1891 a comprehensive Water Authorities Act, which +is still in force, became law. An Act permitting solicitors to do work +for their clients by agreement was passed, as was also an Act for the +better protection of women and girls. In all thirty-eight measures, +many of them of a legal character, became law in this session. The one +of greatest importance was the Australasian Naval Force Act, to which +allusion has already been made. + +In 1892 thirty-nine Acts were passed, among which was one for the +treatment and isolation of lepers; others provided for strengthening +the law penalising bakers for selling bread under weight; for +subsidising railway construction by grants of land; for the +establishment of harbour boards, and the levy of harbour dues; for +penalising the publication of indecent advertisements; for making a +person accused of an indictable offence and the wife or husband of +such accused person a competent but not a compellable witness for the +defence; for raising the Chief Justice's salary to £3,500 with a +view to securing the services of Sir S. W. Griffith; for reducing the +payment of members of the Assembly to £150 per annum; and for taxing +the receipts of totalisators on racecourses, a duty being imposed of +sixpence in the pound of money passed through the totalisators. A new +principle in rabbit legislation was introduced by an Act encouraging +pastoral lessees to destroy the pest by granting them an extension +of their leases as compensation for their outlay. The Pacific Island +Labourers (Extension) Act reversed the decision of Parliament in 1885, +and permitted the reintroduction of islanders for work in the sugar +industry. The recruiting continued from this date until terminated by +the Commonwealth legislation of 1901. This session proved a very long +one, the Houses sitting from March till November. + + +THE ELEVENTH PARLIAMENT: 26th May, 1893-22nd February, 1896. + +The eleventh Parliament was opened on 26th May, 1893, Sir Thomas +McIlwraith being then Premier. A Ministerial crisis was produced on +the Railway Border Tax Bill, which imposed a duty of £2 10s. per ton +on every bale of Queensland wool taken across the border. Ministers +tendered their resignations, but the Governor, Sir Henry Norman, +declined to accept them. In a minute read in the Assembly, His +Excellency expressed the opinion that the vote in question did not +constitute a vote of want of confidence in Ministers, and he gave it +as his belief that on most questions of importance likely to arise +they would have the support of a substantial majority of members of +the Assembly. Consequently Sir Thomas McIlwraith continued in office, +and both Houses passed the bill. It was a retaliatory measure against +the New South Wales Railway Commissioners because of the preferential +rates conceded by them to draw traffic to Sydney that legitimately +belonged to Brisbane. The Meat and Dairy Produce Act became law in +this year; also the Sugar Works Guarantee Act, and the Co-operative +Communities Land Settlement Act, which proved an utter failure in +spite of the passing of amending Acts in the two succeeding years. +Various financial measures noticed elsewhere were also passed, these +last being rendered imperative by the banking crisis which then +paralysed industry and commerce. At the end of the session, Sir Thomas +McIlwraith's health failing him, he retired from the Premiership, +which was taken by Sir Hugh Muir Nelson. + +In 1894 the session opened on 17th July, and one of the most hotly +contested measures was the Peace Preservation Bill, introduced in +consequence of the disturbances connected with the shearers' strike +in the West in 1891, and the apprehension that they would be repeated +unless drastic legislation was enacted. Its passage was strenuously +opposed by the Labour Opposition, and it was only forced through the +Assembly by the application of the closure. Violent scenes culminated +in the suspension of eight Labour members, the suspension being +followed by an appeal by the ejected members to the Supreme Court, +when that court decided that Parliament was the only tribunal for +determining matters affecting its own jurisdiction. In all thirty-six +measures were passed, but the majority were either financial +or designed to amend existing statutes which caused friction in +operation. The effort at this time seemed to be rather to pass +practicable laws than enact measures embodying so-called advanced +principles. The most noteworthy of these laws was the Agricultural +Lands Purchase Act, which authorised the purchase by the Government +of large estates at a cost not exceeding £100,000 in any one year, and +the subdivision of the land into farms. + +In 1895 thirty-five Acts were the product of the session, and they +were generally characterised by the same adaptation of means to ends +that was noticeable in the preceding year. In fact, during these two +years the colonies were all suffering a recovery which did not incite +to heroic legislation for securing the rights of man, including woman. +Deserving of special mention are the Suppression of Gambling Act, and +the Railways Guarantee Act which made provision for local authorities +guaranteeing the State against loss in connection with the +construction and working of railways built under the Act. In +consequence of friction between the three Railway Commissioners, an +Act was passed in this year reducing the number of Commissioners to +one, Mr. Mathieson, the Chief Commissioner, being retained. A short +measure of considerable value was the Standard Time Act, the object +of which was to place Queensland in line with New South Wales and +Victoria by adopting the time of the 150th meridian of east longitude +as the standard time for the three colonies. + +[Illustration: BARRON GORGE, CAIRNS RAILWAY, NORTH QUEENSLAND] + + +THE TWELFTH PARLIAMENT: 17th June, 1896-15th February, 1899. + +In 1896 there was a general election, and the new Parliament opened +on 17th June. Public confidence had been fairly restored after the +financial crisis of 1893, and thirty-five Acts were passed, not one of +which was of a highly contentious political nature. Even the Factories +and Shops Act, introduced by the Government, was supported by the +Labour party; indeed, no party or section opposed it, although the +compulsory closing of shops at 1 p.m. on Saturdays throughout an area +within the radius of ten miles of the General Post Office excited much +individual opposition. Mr. Mathieson having accepted the position of +Chief Commissioner of the Victorian railways, an amending Railways +Act was passed empowering the Governor in Council to appoint a +Commissioner for three years, reducing the salary from £3,000 to +£1,500, and providing for the appointment of a Deputy Commissioner. +Mr. R. J. Gray, one of the three original Commissioners, was appointed +Commissioner, and Mr. Thallon, the present Commissioner, became his +deputy. A measure of some importance repealed the existing Payment +of Members Act, and made the new Act an integral part of the +Constitution, the salary being fixed at £300 a year. The object, as +stated by the Government, was to stop the incessant agitation that was +carried on in political circles on the one hand for an increase, and +on the other for a reduction of the salary. + +In the session of 1897, Sir Hugh Nelson being still Premier, thirty +Acts were passed. There was again a remarkable absence of measures of +a party character, most of them being useful amendments of existing +laws. Of these the Elections Consolidating Act was important. The Home +Secretary, Mr. J. F. G. Foxton, deserves credit for introducing this +session the Aboriginals Protection and Restriction of the Sale of +Opium Act, the first measure for the preservation and care of our +fast-disappearing aboriginal blacks. It must be recorded with shame +that the Government of Queensland should have allowed so many years to +pass before taking steps to protect the race who had been dispossessed +of their heritage from some of the curses attendant on our +civilisation. Since 1897 the stigma no longer rests on our fair +fame, everything possible being done now to save the natives from +extinction. In this year, too, the Mareeba to Chillagoe Railway Act, +which has proved very beneficial to the Cairns hinterland, became law. +A comprehensive Land Act, occupying 110 pages of the Statute-book, was +passed, and also an amending and consolidating Trustees and Executors +Act. + +The session of 1898--the last of the Parliament--opened on 26th July, +and closed on 30th December. The principal work of this session was +the passage of an amending Mining Act which greatly improved the +condition of the working miners. Other measures were an Act to +incorporate the Brisbane Technical College, and the Game and Fishes +Acclimatisation Act, providing for the proclamation of districts, for +an open season, for the issue of game licenses, and the appointment of +guardians. Sir Hugh Nelson, in consequence of the death of Sir A. +H. Palmer, had been translated to the Presidency of the Legislative +Council, and the Premiership was assumed by Mr. T. J. Byrnes on 13th +April. Mr. Byrnes died in the following September, and was succeeded +by Mr. (afterwards Sir) J. R. Dickson. + +On 1st December, 1899, Mr. Dickson and his colleagues resigned in +consequence of a vote of the Assembly, and for seven days the Dawson +Labour Ministry held office, but they were defeated immediately on the +reassembling of the House. In the meantime Mr. Philp had been chosen +leader of the Opposition, and on 7th December he returned to power as +Premier with most of his old colleagues. + + +THE THIRTEENTH PARLIAMENT: 16th May, 1899-4th February, 1902. + +The year 1899 was remarkable for the passage of two great +measures--the Australasian Federation Enabling Act, passed in a +session specially summoned for the purpose, which authorised a +referendum to be taken on the new Constitution; and the invaluable and +monumental Criminal Code Act, extending with its four schedules over +270 pages of the Statute-book. The Code was compiled by Sir S. W. +Griffith, and was afterwards submitted to the whole of the Judges of +the Supreme and District Courts before being presented to Parliament. +A bill was also passed legitimising children born before marriage on +the subsequent marriage of their parents. The other public measures of +the session were for amending purposes. + +The session of 1900 was a fairly active one, thirty-four measures +being passed. A short Act of far-reaching importance empowered the +Government to enter into arrangements with the Governments of the +United Kingdom, Canada, Victoria, New South Wales, and New Zealand, +for laying a Pacific cable. By a short measure the Government were +empowered to prohibit the exportation of arms or naval stores. A great +consolidating and amending Health Act was passed; also a measure, in +connection with the appointment of Dr. Maxwell, of Honolulu, for the +establishment of sugar experiment stations. In this year the Railway +Commissioner was reappointed for three years at a salary of £2,000 per +annum, being an increase of £500. The Factories and Shops Act of 1896 +was repealed, and a more comprehensive measure passed. An amending +Defence Act was passed providing, among other things, for the military +training of boys between twelve and eighteen years. An Act also became +law providing for the inspection of grammar schools by a graduate of +a British or Australian University. Another measure provided for the +holding of the first Commonwealth elections, and for the temporary +division of the State into nine electorates for the House of +Representatives election. Several bills authorising the construction +of railways to mineral fields by private companies evoked the bitter +opposition of the Labour party. To force them through the popular +House the Government were obliged to introduce an amendment of the +Standing Orders, colloquially known as the "guillotine," and to +closure the bills through the House. + +In the session of 1901 twenty-seven Acts were passed. The Chief +Justice's salary, on the retirement of Sir S. W. Griffith to accept +the Federal Chief Justiceship, was reduced to its former amount of +£2,500 a year. The first legislation to eradicate the prickly pear +took place in this year. The bill was introduced by a private member, +Mr. Bell, who has always taken a keen interest in the destruction of +this pest. It was based on the principle that close settlement is the +only effective remedy, and offered inducements to settlers to select +infested lands. The Public Service Act was so amended as to constitute +the members of the Ministry for the time being the members of the +board. A measure was passed requiring every life assurance company +carrying on business in Queensland to hold £10,000 in Queensland +securities, and otherwise protecting policy-holders. An Agricultural +Bank Act was passed authorising the Government to advance to settlers +on the land loans for carrying out improvements. An Animals Protection +Act was also passed for the more effectual prevention of cruelty to +animals. + + +THE FOURTEENTH PARLIAMENT: 8th July, 1902-21st July, 1904. + +The fourteenth Parliament opened on 8th July, 1902, twenty-seven +public measures becoming law in the first session. An amending +Aboriginals Protection Act, chiefly dealing with the sale of opium, +was passed. The sum to be paid as duty on totalisator stakes or bets +was increased to one shilling in the pound from the sixpence provided +by the Act of 1892. A Railway Act amending measure was passed +authorising the appointment of a Commissioner for a term of seven +years, and making other changes to facilitate the working of the +department. In consequence of the drought and Federal embarrassments, +the Public Service Special Retrenchment Act was passed, reducing the +salaries of public servants on a sliding scale; and an Income Tax +Bill became law, imposing a tax of sixpence in the pound upon incomes +derived from personal exertion, and one shilling in the pound when +derived from property, incomes under £100 being mulcted in 10s., +and when not exceeding £150 £1 a year. Provision was made for the +appointment of a Government department for collecting the tax, and the +last section enacted that the tax should cease on 1st January, 1905. +The monumental Local Government Act of 1902 also became law in this +year. + +The next session opened in July, and closed in December, 1903, but +in mid-September progress was suspended by a change of Ministry, the +Morgan-Kidston Government assuming office. Among the measures passed +after the change of Ministry was an Act providing that the senior +puisne Judge resident in Brisbane should be the senior puisne Judge of +the Supreme Court, and discretionary power was given to the Governor +in Council with regard to filling the vacancy created on the Supreme +Court bench through the acceptance by Sir S. W. Griffith of the +more dignified position of Chief Justice of the High Court of the +Commonwealth. The Government were subjected to severe criticism for +making no appointment, but the number of Judges was allowed to remain +at four until the appointment of Mr. Justice Shand in November, 1908. + +Parliament reassembled in May following, and sat two months, when a +dissolution was granted on 21st July, in consequence of the Government +being left without a working majority. + + +THE FIFTEENTH PARLIAMENT: 20th September, 1904-11th April, 1907. + +The fifteenth Parliament opened on 20th September following, and sat +until Christmas. Among the measures passed was a comprehensive +Dairy Produce Act providing for the appointment of inspectors; the +registration of premises, a fee being charged proportioned to the +number of cows kept; for compulsory grading of butter for export; and +for the general regulation of dairies. The Income Tax was continued, +but gave relief to persons with small incomes, though on the whole +it yielded more revenue. Owing to the exigencies of the Treasury, the +Public Service Special Retrenchment Act was continued for a further +period of nine months, but the rate of retrenchment was reduced by +one-half, and provision was made for devoting any surplus revenue +at the close of the year to the repayment to public servants of the +amounts so deducted from their salaries, and in this way they received +a return equal to 8s. in the pound.[a] A Registration of Clubs Act and +fourteen other measures were also passed. + +An extraordinary session of twenty days was held in January, 1905, to +reconsider the Elections Bill, rejected by the Legislative Council +in December previously. This having been done, and the Council having +agreed to the bill, Parliament was prorogued, and met for the regular +session of the year in July following, the sittings being continued +till the Christmas holidays. + +The ordinary session of 1905 was a busy one, though the measures +generally were short and of a practical nature. A distinguishing +feature of the work of this Parliament was the humanitarian and social +legislation which was placed on the Statute-book. The interests of +workers generally were conserved by the Workers' Compensation Act, +which made injuries or fatal accidents met with by employees a charge +upon the industry in which they were engaged. The comfort of a very +large number of workers in the pastoral and sugar industries was +provided for by the Shearers and Sugar Workers Accommodation Act. A +most valuable piece of legislation was the Infant Life Protection Act, +the object of which was to prevent the alarming sacrifice of infant +life in nursing homes from neglect, all such homes having to be +registered and made subject to Government inspection. An Act imposing +a penalty of £10 upon any person selling or giving tobacco or cigars +to a young person under the age of sixteen years was passed, as was +also an Act forbidding the sale or supply of firearms to a young +person under fourteen years, and also forbidding such young person to +use or carry firearms, the penalty for a breach of the Act being +£20. Another measure of interest, which was passed in response to the +request of a large number of workers, was an Act providing for railway +employees a Board of Appeal against disciplinary decisions of +superior officers. A short Act became law giving the right to women +to admission and practice as barristers, solicitors, or conveyancers. +Quite a number of other small Acts was passed, among them being a +Fertilisers Act, the object of which was to prevent loss to farmers by +the sale of fraudulent fertilisers. + +The most contentious measure of the session of 1906, which opened, as +usual, in July, was the Railways Act, its principal object being to +hold the ratepayers of a benefited area responsible for all losses in +working a newly-constructed railway. It empowers the local authority +to levy a railway rate to make good the deficiency, if any, after +providing for working expenses and interest at the rate of three per +cent. on capital expended on the line. If the local authority fails to +levy and collect the railway rate, the Commissioner is empowered to +do so. An important principle of the Act requires, when lands in +a benefited area are being valued for rating purposes, that to the +capital value shall be added the enhancement through the railway +facilities provided. The object of the Act is undoubtedly good, in so +far as it discourages landowners from agitating and bringing political +pressure upon the Government in favour of railway undertakings not +justified by the prospective traffic. It was supposed that persons +desiring a new railway would hesitate to guarantee the Government +against loss through its construction, but the applications for new +lines have not been less numerous since the passing of the Act than +when the burden fell entirely upon the general taxpayer. Yet there can +be no doubt that many unwarranted undertakings have been quashed by +the liability imposed upon local landowners. + +During the session there were thirty-four Acts passed, among them one +for the protection of opossums, native bears, and other wild animals +specified in the schedule, by the proclamation of a close season, and +the prohibition of the use of cyanide as poison by collectors of skins +for export. The Mining Machinery Advances Act empowered the Minister +to advance loans from moneys appropriated by Parliament to persons +or companies erecting machinery for carrying on mining operations or +treating metalliferous ores, such loans to be made on the basis of £1 +for £1 of money expended by the applicant. A comprehensive Weights and +Measures Act also became law. Another useful measure was the amending +Public Works Land Resumption Act, the compensation provisions being +greatly improved. The Etheridge Railway Act also passed in this +session despite the objection of several members of the Labour party +to "syndicate" lines. The opposition of these members, however, was +not characterised by the obstructive tactics adopted in regard to +similar measures in 1908. + + [Footnote a: See page 50, ante.] + + +THE SIXTEENTH PARLIAMENT: 23rd July to 31st December, 1907. + +The sixteenth Parliament was elected in May, 1907, but none of the +three parties, into which the Assembly was divided by the cleavage +between the moderate and the extreme sections of the Labour party +consequent upon the adoption by the latter of the socialistic +objective at the Convention held earlier in the year at Rockhampton, +came back with a majority, and little legislation was found possible, +the only public Acts passed relating to Appropriations, Children's +Courts, Poor Prisoners' Defence, and an amending Income Tax measure +raising the exemption to £200, and giving other relief to taxpayers. +Towards the end of November the Government, failing to pass several +democratic measures through the Council and to obtain adequate support +from the Labour party, resigned, and Parliament was dissolved on 31st +December on the advice of Mr. Philp, who had been called on to form a +new Government from the Opposition party, and had failed to secure a +parliamentary majority. + + +THE SEVENTEENTH PARLIAMENT: 3rd March, 1908-31st August, 1909. + +The result of the appeal to the constituencies was to leave parties +much as before, the Kidston and Labour parties being slightly +strengthened numerically, and the Philp party--the Government at the +moment--weakened correspondingly, they and the Kidston party numbering +25 each, while the Labour party were 22 strong. Mr. Philp's appeal +having thus failed, he retired, and Mr. Kidston, being recalled, +sought to secure for his Government more than casual support from the +Labour party. The House met on 3rd March, 1908. The session lasted +barely seven weeks, and among the fifteen measures which became law +were the following:--An amending Constitution Bill repealing the +provisoes to section 9 of the principal Act, the first of which +required a two-thirds vote of both Houses to any amendment for varying +the mode of appointment or number of members of the Legislative +Council; and the second, that any such amending bill should not +receive the Royal assent until it had lain thirty days on the table +of both Houses of the Imperial Parliament. Another Constitution Bill +provided for a referendum to the electors when a bill passed by the +Assembly had been twice rejected by the Council. The first of the +above-mentioned bills received the Governor's assent forthwith, but +as to the second such assent was reserved, and the bill transmitted +to England. On 19th August, however, the King's assent was +proclaimed, and the incompatibilities between the two Houses were thus +satisfactorily adjusted by a comparatively simple process. A measure +which aroused strong party feeling was a bill to amend the Elections +Act by repealing the postal voting sections, substituting provisions +to enable absent voters to vote at any polling place in the State, and +also ensuring greater secrecy by having the ballot papers from places +where a small number of votes are recorded counted in some larger +centre. A useful Land Surveyors Act was passed, requiring registration +after approval of candidates by a board to be constituted under the +Act, and prescribing a variety of other regulations for the purposes +of securing the competence and protecting the interests of surveyors +generally. Other measures placed on the Statute-book included an Old +Age Pensions Act, which has now lapsed in consequence of the passing +of a Commonwealth pensions law; an Act for the Inspection of Machinery +and Scaffolding; an amending Factories and Shops Act containing many +democratic provisions; a Wages Boards Act, which has been kindly taken +to by both employers and employed, and promises to adjust most of the +differences between masters and men; a Religious Instruction in State +Schools Referendum Act, the poll to be taken on the same day as the +polling for the first Federal election after the passing of the Act; +and an amending Technical College Act dissolving the councils of both +metropolitan technical colleges, and vesting the property and future +management in the Government. Two bills were also passed authorising +the construction of railways to the Mount Elliott and Lawn Hills +mineral fields. These bills directly led to the Labour party assuming +an attitude of open hostility to the Government, and brought the +latter and the Opposition, led by Mr. Philp, together, as the policy +put before the electors by these two parties was identical in almost +every respect. + +Before the opening of the second session on 17th November, 1908, the +Kidston and Philp parties were fused into one on the common basis +of the policy enunciated by Mr. Kidston in 1907 at Rockhampton. A +reconstruction of the Cabinet preceded the meeting of Parliament. When +the session closed on 22nd December very little legislative work +had been done, most of the Government time being occupied with +consideration of the Estimates, the Labour party, which had then +become the Opposition proper, again offering obstruction to Government +measures, and again compelling resort to the closure. An important +measure of a non-party character was passed, however, for a revision +of the statute law in many important details. The most significant +measure of the session was the Loan Act of 1908, authorising the +borrowing of £3,208,000, the vote affording proof of the determination +of the Government and Parliament to enter upon a vigorous policy of +railway and public works extension. + +The third session of the seventeenth Parliament opened on 29th June, +1909. The two sides of the House were so evenly balanced, owing to +several supporters of the Government having crossed to the Opposition +benches, that the majority of the Government was reduced to one. +Finding themselves impotent to transact public business, the +Government advised the Lieutenant-Governor to grant a dissolution, +provided the House would grant Supply. This was done, and His +Excellency accordingly dissolved the Assembly on 31st August. + + +THE EIGHTEENTH PARLIAMENT: 2nd November, 1909. + +The eighteenth Parliament met on 2nd November. The Address in Reply +was adopted without division on the 5th, and Parliament at once +proceeded to the business outlined in the Opening Speech of His +Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor, a laudable desire to transact +business without unnecessary discussion being evinced. The most +important measure was the University of Queensland Act, which was +passed in time to enable the dedication ceremony to take place on 10th +December, Queensland's jubilee day. Of vital importance to Brisbane +and its suburbs was the Metropolitan Water and Sewerage Act. An +amendment of the Workers' Compensation Act and a Workers' Dwellings +Act also became law. Resolutions were also passed approving of the +construction of railways in various parts of the State. + + + + +APPENDIX E. + +LAND SELECTION IN QUEENSLAND. + +[OFFICIAL COMPILATION.] + + +The State is divided into Land Agents' Districts, in the principal +town of each of which there is a Government Land Office and Land +Agent. Plans and information respecting the quality, rents, and +prices of lands available for selection may be obtained on personal +or written application to the Land Agent of the District in which +the land is situated, or to the Officer in Charge, Inquiry Office, +Department of Public Lands, Brisbane. + +Land is opened or made available for Selection by proclamation in the +_Government Gazette_. The proclamation, which is made not less than +four weeks before the time appointed for the opening, specifies the +modes in which the land may be selected, the area, rent, price, &c. + +The several modes of Selection for which the law provides are--(1) +Agricultural Selections, _i.e._, Agricultural Farms, Perpetual Leases, +Agricultural Homesteads, and Free Homesteads; (2) Grazing Selections, +_i.e._, Grazing Farms and Grazing Homesteads; (3) Scrub Selections; +(4) Unconditional Selections; and (5) Prickly Pear Selections. The +more accessible lands are usually set apart for agricultural selection +in areas up to 1,280 acres, or, if pear infested, as Prickly Pear +Selections in areas up to 5,000 acres; while opportunities of +acquiring Grazing Selections in areas up to 60,000 acres are given +over a great extent of Queensland territory. + +Except in the case of Scrub Selections, Unconditional Selections, and +Prickly Pear Selections, no person who is under the age of sixteen +years, or who seeks to acquire the land as the agent or servant or +trustee of another, will be allowed to select. A single girl under +the age of twenty-one years is debarred from selecting an Agricultural +Homestead, Free Homestead, or Grazing Homestead. A married woman is +not competent to select a Homestead unless she has obtained an order +for judicial separation or an order protecting her separate property, +or is living apart from her husband and has been specially empowered +by the Land Court to select a Homestead. A married woman may, however, +acquire a Grazing Homestead by transfer after the expiry of five years +of the term of lease. An alien may, under certain conditions, acquire +a selection, but, unless he becomes a naturalised British subject +within three years thereafter, all his right, title, and interest in +the land will become forfeited. + +Applications for selections must be made in the prescribed form, in +triplicate, and be lodged with the Land Agent for the District in +which the land is situated. + +[Illustration: FARM SCENE, BLACKALL RANGE] + +[Illustration: SISAL HEMP, CHILDERS, NORTH COAST RAILWAY] + +[Illustration: WOOL TEAMS, LONGREACH, CENTRAL QUEENSLAND] + +They must be signed by the applicant, but may be lodged in the Land +Office by his duly constituted attorney, and must be accompanied by +the prescribed deposit. In the case of a Prickly Pear Selection the +deposit must be the full amount of the prescribed survey fee, and in +other cases, except Free Homesteads, a year's rent and one-fifth of +the survey fee. In the case of a Free Homestead application the +deposit consists of an application fee of £1 and one-fifth of the +survey fee. Ordinarily, applications take priority in the order of +their being lodged with the Land Agent, but applications lodged +_prior_ to the time proclaimed as that at which land is to be open +for selection are regarded as simultaneous with those lodged at that +time. + +If land is open for Selection