AUSTRALIAN NEWS BY MAIL

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 37, 7 November 1919, Page 7

AUSTRALIAN NEWS BY MAIL

FEDERAL ELECTION BATTLE BEGINS

THE DARWIN REVOLT

SERIOUS CHARGES OF

CORRUPTION I,

Sydney, October 27. Tho Federal Parliament is "«p," and the election battle is now in full swing. Interest a.t present is mainly centred iu tho leaders, Mr. Hughes and Mr. Ryan, the ex-Premier of Queensland, who is described by his followers as the next Prime 'Minister of Australia. Each devotes a good deal of criticism to tho other, and so far Mr. Hughes has had rather tho better of the argument. But Mr Ryan's force.? are very well organised, and in inactive politics that is a vital matter. , The Darwin Revolt. : Serious allegations regarding the administration of the Northern Territory were made in the Senate by Senator Ferricks (Q.), who moved the adjournment 6f. the House in order to discuss the matter. Senator Ferricks said that reports .that had been published recently would lend anyone tp b'olieVe that a state of .anarchy or revolt existed in Darwin. He believed the people there were a cool, collected, onJjn populace. J. ho protest that had been niado had not been made without good cause. He read telegrams from !Mi*. Pearce. a storekeeper •ftt Port Darwin; Mr. Barrett, a Twrister and ertlicitor there, and Mr. Nelson, secretary of the Australian Workers Union in the Northern Territorv. to show thiat the populace waj quiet and peaceful. Mr. Barrett, in tho course of his telc£l'»m. «wl:. . "This question doe= net affect nidusj»1op». but. the Territory In a tbinlc the <>ne war. Nothin? has h~>n don" to inflame public oninvon or disturb t.h» p»ioe. A letter from Mr. Carey to Dr. G'V'ith shows that Palmer, 'tho niann.jer of Mntoranka, ivna dummyin" bid for Gilruth: tint Be%™i mul Gilruth are. the, owners of the Daly River copper min»; tl'it GF.ru.fi has gone home to meet Sir William Vcstey, who has been advised ■of the sitnnt'on, which cVnrlv prove?- collusion between Carey, C : lruth, and Vestev: that Carey is battling to increase the Jndw's salary in return frr siipnnrt; that statements mado hv Co rev "re German gunboats were admitted by him. . Evans rushes .fictitious documents against, aborigine's for ."nods never received by them. The or'ginal documents are iii Nelson's noTOssion. An official of the Aboriginals Department, beiwr desirous, of purchasing a motorbicyd>, delr'ted the nccount to nine obiriffinals.et 31s. each, tho account being pas"d by Ev,ii>«. The slato'nept was made in'Evans's presence and be was asked to explain, bit could not."'

Very grave irregularities were common gos=in wlien he (Senator Ferrcks) was in the. Territory. When he_ spoke in tho Senate on Iflie subject previously h" did not make anv definite charges, realising that, it would he n difficult matter to prove them- The officials, work : ng in eillusio". i"'l haviner cnharne ■ f Ml offi-e-'si! and other .means .of smothering up their tracks, left, no traces behind the.m. TTn added that if was imnossib'" for Hm present to continue: that (he , neople nf the .Territory would not submit for another dav to l-he xp'dninocrntic pnd ' corront methods, and that he could p>'ove conniption in otber Tlennrti-eents. pavticularlv th" Aboriginal Der"trln>"iit. S'enatnv Ferrieks further explained that th" Minister for Home and Territories had tolesraph'xl for p copv of the 'ptter. and Carey, had replied that it was nof po«'ble to telewanh the contents of th" ]elter without its context; but would forward it Hv mail, That mail would not vo""li Melbourne until next weok. when 'Parliament would not .he sitting.

Senator Earle (T.): T)oe.s Carey 'acknowledge haying written the letter from which yon have read "xt''"ets?

Senator Pe"ricks: I . think Mr. Carey practically admitted to the Minister for TTomp and Territories that he the letter, and that it wa« stolen. It. -"'as' told to me in Darwin that when Mr. Carey was actinc as Government potctary'in TJarwin he prenavii th" toxMion returns to Vestev Bros!, Ltd.. that ti>ose returns went before him as UeoutyTaxeii"ii Commissioner for th" Territory, and were passed and submitted to Melbourne.

Senator I?eid (0.); Why is the place a,s rotten as it appears to be? Senator Perrid's; B""aiisn the are corrupt. Onlv a l?oyal. Commission can pro<-e falsity or truth of such grave alleiratioi". Senator T?u«el1 admitted that the statements made 'by Senator Fen'ioks wto indeed serious, and he and the Government realised that the position in the Territory to-day was serious. The stitoments made were ex narte, and judgment ought-lo be suspended. .

Senator Pratten (N.S.W.) said he he 1 never pT»viouslv thought Hint the administration under Dr. Gijruth was rw"f than unsympathetic, arb'trarv. and to <•11110 exfont. autocratic. Now the d I option* had been made tW th" administration wai corr n ot. 'I'lie Government could, not .shirk those eli*r«res. A bro"d fhfine of '>omp rule ought to be granted to'the Territory.

