only clergyman in the country, who was living at Niagara, entreating him
to come to Long Point and baptize the children. All who had been born
there remained unbaptized. This summer his promised visit was to take
place, and was looked forward to with intense anxiety by both parents
and children. I used to discuss it with my elder brother, and wonder
what this wonderful ceremony of christening could mean. My mother had
explained it as well as she could, but the mystical washing away of sin
with water, to me was incomprehensible, as was also my being made member
of a Church which was to me unknown. I wondered what God's minister
could be like, and whether he was like my father, whom I looked up to as
the greatest and best of anyone in my little world. At last Parson
Addison arrived, and my curiosity was satisfied on one point, and in my
estimation my father stood higher than the clergyman.
"The neighbourhood was notified, and all the children, from one month to
eight or nine years old, were assembled to receive baptism. The house
was crowded with people anxious to hear the first sermon preached in the
Long Point Settlement by an ordained minister. Upon my own mind I must
confess that the surplice and gown made a much more lasting impression
than the sermon, and I thought Mr. Addison a vastly more important
person in them than out of them; but upon the elder part of the
community, how many sad and painful feelings did this first sermon
awaken, and recall times long past, friends departed, ties broken, homes
deserted, hardships endured! The cord touched produced many vibrations,
as Mr. Addison shook hands with every individual, and made some kind
inquiry about their present or future welfare. The same God-hopeful
smile passed over every face, and the same 'Thank you, sir, we find
ourselves every year a little better off, and the country is improving.'
'If we only had a church and a clergyman we should have but little to
complain of.' But it was a hope deferred for many long years. A Baptist
minister, the Rev. Mr. Finch, was the first clergyman who came to the
little settlement to reside. His meetings were held in different parts
of the settlement each Sunday, so that all might have the opportunity of
hearing him if they chose to attend. He preached in houses and barns
without any reward, labouring on his farm for his support. He, like all
the early Dissenting ministers who came to the province, was uneducated,
but possessed and sincerely believed a saving knowledge of the Gospel,
and in his humble sphere laboured to do all the good in his power. Many
of the young people joined his Church. He was soon followed by the
Methodists. Too much cannot be said in praise of the early ministers of
these denominations; they bore every privation and fatigue, praying and
preaching in every house where the doors were not closed against
them--receiving the smallest pittance for their labour. A married man
received $200 a year and a log-house for his family; an unmarried man
had half that sum, the greater portion of which was paid in home-made
cloth and produce. Their sermons and prayers were very loud, forcible
and energetic, and if they had been printed _verbatim_, would have
looked a sad jumble of words. They encouraged an open demonstration of
feeling amongst their hearers--the louder the more satisfactory. But
notwithstanding the criticisms cast upon these early preachers, were
they not the class of men who suited their hearers? They shared their
poverty and entered into all their feelings; and although unlearned,
they taught the one true doctrine--to serve God in spirit and in
truth--and their lives bore testimony to their sincerity. In this world
they looked forward to neither preferment nor reward; all they expected
or could hope for was a miserable subsistence. Nor was it surprising
that in twenty years afterwards, when the path was made smooth, the
church built, and the first clergyman, the Rev. Mr. Evans, came, that he
found a small congregation. Every township had one or two Methodist and
Baptist chapels. I do not recollect one Roman Catholic family in the
neighbourhood. Although the Long Point Settlement was in existence
thirty years before we had a resident clergyman of the Church of
England, yet I cannot recollect one member who had seceded from the
Church. Many had died, and many communed with the Methodists, who did
not belong to them."
POSTSCRIPT.--At the author's request, Mrs. Harris, in June, 1879,
brought down her recollections to the close of the war of 1812-1815. The
following pages are the result--written by Mrs. Harris, twenty years
after writing the previous memoranda, in the eighty-first year of her
age, containing some interesting particulars of the war, and stating the
cause of the loss of the British fleet on Lake Erie, and the disasters
which followed.
The author has not seen cause to alter a sentence or a word of Mrs.
Harris's manuscript, written by herself in a clear, bold hand,
notwithstanding her advanced age:
"In 1810 my father showed signs of failing health. A life of hardship
and great exertion was telling upon a naturally strong constitution. He
decided upon resigning all his offices, and his resignation was accepted
upon this assurance, that from ill-health he could no longer fulfil the
duties they involved. The Hon. Thomas Talbot was appointed his successor
as colonel commandant of the militia, and the late Judge Mitchell
succeeded him as Judge of the District and Surrogate Courts. At this
time there were strong rumours of war between America and England, and
the militia anticipated being called into active service. At the close
of 1811, a large body of the militia which my father had organized
waited upon him, and urged him to resume the command, as in him they had
confidence. Colonel Talbot was a stranger amongst them, and lived at a
distance. My father at that time was in the last stage of consumption,
and died in the June following, in 1812, aged sixty years. In six days
after his death war was declared, and then came troubles to my widowed
mother in various shapes. My father in seventeen years had seen a lonely
wilderness changed into a fruitful country. Most of the original
log-houses had given place to good frame buildings, and the inhabitants
generally seemed prosperous and content. Immediately after the
declaration of war, the militia had to do military duty and neglect
their farms. British troops passed through Port Ryerse, on their way to
Amherstburg and Sandwich, and every available building was used as
barracks. All merchant vessels were converted into ships of war, and
they, with one or two small ships belonging to the Provincial Navy, were
placed under the command of Captain Barclay, of the Royal Navy; Captain
Finnes, R.N., was second in command. His ships were all of light
tonnage; there were several transports, which were in constant use
conveying troops and army supplies to Sandwich and Amherstburg. The lake
was clear of enemies, as the Americans were blockaded within Erie
Harbour, where they had two or three large ships on the stocks. They
could not cross the bar at Erie without lightening their ships and
taking out part of their guns. This they could not do in the presence of
Barclay's fleet. When the weather was too rough for the blockading
squadron to remain outside the harbour, it was too rough for the
American fleet to get over the bar; consequently we felt very safe. This
was during the summer of 1813. During this summer General Brock called
out the militia of Norfolk, and asked for volunteers to go with him to
Detroit; every man volunteered. He made his selection of the strong and
active young men. Right gallantly the militia throughout the province
behaved during the three years' war, casting no discredit upon their
parentage--the brave old U.E. Loyalists. During the summer, Captain
Barclay used to have private information--not very reliable, as the
result proved--of what progress the ships were making on the stocks. He
used occasionally to leave the blockade and go to Amherstburg and come
to Ryerse. The Americans took note of this, and made their plans and
preparations for his doing so. There was a pretty widow of an officer of
some rank in Amherstburg, who was very anxious to go to Toronto. Captain
Barclay offered her a passage in his ship and brought her to Ryerse, and
then escorted her to Dr. Rolph's, where he and some of his officers
remained to dinner the following day. When they came in sight of Erie,
they saw all the American fleet riding safely at anchor outside the bar.