in two or more modes alternatively, +and there are simultaneous applications to select it under different +modes, priority among such applications is given to an application for +the land as an Agricultural Homestead as against an application for it +as an Agricultural Farm; to an application for it as an Agricultural +Farm as against an application for it as an Unconditional Selection; +and, if the land is open for Grazing Selection, to an application +for it as a Grazing Homestead as against an application for it as a +Grazing Farm. + +In the case of simultaneous applications for the same land, as an +Agricultural Farm, priority is secured by an applicant, other than +a married woman or a single girl under twenty-one years of age, who, +when making application, undertakes to personally reside on the +land during the first five years of the term. In other cases of +simultaneous applications for the same land by the same mode of +selection, priority is determined by lot, unless in the case of +simultaneous applications for the same land as a Grazing Selection, +Unconditional Selection, or Prickly Pear Selection, a higher rental +is tendered than that proclaimed. In that event the tender most +favourable to the Crown secures priority. + +Under the Special Selections Act land may be set apart for any body of +settlers who, having some measure of common interest or capacity for +mutual help, are desirous of acquiring land in the same locality. The +procedure to be followed is for a request to be made to the Minister +by the members of the body, explaining the grounds on which they are +co-operating and setting out the land they desire to acquire. Should +the request be acceded to, the land will be opened for selection in +the usual way, but for a period to be set out in the proclamation it +will only be available for the members of the body of settlers for +whom it has been set apart. + +When an application has been accepted by the Land Commissioner +and approved by the Land Court, and the applicant has paid for any +improvements there may be on the land, he becomes entitled to receive +a license to occupy the land in the case of an Agricultural Selection +or a Grazing Selection, or a lease in the case of a Scrub Selection, +Unconditional Selection, or Prickly Pear Selection. Within six months +after the issue of a license, the selector must commence to occupy +the land, and must thereafter continue to occupy it in the manner +prescribed. + + +AGRICULTURAL SELECTIONS. + +AGRICULTURAL FARMS. + +The largest area that may be acquired by any one person as an +Agricultural Farm is 1,280 acres. If the same person is the selector +of both an Agricultural Farm and an Agricultural Homestead, the joint +areas must not exceed 1,280 acres. The purchasing price may range from +10s. an acre upwards, as may be declared by proclamation. The term is +twenty years. The annual rent is one-fortieth of the purchasing price, +and the payments are credited as part of the price. + +The land must be continuously occupied by the selector residing +personally on it or by his manager or agent doing so. Within five +years from the issue of the license to occupy, or such extended time +as the Court may allow, the selector must enclose the land with a good +and substantial fence, or make substantial and permanent improvements +on it equal in value to such a fence. On the completion of the +improvements the selector becomes entitled to a lease of the farm, and +may thereafter mortgage it; or, with the permission of the Minister, +may subdivide or transfer it; or, with the approval of the Court, may +underlet it. + +The selector of an Agricultural Farm, who has obtained priority by +undertaking to reside personally thereon during the first five years +of the lease, must comply strictly with that undertaking, and is +not allowed during such period to mortgage, transfer, or assign the +holding. + +After five years of the term have elapsed, the prescribed conditions +of occupation and improvement having been duly performed, a deed of +grant may be obtained on payment of the balance of the purchasing +price and deed fees. + + +PERPETUAL LEASE SELECTIONS. + +Land proclaimed to be open for Agricultural Farm Selection may also +be opened for Perpetual Lease Selection, and the latter mode may be +conceded priority of application over the former. The rent for the +first period of ten years of the lease is 1½ per cent. on the +proclaimed purchasing price of the land for Agricultural Farm +Selection. The rent for each succeeding period of ten years shall be +determined by the Land Court. The same conditions of occupation and +improvement as are prescribed for Agricultural Farms are attached to +Perpetual Lease Selections, and, except as specially prescribed, the +provisions relating to Agricultural Farms apply to them also. As the +name implies, the selections are leases in perpetuity, and are not +capable of being converted to freeholds. + + +AGRICULTURAL HOMESTEADS. + +Land open for selection as Agricultural Farms is not available for +Agricultural Homesteads unless so proclaimed. The area allowed to be +selected as an Agricultural Homestead varies with the value of the +land, and is fixed by proclamation within the following limits, +viz.:--160 acres in the case of land valued for Agricultural Farm +Selection at not less than £1 an acre; 320 acres in the case of land +valued at less than £1 but not less than 15s. an acre; and 640 acres +in the case of land valued at less than 15s. an acre. The price for +an Agricultural Homestead is 2s. 6d. an acre, the annual rent 3d. an +acre, and the term ten years. + +The land must be continuously occupied by the selector residing +personally thereon. + +Within five years from the issue of the license to occupy, or such +extended time as the Land Court may allow, the selector must enclose +the land with a good and substantial fence, or make substantial and +permanent improvements on it equal in value to such fence. On the +completion of the improvements the selector becomes entitled to a +lease, which, however, is not negotiable in any way. + +At any time after five years from the commencement of the term, on the +selector proving that the conditions have been duly performed and that +the sum expended in improvements on the land has been at the rate of +10s., 5s., or 2s. 6d. an acre respectively according to the value of +the land, he may pay up the remaining rents so as to make his total +payments equal to 2s. 6d. an acre, and obtain a deed of grant of the +land in fee-simple. A deed fee must be paid. + + +FREE HOMESTEADS. + +Land is not available for Free Homestead Selection unless specially +so proclaimed, and the area of no selection must exceed 160 acres. The +term is five years, and during that period the selector must occupy +the land by personally residing on it, and must effect improvements to +the total value of 10s. per acre. A Free Homestead cannot be sold or +mortgaged until a deed of grant is obtained. + + +GRAZING SELECTIONS. + +GRAZING FARMS. + +The greatest area which may be applied for as a Grazing Farm under any +circumstances is 60,000 acres, but, as in the case of other modes +of selection, each proclamation opening land for grazing selection +declares the maximum area which may be selected in the area to which +it applies. In the event of lands open under different proclamations +and of a total area exceeding 20,000 acres being applied for by the +same person, a rental limitation of £200 per annum must be observed as +well as the maximum areas declared by the several proclamations. Thus, +of lands open at 2d. an acre, the greatest area obtainable would be +24,000 acres; at 1½d. an acre, 32,000 acres, and so on. The term +may be fourteen, twenty-one, or twenty-eight years, as the opening +proclamation may declare. The annual rent for the first period of +seven years may range from ½d. an acre upwards, as may be proclaimed +or tendered. The rent for each subsequent period of seven years will +be determined by the Land Court. + +A Grazing Farm must be continuously occupied by the selector residing +personally on it, or by his manager or agent doing so. + +Within three years from the issue of the license to occupy, or such +extended time as the Land Court may allow, the selector must enclose +the land with a good and substantial fence, and must keep it so fenced +during the whole of the term. In the case of two or more contiguous +farms, not exceeding in the aggregate 20,000 acres, the Court may +by Special License permit the selectors to fence only the outside +boundaries of the whole area. If the proclamation declaring the land +open for selection so prescribed, the enclosing fence must be of such +character as to prevent the passage of rabbits. In the case of a group +of contiguous Grazing Farms not exceeding eight in number, or 200 +square miles in total area, and which are situated within a District +constituted under "_The Rabbit Boards Act, 1896_," the Court may by +Special License permit the enclosure of the whole area with a fence +of such character as to prevent the passage of rabbits, instead of +requiring each farm to be separately enclosed. + +The selectors of a group of two or more Grazing Farms, the area of +none of which exceeds 4,000 acres, may associate together for mutual +assistance, and on making proof of _bona fides_ to the Commissioner +may receive from him a Special License enabling not less than one-half +of the whole number by their personal residence on some one or more of +the farms to perform the condition of occupation in respect of all the +farms. + +When a Grazing Farm is enclosed in the manner required, the selector +becomes entitled to a lease of it, and may thereafter mortgage it; or, +with the permission of the Minister, may subdivide or transfer it; or, +with the approval of the Court, may underlet it. + + +GRAZING HOMESTEADS. + +Land open for selection as Grazing Farms must also be open for +selection as Grazing Homesteads, and at the same rental and for the +same term of lease. As already stated, an application to select as a +Grazing Homestead takes precedence of a simultaneous application to +select the same land as a Grazing Farm. The requirements of the law +as regards Grazing Homesteads are the same as in the case of Grazing +Farms, except in the following respects:-- + + (1.) During the first five years of the term of a Grazing + Homestead the condition of occupation must be performed by the + continuous personal residence of the selector on the land. + + (2.) Before the expiration of five years from the commencement + of the term, or the death of the original lessee, whichever + first happens, a Grazing Homestead is not capable of being + assigned or transferred. Unless with the special permission of + the Minister, a Grazing Homestead may not be mortgaged. + + +SCRUB SELECTIONS. + +Lands entirely or extensively overgrown by scrub may be opened for +selection as Scrub Selections up to 10,000 acres in area and with a +term of thirty years. These are classed according to the proportion +covered by scrub, and for periods varying from five to twenty years, +according to the classification, no rent is chargeable. During the +first period the selector must clear the whole of the scrub in equal +proportions each year, and must keep it cleared, and must enclose the +selection with a good and substantial fence. The annual rent payable +for the subsequent periods ranges from ½d. to 1d. an acre. A +negotiable lease is issued to the selector when his application has +been approved by the Court. + + +UNCONDITIONAL SELECTIONS. + +The greatest area allowed to be acquired by any one person as an +Unconditional Selection in one district is 1,280 acres; the price per +acre ranges from 13s. 4d. upwards, and is payable in twenty annual +instalments. As the term implies, no other condition than the payment +of the purchase money is attached to this mode of selection. A +negotiable lease for the term of twenty years is issued to the +selector when his application to select has been approved by the +Court. A deed of grant may be obtained at any time on payment of the +balance of the purchasing price and the deed fee. + + +PRICKLY PEAR SELECTIONS. + +PRICKLY PEAR INFESTED SELECTIONS. + +Prickly Pear Infested Selections comprise lands heavily infested with +prickly pear. The area must not exceed 5,000 acres. + +The term is fifteen years, with a peppercorn rental for the first ten +years and an annual rent of one-fifth of the purchasing price for the +remaining five years. During the first ten years of the term the land +must be absolutely cleared of prickly pear--one-tenth of the pear +being eradicated during each year--and must be kept clear for the +remainder of the term. The freehold may be obtained prior to the +expiry of the term on proof being made that the land has been +maintained free from prickly pear for three years consequent on the +eradication having been completed in advance of the prescribed period. + + +PRICKLY PEAR FRONTAGE SELECTIONS. + +Prickly Pear Frontage Selections are confined to proclaimed prickly +pear frontage areas, comprising lands free from or only lightly +infested with prickly pear, but which adjoin and do not extend for +more than seven miles from lands heavily infested. The greatest area +allowed is 5,000 acres. + +The term is fifteen years, with a peppercorn rental for the first five +years and an annual rent of one-tenth of the purchasing price during +the remaining ten years. During the first five years of the term the +land must be absolutely cleared of prickly pear, one-fifth of the pear +being eradicated during each year, and must be kept clear during the +balance of the term. The freehold may be obtained prior to the expiry +of the term on proof being made that the land has been maintained free +from prickly pear for three years consequent on the eradication having +been completed in advance of the prescribed period. + +PRICKLY PEAR (BONUS) SELECTIONS. + +In the case of Prickly Pear (Bonus) Selections, the freehold of the +land, and a bonus in addition, are granted in return for the complete +eradication of the pear. The maximum amount per acre payable as bonus +is stated in the opening proclamation, but each applicant must lodge a +tender specifying a bonus per acre not in excess of that mentioned +in the proclamation. In the case of simultaneous applications for the +same land, priority attaches to the lowest tender. The size of the +portions opened must not exceed 2,560 acres. The term of lease is ten +years, at a peppercorn rental throughout. The land must be absolutely +cleared of prickly pear during the first seven years--one-seventh +each year--and the clearing must be maintained until the expiry of the +lease. One-seventh of the bonus payable may be claimed at the end +of each of the first seven years of the term, on proof to the +satisfaction of the Commissioner that the condition of eradication has +been complied with. If the eradication is completed at an earlier date +than is required by the conditions of the lease, the balance of the +bonus will then become payable. The freehold may be obtained prior +to the expiry of the term on proof being made that the land has been +maintained free from prickly pear for three years consequent on the +eradication having been completed in advance of the prescribed period. + + +OTHER MODES OF ACQUISITION. + +Crown lands may be acquired in fee-simple by auction purchase in areas +up to 5,120 acres. There is no limitation to the area of freehold land +which may be held by any one person. The minimum purchasing price for +agricultural land bought at auction is £1 an acre, and for other land +10s. an acre. Terms up to ten years may be allowed, with interest at 5 +per cent. per annum on instalments paid after six months from the time +of sale, or the purchaser may elect to hold the land as a lease in +perpetuity at a rental, for the first ten years, equal to 3 per cent. +of the purchasing price, and for such rent for each succeeding period +of ten years as the Land Court may determine. + +Opportunity is also afforded for the occupation of Crown lands for +pastoral purposes from year to year under an occupation license, or +for a fixed term not exceeding forty-two years under pastoral lease. +There is no limitation to the area which may be held by one person +under either of these tenures. + + +TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF SELECTION ON REPURCHASED ESTATES. + +"THE CLOSER SETTLEMENT ACT OF 1906." + +AGRICULTURAL FARMS. + +1. An application to select must be made in the prescribed form, in +triplicate, and be lodged with the Land Agent for the district in +which the land is situated. It must be signed by the applicant, but +may be lodged in the District Land Office by his duly constituted +attorney, and must be accompanied by a deposit of one-tenth of the +purchasing price of the land and one-fifth of the prescribed survey +fee. + +2. In the case of simultaneous applications for the same land, +priority is secured by an applicant, other than a married woman or +a single girl under twenty-one years of age, who, when making +application, undertakes to reside personally on the land during the +first five years of the term of lease. In other cases of simultaneous +applications for the same land priority is determined by lot. + +3. Land cannot be acquired in the interest of another person, and an +applicant is required to declare that he requires the land for his own +exclusive benefit, and not as the agent, servant, or trustee of any +other person. An alien may, on passing a reading and writing test, +acquire a selection; but unless he becomes a naturalised subject of +the King within three years thereafter, all his right, title, and +interest in the land will become forfeited. + +4. The term of the lease of a selection is twenty-five years, +dating from the 1st January or 1st July nearest to the date of the +Commissioner's license to occupy the land. + +5. No rent will be payable during the second, third, or fourth years +of the term. The rent payable during the remainder of the term will +be at the rate of £8 2s. 7d. for every £100 of the purchasing price of +the land, and will be allocated to principal and interest according to +the table appended hereto. + +6. Within two years of the issue of a license to occupy, the selector +must enclose the land with a good and substantial fence, or make +substantial and permanent improvements on it of a value equal to the +cost of such a fence, and must within such period make application +to the Commissioner for a certificate that he has performed this +condition. + +7. When the prescribed improvements are made, a lease will be issued +to the selector, and the selection may then be mortgaged, or, with the +permission of the Minister, may be subdivided or transferred, or, with +the approval of the Land Court, may be sublet, except in the case of +a selection on which the selector has undertaken to reside personally +during the first five years of the term, in which case neither the +lease nor the selector's right, title, or interest thereunder can be +mortgaged, except to the trustees of the Agricultural Bank, assigned, +or transferred during such period. + +8. A selection must be occupied by the residence thereon of the +selector in person, or by his duly appointed agent, as the case may +require or permit, during the whole term or until the leasehold tenure +is determined by freehold. + +9. At any time after five years' occupation the leasehold tenure may +be converted into freehold by payment of the unpaid balance of the +purchasing price. The amount payable in any year, after payment of the +rent for that year, shall be at the rate specified in the last column +of the appended table for every £100 of the purchasing price. + +TABLE OF THE ANNUAL PAYMENTS TO BE MADE AS INSTALMENTS OF PURCHASE +MONEY (SHOWING PRINCIPAL AND INTEREST SEPARATELY), AND THE PAYMENT, +EXCLUSIVE OF RENT, TO BE MADE IN ANY YEAR AFTER THE FIFTH TO ACQUIRE +THE FREEHOLD OF ANY SELECTION UNDER "THE CLOSER SETTLEMENT ACT OF +1906." + + ----------+-----------------+----------------+-----------------+--------------- + | ANNUAL PAYMENT. | Payment to be + | | made in any + +-----------------+----------------+-----------------+ Year after the + | | | | Fifth to + | Principle. | Interest. | Total. | acquire + | | | | Freehold. + ----------+-----------------+----------------+-----------------+-------------- + | £ _s._ _d._ | £ _s._ _d._ | £ _s._ _d._ | £ _s._ _d._ + | | | | + 1st year | 10 0 0 | ... | 10 0 0 | ... + 2nd " | ... | ... | ... | ... + 3rd " | ... | ... | ... | ... + 4th " | ... | ... | ... | ... + 5th " | ... | 8 2 7 | 8 2 7 | ... + 6th " | ... | 8 2 7 | 8 2 7 | 98 4 2 + 7th " | ... | 8 2 7 | 8 2 7 | 94 19 10 + 8th " | ... | 8 2 7 | 8 2 7 | 91 12 3 + 9th " | 1 18 7 | 6 4 0 | 8 2 7 | 88 1 6 + 10th " | 3 14 6 | 4 8 2 | 8 2 7 | 84 7 0 + 11th " | 3 18 2 | 4 4 5 | 8 2 7 | 80 8 10 + 12th " | 4 2 1 | 4 0 6 | 8 2 7 | 76 6 9 + 13th " | 4 6 3 | 3 16 4 | 8 2 7 | 72 0 6 + 14th " | 4 10 6 | 3 12 1 | 8 2 7 | 67 10 0 + 15th " | 4 15 1 | 3 7 6 | 8 2 7 | 62 14 11 + 16th " | 4 19 10 | 3 2 9 | 8 2 7 | 57 15 1 + 17th " | 5 4 10 | 2 17 9 | 8 2 7 | 52 10 3 + 18th " | 5 10 0 | 2 12 7 | 8 2 7 | 47 0 3 + 19th " | 5 15 6 | 2 7 1 | 8 2 7 | 41 4 9 + 20th " | 6 1 4 | 2 1 3 | 8 2 7 | 35 3 5 + 21st " | 6 7 4 | 1 15 3 | 8 2 7 | 28 16 1 + 22nd " | 6 13 7 | 1 9 0 | 8 2 7 | 22 2 6 + 23rd " | 7 0 4 | 1 2 3 | 8 2 7 | 15 2 2 + 24th " | 7 7 4 | 0 15 3 | 8 2 7 | 7 14 10 + 25th " | 7 14 10 | 0 7 9 | 8 2 7 | + +-----------------+----------------+-----------------+------------- + | £100 0 0 | £80 14 3 | £180 14 3 | + ----------+-----------------+----------------+-----------------+------------- + + +[Illustration: VIEW ON BARRON RIVER, CAIRNS RAILWAY] + + +AN ACT TO FACILITATE THE ACQUIREMENT OF SELECTIONS BY CERTAIN BODIES +OF SETTLERS. + +"THE SPECIAL SELECTIONS ACT OF 1901." + +PREAMBLE. + +Whereas it is desirable to promote closer settlement upon the +agricultural lands of Queensland by affording to bodies of settlers +special facilities for the acquirement of Agricultural Selections +to be held in conjunction with portions in adjacent Agricultural +Townships: Be it therefore enacted by the King's Most Excellent +Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council +and Legislative Assembly of Queensland in Parliament assembled, and by +the authority of the same, as follows:-- + +SHORT TITLE AND CONSTRUCTION OF ACT. + +1. This Act may be cited as "_The Special Selections Act of 1901_," +and shall be read and construed with and as an amendment of "_The Land +Act, 1897_," hereinafter called the Principal Act. + + +PROCLAMATION OF LANDS TO WHICH THIS ACT APPLIES. + +2. (1.) The Governor in Council may from time to time, by +proclamation, declare any unoccupied country lands to be open for +selection as Agricultural Homesteads, or as Agricultural Farms, or +as Prickly Pear Selections, or as Perpetual Lease Selections, or as +Grazing Selections, or as Agricultural Farms to be held in conjunction +with Grazing Farms under the provisions of this Act by members of the +body of settlers in the proclamation specified. + +Notwithstanding the provisions of section eighty-three of the +Principal Act, such proclamation declaring the lands mentioned therein +open for selection as Agricultural Homesteads need not also declare +such lands to be also open for selection as Agricultural Farms. + +No Agricultural Homestead to be selected under the provisions of this +Act shall exceed three hundred and twenty acres. + +No Prickly Pear Selection to be selected under the provisions of this +Act shall exceed two thousand five hundred and sixty acres. + +No Grazing Farm to be held in conjunction with an Agricultural Farm +selected under the provisions of this Act shall exceed two thousand +acres, and the total aggregate area of the Agricultural Farm and the +Grazing Farm held in conjunction therewith shall not exceed three +thousand two hundred and eighty acres. + +No other Grazing Selection to be selected under the provisions of this +Act shall exceed three thousand acres. + +Such lands shall remain open for selection under the provisions of +this Act for such time as may be declared by Proclamation. + +During such time such lands shall be open to be selected only by +persons who shall, at the time and in the manner prescribed, furnish +to the Commissioner for the District in which the lands are situated +proof that they are members of the body of settlers for whom such +lands have been set apart. + + +MAXIMUM AREA. + +(2.) No person shall at the same time apply for or hold two or more +Homesteads under the provisions of this Act the aggregate area of +which is greater than three hundred and twenty acres, or two or more +Prickly Pear Selections under the provisions of this Act the aggregate +area of which is greater than two thousand five hundred acres, or +two or more Grazing Selections under the provisions of this Act the +aggregate area of which is greater than three thousand acres. + + +AGRICULTURAL TOWNSHIPS. + +(3.) The Governor in Council may by proclamation set apart any Crown +lands in the said District as Agricultural Townships, and may cause +the whole or any part of such lands to be subdivided into portions +for purposes of residence. Such lands shall be in the vicinity of the +lands open for selection under the foregoing provisions. + +The area of any portion shall not exceed ten acres. + +Any selector of a selection under the provisions of this Act shall +also be entitled to one of the portions in an Agricultural Township, +which portion shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be +a part of the Selection, so that the condition of occupation may be +performed by the residence of the selector either upon the Selection +or upon the portion in the Township. + +The area of the portion in the Township shall not, however, be taken +into consideration in estimating the maximum area which a selector may +apply for or hold. + + +IMPROVEMENTS. + +(4.) In order that the selector may become the purchaser of an +Agricultural Selection under this Act, the certificate of the +Commissioner given under section one hundred and thirty-four or one +hundred and thirty-eight, as the case may be, of the Principal Act +must show that a sum at the rate of ten shillings per acre has been +expended in substantial and permanent improvements on the land. + +The value of any improvements made upon the portion in the Township +shall be reckoned as part of the improvements required to be made upon +the Selection. + +The provisions of this subsection do not apply to Prickly Pear +Selections or to Perpetual Lease Selections or Grazing Selections. + + +CONDITION OF OCCUPATION. + +(5.) During the first five years of the term of the lease of an +Agricultural Farm (including an Agricultural Farm held in conjunction +with a Grazing Farm) selected under this Act, the condition of +occupation shall be performed by the continuous and _bona fide_ +personal residence of the lessee on the Selection; and subsection +5A of section one hundred and thirty-two of the Principal Act shall +accordingly be applicable.