Document Information

Date: 1866-08-02
By: Province of Canada (Parliament), The Globe
Citation: “Legislative Council,” The Globe (3 August 1866).
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Legislative Council Elections

Pursuant to the Order of the Day the House was adjourned during pleasure, and put into a Committee of the whole on the Bill intituled, “An Act to postpone for a limited time the issuing of Writs for the next election of Members of the Legislative Council.”

After some time the House was resumed, and

John Sanborn [Wellington, elected 1863] reported from the said Committee that they had gone through the said Bill and had directed him to report the same to the House without any amendment.

Narcisse F. Belleau [Canada East, appointed 1852, Premier and Receiver General] moved, seconded by A.J. Fergusson Blair [Brock, elected 1860, President Executive Council],

That the said Bill be now read a third time.[1]

The following discussion took place on the measure:—[2] 

James Currie [Niagara, elected 1862] opposed the Bill as unconstitutional.

A.J. Fergusson Blair [Brock, elected 1860, President Executive Council] was of opinion that the passage of the Bill would save much expense to the country. It was but a small part of the Confederation scheme, which was now certain to pass. No objection had been made in the country to the measure, and persons who would be elected under the present law, would never at any rate sit in our Parliament. They would be in the list from which the members of the Confederate Legislative Council would have a preferential claim though not as obsolete right to be elected. It was, therefore, reasonable that the present members who have served in Parliament should not be exposed to the risk of being excluded from the list of eligible parties, in favour of new men who had never served before, especially as the nomination principle was virtually to be extinguished.

Luc Letellier de Saint Just [Grandville, elected 1860] thought it useless and unjust to send members to the electors for a Parliament they would never be required to sit in. Those elections would be expensive; and, as Confederation was certain, he could not see the necessity of holding new elections on the eve of the change.

John Ross [Canada West, appointed 1848] spoke in favour of the Bill. He had no interest in the measure, but believed it just and expedient.

Alexander Vidal [St. Clair, elected 1863] expressed himself dissatisfied with the arguments of Messrs. Ross and Blair. He did not presume to set himself up as a judge of constitutional law; but, as the measure was introduced by the Government, the law officers of the Crown evidently considered it not unconstitutional. The reasons advanced by the President of the Council [A.J. Fergusson Blair] in support of that view were, in his (Mr. Vidal’s) judgment, insufficient to establish it. The Imperial Act under authority of which the elective principle was introduced into the Legislative Council[3] doubtless empowered Parliament to fix or alter the duration of time of service of elected members, but evidently intended this apply to the whole number, and did not sanction or contemplate the extension of the term to any individual, or to a limited number of members.

He regarded the Bill as a serious infringement upon the rights of constituencies, who, in the ordinary course of law, would have the privilege of passing judgment upon their representatives, and of re-electing them the position of being eligible to be chosen for life members under Confederation, or of placing others in that position, in whom they had confidence, should they be dissatisfied with their course. He felt deeply the embarrassing position in which the initiation of the measure in the Council placed the members, and regretted that it had not been introduced in the Legislative Assembly, as it had come to this House sanctioned by that branch of the Legislature, the fact of its being approved by those representing the several counties interested, would, to some extent, have justified its confirmation by the Council. In the present case, he considered the constituencies as deprived of a privilege, without any opportunity being afforded to them of petitioning against the Bill, or indicating their acceptance of it through their representatives in the other Chamber.

Philip Moore [Canada East, appointed 1841] did not agree that the Bill should have originated in the other House. He believed that as the matter affected this House, it should originate here, as they were the proper guardians of their own rights. For his own part he was not in the slightest degree affected by the elections, but, it should be considered that if the elections took place this fall in 12 constituencies, 40 counties would be involves in the contest, and 40,000 or 50,000 yeomen would be disturbed in their vacations, involving great expense and loss of time.

Hon. Mr. Boulton would have brought in this [illegible] himself, had it not been brought in by the Government. He looked upon it as just and reasonable, and hoped it would pass.[4]

After Debate,

The question of concurrence being put thereon, the House divided: and the names being called for, they were taken down as follow:

Contents:

The Honorable Messieurs

Aikins,
Armand,
Armstrong,
Belleau, Sir N.F,
Bennett,
Blair, Fergusson,
Blake,
Boulton,
Bossé,
Bull,
Burnham,
Chaffers,
Cormier,
Dickson,
Duchesnay, E.H.J.,
Dumouchel,
Ferrier,
Foster,
Gingras,
Hamilton (Kingston),
Leonard,
Leslie,
Letellier de St. Just,
McCrea,
McMaster,
Malhiot,
Matheson,
Moore,
Olivier,
Panet,
Perry,
Proulx,
Prud’homme,
Read,
Sanborn,
Shaw,
Skead.—37.

Non-Contents:

The Honorable Messieurs

Bureau,
Currie,
Duchesnay, A.J.,
Flint,
Simpson,
Vidal.—6.

So it was resolved in the affirmative, and

The said Bill was then read a third time accordingly.

The question was put whether this Bill shall pass?

It was resolved in the affirmative.

Order,

That the Clerk do go down to the Legislative Assembly and acquaint that House that the Legislative Council have passed this Bill, to which they desire their concurrence.[5]

[1]      Source:  Journals of the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada (Aug. 2, 1866) p. 211.

[2]      Source: “Legislative Council,” The Globe (Aug, 3, 1866). The debate portion is covered entirely by the Globe.

[3]      An Act to change the Constitution of the Legislative Council by rendering the same Elective (Province of Canada, 1856).

[4]      As the end of the Globe article now covers the vote and procedural matters, we have opted for the Journals in its stead at this point.

[5]      Journals, pp. 211-212.