"Men, women, and children all went to work, clearing land. There were none to make improvements in Canada then but the U.E. Loyalists, and they,with their hoes, planted the germ of its future greatness. About this time, my father with his brother returned from the army; they helped their father two years, and then took up land for themselves near Fort Erie.
"My father married the daughter of a Loyalist from Hudson, North River (Mr. Frederick Lampman); he was too old to servein the war, but his four sons and two sons in-law did. They were greatly harassed, but they hid in the cellars and bushes for three months, the rebels hunting them night and day. At length an opportunity offered, and they made their escape to Long Island, where they joined the British army. One of his sons, Wilhelmus Lampman, returning home to see his family, was caught by the rebels within a short distance of his father's house, andhanged, because, as they said, he was a Tory.
"At the restoration of peace, the whole family came to Canada. They brought their horses and cattle with them, which helped to supply the new country. They settled in the township of Stamford, where their descendants are yet.
"My father settled on his land near the fort; he drew an axe and a hoe from Government. He bought a yoke of yearling steers; this was the amount of his farming utensils. Mother had a cow, bed, six plates, three knives, and a few other articles. It was the scarce year, on account of the rush of Loyalists from the States, who had heard that Canada was a good country, where they could live under their own loved institutions, and enjoy the protection of England.
"The amount of grain that the U.E. Loyalists had raised was hardly sufficient for themselves; still they divided with the new comers, as all were alike destitute. After planting corn and potatoes, they had nothing left. My father cleared two acres, on which he planted corn, potatoes, oats, and flax; his calves were not able to work, and he had to carry all the rails on his shoulders until the skin was worn off them both. This was the way he made his first fence. In the beginning of May [1789], their provisions failed; none to be had: Government promised assistance, still none came. All eyes turned toward their harvest, which was more than three months away; their only resource was the leaves of trees. Some hunted ground nuts; many lived on herbs; those that were near the river, on fish. My father used to work until near sun-down, then walk three miles to the river, get light wood, fish all night, in the morning divide the fish, carry his share home on his back, which they ate without bread or salt. This he did twice a week, until the middle of June, when the moss became so thick in the river that they could not see a fish; still they worked on, and hoped on every day. My father chopped thelogs and they had milk for their breakfast, then went to work until noon; took their dinner on milk; to work again till night, and supped on milk. I have frequently heard my mother say she never was discouraged or discontented; thankful they were that they could eat their morsel in peace.
"Their only crime was loyalty to the Government which they had sworn fealty to. The God of Heaven saw all this, and the sword of vengeance is now, in 1861, drawn over the American people (now they know how to appreciate loyalty), and will perhaps never be sheathed again until they make some restitution for the unheard-of cruelties they inflicted upon those most brave and loyal people.
"At the close of the war they were liberated. Grandfather was sent to the hospital for nearly a year, but his leg never got entirely well. As soon as he was able to walk, he sent for his family (it had been eight years since he saw them): they had suffered everything but death. Coming in the boats from Quebec, they got out of provisions and were near starving. He never had his family all together again. He drew land near the Falls of Niagara, where he went to work in the woods, broken down with suffering, worn out with age; his property destroyed, his land confiscated, and his family scattered; without money or means, and worse than all, without provisions. Still, to work they went with willing hands and cheerful hearts, and often did he say he never felt inclined to murmur. He had done his duty to God and his country; his own and his family's sufferings he could not help. Theirs was not a solitary case; all the Loyalists suffered. The Government found seed to plant and sow the first year; they gave them axes and hoes, and promised them provisions. How far that promise was fulfilled, you well know; they got very little; they soon found that they had to provide for themselves.
"As soon as the wheat was large enough to rub out, they boiled it, which to them was a great treat. Providence favoured them with an early harvest; their sufferings were over, and not one had starved to death. They now had enough, and they were thankful. Heaven smiled, and in a few years they had an abundance for themselves and others.
"I have no memorandum to refer to. I have just related the tale I have often heard my parents tell, without any exaggeration, but with many omissions. I have not told you about my father's sufferings in the army, when, upon an expedition near Little Miamac, he and some others were left to carry the wounded. They got out of provisions: went three days without anything to eat, except one pigeon between nine. I will give you his own words. He says: 'The first day we came to where an Indian's old pack-horse had mired in the mud; it had lain there ten days in the heat of summer; the smell was dreadful; still some of our men cut out slices, roasted and ate it; I was not hungry enough. The next day I shot a pigeon, which made a dinner for nine; after that we found the skin of a deer, from the knee to the hoof. This we divided and ate. I would willingly, had I possessed it, have given my hat full of gold for a piece of bread as large as my hand. Often did I think of the milk and swill I had seen left in my father'shog-trough, and thought if I only had that I would be satisfied.'
"Such were some of the sufferings of my forefathers for supremacy. They have gone to their reward. Peace to their ashes!
"Yours, respectfully,
"Dr. E. Ryerson." "Elizabeth Bowman Spohn."
"P.S.—One thing more I must add: My father always said there never was any cruelty inflicted upon either man, woman or child by Butler's Rangers, that he ever heard of, during the war. They did everything in their power to get the Indians to bring their prisoners in for redemption, and urged them to treat them kindly; the officers always telling them that it was more brave to take a prisoner than to kill him, and that none but a coward would kill a prisoner; that brave soldiers were always kind to women and children. He said it was false that they gave a bounty for scalps. True, the Indians did commit cruelties, but they were not countenanced in the least by the whites. E.S."
"N.B.—To this last statement of Mrs. Spohn's it may be added that it is also true that the Indians were first employed by the Revolutionists against the Loyalists, before they were employed by the latter against the former. The attempt to enlist the Indians in the contest was first made by the Revolutionists. Of this the most conclusive evidence can be adduced.
"E.R."
FOOTNOTES:[139]This must be the grandfather of General W. Fenwick Williams, of Kars.[140]Dr. Canniff, in his excellent "History of the Settlement of Upper Canada," with special reference to Bay Quinté, has the following respecting Colonel Ryerson, who commanded a company and was called captain, though not yet gazetted:"One of Captain Joseph Ryerson's old comrades, Peter Redner, of the Bay Quinté, says: 'He was a man of daring intrepidity, and a great favourite in his company.' He represented Captain Ryerson as one of the most determined men he ever knew. With the service of his country uppermost in his mind, he often exposed himself to great danger to accomplish his desires." (p. 119.)
[139]This must be the grandfather of General W. Fenwick Williams, of Kars.
[139]This must be the grandfather of General W. Fenwick Williams, of Kars.
[140]Dr. Canniff, in his excellent "History of the Settlement of Upper Canada," with special reference to Bay Quinté, has the following respecting Colonel Ryerson, who commanded a company and was called captain, though not yet gazetted:"One of Captain Joseph Ryerson's old comrades, Peter Redner, of the Bay Quinté, says: 'He was a man of daring intrepidity, and a great favourite in his company.' He represented Captain Ryerson as one of the most determined men he ever knew. With the service of his country uppermost in his mind, he often exposed himself to great danger to accomplish his desires." (p. 119.)
[140]Dr. Canniff, in his excellent "History of the Settlement of Upper Canada," with special reference to Bay Quinté, has the following respecting Colonel Ryerson, who commanded a company and was called captain, though not yet gazetted:
"One of Captain Joseph Ryerson's old comrades, Peter Redner, of the Bay Quinté, says: 'He was a man of daring intrepidity, and a great favourite in his company.' He represented Captain Ryerson as one of the most determined men he ever knew. With the service of his country uppermost in his mind, he often exposed himself to great danger to accomplish his desires." (p. 119.)
Governments of the British Provinces—Nova Scotia.