[a] + +(6.) During the first five years of the term of the lease of a Prickly +Pear Selection selected under this Act, the lessee shall occupy +the land; such condition of occupation shall be performed by the +continuous and _bona fide_ personal residence of the lessee on the +Selection; and during such period subsection 5A of section one +hundred and thirty-two of the Principal Act, except the last paragraph +thereof, shall be applicable to every such Prickly Pear Selection. + +(7.) Notwithstanding anything in the Principal Act, or any Act +amending the same, when the proclamation opening the land for +selection so declares, lots which are not contiguous may be applied +for and held as one selection under this Act. + + +REGULATIONS. + +3. The Governor in Council may make Regulations prescribing the manner +in which applicants for selections under the provisions of this Act +shall give proof of their qualification to become selectors, and +prescribing such other matters and things as may be necessary to give +effect to the provisions of this Act. + + [Footnote a: Inter alia the subsection referred to provides + that the lessee shall not, during the first five years of the + term of the lease, mortgage, assign, or transfer the lease.] + + + + +APPENDIX F. + +IMMIGRATION TO QUEENSLAND. + +[OFFICIAL COMPILATION.] + +ASSISTED IMMIGRANTS. + +1. Immigrants approved by the Agent-General, who deposit with him +the sum of £50, shall be provided with passages by a steamer from the +United Kingdom to any port in Queensland for £5, the £50 deposit to be +returned to them on their arrival in Queensland. + + +NOMINATED IMMIGRANTS. + +2. Persons resident in Queensland wishing to obtain passages for their +friends or relatives in the United Kingdom, or on the Continent of +Europe, may do so under the provisions of the 9th section of "_The +Immigration Act of 1882_," at the following rates:-- + + £ _s._ _d._ + Males between 18 and 40 years 4 0 0 + Females between 18 and 40 years 2 0 0 + Males and Females over 40 and under 55 years 8 0 0 + +A full description of the nominee must appear on the application form +supplied by the Immigration Department of Queensland. The application +must be signed by the nominor, who must be of full age. + +The Immigration Agent or Clerk of Petty Sessions must satisfy himself +by personal inquiry that the person for whose passage application is +made is a relative or personal friend of the applicant. + +Passage warrants shall be made out in duplicate. One copy, to be +marked "provisional," will be issued to the applicant and the other +copy, to be marked "final," will be sent to the Agent-General, +who will cause inquiries to be made through his agents as to the +eligibility of the persons named therein to be nominated under the +provisions of this Order. + +If the Agent-General is satisfied that all the conditions of +this Order have been complied with he will, upon surrender of the +provisional warrant, issue the final warrant to the person nominated, +which will entitle him to a passage contract ticket. + +A memorandum shall be printed on the provisional warrant stating that +it must be surrendered and exchanged for a final warrant at the office +of the Agent-General before a passage can be obtained. + +The Agent-General will refuse to issue a final warrant to any person +named in a provisional warrant if he finds that such person is not +eligible to be nominated under the provisions of this Order, or +that the description in the application is incorrect in any material +particular, or that the nominee is otherwise undesirable. + + +CONTRACT IMMIGRANTS. + +3. Free passages may be granted from the United Kingdom to any part of +Queensland to agricultural labourers introduced under contract if the +employer pays a fee of £5 for each labourer introduced, provides him +with suitable accommodation, and guarantees him a year's employment at +wages approved by the Chief Secretary. The choosing of such labourers +to be left to the Agent-General, unless they are known to the +applicant, in which case the Agent-General's duty is restricted to +passing or rejecting them. + + +FREE IMMIGRANTS. + +4. The Agent-General may grant free passages to the wives and children +(under the age of 18 years) of assisted, nominated, and contract +immigrants and to female domestic servants who are desirous of +emigrating to Queensland. + +5. The Chief Secretary may direct that a passage warrant be not issued +in respect of any person nominated or proposed to be indented. + +6. The Order in Council of the fourth day of June, 1891, published in +the _Government Gazette_ of the 5th June, 1891, shall be and is hereby +rescinded. + +And the Honourable the Chief Secretary is to give the necessary +directions herein accordingly. + + + + +APPENDIX G. + +SOME STATISTICS AND THEIR STORY. + + +The figures contained in this Appendix, save those for 1908, and in +relation to certain financial matters for 1908-9, are drawn from the +Statistics for 1908 laid before Parliament this year, but all are +official. + +GROWTH OF POPULATION. + +The population of Queensland, estimated at 28,056 on 31st December, +1860, a little more than a year after separation from New South Wales, +more than doubled during the succeeding three years. Thence it again +more than doubled in the next eight years, the census of April, 1871, +providing a basis for the estimate of 125,146 at the end of that year. +Thence to 1882, two years before the close of the quarter-century, +the figures had again nearly doubled, the population on 31st December, +1884, reaching 309,913. + +Of the number of arrivals in excess of departures there is no record +for 1860 or 1861, but of the total increase, 51,509, for the four +years ended 1865 the recorded arrivals in excess of departures +aggregated 46,422, leaving only 5,087 for excess of births over deaths +for the period. In 1866, in spite of the crisis resulting from the +Agra and Masterman's Bank failure, there was still an excess of 6,632; +but by the next following year the number of such excess had fallen to +917, while the net increase of population in that year was only 3,648. + +The census of 1886, the second year of the new quarter-century, showed +a total population of 342,614, and the next census five years later +410,330. This marked the end of the "boom" period, and the amount +spent on immigration, as compared with 1883 and 1884, was cut down in +the next year by nearly three-fourths, or from the maximum of £361,632 +in 1883-4 to £91,143 in 1889-90. In 1891 there was severe commercial +depression, and by that time arrivals had annually decreased, and +departures came very near in numbers to the arrivals. During the next +ten years the increase in population, as shown by the census, was +95,614, bringing the total up to 505,944. + +Here it may be explained that the intercensus estimates between 1891 +and 1901 proved fallacious, for the total number in the latter year +was 6,660 less than the estimate had been for two years previously, +although the arrivals for the intervening period recorded an excess +over departures of 6,389. So that adding to that number the 17,350 +increase by excess of births over deaths the population in 1901 would +have been shown as 536,343 had the estimates between the censuses been +continued on similar lines. The error would therefore have been 30,399 +had not the census figures in 1901 enabled an adjustment to be made. +Similar over-estimating had occurred previously, it is understood, +through many oversea departures not being recorded by those who +supplied information to the department. Of late years allowances have +been made for unrecorded arrivals and departures in preparing +the intercensus returns, and it may be hoped that in future the +discrepancies will be less disconcerting than in the past. + +The population at the end of the first quarter-century having been +309,913, and on 31st December last year (1908) 558,237, the increase +for the period was 248,324. But the second quarter-century does not +actually close until 31st December next, when the total population +should be approximately 570,000 souls. During the half-century, +therefore, the number of people in Queensland as compared with the +population in 1859 may be taken to have multiplied by twenty-two. +In other words, at the time of separation, a year earlier than the +official record begins, the total population was scarcely greater than +it now is in several of our provincial cities. + + +PUBLIC FINANCE. + +Public revenue, which began in 1860 with a total of £178,589, reached +£2,720,656 in 1884-5, the figures of the natal year being multiplied +nearly fifteen times at the close of the quarter-century. The second +quarter-century showed continued increase until 1888-9, but the +figures of that year were not again reached until 1895-6. They +progressed until in 1899-1900, the last year before federation, they +reached over 4½ millions sterling, an amount not again realised till +1908-9. In 1901 the State figures were considerably disturbed by the +proclamation of the Commonwealth on 1st January. In 1901-2 there was +a large apparent decline of £1,053,145, the Commonwealth having +taken over the whole of the postal and telegraph revenue and about +one-fourth of the Customs. There was also a considerable loss by the +discontinuance of State border duties, as well as by the Commonwealth +tariff, which took effect in the second quarter of 1901-2, many +revenue duties being either sacrificed or lowered in favour of +protectionist imposts which only yielded revenue until they excluded +imports. By 1908-9, despite the loss of post-telegraph and Customs +revenue, the total receipts at the State Treasury formed the +half-century record of £4,766,244. + +The expenditure on loan account began with the foundation of the +colony. At the end of the first quarter-century the public debt +amounted to £16,570,850, exclusive of Government Savings Bank and +Treasury bills obligations. In the first decade of the second quarter +it had almost doubled, standing at the end of 1894 at £30,639,534. +By the end of 1900 there had been a further increase of nearly 5 +millions, and on 30th June, 1909, it stood at £41,568,827, or at the +rate of £74 per head of the estimated population. But the railway net +earnings alone of the last two financial years (1907-8 and 1908-9) +have provided a mean sum of £884,616 per annum towards the interest +charge. + + +LAND STATISTICS. + +In 1860 there were 108,870 acres of land alienated in Queensland. +In 1872 the area exceeded 1 million acres, the first quarter-century +closing in 1884 with over 7 million acres. The 10-million-acre limit +was passed in 1890, and the 15-million-acre limit in 1908, when the +total area alienated was 15,108,439 acres. + +The cash received at the Treasury from land sales up to the close +of 1884 was over 4¾ millions, and at the close of 1908 exceeded 8½ +millions sterling. In process of alienation there were then over +6 million acres. For the last ten years the total area leased or +otherwise in occupation has been recorded. In 1899 the area thus +occupied was 296½ million acres, and in 1906 only 247 million +acres. Since then there has been some recovery in this respect, the +total occupied area of Crown lands being now 273,180,864 acres. The +unoccupied area in 1899 was over 131¼ million acres, and in 1902 +only 121½ million acres. Since then there has been both an increase +and a decrease, the area unoccupied in 1908 being almost 135 million +acres, equal to nearly one-third of the total area of the State. This +unoccupied land consists largely of rangy and waterless country, but +a not inconsiderable area would be occupiable were water and transport +facilities provided, and much of it is in what the geologists have +delimited as the artesian area. + + +LIVE STOCK. + +In 1860 the number of live stock in Queensland totalled--Horses, +23,504; cattle, 432,890; sheep, 3,449,350; pigs, 7,147. There was an +almost continual yearly increase in horses until 1902, when drought +reduced the number by 62,997, or at the rate of about 14 per cent. Not +until 1907 was this loss recovered, when the total number of horses +stood at 488,486, the number being still further increased in 1908 to +519,969. There was an almost uninterrupted increase of cattle until +1882, when the total exceeded 4¼ millions. At the close of the +quarter-century the number was 4,266,172. In 1885 and 1886, owing to +a drought, there was again a small decline in cattle numbers, but from +that time there was a continued increase until 1894, when the total of +7 millions was recorded. But droughts and the tick pest had cut them +down to less than 2½ millions in 1903. In 1908 the number had +recovered to 4,321,600. The enlarged Australian consumption has been +a factor in the shrinkage of numbers, but the large increase in prices +fully compensated the owners for the diminished numbers of their +herds. The increased price of wool during recent years renders the +same remark applicable to the sheep-owners of the State; and it may +be said generally that the pastoral industry was never in a more +flourishing condition. + +Sheep, which totalled fewer than 3½ millions in 1860, reached 7¼ +millions in 1866, and 9 millions two years later. Thence till 1878 +there was a series of fluctuations which brought the total in that +year below 6 millions. But in 1882 the number had vaulted to over 12 +millions, after which there was a descent to a little more than 9¼ +millions at the close of the quarter-century. The year 1885 closed +with a further decrease, but by 1887 the number had increased to +nearly 13 millions. Three years later it reached 18 millions, and in +1892 it touched the record of nearly 21¾ millions. By 1900, which +had been preceded by bad seasons, the number of sheep had dropped to +10-1/3 millions, and in the second year of the twentieth century the +low-water mark of less than 7¼ millions was touched. Since then +there has been a rapid increase, and the numbers in 1908 had recovered +to 18,348,851, or within 3,359,459 of the record number of seventeen +years ago. It must be mentioned that, while scanty rainfall on the +Western pastures was accountable for much of the depletion in stock +numbers, overstocking and absence of possible provision for bad +seasons had much to do with the losses incurred. However, the second +quarter-century will close with flocks in number almost equal to those +of 1892, and with fleeces immensely more valuable than the pastures +then carried, and the stock-carrying capacity of the country has +also been much increased by fencing, water conservation, and artesian +wells. + +Pigs are also becoming a valuable asset of the Queensland +dairy farmer. In 1860 they numbered 7,147; at the close of the +quarter-century, 51,796; and in December, 1908, 124,749. + +[Illustration: HAULING TIMBER, BARRON RIVER, NORTH QUEENSLAND] + + +DAIRYING. + +The phenomenal growth of the dairying industry is shown by the table +headed "Dairying." It shows that, whereas in 1860 10,400 lb. butter +were imported and 450 lb. exported, in 1908 there were 23,838,357 lb. +made, 13,752,118 lb. exported, and only 201,924 lb. imported. Even in +1896 Queensland could hardly be accounted a butter-exporting country, +when the shipments were only 13,942 lb., the imports 1,003,680 lb., +and the quantity made 6,164,240 lb., for in that year the excess +of imports was 989,738 lb.; while in 1908 the excess of exports was +13,550,194 lb., or more than a moiety of the amount manufactured. Of +cheese, in 1896 the quantity made was 1,921,404 lb., whereas in 1908 +it had increased to 3,199,510 lb., and the amount exported was 732,090 +lb., the excess of exports over imports being 685,629 lb. Twenty-five +years ago the excess of imports over exports was 1,068,033 lb., which +meant that there were practically no exports. Even in 1896 the cheese +exported totalled only 8,505 lb. It is evident that the dairying +industry in Queensland is yet only in its youth, and that in another +quarter of a century the exports of both cheese and butter will have +increased enormously. + + +SUGAR PRODUCTION. + +Sugar first appears as a Queensland export in 1870, the quantity +being, however, only 26 cwt. By 1879 the quantity had reached 206,269 +cwt., the quarter-century closing in 1884 with 368,626 cwt., valued +at £454,759. But these figures do not represent the quantity of sugar +manufactured, the total in 1884 being given at 33,361 tons, the export +being 18,431 tons. In 1885 the export, as compared with the previous +year, increased by 58½ per cent. in value. In 1888 the value +declined to £384,375, or by more than one-half as compared with +1886. Thence for many years there was a fluctuating export, a drop to +£681,038 in 1897 being followed by a jump to £1,329,876 in 1898. Two +years later there was a heavy fall to £669,389 worth; then two years' +progression followed by a fall to £646,875 in 1903. In 1904, owing +to the Commonwealth bounty and good seasons, there was a recovery to +£1,257,815, followed by substantial progression each following year, +till 1907, when the record export of £1,779,624 was made. In 1908, +owing to abnormal frosts, there was a decline to £1,482,320. + +The quantity of sugar made of course showed corresponding +fluctuations. In 1896 the 100,000-ton limit of manufacture was for the +first time passed. It was followed by a slight drop in the following +year, but in 1898 the record to that date in manufacture, as well as +in export, was made, the product of the mills reaching the high figure +of 163,734 tons. After that year there was a fluctuating decline in +manufacture to the minimum of 76,626 tons in 1902, the great drought +year; but there was an improvement in 1903, and in 1905 152,722 tons +were manufactured, the two following years being very close together +with a mean production of 186,342 tons. In 1908 the sugar manufactured +was 151,098 tons, a decrease, through frost, of 37,209 tons for the +year. In glancing through the figures not only will the effects of +good and bad seasons be recognised, but also of the suspension of +kanaka labour importation in 1888, its revival in 1890, and the +payment of the Commonwealth bounty during the last five years. + + +MINERAL PRODUCTION. + +When in 1866 railway construction suddenly ceased, both on the +Southern and Central (then called the Northern) lines, there was +general distress, mitigated shortly afterwards by the discovery of +gold at the Crocodile Field, near Rockhampton; and in 1867 by the +opening up of the Gympie Goldfield. The first important discovery of +gold, however, had been on the Peak Downs in 1862, after which the +production of that metal advanced from 2,783 oz. in 1863 to 15,660 oz. +in 1864, slightly in excess of which level it remained for the next +two years. The gold raised then jumped to 35,581 oz. in 1867, and to +111,589 oz. in 1868. During the next two years the production dropped +by about 19,000 oz., but it recovered to 115,986 oz. in 1871. In 1874 +it made another big jump to 254,959 oz., owing to the discoveries at +the Palmer, Charters Towers, and elsewhere in the North. This volume +of production was rather more than maintained during the next two +years, after which there was a fluctuating annual diminution until +1887, when there was a recovery to 348,890 oz. For seven years of +the first quarter-century the value of gold won exceeded a million +sterling per annum, high-water mark being touched in 1875--a year of +heavy rainfall and abundant water--with a gold yield of £1,196,583. + +In gold production the second quarter-century opened well with a total +of 250,137 oz., and this yield for 1885 was followed by continuous +progression until 1889, when the total of 634,605 oz., valued +at £2,695,629, was reached. Thence for seven years there was a +fluctuating decline, the minimum of 477,976 oz. being touched in 1891. +From that year there was a gradual recovery until in 1898 647,487 oz. +was reached, the record being made with 676,027 oz. in the last year +of the century. Since then there has been a continuous annual decline +until the total gold raised in 1908 had fallen to 465,085 oz., which +is rather less than half the quantity declared to be exported in 1898 +and 1903. But the export and production figures of course differ, the +former being the actual weight exported in the year, which may be +less or more than the production. Moreover, the production figures +are stated in fine ounces, so that the difference between gold won and +exported is considerably less than the figures would at first sight +indicate. + +Of copper the recorded quantity produced in 1860 was only one ton, +valued at £50; but two years later the value reached £10,332 through +the discovery of the Peak Downs mines. The two following years showed +an almost entire cessation of export, although some £90,000 worth had +been won. In 1865 the value of copper produced was £58,440. Thence +there was fluctuating progression until 1871, when the value rose to +£174,300, with a further rise to £196,000 in 1872. Declension +followed until in 1882 the production had dropped to £14,982, the +quarter-century closing in 1884 with a total of £30,872 worth. The +explanation is that during the period there was practically only one +copper mine at work in Queensland, and that in 1871 the policy was +commenced of smelting all the richer ores and paying the highest +possible dividends. In one year an amount of about £300,000, equal +to the total capital of the company, was distributed, and shortly +afterwards the mine was closed for want of remunerative ore. Had money +been freely spent in exploration, as at the Mount Morgan Gold Mine, +and only moderate dividends paid to the shareholders, it is +believed that the life of the Peak Downs Copper Mine would have been +indefinitely prolonged. + +During sixteen years of the second quarter-century copper mining +languished, the highest production in any one year being valued at +£20,340, while in 1891 the lowest descended to £865. In 1901, however, +through the opening of the Chillagoe mine, the production rose to +£194,227 worth; by 1906 it had continuously ascended to £916,546, +and in 1907 to £1,028,179. In 1908 there was a phenomenal decline in +production value, owing to the low price obtainable for copper, the +total being stated at £882,901. + +The first production of tin is recorded in 1872, when the yield was +valued at £109,816, through the discovery of stream tin in the Severn +River district of Queensland. The record year for tin production of +the half-century was in 1873, when the value raised was £606,184. +Thence there was a fluctuating decline in output till 1884, which +closed with £130,460 worth for the year. + +In the second quarter-century there was a fluctuating diminution of +production, till in 1898 it was only worth £36,502. After that date +there was a continuous improvement, the figures reached in 1907 being +£496,766. The tin won in 1908 was declared to be of the value of only +£342,191, the reduction arising chiefly from lowered market prices. + +The coal raised in Queensland in 1860 was only 12,327 tons; in 1884 +120,727 tons were raised; and in 1908 the production was 696,332 tons, +valued at £244,922. + + +IMPORTS AND EXPORTS. + +The imports into Queensland in 1860 were of the declared value of +£742,023; at the close of the first quarter-century they exceeded +6¼ millions a year; in 1900 they exceeded 7 millions; in 1908 they +totalled nearly 9½ millions. + +The declared value of exports totalled a little more than half a +million in 1860; the first quarter-century closed in 1884 with a total +of under 4¾ millions. In 1889 the value was slightly under 7¾ +millions, and in 1908 it reached over 14 millions. During the last +quarter-century the exports have trebled in value, while the imports +have increased by only about 48·4 per cent. These figures indicate +that the State is rapidly liquidating its external indebtedness +on private account, whatever may be the increase in public loan +obligations. + + +RAILWAYS. + +Railways form a very gratifying asset. In 1865 there were only +twenty-one miles open for traffic, and they yielded no net revenue. +In 1884 there were 1,207 miles open, of which the net earnings were +£273,096. In 1898 2,742 miles open had £534,992 of net earnings. In +1901 there were 2,801 miles open, with net earnings of £223,853 only, +the cause being the historic drought of the period. Since then there +has been a rapid increase in both traffic and profit, the net earnings +of 3,498 miles in 1908-9 having been £885,622. These figures afford +complete justification for a policy of vigorous construction, for they +show that the capital invested in our railways, £25,183,529, earned +£3 10s. 4d. per cent. in 1907-8. In 1908-9 the net earnings were +£883,610, the return on capital invested being £3 7s. 6d. per cent. + +With the object of supplying the latest official data, the Government +Statistician, Mr. Thornhill Weedon, has compiled the following tables, +which practically divide the half-century into four equal periods. It +must be borne in mind that, except under the heading "Finance," the +statistics are for the calendar year and not for the financial year, +which closes on 30th June:-- + +COMPARATIVE STATISTICS. + +VITAL STATISTICS. + + -----------------------+------------------------------------------------- + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +---------+---------+---------+---------+--------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + -----------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+--------- + Births No. | 1,236 | 5,265 | 10,679 | 14,017 | 14,828 + | | | | | + Marriages No. | 278 | 1,125 | 2,661 | 2,823 | 4,009 + | | | | | + Deaths No. | 478 | 1,936 | 6,861 | 5,645 | 5,680 + | | | | | + Population, State No. | 28,056 | 133,553 | 309,913 | 472,179 | 558,237 + | | | | | + " Brisbane [a] No. | 6,051 | 15,002 | 23,001 | 110,554 | 137,670 + -----------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+--------- + + [Footnote a: The area in 1860, 1872, and 1884 is not quite the + same as that in 1896 and 1908, but the population quoted is + fairly representative.] + + +FINANCE. + + ----------------------+---------------------------------------------------- + | FINANCIAL YEAR. + +---------+---------+----------+----------+---------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1883-4. | 1895-6. | 1907-8.[b] + ----------------------+---------+---------+----------+----------+---------- + REVENUE-- | | | | | + | | | | | + From Customs and | | | | | + Excise £| 59,210 | 419,853 | 900,916 | 1,361,212| 1,498,131 + | | | | | + From other sources £| 119,379 | 576,471 | 1,665,442| 2,280,371| 3,953,501 + | | | | | + Total Revenue £| 178,589 | 996,324 | 2,566,358| 3,641,583| 5,451,632 + | | | | | + EXPENDITURE-- | | | | | + | | | | | + From Revenue £| 161,503 | 865,743 | 2,532,045| 3,567,947| 5,336,330 + | | | | | + From Loan ... ... £| 19,384 | 156,424 | 1,665,823| 592,158| 1,033,676 + | | | | | + ----------------------+---------+---------+----------+----------+---------- + + [Footnote b: The figures for 1907-8 include both Federal and + State collections and disbursements on Queensland account.] + + +BANKING. + + ----------------+----------------------------------------------------------- + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +---------+-----------+------------+------------+----------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + ----------------+---------+-----------+------------+------------+----------- + BANKING | | | | | + COMPANIES-- | | | | | + | | | | | + Assets £| 574,661 | 2,200,346 | 11,155,423 | 18,850,945 | 19,122,646 + | | | | | + Advances £| 490,861 | 1,489,515 | 9,338,716 | 15,481,960 | 14,698,195 + | | | | | + Liabilities £| 332,173 | 1,842,848 | 7,662,543 | 11,346,303 | 16,072,757 + | | | | | + Deposits £| 286,917 | 1,590,283 | 6,322,025 | 10,879,640 | 15,440,427 + | | | | | + SAVINGS BANK-- | | | | | + | | | | | + Depositors No.| 163 | 8,121 | 33,067 | 58,226 | 100,324 + | | | | | + Amount to credit| | | | | + at end of year £| 7,545 | 466,754 | 1,220,614 | 2,329,381 | 4,921,881 + ----------------+---------+-----------+------------+------------+----------- + + +CROWN LANDS. + + -----------+--------------------------------------------------------------- + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +-----------+------------+------------+------------+------------ + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + -----------+-----------+------------+------------+------------+------------ + Area | | | | | + Alienated | | | | | + Acres | 108,870| 1,069,208| 7,099,275| 12,850,843| 15,108,439 + | | | | | + In Process | | | | | + of | | | | | + Alienation | | | | | + Acres | ... | ... | ... | 1,776,034| 6,200,930 + | | | | | + Leased or | | | | | + otherwise | | | | | + occupied | | | | | + Acres | 41,027,200| 123,737,093| 316,113,760| 254,787,200| 273,180,864 + | | | | | + Not | | | | | + occupied | | | | | + Acres |387,983,930| 304,313,699| 105,906,965| 159,705,923| 134,629,767 + -----------+-----------+------------+------------+------------+------------ + + +LIVE STOCK. + + -------------+------------------------------------------------------------ + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +-----------+-----------+-----------+------------+----------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + -------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+------------+----------- + Horses | 23,504 | 92,798 | 253,116 | 452,207 | 519,969 + | | | | | + Cattle | 432,890 | 1,200,992 | 4,266,172 | 6,507,377 | 4,321,600 + | | | | | + Sheep | 3,449,350 | 6,687,907 | 9,308,911 | 19,593,696 | 18,348,851 + | | | | | + Pigs | 7,147 | 35,732 | 51,796 | 97,434 | 124,749 + -------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+------------+----------- + + +DAIRYING. + + ------------------+------------------------------------------------------------ + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +-----------+------------+-----------+-----------+----------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + ------------------+-----------+------------+-----------+-----------+----------- + | | | | | + BUTTER-- | | | | | + Made Lb.| ... | ... | ... | 6,164,240 | 23,838,357 + | | | | | + Imported Lb.| 10,400 | 454,698 | 1,271,964 | 1,003,680 | 201,924 + | | | | | + Exported Lb.| 450 | 1,310 | 12,724 | 13,942 | 13,752,118 + | | | | | + Excess of | | | | | + Imports Lb.| 9,950 | 453,388 | 1,259,240 | 989,738 | ... + | | | | | + Excess of | | | | | + Exports Lb.| ... | ... | ... | ... | 13,550,194 + | | | | | + Estimated | | | | | + Wholesale | | | | | + Price of | | | | | + Butter Per Lb.| 1s. 11¼d. | 9½d. | 11d. | 10d. | 10¾d. + | | | | | + | | | | | + CHEESE-- | | | | | + Made Lb.| ... | ... | ... | 1,921,404 | 3,199,510 + | | | | | + Imported £| 1,559 |lb. 186,916 | 1,069,620 | 77,275 | 46,464 + | | | | | + Exported £| 247 |lb. 20 | 1,587 | 8,505 | 732,093 + | | | | | + Excess of | | | | | + Imports £| 1,312 |lb. 186,896 | 1,068,033 | 68,770 | ... + | | | | | + Excess of | | | | | + Exports £| ... | ... | ... | ... | 685,629 + ------------------+-----------+------------+-----------+-----------+----------- + + +AGRICULTURE. + + -----------------------+---------------------------------------------------- + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +-------+--------+------------+-----------+---------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + -----------------------+-------+--------+------------+-----------+---------- + | | | | | + Total Area Cropped | | | | | + Acres| 3,838 | 62,491 | 187,381 | 322,678 | 535,900 + | | | | | + Wheat, Area for Grain | | | | | + Acres| 196 | 3,661 | 11,389 | 34,670 | 80,898 + | | | | | + " Result of Crop | | | | | + Bushels| ... | 78,734 | 195,727 | 601,254 | 1,202,799 + | | | | | + Maize, Area for Grain | | | | | + Acres| 1,526 | 21,143 | 61,064 | 115,715 | 127,655 + | | | | | + " Result of Crop | | | | | + Bushels| ... | ... | 1,312,939 | 3,065,333 | 2,767,600 + | | | | | + English Potatoes, area | | | | | + Acres| 333 | 2,837 | 3,775 | 7,672 | 6,227 + | | | | | + " Result of Crop | | | | | + Tons| ... | ... | 6,834 | 18,451 | 11,550 + | | | | | + Sugar-cane, Area Cut | | | | | + Acres| ... | 5,018 | 29,930 | 66,640 | 92,219 + | | | | | + " Result of Crop, | | | | | + Cane Tons| ... | ... | ... | ... | 1,433,315 + | | | | | + " Result of Crop, | | | | | + Sugar Made Tons| ... | 6,266 | 33,361 | 100,774 | 151,098 + -----------------------+-------+--------+------------+-----------+---------- + + +MINING. + + -------------------+----------------------------------------------------- + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +--------+---------+-----------+-----------+---------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + -------------------+--------+---------+-----------+-----------+---------- + Gold raised in | | | | | + Queensland Oz.| 2,738 | 124,163 | 250,127 | 502,146| 465,085 + £| 11,631 | 537,365 | 1,062,471 | 2,132,979| 1,975,554 + | | | | | + Silver raised in | | | | | + Queensland £| | | 35,327 | 32,162 | 117,889 + | | | | | + Copper raised in | | | | | + Queensland Tons| 1 | 2,448 | 1,653 | 580 | 14,698 + £| 50 | 196,000 | 30,872 | 21,042 | 882,901 + | | | | | + Tin raised in | | | | | + Queensland Tons| | 1,407 | 3,383 | 1,554 | 4,826 + £| | 109,816 | 130,460 | 49,018 | 342,191 + | | | | | + Coal raised in | | | | | + Queensland Tons| 12,327 | 27,727 | 120,727 | 371,390 | 696,332 + £| 9,244 | 16,120 | 60,025 | 154,987 | 244,922 + | | | | | + All other in | | | | | + Queensland £| | | 6,469 | 30,440 | 281,030 + | | | | | + Total £| 20,925 | 849,301 | 1,325,624 | 2,420,628 | 3,844,487 + -------------------+--------+---------+-----------+-----------+---------- + + +SECONDARY PRODUCTION. + + ------------------------------------------------------------------------- + CALENDAR YEAR. + -----------------+-------+---------+-----------+------------+------------ + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1906. | 1908. + -----------------+-------+---------+-----------+------------+------------ + FACTORIES No.| 13 | 593 | 955 | 1,332 | 1,481 + Hands | | | | | + Employed No.| | | | 19,733 | 29,510 + Plant and | | | | | + Machinery £| | | | 6,145,548 | 4,484,340 + Output £| | | | 6,482,824 | 11,242,437 + Leather Lb.| | 427,168 | 2,221,856 | 3,324,832 | (c)152,611 + Butter Lb.| | | | 6,164,240 | 23,838,357 + Cheese Lb.| | | | 1,921,404 | 3,199,510 + Bacon and | | | | | + Hams Lb.| | | | 5,108,726 | 11,324,323 + Meat, | | | | | + Cured Lb.| | | 4,283,024 | 69,442,447 | 50,418,522 + Timber, Sawn | | | | | + Super. Ft.| | | | 22,309,900 | 100,759,016 + -----------------+-------+---------+-----------+------------+------------ + [Footnote c: Now collected on sides.] + + +IMPORTS. + + ---------------------+----------------------------------------------------- + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +---------+----------+----------+-----------+--------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + ---------------------+---------+----------+----------+-----------+--------- + Apparel, including | | | | | + Boots and Shoes £| 32,701 | 113,371 | 318,910 | 232,077 | 552,071 + Linen, Drapery, and | | | | | + Haberdashery £| 154,454 | 293,155 | 742,357 | 806,638 |1,233,776 + Wine, Beer, and | | | | | + Spirits £| 66,909 | 177,601 | 394,764 | 247,259 | 325,484 + Tobacco, Cigar, &c. £| 17,727 | 30,659 | 78,093 | 74,501 | 204,131 + Wheat, Flour, | | | | | + Biscuits, &c. £| 95,318 | 208,447 | 383,504 | 555,460 | 483,794 + Other Grain and | | | | | + Products thereof £| 4,867 | 42,991 | 197,929 | 118,968 | 202,549 + Potatoes and Onions £| 3,410 | 15,789 | 77,897 | 104,233 | 147,584 + Green Fruit, Jams, | | | | | + and Jellies £| 3,487 | 27,755 | 118,309 | 73,184 | 175,967 + Hardware, Machinery, | | | | | + Metals, and Metal | | | | | + Goods £| 63,622 | 217,659 |1,019,374 | 766,217 |1,661,999 + Stationery, Books, | | | | | + Paper, &c. £| 16,482 | 26,528 | 148,682 | 135,127 | 220,746 + Kerosene and other | | | | | + Oils £| 3,916 | 32,580 | 69,202 | 94,048 | 156,460 + | | | | | + Total all imports £| 742,023 |2,218,717 |6,381,976 |5,433,271 |9,471,166 + ---------------------+---------+----------+----------+-----------+--------- + + +EXPORTS--HOME PRODUCTION. + + ----------------------+------------------------------------------------------- + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +-----------+----------+----------+----------+---------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + ----------------------+-----------+----------+----------+----------+---------- + Wool--Clean Lb.