The University of Notre Dame Australia ResearchOnline@ND Theses 2015 Antipodean Owenite or colonial socialist: Charles Harper, economic development, and agricultural co-operation in Western Australia, 1890 to 1910 David J. Gilchrist University of Notre Dame Australia Follow this and additional works at: https://researchonline.nd.edu.au/theses Part of the Business Commons COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA Copyright Regulations 1969 WARNING The material in this communication may be subject to copyright under the Act. Any further copying or communication of this material by you may be the subject of copyright protection under the Act. Do not remove this notice. Publication Details Gilchrist, D. J. (2015). Antipodean Owenite or colonial socialist: Charles Harper, economic development, and agricultural co- operation in Western Australia, 1890 to 1910 (Doctor of Philosophy (College of Business)). University of Notre Dame Australia. https://researchonline.nd.edu.au/theses/128 This dissertation/thesis is brought to you by ResearchOnline@ND. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses by an authorized administrator of ResearchOnline@ND. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Antipodean Owenite or Colonial Socialist: Charles Harper, Economic Development, and Agricultural Co-operation in Western Australia, 1890 to 1910 by David John Gilchrist This thesis is presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at The University of Notre Dame Australia School of Business 2015 Table of Contents Abstract ...................................................................................................................................... 6 Declaration of Authorship.......................................................................................................... 7 Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................... 8 Chapter One - Pragmatism and Ideology in Western Australian Co-operation ......................... 9 I. Introduction .................................................................................................................. 9 II. Western Australian Economic Growth and the Role of Co-operation ...................... 12 III. The Imperial Inheritance and Pragmatic Co-operation ............................................. 18 IV. The Organisation of this Thesis ................................................................................. 21 Chapter Two - Frontier and City: Charles Harper’s Life ......................................................... 25 I. Introduction ................................................................................................................ 25 II. Building a Foundation ............................................................................................... 28 (i) Harper’s Earliest Years .......................................................................................... 28 (ii) The Harpers as Members of the Colonial Elite ..................................................... 31 (iii) Bachelorhood ......................................................................................................... 34 (iv) Settling Down ........................................................................................................ 38 III. Harper’s Commercial Interests .................................................................................. 40 IV. The Parliamentarian ................................................................................................... 43 V. Scientific Farming ..................................................................................................... 54 VI. Harper’s Religion and Civic Responsibilities ............................................................ 56 VII. Harper and Aboriginal Dispossession ....................................................................... 61 VIII. Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 64 Chapter Three - Visions of English Co-operation in the Victorian Age: Charles Harper’s Intellectual Inheritance............................................................................................................. 66 I. Introduction ................................................................................................................ 66 II. The Fault-Lines in Co-operative Thinking and Practice ........................................... 68 (i) Introduction to the Historical Trajectory ............................................................... 68 (ii) Defining and Categorising Problems ..................................................................... 69 2 (iii) The Way that the Utopian-Pragmatic Dichotomy Distracts Attention from other Debates ............................................................................................................................. 72 III. Robert Owen (1771-1858) and the Co-operative Ideal ............................................. 75 (i) A Brief Sketch of Owen as a Co-operative Promoter ........................................... 75 (ii) Owen’s Co-operative Vision: Transformation of Society and “Mutable Man” .... 78 (iii) Authoritarianism, Paternalism or Democracy ....................................................... 80 (iv) Structure of Owen’s Co-operative Enterprise ....................................................... 82 (v) Concluding Comments .......................................................................................... 83 IV. John Malcolm Forbes Ludlow (1821-1911) and Christian Socialism ....................... 83 (i) A Brief Sketch of Ludlow as a Co-operative Promoter ......................................... 83 (ii) Ludlow’s Co-operative Vision: Transformation of Society and “Mutable Man” . 85 (iii) Authoritarianism, Paternalism or Democracy ....................................................... 86 (iv) Structure of Ludlow’s Co-operative Enterprises ................................................... 88 (v) Concluding Comments .......................................................................................... 89 V. J. S. Mill (1806-73) and Liberal Socialism ................................................................ 90 (i) A Brief Sketch of Mill as a Co-operative Promoter .............................................. 90 (ii) Mill’s Co-operative Vision: Transformation of Society and “Mutable Man” ....... 92 (iii) Authoritarianism, Paternalism or Democracy ....................................................... 93 (iv) Structure of Mill’s Co-operative Enterprises ......................................................... 94 (v) Concluding Comments .......................................................................................... 96 VI. J. T. W. Mitchell (1828-1895) and the Ascendency of Consumer Co-operation ...... 96 (i) A Brief Sketch of Mitchell as a Co-operative Promoter ....................................... 96 (ii) Mitchell’s Co-operative Vision: Transformation of Society and “Mutable Man” 98 (iii) Authoritarianism, Paternalism or Democracy ....................................................... 99 (iv) Structure of Mitchell’s Co-operative Enterprises ................................................ 100 (v) Concluding Comments ........................................................................................ 101 VII. Harper and Agricultural Co-operation ..................................................................... 102 3 VIII. Concluding Remarks ............................................................................................... 109 Chapter Four - The Argument for a Little Judicious Government Expenditure: Charles Harper and Colonial Socialism .......................................................................................................... 111 I. Introduction .............................................................................................................. 111 II. Colonial Socialism as an Ideological Basis for Colonial Economic Expansion – An Australian Form ................................................................................................................. 113 III. Charles Harper and Colonial Socialism in Western Australia ................................. 121 (i) Solving the Transport Problem ............................................................................ 125 (ii) Refrigeration and the Marketability of Produce .................................................. 129 (iii) Providing Financial Support for Agriculturalists ................................................ 132 (iv) Government Support of the Fertiliser Trade........................................................ 138 (v) Government Support for Infant Industries ........................................................... 140 (vi) The Bureau of Agriculture and Government Sponsored Training ...................... 144 IV. Concluding Remarks ............................................................................................... 146 Chapter Five - Charles Harper, Countervailing Power and Co-operation ............................. 148 I. Introduction .............................................................................................................. 148 II. J. K. Galbraith and Countervailing Power ............................................................... 149 III. Charles Harper’s Version of Countervailing Power ...............................................