Complex sentence: Howe, himself, initially opposed confederation, but accepted it as a reality after initial attempts to scuttle it failed and, in 1868 joined the pro-Confederation forces serving for a time in the federal Cabinet of Sir John A. Macdonald.
Split into simpler sentences: Howe, himself, initially opposed Confederation, but accepted it as a reality after initial attempts to scuttle it failed. In 1868, Howe joined the pro-Confederation forces, serving for a time in the federal Cabinet of Sir John A. Macdonald.