|}5,007,167{|12,622,067| 9,030,701|24,479,769|23,459,014 + Greasy Lb.|} {| 5,171,245|26,495,276|64,012,465|66,802,873 + | | | | | + Clean £|} 444,188{| 952,450| 682,774| 1,130,170| 1,670,664 + Greasy £|} {| 217,362| 1,206,730| 1,846,814| 2,459,190 + Total Value £| 444,188 | 1,169,812| 1,889,504| 2,976,984| 4,129,854 + Tallow--Quantity Tons| 640 | 2,890| 2,623| 18,554| 7,292 + Value £| 25,628 | 100,201| 76,019| 337,967| 197,229 + Gold--Value £| 14,565 | 660,396| 923,010| 2,089,166| 1,941,229 + Copper--Value £| 50 | 257,723| 3,014| 32,401| 831,699 + Tin--Value £| ... | 108,310| 228,457| 46,779| 290,389 + Live Stock (Horses, | | | | | + Cattle, Sheep) £| 510 | 366,003| 572,010| 859,367| 1,699,381 + Meat (all kinds, | | | | | + including extract) £| 5,356 | 67,579| 70,833| 898,545| 850,772 + Sugar--Quantity Cwt.| ... | 23,959| 368,626| 1,507,503| 2,645,333 + Value £| ... | 36,833| 454,759| 863,080| 1,482,320 + Hides and Skins £| 14,030 | 93,218| 109,291| 449,265| 421,987 + Pearlshell £| ... | ... | 94,021| 94,865| 49,898 + +-----------+----------+----------+----------+---------- + Total all Exports £| 523,477 | 2,998,934| 4,673,864| 9,163,726|14,194,977 + ----------------------+-----------+----------+----------+----------+---------- + +[Illustration: FALLS NEAR KILLARNEY] + +[Illustration: ABORIGINAL TREE CLIMBERS] + + +INTERCOMMUNICATION. + + -----------------+--------------------------------------------------------- + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +--------+-----------+-----------+------------+----------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + -----------------+--------+-----------+-----------+------------+----------- + RAILWAYS-- | | | | | + | | | | | + Miles Open | ... | 218 | 1,207 | 2,430 | 3,498 + Passengers No.| ... | 40,539 | 1,025,552 | 2,462,020 | 6,538,411 + Cost of | | | | | + Construction £| ... | 2,345,385 | 8,631,835 | 17,248,678 | 23,102,158 + Net Revenue £| ... | 18,213 | 273,096 | 424,862 | 806,797 + | | | | | + SHIPPING-- | | | | | + | | | | | + Inward Vessels | | | | | + No.| 210 | 522 | 1,042 | 649 | 881 + Tonnage| 45,736 | 148,630 | 572,124 | 562,759 | 1,601,107 + | | | | | + Outward Vessels| | | | | + No.| 183 | 507 | 1,061 | 645 | 847 + Tonnage | 39,503 | 143,380 | 579,988 | 531,289 | 1,563,911 + -----------------+--------+-----------+-----------+------------+----------- + + +CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS, EDUCATION, AND PUBLIC LIBRARIES. + + --------------------------+--------------------------------------------- + | CALENDAR YEAR. + +-------+--------+--------+---------+--------- + | 1860. | 1872. | 1884. | 1896. | 1908. + --------------------------+-------+--------+--------+---------+--------- + | | | | | + CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS-- | | | | | + | | | | | + Number | 6 | 21 | 46 | 77 | 107 + Persons Relieved | 397 | 2,796 | 11,614 | 19,917 | 28,310 + | | | | | + EDUCATION-- | | | | | + | | | | | + Number of Schools | 41 | 210 | 528 | 957 | 1,104 + Scholars on Rolls | 1,890 | 23,728 | 60,701 | 103,733 | 105,436 + Average Attendance | ... | ... | ... | ... | 67,309 + | | | | | + PUBLIC LIBRARIES-- | | | | | + | | | | | + Number of Subscribers | 538 | 1,711 | 5,185 | 6,904 | 12,770 + Volumes in Libraries | 4,945 | 20,890 | 60,257 | 129,883 | 249,257 + --------------------------+-------+--------+--------+---------+--------- + + + + +APPENDIX H. + +DIGEST OF HYDRAULIC ENGINEER'S REPORTS. + +OUR ARTESIAN WATER SYSTEM. + + +The water supply problem is of importance so momentous, and the +official information collected by the Hydraulic Engineer being +scattered through reports covering about twenty-five years--from 1883 +until 1908--it is thought desirable to present the main official facts +in a convenient digest for the general reader. + + +SUB-ARTESIAN WATER IN 1884. + +Up to 1883, when the McIlwraith Government created the Hydraulic +Engineer's Department by appointing Mr. J. B. Henderson to organise +it, little had been done by the State for the improvement of the water +supply of the country except in cities and towns. At that time no +artesian water was known to exist in Queensland, but there was a +popular belief that there were great underground supplies, especially +in Western Queensland. Many station-owners had been active, and the +diamond drill had been brought into use, but deep drilling had +not then been undertaken. In October, 1884, the Hydraulic Engineer +reported that he had just visited Widgeegoara Station, where the +owners, Messrs. E. and J. Bignell, partly by sinking shafts and partly +by boring, had obtained an underground pumped supply aggregating +94,000 gallons every twenty-four hours. This resulted from sinking +four 5 ft. × 2½ ft. shafts an average depth of 102 ft. each, and +thence boring and tubing below the bottom of each shaft to the average +depth of 161 ft. Of the total quantity 20,000 gallons a day was +obtained from the Four-mile well, a shaft sunk to a depth of 150 ft. +below the natural surface. Besides this there was a homestead well +33 ft. deep. Analyses of the water showed that, in the opinion of the +Government Analyst, only in one bore was it useful for watering sheep, +it being brackish; but according to the station reports the supply +from the Four-mile well and Nos. 1 and 2 shaft-bores was good +stock water. Mr. Henderson warmly commended the Messrs. Bignell's +enterprise. + + +IMPROVED BORING MACHINERY. + +During the same month the late Hon. George King, of Gowrie, brought +under the notice of the department a report by Mr. Darley, C.E., +to the Government of New South Wales respecting certain American +well-boring machinery by the use of which in Mr. King's opinion +three-fourths of the cost of £6,000 incurred by his firm in sinking +shafts in the Warrego district might have been saved. Besides which +much greater depths could be reached, a machine costing £600 in +America being capable of boring 2,000 ft. The matter being referred to +the Hydraulic Engineer, that officer made inquiries which induced him +heartily to endorse Mr. King's suggestion that the Government should +secure from America a machine with two men experienced in working it +and capable of themselves making any ordinary repairs. Mr. Henderson +also recommended that a staff should be trained by the Americans after +arrival, and expressed the opinion that this course would save both +money and time, and prove a large gain to the colony. But he reminded +the Minister that until there had been an abundant rainfall extensive +operations in bore-sinking in the West could not be carried on, though +he advised the introduction of a sufficient number of machines and +enough tubing in order that during the next season, if rain fell, work +should be vigorously commenced. + +On 4th September, 1885, the Hydraulic Engineer replied in unequivocal +terms to a minute of his Minister requesting him to comply with the +wish expressed that he should purchase a Victorian diamond drill, then +under offer, for coal-prospecting purposes. Mr. Henderson strongly +recommended that no drill be purchased unless capable of boring holes +at least from 5 in. to 2 in. in diameter. He also pointed out that +where drifts and loose gravels were met with, and tubed, a deep bore +must be commenced of large diameter to ensure success. Although the +proposed drills were not ostensibly to be used for water-finding, it +is evident that the Hydraulic Engineer, in reporting upon them, had +that kind of work in view. + + +GOVERNMENT URGED TO IMPORT PLANT AND MEN. + +On 2nd December following the Hydraulic Engineer addressed the +Minister touching water-boring operations, and pointed out that, while +there would be no difficulty in importing the machinery and appliances +requisite for deep bores, he was convinced that men must be introduced +from America to start and teach others here to work them. He +recommended that an efficient plant should be ordered capable of +boring up to 12 in. in diameter to a depth of 2,500 ft., for (say) +£1,000, delivery at the works, and four good drillers under a two +years' engagement brought out to work them at 21s. to 23s. per day, +apparently of twelve hours; board, lodging, and travelling expenses to +be defrayed by the Government. + + +OBSTACLES FROM DROUGHT. + +On 20th February, 1886, the Hydraulic Engineer wrote that, +understanding from conversations with the Minister that "the policy of +the Government is to carry on water conservation works and boring for +underground water with increased energy, he recommends the purchase of +three Wright and Edwards' boring machines, capable of reaching a depth +of 1,000 ft., for delivery within four months from the date of order." +Three days later Mr. Henderson wrote:--"Unfortunately it can be said +with much truth that, ever since the department's existence, the +seasons have been unfavourable in the extreme for carrying out its +plans." After mentioning the specific difficulties encountered, he +added:--"I do not share in the idea that the late rains broke up the +drought, as I cannot disguise from myself the fact that they have not +been general, or even yet of sufficient quantity." + + +FIRST BORING STARTED AT BLACKALL. + +Although the Hydraulic Engineer, so long before as December, 1884, had +recommended the Minister to import American boring machinery with men +trained to work it, it was not until 19th October, 1886, nearly two +years later, that he was able to announce that his advice had been +so far followed that Mr. Arnold, an American borer from Honolulu, +had gone to Blackall with a Pennsylvania Walking Beam Oil Rig boring +machine which had been constructed in Brisbane. It seems that so long +previously as July, 1885, two tenders for boring by Americans--one +being from Mr. Arnold--were submitted by the Hydraulic Engineer to +the Minister, with the intimation that they were both too vague for +acceptance, and expressing the hope that Mr. Arnold, "who seemed a man +of considerable experience, would submit a more liberal and definite +offer." The same report mentions that on the 30th June previously the +Blackall bore had been carried to a depth of 775 ft., and that at 127 +ft. good water had been struck that rose to a height of 60 ft. below +the surface, but was deemed insufficient for the requirements of the +town. Up to that time nine bores had been completed, chiefly by the +ineffective Tiffin auger, but not one had reached artesian water, the +deepest being that at Blackall, and the average depth 371 ft. + + +ARTESIAN WATER STRUCK AT THURULGOONA. + +In his report of 12th November, 1887, the Hydraulic Engineer states +that it is essential that only the best quality of tubing, or +"casing," should be used in bores. In April he had visited, by +direction of the Treasurer, Thurulgoona Station, on the New South +Wales border, and there carefully inspected boring operations. He +found that one bore had, by means of the Canadian Pole Tool boring +machine, been sunk to 1,079 ft., a supply of excellent water having +been struck at a depth of 1,009 ft., "the water overflowing in my +presence to a height of about 20 in. above the surface of the ground." +This was apparently the first artesian water Mr. Henderson had seen in +Queensland, though he had years previously seen the artesian well at +Sale, in Victoria; and he naturally pronounced the opinion that the +result at Thurulgoona was "very satisfactory." During this year +boring had been carried on in Queensland without success so far as the +formation of flowing wells was concerned. Mr. Arnold, having sunk +to 1,039 ft. at Blackall, resigned, but it was decided to continue +sinking, all the tubing being recovered with the exception of a few +feet, and being capable of use several times over if need be. During +this year also tenders had been received from Mr. Loughead, of +Thurulgoona, to put down three bores of 2,500 ft. in Queensland, and +Mr. Henderson reported that there was every prospect of a tender being +received from a company recently formed in Brisbane at a slightly +lower price than Mr. Loughead had named. + + +GOVERNMENT'S FIRST FLOWING WELL. + +It was at this time, after three years' fighting with difficulties +arising from drought, the want of knowledge of deep-boring machinery, +and the indisposition of the Government to spend much money in so +speculative an undertaking, that the first gleam of daylight appeared. +On 6th October, 1888, the Hydraulic Engineer reported that four +contracts had been entered into for deep boring, with as many +different persons or companies, in the aggregate over 20,000 ft. +Included among these was the contract with the Canadian Pole Tool +Company (of which the late Mr. Percy Ricardo was then the financial +head, and Mr. William Woodley, who had been induced to come over from +Canada, was the head driller) for completing the Blackall bore to a +depth of 2,000 ft. if necessary. In this bore, on 26th April, 1888, +after many vexatious stoppages, "an abundant supply of overflowing, +sparkling, fresh artesian water, excellently adapted for domestic +purposes, was tapped at a depth of 1,645 ft." The rate of flow, as +measured from 3 in. piping attached to a screw plug and valve to +control the flow, was found to be 210,000 gallons per diem, with a +temperature of 119 degrees. This had been an expensive bore, for it +cost £5,748. It was not the first artesian water officially utilised +in Queensland, for four months earlier than water rose to the surface +in the Blackall bore the Barcaldine bore was yielding 175,416 gallons +of water a day, at a temperature of 101 degrees, obtained from a depth +of 691 ft., and at a cost of only £1,220. + + +THIRTEEN ADDITIONAL BORES. + +These results were so encouraging that the Hydraulic Engineer +recommended the sinking of thirteen additional bores, and the +recommendation was approved. As early as possible tenders were +advertised, and there then seemed some difficulty in getting eligible +applications, partly, it may be assumed, because of the activity +of private enterprise in bore-sinking. To those engaged in this +undertaking Mr. Henderson in his 1889 report pays a graceful tribute, +congratulating them on their successes, and expressing regret at their +failures, in which they only met the same luck as the Government had +encountered. It was in this report also that the Hydraulic Engineer +suggested that a map be prepared showing the position, altitude, and +other useful particulars of all Government and private bores and wells +in Queensland, and he invited information from all persons capable +of giving it. Mr. Henderson mentioned the successful sinking of +the Cunnamulla bore, having a flow of 22,500 gallons per hour of +"excellent fresh water," with a pressure of 186 lb. to the square +inch, a temperature of 106 degrees, and a depth of 1,402 ft. The total +cost of this bore was £1,928. The success of the Tambo bore was also +reported at the same time, 8,333 gallons per hour having been obtained +at a depth of 1,002 ft., with a temperature of 98 degrees, and for a +cost of £1,515. + + +THE CHARLEVILLE BORE. + +The Hydraulic Engineer's report dated 11th September, 1890, supplies +evidence of the importance of the discoveries made up to that date of +artesian water in Queensland. The striking of a supply of 3,000,000 +gallons a day of "water clear, colourless, soft, and potable" in the +Charleville bore is noted with satisfaction. In the text of the report +this was said to be, so far as the writer knew, the "best well in +Australia," but a footnote added that soon afterwards a bore in the +Cunnamulla district was reported to have been tapped with a daily +supply of 3½ million gallons. The depth of the Charleville bore +was only 1,370 ft., and its cost £2,389. The striking of a supply of +1,095,000,000 gallons per annum at so small a cost was naturally a +subject for both official and general congratulation. + + +INFORMATION SOUGHT AS TO PRIVATE BORES. + +In the same year is reported the striking of water in the Muckadilla +bore, which yielded about 10,000 gallons a day from a depth of over +3,000 ft., and was then believed to be the deepest bore in Australia. +The cost was £2,673. A somewhat better supply was afterwards struck at +3,262 ft. In this report the Hydraulic Engineer expresses regret that +through the absence of barometrical measurements, owing to scarcity of +money, the height above sea level of proposed sites for bores was +not known, but sites were selected from surface indications and the +results achieved by sinking in the neighbourhood. The wells sunk by +the Government had been of much use in assisting private enterprise +to select likely sites, but it would have been more satisfactory +had better information been obtained by the use of the spirit level. +Acknowledgments were made to those who had responded to the circular +invitation sent out for information, and regret was expressed that in +some cases there had been no response. The effort made, however, had +enabled several new features to be embodied in the report, among which +was a table containing a list of both public and private bores, and a +large map locating, so far as possible, the position of each. Another +map showed the rainfall in different parts of the colony, while a +handsome diagram of the Brisbane rainfall was furnished for the first +time. Both of these remained features of the Hydraulic Engineer's +annual reports until 1901, when revenue considerations compelled their +suspension. + + +HINDRANCES FROM FLOODS. + +During 1890 excessive rains and bad roads hindered work in +bore-sinking, instead of the dry periods which had been the cause of +embarrassment for the preceding seven years. The only newly completed +bore during this year was that at McKinlay, which at 1,002 ft. gave a +supply of 224,000 gallons a day. Water was struck in two other bores, +but of insufficient quantity, and work was still proceeding. The +obstacles encountered in boring, often from the breaking of machinery, +but more frequently from the want of thoroughly skilled drillers, must +have been disheartening, especially in cases where the sinking was +done without useful scientific information, and bores had to be +abandoned after months--even years in cases--of labour and worry. + +In his report of 20th January, 1893, the Hydraulic Engineer discusses +at length the question of artesian water supply. The country is, he +holds, now in a much improved position to encounter long droughts. +Valuable information has been and is still being obtained by +exploration as to the prospects of artesian water being found, and +also as to the conservation of surface water by artificial means. He +says that fifteen bores, averaging 1,571 ft. each, have been sunk by +the department, and that although the work has been of a pioneering +character only one sunk to the contract depth has proved a failure. He +estimates that about 88,000 square miles in the western country have +been proved to be water-bearing, and he urges that as large areas +still remain to be explored the present is a favourable time for +inviting tenders for the work. + + +STREAM-GAUGING RECOMMENDED. + +In this report the Hydraulic Engineer directs attention to +the necessity of acquiring information as to the extent of our +surface-water resources. In three of the southern colonies, he +mentions, a systematic practice of gauging streams has for some time +been in force. The work will be useless unless it is carried on for +a number of years. The essential thing to be ascertained is not the +maximum flow of a stream, but the minimum; or rather, perhaps, the +maximum that can be expected from a stream in a season of maximum +aridity. "Without such data," he continues, "no fair distribution of +water, no scheme of water supply, or irrigation, or drainage can be +well considered; nor can storage and distribution or drainage works be +economically designed, or their permanency and efficiency ensured." +He therefore urges the matter of stream-gauging upon the favourable +consideration of the Government, adding that the paramount necessity +of active administration in respect of water conservation generally +has been recognised by Parliament by legislation already placed upon +the Statute-book. + + +WASTE OF ARTESIAN WATER. + +Two official pages of the 1893 report are devoted to the "misuse +of water," a member of Parliament having already objected to the +application of the word "waste" to water allowed to flow unchecked +from bores. The aggregate capacity of the ten Government bores then +flowing was 5,000,000 gallons daily, all measured; while of the 137 +private wells the flow was estimated at 100,000,000 gallons daily. +This total of 105,000,000 gallons would be equivalent to a rainfall +of 29 in. on 91 square miles of country. This was the rate of average +rainfall on the assumed outcrop of water-bearing country that supplied +the artesian area. And it had to be remembered that a part of this +rainfall of 29 in. had to be carried off by streams as well as by +evaporation, and therefore did not sink into the water-bearing strata +of the arid west. As to the extent of the outcrop, it was estimated +not to exceed one-eighth of a mile, with a total length of 1,600 +miles, which meant a total supply of 200 square miles of water-bearing +outcrop area.[a] Arguing on these and other grounds, the report +contends that the falling off of the yield of many bores affords proof +that, wherever the supply comes from, the outflow already exceeds the +inflow. The Engineer can only regard as wasted two-thirds of the water +that now flows from the artesian bores in Queensland; indeed, adopting +the language of an American, "the waste is a crime against the +well-owner and against the State." + + [Footnote a: For fuller particulars see Hydraulic Engineer's + Report for 1893, pages 5 and 6.] + + +CONTROL OF FLOW NECESSARY. + +The Hydraulic Engineer adds that while he cannot assert that the +artesian flow is being exhausted, he yet holds that the flow ought to +be controlled by legislative action.[b] + + [Footnote b: On this passage the Hydraulic Engineer notes + that, in 1891, a bill was introduced into Parliament by Sir + Thomas McIlwraith for controlling the artesian water supply, + and passed through the Assembly, but was rejected by the + Council. Since then no action in that direction has been + taken.] + + +IRRIGATION BY BORES. + +The same report contains an interesting article on irrigation. +It points out that at the beginning of 1892 there were only 200 +irrigators among the land cultivators of the colony, and that the area +irrigated was only 5,000 acres. It was believed that in the last year +the amount of land so fertilised had largely increased. Many of the +plants and distributing apparatus were of a most primitive kind. +"Some are expensive, others badly erected, and not a few are of a type +ill-adapted to the object in view." + +The report goes on to discuss the probability or otherwise of water in +sufficient quantities for irrigation being obtainable by conservation. +In summarising his argument the Hydraulic Engineer says, "Looking at +the question broadly, I am much disposed to regard the possibilities +of a sufficiently abundant supply of water being obtained for +irrigation, especially for land in small areas devoted to intense +culture, as of considerable promise." He then urges the inadequacy of +artesian wells for the irrigation of large areas, pointing out, among +other things, that the entire discharge of the wells then flowing in +Queensland would suffice to irrigate only 219 square miles to a depth +of 1 ft. He thinks that in Queensland we shall have to depend upon +"natural" water for irrigation purposes. + + +A VALUABLE MAP--376,832 SQUARE MILES IN ARTESIA. + +A new feature in the 1893 report was the map giving information as to +(1) artesian bores applied for, (2) under contract, (3) in progress, +and (4) completed. It showed that out of a total of 668,497 square +miles of the "Rolling Downs Formation" (Lower Cretaceous) no less +than 376,832 square miles, chiefly in the arid west, was likely to be +water-bearing. This estimate, it may be noted, has been very slightly +reduced of late, but the scope for exploration in water-finding seems +still great in Western Queensland. The report alludes to the success +attained in the Queensland manufacture of well-boring machinery. All +the plant used, the wire rope alone excepted, was manufactured in the +colony, where improvements had been made in the originally imported +article. Yet it is admitted that the apparatus used was "not a +perfectly scientific one, because it does not produce a core by means +of which the nature of the strata and the angle and direction of the +dip can be fully ascertained." Queensland yellow-wood (_Flindersia +Oxleyana_) had quite replaced American timber in the manufacture of +drilling poles. + +[Illustration: SCENE ON LOGAN RIVER, SOUTH QUEENSLAND] + + +EFFECT OF GOOD SEASONS. + +In closing, the Hydraulic Engineer reports that the succession of good +seasons experienced (years 1890-93), and the abundance of water +and grass resulting, has occasioned much inattention to water +conservation, and he also expresses regret that financial exigencies +have compelled the dispensing with some valued members of his staff. +The article is illustrated by diagrams, and the studious reader will +peruse it with profit. + + +THE SOURCE OF ARTESIAN WATER. + +In his report for 1st November, 1894, the Hydraulic Engineer recurs to +the source of artesian water. He regrets that very little can be added +to the previous assumption that it lies in the outcrops of the porous +beds of the Lower Cretaceous formation on the western slope of the +coast range; and he urges the necessity of accumulating facts relating +to the bores already sunk, and complains that some owners neglect to +give the department the information sought. He urges that legislation +should make the furnishing of statistical matter of this kind +compulsory. He doubts whether, in the absence of information as to the +precise geological conditions subsisting beneath the surface, a map of +Queensland can ever be prepared showing with certainty where artesian +water can be found; but much may be done by accumulating accurate +information with respect to the sinking of bores, nature of strata +passed through, amount and pressure of flow, temperature of water, and +depth beneath the surface whence obtained in each case. The map issued +by the Geological Department would show the water-bearing areas, which +means the formation in which water may be expected to be found; but +bores can only be put down with reasonable certainty when the entire +western country has been prospected. + + +THE LIFE OF ARTESIAN WELLS. + +The life of an artesian well with a permanent spring, says the report, +is limited by the durability of the casing. The corrosive action +of some water is much greater than others; but there should be no +difficulty in renewing the casing when necessary. It has often +been discovered that an interruption of the flow, or its serious +diminution, is the result of worn-out casing. So much is this the case +that there is still controversy as to whether there is any general +diminution in the supply consequent upon continuous waste. + + +ARTESIAN WATER POWER. + +The report then discusses the question of using artesian water for +power in the industries. The Hydraulic Engineer points out that of the +total horse-power used in the United States at that time about 39·5 +per cent. was hydrodynamic. Artesian water, he says, can be applied +to driving all kinds of machinery, "from a sewing machine or a cream +separator to a saw or flour mill; and for fire-extinguishing it is +most excellent." He therefore recommends the employment in Western +Queensland of turbines and Pelton wheel motors for sheep-shearing, +electric lighting, and other kinds of machinery used there, pointing +out that the horse-power available was--At Blackall, 8·04; at +Cunnamulla, 41·53; at Charleville, 123·41; and at Thargomindah, +63·51.[c] He further recommends the utilisation of the artesian supply +for street mains, a suggestion since carried out with great public +advantage in several western towns. While Mr. Henderson doubts the +utility of artesian water for irrigation, he says that, generally +speaking, it is quite as valuable as that from town mains, rivers, +and falls for developing power. The aggregate area to date in which +precious artesian water has been found in Queensland is 117,000 +square miles, and he feels that this area would be rapidly enlarged +by exploration by both Government and private borings. The shallowest +completed flowing well in Queensland at that date was 60 ft., and the +deepest 3,630 ft.; the average depth so far as known to the department +was 1,289 ft. + + [Footnote c: Mr. Henderson notes that these horse-powers have + since been very much reduced.] + + +STATIC PRESSURE AND HYDRAULIC PRESSURE. + +Explaining why the volume flowing from a well does not depend upon +the diameter of the "static" pressure of the water, Mr. Henderson says +that the flow depends principally upon the relative altitudes of the +outcrops of the water-bearing beds, and of the mouth of the bore or +well, and upon the character and texture of the porous beds from which +the well derives its supply. The static pressure is ascertained by +stopping the flow by artificial means, when the pressure generally +rises, sometimes quickly, at other times slowly, until it reaches a +maximum. But when the well is again opened it will be found that +the static pressure has been more or less reduced by friction. This +reduced pressure is called the "hydraulic." The hydraulic pressure can +never exceed the static pressure; nor can the volume of water flowing +from an artesian well be ascertained by its pressure, or the height to +which the water may rise over the top of the casing, any more than the +pressure can be ascertained by knowing its volume.