ABSTRACT
It was hardly possible for an English statesman in 1841, whether or not particularly interested in colonial affairs, to ignore the importance of what was happening in the North American colonies, and particularly in Canada. For such a view there was something to be said in the abstract. Considering the history of the old New England Colonies, the recent rebellion, the crudities of Canadian politics, the general dislike and fear of democracy, it was not surprising that the Ministry should have little faith in colonial self-government. As for responsible government, the several parties vied with one another in putting on it their own extreme construction and in claiming supremacy for the Legislative Assembly. Political systems must be based on facts, and the facts were that in these colonies the representative Assemblies were the strongest political force in the community, and that Assemblies always aspire to power. Party government was certain to come sooner or later.
