6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

PRESENTMENTS OF THE GRAND JURY OF QUEBEC.1

Presentments of Oct' Sessions made at a Continuance thereof by Adjournment held at the Sessions house in the City of Quebec the 16th Oct 1764 by the Grand Jury in, and for the said District represent.

1. That the Great Number of inferior Courts establish'd in this province with an intention to administer Justice are tiresome litigious and expensive to this poor Colony as they very often must be attended with the disagreeable necessity of appeals and of course of many exorbitant fees.

2d The Great number appointed Justices of the Peace out of so few men of Character legally qualified, and fit to be trusted with determining the liberty and property of his Majesty's Subjects to serve their Country as Jurors, is Burthensome and not practised in other Infant Colonys like this. It can answer no good end, to waste mens time, in attending on Courts where no man is upon the Bench qualified to explain the Law, and sum up the Evidences to the Jury, to prevent its being misled by the Barristers.

4. That in the Southern Colonies, where men qualified to serve the publick are scarce, there are no Jurys calld but when the Chief Justice of the province presides, therefore neither the Lives nor Libertys of his Majesty's Subjects, nor any property above the value of 3£ Sterls are left finally to the decision of the Justices of the Peace, and for the easy and speedy dispatch of Justice there are Annually held three Courts of Common pleas and Two of Sessions or assizes, where Jurys are summon'd in Rotation from the different parts of the province and return'd by Ballots, Yet we are of opinion from the present state of this Colony it would be reasonable to Authorize any three of his Majesty's Justices of the Peace finally to determine the fate of any sum not exceeding Ten pounds without Jury or appeal.

5. We represent also as a very great grievance that the market places are converted into Hutts, Stalls &c. for Nurserys of Idlers, who would out of Necessity be employ'd in several Branches of Industry, such as Fishing Farming &c if not permitted contrary to good policy to occupy and infest the publick Ground.

6. Giving away and turning the Kings Batterys Docks and Wharfs into private property, or suffering them to be so occupy'd, are great Grievances to the Inhabitants of this province.

7. We recommend the exertion of the Laws of the Mother Country for the due observance of the Sabbath that the same may not longer be profaned, by selling, buying keeping open shops, Balls, Routs, Gaming or any other Idle Divertions, for the better accomplishing of which, a Learned Clergyman of a moral and exemplary Life, qualified to preach the Gospel in its primative purity in both Languages would be absolutely necessary. 8. From the sense of the nature of Oaths administred to Jurys as also of the consequences of the matters that may occur for discussion, We in

1 Canadian Archives; Dartmouth Papers, vol. 1, p. 29. It will be observed that the criticism is largely directed against certain features of the Ordinance of Sept. 17, 1764.

SESSIONAL PAPER NO. 18

Justice to Ourselves and our fellow subjects, are resolved never more to sit as Jurors at any Court where some man sufficiently versed in the Law does not preside.

9. We represent that as the Grand Jury must be consider'd at present as the only Body representative of the Colony, they, as British Subjects, have a right to be consulted, before any Ordinance that may affect the Body that they represent, be pass'd into a Law, And as it must happen that Taxes be levy'd for the necessary Expences or Improvement of the Colony in Order to prevent all abuses & embezlements or wrong application of the publick

money.

10. We propose that the publick Accounts, be laid before the Grand Jury, at least twice a year to be examined and Check'd by them and that they may be regularly settled every Six months before them, which practice strictly adhered to, will very much prevent the abuses and confusion, too common in these matters.

11. An Ordinance1 pass'd by the Gov' in Council confirming and rendring valid all Decrees of the different military Councils erected in this province before the establishm* of the Civil Law' may be amended by allowing an Appeal to any of the Civil Courts, if the matter decided in any of the Military Courts exceed the sum of Ten pounds.

12. The Ordinance made by the Governor and Council for establishing Courts of Judicature in this province2 is grievous and some Clauses of it, We apprehend to be unconstitutional, therefore it ought forthwith to be amended to prevent his Majesty's Subjects being aggrieved any longer thereby.

