SECOND
- JHEEBPrfllwi
EDITION
M O D E R N P U B L I S H E R S P T Y . LIMITED
124 Oxford Street, Sydney
S e p t e m b e r , 1987.
WHO OWNS
AUSTRALIA?
by
J. N. RAWLING, B.A.
M O D E R N P U B L I S H E R S P T Y . LIMITED
Mcllrath's Buildings
::
Oxford Street, Sydney
CONTENTS
1.—The Question.
2.—Iron Men.
3.—The Banking Ring.
4.—Who's Who and W h a t .
5.—Cement, Drugs, Clothes, and Ships.
6.—On the Land.
7.—Sugar, Press, Insurance and Coal.
8.—Rich Richer, Poor Poorer.
9.—Lending to Governments.
WHO OWNS AUSTRALIA?
1.—THE QUESTION
To one who repeats, with complete approval of t h e sentiment
contained, t h e words of t h e poet—
" B r e a t h e s t h e r e t h e m a n w i t h soul so dead,
Who never to himself h a t h said:
'This is my own, my native l a n d ' "—
t h e question, "Who Owns Australia?" may appear foolish. But
there are f a c t s t h a t should call for thought. Dire poverty,
malnutrition of children, horrible and soul-destroying slums, the
dole, "relief" work, the horrors of our public hospitals, "benevolent" institutions, and other "charitable" organisations, the
Woolworth stores a t whose counters "jewellery" m a y be bought
for 3d., 6d., a n d 1/-, t h e myriad agencies for extracting from
the worker a n d his family t h e last penny of their pitiful
pittance—these on t h e one h a n d . And on t h e other the flaunting
by the few of wealth a n d luxury, their over-eating, over-drinking
a n d waste, the pampering of their children, t h e palaces and
mansions t h e y live in, their command of the purchasing power
to buy t h e best of everything a n d all they desire. If those who
endure the former own Australia it seems time t h a t they inquired why they don't receive a fair s h a r e of w h a t is produced.
But, if possession is nine points of t h e law, t h e n it is the few
who are the owners a n d t h e m a n y who are the slaves.
We reiterate t h e question: "Who Owns Australia?"
Other people may regard this question as a dangerous one—
striking at the very foundations of our institutions and, if it is
reiterated too frequently or too vehemently, they m a y call for
the censor or the policeman or both. Of such, evidently, are
members of the Federal government, for they will not give us
any aid in our search for our owners. Their census r e t u r n s
respect the modesty of these very modest fellows who are n o t
a t all like the feudal nobles of mediaeval Europe, whom all
their serfs knew t o be their lords and masters. Ours m a s querade behind n u m e r o u s trade names, very seldom come out
into the open, a n d do not allow even their n a m e s to get into
"Who's Who." T h e doctor does not get his fees, the small
business m a n becomes b a n k r u p t , the f a r m e r h a s to give u p his
land, the worker loses his employment or p a r t of his wages—
but the millionaires become fewer a n d richer a n d more powerful.
But who these last are, w h a t they own, how they control us
all, how they wax richer by everything we do, eat, drink, see,
h e a r and wear, few have any but vague ideas.
The 1933 census gave a total population for Australia of
6,629,839.* Of these, 207,680 were employers; 481,044 were u n e m ployed—but did not include "pensioners," "persons of private
means," or "helpers not receiving wages or salary." I t should
be evident t h a t n o n e of t h a t half-a-million unemployed would
be included among t h e owners of Australia. But t h e census does
some classifying for us. According to t h e census t h e r e were
3,155,621 "bread-winners"—though how m u c h bread could be
won by the 392,435 of t h e m who had no income at all remains
a mystery. Then there were 875,503 who won a crust—receiving
incomes of less t h a n £52 per a n n u m . 573,611 won a couple of
crusts with incomes from £52 to £103. Incomes of £104 to £155
allowed 375,686 to have a meal now a n d again. 307,199 other
bread-winners received incomes of £156 to £207, a n d 240,280
others incomes of £208 to £259. T h a t is as f a r as we are allowed
to go. We must not inquire about how m a n y crusts are crunched
by the molars of the 331,737 bread-winners who received £260
and more a n d their fledglings. There is a world of m e a n i n g in
those two words "and more"!
This we can say, of t h e 3,155,621
bread-winners, 2,764,714 received less t h a n £5 per week, and this
too: the owners of Australia will be found among a very small
percentage of t h e 331,737 with incomes over £5 per week.** T h a t
is as f a r as we can go with the census—Mr. Lyons classifies t h e
bank-teller or t h e lucky coal-miner with Baillieu or Hordern:
each receives over £5 per week!
*—Population in 1891, 3,174,392; m - 1901, 3,773,801; in 1911, 4,455,005;
in 1921 5 435 734.
—59,170 '"'did not s t a t e " income. I n addition, there were 218,616 "dep e n d a n t s " with incomes; 8755 of t h e m with incomes of over £5 per week.
BREAD-WINNERS
5
We have to seek elsewhere for the owners of Australia.
An owner of anything—a house, a horse, a five-pound note—
can use it for his own purposes: enjoy it, use it, give it away.
He owns it; he has control of it. I t is this double aspect t h a t
h a s to be taken into account when we speak of t h e ownership
of a country. Not merely nominal ownership, but also the power
to control—both of these are implied in our conception of ownership of a country. How can a country and its wealth be owned?
In six ways, it would seem.
Firstly, by straight-out ownership, individually or by a company
in which individuals have shares. So, a m a n or a company
m a y own a factory, a retail store, a bank, a station of square
miles in extent. Secondly, by controlling a company, and, t h e r e fore, everything it owns or controls, by m e a n s of a preponderance
of shares in it or seats on its directorate. Thirdly, by m e a n s of
mortgages a n d liens held over properties.
Fourthly, by m e a n s
of holding a monopoly of the supply of raw materials, loans,
or credits to businesses, so t h a t the nominal owners become the
servants of the monopolist.
Fifthly, by the investing of money
in a country in the form of governmental or municipal loans.
Sixthly, by controlling public opinion t h r o u g h the agencies of
press, cinema, etc. I n all of these ways we shall And t h e ownership of the bulk of t h e wealth of Australia a n d its vast resources
concentrated into t h e h a n d s of a few individuals.
One sure guide to the identity of these our masters lies in the
lists of directors of companies. The f a c t t h a t certain individuals
are directors of a company implies t h a t they have or represent
important interests in t h a t company. And when we find t h e
same individuals as directors of other companies we get some
inkling of the t r u t h , t h a t t h e r e is a vast interlocking betwesn
enterprises which gives control of t h e m all into the h a n d s of
very few. This is w h a t we do And—on a vast scale. Directors
or former directors of banks, export agencies, insurance companies, coal companies, shipping combines are directors or former
directors of companies engaged in practically every other h u m a n
activity. Moreover, while it is impossible for us to know the
full extent of t h e interests and investments of every individual,
every bank, every company, in other enterprises, we do learn
from time to time m u c h of all this so t h a t we obtain a reliable
synopsis, astounding in its revelations of an oligarchy's power,
more pervading a n d more relentless t h a n a n y t h i n g t h a t was
ever d r e a m t of in the days of feudal barons or absolute monarchs.
Wd eat and we sleep, we build houses and we travel by t r a i n or
ship, we read newspapers a n d books, we go to t h e pictures or
t h e theatre, we pay a penny to go into a lavatory or threepence
to change into a b a t h i n g costume and policemen to see t h a t
we do so—whether we are awake or asleep, f r o m before we
are born till a f t e r we are buried—often long after—we, worker
and tradesman, professional m a n and farmer, m a n and woman,
boy and girl, pay tribute to t h e modern feudal aristocracy and
its army of retainers. And t h e few at the top become richer
a n d richer and t h e mass of the people poorer a n d poorer.
2.—IRON MEN
Iron and steel constitute the most i m p o r t a n t industry in the
world today. Iron and steel are used in practically every kind
of constructional work. The export of iron a n d steel has determined foreign policy. With iron and steel, a r m a m e n t s are made.
The iron and steel industry, therefore, is f u n d a m e n t a l in a
nation's economy. Let us look a t Australia's iron and steel
industry.
We find t h a t the whole iron and steel industry of Australia
centres around t h a t giant octupus, the Broken Ilill Proprietary,
Ltd.—which owns coal and metal mines and steelworks and m a n y
things else. Who own it?
I have before me, as I write, a list of those of its shareholders
who own more t h a n 5000 shares each.
At August 26, 1936, the
n u m b e r of shares was 5,220,371. Of these, 3,240,625 were fully
paid u p to £1, in Melbourne; 497,083 fully paid up to £1, in London;
1,336,515 of a new issue paid up to various amounts, in Melbourne, and 146,148, ditto, in London.
Let us look a t the Melbourne list.
The following is a list of the holdings in Melbourne of blocks
of over 5000 shares, fully paid up:—
Name
Harold G. Darling )
Robert G. Meares
)
Francis H. Mitchell) jointly
Cecil H. Hoskins
)
J. G. M c C a n n
)
|
jointly
Shares
750,000
65,386
22,850
Perpetual Trustees, Sydney
Elder S m i t h a n d Co., Ltd
Chas. B. Kellow
Howard Smith, Ltd
Australian Provincial Assurance
Geoffrey Syme
Sidney Myer (deceased)
Philip Russell
Reg. C h a m p (C/o Lysaght Bros., Sydy.)
Essington Lewis
Beatrice Baillieu
Assets Propty., Ltd
Pooled Assets Propy., Ltd
18.390
17,900
17,000
16,400
16,000
15,224
15,100
12,000
11,000
10,205
9,750
9,450
8,700
B.H.P. SHARES
7
r S u n
1****
Orient S t e a m Navigation, Ltd
Edward L. H. Baillieu
Mrs. Hilda A. Carter
J a m e s M. D u n l o p
1 , • ,
Wm. P . Dunlop
\
Herbert Lysaght
Guy Fisher
J o h n Tester
S- jointly
Claude H. Fisher
)
Investive Ltd
George E. Hannerv
J o h n H. D a t t
*
Robert O. Blackwood
A. W. P a l f r e y m a n
Charles B. Reid
1
S. Reid
I . .
Agnes M. Rynie
| Jolntly
F r a n c i s O. EbsworthJ
Kobert C. Meares
Leonard Darling
Harold G. Darling
N o r m a n Darling
MCO
7,550
6,600
6,603
„
°'570
5,800
5,600
5,500
5,500
5,500
5,194
5,161
. „„„
5 009
'
5,000
3,334
3,333
3,333
The following are from the Melbourne Register. Similar blocks
of shares of the new issue, paid up to 10/-:—
Nam:
Harold G. Darling ) 1 n i n t l v
N o r m a n Darling
) •iolnUy
W m . C. Angliss
Albert E. Young
) inint]u
Leslie L. Ashton
) JO!nUy
A r t h u r Birch
Edward L. II. Baillieu
Ghas. B. Kellow
Sir George Tallis
Elder S m i t h a n d Co., Ltd
Geoffrey Syme
Alfred Campbell
A. J. J. Lucas Pty., Ltd
A.P.A
Philip Russell
Perpetual Trustees
Stanley J . S. Pascoe
Essington Lewis
Beatrice Baillieu
Harold G. Darling
N o r m a n Darling
Leonard Darling
,
Shares
„ firn
'">e93
17,984
1G 3 2 5
15,300
11,059
11,000
9,375
8,950
7,612
7,555
7,375
7,000
6,000
t>.872
5,400
5,102
4,875
2,917
1,666
1,666
A similar list from the London Register is as follows: —
Name
B r a n c h Nominees, Ltd
Chas. F. Courtney
Midland B a n k
N.Z. Mercantile a n d T r u s t Agency
Realization a n d Debenture Corpn. of Scotland
Eranch
Nominees, Ltd
Fully P a i d - u p
Shares
18,500
10,000
5,790
5,000
5,000
p a i d - u p to 10/15,500
The Broken Ilill Proprietary, Ltd. is a huge company owning
iron a n d coal mines, smelting works, rolling mills, etc. But its
importance does not consist merely in t h e works it directly a n d
openly owns. R a t h e r is it all-important in the Australian scheme
of things economical, financial and. industrial—and, we m u s t
add, political—because it is the h u b of the hub, the sum around
which revolves the whole of Australian secondary economy. It
is closely linked with the primary industries as well. To be more
explicit, we mean, when we say t h a t it is the centre of our
economic solar system, t h a t the few individuals who are t h e
directors and the principal shareholders of the B.H.P. are also
the chief directors of, and principal shareholders in, m a n y other
companies t h a t own a n d control not only a vast proportion of
the wealth of Australia, but, in so doing, also the lives and destinies of the masses of t h e Australian people.
When we u n m a s k the identity of the modest individuals who
masquerade behind the masks of these seemingly independent
companies, we shall make the acquaintance of a goodly proportion of the real owners of Australia. "The fortunes of some of
Australia's wealthiest families, pastoral as well as financial, h a d
their foundations built of Broken Hill silver-lead; Victoria, South
Australia, and the Speck, as well as New South Wales, have all
shares in it." * Iron aftd steel, tin and zinc, gold a n d silver, coal
a n d banks, beer a n d biscuits, rubber a n d textiles, papers a n d
paper, timber and ships, cement a n d sheep, moving pictures a n d
jam, trading in wool and wheat, dockworks and railways, trustee
and insurance companies, glass and gas—of all these and more
the B.H.P. m a g n a t e s are t h e owners a n d controllers.
Let us have a look at a little more of the detail of these varied
interests of these versatile if modest men. One of the richest
families in Australia is the Baillieu family. Consider the interests
of one of its members. In 1932, C. L. Ballieu was a director of
each of the following companies:—
Carlton and United Breweries Ltd.; Carlton Brewery Ltd.;
Austral Silk and Cotton Mills Ltd.; Electrolytic Zinc Co. of Australasia Ltd.; E.S. & A. Bank Ltd.; Dunlop Rubber Co. Ltd.;
National Smelting Co. Ltd.; New Zealand Loan and Mercantile
Agency Co. Ltd.; S t a n d a r d Trust Ltd.; Yarra Falls Ltd.; Zinc
Corporation Ltd.; Austral Development Ltd.; Austral Metals Ltd.;
Austral Trust Ltd.; Australian Ore and Metal Co. Pty. Ltd.;
British Non-Ferorus Mining Corporation Ltd.; Brotect Celleum
Fibres Ltd.; Gold Mines of Australia Ltd.; River Plate British a n d
Continental Meat Co. Ltd.; Scottish Stock Holders I n v e s t m e n t
Trust Ltd.; Tetuite Mining Corporation Ltd.; Western N.S.W.
Electric Power Pty. Ltd.; Durani Syndicate Ltd.; Imperial Smelting Corporation Ltd.; National Mineral Development Ltd.
'"—Wild Cat Monthly, 4/5/'36.
INTELLIGENCE AND OPPORTUNITY
9
We may p e r h a p s marvel at the s u p e r - h u m a n intelligence of a
m a n who can direct so m a n y such diverse undertakings, and agree
t h a t it is proper t h a t his family—which produced this prodigy—
should control the £70,000,000 t h a t it does control! We lesser
mortals must t a x our lesser intelligence by working out the
problem of how to live on t h e basic wage or how to feed our
children on the dole. But we should not grumble, for, as t h e
press so often tells us, this is the land of opportunity, and we
could all be Baillieus if only we would, as the Yorkshireman says,
f r a m e . Failing such " f r a m i n g " on our part, may the Lord give
us the patience and the power to rest content in the position in
which he has placed us!
The B.H.P. itself has important, ii not controlling interests in
the following companies:—
Australian Iron a n d Steel Ltd.; Broken Hill Pty. By-Products;
Stewarts and Lloyds; Australian Wire Rope Works; Vickers Commonwealth Steel Products; Bullivant's Aust. Pty. Ltd.; Rylands
Bros. (Aust.) Ltd.; Structural Engineering Co. of W.A.; Lysaght
Bros.; Wellington Alluvials (Geld Mines, N.S.W.); H a n n a n ' s North,
Kalgoorlie (W.A.).
AUSTRALIAN IRON AND STEEL
An i m p o r t a n t concern in the iron and steel industry is Australian Iron and Steel Ltd. This company was formed in 1928,
taking over the Hoskins Iron and Steel Co. Ltd. The ordinary
shares of the new company were held as follows: Hoskins interests, 1,200,000; Howard Smith Ltd., 800,000; Dorman, Long &
Co. Ltd., 600,000; and Baldwin's Ltd., 100,000. In 1935, however,
when Australian Iron and Steel was in difficulties, the B.H.P.
got control of it and its interests. The B.H.P. paid 750,000 of its
own shares to the A.I. & S. shareholders in r e t u r n for their
2,700,000 A.I. & S. shares. The A.I. & S. hold shares in other
companies—chiefly in Southern Portland Cement a n d Southern
Blue Metal Quarries, Ltd.
Another of the Broken Hill group of companies is Broken Ilill
South Ltd. I t h a s a capital of 800,000 and holds about the same
a m o u n t in shares in other companies. The list is as follows:—
B.H. Associated Smelters Pty. Ltd., £245,000; Electrolytic Zinc
Co. (Aust.) Ltd., £150,000; British Australian Lead Manufacturers
Pty. Ltd., £20,000; Globe Pty. Ltd., £11,250; Zinc Producers Assn.
Ltd., £720; B. H. Co-operative Cooling Assn. Pty. Ltd., £600; Aust.
Ore and Metal Pty. Ltd., £400; Amal. Metal Corpn. Ltd. (United
Kingdom), £21,110; Electrolytic Refining and Smelting Co. Aust.
Ltd., £16,018; Imperial Smelting Corpn. Ltd. (United Kingdom),
£33,290; I.C.I, of Aust. and N.Z. Ltd., £13,337; Metal M a n u f a c t u r e r s
Pty. Ltd., £13,542; Shale Oil Investigations Pty. Ltd., £12,500; Western N.S.W. Electric Power P t / . Ltd., £160,000.
There is a great deal of water* in Broken Hill South—so much,
in fact, t h a t its nominal dividends for the years 1924 to 1930 of
35 per cent., 35 per cent., 50 per cent., 65 per cent., 45 per cent.,
22£ per cent, a n d 22i per cent., were respectively 294 per cent.,
294 per cent., 421 per cent., 547 per cent., 378 per cent., 189 per
cent., a n d 189 per cent, on t h e money actually invested by the
shareholders! Surely a gold mine—not a silver mine.
The chief other companies of t h e Broken Hill group are:—
AMALGAMATED ZINC (DE BAVAYS) LTD.—This company is
a Victorian one with an authorised and fully paid capital of
£200,000. I t holds shares in the following proportions:—
Minerals Separation a n d de Bavays Processes Aust. Pty. Ltd.,
£443,250; Mining and Metallurgical Processes Pty. Ltd., £5000;
Metals Producing Syndicate, N.L., £3500; Zinc Producers Assn.
Pty. Ltd., £960; Barrier Roaster Co. Pty. Ltd., £10,000; T a s m a n i a n
Paper Pty. Ltd., £50,000.
NORTH BROKEN HILL LTD.—Paid capital of £700,000. Watered
capital since 1910—£435,000. Reserves £2,480,831. I t holds the
following shares:—
B.H. Associated Smelters Pty. Ltd., £300,000; Electrolytic Zinc
Co. A/asia. Ltd., £150,000; British Metal Corpn. Ltd., £21,250;
British Australian Lead M a n u f a c t u r e r s Pty. Ltd., £46,000; Globe
Pty. Ltd., £15,000; Zinc Producers Assn. Pty. Ltd., £1470; Australian Ore a n d Metal Co. Pty. Ltd., £500.
ELECTROLYTIC ZINC CO. OF AUSTRALASIA LTD.—Paid capital of £2,600,000; reserves, £545,186. I n 1920 it offered 1,100,000
cum. pref. shares to shareholders in the following companies
which were apparently taken:—
Amalgamated Zinc (de Bavays) Ltd.; North Broken Hill Ltd.;
South Broken Hill Ltd.; Zinc Corpn. Ltd.; Mount Read a n d Roseberry Mines Ltd.; Mount Lyell Mining a n d Railway Co. Ltd.
The net profits of Electrolytic Zinc for the years ending J u n e
30, 1935 and 1936, were respectively £256,020 a n d £322,864.
MOUNT LYELL MINING AND RAILWAY CO. LTD.—The paid
capital of this company is £1,550,000 with reserves of £1,443,251.
I t s history is as follows. I n 1903 it was reconstructed for t h e third
time and a m a l g a m a t e d with North Mt. Lyell Copper Co. It t h e n
began to swallow every holding of importance within reach. Lyell
T j arsis, Mt. Lyell Comstock, Mt. Lyell Blocks, West Lyell, North
Prince a n d Chester leases sped one a f t e r a n o t h e r into the gaping
maw. I n 1912 a hydro-electric plant was erected at Lake M a r garet. The company also built chemical (superphosphate) works
at Yarraville (Vic.), Port Adelaide (S.A.) and Fremantle (W.A.).
* W h e n a company builds u p reserves a n d t h e n calls those reserves
capital, issuing free shares t o its shareholders, it is said to " w a t e r " its
capital.
POISON GAS
11
The Port Adelaide interests were t a k e n over, t h e Wallaroo-Mt
Lyell Fertiliser Co. in 1931 a n d the Fremantle interests by Mt.
