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in the Territory being allowed one non-voting member of the House of Representatives with limited rights. Nelson
was elected narrowly as the Territory’s first federal parliamentarian in December 1922. He stood as an independent
candidate but had trade union support and after his election joined the Australian Labor Party parliamentary
caucus.
Nelson’s maiden parliamentary speech was reprinted in full in the Northern Territory Times and Gazette a
month later. It was a long speech, covering a wealth of topics of interest to his constituents. The government could
hardly have failed to realise that here was a knowledgeable and articulate advocate for northern development.
Indeed it was made clear that in Nelson’s view the Northern Territory needed an extension of its railway system
and a better rail service, a tightening of the land leasing regulations, more bores, an increase in mining activity and
oil and coal exploration with a requirement that holders of mineral leases be forced to work their claims, markets
for small cattlemen, a subsidy to develop the cotton industry, a Workers’ Compensation Act, better housing for
public servants and better police conditions, an improved medical service, a return of trial by jury and modification
to the extradition laws and an end to wastage and corruption in the administration, to be achieved partly by the
introduction of an elected Administrator’s advisory board.
What could have sounded like a list of demands served on the government was couched in such a way that
it really sounded like an attempt to alert the honourable members to the reasonable needs of fellow Australians.
It was presented as a message from one who knows to those who care, and it contained a lot of colour and
precise information. Thus, it was unfolded that Nelson had information that would facilitate the development of
markets in Java for small cattlemen, and the difficulty of overcoming Vestey’s self interest was alluded to. So also
was a depressing picture painted of a 500 000-square-mile (1 295 000 square-kilometre) state serviced by one
doctor. The answer lay in attracting women doctors who would marry into the community and be less likely to
be attracted away. On the issue of flouted conditions of pastoral leases, he told the wonderful story of arriving at
Eva Downs early and seeing the cattle being brought in from elsewhere to impress the minister, who was called
on to corroborate the facts. Attention was also drawn to Nelson’s desire to guide more parliamentarians through
the Territory.
In August 1923, Nelson took up the cudgels on behalf of some of the Territory’s most underprivileged—
Aborigines, half-castes and lepers. He gave in graphic detail accounts of the sufferings these people, not technically
his constituents, endured, but as yet there was insufficient knowledge of conditions and that his revelations produced
little if any improvement is evidenced by such examples as the Coniston Massacre and its subsequent inquiry and
the plight of lepers as late as the Second World War. Nelson placed the blame for poor Aboriginal conditions on the
Northern Territory administration. ‘Any official in the Northern Territory who has the courage of his convictions,
and dares to condemn the prevailing order of things soon finds that he has lost his position.’
Nineteen twenty-four was the centenary year of European settlement in the Northern Territory. The government
had ‘failed to make adequate land laws and to provide reasonable transport facilities’, but was ‘persisting in a
policy of administration which proved a failure a hundred years ago’. With characteristic thoroughness he then
set out the year’s budget estimates for the Northern Territory and highlighted the marked decreases which these
represented in comparison with figures for 1923, before requesting funds ‘for conveying honourable members
through the Northern Territory’ and a tax holiday for Territory-based secondary industries. (He had won this
concession for primary producers in 1923.) Of more lasting impact was his decision that the Northern Territory
needed a developmental slogan. ‘I suggest ... we should adopt the slogan, “The Territory every day and every
way”. Until we secure some redress I intend to hammer away in order that the Territory shall be given at least a
fighting chance.’ Such slogans retain a high profile in contemporary Northern Territory politics.
Late in 1925 Nelson had to defend his seat in a general election. His opponent was C B Storey, denigrated
by the Northern Standard for declaring his profession as ‘gentleman’ rather than ‘unemployed’, but supported
by the Northern Territory Times and Gazette. Nelson’s platform of 49 points contrasted sharply with Storey’s
vague policy statement. When the votes were counted, Nelson had gained over 61 per cent. While this represented
a vast improvement for Nelson over the 1922 result and must be seen as a vote of confidence, the size of his
majority was probably partly due to a sympathy vote for the candidate who had nearly perished in the desert while
campaigning. It is also obvious that Storey was not a strong opponent and that the Northern Territory Times and
Gazette campaigned less stridently than it previously had.
Before the election, a North Australian Commission had been mooted. Nelson had opposed it. After the
election, the North Australia Bill was resubmitted. This time he gave it grudging support by arguing along the lines
that any development of the north was both generally desirable and of specific defence importance. However, his
support was limited. He saw that Central Australia was in danger of becoming the poorer of the new territories
and argued that the North Australian Commission should be duplicated in the Centre. He further suggested that the
real need was for a developed transport infrastructure and yet more expenditure. In the event the bill was passed.
The North Australian Commission proved disappointing and Nelson supported its dissolution in 1930 by the ALP
government.
Nelson’s support of the interests of his constituents is evident in almost all of his speeches. He was a conscientious
ambassador. However, it was naive to believe that just by alerting Parliament to the needs of the Northern Territory
it would be sufficient to enable these needs to be met. His advocacy occurred at a time when Australia had many
pressing needs and a worsening economic climate. By the time the Australian Labor Party had gained office in
1930, the Depression was severe. Although one might expect that the Northern Territory may have gained more
when its Member of the House of Representatives sat on the government benches, that was not the case. Indeed, it
seems that his two years on the government benches were quite trying for him. While in opposition, he had been
free to complain in all areas and with great eloquence on behalf of his constituents. In government, he was forced