FOURTH ORDINARY MEETING. oil 
With us the Provinces were merged into the new Dominion—gave 
up their names and their charters, and submitted to be governed by 
one parliament at Ottawa. They were re-cast, re-created and formed 
into Provinces of the Dominion—no longer separate colonies of the 
empire, but constituent elements of the new larger colony. The 
powers given to the Provinces were enumerated powers—many of 
their ancient rights were gone or become obsolete, and henceforth 
they were new creatures, supreme in their own local rights, but 
having no capacity to increase their own stature by one cubit. * * 
The main feature of every Federation is how far its constituent 
provinces approach to sovereign States. The autonomy of our 
‘Canadian provinces is perhaps the lowest in the scale of power that 
‘can be exemplified in history. The list of subjects assigned to the 
Central Government at Ottawa is fully more than double that 
assigned to the Provinces, and every unenumerated matter goes to 
swell the central list. And not only that, but the larger list embraces 
the important matters. When the autonomy of a Province is spoken 
-of, or the home rule of a Province asserted, it must be with large 
qualifications. The home rule of an obedient wife to her husband is 
not an inappropriate comparison but like all other comparisons is not 
to be pursued toofar. * * * 
For good or for evil, so far as our written constitution goes, the 
people of Canada have agreed to be governed by one Parliament—to 
have laws made for the peace, order and good government of Canada 
—but for convenience sake the Provinces have the exclusive right to 
legislate on certain defined subjects. The legislation is kept under a 
species of control in the Courts, which is also exercised over 
Dominion legislation, and the other the veto power of the Governor 
General of Canada. The Lieutenant-Governor of each province is 
an official of the Government of Canada, and is sent to preside over 
the local Legislatures with certain powers over the legislation and 
with executive control. The subordination of the Provinces to the 
Dominion is provided for—at least on paper, and their whole duty is 
the transacting of the Local government assigned to them. The 
provinces are independent of each other, but are unable to enter into 
any engagements other than the constitution provides for them. This 
is far from being in the position of quasi independent states, and 
indeed inter-provincial dealings are removed much further than before 
feerunion of 1867... * * * 
