I have already referred to the im. portance of the coming conference between the Federal" Government and the premiers of the nine pro. vinces. 'The main debate will pro bably centre around two broad issues: first, the relative spheres of jurisdic. tion' of the Dominion and the provinces and, second, the question of whether the provinces shall have any right of Veto in the proposed. constitutional amendments to the British North America Act.
That the whole matter of how the! constitution of this country may be changed is in a chaotic state is re. vealed by a glance through the history of former attempts to make alterations. "Tt is evident " that, at the time of Confederation in i867, the statesmen who gathered in coun. cil felt that their work might require some amendment; however,. they' made no clear provision for this, and was left to their successors to termine the best method, Sir John A. Macdonald established a precedent, in 1871, when his government asked the British Government to ratify a resolution regarding change, without consulting the provinces in the ma ter. Since that time the procedure followed has been that of 'a. resolu tion which read, "That. this house fg of the opinion that no changes in. the provisions of the British North, America Act should be sought for fby the executive government with. out, the previous assent of the Parliament of this Dominion."
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.