156 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 



purpose. For the more complete elucidation of them, you will com- 

 municate this (les])atch. and my despatch of the 11th of July, to both 

 liouses of the provincial legislature, in compliance Avith my address for 

 the production of them which thcv may present 3'ou." 



XX\'1I. Infere.nck ï(i be Drawn from FoREcioixo Despatch. 



It will be seen, therefore, that in the foregoing despatch there is no 

 reference to a life tenure, hiit only to the specific changes to which the 

 imperial government had agreed, and which did not necessarily involve 

 any alteration of the commissi(ni and instructions of the governor. This 

 despatch, indeed, by its specific character, ettectually disposes of Governor 

 Archibald's supposition that there was a reference to a change to life 

 tenure in the intimation bj' Lord Stanley that no changes need be made 

 in the commission and instructions. 



XXIX. Request ok LEtusLATrvE Council of New Briînswick for 



A MORE PeR.MANENT TeNURE AFTER RECEIPT (»P DESPATCHES 



IN Question. 



But we have more cvidcm-c bearing on this question of a supposed 

 life tenure of legislative councillors in New Brunswick. In the session of 

 1844. the legislative council of the province went into committee of the 

 whole on Lord Stanley's despatches nf the 11th July and 3(lth December, 

 1S4'J. jnentioned above, and came to the following resolutions : 



" I)eeply impressed with the opinion that the happiness and wel- 

 fare of Your ^Majesty's Lo^-al :ind Faithful Subjects, the People of New 

 Brunswick, can only be maintained b}' securing to them the mixed form 

 of government which has placed Your Majesty's Kingdom foremost 

 among the nations of the civilized world, we would respectfully solicit 

 Y'our Majesty's gracious considei'ation to the present position of the 

 legislative council, as one branch of the JTrovincial legislature, and humbly 

 submit that it should be c'stal)lished u])on a more permanent basis, and in 

 closer analogy to the second branch of the imperial parliament. 



•• Your Majesty will readily perceive that for a legislative bod}' to 

 hold otîice merely during pleasure, has a tendency to expose them not 

 onl}- to undue influence of the popular branch of the legislature, when- 

 ever that branch hap])ens to be dissatisfied with their ])i'oceedings ; and 

 although in times of Compai-ative tranquillity such influence may be 

 rarely exerted, in cases of emergency, when vitid questions are under 

 discussion, the independence of the council intended as a great consti- 

 tutional check to the other two branches, may be placed in ])eril, and the 

 great object for which that middle branch was called into existence will 

 either be fettered oi- I'cndered inefficient. 



