John Horgan (Australian politician)
| John Horgan | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born | 15 July 1834 Macroom, Cork, Ireland |
| Died | 8 July 1917 Perth, Western Australia |
| Nationality | Irish Australian |
| Education | Dr. Moynihan's Collegiate School |
| Occupation | Lawyer Politician |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Ann Oliff Mary Ann (Marion) Coffey |
| Children | 12 |
John William Horgan (1834–1907) was a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council in 1888–89. He is remembered most for his aggressive election campaigns in which he characterised six of the most prominent families in colonial Western Australia as the "six hungry families".
John Horgan was born in Macroom, Cork, Ireland on 15 July 1834. He was educated at Dr. Moynihan's Collegiate School in Cork.
In the 1860s and 1870s, he practised as a barrister and solicitor in Cork, becoming honorary secretary of the Cork Law Society. He became active in British politics, campaigning actively, and ultimately successfully, for the election to the House of Commons of Joseph Ronayne.
In 1876, he emigrated with his family to New South Wales. For the next five years he practised law there. During this period, there was constant conflict in the colony over Henry Parkes' plan to introduce free, compulsory, secular education. This was aggressively resisted by Roman Catholics, whose schools would be closed. A devout Catholic, Horgan was against Parkes' plan, and in January 1881, following the passing of Parkes' legislation, Horgan and his family relocated to Western Australia.
In Western Australia, he turned his energies to improving the standing of the working class. In his work, he took on working men's cases for free, and in 1883–84 he helped secure limited reforms to the Master and Servant Act. In 1886, Horgan, along with Richard "Dickie" Haynes, formed Western Australia's first Eight Hours Association to agitate for the eight-hour day. In May 1886, the Legislative Council's seat of Perth was made vacant by the death of Luke Leake. The following month a by-election was held for the seat, and Horgan nominated. His platform was radical for its time; he advocated responsible government, payment of members, manhood suffrage, a land tax, and a unicameral legislature. He was an aggressive critic of the Government and the colony's powerful ruling elite. It was during this campaign that Horgan first characterised the most wealthy and powerful families of the colony as the "six hungry families", implying that they were hungry for more wealth, power and land. Although Edward Scott easily won the seat, Horgan surprised many by taking second place in the poll. Shortly after the election, he was successfully sued for libel by George Walpole Leake, a member of one of the "Six Hungry Families", and fined £500.
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