6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907 Proclamation, giving express Power and Direction, to his Governour, with the Advice and Consent of his Council, to summon and call General Assemblies, to make, constitute and ordain, Laws, Statutes and Ordinances, for the Publick Peace, Welfare, and good Government of the said Province, as near as might be agreeable to the Laws of England-For which Reasons Your Memorialists have drawn up and transmitted herewith Their most humble Petition to The King, praying his Majesty will, out of his Royal and Paternal Care, of all his Dutifull and Loyal Subjects, in this Province, be graciously pleased to relieve them from the Apprehensions They are under of their Property being endangered, and loosing the Fruits of their Labour; exposed to Ordinances of a Governor and Council, repugnant to the Laws of England, which take Place before His Majesty's Pleasure is known, and are not only contrary to His Majesty's Commission and private Instructions to his said Governour, but we presume equally Grievous to His Majesty's New and Antient Subjects. Your Lordships Memorialists further see with Regret, the great Danges, the Children born of Protestant Parents are in, of being utterly neglected for want of a sufficient Number of Protestant Pastors, and thereby exposed to the usual and known Assiduity of the Roman Catholick Clergy, of different Orders, who are very Numerous in this Country, and who from their own immense Funds, have lately established a Seminary for the Education of Youth, in this Province, which is the more alarming as it excludes all Protestant Teachers of any Science whatever. Wherefore Your Lordship's Memorialists humbly pray that you will be pleased to present, their said Petition to His Majesty-And also pray Your Lordship's Intercession and good Offices in that behalf. And Your Lordships Memorialists as in Duty bound shall ever Pray Montreal January 15th 1774 A committee appointed at a General Meeting (Original) Edwd Wm Gray R. Huntley Lawrence Ermatinger Will Haywood James M'Gill Jas. Finlay Edward Chinn Endorsed:-Memorial of the Kings Ancient Subjects in the District of Montreal to the Earl of Dartmouth. R/ 1st June 1774. SESSIONAL PAPER No. 18 DARTMOUTH TO CRAMAHÉ.1 Lieut. Governor Cramahé WHITEHALL May 4th 1774. SIR, I have received your Letters No. 13 & 142 & have laid them before the King, together with the two Petitions transmitted therewith. The Manner in which the Petitioners have expressed their Wishes is decent & respectful, but I am fully convinced from your Account of the Steps taken to procure these Petitions that it was become highly necessary that the Arrangements for the Government of Quebec should be no longer delayed; And I have the Satisfaction to acquaint you that I did on Monday last present to the House of Lords a Bill for the Regulation of that Government, which is calculated to lay the Foundation for those Establishments that I hope will give full Satisfaction to all His Majesty's Subjects & remove those difficulties with which the Administration of the Government in that Province has been so greatly embarrassed. I am &c DARTMOUTH. CRAMAHÉ TO DARTMOUTH." QUEBEC 15th July 1774. (N° 17). Duplicate. MY LORD! Your Lordship will herewith receive the Minutes of His Majesty's Council of this Province to the End of June last. I am Honoured with Your Lordship's Circular Dispatch of 24 March," and one of the 6th April Numbered 11; The Event, which Your Lordship was pleased to notify in the former, affords great Satisfaction to all His Majesty's Loyal Subjects in this Province; I am extremely Happy in receiving my Royal Master's Approbation of my answer to the Petitioners for an Assembly. His Majesty's old subjects in this Province, tho' collected from all Parts of His extensive Dominions, have in General, at least such as intend remaining in the Country, adopted American Ideas in regard to Taxation, and a Report, transmitted from one of their Correspondents in Britain, that a Duty upon Spirits was intended to be raised here by Authority of 1 Canadian Archives, Q 10, p. 55. 2 Letter No. 13 is that of Cramahé to Dartmouth, of Jan. 19th, 1774, referred to in note 2, p. 495, enclosing the petitions to the King. No. 14 is that of Feb. 3rd, 1774, referred to in note 1, p. 498. 1774. The Quebec Bill was introduced in the House of Lords by Lord Dartmouth, May 2nd, Canadian Archives, Q 10, pp. 79-81. 'Announcing the birth, on Feb. 24th, of Prince Adolphus Frederick, afterwards Duke of Cambridge. See Dartmouth to Cramahé, Q 10, p. 42, expressing approval of his reply to the petitioners for a House of Assembly. 