Recovery of Rents, according to any former Mode of Proceeding by any Law, usage, or Custom whatsoever; and provided also, that whenever the Defendant or Debtor shall either pay the Debt and Costs, or give Security to the Sheriff or Officers for the goods so attached, as in Cases of Bail on Personal Arrests, subject to Justification in Court to answer the Value of the Goods, and abide the Judgment of the Court, the same shall be forthwith restored; and for that Purpose the Defendant or Debtor shall be allowed Forty Eight Hours, after which Period, if the Debt and Costs be not paid, nor Security given, the Goods so seized shall remain attached, and held by the Sheriff or Officer to answer the Judgment of Law.

Be it further Enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That the additional Regulations hereby Enacted shall be in force until the end of the Sessions that shall be held in the Year of our Lord 1789, or as long as the Ordinance hereby renewed; and that the Ordinance passed in the Twenty-fifth year o the Reign of his present Majesty, intituled, "An Ordinance for granting a "limited Civil Power and Jurisdiction to His Majesty's Justices of the "Peace in the Remote Parts of the Province" be no longer in force than until Such Small Jurisdictions as by this Act are authorized shall be actually erected.

Enacted and Ordained by the Authority aforesaid, and passed in Council under the Public Seal of the Province, at the Council Chamber, in the Castle of St. Lewis, in the City of Quebec, the 30th of April, in the 27th Year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George the Third, &c &c &c, and in the Year of our Lord 1787.

By His Excellency's Command.

XLV

ORDINANCE RE CRIMINAL COURTS, 30 APRIL, 17871
[Trans. Shortt and Doughty.]

An Ordinance to Explain and Amend an Ordinance for establishing Courts of Criminal Jurisdiction in the Province of Quebec.

Whereas it is expedient that public Officers should be established in the several Parishes of this Province, under the Denomination of Peace Officers; It is Enacted and Ordained, by his Excellency the Governor and the Legislative Council, That all and every the Captains, and other Officers of Militia in the said several Parishes of this Province, duly commissioned by His Excellency the Governor, or the Commander in Chief for the Time being,and likewise the Serjeants named and appointed by the said Captains and other Officers in the respective Parishes, be, and they are hereby declared to be Public and Peace Officers within their respective Parishes and authorized and enjoined to do and exercise all and singular the Duties and Services of Public and Peace Officers within their respective Parishes according to Law.

And be it further Enacted by the same Authority, That it shall be Lawful for the Commissioners, or Justices of the Peace, assembled in Quarter Sessions, or by a Majority of the same, and they are hereby required, as soon as conveniently may be,to name and appoint such and so many Persons as they may think sufficient, within the Towns and Banlieus of Quebec and Montreal, for carrying into Execution the orders and Decrees of the several Courts, and to preserve the Public Peace therein, every of which Persons so appointed shall faithfully perform the Duties of the Offices for which he may be so appointed for the space of one year; previous to the expiration whereof it shall be the Duty of the said Commissioners or Justices of the Peace annually to appoint others to serve in their stead, and to increase or diminish the number first appointed, as to them shall appear to be most for the Public Weal and Safety; and that no such 1 This is an amendment to the Ordinance of 4 March, 1777 (No. XXXII.)

appointment shall be valid in Quebec or Montreal, and their Banlieus respectively, in the Case of a Civil or Military Officer, or in any Person in Priest's Orders, or in the Profession or Practice of Physic or Surgery, or any Miller, Ferryman, Schoolmaster, or Student of any College or Seminary, or any Person not of full Age: or for neglecting or refusing to perform the said Office or Offices there shall be the Forfeiture of Twenty Pounds, to be recovered in any Court of Record, with Costs of Suit, by Bill, Plaint, or Information, in which no Essoign, Wager, of Law, or any more than One Imparlance, shall be allowed.

30 April, 1787.

XLVI

(signed)

DORCHESTER.

DEBATE ON LYMBURNER'S EVIDENCE

[Trans. Shortt and Doughty.]

On May 16, 1788, Mr. Powys moved in the House of Commons, that Mr. Adam Lymburner, Agent of that section of the population in Canada, French and English, desirous of having a House of Assembly, &c., be heard at the Bar of the House in support of the petition from Quebec of 24th Nov., 1784'. Mr. Lymburner being admitted read a paper pointing out the defects of the system of laws then administered in the Province and the need for a remedy. This paper is given in Canadian Archives Q. 62 A-1, pp. 1-101. After he had withdrawn, a debate followed which is quite fully reported in Hansard, Vol. 27, pp. 511-533. The substance of the debate, however, is given in the following summary from The London Chronicle (May 15-17, 1788).