[d] + +In the same report is announced the striking at Winton, at a depth +of 3,235 ft. of a supply amounting to 100,000 gallons a day, at a +temperature of 140 degrees. It was determined to continue sinking +under a new contract. + + [Footnote d: See Votes and Proceedings, 1894-5, for Hydraulic + Engineer's Report, 1st November, 1894, page 5.] + + +SUBTERRANEAN WATER BELONGS TO THE STATE. + +Mr. Henderson again returns to the misuse of water, suggesting that +the utility of the artesian supply can easily be tested by intense +cultivation of a small area at each bore. He complains that one of +Queensland's most valuable assets is not as carefully guarded as it +should be. He estimates that the quantity allowed to run uncontrolled +and generally misused amounts to 66,000,000 gallons per diem, or +66 per cent. of the estimated total flow in Queensland. He invites +attention to a recommendation in a previous report that all +underground or artesian water should be declared State property. +This would not prevent owners of artesian water taking and using a +reasonable supply of water, but all consumption beyond what might be +called a "liberal" amount should be paid for, the State receiving the +water rate. The experience of America in this matter proved that in +some States control by the Government was enforced, while in others +the greatest care was exercised to prevent any further granting of +subterranean water franchises unless the absolute right of the State +was reserved to regulate the consumption. Appended to the report is a +copy of a recommendation by a Commission in the State of Colorado for +regulating, distributing, and using water. Mr. Henderson thinks the +recommendation too severe, but insists that some State control should +be exercised. + +The same report contains an interesting review of the condition of +irrigation enterprise in Queensland, and again insists that scientific +stream-gauging is indispensable if surface water is to be made +generally available for irrigation purposes. + + +EXTENT OF ARTESIAN SUPPLY. + +The report dated 5th October, 1895, recurs to the Hydraulic Engineer's +previous estimate that the outcrops of the water-bearing beds of the +country covered an area of about 200 square miles. He is glad to learn +that Mr. R. L. Jack, Government Geologist, had since worked the matter +out, and, while approving of Mr. Henderson's suggestion as to the +source of artesian supplies in Queensland, estimated the area as +5,000 square miles, or twenty-five times the Engineer's estimate. +This information seems to have allayed Mr. Henderson's dread of the +exhaustion of the supply, for he says that the Geologist's figures +indicate that "the gathering-ground is larger than can possibly be +required for years to come if there is no extensive leakage, of +which as yet there is no evidence that I am aware of." He next writes +strongly in favour of a comprehensive search for artesian water by +the Government, and of Government aid being offered by loan to persons +willing to sink bores on Crown lands or even on private property. +Such assistance would encourage settlement by leaving the settler in +possession for other purposes of money which would otherwise be spent +on water provision on his holding, and prove an incalculable benefit +to the State by mitigating periodical droughts. + + +PROGRESS TO 1895. + +The report then gives statistics relative to artesian bores as +follows:--Number of bores, 397; average depth, 1,195 ft. Of these +286 overflow with a total output of 213½ million gallons per diem. +Total cost of boring and casing, £860,321, as nearly as could be +estimated, "remarkable results for eight years' work, as in 1887 +boring in Queensland was in its infancy." With a view to greater +accuracy provision for the salaries of two inspectors had been made +on the Estimates for the year, in order that uniform records might +be secured as to the strata pierced, the flow, the pressure and +temperature of the water, amount of rainfall at the outcrop of +water-bearing beds, and the alleged diminution of artesian streams. +The suggestion is then made that land, the leases carrying water +rights, might be made available for settlement in small areas around +tanks and bores. + + +THE WINTON BORE. + +In this report the Hydraulic Engineer is able to announce the success +of the Winton bore. At about 3,555 ft. a daily supply of 720,000 +gallons of excellent artesian water was struck, and boring being +continued to 4,010 ft. without increasing the supply work ceased, +the total cost of the bore having been about £7,000. An article on +irrigation shows a total irrigated area of 7,641 acres, an increase +for the year of 2,240 acres. Included in the area are 2,000 acres of +natural grass land and 2,000 acres sown with artificial grasses; also +11½ acres irrigated from artesian wells in the Warrego district. +Flood mitigation is also dealt with at length, and a system of flood +warnings on the various streams recommended. + + +DR. R. L. JACK'S OPINION. + +The report for 2nd October, 1896, brings records up to date. By map it +is shown that not only does the water-bearing country extend over 56 +per cent. of the area of Queensland, but also continues into New South +Wales and South Australia, and enters Western Australia. It "marks +the position of the ancient Cretaceous sea which connected the Gulf +of Carpentaria with the Great Australian Bight," and "divided the +continent into two islands." "They were," wrote Dr. R. L. Jack, "laid +down by this sea; their present position is due to subsequent general +upheaval, and they lie directly and unconformably on schists and +slates of undetermined age, or on granite or gneiss. Except in +Queensland, where they are overlaid here and there by the remains of +the Upper Cretaceous or Desert Sandstone formations which have not +been removed by denudation, they seem to be covered to a considerable +extent by Tertiary rocks. The Desert Sandstone beds lie horizontally +but unconformably on those of the Rolling Downs, which dip to the +south." [e] + + [Footnote e: See "Geology and Palaeontology of Queensland and + New Guinea," by R. L. Jack, F.G.S., Government Geologist, + and R. Etheridge, jun,. Government Palaeontologist, New South + Wales, page 390.] + + +IMPROVED DRILLING MACHINERY. + +In the same report the improvement in drilling machinery is discussed, +and Queensland manufacturers are congratulated on making American +and Canadian machines with improvements which greatly add to their +efficiency. Bores in Queensland are generally begun with 10-in. +casing, and carried to not lower than 500 ft. Then 8-in., 6-in., +and 5-in. casings are used. The necessity of these casings being as +perfect as possible is emphasised by the Engineer. The cost of sinking +bores by contract, which is almost the universal method, depends +upon the facilities offered by the site for the transport of wood and +water, but the range then was from 17s. to 24s. per foot for the first +500 ft., and increased with depth until, at 4,000 ft. odd, sinking +had cost 55s. per foot. The inspectors appointed the previous year had +done good work, though the wet season delayed travelling. Sectional +diagrams compiled from the inspectors' reports appear among the +appendices. + +Then follows an interesting description of surface artesian water +known as Elizabeth Springs, in latitude half a degree south of the +tropic, and in 140¾ degrees west longitude. The account of these +remarkable springs is well worth reading.[f] + + [Footnote f: See Votes and Proceedings for 1897 for Hydraulic + Engineer's Report, 2nd October, 1896, page 5.] + + +PROGRESS TO 1896. + +Number of bores in Western Queensland to October, 1896, 454; average +depth, 1,168 ft.; feet bored, 530,332 (nearly 100 miles); overflow, +193,000,000 gallons per diem. There were also nineteen deep bores on +the coast. The total cost had been £928,081. + + +BORES IN THE GULF TOWNS. + +Reporting on 2nd August, 1897, the Hydraulic Engineer mentions that +the Burketown bore has been carried to a depth of 2,304 ft., with a +supply of 155,560 gallons of good water at a pressure of 60 lb. per +square inch, and a temperature of 155 degrees, the cost being £4,155. +A few months earlier the Normanton bore had struck water at 2,330 ft., +for 293,000 gallons a day, with a temperature of 151 degrees, at a +total cost of £3,803. + + +PROGRESS COMPARED WITH SOUTHERN COLONIES. + +The same report glances at the progress made in artesian water +discovery in the southern colonies. Queensland aggregate flows on +30th June, 1897, were estimated at 140,000,000 gallons daily, or +51,135,000,000 gallons annually. This would suffice to cover 294 +square miles with water 1 ft. deep, or 100 square miles 35-1/3 in. +deep. In New South Wales, in 1897, there were thirty-four flowing and +twelve pumping bores, yielding 22½ million gallons of water per diem. +In Victoria only one or two flowing bores had been put down, the +country being generally unfavourable for artesian water. In South +Australia there were in all sixty-two bores, seven being still in +progress, but of the total only nineteen wells gave good fresh +water, and twenty-two wells salt water. Seeing that artesian water +exploration began in the three colonies named before any steps were +taken in Queensland, the success here may be regarded as phenomenal, +although of course a very considerable amount of capital was lost in +sinking abortive bores. + + +GRAZING FARM SELECTORS' BORE. + +The report dated 15th September, 1898, mentions that the Bando bore +sunk for the Lands Department for the accommodation of grazing farm +selectors was completed during the year at a depth of 2,081 ft., +giving a supply of 2,000,000 gallons daily, and at a cost of £3,289. +It was estimated to water 146,000 acres. The Roma bore for the town +supply had also been completed at a depth of 1,678 ft., and yielded +a controlled supply of 111,000 gallons daily, which sufficed for the +wants of the town. + + +STATISTICS TO DATE.--THARGOMINDAH ILLUMINATED. + +Particulars of thirty-seven bores sunk in the colony to a depth of +3,000 ft. and over are given. Of these eleven had reported flows, +either large or small, during the year, three had been abandoned, and +nine were still in progress. The yield of 376 bores in the colony was +estimated at 214,000,000 gallons a day, the average per bore being +over half a million gallons. Besides these, fifty-five sub-artesian +wells--those whose water did not rise above the surface--yielded +2½ million gallons a day; and perennial springs gave an ascertained +continuous flow of nearly 4,000,000 gallons a day. The report calls +attention to a serious diminution in the yield of certain wells, and +says that it has been ascertained in some cases that the loss was due +to loss of head, and not to any leakage or obstruction in the casing. +The Hydraulic Engineer therefore again urges legislation to give the +Government control of bore water. As to power, it is mentioned that a +small electrical installation had been set up at Thargomindah by +the Bulloo Divisional Board, and that the number of lamps of sixteen +candle-power that would exhaust the bore power was 150 to 200. + + +THE DROUGHT OF 1899. + +When the report dated 30th August, 1899, was prepared the country was +held in the throes of a protracted drought, and the Hydraulic Engineer +speaks of compression in his report on the ground of economy. +For years past the reports had been becoming increasingly bulky, +appendices and maps being supplied on a generous scale. Government +expenditure in bore-sinking had now nearly ceased, presumably because +private enterprise had already benefited greatly by Government +prospecting for water, and the same necessity did not exist for State +action as in previous years. The new feature of the departmental +year's work is stated to have been the comparative analysis of the +height of bore sites and the water potentials thereat, upon which the +iso-potential map, with the full description given in page 56 of the +report, is based. By this time the number of bores sunk to a depth of +3,000 ft. and over was fifty, an increase for the year of thirteen, +which shows that private enterprise was still active in the search for +artesian water. The total number of flowing bores in the colony was +given as 440, with a yield of water of nearly 266½ million gallons +a day. + +The report dated 25th August, 1900, mentions that during the year in +the Adavale bore 9,000 gallons of water a day had been struck at 1,494 +ft., and although further sinking had been carried to 2,930 ft. there +was no increase in the supply. By this time the number of bores sunk +to 3,000 ft. and over had increased by nine, or to fifty-nine, while +the aggregate flow of artesian water was put at over 321½ million +gallons per day. + + +REGRETTABLE ECONOMIES. + +The report dated 31st August, 1901, was the last to supply the very +full information customarily given annually by the department. There +was almost universal drought and difficulty. In some parts of the +State, however, the drought had broken, so that needful works could be +again pushed on. But this was by no means the end of the great drought +of 1898-1903, and the appendices and valuable maps which added so +greatly to the permanent value of the reports of the department were +discontinued, and only a brief report was presented. This is much to +be regretted, but retrenchment was enforced by revenue shrinkages and +the dislocation temporarily caused by federal union. Happily, however, +the information has since been carefully collected, and is now +available to complete this sketch of the work done and results +achieved since the year 1883, when the department was created under +Mr. Henderson's direction. In the 1901 report the success of the +Adavale bore is recorded, the depth being 3,398 ft., with a flow of +990,890 gallons per day, and at a total cost of £5,369. The striking +of a supply of water in the Dalby bore to the amount of 46,470 gallons +an hour at a depth of 1,841 ft. is also mentioned in this report. +This success is interesting on account of the site being the furthest +easterly where artesian water has been found. + +The report for 1902 was cut down to the minimum limit. It was prepared +while the country was in the grip of the worst drought ever known, +and yet private enterprise was active as ever in bore-sinking, no less +than thirty-six flowing wells having been completed during the year. +The total number in the State was thus brought up to 563, yielding +375,000,000 gallons a day, the average flow per bore being 666,231 +gallons. + + +ADDITIONAL FLOWING BORES IN 1903. + +The report for 1903 was brief. During the year the number of flowing +bores had increased by thirteen, and the aggregate flow by 10,000,000 +gallons. The average flow was 669,279 gallons, or 3,048 gallons +increase upon the flow for the preceding year. This in the face of +the diminution of the flow in many bores cannot be considered +unsatisfactory. The entire cost of well-boring in the State to 1903 is +set down at £1,463,326, including abortive bores, and heavy sums for +carriage of boring plant in the earlier days. It is mentioned in this +report that the Whitewood bore, Bimerah, yielding only 70,000 +gallons a day, at 5,045 ft., is still the deepest in Queensland. The +shallowest is given as at Manfred Downs, at 10 ft., yielding 2,000 +gallons a day; and the hottest water at Elderslie No. 2, where from a +depth of 4,523 ft. emerge more than 1½ million gallons per diem at +a temperature only 10 degrees below boiling point. The greatest static +pressure is at the Thargomindah bore, where it is nearly 240 lb. to +the square inch. + + +LATER INFORMATION. + +Since 1902 until this year annual reports at length have not been +furnished by the Hydraulic Engineer; but this year the work has been +resumed, and advance information supplied in a condensed form. + +In the foregoing epitome of the Hydraulic Engineer's reports extending +over twenty-five years, no particular mention has been made of the +failures inevitable when either the Government or private persons +were engaged in deep boring for water exploration. The following +particulars show some of the obstacles encountered in tapping the +subterranean springs of our arid western country:-- + +In his report for 1902 the Hydraulic Engineer mentioned that a +contract had been entered into with Mr. W. Woodley for the sinking of +a bore at Eromanga to a depth of 2,000 ft. for the sum of £1,438, but +that work could not be prosecuted in consequence of the prevailing +drought in the West. The contract depth was reached on 29th August, +1903, without finding water. A further contract to carry the bore to +3,000 ft. was subsequently entered into, and on 30th June, 1904, at +a depth of 2,612 ft., the work was suspended until the arrival of +casing, which was delayed by rain. It was not until November, 1904, +that the casings reached the bore site, and that work could be +resumed. A suspension of work occurred on 4th March following for want +of a competent driller. Boring was resumed in August and continued +till March, 1906, without success. The only water tapped up to that +time was a supply of 10,000 gallons per diem at a depth of 1,640 ft. +The casings were allowed to remain in the bore, the gross cost of +which had been £4,480. In May, 1906, a new contract with Mr. Woodley, +for sinking another bore to a depth of 3,000 ft., was entered into. At +1,660 ft. a supply of 12,000 gallons a day was tapped; but, this being +considered insufficient, another contract for deepening the bore to +3,500 ft. was entered into with Mr. Woodley, the additional cost being +£1,000. On 9th March, 1908, the depth of 3,500 ft. was reached without +any additional supply. Then a contract for sinking a further 500 ft. +was entered into. At 3,980 ft. a small flow was tapped which dribbled +over the surface, and the 4,000 ft. depth being reached arrangements +were made for sinking another 100 ft. At 4,050 ft. a small flow of 110 +gallons per hour was struck. At 4,135 ft. the flow increased to 250 +gallons per hour. Delays occurred after this, until January, 1909, +when boring was resumed, and at 4,270 ft. a flow of 306,234 gallons +per diem was struck. The water was then brought under control, +and found to have a pressure of 219 lb. per square inch, with a +temperature of 198 degrees F. The water was fresh and drinkable, +though having a slightly gaseous taste; but this was not noticeable +after it had stood exposed to the air for a little time. On completion +of the surface fittings the discharge was measured, and the flow +ascertained to be 256,825 gallons per diem. The cost had not been +adjusted at the date of our information, but it will be understood +that a work extending over five years, and then yielding a +comparatively small supply, makes bore-sinking a highly speculative +industry, even in what the geologists declare to be artesian +water-bearing country. + +[Illustration: COOKTOWN AND ENDEAVOUR RIVER, NORTH QUEENSLAND] + +[Illustration: PEARLING FLEETS OFF BADU ISLAND, TORRES STRAIT] + +At the Kynuna bore, work had been suspended at the time of the last +annual report at a depth of 2,221 ft., the flow being 807,608 gallons +a day. When cased to the bottom the flow was 880,154 gallons per day. +It was handed over to the Winton Shire Council, the total cost having +been £2,610, half of which was granted as a loan to the council by the +Government, and the other half as a free gift. + +Another unsuccessful bore was at Windorah, where, under contract, a +depth of 4,000 ft. was reached, with no water save an insignificant +spring touched at 103 ft. below the surface. The total cost, including +casing and supervision, was £7,508. + +A bore at the joint expense of the Booringa Shire Council and the +Government was started at Mitchell in January, 1908, and on 18th May, +at a depth of 1,405 ft., the work was stopped, the supply, equal to +205,000 gallons a day, being considered sufficient. The cost of the +bore was £1,935. + + +SUMMARY BY THE HYDRAULIC ENGINEER. + +Summarising the information supplied in the accompanying tables, Mr. +Henderson writes:--"The total continuous yield from 716 bores--the +flows from which have been estimated by various persons, not connected +with the department, and communicated to me either directly or through +the public prints, for the accuracy of which I cannot vouch, and +measured under the hydraulic survey which was suspended in 1899 and +not yet resumed--is now estimated at 479,268,000 gallons per diem; +hence the average flow per bore is 669,369 gallons in the same time. + +"These figures do not include the flows from nine sub-artesian wells +the flow from which is artificially produced by cutting down the +outlet, but which it is understood have since ceased to flow, nor do +they include the yield from 215 sub-artesian wells which are pumped +more or less regularly during periods of drought, and which are +estimated to yield 8,600,000 gallons per day, or an average of 40,000 +gallons per well if pumped continuously night and day; but as it is +impossible to form a trustworthy estimate of the daily volume raised +I have put it down at what I think is approximately true--namely, +1,720,000 gallons. + +"I may also mention that owing to the suspension of the departmental +hydraulic survey previously mentioned, I have obtained no official +data relating to perennial springs. The last data to hand are given in +my summarised report for the year 1902." + + +WELLS SUCCESSFUL AND ABANDONED. + +The following table shows the progress of boring and artesian supplies +to end of 1908 [but it must be stated that only part of the data for +the years 1907 and 1908 is to hand]:-- + + ----------------------------+----------+-----------+--------------+-------- + | Artesian | Pumped | Progress | + Sunk by | Flows. | Supplies. | Abandoned or | Total. + | | | Uncertain. | + ----------------------------+----------+-----------+--------------+-------- + [g] Government | 32 | 10 | 76 | 118 + Local Governing Authorities | 16 | 0 | 24 | 40 + Private Owners | 668 | 205 | 315 | 1,188 + +----------+-----------+--------------+-------- + Total to end of 1908 | 716 | 215 | 415 | 1,346 + ----------------------------+----------+-----------+--------------+-------- + + [Footnote g: Pioneering bores sunk to explore and ascertain + the artesian possibilities of new country.] + + +AGGREGATE MILEAGE BORED, AND AVERAGE FOR EACH WELL. + +For comparison with former years I may mention (writes Mr. Henderson) +that the total aggregate number of feet bored in search of artesian +water in Queensland up to end of 1908 is estimated, from the best +information at hand, at 1,498,700 ft., equal to 283·84 miles. The +average depth per bore is 1,113 ft. The total aggregate depth bored is +as follows:-- + + -------------------------------+-----------+-------------------------------- + Date | Miles. | Increase in Each Year. + -------------------------------+-----------+-------------------------------- + Up to the end of October, 1894 | 82·75 | + " " " 1895 | 92·21 | 9·46 miles in twelve months + " " September, 1896 | 102·43 | 10·22 miles in eleven months + " " June, 1897 | 111·02 | 8·59 miles in nine months + " " " 1898 | [h]135·85 | [h]24·83 miles in twelve months + " " " 1899 | 159·61 | 23·76 miles in twelve months + " " " 1900 | [i]184·98 | [i]25·37 miles in twelve months + " " " 1901 | 202·01 | 17·03 miles in twelve months + " " " 1902 | 215·04 | 13·03 miles in twelve months + " " " 1903 | 221·87 | 6·83 miles in twelve months + " " " 1904 | 225·04 | 3·17 miles in twelve months + " " " 1905 | 229·53 | 4·49 miles in twelve months + " " " 1906 | 236·41 | 6·88 miles in twelve months + " " " 1907 | [j]273·66 | [j]37·25 miles in twelve months + " " December, 1907 | [k]276·50 | [k] 2·84 miles in six months + " " " 1908 | [k]283·84 | [k] 7·34 miles in twelve months + -------------------------------+-----------+-------------------------------- + + [Footnote h: This includes a considerable number of old bores + discovered and added to the 1898 year's list.] + + [Footnote i: This includes thirty-four sub-artesian wells + and bores in the Dalby district, representing an aggregate of + 3,500 ft.] + + [Footnote j: Data collected by Police Department at the + beginning of 1907, which include a number of old bores not + previously heard of.] + + [Footnote k: Only a small part of data to hand, which was + chiefly compiled from newspaper reports. It is a fact well + known to this Department that never before was there in any + year so much boring done as during the years 1907 and 1908.] + + +FLOWING ARTESIAN BORES--1908. + + Number of artesian flows of various magnitudes to end of 1908:-- + + Under 10,000 gallons per day 49 + From 10,001 to 150,000 gallons per day 151 + " 150,001 to 750,000 " " " 296 + " 750,001 to 1,500,000 " " " 129 + " 1,500,001 to 2,500,000 " " " 57 + Exceptional flows of over 2,500,000 gallons per day 34 + ---- + Total flowing bores 716 + +The continuous yield of water is estimated at 479,268,000 gallons per +diem, equal to 1,763·22 acre feet, or 2·755 square miles of water 1 +ft. deep, in the same time. + +The average flow of the 716 bores is thus 669,369 gallons per day, and +their average depth is 1,575 ft. + +The estimated value of 1,346 borings is £1,873,375. + + +ARTESIAN WELLS OVER 3,000 FEET DEEP. + +The following is a list, compiled from the latest available +information, of the Artesian Wells of the State over 3,000 ft. deep, +in order of their depth:-- + + ---------------------------+------------------+-------+--------------- + Name of Bore. | Date of | Depth.| Date of + | | | Completion or + | Commencement. | | Suspension. + ---------------------------+------------------+-------+--------------- + | | Feet. | + 1. Bimerah Run, No. 3, | 11 Aug, 1898 | 5,045 | June, 1900 + Whitewood | | | + 2. Bimerah Run, No. 1, | May, 1895 | 4,860 | July, 1897 + Bothwell | | | + 3. Elderslie Run, No. 2, | April, 1900 | 4,523 | Sept., 1902 + Cathedral | | | + 4. Ruthven Run, No. 1 | 1 Aug., 1905 | 4,515 | April, 1908 + 5. Ayrshire Downs Run, | Jan., 1895 | 4,438 | Sept., 1897 + No. 1 | | | + 6. Warbreccan Run | Jan., 1894 | 4,333 | 22 April, 1898 + 7. Manuka Run, No. 1 | Aug., 1896 | 4,310 | April, 1898 + 8. Bimerah Run, No. 2, | Oct., 1897 | 4,310 | Jan., 1900 + Munjerie | | | + 9. Eromanga (Government) | 16 July, 1906 | 4,270 | Jan., 1909 + 10. Rockwood Run, No. 1, | 15 Dec., 1891 | 4,220 | 15 July, 1897 + Glenariffe | | | + 11. Albilbah Run, No. 1, | 1 July, 1889 | 4,205 | Sept., 1902 + Cable End | | | + 12. Ruthven Run, No. 1 | 1 Aug., 1903 | 4,105 | 22 June, 1905 + 13. Lorne, No. 1 | ... | 4,057 | In Progress + 14. Minnie Downs Run | 11 May, 1899 | 4,040 | 30 April, 1902 + 15. Malboona, Manuka | 18 Feb., 1899 | 4,032 | 7 June, 1900 + Resumption | | | + 16. Winton (Government) | 16 July, 1889 | 4,010 | 25 June, 1895 + 17. Darr River Downs Run, | | | + No. 4, Overnewton | Feb., 1892 | 4,006 | 28 Mar., 1894 + 18. Thornleigh (Kargoolnah | May, 1901 | 4,003 | 15 Sept., 1902 + Shire) | | | + 19. Windorah (Government) | 1 July, 1902[l]| 4,001 | 24 May, 1905 + 20. Vindex Run, No. 2 | Oct., 1898 | 4,000 | June, 1900 + 21. Ayrshire Downs Run, | Sept., 1899 | 3,983 | Sept., 1902 + No. 3 | | | + 22. Katandra and | | | + Stamfordham Runs, No. 1 | 8 Oct., 1892 | 3,980 | -- 1896 + 23. Evesham, No. 1 | ... | 3,970 | In Progress + 24. Malvern Hills Run, | 1 July, 1890[m]| 3,942 | 10 May, 1894 + Gowan | | | + 25. Darr River Downs Run, | | | + No. 2, Fairlie | 1 Nov., 1899 | 3,890 | May, 1891 + 26. Talleyrand, Camoola | ... | 3,870 | -- 1898 + District | | | + 27. Burenda Run, No. 3, | | | + Gidyea Creek | 16 Oct., 1895 | 3,840 | Sept., 1898 + 28. Oondooroo Run | Jan., 1900 | 3,800 | 1 April, 1901 + 29. Mount Abundance, No. 2 | -- 1907 | ... | -- 1908 + 30. Albilbah Run, No. 2, | 21 Dec., 1889 | 3,800 | -- 1893 + Jackson's | | | + 31. Greendale, No. 1 | ... [n] | 3,799 | In Progress + 32. Vindex Run, No. 3 | 24 July, 1901 | 3,795 | 6 Sept., 1902 + 33. Muckadilla (Government)| 21 Oct., 1889 | 3,762 | 24 Dec., 1898 + 34. Redcliffe Run, | Jan., 1893 | 3,750 | 20 Mar., 1895 + Redcliffe | | | + 35. Clio G. F., Ayrshire | | | + Downs Resumption | -- 1901 | 3,745 | April, 1902 + 36. Katandra and | | | + Stamfordham Runs, No. 2 | ... | 3,723 | -- 1896 + 37. Ayrshire Downs Run, | 11 April, 1898 | 3,721 | Sept., 1899 + No. 2 | | | + 38. Roma Town, No. 2 | 28 June, 1899 | 3,710 | 17 Oct., 1900 + 39. Nive Downs Run, No. 2, | | | + The Ironbarks | 1 Jan., 1893 | 3,710 | 5 Sept., 1894 + 40. Roma Mineral Oil | -- 1907[o]| 3,702 | Dec., 1908 + Company | | | + 41. Wellshot Run, No. 4 | Sept., 1901 | 3,698 | -- 1902 + 42. Elderslie Run, No. 3 | Mar., 1900 | 3,680 | 18 May, 1901 + 43. Kensington Downs Run | -- 1897 | 3,650 | June, 1898 + 44. Wyora, Winton District | 23 May, 1899 | 3,650 | 12 Mar., 1900 + 45. Darr River Downs Run, | Jan., 1890 | 3,650 | Aug., 1891 + No. 3 | | | + 46. Darr River Downs Run, | | | + No. 1, Nine-mile | 23 Dec., 1888 | 3,600 | Mar., 1899 + 47. Longreach Town, Aramac | April, 1897 | 3,590 | 10 Dec., 1897 + Shire | | | + 48. Noondoo Run, No. 2, | Nov., 1897 | 3,586 | July, 1899 + Dareel | | | + 49. Manuka Run, No. 2 | Feb., 1899 | 3,581 | June, 1901 + 50. Fairbairn, Dagworth | -- 1900 | 3,579 | Sept., 1900 + Resumption | | | + 51. Wellshot Run, No. 3, | 27 Oct., 1894 | 3,561 | 17 June, 1895 + Totness | | | + 52. Barcaldine Downs Run, | | | + No. 1, Twenty-mil e| -- 1889 | 3,533 | 21 Jan., 1896 + 53. Lansdowne Run, No. 3, | Oct., 1894 | 3,529 | Jan., 1896 + Downfall | | | + 54. Jericho (Government) | Mar., 1902 | 3,518 | 15 June, 1903 + 55. Lerida Run, No. 1 | Sept., 1897 |?3,511 | 16 July, 1898 + 56. Katandra and | | | + Stamfordham Runs, No. 4 | ... [p]| 3,510 | -- 1907 + 57. Wellshot Run, No. 1, | 16 Nov., 1892 | 3,504 | 2 Nov., 1893 + Bradnich | | | + 58. Elderslie Run, No. 1, | Oct., 1896 | 3,500 | July, 1898 + Farewell | | | + 59. Lerida Run, No. 2, | 12 July, 1898 | 3,500 | 3 Mar., 1900 + Glenullen | | | + 60. Westlands Run, No. 2, | 18 April, 1893 | 3,480 | 13 May, 1896 + Buffalo | | | + 61. Acacia Downs G. F., | Feb., 1897 | 3,480 | 20 July, 1897 + Bowen Downs | | | + 62. Hamilton Downs Run, | | | + No. 2, Campsie | July, 1898 | 3,457 | Jan., 1900 + 63. Tintinchilla Run, Milo | Before 1895 | 3,411 | Mar., 1895 + 64. Dagworth Run, No. 2, | April, 1898 | 3,400 | Dec., 1898 + Pinnacle | | | + 65. Adavale Town | 27 Dec., 1899 | 3,398 | 8 Nov., 1900 + (Government) | | | + 66. Westbury, Camoola | ... | 3,340 | -- 1900 + District | | | + 67. Dagworth Run, No. 1, | | | + Crescent Creek | April, 1892 | 3,335 | July, 1893 + 68. Arabella Run | 13 April, 1896 | 3,335 | 16 May, 1897 + 69. Jacondol G. F., , | | | + Campbell's Barcaldine | Mar., 1895 | 3,333 | -- 1905 + 70. Thomson Watershed | Aug., 1891 | 3,319 | July, 1893 + (Government) | | | + 71. Burenda Run, No. 2, | Nov., 1894 | 3,315 | 14 Sept., 1895 + Burenda | | | + 72. Bowen Downs Run, | | | + No. 4, Muttaburra road | Aug., 1891 | 3,308 | Oct., 1894 + 73. Hamilton Downs Run, | ... | 3,301 | April, 1895 + No. 1, Clio | | | + 74. Noorindoo Run, No. 1 | Mar., 1901 | 3,300 | -- 1904 + 75. Cooinda, Winton North | 7 June, 1898 | 3,298 | 20 Jan., 1899 + District | | | + 76. Portland Downs Run | 14 Aug., 1897 | 3,280 | 14 June, 1899 + 77. Chatsworth Run, No. 1 | ? 1894 | 3,266 | 5 Feb., 1895 + 78. Sesbania Run, No. 2 | May, 1898 | 3,252 | 19 Sept., 1898 + 79. Alice Downs Run, |11 April, 1898 | 3,248 | Dec., 1898 + No. 2, Norwood | | | + 80. Mount Cornish Run, | ... | 3,219 | 4 June, 1907 + No. 2 | | | + 81. Sesbania Run, No. 5 | 5 June, 1901 | 3,186 | Mar., 1902 + 82. Sesbania Run, No. 6 | ... | 3,179 | -- Aug., 1909 + 83. Terrick Terrick Run, | -- 1907[q]| 3,140 | -- 1908 + Lorne | | | + 84. Sesbania Run, No. 4 | Feb., 1899 | 3,103 | Jan., 1900 + 85. Noorindoo Run, No. 2 | Feb., 1903 | 3,103 | 2 April, 1904 + 86. Noondoo Run, Narine | -- 1896 | 3,098 | Nov., 1897 + 87. Birkhead Run, No. 1, | 29 June, 1898 | 3,095 | -- 1906 + Macfarlane | | | + 88. Authoringa and | 1 Jan., 1896 | 3,086 | June, 1898 + Riversleigh Runs, | | | + No. 2, Rocky | | | + 89. Llanrheidol Run, No. 2,| June, 1896 | 3,085 | 3 April, 1897 + Acacia | | | + 90. Hughenden M. C. | 3 Jan., 1894 | 3,069 | July, 1898 + Town Bore | | | + 91. Muttaburra District, | ? 