To the painful narrativegiven of the banishment of the Loyalists, and confiscation of their property, at the close of the revolutionary war, and their settlement in the British provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Lower and Upper Canada, so fully detailed in the preceding pages, it is proper to add some account of the Provincial Governments.
Nova Scotiais the oldest of the present British American Provinces. This territory had the general appellation of New France, or Acadia, and comprehended, until 1784, New Brunswick and Cape Breton. It was originally regarded as a part of Cabot's discovery of Terra Nova, and as such claimed by the English Government, and was afterwards comprehended within the boundary of a large portion of America, called North Virginia. In the wars between France and England this country changed masters several times; but in 1710 Nova Scotia was again re-conquered by the forces of her Britannic Majesty Queen Anne, sent from New England, under the command of General Nicholson; and by the Treaty of Utrecht, in 1712, it was finally ceded and secured to Great Britain, and has ever since continued in her possession.[141]
"There were originally three sorts of government established by the English on the continent of America: Charter Governments, such as those of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut; Proprietary Governments, as Pennsylvania andMaryland; and Royal Government, as Nova Scotia. A Royal Government is immediately dependent upon the Crown, and the King appoints the Governor and officers of State, and the people only elect the representatives, as in England."[142]
"Peace was declared between France and England the 8th of November, 1762; and by the treaty which followed, all the French possessions in Canada, with Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, and the islands in the Gulf of the St. Lawrence, were ceded to Great Britain. In the year 1764, the Island of St. John, named Prince Edward Island in 1799, in honour of the Duke of Kent, was annexed to Nova Scotia.
"Of Acadia, and accordingly of Nova Scotia, during its early government by the English, the province now known as New Brunswick formed a part, and to the colony was added, in 1758, the Island of Cape Breton, then finally taken from the French. In the same year the military rule which had prevailed was exchanged for a regular Constitution, in which a Governor, representing the British Crown, presided over a Legislative Council and a House of Assembly modelled to some extent from the two estates of the English Parliament."[143]
The first Assembly of Nova Scotia met on the 7th of October, 1758, at Halifax, and elected Robert Sanderson as Speaker. A number of laws passed by the Governor and Council were passed with slight alterations; and the Assembly, on the question being put whether any money should be paid them for their services, unanimously resolved that the members should serve without any remuneration that session. (This was repealed by the members of the next elected Assembly.) The usual Speech from the Throne was made, and a complimentary address was moved in reply; and the Governor and his new Assembly got on better together than he had expected.[144]
"On October 19th, 1760, Governor Lawrence died from inflammation of the lungs, brought on by a cold taken at a ballat the Government House. He was deeply mourned by the colony, and his loss was severely felt. He was accorded a public funeral, and the Legislature caused a monument to be erected to his memory in St. Paul's Church, Halifax, as a mark of their sense of the many important services he had rendered the province. He was a wise and impartial administrator, and zealous and indefatigable in his endeavours for the public good; even his opposition to calling a General Assembly made him few enemies, and his strongest opponent in the matter, Chief Justice Belcher, who succeeded him in the administration, remained on good terms with him."[145]
In the same month that Governor Lawrence died, occurred the death of George the Second, in consequence of which the first House of Assembly of Nova Scotia was dissolved, and a new election, with some changes in the electoral districts, took place. The first meeting of the new Assembly was held the 1st of July, 1761, and the members of the House again agreed to give their services gratuitously. From the death of Governor Lawrence to the close of the American Revolution in 1783, there were ten governors and lieutenant-governors of Nova Scotia, under whose administration the colony was quiet and prosperous, though there was little increase in the population (until the influx of the U.E. Loyalists), and domestic manufactures were discouraged in the interests of English manufacturers.[146]
Down to the year 1783, at the close of the American revolutionary war, the population of Nova Scotia amounted to only a few thousand; but in the following year, by the forced exodusof the Loyalists from the United States, the population more than doubled. "Even before hostilities began, a number of loyal families emigrated from Boston, and settled on the River St. John, founding the town of Parrtown, now St John, N.B. They found the climate and soil both much better than they had expected; and the colony soon began to thrive apace. Settlements were made at Oromocto, where a fort was built, and one bold explorer penetrated as far as the present site of Fredericton, and cleared a farm there for himself. These emigrants numbered about 500, and the district they settled in was made the county of Sunbury. This, however, was only the advance guard of the immense army of emigrants which was to be attracted to the colony at the close of the war, and which was destined to play so important a part in the history of the Maritime Province. The exodus of the Loyalists from New England commenced immediately after the opening of negotiations for peace in November, 1782; for so bitter was the action of the different State Legislatures against them that Sir Guy Carleton (afterwards Lord Dorchester) could not await the action of Parliament, but took upon himself to commence their removal to Nova Scotia. On the 18th of May, 1783, the ships bearing the first instalment of Loyalist emigrants arrived at Navy Island, and during the summer they continued to arrive, until about 5,000 had settled between Parrtown (St. John) and St. Anne's. The peninsula now occupied by the city of St. John was then almost a wilderness, covered with shrubs, scrubby spruce, and marsh. Large numbers of emigrants also arrived at Annapolis, Port Roseway, and other points; and Governor Parr, in a letter to Lord North in September, 1783, estimates the whole number that had arrived in Nova Scotia and the island of St. John (Prince Edward's Island) at 13,000.
"These emigrants included all classes—disbanded soldiers, lawyers, clergymen, merchants, farmers, and mechanics; all in indigent circumstances, but willing to build up their own fortunes, and those of the land of their adoption, by honest labour and industry."[147]
FOOTNOTES:[141]General Description of Nova Scotia. Printed at the Royal Canadian School, 1825, p. 13.[142]General Description of Nova Scotia, p. 17.[143]Bourne's Our Colonies and Emigration, pp. 100, 101."The proclamation inviting emigrants to Nova Scotiaguaranteed them the same form of government and rights as the other colonies; but owing to alleged difficulties in the way of electing an Assembly, no Assembly was chosen, and laws were made and the affairs of the colony were administered by the Governor and Council, until Chief Justice Belcher raised the question in 1755, in a letter to the Lords of Trade, as to the constitutionality of several laws passed by the Governor and Council without the endorsement of a representative Assembly. The question was referred to the Attorney and Solicitor-General of England, who decided that the Governor and Council alone had not the right to make laws, and that any laws so made were unconstitutional. The Lords of Tradeadvisedthe Governor (Lawrence) to convene an Assembly without delay, but he objected to it as needless and impracticable; when the Lord of Trade replied sharply, that he knew their desires on the subject; and as he did not seem disposed to gratify them, they were obliged toorder him to do so; adding, that they knew that many had left the province and gone to other colonies on account of the discontent at the delay of calling an Assembly."In obedience to these instructions, Governor Lawrence brought the subject before his Council the 20th of May, 1758, and a resolution (prepared by Chief Justice Belcher the year before) was passed, to the effect "That a House of Representatives of the inhabitants of this province be a civil Legislature thereof, in conjunction with the Governor for the time being, and the Council; that the first House shall be known as the General Assembly, and shall consist of sixteen members, to be elected by the province at large—four by the township of Halifax, and two by the township of Lunenburg; and that as soon as any other township which might be erected had fifty electors (freeholders), it should be entitled to elect two representatives to the Assembly, as well as having the right of voting for representatives for the Province at large. Eleven members besides the Speaker were to form a quorum." (Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap, li., pp. 238, 239.)