IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) L ^ // // A 4\^ l/s /a 1.0 I.I 1.25 ■50 US 1^ Mi. Ui i^ IIM 2.0 1.4 1.6 ^^ w^^i '/ Photographic Sdences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14580 ( 716 > 872-4503 \%^ 4?, CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHM/ICMH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions / Institut Canadian de microreproductions histpriques Technical and Bibliographic Notes/Notes techniques et bibliographiques The Institute has attempted to obtain the best original copy available for filming. Features of this copy which may be bibliographically unique, which may alter any of the images in the reproduction, or which may significantly change the usual method of filming, are checked below. 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Additional comments:/ Commentaires suppldmentaires; L'Institut a microfilmd le meilleur exempiaire qu'il lui a 6t6 possible de se procurer. Les details de cet exempiaire qui sont peut-dtre uniques du point de vue bibliographique, qui peuvent modifier une image reproduite, ou qui peuvent exiger ury tlic Court, and declared inadmissible. t Sec Appendix No. 3. 12 " therein recommended that Mr. Laporte should he '* permitted to purchase from Government the said " heach lot, e,vtending to the ordinart/ depth of tw en- " tj/'two feet water, and including all the ground " belonging to the Crown in the lot, aiid that the " said sale should he made on a valuation of the " Commissioner of Crown Lands, to he reported to, *' and approved of hj, His Mz'cellencj/ the Adminis- " trator of the Province.'' Proceedings in this procrastinated business were once more and again delayed by another memorial, addressed, not in the name of the Messrs. Frasers, but in that of the TJrsuline Nuns, to GovL-rnment, containing a proposal of the most extraordinary na- ture, namely, offering, at that advanced stage of the proceedings, to indemnify Mr. Laporte for the im- provements by him made upon the said property, (already ordered by the Crown in the first place to be leased, and finally to be disposed of to Mr. La- porte at an evaluation,) on condition that the Govern- ment should sell the right of property to the j\iessrs. Frasers, although the Crown, to the full knowledge of these parties, was already pledged to Mr. Laporte as above mentioned. By a further Order in Council,* approved of by His Excellency Sir Richard Jackson, (the Adminis- trator of the Government,) the ingenious proposal above stated to have been made by the Ursuline Nuns, but in reality emanating from the Messrs. Frasers, was not accepted of by the Crown ; but it was decreed, that the Government being pledged to Mr. Laporte, the last order made should be carried into effect, and which, to quote the language of the said order, " could he suhstantiallj/ done hy a sale to * fcicc Appendix No. 4. ti J " u " d Me Bai ing gra SW( Sta ^i froi f fur $f tot Ex wo wit in t pur ■it. Bur ma Do as of of Tr wa 91 /. Of 1 an an of A Mc thi ■■;* i 13 should he the said h of twcn- ? (/round that the on of the nortcd to, Adminis- ess were nemo rial, Frasers, t'rnment, nary na- ge of the the im- property, place to Mr. La- Govern- i\J essrs. owlcdge Laportc ed of by dminis- proposal Jrsiiline Messrs. but it idged to carried ;e of the sale to ** Mr, Laporte, the same to be made in conformity " with the said list Order in Council of the eleventh '' dat/ of Mai/, hS4\r In consequence of this Order in Council, the Messrs. Frasers subsequently applied to Sir Charles Bagot, the late Administrator ot the Province, pray- ing His Excellency that no Letters Patent should be granted to Mr. Laporte, until such period as an an- swer should bf; given by Her Majesty's Secretary of State, (Lord Stanley,) to whom they had appealed from the said Orders in Council; and requesting, furthermore, that their memorial should be forwarded to that personage for his approval. 'J'he reply of His Excellency to this application was, that their memorial would be transmitted to the Secretary of State forth- with ; but that their requisition to stay proceedings in Mr. Laporte's case could not be acceded to."