Lyell Farmers' Fertilisers Ltd. I n 1927 it bought a large interest
in Australian Fertilisers Pty. Ltd., which supplies New South
Wales and Queensland markets. It h a s the following holdings:—
Commonwealth Fertilisers and Chemicals Ltd., £283,931; Cuming Smith and Mt. Lyell Fertilisers, £400,000; Aust. Fertilisers Pty.
Ltd., £93,750; Metal Manufacturers Pty. Ltd., £196,817; Zinc Producers Assn. Pty. Ltd., £250.
NEW BROKEN HILL CONSOLIDATED LTD.—The latest creation of the Broken Hill group with a nominal capital of £600,000
is a holding company. Its m e m o r a n d u m of association listed t h e
following objects:—
(i) To acquire from Zinc Corpn. Ltd., its holding of 71,693 pref.
shares of £1 each and 229,224 ordinary shares of 2 / - share each in
the capital of Barrier South Ltd.
(ii) From other members of Barrier South Ltd. their shares on
similar terms. Mineral leases in southern section of Broken Hill
field. Whole of issued s h a r e capital of Aplite Syndicate Pty. Ltd.,
and of Gresliam Syndicate Pty. Ltd., two Victorian companies.
IRON AND POISON QAS
Besides dominating the whole of modern economy, the iron and
steel industry is the war industry par excellence. Ships, guns,
shells, torpedoes, aeroplanes, tanks—without iron and steel
modern w a r f a r e would be impossible: t h a t goes without saying.
But, another pre-requisite of modern civilised warfare is gas.
And poison gas m a n u f a c t u r e in Britain is the monopoly of the
Imperial Chcmical Industries Ltd., with a capital of £70,000,000
and closely linked with a r m a m e n t s , oil, diamonds, nickel, lead,
finance—in Britain, Germany, U.S.A., Holland, Canada, South
Africa, Burma, Belgium, and—Australia!
It is a n interesting sidelight on the British Royal Commission
on the Private Manufacture of and Trade in Arms t h a t its c h a i r m a n Sir J o h n Eldon Bankes, held 1000 preference, 765 ordinary
and 170 deferred shares in I.C.I. He was probably appointed on
the principle of setting a thief to catch a thief.*
Now, the I.C.I, has extensive interests in Australia, is closely
linked with B.H.P. iron and, prior to 1929, h a d extensive or dominating holdings in the following companies, in some of which
t h e B.H.P. people also h a d interests:
Imperial Chemical Industries (Australasia), Ltd.; B r u n n e r
Mond and Co. (Australasia), Pty., Ltd.; Leathercloth Pty., Ltd.;
He tried to stop Mr. Poliitt f r o m going on a n d reaching his n a m e
when t h e latter was giving a list of p r o m i n e n t shareholders in a r m a m e n t
firms.
R. F. Higgs, Ltd.; Australian Fertilisers Pty., Ltd.; British Australian Fertilisers Pty., Ltd.; British Australian Lead M a n u f a c turers Pty., Ltd.; S t a n d a r d Ammonia Co. (Sydney), Ltd.;
Wallaroo-Mt. Lyell Fertilisers, Ltd.; Metal M a n u f a c t u r e r s Pty.,
Ltd.; Victoria Ammonia Co., Ltd.; Consumers' Ammonia Co., Ltd.;
Ammonia Co. of Sydney, Ltd.; A.C.F. and Shirley's Fertilisers,
Ltd.
In 1929, however, a gigantic merger was effected of the whole
of the Australian chemical industry.
The Commonwealth Fertilisers and Chemicals Ltd. was born, with a nominal capital of
£7,000,000. It drew in Cuming Smith a n d Co., Pty., Ltd., Wischor
and Co., Pty., Ltd., and Nobel (Australasia), Ltd.—and holds a
controlling interest in Australian Fertilisers, Ltd.
I n between
wars it is concerned to replenish the earth's fertility!
BROKEN IIILL BOUNDARY RIDER
The B.H.P. interests were born, as the n a m e makes evident, in
t h a t hill of the Barrier Ranges which h a s given its n a m e to the
modern city of Broken Hill. There, fifty-two years ago, "Charles
Rasp, a boundary rider on a far-western N.S.W. sheep-run, pegged
out a portion of a barren ridge in a grazing paddock t h a t was to
become known as one of the greatest silver-lead deposits in the
world," and began a history t h a t "has been a grimly interesting
record of d e a t h and dividends." Between 1888 and 1931, "502
m e n met violent d e a t h s . . .; 1153 suffered serious injuries, while
609 have been registered as suffering from lead-poisoning. . . .
These figures do not include . . . thousands of men who worked
until work became a physical impossibility, a n d t h e n coughed
their lives away with tuberculosis." During the same time, about
£35,000,000 was distributed among the shareholders of the mining
companies in the form of dividends and bonuses! An excellent
outline of the price paid by t h e workers and their children for
t h a t wealth for the few is given by Mr. W. J. Thomas in his
pamphlet, "Death a n d Dividends."
Mr. Thomas shows how one of the richest B.H. companies,
North Broken Hill Ltd., is linked up, t h r o u g h three Ballieu directors and W. S. Robinson, with the Zinc Corporation, whose m a n a g ing director Herbert Hoover once was, which h a s interests all
over the world and which, a t the end of 1931, h a d investments
valued a t £842,329/17/11—("at or below cost"—"considerably less
t h a n their realisable value today," said the vice-chairman in
1929)—and up till 1931 h a d paid £3,475,788 in bonuses and dividends. In 1931, of their mining and metallurgical investments
53.6 per cent, were in Australia, 26.2 per cent, in t h e U.K., 12.2 per
*—Thomas: D e a t h a n d Dividends, p. 1.
DEATH AND DIVIDENDS
13
cent, in Europe a n d 8 per cent, in India. The balance sheet of
1928 shows investments by the Corporation in Argentine, Brazil,
Chill, Cuba, China, Scotland, England, India, Spain, Germany,
Hungary, U.S.A., Canada, British Columbia a n d Australia. "The
laborers in a n I n d i a n mine," says Mr. Thomas, "the workers on
a S u m a t r a rubber plantation, the metal workers of Spain and
Germany, a n d t h e mechanics of a n American sewing-machine
company are exploited for the benefit, amongst others, of the
shareholders of the Zinc Corporation, which obtained t h e f u n d s
for such investments by exploiting the mine workers of Broken
Hill." The Ballieus and Co. have become a gratified a n d grateful
junior p a r t n e r of J o h n Bull and Co., Universal Expropriators!
3.—THE BANKING RING
We become bewildered by so m a n y figures and by such vast
sums of money. We need someone's aid to assimilate all the
facts. Let us go to the experts in the processes of turning
blood and sweat into dividends. Let us look at the banks.
A certain type of propaganda t h a t has h a d a good deal of
influence during recent years presents the present economic
a n d financial system as one of a bank's dictatorship over industry. We are living, such propagandists tell us, within a system
of society in which a class struggle Is going on between bankers
a n d capitalists! T h e latter are exploited by the banks—just
as the rest of the population is. Were we to nationalise banks
all our ills would end and the capitalist and the worker would
be able to lie down in peace together—the seeming capitalist
lion not being a lion a t all and both capitalist and worker being
lambs preyed on by the banker. An analysis of the facts, however, shows t h a t this is a false picture.
The small measure of
t r u t h is t h a t the small business m a n is preyed on by the banks—
but by big business as well. On the other h a n d , t h e banks are'
not separate entities a p a r t from industry. R a t h e r are the banks
the necessary i n s t r u m e n t s by which the big capitalists dominate
t h e industrial, economic a n d financial life of the country. Big
Business a n d Big Banking are the same; the controllers of
industry a n d the controllers of the b a n k s are t h e same persons.
The process t h a t has been described by m a n y writers* h a s been
going on in Australia; the process, namely, of the development
of "a very close personal connection between t h e banks and the
biggest industrial and commercial enterprises, t h e fusing of one
with a n o t h e r through the acquisition of shares, through the
*—For discussions of t h e development of finance capitalism see Lenin,
Imperialism; Hobson, Development of Capitalism; Upton Sinclair, T h e
Goose Step; Thorez, T h e People's F r o n t in F r a n c e .
entry of b a n k directors into the boards of m a n a g e m e n t of
industrial and commercial enterprises, and vice versa." *
T h e processes of absorption and amalgamation of banks h a s
gone on since t h e b a n k crashes of t h e nineties, when t h e weakest
went to the wall.** In 1914, t h e r e were 20 Australian banks. I n
1925, these h a d dwindled to 15. Today, there are only nine!
These nine are listed below and, in order to save space, t h e r e
follows each, in brackets, an abbreviation by which t h a t bank
will be referred to in t h e sequel.
Bank of New South Wales (B. of N.S.W.).
Commercial Banking Company of Sydney (C.B.C.).
Commercial Bank of Australia (C.B.A.).
National Bank of Australasia (N.B.A.).
English, Scottish and Australian Bank (E.S. & A.).
Bank of Australasia (B. of A.).
Union Bank of Australia (U.B.A.).
Queensland National Bank (Q.N.B.).
Bank of Adelaide (B. of Ad.).
BANK OF N.S.W.
T h e Bank of N.S.W. is the oldest of Australian banks, having
been founded a h u n d r e d and twenty years ago. It h a s a p a i d - u p
capital of £8,780,000 in £20 shares t h a t today are quoted at £37.
In March, 1927, it absorbed the West Australian Bank and, in
1931, the Australian Bank of Commerce.
From the beginning of
the century u p till 1929, it h a s paid a n average dividend of 10 per
cent. Its last dividend was one of 6 per cent. Its visible reserves
are about £6,250,000.
The present directors of the B. of N.S.W. are: Sir Thomas Buckland, G. R. Love, T. H. Kelly, E. T. Thring, Sir Kelso King, and
R. W. Gillespie.
These individuals are directors of others companies, as follows:
Buckland: P e r m a n e n t Trustees; Pitt, Son a n d Badgery; United
Insurance.
Love: Clifford Love and Co.; Royal Exchange Assurance.
Kelly: Perpetual Trustees; Tooth and Co.
Thring: Ball and Welch; Colonial Sugar Refining Co.; Uabba
Pastoral Co.; Indemnity Marine Insurance.
*—Lenin, Imperialism, chap. 2.
**—At t h e time of t h e bank smashes in 1893, all of the following b a n k s
suspended p a y m e n t in t h e order given, dates in brackets: C.B.A. (Apr. 5 ) ;
E.S. a n d A. (Apr. 13); Austn. J o i n t Stock (Apr. 21); London C h a r t e r e d
B a n k of A. (Apr. 22); N.B.A. (May 1); Colonial B a n k of Australasia (May
6); B a n k of Victoria (May 10); Q.N.B. (May 15); B a n k of N.Q. (May
15); C.B.C. (May 16); City of Melbourne B a n k (May 17); Royal B a n k
of Q. (May 17).
T h e first to reopen was t h e C.B.A. on May 3. T h e next did not re-open
till J u n e 18—it was t h e C.B.C
THE MONEY CHANGERS
15
King: Australian General Assurance; Beale a n d Co.; Church of
England Insurance Company of Australia; Illawarra a n d South
Coast Steam Navigation; Mercantile Mutual; Mort's Dock; Australian Fertilisers.
F a i r f a x : A.M.P., J o h n F a i r f a x & Sons; Royal Insurance.
Gillespie; Gillespie Bros., C.S.R.; N.S.W. Flour Millers Produce Co.; Ball & Welch; Pardey & Co., Ltd. (Millers); Inverell
Milling Co.
In addition, prominent shareholders who have been directors
have extensive interests in other companies.
THE COMMERCIAL BANKING COMPANY
The Commercial Banking; Company of Sydney swallowed u p
the Bank of Victoria in 1926. Its n o m i n a l capital Is £12,000,000
in £25 shares, paid u p to £12/10/-, which are quoted on t h e
exchange a t around £22. Up to 1930 it regularly paid a ten per
cent, dividend and is now paying six per cent. Its present directors are: J. W. Macarthur-Onslow, Owen E. Friend, Sir Wm.
Vicars, J a m e s Ashton, E. R. Knox. Their other directorates a r e :
Macarthur-Onslow: C.S.R.; Commercial Union Assurance of
Australasia.
F r i e n d : Choiseul P l a n t a t i o n ; P e r m a n e n t Trustees; Pitt, Son
& Badgery; Shortland Island Plantations; Solomon Islands Development; Tooheys; Toohey's S t a n d a r d Securities; United I n surance.
Vicars: Koitaki Pora Rubber Estates.
Ashton: Mutual Life a n d Citizens; Anthony Horderns (formerly).
Knox: C.S.R.; Perpetual Trustees; Sydney Exchange Co.;
United Insurance.
George J u d a h Cohen, who was recently gathered to his fathers,
was formerly a director of t h e Bank, and h e h a d extensive i n terest in Australian Gaslight; United Insurance; Sydney Exchange; etc.
An examination of the interests of these directors as outlined
above shows how the two banks are associated on t h e directorates of i m p o r t a n t companies. Directors of both banks (in some
cases, two or more f r o m one or other of the two banks) are
directors of t h e following companies:
P e r m a n e n t Trustees; P i t t Son & Badgery; United Insurance;
Perpetual Trustees; Colonial Sugar Refining Company; Choiseul
Plantations; Solomon Islands Development; Anthony Horderns;
Tooheys.
These banks have been called the Sugar Banks—they control
t h e sugar monopoly.
Their hold on the industrial life of N.S.W.
a n d Queensland was described by a writed who h a d delved deep:
"Sugar, tobacco a n d gas monopolists constitute t h e j u n t a d o m i n a t i n g
t h e economic life of t h e two S t a t e s of N.S.W. a n d Queensland.
The
principal members are J a m e s Burns, Rob. Philp, Adam a n d J a m e s
Forsyth, J . T . Walker, J . R. Fairfax—of t h e B u r n s - F h i l p combine; Knox,
K a t e r , Mackellar, Bennie, Buckland, Cawley a n d Reg. Black—of t h e
S u g a r T r u s t ; H u g h Denison, T o d m a n a n d Dixon—of t h e Tobacco T r u s t ;
Levy, Cohen, Moses a n d Myles—of t h e Sydney a n d N o r t h Shore Gaslight
monopoly.
Linked with these are S a m . Hordern, David Fell, Allen
Taylor, J . R. Robertson a n d t h e Vickery family. . . ."»
Financial houses they control—and beer, sugar, tobacco, flour,
gas, drugs, wireless, ferries, newspapers (e.g., "Sun" a n d "Herald"),
ice, coal, steamships, south sea islands and their trade, timber.
"The Sydney junta"—to continue our quotation—"dominate t h e
coastal a n d harbor traffic of N.S.W. They are the 'North Coast,'
t h e 'South Coast,' the 'Newcastle a n d Hunter River,' . . . t h e
Abermain, Bellambi a n d Wallsend collieries, a n d all t h e linked-up
colliery, financial and shipping interests of the Vickery family,
of David Fell, a n d of the linked-up Timber Trust interests under
Allen Taylor. The J u n t a control Belalie Pastoral, Brindley P a s toral . . . a n d the wool-broking firms operating under t h e t r a d e
n a m e s of 'Harrison, Jones and Devlin' a n d 'Pitt, Son & Badgery'.
. . . Under t h e guise of t h e present democracy t h e most odious
oligarchy holds unbroken dominion."
Since t h a t was written in 1921, t h e r e have been changes—but
changes n o t in the direction of simplifying t h e intricate i n t e r connections, but in t h e direction of f u r t h e r a m a l g a m a t i o n a n d
inter-connection a n d changes of personnel. Some we have m e n tioned have gone to their eternal reward, others, younger, have
stepped into their places.
THE COMMERCIAL BANK OF AUSTRALIA
The Commercial Bank of Australia h a s its h e a d q u a r t e r s in Melbourne. It h a s a nominal capital of £5,000,000. I n 1918 it bought
up t h e National Bank of Tasmania. Its reserves total just over
£3,330,000, and it paid 15 per cent, dividends up to 1930, when they
dropped to 5 per cent. Its 10/- shares are a t present quoted a t
around £1.
The directors of the C.B.A. are J. L. Webb, A. W. P a l f r e y m a n ,
R. C. Meares, W. H. Swanton, a n d A. S. Baillieu. Their other
directorates are:—
Webb: Bay Steamers Ltd.; H u d d a r t Parker.
P a l f r e y m a n : Henry Jones Ltd. (Jam.)
Meares: Australian Iron and Steel; B.H.P.; Squatting Investment.
S w a n t o n : Australian Investment Trust; Fairymead Sugar;
South Australian Perpetual Forests.
Baillieu: Bay Steamers.
*—Anstey: Money Power, pp. 45-56,' 60.
"THEY ALSO SERVE . . . "
17
Here, it is quite evident, we have m e t one of the Metal Banks.
We meet n a m e s t h a t we m e t when we inquired into the personnel of the controllers of the B.H.P. Group.
We find here t h a t the same people who direct t h e B.H.P. a n d
other big industries direct also t h e C.B.A.
On the next page
we shall see t h a t the N.B.A. centres around it a similar group.
I n both groups, B.H.P. is represented on the directorates—In
the C.B.A. by Meares, in the N.B.A. by Darling. There are other
connections which we shall discover.
On the C.B.A. directorate the Baillieus are represented. There
is a host of them, all serving their country without stint.
I
don't know whether I have got t h e m all—but here's a list of t h e m
a n d their directorates:
A. S. Baillieu: Bay Steamers, Ltd.; C.B.A.
Clive Baillieu: Carlton and United Breweries, Ltd.; Carlton
Brewery, Ltd.
C. L. Baillieu, C.M.G. (Lond.): Electrolytic Zinc; E.S. and A.;
Dunlop Perdriau Rubber; National Smelting Co.; N.Z. Loan and
Mercantile Agency; S t a n d a r d T r u s t ; Y a r r a Falls; Zinc Corporation.
D. Baillieu: Atlas Assurance; Queenscliffe Gas a n d Coke Co.
E. L. Baillieu: Freehold Assets; Land Mortgage Bank of Vic.;
Melbourne Electric Supply Co.; Shamrock Brewing Co.; Yarra
Falls.
II. L. Baillieu: S t a n d a r d Trust.
M. II. Baillieu: Australian K n i t t i n g Mills; Carlton and United
Breweries; Castlemaine Brewing Co.; Colonial Mutual Fire Insurance; Foster Brewing Co.; North Broken Hill, Ltd.; Western
N.S.W. Electric Power.
M. L. Baillieu: Associated Pulp and Paper Mills, Ltd; Austral
Silk and Cotton Mills, Ltd.; Electrolytic Zinc; North Broken Hill,
Ltd.; Western N.S.W. Electric Power; Zinc Corporation.
It will be seen t h a t to some companies the Baillieu clan h a s
generously given more t h a n one son. They serve their country,
I said.
For, as Milton said, "they also serve who only stand
and wait"—and the Baillieus s t a n d and wait for dividends and
interest.
These are their directorates.
But they are n o t all their interests. I t is impossible to trace all their interests.
In t h e
B.H.P., for example, the shares held by t h e m individually are, as
we have learned, as follows:
Beatrice Baillieu, 9750 £1 shares and 4875 10/- shares; E. L. H.
Baillieu, 6600 £1 shares a n d 11059 10/- shares.
These, of course,
besides t h e vast system of interlocking of iron and steel of which
they form m a n y locks. We shall r e t u r n to t h e Baillieus later.
NATIONAL BANK OF AUSTRALASIA
The National Bank of Australasia is the other Metal Bank.
Like the C.B.A. it is also a Melbourne bank. I t h a s a p a i d - u p
capital of £5,000,000. I n 1918, it absorbed t h e Colonial Bank and,
in 1921, the B a n k of Queensland (the latter itself being a merger
of the Bank of North Queensland a n d the Royal B a n k of Queensland) . I t s last dividend was of 5 per cent. The directors of t h e
N.B.A. are Sir J. A. M. Eider, K.B.E., the Hon. Sir R. G. Clark,
T. C. Alston, Sir Henry Chauvel, H. G. Darling, and D. Yorke
Syme, whose family owns t h e Melbourne "Age."
Their other
directorates are:—
Elder: Goldsbrough, Mort & Co.; Union Trustees.
Clark: Goldsbrough, Mort & Co.
Alston: Australian Glass Manuf. Co.; A.M.P. (Victorian Board);
Kauri Timber Co.; Melbourne Steamship Company; Paterson,
Laing & Bruce.
Chauvel: Colonial Mutual Life.
Darling: Australian Iron and Steel; B.H.P.
Symc: Hobson's Bay Dock a n d Engineering; Major Bros.; Melbourne Harbor Trust (Commissioner); Melbourne Steamship Co.;
Metropolitan Gas; Mount Lyell Mining a n d Railway Co.; Mount
Pleasant Coke Co.
Another big shareholder, who was but recently a director, is
Sir J o h n Grice, whose interests are: Dunlop Perdriau; Metropolitan Gas; Australian Glass Manuf. Co.; N.Z. Loan and Mercantile Agency; Emu Bay Railway; Trustees, Executors and
Agency; North British and Mercantile Insurance. Two others
are H. M. S t r a c h a n (of Union Trustees a n d S t r a c h a n & Co.),
and A. F. Bell (of Robert Harper & Co.).
