Polling day for the Federal elections has been fixed for December the 16°h, and although the dailies have been doing their utmost to work up an exciting contest, it evident that the mass of electors take the Federal contest far more easily than the elections for the Sta'e Assembly. 'The atrugyle for the Federal House is spread over tve wide an area to do more than arouse w passing interest in the average man inthe street. Some of the electorates areon.a huge sea'e, nnd as far as size goes are kingdoms in' themselves, while to nine-tenths of the electors the candidates are but mere names. Nomination day is and seventeen Representatives have been returned unopposed, five of them in Victoria, including the Premier Mr. Deakin, and Sir George Turner the Treasurer.
For the four Victorian seats in the Senate eighteen candidates have bern nominated, including the lady aspirant. to political honours, Miss Vida Goldstein, Mr. Deakin's election speeches, both in this State and in New South Wales, sought to impress on the Australian public the cheapness of Federation, its cost during the first year amounting to 1s. 1d. per head of population; its present figure is slightly in advance of that having yone up to 1/6. As to the future he asks for fiscal besee, for which the trading community will be daly thankful.
Gri the question of preferential trade Mr, Deakin asks Mr. Chamberlain to come down to actual details, and these, when to hand, will meet with generous consideration.
The Cabinet's attitude on this question has been more fully described in a recent speech by Sir Guorge Turner. the policy of Australia should be Australia first, then Great Britain as near as possible, and let the foreigner lovk after himself. the Government proposal was to make the tariff wall a little higher against the foreigner," not to reduce it in favour of Great Britain.
Indications point to the fact that when Mr. Chamberlain comes to strike a bargain hereabouts, he will find that the seutimental feeling on which he so largely relies, has for the time to give way to purely business cousiderati The First Federal Parliament expired amid a blaze of compliments of its own production, It has, however, the meri of diligence. In two and a-half years it passed thirty-seven Acts, some of them of great importance; the Customs Act took up by far the largest proportion of its time. Some unkind critics declare that all the outside wont will remember it by is the incident of the "Six Hatters," and the attempt to whitewash all the sew of the world in order that no "eul'ud pusson shall have x band in the carriage of Australian mails.
The State Governor Recalled.
The Home Government have paid a great_compliment to Sir George Clarke, the State Governor of Victoria. He has been recalled to London to serve on a committee of three in the important task of reorganisins the War Office. Sic Geonze Clarke is an Artilleryman of large experience, and with a talent for who should m ko his mark "us task for which he has been chosen. 'The xppontment is " loss 10 Victoria, for during his two years' stay here Sir George be anensely lar, but it gives Australiv a feeling of personal interest in the work of the reorganising committee, Sir George and Lady Clarke took their departure from Melbourne last. week per Orient steamer Orontes, and Lieut.-Governor Sir John Mulden now reigns in his sted, Naval Notes, Some details of the new Naval Agreement are now announced. Those relating to the employment of native-born seamen are as follows 'A body vf 900 men is to be enlisted for permanent service and will revive local rates of pay. A portion of this body will in time be drafted into the new second-class cruiser Challevger, due to arrive on the station early next yea The remainder will be drafted into the ornisers Mildura, Tauranga, and Katoomba, which vessels are at present undergoing x refit, preparatory to being used 4s drill ships.
Tu addition local naval reserve to consist of 25 officers and 700 seamen is to be formed, and will be used to complete the personnel of the drill ships when required.
The naval cadet system is to be extended to both Australis and New Z-aland.
The Minister of Defence has been advised by the Admiralty that the Euryalus, which is to replace the Royal Arthur on the station xs flagship, will be comm ed at Portsmouth on the 5th of January. The new flagship is wu armoured cruiser of 2 placement, capable of stenming 21 knots. She is armed with two 9.2 guns, twelve 6-inch breechloa ters, fourteen twelve-pounder quick-frets, besides the usual light armament of machine guns.
A sister ship to the Challenger is "iso listed t" arrive later in the yer.
The auxiliary squadron "therefore will consist of H.M. S. Euryalus, Challenger, Encounter, Psyel Katoomba, Wallaroo, Tauranga, Mildura, Mutine, Penguin, 'Porch, and Lizard. Admiral Fanshawe will, 0" arrival of theEuryalas, transfer his flag' to that vessel, and the Koyal Arthur will proceed home with time-expired men.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.