4. Power to impose Customs and Excise Duties to rest with the Federal Government and Parliament.

5. Military and Naval Defence Forces to be under one command. 6. The Federal Constitution to make provision to enable each State to make amendments in its Constitution if necessary for the purposes of Federation.

Further resolutions approved of the framing of a Federal Constitution which should establish a Senate and a House of Representatives—the latter to possess the sole power of originating money Bills; also a Federal Supreme Court of Appeal, and an Executive consisting of a Governor-General, with such persons as might be appointed his advisers. On the 31st March, Sir Samuel Griffith, as Chairman of the Committee on Constitutional Machinery, brought up a draft Constitution Bill, which was fully and carefully considered by the Convention in Committee of the Whole, and adopted on the 9th April, when the Convention was formally dissolved.

The Bill of 1891 aroused no popular enthusiasm, and parliamentary sanction to its provisions was not sought in any of the colonies; thus federation fell into the background of politics.

At this juncture a section of the public began to exhibit an active interest in the cause, which seemed in danger of being temporarily lost through the neglect of politicians. Public Associations showed sympathy with the movement, and Federation Leagues were organised to discuss the Bill and to urge the importance of federal union upon the people. A conference of delegates from Federation Leagues and similar Associations in New South Wales and Victoria was called at Corowa in 1893. The most important suggestion made at this Conference was that the Constitution should be framed by a Convention to be directly elected by the people of each colony for that purpose. This new proposal attracted the favourable attention of Mr. G. H. Reid, then Premier of New South Wales, who perceived that a greater measure of success could be secured by enlisting the active sympathy and aid of the electors, and who brought the principle to the test in 1895. In January of that year he invited the Premiers of the other colonies to meet in conference for the purpose of devising a definite and concerted scheme of action. At this Conference, which was held at Hobart, all the Australasian colonies except New Zealand were represented. It was decided to ask the Parliament of each colony to pass a Bill enabling the electors qualified to vote for members of the Lower House to choose ten persons to represent the colony on a Federal Convention. The work of the Convention, it was determined, should be the framing of a Federal Constitution, to be submitted, in the first instance, to the local Parliaments for suggested amendments, and, after final adoption by the Convention, to the electors of the various colonies for their approval by means of the referendum.

In 1896 a People's Federal Convention, an unofficial gathering of delegates from various Australian organisations, met at Bathurst to

discuss the Commonwealth Bill in detail, and by its numbers and enthusiasm gave valuable evidence of the increasing popularity of the

movement.

In accordance with the resolutions of the Convention of 1895, Enabling Acts were passed during the following year by New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, and Western Australia; and were brought into operation by proclamation on the 4th January, 1897. Meanwhile Queensland held aloof from the movement, after several attempts to agree on the question of the representation of the Colony. The Convention met in Adelaide, Mr. C. C. Kingston, Premier of South Australia, being elected President; and Sir Richard Baker, President of the Legislative Council of South Australia, Chairman of Committees; while Mr. Edmund Barton, Q.C., one of the representatives of the mother colony, and a gentleman who had taken a deep interest in the movement, acted as leader of the Convention. The final meeting of the session was held on the 23rd April, when a draft Constitution was adopted for the consideration of the various Parliaments, and at a formal meeting on the 5th May, the Convention adjourned until the 2nd September. On that date the delegates re-assembled in Sydney, and debated the Bill in the light of suggestions made by the Legislatures of the federating colonies. In the course of the proceedings, it was announced that Queensland desired to come within the proposed union; and, in view of this development, and in order to give further opportunity for the consideration of the Bill, the Convention again adjourned. The third and final session was opened in Melbourne on the 20th January, 1898, the Colony of Queensland being still unrepresented; and, after further consideration, the Draft Bill was finally adopted by the Convention on the 16th March for submission to the people.