The Americans had everything in readiness; and as soon as the
watched-for opportunity came, and the British fleet left the station,
they got their own ships over the bar, their guns in, and all things
ready for defence or attack. They far outnumbered the British fleet, and
were of heavier tonnage. Captain Barclay consulted his senior officers
whether it would be best to come into Long Point Bay to winter, where
they could get supplies across the country from Burlington Bay of all
the munitions of war, and leave the ship on the stocks at Amherstburg
(the _Detroit_) to her fate, as neither the guns to arm nor the men to
man her had yet been forwarded, and now could not unless by land, which
for heavy guns and the munitions of war was the next thing to an
impossibility. It was with great difficulty that food and clothing could
be forwarded, where there was little more than an Indian path and no
bridges. The wisdom of the fleet decided upon going to Amherstburg and
trusting to arming the ships with the guns from the fort, and manning
them with sailors from the fleet, and with soldiers and volunteers. They
landed Captain O'Keefe, of the 41st Regiment, who was doing marine duty
at or near Otter Creek, to find his way to Ryerse, and to tell the
militia commandant that the whole frontier on Lake Erie was now open to
American invasion, the new ship was launched, imperfectly armed and
manned; and without a sufficient supply of ammunition for the fleet, and
with little more than a day's rations for his men, Commodore Barclay was
necessitated to risk an action. The result is too well known. Nearly all
the officers were killed or severely wounded. Captain Barclay, who had
already lost one arm, was disabled in the other arm; but they did not
strike their colours to Commodore Perry's superior force until their
ammunition in some ships was all exhausted, and in others nearly so. No
one could have fought more bravely than Captain Barclay. At the same
time, those who knew of his leaving the blockade could not help feeling
that all the disasters of the upper part of the province lay at his
door. In May of 1814 we had several days of heavy fog. On the morning of
the 13th, as the fog lifted, we saw seven or eight ships under the
American flag anchored off Ryerse, with a number of small boats floating
by the side of each ship. As the fog cleared away they hoisted sail and
dropped down three miles below us, opposite Port Dover. Of course an
invasion was anticipated. Colonel Talbot was then in Norfolk, and he
ordered all the militia to assemble the next day at Brantford, a
distance of thirty miles, which they did with great reluctance, as many
of both officers and men thought that an effort should have been made to
prevent the Americans landing; but no resistance was offered. On the
14th, the Americans burnt the village and mills of Dover; on the 15th,
as my mother and myself were sitting at breakfast, the dogs kept up a
very unusual barking. I went to the door to discover the cause; when I
looked up, I saw the hill-side and fields, as far as the eye could
reach, covered with American soldiers. They had marched from Port Dover
to Ryerse. Two men stepped from the ranks, selected some large chips,
and came into the room where we were standing, and took coals from the
hearth without speaking a word. My mother knew instinctively what they
were going to do. She went out and asked to see the commanding officer.
A gentleman rode up to her and said he was the person she asked for. She
entreated him to spare her property, and said she was a widow with a
young family. He answered her civilly and respectfully, and expressed
his regret that his orders were to burn, but that he would spare the
house, which he did; and he said, as a sort of justification of his
burning, that the buildings were used as a barrack, and the mill
furnished flour for British troops. Very soon we saw columns of dark
smoke arise from every building, and of what at early morn had been a
prosperous homestead, at noon there remained only smouldering ruins. The
following day Colonel Talbot and the militia under his command marched
to Port Norfolk (commonly known as Turkey Point), six miles above
Ryerse. The Americans were then on their way to their own shores. My
father had been dead less than two years. Little remained of all his
labours excepting the orchard and cultivated fields. It would not be
easy to describe my mother's feelings as she looked at the desolation
around her, and thought upon the past and the present; but there was no
longer a wish to return to New York. My father's grave was there, and
she looked to it as her resting-place. Not many years since a small
church was built on a plot of ground which my father had reserved for
that purpose; in the graveyard attached are buried two of the early
settlers--my father and my mother. A.H."
* * * * *
The writer of the following paper seems to have been perfectly
acquainted with the subject on which he writes, but is entirely unknown
to the author of this history. The paper appears to have been written
shortly after the decease of Colonel Ryerson, and was enclosed to the
author on a printed slip. It throws much light on the history and
character of the times of which it speaks:
"_Last of the Old U.E. Loyalists._
"Died, at his residence, near Vittoria, county of Norfolk, on Wednesday,
the 9th of August, 1854, after a short illness of three days, Colonel
Joseph Ryerson (father of the Rev. Messrs. George, William, John,
Egerton, and Edwy Ryerson), in the ninety-fourth year of his age.
