Hokitika Guardian & Evening Star SATURDAY, MARCH 27th., 1920. THE WEEK.

Hokitika Guardian, 27 March 1920, Page 2

Hokitika Guardian & Evening Star SATURDAY, MARCH 27th., 1920. THE WEEK.

Four years hence, writes an Australian paper, will come the centenary of the foundation of the first British settlement in the Northern Territory of the Commonwealth. For it was in 1824 ten years before the Hcntys came to Victoria, that Captain Bremer, of H.M.S., Tamar landed at Fort Duiuias on Melviile Island with the fifty men who established the little post, of which a few crumbling traces are still visible. Such wore the first humble beginnings of the occupation of Northern Australia, for as yet, and for years afterwards, there were no other white men settled north of the Tropic of Capricorn. To-day the Northern Territory, reduced as it is hv the subsequent formation of Queensland and of Western Australia to an area of 523,000 square miles, or a 'little over a sixth of the

whole continent, supports a population, exclusive of aborigines, of between 4000 and 0000 persons. Of these nearly a •third are Asiatics, and the more or loss white element is being rather rapidly reduced just now by an exodus to other parts of Australia, where there is supposed to be more chance of making a. living. 'This movement has been much stimulated by the 103 free passages given away by the Commonwealth to Greeks and other indigent persons. Apparently, there remains a choice between giving several hundred more passages of this kind and finding some means of supporting the unemployed in the Territory. The Territory stands in the Commonwealth ledger for a debt pf over £4,000,000 ‘representing the cost, or part of the cost, of development by the power of the public purse. It also involves an annual loss to the Commonwealth of nearly £400,000. What the position will be when the centenary comes.no man can guess. It may be that the Territory is at the nadir of its fortunes. One Ko v al commission is examining a portion of its past, and the Federal Ministry proposes to have another commission, the latest of a long line to proscribe for the future.

If commissions can save the Territory,

the outlook is bright. It must in fairness be pointed out that existing conditions are not the outcome of 96 years of continuous occupation and effort. The attempt at occupation begun in 1824, came to an end after the place of the settlement had been moved first to Raffles Bay and then to Port Essinginn iii 1849. Then for, 14. years all the land lay waste and uninhabited as far as white men were concerned. Tlie Malays from Macassar continued to scour the coasts for trepang and pearls, as they had done long before Matthew Flinders met their proas at Malay

'Ronds in 1802. Tint for flm rest tlio aborigines wore the undisputed masters of tlio soil, until South Anstrnlin took over tlie Territory in 1863. From that

time dates the uninterrupted oceupnti m , anti progress which have led to tlio results outlined above, giving a dwindling population and a debt of a good deal more tlinn £IOO.OOO for eaeli of the 67 years that bare elapsed. One reeord at least the Territory holds. There is rio other area in the world with a publie debt of £BOO per bond of population South Australia carried the burden until 1011, when the Commonwealth took over the Territory and its debts. A Commission inquired into the best, means of developing -this new national asset. There followed n brief season of high bones, of optimisin' foreeasts, and of lavish expenditure, “Neither h v reason of el ini ate nor of poverty of soil,” says a passage in the annual report of 1912,” does its development, bv white people present ally insuperable difficulties or even difficulties of a very extraordinary character.”

Yet the fact is that after eight years the problem of development by white people seems no nearer to a solution. One big new industry has been established in the Territory under the Commonwealth rule. This is the North Australian meat works at Darwin, commonly known as Vestey’s. These fine works represent a capital investment of over £1.000,000, provide employment for some 200 men all the year round, and for many hundreds more in the killing season of five months or so furnish the only considerable export from Darwin, and supply to the Territory’s one railway the traffic which yields a great part of its little earnings. But this year there will ho no killing season. After carrying on frtr three seasons against all kinds of difficulties, natural and artificial, the company has temporarily given up the struggle. This has much to do with the deepening depression that now hangs over Darwin and with the exodus of population. Another contributing cause is the partial failure of what a resident described as the “moneycrop from the south,” the fertilising shower of Commonwealth expenditure which used to descend on Darwin much more liberally than it now does. With regard to the commercial outlook it is interesting to notice that the firm of B. P. Allen and Co., which has for nearly 40 years done a very solid business at Darwin as merchants, storekeepers,

and probably, too, as “grub-stokers ’ of prospectors and others in tlie back country, has just retired from the undertaking. The number of miners in the Territory lias fallen to about 500, including a number of aged Chinese •Pearling is not flourising, though there are still two fleets of luggers working from Darwin. While Customs duties in the last 20 or 30 years have driven the Macassar men off the Coast no one else is doing much at trepanging. There is a small trade in buffalo hides and horns, a. wasteful business involving the slaughter of the buffaloes for the sake of little more than their hides, and a few other odds and ends. Some include deported officials ,amongst the exports of the Territory but they do , not figure regularly in the returns. Altogether the Northern Territory is a costly and troublesome quarter of the sunny land of Australia.

