THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE 27 
was revised in 1916. In 1918 a special government department, called 
the Department of Municipal Affairs, was created, mainly to supervise 
and direct the finances of the municipalities, thus insuring a sound basis 
and good market for debentures issued. Every municipal corporation 
borrowing money is required by law to impose taxes each year sufficient 
to pay the annual interest and provide a sinking fund large enough to 
retire its debentures at maturity. 
Rural and village municipalities are erected under the Municipal 
Code and their affairs are administered by an elective council of seven 
members over which one of them presides as mayor. The county councils 
are made up of the mayors of the local municipalities within the county. 
Most urban municipalities have been created under special charter of 
the legislature, although provision is made for the erection of such muni- 
cipalities under the Cities and Towns Act. 
In 1927 the various classes of municipalities in the province were: 
city municipalities, 24; town municipalities, 96; village municipalities, 
288; parish municipalities, 992. The area of the municipalities of the 
province now amounts to 25,466,325 acres, whilst the taxable lands have 
an area of 21,348,170 acres. The value of municipally-owned public 
utilities in 1927 was as follows: — 
Waterworks and sewers... .. 
Gas........... 
Light.............. 
Telephone. ......... 
Others. .. 
Total 
$ 79,652,818 
516,584 
10,913,267 
64,285 
11,063,230 
.$102,210,184 
EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM#* 
Provincial Control.—In Canada education is one of the activities 
of Government over which the British North America Act gives the 
province exclusive control, and each of the provincial governments, there- 
fore, has a department of education in charge of a minister. In Quebec, 
however, there is no minister of education, but the provincial secretary 
represents the interests of education in the provincial cabinet and in the 
legislature. The educational system is in charge of the Department of 
Education, the administrative officer of which is known as Superintendent 
of Education. 
Council of Education.—The Council of Education is the legislative 
and advisory body in the educational system of the province. It is com- 
* Revised by the Superintendent of Public Instruction, Quebec.