OUR AUSTRALIAN LETTER

Evening Star, Issue 12865, 14 July 1906, Page 2

OUR AUSTRALIAN LETTER

fFBOirOoR Special Cobrespondent.j SYDNEY, July 7. FEDERAL POLITICS.—WILL MR DEAKIN RETIRE?

A rumor gamed currency this week that Mr Dealun, the Federal Prime Minister, meditated resigning from the political sphere at the end of the present session ana apparently proved so distressing to his Protectionist followers that Mr Mauger was put up. in the House of Representatives to inquire whether there was any truth m the "mischief-making story." Mr Deakin seemed grateful of the opportunity of malting an explanation. The rumor, as he acknowledged, had this much foundation : that two years ago, when he was a private member, he bad decided upon retiring at the close of this Parliament, and had actually searched Ballarat for a suitable successor. Since then, however, '-' unexpected obligations" have been cast upon him which have entirely altered his purpose. Except by the consent of his colleagues and attenuated partv, "with both of whom his relations are most cordial and satisfactory," he does not now feel free to take any such step. Ho further accounted for the the fact that, replying to inquiries from old friends in relation to ponding appointments hero and in London, he felt that "those positions should be filled by better men, and that, in the event of his retirement from public life, he will not be a candidate for any of them." No doubt the over increasing discomfort of Mr Deakin as "tho "catspaw" of the Labor party renders the prospect of retreat from his most unfortunate position somewhat alluring, and it almost looks as if he were awaiting just a little pressure from some of those "old friends" to make him change his mind as to his party obligations and the acceptance of a comfortable post far removed from the " nodding strife " of thn coming, elections. Politically Mr Deakin is in as tired and languid a condition as it is possible to imagine, and his future prospects do not promise any relief for his weary spirit. It will not be at all surprising if, before the end of the session, something further is heard of this interesting subject.

While the Opposition are wrestling vainlv with .the combination of Victorian and Labor interests over the Anti-Trust Bill, their leader (Mr Reid) is conducting .a pre-election campaign in Queensland? His absence from the House, which would formerly have been adversely commented upon bv his Press mentors, now receives marked* encouragement. Anf-aring the question of why Mr Reid U ».>t in his place in Parliament by one of the leaders of the Queensland Socialists, the Sydney ' Daily Telegraph' says " there is no doubt that it would suit the purpose of tho caucus and its 'mercenaries' for the Opposition Leader in Melbourno to idly beat the parliamentary air instead of going abroad and doing propaganda work in the constituencies. It may be that in the earlier days of the present Parliament, before Mr Deakin's betrayal of the anti-Socialist cause, the party represented by the existing Opposition suffered more or less through the prolonged absence of Mr Reid from the parliamentary arena. But the circumstances existing now will bear no comparison with those which existed then. Parliament is dominated by a political conspiracy against which there is no fighting chance. As far us the present Parliament is concerned, the Opposition finished their chief work when they forced forward to a successful completion the redistribution of seats. Having thus cleared the way for an appeal to the people, the path of duty now lies in the direction of educating them to an appreciation of the issues which within the next few months they will have to decide." So far as the Anti-Trust Bill is concerned, it has been demonstrated that all the Opposition can do is to get some of its more objectionable details modified ; but owing to tho determination to give as much assistance to. Victorian manufacturers as possible, the essential princi of the Bill are bound to be maintained. Even Victorian Freetraders are. aiding the measure, which is specially designed to se-~ cure more protection for certain manufacturers of that Stale through an indirect channel.

POLITTCAL BLACKGUARDISM.

