South Australian referendum, 1896
Encyclopedia
A referendum was held in South Australia on 25 April 1896, and dealt with matters relating to secular and religious education. The referendum was held concurrently with a general election
, the first in Australia in which women were eligible to vote, and was the first referendum to be held in Australia. The South Australian public affirmed the system of free, secular, state education in place at the time, and rejected scriptural instruction in state schools and a capitation grant for religious schools.
. In 1895 Robert Caldwell, an Anglican Member of the House of Assembly called for a poll to be conducted, asking the opinion of the parents of state school children on the matter. The resolution was amended to extend the poll to all voters, and to include the question of capitation grants for non-state schools. The question was finally proposed as follows:
The three options had initially been proposed as one question, which voters could either support or reject. However, Frederick Holder
and Premier Charles Kingston
moved that each part be considered separately.
, who had been an advocate of both scriptural instruction in schools and the capitation grant, distributed a pastoral letter
to his diocese in the wake of the referendum, conceding that the result had decisively shown that these reforms would be unlikely to gain support. The Southern Cross, Adelaide's Catholic newspaper, pointed out that the capitation grant alone, and not scriptural instruction, had been requested by the Catholic Church, and that it was the size of the margin, rather than the result, that was of interest. Christian Weekly, a local Wesleyan paper, also called the decision decisive, but maintained hope for future changes.
South Australian state election, 1896
State elections were held in Australia on 25 April 1896. All 54 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent liberal government led by Premier of South Australia Charles Kingston in an informal coalition United Labor Party led by John McPherson defeated the...
, the first in Australia in which women were eligible to vote, and was the first referendum to be held in Australia. The South Australian public affirmed the system of free, secular, state education in place at the time, and rejected scriptural instruction in state schools and a capitation grant for religious schools.
Background
Following the passage of the Free Education Bill in 1891, free, secular education had been provided to South Australian children in state schools. This prompted a number of church groups to campaign for scriptural instruction in state schools. The National Scriptural Education League, led by the Wesleyan pastor Joseph Nicholson, had unsuccessfully attempted to make "scriptural education without dogma" a referendum question at the 1893 electionSouth Australian state election, 1893
State elections were held in Australia on 15 April 1893. All 54 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent conservative government led by Premier of South Australia John Downer was defeated by the liberal opposition led by Charles Kingston, with the support...
. In 1895 Robert Caldwell, an Anglican Member of the House of Assembly called for a poll to be conducted, asking the opinion of the parents of state school children on the matter. The resolution was amended to extend the poll to all voters, and to include the question of capitation grants for non-state schools. The question was finally proposed as follows:
- Are you in favour of the continuance of the present system of education in State schools?
- Are you in favour of the introduction of Scriptural instruction in the State Schools during school hours?
- Are you in favour of the payment of a capitation grant to denominational schools for secular results?
The three options had initially been proposed as one question, which voters could either support or reject. However, Frederick Holder
Frederick Holder
Sir Frederick William Holder KCMG was the 19th Premier of South Australia and a prominent member of the inaugural Australian Commonwealth Parliament, including the first Speaker of the House of Representatives.-Life:...
and Premier Charles Kingston
Charles Kingston
Charles Cameron Kingston, Australian politician, was an early liberal Premier of South Australia serving from 1893 to 1899 with the support of Labor led by John McPherson from 1893 and Lee Batchelor from 1897 in the House of Assembly, winning the 1893, 1896, and 1899 state elections against the...
moved that each part be considered separately.
Results
Voters were instructed to place an X next to a proposal to support it, or leave the proposal blank to reject it. All subsequent referendums have been held in a Yes/No format. Of the 137,781 colonists on the electoral roll, 91,348 voted, a turnout of 66.3%. The total informal vote was 12,830 (14%),.| Proposal | Question | For (%) | Against (%) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Continuing present system | 51,681 (74.4) | 17,819 (25.6) | Yes |
| 2 | Scriptural instruction | 19,280 (35.6) | 34,834 (64.4) | No |
| 3 | Capitation grant | 13,349 (24.1) | 42,007 (75.9) | No |
Reaction
The Anglican bishop of Adelaide John HarmerJohn Harmer
John Harmer served as mayor of Williamsburg, Virginia from 1737 to 1738.Harmer was mayor of Williamsburg in 1738 and 1746, a churchwarden for Bruton Parish Church, and Burgess for Williamsburg from 1742 to 1747....
, who had been an advocate of both scriptural instruction in schools and the capitation grant, distributed a pastoral letter
Pastoral letter
A Pastoral letter, often called simply a pastoral, is an open letter addressed by a bishop to the clergy or laity of his diocese, or to both, containing either general admonition, instruction or consolation, or directions for behaviour in particular circumstances...
to his diocese in the wake of the referendum, conceding that the result had decisively shown that these reforms would be unlikely to gain support. The Southern Cross, Adelaide's Catholic newspaper, pointed out that the capitation grant alone, and not scriptural instruction, had been requested by the Catholic Church, and that it was the size of the margin, rather than the result, that was of interest. Christian Weekly, a local Wesleyan paper, also called the decision decisive, but maintained hope for future changes.