6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907 Parliament, was a principal Cause of setting them upon petitioning for an Assembly, and endeavouring to engage their Fellow Subjects to join therein. Some of the Committee, with whom I conversed this Spring upon the Subject, acknowledged the Irregularity of their Assembling without the Consent, or Approbation of the King's Governor, that it was an ill example shewen to their Fellow Subjects, whom it was their Interest, if it were only upon Account of their great Superiority in Point of Numbers, to see continue in those Habits of Respect and Submission to which they had been accustomed, and, upon my stating these and some other Reasons in the strongest Manner I could, promised not to engage again in such a Business; From the Temper they seem to be in at present, and the tractable Disposition of the Canadians, I am Hopefull, they will wait with Patience, until an Opportunity offers for perfecting those Arrangements, they have been made to expect, and which in certain Cases are much wanted, and therefore much to be desired.1 PETITION OF FRENCH SUBJECTS. A Petition of divers of the Roman-Catholick Inhabitants of the Province of Quebeck to the King's Majesty, signed, and transmitted to the Earl of Dartmouth, his Majesty's Secretary of State for America, about the Month of December, 1773, and presented to his Majesty about the Month of February, 1774.2 Au Roy. 'SIRE, Vos très-soûmis et très-fidéles nouveaux sujets de la province 'de Canada prennent la liberté de se prosterner au pied du throne, pour y 'porter les sentiments de respect, d'amour, et de soûmission dont leurs 'cœurs sont remplis envers votre auguste personne, et pour lui rendre de très'humbles actions de grace de ses soins paternels. 'Nôtre reconnoissance nous force d'avouer que le spectacle effrayant 'd'avoir été conquis par les armes victorieuses de vôtre Majesté n'a pas 1 The remainder of the despatch refers only to Indian affairs and hence is omitted. 2 This petition, which does not appear among the State Papers, together with the translation of it and the memorial which follows, are taken from Maseres' "An Account of the Proceedings" &c. pp. 112-131. Concerning this Maseres says, "It is easy to see that the foregoing petition of the aforesaid French inhabitants of Canada has been made the foundation of the act of parliament above-recited." (The Quebec Act) p. 131. SESSIONAL PAPER No. 18 'longtems excité nos regrets et nos larmes. Ils se sont dissipés à mesure que 'nous avons appris combien il est doux de vivre sous les constitutions sages 'de l'empire Britannique. En effêt, loin de ressentir au moment de la 'conquête les tristes effêts de la gêne et de la captivité, le sage et vertueux 'Général qui nous a conquis, digne image du Souverain glorieux qui lui 'confia le commandement de ses armées, nous laissa en possession de nos 'loix et de nos coûtumes. Le libre exercice de nôtre religion nous fût 'conservé, et confirmé par le traité de paix: et nos anciens citoyens furent 'établis les juges de nos causes civiles. Nous n'oublirons jamais cet excès 'de bonté ces traits généreux d'un si doux vainqueur seront conservé pré'cieusement dans nos fastes; et nous les transmettrons d'âge en âge à 'nos derniers neveux.-Tels sont, Sire, les doux liens qui dans le principe 'nous ont si fortement attachés à vôtre majesté liens indissolubles, et qui 'se resserreront de plus en plus. 'Dans l'année 1764, votre Majesté daigna faire cesser le gouvernement 'militaire dans cette colonie, pour y introduire le governement civil. Et dès l'époque de ce changement nous commençames à nous appercevoir des 'inconvenients qui résultoient des loix Britanniques, qui nous étoient 'jusqu'alors inconnües. Nos anciens citoyens, qui avoient réglé sans frais 'nos difficultés, furent remerciez cette milice qui se faisoit une gloire de 'porter ce beau nom sous vôtre empire, fût supprimée. On nous accorda à 'la vérité le droit d'être jurés : mais, en même tems, on nous fit éprouver 'qu'il y avoit des obstacles pour nous à la possession des emplois. On 'parla d'introduire les loix d'Angleterre, infiniment sages et utiles pour 'la mére-patrie, mais qui ne pourroient s'allier avec nos coûtumes sans 'renverser nos fortunes et détruire entiérement nos possessions. Tel ont 'été depuis ce tems, et tels sont encore, nos justes sujets de crainte ; tem'pérés néanmoins par la douçeur du gouvernement de vôtre Majesté. 'Daignez, illustre et généreux Monarque, dissiper ces craintes en nous 'accordant nos anciennes loix, priviléges, et coûtumes, avec les limites du 'Canada telles qu'elles étoient cy-devant. Daignez repandre également 'vos bontés sur touts vos sujets sans distinction. Conservez le titre glorieux 'de Souverain d'un peuple libre. Eh! ne seroit-ce pas y donner atteinte, 'si plus de cent milles nouveaux sujets, soumis à vôtre empire, étoient 'exclus de vôtre service et privés des avantages inestimables dont jouissent 'vos anciens sujets ?-Puisse le ciel, sensible à nos priéres et nos vœux, faire 'joüir vôtre Majesté d'un regne aussi glorieux que durable! -Puisse cette 'auguste famille d'Hanovre, à laquelle nous avons prêté les sermens de 'fidélité les plus solemnels, continuer à regner sur nous à jamais ! 'Nous finissions en suppliant vôtre Majesté de nous accorder, en com'mun avec ses autres sujets, les droits et priviléges de Citoyens Anglois. 'Alors nos craintes seront dissipées : nous filerons des jours sérains et tran 1 See, however, the proclamations of Amherst and Murray, pp. 38 & 42. For the basis of this change and the circumstances attending it, see Ordinance of Sept. 17th, 1764 and the notes thereon; p. 205. |