"Colonel Ryerson was born near Paterson, New Jersey, about fourteen
miles from the city of New York, the 28th of February, 1761. His
ancestors were from Holland; he was the seventh son; he lost his father
in childhood. At the breaking out of the American revolution, two of the
brothers entered the British army. Samuel (father of Mrs. Harris, Eldon
House, London) was nine years older than Joseph, and was the first in
that part of the country to join the Royal standard. On arriving at New
York, he was informed by the British commander that if he would raise
sixty men he would receive a captain's commission. He returned to his
native place, and raised the complement of men in a few days. Joseph,
who was then only fifteen years of age, entered the army the 6th of May,
1776, as a cadet. He was too small and weak to handle a musket, and
received a light fowling-piece, with which he learned the military
exercise in a few days. In the course of a few months an order was
received to embody a portion of these New Jersey volunteers into a corps
of Light Infantry, to go to the South to besiege Charleston. Joseph
Ryerson was one of the 550 volunteers for this campaign. When Colonel
Ennis (the Inspector-General of the troops at New York) came to Joseph
Ryerson, he said, 'You are too young and too small to go.' The lad
replied, 'Oh! sir, I am growing older and stouter every day.' The
colonel laughed heartily, and said, 'Well, you shall go then.' These
Light Infantry volunteers were attached at different times to different
regiments; and Mr. Ryerson was successively attached to the 37th, 71st,
and 84th Regiments. Such was the hard service performed by these Light
Infantry volunteers, that out of 550 men, rank and file, exclusive of
officers, only eighty-six of them returned, three years afterwards,
after the evacuation of Charleston.
"The Light Infantry corps having been broken up, the few remains of the
men composing it returned to the regiments out of which they had
volunteered. About eighteen months after leaving New York, before he was
seventeen years of age, Mr. Ryerson received an ensign's commission, and
he was, in the course of a year, promoted to a lieutenancy in the Prince
of Wales' Regiment. His first commission was given him as the immediate
reward of the courage and skill he displayed as the bearer of special
despatches from Charleston, 196 miles into the interior, in the course
of which he experienced several hairbreadth escapes. He was promoted to
his lieutenancy for the manner in which he acquitted himself as the
bearer of special despatches by sea to the north, having eluded the
enemy in successive attacks and pursuits. He was in six battles, besides
several skirmishes, and was once wounded. At the close of the war in
1783, he, with his brother Samuel, and many other Loyalists and
discharged half-pay officers and soldiers, went to New Brunswick, where
he married in 1784, and settled and resided in Majorville, on the River
St. John, near Fredericton, in 1799, when he removed to Upper Canada and
settled in Charlotteville, near his brother--they both having drawn land
from the Government for their services.
"While in New Brunswick he was appointed captain of militia; on his
arrival in Canada he was appointed major, and a few years afterwards
colonel. On the organization of London district in 1800 (including the
recent districts of Talbot, London, Brock, and Huron), he was appointed
high sheriff--an office which he resigned, after a few years, in favour
of his son-in-law, the late Colonel Bostwick, of Port Stanley.
"During the late war with the United States, in 1812, Colonel Ryerson
and his three eldest sons took an active part in the defence of the
country. He was for many years a magistrate and Chairman of the Quarter
Sessions; but he would never accept of any fees as a magistrate.
"Some ten years since he resigned whatever offices he held. In 1850 he
lost his wife, aged eighty-four years--a woman of sound understanding
and rare excellence. He continued healthy and vigorous to the
last--having the Friday before his decease rode several miles, and
walked from Vittoria to his own house--a distance of nearly two
miles--after which he conversed with much animation and cheerfulness.
"Shortly after his attack on Sunday night, he expressed his belief that
he should not recover, and stated his entire trust in God, through the
merits of Jesus Christ, in whom he felt that he had good hope of eternal
life.
"His funeral was attended by a large concourse of people--especially of
the old inhabitants. Six of his old neighbours acted as
pall-bearers--namely, Colonel Potts, F. Walsh, Aquilla Walsh, Abner
Owen, Joseph Culver, and S. Ellis, Esquires--whose joint ages amounted
to almost 400 years. The Scripture lesson was read, and prayers offered
up at the house by the Rev. Mr. Clement, Wesleyan minister; and the
service was read at the grave by the Rev. George Salmon (an old friend
of the family), in the absence of the Rev. Mr. Evans, rector of
Woodhouse, to the erection of the church of which rectory Colonel
Ryerson had been the largest contributor.
"Colonel Ryerson is probably the last of the old United Empire Loyalists
in Canada who joined the British army in 1776--a race of men remarkable
for longevity and energy, and a noble enthusiasm for British
institutions."[140]
_Interesting piece of Local History by the Rev. Dr. Scadding._
"NIAGARA, Aug. 3rd, 1861.
"DEAR SIR,--
"I have deferred acknowledging the circular announcing your intended
work on the U.E. forefathers of the Canadian people, until now, from not
having had before a moment of leisure to prepare the contribution which
I intended to offer for your acceptance and use. I only hope that my
delay may not have rendered the communication too late.
"Such a work as that which you propose to bring out is a desideratum,
and cannot fail to be interesting, and increasingly so as years roll on.
