ffith, as Premier, foreshadowed this would be brought
forward in the session of 1892. I was returned as an opponent of black
labour, and thought it necessary to justify my support of the new
policy. To do so I obtained a letter of introduction to Mr. Neame, the
owner of Macknade, on the Herbert River. I had some practical experience
of what it was to work among cane, but did not give any hint of what
action I was going to take in the House. Eventually, I informed my
constituents of my change of views, and put myself in their hands. From
them I received a free hand to act on my own judgment. I voted for the
extension, and the House passed the bill.

1893 was the year of the great bank smash when so many institutions went
under, and eventually had to undergo reconstruction. In this difficult
time, Sir Hugh Nelson as Treasurer showed himself as an able and capable
financier. He received help and sympathy from the banks which weathered
the storm, but from none more than the General Manager of the
institution which held considerable Government moneys.

Retrenchment was the order of the day. Members salaries were reduced to
L150 per annum. Lively and acrimonious discussions continued during the
session, but Sir Hugh Nelson was firm in his resolutions to restore
confidence, and backed up by the majority of the members, he soon
allayed the panic.

A general election took place in this year, and I was again a candidate.
On arriving at Boulia, where I addressed a meeting, I learnt that Mr.
Wallace Nelson had been nominated by the Labour Party to oppose me, but
when I reached Winton after completion of the tour, I found that I had
been returned unopposed, Mr. Nelson's nomination paper being informal.
At the opening of the session I was twitted by Labour members of having
obtained the seat by an informality.

In those days I was not altogether a hardened politician, and felt
somewhat sensitive on the charge. I returned to Winton, called a meeting
to consider whether I should resign and contest another election, or
retain my position. The meeting, which was a large one and
representative, decided that I should retain the seat. I must say that
after taking this course, my opponents made but little allusion to the
way in which I had been elected, and then only in a joking, friendly
manner. The Government of which Sir Hugh Nelson was now Acting
Premier--McIlwraith having gone on a health tour--submitted its railway
proposals to a p