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 350 THE BRITISH EMPIRE : — AUSTRALASIA AND OCEANIA

AUSTRALASIA AND OCEANIA.

The British Territories in Australasia comprise the self-governing States and Territories which now form the Commonwealth of Australia ; the Australian Dependencies of Papua and Norfolk Island, the self-governing Dominion of New Zealand and adjacent islands, and the Crown Colony of Fiji. The British possessions in Oceania include the Solomon and Tonga Islands, and many other groups of islands and islets scattered over the Pacific.

THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA.

The Commonwealth of Australia, consisting of the six colonies (now denominated Original States) of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania, was proclaimed at Sydney January 1, 1901. After five of these colonies had, by legislative enactments, approved by the direct vote of the electors, declared their desire for a Federal Onion, the British Parliament, on July 9, 1900, passed the Act to constitute the Commonwealth. This Act provided for the inclusion of W estern Australia in the Federation if that colony so desired, and in the following month the colonial legislation necessary for this end was passed.

On January 1, 1911, the Northern Territory was transferred by South Australia to the Commonwealth, and on the same date a portion of New South Wales, consisting of 912 square miles, was vested in the Common- wealth, for the purpose of forming the Federal Territory containing the seat of the Commonwealth Government. In 1917 this area was increased to 940 square miles.

Legislative power is vested in a Federal Parliament, consisting ot the King, represented by a Governor-General, a Senate, and a House of Re- presentatives. The Senate consists of Senators (six for each of the Original States voting as one electorate) chosen for six years. In general, the Senate will be renewed to the extent of one-half every three years, but in case of prolonged disagreement with the House of Representatives, it may be dissolved, and an entirely new Senate elected. The House of Repre- sentatives consists, as nearly as may be, of twice as many members as there are Senators, the numbers chosen in the several States being in proportion to the respective numbers of their people as shown by the latest statistics of the Commonwealth, but not less than five for any original State. As a result of the Census enumeration of 1911, New South Wales has 27 members, Victoria 21, Queensland 10, South Australia 7, Western Australia 5, and Tasmania 5. Every House of Repressntatives continues for three years from the date of its first meeting, unless sooner dissolved. Electoral quali- fications for both Chambers of the first Federal Parliament were those for the more numerous House of the Parliament of the State in which the elector was competent to vote. Every. Senator or Member of the House of Representatives must be a natural-born subject of the King, or have been for live years a naturalised subject under a law of the United Kingdom or of a State of the Commonwealth. He or she must be of full age, and must possess electoral qualification. Since the first Parliament of the Commonwealth was instituted, an Electoral Act has unified the franchise for both Chan OH the basis of universal adult (male and female) suffrage..

The legislative powers of the Federal Parliament an extensive, embracing commerce, shipping, &c. ; finance ; defence ; postal, telegraph, and like services ; census and statistics ; conciliation and arbitration in industrial