Western Australia and - Federation Perhaps it was with an eye
upon the Imperial Conference that Sir James Mitchell, the Premier of Western Australia, sent to the Times of Tuesday, a letter obviously intended to rally those who consider that Western Australia ought to secede from the Commonwealth of Australia. Western Australia has long been oppressed by a sense of being the Cinderella of Australia. The State is remote from the others, it is poorly populated, and it considers that it is grossly over-taxed for what favours it receives. The Premier himself sees no solution but secession. He has no hope of better treatment as Federal affairs are con- ducted at present. The crumbling of the Federation and the emergence of an independent Western Australia surrounded by tariffs of her own would be a very serious matter—much too serious in our judgment to be approved on the special pleading of the Premier. If the grievances of Western Australia are not remediable within the Federation that impossibility has yet to be proved. We should be surprised if the Australians, now in a mood to tackle their difficulties valiantly, had not the wit and the spirit to tackle this one too.
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