I am glad that you have been moved to this undertaking, as I feel sure
that it will be executed with vigour and thoroughness, in a patriotic
spirit, and with a real affection. Our neighbours in the United States
have long since seen the propriety of collecting and permanently
recording the otherwise rapidly evanescent memorials of their past. The
volumes put forth by their Historical Societies and State Government and
by individuals amongst them, on this subject, possess extraordinary
interest not only for United States' citizens, but also for the general
reader, and particularly for the inhabitants of the existing British
North American Colonies. I have often wished that we could have for
Canada some such publication as Lossing's Field Book of the Revolution,
to preserve for the eye, by woodcuts worked into the text, sketches and
plans of historic places and buildings as they were in their primitive
state--objects which, in a country like this, from the perishing nature
of materials in many instances, from the levelling of streets,
straightening of roads, railway excavations, esplanades, building and
other processes and causes, are being so rapidly obliterated.
"As you invite information in regard to early settlers generally, I have
thought it simply a duty to send some memoranda--which I hope may be
deemed not unworthy of use--respecting my father, whom I have supposed
you might, perhaps, find an occasion of noticing in connection with a
mention of Whitby, in a note or otherwise.
"I am, dear Sir,
"Very truly yours,
"H. SCADDING."
"The Rev. Dr. Ryerson."
"This town was, at its commencement, about the year 1819, named Windsor,
by its projector, Mr. John Scadding, the original grantee of a thousand
acres in this locality. On a natural harbour of Lake Ontario, popularly
known as 'Big Bay,' Mr. S. laid out the town, built the first house, and
named the streets, three of them, after his three sons--John, Charles,
and Henry. The appellation 'Windsor' had no reference to the
world-renowned royal residence, but to a very humble property so
designated, once possessed by Mr. S. in the parish of Luppitt, in
Devonshire, from which neighbourhood, viz., Dunkeswell, he first
emigrated to Upper Canada in 1793. Before this transplantation, his
family, with numerous kith and kin, had had their home in these old
Wessex regions for many a generation. Local registries, tombstones, and
other records constantly exhibit the name, which will also be found in
the minute Ordnance maps of England, attached to a small hamlet in the
vicinity of Wellington, in the closely adjoining county of Somerset.
Through the instrumentality of Governor Simcoe, to whom he was
personally and in the most friendly manner known in Devonshire before
his emigration, Mr. S. was also the owner and first cultivator of a
section of land watered through its whole length by the River Don, from
the second concession to the lake's edge, in the township of York. It
was while putting off trespassers on a portion of this last-mentioned
property, which is now to a great extent included within the limits of
the city of Toronto, but which was at the time, for the most part, in
its primitive natural state, that he was, at the age of seventy,
unfortunately killed by the falling of a tree in 1824. His widow, Mrs.
Melicent Scadding, survived until 1860, attaining the age of
ninety-three years. In 1854, the town of Windsor was incorporated by the
Act of Parliament 18 Vic., c. 28, on which occasion its name was changed
to 'Whitby,' ambiguities and inconveniences having arisen from the
existence of another Windsor on the Detroit river."
_Loyalty and Sufferings of the Hon. John Munroe, of Fowlis._
"Born in Scotland, in 1731; came to America in 1756; married in Albany
Miss Brower, of Schenectady, in 1760; lived at Matilda, U.C., and died
at Dickenson's Landing in October, 1800, aged sixty-nine.
"During the revolutionary war he resided near Fort Bennington, where he
possessed considerable property, which was confiscated by the United
States' Government. He was captain in Sir John Johnston's regiment, and
his son Hugh was a lieutenant. The appended certificates state his
services, sufferings and merits."
The above summary statement, and the following certificates, were
enclosed to the writer of this history several years since by a son of
Captain Munroe, who held several situations in Upper Canada, such as
judge, sheriff, etc.
_Brigadier-General Allen Maclean's Certificate._
"I do hereby certify that the bearer hereof, Captain Munroe, was the
first man that joined me at New York, on the 3rd of June, 1775, to take
up arms in defence of his King and country, and that he was of infinite
service to me at that time. That during the time I was engaged at Boston
he remained in and about New York, till my return, when he gave me every
information in respect to the danger of my being taken prisoner; in
consequence of which I divested myself of every military appearance, and
secured my papers, etc., on board the _Asia_ man-of-war, and at the risk
of his life he conducted me upwards of 200 miles through the province of
New York to a gentleman's house near Schenectady, whose son conducted me
up the Mohawk river, on my journey to Canada by way of Oswego, the
communication on all other places being shut up. I do also certify that
Captain Munroe did engage a great number of men to serve his Majesty
against the rebels, and that an information was lodged against him on
that account, and was taken up and tried; that though many of the men
were never able to join the King's troops in Canada, yet numbers joined
Sir John Johnston's regiment, and others joined the 84th, under my
command; and that in defiance of all the hardships, difficulties, and
dangers he was exposed to, he has ever adhered to the same loyal
principles, notwithstanding he was eighteen months a close prisoner,
mostly in irons; that he made his escape from prison in Albany; was
unfortunately retaken and confined at Esopsus, on the Hudson river, and
would infallibly have been hanged (his sentence having been pronounced)
had he not made his escape; that I am acquainted with Mrs. Munroe and
her family of eight children, which has hitherto been brought up in a
genteel sphere of life; and that I always understood Captain Munroe to
be a gentleman of considerable property in the province of New York, and
as an officer always behaved with becoming spirit and resolution.
"ALLEN MACLEAN,
"Late Brigadier-General in Canada."