[144]Ib., p. 239."Lawrence was an active and able officer, and paid great attention to developing the resources of the province and promoting the welfare of the people. He opposed the Government scheme of making the colony a military settlement, and was permitted to invite a more desirable class of emigrants, farmers, mechanics, etc. A proclamation was issued, and inquiry soon followed as to the inducements offered to settlers. The terms were liberal. The townships were laid out at twelve miles square, or one hundred thousand acres each; and each settler was entitled to one hundred acres for himself, and fifty acres for every member of his family, on condition that he cultivated the land within thirty years; and each township was to have the right to send two members to the Legislature as soon as it contained fifty families. Agents from parties in Connecticut and Rhode Island visited Halifax in 1759, with a view to emigration, and selected Minas, Chignecto, and Cobequid, which had formerly been settled by the Acadians, as sites for townships. Emigration soon set in steadily towards the province; six vessels, with two hundred settlers, arrived from Boston; four schooners, with one hundred, came from Rhode Island; New London and Plymouth furnished two hundred and eighty; and three hundred came from Ireland, under the management of Alexander McNutt."—Ib.[145]Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap, li., p. 239.[146]Governor Francklin wrote to the Earl of Shelburne, in 1766, that "The country, in general, work up for their own use, into stockings and a stuff called home-spun, what little wool their few sheep produce; and they also make part of their coarse linen from the flax they produce."—"I cannot omit representing to your lordship on this occasion,that this Government has at no time given encouragement to manufactures which could interfere with those of Great Britain, nor has there been the least appearance of any association of private persons for that purpose."—"It may be also proper to observe to your lordship, that all the inhabitants in this colony are employed either in husbandry, fishing, or providing lumber; and that all the manufactures for their clothing, and the utensils for farming and fishing, are made in Great Britain." (Tuttle, Chap. lxvi, p. 325.)[147]Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap. lxvi., p. 327."The Loyalists who settled at the St. John River did not agree very well with the original settlers. They grew angry with the Governor because their grants of land had not been surveyed. He in turn charged them with refusing to assist in the surveys, by acting as chainmen, unless they were well paid for it. Then they demanded additional representation in the Assembly. Nova Scotia was then divided into eight counties, and there were thirty-six representatives in the Assembly, the districts where a number of Loyalists had settled being included in the county of Halifax. Governor Parr opposed an increase of representation, as his instructions forbade his increasing or diminishing the number of representatives in the Assembly."The Loyalists then began to agitate for a division of the province—a policy which was strongly opposed by the Governor, and which gave rise to much excitement and ill-feeling. Parr went so far as to remove some of the Loyalists to the other side of the Bay of Fundy, in the hope that that would settle the agitation; but it only increased it, and the Loyalists, who had many warm and influential friends at court, urged a division so earnestly that the Ministry yielded to their wishes, and the Province of New Brunswick was created (in 1784), so called out of compliment to the reigning family of England. The River Missiquash was constituted the boundary line between the two provinces, and the separation took place in the fall of 1784, and the first Governor of New Brunswick, Colonel Thomas Carleton (brother of Lord Dorchester), arrived at St. John on the 21st of November. In the same year Cape Breton was made a separate colony[148]; and as the Island of St. John (Prince Edward Island) had been separated from Nova Scotia in 1770, there were now four separate governments in what at present constitute the Maritime Provinces." (Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap. lxvi., pp. 328, 329.)[148]In 1829, Cape Breton was restored to Nova Scotia, of which it now forms a part.
[141]General Description of Nova Scotia. Printed at the Royal Canadian School, 1825, p. 13.
[141]General Description of Nova Scotia. Printed at the Royal Canadian School, 1825, p. 13.
[142]General Description of Nova Scotia, p. 17.
[142]General Description of Nova Scotia, p. 17.
[143]Bourne's Our Colonies and Emigration, pp. 100, 101."The proclamation inviting emigrants to Nova Scotiaguaranteed them the same form of government and rights as the other colonies; but owing to alleged difficulties in the way of electing an Assembly, no Assembly was chosen, and laws were made and the affairs of the colony were administered by the Governor and Council, until Chief Justice Belcher raised the question in 1755, in a letter to the Lords of Trade, as to the constitutionality of several laws passed by the Governor and Council without the endorsement of a representative Assembly. The question was referred to the Attorney and Solicitor-General of England, who decided that the Governor and Council alone had not the right to make laws, and that any laws so made were unconstitutional. The Lords of Tradeadvisedthe Governor (Lawrence) to convene an Assembly without delay, but he objected to it as needless and impracticable; when the Lord of Trade replied sharply, that he knew their desires on the subject; and as he did not seem disposed to gratify them, they were obliged toorder him to do so; adding, that they knew that many had left the province and gone to other colonies on account of the discontent at the delay of calling an Assembly."In obedience to these instructions, Governor Lawrence brought the subject before his Council the 20th of May, 1758, and a resolution (prepared by Chief Justice Belcher the year before) was passed, to the effect "That a House of Representatives of the inhabitants of this province be a civil Legislature thereof, in conjunction with the Governor for the time being, and the Council; that the first House shall be known as the General Assembly, and shall consist of sixteen members, to be elected by the province at large—four by the township of Halifax, and two by the township of Lunenburg; and that as soon as any other township which might be erected had fifty electors (freeholders), it should be entitled to elect two representatives to the Assembly, as well as having the right of voting for representatives for the Province at large. Eleven members besides the Speaker were to form a quorum." (Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap, li., pp. 238, 239.)
[143]Bourne's Our Colonies and Emigration, pp. 100, 101.
"The proclamation inviting emigrants to Nova Scotiaguaranteed them the same form of government and rights as the other colonies; but owing to alleged difficulties in the way of electing an Assembly, no Assembly was chosen, and laws were made and the affairs of the colony were administered by the Governor and Council, until Chief Justice Belcher raised the question in 1755, in a letter to the Lords of Trade, as to the constitutionality of several laws passed by the Governor and Council without the endorsement of a representative Assembly. The question was referred to the Attorney and Solicitor-General of England, who decided that the Governor and Council alone had not the right to make laws, and that any laws so made were unconstitutional. The Lords of Tradeadvisedthe Governor (Lawrence) to convene an Assembly without delay, but he objected to it as needless and impracticable; when the Lord of Trade replied sharply, that he knew their desires on the subject; and as he did not seem disposed to gratify them, they were obliged toorder him to do so; adding, that they knew that many had left the province and gone to other colonies on account of the discontent at the delay of calling an Assembly."
In obedience to these instructions, Governor Lawrence brought the subject before his Council the 20th of May, 1758, and a resolution (prepared by Chief Justice Belcher the year before) was passed, to the effect "That a House of Representatives of the inhabitants of this province be a civil Legislature thereof, in conjunction with the Governor for the time being, and the Council; that the first House shall be known as the General Assembly, and shall consist of sixteen members, to be elected by the province at large—four by the township of Halifax, and two by the township of Lunenburg; and that as soon as any other township which might be erected had fifty electors (freeholders), it should be entitled to elect two representatives to the Assembly, as well as having the right of voting for representatives for the Province at large. Eleven members besides the Speaker were to form a quorum." (Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap, li., pp. 238, 239.)
[144]Ib., p. 239."Lawrence was an active and able officer, and paid great attention to developing the resources of the province and promoting the welfare of the people. He opposed the Government scheme of making the colony a military settlement, and was permitted to invite a more desirable class of emigrants, farmers, mechanics, etc. A proclamation was issued, and inquiry soon followed as to the inducements offered to settlers. The terms were liberal. The townships were laid out at twelve miles square, or one hundred thousand acres each; and each settler was entitled to one hundred acres for himself, and fifty acres for every member of his family, on condition that he cultivated the land within thirty years; and each township was to have the right to send two members to the Legislature as soon as it contained fifty families. Agents from parties in Connecticut and Rhode Island visited Halifax in 1759, with a view to emigration, and selected Minas, Chignecto, and Cobequid, which had formerly been settled by the Acadians, as sites for townships. Emigration soon set in steadily towards the province; six vessels, with two hundred settlers, arrived from Boston; four schooners, with one hundred, came from Rhode Island; New London and Plymouth furnished two hundred and eighty; and three hundred came from Ireland, under the management of Alexander McNutt."—Ib.