At the present moment general public attention, is centred on the extraordinary developments.in New South Wales, where political blackguardism thrives in unashamed nudity. How long the scandalous scenes which dissfrace the Lower Chamber of New South Wales are going, to be tolerated is a question difficult to answer. Thrre are members in it whose licentious goings on would not be permitted in any other colonial Parliament. Their blatant, drunken demeanor and obscene language are such that no constituency with any sense of decency ought to return them. Yet surh is the callousness, the indifference, the public moral degeneracy of the people who return members of Parliament in New South Wales, that these outrageous products of democracy—these political larrikins of the vilest and most disgusting, type—are looked upon with a leniency and indulgence that are 6imp!y enigmatical to those who have not been enervated bv the environment of "birth-stained Sydney." With all their faults,.they are looked upon as " clever fellows," having a plucky audacity that compels something of admiration. During the past fortnight the AssembV has been engaged in discussing th° Ad-dress-in-Reply and an amendment of no confidence moved by Mr M'Gowan, the leader of the Labor-Opposition. But the fate of the amendment has been a foregone conclusion of impot°ncy, technicalities have shut out free discussion of the terrible land scandal in its most important hearings, and the public have been mainly iutprested in the extraordinary performances of Mr Crick (the ex Minirter of Lands, who is being charged with conspiracy after escaping the meshes of the law on an indictment for bribery) and Mr rTo"ton (the editor of 'Truth,'that strange Sydney Sunday publication), who has taken it into his head to charge a prominent Labor member with a list of offences, including the general suggestion that he was "one of the most corrupt and incorrigible boodlers that ever sat in the House." Mr Crick reachr-d the climax of his parliamentary freedom when he persistently defied the Speaker of the House and made an ignoble exit in charge of-the Sergeant-at-Arms. Then later Mr Norton, as an earnest of his seriousness, arranged to resign along with the member he attacked and contest his seat, to ascertain what his constituents thought of the business. Mr Norton made his charges in the absence of the Labor member, Mr Holman, who, it will be remembered, engaged in the recent debate with Mr Reid on Socialism, and left his resignation in charge of Mr O'Sullivan to place in the hands of the Speaker should his challenge be taken up. Probably to his surprise, at the succeeding sitting* his challenge was accepted, for Mr Holman, after a. vindicatory speech, also handed his resignation to Mr O'Sullivan, who tendered both to 'the Speaker. , Both the Surrey Hills and Cootamnndra Seats have consequently been declared vacant, and the contest which is supposed to demonstrate the personal honor of the accus-d and accuser is to take place in the latter constituency. This appeal to the wiseacre hallotees of Cootamnndra is, of course, an unmitigated farce, with less ©erase in it than a French duel. Whether Mr Holman is re-eleoted by his; constituents or not wall not settle Question of his innocence of the charges which have been brought against him. Pcdsibly in the event of his re-election, he intends to ask for a select committee of inquiry to invefitMrate his case, but there: is. a chance of both Mr Norton and himself, being discarded in. favor of an anik "foedaHst or some local -earididaie. Mr Holman explained in the' Hoirse that he seized the -opportunity: of "conferring a favor rroon the community at large bv accerjitnng the Drooosal rashly, made by Mr Norton." .hut he mav find he has been too quixotic on behalf of the community. The more practical stem would have been to dkrecrard altopother the charges as tvanswarent calumnies, or got a committee of inquiry appointed at once.

As this mataer will ( loom la.rpe.ly in the public eye immediately, it may be as well for your readers to understand exactlv the nature.of the charges Mr Norton made and tho reply of Mr Hobnan thereto. Mr Norton charged Mr Hclman with ing been convicted of swindling by falso Bcetenoes.j thai be was ana, of the mewb

