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 AUSTKAUA

69

AUSTKAUA

ment railways is 22,647; of private railways open to general traffic, 1,125.

Up to 1918, 858,600,345 acres representing 4510 per cent of the total area of the Australian Com* monwealth were either unoccupied or occupied by the Crown, only 5.63 per cent had been actually alienated (107,093,317 acres), 2j92 per cent (55,672,- 578 acres) were in course of alienation, and 4635 per cent (882^65,600 acres) were held under various forms of leases and licenses. The total area under crops was 13,332,393 acres and the total value of the crops was about $261,360,000. The total mineral production up to the end of 1918 was $4,309,527,181.

GovBRNMENT.— The seat of the government is pro- visionally at Melbourne, but eventually will be at Yass-Canberra, the site acquired from the State of New South Wales in 1910. Now that peace has been concluded, the Government is planning to ^o ahead with the establishment of a federal capital. The Legislative power is vested in a FcKieral Parliament, consistmg of the King, repre- sented by a governor-general, a Senate (six for each of the original six states, voting as one elec- torate), chosen for six years, and a House of Representatives consisting if possible of twice as many senators, the number chosen in the several states being in proportion to the respective num- ber of their people as shown in the latest statistics of the Commonwealth, but not less than five for any original state. The Constitution provides for a Federal Judicature, for an inter-State Commis- sion of Trade and Commerce, and for alteration of the Constitution. A high court of seven judges

has been established with original as well as ap- pellate jurisdiction. In 1920 Mrs. (3owan was the first woman elected to Parliament. The present governor-general is Henry William Baron Forster, succeeding Sir Ronald Craufurd Munro Feiguson in 1920.

Present Miutary System.— In September, 1920, modifications in the defensive policy, respecting both the army and navy were annoimced in Parlia- ment. The army is to be organized and trained on the divisional basis and will consist of two light-horse divisions, four infantry divisions, and three mixed brigades, with the necessaiy extra- divisional units. In time of peace the number of soldiers will be about 130,000. The restoration of the Council of Defense insures continuity of policy and the co-ordination of the requirements on sea, air, and land; control and administration to be exercised by the militaxy and naval boards. By the reduction of the naval forces, many of the vessels of the Royal Australian Navy pass to the reserve.

EoucATioN.-^Throughout the states primary edu- cation is compulsory and free, while there exists in most of the states a liberal provision of scholar- ships and bursaries to the hijgher state schools, secondary schools, and universities. Each state has its university; affiliated to those of New South Wales and Victoria are four colleges in connection with the Catholic, Anglican, Aesbyterian, and Methodist churches respectively. At the census of 1911, according to the Australian Year Book for 1917, out of every 10,000 children between the ages of five and fifteen 8,907 could read and write. Ac-

New Soutb Wales

Victoria

Queens- land

South Australia

West Australia

Northern Territory

Federal Territory

Common- wealth

Church of England..

Roman Catholic

Presbyterian

Methodist ..........

748,493

382,740

186,592

153,512

20,965

23,008

7,177

7,533

462,388

278,465

240,515

180,339

31367

16^41

11,906

7,968

219,614 141,461 78X)48 61,557 14,080 10,735 24,843 4,431

119,385 53,467 23,709

104,836

22,799

13,940

27,794

4,007

112,975

58,449

27,569

35,298

4,931

6,376

2,561

1,944

91,255 29,576 16,295 25,746 « 4398

5,032 202

1,465

678

454

153

121

15

25

25

685 634 192 121

i

1,755,743 945,246 573,073 561^50

Bantist • •

99,555

Congregational

T/^itheran .,,--... ^.

75,948 74^08

Salvation Army

1

• •••••• 1 ■■«•••■

27,348

Total population..

1,646,734

1,314,551

605,813

408,558

282,114

191,211

3,310 ; 1,714, 4,455,005

The Australasian Catholic Directory for 1921 gives the following summary of Catholic Ecclesiastical Statistics:

State and Ecclesiastical Ptoviooes

Q

S

o «

=52

£

ii

It

3b

State of New South Wales.

(Ptovn of Sydney) State of Victoria

(Prov. of Melbourne) State of Tasmania ,

(Prov. of Tasmania) State of South Australia)

(Prov. of South Australia) State of West Australia

(Prov. of Perth) State of Queensland

(Prov. ci Brisbane)

Commonwealth of Australia, (Including V. A. of New Guinea)

235

689

480

K^2

322

155

521

283

59

109

21

72

30

2

10

45

129

61

27

32

58

144

64

31

53

80

221

118

19

59

632

1,805

1,026

291

601

3,259 1,571 169 434 550 747

16 13

1

I • •

as

1

8

•CqB

m g

2

II

8

ll

eg

8

II

69

51

3

7 36

el 35

101

28

4

19

409

220

27

54

3 72 22 88

44

22 2 9

14

8

65,119 47,391 3,596 7,539 11,219 20,564

400359

286,433

32,600

60,238

47,100

117,000

6,768

3, 41 201 177 914 108

157,895 i 952,108