* In the meantime the beach lot in controversy was, pursuant to the lastmentioned Orders in Council, surveyed as to the exact number of feet; and esti- mated by the Inspector General of Her Majesty's Domains, appointed by the Crown for that purpose, as to the value of said property, at the sum or price of two thousand one hundred pounds, current money of this Province. Reference was also made to the Trinity Board at Quebec as to the extent of deep water to be given, and Mr. Laporte ordered ' to fur- nish his acceptance of the sale by the Crown to him of the said property^ upon the above specified terms and conditions ,•' Government having refused to grant any delay whatsoever for the payment of the amount of the purchase money, although special application, * The reply of Lord Stanley, Her Majesty's Secretary of State, to tho Memorialists, the Messrs. Frasers, was briefly and significantly this :— " tfiat the prater of their Pttition coxtld not be entertaimd. 14 upon strong grounds, v^as made by Mr. Laporte for such indulgence. There consequently remahied at this time, for the completion and perfection of the said contract of sale between the Crown and Mr. Laporte, simply— the drawing of the precise boundary Ihie between the property so disposed of by Government to Mr. La- porte and that of the Ursuline Nuns, as defined in the plan of Mr. Saxe ; the fixing of the boundaries, or division lines, of the same on the south and on the north, and the extent of deep water upon the entire front of the said beach lot : so as to furnish a com- plete description of property, fit for insertion in the Letters Patent to be given by the Crown to Mr. La- porte, the vendee of the same. These abovementioned necessary preparatory pro- ceedings to the deed of sale, or Letters Patent, being perfected, were also, in virtue of directions given by iter Majesty's Surveyor General to Mr. Adolphus Larue, Deputy Provincial Surveyor, as to the drawing of plans, erecting boundaries, and the establishing of the division lines, likewise eventually performed and «ccomplisheil. The said plans, surveys, setting of boundaries, fixing of division lines, and all and every the proceedings relative to these matters having been so done and executed at the personal cost and expense of Mr. Laporte, as so ordered by the Crown. It would be presumed that, after the lapse of so many years, and at this stage of the proceedings, when the executing of the Letters Patent alone remained to be done to close this transaction, that no further obstacles could possibly exist, or be raised, to prevent Mr. Laporte from becoming the proprietor of the beach lot in question. Yet, more procrastination and delays were in store for that deeply wronged and maltreated individual, -further proceedings in this E X( )orte for for the t of salo ily— the reen the Mr. La- fined in mdaries, d on the le entire a com- on in the Hr. La- ory pro- t, being jiven by i-dolphus drawing shing of ned and siting of nd every ing been expense > ise of so eedings, it alone that no lised, to rietor of tination ?ed and in this 15 business having ceased in consequence of an address from the House of Assembly, during the last Session oF our Provincial Parliament, to His Excellency Sir Charles Bagot, the former Govcrnor-in-chief, founded upon the rej)ort of a Special Committee^ to which a petition, purporting to be on behalf of the Ursuline Nuns, (but in reality coming from the Messrs. Fra- sers,) and addressed to the Lower House, had been referred. The' address^ above alluded to, requested of His Excellency that all further proceedings, in regard to the disposal of the beach lot at L'Ance des Meres to Mr. Lap;)rte, should be stayed and suspen- ded by Government until the next sitting of the Pro- vincial Legislature, and this for the purpose of enab- ling the Committee to report the more effectually to the House upon the merits of the application so made to that body by the Religious Ladies of the Ursulinel Convent. In consequence, therefore, of the beforementloned address on the part of the House of Assembly, the Executive Government, not willing to refuse the re- quest of the House, has declined at this time to pro- ceed further in the matter, although repeated appli- cations, couched in respectful but earnest language^ have been made by Mr. Laporte to the Executive, the same strongly representing to the Crown the in- justice and loss likely to result and be sustained by him in case of such a measure, so injurious to his in- terests, being adopted by Government, — yet, never- theless, in such slate does this long pending affair rest for the present. I ' ', REMARKS. From the preceding statement, vouched for os being, in every respect, a plain and unvarnished narrative of facts, it mu>t he evident tiiat Mr. J. I]. Laporte, the indiviJual whose claims upon Government have heen delayed in the singular and extraordi- nary manner