加拿大的代表们乘坐一艘游船沿劳伦斯河航行到劳伦斯湾，抵达爱德华太子岛的夏洛特敦。在那里，大会广泛讨论了联合所有英属殖民地建立一个国家的可能性。
After much complicated debate at another convention in Quebec City that same year, the delegate submitted a draft of an agreement for the formation of the dominion of Canada. The bulk of the work had been done by a group of men of seemingly high virtue, who became know in history as “the Fathers of Confederation”. United Canada was divided into the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Some allowances were given to Quebec because it was a predominantly French-speaking Catholic province and had special needs, unlike other provinces. The colony of Nova Scotia was divided into Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. These four provinces formed the original new nation. A flexible approach, in later years, persuaded other colonies to join.
同年，在魁北克城的另一次会议上，经过错综复杂的讨论后，代表们提交了一份建立加拿大国家的协议草案。大部分工作是由一些那时德高望重的人完成的，他们成为历史上有名的“联邦国父”。联合加拿大被划分为安大略省和魁北克省。一些特权给了魁北克，因为它与其他省不同，是一个以说法语为主的天主教省，有其特殊需要。新斯科舍和新布伦斯威克。这四个省形成了新国家的雏形。在以后的岁月里，他们以灵活的方式说服了其他殖民地加入了这个国家。
A federal system, with powers distributed between the central and provincial governments, was created. The provinces were assigned powers to have their own governments to deal with more local or provincial issues, the federal system would promote harmony among provinces, with different perspectives on nationhood. This was a compromise, so that the bigger provinces of Ontario and Quebec wouldn’t completely dominate the smaller provinces. The country was to be called the Dominion of Canada, but would still remain loyal to Britain as a member of the British Empire.
一种在中央和省政府之间分享权力的联邦体制创建起来了。各省被赋予权力，拥有自己的政府以处理更多的地方事务。这种联邦体制可望促进各省之间彼此协调，尽管它们站在本民族立场上有不同的观点。这是一种折衷的办法，致使较大的安大略省和魁北克省不能完全支配较小的省。这个国家被称为加拿大自治领，但仍然是大英帝国的一个成员，效忠英国。
The new legislation that created Canada was a British act of Parliament called “The British North America Acts of 1867”. Canada officially became a nation on July 1st, 1867. This would be the anniversary occasion each year, for joyous celebration of a national holiday commemoration the birth of Canada.
使加拿大成为一个国家的新法案是一项叫做“1867年英属北美法案”的英国国会法案。1867年7月1日，加拿大正式成为一个国家。每年的7月1日为周年纪念日，在这个法定假日里举行庆典活动，纪念加拿大的诞生。
The development of the country, as we know it today, was an evolutionary process over more than eight decades. Manitoba became a province after some controversial events involving the federal government and the Métis, French-speaking descendants of French fur traders who married American Indian girls. This ethnic group settled near Fort Gary, the city of Winnipeg, Manitoba what is called today.
正如我们今天所知道的那样，这个国家在80多年里不断发展演进。在几次涉及联邦政府和梅蒂斯人的有争议的事件之后，马尼托巴成为加拿大的一个省。梅蒂斯人是美洲印第安女孩与法国毛皮贸易商的后裔，讲法语。这个族群定居在加里要塞附近的温尼伯城，即今马尼托巴。
John A. Macdonald, the new and first Prime Minister of the new nation, made a deal with the western-most colony in Vancouver guaranteeing on the building of a railroad from the east to the west if that colony would join Canadian Confederation. The property of the Métis, to which the letter felt legally entitled, was in the path of the new railway. The federal government essentially took the land. The Métis were compelled to move further west, but not without a fight. (The Métis and the federal government were on an inevitable collision course. Twice, Métis revolts rested the might of the federal government and relationship between French-and English-speaking in Canada). The federal government was able to defeat the Métis in both clashes. Louis Riel, the leader of the Métis was hanged for treason in 1885 for his leading role in resisting the federal government. He became a martyr to French-Canadians. His death only added fuel to the growing discontent between French and English Canada.
