Evening star., 1902-09-01

could no more have drought over the en-
tire continent than over all OF Europe nat
would you people here in America think
IL whenever there Is lack Of rain, say, In
Kansas, articles were to be published all
over the world that America was ruined?
What one province loses from drought In
one two or three years Is often made up by
one good season. Our passenger and freight
tariffs are very low for new country.
Australians travel more extensively over
long distances there than any other people
I have ever known. Members of our legis-
lature for example make end-of-the-week
Journeys to their homes of seventeen hours
each way. and think little Of it. The pros
pect for our railroads Is very good. You
may say that emphatically.
The New Tariff.
About our new tarif-that is partly pro-
tective in its nature, but 1t is designed
chiefly to produce revenue. There Is no
present differentiation in favor Of other col
onies of Great Britain. At the London con-
ference on this subject such plan was pro-
posed, and 1 shall present 1t to our legis-
lature on my return. 1 cannot now antici-
pate the result. 1t may be either general
increase of our duties on goods imported
from non-Brtish communities or reduc-
ton In favor Of goods imported from Brit
ish communities. With the excise tariffs our
impost duties produce annually revenue
of about fS,OO0O0O. This Is ample for the
needs of the federation. But it Is not ours
to play with. By the terms of esta blish-
ment we must return to the separate prov
inces nearly all the funds collected from
them. less the actual sums spent within
those provinces. This provision extends in
one form or another over period OF ten
years from 1891.
1T Is safe to say that fully five-sixths of
our people are in hearty favor of the broad
barrier we have established against Asiatic
and other eastern labor. Our purpose Is TO
whit To- hnr of oil nd wa
mean to do 30 earnestly. To this end we
have prohibited the immigration Of any
black or yellow races, and have created a
dinerential or rebate on certain sugar
tariffs to the great advantage Of the planter
who uses white labor. Out of 5000 planters
in the sugar-producing districts of Queens
land over 1,4OO have come forward to claim
this benefit. The law has been In operation
only since last October. 1t is too soon to
judge of its effect. But We hope that in five
years white labor may be used exclusively,
even in the sugar plantations, which were
supposedly threatened with ruin unless the
operators were permitted to employ Malay
laborers. There are some of us who think
Australia would better do without It's sugar
plantation than with Malay or Chinese
labor.
Lord Hopetoun's Resignation.
Lord Hopetoun's resignation as governor
was due entirely to the refusal of our legis-
lature to make what 1 believe to be appro-
pirate allowances for the maintenance OF
his office, and not in any degree to dssatis-
faction with him or friction with his min
listers. His salary was placed at f1OOOO.
His allowances ended with the use of a
proper building and the employment of
servants, gardeners and similar help. 1
proposed that, to pay for his light. heat
and other necessary expenses. he be granted
an allowance not an increase Of salary, of
5000. With this am confident the great
majority Of our people are In full sympathy
l am convinced that In order to get the
kind of men we ought to have for such
an office the allowances I have indicated
are quite necessary"
Barton and their son and daughter; Sir
John Forrest, minister Of Defense and Lady
Forrest; Mr. F1aney, Sir Edmunds private
secretary, and several others They were
all very enthusiastic over Washington.
Lady Barton is exceptionally gracious
and gentle-spoken. She seemed very happy
in the prospect Of building city like Wash
ington. Your city Is so beautiful" she ex-
planned. II do not know Of any place more
lovely. 1t sounds very odd, doesn't it, to
talk Of building new city In Australia?
But that Is what We mean to do neverthe-
less 1t was really the reason we came to
Washington. Unfortunately. we were de-
-iayed SO long in London we had but a few
days for America. But we saw enough to
indicate that the people OF New York must
be very tired all the time and that Wash
ipgton Is the most beautiful place in the
world 4"