The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1900-07-16
AUSTRALIAN
FEDERATION
Views of a Prominent
Iasmanian.
{. I. MILES INTERVIE W{D
Talks EntertainingIy on the New
Australian Commonwealth
and its Future.

iAoH- r-uWdFu l. Miles, the prominent /
Tasmanian who has come to Hawaii an,
may conclude to settle in this city and |
invest in property in the Islands. takes
exception to some of the statements in |
the article by James Bryce concerning |
Australian federation, that was printed |
in the Advertiser last week
In an interview yesterday Mr. Miles |
was asked for his views concerning Mr.. |
Bryce's article
Mr.. Bryce is a clever writer and any
thing from him demands consideration"
he said. HIS article is a mastery re-
view of the subject, but when he refers
to the causes which delayed the accept
ance of the Constitution by the Austria
Ian States, he IS somewhat misleading
This question has been before the people
| of Australasia since 1891, but for some
years Federation did not take hold of the
| hearts of the people, and was purely e
subject for politicians to toy with. Lat
! terly, when IL became a peoples question
the calculation of the financial problems
of Australasia caused the delay"
What were the financial difficulties m
volved in federating the Australian
States?" was asked.
| The difficulty which besets nations as
well NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. Had
| Australia been free from debt. the prob
lem of federation would have been very
simple but no set of Colonies or States
have ever before attempted to federate
carrying such an enormous debt. The
public debt of Australia IS roughly, 81,
125.000OOo. paying an average rate OF
about 81 per cent interest, and the diff
feTent Colonies have always looked to
their customs revenue to pay the inter-
est en- this enormous debt; customs reve-
/ nue. growing proportionately with the In
crease of debt Upon the establishment
, of the Commonwealth, the right 10 col
lect customs revenue passes to the Fed
: | eral Government; the States retain their
: debts but lose the revenue upon which
they have heretofore relied to pay in
terest, and are altogether dependent up
on the Federal tariff, and the surplus
Federal revenue, to maintain their sol
vency."
But a Federal tariff can he framed that
e will meet the case and give to each State
: what il requires?' asked the reporter
mo. That is just where the trouble
q arises. State revenues and State expend-
r lures inevitably vary with the varying
y conditions of each separate State. These
:. variations .-e beyond the control of Par.
e lament and must be accepted as irreduc
n ible data of the problem. The revenue
4 yielding power per capita of State de
u ponds upon its consuming power in du
/ table articles, and this is dominated b.
# the relative proportion of adult male
r contained in ii, and when we find, for IN
, stance, West Australia with 51.zO per cen
q adult males TO total population, ant
o. South Australia with only ESQ per cent
= we realize the difficulty in framing
~ Federal tariff to meet the requirement
= of each and all of the States.
with such disproportions in the adul
: male population of the various states
- there is necessarily a considerable diner
~ ence in the revenue per capita from Gus
toms West Australia's customs revenu
&c per head is about si1, while New Sout
III Wales draws from this source only s5.5
" hence the difficulty in framing a uni1ori
u Federal tariff to meet all cases. Indeed.
ne do not believe the wit of man can deVis
of a uniform tariff that will meet all case
a tariff of s25 600 600 would suit the cas-
OF New South Wales. which is practlca
" a free trade colony, and draws 81
900 annually from its land revehu
while a tariff of $50, 900 600 would not gi'
IN back to West Australia what II surrei
ders to the Federal Government.
''It is supposed by the financial men
Ito Australia that the tariff will be fixed b
tween thirty and thirty-five million dc
,te lars. In that case New south Waes
he have surplus of 100000 annually fro
IS customs, and some of the other ) at
he win be face to face with an alarming O
fciency. Direct taxation is inevitab
'st and the form will probably be TAX
'f land and incomes. We nave TINS loIln
Ige mics. but il VIII be largely increased
Ell those States losing customs revenue.
mt What has Australia taken as the ba'
z! of it's constitutions" the reporter c
iiu quired.
{" well, as far as ii is possible FOR a fe
GRAFTON of self-governing States, under
snt monarchy, TO follow the lines OF repu
Seu lie we have adopted the main features
az the Constitution of the United States,
II speaks volumes for the trainers OF yo
ma Constitution, that with the experien
W and precedents of a century ana que
rs. ter, there is so much that can be ada
ing ed to present-day requirements. The G'
ernor General viii probably be appoint
Dy and call to his Cabinet the Premlefs
the - r,asoro, ctatoe he Federal Parl
go ment will then be elected. and sho'
10 meet for the despatch of business early
1901 Thus we hope the new century
bly, oI., dss+irad to nIav an imp
:, tant part in the history of the twena'
,n century"