SUGAR AND IRON INTERLOCK
We And here, also, interlocking between t h e interests of the
two metal banks. Directors of both have common interests. As
we saw in t h e case of t h e Sydney banks, these banks also control,
besides the vast interests centring around B.H.P., gas, beer,
trustees, companies, insurance companies, etc. They are closely
linked with t h e Bank of Adelaide, with breweries, newspapers,
a n d wireless stations in both Victoria a n d South Australia. They
dominate the t h r e e States of South Australia, Victoria a n d Tasm a n i a . Making allowance for t h e changes of t h e intervening
years, t h e list given in 1921 f r o m t h e book already quoted throws
light on the personnel: "Sir J o h n Grice, R. G. Casey, Arch Currie,
Bowes Kelly, Ed. Miller, W. L. Baillieu, W. G. Sharp, Duncan
McBryde, t h e Robinsons, Harvey Patterson, T. L. Webb, Monty
SUGAR AND IRON
19,
Cohen, W. D. and J. S. Reid, J. H. Riley, H. V. McKay, F. G. a n d
J. Clarke, Ed. Fanning, F. T h o n n e m a n , J a m e s Harvey, W M.
Jamieson."
THE E.S. & A.
The t h r e e remaining banks, not yet mentioned, have their
h e a d q u a r t e r s in London. The directors of the English, Scottish
anil Australian Bank are Andrew Williamson, Lord Forster of
Lepe, Sir F. W. Young, S. M. Ward, C. L. Baillieu, Rt. Hon. Lord
Hunsdon, Sir George Schuster. The E.S. & A. h a s a p a i d - u p
capital of £3,000,000. I t has absorbed the London B a n k of Australia, the Commercial Bank of Tasmania a n d the Royal B a n k of
Australia. I t s reserves total over £3,500,000, a n d its £3 s h a r e s
are quoted a t over £6. The last dividend was one of 5 per cent.
The other directorates of Baillieu we have already listed. Those
of the other directors (with the exception of Ward, who seems
to have none) are as follow:—
Williamson: Australian Estates a n d Mortgage Co.; Australian
Pastoral Co.; Australian Sheep F a r m s ; Midland Railway Co.
(W.A.); Mt. Lyell Mining and Railway Company; Sulphide Corporation; British Match Corporation; Royal I n s u r a n c e Co.;
Algoma Central a n d Hudson Bay Railways Co. (Bondholders'
Committee); Algoma Central Terminus Ltd.
Forster: Australian Mercantile Land and Finance Co.; A.M.P.;
Clitheroe Estate Co.
Young: Australian Estates a n d Mortgage Co.
Hunsdon: Australian Pastoral Co.; Commercial Union Assurance Co.; A.M.P.; Rio de J a n e i r o City Improvements Co.
Schuster: Bank of N.Z.; Commercial Union Assurance Co.
ANOTHER METAL BANK
I t will be seen immediately t h a t the E.S. & A. is also a metal
bank linking British capital with Australian in the B.H.P. i n terests. Directors of t h e E.S.A. a n d the N.B.A. have common
interests in Mt. Lyell Mining & Railway, Dunlop-Perdriau, N.Z.
Loan & Mercantile. There are also links with the Sugar Banks:
a director of the E.S.A. a n d a director of the C.B.C. have the
same~charge in the Commercial Union Assurance, while, in the
A.M.P., a director each from t h e E.S. & A., the B. of N.S.W., a n d
the N.B.A., find a meeting place. The directors provide also links
between the banks already detailed a n d the two overseas land
banks with vast interests in the primary industries of Australia.
MEN OF IRON
Much food for thought may be extracted from the share lists
t h a t we publish in this pamphlet. Take the B.H.P. list and pick
out the Darling interests. Harold G. Darling and four others
own 750,000 £1 shares. As the last B.H.P. dividend was one of
12£ per cent., t h a t holding brought in a n income of £93,750 for
the five of them—or £18,750 for the Darling. Then t h e same
Darling a n d a n o t h e r of t h a t ilk hold together a bundle of 65,386
shares which bring each of t h e m an income of £4086/12/6. Then
t h e same two Darlings hold 3333 shares individually, and another,
Leonard, holds 3334—10,000 between these three. Ten t h o u s a n d
shares mean a n income of £1250: cr over £420 each. So, the steel
worker who sweats before t h e open h e a r t h a t Port W a r a t a h , or
the unemployed who swelters or shivers, according to season,
outside t h e works waiting for a job, will thrill to learn t h a t they
help to m a k e it possible for the three Darlings—Norman, Harold
a n d Leonard—to enjoy a steady competence of £28,173/5/- a
year, and t h a t Harold a n d Leonard also, can provide their wives
with pin money from the director's fees t h a t they " e a r n " f r o m
the B.H.P. in addition to w h a t they merely "get."*
But Harold is something more t h a n an iron man.** He is also a
banker. Juggling iron ore and white hot steel bars is only one
of his jobs. When he finishes t h a t he wipes the sweat f r o m his
honest brow, doffs his greasy and singed overalls, doctors up his
burns and sets out for the office of the National Bank of Australia with his weekly wages of £370 in his pocket.
There, he becomes a bank director and "earns" more feest—
t h u s by his assiduity preparing for a rainy day while his fellows
are content to play two-up and work for the dole. Here is surely
a life of inspiration for our youth—a m a n who shall, departing,
leave behind him
Footprints on t h e s a n d s of time;
Footprints t h a t p e r h a p s another
Sailing o'er life's solemn m a i n
A forlorn a n d ship-wrecked b r o t h e r
Seeing shall t a k e h e a r t again.
After this t e a r f u l and earnest exhortation, I hope to see thousa n d s of our youth become directors of b a n k s a n d steel works
and pocket their £370 a week. They will find their reward well
worth the sacrifice of their two-up games a n d the leisure t h a t
accompanies their working for t h e dole.
* They are to have their "pickings" enormously increased, since they
also now hold between t h e m 38,942 of t h e new issue of shares, paid u p to
10/-. (See p. 7.)
** Harold is also a director of Australian Iron & Steel—and draws more
fees t h e r e !
t T h e share list of t h e N.B.A. does n o t show t h a t Darling holds any
s h a r e s — a n d yet h e is a director! T h e t r a i l is lost. H e is evidently hiding
his identity—living two lives.
EARNING AND GETTING
21
B u t I don't w a n t to preach. If you are astisfled with t h e dole
and don't want £370 a week, let's get on with our story.
There is A. W. P a l f r e y m a n who has not ambled along so placidly
as his n a m e m i g h t imply. He h a s 5161 s h a r e s in B.H.P. a n d 730
preference and 31,859 ordinary shares in the C.B.A.
And
Miss E. P. P a l f r e y m a n h a s 21,129 ordinary shares in t h e same
bank. The P a l f r e y m a n is interested also in jam. He is c h a i r m a n of directors of Henry Jones Co-operative Ltd.
T h e n there is R. C. Meares, a co-director with Darling of t h e
B.H.P. a n d Australian Iron a n d Steel a n d a director also of t h e
Squatting Investment Co. a n d the C.B.A. He is one of t h e five
who hold the already-mentioned 750,000 in B.H.P. a n d h a s 5000
on his own account. He h a s 6038 ordinary shares in t h e C.B.A.
On the board of the Squatting Investment Co., sit with h i m
J. M. Niall (as C h a i r m a n ) and K. »I. Niall—who are both (the
former again C h a i r m a n ) directors of Goldsbrough, Mort. And
J. M. h a s 8000 ordinary and 50 preference shares in t h e C.B.A.
and 500 £8 shares in t h e N.B.A.
BANK OF AUSTRALASIA
The Bank of Australasia h a s a paid-up capital of £4,500,000 a n d
reserves a m o u n t i n g to just over the same amount. I t is the
pioneer of t h e Anglo-Australian banks, having been founded by
royal c h a r t e r over a h u n d r e d years ago, a n d it has always m a d e
a profit—its average dividend for t h e ten years ending 1930 being
14.9 per cent. I t appears to have been the only b a n k to have
watered its capital by capitalising £1,000,000 of its reserves in
1929. I t s present directors are :Ch. G. Hamilton, J. F. G. Gilliat,
the Rt. Hon. Lord Aldenham, Ch. G. Burnett, the Earl of Middleton, J o h n Sanderson, A r t h u r Whitworth, Goschen, Harold Nelson,
Livingstone-Learmonth, Horace Peel, Donald Anderson. As you
see, we are now moving in aristocratic circles, by whom it is a
pleasure to be fleeced. And we shall And t h a t , as sheep, we are
associated with the sheep of every continent. We are proud to
be shorn by shearers with such a n extensive business. The i n terests of our noble a n d aristocratic directors are:—
IlamHton: Australian Agricultural Co.; London and Lancashire
Insurance Co.; Law Union a n d Rock Insurance Co.; National and
Provincial Banks; Coutts & Co.
Gilliat: J. H. Gilliat & Co.; Commercial Assurance; S t a n d a r d
B a n k of South Africa.
A l d e n h a m : Guardian Assurance.
B u r n e t t : Alliance Assurance;
Penny Bank.
Lloyds Bank;
the
Yorkshire
Sanderson: Australian Mercantile a n d Finance; Australian
Sheep F a r m s ; Sulphide Corporation.
Whitworth: Bank of England; Borneo Co.; Brazilian W a r r a n t
Agency and Finance Co.; Cambuhy Coffee a n d Cotton Estates;
Central Insurance; Liverpool, London a n d Globe Insurance.
Goschen: Goschen a n d Cunliffe; Bank of England; Borholla
(Assam) Tea Co.
Nelson: Nelson Financial Trust; Fitzroy Estates; Geo. Nelson,
Dale & Co.
Livingstone-Learmonth: Australian Agricultural Company; Peel
River Land a n d Mineral Co.
Peel:.Henckell Du Bulsson & Co.; Eagle, Star a n d British I n s u r ance Co.; S t a n d a r d B a n k of South Africa.
Anderson: Anderson Green & Co. (Managers of Orient Steam
Navigation Co.); Orient Underwriting F u n d Ltd.
CENTRE OF TIIE WEB
There are several things to notice here immediately. Firstly,
we are brought into t h e very centre of t h e British financial spider
web. The B. of A. links us u p t h r o u g h one or more directors
with the Bank of England, Lloyds Bank, t h e National and Provincial Bank, the Yorkshire Penny Bank, a n d the Standard Bank
of South Africa. Secondly, it is linked with t h e oldest land companies in Australia—for example, t h e Australian Agricultural
Company. Thirdly, again we And the interests of this b a n k i n terlocking with those of t h e other Australian b a n k s : a director of
the B. of A. associates with a director of the E.S. & A. a n d one
f r o m t h e C.B.C. in directing t h e Commercial Union Assurance;
directors of t h e B. of A. share with t h e E.S. & A., t h e task of
looking a f t e r Australian Sheep Farms, t h e Sulphide Corporation, a n d the Australian Mercantile Land and Finance Company.
UNION BANK OF AUSTRALIA
T h e Union Bank of Australia, t h e last one of t h e n i n e banks
operating in Australia, links us more closely still with British
finance a n d industry. I t h a s a nominal capital of £4,000,000 a n d
visible reserves of over £5,000,000. I t h a s paid t h e largest of b a n k
dividends—15 per cent, f r o m 1920 to 1929. Its last dividend was
5 per cent. Its £5 shares are being quoted a t round about £11.
T h e directors of t h e U.B.A. are: E. W. Parker, Robert C. Nesbitt,
Hugh D. Flower, Lord Hillington, Sir Malcolm Hogg, Lord Stonehaven, Major-General Sir J o h n Davidson, A. T. Maxwell, J. W.
Hely-Hutchison. Their other directorates are as follow:—
VICKERS AND KRUPP
23
P a r k e r : British and Foreign Marine Insurance; Dalgety & Co.;
Spassky Copper Mine.
Nesbitt: British Law Insurance; National Mutual Life Association of Australasia.
Flower: Clerical Medical and General Life Assurance; E m ployers' Liability Assurance Corporation; General Reversionary
and Investment Co.
Ilillington: Glyn Mills & Co.; Marine Insurance Co.; Ottoman
Bank.
Hogg: Forbes, Forbes a n d Campbell; Beaumont Property Trust;
Westminster Bank; Westminster Foreign Bank.
Stonehaven: London and Lanes. I n s u r a n c e ; National Mutual
Life of A.; Tanganyika Concessions; West Midland Sugar.
Davidson: African Mercantile Co.; David Sasson & Co.; Gresham
Fire a n d Accident I n s u r a n c e Society; Gresham Life Assurance;
National B a n k of Egypt.
Maxwell: Glynn Mills & Co.; Vickers, Ltd.
Ilely-Hutchison: George Henderson & Sons; Barnagore J u t e
Factory Co.; D. Anderson & Son; Manchester a n d County Bank.
LINKED WITH DEATH
The U.B.A., it will therefore be seen, h a s interests linked with
some of those of t h e B. of A. and, moreover, links t h e companies
t h a t it controls, and which exploit our wealth, to t h e Ottoman
Bank, the Westminster Bank, the National Bank of Egypt, the
Manchester a n d County Bank, and the big a r m a m e n t firm;
Vickers Ltd.
And, when we are linked with Vickers, we are linked with war
and destruction and death. Vickers controls or helps to control:
Vickers-Armstrong, the English Steel Corporation, Steel M a n u facturers Nickel Syndicate, five a i r c r a f t companies, a n d is connected with:—
The O t t o m a n Bank, British a n d Allied Investment Corporation,
William Beardmore, Baldwins Ltd., Baring Bros., Glynn Mills, Sun
Insurance, etc.;
a n d has agreements with:—
Krupp (Germany), Terni (Italy), Mitsui (Japan) and Electric
Boat (U.S.A.).
We can be proud to be numbered among the p h e a s a n t s on the
close preserve of the inner circle of British Hunters, Ltd. Good
hunting, my lords!
4.—WHO'S WHO AND
WHAT?
Following the trails t h a t these s h a r e lists afford leads us into
unexpected places—sometimes even into the Holy of Holies!
For
example, let us follow one of these trails.
In t h e share-list for N.B.A. a p p e a r t h e n a m e s : Equity Trustees,
Executors and Agency Co. Ltd., National Reliance Investment
Trust, Ltd., Were's Investment Trust, Ltd., S t a n i f o r t h Ricketson
a n d Edward G. Brooke—and the total of t h e shares opposite these
n a m e s is 6368.
Now S t a n i f o r t h Ricketson is Chairman of
Directors of t h e National Reliance and of Were's Investment
Trust, mentioned above, a n d also of Capel Court I n v e s t m e n t
Trust, Capel Court Ltd., and t h e "Argus and Australasian."
He
is also a director of t h e F o u r t h Victorian Building Society a n d
of t h e Union Investment Co. Ltd.
Ricketson is, therefore, by
way of being a big m a n . But we h a v e n ' t reached the end of our
trail.
One of t h e directors of t h e Were's I n v e s t m e n t Trust, which
is one of the biggest stock-broking firms in the country, is t h e
Rt. Hon. R. G. Menzies, P.C., K.C., M.H.R., Attorney-General in
t h e Lyons government. He is also a director of each of the
following companies:—
New Zealand Perpetual Trustees Ltd.
National Reliance Invest. Trust Ltd.
Equity Trustees, Executors & Agency
Co. Ltd
Were's Invest. T r u s t Ltd
Capel Court Ltd. (Landlords)
..
Capel Court Invest. T r u s t Ltd
Commercial Union Assurance Co. Ltd.
(Melb. Board)
County of Bourke P e r m t . Building &
Invest. Scty
Jason Invest. T r u s t
..
TOTAL
Nominal Cap.
£
250,000
2,000,000
Paid Up.
£
197,535
200,000
500,000
1,000,000
100,000
1,000,000
90,000
375,000
47,000
150,000
3,750,000 '
500,000
1,000,000
£1O,1OO,O(J0
3,540,000
200,000
37,500
(1st issue,
quarter paid)
£4,836,535
Were's other directors are S. Ricketson, F. W. Spry, W. J.
Byrne, C. Lorrimer, K. A. Henderson.
K. A. Henderson is director of "The Argus" and Chevron Ltd.
Ricketson is the driving force of J. B. Were, and t h e m a n a g i n g
director of "Argus."
Other directors associated with Menzies on t h e board of Equity
Trustees are Sir E. Mitchell, Sir Stephen Morell, H. Alan Currie,
E. F. Herring, Allan Spowers.
Of these m e n Spowers is a director of t h e "Argus" a n d Morell
of Carlton and United Breweries; Colonial Gas Assc. Ltd.; a n d
Melb. Co-op. Brewery Co. Ltd.
Three of t h e m e n with whom Menzies is associated are t h r e e
HIGH COMPANY
25
of the six directors of the "Argus," most reactionary daily paper
in Australia. Ricketson is c h a i r m a n of this company.
The Ricketson Group is t h u s connected by several links with
t h e inner circle of the oligarchy.
In t h e Union Trustee Co., h e
is associated with Sir J. A. M. Elder, Sir David Orme Masson, L.
J. Green, J. C. MacKinnon, A. F. Bell a n d J. V. Fairbairn, t h e
other directors.
Of these,, Elder is director also of Goldsbrough
Mort and t h e N.B.A. and Masson is a director of National Mutual
Life a n d is with Ricketson also in the F o u r t h Victorian P e r m a n e n t Building Society.
Herr Kisch will also understand why Signor Menzies shuddered
in 1934 when it was suggested t h a t he, Kisch, should be allowed
into Australia.
How could a Czechoslovakian Jew be allowed
into Australia by a m a n who sat cheek by jowl with such
directors (of Commercial Union Assurance) as Lord Clinton,
Viscount Elibank, Sir R. S. Home, Sir Geo. E. Schuster, Lord
Portal, Viscount Ullswater, Lord Hunsdon a n d others?
And we
understand, too, why he wished to keep out of Australia a Peace
Delegate, when we know t h a t , on t h e Melbourne Board of t h e
same company, he sits beside Sir Colin Fraser—of t h e War T r u s t :
A.C.F. a n d Shirley's Fertilisers, Broken Hill South, Electrolytic
Zinc, Zinc Corporation, etc. We are glad our Attorney-General
h a s got into such high company!*
Politicians are fairly numerous a m o n g directors—especially
politicians of t h e upper houses whose members are elected on
a very limited franchise. The Hon. Sir David Gordon, M.L.C.
(S.A.), is director of t h e Adelaide Supply Co., Broken Hill South,
North Broken Hill, Ellis Caterers Ltd., Reid Bros. (Timber a n d
Iron Merchants), Shipping Newspapers (S.A.). Senator C. W.
G r a n t is a director of the Cascade Brewing Co., the F a r m e r s &
Citizens' Insurance Co., H. C. Heathorne & Co. (agents for cars),
Hobart Gas Co., Launceston Gas Co., Perpetual I n s u r a n c e &
Securities Ltd., and Perpetual Trustees Executors Agency Co.
of Tasmania.
We meet a few more of them on the board of Amalgamated
Wireless: t h e Rt. Hon. W. M. Hughes, Senator Millen, t h e Hon.
J . F. Coates.
I t Is interesting to note in this connection t h e companies in which
Senator A. J . McLachlan, Postmaster General, is a director. T h e y a r e : —
CAPITAL.
Nominal.
Paid Up.
£
£
Hume Pipe (Aust.) Ltd
500,000
500,000
Hume Pine ( F a r East) Ltd
100,000
75,000
H u m e Steel Ltd
500,000
350,000
Mick Simmons Ltd
250,000
160,000
S o u t h e r n Union Assurance Co. of Aust. Ltd.
250,000
62,500
TOTAL
£1,600,000
£1,153,508
THE THREE GROUPS
We can, therefore, with t r u t h say t h a t , while t h e r e are t h r e e
groups of banks—Sugar, Metal, and Overseas—they have common
interests; although t h e r e are occasions when conflicts arise between t h e m . We h a v e seen enough, too, t o enable us to say
t h a t t h e few m e n who control these banks control nearly everyt h i n g else. W h a t we say h e n c e f o r t h is merely to illustrate this
t r u t h . Another point to notice is the close connection between
British a n d Australian capital. I n the Sydney a n d Melbourne
banks, British capital a n d Australian capital are p a r t n e r s ; in
t h e overseas banks, Australian capital is practically excluded.
This point also will be f u r t h e r illustrated as we go on. Australia
is owned, we m a y say already, by a small group of Australian capitalists associated with a bigger group of British
capitalists who also, a t t h e same time, own a large slice of
the rest of the world. The Australian junior p a r t n e r s are hoping
to increase their share of t h e Australian portion a n d to obtain
a Arm hold of t h e foreign portion also.
MODERN FEUDAL LORDS
T h e control of t h e banks a n d financial institutions is necessary
for our modern industrial, commercial, a n d pastoral feudal lords.
Banks are the modern i n s t r u m e n t s of domination, j u s t as land
monopoly was in the Middle Ages. By m e a n s of bank ownership
a n d control, our millionaires complete t h e circle by which t h e
rest of us are bound in. For the extent of the domination
wielded by t h e few is n o t limited by their ownership of t h e
big companies t h a t we have seen are theirs. W h a t of t h e
m a n u f a c t u r e r and retailer, who are not big enough to be in
t h e inner circle, the f a r m e r and t h e small business m e n — m a n y
of whom are worse off t h a n t h e employed worker—the professional m a n and small trader? By its control of t h e banks t h e
oligarchy h a s t h e m a t its mercy.
I t wields its power by m e a n s of its control of credit. Apart
f r o m t h e issuing of notes by a government (and notes cover a n
infinitesimal portion of modern commercial a n d financial t r a n actions), t h e banks have a monopoly of t h e process of m a k i n g
liquid t h e credit t h a t t h e wealth of t h e community creates.
