MR DEAKIN ATTACKED

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 246, 10 July 1908, Page 7

MR DEAKIN ATTACKED

NAYAI DEFENCE.

ALLEGED DICTATION TO BRITAIN. "A SHILLING PER HEAD." (or TELEGRAPH PEESS ASSOCIATION—COPTEIGHT.) Sydney, July 8. At the annual meeting of' tho Pastoralists' Union, tho President, Mr. W. E. Abbott, aftor condemning tha Commonwealth Immigration Act, referred to tho question of Imperial defence, and said:— ." With all the effrontery of a sturdy beggar, who at the samo time was half beggar, half bully and all coward, our Primo Minister, who was clected fo represent Australia, by virtue of our munificent contribution of a shilling per head per annum, claims tho right to say whero'tho ships of the British Navy shall bo placed in case of war, and threatens withdrawal of, our*contribution if his demands are 'not- complied with. " Tho position is untenable, and when the British taxpayor realises how he is being used and flouted, tho result will bo disastrous to us or those coming after us." EMPIRE'S DEFENCE BILL. According to a recently published return of the "cost of'defending the Empire" for the year 1905-06, the naval and the military expenditures per head of population, and tho total of both, work out as under:— ■3

Taking aggregate figures, the return' indicates that the Colonies, taken as a whole, with 15,934,588 people, spent in 1905-06 for military and naval purposes .£3,518,709 (military •£3,IG-M6G, naval ,£384,213); while tho United Kingdom, with a population of 43,217,637, spent for military and naval purposes „EG3,202,500 (military .129,813,000, naval i

' - i isjj d is So o S s I - ft ft rsZ.3 ■ s. d. s. d. iE s. d. United Kingdom ... 13 9J 15 5S 19 3 New Zealand 4 3J 0 10J 0 5 2} Australia 3 9J 1 3J 0 5 Oi Cape Colony 4 ?| 0 5 0 5 OJ ! Canada 4 GJ — 0 4 (4 Natal - 2 4 0 7* 0' 2 1X4 Transvaal ... ... 2 Oi — 0 2 Oj Newfoundland ... — 0 3J 0 0 3} Total Colonies ... 3 llf 0 6 0 4 55