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appointment to public offices was to be vested in the Governor with the advice of the Executive Council, excepting in the case of officers liable to retire on political grounds, whose appointment was vested "in the Governor alone." Sec. 37. See p. 46, supra. The Bill also contained clauses similar to those of the New South Wales Bill, relating to the assent of the Governor to Bills and Her Majesty's power to disallow the same; relating to boundaries of the Australian colonies; and provid'ng that it should not come into force until the control of the sale and appropriation of the waste lands of the Crown within the colony should be vested in the legislature to be created. The legislature was authorized to amend the Constitution, subject to the condition that Bills altering the Constitution of the two Houses should be passed by an absolute majority in each House and should be reserved for the Queen's assent.

The Constitution, so drawn, granted powers to the proposed bicameral legislature in excess of the authority conferred by 13 and 14 Vic. c. 59. In this respect the Select Committee of the Victorian Council were influenced by the same political considerations as the Select Committee of the New South Wales Council. They wished to secure under the new Constitution "other and additional powers and functions" beyond those vested in the old Council. In so doing they ran the same risk of having the Royal assent withheld. In fact it was known that, owing to the excess of powers proposed to be granted by the Constitution, the Royal assent could not be legally given, and that fresh Imperial legislation would be required in order to legalize the Constitution. The powers and functions granted by the Bill

were:

1. To make laws in and for Victoria in all cases whatsoever. 2. To impose taxation, including duties of customs.

3. To appropriate revenue.

4. To legislate concerning the waste lands of the Crown.

5. To amend the Constitution of the Council and Assembly,

subject to certain conditions.

Accompanying these grants were several restrictions and other provisions relating to electoral matters similar to those embodied in the New South Wales Bill. As the Bill contained matters in excess of the powers conferred by the Enabling Act, the law officers of the Crown advised that it was not competent for Her Majesty to assent to the Bill without the authority of Parliament. In order to enable that assent to be given, a Bill was brought into Parliament, to which the proposed Constitution was added as Schedule A; amended, however, by the omission of clauses relating to the assent of the Governor to Bills, Her Majesty's power to disallow Bills, and respecting the boundaries of the Australian colonies. It was intituled "A Bill to enable Her Majesty to assent to a Bill, as amended, by the legislature of Victoria to establish a Constitution in and for Victoria." Section 1 enabled Her Majesty to assent to the Bill. Section 2 repealed Imperial Acts inconsistent with the Constitution, and vested the entire management and control of the waste lands of the Crown in the new legislature. The provisions of former Acts relating to the disallowance of Bills were preserved. The new legislature was authorized to

repeal or alter all or any of the provisions of the reserved Bill subject to the conditions therein prescribed.

RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT.-The Bill was passed and assented to on 16th July, 1855; it is known as the Victorian Constitution Statute; whilst the Act contained in the Schedule is known as the Victorian Constitution Act. The new Constitution was proclaimed on 23rd November, 1855. The first Responsible Government was composed of Mr. W. C. Haines, Chief Secretary; Mr. (afterwards Sir) W. F. Stawell, Attorney-General; Mr. (afterwards Sir) C. Sladen, Treasurer; Mr. C. Pasley, Commissioner of Public Works; Mr. H. C. E. Childers, Commissioner of Trade and Customs; Mr. (afterwards Sir) A. Clarke, Surveyor-General; and Mr. (afterwards Sir) R. Molesworth, SolicitorGeneral; Mr. (afterwards Sir) Wm. H. F. Mitchell (without office). The Ministers were all returned to seats in the first elections for the Legislative Assembly, which took place in the spring of 1856; they met the new Parliament as a Cabinet, and resigned on the passing of an unfavourable resolution upon the subject of the Estimates, in March, 1859. Mr. (afterwards Sir) John O'Shanassy, the mover of the resolution, was then, in accordance with Cabinet practice, invited to form a Ministry.-Jenks' Gov. of Victoria, p. 215.

ENLARGED LEGISLATIVE POWERS.-The Constitution of Victoria, like that of the other Australian colonies, was subsequently enlarged and improved by further grants of power, contained in Imperial Acts applicable to the colonies, of which a summary has been given, under the heading of "New South Wales," pp. 49-51, supra.

