This book presents an in-depth research into 125 years of the history of the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association in City of Victoria as a case study of Chinese community leadership and operation of a Chinese government within a municipal government in Canada. It does not examine only one association in one city. Instead, it provides an overview of the socio-economic and political activities of the Chinese in Canada before the turn of the twentieth century, their relationship with Western communities, and the Association's inter-relationship with China and other parts of the world. The book also includes a history of the origins of 17 Chinese Benevolent Associations in other Chinese communities across Canada.