_Captain Duncan Campbell's Certificate, Late of the 84th Regiment._
"I do hereby certify, that I have been well acquainted with Captain John
Munroe, late of the King's Regiment, of New York, for many years, while
he followed the mercantile way of business in America's last war, and
ever since; that he always bore the character of an honest and
respectable gentleman amongst his numerous acquaintances. I also knew
him to be a zealous friend to the interest of his King and country, and
that he and his family have suffered the greatest cruelties by the
rebels, and the loss of all his property. I also know that he laid a
permanent foundation for his family in the province of New York by his
indefatigable industry; that I have been different times at his last
place of abode, where I have seen most part of the improvements he had
made, though at that time in a manner beginning, where he had an
excellent dwelling-house, a saw and grist mills, with other
improvements.
"That I know him to have a very large family, and a thriving and growing
property in the county of Albany, and province of New York.
"DUNCAN CAMPBELL,
"Late Captain of the 84th Regiment.
"No. 8 Fley Market, St. James."
_General Tryon's Certificate._
"I do certify that I know Captain Munroe, during the time that I was
Governor of the Province of New York, to be an active magistrate; that
in the year 1776, at the period I was on board the _Duchess of Gordon_,
he came from his place of abode, two hundred miles through the rebel
posts, on the Hudson river, and with difficulty got on board, when he
informed me of several particulars relative to the situation of the
rebel armies, and the preparations they were making for defence in the
highlands.
"He also communicated to me his distress for want of money to pay the
recruits he had engaged for General Maclean's regiment, on which I
advanced him such a sum as he thought he could carry with safety. About
that time a packet arrived from England, which brought dispatches for
the Bishop of Quebec. These I requested he would take charge of, and
forward them with diligence and secrecy. To facilitate this business, I
offered him fifty pounds to defray the expense thereof. He took charge
of the dispatches, which I heard were safely delivered, though he
declined accepting the fifty pounds. Such conduct, and his indefatigable
diligence to forward his Majesty's service, merits the attention of
Government, particularly as he has lost his property and suffered
imprisonment in the royal cause.
"WM. TRYON,
"Upper Grosvenor St., 14th February, 1785."
SUFFERINGS OF THE U.E. LOYALISTS DURING THE REVOLUTIONARY
WAR--VINDICATION OF THEIR CHARACTER--THEIR PRIVATIONS AND SETTLEMENT IN
CANADA.
_A Letter from the late Mrs. Elizabeth Bowman Spohn, of Ancaster, County
of Wentworth, dated July 3rd, 1861, together with an Introductory Letter
by the Writer of this History, dated February 15, 1875._
"_To the Editor of the Christian Guardian._
"MY DEAR SIR,--
"At the request of the family, I have prepared, and I send you herewith,
a brief obituary notice of Mrs. Elizabeth Bowman Spohn, only child of
the honoured and widely-known late Peter and Elizabeth Bowman, near the
village of Ancaster, in the county of Wentworth.
"I here subjoin for publication a remarkable letter which I received
from Mrs. Spohn in 1861, in answer to a circular which I sent out to the
United Empire Loyalists of Canada and their descendants, to procure
information and testimonies from themselves as to their early history
and settlement in this country.
"I had long been impressed with the injustice done to the character and
acts of our Canadian forefathers by the partial and often unfounded
statements of American historians and utter neglect of English
historians. I had, in accordance with my own strong convictions and in
compliance with many solicitations, determined to attempt an act of
justice and gratitude to that noble generation of men and women. I have
been favoured with a large number of letters similar to that which
follows, and which will form an interesting Appendix of information and
testimony to any history which may be written of them. I have not been
able to complete my task; but if my life and strength be spared, and if
I can be released from official labours which weigh so heavily upon my
time and strength, I shall be able to complete what I have undertaken
and long prosecuted, namely, contribute something to settle many
unsettled and disputed facts of American and Canadian history, and to
do, at least, a modicum of justice to a Canadian ancestry whose heroic
deeds and unswerving Christian patriotism form a patent of nobility more
to be valued by their descendants than the coronets of many modern
noblemen.
"The following letter is founded on the testimony of those who were
incapable of knowingly perverting the truth in any particular, and tends
to prove and illustrate, by its artless statements, the true
disinterested loyalty and Christian patriotism of those who adhered to
British connection in the American revolution; their cruel treatment
from the professed friends of liberty; their privations, sufferings,
courage, and industry in settling this country; or who, as it is
beautifully expressed in the following letter, 'with their hoes planted
the germ of its future greatness.'
"Yours very faithfully,
"E. RYERSON.
"Toronto, February 15, 1875."
"ANCASTER, July 23rd, 1861.
"REV. AND DEAR SIR,--
"I have long wished some person would give the world a true history of
that much-traduced and suffering people, the U.E. Loyalists; and I
assure you that when your circular came I was greatly rejoiced to learn
that they would at least get justice from such an able source as
yourself; and if the plain narrative of the sufferings of my forefathers
will assist you in the least in your arduous and praiseworthy
undertaking, I will be exceedingly gratified.
"My great-grandfather emigrated from Germany in the reign of Queen Anne.
He settled near the Mohawk river, at a creek that still bears his name
(Bowman's Creek). My grandfather, Jacob Bowman, joined the British army
in the French war; at the conclusion of peace he was awarded 1,500
acres of land on the Susquehanna river, where he made improvements until
the revolutionary war broke out. The delicate state of my grandmother
obliged him to remain at home, while nearly all that remained firm to
their allegiance left for the British army.
"He was surprised at night, while his wife was sick, by a party of
rebels, and with his eldest son, a lad of sixteen years of age, was
taken prisoner; his house pillaged of every article except the bed on
which his sick wife lay, and that they stripped of all but one blanket.