In its main provisions the Bill of 1898 followed generally that of 1891, yet with some very important alterations. It proposed to establish, under the Crown, a federal union of the Australasian colonies, to be designated the Commonwealth of Australia. A Federal Executive Council was created, to be presided over by a Governor-General appointed by the Queen. The Legislature was to consist of two Houses-a Senate, in which each colony joining the Federation at its inception was conceded the equal representation of six members; and a House of Representatives, to consist of, as nearly as possible, twice the number of Senators, to which the provinces were to send members in proportion to population, with a minimum number of five representatives for each of the original federating states. The principle of payment of members was adopted for the Senate as well as for the House of Representatives, the honorarium being fixed at £400 per annum. The nominative principle for the Upper House was rejected, both Houses being elective, on a suffrage similar to that existing in each colony for the popular Chamber at the foundation of the Commonwealth. At the same time, it was left to the Federal Parliament to establish a federal franchise, which, however,

could only operate in the direction of the extension, not the restriction, of any of the existing privileges of the individual colonies; so that in those States where the franchise has been granted to women their right to vote cannot be withdrawn by the central authority so long as adult suffrage prevails. While the House of Representatives was to be elected for a period of three years, Senators were to be appointed for twice that term, provision being made for the retirement of half their number every third year. The capital of the Commonwealth was to be established in federal territory.

Warmly received in Victoria, South Australia, and Tasmania, the Bill was viewed somewhat coldly by a section of the people of New South Wales, and this feeling rapidly developed into one of active hostility, the main points of objection being the financial provisions, equal representation in the Senate, and the difficulty which the larger colonies must experience in securing an amendment of the Constitution in the event of a conflict with the smaller States. So far as the other colonies were concerned, it was evident that the Bill was safe, and public attention throughout Australasia was riveted on New South Wales, where a fierce political contest was raging, which it was recognised would decide the fate of the measure for the time being. The fears expressed by its advocates were not so much in regard to securing a majority in favour of the Bill, as to whether the statutory number of 80,000 votes necessary for its acceptance would be reached. These fears proved to be well founded; for on the 3rd June, 1898, the result of the referendum in New South Wales showed 71,595 votes in favour of the Bill, and 66,228 against it, and it was accordingly lost. In Victoria, Tasmania, and South Australia, on the other hand, the Bill was accepted by triumphant majorities. Western Australia did not put it to the vote; indeed, it was useless to do so, as the Enabling Act of that colony only provided for joining a Federation of which New South Wales should form a part.

The existence of such a strong opposition to the Bill in the mother colony convinced even its most zealous advocates that some changes would have to be made in the Constitution before it would be accepted by the people; consequently, although the general election in New South Wales, held six or seven weeks later, was fought on the Federal issue, yet the opposing parties seemed to occupy somewhat the same ground, and the question narrowed itself down to one as to which should be entrusted with the negotiations to be conducted on behalf of the colony with the view to securing a modification of the objectionable features of the Bill. The new Parliament decided to adopt the procedure of sending the Premier, Mr. Reid, into conference, armed with a series of resolutions affirming its desire to bring about the completion of federal union, but asking the other colonies to agree to the reconsideration of the provisions which were most generally objected to in New South Wales. As they left the Assembly, these resolutions submitted-first, that, with equal representation in the Senate, the

three-fifths majority at the joint sitting of the two Houses should give way to a simple majority, or the joint sitting be replaced by a provision for a national referendum; second, that the clause making it incumbent upon the Federal Government to raise, in order to provide for the needs of the States, £3 for every £1 derived from Customs and Excise Duties for its own purposes, and thus ensuring a very high tariff, should be eliminated from the Bill; third, that the site of the Federal Capital should be fixed within the boundaries of New South Wales; fourth, that better provision should be made against the alteration of the boundaries of a State without its own consent; fifth, that the use of inland rivers for the purposes of water conservation and irrigation should be more clearly safeguarded; sixth, that all money Bills should be dealt with in the same manner as Taxation and Appropriation Bills; and seventh, that appeals from the Supreme Courts of the States should uniformly be taken, either to the Privy Council or to the Federal High Court, and not indiscriminately to either; while the House also invited further inquiry into the financial provisions of the Bill, although avowing its willingness to accept these provisions if in other respects the Bill were amended. These were all the resolutions submitted by the Government to the House, but the Assembly appended others in respect to the alteration of the Constitution and the number of Senators, submitting, on the first of these points, that an alteration of the Constitution should take effect, if approved by both Houses and a national referendum; that a proposed alteration should be submitted to the national referendum, if affirmed in two succeeding sessions by an absolute majority in one House, and rejected by the other; and that no proposed alteration, transferring to the Commonwealth any powers retained by a State at the establishment of the federation, should take effect in that State, unless approved by a majority of electors voting therein; and, on the second point, that the number of Senators should be increased from six to not less than eight for each State.

