SHAP. IV] THE GOVERNOR AS HEAD 101 
The principles which were laid down at the Colonial 
Conference have never been varied in any degree, and 
recent history affords many interesting examples of their 
being followed. In the case of the Commonwealth there 
have been three cases of the refusal of the Governor-General 
50 grant a dissolution. In 1904 the Labour Ministry of the 
lay was defeated on the question of the Conciliation and 
Arbitration Bill by a coalition of the party led by Mr. Deakin 
with that led by Mr. Reid. The Premier applied for a 
dissolution, thinking no doubt that it would be desirable to 
see if the country would not decide between the rival policies 
by sending back a strong Labour Party, even if it were 
not strong enough to control the Government. But the 
Governor-General declined to grant a dissolution, no doubt 
on the broad ground that the possibility of Parliamentary 
Government had by no means been exhausted.! This was 
obviously the case, for a Ministry, that of Mr. Reid and 
Mr. McLean, had been agreed upon to unite the followers of 
Mr. Reid and Mr. Deakin, and that Ministry held office until 
June-July 1905, when, the coalition having broken down, the 
Prime Minister was defeated at the opening of Parliament. 
Mr. Reid then applied for a dissolution, but again the 
Governor-General refused to grant one.? Matters had now 
been patched up again between the Labour Party and 
Mr. Deakin, who had acted together against Mr. Reid, until 
Mr. Reid and the Labour Party coalesced to defeat Mr. 
Deakin on the Conciliation and Arbitration Bill by extending 
ts operation to railway employees, a proposal which was held 
lo be ultra vires by the Commonwealth High Court in view 
of the fact that railways were state agencies, and as such 
could not be interfered with by the Commonwealth. Again, 
the new coalition Government—for though the Labour Party 
would not join the Ministry they supported it very steadily— 
was successful for a time, until, in view of the elections, 
Australia House of Assembly Debates, 1899, pp. 917 seq. The ground of 
Mr. Kingston’s failure was personal ; Sir F. Holder entered federal politics in 
1901, when Mr. Jenkins became Premier, an office which he held until 1905. 
* Commonwealth Parliamentary Debates, 1904, p. 4625. 
* Thid., 1905, pp. 133, 134; Turner, Australian Commonwealth, pp. 97-100.