[144]Ib., p. 239.
"Lawrence was an active and able officer, and paid great attention to developing the resources of the province and promoting the welfare of the people. He opposed the Government scheme of making the colony a military settlement, and was permitted to invite a more desirable class of emigrants, farmers, mechanics, etc. A proclamation was issued, and inquiry soon followed as to the inducements offered to settlers. The terms were liberal. The townships were laid out at twelve miles square, or one hundred thousand acres each; and each settler was entitled to one hundred acres for himself, and fifty acres for every member of his family, on condition that he cultivated the land within thirty years; and each township was to have the right to send two members to the Legislature as soon as it contained fifty families. Agents from parties in Connecticut and Rhode Island visited Halifax in 1759, with a view to emigration, and selected Minas, Chignecto, and Cobequid, which had formerly been settled by the Acadians, as sites for townships. Emigration soon set in steadily towards the province; six vessels, with two hundred settlers, arrived from Boston; four schooners, with one hundred, came from Rhode Island; New London and Plymouth furnished two hundred and eighty; and three hundred came from Ireland, under the management of Alexander McNutt."—Ib.
[145]Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap, li., p. 239.
[145]Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap, li., p. 239.
[146]Governor Francklin wrote to the Earl of Shelburne, in 1766, that "The country, in general, work up for their own use, into stockings and a stuff called home-spun, what little wool their few sheep produce; and they also make part of their coarse linen from the flax they produce."—"I cannot omit representing to your lordship on this occasion,that this Government has at no time given encouragement to manufactures which could interfere with those of Great Britain, nor has there been the least appearance of any association of private persons for that purpose."—"It may be also proper to observe to your lordship, that all the inhabitants in this colony are employed either in husbandry, fishing, or providing lumber; and that all the manufactures for their clothing, and the utensils for farming and fishing, are made in Great Britain." (Tuttle, Chap. lxvi, p. 325.)
[146]Governor Francklin wrote to the Earl of Shelburne, in 1766, that "The country, in general, work up for their own use, into stockings and a stuff called home-spun, what little wool their few sheep produce; and they also make part of their coarse linen from the flax they produce."—"I cannot omit representing to your lordship on this occasion,that this Government has at no time given encouragement to manufactures which could interfere with those of Great Britain, nor has there been the least appearance of any association of private persons for that purpose."—"It may be also proper to observe to your lordship, that all the inhabitants in this colony are employed either in husbandry, fishing, or providing lumber; and that all the manufactures for their clothing, and the utensils for farming and fishing, are made in Great Britain." (Tuttle, Chap. lxvi, p. 325.)
[147]Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap. lxvi., p. 327."The Loyalists who settled at the St. John River did not agree very well with the original settlers. They grew angry with the Governor because their grants of land had not been surveyed. He in turn charged them with refusing to assist in the surveys, by acting as chainmen, unless they were well paid for it. Then they demanded additional representation in the Assembly. Nova Scotia was then divided into eight counties, and there were thirty-six representatives in the Assembly, the districts where a number of Loyalists had settled being included in the county of Halifax. Governor Parr opposed an increase of representation, as his instructions forbade his increasing or diminishing the number of representatives in the Assembly."The Loyalists then began to agitate for a division of the province—a policy which was strongly opposed by the Governor, and which gave rise to much excitement and ill-feeling. Parr went so far as to remove some of the Loyalists to the other side of the Bay of Fundy, in the hope that that would settle the agitation; but it only increased it, and the Loyalists, who had many warm and influential friends at court, urged a division so earnestly that the Ministry yielded to their wishes, and the Province of New Brunswick was created (in 1784), so called out of compliment to the reigning family of England. The River Missiquash was constituted the boundary line between the two provinces, and the separation took place in the fall of 1784, and the first Governor of New Brunswick, Colonel Thomas Carleton (brother of Lord Dorchester), arrived at St. John on the 21st of November. In the same year Cape Breton was made a separate colony[148]; and as the Island of St. John (Prince Edward Island) had been separated from Nova Scotia in 1770, there were now four separate governments in what at present constitute the Maritime Provinces." (Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap. lxvi., pp. 328, 329.)
[147]Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap. lxvi., p. 327.
"The Loyalists who settled at the St. John River did not agree very well with the original settlers. They grew angry with the Governor because their grants of land had not been surveyed. He in turn charged them with refusing to assist in the surveys, by acting as chainmen, unless they were well paid for it. Then they demanded additional representation in the Assembly. Nova Scotia was then divided into eight counties, and there were thirty-six representatives in the Assembly, the districts where a number of Loyalists had settled being included in the county of Halifax. Governor Parr opposed an increase of representation, as his instructions forbade his increasing or diminishing the number of representatives in the Assembly.
"The Loyalists then began to agitate for a division of the province—a policy which was strongly opposed by the Governor, and which gave rise to much excitement and ill-feeling. Parr went so far as to remove some of the Loyalists to the other side of the Bay of Fundy, in the hope that that would settle the agitation; but it only increased it, and the Loyalists, who had many warm and influential friends at court, urged a division so earnestly that the Ministry yielded to their wishes, and the Province of New Brunswick was created (in 1784), so called out of compliment to the reigning family of England. The River Missiquash was constituted the boundary line between the two provinces, and the separation took place in the fall of 1784, and the first Governor of New Brunswick, Colonel Thomas Carleton (brother of Lord Dorchester), arrived at St. John on the 21st of November. In the same year Cape Breton was made a separate colony[148]; and as the Island of St. John (Prince Edward Island) had been separated from Nova Scotia in 1770, there were now four separate governments in what at present constitute the Maritime Provinces." (Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap. lxvi., pp. 328, 329.)
[148]In 1829, Cape Breton was restored to Nova Scotia, of which it now forms a part.
[148]In 1829, Cape Breton was restored to Nova Scotia, of which it now forms a part.
New Brunswick.
The population of New Brunswick at the time of its separation from Nova Scotia, in 1784, was about 12,000. The governments of both provinces were similarly constituted—a Governor, an Executive and Legislative Council, members of the latter appointed by the Crown for life, and an Assembly or House of Commons, elected periodically by the freeholders: and both provinces were prosperous and contented for many years under successive governors, who seemed to have ruled impartially, and for the best interests of the people, though with narrower views of free government than those which obtained at a later period. The Loyalists not only obtained the establishment of New Brunswick as a province, but constituted the principal members of its Legislature, the officers of its government, and founders of its institutions; and the chief public men of the province have been from that day to this either U.E. Loyalists or their descendants.
Mr. Andrew Archer, in his excellentHistory of Canada for the Use of Schools, prescribed by the Board of Education for New Brunswick, gives the following account of the formation of the government of that province, and its founders:
"On Sunday, the 21st of November, 1784, ColonelThomas Carleton(brother to SirGuy Carleton), the first Governor of New Brunswick, arrived in St. John harbour and landed at Reed's Point. He had commanded a regiment during the revolutionary war, and was much esteemed by his Majesty's exiled Loyalists. The province was formally proclaimed the next day.