I t is wrong, of course, to say, as is o f t e n said, t h a t banks create
credit. They do not a n d cannot. They merely have control of
it and can issue it to whomsoever they wish. T h a t is their power
—and it is a tremendous power.
They can say to this business: Prosper!—and it prospers.
And they can say to a n o t h e r : Wither and die!—and it withers
a n d dies. And they do say both! They use this power to take
THEIR HIGH MIGHTINESSES
27
a business for themselves or their creatures or to m a k e of its
nominal owner their slave whose nose they keep to t h e grindstone. Ask t h e thousands of ruined f a r m e r s and b a n k r u p t or
struggling small business men.
But the governments are also t h e prey of the banks. The
machinery by which governments are kept in check is almost
fool-proof. During t h e p a s t few years we have seen how their
domination h a s grown. Today, for example, they h a v e only one
small body to deal with—the Loan Council. No credit can be
issued or loans raised by governments without the approval a n d
consent of the Loan Council. I n practice, therefore, w h a t t h e
banks determine shall be done is done. Their orders are given
to the Loan Council, which t r a n s m i t s t h e m to t h e desired
quarter.
I n 1932, at t h e behest of the banks, a S t a t e Governor
illegally a n d unconstitutionally dismissed a government a n d
illegally and unconstitutionally held a n election, so t h a t n o
obstacle should r e m a i n in the way of the achievement of t h e
banks' wishes. And those wishes were worded by their principal
mouthpiece a t t h e beginning of t h e crisis—when it told in
advance w h a t the masses would have to do to pay for t h e crisis
on behalf of our millionaires:—
"A reduction In wages would lower t h e s t a n d a r d of living. T h a t
c a n n o t be disputed. Were a reduction to become general, t h e s t a n d a r d
would improve beyond w h a t it would be a t t h e outset of t h e reduction,
because employment would be improved a n d costs would be reduced.
But it would not be equal to the standard which Australia, enjoyed up
to the middle of last year. A reduction in t h e s t a n d a r d of living
does n o t m e a n a reduction in food or in t h e quantity of clothing. I t
m e a n s t h e giving up of some amusement, fewer pictures, fewer motor
rides, fewer wireless outfits a n d gramophones, perhaps not quite so
good clothing."—"S.M.H.," Commercial Supplement, Feb. 14 1930,
Thus, brutally, was the programme mapped out. But t h e
people did n o t believe it t h e n . They believe it now! T h a t is t h e
power t h a t we owners of a country can wield: force t h e people
to wear cheap clothes (singlets 1/6 a t Woolworths!) in order
t h a t we can wear the best, a n d m a n y of the best; make the
people stay at home, so t h a t we can travel in luxury liners
abroad;—but we went f u r t h e r t h a n t h e "Herald" dared to tell:
we made people starve and children die while we gormandised
and r a t s ate their fill!*
The power of the banking oligarchy is great. Only the unity
with knowledge of the masses of the people can break it!
*—Two cuttings f r o m t h e same issue of " T h e Sydney Morning H e r a l d "
( J a n . 1, 1931) speak for themselves. T h e headings were:—
"SOME S I L O S FULL.
"WHEAT T U R N E D AWAY."
"SWAGMAN'S DEATH
"LACK O F N O U R I S H M E N T . "
I n t h a t very year, 1930-31, Australia produced its record w h e a t crop:
215,000,000 bushels
FINANCE-CAPITALISTS
Glancing a t t h e s h a r e lists printed in these pages it will be
seen t h a t the finance companies h a v e shares in industrial firms
and t h e industrial firms as well as the finance companies have
shares in the banks.
(See, for example, pp., 6, 7, 30, 38.)
We have already m e t the Nialls—(p. 21).
Associated with the Nialls on t h e board of Goldsbrough is Sir
J. A. M. Elder. No, h e is not interested in jam, even with those
initials—but h e is c h a i r m a n of directors of the N.B.A. and the
Union Trustee Co. of Australia. He h a s 600 £8 shares in t h e
N.B.A.
K. M. Nlall is also a director of A.C.F. & Shirley's Fertilisers,
Ltd. a n d of Mt. Lyell Mining & Railway Co. The holdings a n d
connections of the latter are given on pages 9-11 (or more fully
in the c h a r t on pages 32 and 33). The c h a i r m a n of directors of
this company is P. C. Holmes Hunt, who is also c h a i r m a n of t h e
Colonial Gas Association and J o h n s & Waygood Ltd., deputyc h a i r m a n of t h e Metropolitan Gas Co., c h a i r m a n of t h e Melbourne Board of t h e Union Assurance Society, a n d a director
of Commonwealth Fertilisers & Chemicals, Crankless Engines,
and Wallaroo-Mt. Lyell Fertilisers. The Colonial Gas Association, a n English company but controlled in Melbourne, owns
works in Vic., W.A., N.S.W., S.A. a n d Q.
Another director of the Commonwealth Fertilisers & Chemicals
is Sir L e n r o n Itaws. He is also a director of A.C.F. & Shirley's
Fertilisers, Ltd., Elder Smith & Co. Ltd., Howard Smith, Ltd., a n d
Caledonian Collieries. The interlocking of interests is f a s t becoming bewildering. We are brought to coal a n d shipping.
A. Howard Smith is c h a i r m a n a n d m a n a g i n g director of
Howard Smith, Ltd., Australian Steamship Proprietary, Caledonian Collieries, Ltd., c h a i r m a n of the Australia Sugar Co. a n d
Invincible Colliers and a director of Southern Portland Cement
and Southern Blue Metal Quarries. The other two directors of
Howard Smith, Ltd. a r e Colonel A. Spain and O. E. Friend.
O. E. Friend links this branch of coal and shipping to t h e
Commercial Banking Company, being a director of t h a t as well
as of Australian Steamships Pty., Caledonian Collieries, Choiseul
P l a n t a t i o n s Ltd., Perpetual Trustee Co. of N.S.W., Pitt, Son &
Badgery, Shortland Islands Plantations, Ltd., Solomon Islands
Development Company, Tooheys Ltd., Tooheys S t a n d a r d Securities a n d the United Insurance Co., Ltd. It will be grasped t h a t
not m a n y m e n control these vast concerns.
Colonel Spain is a director of Australian Steamships Pty.,
Emu & Prospect Gravel & Road Metal Co., Katoomba & Leura
G a s Co., North Coast Steam Navigation Co. Ltd., and Sydney
CAPTAINS OF—BOOZE
29
Ferries Ltd.—the last a money-sucking monopoly.
Another shipping combine t h a t is linked also to the Howard
Smith group is Burns, Philp & Co., Ltd., which has controlling
interests in Solomon Islands Development Co., Ltd., Burns Philp
(South Seas), Choiseul Plantations, a n d Shortland Islands P l a n tations. The c h a i r m a n of directors of Burns, Philp is James
Burns who is also director of Bankers & Traders Insurance Co.,
Bellambi Coal Co., Burns Philp (South Seas), Queensland I n s u r ance Co., Shortland Islands Plantations, a n d Solomon Islands
Development Co. To help him direct the last two companies
are J. M. C. Forsayth, W. H. Lucas and L. M. Pattinson. T h e
last of these is a director of Washington H. Soul-Pattinson &
Co., drug m a n u f a c t u r e r s .
ADELAIDE STEAM, GAS AND BEER
Another steamship company is the Adelaide. Its directors are
M. G. Anderson (directing also Adelaide Airways, Ltd, Australian
National Airways, and J. and A. Brown a n d Abermain-Seaham
Collieries), T. E. Barr-Smith (who h a s to help care for Elder
Smith & Co. and Elder's Trustee a n d Executive Company), J. II.
Gosse (also of Executor, Trustee & Agency Co. of S.A., News
Ltd., and S.A. Portland Cement), the Hon. W. G. Duncan, M.L.C.
(who connects parliament and steam with steel and finance—being director of Australian Iron & Steel, the B.H.P., Bagot's Executors & Trustee Co., and the J. B. Chandler Investment Co.)
and Sir Howard W. Lloyd.
Howard Lloyd h a s quite a h a n d f u l of things to help look a f t e r .
First, he is c h a i r m a n of directors of the Bank of Adelaide and,
then, besides Adelaide Steamship, h e h a s to keep an eye on
Newton McLaren, Ltd., the S.A. Brewing Co., a n d the S.A. Gas
Co. I t is surprising—or is it? seeing there's money in it: there's
a pub a t every corner throughout t h e slums—that our leading
captains of industry should be interested in breweries a n d beer.
The B a n k of Adelaide is also closely linked with General
Motors-Holdens. A director of both is E. W. Holden who, to distinguish himself from the generality of directors, has the letters
of an academic degree, B.Sc., a f t e r his name. He also directs
Adelaide Cement, Colton Palmer & Preston, and the S.A. Brush
Co. Bagot's Executive & Trustee Co. is connected to the Bank of
Adelaide by another director, A. E. Hamilton, who is also a director of the Metropolitan Brick Co. and the Onkaparinga Woollen
Co.
Another South Australian is Sir Wallace Bruce who has to
divide his time u p directing such diverse undertakings as: Adelaide Cement, Adelaide Rope & Nail Co., Clarkson, Ltd., (glass,
oil and color m e r c h a n t s ) , General Motors-Holdens a n d the S.A.
Gas Co.
BANK OF ADELAIDE
The Bank of Adelaide we have mentioned as being closely connected to the B.H.P. group, while we referred to t h e National
Bank of Queensland as being r u n by the same people who c o n trol t h e economic life of N.S.W.
Let us look a t the directors of these. The B. of Ad. h a s as
directors: Howard W. Lloycl (director also of Adelaide Steamship
Co., Newton McLaren Ltd., South Australian Brewing Co., South
Australian Gas Co.); E. W. Ilolden (director also of Adelaide
Cement; Colton, Palmer & Preston; General Motors-Holden's);
C. R. J. Glover (director also of South Australian G a s ) ; A. A.
Simpson (director also of Metropolitan Brick Co.); A. E. Hamilton
(director also of Bagot's Executors & Trustee Co., Metropolitan
Brick Co., Onkaparinga Woollen Co.). The B. of Ad. paid 10
per cent, dividends from 1919 to 1929—its last dividend being four
per cent.
QUEENSLAND NATIONAL BANK
The Q.N.B. h a s as directors: James Love (of Q. Pastoral Co.);
W. H. Hart (of Millaquin Sugar, and Thos. Brown a n d Co.);
M. J. Ryan (of Q. Trustees); F. E. Loxton (of Burns Philp, Quant a s Empire Airways, and Q. a n d N.T. Aerial Services); a n d W. A.
Jolly.
SOME BANK SHAREHOLDERS
C.B.A.
The nominal capital of the Commercial Bank of Australia, Ltd.
is £5,000,000—300,000 preference shares of £10 each a n d 4,000,000
ordinary shares of 10/- each.
Of these, 211,735 preference a n d
4,000,000 ordinary shares have been taken up and are fully paid—
the total paid u p capital, therefore, being £4,117,350.
Some interesting details are furnished by a list of t h e s h a r e holders:
Companies holding 250 or more Preference or 5000 or more
Ordinary shares.
Arthur P. Adams, a n d T h e )
T r u s t e e s , E x e c u t o r s & Agency )
Co;, L t d .
)
Assets Pty., Ltd.
.. '
B u r n s P h i l p & Co., L t d . . .
.
City M u t u a l Life Assce. Socy. .
..
Pref.
Ord.
300
500
450
700
500
12,000
C.B.A. SHAREHOLDERS
Colonial M u t u a l F i r e Insce., Co., L t d .
D r o m o r e , Pty., L t d
F r a n k l i n I n v e s t m e n t s Pty., L t d .
..
O r i e n t S t e a m N a v i g a t i o n Co., Ltd. . .
P e r p e t u a l T r u s t e e Co., L t d . [Syd.] )
P e r c y S. C h a p m a n
)
S.I.M.U. M u t u a l Insce. Assn. (N.Z.) . .
T r u s t e e s , E x e c u t o r s & Agency, Co.,
Ltd.
U n i o n T r u s t e e Co. of A u s / a s i a . , L t d .
Wilson's N.Z. P o r t l a n d C e m e n t , L t d .
31
Pref.
600
—
—
—
,00
Ord.
1550
5608
5292
12,200
42
686
823
1098
413
—
4938
1965
1050
In addition, the following companies on the London Register:
Backwood T r u s t L t d
B a r c l a y ' s Nominees
B l a c k b u r n Assce., Co., L t d
B i s h o p s g a t e Nominees, L t d
C a r d i n a l I n v e s t m e n t T r u s t , Ltd.
..
Clergy M u t u a l Assce. Socy
Clydesdale B a n k Nominees Ltd.
..
E l l e r m a n Lines, Ltd.
..
L a k e View I n v e s t m e n t T r u s t , Ltd. . .
Legal G e n e r a l Assce. Socy. L t d .
..
London Border & General Trust, Ltd.
London General Investment Trust,
Ltd.
L o n d o n & M a n c h e s t e r Assce. Co., L t d .
Midland Bank Executor & Trustee
Co., L t d .
R e a l i s a t i o n & D e b e n t u r e C o r p n . of
Scotland
R o y a l Lond. M u t . Insce. Soc. Ltd.
S e c o n d A m e r i c a n T r u s t Co., L t d . . .
S c o t t i s h A m e r i c a n M o r t g a g e Co., L t d .
S c o t t i s h Cities I n v e s t m e n t T r u s t , Ltd.
Scottish Provident Institution . .
..
Pref.
—
317
600
—
—
50
500
—
—
—
—
.'.
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
Ord.
12,000
1148
—
12,940
5414
—
—
2650
10,000
10,000
C000
—
500
..
..
4000
3000
269
..
77,024
500
—
—
800
500
2800
..
..
..
..
..
..
—
12,856
5000
—
—
—
There follow some of t h e biggest individual
there are familiar n a m e s again:
A. W. P a l f r e y m a n ( T o o r a k )
..
..
Miss E. F . P a l f r e y m a n
Melrose M a r l e r (deceased)
. . . .
( C / o . Equity T r u s t e e s Co., Melb.)
Albert E. Y o u n g ) "Clerks," 360 Col- )
Leslie L. A s h t o n )
lins St., Melb.* )
A / c . of E d w a r d D u c k e t t (deceased)
( C / o . E. L. D u c k e t t )
Eric L. D u c k e t t (Melb.)
Roy E. D u c k e t t (Melb.)
J o h n L. W e b b
(C/o. Huddart Parker)
H e r b e r t H a n s o n ( A r m a d a l e , Vic.)
..
H e r b e r t A. A. E m b l i n g (Melb.)
..
Ulysses G r a y
A r t h u r L. L o n g (Melb.)
* See n o t e , p. 39.
Pref.
730
—
—
~Qr
shareholders—
Ord.
31,859
21,129
27,434
22,391
—
18,784
60
81
—
7886
8755
16,625
—
190
208
67
15,419
13,892
12,000
11,233
Shipping
Coal a n d
Air
Gas.
Services.
Breweries.
Miscellaneous.
Electricity.
7
Rubber.
Textiles.
Chemicals.
Oil.
Pacific Cos.
Directors.
Director of
Shares in .
Note.
T h e C h a r t does n o t aim a t being exhaustive—it is sufficiently involved.
The large circles represent t h e t e n
Australian banks. T h e companies within
a circle have as directors one or more
of t h e directors of t h e bank concerned.
Companies included in t h e a r e a where
two or t h r e e circles overlap have as
directors one or more of each of t h e two
or t h r e e b a n k s concerned.
A black dot represents a director, t h e
lines f r o m him pointing to t h e companies
of which he is director. Follow the direction of the arrows to the company concerned. Lines Joining companies indicate
connection by directors.
A dotted line denotes s h a r e s held by
the company whence t h e line s t a r t s in
t h e company to which t h e arrow points.
Usually the number of shares held is
written in.
T h e vast wealth a n d power t h u s represented are controlled by a few individuals.
MORE C.B.A. SHAREHOLDERS
Geo. Kettlewell (deceased)
.. •
( C / o . G. L. S t r a c h a n , Geelong)
Mrs. M. V. Kettlewell ( T o o r a k )
P e r c y C. L e o n a r d (Melb.)
)
"S"i dTnr e- "y B . Myer
; [Myer's
>)
[deceased]
> Emporium] )
M r s . M. M. B. Myer )
E d g a r R . Staley (Melb.)
..
R o b e r t B . M c C o m a s (Melb.)
F r a n k H a l e y (deceased)
..
..
( C / o . U n i o n T r u s t e e Co.)
J a m e s M. Niall
( C / o . G o l d s b r o u g h M o r t & Co.)
T o b i a s E m a n u e l (St. K i l d a )
W . N. G i l l m a n (Melb.)
Geo. C. Poyser (Mt. Kokeby, W.A.
W . J . A. Poyser
B e r t i e Poyser
W . E. R o b e r t s o n ( O a m a r u , N.Z.)
A / c . of H. P. H e n t y (deceased)
' (C/o.
perpetual
Executors &
T r u s t e e s Assocn.)
C. J . G u m m e r ( W a r r a w e e , N.S.W.) . •
Dr. J a s . S. O r m o n d ( M a l v e r n )
David J. Hardie (Kew)
Mrs. Agnes Davies (Kew)
M a r k S c h w a r t z (Albert P a r k ) . .
Mrs. S c h w a r t z
R o b e r t C h a n c e l l o r M e a r e s (Melb.) . .
A r t h u r H. C r a n w e l l (N.Z.)
..
D r . Basil K i l v i n g t o n )
[Hawthorn]
Mrs. Kilvington
)
Mrs. Myrtle A b r a h a m ( B a l l a r a t )
A c l a n d Giles (Pirie St., Adelaide)
..
M o r t i m e r Giles (Pirie St., Adelaide)
L e n n o n H. K i n g (Manly, N.S.W.)
..
W m . H. Meek (N.Z.)
Miss M. J o n e s
)
mendigo]
..
Miss G. A. J o n e s )
,
H a r o l d D. G r e e n w o o d )
[Christ- )
F r a n k S. W e l d i n g
)
church] )
Miss M a r y B e r t r a m ( T o o r a k )
..
D r . K e n n e t h A. M c L e a n (Melb.)
..
Mrs. E. A. N e u n h o f f e r ( A r m a d a l e ,
Vic.)
Sir Geo. Tallis (Melb.)
A. S. M. Till
(C/o. Barclays Bank, Lond.)
A / c . of A. E. Jolly (deceased)
..
( C / o . Elder's T r u s t e e & E x e c u t o r s )
Louis A. G o l l e n (Melb.)
F . M. H e a t h (Melb.)
Mrs. Daisy E d w a r d s ( E a s t M a l v e r n )
William Leyshon (Flemington)
Miss I d a M. Elder (406 Collins S t . ,
Melb.)
Pref.
Ord.
10,584
545
500
112
10,003
9800
1048
350
4200
9554
8449
8100
50
8000
30
170
100
7708
7460
7200
7318
5278
7000
6967
100
6767
6609
6367
6200
6126
5050
6038
5993
400
5540
5815
5733
4592
5700
5468
80
5370
5184
5000
5000
5000
5000
5000
5000
540
570
250
100
4870
4719
4659
4599
55
4268
THE BAILLIEUS AT HOME
Pref.
535
260
—
—
300
G . D. D e l p r a t t ( T o o r a k )
M r s . Adelaide V. A. Arnold (Melb.)
Allan Arnold (Melb.)
A r t h u r S. Arnold (Melb.) . . . .
..
A / c . of J . H. F l a c k (deceased) . . . .
( C / o . Equity T r u s t e e s E. & A. Co.)
A / c . of M. R . M a r s h
800
( T r u s t e e s E. & A. Co., Ltd.)
A / c . of I. C. H a m m o n d
500
( T r u s t e e s E x e c u t o r s & Agency Co.)
C. H. T r a n t e r (deceased)
643
( N a t i o n a l T r u s t e e s E. & A. Co., Ltd.)
J . R. J o h n s o n (3 S p r i n g St., S y d n e y )
304
T i m o n Wilson (Glen T h o m p s o n , Vic.)
500
Miss Eliza J . A d a m s (Melb.)
. . . .
255
M. J . F e r g u s o n (Parkville)
• 326
Mrs. E. M. F e r g u s o n ( A r m a d a l e , Vic.)
336
Mrs. R . M. W a l s h e ( B r i g h t o n ) . . . .
300
Mrs. Isabelie Buckley ( C a n t e r b u r y ) . .
400
N. H a m i l t o n - S m i t h ) 9 9 O U e e n St 1
601
F.H.Wilson
)
Melb
1
J o h n R. Bishop
)
'
'
Miss P. M. H a m m o n d ( T o o r a k )
..
274
C. J . Moody ( K o o - W e e - R u p )
. . . .
317
Miss Isabella M. Moody
251
35
..
..
..
..
..
Ord.
4071
—
4000
4000
3048
..
3000
..
3000
..
2711
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
2575
2367
2236
2132
2080
1720
1594
••
1128
..
..
..
1105~
1074
715
THE BAILLIEU FAMILY AT HOME
The Baillieu family are a t home in t h e C.B.A. Here are their
holdings:
A. S. Bailleu
Mrs. B e a t r i c e M. Baillieu
CJive Baillieu
..
..
Clive L. Baillieu
..
Edw. L. Baillieu
..
M a u r i c e H. Baillieu
N o r m a n Baillieu
Clive L. Baillieu
Arden Armstrong
[jointly]
S t a n l e y B. Holder
Wm. Clark
W m . S. R o b i n s o n
[jointly]
Clive W . Baillieu
Total for the tribe
Pref.
