978 THE FEDERATIONS AND THE UNION [PART 1v
members of the Provincial Councils, the powers of the
Councils and the distribution of the surplus revenue between
the provinces, provided that any such Bill required reserva-
tion for the royal assent.
It was provided that after all the revenue appropriated
by Parliament or charged by the Imperial Act itself had
been provided for, the surplus should be divided among the
several provinces in the same proportions as the gross pro-
ceeds of the said revenue should have arisen therein respec-
tively. The Provincial Councils had also been empowered
to raise revenue within the provinces subject to the excep-
tions mentioned above.
It should, however, be noted that a certain degree of
stability has been given to the Provincial Councils in South
Africa by the requirement made at the Bloemfontein Con-
ference for the reservation of Bills of the Union Parliament
abolishing them or affecting their powers (s. 64). It is true
that this requirement is not a very important one, for it
merely introduces a certain amount of delay, and possibly
a certain caution, in the Union Parliament, lest any step be
taken which could prevent the assent of his Majesty being
altimately given to the proposed Bill. But in view of the
relatively unimportant position of the provinces under the
Constitution it is hard to believe that any very substantial
doubt could ever exist as to the acceptance of a Bill relative
to the provinces by the Imperial Government. The Union
Parliament under any normal circumstances must be deemed
the best judge of what legislative authority should be exer-
cised by the provinces. It is quite possible that in fact it
may allow the provinces great powers; it is more probable
that it will exercise the greater part of the legislative func-
tions of the country itself.
§ 5. THE JUDICIARY !
The Colonial Conference of 1907 discussed among other
things a recommendation on this head by the Prime Minister
for the Transvaal, which was in favour of the establishment
‘ ss. 95-116. Cf. Parl. Pap., Cd. 3523, pp. 207 seq. ; Cd. 5745, p. 230.