Half an hour after my grandfather was marched off, his youngest child
was born. This was in November. There my grandmother was, with an infant
babe and six children, at the commencement of winter, without any
provisions, and only one blanket in the house. Their cattle and grain
were all taken away.
"My father, Peter Bowman, the eldest son at home, was only eleven years
old. As the pillage was at night, he had neither coat nor shoes; he had
to cut and draw his firewood half a mile on a hand-sleigh to keep his
sick mother from freezing; this he did barefooted. The whole family
would have perished had it not been for some friendly Indians that
brought them provisions. One gave my father a blanket, coat and a pair
of mocassins. A kind squaw doctored my grandmother, but she suffered so
much through want and anxiety that it was not until spring that she was
able to do anything. She then took her children and went to the Mohawk
river, where they planted corn and potatoes; and in the fall the
commander of the British forces at Niagara, hearing of their destitute
situation, sent a party with some Indians to bring them in. They brought
in five families: the Nellises, Secords, Youngs, Bucks, and our own
family (Bowman), five women and thirty-one children, and only one pair
of shoes among them all. They arrived at Fort George on the 3rd of
November, 1776; from there they were sent first to Montreal, and then to
Quebec, where the Government took care of them--that is, gave them
_something to eat_ and barracks to sleep in. My grandmother was exposed
to cold and damp so much that she took the rheumatism, and never
recovered.
"In the spring of 1777 my father joined Butler's Rangers, and was with
Colonel Butler in all his campaigns. His brother, only nine years old,
went as a fifer.
"But to return to my grandfather, Jacob Bowman: his captors took him and
his son to Philadelphia, where he was confined in jail eighteen months.
An exchange of prisoners then took place, and they were sent to New
York; from there he, with his son and Philip Buck, started for their
homes, not knowing that these homes they never would see again, and that
their families were far away in the wilds of Canada. The third evening
after they started for their homes, they came to a pond, and shot some
ducks for their supper. The report of their guns was heard by some
American scouts, who concealed themselves until our poor fellows were
asleep, when they came stealthily up and fired. Six shots took effect on
my uncle, as he lay with his hat over his ear. Five balls went through
it, and one through his thigh. My grandfather and Buck lay on the
opposite side of the fire. They sprang into the bushes, but when they
heard the groans of my uncle, grandfather returned and gave himself up.
Buck made his escape. They then marched off, carrying the wounded boy
with them.
"They were taken to the nearest American station, where grandfather was
allowed the privilege of taking care of his wounded son. As he began to
recover, grandfather was again ordered to abjure the British Government,
which he steadfastly refused to do. He was then taken to Lancaster jail,
with Mr. Hoover. They were there fastened together by a band of iron
around their arms, and a chain with three links around their ankles, the
weight of which was ninety-six pounds; and then fastened by a ring and
staple to the floor. In that condition they remained either three years
and a half or four years and a half, until the flesh was worn away and
the bones laid bare four inches.
"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 serve in 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, and _hanged_,
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 the logs 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's _hog-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:
[Footnote 139: This must be the grandfather of General W. Fenwick
Williams, of Kars.]
[Footnote 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.)]
CHAPTER XLII.
GOVERNMENTS OF THE BRITISH PROVINCES--NOVA SCOTIA.
To the painful narrative given 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 Scotia_ is 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 and Maryland; 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 ball at 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 exodus of 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:
[Footnote 141: General Description of Nova Scotia. Printed at the Royal
Canadian School, 1825, p. 13.]
[Footnote 142: General Description of Nova Scotia, p. 17.]
[Footnote 143: Bourne's Our Colonies and Emigration, pp. 100, 101.
"The proclamation inviting emigrants to Nova Scotia _guaranteed 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 Trade
_advised_ the 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 to _order
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.)]
[Footnote 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._]
[Footnote 145: Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap, li., p.
239.]
[Footnote 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.)]
[Footnote 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.)]
[Footnote 148: In 1829, Cape Breton was restored to Nova Scotia, of
which it now forms a part.]
CHAPTER XLIII.
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 excellent _History 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, Colonel _Thomas Carleton_
(brother to Sir _Guy 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 Governor and 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 Justice
_Ludlow_ had been a judge of the Supreme Court of New York; _James
Putman_ was 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; Judge _Joshua Upham_, a graduate of Harvard, abandoned the Bar
during the war, and became a colonel of dragoons; Judge _Israel Allen_
had been colonel of a New Jersey Volunteer corps, and lost an estate in
Pennsylvania through his devotion to the Loyalist cause; Judge _Edward
Winslow_, nephew of Colonel _John Winslow_, who executed the decree that
expelled the Acadians from Nova Scotia, had attained the rank of colonel
in the Royal army; _Beverley Robinson_ had raised and commanded the
Loyal American Regiment, and had lost great estates on Hudson river;
_Gabriel G. Ludlow_ had commanded a battalion of Maryland Volunteers;
_Daniel Bliss_ had been a commissary of the Royal army; _Elijah Willard_
had taken no active part in the war; _William Hagen_ and _Guildford
Studholme_ were settled in the province before the landing of the
Loyalists; Judge _John 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 of _St. 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 munificence which 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:
[Footnote 149: Chap. xxvi., pp. 260-262.]
CHAPTER XLIV.
PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND.
_Prince Edward Island_ was 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:
[Footnote 150: Bourne's "Our Colonies and Emigration," Chap. viii., p.
105.]
CHAPTER XLV.
LOWER CANADA.
_Lower Canada_ was 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, of _representative 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 to them
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 the province 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 throughout Canada 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 the _Habeas Corpus_ Act, and the _trial by jury_
in civil cases, and obtained full 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. The _Habeas Corpus_ Act 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 of _Upper Canada_ amounted to only
10,000 inhabitants, and that of _Lower Canada_ to 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, _Upper_
and _Lower Canada_, the division line between which was the River
Ottawa.
