368 PARLIAMENTS OF THE DOMINIONS [PART 111 
legislate within the limits of its constitution. Nor could 
it so legislate as to permit itself to become a member of a 
federation. It was clear that for this purpose an Imperial 
Act was required. 
This principle was maintained steadily in Australia, where, 
however, it might have been held to be rendered necessary 
by the fact that Imperial legislation was required to create 
a federation in view of the fact that all the Colonies in 
the Commonwealth owed their constitutions to Imperial 
legislation. But it was equally held to be necessary in the 
case of the South African Colonies when they formed a Union 
in 1910. In that case the Colonies all owed their position 
to letters patent, and it could not be maintained that the 
need for an Imperial Act was due to existing Imperial 
legislation. It was clear that the need was simply based 
on the essential position that a Colony cannot alter its 
Colonial status by becoming part of a federation, and that 
uo concert of neighbouring Colonies can produce this effect. 
If a Colonial Legislature cannot extinguish itself it cannot 
abolish the Colonial Governor as the representative of the 
Crown controlling the executive authority of the Colony. It 
is indeed still regarded as important not to insert provisions 
in Colonial laws defining in any way the appointment of the 
Executive Government; thus in the case of the Natal Consti- 
tution the proposal of the select committee of the Legislative 
Council which drafted it to insert a clause providing for the 
appointment of the Governor by the Crown was omitted 
at the request of the Imperial Government, as it was not 
a convenient manner in which to legislate? and in 1906 the 
Parliament of South Australia3 would not proceed with 
a Bill introduced at the suggestion of the Chief Justice to 
regularize the position of the Deputy Governor because it 
was held to be a matter of prerogative and not a fit subject 
for legislation. The Chief Justice’s doubts were of course 
* The Government of South Africa, i. 452-4. 
Parl. Pap., C. 6487, pp. 42 {Clause 3 of Bill No. 2, 1890-1) and 72. 
! See House of Assembly Debates, 1906, p. 141; Legislative Council 
Debates, 1906, p. 191.