1895 | 3,065 | April, 1895 + Brookwood | | | + 92. Authoringa, No. 3, | Aug., 1898 | 3,060 | -- 1899 + Spinifex | | | + 93. Muttaburra District, | | | + Weewondilla | ... | 3,060 | Dec., 1903 + 94. Albion Downs Run | Oct., 1897 | 3,033 | Sept., 1899 + 95. Muttaburra District, | -- 1906 | 3,030 | 27 July, 1908 + Crossmoor | | | + 96. Barcaldine North | | | + District, Fairview | ... | 3,028 | 20 July, 1907 + 97. Myall Plains, Boombah | Feb., 1907 | 3,024 | Dec., 1908 + 98. Lansdowne, No. 2, | Nov., 1889 | 3,005 | Feb., 1892 + Narambla | | | + 99. Yarrawonga Run, Ada | ... | 3,000 | June, 1898 + 100. Tarra Grazing Farm, | ... | 3,000 | -- 1906 + No. 4 | | | + ---------------------------+------------------+-------+--------------- + + [Footnote l: Abandoned or suspended at 4,001 feet.] + + [Footnote m: Abandoned at 3,942 feet.] + + [Footnote n: In progress at 3,799 feet.] + + [Footnote o: In progress at 3,702 feet.] + + [Footnote p: Abandoned or suspended at 3,510 feet.] + + [Footnote q: In progress at 3,140 feet.] + +The hydraulic survey, suspended some years ago, has not yet been +resumed; therefore the foregoing return, furnished by the Hydraulic +Engineer in advance of his report, has been compiled from unofficial +documents which have not yet been verified, and is given for what it +is worth. + + +STATISTICS SUPPLIED BY WELL-BORING COMPANIES. + +In order to make the record of artesian boring in Queensland as +complete as possible, the following information has been obtained from +the two principal drilling firms at present engaged in the State. +It will be noticed that the list of the Intercolonial Boring Company +includes three bores in South Australia:-- + +LIST OF BORES OVER 3,000 FEET IN DEPTH PUT DOWN BY INTERCOLONIAL +BORING COMPANY, LIMITED. + + Depth. + Name of Bore. Feet. Date Completed. + + Ayrshire Downs, No. 3 3,983 September, 1902 + Brookwood, No. 1 3,065 May, 1895 + Boombah, No. 1 3,024 December, 1908 + Chatsworth, No. 1 3,266 February, 1895 + Cooindah, No. 1 3,289 January, 1899 + Dagworth, No. 1 3,335 July, 1893 + Dagworth, No. 2 3,400 December, 1898 + Dareel, No. 1 3,586 July, 1899 + Elderslie, No. 3 3,626 May, 1901 + Evesham, No. 1 3,970 In progress + Fairview, No. 2 3,028 July, 1907 + Greendale, No. 1 3,799 In progress + Goyder's Lagoon, S.A. 4,850 March, 1905 + Hamilton Downs, No. 1 3,301 April, 1895 + Hamilton Downs, No. 2 3,457 January, 1900 + Kynuna, No. 7 3,226 December, 1908 + Lerida, No. 1 3,511 July, 1898 + Lerida, No. 2 3,500 March, 1900 + Llanrheidol, No. 2 3,085 April, 1897 + Lorne, No. 1 4,057 In progress + Manuka, No. 2 3,581 June, 1901 + Mungeranie, S.A. 3,360 February, 1900 + Mulka, S.A. 3,445 December, 1906 + Mount Cornish, Tablederry 3,219 June, 1907 + Mount Cornish, No. 3 3,015 June, 1909 + Narine, No. 1 3,098 November, 1897 + Ruthven, No. 1 4,105 June, 1905 + Ruthven, No. 2 4,515 April, 1908 + Roma Mineral Oil 3,715 In progress + Sesbania, No. 2 3,252 September, 1898 + Sesbania, No. 4 3,103 January, 1900 + Sesbania, No. 5 3,186 March, 1902 + Sesbania, No. 6 3,179 August, 1909 + Vindex, No. 2 4,000 June, 1900 + Vindex, No. 3 3,795 September, 1902 + Warbreccan, No. 1 4,333 June, 1898 + Winton (deepened) 4,010 June, 1895 + Wyora, No. 1 3,600 March, 1900 + +Note.--Bores marked S.A. are in South Australia. + +Brisbane, 1st October, 1909. + + +BORES COMPLETED AND IN PROGRESS BY WOODLEY LIMITED, BRISBANE, SINCE +31ST MARCH, 1909. + + 1. Bore at Millie Station, near Charleville, D. McNeill owner. + Depth, 1,732 ft.; water 8 in. over casing; flow ¾-million + gallons per diem. + + 2. At Claverton Downs, near Wyandra, Mrs. Whitney owner. + Depth, 1,955 ft.; water 22 in. over casing; flow about 1½ + million gallons. + + 3. At Bendena Station, Burgess and Co. owners. Depth, 2,232 + ft.; water 4 ft. 6 in. over casing; flow about 3½ million + gallons. + + 4. At Bonus Downs Station, Mitchell, Sir S. McCaughey owner. + Depth, 3,424 ft. 6 in.; water rising to 60 ft. below surface; + boring ceased in slate formation. + + 5. At Eurella Station, Donald Fletcher owner. Depth at end + of September, 2,124 ft., still in progress; water rising to + within 150 ft. of the surface. + + 6. At Clifton Station, C. H. T. Schmidt owner. Depth, 26th + June, 225 ft.; in progress. + + 7. At Koreelah Station, Charleville. Depth at end of June, 400 + ft.; in progress. + + 8. At Comongin Station, Bulloo, McLean, Barker, and Co. + owners. Depth on 30th June, 600 ft.; in progress. + + 9. At Aberglassie Station, J. R. and H. C. Loughran owners. + Starting. + + 10. At Cytherea Station, R. T. Winter owner. Starting. + + 11. At Airlie Downs, A. Leeds owner. Starting. + + + + +APPENDIX J. + +CLIMATIC CONTRASTS. + +COMPARATIVE VITAL STATISTICS. + + +Vital statistics are set forth by the various Government Statists +of Australia with extreme particularity. But it is not easy to make +comparative analyses for the purpose of ascertaining the birth rates, +marriage rates, or death rates in the different States of Australia. +The birth rates per 1,000 of the population give no accurate bases for +comparison. They supply only what the statists call the crude birth +rate. The information necessary to ascertain true comparative birth +rates involves knowledge of the number of women of the different +child-bearing ages in the several States; the proportion of marriages +at different ages in each; the number of married women, their ages, +and also the number of spinsters. Married women in their teens are +more fertile than in their twenties, in their twenties than in +their thirties, in their thirties than in their forties. So that to +ascertain the true birth rate the comparative number of married or +marriageable women in the contrasted countries must be ascertained. +For example, if there were 20,000 married women in Queensland between +twenty and thirty; and 60,000 married women of the same age in New +South Wales; and if the number of births among those 20,000 and 60,000 +respectively were ascertained, the true birth rate among women of that +age would be obtained. Similar remarks apply to the death rate. The +comparison must be made between a given number of men or women of the +same ages, and then the true comparative death rate per 1,000 of such +persons will be ascertainable, but not otherwise. + +It is supposed in many parts of Australia that North Queensland is +less salubrious than South Queensland, and that the Southern States +are healthier than Queensland as a whole. The crude death rate does +not give a basis for this assumption, because there are fewer old +people and fewer young children per 1,000 of the population in +sparsely peopled areas than in settled districts. The lightest average +mortality is among persons between the ages of two and eighteen years; +the greatest mortality among children under two years. Information +is not procurable showing the number of persons in Queensland in age +groups, this information being only obtainable in census years. + +The Queensland Government Statistician has furnished the accompanying +table, based on the results of the censuses of 1891 and 1901, showing +the relative salubrity of different parts of the Commonwealth in those +two years for all the States save Western Australia; and it will be +noticed that it differentiates also between children north and south +of the Tropic of Capricorn in Queensland. These figures are valuable +for comparative purposes. + +It will be noticed that among children under two years the rate of +mortality north of the Tropic of Capricorn in 1891 was 74.85 +per 1,000, and in 1901 73.42 per 1,000. South of the tropic the +corresponding figures were 70.33 and 64.97 per 1,000 respectively, the +difference in favour of the south being 4.52 and 8.45 per 1,000. Of +children under five years in the north the mortality was 39.44 and +32.80 respectively; while south of the tropic it was 33.54 and 29.72 +respectively. Thus the difference in favour of the south was 5.90 and +3.08 respectively. Above the age of five years the difference between +north and south is rather more marked, but the comparison of +these, for reasons analogous to those stated above with respect to +comparative birth or death rates, is valueless. + +If we take the New South Wales figures, we find that as to children +under two years the mortality in 1891 was 85.12, and in 1901 72.42 per +1,000. Thus North Queensland compares very favourably with the parent +State by 10.27 in 1891, and unfavourably in 1901 by only 1 per 1,000. +With South Queensland the comparison shows a difference against New +South Wales in 1891 of 14.79 per 1,000, and of 7.45 per 1,000 in 1901. +As to children under five years the difference in favour of New South +Wales in 1891, as against North Queensland, was only 0.16 per cent., +and in 1901 0.43 per 1,000; and as against South Queensland it was +5.74 on the wrong side in 1891, and 2.65 in 1901. It is needless +further to analyse the figures, but evidently the only States +whose mortality among young children is more favourable than South +Queensland are South Australia and Tasmania. + +Although these figures are official it may be wise to use them with +reservation. The comparatively high mortality north of the Tropic of +Capricorn is fully accounted for by the absence of the comforts of +life in that newly settled area. In 1901 the mortality beyond the +tropic was, for children under five years, almost the same as in +New South Wales and Victoria. So that, so far as young children are +concerned, we need not fear that the climate of Tropical Queensland +will be found unfavourable to the British race. + +The death ratio of the population is somewhat higher in the tropics +than in the South for each age group mentioned, and consequently of +course for persons of all ages; this applies to both the years cited, +1891 and 1901. These years have been selected as, being "Census" +years, the numbers at each age can then be definitely determined. The +mortality rate for 1901 showed a distinct improvement on that for 1891 +in all instances except with persons over five years of age in the +South; as regards these the experience for 1901 was fractionally less +satisfactory than in 1891. + +[Illustration: "QUEENSLAND and Territory of PAPUA 1909"] + + +RETURN SHOWING THE POPULATION, NUMBER OF DEATHS, AND THE RATE OF +MORTALITY AT CERTAIN AGES FOR THE YEARS 1891 AND 1901. + + ----------------------------+----------------------------------------++ + | 1891. || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + | Census | Number of | Ratio || + ------ | Population. | Deaths. | per 1,000 || + | | | of the || + | | | Population. || + ----------------------------+--------------+-----------+-------------++ + QUEENSLAND-- | | | || + | | | || + NORTH OF THE TROPIC OF | | | || + CAPRICORN-- | | | || + | | | || + Under 2 years | 6,426 | 481 | 74·85 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + Under 5 years | 15,061 | 594 | 39·44 || + Over 5 years | 93,925 | 1,088 | 11·58 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + All ages | 108,986 | 1,682 | 15·43 || + |==============|===========|=============|| + | | | || + SOUTH OF THE TROPIC OF | | | || + CAPRICORN-- | | | || + | | | || + Under 2 years | 18,598 | 1,308 | 70·33 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + Under 5 years | 45,264 | 1,518 | 33·54 || + Over 5 years | 239,468 | 1,970 | 8·23 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + All Ages | 284,732 | 3,488 | 12·25 || + |==============|===========|=============|| + | | | || + WHOLE STATE-- | | | || + | | | || + Under 2 years | 25,024 | 1,789 | 71·49 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + Under 5 years | 60,325 | 2,112 | 35·01 || + Over 5 years | 333,393 | 3,058 | 9·17 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + All Ages | 393,718 | 5,170 | 13·13 || + ----------------------------+--------------+-----------+-------------++ + +[cont.] + ----------------------------++---------------------------------------- + || 1901. + ++--------------+-----------+------------- + || Census | Number of | Ratio + ------ || Population. | Deaths. | per 1,000 + || | | of the + || | | Population. + ----------------------------++--------------+-----------+------------- + QUEENSLAND-- || | | + || | | + NORTH OF THE TROPIC OF || | | + CAPRICORN-- || | | + || | | + Under 2 years || 6,933 | 509 | 73·42 + ++--------------+-----------+------------- + Under 5 years || 17,166 | 563 | 32·80 + Over 5 years || 132,466 | 1,448 | 10·93 + ++--------------+-----------+------------- + All ages || 149,632 | 2,011 | 13·44 + ||==============|===========|============= + || | | + SOUTH OF THE TROPIC OF || | | + CAPRICORN-- || | | + || | | + Under 2 years || 18,454 | 1,199 | 64·97 + ++--------------+-----------+------------- + Under 5 years || 45,460 | 1,351 | 29·72 + Over 5 years || 308,174 | 2,645 | 8·58 + ++--------------+-----------+------------- + All Ages || 353,634 | 3,996 | 11·30 + ||==============|===========|============= + || | | + WHOLE STATE-- || | | + || | | + Under 2 years || 25,387 | 1,708 | 67·28 + ++--------------+-----------+------------- + Under 5 years || 62,626 | 1,914 | 30·56 + Over 5 years || 440,640 | 4,093 | 9·29 + ++--------------+-----------+------------- + All Ages || 503,266 | 6,007 | 11·94 + ----------------------------++--------------+-----------+------------- + + +NOTE.--Death rates calculated on the estimated mean population of +the two years mentioned above and published in the Reports on Vital +Statistics were-- + + 1891 12·77 + 1901 11·88 + +The utilisation of Census figures in order to quote the age condition +at the time is accountable for the slight difference in the total +ratio. + +RETURN SHOWING THE POPULATION, NUMBER OF DEATHS, AND THE RATE OF +MORTALITY AT CERTAIN AGES FOR THE YEARS 1891 AND 1901.--_continued:_ + + ----------------------------+----------------------------------------++ + | 1891. || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + | Census | Number of | Ratio || + ------ | Population. | Deaths. | per 1,000 || + | | | of the || + | | | Population. || + ----------------------------+--------------+-----------+-------------++ + NEW SOUTH WALES-- | | | || + | | | || + Under 2 years | 66,719 | 5,679 | 85·12 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + Under 5 years | 165,750 | 6,510 | 39·28 || + Over 5 years | 966,484 | 9,776 | 10·12 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + All ages | 1,132,234 | 16,286 | 14·38 || + |==============|===========|=============|| + | | | || + VICTORIA-- | | | || + | | | || + Under 2 years | 62,102 | 5,822 | 93·75 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + Under 5 years | 148,359 | 6,518 | 43·93 || + Over 5 years | 982,104 | 12,113 | 12·33 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + All ages | 1,130,463 | 18,631 | 16·48 || + |==============|===========|=============|| + | | | || + SOUTH AUSTRALIA-- | | | || + | | | || + Under 2 years | 17,875 | 1,180 | 66·01 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + Under 5 years | 45,166 | 1,407 | 31·15 || + Over 5 years | 270,367 | 2,804 | 10·37 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + All ages | 315,533 | 4,211 | 13·35 || + |==============|===========|=============|| + | | | || + TASMANIA-- | | | || + | | | || + Under 2 years | 8,414 | 524 | 62·28 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + Under 5 years | 21,466 | 599 | 27·90 || + Over 5 years | 125,201 | 1,635 | 13·06 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + All ages | 146,667 | 2,234 | 15·23 || + |==============|===========|=============|| + | | | || + WESTERN AUSTRALIA-- | | | || + | | | || + Under 2 years | ... | ... | ... || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + Under 5 years | 6,835 | 293 | 42·87 || + Over 5 years | 42,947 | 576 | 13·41 || + +--------------+-----------+-------------++ + All ages | 49,782 | 869 | 17·46 || + ----------------------------+--------------+-----------+-------------++ + + [cont.] + ----------------------------++--------------------------------------- + || 1901. + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + || Census | Number of | Ratio + ------ || Population. | Deaths. | per 1,000 + || | | of the + || | | Population. + ----------------------------++--------------+-----------+------------ + NEW SOUTH WALES-- || | | + || | | + Under 2 years || 64,376 | 4,662 | 72·42 + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + Under 5 years || 159,146 | 5,151 | 32·37 + Over 5 years || 1,199,987 | 10,870 | 9·06 + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + All ages || 1,359,133 | 16,021 | 11·79 + ||==============|===========|============ + || | | + VICTORIA-- || | | + || | | + Under 2 years || 54,669 | 3,817 | 69·82 + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + Under 5 years || 131,986 | 4,251 | 32·21 + Over 5 years || 1,069,355 | 11,653 | 10·90 + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + All ages || 1,201,341 | 15,904 | 13·24 + ||==============|===========|============ + || | | + SOUTH AUSTRALIA-- || | | + || | | + Under 2 years || 15,988 | 1,059 | 66·24 + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + Under 5 years || 39,940 | 1,166 | 29·19 + Over 5 years || 318,568 | 2,808 | 8·81 + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + All ages || 358,508 | 3,974 | 11·08 + ||==============|===========|============ + || | | + TASMANIA-- || | | + || | | + Under 2 years || 8,484 | 492 | 57·99 + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + Under 5 years || 20,865 | 531 | 25·45 + Over 5 years || 151,610 | 1,283 | 8·46 + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + All ages || 172,475 | 1,814 | 10·52 + ||==============|===========|============ + || | | + WESTERN AUSTRALIA-- || | | + || | | + Under 2 years || 9,303 | 882 | 94·81 + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + Under 5 years || 20,675 | 957 | 46·29 + Over 5 years || 163,449 | 1,562 | 9·56 + ++--------------+-----------+------------ + All ages || 184,124 | 2,519 | 13·68 + ----------------------------++--------------+-----------+------------ + + +RAINFALL AND TEMPERATURE. + +The subjoined map shows the curves of equal mean annual rainfall +for every 10·0 inches for Australia, compiled from the most recent +information:-- + +[Illustration: DISTRIBUTION OF THE RAINFALL OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF +AUSTRALIA] + +The following table shows the relative rainfalls at the six Australian +capital cities for the periods set severally against them; also for +the ten-year period subsequent to 1896, during which the average +precipitation was much below that of the total number of years over +which the records extend:-- + + ----------------------------------------------------------------------- + Ten Years' + Total Average Ten Years' Difference Difference Percentage + Place. Number Rainfall Average between for per Annum + of for all Rainfall. the Two. Ten Years. above or + Years. Years. below + True Mean. + ----------------------------------------------------------------------- + Inches. Inches. Inches. Inches. + + Brisbane 57 47·47 39·16 -8·31 83·10 -18 + Sydney 67 48·80 44·28 -4·52 45·20 -9 + Melbourne 63 26·35 25·50 -0·85 8·50 -3 + Perth 31 33·03 32·54 -0·49 4·90 -1 + Hobart 66 23·38 22·98 -0·40 4·00 -2 + Adelaide 67 20·89 20·53 -0·36 3·60 -2 + ----------------------------------------------------------------------- + +The following table supplies similar information with respect to +seventeen representative Queensland stations, from which it will be +seen that the mean annual rainfall at Geraldton for twenty-one years +was 145·27 inches, and for the ten years subsequent to 1896 135·81 +inches. Thus Geraldton is by far the wettest place in the State. +The lightest mean rainfall for the same period was at Boulia, which +recorded 11·45 inches; and for the ten years, 8·72 inches. The last +column of the table shows that the fall for the ten years was under +the average at every station mentioned, the shortage at Cooktown +having been 28 per cent. each year of the ten. The number of wet days +is not supplied, except for the capital cities. The driest part +of Australia--that which receives a rainfall of 10·0 inches +and under--comprises an area equalling nearly one-third of the +Commonwealth, and includes the central Territory of South Australia, +the extreme western parts of New South Wales, the south-western +parts of Queensland, and the south-eastern, central, and part of the +north-western portions of Western Australia. The limits of this dry +area are shown by the 10·0-inch isohyetal line:-- + + ------------+------+----------+----------+----------+----------+---------- + | | | | | |Ten Years' + |Total | Average |Ten Years'|Difference|Difference|Percentage + |Number| Rainfall | Average | between | for |per Annum + Place. |of | for | Rainfall.| the Two. |Ten Years.|above or + |Years.|all Years.| | | | below + | | | | | |True Mean. + ------------+------+----------+----------+----------+----------+---------- + | | Inches. | Inches. | Inches. | Inches. | + | | | | | | + Cooktown | 29 | 68·96 | 49·91 | -19·05 | 190·50 | -28 + | | | | | | + Geraldton | 21 | 145·27 | 135·81 | -9·46 | 94·60 | -7 + | | | | | | + Brisbane | 57 | 47·47 | 39·16 | -8·31 | 83·10 | -18 + | | | | | | + Mackay | 36 | 69·42 | 61·73 | -7·69 | 76·90 | -11 + | | | | | | + Maryborough | 36 | 46·58 | 39·49 | -7·09 | 70·90 | -15 + | | | | | | + Goondiwindi | 28 | 29·27 | 22·99 | -6·28 | 62·80 | -21 + | | | | | | + Tambo | 21 | 22·87 | 18·08 | -4·79 | 47·90 | -21 + | | | | | | + Bowen | 36 | 40·40 | 35·62 | -4·78 | 47·80 | -12 + | | | | | | + Blackall | 27 | 22·59 | 17·92 | -4·67 | 46·70 | -21 + | | | | | | + Charleville | 34 | 19·71 | 15·30 | -4·41 | 44·10 | -22 + | | | | | | + Hughenden | 22 | 19·12 | 14·92 | -4·20 | 42·00 | -22 + | | | | | | + Thursday | | | | | | + Island | 16 | 68·11 | 63·99 | -4·12 | 41·20 | -6 + | | | | | | + Springsure | 30 | 26·25 | 22·54 | -3·71 | 37·10 | -14 + | | | | | | + Boulia | 21 | 11·45 | 8·72 | -2·73 | 27·30 | -24 + | | | | | | + Thargomindah| 25 | 12·53 | 10·03 | -2·50 | 25·00 | -20 + | | | | | | + Cloncurry | 23 | 19·35 | 17·02 | -2·33 | 23·30 | -12 + | | | | | | + Normanton | 35 | 37·11 | 35·26 | -1·85 | 18·50 | -5 + ------------+------+----------+----------+----------+----------+---------- + +The following table shows the distribution of the average rainfall +from 10·0 inches and under to over 40·0 inches:-- + + -----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ + Average Annual | | | | | + Rainfall. | N.S.W. | Victoria. |Queensland.| South | + | | | | Australia.| + -----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ + | sqr. mls. | sqr. mls. | sqr. mls. | sqr. mls. | + | | | | | + Under 10 inches | 81,144 | nil | 135,600 | 306,663 | + 10-20 " | 116,363 | 36,300 | 255,300 | 57,935 | + 20-30 " | 77,910 | 27,900 | 173,400 | 13,908 | + 30-40 " | 20,414 | 18,770 | 58,700 | 1,198 | + Over 40 " | 14,541 | 4,914 | 47,500 | 366 | + +-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ + Total Area | 310,372 | 87,884 | 670,500 | 380,070 | + -----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ + + [cont.] + -----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-------------- + Average Annual | | | | + Rainfall. | Northern | Western | Tasmania.| Commonwealth. + | Territory.| Australia.| | + -----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-------------- + | sqr. mls. | sqr. mls. | sqr. mls. | sqr. mls. + | | | | + Under 10 inches | 6,300 | 408,300 | nil | 938,007 + 10-20 " | 213,430 | 400,720 | nil | 1,080,048 + 20-30 " | 96,790 | 113,700 | 11,395 | 515,003 + 30-40 " | 120,600 | 39,100 | 5,396 | 264,178 + Over 40 " | 86,500 | 14,100 | 9,424 | 177,345 + +-----------+-----------+-----------+-------------- + Total Area | 523,620 | 975,920 | 26,215 | 2,974,581 + -----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-------------- + + +The comparative rainfalls and temperatures at the respective State +capitals, and at Canberra, the embryo Federal capital, are shown in +the following table:-- + + ------------+-------+--------------------------------+ + | | ANNUAL RAINFALL. | + Place. | Height+----------+----------+----------+ + | above | | | | + | M.S.L.| | | | + | | Average. | Highest. | Lowest. | + ------------+-------+----------+----------+----------+ + | Ft. | Ins. | Ins. | Ins. | + | | | | | + Perth | 197 | 33·05 | 46·73 | 20·48 | + Adelaide | 141 | 20·38 | 30·87 | 13·43 | + Brisbane | 137 | 50·00 | 88·23 | 24·11 | + Sydney | 144 | 49·35 | 82·81 | 23·01 | + Melbourne | 91 | 25·62 | 44·25 | 15·61 | + Hobart | 160 | 23·40 | 40·67 | 13·43 | + Canberra {| 2,000 |} | | | + (District) {| to |} 23·00 | 50·69 | 16·56 | + {| 2,900 |} | | | + ------------+-------+----------+----------+----------+ + + [cont.] + ------------+-------+----------------------------------------------------- + | | TEMPERATURE. + Place. | Height+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------- + | above | Mean | Mean |Highest | Lowest | Average| Average + | M.S.L.| Summer.| Winter.| on | on | Hottest| Coldest + | | | | Record.| Record.| Month. | Month. + ------------+-------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------- + | Ft. | Fahr. | Fahr. | Fahr. | Fahr. | Fahr. | Fahr. + | | | | | | | + Perth | 197 | 73·9 | 55·6 | 112·0 | 33·6 | 75·1 | 54·6 + Adelaide | 141 | 72·3 | 52·0 | 116·3 | 32·2 | 73·3 | 52·5 + Brisbane | 137 | 76·0 | 60·0 | 108·9 | 36·1 | 77·3 | 58·0 + Sydney | 144 | 70·8 | 53·9 | 108·5 | 35·9 | 71·5 | 52·3 + Melbourne | 91 | 64·9 | 49·2 | 111·2 | 27·0 | 66·3 | 47·7 + Hobart | 160 | 61·4 | 47·0 | 105·0 | 27·7 | 62·1 | 45·7 + Canberra {| 2,000 |} | | | | | + (District) {| to |} 69·7 | 45·0 | 109·0 | 16·0 | 72·0 | 42·0 + {| 2,900 |} | | | | | + ------------+-------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------- + +The mean humidity at the several capitals is as follows:--Brisbane +mean averages, 68·1; highest, 85; lowest, 47. Sydney mean averages, +73, 90, 55. Melbourne mean averages, 72, 76, 67. Adelaide mean +averages, 56, 84, 33. Perth mean averages, 63, 83, 45. Hobart mean +averages, 72, 76, 67. + + + + +APPENDIX K.--EDUCATION STATISTICS. + + +I.--STATE PRIMARY EDUCATION (1907). + + ----------------------------+------------+-----------------+-----------+ + | Queensland.| New South Wales.| Victoria. | + ----------------------------+------------+-----------------+-----------+ + | £ s. d. | £ s. d. | £ s. d.| + Amount per head of estimated| | | | + population | 0 10 11 | 0 10 6 | 0 9 6 | + Amount per district scholar | 3 3 2 | 3 9 2 | 2 18 7 | + ----------------------------+------------+-----------------+-----------+ + + +II.--PRIVATE SCHOOLS (1908). + + ------------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+-------+ + |Undenomi-|Church of| Roman |Lutheran.| Total.| + |national.| England.|Catholic.| | | + ------------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+-------+ + Number of schools | 86 | 8 | 61 | 2 | 157 | + Teachers--Male | 26 | 6 | 57 | 2 | 91 | + Female | 170 | 32 | 372 | | 574 | + Gross enrolment--Male | 786 | 236 | 4,883 | 29 | 5,934 | + Female | 1,386 | 344 | 6,400 | 34 | 8,164 | + Average daily attendance| | | | | | + --Male | 654 | 216 | 4,220 | 24 | 5,114 | + Female| 1,289 | 297 | 5,200 | 28 | 6,814 | + ------------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+-------+ + +CHURCH OF ENGLAND SCHOOLS (1909).[a] + + -------------------------+------------+--------------+----------------+ + Schools. | On Roll. | Average | Teachers. | + | | Attendance. | | + -------------------------+------------+--------------+----------------+ + St. John's Day School, | 44 boys, | 33 boys, | 6, and 1 music | + Brisbane | 134 girls | 107 girls | and 1 drawing | + | | | | + Holy Trinity Day School, | 33 boys, | 30 boys, | 3 | + Woolloongabba | 42 girls | 37·6 girls | | + | | | | + St. Paul's Day School, | 35 | 29 | 2 | + Maryborough | | | | + | | | | + High School for Boys, | 112 | 112 | 9 | + Southport | | | | + | | | | + Glennie Memorial School | 50 | Very good | 6 | + for Girls, Toowoomba | | | | + | | | | + Eton High School for | 50 | 97 per cent. | 9 | + Girls, Toorak, Hamilton | | | | + | | | | + St. Paul's Day School, | 35 boys, | 25·3 boys, | 4 | + Ipswich | 62 girls | 47 girls | | + | | | | + Theological College, | 14 students| ... | 3 | + Nundah | | | | + | | | | + Tufnell Orphanage, | 70 children| ... | 5 workers | + Nundah | | | | + | | | | + Industrial Home, | 21 inmates | ... | 2 instructors | + Clayfield | | | | + | | | | + High School for Girls, | ... | ... | ... | + Stanthorpe | | | | + -------------------------+------------+--------------+----------------+ + +[Footnote a: Furnished by Mr. A. A. Orme, Diocesan Registry, Brisbane.] + + +ROMAN CATHOLIC SCHOOLS (1909).[b] + + -------------------------------------------------------+---------+ + SCHOOLS TAUGHT BY SISTERS-- | On Roll.