Various

“ BLEAKLEY.—I am satisfied that the problems of Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Queensland are similar, but probably different altogether from those of New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. I do not think that members of the Conference have exactly grasped what we have in prospect in Queensland. We have a full-blooded aboriginal population of about 10,000, of which, say, one-third, or, at the most, 4,000 are living a nomadic life. ”

“ In my opinion, the Northern Territory cannot absorb all those people in employment, and, consequently, the question of disposing of the half-caste population arises. Should the total population reach 10,000, there will be work for, say, 3,000 of them. The problem will then arise as to who will do the work that is available. If half-castes are employed, the whites will be unemployed, and they will leave the country. If, on the other hand the whites are employed, the half-castes will be out of work, and will have to be maintained by the Commonwealth Government. ”

“ NEVILLE.—The opinion held by Western Australian authorities is that the problem of the native race, including half-castes, should be dealt with on a long-range plan. We should ask ourselves what will be the position, say, 50 years hence; it is not so much the position to-day that has to be considered. Western Australia has gone further in the development of such a long-range policy than has any other State, by accepting the view that ultimately the natives must be absorbed into the white population of Australia. ”

“ In Western Australian we have only a few institutions for the reception of half-caste illegitimate children, but there are hundreds living in camps close to the country towns under revolting conditions. It is infinitely better to take a child from its mother, and put it in an institution, where it will he looked after, than to allow it to be brought up subject to the influence of such camps. We allow the mothers to go to the institutions also, though they are separated from the children. The mothers are camped some distance away, while the children live in dormitories. ”

“ It is perhaps in regard to this class more than any others that drastic measures are needed for moral control and protection of females and suppression of miscegenation. The whole environment creates a taste for the delights of civilized life that are an irresistible snare to them, making them an easy prey to the unscrupulous white or alien.
In Queensland, for a quarter of a century, the marriage of whites and blacks has been rigidly restricted, and every encouragement has been given to marriage of cross breed aboriginals amongst their own race. ”

“ COOK.-In the Northern Territory, we have found that, given equal chances, the average half-caste is not inferior in mental ability to the average white child. It is true that the percentage of children of outstanding ability may be higher amongst the whites, but the half-caste has sufficient intelligence to give him the right to demand equal opportunity. In the past, we also had a special syllabus which brought the half-castes up to the standard of white children of about twelve years of age, but experience has shown us that they are capable of going beyond that. ”

“ In Queensland we distinguish between cross-breeds of definite aboriginal leanings, and those of civilised leanings. All young half-castes and also aborigines are given education and, where possible, vocational training. For years past the policy has been to give the intelligent and ambitious adult half-castes the opportunity to secure their freedom and maintain themselves in a civilized community, but we have found them sorely at a disadvantage by reason of racial, educational, and temperamental disabilities. ”

“ As far as citizenship rights are concerned, every aboriginal, whether full-blooded or otherwise, possesses a State vote, while every half-caste enjoys a vote for Federal purposes. Except when they are on the reserves, and except that they are not allowed to obtain liquor, they enjoy all the rights and privileges of the white people. They may join unions, work where they like, and live where they like. ”

“ METFORD.—An aboriginal woman, or a woman in whom there is a preponderance of aboriginal blood, may not receive the maternity allowance. There is nothing in the act to debar a half-caste mother from receiving the allowance, and it is paid to all such. The act does not define an aboriginal or a half-caste. The law provides that the allowance shall be paid to the mother of the child. There is no provision for it to be paid to any one else. The act would have to be amended to enable payment to be made to any one besides the mother. ”

“ Perhaps we could deal first with the natives of other than full blood and then those of full blood. The full-blooded natives are not of much concern, really, in New South Wales and Victoria, or in South Australia, for they are so few in number; but the natives of less than full blood are of concern to all of us. If we could deal with the position of the natives of less than full blood we could perhaps then go back to the very important and serious position of the Northern Territory, outlined for us by Dr. Cook. ”

“ Statements have been made from time to time about aboriginal girls in domestic service becoming pregnant. In New South Wales, we throw the responsibility on the employer for the physical and moral well-being of apprentices. As a matter of fact, the number of girls who get into trouble is negligible. Most of them serve right through their apprenticeship, and continue in the same employment for years. We consider that if we can keep them away from the dangers of camp life until they reach years of discretion we are doing good work. ”

“ It is generally said that the locality in which they settle becomes a hotbed of immorality, and that the low-class whites take drink to them and encourage them to lend their women to the white hoboes of the town. Lack of employment has been one of the main stumbling blocks. We have not been able, in recent years, to find employment for our white population, and this makes it very difficult to find work for aborigines. Moreover, when work is found for them it is difficult to keep them at it constantly. The men are very ready to leave one job for another, or for no job at all. ”