aa just re])resented. originating as it did from the scheming acts and descreditahle efforts uf his ndversaries, in attempt* ing to deprive him of certain property to which they had no right or title whatsoever, must, nccess-arily, have greatly cmharrassed him in his circnmstances — nay more, vvoniil mosta^buredly have reduced him to a state of poverty, if not utter ruin, had not a friendly iiand, with a due regard to his peculiar and dcistitute situation, assisted and relieved him in liis difficultied. The Ursuiine Nuns never did possess, at any time, any title-deeds or other documents of a defcriplion constituting tliem proprietors even of the land ai)ove the cliffs : although the Mestis Fras-ers, (as representing these Religious Ladies,) in virtue of their rights laid claim to the beach lot as liiparian prcprictoi's. These ladies, as a religious community, in conjunction with others of the same order in this country, beii g civilly deail, could only possess and hold properly in virtue of, what is termed in the French language, leitres u'cmoriissoiK vf., or leliers patent from the Crov\ n ; the whole of the property owned by them, in that section of the Province in which they are domiciliated, beii g acquired in viituo of legal titles by pu'chase, exchange, or otherwise, and these con- firmed to them by Royal authority or letters j)atent, issued by the Kings of France lot g pre\i()us to T]rilish doniinion being rxislciit in the country. Yel, the Ursulines Nuns never had titles to such hind ; nor, although ca^es of emeigency required llum to ilo so, did they ever produce them. '1 his therefore purely iniaginary right of Ui- jparian proprietorship, in virtue of which claim was laid to the beach, was consequently exercised by the Messrs. Frasers for the iipecious demands of the Ci Govern ir in questic lint w have not Crown, Messrs. property no lltli'S not the highest property inis iiig Have of tlie ininislra the iMe: reciigni: Lajiortt ance, n The i selves, Kirg's of time believii contest lot in q these p But till l'lUi)h'i o'i beii the lai could and ni but, a Coiivt. thj nii • Si nglill: FlMbt'l tiiin ] CoUcr 17 in every miii-t he e claims exfrnordi- from the > allempt- " no light i?sed iiim e reduced dly hand, siiited uud ille-deeds roprietors Jj-ers, (as rights laid ith others )llld only e Freni h ; Cn)v\ II ; i)n of the in viituo ese con- d hy the sisleiil in c'h hind ; did they It of Jii. 1 to the I for tlio Ipecious purpose of, not only giving a show of right to their iii jiul Remands, but also with a view of defeating the equitable intentidns pf the Crown, in carrying out and completing the original designs of Government towards Mr. Laporte, by a concession of the beach lot in question to that individual. But why at all enter here into disquisition upon such a subject? — have not ably written reports, executed by the law-ollicois of the Crown, already and repeatedly declared that the claims of the Messrs. Frazers (as representing the Ursuline Nuns) to the said properly were and are wholly unfounded and unjust, as possessing no (itU's, and not having even /caniOle riglits to the same I Have not the solemn decisions of Courts of Justice, (one of them the liigliest tribunalin the country,) already recorded that the right of property was entirely vested in the Crown, and overruling and dis* uiis ii.g their pretended < luiins to the said beach lot 1 Have not Muniorous decrees ami orders of the Executive Councils of the Province, approved and sanctioned by the rcspi-ctive ad- ininislrator?:, who signed the same, success^ively decided, anil given the Mi's.'U":^. Frasers to understand, that their claims could not be recdgnised t)r admitted, the Crown being duly pledged to Mr. J. B. Laporte, in his character and right — fnvst, as the <<,'«e. culpidjle of beinir jj.nties to an act made in contravention to the laws of the land, and, morever, odious in the eyes of all courts of justice, could no*, artuated by the sordid s^pirit of avarice whiih influenced and misled them, allow that this pri-perty should elude their grasp; but, as the representatives of the Religious Ladies of the Ursuline Convent, have, not for comnwrcuil, but for speculative pin-poses of the most reprehensible description,* attempted, by the exercise of * Siihseqiicnt to the .Iiul2mciit rendered in Appenl, in the snil of the Crown Rg iiii.l Liip.iito, and ihe Ursuline Niiiis initivei.iiij; pailiis, the Mtssrs. riibcis, liun the repr'senluiives of ihe Nuns by puichase, in virtue of u cer- tiUJi Deed or Insliuniont of Sale, executed befoie one Mire. Piuent niwl Collcni^uc, Notaries rublic at Quebec, on the 4tli day of NovcmlCt, :y ''^^idi they % one WiUianf '^^e 30ti, July "'not:?' ""«' ;;; -"p'"'e S J"s(/ce for ,/,g' f.