ONTARIO AND QUEBEC. 
19 
Council was appointed to administer the province. Lord 
Durham was appointed Governor-General, and was intrusted 
with large powers as high Commissioner for adjusting the 
relations and government of the two provinces. On his 
arrival he. dissolved .the special Council and appointed a 
new executive, and then proceeded to examine into the 
causes of the failure of the Constitution of 1791. The result 
of his inquiries was embodied in the famous Durham report 
presented to Parliament in 1839, in which he recommended 
the union of the two provinces and the introduction of 
responsible government. Lord John Russell brought forward 
a bill to carry out the former of these recommendations, and 
the bill became law on July 23rd, 1840 
This Act united the two provinces and established a The 
Legislative Council of not less than 20 members, appointed nas, 
for life by the Governor, and a legislative Assembly of 84 
members, consisting of an equal number from Upper and 
Lower Canada. Toronto, Montreal and Quebec were to return 
two members each, certain other towns and the county 
constituencies one member each, power being given to the 
Governor to fix the limits of the constituencies. The number 
of representatives was not to be changed without the con- 
currence of two-thirds of the members of each House. A 
real property qualification to the amount of £500 was re- 
quired of all members of the Assembly. As regards the 
revenue and expenditure certain fixed charges, amounting to 
about £75,000, were thrown on the consolidated fund, and 
all other expenditure was placed within the control of the 
Assembly. 
It only remained for the home Government to give effect Responsd 
to that portion of the Durham report which recommended the Be Dh 
introduction of responsible government, and in a Despatch 
3 & 4 Vie. (i) c. 85. 
De