promise that has been held out to them has been evaded, has been contradicted; if they think they have been denied the rights becoming new subjects, if they are uneasy under it-what then? Why, then you will say, "Would you have given those tumultuous fellows assemblies? Have you not assemblies enough in America already? Do you mean to have more assemblies? Under one or other of these pretexts the right of assembling will for ever be denied them. Therefore, Sir, disliking the bill from the beginning to the end, as far as to me it is intelligible, I shall, in the committee, if it reaches the committee, desire to have explained to me those parts which at present are quite unintelligible. I shall also propose to limit the extent of it to something a little more within the idea of the boundaries ever given to Canada, and likewise to limit the duration of the bill, which forms a government such as the world never saw before. The number of persons of whom the council is to consist is not to exceed twenty-three, nor be less than seventeen, who may be Catholics or Protestants, of whom no quorum is necessary, and of whom you know nothing in the world. To see that country put, by a perpetual law, under such a government, is what I cannot consent to, and must beg there to make my stand. If you do not mean to profess that this shall be the permanent constitution of Canada, you must make some limitation to this bill it will then force itself under the consideration of Parliament, and we shall be able, at a subsequent period, to judge of the situation of this province, and how far, in this part of the British dominions, we have something like the British constitution.

As to the government as it now stands, this legislative council seems to me to be the very worst kind of government that can be invented. If it is not the proper time to give an assembly, it is better to let the governor be absolute-better to let him be without a council: he will be responsible; but what have we here? Seventeen or eighteen gentlemen, who may be removed or suspended by the

governor; so that if an act of oppression should come from the Crown, these may be a screen for the governor to excuse and justify him. I hope, Sir, it is unnecessary for me, when I make use of the word governor, to say I do not mean any offence to the particular person invested with that office.(1) I have a personal friendship for him, and entertain as high an opinion of him as any man who hears me can entertain; but this governor may be removed, may be removed to-day, and another individual may go in his room of a different complexion.

With regard to religion, I should like also to ask a question or two. Is the Roman Catholic religion, is the discipline of that church, to be established throughout that country? If it is, I should be glad likewise to know in what situation the bishop will be placed, with the exception of being subject to the King's supremacy, established by the act of the first of Queen Elizabeth. I am not able to quote acts of parliament, especially very old ones; but, if I am not mistaken, all authority derived from the see of Rome is taken away by that act. I should be glad to know also, whether, from this time, all ordinances, all commissions, are to be revoked, annulled, and made void. Are the present English lawyers still to do duty there? Are the men at the

head of the courts of justice - one of whom,(2) with great satisfaction to the province, now exercises the office of chief justice there, and is as able and as amiable a man, as much respected there and beloved by his acquaintance here, as any one of the profession is that gentleman to be taken away, and are you to have Canadian lawyers, or to borrow lawyers from the Continent?

What, Sir, is to be the situation of the British subjects? Many gentlemen have bought large estates in Canada; even large seignories are now held by British subjects. Are they to be entirely subject to French law? Has this been the policy of this country with regard to any other acquisition

(') General Carleton.

(2) William Hey, Esq.

whatever, except one, Minorca ? The Minorcans remain Spanish. Will the Canadians, in that respect, be in the same situation as the Minorcans? When Minorca was attacked, had you one Minorcan who did not join the French? Will the Canadians be less Frenchmen than the Minorcans Spaniards? What temptation do you hold forth to them! How much have you provoked them, even those who are the most amiable, the most respectable! How much do you court them to be disinclined to your government ! Would it not be better, by degrees, to show them the advantages of the English law, and mix it with their own? You have done the contrary: you have taken from the English subject his benefit of the law of England, and you do not offer to the French subject that change of the constitution, which, if introduced in a moderate manner, would have attached him to this country.