*^ ^''« .^ame ^'"^» a/so in ' '"; « fo the ■i"**"^^- Frasora |''Prnse/ve3 '^'tej-est la o" be/ja/f I ""^ thnt '^•'' a pro- fith the "">roi;gf, "■' ><7s(e- 'eavoi/r- "Triaru/, "long, "as to "Pporf, I fhey July It is, however, to the Executive Govcrnmout of the Province tliat Mr. L.ipoite looks up for due reilrcss, for ample and long tlolayed justire, and for the full and perfect confirtnation of his rights. Mr. iJ.aporte uas tho first of llor Majr.My'?* suljjccts, in this j),irt of the iProviMce, to discover and make known to Government thnt the jirijtjht of property to all beach lotrf in goncral, on hoth eides of the river St. Lawrence, north and south, wab vc>;led in the Crown nnd that such was situate within its domain. In the case of the Crown , airainst Laporte, the question (then a novel one) as to the rights of Govertuuent in this respect, was originally tried, discussed, and de- termined. In consequence, innumeralile applications, by divers of Her IMiijesty's subjects, have been made since that period to Go- vernment for Letters Patent to beach lots, and the revenues of the Province have been thereby considerably enriched. Yet tingular and imprecedcnted as it may appear, Mr. Laporte is the only party- applicant to whom Letters Patent have not been granted. In the foregoing representation of this peculiar case, it will be seen that no spirit of complaint is in any way manifested against the Government. Yet as a loyal and true subject of Her Majesty, as being in this instance the party sufl'erer, and his interests made the sacrifice, Mr. Laporte would respectfully but firmly represent, that the extreme liberality and (as events have shown) misplaced indul- gence evinced by the Government upwards the Messrs. Frasers, in the course of those proceedings, not only unquestionably gave rise to the delays which have occurred, but also were the cause (indirectly, it may be — but still the cause throughout) of perverting and render- ing ineflTectual and powerless the original intentions of the Crown towards Mr. Laporte, relative to the disposal of the said property. And, further, in return to, and in a notable spirit oi (jrat'ihtde to- wanls Government for past favours, and with a perfect indilFerence as to the consequences of legislative authority interfering with exe- cutive power, have tiie aforesaid and often quoted Messrs. Frasers, to suit private interests and for personal considerations, resorted to the bold, unique, and unprecented measure, lately adopted by them, of summoning to their rescue legislative interference and legislative assistance. Indeed, lo every lover of justice alike with every well-wisher to Government, it must, upon a perusal of these facts, be to a certain extent not only a matter of regret but also a matter of afarm, to remark that individual rights and claims, of the nature of those set forth in the foregoing statement, duly and repeatedly acknowledged and admitted as already stated, should have been, and still remain, subject to delays so fatal to the interests of any subject of Her Majesty, similarly circumstanced. do But Mr. Lnporic, relying as he does with implicit confijence upon tho well known faith of Her Majesty's Government, looks forward, as a special measure and act of justice on the part of the Crown townnls him, to the lionoiirahle fulfilment nnd prompt completion of its etipngi'ments with Mr. Laporte, by granting to iiim a full nnd final confirmation of \m claims and rights as alrcadv ordered and determined by Her Mojestys Government. 5 I I 5 Upon nvnni, Crown plot ion ill nnd ;d and APPENDIX. No. I. PUOVINCR OF I.OWKH CaNADA, Disiuicj OF QuKiii;(;. DoMiNUS Hex, Hn t|)e Bfno*s Henrf), Tlie tweiilieth day of April 1831. No. 1574. f*. .Tkan Baptistk Lapohtr, of tlic Parish of Quebec in the Cuunty of (juebuc, in lliu District of Quebec, Yeoman- And DiiFBNDAM, The siiid Jf.an BAriiSTr. LAronrn, 1'laintiff, engaranlie, vs. The Hclipious Ladies of the Ursulinc Convent, residing in the I'ity of Quebcf, in the County of Quebec* and Iho District of Quebec, in their said Convent. Deff.ndams, en t/arantie and intervening pnrty^ The Court havinpr heard the Attorney General on behalf of our Sovereign Lord the King, nnd Mr. Caron, Attorney for tiic Ursuline Nuns, as gnrants forme'h's of llie above iianud .Iijnn Bnpliste