Book Review: A Constitutional History of Australia
| Date | 01 December 1979 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0067205X7901000407 |
| Published date | 01 December 1979 |
| Author | Phillipa Weeks |
| Subject Matter | Book Reviews |
1979]
Book
Reviews 435
by confining its revenue per head to the
current
level.'
It
burst into
world-wide prominence with the success
of
the Progress
Party
in the
Danish elections of December 1973. This party, under the leadership
of aformer lecturer in tax law
at
the University
of
Copenhagen,
Mr
Mogens Glistrup, attracted the second-largest number
of
votes with a
platform consisting solely of apledge
to
abolish income tax. The
elections
of
February 1977 gave the party further seats in the Folketing.
In
Australia, the tax burden was
an
issue in the federal elections
of
1975 and 1977, and since 1976 there has been akind of race among
the States to abolish death duties. Such aconjunction
of
signs could not
be ignored.
Nevertheless, this
is
still the best generally available tax casebook for
students, and assembling it has been aworthwhile enterprise. Since it
will no doubt
run
into
further
editions, the authors will have the
opportunity to bring the work nearer to the exacting standards which
they have set for themselves in the preface. G. DE
Q.
WALKER*
AConstitution,a[ History
of
Australia by W. G. McMINN, Associate
Professor of History, University of Newcastle. (Oxford University Press,
1979), pp. i-xiii, 1-213. Cloth, recommended retail price $18.50 (ISBN:
019
550562
x).
Historians tend to be "timorous souls"
rather
than "bold spirits". By
focussing on narrow subjects
or
periods they
can
produce conclusions
which are, if
not
incontrovertible,
at
least unexceptionable. Few have
the confidence to paint abroad canvas, to analyse societies
of
people
and institutions in general terms. Such confidence
is
born of avision
and understanding which eludes most observers.
Yet
there
is
another side to the historian's trade which bridges the
gap between the general and the particular.
It
is the sort of history
taught in schools, and presented as context material in
other
disciplines,
like law.
It
is
the history of broad themes based on secondary sources
rather
than
primary materials-essentially, history by synthesis. T'he
defect of such history
is
that
the facts are untested and the interpre-
tations adopted are usually the orthodox ones. The merit lies in the
spread of knowledge to non-professionals, in the enlightenment, albeit
imperfect, of other areas of scholarship.
AConstitutional History 0/ Australia by W. G. McMinn falls into
6Proposition 4was passed in November 1979 by 74% in favour to 26%
against, surpassing the 64-35% vote by which Californians adopted Proposition 13.
The effects of the first
18
months of Proposition
13
's operation are discussed in
The Economist,
5-11
January 1980, 18-23. The article concludes that the effects
have been beneficial for California's economy, but that there are afew problem
areas.
It
then examines whether these problems are likely to be short-term
or
not
and inclines to the view that they will be overcome.
*LL.B. (Syd.), S.J.D. (Penn.); Senior Lecturer, Law School, Australian National
University.
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