4th Quebec Legislature: Difference between revisions

Legislature of Quebec

Législature du Québec
Legislature of Quebec ; Législature du Québec
Fourth Legislature, 1878 - 1881
Type
Type	Bicameral
Houses	Legislative Council; Legislative Assembly
Term limits	Four years, subject to earlier dissolution.
History
Founded	July 1, 1867
Preceded by	Third Legislature of Quebec, 1875-1878
Succeeded by	Fifth Legislature of Quebec, 1881-1886
Leadership
Monarch	Victoria
Lieutenant Governor	Luc Letellier de St-Just (1876-1879) ; Théodore Robitaille (1879-1884)
Premier	Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière (Liberal) (1878-1879) ; Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau (Conservative) (1879-1882)
Speaker of the Legislative Council	Henry Starnes (Liberal) (1878-1879) ; John Jones Ross (Conservative) (1879-1882)
Speaker of the Legislative Assembly	Arthur Turcotte (Independent Conservative) (1878-1882)
Leader of the Opposition	Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau (Conservative) (1878-1879) ; Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière (1879-1882) Liberal;
Structure
Seats	Legislative Council: 24 ; Legislative Assembly: 65
Legislative Council political groups	Conservatives 21; Liberals 2; Vacant 1
Legislative Assembly political groups	Conservatives 32; Liberals 31; Independent Conservatives 2
Elections
Legislative Council voting system	Life appointments
Legislative Assembly voting system	Single member constituencies; First-past-the-post voting; Secret ballot; Adult male franchise with property qualification
Constitution
	British North America Act, 1867

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The Fourth Legislature of Quebec was the provincial legislature of Quebec, Canada that existed from 1878 to 1881, following the general election of 1878.

The 1878 election was called by Premier Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière, leader of the Quebec Liberal Party, after he had been installed in office by the Lieutenant Governor Luc Letellier de St-Just. The Lieutenant Governor had dismissed the former Conservative Premier, Charles Boucher de Boucherville, over a dispute about railway legislation proposed by the Boucher de Boucherville government.

Since the Liberals did not have a majority in the Legislative Assembly, Joly de Lotbinière called an election immediately. The election resulted in a hung parliament, with neither party having a majority in the Legislative Assembly. Joly de Lotbinière was able to stay in office for one year with a minority government, supported by two Independent Conservatives, but lost a confidence vote in 1879. The Quebec Conservative Party led by Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau then formed a minority government for the remainder of the term of the Legislature.

The Legislature held four annual sessions, with the first session called on June 4, 1878. The Legislature was dissolved on November 7, 1881, leading to the 1881 general election on December 2, 1881.

Structure of the Legislature

The Legislature of Quebec was created by the British North America Act, 1867. It consisted of the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council.^[1] The Lieutenant Governor was appointed by the Governor General of Canada for a term of five years.^[2] The Legislative Assembly consisted of sixty-five members, elected in single-member constituencies by first-past-the-post elections.^[3] The Legislative Assembly was to last for four years, subject to being dissolved earlier by the Lieutenant Governor.^[4] The Legislative Council consisted of twenty-four members, appointed for life by the Government of Quebec.^[5]

Elections and qualifications

Right to vote

The right to vote in elections to the Legislative Assembly was not universal. Only male British subjects (by birth or naturalisation), aged 21 or older, were eligible to vote, and only if they met a property qualification. For residents of larger cities, the qualification was being the owner or occupant of real property assessed at three hundred dollars or more, or for tenants, an annual rent of thirty dollars or more. For any other municipality, the qualification was being an owner or occupant of real property assessed at two hundred dollars or more, or twenty dollars in annual value. For tenants in smaller centers, the qualification was paying an annual rent of twenty dollars or more.^[6]

Women were completely barred from voting.^[6]

Judges and many municipal and provincial officials were also barred from voting, particularly officials with law enforcement duties, or duties relating to public revenue.^[7] The Returning Officer in each riding was also barred from voting, except when needed to give a casting vote in the event of a tie vote.^[8]

Qualification for the Legislative Assembly

Candidates for election to the Legislative Assembly had to meet stricter qualifications than voters. In addition to being male, twenty-one or older, and a subject of Her Majesty (by birth or naturalisation), a candidate had to be free from all legal incapacity, and be the proprietor in possession of lands or tenements worth at least $2,000, over and above all encumbrances and charges on the property.^[9]

Women were completely barred from membership in the Assembly.^[9]

Qualification for the Legislative Council

The qualifications for the members of the Legislative Council were the same as for the members of the Senate of Canada.^[10] Those requirements were:

Be of the full age of thirty years;
Be a British subject, either natural-born or naturalised;
Possess real property in Quebec worth at least $4,000, over and above any debts or incumbrances on the property;
Have a net worth of at least $4,000, over and above debts and liabilities;
Reside in Quebec;
Reside in, or possess his qualifying real property, in the division he was named to represent.^[11]

The provisions of the British North America Act, 1867 did not explicitly bar women from being called to the Senate of Canada. However, until the Persons Case, it was assumed that women could not be called to the Senate, and were thus also barred from the Legislative Council. In any event, no woman was ever appointed to the Legislative Council.^[12]

Legislative Assembly

Party standings

The 1878 election returned a hung parliament. Neither party had a majority in the Legislative Assembly. The Conservatives had one seat more than the Liberals, but there were also two independent Conservatives. With their support, Joly de Lotbinière was able to stay in office.

Template:Canadian politics/party colours/Conservative (historical)/row Template:Canadian politics/party colours/Conservative (historical)/row

Affiliation		Members
Conservative Party	32
	Liberal Party	31
Conservative Independent	2
Total		65
Government Majority		1

Members of the Legislative Assembly

The following candidates were elected to the Legislative Assembly in the 1878 election.^[13] The Premiers of Quebec are indicated by Bold italics. The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly is indicated by small caps. Cabinet Ministers are indicated by Italics.

	Name	Party	Riding
	Robert Greenshields Meikle	Liberal	Argenteuil
	Narcisse Blais	Liberal	Bagot
	Joseph Poirier	Liberal	Beauce
Célestin Bergevin	Conservative	Beauharnois
	Pierre Boutin	Liberal	Bellechasse
Joseph Robillard	Conservative	Berthier
Joseph-Israël Tarte	Conservative	Bonaventure
William Warren Lynch	Conservative	Brome
Michel-Dosithée-Stanislas Martel	Conservative	Chambly
Dominique-Napoléon Saint-Cyr	Conservative	Champlain
Onésime Gauthier	Conservative	Charlevoix
	Édouard Laberge	Liberal	Châteauguay
	William Evan Price	Independent Conservative	Chicoutimi et Saguenay
Willian Sawyer	Conservative	Compton
Charles Champagne	Conservative	Deux-Montagnes
Nicodème Audet	Conservative	Dorchester
	William John Watts	Liberal	Drummond et Arthabaska
	Edmund James Flynn	Liberal	Gaspé
Louis Beaubien	Conservative	Hochelaga
	Alexander Cameron	Liberal	Huntingdon
	Louis Molleur	Liberal	Iberville
	Jean-Baptiste Couillard Dupuis	Liberal	Islet
Narcisse Lecavalier	Conservative	Jacques Cartier
Vincent-Paul Lavallée	Conservative	Joliette
	Charles-Antoine-Ernest Gagnon	Liberal	Kamouraska
Léon-Benoît-Alfred Charlebois	Conservative	Laprairie
Onuphe Peltier	Conservative	L'Assomption
Louis-Onésime Loranger	Conservative	Laval
Étienne-Théodore Pâquet	Conservative	Lévis
	Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière	Liberal	Lotbinière
Édouard Caron	Conservative	Maskinongé
	George Irvine	Liberal	Mégantic
	Ernest Racicot	Liberal	Missisquoi
Octave Magnan	Conservative	Montcalm
	Louis-Napoléon Fortin	Liberal	Montmagny
	Charles Langelier	Liberal	Montmorency
	Horatio Admiral Nelson	Liberal	Montréal Centre
Louis-Olivier Taillon	Conservative	Montréal Est
	James McShane	Liberal	Montreal Ouest
	Laurent-David Lafontaine	Liberal	Napierville
Charles-Édouard Houde	Conservative	Nicolet
Louis Duhamel	Conservative	Ottawa
Levi Ruggles Church	Conservative	Pontiac
	François Langelier	Liberal	Portneuf
	David Alexander Ross	Liberal	Québec-Comté
	Rémi-Ferdinand Rinfret dit Malouin	Liberal	Québec-Centre
	Joseph Shehyn	Liberal	Québec-Est
	Arthur H. Murphy	Liberal	Québec-Ouest
Michel Mathieu	Conservative	Richelieu
Jacques Picard	Conservative	Richmond et Wolfe
	Alexandre Chauveau	Liberal	Rimouski
Solime Bertrand	Conservative	Rouville
	Pierre Bachand	Liberal	St. Hyacinthe
	Félix-Gabriel Marchand	Liberal	St. Jean
François-Sévère Desaulniers	Conservative	St. Maurice
	Joseph Lafontaine	Liberal	Shefford
Joseph Gibb Robertson	Conservative	Sherbrooke
William Duckett	Conservative	Soulanges
	Henry Lovell	Liberal	Stanstead
Georges-Honoré Deschênes	Conservative	Témiscouata
Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau	Conservative	Terrebonne
	Henri-René-Arthur Turcotte	Independent Conservative	Trois-Rivières
Émery Lalonde, Sr.	Conservative	Vaudreuil
	Jean-Baptiste Brousseau	Liberal	Verchères
Jonathan Saxton Campbell Würtele	Conservative	Yamaska

