554 THE CANADIAN EDUCATIONAL SVSTE.M. 



stituent elements of Canadian life which successfully claimed 

 the embodiment of this [principle in the fundamental law of the 

 Dominion were to be found in the diverse characteristics of the 

 two nationalities. French and English. The problem raised by 

 these was at once racial, ecclesiastical and linguistic. At the 

 first jj^lance these three may appear to Ije out, but the\- are not 

 really so in the eyes of the law. It does ha])pen that they 

 are to a large extent co-incidental, but numerous interpretation.^ 

 of Clause 93 in the Canadian courts have made it e\ ident that 

 the intention of the framers is regarded by the majority of 

 jurists to be to ensure, not so much linguistic and racial as eccle- 

 siastical securit}'. One illustrative example of this ma\' be 

 quoted : — 



" It has been recentl\- held that the use of the hVcncli lan- 

 guage in schools in Cpi)er Canada attended by French-Canadian 

 children, whether th(.)se schools were public schools or denomina- 

 tional (separate) schools, was not a right enjoyed by law at the 

 date of the union, and that therefore the Provincial Letiislattire 

 of Ontario has the fullest discretion as to how far the French 

 language is to be now used or taught in the schools of that 

 Province." (Clement's "Canadian Constitution."; 



Various aspects of this question have from time to time 

 been submitted to the test n\ the law-courts, some of which ha\"e 

 been deemed of sufficient imjjortance to reach the Pri\v Council 

 for final decision. As a result of this the following i)rinciple^ 

 may be said, on the authorit\' just (|tioted, to have been estal)- 

 lished : — 



''I. The right to establish denominational schools; 



" 2. The right to invoke State aid in the collection oi taxes 

 necessary for the suj^port of such schools from their sui)])orters : 



" 3. The i)rivilege of exem])tion from taxaticvn for the sup- 

 {X)rt of the ]niblic schc^ds of the province; 



"4. The ])rivilege of having taught in such sei)arate schools 

 the religious tenets of their denomination ; to which sh.ould 

 perhaps be added the right or ])ri\ilege which an\- member of 

 any denomination has to choose which he will support, the 

 sei)arate schools of his deru^mination. or the ptiblic schools of 

 the province. Any legislatiiin of a com])ulsory character would, 

 it is thought, be tmconstitutional as ])rejudicially affecting the 

 right (,r privilege which such persons had by law at the date of 

 the Confederation." 



it will thus be seen that llii> foundation princi])le oi the 

 Canadian educational system has a \er\ important bearing on 

 educational finance, with which it niu>t be borne in mind this 

 pajKM- especially deals, these other (|uestions onlv being intro- 

 duced so ifar as they help to a bf-tter understanding of the main 

 issue. 



In such a vast territory as Canada, and a country with a 

 population which is far from homogeneous, the problems which 

 arise in the course of educational development are necessarilv 

 varied. This fact. howCver. calls for notice that the Dominion 



