Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 17.djvu/85

This page needs to be proofread.

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