13. proper regulations regarding the measurement & quality of Fire wood are wanted as well as the following articles. Vizt

For regulating Carts and Carriages of every kind.

For clearing and keeping clean the public streets Docks and Landing places.

For sweeping Chimnies to prevent accidents by Fire.

For establishing a publick protestant school and a Poor house.

14. For suppressing gaming houses, in particular that of the Quebec Arms kept by John King in the lower Town, which we have been informed has been very particularly countenanced; and which we ourselves present, from our own Knowledge as a notorious nusance, and prejudicial to the Industry and Trade of this City.

15. Also for the preventing for the future any abuses Arising from (and for the amending of) that well intended order for carrying Lanthorns. in the night time, that regular people going about their Lawful Business

1 For this ordinance see "Ordinances, Made for the Province of Quebec, by the Governor and Council &c. Que., 1767." p. 16.

This is the Ordinance of Sept. 17, 1764, given at p. 205.

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

without giving Disturbance to the publick quiet, may not be liable to Imprisonments, by Sentrys serjeants or Officers.

That. Among the many grievances which require redress this seems not to be the least, that persons professing the Religion of the Church of Rome do acknowledge the supremacy and jurisdiction of the Pope, and admit Bulls, Briefs, absolutions &c from that see, as Acts binding on their Consciences, have been unpannelld, en Grand and petty Jurys even where Two protestants were partys, and whereas the Grand Inquest of a County City or Borough of the Realm of Great Britain, are obliged by their Oath to present to a Court of Quarter Sessions or assises, what even appears an open violation of the Laws and Statutes of the Realm, any nusance to the subjects or Danger to his Majesty's Crown and dignity and Security of his Dominions. We therefore believe nothing can be more dangerous to the latter than admitting such persons to be sworn on Jurys, who by the Laws are disabled from holding any Office Trust or Power, more especially in a Judicial Capacity, with respect to which above all other, the Security of his majesty, as to the possession of his Dominions and of the subject as to his Liberty, property and Conscience is most eminently Concern'd.

That. By the Definitive Treaty the Roman Religion was only tolerated in the province of Quebec so far as the Laws of Great Britain admit, it was and is enacted by the 3d Jams 1st Chap 5th Section 8th no papist or popish Recusant Convict, shall practice "the Common Law, as a Councellor, "Clerk, Attorney, or Sollicitor nor shall practice the Civil Law, as Advocate "or proctor, nor practice physick, nor be an apothecary, nor shall be a Judge, "Minister, Clerk or Steward of or in any Court, nor shall be Register or "Town Clerk or other Minister or Officer in any Court, nor shall bear any "office or charge, as Captain, Lieutenant, Serjeant, Corporal, or Antient "Bearer or Company of Soldiers nor shall be Captain, Master, or Governor, "or bear any office of Charge, of or in any Ship, Castle or Fortress, but be "utterly disabled for the same, and every person herein shall forfeit one "hundred pounds; half to the King and half to him that shall sue." We therefore believe that the admitting persons of the Roman Religion, who own the authority, supremacy and Jurisdiction or the Church of Rome, as Jurors,

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is an open Violation of our most sacred Laws and Libertys, and tending to the utter subversion of the protestant Religion and his Majesty's power authority, right, and possession of the province to which we belong.

That so many Gentlemen of the Army and in actual service exercising any Judicial Authority, to be unconstitutional nothing but necessity by the want of a sufficient number of subjects qualify'd for the purpose, can excuse, even in a new Country, such an unwarrantable incroachment on the establish'd maxims of a British Government.

The foregoing Representations of Grievances abuses and nusances, we the Grand Jurors of the District of Quebec, believe it our indispensable duty to make from the nature of Our Oath and charge, and from the informations presented to us, as well as what occurs to our own observations, and do strongly recommend the same for redress to all those who by their Sacred Oath, are bound to redress them.