"The government of New Brunswick consisted of a Governorand a Council that united both executive and legislative functions, and a House of Assembly of twenty-six representatives. The Council was composed of twelve members. They were men of great talent, and had occupied before the war positions of influence in their native States. Chief JusticeLudlowhad been a judge of the Supreme Court of New York;James Putmanwas considered one of the ablest lawyers in all America; the Rev. and Hon.Jonathan Odell, first Provincial Secretary, had acted as chaplain in the Royal army, practised physic and written political poetry; JudgeJoshua Upham, a graduate of Harvard, abandoned the Bar during the war, and became a colonel of dragoons; JudgeIsrael Allenhad been colonel of a New Jersey Volunteer corps, and lost an estate in Pennsylvania through his devotion to the Loyalist cause; JudgeEdward Winslow, nephew of ColonelJohn Winslow, who executed the decree that expelled the Acadians from Nova Scotia, had attained the rank of colonel in the Royal army;Beverley Robinsonhad raised and commanded the Loyal American Regiment, and had lost great estates on Hudson river;Gabriel G. Ludlowhad commanded a battalion of Maryland Volunteers;Daniel Blisshad been a commissary of the Royal army;Elijah Willardhad taken no active part in the war;William HagenandGuildford Studholmewere settled in the province before the landing of the Loyalists; JudgeJohn Saunders, of a cavalier family in Virginia, had been captain in the Queen's Rangers, under Colonel Simcoe, and had afterwards entered the Temple and studied law in London. He was appointed to the Council after the death of Judge Putman. The government of the young province was governed with very few changes for several years.
"The town and district of Parr was incorporated in 1785, and became the city ofSt. John. It was the first, and long continued to be the only incorporated town in British America. It was governed by a mayor and a board of six aldermen and six assistants. The first two sessions of the General Assembly (1786-87) met in St. John. On meeting the Legislature at its first session, Governor Carleton expressed his satisfaction at seeing the endeavours of his Majesty to procure for the inhabitants the protection of a free government in so fair a way of being finally successful. He spoke of the peculiar munificencewhich had been extended to New Brunswick—the asylum of loyalty—and all the neighbouring States; and expressed his conviction that the people could not show their gratitude in a more becoming manner than by promoting sobriety, industry, and religion; by discouraging all factious and party distinctions, and by inculcating the utmost harmony between the newly-arrived Loyalists and the subjects formerly settled in the province.
"Two years afterwards (1788), the seat of government was removed to St. Anne's Point, Fredericton, which was considered the most central position in the province. It is said that Fredericton was chosen to be the seat of government because Albany, the seat of the Legislature of New York (from which State the great body of the Loyalists came), is situated many miles up the River Hudson, and is thus removed from the distracting bustle, the factious and corrupting influences of the great commercial metropolis at its mouth."[149]
FOOTNOTES:[149]Chap. xxvi., pp. 260-262.
[149]Chap. xxvi., pp. 260-262.
[149]Chap. xxvi., pp. 260-262.
Prince Edward Island.
Prince Edward Islandwas first called by the French St. John's Island, on account of the day on which the French landed on it; but in 1799 its name was changed, and it was called Prince Edward's Island in honour of the Duke of Kent, (William Edward) afterward William IV. After the close of the American Revolution in 1783, a considerable number of the exiled Loyalists went to Prince Edward's Island and became merchants and cultivators of the soil.
"In 1763 the island was incorporated with Nova Scotia; but in 1770 it was made a separate province, in fulfilment of a curious plan of civilization. It was parcelled out in sixty-seven townships, and these were distributed by lottery among the creditors of the English Government, each of whom was bound to lodge a settler on every lot of two hundred acres that fell to him. The experiment was not at first very successful, but gradually the shares passed from the original speculators to men who knew how to use the rich soil and usually healthy climate of the island."[150]
FOOTNOTES:[150]Bourne's "Our Colonies and Emigration," Chap. viii., p. 105.
[150]Bourne's "Our Colonies and Emigration," Chap. viii., p. 105.
[150]Bourne's "Our Colonies and Emigration," Chap. viii., p. 105.
Lower Canada.
Lower Canadawas first possessed by the French, and under the rule of France the government was purely despotic, though not cruel or harsh. On the conquest of Lower Canada in 1759, and its final ceding to England by the Treaty of Paris, 1763, a military government was instituted, which continued until 1774, when the famous "Quebec Act" was passed by the Imperial Parliament, known as the 14th George the Third, Chapter 83; or as "the Quebec Act"—it was introduced into the House of Lords on the 2nd of May, 1774—"for Making more Efficient Provision for the Province of Quebec." By the provisions of this famous Act, the boundaries of the province of Quebec were extended from Labrador to the Mississippi, embracing in one province the territory of Canada, together with all the country north-west of the Ohio to the head of Lake Superior and the Mississippi, and consolidating all authority over this boundless region in the hands of a Governor and Council of not less than seventeen or more than twenty-three members, with power to pass ordinances for the peace, welfare, and good government of the province. At the close of the war between England and France by the Peace of Paris, 1763, English emigration was invited to Lower Canada, with the promise, by Royal Proclamation, ofrepresentative government, as in the other colonies. That promise, however, was not fulfilled by the Act of 1774; but the Catholics were not displeased that the promise of a Representative Assembly was not kept, as a Representative Assembly, to which none but Protestants could at that time be chosen, was less acceptable tothem than the despotic rule of a Governor and Council nominated by the Crown. The Quebec Act authorized the Crown to confer places of honour and business upon Catholics. The owners of estates were further gratified by the restoration of the French system of law. The English emigrants might complain of the want of jury trials in civil processes, but the French Canadians were grateful for relief from statutes which they did not comprehend. The nobility of New France, who were accustomed to arms, were still further conciliated by the proposal to enrol Canadian battalions, in which they could hold commissions on equal terms with English officers. The great dependence of the Crown, however, was on the clergy. The capitulation of New France had guaranteed to them freedom of public worship, but the laws for their support were held to be no longer valid. By the Quebec Act they were confirmed in the possession of their ancient churches and their revenues; so that the Roman Catholic worship was as effectually established in Canada as the Presbyterian Church in Scotland.[151]
This Act encountered very strong opposition both in England and America. The Mayor, Aldermen, and Council of the city of London presented a petition to the King against the Bill, praying his Majesty not to sign it. In that long and ably drawn up petition, occur the following words:
"We beg leave to observe that the English law, and that wonderful effort of human wisdom, the trial by jury, are not admitted by this Bill in any civil cases, and the French law of Canada is imposed on all the inhabitants of that extensive province, by which both the persons and properties of very many of your Majesty's subjects are rendered insecure and precarious. We humbly conceive that this Bill, if passed into a law, will be contrary not only with the compact entered into with the various settlers of the Reformed religion, who were invited into the said province under the sacred promise of enjoying the benefit of the laws of your realm of England, but likewise repugnant to your Royal Proclamation of the 7th of October, 1763, for the speedy settlement of the said new government. * * That the whole legislative power of theprovince is vested in persons to be wholly appointed by your Majesty, and removable at your pleasure, which we apprehend to be repugnant to the leading principles of this free Constitution, by which alone your Majesty now holds, or legally can hold, the Imperial Crown of these realms."
In the House of Commons the Bill was strongly opposed by Messrs. Fox, Burke, Townsend and others, chiefly on the ground of its unconstitutionality, and every effort was made to amend it, but without success. The Bill was finally passed by a vote of 56 to 20.
In the House of Lords, the Bill was vehemently opposed by the Earl of Chatham, who protested against it "as a most cruel, oppressive, and odious measure, tearing up justice and every good principle by the roots," and "destructive of that liberty which ought to be the groundwork of every constitution." The Bill, however, passed the Lords by a vote of 26 to 7, and received the royal assent on the prorogation of Parliament, the 22nd of June, the King stating in regard to it that "it was founded on the clearest principles of justice and humanity, and would, he doubted not, have the best effect in quieting the minds and promoting the happiness of his Canadian subjects."
