Douglas contested McLean’s old electorate of Eastern
Downs,[6]
and exhorted his constituents to ratify his appointment. However, the Queenslander was now hesitant to recommend as treasurer a man who
freely admitted “no pretensions to any special financial skill,”[7]
and who, the paper believed, had been appointed “more by political
considerations than by personal fitness for the duties to be performed.”[8]
At a meeting between Douglas and his Eastern Downs
electors at the Warwick courthouse, Richard St. George Gore, postmaster-general
and a member of the legislative council, directly addressed the issue of Douglas
being appointed treasurer without being a member of parliament. Gore denied that this action was
unconstitutional, because:
The Queen, through her representatives, had power to appoint anyone she pleased. This had been done, and it became their duty to ratify it.[9]Faced with no opposition, Douglas was duly elected,[10] the first time he had been elected unopposed to parliament. When parliament reconvened, the opposition were determined to get rid of the government which they believed had “ruined the prospects of the colony.”[11] They succeeded beyond all expectations, because the session lasted only 10 sitting days, with Douglas at the centre of the storm leading to its dissolution.[12]
Douglas’s principles and sense of probity soon caused
tensions between himself and the ministry regarding continued financial
implications over the use of land-orders to induce a large influx of immigrants
to Queensland.[13] Because the colony was in debt due to the
financial crisis the previous year and the effects of a prolonged drought,
Douglas believed that the government could no longer afford to encourage the
ongoing use of land-orders to facilitate immigration. He therefore tendered his resignation.[14]
Macalister, who did not want Douglas opposing his
ministry from the opposition benches, refused to accept it, instead offering
him the position of minister for works and the freedom to express his views on
land-orders and immigration whenever they were raised in parliament.[15] Douglas, who had never appeared comfortable
as treasurer, accepted Macalister’s offer and rescinded his resignation.[16] This action on the part of Douglas
demonstrated an increasing political maturity on his part. A younger Douglas would not have accepted an
alternate ministerial position, instead demanding the abandonment of the
land-order policy as the price for his support.
However, Douglas had now developed a keener sense of what could and
could not be achieved. He understood the
maxim that politics is the art of the possible and that there were limits to
what could be achieved. Douglas
therefore remained in the ministry, which soon rued the constitutional crisis
arising from Macalister’s magnanimity.
Appointed secretary for public works,[17]
Douglas came under trenchant attack from the opposition, who insisted that he
could not switch portfolios without again standing for re-election. William Henry Walsh further demanded to know
how Douglas could agree “to a bill as Secretary for Works when he could not
agree to it as Colonial Treasurer?” [18]
Nonetheless, Douglas believed that he had acted correctly
and noted that there were no precedents to force him to the polls.[19] Despite this, the government lost an
opposition motion that declared his seat vacant and forced the government to
resign. A general election was called.[20]
Through his refusal to countenance the further issuing of
land-orders, Douglas had inadvertently brought down the government of the day
and forced the colony to the polls.
Nevertheless, with the exception of the Warwick Argus,[21]
he received widespread sympathy and support for his position from within both
his electorate and the press.
[1] “Death of the Hon. J.D. McLean.”
Queenslander, 22 December 1866
[2] Queensland Government Gazette,
vol 7 no 163, 19 December
1866 , p. 1265
[3] Queenslander, 22 December 1866 , p.
4. The paper supported the appointment
because: “Douglas does not distinctly belong
to any particular section of the house.
He is a resident in Brisbane
[4] Statistical Register of Queensland
[5] This was the first time in the short history of the Queensland
Parliament that a non-parliamentarian was appointed a minister. (“The Colonial Treasurer at Warwick 12 January 1867 , p. 4)
[6] John Douglas. “To the
Electors of Eastern Downs .” Brisbane 20
December 1866 ; John Douglas.
“To the Electors of Eastern Downs .” Queenslander, 22 December 1866 , p. 1. Douglas, as was his style, was quickly into
election mode and addressed the electors of Eastern Downs just two days after McLean ’s death and only the day after his appointment to
the treasury position.
[7] John Douglas. “To the
Electors of Eastern Downs .” Queenslander, 22 December 1866 , p. 1
[8] “The New Treasurer.” Queenslander, 29 December 1866 , p. 5
[9] Ibid.
[10] Queenslander, 5 January 1867 , p. 4;
“Electorate of Eastern Downs .” Warwick 5 January 1867 , p. 2
[11] Warwick 7
May 1867 , p. 2
[12] Bernays, p. 39. The session
commenced on 7 May 1867
and came to an untimely end on 23
May 1867 .
[13] For a detailed account on land-order abuses, see Bernays, p. 310
[14] “Mr. Douglas at Warwick 1 June 1867 , p.
7. The land-order system was originally conceived
as a means of attracting labour to Queensland Queensland University of Queensland
[15] “Mr. Douglas at Warwick 1 June 1867 , p. 7;
Mr. Walsh. “Ministerial Changes
(Privilege.)” Queensland Parliamentary Debates, vol 4, 1867, p.180
[16] Arthur Macalister.
“Memorandum by Ministers for His Excellency’s Consideration. Dissolution of Parliament.” Queenslander,
1 June 1867 , p. 6;
Beverley Kingston. Land Legislation and
Administration in Queensland Melbourne , Monash University
[17] Queensland Government Gazette, vol 8 no 39, 21 May 1867
[18] Mr. R. Cribb. “Ministerial
Changes (Privilege).” Queensland Parliamentary Debates, vol 4,
1867, p. 177; Kingston
[19] Mr. R. Cribb. “Ministerial
Changes (Privilege).” Queensland Parliamentary Debates, vol 4,
1867, p. 177; Arthur Macalister.
“Memorandum by Ministers for His Excellency’s Consideration. Dissolution of Parliament.” Queenslander,
1 June 1867 , p. 6
[20] “Ministerial Explanation.” Queensland Parliamentary Debates, vol 4,
1867, pp. 178 & 189-90 & 202; Harding (1997), pp. 101-5. For an entertaining account of what
transpired see, Queensland Brisbane
[21] Warwick 28 May 1867 , p. 2
