AUSTRALIAN NOTES.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1061, 25 February 1911, Page 9

AUSTRALIAN NOTES.

. lABOUR AND"EMPIRE. i r-'-T-HE COMING- IMPERIAL -COXFBB- '.4 ence ' One.of the most important of the subjects for: the. Imperial Conference . (savs : ». the' Sydney 'Daily. TelegTapli") \till bo ' that .self-governing • Dominions! should - • have their" relations with tho Imperial ■ Government dealt with by • a separate - -■' Government Department, of which - tho .: BriKshPrime Minister shall be the head, i Slr.; : Fisher' says that- thts'fls still a -live", -4 question. „"So far as-1 recollcct,". ;ha .; atlds, "the-proposalsof the Imperial Gov- 1 ernment' have not :been tho subject of -i any'recent dispatch. I understand that ' -J as the matter was left at the last con- >j fereuce the. desire of the Dominions was j that tho channel of communication :lie- -3 tween the self-governing Dominions and - J the,lmperial Government should not bo 1 tho. Colonial Office; but it secretariat un- ; ~ dor the British .-Prune ■ Minister.- I- no-; : tice. that in tlio King's Speech there :was a ■ reference to the; self-governing nations;. S AVheii I spoke in South Africa on-vari-j ous occasions.l alluded to Imperialism. I pointed out that by the Empire I meant a congregation of . nations'.- * ■ They .might have what name v ;taey lliked, ? but that was. what the Empire meantito me. Some _of the recent. English-news-:-i papers predict : the creation of a --no-,v-Doininions Secretaryship of-State, which will not necessarily be held by. the Prirno Minister of the United Kingdom," ; fvRELIGION AND TIIE CENSUS..; A One of the questions which every adult . ; in : the. Commonwealth : is icalled upon to 1 : answer at the ' talcing of the census on: April 3 asks the citizen - to indicate his.-fi religion. In the past, statistshave l>een : perp.exed by the vagueness' aml inadequacy of many'of. the replies. .In order - to. ensure greater accuracy,in: the" coihirigii/ census the Federal Statistician jh\ a 'jiic-: : morandunj has issued the follou'ing -directions:—"Vague,'indefinite v»-hich' might mean one of,several different.'religious bodies, aro to be avoided. Thus ~ Protestant should -not h-e used whera " Church- of England is' intended, or Cath- -'A olic. where Eaman Catholic is'meant:s-1f.3? the person is arfreethinker, or if/no de- 'J , nomination or religion,, the fact ; shonld Ira stated. :If any person,' however -conscientiously objects'to state- hisreligioug." denomination, thei '.word object may.: Ijb inserted, this being the: only query;\dii V. the census card* to. which'- the option of refusing to* furnish a : r'eply: is allowed; In every. other case, a. ;refusal. renders the -person; liable- to :a ; fine? of «£lO. ; 'Ac- "i tunl experience -in: past .censuseshas .- j shown, however,- that relatively feu'- peopie ,avail of the right to ob- ! ject; _and-in view of the. that' the ? i question, is of such rtreat and general in- - I tercst, it is- hopsd that at the forthcoming census there -will be such .a desire onY3 the-part of the 'people ■'to! mako cen- ' j sus as complete as possible,- that tho num- ':■ berof objectors , will bo. reduced. to ----a --' J minimum.- In the case ot children: how---ever \oung, the religion:in-wlnch it IS in- ' . tended they shall, dc .brought up should ." be inserted," ",.'j MINER \L AVEA.LTH.

■■According :to. .the advance statement <as ■' to .the" progress of the mineral industry " v of rNew. South" :Wales during 1910, tissued. ' by Air. Pittman (the Under-Secretary ■ for | Mines), the value of the • output -was J —an -increise of '^1,100(5"6-,on J that of 1809. This;ohtput has.beeh-onlv-' < once, exceeded-in; 1907. - The' number of 1 persons engaged: in- mining: is .estimated vj at 37,413, and - the value of plant -and- ' machinery at the mines is ,£6,156,000. To'-» the end of last ;year- the' mineral produc- 1 tioiof' J> T cv,""S otitic .Wales- had reached the '-s valuej>f .^05,119,52?.' 'The gold' yield was I 188,857cz.' fine, ■ which"- was; much below the .average. • Dredges recovered metals to ' tha value Tlie output*of , coal • was• tori's,valued <•' at-"' &3,. 009,658. .The quantity, of. ' 282,337 tons, .valued at .5159,069.: The >\ kerosene shale raised amounted to 68,293 1 tons, of the value 'of ~i!33,89G.L : mines,yielded ;products".,toTthe" value "of' -H .£3,399,674—an increase .of '.£518,706 on the ■; -;1 t previous year. Copper production - was'valued at .£486,257—an increase of .£61,520. . I The value of tin and ■ tm-orc production '■■■■>. was .£228,156—an increase of ;,£17,127/ - "-j