I shall not, in the present stage of the bill, trouble you any longer; but I must desire to know, why a subject of this importance is driven off to the last week of May? Was there no other time of the session? Gentlemen are gone into the country; the elections are coming on very soon, and that is another objection. For all these reasons, I find myself, at this time, under the necessity of rejecting a bill, which, if carried into execution, will, I am convinced, tend more to rivet in the Canadians prejudices in favour of French rule, than it will to attach them to the government of England.

Lord North.(1) I am sure, Sir, after what has been thrown out upon this occasion, I should be the last man in the world, though the honourable gentleman has repeatedly called upon his Majesty's ministers to lay down a plan for the government of Canada, to find fault with him for disapproving the plan which is now offered. He will, Sir, exchange forgiveness with me, and excuse me if I do not answer the questions which he has put with so much warmth, and

(') First lord of the treasury, and chancellor of the exchequer.

so pointedly, "Whose bill is this? Is it the bill of the governor of Canada? Is it the bill of the law officers? Is it the bill of the lord chancellor? Is it the bill of the lord president ?" Sir, I apprehend that is a matter of no manner of consequence to this inquiry. It comes down to us a bill from the House of Lords: if the House of Commons shall approve of it as it is, or if they shall think proper to return it with alterations, when it goes from hence to receive the concurrence of the Lords and the concurrence of the Crown, it will be a bill of Parliament. His Majesty's ministers have been led to the proposal of this measure, in compliance with the repeated calls of several members of this House, as well as from the necessity of the case, and after having maturely considered the various opinions of those individuals who were able to give the best light and information upon the subject. Sir, this question has not been delayed from any other desire than that of being fully informed. Information has been sought from all quarters; from the officers of the Crown in Canada, and from the officers of the Crown at home; every person who could give information has been consulted. I do not know that this bill agrees precisely with the opinion of any one of them; but, Sir, this bill, as it was offered to the House of Lords, was the result of the opinion of the noble lord,(1) who offered what he conceived to be the best plan for Canada, the best plan for Great Britain, after considering and weighing every information, and receiving every light he could receive from every quarter.

The honourable gentleman thinks it so improper a bill, that it ought not to be suffered to be read a second time. Sir, if the honourable gentleman really thinks that the state of Canada is so much better than it was, that it ought not to be taken into consideration by the House of Commonsfor this bill, in going through the committee, may receive very material alterations-if the honourable gentleman is of

(') The Earl of Dartmouth, secretary of state for the colonies.

opinion, that Canada is now in such a state of order, that it is better not to proceed to consider this question any further, he is perfectly right in objecting to read it a second time. But I was so struck with the arguments used by the honourable gentleman, in the last session of parliament, to show the necessity of doing something upon the subject, that I certainly shall be of opinion, that we ought to give this bill a second reading, and allow it to go into a committee, to consider and discuss it still further. If the plan sent to us from the House of Lords is not a good one, let us alter it; but by no means let us leave the province of Canada in its present situation.

The first thing objected to by the honourable gentleman is, the very great extent of territory given to the province. Why, he asks, is it so extensive? There are added, undoubtedly, to it two countries which were not in the original limits of Canada, as settled in the proclamation of 1763; one, the Labrador coast, the other, the country westward of the Ohio and the Mississippi, and a few scattered posts to the west. Sir, the addition of the Labrador coast has been made in consequence of information received from those best acquainted with Canada, best acquainted with the fishery upon that coast, who deem it absolutely necessary for the preservation of that fishery, that the Labrador coast should no longer be considered as part of the government of New York, but be annexed to that country. With respect to the other additions, three questions very fairly occur. It is well known, that settlers are in the habit of going to the interior parts from time to time. Now, however undesirable, it is open to Parliament to consider, whether it is fit that there should be no government in the country, or, on the contrary, separate and distinct governments; or whether the scattered posts should be annexed to Canada. The House of Lords have thought proper to annex them to Canada ; but when we consider that there must be some government, and that it is the desire of all those who trade from Canada to those countries, that there should be some government, my opinion is, that if gentlemen will weigh the inconveniences