ourselves of it.  So much has been written and said about the attitude of the league with regard to Parliamentary candidates that, as its President, I feel that I ought to take this opportunity of stating our reasons for that attitude.  From its inception the league has declined to recognise parties in a contest at all.  Its sole concern has been, and must be to support effective voters, to whatever party they may belong.  To secure the just representation of the whole electorate of whatever size, is the work of the Effective Voting League, and, whatever the individual opinions of the members may be, as an official body they cannot help any candidate who opposes the reform for which they stand.

I remember meeting at a political meeting during a subsequent general election a lady whom I had known as an almost rabid Kingstonian.  But the party had failed to find a position for her son in the Civil Service, although their own sons were in that way satisfactorily provided for.  So she had thrown in her lot with the other side, which at the time happened to gain a few seats, and the lady was quite sure that her influence had won the day for her former opponents.  Leaning forward to whisper as if her next remark were too delicate for the ears of a gentleman sitting near, she said, “Do you know, I don’t believe the Premier has any backbone!” I laughed, and said that I thought most people held the same belief.  To my amusement and astonishment she then asked quite seriously, “Do you think that is why he stoops so much?” There was no doubt in her mind that the missing back bone had reference to the physical and not to the moral malformation of the gentleman in question.

CHAPTER XXII.

A VISIT TO NEW SOUTH WALES.

Early in the year 1900 the Hon. B. R. Wise, then Attorney-General of New South Wales, suggested a campaign for effective voting in the mother State, with the object of educating the people, so that effective voting might be applied for the first Federal elections.  Mrs. Young and I left Adelaide on May 10 of that year to inaugurate the movement in New South Wales.  During the few hours spent in Melbourne Professor Nanson, the Victorian leader of the reform, with another earnest worker (Mr. Bowditch), called on us, and we had a pleasant talk over the proposed campaign.  The power of The Age had already been felt, when, at the convention election, the 10 successful candidates were nominees of that paper, and at that time it was a sturdy opponent of proportional representation.  The Argus, on the other hand, had done yeoman service in the advocacy of the reform from the time that Tasmania had so successfully experimented with the system.  As we were going straight through to Sydney, we were able only to suggest arrangements for a possible campaign on our return.  Our Sydney visit lasted eight weeks, during which time we addressed between 20 and 30 public meetings.