N.S.W. POLITICS.

Hastings Standard, Issue 157, 28 October 1896, Page 3

N.S.W. POLITICS.

SV!>NKV. Oct. 'll. New Zf aland shipmasters trading to the Southern coal ports know the d.iv_r r attendant on loading. owing to the absence of a safe harbor. When large vessels full, rnd had weather comes on. ihey ar. (•••>!. p. ]lt d to take llight. Cnder siteh circumstances the Southern collieries are handicapped, compared with Newcastle and it.s greater facilities. The Assembly has carried a motion referring the ijue.-tion of constructing a -.1 f< harbor at Port Kembhi. which wa- -1 lected after 111 - quiring into the claims of WOOIIOII- - and Puiiambi, to the Public Works Committee. Much time was wasted in discussing the Sunday traduitr question. One Ze.ll) ;ts 1. < 111( . 1 miflynd hit:.-el I ill the public inn i> -t by calling at fourteen hotels. In each instance the I if*- 11st. e never failed to a>k his •' poiThe only point of interest elicited during the discussion was the view of the Premier, who thought hotels -iio iid he open "luring stated hour-, on Sunday. He promised to support any move' in that direction. I'wring the elections threatened slaughter was l>r. atlnd against the Council. That auir'-t body was either 10 be menil« d or tnded. The public has patiently waited to see some of thethreats come about. The Premier introduced the Constitution Act Amendment Pill, which simply

provide.-: fur a referendum to decide disputes between the two Houses. The Premier, in showinanlike oratory, informed the awe-stricken House that he had fulfilled his pledges to the country on the Council ipiestion. A lively debate followed before a resohtin which Mr Keid 1 lr See. tlir ex-Colonial Treaiitical insect, fnrwhich remark lie had to climb down. An eiiort was made to raise a dis-cus-ion on old age pensions, but the Premier declined to be drawn. So important] a'matter required the recess for consideration. The Women's Franchise Bill was discharged from the order paper at the request of the member who fathered it. The Savings Bank Pill has passed the A—embly, and the Council has passed the Franchise Fxtension Bill on the Statute Book. The Abolition of Capital Punishment Bill has got through committee of the Assembly, a listless effort to retain the supreme penalty for murder Wing reject* d by '2O to «. Naturally, the alien population do not regard the Restriction Act with calmness. An Assyrian merchant, writing to the press*advances what must be an unlooktd-for blow at the religions element in the Ministry. He says if Christ came to Sydney, neither he nor his disciples cottld be admitted, because they were Assyrians. The writer indignantly scouts the idea that they are a colored race. They were Caucasians, and claimed the habits and customs of those civ ilised people. The latter argument avails nothing, because the Act specifies "all Asiatics." One member of a deputation mournfully told the Premier that the Sultan forbade his countrymen leaving home, which caused Mr Keid to remark that he quite agreed with the Sultan, who was a sensible man. The military numbers of the Assembly invaded the Colonial Secretary's office in strong force to prefer a request for the re-establishment of the Easter encampments, whi*h were abandoned under the Government retrenchment policy. Mr Bunker promised to favorably submit the request to his colleaires, but it meant an expenditure of £••20.000. The country spent Jt'3,000.000 in defence purposes, and he considered it a short-sighted policy to allow the whole work to become ineffective by a refusal to pay sufficient to enable the forces to become efficient.