8th Parliament · 2nd Session
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The Senate met at 3 p.m. pursuant to the proclamation of His Excellency the Governor-General.
The President (Senator the Hon. T. Givens) having taken the chair,
The Clerk read the proclamation.
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NOR-GENERAL entered the chamber and took his seat, with the President on “his right hand. A message was sent to the House of Representatives intimating that His Excellency desired the attendance of honorable members in the Senate chamber, who being come with their Speaker,
HIS EXCELLENCY was pleased to deliver the following speech : -
Gentlemen of the Senate and of the House of Representatives :
You are called together for the purpose of considering measures of urgent public importance.
The Quadruple Treaty relating to the Pacific,
The Supplement to the Quadruple Treaty,
TheFar Eastern Treaty, and
The Chinese Customs Treaty, will be submitted for your approval. Such legislation as is needed to enable the Commonwealth to carry out its obligations under the treaties will be introduced.
Experience having proved the necessity for continuous representation of Australia in the United -States, a measure will be introduced to provide for the appointment of an Australian Commissioner.
My Government proposes to continue its support of voluntary movements for the collective marketing of primary products upon the same broad principles upon which was based the assistance given by the Government last year to, the wheat, fruit, and dairy farmers.
A special effort has been made to improve the standard of the exportable products of the country, and this matter will continue to receive the closest attention.
Queensland justify the hope that a successful result will be achieved.
In the earnest hope that under Divine guidance your deliberations may further the welfare of the people of the Commonwealth, I now leave you to the discharge of your high and important duties.
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NOR-GENERAL having retired,
The President read prayers.
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– It is with most profound regret that I have to announce to the Senate that since we last met our late respected colleague, Senator the Honorable John Adamson, met with his death by being run over by a train near to his own home in Brisbane. Immediately I received the news I sent, on behalf of the Senate and myself, a message of sorrow and sympathy to the widow of the late honorable senator. In doing so, I was well assured that I was acting in accordance with what would be the heartfelt desire of every member of the Senate.
Honorable Senators. - Hear, hear!
– Of course, my message was sent pending a more formal resolution in the Senate itself in connexion with the death of the late honorable senator, which, I anticipate, will be submitted in due course
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– I have to announce that I have received a communication from His Excellency the Governor-General, enclosing a certificate of the choice of Mr. Henry Chester-Master Garling as a senator to fill the vacancy in the representation of New South Wales in the Senate caused by the resignation, during last session, of Senator H. E. Pratten. The certificate will be laid on the table, and read by the Clerk.
Certificate read by the Clerk.
– I have to announce that I have received a communication from His
Excellency the Governor-General enclosing a certificate of the choice of Mr. John Valentine MacDonald as a senator to fill the vacancy in the representation of Queensland in the Senate caused by the death of the late Senator the Honorable J. Adamson. The certificate will be laid on the table, and read by the Clerk.
Certificate read by the Clerk.
Senator Garling and Senator MacDonald made and subscribed the oath of allegiance.
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Assent to the following Bills reported : -
Appropriation Act 1921-22.
Australian Soldiers’ Repatriation Act 1921.
Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1921.
Commonwealth Electoral Act 1921.
Commonwealth Public Works Committee Act 1921.
Customs. Tariff 1921.
Customs Tariff (Industries Preservation) Act 1921.
Customs Tariff (New Zealand Preference) 1921.
Excise Tariff 1921.
Funding Arrangements Act 1921.
High Court Procedure Act 1921.
Income Tax Act 1921.
Income Tax Assessment Act 1921.
Income Tax Assessment Act 1921 (No. 2).
Invalid and Old-age Pensions Appropriation Act 1921.
Iron and Steel Bounty Act 1921.
Loan Act (No. 2) 1921.
Loans Redemption and Conversion Act 1921. Patents Act 1921.
Repatriation Loan Act 1921.
Returned Soldiers’ Woollen Company Loan Act 1921.
Supplementary Appropriation Act 1919-20.
Supplementary Appropriation Act 1920-1921.
Supplementary Appropriation Act 1921-22.
Supplementary Appropriation (Works . and Buildings) Act 19.19-1920.
