Lang Ousted

Dining and drinking in Sydney restaurants, moneyed New South Walesmen leaped up with loud hurrahs last week at sudden news that His Majesty's Governor of New South Wales, Sir Philip Game, had forced out of office their notorious State Premier, tall, square-jawed John Thomas Lang, famed for repudiating more than $3,500,000 of interest due on the State debt.

Raucous Sydney revelers jubilated in the streets all night. Australian stocks & bonds leaped up in London and Manhattan.

Meanwhile ousted Premier Lang had stalked with long strides out of his office, snarled "I'm through here!" at reporters, jackknifed his long body into his small motor car, pressed the starter and rattled off to his farm some miles from Sydney. Significantly "he had been dismissed not by Sir Isaac Isaacs, the Australian-born Governor General of the Commonwealth, but by British-born Sir Philip Game, the belligerently British Governor of the State.* Laborite supporters of Mr. Lang predicted that in the New South Wales election which must now be held, the "British meddling" of Sir Philip would sweep Laborite Lang back into power.

At the residence of Sir Philip and Lady Game reporters were assured that "the Governor gave Mr. Lang every chance before demanding his resignation." Sir Philip, his secretaries said, had begun by calling State Premier Lang on the carpet for resisting the efforts of Federal Premier Lyons to collect taxes in the defaulting state of New South Wales (TIME, April 18 et seq.). Since the Federal Treasury has made good the State's defaults, and since the Federal Parliament has authorized tax seizures, Sir Philip protested the circulation by Premier Lang of a letter ordering officials of New South Wales to obstruct the seizures. This letter Sir Philip called "illegal," told Mr. Lang he could either withdraw his letter or resign as Premier, whereat he promptly resigned.

At once Conservative Sir Philip replaced Laborite Lang with Conservative B. S. B. Stevens, leader of his party (United Australia) in New South Wales. Mr. Stevens assured everyone that he would instantly hand over all taxes demanded by his Conservative superior. This did not alter the fact that Premier Lang's Laborites still held an overwhelming majority in the State Assembly, would undoubtedly throw out Premier Stevens should he dare to face them. Instead Mr. Stevens proposed to ask Sir Philip to dissolve the Assembly at once, order an election.

*Each state or province of a Dominion has its own premier and its own governor, there being also a premier and a governor-general for the Dominion as a whole. Governors, no less than governors-general, derive their powers directly from the King who appoints them, theoretically, on the advice of the local premier. In practice the King used to appoint governors-general and governors much as he pleased, but George V has been forced to bow more & more to local sentiment, notably when His Majesty was forced to appoint Sir Isaac Isaacs, "a man he had never seen," to be Governor General of Australia. For a governor to dismiss a premier is unusual but not unprecedented. Two Premiers of Quebec have been dismissed by their Governor.

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