"Mr. Powys entered into a detail of circumstances and the allegations contained in the petitions. He stated it as the general wish of the Canadians, that some determinate code of laws should be established in that Province, and that they might not henceforward be subjected to the sole ordinance of a legislative Council, appointed by the Crown, and removable at the pleasure of the Crown. They wished to have a House of Assembly instituted in the province, and the English laws in general extended to them. He observed, that they had not the privilege of Habeas Corpus; at least it was not a part of their constitution, though it might be occasionally allowed them. They were deprived of the trial by Jury, except in a few instances. As to the Council, above alluded to, it ought not to exist; for, in the opinion of the best informed and most elegant historian of the present age (Mr. Gibbon), where the legislative power is appointed by the executive department, it is a sure criterion of a despotic government. The petitioners wished to be put on the same footing with the provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, which have a House of Assembly, and partake of the blessings of English laws. He thought their request was just and reasonable, and merited the attention of the House. He concluded with moving, That it is the opinion of this Committee, that the petitions from Quebec merit the serious and immediate attention of the House.

Sir Matthew White Ridley seconded the motion. The laws, he said, were in Canada vague and undefined; and wherever this is the case, very great abuses are the consequence. He hoped, that if the House should not find time in the remainder of this session to come to any ultimate decision on the subject, they would at least adopt a resolution that might give the Canadians good reason to hope for a determination in their favour in the succeeding session.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer agreed with the Hon. Mover, that the

1 See No. XXXVIII.

In Nova Scotia a House of Assembly was constituted in 1758 (see Selections from the Public Documents Relating to Nova Scotia, Halifax, 1869). A House of Assembly was provided for when New Brunswick was constituted a province in 1784 (see Dominion Sessional Papers XVI, No. 70).

petitions deserved the serious attention of the House; but nothing could be done immediately in the business. Parliament, he said, was not ripe for the discussion of an affair of such magnitude as the framing of a constitution for a large, flourishing and growing province. A sufficient body of information had not been transmitted from that colony, to enable the House to determine upon the merits, of the subject contained in the petitions. As to the appointment of a House of Assembly, though he was inclined to recommend that mode of legislation, he had strong doubt whether it would be proper at this time, when the province was in a state of heat and fermentation. A popular Assembly would not tend to allay that heat. The privilege of Habeas Corpus was ordered by the Legislative Council of Quebec, to be granted to the inhabitants; so that they had no reason to complain in that particular. He was not pleased with the motion in its present form.

Mr. Fox ridiculed the idea that Parliament was not ripe for the formation of a constitution for Quebec. Could it be supposed that, after that province had been in our possession for the space of 25 years, sufficient information had not been procured to authorise a complete determination upon what laws were most expedient for the government of it? He charged His Majesty's Ministers with great neglect, and even with being unfit for the offices they held as they had not taken the proper steps to accelerate this business.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer vindicated himself from the charge of neglect; and Mr. Fox rejoined.

Mr. Marsham thought the House ought to pass a bill immediately for extending the Habeas Corpus Act to Quebec; that it might no longer be considered as a mere favour or indulgence to the inhabitants, but as a matter of right. He also proposed, that after the Chairman should have left the chair, the House should pledge itself to enter fully into this business early in the next session.

Mr. Sheridan regarded the Ministry as culpable, for having so long neglected the proper adjustment of the laws for the province of Canada.

Mr. Alderman Watson remarked, that great inconveniences arose in Canada from the bad administration of bad laws, and hoped that the British laws, in general would be extended to that province.

Mr. Martin was convinced of the propriety of coming to a speedy determination on this head.

Sir James Johnstone was friendly to the prayer of the petitions; but wished that the discussion might be postponed till next session.

Mr. Burke agreed to the motion.

Mr. C. L. Smith, Sir W. Dolben, Sir Herbert Mackworth, and Sir Watkin Lewes, also spoke on the occasion.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer having moved, that the Chairman leave the Chair, instead of putting the question on Mr. Powys's motion, a division took place; when the numbers were, for the Minister's motion 104, against it 39, majority 65.

Mr. Powys then moved, that this House will, early in the subsequent session, take into consideration the petitions from Quebec.

My Lord.

XLVII

SYDNEY TO DORCHESTER'

[Trans. Shortt and Doughty.]

Whitehall, 3d Sept., 1788.

Your Lordship will have seen, by the proceedings which took place in Parliament in the course of the last Session, the Arguments which were made use of on the Introduction of the Petition brought by Mr. Lymburner from Quebec, for a Change of the present Constitution of the Province, and the reasons which occurred to His Majesty's Ministers for avoiding any decision upon that very important Subject.

It will, however, be absolutely necessary that it should be resumed very shortly after the next meeting, and it will, of course, be a matter of great importance to His Majesty's Servants, that they should be previously prepared to enter into a full discussion of the business, and to propose such arrangements as may be found to be expedient for removing every just and reasonable cause of complaint that may exist among His Majesty's Subjects, of any description whatsoever, who are Inhabitants of that Province.

