32 RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT [PART I 
reserving as a general rule Bills of local interest. A curious 
contretemps resulted from the passing of the Act : under the 
interpretation put on the Act by his law officers, the system of 
responsible government was brought into effect before a new 
legislature came into existence, and the sitting Legislative 
Council proved ready to defeat the officers of the Government 
who had to face them in their new capacity as ministers. 
In the case of South Australia the Imperial Government 
did not proceed as in the case of New South Wales and 
Victoria to pass an Act confirming the Colonial Bill, No. 3 
of 1853, but they suggested in a dispatch of May 4, 1855, 
that the Legislative Council would do well to reconsider the 
provisions of the original Bill regarding the Legislative 
Council? It was added that if this were done, and if the 
provisions affecting the Imperial right of disallowance which 
restricted the right to Bills affecting Imperial interests were 
altered, it would not be essential to provide for the ratifica~ 
tion of the Bill by an Imperial Act, as the passing of the 
Imperial Act, 18 & 19 Vict. c. 56, regarding the waste lands, 
rendered further Imperial legislation needless, unless the 
fundamental principles of the Bill were altered. The 
Governor, on the receipt of this dispatch, in accordance with 
a suggestion contained in it proceeded to dissolve the 
elective portion of the Legislative Council, but he put before 
the people as an alternative to responsible government the 
adoption of a system of having a single chamber of four 
official nominees, of twelve elective members selected on 
a restricted franchise, and of twenty-four members elected 
on a low franchise. This scheme fell entirely flat, and in 
the result the Legislative Council passed an Act, No. 2 of 
1855-6, which created a bicameral legislature, made pro- 
vision for retiring officers, laid down a Civil List, and provided 
for ministerial tenure of office. This Act received in due 
course the royal assent? 
In the case of Tasmania the same procedure was adopted : 
! Parl. Pap., July 24, 1856, pp. 45 sea. : Rusden, Hist. of Australia. iii. 
140 seq. 
* Parl. Pap., July 24, 1856, p. 108. 3 Thid., pp. 65 seq., 109,