Tin; Lady Liverpool Committee which dissolved this week deserves some larger recognition and appreciation of its work than the formal motion of thanks adopted at the scanty public- meeting. During tlie period of the war, tlie Committee worked untiringly in the interests of the soldiers on active service. Great personal care and thought was thrown into the work of the Committee in the interests of the soldiers. The workers did not spare themselves when there was work to be done, and for months tlie self imposed task was kept up at high pressure. The funds were economically handled from every point of view. Tlie money was raised in the first instance free of all costs, and the total administration was carried out without any charge, so that the inch got the full benefit of every penny raised. It was a. lino record, of which the energetic workers of tlie CommitU" might well be proud. The unexpected ending of hostilities left the Committee with,a substantial amount in hand, and the expenditure of this goodly sum it is proposed, should he continued for the benefit of the men who are still in

hospital or otherwise invalided, including those incapacitated or partially so. This is a very proper ston to take and , will assist in adding to tlie comforts of men who still hear the marks of arduous campaigning. It is well tlmt 'these men who arc Mill suffering should be remembered, and eared for to the fullest extent, and the assistance which

the Liverpool funds will give will no doubt, ho serviceably applied in many desirable wavs.

i Tin; resignation of Sir James Allen j from Rnrliment thortgh hinted at for • some time, has come rather sooner than j was expected. Sir James himself has just returned from liis important Island mission, for being Minister of External Affairs he must have acquired special information which would he of particular service to the administration, Perhaps lie had an understudy on hoard in the person of the Hon Lee, With the Prime Minister pot too well, and with a large amount of Cabinet business of dispose of, Sir James might haw been expected to hold office longer. But other conditions might ho operating, honco his retirement. The party lias chosen its nominee for iho seat (some weeks ago, and thus at no distant date there will be two bye-elec-tions —one in each Island—in full progress. Sir Janies Allen lias had very lengthy service ip the New Zealand Parliament, and he is now to take up an important post as the Dominion representative in London. During the war in the face of obstacles ami opposition Sir James had a difficult role to play. It is to his personal credit that lie won through and achieved a record lor the Dominion that the soldiers and the people might lip proud of. The retiring Minister leaves office with a very honourable record behind him, and th" country is pinch indebted to him foi his fine work, his war work particularly commending attention. Sir James Allen served hi.s country well, and In; deserves well of his country now. We wish him success in his new office "heic ho will have a very different role to play.

Wirimc there wcie no special developments in regard to the hydro-electric propositions during the week, there is at least reason to believe that the Fake Kanieri source stands in special favour, and is believed to be capable of development to a capacity equal to the power requirements of the Coast for some time —and this probably for within a radius of of) miles from the power site. The special point in favor of Film Kanieri is its situation which lends itself to economic development. A substantial amount of power, say ",.090 horse, could 1 10 developed there much cheaper than at any other known point along the Coast, ami this is a transcendent advantage quite to the credit of this locality. And it would aiqmar that 6,090 horse , )( ,wer for industrial and lighting purposes will supply the Coast area referred to for some years to come, hater it is possible that other sources of power might be developed Lo the north, but their development turns on their commercial advantage, and this is not likely as far ns we can learn to be in serious competition with Lake Kanieri for

seine time to come. Locally, too, the greatest users of power will be located in tins neighbourhood, which is another factor in favor of Lake lvanieri, and will tend to its more speedy development. To meet local needs a considerable further development at Lake Kanieri is necessary, and this expansion will mean provision for otner supplies in the district, so that in the not distant future this will be a centre for important hydro-electric works in Westland.

The undertaking however, will not move as quickly as will be desired., There is a general hold up all over the world for electric machinery and supplies. This locality cannot expect to be any exception from other places. This applies, also, to the reticulation of the electric light through the town, and itwill not come as quickly as was hoped at one time. However, where there’s a will there’s a way, and it i.s in the interests of the promoters to complete their scheme as quickly as possible, aiul no doubt there will not be any unnecessary delay on their part. It is expected that at no distant date the Government engineer will decide definitely as to Lake Kanieri, and if selected as the principal site lor the West Coast sehemq that finality will lead to a. definite expansion of the 'works. As pointed out by Mr Kissel in Ins address a week ago, the local station would he one of an ultimate chain to girdle the Islands, and so link up with the power stations of tlie West Coast. A scheme of this eliar--1 actor has been outlined by Mr Parry, ' and the next-move is to centralise ac- | tiou at some starting point which would jbe the main centre for the time and i afterwards become one of the main arteries in the wider distribution to be taken up. Having such a natural reservoir as Lake Kanieri so admirably situated and so excellently served with road access, places til’s part of the Coast in what is really an exceptional position, and enabling it to become the pionoei district in hydro-electric supply.