corrupt and incorrigible boodlers that ever' eat m the- House; that he had betrayed the Labor, party; thai he had inspired : or Written articles in the 'Worker' and J the Newsletter' against Mr that i he had 'Written articles in a Ck>otamundra 1 paper against Mr Norton; that he 'had been a go- bye befcweeri 4wo men, iHaynes and Low, and as .each had received £IOO from a' certain manufacturer in connection with a Government" contract; that, he had I approached a bookmaker for the expenses | of the election campaign of two members \ of his party, in return for which the vote would be given against Mr field's Governnueait; tihat he 'had accepted boodle from the brewers in connection with the Liquor Bill; that he made the Labor party , a sort of fee-hunting and was |n league with two Arbitration Court' firms for fees;-that he looked for promotion,in quarters hostile to the Labor that he had acted improperly in deanandiirig I the Coal Commission, and then appearing i for one of the parties. j Tie first charge related to an ill-starred ■ venture of the Labor partyr—the ' Daily Post' newspaper, which Mr Holman and j Mr Sam Smith started eleven years ago. ! It _was perfectly true. Mr Holman explained, that he had stood his trial en a i charge of conspiracy to defraud, and it was just as true that the jury had found him and others guilty. But on appeal that conviction was quashed, and no further proceedings were afterwards taken, j He did not deny that tlhe facts in themselves might appear' suspicious; but since that date he had been three times returned by constituencies to the House, and had been admitted as,, a member of the Bar.—(Cheers.) He was in a position to know, further, that he was admitted after the attention of the Barristers' Admission Board had been directed to the whole of the facts. He asked the House to keep an even mind on the matter, and to assume that facts which even warranted a conviction in the mind of a jury, but which afterwards had been held to be capable of an honorable explanation by the Barristers' Admission Board, might be capable of an honorable explanation in the House. The ' Daily Post' scheme was badlv conceived, and bady managed from the beginning. He was at the time" a ""you-ng man-of twenty- four, with not the slightest business knowledge or knowledge of the world, yet when a vacancy occurred on the directorate he had accepted the seat. There were no emoluments attached to the and although he had invested his savings in the venture he had not received so much as a farthing from it.— (Hear, hear.) At a certain stage the directors annroached Mr Hjslod. and borrowed'£2oo from him. When they borrowed this they honestly believed they had weathered the worst of their troubles, and had hopes of a successful paper. The facte, however, proved that they Wore wrong, and there, were great losses all round. All of them lost what they had invested. A considerable time Mr ffielop was persuaded thai, he had not been the victim of bad judgment, but of swindling, and he instituted the proceedings which resulted in the conviction of himself (Mr Holman), Mr Sam Smith, and others. He did not deny that the conviction was quashed on a purely technical Doint, but no further proceedings were taken. Two years later he and Mr Smith found themfielves both members of Parliament. They immediately began to repay Mr Hislop—(hear, hear) —the money he had lost in consequence of their folly in persuading him to make the advance. T.hev paid ham the loon, his costs, and interest.—(Cheers.) And Mr Hislop was now, he was proud to say, one of his strongest friends in S-vdney. Ho wished to emphasises that whatever technicail offence they bad committed they had erred honestly, without the slightest intentio to defraud.

As to an incident in connection with the fall of the Reid Government in 1899, Mr Holman explained that it was quite true that somebody went to a certain sporting man on behalf of the Labor party and made certain suggestions. At one stage of the crisis it was believed that certain members of the party wonld resign rather than submit to dishonorable domination. They did take certain steps, and as a result the party voted as a body against Mr Reid rather than run the risk of a disruption. Ho did not understand the charge of the hon. member whatever. Those who were in the party at the time would bear him out in saying that nothing was directed by him at the time thit was not for the good of the party. If the hon. number suggested that at the interview in question there was any suggestion that he (Mr Holman) should profit, he was suggesting what was absolutely false —(Hoar, bear.) Then Mr Norton had dochmd that he (Mr Holman) bad accepted bribes from the liquor party in connection with the Liquor Bill. That was au absolute lie, and he believed knowingly uttered. He had always stood as an opponent of Local Option, and if Loral Option were carried he favored compensation. In 1895. at Grenfell, he secured the nomination of the Licensed Victuallers’ Association because of his views on the point. Members of the party also knew that at the Labor Conference in 1904 he vigorouhy opposed Local Option being made a plank of their platform. He challenged any member to snow any connection between him and the brewers in connect on with the Liquor Bill.—(Cheers.) Mr Nor ton bad most unjustifiably brought in the name of a solicitor (Mr Beeby), and had said that he (Mr Holman) was his law partner, and was always in the Arbitration Court Icokincr for fees. He had the statement of Mr Beebv to show that his firm had conducted some 200 industrial d spate.-, and he (Mr Holman) had been briefed in two only. He was further charged with having acted in the interests of Mr Herbert Low hi the matter in which that gentleman considered he had a claim against a certain Government contractor. This charge was tho only one that bad a scintilla of truth in it, and the statement that he had acted for Mr Low was perfectly true! He was prepared, if the House thought it worth while, to hav that matter probed to the bottom. He did go, on Mr Low’s behalf, and make certain suggestions to a Government contracto which would have the effect of avoiding anything like a squabble in the law courts. He' bad gone fully into the particulars of the case with Mr M’Gowen, Mr Thrower, and Mr Nielsen, and he assured the House that the details would not throw one ray of dishonest light on his conduct, which consisted in acting as a friend between two menThere was a good moral claim, and it was a claim for no - immoral service. He persuaded the Government contractor to agree to a friendly understanding, and no one could any that one atom of dirt stuck to him in connection with the transaction. If the House desired, be would be prepared to give, in confidence, the whole of the facts to any three members of the Ministerial party who might be nominated for that purnose.