Supplementary Appropriation (Works and Buildings) Act 1920-1921.
Tariff Board Act 1921.
Trading with the Enemy Act 1921.
Treaty of Peace (Hungary) Act 1921.
War Precautions Act Repeal Act 1921.
War Precautions (Coal) Act 1921.
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Letter from United States President.
– I have to inform the Senate that the resolutions passed by the Senate on the 17th and 23rd November last with regard to the Disarmament Conference at Washington were conveyed to the President of the United
States through the Australian representative at the Conference, Senator the Right Honorable G. F. Pearce, and the following letter was received by Senator Pearce in reply: -
I am writing just a few lines to thank you again for your call, and for bringing tome the resolutions adopted by the Senate of the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia expressing its congratulations on the efforts of the Government of the United States in behalf of armament limitation and greater guarantees of world peace.
I will be grateful if you will express to the Senate of the Commonwealth my very great appreciation and gratification. Such assurances are an inspiration and a source of increased strength and determination in behalf of what I know we all believe is a noble and very worth-while cause.
As testifying the united purpose of great free peoples, they have at this time a peculiar value in relation to the efforts which are being so earnestly pressed by the delegates to the Conference , on Limitation of Armament.
Please convey to the Senate, to the Parliament, and the people of the Commonwealth of Australia, my sincerest wishes for their continuedprogress and prosperity, and for the fullest realization of the magnificent destiny which all Americans recognise as assured to your great people.
Most sincerely yours,
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– I have to inform the Senate that the resolution passed by the Senate on 8th December, 1921, with regard to the settlement of the Irish question has been conveyed, through the Government, to the Prime Minister of Great Britain, from whom has been received, in reply, a cablegram in the following terms : -
Please convey to Senate of the Commonwealth of Australia my sincere thanks for their very kind resolution.
I will gladly transmit to my colleagues of the recent Irish Conference the Senate’s message of greeting to Ireland as a member of the British Commonwealth of Nations.
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(By leave). - I desire to announce that, following on the resignation of the Right Honorable Sir Joseph Cook of the office of Treasurer, the Ministry has been reconstructed as follows : -
The Right Honorable William Morris Hughes, P.C., K.C., to be Prime Minister and Minister for External Affairs.
Senator the Right Honorable George Foster Pearce, P.C., to be Minister for Home and Territories.
Senator the Honorable Edward Davis Millen, to be Minister for Repatriation.
The Honorable Littleton Ernest Groom, to be Attorney-General.
The Honorable Walter Massy Greene, to be Minister for Defence and Health.
The Honorable Alexander Poynton, O.B.E., to be Postmaster-General.
The Honorable Arthur Stanislaus Rodgers, to be Minister for Trade and Customs.
The Honorable Stanley Melbourne Bruce, M.C., to be Treasurer.
The Honorable Richard Witty Foster, to be Minister for Works and Rail-‘ ways.
The Honorable Sir Granville de Laune Ryrie, K.C.M.G., to be Honorary Minister.
Senator the Honorable John Earle, to be Vice-President of the Executive Council.
The Honorable Hector Lamond, to be Honorary Minister.
The Minister for Repatriation in this Chamber will represent the Prime Minister, the Minister for External Affairs, and the Treasurer; the Minister for Home and Territories will represent the Attorney-General and the Minister for Defence and Health; and the VicePresident of the Executive Council will represent the Minister for Works and Railways, the Postmaster-General, and the Minister for Trade and Customs.
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– I have to report that I have received a copy of the Speech with which His Excellency the GovernorGeneral was graciously pleased to open the present session of the Commonwealth Parliament.
Motion (by Senator E. D. Millen) agreed . to -
That the consideration of the Speech be an Order of the Day for the next day of sitting.
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Motion (by Senator E. D. Millen) agreed to -
That the Senate, at its rising, adjourn until 3 p.m. . to-morrow.