300
75
93
143
887
174
Ord.
500
720
3943
396
1593
25,538
257
6100
550
200
2222
39,347
Australians should feel g r a t e f u l for t h e p a r t being played in
the development of the country by such self-sacrificing people
who refuse to allow one member of their family to be disinterested!
'
•
The Baillieus can indeed ask:—
B r e a t h e s t h e r e t h e m a n w i t h soul so dead,
W h o n e v e r to himself h a t h s a i d ;
" T h i s is m y o w n , m y n a t i v e l a n d " ?
DRUGGISTS
Australia's drug bill is huge a n d m a n y of our owners wax rich
by producing an infinite variety of drugs in bottles, boxes a n d
capsules of varying size, design and color. Drugs a n d poisons
are combined in all possible combinations and p e r m u t a t i o n s a n d
with these our masters experiment on us. Medical knowledge
is restricted to a close corporation of surgeons and physicians
whose continuous services t h e bulk of t h e population is not able
to afford. Instead of broadcasting in cheap books, newspaper
articles, pamphlets a n d over t h e air so t h a t all may know t h e
symptoms a n d remedies of diseases and ailments, these are the
secret knowledge of a small group. People know nothing about
their bodies and how to look a f t e r them. A profound ignorance
is all-pervading—ignorance and silence. As a result t h e legal
drug traffic is more deadly t h a n the illegal opium traffic. Men
and women ailing or with ailing children, in their anxiety a n d
panic, will try a n y t h i n g once—and the a n y t h i n g s to try are
multiplied from day to day. Thousands die every year because
of the ignorance and the silence. And the drug m a n u f a c t u r e r s
are utterly unscrupulous—corrupting also the thousands who
depend on the traffic for a living. During the infantile paralysis
scare in Melbourne, I heard a well-advertised cold "remedy" being
cleverly suggested as a preventive of infantile paralysis! Mothsrs
h a l f - d e a d with anxiety will have bought thousands of pounds'
worth of this concoction—if advertising results were up to expectations—and the drug oligarchs will have smacked their lips
a t the prospect. May more epidemics visit this fair land of ours!
Ghouls!—ghouls like the undertakers who today are taking to
advertising over t h e air and the picture screen!
We have seen Washington H. Soul-Pattinscn & Co. linked with
t h e oligarchy. Another drug factory is Drug Houses of A.
Drug Houses of Australia, Ltd., was formed in 1929 to consolidate A. M. Bickford & Sons, Felton Grimwade & Duerdins, Felton
Grimwade Dental Co., Felton Grimwade & Bickford, Taylors
Elliotts & Australian Drug Pty., and Elliott & Australian Drug
Co. The company is directed by V. G. Elliott, Maj.-Gen. H. W.
Grimwade, H. G. McRoberts, H. Bickford, F. W. Firth, R. CullenWard, E. Norton Grimwade, Dr. Cecil Purser, L. G. Cohen, a n d
L. A. Poole.
The two Grimwades are directors also of Felton Grimwade &
Duerdins, a n d Australian and Australian Glass Manufacturers,
Ltd. Glass is needed for the poisons to reach the victims.
The operating company of Drug Houses of Australia and Australian Drug (Investments) Ltd., is Elliott's a n d Australian Drug
Ltd. (formed by a n a m a l g a m a t i o n with Elliotts). The directors
THE DRUG TRAFFIC
37
are V. G. Elliott, F. W. Firth, H. R. Elliott, L. G. Cohen, Rex
Cullen-Ward, A. A. Kemp, Dr. Cecil Purser.
In Australian Glass Manufacturers, associated with t h e two
Grimwades and T. C. Alston, are F. J. Smith and Sir Alexander
Stewart.
F. J. Smith is something of a genius for he is able to direct the
affairs of the following companies:—
Australian Films (Holdings) Ltd., Australian Empire Airways, Australian Glass Manufacturers. Australian Window Glass Pty., Australian Gypsum Ltd., Brickfield Freeholds, Ltd., British Cinema Ltd.,
British Empire Films Ltd., Cinesound Productions Ltd., Crown Crystal
Glass Co., D. Davis & Co., D u t t & Co. Pty., General T h e a t r e s Corporation of Australasia, George Hudson Ltd., G r e a t e r Union (Extension) Ltd., Greater Union (Management) Ltd., Greater Union T h e a t r e s
Ltd., Hordern Bros. Ltd., J. C. Williamson Ltd., J a m e s S t e d m a n Henderson's Sweets Ltd., National T h e a t r e Supply Co. of Australasia,
Pencarbon Co. (A.) Ltd., Q a n t a s Airways Ltd., Rosehlll Racecourse
Co. Ltd., T h o r n y c r o f t (Aust.) Ltd., Union T h e a t r e s Investments Ltd.,
Westralian Cinemas Ltd., Wests Ltd., a n d t h e Yulgilbar Pastoral Company. A most versatile gentleman.
—AND BOOZERS
T h e Carlton & United Breweries Co. was formed in 1907 to take
over the Carlton Brewery Ltd., McCracken's City Brewery, Ltu.,
the Victoria, Castlemaine, Shamrock and Foster Breweries a n d
h a s since acquired the Geelong Brewery, Fitzgerald's Brewing
and Malting Co., Cohn Bros. Brewing Co., and the Melbourne
Co-op. Brewing Co. On the board of directors is to be found the
inevitable Baillieu—the C. and t h e M. H. L. of t h e gens. T h e
c h a i r m a n is Colonel II. E. Cohen who brings us back again to
metals. His directorates are: Amalgamated Zinc (de Bavay's)
Ltd., Associated Pulp & Paper Mills, Carlton & United
Breweries, Carlton Brewery Ltd., Electrolytic Zinc, Foster Brewing Co., Shamrock Brewing Co., S t a n d a r d Mutual Building Society, Swan Brewing Co., Zinc Investments Pty. Ltd. The Hon.
and gallant Colonel is very fond of boozers!
With Cohen on the directorate of Electrolytic Zinc are Sir
Colin Fraser (chairman), H. Sheppard, J. S. Teulon, M. L. Baillieu and Senator Sir W. Massy-Greene, a former Federal Minister. The London Board consists of another Baillieu—C. L.—
J. R. Govett, G. W. W. Mackinnon a n d L. B. Robinson. We meet
Sir Colin elsewhere in these pages. H. Sheppard is on the board
of Associated Pulp and Paper, Mt. Coolon Gold Mines, Western
N.S.W. Electric Power, and is c h a i r m a n of North Broken Hill.
J. S. Teulon is director, too, of Freehold Assets, Melbourne Electric Supply Co., and the Shamrock Brewing Co. J. R. Govett
links Electrolytic Zinc with t h e Zinc Corporation. G. W. W.
Mackinnon is a London Director of Broken Hill South, Amalgam a t e d Zinc, Emu Bay Railway Co., Mt. Lyell Mining and Railway Co., and North Broken Hill.
WHO OWNS AUSTRALIA?
SOME MORE BANK SHAREHOLDERS
N.B.A.
MELBOURNE COMPANIES
T h e nominal capital of t h e N.B.A. is £10,000,000. The p a i d - u p
capital is £5,000,000 a n d is m a d e u p of 200,000 £10 shares fully
paid and 600,000 £8 shares paid u p to £5. Of these 146,236 £10 a n d
367,076 £8 shares are on the Melbourne Register.
I have in f r o n t of me a list of t h e shareholders who hold 500
or more shares. The list is instructive:—
£10 Shares.
Boon & Co., L t d . (N.Z.)
Equity Trustees, Executors & Agency
226
^
Kodak*'(A/'s'ia.)"pty.,' Ltd. "
!! "
2000
L a n d Mortgage B a n k of Vic. . .
..
23b
N a t i o n a l Reliance I n v e s t m e n t T r u s t
100
Perpetual,
Executors
&
Trustees
Assocn
262
Salvation Army
666
South British Insurance
..
..
..
72
Trustees, Executors & Agency Co., L t d .
4979
Trustees, Executors & Agency Co., Ltd. < _
Alexander W. G r a y
„„„
Were's I n v e s t m e n t T r u s t L t d .
..
208
350
Dixon T r u s t Ltd
P e r p e t u a l T r u s t e e Co., L t d
2129
Alfred c o n s e t t S t e p h e n
W. T. B r u n t o n
• • • • [ 100
K . de L. C u d m o r e
)
Alfred Consett S t e p h e n
. . . . . . )
36g
P e r p e t u a l T r u s t e e Co., L t d
)
C, A. W h i t e
>
16
P e r p e t u a l T r u s t e e Co., L t d
)
J a m e s M. Niall
—
(Of Goldsbrough M o r t )
304
I d a H. Moloney
(C/o. M. Niall)
Union, T r u s t e e Co., of A/sia. L t d . . .
309
Ausn. Provincial Association
..
..
562
B a n k e r s ' I n v e s t m e n t T r u s t (Lond.) . .
223
Bell 'Bus Co. (N.Z.)
—
£8 S h a r e s .
..
310
••
..
..
2100
or*
&uu
162
..
..
••
••
__
637
..
<iiD1
855
,„,,
i-wa
~
10,89.!
,„.„
1040
..
134
..
526
••
°uu
••
393
..
..
..
••
«ob
..
••
..
526
500
LONDON COMPANIES
The n e x t seven are London companies:—
£10 S h a r e s .
1T9
500
3265
323
31
50
127
A r m y & Navy I n v e s t m e n t T r u s t
Life Association of S c o t l a n d
.
Lloyds B a n k
L o n d o n T r u s t Co
Rio Claro I n v e s t m e n t T r u s t
..
River P l a t e T r u s t , L o a n & Agency Co
Second Scottish I n v e s t m e n t T r u s t
£8 S h a r e s .
509
879
562
900
488
N.B.A. SHAREHOLDERS
39
INDIVIDUAL SHAREHOLDERS
The above are the firms which hold 500 or more shares in the
bank. Below are individuals, most of whom are directors or
shareholders in other undertakings.*
On the Melbourne Register:—
£10
S t a n i f o r t h Ricketson )
Edward G. Brooke
> (Melbourne)
Sidney Myer (deceased)
A. E. Williams (Melbourne)
..
..
R. B. McComas (Melbourne)
..
..
J o h n W a u g h (Sydney)
E. J. Quirk (Melbourne)
Tobias E m a n u e l (Melbourne)
..
..
Joseph G r a s - y - f o r t (Melbourne)
..
Marie G r a s - y - f o r t (do.)
S a r i t a G r a s - y - f o r t (do.)
Ulysses Gray (Melbourne)
..
..
J a m e s Scobie (Melbourne)
.. ..
Emily J . W. Anderson
(C/o.
Trustees,
Executors
&
Agency)
Lawrence E. Schwarz (Melbourne)
J o h n Goodall
(C/o. T. E. & A. Co.)
J o h n E d m o n d (Melbourne)
. . . .
Eliza J. Davies (Melbourne)
..
..
M a r y S. J. Orr (Melbourne)
..
..
Grace E. Moore (Melbourne)
. . . .
W m . P. Greenwood (Melbourne)
..
Askin M. Foster
(C/o. Union Trustee Co.)
Leslie M. Harvey ')
Acland Giles
S (Adelaide) . .
Mortimes Giles
)
William Burges ( P e r t h )
Leslie M. Harvey (Adelaide)
..
..
J a m e s Dennis
(C/o. Equity Trustees)
Archibald P. Dougall (Melbourne) . .
G. G. T u r r i (Melbourne)
F. A. H. K n i g h t (Melbourne)
..
..
T h o m a s S. B e a u m o n t (Melbourne) . .
Sir George Tallis (Melbourne) . . . . •
Henry M. Collins
(C/o. T. E. & A. Co.)
Albert E. Young (Melbourne)
.. ..
W m . Thursfield (Melbourne)
..
..
Shares.
685
425
511
88
165
460
360
93
144
620
300
354
£8 Shares.
3600
3063
2250
2008
1728
1496
1403
1353
296
422
1304
1300
1294
210
27
1215
1125
—
85
38
—
208
—
1105
1100
1000
1000
928
880
—
846
110
302
46
849
654
843
238
101
423
42
—
147
813
796
768
740
720
21
152
705
697
806
* There are undoubtedly dummies a m o n g t h e m , too—dummies for some
modest individuals higher up. I n t h e list of shareholders of t h e B.H.P.
given above appear t h e n a m e s of Albert E. Young a n d Leslie L. Ashton,
who hold jointly 16,325 shares in t h e B.H.P. T h e same two individuals
appear in t h e list of shareholders of t h e C.B.A., in which they hold jointly
595 preference a n d 22,391 ordinary shares. Their occupation is given a s
clerks I Clerks in Melbourne a r e evidently so enamored of their jobs t h a t
they r e m a i n clerks all t h e i r lives. T h e y are evidently well paid In t h e
southern capital!
The: oligarchy are in everything. Any firm in which it h a s no
interests a t all is n o t worth very much. Coal a n d iron, metals
and shipping, b a n k s and finance—these are t h e m a i n pillars—
but they control papers, beer, pictures, wireless, rubber, newspapers, etc., as well. I t is i m p o r t a n t to notice how the financial
houses—banks, insurance companies, trustee companies, etc.—
are closely linked with big industry.
The directors of the Perpetual Trustee Co. are: T. H. Kelly
(chairman), Walter T. Brunton, Herbert R. Lysaght, O.B.E., LieutCol. t h e Hon. T. A. J. Playfair, M.L.C., E. R. Knox, K. de L. Cudmore, H. V. Douglass (managing director).
Of these, Kelly, n o relation to Ned, is a director also of t h e
B. of N.S.W. and Tooth & Co., Lysaght is director of Anthony
Hordern & Sons and the B.H.P.,Playfair helps direct t h e Australian Gaslight Co. and N.S.W. Fresh Food & Ice, Knox is also
on t h e board of Colonial Sugar a n d the United Insurance Co.,
a n d Cudmore is a director of the N.S.W. Land & Agency Co.
The directors of t h e Permanent Trustee Co. of N.S.W., Ltd. are:
O. E. Friend, Cecil H. Doyle, F. N. Yarwood (chairman), Sir
T h o m a s Buckland, W. G. Hull, J. W. Barnes (manager), E. V. T.
Whittle (asst. m a n a g e r ) .
Sir Thomas Buckland is a director of United Insurance, Pitt
Son & Badgery and the Bank of N.S.W., as well a s of the Perm a n e n t Trustee Co. The other directors of United Insurance
are O. E. Friend, F. W. Hixon (who helps direct also Illawarra &
South Coast Steam Navigation Co., Newcastle-Wallsend Coal
Co., and Sydney Exchange Co.), E. R. Knox a n d G. F. Hughes.
The Hon. W. Angliss, M.L.C., is a director of Australian Cement,
Davis Coop & Co., Eagle S t a r & British Dominions I n s u r a n c e
Co., Goodlet & Smith, a n d Mutual Store Ltd.
Queensland Trustees Ltd. h a s a director (R. J. Archibald)
who is also a director of Corricks, Ltd. ( f u r n i t u r e m a n u f a c turers), Finney Isles & Co. (retail drapers), M a m a r a Plantations,
McKimmins' Sundae Shops, Solomon Islands Rubber Plantations
Ltd., a n d United Provisions Ltd.
Myer Emporium, we h a v e seen, h a s a Baillieu on its directorate and, in Sydney, Anthony Hordern & Sons has among its
directors: Sir Mark Sheldon a n d H. R. Lysaght.
The directors of the Trustees, Executors and Agency Co., Ltd.
are: Sir Alexander Stewart (chairman), Maj.-Gen. Sir Brudnell
White, K.C.B., K.C.M.G., K.C.V.O., D.S.O., R. O. Blackwood, D.
S t u a r t Murray, J o h n Fordyce, Sir Claude Reading, K.C.M.G., Sir
Lennon Raws, C.B.E., W. Sydney Jones (gen. m a n a g e r ) , K. M.
Hughes (manager).
R. O. Blackwood, vice-chairman of the Trustees Executors &
Agency Co., is also a director of Australian Iron & Steel, B.H.P.,
and Daigety & Co. The directors of the last include General the
IN EVERYTHING
41
Hon. Sir Herbert A. Lawrence. T h e Hon. I. A. Boyd, c h a i r m a n
of Southern Union Insurance and Union Investment Co., is a
director also of Amalgamated Coffee Plantations, A.P.A., Melbourne Hotels Ltd.,. and Rolfe & Co.
One director of the Trustees Executors & Agency Co. is Sir
Claude Reading. Today he is also c h a i r m a n of directors of the
Commonwealth Bank of Australia! A. F. Bell is a director of
the A.M.P., Robert Harper & Co., a n d the Union Trustee Co.
And he, too, is a director of the Commonwealth Bank! The
oligarchs have their h a n d s on the people's bank!
R. Love is a director of the B. of N.S.W. James Love is a
director of the Queensland National Bank a n d the Queenslana
National Pastoral Co. Sir Clifton Love, C. J. D. Love and G. R.
Love are directors of Clifford Love & Co. (tea importers a n d
food m a n u f a c t u r e r s ) , while the chevalier helps direct the M a n u facturers' Mutual Insurance Ltd. and G. R. is a director of the
Royal Exchange Assurance.
A director of the Victorian Insurance Co. (A. T. Creswick) is
also a director of Carlton & United Breweries, Carlton Brewery,
Castlemaine Brewery and the Victorian General Assurance and
Guarantee Co.
VERSATILITY
One person who believes t h a t Australian imperialism h a s a
great f u t u r e before it in the East Indies is Wilfrid E. Johnson,
who is n o t greedy but draws fees for directing the following
companies:—
Archibald Howie Ltd., Austral Bronze Co., Belvedere Pty., Carrier
(Australasia) Ltd., Clemton Pty., D. Davis & Co., Eastbourne Pty.,
Exeter Pty., Gilbert-Lodge & Co., Holbrook Pty., J. M. Dempster Pty.,
J. M. Todd Pty., J a m e s Stedman-Henderson's Sweets Ltd., J e l a p a n g
T i n Dredging Ltd., K a m p o n g L a n j u t T i n Dredging Ltd., K r a m a t
K a m p a r Tin Fields Ltd., K u a l a K a m p a r Tin Fields Ltd., K u n d a n g
Tin Dredging Ltd., L a r u t T i n Fields Ltd., Licenses & General I n s u r - ance Co., Lymdale Pty., L y n d h u r s t Pty., Malim Nawar Tin Ltd., Melrose Pty., Navua Pty., Parisian Neckwear (A.) Pty., Pencarbon (A.) Ltd.,
P e n c a r b o n (N.Z.) Ltd., R a w a n g Concessions Ltd., R a w a n g Tin Fields
Ltd., Richmond Pty. Ltd., Rosdale Pty., Seatondale Pty., S o u t h e r n
K i n t a Consolidated Ltd., T a n a h Biji Ltd., W. G. Watson & Co., a n d
Yulgilbar Pastoral Co.
Wilfrid certainly h a s n o lack of interests—or of tin!
Starting price betting is a burning question today. T h e following gentlemen will be most morally indignant at the evil:
E. H. Buchanan, F. W. Marks, F. A. Thorpe and Sir G. A. Julius.
For they are t h e directors of Automatic Totalisators, Ltd. and
of Automatic Totalisators (France) Ltd. In addition B u c h a n a n
is director of Beard Watson a n d Co. Ltd. and Mortgage Finance
& Discounts Ltd., and the baronet is a trustee of Mutual Life
& Citizens.
MORE N.B.A. SHAREHOLDERS
£10 Shares.
T. J. Ledingham
191
(C/o. T . E , & A. Co.)
N o r m a n Dougall (Melbourne) . .
..
67
T. W. Scott (Terang)
70
E. W h i t e h e a d (Melbourne)
293
(C/o. Union Trustee Co.)
Gerald W h i t e h e a d (Melbourne)
..
100
J. F. W a r r e n (Melbourne)
. . . .
—
Sir J. A. M. Elder (Melbourne)
..
—
P. M. Must (Ballarat)
100
P. C. Leonard (Melbourne)
. . . .
—
H. N. Leonard (do.)
200
David Davies (Denillquin)
. . . .
6
Willi Fels (Dunedin)
400
J o h n E. Goodall (Melbourne) . .
..
32
Joseph Powell (Melbourne)
..
..
141
W. R. G r a h a m (Channel Islands) . .
66
M a r g a r e t H. M a r t i n (Cairns)
..
..
64
W. W. S t e p h e n s (deceased)
.. ..
113
(C/o, Trustees Executors)
J o h n H e f f e r n a n (Melbourne) . . . .
—
F r a n k Liddell
112
(C/o. Perpetual Trustees)
J. S. S m i t h (London)
125
George Nicholson (Melbourne)
..
107
Charles Lawrence (Melbourne)
..
100
N o r m a n L. Suttor (Rose Bay, N.S.W.)
125
M a r k Schwarz (Melbourne)
.. ..
97
J o h n Fulton
100
(C/o. P e r p e t u a l Trustees)
Isabella M u n r o
100
R. Purbrick (Melbourne)
188
P. N. U p t o n ) S o u t h British I n s u r W. R . Wilson ) a n c e Co., Auckland
209
Richard
A.
Crouch
(Armidale,
N.S.W.)
727
C a t h e r i n e A. Cobcroft
—
(C/o. Union T r u s t e e Co.)
H a r r i e t M. Power
174
(C/o, Trustees Executors, Melb.)
