RESTLESS NORTHERN TERRITORY

Evening Post, Volume XCVII, Issue 56, 8 March 1919, Page 5

RESTLESS NORTHERN TERRITORY

(PROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

SYDNEY, 28th February. Affairs in the Northern Territory, which broke forth a few weeks ago in an attack by a mob on the person of the Administrator, Dr. Gilruth, continue in an unsettled condition. The Territory provides the Federal Government with its most awkward internal problem.

Labour extremists have a firm hold on Darwin, and for all practical purposes, Darwin is the Territory. When the new taxes were introduced,' including a further duty on beer, the retail prices in the Darwin hotel bars (which are Stateowned) were raised. It was then that the Darwin populace broke loose, and attacked Dr. Gilruth in the manner described. Having declared war, the mob decided to . continue hostilities, so that "Darwin's grievances might be redressed." The beer trouble has been forgotten long since, except that a liquor "strike" continues. . No good unionist will drink liquor from the Darwin hotels, and. as the latter existed on the traffic, and the "strike' has continued for several weeks, they are in a bad way. The other day, Dr. Gilruth left the Territory, and proceeded to Melbourne, where he has been in consultation with the Fedral authorities. Following on that, Darwin citizens held a meeting, and decided to continue tho liquor "strike" Until better administrative conditions were granted. This information was conveyed to the Federal Government in a most impertinent telegram. It was pointed out that the authorities had given the hotel staffs notice, and it was asked why the highly-paid' hotel supervisors were, not sacked, and the poorlypaid women kept on. The Federal Government now announces that the Administrator will be assisted in future by a nominated advisory council, representing the people. This is expected to quieten Darwin, which is constantly clamouring, for representation of some sort, but whether it will remains to be seen.

The absurdity of the whole position lies in the fact that the white population in the Territory totals only 2000 or 3000 souls, and that the place costs the Federal authority fully £400,000 per year. The justification of the expenditure is the belief that the Territory is to 'grow and become wealthy and self-supp-orting—and so hold' the back door of Australia against hungry Asia. But as a matter of fact, under paralysing State control, the Territory has neither grown nor developed for years- past. Australia now recognises this, and is asking herself what is to be done ?