Forty-five years of service.(A Lifetime in Conservative Politics: Political Memoirs of Sir Joseph Carruthers)(Book Review)

A Lifetime in Conservative Politics: Political Memoirs of Sir Joseph Carruthers, edited by Michael Hogan; UNSW Press, 2005, $54.95.

FORTY INDIVIDUALS have occupied the position of Premier of New South Wales since the advent of responsible government in 1856. While some are known, many have faded from public view. This book refocuses attention on one whose legacy continues to be felt at state and national levels even though he has long been forgotten.

Joseph Hector McNeil Carruthers was premier for just over three years. In 1907 ill health forced his resignation just six days after a second election win. Following a short sabbatical, Carruthers was appointed to the Legislative Council, where he served until his death twenty-four years later.

Carruthers deserves to be remembered. This was a man vitally concerned throughout his career with land reform, closer settlement and immigration. From the 1895 crown lands legislation that historian John Ward described as his "first political masterstroke" through to his "Million Farms" campaign of the 1920s, Carruthers never ceased his efforts to develop the state.

Carruthers also advanced our cultural life. Few recall that his efforts secured the incredible collection of David Scott Mitchell for New South Wales or that the foundation stone of what is now the Mitchell Library bears Carruthers' name.

Above all, Carruthers merits recognition because of his influence on the non-Labor side of politics. In 1902 he formed the Liberal and Reform Association as "a strong, permanent extra-parliamentary, electoral organisation" that, in Michael Hogan's words, converted the then Liberal Party into a "genuinely modern political party". Carruthers brought the two-party system to New South Wales and his efforts at "fusion" in the state provided a practical example for others across the nation to follow. The pity is that, in the sixtieth anniversary year of the federal Liberal Party, few know Carruthers' name, let alone his contribution to the national movement Robert Menzies welded together in 1945.

Michael Hogan's book is based upon a much lengthier manuscript written when Carruthers was old and infirm. He died before it could be revised or edited. While the original manuscript ignored many episodes, A Lifetime in Conservative Politics contains a wealth of material for anyone interested in the politics and history of New South Wales.