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