950 THE FEDERATIONS AND THE UNION [PART Iv
of public affairs should accept an arrangement which sanctions
the abolition of their separate existence! No question
of their legal competence of course arose, if for no other
reason because the Act to be passed was not to be passed by
them at all, but by the Imperial Parliament, which is entitled
to do what it thinks fit in the matter. The real justification
for being ready to do without a referendum was no doubt
the fact that there was no substantial dissatisfaction, at any
rate in three of the Colonies, while the referendum in the
fourth as a matter of fact did not alter the state of affairs as
far as regards it, and the Parliament was clearly shown to
be in sympathy with the popular feeling on the question.
The preamble ignores the referendum in Natal, mainly no
doubt in the interests of simplicity.
§ 2. THE EXECUTIVE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNION
The provisions of the Constitution as to the Executive
Government 2 of the Union are very closely modelled on
those of the Australian Constitution. The Executive
Government is declared by s. 8 to be vested in the King,
and is to be exercised by the Sovereign in person or by
a Governor-General as his representative. The provision
for the personal exercise of the power is new : it does not
occur in the Australian or Canadian Constitutions, though
it is not excluded by either, but a curious problem arises
as to the exact position of His Majesty if he did as a
matter of fact visit either Canada or Australia. Tt is clear
from the Constitutions of either country that the Governor-General
would continue to exercise all his functions, and
the somewhat curious position would arise that the Sovereign
had no exact constitutional position in one of his own
dominions. For example, any Bill passed by the Parliament
! Colonial Parliaments are of course not in any way bound by law to
consult the constituencies on important measures: for example, in 1907
the Commonwealth Parliament increased members’ salaries in the face
of a good deal of adverse feeling in the country, and in 1910 Tasmania
and in 1911 Western Australia followed suit, while South Australia preferred
a referendum (Act No. 1025. 1910). Cf. p. 923, n. 1.
* sg. 8-17.