| + | | + _Archdiocese of Brisbane_-- | | + | | + Brisbane (High School), All Hallows; (Primary) | | + --Elizabeth street, Ivory street, South | | + Brisbane, Kangaroo Point, Red Hill, Wooloowin, | | + Toowong, Rosalie; Sandgate; Ipswich; | | + Helidon; Toowoomba (2); Dalby; Roma; Warwick; | | + Stanthorpe; Gympie (2); Maryborough; | | + Bundaberg; Beaudesert; Southport; | | + (Orphanage), Nudgee | 6,226 | + | | + _Diocese of Rockhampton_-- | | + | | + (High School), Rockhampton; Townsville; | | + Charters Towers; (Primary), Rockhampton; | | + Townsville; Charters Towers; Mount Morgan; | | + Hughenden; Gladstone; Longreach; | | + Winton; Mackay; Ravenswood; Clermont; | | + Emerald; (Orphanage), Neerkol | 4,228 | + | | + _Diocese of Cooktown_-- | | + | | + (High School), Cooktown; (Primary), | | + Cooktown; Cairns; Geraldton; Mareeba | 572 | + | | + SCHOOLS TAUGHT BY CHRISTIAN BROTHERS-- | | + | | + _Archdiocese of Brisbane_-- | | + | | + (College), Nudgee; (High School and Primary), | | + Brisbane; Ipswich; Toowoomba; Gympie; | | + Maryborough | 1,880 | + | | + _Diocese of Rockhampton_-- | | + (High School and Primary), Rockhampton; | | + Charters Towers | 740 | + |-------- | + Total | 13,646 | + -------------------------------------------------------+---------+ + +[Footnote b: Supplied by the Church authorities.] + +[Illustration: GOVERNMENT HOUSE, NOW DEDICATED TO UNIVERSITY PURPOSES] + + + + +APPENDIX L. + +INAUGURATION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND. + + +In older lands Time seems to move with so deliberate a step that his +march is scarcely noticed, and the passing of fifty years is but a +small matter, though within the past half-century discovery after +discovery, advance after advance, has been made. Still these things +have come gradually, and, like all the great triumphs of peace, have +been achieved calmly, orderly, and almost imperceptibly. It has been +different in these new countries, whose practical history comprehends +scarcely more than the span of one man's life. Queensland has grown +out of nothing (from the point of view of civilisation) to a fair +stature of importance. Fifty years is the sum of its existence as a +self-governing State, but within that brief period the country has +been reclaimed from the wilderness, and made the home of a happy, +progressive, and enlightened people. Bearing in mind what Queensland +was fifty years ago, and what it is to-day, it will be admitted that +its jubilee was eminently worth celebrating, not in a mere spirit of +festivity, but in the spirit of a people conscious of what has been +done, and full of enthusiasm for continued development. No better +evidence of that could have been afforded than by the particular +method of celebration decided upon--the dedication of the most +historic building in Queensland to the purposes of a University. +It would have been easy to have devised a more showy plan, to have +arranged for festivities that would have given greater immediate +pleasure, but it would not have been possible to have marked the +jubilee day with anything so admirably calculated to promote the best +interests of the people, or so likely to abide in the public memory. +That was the view of Mr. Kidston and his Government, to whom belong +the honour of having given effect to the long-cherished aspirations of +that numerous body who desire to see Queenslanders an educated as well +as a prosperous people. For many years there had been a movement afoot +for the establishment of a University. As far back as 1891, a Royal +Commission, under the presidency of the late Sir Charles Lilley, +had inquired into the matter and reported strongly in favour of the +project. Premiers who were themselves graduates of universities and +cultured, far-seeing men had recognised the need for a University, but +the matter obstinately remained in the air. For some sixteen years, +largely supported by the Sydney University, a Council had carried on +University Extension Lectures, educating not only the students, but +the public. Finally, the present Premier, realising that the time was +ripe for a definite forward move, placed educational reform in the +forefront of his policy, and succeeded in getting legislation passed +for the establishment of the institution and in securing a liberal +provision for maintaining it. This much achieved, everything was +sufficiently far advanced for an impressive dedicatory ceremony on +the day chosen for celebrating the jubilee of Queensland--Friday, 10th +December, 1909. It was not possible, of course, for the University to +be actually in operation by that date, but it was possible to take +the first step by solemnly setting apart for its uses the building in +which it is proposed to conduct it. That was precisely what was done +on this occasion, and with a simple dignity and an earnestness of +purpose that could not well have been surpassed. Everything combined +to make the day and the event memorable, to lift it out of the +commonplace of public occasions, in a word to make it historic--the +most historic event since the promulgation of Queensland's free +Constitution. The building itself had been the honoured home of every +Governor since 1861. As was happily phrased in one of the speeches, +it had been the centre of social and political life. What more +appropriate than that it should be invested with a new function--be +given, as it were, a new lease of life in the great cause of +citizen-making? What more interesting than that the chief figure +in the ceremonial should be Sir William MacGregor, himself a great +witness to the value of university training, a distinguished servant +of the Empire, one of the select band of Empire builders who have +united ripe scholarship with tireless energy and firm grasp of +national business and the ways of the world? It was a singularly happy +circumstance that this was his first important public act as Governor +of Queensland. But a few days before he had taken over the reins +of government from the hands of the Lieutenant-Governor, Sir Arthur +Morgan. As befitted the occasion and the interest which they had taken +in the matter of the University, Sir Arthur and Mr. Kidston also took +a prominent part in the ceremony. The presence of Professor David, of +the Sydney University, who was a prominent member of the Shackleton +Expedition to the Antarctic regions, and of Professor Stirling, of the +Adelaide University, lent additional distinction to the event, visibly +representing, as it did, the cordiality with which those important +institutions regarded the advent of Queensland into the sisterhood of +Australian University-States. + +Never before in its history had Government House been the scene of +a gathering so unique. The Premier struck the keynote of the whole +proceedings, when he said that they were met "to erect this white +stone, as it were, to mark this point in our national progress." He +was alluding to the marble tablet, which had been affixed to the wall +near the main entrance, recording the dedication of the building to +its new purposes. Also, he declared the democratic foundation of the +institution in the significant sentence: "In very truth it may be said +that the Queensland University is of the people, and I trust that the +Senate, when they start to manage this institution, will remember that +it is also to be for the people." + +To the ceremony were bidden all who could lend to it distinction and +interest. It was no mere official or exclusive gathering, but one +which represented in full measure the democratic character of the +Queensland people. Those high in place were there; those who in +university life had won honour; those who had laboured to lay +the foundations of the educational system of which this was the +culmination; the people for whose children this was to be in a real +and practical sense the great training school and character-building +institution; the children from whose ranks were to be drawn the +earliest students. The scene was one which will live in memory long +after the University has begun its work, and will be recalled when in +their gladsome, perhaps boisterous, fashion the students hold their +commemoration days, or when in more thoughtful times the men and women +who have gone forth from it girded for the battle of life revisit +its shady walks and studious halls. The building and its charming +environments lent themselves to an impressive spectacle. In the +bright summer day, the well-kept grounds and the rich foliage of the +neighbouring gardens presented a picture of rare colour and beauty. +Beyond lay the broad river glistening in the sunlight. Above arched +the ineffable azure scarcely flecked by clouds. In the distance lay +the far spreading city, with its pulsating life and varied activities. +Under the shadow of the graceful building and in a sweeping +semi-circle were massed the spectators, with eyes concentrated on +the main portico, which had been converted into a stage for the +interesting drama of the afternoon. A curved structure had been thrown +out from the masonry, and decorated and canopied with maroon and +white. Grouped around this were arranged the chairs provided for the +seven hundred invited guests. Among these were many wearing their +university costumes, which vied in colour and variety with the dresses +of the ladies. Beyond this enclosure were drawn up, rank behind rank, +250 boys and 550 girls chosen from the fifth and sixth classes of the +metropolitan schools, each wearing Queensland's colours, maroon and +white, and 200 State school cadets in uniform. All had been assembled +in Alice street, and marched in procession to the space allotted to +them. They were there for the double purpose of supplying a choir and +adding to the representative character of the assembly. Beyond +their lines were gathered the members of the general public. The +arrangements entailed a good deal of planning and forethought, but +every part of the ordered and dignified ceremony was smoothly carried +out. The military element, drawn from the 9th Australian Infantry +Regiment, was lined up along the whole front of Government House, the +scarlet coats and white helmets supplying a fringe of colour to that +part of the picture. + +The time fixed for the ceremony was half-past 3 o'clock. The reserved +enclosure was then filled, the intermediate space was thronged with +school children and cadets, and the outer circle was made up of those +whom interest or curiosity had drawn to the spot. It was no small +evidence of the genuineness of that interest that, though hundreds +were too far away to hear the speeches, they remained during the whole +proceedings. They took their cue from those who were nearer, and +when they saw or heard them applauding they joined in and swelled the +volume of enthusiasm. One of the first to take his place on the dais +was Mr. W. H. Barnes, to whom it had fallen, as Secretary for Public +Instruction, to pilot the University Bill through the Legislative +Assembly. Not long afterwards there came Mr. A. H. Barlow, M.L.C., the +veteran Minister, who had had much to do with the preparation of the +measure, and who had charge of it during its progress through +the Upper House. Among early arrivals were Miss MacGregor, His +Excellency's daughter, and Mrs. Kidston. Punctually at half-past 3 His +Excellency the Governor, Sir William MacGregor, arrived, dressed in +his Windsor uniform and wearing the long flowing blue silk cloak +and decorations of the Grand Cross of St. Michael and St. George, +accompanied by Lady MacGregor and Mr. Kidston, Premier of Queensland. +Mrs. Kidston presented Lady MacGregor with a beautiful bouquet, and +almost at the same time the band of the 9th Regiment struck up "The +National Anthem," the whole assemblage rising as the patriotic strains +were heard. The duties usually devolving upon a chairman fell to +the Premier, who occupied a chair on one side of a small flag-draped +table, while His Excellency sat on the other side. Near by were the +Lieutenant-Governor, Sir Arthur Morgan, wearing his robes of office, +the Chief Justice (Sir Pope A. Cooper) in court dress, the Speaker +of the Legislative Assembly (Mr. J. T. Bell) in his flowing robes, +Professor David (representative of the Sydney University) in +his official robe, Professor Stirling (the representative of the +University of Adelaide) wearing the scarlet robe of an M.D. of +Cambridge, and His Grace Archbishop Donaldson in the scarlet and +ermine of a D.D. Central Queensland had a venerable representative in +the person of the Right Rev. Dr. Hay, Moderator of the Presbyterian +General Assembly. The Roman Catholic Archbishop, the Right Rev. Dr. +Dunne, had as his representative Rev. Father Byrne, the Administrator +of his diocese. The distinguished company included also Mr. Justice +Real and Mrs. Real, Mr. Justice Chubb and Mrs. Chubb, Mr. Justice +Shand, Mr. D. F. Denham (Minister for Lands) and Mrs. Denham, Mr. T. +O'Sullivan, M.L.C. (Attorney-General) and Mrs. O'Sullivan, Mr. W. T. +Paget (Minister for Agriculture and Railways) and Miss Paget, Mr. J. +G. Appel (Home Secretary) and Miss Appel, Mrs. Barnes, Mr. A. G. C. +Hawthorn (Treasurer) and Mrs. Hawthorn, Mr. W. Lennon, M.L.A. (Acting +Leader of the Opposition) and Mrs. Lennon, Miss Celia Cooper, Mr. +C. W. Costin (Clerk of Parliaments), Mr. Anthony Musgrave, (Private +Secretary to His Excellency), Captain Scarlett, A.D.C., and Captains +Newton and Claude Foxton, honorary AA.D.C. Members of both Houses +of Parliament, prominent public servants, the mayors and aldermen of +Brisbane and South Brisbane, representatives of other metropolitan +civic bodies, leading citizens, and consular representatives had their +seats in the enclosure fronting the official dais. + +By a happy arrangement the ceremony was inaugurated by the assembled +children singing "The National Anthem," to which were added three +of the patriotic verses of "The Australian Anthem" composed by +Queensland's sweet singer, the late J. Brunton Stephens. The fresh +musical voices rang out true and clear, carrying far through the +still, scented air the simple words of devotion and patriotism-- + + What can Thy children bring? + What save the voice to sing + "All things are Thine"?-- + What to Thy throne convey? + What save the voice to pray + "God bless our land alway, + This land of Thine"? + + Oh, with Thy mighty hand + Guard Thou the Motherland; + She, too, is Thine. + Lead her where honour lies, + We beneath other skies + Still clinging daughterwise, + Hers, yet all Thine. + + Britons of ev'ry creed, + Teuton and Celt agreed, + Let us be Thine. + One in all noble fame, + Still be our path the same, + Onward in Freedom's name, + Upward in Thine! + + +[Illustration: VIEW OF DEDICATION CEREMONY] + +The last notes had scarcely died away, when the Premier rose to +invite His Excellency to assent to the University Bill of 1909, and to +dedicate the building to the University. He prefaced that proceeding +by a speech, which summarised the course of progress in Queensland, +touched upon the difficulties it had been necessary to overcome, and +the achievements in settlement and development which had made this +ceremony possible. More than that, it focussed as it were in a few +sentences the destined scope of the University, and the liberal +provisions by which it was to be made accessible to "all our young +people without regard to class, or creed, or sex." Twenty foundation +scholarships were the generous birthday gift to the University. There +was a great outburst of enthusiasm at this announcement, and the +applause rang out again with renewed strength when His Excellency +stepped forward, and read a congratulatory message from His Majesty +the King. This was a fitting prelude to the able and statesmanlike +speech which His Excellency made. This over, Mr. Costin presented the +University Bill for His Excellency to sign. His Excellency dipped his +pen in the ink held by a handsome silver inkstand, and affixed his +signature to the charter of the University. Then, pressing an electric +button, he revealed to view a marble tablet--the white stone of +which the Premier spoke--designed "to mark this point in our national +progress." + +The building had now been dedicated, but it yet remained symbolically +to hand it over to the people. This was done by His Excellency's +presentation to Mr. J. T. Bell of the University Act, and Mr. Bell's +acceptance of it on behalf of the people of Queensland. Eloquent +speeches from Mr. Bell, Professor David, and Professor Stirling +followed, each in his turn drawing from the assemblage the endorsement +of enthusiastic applause. Once more the aid of the children was +invoked, and, under the direction of Mr. George Sampson, F.R.C.O., +they sang to the music of "The Old Hundredth" "The Children's Ode," +specially written for the occasion by Mr. W. J. Byram-- + + Dear land, the queen of all fair climes! + To jewels of thy diadem + We add to-day its brightest gem, + A guiding star for after-times. + + Thy sons shall grow in wisdom's power, + Thy daughters win an ampler grace, + And both shall mould that higher race + Gifted with learning's priceless dower. + + Here as the seasons wax and wane + May Science still increase her store, + And Truth be reverenced more and more, + And Tolerance and Justice reign. + + Father of all, our effort bless! + Without thy aid we are as nought, + We are but children to be taught + Thy way that leads to perfectness. + + +One graceful ceremony remained, and that typical of beauty, life, and +growth--the planting of a tree to be known as "The University Tree," +its destiny to grow with the University, and afford grateful shade +to those brought within its wholesome influence. The pleasant duty of +planting devolved upon Lady MacGregor, and it was carried out by means +of a silver trowel presented to her by the Premier. The business +of the afternoon had now concluded; the first step toward the +establishment of the University had been taken: its future home had +been dedicated. + + +THE DEDICATION SPEECHES. + +The PREMIER (Hon. W. Kidston), in rising to ask His Excellency to +dedicate Government House to the purposes of the University, said: +Your Excellency and Ladies and Gentlemen,--To-day Queensland completes +her first half-century as a self-governing community; and we are met +to honour the occasion--to erect a white stone, as it were, to mark +this point in our national progress. Fifty years ago a handful of +settlers, not quite 24,000 in number, claimed and obtained the right +to manage their own affairs; and the British Government, in granting +that right, virtually handed over to those few pioneers the ownership +of this vast territory now called Queensland--a territory exceeding +in area the combined areas of England, Scotland, Ireland, France, +Portugal, Spain, and Italy. If we consider how few they were and the +way in which they undertook the work of opening up and civilising this +vast territory, we must recognise that our first pioneers were men +of enterprise, of self-reliance, and of high courage. (Hear, hear.) +Although our population has increased twenty-four times since then, we +are still but a handful in this vast land. When we try to compare the +Queensland of to-day with the Queensland of fifty years ago--the +cities and towns that have been built where then was the untrodden +bush; the thousands of miles of railways and the many thousands of +miles of roads, like a network all over this great area; the rivers +that have been spanned by bridges; the harbours that have been made; +the endless miles of telegraph lines that give rapid communication +between the townships scattered all over the State--all the things +that go to mark a civilised people--when we consider to what extent +that work has been carried out by such a mere handful of people, we +may well commend the men who have preceded us. (Hear, hear.) And it +was not only in the matter of material development that these men did +good work. Many years ago they established an educational system which +still obtains--a system so effective and comprehensive that all over +this vast territory of Queensland wherever ten or a dozen children can +be brought together there you will find a State school. (Hear, hear.) +And even beyond that, by means of the itinerant teachers, the +scattered children of the bush are sought out and have at least the +rudiments of education brought to their isolated homes. (Hear, hear.) +To-day we seek to commemorate our establishment as a self-governing +community, and at the same time to show our appreciation of the +excellent work done by our predecessors in opening up this new land +and in promoting the civilising and humanising agencies that have made +Queensland what she is; and I hold that we can show our appreciation +of the good work our predecessors did in no better way than by +imitating and continuing that good work. We who have eaten of the +fruit of the trees which our predecessors planted; we, the men of +to-day, may also seek to plant so that the children of to-morrow may +gather the fruit. (Hear, hear.) + +[Illustration: THE PREMIER (HON. W. KIDSTON) OPENING THE PROCEEDINGS] + +Perhaps, Your Excellency, I am not just the person to discuss +educational methods, or to seek here to give instructions to the +Senate who will manage this University; but I may express the hope +that the University of Queensland will provide for the youth of +Queensland the highest culture and the best university training that +can be got, at any rate, this side of the line. (Hear, hear.) At the +same time I would not have it forgotten that Queensland is a hive of +working bees; and all our educational institutions, from Kindergarten +to University, should keep that fact in view. There is this difference +between the youngest University in the Empire and the oldest: Oxford +was established by a King; the University of Queensland is established +by the People. (Hear, hear.) Queensland is democratic not only in her +political institutions: she is democratic in heart and sentiment; and +the desire of our people for a University is simply the desire that +Queensland may be an educated democracy--the safest, the strongest, +and the happiest community in which men can live. (Hear, hear.) I +would have the Senate always remember that it was the desire of our +people that inspired the crowning of our educational system by the +establishment of a University, that in very truth the Queensland +University is "of the people," and I trust that the Senate will never +forget that it should be "for the people." (Hear, hear.) It is not all +of us who can go to a University or directly share in its advantages; +yet the whole community should, and I hope will, receive a general +benefit. I hope that its influence will radiate downwards through all +the ranks of our social organism; that those who have the advantage +and the privilege of the more liberal education which our University +will give will be like the leaven which the woman put in three +measures of meal, and will leaven the whole community. (Hear, hear.) + +Parliament has made what I think is fairly adequate financial +provision for our University. A sum of £50,000 is being set aside from +this year's revenue for meeting what may be called the initial cost. +(Hear, hear.) And, besides that, a sum of £10,000 a year is being +provided for what may be called the annual working charges. (Hear, +hear.) I may also announce to-day that the Cabinet, subject of course +to the approval of Parliament, has resolved to institute a certain +number of foundation scholarships as a step towards equalising +educational opportunities for our young people and by way of opening +the door to ability and special merit. (Applause.) It has been decided +to establish twenty foundation scholarships--(applause)--tenable for +three years, each of which will carry free entrance to the University +and £26 per year, or, in cases where students, to attend the +University, must live away from home, £52 a year. These scholarships +will be equally open to all our young people without regard to class, +or creed, or sex. (Applause.) There will also be a foundation gold +medal, carrying a prize of £100 a year for two years, for the purpose +of encouraging original chemical research--(applause)--a similar +medal and prize of a similar amount, tenable for two years, for +engineering--(applause)--and a foundation travelling scholarship of +£200 a year, tenable for two years. (Applause.) The scholarships will +of course be competed for annually, so that in the third and each +succeeding year there will be sixty of these scholarship students at +our University. (Applause.) + +I now ask Your Excellency, as representing His Majesty, to assent to +the Bill, which has been approved by both Houses of Parliament, for +the establishment and endowment of the University of Queensland, and +on behalf of our people to dedicate this building, now your home, to +the purposes of the University. (Loud applause.) + + +HIS EXCELLENCY SIR WILLIAM MacGREGOR said: Mr. Kidston, Ladies and +Gentlemen,--The first duty I have to perform here to-day is to read +to you a telegram which I received this forenoon from the Right +Honourable the Secretary of State for the Colonies. This telegram +is dated London, 9th December, at 1.45 p.m., and is addressed "The +Governor, Brisbane." The Secretary of State says:-- + +"I am commanded by His Majesty the King to convey to you the following +message:-- + + "His Majesty the King heartily congratulates the people of + Queensland on the completion of fifty years of responsible + government. It is the earnest hope of His Majesty the King + that the enterprise and loyalty which have marked the first + half-century of the State of Queensland may be its abiding + heritage and that the prosperity which is evident at the close + of this period may be multiplied abundantly in the years to + come." "CREWE." + +For two reasons I have put in writing what I have to say on the +important subject that has brought us here to-day. The first is that +I cannot make myself heard by a large audience. The second is that we +are assembled here on the occasion of the Jubilee of Queensland, and +that fifty years hence the Jubilee of the University of this +State will also be celebrated, and it is desirable that those who +participate in that ceremony should know in what spirit the +University is being founded: what are our hopes, our aspirations, what +appreciation we have of our duty towards our posterity and the future +of the great country we and they have to develop. I trust that for +this reason all speeches made here to-day may be carefully recorded, +as we now enter upon a new phase of the intellectual life of +Queensland, a matter that cannot but be of far-reaching importance to +the next and succeeding generations of this State. + +I deem it a fortunate circumstance that, a few days after my arrival +in Brisbane, I should have the privilege of participating in a +ceremonial for the establishment of "The University of Queensland," of +taking part in a State function of historical and of great social and +economic importance. + +We live in an age of more rapid progress than any that has ever +preceded our own day: and for my part I am prepared to believe that +we owe to education the enormous advances in recent years in health, +wealth, and in the amenities and comforts of life. It is now well +known to us all that the nation that is backward in education is, or +soon will be, behind in all that makes a people great and prosperous. + +I am aware that these facts were fully recognised by many men in +Queensland long years ago, for I well remember the former efforts +that were made to found a University here--efforts that failed through +causes that happily no longer exist. One of the most noticeable facts +in the social and economic life of English-speaking people in recent +years is the great impulse that has been given to the development and +extension of university teaching. It may with a good show of reason be +said that Australasia led up to the great educational revival of +the last quarter of a century, by the opening of the now famous +Universities, of Sydney in 1852, of Melbourne in 1855, and of Adelaide +in 1876. Then followed the University of Tasmania in 1889. The wave of +university education has left the United States with 40 universities, +16 of which are very great, and 415 colleges. The movement has been +as pronounced in Canada, where higher education is receiving great +attention, due in a large measure to the splendid liberality of +wealthy and patriotic citizens. The same influence has been profoundly +felt in the United Kingdom. The Victoria University was founded in +1880, and the London University was reconstituted in 1900. Birmingham +University dates from 1900, Liverpool University from 1903, the +University of Wales from 1903, Leeds University from 1904, Sheffield +University from 1905, and the two national Universities of Ireland +from 1908. To come nearer home, New Zealand has her University and +affiliated colleges; and West Australia is at this moment taking +active steps for the establishment of her own State University, +so that it remains at present doubtful whether Queensland or West +Australia is to play the part of the most retiring of this pleiad of +Australasian Universities. Hitherto the youth of Queensland has had +to go elsewhere for residential university education. Fortunately +for Queensland, she has had an active and influential committee for +university extension lectures, the members of which have patriotically +performed good service to the State by arranging for lectures that +have helped to procure from beyond the State university certificates +of competence by a considerable number of the youth of this country. +This committee has fortunately been able to do enough to demonstrate +how much we need a University of our own. They are entitled to the +warm thanks of the community for what they have done. I have had an +opportunity of knowing from the admirable lectures of Professor David, +on the 4th and 8th of this month, how interesting, instructive, and +valuable those lectures can be. I have said enough to show you that +if Queensland did not now, without any further delay, proceed to +found her University, this, one of the greatest, most promising, and +wealthiest provinces in the Empire, would, as far as education is +concerned, occupy a very conspicuous and unenviable position among +the great countries of the world; especially would this be the case in +regard to the sister States and Dominions. + +What is a University? I have seen a University defined as a place at +which students from any quarter of the universe could be received +to study, irrespective of nationality. What we understand here by a +University, and what we aim at, is an institution where any person +can find the fullest and best instruction of the day in any branch of +knowledge. It will be the head corner-stone of the system of +education that has been legalised in this State, a school that will be +accessible to all, and will afford equal chances and opportunities +to rich and poor alike, without reference to sex or religious +denomination. I know of no institution in modern social life that +equals the University in giving a fair chance in life to the youth +that is capable and is able and willing to work; although, for my +part, I can only regard schools of all grades as only preparatory for +the studies that have to be incessantly pursued after one ceases to +attend classes, if one does not resign oneself to falling behind; thus +the primary school prepares for the secondary school, and that school +leads to the university, which last furnishes the highest and best +intellectual equipment for one's life work, an equipment of such +character that it can be obtained and be certified to by the +university, and by that alone. It supplies to the bearer the hall-mark +of the State that the man or woman that bears it has had the best +instruction that the country can supply. + +[Illustration: HIS EXCELLENCY SIR W. MACGREGOR ADDRESSING THE +AUDIENCE] + +What is to be taught in the University? You will find that the +University Act makes provision for the establishment of certain +faculties in which instruction shall be given; the preamble shows that +the University is to provide "a liberal and practical education in the +several pursuits and professions of life in Queensland." In no other +country can the pursuits and professions of social and economic life +be greater than they are, or will be, in Queensland, having regard to +the extraordinary multiplicity of its resources. Such a broad purpose +as that set out in the University Act leaves little option to the +ruling power of the University as to what subjects are to be taught. +That question is determined in a large measure by the work of other +universities, for it is a foregone conclusion that the University +of Queensland is not to occupy a position in the educational world +inferior to that of any sister university in Australasia. We are well +aware that their standard is high; and we recognise that we start +late, and are therefore behind, and that we have a hard task before us +to overtake the other universities; but this has to be done, and will +be done. I dwell on this because there should exist no misconception +as to the scope of the Queensland University, especially in regard to +what is called the classical side of instruction, in contradistinction +to the scientific or practical. We recognise that the literary records +of the world have, in the main, been successively committed to +the languages of the Chaldeans, the Greeks, the Romans, and the +Anglo-Saxons. If those languages are dead, their remains are so +constantly brought before us every hour of our lives that acquaintance +with those of them that are usually taught in what is called the +faculty of arts forms a necessary and indispensable part of the +education of every accomplished or finished scholar, and of most +professional men or women. At the same time, therefore, that this +University will provide the best tuition in the classical languages +of the past, we cannot but see that times have changed; that, for +example, in no country in Europe or America could the Prime Minister +now conduct official business in Latin with King or Governor, as was +the case in England not very long ago. No Prime Minister could now +electrify a drooping Parliament with a Latin quotation, as Pitt did. +So far as I know, the last Parliament in Europe to use Latin as its +language ceased to do so some three-score of years ago. The classics +have come into disfavour owing in a large measure to the fact +that they were overdone, that time was wasted on utterly valueless +subtleties in learning