The variety of applications which have from time to time been transmitted from thence upon this business, of so opposite a tendency to each other, render it extremely difficult to fix upon any Arrangements calculated to satisfy all the Parties interested in, or connected with it; His Majesty's Servants however, are desirous to give the matter a full consideration and that they may be the better enabled to form a competent judgment of the steps adviseable to be taken, they are solicitous of obtaining from Your Lordship a full and impartial account of the different Classes of Persons who desire a Change of Government, as well as of those who are adverse to the Measure, specifying, as nearly as it can be ascertained, the Proportion of Numbers and Property on each side in the several Districts; and, That your Lordship at the same time should state in what manner, either the interests, or influence of the latter, might be affected by any alteration, and what is the Nature and grounds of their apprehensions from the Introduction of a greater Portion of English Law, of a System of Government more conformable to that established in other British Colonies.

In particular, They wish to be informed from what Causes the objec tion of the old Canadian Subjects to an House of Assembly chiefly arises: Whether, from its being foreign to the Habits and Notions of Government in which they have been educated, or, from an apprehension that it would be so formed as to give an additional Weight to the New Subjects, and lead to the introduction of Parts of the English Law which are obnoxious to them; or, from an idea that being invested with a Power of Taxation, it would eventually subject their Property to Burthens from which they are at present exempted; In like manner, whether the Objections which appear to exist to a farther Introduction of Trial by Jury, arise either from Prejudices against the Nature and Mode of such a decision, or from the difficulty of finding Jurors properly qualified, and the inconvenience to Individuals of the necessary Attendance; or from the Notion of this species of Trial being necessarily coupled with Modes of Proof and Rules of Law, different from those to which they are accustomed.

Though several of these points have already been noticed by Your Lordship in some of your Letters to me, and in the Papers which accompanied them, yet His Majesty's Servants do not think that they are sufficiently explicit to enable them to form a decided opinion.

The anxiety of His Majesty's Servants to be perfectly informed with

This document illustrates the anxiety of the British Government to understand Canadian affairs as fully as possible before making any change in the Constitution. Thomas Townshend, Baron, afterwards Viscount Sydney, became Secretary of State for the Home Department December 23, 1783.

regard to all these matters as soon as possible, has induced them to send out an Extraordinary Packet Boat, and they are in hopes of receiving from Your Lordship upon her return, a full communication of the Sentiments entertained upon these several heads of enquiry, and which communication they wish to be made in a manner that may be proper to be laid before Parliament at the next meeting.

I find, upon an examination of the Plans submitted by Your Lordship's predecessor, that the most considerable part of the disbanded Troops and Loyalists who have become Settlers in the Province since the late War, have been placed upon Lands in that part of it which lie to the Westward of the Ceders, and beyond those Lands (excepting only Detroit and its Neighbourhood) which are granted in Seigneurie; as these People are said to be of the number desirous of the Establishment of the British Laws, It has been in Contemplation to propose to Parliament a division of the Province, to commence from the Boundary Line of the Seigneurie granted to Monsieur de Longueil, and to take in all the Country to the Southward and Westward in the manner described in the inclosed paper. But, before they take any step towards the execution of this measure, they are de sirous of receiving the advantage of Your Lordships opinion how far it may be practicable or expedient; or, whether any other line or mode of separation would be preferable. Your Lordship will however understand, that it is The Kings intention that the New Settlers in that part of the Province who now hold their Lands upon Certificates of Occupation, shall, at all events, be placed upon the same footing in all respects, as their Brethren in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, by having their Lands granted to them in free and Common Soccage, with a Remission of Quit Rents for the first Ten Years; and Instructions will be prepared accordingly, as soon as Your Lordship's opinion upon the plan abovementioned shall be obtained.

With a view to the execution of the Plan in question, it will be necessary for you to consider, previously to your Report upon it, what sort of Civil Government ought to be formed for its internal arrangement, & whether the Number and description of the Inhabitants and other Circumstances are such as do, or do not, make the immediate Establishment of an Assembly within this district, practicable and adviseable. At all events It will be natural, as the greatest Part of these New Settlers are attached to the English Laws, that that System should be introduced as the general Rule, with such Exceptions or Qualifications as particular and local Circumstances may appear to require; At the same time Your Lordship will attend to the situation to which the Old Canadian Settlers at Detroit would be reduced, provided it may be found expedient, in consequence of the Information which the King's Servants expect to receive from Your Lordship, (and by which you will understand they mean in a great degree to be guided) to resist the Application for any Change of the Constitution of the remaining part of the Province; and, Your LordIship will also consider, in case of such a determination, in what part of the Province within the reserved limits, the Settlers at Detroit, if they should desire to be removed, might be accommodated with Lands the best suited to their advantage.

I am &c.,

SYDNEY.

1 General Haldimand.

The rapids on the St. Lawrence below Lake St. Francis.