After Australian federation in 1901, the upsurge in nationalism led to the search for an official national floral emblem. The New South Wales waratah was considered alongside the wattle "Acacia pycnantha", and debate raged between proponents of the two flowers. The economist and botanist R. T. Baker proposed that the waratah's endemism to the Australian continent made it a better choice than the wattle, as well as the prominence of its flowers. He was nicknamed the "Commander in Chief of the Waratah Armed Forces". The South Australian "Evening News" also supported the bid, but to no avail.