them. They were associated with too much +book and too little practical work. Here we shall have a course of +classics, an arts faculty, equal to that of other universities, +but without unduly encroaching on other faculties of more modern +development and of more direct utility in the evolution of modern +economic life. It would, however, be unreasonable to expect that the +University of Queensland could be brought into the world full-grown at +its birth. The University of Sydney began with four professors. I am +informed by the very distinguished gentleman who is Chancellor of +the University of Adelaide that the now great University of that city +entered on its career, in rented premises, thirty-four years ago, with +three chairs--classics, mathematics, and natural science. Now it has +faculties of arts, science, law, medicine, electrical, mining, civil +engineering, commerce, and music; and it has ranked, by letters +patent, for the last twenty-eight years, with the old universities of +the United Kingdom. The Adelaide University now has eleven professors +and twenty-six lecturers. It supplies to us a splendid example of +courage, of energy, and of perseverance, and that example we mean to +follow. (Applause.) Our late start is not without some compensation, +for not only are we able to profit from the experience of others, but, +what is equally important, we can adapt our University courses to +the needs of the country untrammelled by the vested interests and the +threadbare traditions that make it so difficult for old universities +to adapt themselves to the exigencies of modern educational +requirements. If one thinks of Queensland as she was this day fifty +years ago, and as she is to-day, it can be seen that he would be +a bold man that would predict what faculties, what tuition, may +be required, and may be given, in the Queensland University half a +century from now. The moral to be drawn from this is, to make a start +on an elastic plan that may admit of indefinite expansion. We +require a broad and strong foundation, able to carry a great edifice, +sufficient to provide the most comprehensive tuition, not only in what +is known, but also to facilitate and encourage original research and +invention, as set out in the Act. Even sport will not be forgotten, +for it is an important consideration, in a non-residential university, +to foster that feeling and regard for a bountiful mother that +should animate the students of every great University. One thing is +abundantly clear: that because we are determined to have a university +equal to the needs of this great State, a university that shall +stimulate those of the sister States, and because we start at so +late a date, we must begin with the very best teachers that can be +procured, the most learned and enthusiastic men in their several +departments. On those men will in a large measure depend the future +character and standing of our University. The best men will be the +cheapest. Queensland can afford to employ them, and we know they will +be a profitable investment. (Applause.) A university costs money, much +money, especially in the technical departments, such as engineering, +mining, and agriculture. The endowment of universities has been +recognised in recent years as having such strong claims on public +funds that they cannot be overlooked. That principle is accepted here. +Our nearest neighbours have conferred valuable land areas on their +universities; and they have been very liberal to them in money grants. +In this respect the oldest of our Universities, that of Sydney, led +the way with wisdom and a liberal hand, and to-day New South Wales +reaps her reward. It may safely be assumed that the Parliament and +Government of Queensland will be equally liberal and far-seeing. +But the different Universities have in recent years profited in an +extraordinary manner from the munificence of private citizens. In ten +years the technical schools, colleges, and universities of the United +States received in that way £23,000,000. Perhaps the largest amount of +such gifts in any one year was in 1903, when they received £3,350,000. +It appears that in 1907 nearly £300,000 was bequeathed to universities +and colleges in the United Kingdom. It has become a common practice +for private citizens to found a university chair to bear the name of +a person whose memory it is desired to preserve and to honour. Others +that are not in a position to do so much as that have very frequently +established a bursary or scholarship, sometimes sufficiently large +to maintain a student at the university, or to partly do so. The +bursaries that produce the best results are those that are given by +open competition. But others that are limited to a specified name or +locality, according to the desire of the donors, are very useful. Some +men of good will are not permitted by their means to do more than to +found a prize for proficiency in some branch taught in the university. +This State possesses an enormous area; the productions are varied in +a very unusual degree, and they are of enormous value present and +prospective; and there can be no reason to suppose that Queenslanders +are to be less generous and patriotic towards their University than +our neighbours have been towards theirs. I shall be satisfied if we +have citizens here as generous as Russell in Sydney, as Ormond in +Melbourne, and Elder and Hughes in Adelaide. I think that no more +patriotic nor useful disposition of one's money could be made. We +start under the best auspices, for we have before us now a most +gracious message of congratulation and good wishes from His Majesty +the King, whose life is devoted to the welfare of his subjects, and +there are with us to-day representatives from the great Universities +of Sydney and Adelaide. Each of these Universities has sent us a man +of world-wide reputation. I know well what I am saying when I tell you +that the names of Professors David and Stirling are as well known, +and are as highly honoured, by the learned men and women of Europe +and America as by the people of Australia. (Applause.) It is a great +honour to us to have such representatives here to-day, and for their +presence we owe hearty thanks to their respective Universities, and +I bid them a hearty and appreciative welcome to Brisbane, for I feel +sure that they and the Universities they represent will always extend +to us sympathy, good advice, and an excellent example; and I am +certain that they will be delighted to see us here in a position to +offer them that healthful emulation that cannot but be advantageous to +all concerned. I now, ladies and gentlemen, take the first practical +step towards the founding of the University of Queensland by complying +with the request of the Hon. William Kidston, Premier of the State, to +assent to the University Bill of 1909; and I shall thereafter, in your +presence, deliver this copy of the Act to the Hon. Joshua Thomas Bell, +who will receive it on behalf of the people of Queensland; and, this +done, I shall, by unveiling a commemorative tablet, dedicate this +building to the purposes of the University of Queensland. (Loud +applause.) + +[Illustration: HIS EXCELLENCY UNVEILING THE DEDICATION TABLET] + + +HIS EXCELLENCY, having signed the University Bill, and assented to it +on behalf of His Majesty the King, handed a copy to Mr. Bell, Speaker +of the Legislative Assembly, saying: It is with profound pleasure and +great hope that I present this Act to you on behalf of the people of +Queensland. (Applause.) + + +HIS EXCELLENCY: I now proceed to unveil the commemorative tablet which +dedicates this house to the University of Queensland. + + +By pressing a button, His Excellency unveiled a tablet bearing the +following inscription:-- + + DEDICATED + TO THE UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND + BY HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR, + SIR WILLIAM MACGREGOR, G.C.M.G., + ON BEHALF OF THE PEOPLE OF QUEENSLAND, + ON 10TH DECEMBER, 1909, + THE FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY + OF THE + ESTABLISHMENT OF RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT + IN QUEENSLAND. + + W. KIDSTON, + + CHIEF SECRETARY. + + +The HON. J. T. BELL (_Speaker of the Legislative Assembly_) said: Your +Excellency, Mr. Kidston, Your Grace, Ladies and Gentlemen,--If I +may for a second, before uttering the few sentences I propose to do, +mention a personal matter in regard to His Excellency, I should like +to do it, and that is to express the consternation I felt at the +announcement which His Excellency made that in his opinion all the +speeches that are delivered upon this occasion should be of such a +character that they may be perused with pleasure and with instruction +by those who are celebrating the jubilee of this institution fifty +years hence. May I say that I find it sufficiently difficult to cope +with my contemporaries without having to make in addition provision +for posterity? I listened to His Excellency's address with the +greatest satisfaction, as everyone did who heard it, because it was +felt to be a fitting deliverance for such an occasion as this. Whether +now, or five years hence, or ten years hence, or when the jubilee of +this institution is celebrated--as it will be celebrated--anyone +who wants authoritative information concerning the present education +systems of the world, of the Empire, and particularly of Australia and +in regard to this University, can turn to His Excellency's deliverance +with the knowledge that he can get all the information there. (Hear, +hear.) I at least feel--and so does everyone who has any acquaintance +with the fact--sympathy with the allusion which His Excellency made +during his remarks to that body of men who are known as the University +Extension Council. I do not know how far back their labours began--it +was certainly more than ten years--but these men, free from any +instinct of self-advertisement, and prompted only by influences that +were unselfish, did their very best in our small community years ago, +and year after year, to lay the foundations of a university. (Hear, +hear.) I am of opinion, although these things are difficult to trace, +that it was the labour of these men of the University Extension +Council, and their influence upon the public and upon the men in +public life, which really laid the foundations of this gathering, and +caused the Government of the day to institute the University. I +say all honour to those men, and I hope that their names will be +perpetuated somewhere or other. (Hear, hear.) I should like to say +that in dedicating this building to the purposes of a University, +those of us who are Queenslanders born and bred, not of the first +but even of the second generation, must feel some interest in the +transformation that such an edifice undergoes. I can only hope that +it will play its part as well as a University edifice as it did as a +Government House. Ever since, I suppose, 1861 or 1862, it has been the +home of Her Majesty's or His Majesty's representative in this State. +It was the headquarters of the social and political life of the State, +and it has, through its various inhabitants, performed its duties +well. There is this to be said, that it has housed in the past men +of the character that it will house in the future--men who possessed +qualifications that equally adapted them to live in this building in +the future, and within its new surroundings, as they were qualified to +inhabit it in the past. Let us think for a moment of some of the men +who have made this building historical. Let us think of Sir George +Bowen, our first Governor, a man who, before he became private +secretary to Mr. Gladstone, was the representative of the Crown in the +Ionian Isles, was an Oxford don, a fellow of his college, and a man +with an academic reputation. He came out here and lived with us, and +in one way at least his classical impulses have left their impression +on the community in the nomenclature of a number of creeks and hills +in Southern Queensland. (Hear, hear.) Then we had Lord Lamington, +a man of some academic pretensions; but, greatest of all from a +university standpoint, we had Lord Chelmsford, a man who was an honour +to his college, his university, and to the State which he governed. +(Hear, hear.) He was one of the very few men in the public service of +Great Britain who had ever come south of the line who were able to +say they were fellows of All Souls--(applause)--which represents in +university distinction what the V.C. means in the military field. +(Applause.) He was a man of qualifications that we were proud to have +in our Governor, and I know that when the proposal was made to him +that this building which he inhabited should be converted into a +university he was one of the first and most enthusiastic advocates of +the proposal. (Applause.) Lastly, we come to the last occupant of the +building, our present Governor, Sir William MacGregor, and no happier +instance can be found of what a university education can do to produce +an Empire builder and a stern man of the world than is to be found in +the person of His Excellency. Whatever may be the class of inhabitants +who are going to labour within these walls in the future, they have +had forerunners of whom they have no reason to be ashamed. Just let me +add a few sentences more. This building has some distinct advantages +from a university point of view. The sole object of a university is +not to instruct men to pass examinations; it has a wider sphere than +that. There was a time--it existed through ages--when the conception +of a university was an institution that turned out scholars. To-day, I +venture to say, it has become recognised that the duty and the object +of a university is the production of citizens. (Applause.) And you +will not produce citizens merely by making them go to lectures and +periodically answer questions in an examination. In the university +life one of the chief and most valuable features is the comradeship, +the common citizenship with the other members of the university, the +participation in athletic sports, the _esprit de corps_ that comes +from belonging to such an institution. And from that aspect I look +with pleasure upon the Brisbane River, only a few yards away, where we +shall find in the future, I hope, a university boat club, which club +has always been a prominent feature of universities in Great Britain, +as it is now becoming in Germany. And in connection with athletics, +and especially aquatic athletics, you will find the students of this +University will uphold the reputation of British students. (Applause.) +I do not propose to speak at any greater length. I am convinced that +after the liberal and, as far as we can see at the present time, +adequate provision that has been made by the Government of the day for +the management of this University, you will see men attending it who +will make their mark upon the community. (Hear, hear.) I repeat that +I hope that the test of the success of this University is not going to +be purely a literary test, though let it be tested in that way too. +I am convinced that those who look at the University from the broader +standpoint feel confident that this University is not going to turn +out merely scholars--merely men who can pass examinations--but is +going to turn out men of the world, and is going to have a striking +effect upon the tone of our citizenship. (Hear, hear.) I hope that +not merely morals, but, in some degree at all events, manners, will be +cultivated in this University; and we, a handful of people, who +spend comparatively enormous sums every year on primary and secondary +education, shall have additional reason to be proud when we see the +effects of the University now inaugurating being spread throughout the +land. (Applause.) I thank Your Excellency for dedicating this building +to the purposes of a University, and I rejoice that we have a man of +your character performing such a ceremony. (Applause.) + + +THE HON. W. KIDSTON: I have here apologies from the Chancellors of the +Universities of Melbourne and Tasmania, regretting their inability +to be present with us to-day. One of the pleasing features of this +celebration is the kindly and friendly way in which the Universities +of sister States have received the advent of their younger sister, the +University of Queensland. (Hear, hear.) But the Universities of +Sydney and Adelaide have done more: they have sent Professor David +and Professor Stirling respectively to say a few words to us on this +occasion and to wish us Godspeed. I now ask Professor David to speak. +(Applause.) + + +PROFESSOR DAVID (_Sydney University_) said: Your Excellency, Mr. +Kidston, Your Grace, and Ladies and Gentlemen,--It is a great honour +for me, as representing the elder sister amongst the Universities of +Australia, to bring a message of goodwill to our young University--the +University of Queensland. (Applause.) It is under happy auspices that +this young University is having this grand building, with such fine +memories of the past, dedicated to its uses. We have in our present +representative of His Majesty a gentleman of ripe scholarship and +learning, one who has been throughout his whole life, as he is now and +as he long will be too, a great power for good, a great power for all +that is uplifting and ennobling to the British Empire--Sir William +MacGregor. (Applause.) We have, too, this dedication ceremony +performed in the presence of a representative of the Government who +has shown that he has the greatest possible grip of all that is +needed to make a university such as this young University a People's +University; one, too, who has at heart, I know, the good and +prosperity of his country--the Honourable the Premier, Mr. Kidston. +(Applause.) The present Ministry, with great foresight, have resolved +to make this University not merely a University of Brisbane, but the +University of Queensland. (Hear, hear.) And it seems to me, as one who +has studied university matters for some years in the past, that it is +an act of great wisdom on the part of those who have controlled the +inception of this movement that they have decided to associate here +together the Technical College and the University. (Applause.) I +feel sure that the association will make for the good of both these +institutions, which never should be divorced from one another, and +between which there should be nothing more than friendly rivalry, and +always an interchange of courtesy, of hospitality, and of confidence. +(Applause.) Another point, and a very important one, which I +was delighted to hear from the lips of Mr. Kidston, is that this +University is to be able to appeal to the farthest boundaries of this +great State, by virtue of these sixty splendid scholarships which the +Government have decided to endow--(applause)--that will bring in many +boys and girls who otherwise, through remoteness or want of means, +would have been unable to avail themselves of this University +education. Thus I am sure that, although this University will start, +no doubt, with but a small number of students, even amongst the small +group of students who may come first to this University the nation +will reap no less rich reward than did the University of Sydney when +it started with a mere handful of students. That University celebrated +its Jubilee only in 1902, and amongst its first handful of students +was no less a man than he who was the honoured Chancellor of our +University, Sir William Windeyer; than he who did so much not only +for New South Wales but Australian science, our late Government +Astronomer, Mr. H. C. Russell; than he who is now an ornament to the +Bar, an honour to his University, and a great honour to this State and +to the whole of this Commonwealth, Sir Samuel Griffith. (Applause.) +Certainly it will not be for want of plenty of good material that this +University will not flourish, for we in Sydney know of what splendid +materials your grammar schools, both for boys and girls, are made, as +well as many of your other schools. We know it right well in Sydney, +for there, many a time and oft, your boys and girls take prizes over +the heads of our own. (Applause.) Then a word in conclusion, and that +is this, Your Excellency, and ladies and gentlemen: That, just as in +medieval times when the universities were started, Feudalism, which +made for isolation and all that was selfish, was broken down chiefly +by the University influence, which gathered the people and drew them +together in that great bond of brotherhood and learning, so in these +troublous times, when class is ranged against class, and when Labour +is pitted against Capital, surely we need the levelling influence of +a University--not an influence to level down but an influence to level +up in a noble, common brotherhood. (Applause.) We need universities as +well as we need "Dreadnoughts" and Kitcheners--as we do need them to +keep our country foremost in the arts, not only of war--even in war a +university may do much; we have a Director of Military Studies at our +University at Sydney, and I trust you will have one here--but to keep +us foremost in the arts of peace. In the matter of the foundation +of the universities of the Old World, you will remember that it was +through the Crusaders that those universities were founded. It was the +fiery zeal for Faith that started those universities. The Crusaders +were brought into contact with the learning of the Eastern World, +and so Learning and Faith were brought together in the foundations of +those old Universities of Paris and Oxford. Sometimes Learning only +flourished: sometimes only Faith: sometimes Reverence only, sometimes +Faith. May it be our fervent prayer that in this noble hall both +Reverence and Learning shall for ever dwell together in sweet harmony. +(Applause.) As representing the older sister University of Sydney, +from the bottom of my heart I wish to our young sister University on +this historic occasion all goodwill--a message of goodwill, a message +of Godspeed. (Applause.) + + +PROFESSOR STIRLING (_Adelaide University_) said: Your Excellency, Mr. +Premier, and Ladies and Gentlemen,--My first duty is to present to the +Government of Queensland, on behalf of the University of Adelaide, its +very cordial thanks for the invitation so courteously extended to it +that it should be represented on an occasion which will assuredly be +a memorable episode in the annals of this great and prospering State. +And in this connection I am desired by our Chancellor, Sir Samuel Way, +to convey to this gathering his great regret that his judicial duties, +now of a very exacting kind, have prevented his acceptance of the +invitation extended to him in the first place as our chief official, +and of doing honour to the event that is being celebrated. My second +and principal duty is to offer the cordial congratulations of the +University I represent to the Government of Queensland, and through it +to its whole people, that now at last, after many years, the keystone +is being placed upon the arch of the educational edifice of this +State. (Hear, hear, and applause.) I have had the honour of being +connected with the University of Adelaide ever since its foundation, +now thirty-four years ago. I can well remember its early struggles, +its efforts to take a fitting place in our national life, and I +am glad to have lived long enough to see many of its aspirations +fulfilled--(hear, hear)--aspirations that have been fulfilled in spite +of what has not always been a very whole-hearted support either on the +parts of successive Governments or of the people for whose benefit +it was intended. But I think it is now well recognised that the +University is playing a useful and essential part in the intellectual +life of the community, and that any arrest to its progress would be +nothing short of national disaster. These recollections of our early +struggles lead me to say that it will now be very interesting to us, +as onlookers, to see whether this last-born of the great educational +centres of Australia--founded as it has been by a Government that +claims to be at least as democratic as the Governments of its sister +States--will escape the criticisms, sometimes quite undeserved, that +have at one time or another been directed, certainly against my +own University, and, as I think I may say also, against its sister +institutions. Then, too, in the adjustment of the work of the +University there will no doubt recur the perennial discussion--indeed +it has already been initiated to-day by His Excellency--as to the +relative importance in an educational system of culture as opposed to +material science. I am glad that I am not called upon to enter into +that question to-day. But, speaking now from a point of view which +concerns literature no less than science, I may be permitted to say +that it is gratifying to hear the announcement of the Honourable the +Premier that the claims of original research will be brought +within the scope of the institution which takes its origin to-day. +(Applause.) Surely it is a desirable, even a necessary, function of +the chief seat of learning of a State that its professors and teachers +should not only teach that which is known, but that they should +themselves be contributors to the sum of human knowledge. There can be +no doubt that the prestige of a university depends far more upon the +extent to which its teachers are known as originators of knowledge +than upon their daily routine lectures, however honestly or however +ably these may be delivered. + +[Illustration: LADY MacGREGOR PLANTING THE UNIVERSITY TREE] + +Every professor worthy the name will admit that the burden of +teaching, unrelieved and uninspired by the stimulus of independent +work and thought, may indeed become destructive of the intellectual +energies. This infant University, launched as it is upon its career +with the goodwill of a prudent Government and with, I believe, to an +unusual degree the good wishes and support of the people, has the +great advantage that it may profit by the example of the institutions +that have preceded it; and fortunate will be the University of +Queensland if, by adopting the good that may be discerned in its +sister institutions, and by avoiding their mistakes, if such have +been made, it shall enter upon and pursue a blameless career of which +all men shall speak well. Even in their relatively short careers, as +time goes for States and institutions, it can be perceived that the +Australian Universities have to some extent developed individualities +of their own, and this is just what is to be desired. A Minister of +France under the Third Empire once made it his boast that on the same +day and at the same hour every corresponding class in every Lycee +throughout the length and breadth of the land was performing the same +allotted task. That boast bespoke an undesirable uniformity which is +not likely to find favour in British communities, least of all in +these States, where we have become accustomed to strike out new lines +in education for ourselves. Therefore, it is to be desired that the +University of Queensland will in its turn, evolve an individuality of +its own, that it will be inspired by the particular requirements of +the State whose interests it serves; and, further, may I express the +hope that the fact will become recognised, which has not easily +gained recognition in the Australian communities--namely, that a +well-founded and well-equipped university may be one of the best +assets, material as well as intellectual, that can be possessed by +any State or Nation. Your Excellency, I have been ordered to be brief +in my remarks, and, interesting as are many of the thoughts that +arise on such an exceptional occasion, I must conclude by expressing +once more, on behalf of the University I have the honour to represent, +and with all earnestness and sincerity, our fervent hope that this +University of Queensland, so auspiciously inaugurated, will prosper +to the uttermost, and that it will grow in usefulness and dignity as +it grows in years, and that at length it will stand forth as a noble +monument to the great State whose far-seeing Government and whose +public-spirited citizens have this day launched it on its career of +promise. (Applause.) + + +THE HON. W. KIDSTON: I have now to invite Her Excellency, Lady +MacGregor, to plant a "University tree," which I hope will grow and +flourish as we expect the University to do, and that in the years to +come, when many who are here to-day have passed away, the tree will be +known as "Lady MacGregor's tree." + + +On a spot in front of the dais, Her Excellency planted a tree with +a silver trowel on which was inscribed: "To Lady MacGregor, from the +Chief Secretary of Queensland, Hon. W. Kidston, 10th December, 1909." +Lady MacGregor then declared the tree well and truly planted. + + + + + BRISBANE: + + ANTHONY JAMES CUMMING, GOVERNMENT PRINTER. + + 1909. + + * * * * * + + + + + Transcriber's Note: + + + Missing or damaged punctuation has been repaired. + + The mid-dot, usual for the period, was used for decimals, and + where used, has been retained. + + L.s., _locus sigilli_ ( = the place of the seal). + + Part of the text of Map 8 was on the next page after 2 pages + of maps, and has been moved to join the beginning of the map 8 + text, for better flow. + + The Barwan River, described in the Proclamation in the Government + Gazette, and under Queensland (Map 9) is now known as the Barwon + River. + + Illustrations (photographs) through the book appear facing + every 4th or 8th page. Where a photograph intersects a + paragraph of text, it has been moved to the end of the + paragraph. + + Page 27: 'freetrade' corrected to 'free trade' "... the + enhanced prosperity resulting from interstate free trade." + + Page 69: 'arrear', archaic, but probably correct in 1909. + "... unoccupied land might be leased for fourteen years by a + council when rates had been permitted to fall into arrear for + a term of four years." (Webster's Dictionary, 1913 Edition). + + Page 207: Mining: 1872: Gold raised in Queensland: £537,365. + The first '3' could be '2'. The scan is smudged and unclear. + + Page 229: 'Mount Cornish, No. 3'. + The '3' may be a '5'. The scan is unclear, even at different + magnifications. + + Page 237: Brisbane, mean summer temperature, '76.0' could be + '73.0' or '75.0'. This is a 'best guess'; the scan is smudged + and unclear, and part of the number is missing. '76.0' has + been selected after a careful comparison of the '6' with nearby + numbers. 76.0°F is also closest to the current Brisbane mean + summer temperature of 24.8°C, or 76.6°F, and in the same chart, + the current Brisbane mean winter temperature of 15.6°C, or 60°F + is the same as that given in this 1909 book (60°F). + + Page 243: 'acessible' corrected to 'accessible'. + "... by which it was to be made accessible to all our young + people without regard to...." + + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's Our First Half-Century, by Government of Queensland + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OUR FIRST HALF-CENTURY *** + +***** This file should be named 39495-8.txt or 39495-8.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/3/9/4/9/39495/ + +Produced by far Nick Wall, Lesley Halamek, and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This +file was produced from images generously made available +by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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