# 4th Parliament of British Columbia

The 4th Legislative Assembly of British Columbia sat from 1882 to 1886. The members were elected in the British Columbia general election held in July 1882. Robert Beaven formed a minority government in 1882. The Beaven government fell on a Motion of no confidence in January 1883. William Smithe formed a new government later that month.
There were four sessions of the 4th Legislature:
| Session | Start | End |
| 1st | January 25, 1883 | May 12, 1883 |
| 2nd | December 3, 1883 | February 18, 1884 |
| 3rd | January 12, 1885 | March 9, 1885 |
| 4th | January 25, 1886 | April 6, 1886 |
John Andrew Mara served as speaker.

## Members of the 4th General Assembly

The following members were elected to the assembly in 1882:
| Member | Electoral district | Party | First elected / previously elected |
| George Cowan | Cariboo | Independent | 1877 |
| Robert McLeese | Cariboo | Government | 1882 |
| Charles Wilson | Cariboo | Opposition | 1882 |
| John Grant | Cassiar | Opposition | 1882 |
| William Munro Dingwall | Comox | Government | 1882 |
| William Smithe | Cowichan | Opposition | 1871 |
| Hans Lars Helgesen | Esquimalt | Government | 1878 |
| Charles Edward Pooley | Esquimalt | Opposition | 1882 |
| Robert Leslie Thomas Galbraith | Kootenay | Government | 1877 |
| Edward Allen | Lillooet | Opposition | 1882 |
| Alexander Edmund Batson Davie | Lillooet | Opposition | 1875, 1882 |
| Robert Dunsmuir | Nanaimo | Opposition | 1882 |
| William Raybould | Nanaimo | Opposition | 1882 |
| James Orr | New Westminster | Opposition | 1882 |
| John Robson | New Westminster | Opposition | 1871, 1882 |
| William James Armstrong | New Westminster City | Government | 1871, 1881 |
| James Cunningham (1884) | New Westminster City | Government | 1884 |
| Robert Franklin John | Victoria | Opposition | 1882 |
| George Archibald McTavish | Victoria | Opposition | 1882 |
| Robert Beaven | Victoria City | Government | 1871 |
| Theodore Davie | Victoria City | Opposition | 1882 |
| Simeon Duck | Victoria City | Independent | 1871, 1882 |
| Montague William Tyrwhitt-Drake | Victoria City | Opposition | 1882 |
| Preston Bennett | Yale | Opposition | 1878 |
| John Andrew Mara | Yale | Opposition | 1871 |
| Charles Augustus Semlin | Yale | Independent | 1871, 1882 |
| George Bohun Martin (1882) | Yale | Opposition | 1882 |

## By-elections

By-elections were held for the following members appointed to the provincial cabinet, as was required at the time:
* William James Armstrong, Provincial Secretary, elected September 18, 1882
* Simeon Duck, Minister of Finance, elected April 15, 1885
* Alexander Edmund Batson Davie, Attorney General, acclaimed March 31, 1883
* William Smithe, Premier, acclaimed March 31, 1883
* John Robson, Provincial Secretary, Minister of Finance and Agriculture and Minister of Mines, acclaimed March 31, 1883
By-elections were held to replace members for various other reasons:
| Electoral district | Member elected | Election date | Reason |
| Yale | George Bohun Martin | October 13, 1882 | death of P. Bennett on August 9, 1882 |
| New Westminster City | James Cunningham | April 21, 1884 | W.J. Armstrong appointed sheriff April 5, 1884 |