A CRITICAL SITUATION. LARGE AND SMALL STATES AT VARIANCE. Adelaide, April 13. Tne greater portion of the morning was occupied with the wording of the money clauses. After the Committee, by 27 to 21, decided to substitute " the Senate " for the more awkward " Assembly of States," the battle of dates commenced. Mr Reid strongly opposed the Senate haviug equal power iv matters of finance. With the Senate constituted as proposed such a system of equal power would be fraught with disaster. The Lower House must be master of finance. Sir George Turner supported Mr Reid. He had raised the crux of the whole question. He believed that the Committee had made a mistake in conceding equal and he dared not go back to Victoria and submit such a proposal to the people. He urged the small States to assist by not giving the Senate equal power over money Bills. If they were not prepared to accept what was called the 1891 compromise then Federation was an impossibility. Sir John Downer thought they ouly asked for what were legitimate rights. The small colonies had gone far enough, and he would not personally be prepared to mal.i- uny further concessions to the large State* A member (ironically). How far ln.vuyon gone ? Sir John Downer replied that they had gone further than the small States in America and Switzerland. Mr Wise (Sydney) said that although incomprehensible to him, there was un doubtedly Btrongly engrained a popular prejudice amongst the people of Victoria against a Second Chamber, no matter how constituted, having power to deal with money Bills. The alarms expressed by either side were groundless. The smaller States had absolute safety against excessive oppres sion by absenting themselves from the Senate, which wonld require a third of the Senators present to cany a measure. Sir Thos. Kingston (Adelaide) thought if that were so they might as well remain and outvote the others. He intended, even at the risk of separating himself from his colleagues, to support Mr Reid. He believed they should stick closely to the 1891 com promise. He was not prepared to imperil Federation by attempting to destroy a com promise which would result in Federation. Sir John Forrest advocated equal powers just as he had done in 1891. He did not accept the compromise arrived at on that occasion. 