nap. 1] PRINCIPLES OF IMPERIAL CONTROL 1005
them, but he gave a reply in favour of federation to an
address from the Legislative Council without taking their
advice. It is true that the act was not deliberate, but he
sould have awaited their advice, and the Ministry in indigna-
tion resigned on April 13, 1866, leaving the way open to
a new Ministry which declared for federation—a piece of
very bad parliamentary tactics.
Lord Carnarvon was at the Colonial Office during the
decision of the question of federation, and it was perhaps
his connexion with the Canadian settlement which resulted
in another curious case of proposed Imperial interference
with matters of local concern which occurred in the case of
the Cape in 1875. The Imperial Government were at that
time extremely anxious to secure a federal union between the
British Colonies in South Africa and the two Dutch Republics
of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State. The Upper
House of the Cape was in favour of the proposal, but on the
other hand the Lower House was distinctly opposed to it,
and the opinion in the Colony seemed to be in favour of the
sentiments of the Upper House. The matter was compli-
cated by the fact that the Upper House was elective, and
therefore had some claim to be regarded as expressing the
will of the people as well as the Lower House. It was
accordingly suggested 2 by the Imperial Government that
the Governor should take the step of dissolving the Lower
House in the hope that a new set of elections would result in
the return of a majority in the Lower House in favour of the
proposal for negotiations for union. The Governor, however,
reported against the proposal? He admitted that a majority
in the Legislative Council, and an apparent majority in the
country, might be deemed a ground for thinking that the
dissolution of the Lower House would result in the return
of a House favourable to the proposals. But he considered
that this was really doubtful, that the opinion of the country
See Pope, Sir John Macdonald, i. 296, 297 ; Hannay, New Brunswick,
i, 248.
¢ See Lord Carnarvon’s dispatch of October 22, 1875; Parl. Pap.
C. 1399, p. 27. ? ‘See his dispatch of November 24, 1875; ibid., p. 52.
