council by proclamation for any territory within one year from the date of the proclamation, and such disallowance on being made known by the governor-general by proclamation shall annul the law from the day. when the disallowance is so made known.

21. The members of the commission shall be entitled to such pensions or superannuation allowances as the governor-general in council shall by proclamation provide, and the salaries and pensions of such members and all other expenses of the commission shall be borne by the territories in the proportion of their respective revenues.

22. The rights as existing at the date of transfer of officers of the public service employed in any territory shall remain in force.

23. Where any appeal may by law be made to the king in council from any court of the territories, such appeal shall, subject to the provisions of this act, be made to the appellate division of the supreme court of South Africa.

24. The commission shall prepare an annual report on the territories which shall, when approved by the governor-general in council, be laid before both houses of parliament.

25. All bills to amend or alter the provisions of this schedule shall be reserved for the signification of his majesty's pleasure.

THE BRITISH NORTH AMERICA ACT.1

[March 29, 1867.]

An Act for the Union of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and the Government thereof; and for purposes connected therewith.

Whereas the provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick have expressed their desire to be federally united into one Dominion under the crown of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, with a constitution similar in principle to that of the United Kingdom: And whereas such a union would conduce to the welfare of the provinces and promote the interests of the British empire:

And whereas on the establishment of the union by authority of parliament it is expedient, not only that the constitution of the legislative

1 This and the following acts, relating to the constitutions of Canada and Australia, are reprinted from Dodd's Modern Constitutions, University of Chicago Press: 1909, vol. I, pp. 33-68 and 185-225. — J. B. S.

authority in the Dominion be provided for, but also that the nature of the executive government therein be declared:

And whereas it is expedient that provision be made for the eventual admission into the union of other parts of British North America:

Be it therefore enacted and declared by the queen's most excellent majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the lords spiritual and temporal, and commons, in this present parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same as follows:

1. This act may be cited as the British North America Act, 1867. 2. The provisions of this act referring to her majesty the queen extend also to the heirs and successors of her majesty, kings and queens of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

II. UNION.

3. It shall be lawful for the queen, by and with the advice of her majesty's most honourable privy council, to declare by proclamation that, on and after a day therein appointed, not being more than six months after the passing of this act, the provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick shall form and be one Dominion under the name of Canada; and on and after that day those three provinces shall form and be one Dominion under that name accordingly.

4. The subsequent provisions of this act shall, unless it is otherwise expressed or implied, commence and have effect on and after the union, that is to say, on and after the day appointed for the union taking effect in the queen's proclamation; and in the same provisions, unless it is otherwise expressed or implied, the name Canada shall be taken to mean Canada as constituted under this act.

5. Canada shall be divided into four provinces, named Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.2

6. The parts of the province of Canada (as it exists at the passing of this act) which formerly constituted respectively the provinces of Upper Canada and Lower Canada shall be deemed to be severed, and shall form two separate provinces. The part which formerly constituted the prov

2 The following additions have been made to the membership of the confederation: Manitoba, July 15, 1870; British Columbia, July 20, 1871; Prince Edward Island, July 1, 1873; Alberta and Saskatchewan, September 1, 1905. Newfoundland has never joined the union.

ince of Upper Canada shall constitute the province of Ontario; and the part which formerly constituted the province of Lower Canada shall constitute the province of Quebec.

7. The provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick shall have the same limits as at the passing of this act.

8. In the general census of the population of Canada, which is hereby required to be taken in the year one thousand eight hundred and seventyone, and in every tenth year thereafter, the respective populations of the four provinces shall be distinguished.

III. EXECUTIVE POWER.

9. The executive government and authority of and over Canada is hereby declared to continue and be vested in the queen.

10. The provisions of this act referring to the governor-general extend and apply to the governor-general for the time being of Canada, or other the chief executive officer or administrator for the time being carrying on the government of Canada on behalf and in the name of the queen, by whatever title he is designated.

11. There shall be a council to aid and advise in the government of Canada, to be styled the queen's privy council for Canada; and the persons who are to be members of that council shall be from time to time chosen and summoned by the governor-general and sworn in as privy councillors, and members thereof may be from time to time removed by the governor-general.