J a n e t T . W a r n e r (Cairns)
60
W. H. Stallard (Toronto, N.S.W.) . .
130
S a r a h E. R. Hamilton (Melbourne)
89
M a r t h a R o s e n t h a l (Melbourne)
..
89
G. E. H a r t n e t t e (Melbourne)
.. ..
177
J . C. P r a t t (Melbourne)
146
W. E. Sargood (Corowa)
83
Florence A. Cohen (Sydney)
..
..
130
Doris Joseph (Melbourne
..
..
256
Susan Schreuder (Melbourne)
..
425
Bessie M. M u r p h y (Melbourne)
..
264
E. E. T . Williams (Melbourne) . .
..
267
C. B. Rocki (Melbourne)
250
Eustace J . Gill (Bendigo)
300
August S t a n g ( P e r t h )
400
Andrew Hegarty (Dunedin)
..
..
309
Minnie G. Taylor
545
(C/o. Trustees Executors)
43
MORE N.B.A. SHAREHOLDERS
N. R. J o h n s t o n (Christchurch)
M a r g a r e t Lawlor
(C/o. National Trustees)
£10 Shares.
437
560
£8 Shares.
75
£10 Shares.
£8 Shares.
511
On the Sydney Register:—
G. M. Cooper
(C/o. R a i n e & H o m e )
T h o m a s Cornish (deceased)
. . . .
(C/o. Perpetual Trustees)
A r t h u r H. H. M. Feez (deceased) . .
(C/o. Perpetual Trustees)
G. D. Greenwood (N.Z.)
R. L. P e r r i t t (Roseville)
Baron Vivian Richardson
(C/o. Perpetual Trustees)
116
31
562
77
572
272
320
128
356
457
435
On the Brisbane Register:—
W. H. Williams (deceased)
..
(C/o. Q. Trustee Co.)
W. M. Laing (deceased)
(C/o. Union Trustee Co.)
C. H. Buss (Bundaberg)
G. L. Buss (Bundaberg)
J. S. Bartholomew (Maryborough)
Lady Marie Cowley (Toowong)
C. F. Bird (Cairns)
R. H. Couldery (Brisbane)
..
£10 Shares.
..
389
..
..
..
£8 Shares.
1764
91
803
—
—
103
142
106
87
803
5(S5
800
625
615
574
On the Adelaide Register:—
£10 Shares.
W. H. Bagot
217
Eleanor K . Barker (Adelaide) . .
..
313
J. R. Corpe (deceased)
408
R. Henderson (Adelaide)
74
W. W. G o o d h a r t (do.)
45
Alfred E. Jolly (deceased)
..
..
200
Ernest E. Jolly
—
Lucy Lawson
173
Howard W. Lloyd ) C/o. H. L. &
Lucy J. Bagot
)
A. E. Ayers
129
Howard W. Lloyd ) .
.„
do
86
H. H. Lloyd
)
Howard W. Lloyd )
1K,
1&s
L. L. Lloyd
) ao
J a n e I. Newland
96
C. E. Rawlings (Port Adelaide)
..
177
A. M. Snow (Lower M i t c h a m ) . . . .
—
Hild Snow (Aldgate)
72
W. R. Snow (Aldgate)
—
A. M. Snow (Aldgate)
128
C. H. N. S y m m
139
Dudley C. T u r n e r )
2S
Kathleen Turner
)
K a t h l e e n A. Wood
—
£8 Shares.
1000
1375
1757
1908
543
1000
522
923
..691
1266
465
524
885
555
1306
630
2028
508
506
539
It will be noticed t h a t the ideals of chivalry actuate quite a
n u m b e r of our masters: t h e r e are m a n y k n i g h t s a n d baronets
among them. Associated Newspapers, Ltd., which owns the
Sydney "Sun" with its motto "Above All for Australia," sees
n o t h i n g incongruous in having on its board n o fewer t h a n four
old-world titles: Sir Hugh Denison, Sir J o h n Butters, Sir G r a h a m
Waddell a n d Sir Frederick Tout. The t h r e e ordinary mortals
(D. W. Roxburgh, Fordyce Wheeler and Dr. W. S. Ziele) must
feel very weak in company with four such chevaliers "whose
s t r e n g t h is as the s t r e n g t h of forty (four times ten) because
their h e a r t s are pure." When t h e Rev. L. H. Cocks attacked t h e
press recently, the "Sun," feeling thoroughly self-righteous, r e plied: "Australia h a s no reason to complain of its press . . .
T h e influence of the newspapers is generally in favor of t h e
moralities—of honesty, justice and order." Ye gods!
Sir Hugh Denison is also a director of Australian Paper &
Pulp Co. Ltd. a n d Australian Paper Manufacturers. Directors
of the latter are II. Brookes| (also a director of National Mutual
Life Association of A.), II. E. Brookes (who is also a director of
the Aus. Paper & Pulp Co. a n d Austral Otis Engineering Co.),
N. E. Brookes (same as H. E.). All the shares of t h e Aus. Paper
Manufacturers, which is a n operating company, are held by Australian Paper & Pulp and the Cumberland Paper Boards Mills, Ltd.
Another paper Arm is Associated Pulp & Paper Mills among
whose directors we find M. L. Baillieu, Colonel Cohen, Senator
Sir Massy-Greene and Sir Colin Fraser.
Still a n o t h e r paper company is Paper Makers Pty. On its
directorate are familiar n a m e s : Theo Fink, Sir Keith Murdoch,
Thorold Fink and W. O. Fairfax—the last linking us to the
"Sydney Morning Herald."
The Herald & Weekly Times Ltd., of which Theo. Fink, Thorold
Fink, Sir Keith Murdoch, H. D. Giddy, G. A. Caro a n d J. A. McDonald are directors, publishes t h e "Melbourne Herald," "Sun
News-Pictorial," "Weekly Times," "Sporting Globe," "Table Talk,"
"The Listener-in," "Home Beautiful" a n d "Aircraft." The company hold shares also in Advertiser Newspapers Ltd. (S.A.),
News, Ltd. (S.A.), a n d Queensland Newspapers, Ltd.
On the directorate of Broken Hill South we meet Colin Fraser
again and we meet, also, Sir Sydney Snow who, in addition to
directing t h e affairs of t h e oligarchs' political party, helps to
look a f t e r Broken Hill South, General Industries Ltd., and H. B.
Dickie Ltd.
Senator \V. Massy-Greene finds time in between his parliam e n t a r y duties to help direct t h e following companies: B a r n e t
Glass Rubber Co., Amalgamated Zinc (de Bavay's) Ltd., Associated Pulp & P a p e r Mills, Atlas Assurance Co., Australian K n i t -
THE MODERN CHIVALRY
45
ting Mills, Austral Silk & Cotton Mills, Electrolytic Zinc, Emu
Bay Railway Co., Melbourne Electric Supply Co., a n d Zinc I n vestments Pty. Another ex-minister is t h e Rt. Hon. W. A. Watt.
His directorates are: Aeolian Co., Barnet Glass Rubber, DunlopPerdriau Rubber, J a l a n Kebun Rubber, Q a n t a s Empire Airways,
Rolfe & Co., Silverton Tramway Co., a n d the Zinc Corporation.
Associated with Watt on the board of t h e Aeolian Co., seeking
to provide us with music to soothe us, a t a price, is G. II. Robinson. He also directs Australian Knitting Mills, Freehold Assets,
Hoyts Theatres, Land Mortgage Bank of Victoria, Luna P a r k
Ltd., and Mt. Coolon Gold Mines. He likes to amuse us—at a
price.
Another chevalier believes in big a n d quick returns.
Sir
Arthur Cocks is c h a i r m a n of directors of Direct Cash Orders.
The cash order business is one of t h e most voracious, extracting
over 100 per cent, profit on the accommodation it gives its
clients. He is also m a n a g i n g director of Arthur Cocks & Co.
(wholesale departments), Arthur Cocks & Co. (Q.) a n d A r t h u r
Cocks & Co. (N.Z.).
On the board of the Mutual Life & Citizens is a n o t h e r chevalier and politician: Sir II. Y. Braddon M.L.C., who helps direct
also: the Bank of N.Z., British & Foreign Marine Insurance Co.,
Goodyear Tyres (child of a n American company), the Union
Assurance Society and W. R. Carpenter & Co.
The last-mentioned company is interested in shipping, insurance and copra and has as directors: Sir Walter R. Carpenter
(also director of Austral Diving & Pearling Co., Brown & Joske
Ltd., Consolidated Neon, Sealcones [Aust.] Ltd.), and W. R. Carpenter (Solomon Islands), R. B. Carpenter (also of W.R.C. [Sol.
Islands] a n d Brown & Joske), a n d C. II. V. Carpenter (of both
W. R. C. companies and Consolidated Neon). J. A. Carpenter is
a director of the Sol. Is. Co. a n d also of Peters' American Delicacy Co. a n d Tagula Plantations. II. B. Carpenter is another
director of Tagula Plantations. A family affair!
The generals of the A.I.F. have also carved out for themselves
fairly comfortable niches. Maj.-Gen. Sir Talbot Ilobbs is director of the A.M.P. (W.A. Board), N.Z. Insurance Co., West Australian Newspapers Ltd., Yellow Cabs (W.A.) Ltd. Maj.-Gm.
Glasgow helps direct Hornibrook Highway, Ltd., Millaquin Sugar,
Singapore Hume Pipe Co., a n d Southern Union Assurance.
Maj.-Gen. F. G. Hughes helps direct t h e affairs of Broken
Hill South, B a r n e t Glass Rubber, Commercial Union Assurance,
Dunlop-Perdriau, and the Western N.S.W. Electric Power Pty.
5.—CEMENT,
DRUGS,
CLOTHES
AND
SHIPS
BUILDING A HOME
In the daily papers every day, men and women are each urged
to own a little corner of Australia. I know, and you know, of
one who sought to own a little corner of Australia. I t took him
27 years to "buy" his house, and h e paid more t h a n the value
of the house in interest—first tribute to the oligarchy.
We have seen t h a t , if our friend h a d wished to build "his"
house of wood he would have h a d to get it f r o m t h e Timber
Combine a n d so pay tribute to the oligarchy. If he wanted to
erect it of concrete he would pay similar tribute also—especially
if he lived in South Australia, where, on t h e directorate or in the
share-list of t h e Adelaide Cement Co., h e will meet with t h e same
n a m e s as we m e t with when investigating t h e Broken Hill group.
Or, his house m a y be jerry-built and h e or his wife or children
m a y catch colds. Because it h a s never been found profitable
enough to And a cure or preventive of t h e common cold, he will
have recourse to the "chemist." Now, it is said, t h e p a t e n t medicine bill for Australia is greater t h a n its drink bill! It would
be strange, wouldn't it, if the oligarchy did n o t draw tribute from
such a f r u i t f u l source of wealth.
DRUGS
Drug Houses of Australia is a company formed in 1930 to consolidate t h e interests of t h e following drug companies: A. M.
Bickford and Sons (Adelaide and Brisbane); Elliots & Australian
Drug (Sydney); Felton, Grimwade & Duerdins (Melbourne);
Felton, Grimwade Dental Co. (Melbourne); Felton, Grimwade &
Bickford ( P e r t h ) ; Taylors, Elliots & Australian Drug (Brisbane,
Rockhampton a n d Townsville). I t h a s a p a i d - u p capital of
£2,439,912, a n d its directors are: V. G. Elliott, M a j o r - G e n e r a l
H. W. Grimwade, H. C. McRoberts, H. Bickford, F. W. Firth, R.
Cullen Ward, E. Norton Grimwade, R. E. Wood, Dr. C. Purser,
L. G. Cohen, L. A. Poole. Its dividends for 1935 was Ave per
cent, on grossly watered capital.
SILKS AND SATINS; COTTON AND WOOL
And, of course, if he wants to dress—and the oligarchy's policemen will see t h a t h e does—he will inevitably pay h i s feudal
dues. He will And—or he won't—that from the sheep's back to
his the wool is t h e property of or pays tribute to our ubiquitous
CEMENT, DRUGS, CLOTHES AND SHIPS
47
feudal lords. Their domination of the land and sheep we shall
consider later. But look a t t h e textile factories.
Yarra Falls?—C. L. Ballieu, one of the oligarchs is a director.
Australian Knitting Mills Ltd.?—M. H. Baillieu, another oligarch,
is a director. Austral Silk and Cotton Mills Ltd.?—M. L. Baillieu,
still a n o t h e r oligarch, is a director. And, if he wanted to buy
a t Myer's Emporium, he would find yet another Baillieu
ensconsed there.
Nor are these all the textile concerns connected with t h e
oligarchy, nor are the Baillieus the only oligarchs.
KNITTING
Three of the Robinsons are co-directors with the Baillieus on
the directorate of Australian Knitting Mills—a company in which
Yarra Falls has big interests and which has thousands of shares
in Julius Kayser (Aust.) Pty., Ltd., formed to m a n u f a c t u r e silk
hosiery. One of the Gillespies is a director of Lincoln Mills
(Aust.), Ltd., a n d we have already seen t h e connection through
directors between Austral Silk & Cotton and Yarra Falls and the
E.S. & A. Yarra Falls is the most important of the textile m a n u facturing companies and it h a s as directors Senator the Hon. Sir
Massey Greene, F. Robinson, Arthur Hordern, F. Hill, N. de W.
Robinson, E. L. Baillieu, A. C. Wilkinson, and (London directors)
W. S. Robinson and C. L. Baillieu. Its capital is £1,000,000.
Finally n o t to leave our respected High Commissioner out in the
cold, there is t h e firm of Paterson, Laing and Bruce, of which the
Hon. S. M. Bruce is a director. His chairman of directors is
Thomas C. Alston, who is also a director of Australian Glass
M a n u f a c t u r i n g Co., A.M.P., Kauri Timber Co., Melbourne S t e a m ship Co., N.B. of A.—as we have already seen.
SHIPS
B u t whatever we buy from overseas or from other States, we
must pay tribute to the shipping companies, and we here find
as close links as anywhere with t h e iron and money monopoly.
The principal shipping companies of Australia are listed below,
with their p a i d - u p capital and their reserves:—
P a i d - u p Capital
£
Adelaide S t e a m s h i p Co. Ltd
2,325,135
644,081
W. R. C a r p e n t e r & Co. Ltd
281,616
P o r t Jackson & Manly S.S. Co. . .
443,700
N o r t h Coast S.N. Co. Ltd
100,000
Ulawarra & S o u t h Coast S.N. Co.
1,500,000
B u r n s P h i l p & Co. Ltd
2,250,000
Howard S m i t h Ltd. .'. . .
..'
750,000
B u r n s Philp (South Sea) Co.
Reserves
£
490,391
224,300
51,676
168,234
48,820
1,616,338
337,379
107,013
P a i d - u p Capital
£
H u d d a r t P a r k e r Ltd
1,250,000
Sydney Ferries L t d
170,000
Newcastle & H u n t e r River S.S. Co.
150,000
Melbourne S.S. Co. Ltd
.. ..
366,000
Totals
£10,230,532
..
..
..
..
..
Reserves
£
766,652
53,034
88,607
—
£3,952,448
T h e profits of these shipping companies have been enormous—
10 per cent, to 20 per cent, dividends have been common, a n d
profits are still high. A tremendous a m o u n t of water h a s been
poured into the capitals of these companies—as is appropriate
with shipping companies. The following table gives the amounts
for the various companies:—
Melbourne S.S. Co. Ltd
Adelaide S.S. Co. Ltd
P o r t Jackson & Manly S.S. Co
North Coast S.N. Co. Ltd
B u r n s Philp & Co. Ltd
Howard S m i t h Ltd
H u d d a r t P a r k e r Ltd
Sydney Ferries Ltd
Newcastle & H u n t e r River S.S
Total
£
136,000
1,550,090
239,081
113,986
450,000
500,000
250,000
146,666
50,000
£3,485,823
MANY INTERESTS
These shipping Arms have interests in the following e n t e r prises:—
Adelaide S.S. Co., Ltd.: J. a n d A. Brown and Abermain-Seaham
Collieries Ltd.; Australian National Airways.
Melbourne S.S. Co., Ltd.: Hobson's Bay Dock a n d Engineering
Co. (controlling interest).
W. R. Carpenter & Co., Ltd.: Coconut Products Ltd. (controlling); W. R. Carpenter (Solomon Islands), (controlling);
South Pacific I n s u r a n c e (controlling); Brown & Joske (Fiji).
Illawarra and South Coast S.N. Co., Ltd.: Allen Taylor, Ltd.
Burns, Philp & Co., Ltd.: Burns Philp (South Seas), (controlli n g ) ; Queensland I n s u r a n c e ; A.U.S.N. Co.; Solomon Islands Development (controlling); Choiseul & Shortland Island P l a n t a tions (controlling); J a n t z e n (Aust.), Ltd.
Howard Smith Ltd.: Australian S.S. Pty. Ltd.; Caledonian Collieries Ltd.; Invincible Colliery Ltd.; Australian Sugar Co.; Commonwealth Steel Products Ltd.; Biisbane Wharves Ltd.; Australian Iron a n d Steel Ltd.; Southern Portland Cement Ltd.; Southern Blue Metal Quarries Ltd.; Broken Hill Pty Ltd.; Australian
National Airways.
Huddart Parker Ltd.: Hebburn Coal Co.;. Metropolitan Coal Co.
Ltd.; T a s m a n i a n Steamers Ltd.; J. & A. Brown a n d Abermain-
49
ON AND OFF THE LAND
S e a h a m Collieries Ltd.; Amalgamated
Broken Hill Pty. Collieries.
Wireless
(Aust.)
Ltd.;
Sydney Ferries Ltd.: Harbor, Land, and Transport Co. Ltd.
Finding out who owns the land may be a tedious job, but this
is clear—these companies own the sea and W. R. Carpenter a n d
Burns Philp own the Pacific Islands.
6.—ON THE LAND
Australian Estates and Mortgage Co.; Australian Mercantile,
Land, and Finance Co.; Pitt, Son and Badgery; Colonial Sugar
Refining Co.; Peel River Land Mineral Co.; Squatting Investm e n t Co.; Goldsbrough, Mort; Australian Investment T r u s t ;
Australian Pastoral Co.; Australian Sheep F a r m s ; Australian
Development Co.; Dalgety and Co.; Queensland National Pastoral;
Australian Agricultural Company.
These are some of the companies t h a t we have seen closely
connected with the banks.
They are the companies through
which the oligarchy controls t h e land and its products—producing wool, wheat, sugar, meat, etc., on their own stations or m a r keting the products of those dependent on them. There are other
companies and there are individuals of t h e miner circle who own
or control on long leases vast areas of South Australia, New
South Wales, Queensland, and North Australia.
The whole of
Melville Island is leased by the Australian Investment Agency, a
subsidiary of Vestey's.
LAND OF OPPORTUNITY
Australia h a s certainly appeared to a few, at any rate, as a
land of opportunity.
One such was the late Sir Sidney Kidman,
the Cattle King.
He started out to seek his fortune, according
to his biographer, Ion L. Idriess, as a boy of 13 with "five shillings
and a brave heart."
He "got on"—working as stockman and
drover: no opportunity; driving his own team and carting stores
to Cobar: marvellous opportunity—100 per cent, profit!—then,
dealing in horses and cattle: more opportunities; t h a n k f u l his
wife made him go to church because he there made profitable
cattle deals; and finally, owning a station.
Ultimately, he controlled over 100,000 square miles of land—about half the area of
France or l-30th of the area of Australia!
What a pity we
didn't have another 29 with the genius of Kidman to grasp
opportunities!
Our land settlement problems would, by now,
have been settled. The rest of us, with no ability to seize opportunity, could have become the serfs of the 30 Kidmans.
The following stations in New South Wales were acquired* by
Kidman between 1910 a n d 1920:
"Yantara
Salisbury Downs
Bootra
Purnanga
Mount Arrowsmith
210,139 acres; bought in
434,266
„
„
„
132,649
„
„
„
254,825
„
„
„
228,825
„
„
„
—"S.M.H.,"
1910,
1914,
1915,
1919,
1920."
8/5/'36.
A.A. OCTOPUS
T h e Australian Agricultural Company was a company t h a t got
in early. It was formed in England in 1824. I t was to have a
capital of £1,000,000—divided into 10,000 shares of £100 each. A
Royal Charter was g ^ m t e d . The aim was to acquire a million
acres in New South Wales in return for the spending of certain
sums of money on the development of the country. I n 1828,
Governor Darling granted t h e company 2000 acres a t Newcastle
where coal h a d been discovered. About five years later it gained
possession of 6000 acres, freehold, on Liverpool Plains. Later
p a r t of its holdings was sold to the Peel River Co.
In 1830, t h e A.A. Co. began extracting coal, a n d in the next
two decades sought to prevent others from engaging in t h e
production of coal.
One of those proceeded against (in 1845)
was J a m e s Brown, who had, opened up a mine n e a r Maitland.
Today, the A.A. Co. h a s ceased to produce coal, but it sold
the land on which Newcastle now stands a t enormous prices,
and it has extended its control over vast areas in various p a r t s
of Australia—especially in Queensland, where it owns some of
the finest stations in the State. And it is still linked with coal—
holding m a n y thousands of shares in H e b b u m Ltd. The A.A. Co.
holds h u n d r e d s of t h o u s a n d s of acres in N.S.W. a n d Q., r u n n i n g
sheep and cattle—at Cloncurry, Longreach, Winton, Tamworth
DALGETY'S
Dalgety's is the trade n a m e covering a multitude of sins. The
company "buys a n d sells wool, hides, sheep, cattle. I t imports,
exports, finances a n d ships commodities." I t was begun as a
wool-selling business in 1846 by Frederick G o n n e r m a n Dalgety.