The feeling against the Act was intense both in England and the colonies, regarding it as a type of Imperial legislation for the colonies. "The strongest excitement prevailed in England for some months after the passing of the Act; and the papers were filled with little else than letters and remarks upon it." The British Loyalist settlers in Canada were indignant, and meetings were held in Quebec and Montreal, at which strong resolutions were passed, and petitions unanimously signed to the King, Lords and Commons, praying for the repeal of the Act, and forwarded to England.
"On the 17th of May, 1775, Lord Camden moved in the House of Lords for the repeal of the Act, but the motion was defeated by a vote of 88 to 28." A similar motion by Sir George Saville, in the Commons, was likewise defeated by a vote of 174 to 86.[152]The feeling of the Loyalists throughoutCanada was very strong against this Act; and its operations gave no satisfaction to any party.[153]
From the prevalent dissatisfaction among all parties in Canada with the Quebec Act of 1774, the Imperial Government having, in 1788, sanctioned ordinances to restore theHabeas CorpusAct, and thetrial by juryin civil cases, and obtainedfull and minute information as to the internal state of Canada, a Bill was prepared and introduced into the House of Commons by Mr. Pitt, pursuant to a message from the King, on the 4th of March, 1791, establishing a representative government for Canada, after the model as far as possible of the British Constitution. This Act is sometimes called the "Grenville Act," having been chiefly prepared by Grenville, and conducted by him through the House of Lords; it is sometimes called the "Pitt Act," having been introduced and carried through the House of Commons by Pitt; but it is generally known in Canada as the Constitutional Act, 31 George III., Chapter 31—the Act which gave to Canada its first constitutional government, and under the provisions of which Canada was governed for fifty years, until the union of the two Canadas in 1841.
Mr. Pitt in introducing his Bill stated "that the division of the province into Upper and Lower Canada, he hoped would put an end to the competition between the old French inhabitants and the new settlers from Britain and the British colonies. This division he trusted would be made in such a manner as to give each a majority in their own particular part; although it could not be expected to draw a complete line of separation. Any inconvenience, however, to be apprehended from ancient Canadians being included in the one or British settlers in the other, would be averted by a local Legislature to be established in each.
"In imitation of the Constitution of the mother country, he would propose a Legislative Council and House of Assembly for each; the Assembly to be constituted in the usual manner, and the members of the Council to be for life; reserving to his Majesty to annex to certain honours an hereditary right of sitting in Council (a power never exercised). All laws and ordinances of the province to remain in force till altered by the new Legislature. TheHabeas CorpusAct was already law by an ordinance of the province, and was to be continued as a fundamental principle of the Constitution.
"It was further meant to make a provision for a Protestant clergy in both divisions, by an allotment of lands in proportion to those already granted.
"The tenures were to be settled in Lower Canada by the local Legislature. In Upper Canada, the settlers being chiefly British, the tenures were to be soccage tenures.
"To prevent any such dispute as that which separated the thirteen colonies from the mother country, it was provided that the British Parliament should impose no taxes but such as might be necessary for the regulation of trade and commerce; and to guard against the abuse of this power, such taxes were to be levied and disposed of by the Legislature of each division."
The Bill was opposed in the House of Commons by Mr. Fox and others, upon the grounds that it created two provinces and two Legislatures, and made the members of the Legislative Councils nominees of the Crown for life, instead of leaving their election to the people; but the Bill was supported by Edmund Burke, who, with Fox, had voted side by side against the Quebec Act of 1774, but who opposed each other on the Canada Bill of 1791.[154]
Mr. Pitt, in reply to the objection of Mr. Fox and others, stated among other things, "That the population ofUpper Canadaamounted to only 10,000 inhabitants, and that ofLower Canadato not more than 100,000."[155]
With such preparation and explanations the Bill passed both Houses of Parliament and received the royal assent, conferring on Canada a new Constitution.
This Act separated the province of Quebec into two provinces,UpperandLower Canada, the division line between which was the River Ottawa.
For each province a Legislature was established consisting of aGovernor, aLegislative CouncilandHouse of Assembly—in imitation of the Constitution of England; for the Governor was to represent the Sovereign, the Legislative Council the House of Lords, and the Assembly the House of Commons.
The members of the Legislative Council were to be discreet persons, appointed by Royal authority for life; the members of the Assemblies were to be chosen by the people, once in four years, unless oftener called upon, by dissolution, to elect new members.
The Act was to come in force not later than the 31st of December, 1791; and the date of meeting of the new Legislature was not to be later than the 31st December, 1792.
Thus in fulfilment of a promise made in a Royal Proclamation in 1763, Canada obtained arepresentativeform of government in 1791.
It has been seen thatthe representativeform of government was obtained both forNova ScotiaandNew Brunswickby therepresentation and influence of theUnited Empire Loyalists; it was so in Canada. Thus are we indebted to theUnited Empire Loyalistsnot only for our unity with the British empire, but for the original constitution of representative government which, with enlarged application, is the basis of that free government which now prevails throughout all the provinces of the Dominion of Canada.
GOVERNMENT OF LOWER CANADA.
In 1786, Lord Dorchester had been appointed Governor of Canada and Commander-in-Chief of the British forces in North America.[156]But he left for England in August, 1791, on a year's leave, and in his absence the administration of the Government was entrusted to the Lieutenant-Governor, General Alured Clarke, a retired British officer. The elections took place in June, 1792, and were in some instances warmly contested. Lower Canada had been divided into twenty-one counties, eighteen of which elected two members each, and three—the counties of Gaspé, Bedford, and Orleans—returned one member each; the cities of Quebec and Montreal were each represented by four members, and Three Rivers by two. Of the fifty members elected to the first House of Assembly, fifteen were of British origin, and thirty-five were of French origin.[157]
The Legislative Council consisted of fifteen members.
On the 30th of October, the Provincial Parliament was commanded to meet at Quebec the 17th of December, 1792, for the actual despatch of business. On the meeting of the Legislative Council that day, the Hon. Chief Justice William Smith was appointed Speaker. The House of Assembly did not agree upon the election of Speaker on the first day—the French and English-speaking members advocating respectively the election of a Speaker of their own language; but at length Mr. J.A. Panet was elected by a large majority—he speaking both languages with equal fluency.[158]
The Lieutenant-Governormade a speech expressing the solicitude and consideration of the King for his Canadian subjects, in recommending to his Parliament such a change in their colonial government as circumstances might require and admit. "On a day like this," said his Excellency, "signalized by the commencement in this country of that form of government which has raised the kingdom to which it is subordinate to the highest elevation, it is impossible not to feel emotions difficult to be expressed.
"To give an opportunity for your loyal and grateful acknowledgments to his Majesty is one of my motives for calling you together, and that debt discharged, your Council will doubtless be next employed for enacting the laws necessary to confirm and augment the property of your country."
The Lieutenant-Governor concluded in the following words:
"Great Britain being happily at peace with all the world, and I hope without apprehension of its interruption, the present moment must be most fit and urgent for all those arrangements best made at a season of tranquillity, and falling within the sphere of our trust. The conviction I feel of your disposition to cultivate that harmony amongst yourselves and each branch of the Legislature, which is always essential to the public good and private satisfaction, makes it unnecessary for me to enlarge upon this subject.
"Such objects as it may become my duty to recommend to your consideration, shall be occasionally communicated to you by message."
The address of the Assembly in answer to his Excellency's speech breathed a spirit of grateful affection and loyalty. After expressing their warmest gratitude to the King and Parliament of Great Britain, "in granting to his Majesty's subjects in this province a new and liberal Constitution for their colonial government," the Assembly proceeds:
"We cannot express the emotions which arose in our breasts, on that ever-memorable day when we entered on the enjoyment of a Constitution assimilated to that form of government which has carried the glory of our mother country to the highest elevation. * *
"It is an unparalleled happiness for us to have an opportunity of presenting to his Majesty our loyal thanks, and of expressing to him our gratitude; such homage is the language of our hearts, and it is due from us, for all the favours with which we have been loaded. That duty fulfilled, we will turn our attention with most ardent zeal to framing such laws as may tend to the prosperity and advantage of our country.
