6 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
force of circumstances and show a willingness to give completeness to the 
confederation of the north. Australasian statesmen who desire to see the 
federal union of their respective colonies consummated might well reflect 
that to them the task is much easier of accomplishment than has been the 
case with Canada, since Australia has not to encounter those national and 
sectional difficulties which have always, from the outset, perplexed and 
hampered Canadian public men. The history of the Canadian union for 
the twenty-seven years since 1867 is one which the Australian communities 
might well study with profit, since it shows the successful results of states- 
manship directed to the attainment of a great public end—the removal of 
sectional and national jealousies, and the creation of a broad Canadian 
sentiment from one end of the confederation to the other. Though many 
difficulties undoubtedly intervene in the way of so desirable a national 
end, yet no one will deny that on the whole the results have been favour- 
able, and make Canadians sanguine for the future, despite the predictions 
of political pessimists. If the Australasian and South African delegates 
learned nothing more than this by their visit to Canada, their respective 
colonies must be very soon the gainers. 
FRE 
But it is not my intention to dwell any longer on this interesting and 
influential assemblage of colonial representative statesmen. My object 
in this paper is to show some of the sources of the strength of the 
Canadian federal constitution, as well as those elements of weakness 
which are inherent in every system of federation, however carefully de- 
vised. In the course of this series I shall make comparisons between the 
federal system of the Dominion and that proposed by the convention of 
1891 for the Commonwealth of Australia. Such a review should have 
some interest for Australians who are halting in the way of federation, 
but also for all Englishmen who are anxious to study the evidences of 
colonial development throughout the empire. 
But betore I proceed to show some of the experiences of Canada for 
more than a quarter of a century in the working out of the federal union 
under conditions of much difficulty, I shall first contrast in parallel 
columns the leading features of the Canadian system of government with 
those in the draft of the constitution proposed for the Australian feder- 
ation. In this way my readers will be able to form an intelligible idea of 
the principles which lie at the basis of the Canadian system, as well as of 
those political ideas which have most influence among the statesmen of 
the Australasian dependencies at this very important period of their his- 
tory, when they are hesitating between colonial isolation and national 
strength. I do not propose, however, to take up and review seriatim all 
those features of federation which are summarized below, but simply to 
