Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1864-11-03
THE PROPOSED CANADIAN FEDERATION

on the essential points of federation of the Br
fish North American provinces that the ultimat
organization Of Colonial Union may now, it
believed, be considered as certain. The colonie
accedlng to the proposed plan are the Canadas
New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward
Island, and Newfoundland. The new Government
is to consist of Governor General, appointed b,
the Crown; an Upper House, sort of Senate o.
House OF Lords, the members of which are to b,
appointed by the Grown from the Provincial Legis-
latures, and are to hold Office for life and Lowe,
House chosen by popular vote, each province te
have representation according to its population
The Upper House is to consist of seventy six mem.
bers, OF which the Canadas are to have twenty
each, and the remaining eastern colonies twenty
eight The federal authority will have the su-
preme control of customs, currency, navigation,
laws, and national matters. The provinces will
take care of their local affairs.
In referring to the formation Of this inter-colo-
NAL Union, and to the successive steps which have
led to it, our intelligent contemporary, the New
York Commercial Advertiser, observes:
The proceedings of the Conference have throughout
shown marked leaning toward the institutions of the
parent country Sefgovernment in the provinces SO far
from developing itself in these negotiations into ripper
form OF democracy has exhibited strong tendency
ward the formation OF monarchy. The people, SUCH
not to be directly consulted upon this radical change
in the government of their affairs The act of federation
is initiated rmined and executed by
chosen for the exercise of such functions but simply
for the regulation of affairs upon the existing basis The
federation is thus created BY unauthorized assumption
Of power. The people, however, appear to be SO we'll
disposed toward the proposed order of affairs that
none probably will prominently call in question the right
OF the Conference to exercise these powers and it may
very reasonably questioned whether people who thus
tamey acquesce in unauthorized control of their po
cal destiny have very much to lose leaving others to
manage their affairs for them.
The proposed Constitution of the new Federation
shows like tendency to transfer the rights of suffrage
into the hands of central power At the head of the
Government is to be Governor General not chosen by
the popular vote, but appointed by the Crown This
however is more than may be considered just and
cessary while the country dependent upon England for
projection 1t seems, however, to be entirely gratu
tous surrender of popular to propose that the chief
magistrate shall be invested with vicerega prerOgatives
This disposition to subject the Government Of the
country to royal control apparent in the proposed Con
stuton Of the Houses of Legislature Under the Gov
ernor General are to be two legislative bodies-one
purely representative house, resembling House
OF Representatives, with two hundred members, appor
toned according to population among the several pre-
vnces the other an upper house, with seventy
bers aud holding relation toward The lower house sIm-
lar to that maintained by Senate the House of
Representatives The members of he upper to
be chosen BY the Crown from the several provincial egs
latures. The home Government will thus have the
troll of the head of tho Government and Of the Upper
House of Legislature which is equivalent to its actually
governing the country With such strong eanings toward
the Grown and the Capitalization Of power here
exhibited it would be stretching of probabilities
cude that the confederation but preparatory the
creation of kingdom Tor Of the scions Of the royal
family No one familiar with the sentiment of the popu-
a0n of the provinces would suppose that such
men would meet with any thing but enthusiastic popular
reception Every where, except among the French Can
adams and along own boundary line there exists the
warmest attachment toward the royal family The Queen
is intensely beloved and the BRITISH Constitution is
garded the of governmental perfection and any
proposition to establish the institutions OF the old
try in the provinces would be hailed with almost universal
satisfaction.
"To the people of the United States therefore, this
federation must be undertood ind eating that
ed on northeastern frontier We may dismiss the
Dreams in which have premaurely INDUCED Of
lures from the Canadians for incorporation with the United
States In Upper Canada there class who, by their
constant Intercourse with our frontier population have
imbbed the spirit Of ins buttons and would offer
objection to such but The large mai rty of The
population partially from jesusy at superior pro-
grass and partially from traditional respect for home in
s utons would oppose amalgamation with the United
States to the utmost extremity.
Nor that Americans would have any Just
occasion for dissatisfaction with such cho However
much might think unfortunate the people Of the
provinces that they should surrender their segovernmen
into the hands of king, and that their comparative
fancy they should substitute the heavy expenditures of
regal establishment for their present simple machinery of
government yet we make such Interpretation of
the Monroe doctrine would dispute the absolute right
Of neighbors to choose their form of government
Our wesusianed faith IN the superiority of republican
institutions could only lead to regard with interest the
experiment Of creating monarchy upon neighbOrng
territory possessing most of the elements for the Foundation
Of great nation that possessed by ourselves while
the vast superiority of national power may well dspel
any apprehension of attempted monarchical aggression
If the people of Canada have shown "a marked
leaning toward the institutions of the parent coun
try" instead of developing their self-government
"into ripper form Of democracy" it must be said,
in apology for such preference, that our own
example of self-government has not been
particularly adapted, by the "riper form" into
which it has been brought during the last few years.
to induce an imitation of our peculiar political
maxims and institutions. And in view of events
now daily occurring in the United States, it might
not be very seemly in us to taunt the people Of
Canada for " tame acquiescence in the unautho-
rzed control of their political Destiny, or to blame
their rulers for manifesting ga tendency to trans
fer the rights of suffrage into the hands of cen.
trail power"
"INDEPENDENCE OF THOUGHT IN AMERICA
subscriber sends the following extract from an ora
ton delivered by the Hon. GULIAN C. vERPLAscK, OF
New York, describing state of things which unhappiy
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