'As the presentment made by the protestant members of the Jury, wherein the impannelling of Roman Catholicks upon Grand petty Juries, even where two protestants are the parties, is complained of. As this very presentment has been openly & ungenerously used as a handle to set his Majesty's old & new Subjects at varience in this province, we cannot help endeavour to set the public right in this particular in which they have been so grossly imposed on: What gave birth to this presentmt. was the following short, but pithy Paragraph, in the Ordinance of the 17th Day of Sept' last.

"In all Tryalls in this Court all his Majesty's Subjects in this Colony to be admitted on Juries without any distinction:" This is qualifying the whole province at once for an Office which the best & most sensible people in it are hardly able to discharge: It then occur'd to the Jury that was laying a Subjects life, liberty & property too open, & that both old & new Subjects might be apprehensive of the consequence from the unlimited admission of Jurymen His Majesty's lately acquired Subjects cannot take it amiss, that his ancient subjects remonstrate agt this practice as being contrary to the laws of the realm of England, the benefit of which they think they have a right to, nor ought it to give offence when they demand that a protestant Jury should be impannelled when the litigating parties are protestants such

'This document is not dated, but it was evidently prepared some time after the former presentments as it replies to criticisms passed upon them.

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

were the real motives of the Presentment, and we can aver that nothing further was meant by the quotation from the Statute.

That the subscribers of the presentment meant to remove every Roman Catholick from holding any office or filling any public employment is to all intents and purposes a most vile groundless insinuation & utterly inconsistent: Sentiments & intentions such as these we abhor, & are only sorry that principles do not allow us to admit Roman Catholicks as Jurors upon a cause betwixt two protestants; perhaps theirs hold us in the same light in a Case betwixt two Catholicks, and we are very far from finding fault with them, the same liberty that we take of thinking for ourselves we must freely indulge to others.

STATEMENT BY FRENCH JURORS IN REFERENCE TO THE FOREGOING PRESENTMENTS.1

Charrest, Amiot, Tachet, Boisseaux, Poney, Dumont, & Perrault nouveaux Sujets, Grand Jurés dans les districts de Quebec ayant demandés a S. Ece en Conseil la Traduction en François de deux Deliberations faites en Anglois en la Maison du Trois Canons tous les Jurés Assemblée dont une Signée 16me Octre present Mois des requerants ainsi que des autres Jurés et l'autre Signée des Jurés Anciens Sujets entendant l'Anglois seulement; et les ayant obtenües, ils se sont cru obligés de dire le part qu'ils avoient dans les articles qui composent la premiere Deliberation.

Ils commencent par dire qu'avant la Signature de cette Deliberation il y avoit eu Plusieurs Assemblées, ou Il avoit été question de faire Plusieurs Coupons de Representations sur des feuilles volantes et dont les requerants n'ont eu connoissance que d'une Partie et dont Plusieurs entre celles dont ils ont eu connoissance avoient etés abattuës et rejettées par les Requerants que de toutes les feuilles il fût fait un Precis indubitablement, et que lors qu'il fut fait, il nous fût offert pour le Signer sans qu'il nous fût interpreté, mais seulement, lû en Anglois, que sur la Representation qui fût faite par quelqu'uns de nous, afin qu'il nous fût lû, il nous fut repondu que ce precis n'etoit que le Resumé, des Coupons des Articles proposés et Acceptés dans les Seances dernieres et que le Tems pressoit pour les Porter, et que c'etoit fort inutile.

Ils vont donc d'etailler la part qu'ils ont dans ces differents Articles qui composent cette Deliberation.

1 Article. Non seulement nous n'avons eu aucune connoissance de cet Article, mais même nous nous serions opposé de toutes nos forces à cette proposition comme contraire aux Interêt des Colons nouveaux Sujets de S. M. et comme opposé au Sage Arrêt du Gouverneur et conseil qui voyant la necessité d'etablir une Jurisdiction ou les Nouveaux Sujets, pussent trouver an Azile pour y étre jugés, de francois à francois suivant les Usages, Anciens, et dans leur Langue a été encore sollicité depuis par une

1 Canadian Archives; Dartmouth Papers, vol. I, p. 40.