Lnporte, upon the issues raised as V ell upon the excej)tion jurcniptoltc en droit po-jJ-titelle as upon the difensc au foiidn en fait, having also seen and examined the several exhibits and proofs of record, nnd the liguralivc jiliin of Mr. William Saxe, sworn Surveyor, drawn in obedience to the Intiiloiiilory Judu'meut, rendered in this cnut.o on the fourth day of June, one thousand eight hundred aud thirty, nnd filed therein on the second day of October following, nnd having maturely deliberated upon the whole— It is considered nnd adjudged, inasmuch as the tract and parcel of ground and beach mentioned, nnd set forth in the said information of the said Attorney General, nnd described as follows, that is to say : — " A certain tract " or parcel of land, situated in the Lower Town of Quebec, at a place called " L'Ancc dcs Mires, containing five nrpenta, eight feet, French measure, in " front, by about seventy feet and ujjwards in depth, extending to the foot of " Cape Diamond, bounded in front by low water mark, on one side to the " North by land in the possession of Alexander Munn or his representatives^ ♦' on the other side to the South West, by land in the possession of .John Sex- •• ton Campbell, and in the rear by Cape Diamond" forms no part or parcel of the ground sold by one Duquet to the said Ursuline Nuns, by Deed, before Becquet, Notary Public, and witnessos, on the twelfth day of M arch, one thou- sand six hundred and seventy-one, and subsequently confirmed to them by the Intendant, lliatour said Lord the King is the proprietor thereof. And it is therefore further considered and adjudged, that the said Jean Bap- tiste Laporte do, within fifteen days of tlie service upon him of the present Judgment, delist from, quit, and abandon, and after that delay that he bo amoved from the possession and occupation of the tract or parcel of ground nnd beach herein before described, and that the sam. be rendered and de- livered up to our said Lord the King; and it is further considered and adjudged that our said Lord the King do recover his costs from the said John Baptiste Laportc. PEIiRAULT & BURROUGHS, P. B.U. D d*2 vKOTiMci or \9n»R CANADA .1 No. II. Couct o( appeslf. Thu 30th day of July, 1840. Tho UnsuLiNU Nunk of Quebec, ArrELLANTi, and The ArronNEY General, /wo /?«jrma, Respondent. The Court haring heard tho parties by their Couiisul, examined the record and proceedings, and deliberated thereon. It is consiihrod tluit innsmiicli by the report of the survey of William Siixe, referred to in tliu .ludgmcnt uf ihu Court below, of tho twentieth day of April, ei^Milnea hundred imd thirty one, it appears that there is a space between the Capo Diamond and high water mark in the Uivcr St. Lawrence, which the Crown cannot claim as the soil uf the tide-water, and whereof the Appellants have been leg.illy in possession from time immemorial, under titles which it was not the object of tho infor- mation to try, the Judgment of tho Court below, has, by uwardinff all tho depth of land from low watermark to Cape Diamond, adjudged to the Crown more than ought to have been held and considered as its properly, and tho Judgment of the Court below is therefore in this respect reversed :— And this Court giving the Judgment which tho Court below ought to have rendered. It is adjudged and declared that all tho land between low water mark, of tho premises described in the said Judgment, and the place designated in the plan of William Saxc, therein referred to by a line with the letters ir, h, i, k, 1, and a, as that at which tho tide did rise and would again rise but fur the obstacles ill its way, shall be held to be the property of our Sovereign Lady the Queen, in right of Her Sovereignty, as tho soil of tide-water, and therefore it is eon. sidered that the said Jean Baptisto Laporto, do within flfteen days from tho service of tho present Judgment, desist from, quit and abandon the same, and tliat in default thereof, he be amoved of tho possession and ocenpalion of tho said tract and parcel of land and beaoh, as herein av/arded to Her Majesty in due course of law. The Court awarding no costs to cither party, either in this Court or in tho Court below. And it is ordered that thu Uecord be remitted to the Court belowi Certified, E. DESBAIIATS, C C. A. No. III. Ext»act/;'OOT a Report of a Commillee of the whole Council, dated the nth May, 1841, and apjyroved by the Governor General in Council, nth June, 1841, in so far as the same relates to the Beach Lot at VAnce des Mires, conceded by the