Victorian year-book, 1895-8 : containing a digest of the statistics of Victoria, with references to the statistics of the other Australasian colonies and other countries. Section I. Government and population / by James Jemison Fenton.

  • Fenton, James Jemison.
Date:
1899
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Victorian year-book, 1895-8 : containing a digest of the statistics of Victoria, with references to the statistics of the other Australasian colonies and other countries. Section I. Government and population / by James Jemison Fenton. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    Conference 42. Further annual Conferences of Premiers were held in Sydney Premiers, March, 1896, in Hobart on the 2nd February, 1897, and in 1897, Melbourne on the 7th March, 1898. At the first of these all the colonies except Western Australia and New Zealand; at the second, all the colonies; and at the third, all except New Zealand were represented. The principal business transacted at the various meetings was as folloAvs :— CONFERENCE OF 1896. Federal Defence.—Resolved that—(1.) Federation is essential to any com- plete scheme of Australasian defence. (2.) It is desirable, however, in the mean- time, that the military laws of the several colonies should enable the Local Forces to serve in any part of Australia and Tasmania, for the purpose of defence against foreign aggression. (3.) That uniformity in matters of drill, uniform, arms, equipment, and also pay when on active service, should be secured as soon practicable, (-t.) That the establishment of a “cordite” factory in Australia is a matter of urgent importance. (5.) That periodical meetings of the Commandants should be held for the purpose of promoting the efficiency of the forces. Ocean Light Service.— The recommendations made by the Maritime Conference, held in Hobart, in August, 1894, were adopted, and a Bill to give effect to them was ordered to be drawn up ; but in regard to the recommen- dation that the cost of the “ C^ean Light Service ” should be defrayed by the colonies on the basis of population, the representatives of Victoria reserved the right to communicate their decision at a later period. Undesirable Ijijiigration.—Resolved, that it is desirable to extend with- out delay the provisions of the Chinese Restriction Acts to all coloured races. Queensland assented, subject to the right of continuing for the present the pro- visions of the “ Pacific Island Labourers Act” of that co1oii3L Quarantine.—The recommendations agreed upon at the recent meeting of medical officers at Melbourne were adopted by the representatives of New South ' Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and Queensland, subject to the following ’ modifications :— ! (1.) No ship to be relieved from payment of quarantine expenses. (2. The Federal experts to be at liberty to perform other public duties. (3.) Federal experts to be nominated by the colonies wherein they are to serve and approved by the conti’acting Governments, or a majority thereof. (4.) Paragraph 16 to be excised. ; Tasmania hesitated to adopt the foregoing resolution, but would gladly t come in under the Australian agreement if New Zealand also entered. ■ Anglo-Japanese Treaty.—Resolved—That the Coloniesof Australasia repre- V sented at the Conference do not take advantage of tlie stipulation provided in ' Article XIX of the Treaty of Commerce between Great Britain and .Japan of 16th I' July, 1894. ( Federation.—Resolved—That the deliberations of this Conference have made i the urgent necessity for a federation of the Colonies more than ever apparent. ;; The enactment by New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tas- ^ mania, of the Federal Enabling Bill drafted at the Hobart Conference of 1895, I constitutes a substantial advance upon a satisfactory liasis. It is an additional 1 source of gratification to the Conference to leam from the Representatives of ^ Queensland that tlie Queensland Government intend to introduce a similar Bill ; immediately after the meeting of the new Parliament. CONFERENCE OF 1897. j ResohUlom. Trade Relations with United Kingdom.—In favour of closer commercial \ relations between the mother country and the Australasian colonies on a basis of J mutual advantage.