Senator Ferricts's in tho Senate to tho firm of Vestev 'Bathes \'-ero reviewed in a. statement by Mr. A. G. d.e L, Arnold, of Messrs. Arnold and Comrnny. Roliei+ors, in Pvdnev, for ]VTpfAi»s. Vpstov B r others. "Tl"* firm of Vestev Brothers," he said.' "is wholly British and unconnected with any trust or combine. The nrineinnls of th" firm —Sir William Yestey, Bart., nnd Mr. F. H. Vestey—are both natural-born British subjects, and their heed office is and nlwavs has been in London. The facts relating to the establishment of the Nort.li Australian .Meat. Company's works at Darwin are in contrast to th" insidious methods, usually ascribed to the American Meat Trust. Before the works wer? commenced the whole matter was gone into with the Horn" and Territories Department. and the final arrangement officially embodied in a contract entered into on .Tune H: WH, between Vestey Brothers and the Minister (on behalf of tho Commonwealth), providing for the erection of the works 011 certain conditions, including an undertaking bv the Commonwealth to extend tho railway, to the. Ke.therino and iinurove the wharfage accommodation at Darwin. A« rertards the suggestion that the late Administrator (llr. flilrut.h) or any other Government official is or was interested in the firm of Vestey Brothers or the company wo can onlv. sav that if is not correct. The suggestion "that Mr. Carey, while Government Secretary, had prrnarnl the income tax returns of Vestey Brothers is inaccurate, if for no other roson than that Vestey Brothers are not liable to make income lax returns for the Territory, and have never made any such returns. Mr. Carev was engaged in making nut income tax returns'for the North Australian Meat Company, hut at the time he did so had previously resigned all npnrintnierls held by him under the Government."

Coal Supplies for New Zealand. Comulieations are again threatened in the coal-milling industry. The secretary of the Coal Miners' Federation (Mr. Willis) iins written to the Prune Minister, and aUo to the mine owners' representatives a letter drawing attention to "tliu state of unrest developing, especially on tlin northern eoal fields of New South Wales. because of the increased amount of coal being exported to New Zealand. Sir Willis stales that as this coal is to be used to assist the New Zealand mine owners to defeat their employees, who are endeavouring to obtain new wages and conditions, the members of Uie .Australian Coal Miners' Federation are not prepared to produce coal which may lie utilised for that purpose. Ihc lettei concludes by asking, the i\ew South Wales collicrv proprietors, in the inteiesls of industrial peacc m the Commonwealth, to cease shipping coal to tlio Dominion until the dispute there between the coal owners and the coal minora is settled. Unless that is done, lio adds, there is danger of the coal jnincrs in Now South AValcs ceasing work. The coal owners' representatives have replied stating that it ia quite impos-

siblo for (hem (o agree to the request, and pointing out that the coal miliars havto oil several occasions approached tho Primo Minister complaining that ilioy iire suffering from lack of employment'. Following these complaints it is stated in vopl.v that tho employers have mado hrrangemontß which givo moro continuous employment for the miners and to accede lo (heir request would only reduce the work available. Tlicy ud'd that they liopo that the demand for Australian coal in New Zealand will increase, as ft long time must ensue before tho New South Wales colleries can reach the standard of their pro-war export trade. Coal for New Zealand, they point out, is being brought from the United States, and if tho export from Australia to tho Dominion is sloppod it will .only handicap tho Australian coal industry and benefit the American collieries. The view is also taken by the proprietors that if the rapicst of Mt. "Willis is acceded to similar requests may be made in die event of other industrial disputes arising in Australia, such., for instance, as (hose in which the Melbourne wharf labourers or others might be concerned. ' Rich Find of Black Opals, The discovery of opal at Tinlenbar (New South Wales) has created a rush nn the Lower Richmond. Mr. J l . H. Morris, who made the find, lws unearthed opals valued at. about .0350, the majority being of the black variety. A sample submitted to Mr. Marks, a Sydney opal expert, was valued at JJSO an ouneo.

Morris first came on the track some months ago at Brisbane, where he encountered a stone, which was stated to have coma from the Richmond River. Tracing the seller, he found that, tho stono. which was of excellent quality, had beeh found r.ear Alstonville, an<i since then lie has been prospecting the locality, ultimately finding traces, and sinking a shaft on the property of Mr. .1. W. Newport, at Tintenbar. At a depth of two feet he found a small pocket of stone about the size of beans, while at six feet he unearthed several pockets, which contained one hundred stones, ranging in size from a pea to a pigeon's egg, and aggregating 7oz. He now awaits the Warden's Court, which is to sit on November. (!, to'work the opening up of the claim. He states with confidence that the find will yield a hannsome-return, and the field will turn out rich. Investigations mado prove (hat. opal exists for i line of threenunrters of a mile.