AUSTRALIAN FEDERATION

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4320, 1 April 1901, Page 5

AUSTRALIAN FEDERATION

j,..'. PARLIAMENTARY POLES. A CLOSE STRUGGLE. ELECTIONS TO THE SENATE. SYDNEY, March 31. In the .Senate elections in New South Wales, Messrs Walker. Gould, Miilen, Pulsford, Gray and O’Connor are leading strongly. All but. the last-named are Erect radars. ... . In Victoria, the. leading candidates

are ;\lr S. Eraser, Sir Win. Zeal, am Messrs .). Styles and R. W. Rest tProtectionists). Sir Frederick Sargoot (Freetrader) and Mr J. G. Barrett (La. hour).

In Tasmania, Messrs Gatlin, Dobson

and O’Keefe have the best lead among the Ministerialists, and of Oppositionists, Messrs Clements and MacFarlane (Freetraders) and Cameron (.Protectionist) are among the first, six. Mr Rarton expects to carry the balance of the Victorian seats in the House of xiepresßiitatives, and thinks the final returns will improve his position in New South WalesMr Reid expresses satisfaction with the way in which the Freetraders stuck together in Now South Wales. He believed that at least five- of the Freetrade bunch for the Senate will he elected- ■ The elections have caused little excitement in the other States. (Received March 31, 5.57 p.m.) SYDNEY, March 31. The latest returns for the Senate place Major J. O. Neild ahead of MiGray. A telegram lias been received by Mr Reid stating that six Freetraders have been . elected to the Senate. ADELAIDE, March 31. For the Senate the leading candidates are —Protectionists, Sir John Downer, Air G. McGregor, the Hon Thomas Playford; Freetraders, Mr R. C. Baker, Mr D. M. Charleston, and Mr J. A. Svmon. |i' BRISBANE. March 31.

The Federal elections commenced today. For the Senate, .Messrs 'V. G. Higgs, A. Dawson and J. 0. Stewart (Labour candidates), and J. Fcrgusson and T. Glasscy (Protectionists) are leading. • (Received April 1, 0.57 a.m.) SYDNEY, March 31. Tasmania and South Australia are being treated as one electorate,- the Tasmanian vote being subject to the Hnre-Sporice system. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

SYDNEY, March SO. Further Freetraders have been elected to the House of Representatives in New South Wales, as follows;—Worriwa, Hr A...it. .Conway; Canoblas, Mr T. P. Brown, a Labour caiulidato'b who defeated the Hon Bernard Wise, State Attorney-General; Sou (hi Sydney, Mr G. R-. Edwards, wlio defeated Mr J. S. .McGowan, leader of the Labour party, by 461. The Cowpor electorate has returned Mr F. Clarke*, Brotectioliist; The state of parties in Now South Wales on the results so far known is: Freetraders, 17; Protectionists, 8; Labour, 1. In some of the larger scattered districts the returns are; incoinpletej and the state off parties may yet be altered somewhat. w . In the Victorian elections * for the House of Representatives the following constituencies have returned Protectionists:—Bourke, Mr J. N. Cook : Corangamite, Mr J. C. Manifold; uaaueeaorie, Mr W. B. Grose..' The returns for Victoria show fourteen Protectionists pnd three Freetraders. There are six seats-for which returns are not to hand.; : In Westyrn Australia, only, three returns are yet complete. Sir John Forrest, Protectionist and Federal Minister of Defence, ;has been returned unopposed for the 'Swan scat; Mr Solomon, Freetrader, for Fremantle; and Mr Fowler, Freetrader, for Perth. * In Tasmania the candidates returned arc:—Freetraders, Sir Edmund Braddon and Messrs Prisso and Cameron (the latter, however, supports the Barton Ministry); Protectionists, Sir Philip Fysh and Mr O'Malley. i 'The approximate aggregates for the four colonies are:—Protectionists, 25; Freetraders, 25; Independent, 1. The Barton Ministry has 26 supporters, i (Received March 31, 5.57 p.m.) SYDNEY, March 31. Mr D. Watkins, who has been returned for Newcastle, is’ a Labour and Protection candidate. : Mr Reid has received a. telegram, from Perth stating that one protectionist lias been elected to the House.

ADELAIDE. March 21. Tho elections have been quietly conducted.

None of the returns are yet complete, but the latest practically assure ihe rcburn of the following to the House of Representatives; ; Protectionists—The Hon C. C. Kingston ' (Federal Minister for Trade andCustoms), Sir John Lanedon Bonython. Labour Protectionist—Mr hi. L. Batchelor. Freetraders—Sir John Tfohbr SState Treasurer), Mr P. Glynn. For the other two seats, Mr V .L. Solomon and A. Poynton, both Freetraders, are' leading. *, i\ I BRTSB VNE, March 31. Mr T. McDonald-Paterspn, a F'cetrader, has been elected to the House. I (Received April 1, 1.2 a.m.) i BRISBANE, March ( Mr Groom, a Protqctionist, ha-i' been elected for Darling Downs, .and’Mr Mo. Donald (Labour) for Kennedy;!.! ■ MELBOURNE, March 31. The following additional returns are announced: —Flinders, Mr A. C. Groom i(Freetrader); Moira, Mr T. Kennedy (Protectionist); Grampians, Mr T. Skene; Meruda, Mr T. Harper (Protectionist); Wimmera, Mr P. Phillips (Prote»tionht). ; THE POLL IN QUEENSLAND. i (Received April 1, 0.57 a.m.) , i . BRISBANE. March 31. i Tho feature of the elections 'in Queensland is the success of the Labour party. As far as present returns go the party has secured four of the, six Soita. torial seats and five' out of nine seats for tho House, thus, speaking in no uncertain sound on llio question of “White Australia.” All the principal sugar’growing districts have returned Labour jcandldates. —;— : THE OPENING 01**'PARLIAMENT. (Received NEW* YORK, March 31. The protected cruiser New Yon; wd! represent America af the opening of the Federal Parliament.!