12. All powers, authorities and functions, which under any act of the parliament of Great Britain, or of the parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, or of the legislature of Upper Canada, Lower Canada, Canada, Nova Scotia, or New Brunswick, are at the union vested in or exercisable by the respective governors or lieutenantgovernors of those provinces with the advice, or with the advice and consent, of the respective executive councils thereof, or in conjunction with those councils, or with any number of members thereof, or by those governors or lieutenant-governors individually, shall, as far as the same. continue in existence and capable of being exercised after the union in relation to the government of Canada, be vested in and exercisable by the governor-general, with the advice, or with the advice and consent, of or in conjunction with the queen's privy council for Canada, or any members thereof, or by the governor-general individually, as the case requires, subject, nevertheless (except with respect to such as exist under

acts of the parliament of Great Britain or of the parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland) to be abolished or altered. by the parliament of Canada.

13. The provisions of this act referring to the governor-general in council shall be construed as referring to the governor-general acting by and with the advice of the queen's privy council for Canada.

14. It shall be lawful for the queen, if her majesty thinks fit, to authorize the governor-general from time to time to appoint any person or persons jointly or severally to be his deputy or deputies within any part or parts of Canada, and in that capacity to exercise during the pleasure of the governor-general such of the powers, authorities and functions of the governor-general as the governor-general deems it necessary or expedient to assign to him or them, subject to any limitations or directions expressed or given by the queen; but the appointment of such a deputy or deputies shall not affect the exercise by the governorgeneral himself of any power, authority or function.

15. The command-in-chief of the land and naval militia, and of all naval and military forces, of and in Canada, is hereby declared to continue and be vested in the queen.

16. Until the queen otherwise directs, the seat of government of Canada shall be Ottawa.

IV. LEGISLATIVE POWER.

17. There shall be one parliament for Canada, consisting of the queen, an upper house styled the senate, and the house of commons.

18. The privileges, immunities and powers to be held, enjoyed and exercised by the senate and by the house of commons, and by the members thereof respectively, shall be such as are from time to time defined by act of parliament of Canada, but so that the same shall never exceed those at the passing of this act held, enjoyed and exercised by the commons house of parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and by the members thereof.3

19. The parliament of Canada shall be called together not later than six months after the union.

20. There shall be a session of the parliament of Canada once at least in every year, so that twelve months shall not intervene between the last sitting of the parliament in one session and in its first sitting in the next

session.

3 Repealed and replaced by act of 1875; see p. 69.

THE SENATE.

21. The senate shall, subject to the provisions of this act, consist of seventy-two members, who shall be styled senators.*

22. In relation to the constitution of the senate, Canada shall be deemed to consist of three divisions:

1. Ontario;

2. Quebec;

3. The Maritime provinces, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick; which three divisions shall (subject to the provisions of this act) be equally represented in the senate as follows: Ontario by twenty-four senators; Quebec by twenty-four senators; and the Maritime provinces by twentyfour senators, twelve thereof representing Nova Scotia and twelve thereof representing New Brunswick.

In the case of Quebec, each of the twenty-four senators representing that province shall be appointed for one of the twenty-four electoral divisions of Lower Canada specified in schedule A to chapter one of the consolidated statutes of Canada.

23. The qualifications of a senator shall be as follows: 1) He shall be of the full age of thirty years:

2) He shall be either a natural-born subject of the queen, or a subject of the queen naturalized by an act of the parliament of Great Britain, or of the parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, or of the legislature of one of the provinces of Upper Canada, Lower Canada, Canada, Nova Scotia or New Brunswick before the union, or of the parliament of Canada after the union:

3) He shall be legally or equitably seized as of freehold for his own. use and benefit of lands or tenements held in free and common socage, or seized or possessed for his own use and benefit of lands or tenements held in franc-alleu or in roture, within the province for which he is appointed, of the value of four thousand dollars, over and above all rents, dues. debts, charges, mortgages and encumbrances due or payable out of, or charged on or affecting the same:

4) His real and personal property shall be together worth four thousand dollars over and above his debts and liabilities:

4 By the British North America Act of 1871 the Canadian parliament was empowered to make provision for the representation therein of provinces subsequently admitted. Manitoba has 4 senators, British Columbia 3. Alberta and Saskatchewan 4 each, making a total of 87 senators. See sec. 147 for the representation of Prince Edward Island in the Senate.