YOUNG HEX'S CRIMES. i : ,In sentencing a young man at tlio-Sn-'. \ preme Court:at:Bendigo on.a.-.charge of -I having received stolen property, to which ■ ■ ' he had pleaded guilty, the; Chief .Justice'': -1 (Sir John Madden) said there was no country' he' knew, of in ; -which , there_ was less ' i reason for young,persons. to commit these - crimes.. Since he ;liad spoken.'upon, this • subject.at Sale ; he."had teen a Regrettable { criticism of his action.'-; No ' wise' man ■ .:j could . refrain, from issuing, warnings to - deter young men from: committing these crimes. The case lie ,was then .dealing .. - "with was not one, but"rone -a which came before the Courts with start- /< ling frequency.. The. criticism he referred" to stated, that he.had said at Sale that.:<f< it Was -a : thirig:..to" -glory . that mi: the-•« last five-and-twenty yedrs crime, generally-; speaking," in this'couhtry had 'diminished' in a "most remarkable degree. I'liat* fact - — made j it-all the. more, regrettable".that j <■> those.who were:su's£aiisng crime werethe • ; younger-portion of-the community. -The - criticism suggested, that, that was not; so, because a -great deal of crime was committed by. drunkards and vagrants."-.At Sale he was; not talking about' drunk-' ards or vagrants, but of the grave crimes ■. : which were dangerous to the community, r and he would > repeat. it that it wiis:de- .-, plorable to .see the number-of young; men .-..- who were presented on charges of this nature. He had also said' that -nicrcy l ilj seemed to be misinterpreted Iby ; vW young, people.", were give a chalice to young meu who fell-into: ;' crime\for the first time,"but he did know 4 J that a number of young people misin-' ,:.; terpreted that mercy, anil traded upon "it i J to a certain extent. ; * ' :

THE CHAMPION KIXGER. . ' The first sheep-shearing contest decided. - . in Australia for the' world's ■ championship took place in.the Austral Too- , l wocmba. Tho rival competitors: \vei-e y " Frederick Zimmerle, a well-known Queensland shearer, a lintive or Tcowomba,;aml ■■ Charles Maurciy of Glen Inr.ss. ','The ■' match Was-for a purse of .£SOO, with a - side wager,of 4:100. The men shore for ■ > : - two and a half-hours," the contest result- ■ . ing in'a win for Zimmerle, who shore - J 32 sheep to Usurer's 28. Tor • quality. ' Zimmerle was. awarded '146 points and-1 .< Jfaurer 133, and lor-style Zimmerle 50(full point;), and Maurer 16.

3IARRLSGES INCREASING. „ : The Governments Statist .Qlr.■ A;::Sk •■> Liitighton) reports that the niarnage.'statistics of Victoria., for-1910 were very satis- . J factory, but birtiv and death figures wero hot so favourable-tis" those for 1909. Tho • number of , marriages; .10, - the • highest ever'recorded, and was greater bv- - 803 than.that.fcr' tho previous year.; ;Tlie' ■ metropolis, country towns, and rural dis- i; : - tricts. contributed proportionately to this increase. \ -.The -marriage; rate--was tho • - highest fcr the past'-20 years. The births : .^31,437—-ere: fewer by 112, than m ' tho •» preceding-year, and the crude birth rate - was the-lowest ever- experienced -in the- ' State. ,:.In Melbourne and suburbs thero . were 13,367 births;: as. against .13,418 • in--1809. Tho deaths in the Slats wero 1-1,735, "- " or 300 more than ■in 1909, which was . a . year, with a. particularly low mortality, rate; ' Tho increase over tint voir ait wholly due to the heaviermortality among ~ infants and octogenarians. In He!- : bourne and suburbs _123 i infants died; as :■ compared with'. 1126 ;in .the; previous year. Pulmonary'tuberculosis and-other, -tnborcular"diseases were responsible for 1307." ; ■ deaths, or ,26 fewer/than Inst yeai;. . /I'lia ' death rate from these diseases lias fallen-v. 81 per cent, in the past tea vears, .and - nearly 22 per cent.: in. the last five vcars..'--;.; Th» excess of • Jbirths over deaths . was ;>4 16,701 i as against 17,113 in 1909. - -a , 1 > BYPTIST CONGRESS, / The second'. Australasian : Baptist-Con* - eress is to> bo. held <in Melbourne « from -st k March 29 to April 5. Delegates from-all s >- the States of tho Commonwealth and from New Zealaud-will be miattandance.- The meetings will--.be-.beld . m the-. Collins - St,rept,'.Baptist. Church, and will be open - • •'•* to general - publio.. .- The •> subjects i chosen- for consideration embrace the' 1 e-id-ing religious questions of tlie day,, as well' 3 -"-- as matters relating more particularly • to-' •'0 ,tka Baptists, !