"We hear with pleasure that Great Britain is at peace with all the world, and we consider this as the most favourable time for the consideration of the objects that fall within the sphere of our charge, to cultivate harmony among ourselves and each branch of the Legislature; that it is a condition essentially necessary to the public good and our own private satisfaction.
"We will at all times give the most speedy and deliberate consideration to such messages as we may receive from your Excellency."
Throughout this address of the Assembly there is the true ring of manly sincerity, and heartfelt loyalty to the Throne and to the unity of the empire. The Governor soon sent several messages to the Assembly, submitting, by command of the King, various subjects for their consideration, for which he received their cordial thanks, and assurances that the subjects submitted would receive their best consideration.
There was one subject of discussion which created much feeling and protracted debate—namely, the language in which the proceedings of the Assembly should be conducted, recorded, and published; but the rising storm was allayed and unity restored by the decision to leave each member at liberty to address the House in French or English at his pleasure—to have all motions, before being put to the House, read in both languages, and the record of the proceedings kept and published in both languages—a happy arrangement, which has been continued to this day.
The House of Assembly, in their reply to the opening speech of the Lieutenant-Governor, expressed their intention of presenting their heartfelt thanks to his Majesty for the new and liberal Constitution conferred upon them. That truly loyal address was as follows, and does lasting honour to its authors and the Imperial Government:
"We, your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the representatives of Lower Canada, met in Assembly for the first time under our new Constitution, humbly approach the Throne, to express to your most gracious Majesty our sentiments of gratitude and joy on the happy change which has taken place in the forms of our government.
"The Constitution which it hath pleased your Majesty and Parliament to give us, modelled upon that of Great Britain—a Constitution which has carried the empire to the highest pitch of glory and prosperity—assures to this colony the most solid advantages, and will for ever attach it to the parent State.
"Now, partaking without distinction the benefits of a government which protects all equally, we offer our thanks to Divine Providence for the happiness prepared for us. Our prayers are for the general prosperity of the nation of which we make a part, and for the preservation and felicity of our august and virtuous Sovereign.
"May it please your Majesty to receive favourably our respectful homage, and permit us anew to express our loyalty and attachment.
"May it please your Majesty and Parliament to receive our most humble thanks for the favour conferred upon this colony.
"Such are the heartfelt wishes of the representatives of the people of Lower Canada."
Such were the auspicious circumstances and cordiality of feeling attendant upon the inauguration of constitutional government in Lower Canada. The session continued upwards of four months—from December until May—during which time a great many subjects were introduced respecting expenses and revenues, salaries of officers, affairs appertaining to legislation, to the militia, to the administration of justice, and the welfare of the country; but only eightBillswere passed, and which were assented to in the King's name by the Lieutenant-Governor, who prorogued the Legislature on the 9th of May, 1793, with a short and complimentary speech.
It is not my object to narrate in detail the legislation orproceedings of any of the colonies, except in so far as may be necessary to illustrate the history ofthe Loyalists of America. A most impressive illustration of true loyalty was given by the Assembly of Lower Canada before the close of its first session. In the Lieutenant-Governor's speech at the opening of the session, he informed the Legislature that Great Britain was at peace with all the world, and that there was no apprehension of its interruption. But before the close of the session intelligence was received at Quebec that the revolutionary authorities of France had declared war against Great Britain.
On the 25th of April, 1793, the Lieutenant-Governor sent a message to the Assembly, informing them that he had received a letter from the Secretary of State, of the 9th of February previous, stating that "the persons exercising the supreme authority in France had declared war against his Majesty."[159]
The answer to the message breathes theLoyalists'spirit. They thanked his Excellency for his message, and assured him that "it was with horror they had heard that the most atrocious act which ever disgraced society had been perpetrated in France (alluding to the recent decapitation of the unfortunate Louis XVI.), and that it was with concern and indignation they now learned that the persons exercising the supreme authority there had declared war against his Majesty.
"His Majesty's faithful subjects earnestly pray that his arms may be crowned with such signal success over his enemies as shall speedily bring about a peace honourable, safe, and advantageous to his Majesty and the empire."
In conclusion, the Assembly assured his Excellency that "the House would immediately proceed to a revision of the Militialaws, and if alterations and amendments were necessary they would make such amendments as should be deemed the most fit and proper to secure and protect the province from every insult and injury of his Majesty's enemies."
At the close of the session, after assenting, on behalf of the King, to the eight Bills which had been passed, the Lieutenant-Governor delivered the proroguing speech, in which he thanked the Assembly for the diligent and practical consideration which they had given to the various subjects which had been submitted to them, and the "further regulations necessary for the better organizing and more effectually calling forth the militia for the defence of this extensive and valuable country, when our enemies of any description shall make it necessary." His Excellency alluded to the war of the rulers of France against England in the following words:
"Gentlemen, at the first meeting of the Legislature, I congratulated you upon the flattering prospects which opened to your view and upon the flourishing and tranquil state of the British empire, then at peace with all the world. Since that period, I am sorry to find its tranquillity has been disturbed by the unjustifiable and unprecedented conduct of the persons exercising the supreme power in France, who, after deluging their own country with the blood of their fellow-citizens, and imbruing their hands in that of their Sovereign, have forced his Majesty and the surrounding nations of Europe into a contest which involves the first interests of society. In this situation of public affairs, I reflect with peculiar pleasure upon the loyal and faithful attachment of his Majesty's subjects of this province to his royal person, and to that form of government we have the happiness to enjoy."[160]
The second session of the Parliament was summoned by Lord Dorchester himself, the 11th of November, 1793.[161]This session lasted seven months and a half, though only six Bills were passed. In his speech at the opening of the session, Lord Dorchester recommended the due administration of justice, together with the arrangements necessary for the defence andsafety of the province, as matters of the first importance. His Excellency also informed the Assembly that he would order to be laid before them an account of all the receipts of the provincial revenues of the Crown since the division of Upper and Lower Canada.
The purport of his Excellency's speech, and the spirit of the Assembly, and the relations between the colony and the parent state, may be inferred from the following cordial and complimentary address of the Assembly in answer to the Governor's opening speech:
"Fully convinced of the happy effects to be derived from a solid and invariable administration of justice, and of the indispensable necessity for an establishment for assuring the defence and safety of the province, we will lose no time in resuming the consideration of these important subjects, and in making such amendments in the existing laws as may best protect the persons and property of its inhabitants.
"By receiving from your Excellency an account of the receipts of the provincial revenues of the Crown, we shall be enabled to deliberate on the means by which they may be rendered more productive; and penetrated with gratitude to the parent state for having hitherto defrayed the surplus expenditure of the province, we flatter ourselves that, in consideration of our situation, we shall continue to receive her generous assistance—a hope further strengthened by your Excellency's intention of not requiring from us any subsidy at present, which confirms the benevolence of the mother country.
"In the infancy of our Constitution, we perceive the necessity of greater circumspection in the formation of laws that may tend to support and establish it; and also to cultivate amongst the different branches of the Legislature that cordial harmony and concord so necessary to promote the measures essential to the happiness and well-being of our country."