In 1884 it was established as a limited company with h e a d quarterd in London. We have seen some of the connections. It
is linked financially with the following concerns:—
Glynn Mills (and therefore with Vickers); Currie & Co.;
Anglo-Austrian Bank; Bank of R u m a n i a ; Ottoman Bank; Liverpool, London, and Globe I n s u r a n c e ; Midland Railway Co.; Whitechapel and Bow Railway. With the Spassky Copper Mine; the
U.B.A.; London and N.W. Railway; Birmingham Canal Navigation Co.; E.S. & A.; Sydney Ferries; Mutual Life and Citizens;
B.H.P.; B. of N.S.W.; Adelaide Steamship Co.; Sth. Ausn. Brewing Co.
«—They were p u t up for salei in June, 1936.
GRASPING OPPORTUNITIES
51
Goldsbrough, Mort Ltd. has, for over 50 years, been paying
big dividends to its shareholders. Like Dalgety's it is a mere
trade n a m e — a n o t h e r pseudonym for the oligarchy.
In the early days, wool was sold in London. Both Richard
Goldsbrough a n d Thomas Mort began to sell wool locally.
Thomas Sutcliffe Mort was born in Lancashire in 1810 and arrived
in Sydney in 1838. At the time of the financial crisis of 1842, in
which the Bank of Australia failed, he began local sales of wool.
He obtained 14,000 acres in the Moruya district, where h e established the Bodalla model dairy. In 1854, he commenced t h e
excavation for Mort's Dock in Sydney. He was also a pioneer in
t h e refrigeration of m e a t for export.
He died in 1878.*
Richard Goldsbrough began his local wool sales in 1848. For
years the small m e n sold locally, but the big men still took their
wool to London. Local sales were definitely established in t h e
'eighties. In 1881, R. Goldsbrough & Co. was registered in
Melbourne. I n 1888, Mort & Co. Ltd., of Sydney, was absorbed
a n d the n a m e changed to Goldsbrough, Mort. Today, there is
no Goldsbrough, Mort—except in n a m e .
The present directors of G.M. are K. M. Niall (also a director
of A.C.F. and Shirleys Fertilisers Ltd., Mt. Lyell Mining and Railways Co., Squatting Investment Co.); J. M. Niall (also a director
of Squatting Investment Co.); Sir F r a n k Clarke; B. Chafley; Sir
J a m e s Elder (also a director of N.B.A. and Union Trustee Co.).
The capital paid up is £2,400,000.
G.M. owns stations at the following places, the figures a f t e r
each being, first, the number of acres, and, second, the n u m b e r
of sheep:—
Bourke (126,833—22,263); Brewarrina, 3 [(1) 77,158—20,772;
(2) 42,316—8918; (3) 23,275—3000]; Canonbar (84,215—22,698);
Carcoar (16,926—22,434); Cobar (114,023—10.505); Hillson (360,039
—38,837;) Moulamein (39,500—6511); Narrabri (23,113—10,400);
Pilliga (20,343—18,041); Aramac (?—25,000); Clermont (?—?);
M u t t a b u r r a (22,823—43,120); Winton (9—2035); Hay (8900—?).
Total sheep: in N.S.W., 166,338; in Q„ 88,196.
Queensland National Pastoral Co. was formed in 1915 to take
over the pastoral properties of the Q.N.B. Two of its directors,
James Love and M. J. Ryan are directors of the Q.N.B., and the
latter is also a m a n a g i n g director of Millaquin Sugar, and the
remaining one (E. C. Walker) is also a director of Q. Trustee Co.
The company's capital is £325,000, and it has properties in Boulia,
Camooweal, Gladstone, Gympie, Hungerfcrd, Longreach, Nanango, Toogoolawah, Winton—all in Q.
Two of t h e directors of Squatting Investment Co. we have
already met (the two Nialls). T h e other two are J. N. Fraser and
"—"Dally T e l e g r a p h " (Syd.), Sept. 29, 1923.
R. C. Meares (an old friend—director of Aust. Iron a n d Steel,
B.H.P., and C.B.A.). The company (capital, £300,000) h a s stations
in N.S.W. and Q.
D. W. Roxburgh (director of Associated Newspapers, North
Shore Gas, etc.) a n d F. N. Yarwood (director of Newcastle Wallsend Coal Co., P e r m a n e n t Trustees, etc.) are two of the directors
of Australian Stockbreeders Ltd. (issued capital, £325,579), which
h a s big properties in Q.
The Scottish Australian Co., Ltd. is a n i m p o r t a n t company,
owning nearly half a million sheep in Q. and N.S.W., with an
issued capital of £1,100,000. Its directors, a n d their other directorates, are:—
J. C. Inglis: Scottish Australian Mining Co.
J . G. Harris: Goode, D u r r a n t & Murry, Ltd.
Lt.-Col. I. Rose-Innes Forbes: Sc.-Aus. Mining Co.
I. C. Geddes: Aberdeen & Commonwealth Line; B a n k of N.S.W.
(London Board); English Coaling Co.; Equitable Life Assurance;
Equitable Revisionary Interest Socy.; Orient Underwriting F u n d
Ltd.
Sir P. G. Mackinnon.
Australian Estates & Mortgage Co., with stations in N.S.W. &
Q., half a million sheep, over half a million acres and a capital
of £1,500,000, h a s directors connecting it with the inner circle.
Two really big companies next demand our attention.
Australian Mercantile Land & Finance Co. has a paid-up capital of £3,800,000, owns well over a million acres in N.S.W. and Q.,
and possesses a n imposing list of directors:
John Sanderson: of A. A. Co., B. of A., British & Foreign Marine
Insurance, Sulphide Corporation.
Lord Luke of Pavenliam: of Argentine Estates of Bovril Ltd.,
Ashanti Goldfields Corporation, Bovril Aust. Estates Ltd., Bovril
Ltd., Estates Control Ltd., Lloyds Bank, N.B.A., S a n t a Fe Land
Co., Virol Ltd.
Lord Forster (see under E.S. & A.).
Hon. Maurice Lubbock, of Lloyds Bank, etc.
D. O. Malcolm, of Beira Works Ltd., British North Borneo Co.,
Brit. Sth. Af. Co., Bwana M'Kubwa Copper Mining Co., City and
International Trust, Consolidated Gold Fields of Sth. Af., New
ditto, Port of Beira, Development Ltd., Provident Mutual Life
Assurance, Rhodesia Land Bank, Rhodesia Railways Trust,
Rhodesian Anglo-American Ltd., R h o k a n a Ltd., South-West Africa
Co. Ltd.
J. M. Eddy, of Argentine Industrial Co., Argentine Lands a n d
Industries Ltd., Bahia Blanca Waterworks Co., Bank of London
a n d Sth. America Ltd., Buenos Ayres Ensenada a n d Sth. Coast
Railway Co., Buenos Ayres Southern Dock Co., Buenos Ayres
SUGAR
53
Western Railway Ltd., Ottoman Railway from Smyrna to Aden,
Royal Mail Lines Ltd.
We begin to appreciate the f a c t t h a t the Argentine is a sister
dominion of our feudal Empire.
Australian Pastoral Co. has a capital of £1,000,000, properties
in N.S.W. a n d Q., and an imposing directorate including Andrew
Williamson (of Australian Sheep F a r m s with its well over a million acres at Bourke—see under E.S. & A.).
Another big land company is the N.Z. and A. Land Co., which
h a s an issued capital of £3,000,000 and owns nearly 2,000,000
sheep and m a n y hundreds of thousands of acres. The Anal land
interest we have space to mention are the Field interests, split
u p among five different companies possessing h u n d r e d s of
thousands of sheep and acres. We can only again echo the poet:
Breathes there t h e m a n with soul so dead,
Who never to himself h a t h said:
"This is my own, my native l a n d " ?
7.—SUGAR, PRESS, INSURANCE, AND COAL
Of all the goldmines in Australia, the Colonial Sugar Refining
Co. is and h a s been the richest. I t was established by the late
Sir Edward Knox in 1855—beginning in n o r t h e r n N.S.W. a n d
t h e n extending to North Queensland, Fiji, and New Zealand.
The present company was registered in 1887 with a p a i d - u p
capital of £600,000. I t absorbed the Victorian Sugar Co. and the
N.Z. Sugar Co. The McNade and Hambledon mills and p l a n t a tions were bought in 1897. Four years later the Knockroe mill
was bought, a n d in 1903 t h e paid-up capital was £2,000,000.
The Poolman refineries a t Sydney a n d Melbourne were purchased
in 1907 and t h e p l a n t a t Ripple Creek in 1908. In the former
year, there was a bonus issue of £75,000, followed by another
of £350,000 in 1908, by one of £150,000 in 1910, and another of
£250,000 in 1915.
During the last three years of the war, the Commonwealth government bought all of Australia's sugar crop—the C.S.R. handled
most of it and was paid £5,393,142 by the government for t h e
trouble.
In 1926,, it acquired the only mill in Fiji t h a t did not
already belong to it.
SUGAR AND WATER
The nominal capital of t h e company is £14,000,000 (in £20
shares—now quoted a t £43/5/-) paid up to £11,700,000—but it is
all water! In other words, the shareholders have not put a
penny piece into-the business! They regularly received nominal
12-J per cent, dividends—still do, the 6 J per cent, last nominal
dividend being t h a t because the capital was doubled in 1935,
thus automatically halving the nominal dividend rate. From
1887 to 1936, it paid £18,147,172 in dividends; a n d it issued cash
bonuses, returned capital, a n d distributed bonus shares to t h e
value of nearly £17,000,000 durirfg the same period! This means,
simply, t h a t the original shareholders put their original £600,000
into the business in 1887—then things went so well t h a t they
were able to withdraw all t h a t money and m u c h more besides
and provide more capital for the company from profits—to t h e
extent now of over £11,000,000—besides paying themselves big
dividends a n d cash bonuses all the time a n d additional visible
reserves a m o u n t i n g to £4,280,987! There is more "sugar" in
sugar t h a n t h e r e is in iron! From 1929 to 1935, t h a t is during
the years of crisis, the C.S.R. m a d e net profits a m o u n t i n g to
nearly £5,000,000.
A FAMILY AFFAIR
The C.S.R. h a s been t h e close preserve of several N.S.W. f a m i lies. One of these is t h e Knox family. When E. W. Knox retired
from its board of directors in 1933, he h a d completed almost 69
years with the company.
He h a d joined it in 1864 when it was
producing about 5000 tons a year. In 1933, t h e output was 60
times as great. He became c h a i r m a n of directors in 1920. His
f a t h e r , Sir Edward Knox, h a d also been c h a i r m a n of directors
for m a n y years, and h a d been a director also of the C.B.C.
nearly all his life: director 1845-6, m a n a g i n g director 1847-8,
m a n a g e r 1848-51, director 1851-6, auditor 1856-62, director 186278, and t h e n director on and'off until his d e a t h in 1901.*
Edward Knox was born in 1820 at Elsinore, Denmark, but
evidently lacked t h e hesitation a n d indecision t h a t characterised
a n o t h e r Elsinorean, although the Prince of D e n m a r k filled no
greater a portion of "Hamlet" t h a n the Knoxes did or do in t h e
C.S.R.
Edward Knox came to Australia in 1840.
In 1842 h e
began his sugar company which was floated into t h e C.S.R. in
1855. I t was the gold discoveries t h a t set it firmly on its feet.
In 1894, celebrating his golden wedding and his 50 years' association with sugar, h e made a speech in which he expressed
his gratitude t h a t "with us strikes a n d labor difficulties h a d
been unknown." ** Of course, he h a d nothing to say of t h e
k a n a k a s kidnapped for the Queensland sugar plantations a n d
source of much of t h e wealth of his own family and those of
the Burnses, Philps, a n d Fairfaxes—the latter of whom used
their paper in a n endeavor to prevent t h e abolition of k a n a k a
labor! His eldest son died in 1888; another son, E. W., succeeded
him as m a n a g i n g director of the C.S.R. and a director of C.B.C.;
*—'S.M.H.," July 29, 1933, speech by J a m e s Ashton.
**—Art., "Danish-Australian Pioneers," June, 1921.
GRANNY
55
still another, T. F., was for many years managing director of
Dalgety's, and died in 1919; a n d the remaining one, Sir Adrian,
became a racehorse owner, Chief Justice of Australia, a n d a
f r i e n d of J o h n Brown, from whom he inherited mines, horses,
a n d money.
LORDS OF TIIE PRESS
I n the Middle Ages, the feudal lords h a d their minstrels, the
friars, and the church, with its mystery a n d morality plays, to
p u t a damper on the fires of discontent and to tell the serfs
w h a t good chaps the feudal lords were.
I t wasn't a very
efficient system.
Today, however, the system is f a r more effective.
The modern feudal lords own t h e daily and weekly press
t h a t enters into every home.
To particularise, t h e "Sydney
Morning Herald" is the official organ of sugar and the Sydney
banks. The "Age" and Melbourne "Herald" are efficient m o u t h pieces for iron and steel.
"SYDNEY MORNING HERALD"
The "Sydney Morning Herald" is owned by J o h n F a i r f a x &
Sons—a limited company, registered in 1916, in which all shares
were to be held by members of the F a i r f a x family.
The composition of the company was given in 1931 as follows:—
Managing director: W. O. Fairfax; director: Dr. E. Wilfred
F a i r f a x (son of J a m e s Reading F a i r f a x ) ; shareholders: J o h n F.
F a i r f a x (son of E. W. F.); Miss Mary F a i r f a x and J o h n Hubert
Fairfax, a well-known Queensland grazier (children of J a m e s
Reading F a i r f a x ) ; and Lady F a i r f a x (widow of Sir James Oswald
Fairfax).
T h e "Herald" was founded by three p a r t n e r s in 1831 as a
weekly.
It became a daily in 1840 at 6d. per copy.
I n 1841,
J o h n F a i r f a x and Charles Kemp acquired the "Herald"—the
former became t h e sole owner in 1853. It h a s remained in the
F a i r f a x family ever since.
Reactionary a n d representative of
t h e inner circle of vested interests in New South Wales the
"Herald" has been throughout its existence.
It was alive to
attack the first strike in Australian history, and it h a s attacked
every one since. It alone, of all newspapers in N.S.W., supported
W. C. Wentworth's scheme for a nominee upper house; it waxed
hysterical over t h e Eureka Stockade; it supported Dalley's sending of soldiers to fight t h e Sudanese in 1885 a n d the sending of
troops to South Africa in 1899; it fought for the retention of
k a n a k a slavery In Queensland; it was in t h e f o r e f r o n t calling
for more and more sacrifices from the masses during the years
of crisis a t t h e same time as the family who owned it was m a k ing millions!
During the hectic years of 1931 and 1932 it even
incited a n d encouraged reactionary mobs made up of sons of
squatters and deluded middle-class men to acts of violence
against t h e workers.
We h a v e n ' t space even to h i n t a t its vile
record on behalf of reaction a n d m a m m o n , a n d against peace,
freedom, and progress.
LEADERS OF REACTION
We have quoted w h a t it said the people would have to forego
in order to pay for the crisis, and we have mentioned the huge
sums m a d e by t h e C.S.R. during the crisis years—and t h a t was
only one of the F a i r f a x interests. Take p a p e r and pencil, look
at the advertisement pages of t h e "Herald," a n d figure out the
vast income of t h a t paper. Then consider the other F a i r f a x
interests: Bank of New South Wales, Burns Philp (presumably),
government bonds, B.H.P., pastoral interests, a n d all t h a t we
don't know of. And yet, so efficient is the oligarchy's safetyvalve system, t h a t t h e cold-blooded urging of pulling in the
belt at a time of record productions of wheat a n d wool and
m e a t caused barely a ripple. I t told us we were in the position
of a shipwrecked crew, and we should have to go on short
rations—we did, and its owners, the Fairfaxes and their fellowvultures, gobbled up all t h a t we went without!
IIOW TO LIVE WHILE STARVING
\
In its leader of November 11, 1932—appropriate day!—it h a d
the heartless audacity to describe t h e pensions paid to old
people, invalids, and to widows as "vested interests" t h a t h a d to
be attacked. From time to time it h a s considerably shown how
the mass of us can do with less so t h a t the oligarchy and its
dependents m a y have more. Three years ago it published a series
of articles giving details of how to live on t h e basic wage or
less. For example, one showed how it was possible for a m a n
and wife to live on £1 a week (of course in a shack), a n d
a n o t h e r told of a family of four who lived on two guineas a
week and saved money. Details for the first case were: "Meat,
1/10; vegetables, 1/8; milk, 1/9; bread, 2/3?»; groceries, 5/0^; total,
12/7—the balance, 1/6 [14/1 allowed for food] covers soap, 2d.
(a lOd. bar lasts five weeks), kerosene, 6d. (small lamp and n o
late hours); and sundries, such as materials for small quantities
of j a m and sometimes candles or matches when required. A
box of matches ofen lasts three weeks!" Rent was 2/6 per week
— they lived in a one-roomed h u t — t h e wife cooked in the open.
INSURANCE AND—INSURANCE
57
A delightful picture to encourage us to struggle t h r o u g h t h e
rigors of 20th century civilisation to make things easy for those
who have plenty. (See "S.M.H." Women's Supplement for Feb.
;15 and for J a n . 4, 11, 25 and Feb. 8, 22 a n d March 1 a n d 8,
1934.)
THE BAILLIEU PRESS
The Baillieus in Melbourne, with assistance, control the Herald
and Weekly Times Ltd., which is linked with t h e Advertiser
Newspaper Ltd. and News Ltd. These three companies publish
between t h e m : The "Herald" (Melb.), "Sun News-Pictorial"
(Melb.), "Weekly Times," "Table Talk," "Sporting Globe,"
"Listener In," "Home Beautiful," "Aircraft," the "Advertiser"
(Adelaide), the "News" (Adelaide), the "Mail" (Adelaide), and
the "Barrier Miner" (Broken Hill). They own, also, wireless
stations in Victoria and South Australia. We have already seen
t h a t the "Age" is linked to t h e B.H.P. interests. So is the Sydney
"Sun," which is published by Associated Press, which issues also
"Wireless Weekly," "Woman," and the "World's News." Through
directors (Sir Hugh Denison is c h a i r m a n ) , the Associated Press
is interlocked with the Australian Paper and Pulp Co., Australian
Paper M a n u f a c t u r e r s Ltd., 2GB and 2UE, Amalgamated Coffee
Plantations (N.G.) Ltd., Broadcasting Services Association,
General Motors-Holdens, North Shore Gas, A.M.P., Colonial
Mutual, Queensland Meat Export Co. There is share connection
with Consolidated Press, which publishes t h e "Daily Telegraph"
and the "Australian Women's Weekly."
With the aid of these and other papers, the oligarchy is convinced t h a t its hold on Australia is insured against being
loosened. And t h a t brings us to another form of insurance.
INSURANCE
We have seen already t h a t the big insurance companies are
closely connected with the banks, the big land companies, the
C.S.R., and B.H.P. A big harvest is reaped by the' insurance
companies. The Queensland I n s u r a n c e Co. (whose £1 shares are
quoted at £3!) has paid big dividends—121 per cent, before the
crisis; its last one being 8 per cent. It is controlled by the BurnsPhilp-Bank of N.S.W. interests, and is linked with coal, wool,
rubber (Austral Malay), David Jones, and so cn. United I n s u r ance Co. is controlled by the Cohen, Buckland, Friend, and
Vickery interests( t h a t is, by B. of N.S.W. a n d C.B.C.—the same
old gang). I t suffices to list some of t h e dividends paid by this
a n d other companies: United, 1925-9, 10 per cent.; 1936, 8 per
cent. Standard, ! 925-9. 15 per cent., 16 2/3 per cent., 16 2/3 per
cent., 12i per cent., 12£ per cent. N.Z. Inscc. Co. 1925-9, 13.2 per
cent., 11.9 per cent., 12| per cent., 11| per cent., 11J per cent.;
1930, 10 per cent. South British, 1936, 13J per cent.; its £l shares
are quoted a t £4/15/6.
There is quite evidently a goldmine in insurance, and the
miners are our old friends the enemy.
COAL
There are m a n y coalmines and quite a n u m b e r of coal companies, txnd we should be surprised if the inquisitive a n d acquisitive fingers df the oligarchs were not in coal, too. We have
seen the A.A. Co. beginning the exploitation of Newcastle and
continuing, even today, drawing dividends therefrom.
The
masters of iron and steel and of the banks are "in coal." * For
example:—
In the Abermain-Seaham Coal Co., the Adelaide Steamship
Co., in 1930, owned 571,000 shares, H u d d a r t P a r k e r nearly 25,000
shares, Howard Smith Ltd. nearly 60,000 shares, B a r r - S m i t h (of
Elder, Smith and Co.) nearly 30,000 and G. S. Yuill Ltd. 40,000.
Adelaide Steamship also controlled the East Greta Coal Mining
Co. Then, as we have seen, H. W. Lloyd is a director of the B. of
Ad. a n d of Adelaide Steamship.