The Legislative Council adopted the resolutions with some important amendments, discarding the suggestion in the first resolution for a national referendum; submitting that the seat of the Federal Government should be established at Sydney; more clearly preserving the rights of the people of the colony to the use of the waters of its inland rivers for purposes of water conservation and irrigation; carrying all appeals from the Supreme Courts of the States to the Privy Council; and declining to affirm its preparedness to accept the financial scheme embodied in the Bill. Further, the House suggested that the plan of submitting proposed alterations of the Constitution to the people by means of the referendum should be altered, and that no rights or powers retained by a State should be afterwards transferred to the Commonwealth without the consent of both Houses of Parliament of that State.. The New South Wales Premier decided to submit the resolutions of both Houses to the other Premiers in conference, attaching, however, greater importance to those of the Assembly, as embodying the views

of a House which had just returned from the country. This conference was held in Melbourne at the end of January, 1899, Queensland being represented; and an agreement was arrived at, whereby it was decided that, in the event of a disagreement between the two Houses of Parliament, the decision of an absolute majority of the members of the two Houses should be final; that the provision for the retention by the Commonwealth of only one-fourth of the Customs and Excise revenue might be altered or repealed at the end of ten years, another clause being added, permitting the Parliament to grant financial assistance to a State; that no alterations in the boundaries of a State should be made without the approval of the people as well as of the Parliament of that State; and that the seat of Government should be in New South Wales, at such place, at least 100 miles from Sydney, as might be determined by the Federal Parliament, and within an area of 100 square miles of territory, to be acquired by the Commonwealth, it being provided that the Parliament should sit at Melbourne until it met at the seat of Government. A special session of the New South Wales Parliament was convened to deal with this agreement, and the Legislative Assembly passed an Enabling Bill, referring the amended Constitution to the electors. The Council, however, amended the Bill demanding-first, the postponement of the referendum for a period of three months; second, making it necessary for the minimum. vote cast in favour of the Bill to be one-fourth of the total number of electors on the roll; third, deferring the entrance of New South Wales into the Federation until Queensland should come in. These amendments were not accepted by the Assembly, and a conference between representatives of the two Houses was arranged; but this proved abortive, and twelve new members were appointed to the Upper House in order to secure the passage of the Bill. This course had the effect desired by the Government; for the Council passed the Bill on the 19th April, an amendment postponing the referendum for eight weeks being accepted by the Assembly. The Bill received its final assent on the 22nd April, and the 20th June following was appointed as the date of the referendum. The poll resulted in a majority of 24,679 in favour of the Bill, the votes recorded for and against being 107,420 and 82,741 respectively. South Australia on the 29th April had re-affirmed its acceptance of the Bill by a majority of 48,937 votes, in Victoria it was again passed with a majority of 142,848 on the 27th July, while on the same date the Bill passed in Tasmania with a margin in its favour of 12,646 votes. Queensland adopted the measure on the 2nd September by a majority of 6,216. Western Australia still hung back, but at a referendum taken on the 31st July, 1900, the Bill was accepted with the decisive majority of 25,109 votes.

Though the Bill was favourably received by the Imperial Government, certain amendments, the most important of which referred to the appeal to the Privy Council, were proposed by Mr. Chamberlain, the Secretary of State for the Colonies. At a Premier's Conference, held