John Arthur (Australian politician)

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John Andrew Arthur (15 August 1875 – 9 December 1914) was an Australian politician and briefly Minister for External Affairs.^[1]

Arthur was born in Castlemaine, Victoria, son of a goldminer and spent his childhood in several Victorian goldmining towns. He won a state scholarship allowing him to attend Grenville College, Ballarat for three years. He graduated from the University of Melbourne with a Bachelor of Arts in 1895. He was a brilliant student and competed a Master of Arts in 1897, a Bachelor of Laws in 1898 and a Master of Laws in 1901. He became a tutor at Queen's College in logic and philosophy, political economy and history, and law and was admitted to the bar in 1903. He became a prominent lawyer in the new federal courts, especially the Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration and represented the Agricultural Implement Makers' Union in the Harvester case which led to the basic wage concept that was the basis of wage setting in Australia until the 1990s.

[edit] Political career

In 1913 election he just beat the incumbent John Quick to win the Australian House of Representatives seat of Bendigo for the Australian Labor Party. He was noted for his contribution to parliamentary debates and continued his career as an industrial advocate, often travelling from the then seat of the parliament in Melbourne to Sydney to argue cases. Campaigning for the 1914 election, combined with his court work undermined his health and following the election of the Watson government he was confined to bed. He attended caucus on 17 September and was elected to the ministry and sworn in as Minister for External Affairs on the same day. He was forced back to bed and died on9 December 1914 of kidney disease at his home in the Melbourne suburb of Parkville. He was survived by his wife, two daughters and two sons.

[edit] Notes

Political offices
Preceded by Patrick Glynn	Minister for External Affairs 1914	Succeeded by Hugh Mahon
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by John Quick	Member for Division of Bendigo 1913–1914	Succeeded by Alfred Hampson

Persondata
NAME	Arthur, John Andrew
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	Australian politician
DATE OF BIRTH	15 August 1875
PLACE OF BIRTH	Castlemaine, Victoria
DATE OF DEATH	9 December 1914
PLACE OF DEATH	Parkville, Victoria