For each province a Legislature was established consisting of a
_Governor_, a _Legislative Council_ and _House 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 a _representative_ form of government in 1791.
It has been seen that _the representative_ form of government was
obtained both for _Nova Scotia_ and _New Brunswick_ by the
representation and influence of the _United Empire Loyalists_; it was so
in Canada. Thus are we indebted to the _United Empire Loyalists_ not
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-Governor made 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 eight _Bills_ were
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 or proceedings
of any of the colonies, except in so far as may be necessary to
illustrate the history of _the 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 the _Loyalists'_ 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 Militia laws, 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 and safety 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 terms _the
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 they saw 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 zealous endeavours 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, the support 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, without the 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:
"Having experienced for many years your lordship's mild and auspicious
administration of his Majesty's Government, and being aware that during
that period the resources, prosperity, and happiness of this province
have increased in a degree almost unequalled, we, the inhabitants of the
city of Quebec, respectfully request your lordship to accept our sincere
and most grateful thanks and acknowledgments.
"The length of your residence in the province; the advantages derived to
our society from the example of private virtues shown by yourself and
your family; your lordship's uniform prudent and paternal attention,
under every change of time and circumstance, to the true interests of
his Majesty's subjects entrusted to your immediate care, and that
gratitude which we feel (and must be permitted to repeat), excite in our
minds the warmest sentiments of personal attachment, of which allow us
to tender you the strongest assurance.
"Under these impressions, we view your lordship's intended departure
with the deepest regret; and submitting to your determination to leave
us with unfeigned reluctance, we entreat you to accept our most sincere
wishes for the future prosperity of yourself and all your family."
In the Montreal address we have the following expressions of sentiment
and feelings:
"The inhabitants of Montreal, penetrated with gratitude for the
happiness enjoyed by them under your lordship's administration of the
government of this province during a great number of years, embrace the
present opportunity of your intended departure for Great Britain to
entreat you to receive their humble acknowledgments and accept their
most sincere wishes for your health and prosperity, and for that of all
your family.
"The prudence and moderation which distinguished your conduct in the
province assured internal peace and tranquillity, and in reflecting
infinite honour on your lordship, have fully justified the confidence
reposed in you by our august Sovereign, and assured to you the
affections of the inhabitants."
The grateful and affectionate answers of Lord Dorchester to both
addresses may be easily conceived. The comparatively happy state of
things indicated by these addresses continued, with interruptions, for
about ten years after Lord Dorchester's departure.
Lord Dorchester was succeeded by General Prescott, who became
lieutenant-governor, until he was relieved the 31st of July, 1799, by
the appointment of Sir Robert S. Milnes, who acted as lieutenant-governor
of the province during the ensuing six years, when the senior Executive
Councillor, Thomas Dunn, succeeded to the administration of the government
for two years, until the appointment, in 1807, of Sir James Craig as
lieutenant-governor and commander-in-chief, under whose administration
the reign of discord and strife of race became predominant, with the
natural results which in long years afterwards ensued. These matters,
however, do not come within the province of my history of the Loyalists
of America.
But it is to be observed that though the French had much to complain of,
having scarcely any representation in the Legislative Council, none in
the Executive, and none in the Provincial Board of Education, called the
"Royal Institution," which had the care of education in the
province,[169] and therefore had to depend alone upon their own elected
representatives in the House of Assembly for the protection of their
rights and feelings; yet they evinced a loyalty through all these years,
and through the war of 1812-1815, not excelled by the British
inhabitants of Lower Canada, or of any other colony, notwithstanding the
efforts of French and American emissaries to create disaffection in the
province. A remarkable illustration of the loyalty of the French in
Lower Canada occurred in 1805: "The horrors of the French revolution had
passed by, but Great Britain and France were still engaged in a
desperate war. By land, on the continent of Europe, the French, under
Napoleon I., were everywhere victorious against the countries in
alliance with Great Britain. But England by sea was more than a match
for France; and on October 21st, 1805, won the battle of _Trafalgar_, by
which the French naval power was destroyed. The news of this victory
reached Canada early in January, 1806. The Canadians of French origin
immediately showed that they felt less sympathy for their own race, and
less pride in its military prowess, than gratification at the naval
success of the empire of which they formed a part. They indulged in
patriotic songs, and testified their interest by illuminations and other
modes of rejoicing."[170]
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 151: Bancroft, Vol. VII., Chap. xiv., pp. 157, 158.]
[Footnote 152: "The excitement in England and Canada on the passage of
the Act was, however, only a breeze compared to the storm of indignation
which it raised in the thirteen other provinces when the news reached
them; and there is no doubt but that the passage of this Act was 'the
last drop' which overflowed the cup of colonial patience, and led
directly to the Declaration of Independence." (Tuttle's History of the
Dominion of Canada, Chap, lix., pp. 295, 296.)]
[Footnote 153: "The provisions of the Quebec Act dissatisfied all
parties when they came to be executed. The French majority, being
represented by less than one-fourth of the number of members in the
Council, thought themselves but little better off than when a purely
military government. The English party considered themselves injured
because the trial by jury, in civil cases, had been taken away. The
absence of a representative form of government, and of the privileges of
the _Habeas Corpus_ Act, made them feel that they were denied the rights
of British subjects.
"Nobody being satisfied, and the Governor (Sir Frederick Haldimand,
whose governorship lasted from 1778 to 1785) being very arbitrary,
discontent reigned in the provinces. There were loud complaints, not
only of the Governor's tyranny, but also that justice was not fairly
administered by the judges in the course of law.
