VESTED INTERESTS AND STATES RIGHTS TOWARDS FEDERATION VESTED INTERESTS AND STATES RIGHTS

“Australia's colonies did not federate in the emotional aftermath of rebellion or the fires of civil war, nor was there a Declaration of Independence or “self evident truths”, no Bill of Rights or Gettysburg Address driving the political process Federation - when the six Australian colonies joined together under a federal system of government - was not achieved with a grand flourish of independence and nationhood but only after several national conventions and a series of complex compromises and referenda.”

‘Waltzing Matilda” Nationalism: By 1901 the majority of the population was Australian-born and beginning to feel more attached to their colony or Australia than England or Ireland, the land of their forefathers. They were also starting to feel inferior to the British, particularly when they were referred to as ‘colonists’ and wanted to become an independent country which would be respected in the world. Nationalism: The population felt they were one people, one language and one culture so should be one country rather than a series of British colonies. This was reflected in newspapers, art, poetry and songs.

Transport and communication: Travel was difficult between colonies because of different rail gauges (NSW standard, Qld narrow and Vic broad gauge used) so travellers had to change trains at borders. Federation would provide an opportunity to remedy this problem. Telephone and postal services would be better run if they were federally based rather than colonially based. The building of the telegraph line linked all capitals and overseas with almost instant communication, which led to a greater feeling of unity. Customs and tariffs: At border crossings, as travellers changed trains, they were taxed with customs duties on goods being brought in and taxes and tariffs on goods being transported out. Sometimes they were searched by customs officers Trade: As different colonies supported two opposing views on trade (protection or free trade), it made trade between the colonies difficult. A common policy under a federal government would make interstate trade easier and more effective, as it would remove colonial rivalry, competition, customs barriers and trade barriers and would present a united economy to trade with overseas countries

Defence: Each colony had its own small defence force Defence: Each colony had its own small defence force. Federation would mean one united and, therefore, larger defence force, and as fear grew about Australia’s isolation, this became an important issue

Contract labour and a cheap labour force: Concern about the indentured Kanaka labour on the Qld cane fields leading to cheap labour undermining the conditions being fought for by the unions led to this issue becoming important in the lead-up to Federation. At the bottom of this argument was the desire for a White Australia for White Australians. Immigration: Each colony had its own immigration policy and these were not always compatible. NSW and Vic had banned Chinese immigration but SA had not. A federal government could have one policy on immigration and thus control the entry of non-white races. At the bottom of this argument was the desire for a White Australia for White Australians

“Yellow Trash” Bulletin Cartoon 1895

Distance and size were two issues which arose in opposition to nationalism, transport and communication. A united and federated Australia would be larger than the whole of Europe from Edinburgh to Istanbul. There was no unified land-based communication system (see problems with the rail system), and, despite the telegraph, transport and communication between the colonial capitals relied on the unreliable sea transport. Western Australia and Tasmania were particularly concerned about this issue as they felt the most isolated and, to some extent, ignored.

Fear of the larger colonies: WA and Tas also felt that, as the smallest colonies, their needs and desires would be ignored by the larger colonies. They already had a colonial parliament which looked after their interests so they saw no need to bother with a federal government that they could not trust to look after them, as it would be dominated by the larger colonies

Defence was also an issue for the anti-federalists who feared that the larger states would take their money but defend only the heavily populated areas of the east coast

Protection: The smaller colonies and those colonies with specialised industries such as Qld (sugar) and WA (the latest gold discoveries in 1893) were concerned about the loss of their income from trade in these resources. They were also worried that the absorption of their benefits (particularly gold at a time when the NSW and Vic goldfields were in decline) by the federal government would take away revenue from the colony. Free Trade: This was wanted by NSW as it was best for their agricultural industries to be able to specialise and trade across all colonies.

Contract labour: Qld’s whole sugar industry was reliant on the contract (really slave) labour of the Kanakas or Pacific Islanders, and the idea of their removal horrified the farmers as there was, to their mind, no alternative. The colonial government of Qld also realised that the end of the sugar industry would destroy their economic independence.  Trade unions: The unions were generally against Federation, as they believed that improving working standards and achieving social legislation was likely to be more effective at a colonial level, colony by colony, than through a federal government which could be hostile to their demands.  The cost of setting up and maintaining a federal system was an issue for all the colonies to be concerned about and is still not resolved today

Questions Using this presentation and your text book Answer the following question either in your workbook or in a word document. Only write the answers to the questions you do not have to write the question out.

Questions Define Federation? How was federation different to other countries formation? Name the states and the nicknames for the people living there? What is nationalism and how did it effect australia leading up to Federation? What were the differences between the states? What were the negative feeling towards Federation? What were the positives for Federation give 2 examples? How did imigration effect the Federation issue? What is the White Australia Policy? Using the cartoon hand out and the internet --- research about the life of Henry Parkes I want you to write a page describing his life, actions, influences and achievements in a word document? Imagine you are a reporter come up with five questions you might have asked him if he had survived to see federation?