REFORMS. By the Legislative Council (Reform) Act, 1881 (45) Vic. No. 702), the number of members of the Council was increased from 30 to 41; and by the Act 52 Vic. No. 995, passed in 1888, the number was increased to 48, distributed among the fourteen provinces. The term of membership has been reduced from ten years to six years, and the qualification of members and electors has been lowered. Members of the Council must be of the full age of 30 years, natural born or naturalized subjects, and possessed of freehold property in Victoria of the annual value of £100. Electors of the Council must be adult males, natural born or naturalized subjects, and possessed of a qualification either (1) as freeholders or mortgagors in possession of land of the annual value of £10, or leaseholders to the annual value of £25; or (2) as graduates, members of the learned professions, or military or naval officers. No property qualification is required for membership of the Assembly; members of that House are paid at the rate of £300 per annum for their services. The franchise for the Assembly is manhood; every natural-born or naturalized male subject of the age of 21 years, if resident for 12 months in Victoria and for one month in an electoral district, is entitled to be enrolled as a voter for that district. Every such person is also entitled to vote in every electoral district in which he is seised in fee of lands worth £50, or of the annual value of £5, or in which his name is entered on a municipal roll as a ratepayer. By the Act 22 Vic. No. 89 (1859), the duration of the Assembly was reduced from five years to three years. The number of members of the Assembly has been increased from 60 to 95.

CONSTITUTIONAL STRUGGLES.-Since the adoption of the Victorian

Constitution it has been subjected to some severe strains, consequent on disputes between the two Houses respecting their powers in matters of taxation and appropriation. During those controversies questions of great Constitutional importance were raised and discussed. Among these may be mentioned the action of the Assembly in tacking the proposed new tariff to the annual Appropriation Bill in 1865; its rejection by the Council and the consequent deadlock; the insertion of the proposed grant to Lady Darling in the Annual Appropriation Bill in 1867; its rejection by the Council and consequent deadlock; the insertion of provision for payment of members in the annual Appropriation Bill of 1877; its rejection by the Council and the consequent deadlock, leading to "Black Wednesday" dismissals; the Victorian delegation to England in October, 1878, and Sir Michael Hicks-Beach's despatch of 3rd May, 1879. In that famous despatch the Colonial Secretary said:

"I observe that the address of the Legislative Assembly of February 14th, 1878, dwells almost exclusively on the necessity of securing to that House sufficient financial control to enable adequate supplies to be provided for the public service, and it is prominently urged in Mr. Berry's letter of February 26th, in proof of the necessity for finding some solution of the present constitutional difficulty, that 'scarcely a year passes but it becomes a question whether the supplies necessary for the Queen's service will be granted.' But this difficulty would not arise if the two Houses of Victoria were guided in this matter, as in others, by the practice of the Imperial Parliament, the Council following the practice of the House of Lords, and the Assembly that of the House of Commons. The Assembly, like the House of Commons, would claim and in practice exercise the right of granting aids and supplies to the Crown, of limiting the matter, manner, measure, and time of such grants, and of so framing the Bills of Supply that these rights should be maintained inviolate; and as it would refrain from annexing to a Bill of Aid and Supply any clause or clauses of a nature foreign to or different from the matter of such a Bill, so the Council would refrain from any steps so injurious to the public service as the rejection of an Appropriation Bill."-Todd, Par. Gov. Col., 2nd Ed., p. 746.

(3) TASMANIA.

FOUNDATION. This island, which down to the year 1853 was known as Van Diemen's Land, was, until its circumnavigation by Flinders and Bass in 1798, thought to be connected with the mainland. In 1803, in consequence of the presence of French exploring vessels in Australian waters, an apprehension was felt that the French meditated the annexation of unoccupied territory along the Australian In order to remove any impression that Van Diemen's Land was unclaimed by the British nation, the Sydney Government decided to formally take possession of it. Accordingly Governor King despatched Lieutenant John Bowen to the Derwent in charge of the Albion and

the Lady Nelson, which conveyed a number of soldiers and prisoners thither to form the nucleus of a settlement. The pioneering party

anchored off Risdon Cove on the left bank of the Derwent on 12th September, 1803. In 1804, Colonel David Collins abandoned an attempt to form a settlement on the shores of Port Phillip, and removed with his charges to the Derwent. Not approving of the site chosen at Risdon Cove by Bowen, he selected another one on the south bank of the Derwent, known as Sullivan's Cove, which in after years grew into the city of Hobart, so named after Lord Hobart, the Secretary of State for the colonies. In 1804, Collins superseded Bowen as commandant of the Derwent settlement. In the same year Colonel Patterson, by direction of Governor King, planted a camp at George. Town on the Tamar, but it was subsequently removed to a better situation at York Town, and eventually to the present site of Launceston. In 1805, it was decided to abandon the prison settlement on Norfolk Island, and some of the free colonists were transferred to the Derwent, where "New Norfolk was founded.