约翰?A?麦克唐纳，这个新兴国家的第一任总理，与温哥华的最西边的殖民地达成协议，保证说如果该殖民地加入加拿大联邦，他将建一条从西到东的铁路。梅蒂斯人的地产——他们认为是合法拥有的——正好在这条新铁路线上。联邦政府完全剥夺了他们的土地。梅蒂斯人被迫向西，但并非没有抵抗。(梅蒂斯人不可避免地要与联邦政府进行抗争。他们的对联邦政府的两次反叛考验了联邦政府的权威和说法语与说英语的加拿大之间的关系。)在两次冲突中，联邦政府都成功以失败了梅蒂斯人。1885年，梅蒂斯人的领袖路易斯?瑞尔，因带头试图反抗联邦政府以叛国的罪名被绞死。他成为说法语的加拿大人的死难者。他的遇难对说法语和说英语的加拿大之间日益激化的纠纷无疑是火上浇油。
Throughout this whole period, 1869 to 1885, the federal (or central) government ignored the appeals of the Métis. It appeared that, according to Macdonald and his followers, the creation of the new nation was more important than relieving the plight of a relatively small minority group. The Métis probably deserved much better of the federal government. Different versions of these events are still debated in Canadian classrooms today.
在整个1869年至1885年期间，联邦政府都没有理睬梅蒂斯人的诉求。很显然，在麦克唐纳和他的继任者们看来，建立一个新国家比解除一个相对弱小的少数民族的困境更重要。也许，梅蒂斯人可以享受到联邦政府更好的待遇。今天，在加拿大的教室里，对这些事件的不同看法不在争论不休。
Macdonald was also criticized for concealing the fact that he took some money illegally to complete the railway. In 1873 as “The Pacific Scandal” became known, the construction of the railway suspended temporarily. The determined Macdonald and his government, obsessed by the possibility of the Americans moving in and taking over the west, boldly pushed railway construction to completion.
麦克唐纳还被指责隐瞒事实，非法挪用资金完成铁路建设。那次有名的1873年的“太平洋丑闻”曾使铁路建设一度停了下来。后来麦克唐纳和他的政府，由于担心美国人入侵并接管西部，坚定果断地推动完成铁路建设。
Manitoba became a province in 1870, British Columbia in 1871, Prince Edward Island in 1873, Alberta and Saskatchewan in 1905. The admission of Newfoundland into Confederation in 1948 completed the Canadian Confederation of ten provinces from sea to sea, as they exist today. The railway, the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) was completed before the agreed deadline.
1870年马尼托巴成为一个省，1871年英属哥伦比亚加入，1873年爱德华太子岛加入，1905年艾伯塔和萨斯喀彻温加入。1949年，纽芬兰岛获准加入联邦，使拥有10个省的东岸到西岸的加拿大联邦完整起来，也就是今天的加拿大。那条铁路，即加拿大太平洋铁路在预定完工日期之前也已建成。
Canada’s becoming a nation was not an easy road. Canada’s remaining a nation has perhaps been an even harder road. There were many challenges facing it over the first one hundred or more years. The most serious challenge has been, and still is, staying together as a country. Relations between French-speaking and English-speaking Canada have been difficult to improve. This persistent theme in Canadian history began with the defeat of New France by Britain during the Seven Years War from 1756to 1763 (or the French-Indian War, as it was known in North America). In the last twenty years, referenda held in Quebec for possible separation from Canada, were narrowly defeated. This challenge still lies ahead.
加拿大的立国之路崎岖不平，继续保持下去更是充满艰辛。在开始的100多年里，她面临许多挑战一直是并且现在仍然是保持国家的统一。说法语与说英语的加拿大之间的关系是最难处理的。这个加拿大历史上的房屋主题，始于1756年至1763年的七年战争(或者在北美，通常叫做法印战争)期间英国打败新法兰西的时候。近20年里，魁北克举行的旨在使该省脱离加拿大的公民投票，在那里勉强被失败。这个挑战在今后的日子里还会依然存在。
So far, the country has remained strong, and has traditionally played a significant role in international affairs. Canada has much promise for the 21st century. It will need to find creative diplomatic strategies to keep the internal rumblings beneath the surface from exploding into self-destruction. It will need to find a way to fulfill the dreams of “the Fathers of Confederation” of so many years ago. A good guess is that the odds are in favor of Canada achieving those dreams and truly becoming the nation that was originally intended.
迄今为止，这个国家还是强大的，并一直在国际事务中扮演着重要角色。加拿大对21世纪寄以厚望。好需要具有创造性的外交策略，避免隐藏在外表下的内部摩擦导致自我毁灭。她需要找到一条道路，实现多年以前“联邦国父”的梦想。一个美好的期待是，机遇关照加拿大去实现这些梦想，真正成为最初所设想的那样一个国家。
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