Again, as we have also seen, J. L. Webb is a director of H u d d a r t P a r k e r Ltd. and the C.B.A. Now, H u d d a r t Parker controls
Hebburn Ltd. (coalmines), h a s big interests in B.II.P.. Collieries
Ltd., in South Maitland Railways, Ltd. (for coal transportation),
and h a s all the shares in Metropolitan Coal Co. So AbermainSeaham, Adelaide Steamship, East Greta Coal, H u d d a r t Parker,
Hebburn Ltd., B.H.P., and South Maitland Railways are all connected, are all controlled by the same men! Ships a n d banks,
iron and coal and railways.
But t h a t is by n o m e a n s all. Besides the connection between
the B.H.P. t h a t we have already traced, two directors of the
B.H.P. in 1930 were also directors, respectively, of the N.B.A. a n d
the E.S. & A.—Bowes Kelly and Sir Joseph Cockburn. J a m e s
Burns, of Burns Philp a n d the Bank of N.S.W., is also in coal. As
head of the Burns Philp combine he is linked up with t h e I n c h cape interests, I t all becomes bewildering, a n d would require
more space t h a n we have to trace out all the inter-connections.
As Adelaide Steam controls Abermain-Seaham, a n d H u d d a r t
P a r k e r controls Hebburn, so Howard Smith owns and controls
Caledonian Collieries Ltd.—a company which works some of the
richest coalmines in Australia. Ships a n d coal—when it is not
desired t h a t coal m a k e big profits, t h e ships can, and vice versa.
T h a t is one benefit owning both coal a n d ships!
Burns Philp
have big interests in Bellambi Coal Co.; Adelaide Steam in East
Greta Coal Mining Co., North Bulli Ltd.; Howard Smith in I n •5—Art., by E. S. Miller, a c c o u n t a n t for the Miners, in t h e "Labor Daily,"
M a r c h 4, 1930.
59
SHIPS AND COAL
vincible Colliery I^td. and in collieries in Queensland; Mcllwraith,
McEacharn in Bellambi Coal Co.; the North Coast Steamship
Co. in Wallerawon Collieries Ltd.
Coal is the i n a n i m a t e substance. I t needs the labor of men
to bring it to t h e top. The owners of the men and the coal are
not satisfied with the coal—they must obtain more of the men's
labor.
The story is told by figures:—*
Year.
1929
1930
1931
1932
1933
1934
O u t p u t in Tons.
7,G17,73G
7,093,401
6,432,382
6,784,222
7,118,437
7,873,180
..
..
..
..
..
..
Total Employees.
22,470
20,090
15,808
13,576
13,349
13,465
More tonnage—fewer men—more work per man—less work for
the mass—more wealth for the few!
8.—RICH RICHER, POOR POORER
Yes—that is the position universally. I n 1930, the average wage
for all callings in the engineering industry was 91/1. The value
of production of the Australian m a n u f a c t u r i n g industries for
t h a t current year (1930-1) was £118,310,123. Production decreased
by about £8,000,000 in 1931-2, but increased to above the production of 1930-1 in 1932-3 and to still more (£129,091,915) in 1933-4.
B u t t h e average wages decreased till 1933 (to 86/3 in 1931, 81/6
in 1932, 81/4 in 1933). They then were slightly increased to 83/2
in 1934 and 86/- in 1935 (Sept.). But if a production to the value
of £118.3 millions in 1930-1 m e a n t a n average wage of 99/1,
then the production to a value of £129.09 millions in 1933-4
should have m e a n t a n average wage of 108/- instead of the
actual 83/2.**
During t h e same period under review (1931-5), the profits of
the big industrial undertakings increased. Below is a selection:
Electrolytic Zinc
Huddart Parker
..
General Motors-Holden's
Hume Steel
Goodyear Tyres
..
Australian Iron a n d Steel
Tooth and Co
Carlton
and
United
Breweries
1931
£
158,239
70,644
516,474
Loss+
977
36,066
18,071
480,829
1932
£
234,903
71,860
349,914
Lossf
2,535
58,018
2,203
467,474
1933
£
373,095
73,078
134,161
1934
£
350,161
85,740
402,333
1935
£
402,956
7,787
140,820
70,359
482,204
12,682
223,001
120,774
567,119
13,400
628,000
240,992
223,927
234,540
249,613
—
—
673,057
—
—
*—Orr a n d Nelson, Coal, p. 8.
A.E.U. p a m p h l e t , " T h e Union's Case for Wage Restoration," p. 1 a n d
our own forthcoming pamphlet, "Who P a i d for t h e Depression?"
" N.B.—In spite of t h e two losses, the profits for t h e five years average
nearly £70,000 per a n n u m .
1931
£
1932
£
355,747
744,322
1933
£
1934
•
£
Adelaide Electric Supply
354,797
374,917
355,469
Colonial Sugar
734,823
792,414
963,501
Aust.
Glass
Manufacturers
76,768
92,137
129,602
122,439
B.H.P
82,257
427,588
103,720
313,617
I n a d d i t i o n , h e r e a r e s o m e 1936 p r o f i t s : A m a l g a m a t e d
1935
£
—
931,949
175,522
670,442
Wire-
less, £109,701; Aust. Glass, £205,493; Anthony Horderns, £97,941;
B.H.P., £850,361; Burns Philp, £234,474; Drug Houses of Australia, £184,060; Dunlop-Perdriau Rubber, £307,183; Goldsbrough,
Mort, £237,467; David Jones Ltd., £146,148; Myer's Emporium,
£289,664; North Broken Hill, £666,940 170 per cent, dividend!];
Tooheys £108,819.
9.—"LENDING" TO GOVERNMENTS
In addition to the direct investment by overseas capitalists in
Australian companies, there is another and very f r u i t f u l way
of gaining a stake in the country—and a way, moreover, which
demands the minimum of worry. I t is the investment of f u n d s
in government and municipal bonds. In this respect, a t least,
we can f u r n i s h the exact figures for overseas investment in this
country.
NOTE.—Apologists in t h e press o f t e n a t t e m p t to m a k e out t h a t t h e
big companies are really financed by the savings of t h o u s a n d s of small
investors. Mr. J a m e s Ashton, apparently safe in t h e knowledge t h a t it is
impossible to find out t h e detailed facts, h a s done this on several occasions.
I n t h e "S.M.H." for Feb. 11, 1926, appeared a list (taken f r o m t h e
"Economist") of about 25 big companies (including t h e big banks), with
t h e n u m b e r of their shareholders, t h e a m o u n t of capital, a n d t h e n t h e
average holding. For example, t h e Midland B a n k h a d a capital of
£11,976,890. I t h a d 57,250 holders, a n d , therefore, a n average holding of
£209.
Our c o m m e n t s : —
(1) T h e above proves nothing a n d could n o t deceive a schoolboy. Averages are worthless. I n t h e example given, 57,249 could hold £1 e a c h a n d
one person hold t h e rest of t h e £11,000,000 odd, a n d t h e average would
still be £2091
(2) T h e big m a n wants t h e little m a n in, in vast numbers, as long
as he h a s control. T h e more money he controls, the mere profits h e
will be able to make for his own big investments. T h e contradiction
is t h a t t h e working of t h e whole system is rapidly decreasing t h e n u m b e r of
those who have even a pound to invest.
(3) Let t h e "Economist" or Ashton publish a full list of shareholders
a n d their holdings—leave averages alone
(4) T h e fact t h a t a m a n has a small investment In one company does
n o t m e a n t h a t h e is a small investor—small investments in a large n u m b e r
of companies make up one big investment. F a i r f a x h a s a comparatively
small investment in B.H.P., but is F a i r f a x a poor capitalist? How m a n y
have shares in all t h e companies listed?
(5) How m a n y dummies, wives, children, a n d employees given a s h a r e
for a Christmas box are included in t h e numbers?
(6) We know too m u c h of the big investments of t h e big men.
No, they c a n n o t prove t h a t way t h a t we are living in a paradise of
little investors, a n d t h a t t h e oligarchs are j u s t poor, struggling capitalists!
61
BORROWERS AND LENDERS
According to t h e Commonwealth Year Book for 1935, the combi, :d debt of the Commonwealth and State governments at
J u n e 30, 1934, was £1,222,558,798, on which the yearly interest was
£49,299,637. This money was borrowed partly in Australia a n d
partly overseas t h e different amounts being:—
Where Borrowed.
Australia
London
New York
Pace Value of
Amount Borrowed.
£
029,285,016
547,325,462
45,948,320
Interest
Payable.
..
..
..
£1,222,558,798
23,536,387
23,458,334
2,304,916
£49,299,637
Exchange is involved in connection with the interest which is
payable in London and New York.
As the present r a t e of exchange on London is 25} per cent., the overseas debt costs Australia a n o t h e r £6,000,000 each year.
PARTICULARS OP LOAN E X P E N D I T U R E
£
Railways (State)
339,157,910
W a r Debt
'
280,148,179
L a n d Settlement Scheme
94,179,350
Deficits a n d Exchange . .
88,000,000
Roads, Bridges, Harbors, ete
81,832,493
W a t e r Supply
72,466,911
Telegraphs a n d Telephones
30,024,968
Electricity Supply
24,029,762
T r a m w a y s (State)
17,212,893
Commonwealth Railways
15,330,4.65
The balance of t h e expenditure was incurred for buildings, schools,
defcnce, shipbuilding, etc.
Note.—The above figures include expenditure by Commonwealth and
S t a t e governments only. T h e y do not include expenditure by municipal or
semi-governmental bodies which possess their own power to raise loans.
There are several points to remember in regard to this national
debt.
(1) Public ownership of public utilities is a fallacy—they are
owned indirectly by the bondholders, who receive their interest
whether profits are made by the enterprises or not.
The railways, for example, always pay their real owners—the bondholders—whether t h e r e is a deficit or a surplus.
(2) Comparison with direct investments in railway companies
in America a n d England would undoubtedly show investment to
governments the more profitable.
(3) T h e bondholders are able to wield a great power.
Compare, for example, the visit of Sir Otto Niemeyer to Australia.
(4) Bonds are often issued free of income t a x and with other
valuable concessions.
(5) T h e Loan Council now h a s full control of all loans—a f a c t
t h a t allows easier domination by t h e Australian financial
oligarchy.
WIIO OWNS TIIE RAILWAYS?
And, taking the railways—in which much money of the bondholders is invested—there is statistical proof t h a t the share of
the income from the N.S.W. railways received by t h e bondholders
is growing, while the s h a r e received by the workers who operate
the railways is dwindling.
The railways grow, more train-miles
are run, more goods are carried—but fewer men are working on
the railways, each h a s more work to do a n d more responsibility
to bear, and the wages decrease.
The interest, however, keeps on increasing! Some figures given
in t h e "Railroad" (10/ll/'35), organ of the Australian Railways
Union, illustrate all this:—
1928
1929
1930
1931
1932
1933
1934
Total
Average No. Salaries
of S t a l l
and
Employed Wages
44,973 12,093,706
43,972 12,422,298
41,342 11,656,142
40,020 10,167,293
9,637,122
40,329
8,462,906
38,881
8,154,378
38,174
Interest
Including
Exchange
5,882,452
6,150,000
6,420,643
7,527,715
7,832,758
7,544,518
7,074,793
Working
Expenses
14,978,050
14,962,423
12,842,333
12,510,029
11,966,648
11,203,528
T o n n a g e of
Passengers Goods a n d
Carried
Live Stock
151,116,086 14,516,643
147,892,548 12,150,964
126,811,993 10,743,109
128,359,419 10,211,322
132,867,221 11,147,866
142,520,429 11,364,235
Out of every £1 earned, the amounts paid in interest were as
follow: 1928, 6/1; 1929, 6/3; 1930, 7 / - ; 1931, 9/9; 1932, 10/5; 1933,
9/9, 1934, 9/7.
CORPORATION OF BRITISH BONDHOLDERS
J u s t as the financial autocrats here can dictate their will to
governments here, so do their brothers in England. And as the
sharks in Britain share about equally with t h e sharks here our
"debt," we should expect pressure brought to bear on our governm e n t s both from London and here. A f a c t t h a t explains the visit
of Sir Otto Niemeyer in 1931. There is a strong organisation in
London to watch and protect the property of Britain's financial
a n d industrial barons in whatever p a r t of the world they may
h a p p e n to be.
I t is the Corporation of British Bondholders.*
According to the "S.M.H." (3/2/'32), t h e Corporation of British
Bondholders was founded in 1868 to protect t h e interests of
holders of foreign securities. It was incorporated i n 1873 a n d
reconstituted in 1898 by a special Act of Parliament, by which its
council was to consist of six members nominated by the British
Bankers' Association, six by the London Chamber of Commerce,
a n d nine co-opted by the council as a whole. Included in its
*—Australian capitalists arc investing capital outside of Australia; they
will probably soon require a Corporation of Australian Bondholders. See
our p a m p h l e t : "Australian Imn°via.Usm.'-
BONDHOLDERS
63
council in 1931 were Maurice de Bunsen (diplomat), Sir Stephen
Demetriadi (representative of many commercial and trading
bodiesi, F. C. Goodenough (chairman of Barclay's Bank), Reginald
MelCenna (chairman of the Midland Bank), J. W. B e a u m o n t
Pease ( c h a i r m a n of Lloyds Bank), R. Hugh T o n n a n t ( c h a i r m a n
of Westminster Bank).
The composition of the council certainly throws an illuminating light on the visit ol' Sir Otto Niemcyer and the reasons t h e r e fore.
Who a n d what are these people?--these people who own us,
who own this fair land of ours and all t h a t is in it, who
condemn our children to die of malnutrition, to live in slums,
or to grow up without the knowledge of or t h e capacity to
enjoy the culture t h a t is their inheritance, who say t h a t tens
of thousands of us will never get a job again a n d t h a t we
must be content to live on the dole! I t is only h u m a n n a t u r e
t h a t we w a n t to know ail about them, how they live, how they
spend the vast income which is so unkindly t h r e a t e n e d with
diminution by the d e m a n d s of f a r m e r s for aid, of workers for
increased dole, for work and even for increased wages. We ore
interested when thev m a r r y and are given in marriage—and we
read columns about who were there, how they looked, w h a t they
said. We are interested when they have babies—some of t h e m
do have babies. We are interested when they die—and we even
pay the compliments of our tears to the cleverness of scribes
who tell us of t h e i r nobility and goodness. We are interested,
too, when one of t h e m comes from "the old country" a s governor
or governor-general over us—we pay him £10,000 a year for doing
so, a n d crowd the streets to watch lhin pass.'"
We read of their womenfolk, a n d of themselves, too, being
dressed in a n ensemble t h a t cost n e a r a £1000—and our reaction
is to wonder how it is possible to p u t such an a m o u n t of money
on oneself. We read of a female of the species at one time
disporting herself in .scanty costumes at Valm Beach and ot.h"rwise being a source of scandal and of worry to the noble family
into which she h a s married and at a n o t h e r time travelling
abroad in Europe, leaving behind in Australia her lew-uionthsolcl baby and we r e f r a i n from calling h e r an impudent hus.;y
or heartless creature—as we should a working-chus;.; m o t h e r who
gadded about and neglected h e r children. We read of some of
tliem drinking themselves to death, of aping King Solomon or
the i n h a b i t a n t s of Sodom, of squandering t h e life-blood ol our
" ~ c n-, S t o n e h a v e n . Forstcr. H o r c - R u l h v e u — s t c s h a r e and director lists
above.
(>
°
O
O
q
O
£
(M
fD
:
children—we read of t h e r o t t e n n e s s of a n oligarchy, j u s t as we
h a v e read of t h e r o t t e n n e s s of oligarchies f r o m a n c i e n t Babylon
onwards. B u t we still t h i n k our own more respectable, more
civilised, more deserving of the wealth we h a v e showered on
t h e m . We still read with avidity the pages a n d pages of dailies,
weeklies, a n d monthlies devoted to t h e i r doings a n d t h e doings
of those lesser fry who would be like t h e m .
These m e n who own Australia live and move a n d h a v e t h e i r
being in t h e knowledge t h a t they a r e t h e owners. They comm a n d , order, a n d bully, a n d t h e i r behests are obeyed. Men give
u p their m a n h o o d to t h e m a n d stoop to serve t h e m . Men a n d
women offer them" t h e i r souls to be flunkeys for them. I h a v e
sat and listened to one who knew tell of the way in which
one of them—Howard Smith—treated a n d spoke t o even t h e
s u p e r i n t e n d e n t s of his companies, w h o went in f e a r a n d t r e m b ling because of h i m : brow-beating, t h r e a t s , a n d foul language,
while they stood before him like whipped schoolboys. Under the
dictation of these, politicians have passed laws t a k i n g f r o m us
our liberties. Sons of t h e m h a v e helped to organise fascist
bodies t h a t in a time of stress have browbeaten, bullied, a n d
assaulted m e n who were t h e victims of t h e system t h a t gave
wealth to a few a n d poverty, bankruptcies, or u n e m p l o y m e n t to
t h e m a n y . They h a v e t a k e n our land a n d m a d e slaves of a
free people. And t h e words of P a d r a l c Pearse, President of t h e
Irish Republic, m u r d e r e d by t h e British government in 1916,
come to me:—
And because I am of t h e people, I u n d e r s t a n d t h e people,
I a m sorrowful w i t h their sorrow, I a m h u n g r y w i t h t h e i r desire:
My h e a r t h a s been heavy with the grief of m o t h e r s ;
My eyes h a v e been wet w i t h t h e t e a r s of children;
I have yearned w i t h old wistful m e n ,
And laughed a n d cursed w i t h young men.
Their s h a m e is my s h a m e a n d I h a v e reddened for it—
Reddened for t h a t they h a v e served, t h e y who should be free,
Reddened for t h a t they h a v e gone in w a n t , while others h a v e been full,
Reddened for t h a t they have walked in f e a r of lawyers a n d of their jailors
W i t h their writs of s u m m o n s a n d t h e i r h a n d c u f f s ,
Men m e a n a n d cruel!
I could have borne stripes on my body r a t h e r t h a n this s h a m e of my people.
We have tried to discover a n d uncover t h e robber barons who
own Australia a n d hold its people to ransom.
Let t h a t people
consider these facts, look long on t h e m a n d ponder—until they,
too, redden with t h e s h a m e of it; t h a t these things should be
a n d children go without, m e n sicken w i t h despair, a n d women
wither a n d die. But s h a m e is n o t enough. Unity of t h e masses
—the People's Front—is more powerful t h a n the m i g h t of t h e
Robber Barons!
P r i n t e d by T h e F o r w a r d Press P t y . Ltd., 175-7 Campbell St., Sydney.
Other Publications
*
|
SOVIET UNION, 1986.
Soviet leaders. Cloth
8
Important
speeches
by
WHAT IS TO BE DONE? by N. Lenin. Cloth . . . .
Paper
COMMUNISM IS OUR ULTIMATE AIM.
Two Worlds series
T H E COMMUNIST
series
PARTY.
d
3
0
4 0
I (1
No. 2,
6
No. 3, Two Worlds
C H I E F STAGES IN THE HISTORY
C.P.S.U.
No. 4, Two Worlds series
OF
0
THE
0
BRITISH R U L E IN INDIA, by Karl Marx
2
AN A P P E A L TO CATHOLICS, by L. Sharkey . . . .
2
LENIN
2
ON THE
THIRD INTERNATIONAL . . . .
W E D E F E N D PEACE, by Tom Wright
1
TWENTY YEARS OF SOVIET VICTORIES, by L.
Sharkey
2
WHY W E W I L L STOP COUNT VON
by Lloyd Ross
2
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MODERN PUBLISHERS PTY. LIMITED
124 OXFORD STREET, SYDNEY
A Survey of
Australia
T h e series to which the pamphlet you have just read belongs, is "lie
t h a t is unique ill Australia
It alms it presenting a complete SURVEY
O F AUSTRALIA in TWELVE pampKlets
These will supply a long-felt
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Each p a m p h l e t will be written by a member of t h e AUSTRA1J.AN
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I T I S AIMED T O PUBLISH ONE PAMPHLET P E R MONTH
T H E COMPLETE S E R I E S WILL BE AS FOLLOW
1.—WHO OWNS AUSTRALIA?
(2nd Edition
Available)
2.—AUSTRALIAN IMPERIALISM
3.—WHO PAID FOR THE DEPRESSION?
Now
Will show how the rich few became richer and t h e mass poorer
because of t h e Economic Crisis.
4.—AUSTRALIA:
LAND
Australia's Wealth
•vealth for all
5—IS
and
DEMOCRACY
OF
PLENTY
Resources a n d how they
SAFE
IN
provide
AUSTRALIA?
How governments are taking from us the
which our f a t h e r s fought
6.—AUSTRALIA PREPARES
GALLIPOLI
could
FOR
rights
a n d liberty for
ANOTHER
Our governments a r m for war a n d sabotage t h e cause of peace
7.—HEALTH
IN
HOMES
AND
HOSPITALS
The toll on lives taken by the slums and t h e starved hospitals and
medical services.
8.—CAN
IT
HAPPEN
IN
AUSTRALIA?
Fascist t r e n d s a n d developments in Australia laid bare
9.—THE
ATTACK
ON
EDUCATION
A war is being waged on culture
startling story of it.
10.—POLITICAL
PARTIES
and
AND
education—here
THEIR
is
the
;
POLICIES
W h o m do our politicians serve?
t I.—SUFFER,
LITTLE
CHILDREN
T h e story of w h a t our social system is doing to our children
12.—CONTINUING THE STRUGGLE FOR PROGRESS
H
How our liberties a n d conditions were won a n d w h a t is being done
to r e t a i n t h e m .
V
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