ally annexed New Guinea to the British Crown, thus wrangling with the Secretary of State on his right to nominate the highest Crown Official in the colony. But as Lord Randolph Churchill says, truly enough, we cannot govern mankind by "flouts and sneers."
The history of this Queensland imbroglio, briefly, I take to be this. Sir Thomas M'Ilwraith, despite his well-intentioned and historic effort to enlarge the Queen's dominions, found himself outdistanced as an "Imperialist" by his rival Sir Samuel Griffith, who was able to cut rather a prominent figure on behalf of his colony at the Colonial Conference in Downing Street. In revenge, Sir Thomas seems to have determined to poach on his rival's "Radical preserves" in the colony. Being a man of considerable force and individuality, with a party at his back, he had influence enough to upset the Naval Defence Bill which Sir Samuel Griffith introduced into the Queensland Parliament in fulfilment of his pledges to Lord Knutsford at the Colonial Conference. This was a very serious matter to begin with; and Queensland stands out, thanks to Sir Thomas, as the only Australian colony which has declined to ratify the agreement with the British Government for the maintenance of the local Australian fleet.
