FEDERAL SYSTEMS OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE BRITISH EMPIRE THEIR ORIGIN, NATURE, AND DEVELOPMENT BY ARTHUR P. POLEY, B.A. OF THE INNER TEMPLE AND MIDLAND CIRCUIT, BARRISTER-AT-LAW, PREFACE In this book an attempt has been made to give an account of the four great systems of Government of the United States, Canada, Australia, and South Africa, and to explain their nature, origin, and development. In covering such a wide field it has only been possible without defeating the object the Author has had in view-the presentation of a lucid statement in a reasonable compass of space—to deal but briefly with many matters which deserve ampler treatment. If fuller knowledge is desired the reader is referred to the histories and excellent treatises which have been written by distinguished writers on the several Constitutions. It is believed that no attempt has hitherto been made to bring the four Constitutions together for the purposes of comparison, and in this respect the present work may perhaps claim to break new ground and to be of general Imperial interest. The scheme adopted has been to trace the origin and development of Colonial Government from the establishment of the American plantations down to the present time. The formation of the United States and the creation of the three Imperial systems have marked stages in the History of the Empire. To explain the Constitution of the United States without referring to the reasons that actuated its framers in its construction would be as unprofitable as it would be to describe it without relation to its indebtedness to the Constitution of Great Britain. In the same way each Constitution in turn, as it throws light on its predecessor, lends itself to the object of comparison and to a proper understanding of the value of federal systems. In the last chapter of the work a suggestion is made for a closer union of the Empire. If this chapter be read in conjunction with the first chapter its historical meaning will be better appreciated. V |