cmap. mm] THE GOVERNOR AND MINISTERS 173 
of a responsible-government Colony or Dominion and the 
Governor acting as an Imperial officer in the Imperial 
interest. The distinction is fundamental, and must form the 
basis of all discussion of the matter if there is to be clearness 
of thought. It is true that it is not possible to accept the 
views of these two very able men as to the position of 
a Governor under responsible government as a mere formal 
sfficer in cases not involving Imperial interests, but it is 
a mistake to treat his actions in that capacity as being cases 
illustrating his position as an Imperial officer, which is what 
in effect Todd does; he is not, when he dissolves Parliament 
on ministerial advice or refuses to do so, acting in Imperial 
interests; he is acting in the interests of the Government of 
which he is head, and it is merely confusing to compare such 
action withaction in opposition to ministers takenon Imperial 
grounds. In the former case he is responsible so far as the 
head of Government can be responsible to the people of the 
Colony ; in the latter to the Crown at home, advised by 
the Ministry of the day. It is no doubt true that as the 
people in the Colony cannot dismiss him, it may be said that 
he is not responsible to them ; it was in fact declared by the 
resolutions of September 3, 1841, which adopted responsible 
government in Canada, that the Governor was responsible to 
the Imperial authority alone, and it is quite obvious that 
it would not be reasonably practicable to secure that the 
formal tenure of the Governor should depend in any way 
upon more than one authority ; it would then become 
possible for a Colonial Government to proceed to determine 
the tenure of office of a Governor who acted against their 
advice on Imperial grounds—for a distinction of power with 
regard to local and Imperial matters would be impossible in 
practice—and the Governor would therefore lose his value 
for the purposes of the Imperial Government. But it was 
recognized by Lord Durham in his pronouncement on 
responsible government that the Governor must learn only 
to look for support to the Imperial authorities where he 
acted in the Imperial interest. Again, it was attempted 
in the discussions preceding the adoption of the Australian