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(By leave). - I desire to submit two motions, one in reference to the death of Mr. Tudor, and the other in relation to the death of Senator Adamson. I now move -
That this Senate expresses its profound regret at the death of the late Honorable Prank Gwynne Tudor, who, from the commencement of the Commonwealth, represented the Division of Yarra for twenty-one years. This Senate also places on record its high appreciation of the sterling public service rendered by the deceased member to the people of the Commonwealth, and extends to his widow and family its sincere sympathy in their bereavement.
The Senate has already been reminded of the fact that death has been busy in the ranks of Federal parliamentarians since we last met here. I feel certain that, although that reference was timely, it was not needed to remind honorable senators of those whose loss we now mourn. Mr. Tudor had had a long, distinguished, and honorable public career. He entered the National Parliament on its formation in 1901, and it is evidence of the esteem of those who sent him here that they retained his services until his decease. During that long period of very assiduous and faithful public service he attained Ministerial rank, and held office in four Ministries. Even those most sharply separated from him in political views ‘felt that on all occasions and under all circumstances he administered the Departments under his control according to the highest traditions. His worth to the country and to his party was recognised further by his receiving the high and honorable position of leader of his party, which he held up to the time of his death. Regarding hispublic career I need hardly add more than that, if there was ever a man of whom we might say that he sought to serve his country from a high sense of duty asthat duty presented itself to him, it was the gentleman whose loss we now mourn. He was the esteemed friend of us all.. His kindly, lovable disposition, hisgenerosity towards his fellows - even in the moments of warm debate - were very marked. There was that about his personality that attracted, and, indeed, compelled, esteem and respect. That characteristic Mr. Tudor possessed to the fullest extent. We can only regret that his services, which were very constantand very marked, are no longer available’ to this Parliament and to this country. Perhaps I may make a passing reference to those who will necessarily mourn his loss more than we do. In close proximity to the tragedy that has robbed them of a husband, and father, our expression of sympathy may be a poor thing,’ but in all sincerity we offer it to the relatives of the deceased. No more appropriate epitaph could be written over his grave than that on all occasions his one thought was to do his duty.
.- It is with feelings of sincere regret and sympathy that I desire to associate myself with all that has been said by the Leader o’f the Government (Senator E. D. Millen). Associated as I was with the late Mr. Tudor, it is impossible to overestimate his many manly -virtues. As a member of this Parliament from its inception, he won a high place in the hearts of us all, and we unanimously agree that no more warm-hearted friend, or more generous opponent, ever held a seat in Parliament. I join with the Leader of the Government in his expressionsof appreciation and in the motion conveying our sympathy to the widow and family in the loss of such a good and able man.
Question resolved in the affirmative, honorable senators standing in their places.
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– (By leave). - I now move -
That this Senate expresses its great sorrow at the death of the late Senator John Adamson,
C.B.E., and tenders its deepest sympathy to Mrs. Adamson and her family in their bereavement.
The late Senator Adamson was, as far as his membership of this Parliament was concerned, quite a young man. He only joined our ranks at the election of 1920, and thereforewas, comparatively speaking, new amongst us. But he had a very creditable period of public service in the State which he represented. For fifteen years he was, in one capacity or another, serving the people of his State, and for some portion of that time in a Ministerial capacity. Whatever views may be held regarding the incident to which I am about to refer - I have in mind his resignation of Ministerial office owing to a difference of opinion with his colleagues - ho was returned to represent the people of the great northern State in this Parliament. The members of this Chamber had then an opportunity of direct acquaintance with him. He had always been an active figure in the public life of his State. I may refer particularly to his work in connexion with the war. He was a thorough Britisher in the sense of ever striving to do that for which the Empire stands. His activities’ in connexion with our soldiers, which were brought particularly under my notice because of my association with theRepatriation Department, deserved the highest praise. He was at all times available to do what he could to alleviate the conditions in which our returned men necessarily found themselves. “Whilst a member of this Chamber his deep earnestness and great concern in the discharge of what he thought to be his duty, in spite of failing health, must have impressed us all. I venture to say that, had it not been for his conscientious desire, and his determination to stand to the post to which he had been called, possibly he would have prolonged his days somewhat. During his term here we learned to respect and admire the late Senator John Adamson for his blunt honesty and sincerity of purpose. Therefore, I submit the motion with the full confidence thatall senatorswill earnestly join in extending to his widow and family that sympathy which we undoubtedly feel.