"Many persons, on slight grounds, were thrown into prisons, were sent to
England, and at length, 1785, the unpopular Governor demanded his own
recall.
"The English Government saw that steps must be taken to put an end to
the general discontent. But this could not be done without making such
changes as might satisfy the increasing English and Protestant
population as well as the French and Roman Catholics. Nor could such
changes be made on the instant, or without due preparation. Accordingly,
in the first instance, _trial by jury_ in civil cases, and the law of
_habeas corpus_, was introduced into the province (in 1788). Next it was
determined to procure further and more perfectly reliable information
about all its internal affairs, and find out, it possible, the best
modes of removing the causes of complaint.
"Lastly, as a proof of the desire to deal impartially with the King's
Canadian subjects, it was decided to send out, as governor, one who had
rendered himself acceptable to all classes. This was no other than the
popular Sir Guy Carleton, who had been made a peer with the title of
_Lord Dorchester_, who reached Quebec in October, 1786. During the
succeeding five years, until 1791, when he again departed (for a short
time) to England, the Governor did all in his power to mitigate the bad
feelings growing out of the differences of race, creed and language. In
order to procure for the English Ministers the information they needed
about the internal affairs of the province, he appointed Committees of
Inquiry to inquire into all particulars relating to _commerce,
education, justice_, the _militia_, and the _tenure_ of _lands_; to make
full reports upon these; to suggest changes and improvements by which
existing evils might be remedied." (Dr. Miles' School History of Canada,
Chap. v., pp. 181, 182.)
See also Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap. v., p. 322.]
[Footnote 154: It was the discussion on this Bill which produced the
first separation between Fox and Burke. The mind of Burke was excited to
the highest degree by the principles and horrors of the French
revolution, and he had frequently denounced it with the full force of
his lofty eloquence; while Fox had repeatedly expressed his admiration
of the French revolution. When the Canada Bill was discussed in the
House of Commons, Burke commenced his speech by a philippic against the
republican principles of the revolutionary Government of France; and
concluded by declaring that if by adhering to the British Constitution
would cause his friends to desert him, he would risk all, and, as his
public duty taught him, exclaim in his last words, "Fly from the French
Constitution!" Fox said in a low voice, "There is no loss of friendship,
I hope." "Yes," retorted Burke, "there is a loss of friendship. I know
the price of my conduct. Our friendship is at an end." Such a scene
followed as had seldom, if ever, been witnessed in the House of Commons.
Members were veritably affected by such an open rupture between those
two celebrated statesmen and orators. Fox shed tears; and it was some
time before he could sufficiently command his emotions to reply.]
[Footnote 155: This was an under-estimate of the population of both
provinces. Later and reliable authorities estimate the population of
Lower Canada in 1791 at 150,000, of whom about 15,000 were British; in
1763 the population of Lower Canada was estimated at 65,000; the
population had therefore more than doubled during the twenty-seven years
of English rule. Before 1782, the English-speaking Protestant
inhabitants were very insignificant in number; but after 1782 they
increased rapidly, and are estimated at upwards of 15,000, and by some
writers as high as 30,000 in the year 1791. The great majority of them,
besides, were of classes of people accustomed to think for themselves,
also officers and disbanded soldiers belonging to the army, and
emigrants from the British Isles, who came to make homes for their
families in Canada. (Miles' School History of Canada, Part II., Chap.
v., pp. 183, 184.)
It is stated on the best authorities that 10,000 Loyalist emigrants
arrived in what was afterwards designated Upper Canada, during the year
1783; in 1791 the population of Upper Canada is stated to have been
12,000.]
[Footnote 156: "In June, 1786, Sir Guy Carleton, now raised to the
peerage as Lord Dorchester, was appointed Governor-General of all the
provinces, and Commander-in-Chief of all the forces in British America.
He arrived at Quebec on the 23rd of October, and was joyfully received
by all classes, but especially by the Canadians, with whom he was a
great favourite on account of the mildness and justice with which he had
treated them during his former administrations. At the same time there
also arrived a new Chief Justice for Quebec, Mr. Smith, who had been
Attorney-General for New York, but had been forced to leave on account
of his loyalty to the British Crown." (Tuttle's History of the Dominion
of Canada, Chap. lxv., p. 321.)]
[Footnote 157: "The elections came off during June, and the people
exercised their new privilege with prudence and judgment, returning good
men; and although the elections were warmly contested in some places,
everything passed off quietly. There were fifteen English-speaking
members elected, amongst whom were some of the leading merchants, such
as James McGill, Joseph Frobisher, John Richardson and others, whose
descendants are still amongst our leading citizens. Amongst the French
elected were many of the most prominent seignors, such as Louis De
Salaberry, M.H. De Rouville, Philip Rocheblave, M.E.G.C. De Lotbiniere,
M. La Vatrice and others. Altogether, it is generally claimed that the
first Assembly of Lower Canada was the best the province ever had."
(Tuttle's History of the Dominion of Canada, Chap. lxviii., p. 330.)]
[Footnote 158: The French-speaking members nominated Mr. J.A. Parret
(Panet), a leading advocate of Quebec; and the English party nominated
successively Mr. James McGill, one of the most prominent merchants of
Montreal, and William Grant, of Quebec. The feeling was strong on each
side to have in the Speaker a gentleman of their own language; but Mr.
Parret (Panet) was ultimately chosen by a large majority, to some extent
because _he understood and spoke both languages fluently_. This
gentleman occupied the position of Speaker for upwards of twenty years,
and fully justified the wisdom of the first Assembly in electing
him.--_Ib._, p. 330.