Colonial Despatches

I have the honor to forward to Your Lordship the usual copies of four Acts passed by the Legislative Council entitled respectively—An An Act to amend the Law as to the Qualification of Electors, and of Elective Members for the Legislature, and to provide for the Registration of Persons entitled to Vote at Elections of such Members, 1871.
An Act to regulate Elections of Members of the Legislature of this Colony, 1871.An
An Act to prevent Bribery, Treating, and undue influence at Elections of Members of the Legislature, 1871.

and
An Act to make provision for enquiring into Controverted Elections and Disputed Returns of Members to serve in the Legislature, 1871.

2. I enclose the Reportof of the Attorney General, and it is not necessary for me to add much to the explanations therein contained. The first three measures do not differ in principle from others which have been commonly adopted elsewhere; and the principle of the Controverted Elections Act, although I forward to YourLordship Lordship a protest against it from the Judges of the Supreme Court, I regard as very important in any Colony, but specially so in this one under the arrangements which it is proposed to establish.

3. Your Lordship will observe that the first Act of the series providing for theRegistration Registration of Voters also requires a qualification in respect of Electors. In my Despatch No 136 of the 17th October last, I have my reasons for not attempting to impose any condition of this kind at the Elections for the present Council. I still doubt whether the qualifications which are now required willcmuch much affect the result of any election; but I found a strong opinion prevailing among our official members of the Legislature that it would be undesirable to formally establish manhood suffrage by an Act of the Legislature; for in this case it would be practically impossible at any subsequenttime time to withdraw it; while it will always be open to the Legislature to relax a restriction and more easy to modify the provisions in any direction if the principle is now asserted that some qualification for the elective franchise is necessary. Still it has not been found practicable to do more thanrequire require what is at best but a very slight qualification. The chief value of the Act is that whatever may confer the elective franchise the right to exercise it must be registered, and after this year must have been possessed for three months before registration. These and other auxiliary regulations will Ithink think effectively restrict the elective power to settled residents who have some substantial interest in the Colony.

4. With regard to the Controverted Elections Act, Your Lordship will consider the objections urged by the Judges of the Supreme Court. As I have assented to theAct Act subject to Her Majesty's confirmation, it is scarcely necessary to say that I do not concur in the views of Mr Begbie and Mr Crease, but some explanation of my reasons is desirable. If the Judges had had the same experience in the working of Colonial Representative Constitutions as both theAttorney Attorney General and myself have acquired in other places, I do not think they would hold the opinion they now entertain. It would not require experiment now to teach me what to expect from the action of Colonial Election Committees, but in fact I am informed that experiencehere here during the existence of the separate Vancouver Island Legislature fully justifies the conclusion at which I have arrived. I believe that every reason which induced the disregard of the Judges objections in England would apply in this Colony with greater force. Almost allthe the arguments which have been used against the jurisdiction in Controverted Elections being given to the Supreme Court are more closely applicable to its being left to the Assembly, which will be a political body liable to be swayed by political motives. Whereas in fact bythe the operation of the Registration of Voters Act it will scarcely be possible that any Election should be controverted except on the ground of Bribery and other corrupt practices which will be offences against the Law, and as such properly cognizable by a legal Court. I do not regard a ColonialLegislature Legislature as a natural tribunal to adjudicate upon matters of that kind nor think it at all desirable that they should be so constituted; even though Colonial public opinion might be satisfied by such a tribunal; for in any case great consumption of the time of the Legislative bodyis is caused by the trial by them of disputed Elections. But, the great merit of the measure in my estimation is that it will operate to prevent Controverted Elections. Let them be referred to the Court, to treat infractions of the Election Laws as common offences, and there will probably not be one reference to the Courtin in ten general elections. Allow the Assembly to deal with them and there will be Petitions on almost every occasion, political jobbery, corruption, and pretences to Parliamentary supremacy over ordinary law to which in fact a Colonial Legislature has no title though the claim to it has causedmuch much mischief in other places.

5. I do not share the dread of the Judges either that "supreme political power" would be placed in their hands, or that their independence would be destroyed, which Mr Begbie alleges to be the main grounds for his objection to the jurisdiction. I have no fear that the fate ofany any administration would ever depend upon a Judges decision, nor on the other hand would be in any case, under Confederation or not, be removable by the local government, and his Salary is provided for by Act; and this places him at once above any unworthy influences andmakes makes him an impartial referee much more so, indeed, than in many cases which might come before him, such as I have known, in which the Acts both of the Government and the Legislature have been arraigned.

6. Mr Crease succinctly objects to the measure, as"unnecessary, "unnecessary, inexpedient, ineffective and dangerous." I differ from him on all these grounds. I think it not "unnecessary" because the history of the Assembly of Vancouver Island exhibited the same tendencies here which have been observed elsewhere; and the present Legislature knowingthis this have willingly adopted the principle under discussion by a unanimous vote. I think its "expediency" even greater here than in England, because of the lack of a high standard of public opinion in small communities. It will be at least as "effective" as a matter of convenience, because if theLegislature Legislature should try Election petitions, all such Petitions must be brought to Victoria for hearing, while if the Court adjudicates the question can be brought before the Court on circuit, and if necessary a special Court can be held in a convenient place. I cannot regard it as in any sense"dangerous" "dangerous" to the free administration of the Law, even to so great an extent as it would be for the Court to decide upon any point of Constitutional Law, in which the local Government might be concerned, upon which a legal judgment should be required. And I look upon anyregulations regulations as valuable and important at this particular juncture in public affairs which will assist to assert the principle that even Colonial Legislatures, Responsible Governments, and popular majorities must discharge their functions according to Law. I do not like to suppose,that that any such consideration affects the view taken by the Judges; but the only objection that I can see is that this Act will in some slight degree add to their duties and responsibilities.