The Assembly bestowed much attention upon the Judicature Bill of the previous session, and on the Militia Bill, and brought them to maturity; also an Alien Bill was introduced and passed, establishing "regulations respecting aliens and certain subjects of his Majesty, who have resided in France, coming into this province and residing therein, and for empowering his Majesty to receive and detain persons charged with or suspected of high treason, and for the arrest and commitment of all persons who may individually, by seditious practices, attempt to disturb the government of this province."[162]
It happened at the commencement of this session that Edward, Duke of Kent, the father of our beloved Queen Victoria, was in Canada, and held military command of the troops. The day after the assembling of the Legislature, the Assembly presented him with a most cordial and affectionate address, as did subsequently the Legislative Council, clergy, and citizens of Quebec, Montreal, and Three Rivers, styling the prince "the son of the best of sovereigns." The prince delighted all by his answers, his amiable manners and exemplary conduct. All were especially delighted with his declared disapprobation of the termsthe King's old and new subjects; French and English inhabitants.He said all were "the King's Canadian subjects."[163]
Lord Dorchester transmitted to the Assembly, on the 29th of April, 1794, a message peculiarly interesting from its being the first financial statement laid before the Legislature of Lower Canada. The message commences: "The Governor has given directions for laying before the House of Assembly an account of the provincial revenue of the Crown from the commencement of a new Constitution to the 10th of January, 1794."[164]
The House, by an address, thanked his Excellency for the message and papers accompanying it; they observed that theysaw in it an additional proof of the paternal solicitude of his Majesty to ease the burdens of his subjects, and of his Excellency's anxiety to promote the interests of this province; and that the magnitude and utility of the objects recommended to their consideration could not fail engaging their serious attention as soon as the important matters now before them, and in a state of progression, were accomplished.[165]
In closing the session, the 31st of May, 1794, Lord Dorchester assented, in the King's name, to five Bills, reserving the Judicature Bill for the royal pleasure (which was approved and became law the following December), and one for appointing Commissioners to treat with Commissioners on behalf of Upper Canada, relating to duties and drawbacks to be allowed to that province on importations through the lower province. The closing speech of his Excellency, among other things, contained the following words:
"I have no doubt that, on returning to your respective homes, you will zealously diffuse among all ranks of people those principles of justice, patriotism, and loyalty which have distinguished your public labours during this session, and that you will use your best exertions to find out and bring to justice those evil-disposed persons who, by inflammatory discourses, or the spreading of seditious writings, endeavour to deceive the unwary and disturb the peace and good order of society; and that you will avail yourselves of every opportunity to convince your fellow-subjects that the blessings they enjoy under a truly free and happy Constitution can be preserved only by a due obedience to the laws, all breaches of which are the more inexcusable as the Constitution itself has provided for the safe and easy repeal or modification of such as may not answer the good intentions of the Legislature."
The interval between the close of the second and the opening of the third session of the Legislature, from the 31st of May, 1794, to 5th of January, 1795, quiet and contentment prevailed in the province; and the short speech of Lord Dorchester (for his speeches were always short and to the point) at the opening of this third Session was chiefly one of congratulation, commendation and suggestion. Among other things he said:
"Gentlemen, I shall order to be laid before you a statement of the provincial revenues of the Crown for the last year, together with such part of the expenditure as may enable you to estimate the ways and means for the most necessary supplies, in bringing forward which you will keep in view the advantages of providing for the public exigencies by a prudent restraint on luxuries, and by regulations which may, at the same time, encourage and extend commerce.
"Gentlemen, the judges and law officers of the Crown have been directed to draw up and report their opinion on the subject of your address to me on the 28th of May last" (this related to the establishment of forms of proceeding in the courts of justice, and a table of fees to which the different civil officers, advocates, notaries, and land surveyors should be entitled in their respective offices); "and I have much satisfaction in perceiving this early disposition on your part to prevent and guard against abuses which might impede the course of justice, or give rise to customs that would establish oppressive demands, and gradually efface from our minds a due sense of their unwarrantable origin.
"Your own disinterested conduct in your legislative capacity; your zealous endeavours to promote a general obedience to the laws, connected with a benevolent attention to the interests of the subject, form a solid foundation for government, and afford me great hopes that our new Constitution will be firmly established, and ensure, for ages to come, the happiness of the people."
Referring to this speech of Lord Dorchester, Mr. Christie well remarks: "The foresight, the rectitude, the wisdom of this most upright man and virtuous governor, cannot fail to strike the reader, and command his respect and admiration."
As might be expected, the address of the House of Assembly in answer to the Governor's speech was equally cordial and assuring, concluding with the following words:
"It is highly flattering to us that our conduct in our legislative capacity has met with your Excellency's approbation. Being thoroughly sensible of the happiness we enjoy under the free and liberal Constitution which has been granted to us by the parent state, under your Excellency's prudent and wise administration, we will continue to exert our most zealousendeavours to promote a general obedience to the laws, and to establish that Constitution in such a manner as may ensure for ages to come the happiness of the people."
On the 16th of February, 1795, the Governor sent a message to the Assembly, transmitting "the accounts of the provincial scheme of the Crown from the 6th of January, 1794, to the 5th of January, 1795, also of the civil expenditure for the same period."[166]
The Commissioners appointed under the Act of the previous session, to treat with Commissioners on behalf of Upper Canada concerning duties and drawbacks to be allowed in favour of that province, reported that they had met and finally adjusted with them the sum to be reimbursed to Upper Canada for 1793 and 1794.[167]
Several important Acts were passed this session relating to revenue, defraying the charges for the administration, thesupport of the civil government, and for other purposes. On the 7th of May, his Excellency prorogued the Legislature with a speech which contained the following paragraphs:
"Gentlemen, I cannot put an end to this session of our Provincial Parliament without expressing my approbation and thanks for that zeal for the public welfare which has distinguished all your proceedings.
"Gentlemen of the House of Assembly, the cheerfulness with which you have granted a supply towards defraying the civil expenditure of the province gives me great satisfaction; the judicious choice you have made of the means for this purpose, evinces a tender regard for the interests and condition of this country; and the unanimity in this tribute of gratitude and attachment to the King's government cannot but be highly pleasing to his Majesty."
The fourth and last session of this Parliament was summoned for the 20th of November, 1795, and continued until the 7th of May, 1796, during which twelve Bills were passed that received the royal assent. In his opening speech, his Excellency expressed his "great satisfaction to observe, during the present session, a continuance of the same zealous attention to their legislative duties, and to the general interests of the province, which he had occasion to notice in their former proceedings." His concluding words were:
"Gentlemen of the Legislative Council, and Gentlemen of the House of Assembly, in expressing my approbation of your proceedings, I must further observe that the unanimity, loyalty, and disinterestedness manifested by this first Provincial Parliament of Lower Canada, have never been surpassed in any of his Majesty's provincial dominions; and I feel convinced that the prosperity and happiness of this country will continue to increase in proportion as succeeding Parliaments shall follow your laudable example."
Thus ended the first Parliament of Lower Canada; thus was inaugurated and consolidated its government, which, withoutthe strife of partizanship or the machinery of party, was pure, just, mild, economical, patriotic, and progressive.
Thus also ended, in the course of a few weeks, Lord Dorchester's connection with Canada; for having obtained his Majesty's leave of absence, he embarked with his family for England the 9th of July, 1796. He was far advanced in life; he had been, with few interruptions, connected with Canada, as officer, military commander, and governor, more than thirty-six years. He was with General Wolfe at the siege and taking of Quebec in 1759, where he was wounded; he was colonel of the Grenadiers, and quartermaster-general of Wolfe's army. In the various capacities in which he served, whether as governor or commander-in-chief or diplomatist, he was equally distinguished for his courage and prudence, his justice and humanity, as well as for his many social and private virtues.[168]
His departure from Canada was a matter of universal regret. Farewell addresses were presented to him by the citizens of Quebec, Montreal, and other places—all expressing to him the highest respect and warmest gratitude for his long and valuable services to Canada. The general spirit of these addresses may be inferred from the following expressions: