out ov this home,
Misther Robert. There's not as much as a single spark ov sperit in the
whole counthry!'

So he marched off in high dudgeon. His master stayed a short while
behind, and saw a few sturdy yeomen arrive to exercise the franchise.
Their air of agricultural prosperity, and supreme political apathy,
contrasted curiously with young Wynn's memories of the noisy and ragged
partisans in home elections. It was evident that personal character won
the electoral suffrage here in the backwoods, and that party feeling had
scarce an influence on the voters.

The franchise is almost universal throughout Canada. In 1849 it was
lowered to thirty dollars (six pounds sterling) for freeholders,
proprietary, or tenantry in towns, and to twenty dollars (four pounds)
in rural districts. This is with reference to the hundred and thirty
representatives in the Lower House of the Provincial Legislature. The
members of the indissoluble Upper House, or Legislative Council, are
also returned at the rate of twelve every two years, by the forty-eight
electoral divisions of the Province.

But to come back to our family party under the butternut tree. Robert
related the above anecdote of Andy's disappointment; and from it old Mr.
Wynn and Davidson branched off to a variety of cognate topics.

'Noo, I'll confess,' said the Scotchman, 'that the municipal elections
hae an interest for me far aboon thae ithers. The council in my township
can tax me for roads, an' bridges, an' schules: that's what I call a
personal and practical concern. Sae I made nae manner of objection to
bein' one of the five councillors mysel'; and they talk of electin' you
too, Maister Robert.'

Robert shook his head at the honour.

'I hae a fancy mysel' for handlin' the purse strings wherever I can,'
added Davidson. 'Benson will be the neist town-reeve, as he has time to
be gaun' to the county council, which I couldna do. But noo, will ye
tak' a turn round the farm?'

Plucking a sprig from an ash-leaved sugar maple close by, according to
a habit he had of twisting something in his lips during intervals of
talk, Mr. Davidson walked down the slope with Robert. While they are
discussing crops, with the keen interest which belongs not to amateurs,
we may enlighten the reader somewhat concerning the municipal system of
self-government in which the shrewd Mr. Davidson professed his interest.
Nowhere is it so perfect as in Canada. Each district has thorough
control ove