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SEPARATION.-By Section 44 of the Act 4 Geo. IV. c. 96 (19th July, 1823), intituled "An Act to provide . for the better administration of Justice in New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land," the Crown was empowered to constitute and erect the island of Van Diemen's Land into a separate colony independent of New South Wales. On the 13th October, 1823, a charter of Justice was issued by the Crown instituting a Supreme Court for Van Diemen's Land. Mr. John Lewis Pedder became the first Chief Justice of the colony. The Court was opened for business on 24th May, 1824. Pursuant to an Order in Council dated 14th June, 1825, the separation and independence of Van Diemen's Land were proclaimed. The new colony then received a Lieutenant-Governor, an Executive Council, and a Legislative Council of its own. The Governor of New South Wales was entitled the "Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief" of the eastern part of the continent, and the Lieutenant-Governor of Van Diemen's Land exercised all the powers and functions of Governor when the Governor of New South Wales was not present on the Island. The Executive Council consisted of the Lieutenant-Governor, the Chief Justice, the Colonial Secretary, the Colonial Treasurer, and the Chief Military Officer. The Legislative Council consisted of seven members nominated by His Majesty, its functions, under sec. 24 of the Imperial Act, being to make laws and ordinances for the peace, welfare and good government of the colony, provided that such laws were not repugnant to the law of England.

By the Act 9 Geo. IV. c. 83 (28th July, 1828), the Crown was authorized to re-model and improve the Supreme Courts of New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land. The remaining sections of the Act providing for the constitution, appointment, and powers of the Legislative Councils in and for both colonies, and providing for the introduction and operation of "all laws and statutes in force within the realm of England," were made applicable alike to New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land. See "New South Wales," pp. 37-8, supra.

The Act 5 and 6 Vic. c. 76 (30th July, 1842), intituled "An Act for the Government of New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land,"

created a new Legislative Council for New South Wales, but it did not do so for Van Diemen's Land. The whole of the provisions of that Act, with several minor exceptions, were confined to New South Wales.

FIRST REPRESENTATIVE LEGISLATURE. For their first instalment of the Representative System of Government, the people of the southern island had to wait till the passing of that important Act 13 and 14 Vic. c. 59 (1850), intituled "An Act for the better government of Her Majesty's Australian colonies." By section 7 of this Act, it was provided that the legislature already existing in Van Diemen's Land, under the Act of 1828, might establish within the colony a Legislative Council, to consist of not more than 24 members, of whom one-third should be nominated by Her Majesty and the remainder elected by the inhabitants of the colony. Upon the issue of the writs for the election of the new Legislative Council, all prior legislation relating to the constitution, appointment and powers of the old Legislative Council should be repealed. The Governor of Van Diemen's Land, with the advice and consent of the new Legislative Council so established, had authority to make laws for the peace, welfare and good government of the colony; to appropriate to the public service the whole of the revenue arising within the colony from taxes, duties, rates and imposts, and to impose duties of customs. The Council, however, could not pass any laws repugnant to the law of England, or interfere in any manner with the sale or appropriation of the waste lands of the Crown; nor could it pass any Bill appropriating to the public service any sum of money, unless the Governor first recommended that provision for the appropriation should be made (sec. 14).

Section 7 of this Act was an enabling section, valuable in its immediate grant of power, but especially valuable as a precedent, showing the inclination of the Imperial Government to entrust the people of the colonies not only with representative institutions, but also with the power of drafting their own constitutional instruments. The old Council of 1828 was to establish the new Council and make arrangements for dividing the colony into convenient electoral districts. The qualifications of members and of electors for the new Council were made similar to those of the members and electors of the Legislative Council of New South Wales, under 5 and 6 Vic. c. 76 as amended by 13 and 14 Vic. c. 59.

THE NEW CONSTITUTION.-During the governorship of Sir William Denison, the new Legislative Council of Van Diemen's Land, in the exercise of power conferred by 13 and 14 Vic. c. 59 s. 32, proceeded to draft a Constitution "for the establishment of the Parliament of Van Diemen's Land." It was proposed that the new Parliament should consist of a Legislative Council and a House of Assembly in place of the existing Council. The Council was to consist of 15 members, elected by the qualified voters of the colony. The House of Assembly was to consist of 30 members elected on a more popular franchise than that of the Council. Bills for appropriating any part of the revenue, or imposing any tax, rate, duty, or impost, were required to originate in the Assembly, and the Assembly could not originate or pass any vote, resolution, or Bill for the appro

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