MONSTER PETITION

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21853, 16 July 1934, Page 11

MONSTER PETITION

SECESSION QUESTION WESTERN AUSTRALIA'S PRAYER [FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT] SYDNEY, July 5 The preparation of the Western Australian petition to the British Parliament in favour of the State's secession from the Commonwealth is no easy task. It is some months now since the people of Western Australia, at a referendum, decided in favour of secession, and when they did so they elected a Government which was opposed to such a policy. The Government, however, is bound by law to pro r ceed with the petition, and has prepared a score or more of reasons in favour of secession. Its next duty will be to appoint a delegation, probably of three, to take the petition to London. Because he is an accomplished penman, who can write copperplate, Mr. J. Saunders, a retired civil servant, has secured employment in Perth for seven weeks. It will take him at least that time to write the petition. No typewritten petitions arc received ■by the British Government; all must bo written by hand. When the Goveinment looked through the State service for a super penman it found many reasonably good writers, but none able to give that perfection of form that is needed in a petition destined to go before the Lords and the Commons. Mr. Saunders has been described as a "Rembrandt" among penmen. Now in his study each day he is copying with Indian ink on parchment the whole of the secession petition which was printed as a schedule to the secession legislation. This petition contains no me thousands of words, and must be presented sin one piece. Jf the prayer of the petition were presented on different sheets, the formality of adequately certifying each specific sheet would have to bo gone through. So it is that Mr. Saunders is writing the petition on a huge roll of parchment, which at present looks like equalling the length of three or more cricket pitches of 'VI yards each Australia, an a whole, do en riot take the petition very seriously, but it will watch with interest the reception it receives from the British Parliament, To most people the secession of any of the States is beyond the realm of practical polities. It is felt that nothing will ever be done to break down the federal Constitution, If the States have suffered there are, it i« considered, means of rectifying the blunders other than by breaking a way.