[riddell] BRITISH NORTH AMERICA ACT, 1867 93 



At the Quebec Conference the Hon. George Brown moved: "That 

 in the Local Government there shall be but one Legislative Chamber"; 

 Mr. (afterwards Sir Leonard) Tilley of New Brunswick objected as 

 did Mr. Fisher and Mr. Chandler of the same Province; Mr. (after- 

 wards Sir Charles) Tupper of Nova Scotia was inclined to agree with 

 Mr. Brown, and Mr. Carter of Newfoundland told of the favourable 

 experience of his Province with one Chamber. The motion, however, 

 was for a time withdrawn. When it was brought up again, Mr. 

 McCully of Nova Scotia made the sensible suggestion to "let Upper 

 Canada try a single Chamber and if it succeeds the other Provinces can 

 afterwards adopt it": and this was carried. It was not until the 

 third draft that the express provisions for the number of Chambers 

 were formulated.^ 



The minute division of legislative authority between Dominion 

 and Provinces formed in Sections 91 and 92 was the subject of a con- 

 siderable amount of discussion— only two matters seem to call for 

 special comment. 



By Section 91 (27) the Dominion is given legislative power in 

 Criminal Law: by Section 92 (13) the Provinces, in Property and 

 Civil Rights in the Province— these two provisions indicate the funda- 

 mental causes of the Federal system being adopted in the Constitu- 

 tion of the Dominion instead of a Legislative Union. 



When civil government was provided for Canada instead of 

 military rule by the Royal Proclamation of 1763, it was ordered that 

 "public Justice within Our said" Colony in "all Causes as well Criminal 

 as Civil" should be administered "as near as may be agreeable to the 

 Laws of England." With the English Criminal Law there never was 

 any complaint in French Canada ; but there was much feeling against 

 the English Civil Law: and this had no little to do with the passing 

 of the Quebec Act of 1774. Carleton advised "as the only way of doing 



British Columbia had one House called the Legislative Council : in anticipation 

 of coming into Confederation, she changed the name to the Legislative Assembly 

 in 1871 by the Act 1871, 34 Vict., No. 147 (B.C.). 



When the Provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan were created by the Dominion 

 Acts of 1905, 4 and 5 Edward VII, CC. 3 and 42, it was provided that their Legisla- 

 ture should have only one Chamber called the Legislative Assembly. New Brunswick 

 got rid of her Legislative Council by the Act of 1891, 54 Vict., C. 9 (N.B.) becoming 

 effective in 1892. 



Prince Edward Island had two Houses until the Act of (1893), 56 Vict., C. 1 

 (P. E. 1.) became effective the following year — thereafter one Counciller and one 

 Assembly man were to be elected for each electoral district, but all to sit and vote in 

 one House, the Legislative Assembly (reminding the student of constitutional history 

 of the ancient Scottish Parliament). 



' Pope, Confederation, pp. 21, 75, 175. 



