John A. Macdonald Papers, Drafts of the Quebec Resolutions, Resolutions on Indians, Ferries, etc., Amended Copy(25-26 October 1864)
Document Information
Date: 1864-10-25 – 1864-10-26
By: John A. Macdonald
Citation: John A. Macdonald, Drafts of the Quebec Resolutions, Resolutions on Indians, Ferries, Etc., October 25-26th, 1864 (MG 26 A, Vol. 46, p. 18035).[1]
Other formats: Click here to view the original document (PDF).
Click for our e-book from which the transcription and footnotes come from: Charles Dumais, The Quebec Resolutions: Including Several Never-Published Preliminary Drafts by George Brown and John A. Macdonald & a Collection of all Previously-Published Primary Documents Relating to the Conference, Second Edition (Calgary: Canadian Constitution Foundation, 2025).
Note: The original text also contains handwritten notes and other marginalia. Click here to view an explanatory document on how we have transcribed handwritten notes from the publication mentioned above (Dumais, Quebec Resolutions, 2025). The footnote numbers (endnotes on our website) may not match because in the book the numbers restart for each page, but on our website, they are continual.
Click here to view the other copies of this document (MG26 A 18033)
18035
CONFIDENTIAL.
RESOLUTIONS SUGGESTED FOR CONSIDERATION.
Resolved,—
1. It shall be competent for the General Legislature to pass laws respecting—
1. The Indians, [and lands secured for the Indians]
2. Ferries between any Province and a Foreign Country or between any two Provinces, [illegible]
[strike out] 3. For the regulation and incorporation of Fire and Life Insurance Companies,
[checkmark] 4. Respecting Savings Banks.
2. It shall also be competent for the General Legislature to pass—
Inspection Laws, and
Laws relating to Quarantine.
[checkmark] 3. The General Government and Legislature shall have all powers necessary or proper for performing the obligations of the Province as part of the British Empire to Foreign Countries, arising under Treaties between Great Britain and such Countries. [and those growing out of a [illegible]]
[checkmark] 4. All Courts, Judges and Officers of the several Provinces shall aid, assist and obey the General Government in the exercise of its rights and powers under this Act, and for such purposes shall be held to be Judges and Officers of the General Government.
5. The General Government [Leg.] may also, from time to time, establish additional Courts, [the G.G. [illegible]] and appoint other Judges and Officers, when the same shall appear necessary or for the public advantage, in order to the due execution of the laws, rights and obligations of the General Government. [Legislature]
[checkmark] 6. All Bills for appropriating any part of the Public Revenue, or for imposing any new Tax or Impost, shall originate in the House of Commons or the Local Assembly, as the case may be.
[checkmark] 7. The House of Commons or Legislative [local] Assembly shall not originate or pass any Vote, Resolution, Address or Bill for the appropriation of any part of the Public Revenue, or of any Tax or Impost to any purpose, not first recommended to the House or Assembly by Message of the Governor General [or Lieutenant Governor as the case may be], during the Session in which such Vote, Resolution, Address or Bill is passed.
8. Any Bill of the General Legislature may be reserved in the usual manner for Her Majesty’s Assent, and any Bill of the Local Government [Legislatures] may in like manner be reserved for the consideration of the General Government [Governor General].
9. Any Bill passed by the General Legislature shall be subject to disallowance by Her Majesty within two years, as in the case of Bills passed by the said Provinces hitherto, and in like manner any Bill passed by a Local Legislature shall be subject to disallowance by the General Government [governor] within one year after the passing thereof.
10. The North-West Territory, British Columbia and Vancouver shall be admitted into the Union on such terms and conditions as the General Legislature shall deem equitable, and as shall receive the assent of Her Majesty, and in the case of the Province of British Columbia or Vancouver as shall be agreed to by the Legislature of such Province.
THE JUDICIARY
11. The Judges of the Courts of Admiralty shall be paid by the General Government.
12. A further sum proportioned to the population of each Province shall be set apart annually out of the General Revenue towards the expense of the Judiciary in each Province.
13. The sum so set appear for each Province shall be applied by the General Government to the payment of the salaries of the Judges of the Superior Courts in such Province; and in the case of any Province the salaries of whose Judges shall not exhaust the sum so set apart for such Province, the balance shall be paid over to the Province towards paying the inferior Judges thereof.
14. The number of Superior Judges shall not be increased, except by the concurrent action of the General and Local Legislatures.
15. The Judges of the Superior Courts, in each Province, shall be appointed by the General Government, and their salaries shall be fixed by the General Legislature.
16. The Lower Canada Judges shall be appointed from the Bar of Lower Canada.
17. The Judges of the other Provinces may be appointed from the Bar of any of the said Provinces, except Lower Canada.
18. All Judges of the Superior Courts shall hold their offices during good behaviour, and shall be removeable only on the address of both Houses of the General Legislature.
19. The General Legislature shall have power to pass statutes for rendering uniform all or any of the laws relative to property and civil rights in Upper Canada, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland, and for rendering uniform the practice of all or any of the Courts in these Provinces.
20. The seat of the Local Government in Upper Canada shall be Toronto; of Lower Canada, Quebec; of New Brunswick, Fredericton; of Nova Scotia, Halifax; of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown; and of Newfoundland, St. John’s, subject to any future action of the respective Local [Legislatures] Governments in respect thereof. [the seat of the Local Government of Upper Canada shall be Toronto; of Lower Canada Quebec; and the Sears of the Local Government of the other Provinces [shall be] shall be]
Endnotes
[1] I have provided here an example from the John A. Macdonald Papers that belong to the tabling of resolutions described in Hewitt Bernard’s Minutes and Report. Another copy with similar amendments (MG 26, A, Vol. 46, 18033) can be accessed at PrimaryDocuments.ca by scanning the QR code on the left. Unlike many of the other papers for the Bernard Minutes and Report, this one is not only well preserved but mostly readable. I envision a fuller (if not a full) account of the primary material for the Hewitt Bernard Minutes and Report in a future edition of this book. For the moment, however, readers may refer to the PrimaryDocuments.ca website for further updates. Since these provisions were tabled on October 25th, and the primary material has “October 26th” inscribed at the top, I’ve tentatively dated this document October 25th-26th. It is possible that some of the resolutions were tabled on October 25th and others on October 26th, while minor drafting amendments to the text were made in a drafting session on the 26th. [C.D.]
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