be accepted by the Legislature of each Province.
Mr. Blake replied to the Minister of Militia, and
contended that it was eminently proper that, from the very outset, any action
by the Dominion Government, looking in the direction of taking
away from the Local Legislatures their control over property and
civil rights, should be carefully discussed. He considered
sound policy was against this Parliament assuming control over these
laws; first because it would be against the proper working of
the Federal system, and second because it would give this Parliament control
over the laws of Ontario, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, with which
one-third of its membersthose from Quebec—had no concern. Such a
policy, he believed, was wrong; and even from the point of view of those
who thought otherwise, it must be regarded as premature, looking to the position of
Nova Scotia and to the coming in of
Newfoundland. Moreover, without the concurrence of the Local
Legislatures, the money spent on this object would be thrown away; and
that concurrence he did not believe would be given. As regarded, at
least, his own Province, his voice would be raised against such concurrence.
Sir John A. Macdonald said it was possible that Ontario,
Nova Scotia and New Brunswick might never have precisely the same laws, but
it was, at least, desirable that they should have an opportunity of
obtaining uniformity of their laws. There had been a gradual divergence of the laws
in those Provinces, and it was of importance
to their well-being that that divergence should be done away with. The
most likely way to accomplish that was to have a Commission of experts familiar
with the laws of the various Provinces, to report a body of laws which
the Provinces might either accept or reject. The member for Durham said
this movement was premature, because Newfoundland was not yet in the
Union. That Province had been very careful to maintain its Civil Law, the
law of England. The whole of its own laws in that department might be contained
in a very thin volume. There would be little difficulty,
therefore, as regarded that Province. No one Province could afford to pay
the expense of such a commission as this, and if it did a Provincial commission
would look at the consolidation of the law from a Provincial
point of view. He was surprised that the member for Durham should oppose this
or should not desire a uniform system of laws over all the Provinces. It
was of importance that the members of the bar of one Province should be
in a position to go to the bar of an [...]
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