Crown to Mr. Jean li. Laportc. " The Committee of Council have had under consideration the several oases referred to, regarding claims to beach lots at Quebec, called L'Ance dea M6rc», and have agreed upon the following Uoport. " The property called L'Ance des Mires is situated on tho River St. Law- rence, above the Mariners' Chapel at Quebec, and extends to Wolfe's Cove above that city. " According to a Report of the Inspector General of the Queen's Domain, it may, in reference to the present proprietors and claimants, be divided into five sections, &c. &c. :— " The third lot or section of the Crown property at L'Ance des Mires, con- sists of 908 French feet in front- It was origiiuilly leased by the Ursuline Nuns to Messrs. Coltman, on the 2lst October, 1808, for 30 years ; the unexpired term of which lease came into the possession of J. B. Laporte, by assignment from Messrs. Coltman in 1816. During the continuance of tliis term, Mr. Laporte being dcoirous of obtaining a renewal of the lease, and iimiing .sumo difficulty with the Ursuline Nuns, inquired into the title, and gave inforinaliou S3 Law- Covu con- Nuns xpired nmcnt Mr. .SUIIIO iiialiou tu Government, which induced Ilcr Mnjesty's Attorney General, to lonimeuco a suit iigiiiaiithim lu the tennnt in po-sseidiun. "Tho Crown chiitned in this suit, not only the beach up to high-water mark, but also from ihoncc up to Ciipc Diamond ; ai) 1 Laportu, ing thus sued, ciilUid upon llic Nuim tvt ((uariintuos of hU title : ti. y intervened la Ihu suit, rliuniiiiK low- water mark ns the boundary of their e:itale. "Judgment in favour of linj Crown, to the full extent of its ciuim, wnsf^iTen in the t;()urlof KiiiK'-t Minih ; n({uiu8l this Judgment tho Ursuliiit- Nunsnp- peulod ; uiul in luly 18 tO, Judgment was given UKninst tho Crown, as regard* ed the ground in rear of hi;;li-water mark, and e.ttabiiiiiiing in favour of ihu Crown its title to the ground between high and low water mark. " It is remarkable, that in the Judgment of the Ctuit of Appeals adopted ns high water mark, a lino ilrawn on a plan nnule by Mr. Saxe, a Deputy Sur- veyor, who was employed to make a liguiativu plan of tho locality for the as- Bislanoe of the Court, whieh line is in fact below tho true high water mark made, and was not intended to establish its exact locality, or supported in the proceedings by any tjvidence, Hhewing that it was a true lino ascertained by actual survey. This line runs in an irregular manner, and cuta through housed and cariins erected on the Cape side of the road to the C'uvca. " The Uisuline Nuns and the Crown have both declared their intention to appeal from this Judgment; but the former having failed to put in the neces- sary security, forfeited their right to appeal, and the Crown has, therclore, tho right III iuaiil upon the Judgment as binding, or, on the other hand, tu appeal from it, and in.sist upon a full extent of its tirst claim. " On the 7lh March, \b'.i9. it was determined, that this lot should be leased, for a term of years, and in consideration of large outlay* made by Mr. Laporte. that he should have the first lease of 2 1 years, on pax ing arrears of rent at £ 10 per annum for eight previous years, and the new rent being £100 per annum, orders were issued to tho Attorney General to prepare this lease, but its com- pletion has been prevented by the following circumstance- " Messrs. J. and J. M. Fiaser, while the huit was in litigation, and after tho first Judgment in favour of tho Crown, procured a grant in perpetuity, from the Ursuline Nuns, of the whole ground to the summit of the Cape, and e.\- t ending from thence to low water nnuk ; thus assuming to acquire u title to the ground in litigation, under colour of authority from the Messrs. Fraser, Mr. Wm. Lampson has taken violent possession of the beach lot within a few days past. The Committee are respectrnlly of opinion that it would bo inex- pedient for the Government to continue the litigation. They also respectfully reiterate their opinion, that the plan of leasing for years is expedient. Tho Committee are further of opinion, that the Government is pledged to Laporto to give him a preference in case of the disposal of the beach lot. *' The Committee are also of opinion, that Messrs. Fraser by assuming to acquire a title to property in opposition to tho ';jhts of tho Ciown, that pio- periy being in litigation, has thereby acquired no claim to the favourable con- sideration of the Government. " They are also of opuiion, that it would bo prudent, to avoid