– It is my duty to join with the Minister in charge of the Senate (Senator E. D. Millen) in express ing the regret we all feel at the death of Senator John Adamson and our sympathy with his relatives. The late senator did not enjoy a prolonged period amongst us., but we all know that he had won for himself a favorable name and an honorable position in the State of Queensland. The personality of the man was unmistakable. My slight acquaintance with him only confirmed me in the high opinion I had formed of him from his reputation in Queensland. It is with most sincere regret that I now join with the Leader of the Senate in mourning the loss of one of the most distinguished members ever sent by the people of Queensland to this Chamber.
– As an old friend and colleague of the late Senator Adamson, I should like to indorse the remarks made by the Minister for Repatriation (Senator E. D. Millen) and the Leader of the Opposition (Senator Gardiner). I knew him for a long time before he entered politics. He left the ministry of the Church to take an active part in the public affairs of his State, and I may add that his sympathies were always with the suffering and the oppressed. In everything he did he sought to uplift those whom we may call the “ working classes “ of this country. His political career was at times very stormy and his fortunes changeable. The Minister forRepatriation has referred to one incident in connexion with the late war, in which the late honorable senator took such an active part. He resigned his position in the Queensland Ministry owing, as the Leader of the Senate has remarked, to a difference of opinion with his colleagues. He came out of the Ministry and stood for what he considered to be the true ideal of a Democracy, namely, that every Democrat should serve his country during such a crisis. I may be excused if I refer to something that occurred at a public meeting which I attended with the late honorable senator during the conscription campaign in Queensland, but I shall not mention the name of the town, because the incident does not redound to its credit. As we left the meeting the mob became so unruly that the late honorable senator was felled by a stone which struck him on the head, and we were obliged to take shelter in a railway carriage under police protection.
I refer to that episode because it demonstrates in what mariner occasionally a man may be treated for honestly endeavouring to serve his country. I wish, also, to express my deep sympathy with the late honorable senator’s family. His health had been failing for a long time before he became a member of this Senate. I join in the motion and wish to convey to his widow and family my deepest sympathy in their bereavement.
– I can hardly allow this occasion to pass -.without saying a few words, expressive of my sympathy with the family of the late Senator Adamson, because his unfortunate death had an important . bearing on my appearance in this’ . Chamber. I knew the late senator for a . number of years, and in circumstances quite different from those in which he appeared to other honorable senators. My acquaintance with him did not, perhaps, extend over such a long period as was indicated by the honorable senator who preceded me, but I saw a good deal of him for many years before he entered this Parliament, and I formed the very highest opinion of him as a man of his word and as one who held, perhaps, too strongly, in view of the uncertainty of human affairs, to his political -beliefs. Probably this trait in his character . hastened his end, because we all know that in the discussion of political questions we sometimes speak too heatedly and expend a great deal of vital force, which in later life cannot readily be made up, and whose absence leads to catastrophe. On certain occasions, long before the war threw its dread shadows over the world, I was the recipient of little homilies from the late senator, - with whom I was on terms of friendship. I knew him as a highly cultured and widely read man, who had ‘ delved very deeply into those sources of - knowledge which are available to every one of a literary bent. I would like to say very much more ; but as this is an occasion when brevity is observed, I willmerely add my expressions of appreciation of the late Senator Adamson’s personality and join with others in conveying my deep sympathy to his widow and family..
Question resolved in the affirmative, honorable senators standing in - their places. .
– It is hardly necessary for me to inform the Senate that I shall take the earliest opportunity of forwarding the resolutions just passed to the widow of the late Honorable F.G. Tudor, and of the late Senator John. Adamson, together with copies of the speeches delivered this afternoon.
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– As a mark of respect to the late Honorable Frank Gwynne Tudor and the late Senator John Adamson, I move -
That the Senate do now adjourn.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
Senate adjourned at 4.7 p.m.
Cite as: Australia, Senate, Debates, 28 June 1922, viewed 22 October 2017, <http://historichansard.net/senate/1922/19220628_senate_8_99/>.