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Belgian Amiga Club - ADF Collection
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BS1 part 27
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WorldAtlas2_d2.adf
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TEXTA
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1990-04-02
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23 lines
The commonwealth of Australia was once inhabited by many different tribes.
Captain James Cook explored the east coast of Australia in 1770. Soon after
the British claimed the entire continent for themselves. It was originally
used as a penal colony. Various kinds of criminals and misfits of England's
society were shipped to Australia to protect British society. When
immigration was on the up-rise in the 1850s Australia was no longer used as
a penal colony. The commonwealth was declared in 1901. The Northern
Territory was given some self-rule in 1978.
Australia once had strict, racially discriminatory immigration rules but they
were abolished in 1973. There are approximately 50,000 aborigines and
150,000 part-aborigines living in Australia. Aborigines are like the American
Indians. They are the descendants of the native Australian tribal people.
The aborigines and part-aborigines are still economically disadvantaged and
mistreated. However, there are some preserves in the Northern Territory
which allow the aborigines to live as their forefathers did.
Australia is a top exporter of beef, lamb, wool, and wheat. These agricultural
goods give Australia its economic stability along with its large mineral
deposits. Australia is industrialized but in 1986 the economy weak because of
a large balance of payments deficits.
Many of Australia's wildlife and plant life are unique to its continent only.
The kangaroo, koala bear, platypus, wild dog (dingo), racoon-like marsupial
(Tasmanian devil), bear-like marsupial (wombat), and barking and frilled
lizards are only found in Australia. @