THE KANAKA QUESTION.

The report of a Royal Commission throws some tight on the difficulties likely to arbe in relation to the removal of kanakas from the sugar plantations of Queensland. It appears that in that State and on the Tweed River on April 10 there were 6,389 kanakas, 691 holding certificates of exemption, and since that date 418 have been repatriated, leaving 5,280 liable to deportation to the islands. There are also soma fifty adult islanders and half-castes who, having been born in Queensland, claim to be British subjects. The majority of these have been educated in the State schools,, aud are of relatively high intelligence. They would probably resist compulsory deportation. Repatriation during the next eix months viil .(jiobably redure the number liable to iepartatioo to 4,000. The report goes on to state that there axe in Queensland certain kanakas who t by reason of extreme age and bodjlv infirmity, would be: unable to obtain a livelihood if sent back to the islands. "There are also individuals who have lived here so long that their tribe hove become extinct, and others whosse prolonged subsistence on English diet would unfit them for the vegetable food which chk fly constitutes the sustenance of the kanaka- 1 - in thdr isrlaiids. Others left their homes to escape death punishment • for various breaches of tribal laws, and if sent back they would probably be killed. The report also deala with the wives of kanakas who are not natives of the same island, and the Commission, coraidor that it would he inhuman to deport such persons; The report deals at some length with tho question of repatriation and the labor supply to replace kanakas, and on the ktter «ues&vn the Com-

mission conrider that any uncertainty as to an adequate supply of labor in the sugar industry could be greatly, .minimised, were it poFsible to provide facilities for settlement upon small holdings of such workers as would be inclined to avail themselves thereof in the sugar districts.' The' Commission make a numb; r of recommendations, including the following:—That the resident Commissioners in tbe various groups be requested to acquaint the chiefs that the islanders now in Queensland may be shortly returned in large numbers so that increased food supplies may be provided; that an islander may be landed at any spot which he may consider will tend to ensure him a. eai'e landing; that the names of kanakas desirous of returning within the next six months may be obtained in order to arrange for their speedy repatriation; that legislation be provided defining the status of Pacific Islanders engaged in tbe pearl shell and beche-de-mer fisheries, also the natives of New Caledonia, Loyalty group, and Fiji; that exempdon from compukory deportation be allowed in certain cases, where such •.'.«- portation would inflict severe hardships and injustice upon kanakas and their families; that steamers to accommodate up to 500 islanders each bo employed as transports; that 2,000 inlanders be repatriated in January next, and thereafter SCO. per month.

TRAMWAY CRISIS.

A tramway crisis is threatened in Sydney through the sumiuaTy dismissal of a driver —H. Lawtou—who is president of the Employees' Union. A notice was posted at the traaishcds, Newtown, caliing a mass nueting of members of the union," and containing the lines, " Startling. disclosures to be made.—Official Ineptitude." The "official ineptitude" caused officials of all grades to rise, and when Mr Lawton was called upon to have the objectionable notice removed he declined. Moreover, when a piece of blank paper was placed over the offensive notice it was torn down. Called before the superintendent, he declined to reply to the charges brought against him, and was at once dismissed. The charges were as follow:

(1) That he signed, or permitted his name to be affixed to, and caused to be exhibited at the various tramway depots, a uotioe which was in terms objectionable, and calculated to subvert discipline. (2) That he disobeyed the order of the traffio superintendent to remove each notice.

(3) That after such disobedience of orders he objected to the raid notices being covered over by his superior officers.

(4) That he refrecd to .give any explanation or answer questions when before his superior officer in connection with the maiter.

The union have decided to stand by president, mid are smoking a commission of inquiry into • his treatment and common grievances. There is a certain amount of public sympathy with the men in regard to certain conditions of their work, but it is rocosra'sed tlat the union went altogether too far when they ascribed "official ineptitude" to the management, and that in the cironmstanoes Lairton's dismissal was deserved.