“ Another matter upon which we differ from Queensland is in the fundamental character of the natives. Mr. Bleakley has mentioned settlements and cultivation; our experience is that one can never make a farmer out of a native—seldom even out of a half-caste. In Western Australia blocks of land have been granted to the natives and all that they have done is to build humpies and then sit down. Without constant supervision it is impossible to make them cultivate land. Then we have the important difference between the female and the male. ”

“ The difference in reliability, independence and ability to maintain themselves is very marked in half-castes from institutions and those who have grown up in outback areas and have had to fend for themselves, more or less. The half-caste who has grown up in the bush is able to take his place as a workman and is generally considered by employers to be fairly competent. That is not so true of half-castes who have grown up in institutions. This leads to the conclusion that half-castes should be encouraged to leave institutions and mingle more freely with the general public. ”

“ I do not say that very much progress is likely to be made by the father and mother. They will always be a difficulty, but their children will have a better opportunity than if kept on an institution. The ultimate result will be that the children will attain to a degree of self-reliance and self-respect that will give them a definitely improved status. In regard to what Mr. Bleakley said about half-caste communities our experience is that these people are quite unwilling to do any service in return for what is done for them unless they receive payment. ”

“ To do all these things into which we in Western Australia have put our hearts, will require much greater expenditure than is at present allowed for native welfare purposes. The present level of expenditure for this purpose in Western Australia is ridiculous. My calculation is that, excluding the 10,000 full blooded natives in Western Australia who are considered to be outside the influence of civilisation, the cost incurred to ensure the well-being of each native is 30s. ”

“ NEVILLE.—Dr. Cook referred to the problem of preserving the full-blooded aborigine, and I agree largely with what he said. In my opinion, however, the problem is one which will eventually solve itself. There are a great many full-blooded aborigines in Western Australia living their own natural lives. They are not, for the most part, getting enough food, and they are, in fact, being decimated by their own tribal practices. In my opinion, no matter what we do, they will die out. ”

“ More recently, two coloured men, suspected of being involved in the murder of a white man, were taken from the police and burnt to death. Such things happen to-day in a community not very different from our own. There is at present no evidence of any such attitude towards the coloured people in Australia, for in this country the aboriginal native is regarded with contemptuous tolerance. But when he has been elevated to a position almost equal to that of a white conflict may be expected unless that stage is reached only after enlightened development. ”

“ The detribalization of the natives I have in mind with the admixture of white blood would increase the expenditure of the State, so it would pay us better to keep those people intact, than to try to improve them and help them socially. Another suggestion I have to make is that in compiling a census of the population of Australia we should include every one, and not exclude half-castes and full-blooded aborigines. ”

“ In Victoria, many of the half-castes have been living under civilised conditions for five generations, and they would raise an outcry, in which they would receive support from white people, if any effort were made to deal with them on lines upon which it is proposed to deal with half-castes in Western Australia. Our experience in Victoria is that half-castes will do work under supervision, but they cannot be trusted alone. ”

“ I agree that it is difficult to get them to do any such work; they have to be kept under constant supervision. They are employed on clearing land, road construction, dairying and similar pursuits. Our principle difficulty is that as soon as a girl becomes competent to take a position as domestic servant and enters domestic service, it is no time before she comes back to the Lake Tyers Station either pregnant or, worse still, with two or three little children. It is difficult in a State with a large white population to prevent such things from happening. ”

“ If we had sufficient capital to make those cattle stations more productive the demands upon the Treasury would be reduced as has happened in Queensland. It is impossible to do what this Conference suggests should be done on an expenditure of 30s. a hold for each native. All we can do is to maintain the existing services, and provide the indigent with a certain quantity of food and clothing. The food is neither sufficient nor of the right kind. It lacks the very things that the people need. The natives in our Sate exist on four articles, meat, tea, flour and sugar. ”

“ He is fond of horses, and makes a good rider. The natives' tracking ability and knowledge of the country, particularly their own country, make them valuable employees. We have found that even the semi-civilised need protection and control, otherwise they become a menace to the white race by reason of their low social conditions, and their susceptibility to disease and illnesses, which, in a white community, we are better able to control. In Queensland, as I have said, perhaps not more than 9,000 of these people are living on reserves and, of course, are under supervision. ”

“ The number of half-castes in certain parts of Australia is increasing, not as a result of additional influx of white blood, but following on inter-marriage amongst themselves, where they are living under protected conditions, such as at the Government aboriginal stations at Point Pearce and Point McLeay, in South Australia. This may be the beginning of a possible problem of the future. A very unfortunate situation would arise if a large half-caste population breeding within themselves eventually arose in any of the Australian States. ”

“ PETTITT.—Although the New South Wales act defines an aboriginal as a full-blooded or half-caste black, the definition goes further and includes the words "any person having apparently an admixture of aboriginal blood". There have not been many instances in which objection has been taken to the provision preventing such people from obtaining drink. It may be desirable that the act of New South Wales should go further and provide that it shall be an offence for an aboriginal to be found in the possession of liquor. ”