the necessity for all further intervention of the Crown in tho matter of litig;ilioii, to dispose of the property, without guarantee ol title. The Committee, therefore, res- pectfully recommend, that Mr. Laporte be permitted to purchase the beach lot extending to iho ordinary depth of 22 feet water, and including all the ground belonging to the Crown in the lot, without reference to the boundary, but without compromising tho Seigniorial rights of the Crown, on the property held by or under the Ursuline Nuns, and that this sale be made on a valuation of the Commissioner of Crown Lands, to be reported to and approved by your Excellency." Certified, G. H. RYLAND. Montreal, lUli May, 1841. 24 No. IV. Extracts from the Copy of a Report of a Committee of Council of the I'iilh of December^ 1841, approved by His Excellency, the Administrator of the Government, on the Memorial of the UrsuUne Nuns of Quebec. •* The Committee of Council have had under consideration the Memorial of the Society of Ursuline Nuns at Qnebuc, praying the reconsideration of an Older in Council, ajiproved by llis Excellency, the late Governor General, on the lltho:' June, 1»41, rulative to the disposal of a beach lot of land at L\L'/c dcs Mercs at Quebec. " The Committee have had also under considoralion a proposal made by the Hon. Edward Caron, on behalf of the Ladicd of the Ursuline Convent, roiire- senting that they are the guarantees of a title to the premises in question, which title it appears was made by them in i)crpetuity, reserving a rent, the tenants being Messrs. J. &. J. M. Eraser, of (Quebec, and olicring to iiidLmnify jNlr. L.aporte, to whom a lease of the premises was ordered by the Executive Ciovornnient of Lower Canada, in consideration of ceitain improvements, for these improvements, on condition that the Crown would sell its right to the Messrs. Eraser. " In the disposal of the otlier bench lots at L'Ancc dcs ^ feres, the Council were enabled to put an end to all litigation and dispute about boundary, by ordering sales of the beach lots to the p tsous claiming to be Kiverian proprie- tors or holders of the ground immedii.toiy in rear of the hinds of the Crown, forming part of the bed of the river, or on its shore, where the disputed boun- dary was situate ; but in the present case, a lease has been ordered to Laporte, and the land in rear has been, as before stated, conveyed to the 3Iessrs. Eraser by tlie Ursulines, so that it is not in the power of the Government to sell the beach lot to the owners of the land in rear, without invalidating the Order in Council in favour of Laporte." " The Committee in the Order now under re-consideration, finding the Go- vernment under a pledge to give a lease to Laporte, and finding also that by the Judgment of the Court of Appeals, and the act of the Ladies of the Ursu- line Convent, the property unfortunately severed, and the questions of boundary still open, and tenants under the Nuns still insisting upon the right to the land down to low- water mark, and Laporte, or his .assignee, slill insisting on the right to the shore up to the Cape ; bv way of carrying into efl'ect the Order in Council in favour of Laporte, so far as it could be done, and for the purjiosu of leaving the parties interested to contest their own rights without further liti- gation on the part of the Government, advised a sale to Laporte of all the beae'i lot, being the jiroperty of lln' Crown, Mherever its boundary might be found to be ; and the Committee understand the proposal of Mr. Caron, on the part of the Ursuline Nuns, to be made with the object of forcing a compromise Mhich would avoid further litigation, and prevent the severance of the beach lot, bounded by high water-mark from the land in rear, which severance would bo obviously to the detriment of both properties." " l?ut, under present circumstances, the CommiKee do not feel at liberty to cancel the order in favour of Laporte. nr to force him or his assignee to part with any right which they may acquire under ii—i/iri/ tJiink it rii/Zit tJiat the Gorcrmncnt, at least, shoitid be free of all further legal contests : and they sea no (jther means of producinf) this result than hy carrying into eJI'ect the last order, vhich may be sal stantially done by a sale to Laporte, or /tis assignee, of the leueh lot, bounded on the land side by the 2^i'f>l>'^rty of the L'rsuline Nuns or their ten- ants, wheresoever the boundary 7nay happen to be, — the sale to be made iu cou- foruuly with tlxc last Order in Coiiiitii." ?*>^t