By-elections

Other MLAs were elected in by-elections during the term

Honoré Mercier, Quebec Liberal Party, St. Hyacinthe, June 3, 1879 [1]
Flavien-Guillaume Bouthillier, Quebec Liberal Party, Rouville, June 18, 1879 [2]
Raymond Préfontaine, Quebec Liberal Party, Chambly, June 26, 1879 [3]
Achille Larose, Quebec Liberal Party, Verchères, July 17, 1879 [4]
Joseph Parent, Quebec Liberal Party, Rimouski, March 3, 1880 [5]
Joseph-Élisée Beaudet, Quebec Conservative Party, Chicoutimi et Saguenay, March 27, 1880 [6]
Joseph Marion, Quebec Conservative Party, L'Assomption, June 4, 1880 [7]

Executive Council during Fourth Legislature

Joly de Lotbinière Cabinet (1878-1879)

Prime Minister and Executive Council President: Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière
Agriculture and public works: Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière
Crown Lands: François Langelier (1878-1879), Félix-Gabriel Marchand (1879)
Attorney General: David Alexander Ross
Secretary and Registry: Félix-Gabriel Marchand (1878-1879), Alexandre Chauveau (1879)
Treasurer: Pierre Bachand (1878-1879), François Langelier (1879)
Solicitor General: Alexandre Chauveau (1878-1879), Honoré Mercier (1879)
Legislative Council President: Henry Starnes

Chapleau Cabinet (1879-1881)

Prime Minister and Executive Council President: Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau
Agriculture and public works: Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau (1879-1881), John Jones Ross (1881)
Crown Lands: Edmund James Flynn
Railroad: Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau (1871), John Jones Ross (1871)
Attorney General: Louis-Onesime Loranger
Secretary and Registry: Etienne-Théodore Pâquet
Treasurer: Joseph Gibb Robertson
Solicitor General: William Warren Lynch
Legislative Council President: John Jones Ross

References

^ British North America Act, 1867 [now known as the Constitution Act, 1867], s. 71.
^ British North America Act, 1867, s. 58.
^ British North America Act, 1867, s. 80.
^ British North America Act, 1867, s. 85.
^ British North America Act, 1867, s. 72.
^ ^a ^b The Quebec Election Act, RSQ 1875, c. 7, s. 8.
^ The Quebec Election Act, s. 11.
^ The Quebec Election Act, s. 205.
^ ^a ^b The Quebec Election Act, s. 124.
^ British North America Act, 1867, s. 73.
^ British North America Act, 1867, s. 23.
^ Quebec National Assembly: Les membres du Conseil législatif (par divisions).
^ Quebec National Assembly: Les résultats électoraux depuis 1867.

External links

List of Historical Cabinet Ministers

[1] British North America Act, 1867 [now known as the Constitution Act, 1867], s. 71.

[2] British North America Act, 1867, s. 58.

[3] British North America Act, 1867, s. 80.

[4] British North America Act, 1867, s. 85.

[5] British North America Act, 1867, s. 72.

[QEA-8-6] The Quebec Election Act, RSQ 1875, c. 7, s. 8.

[7] The Quebec Election Act, s. 11.

[8] The Quebec Election Act, s. 205.

[QEA-124-9] The Quebec Election Act, s. 124.

[10] British North America Act, 1867, s. 73.

[11] British North America Act, 1867, s. 23.

[12] Quebec National Assembly: Les membres du Conseil législatif (par divisions).

[13] Quebec National Assembly: Les résultats électoraux depuis 1867.

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[4]

[5]

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@@ Line 72: / Line 72: @@
 === Qualification for the Legislative Council ===
-The qualifications for the members of the Legislative Council were the same as for the members of the Senate of Canada.<ref>[https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/section-73.html#h-12 ''British North America Act, 1867'', s. 73.]</ref>
+The qualifications for the members of the Legislative Council were the same as for the members of the Senate of Canada.<ref>[https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/section-73.html#h-12 ''British North America Act, 1867'', s. 73.]</ref> Those requirements were:
-Those requirements were:
 # Be of the full age of thirty years;<br>
 # Be a British subject, either natural-born or naturalised;<br>