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Lorsque le document est trop grand pour Atre reproduit en un seul clichA, 11 est filmA A partir de Tangle supArieur geuche, de geuche A droite, et de heut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'imeges nAcessaire. Les disgrammes suivsnts illustrent la mAthode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 \l »\.- ' m 1 ? ^y, Kii I 1.^1 !|i ■1 .'I UKiTl ■IP ^ . .-.^.^ I RUPERT'S AMERICA ITS HISTORY AND RESOURCES, ENCLOSED WITH A LETTER TO [IS GRACE THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM SECRETARY 01 STATE FOR THE COLONIES BY THE REV. G, O. CORBETT. M. D. LATE MINISTER OF ST. ANDREW S AND HOLY TRINITY. \'^ \ MEDICAL MISSIONARY , &c. (in thete temtorm), t p T / F / ■;> 1863. vi?ws^^8PWS*i ^^ ^~ '. ■'.. ■■■I MAf t ' ' I v: Hi TO His ORACll THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM, Her Majestt's Si.omtary of State for ths Colonixb. My Lord Duke, For several years past I have taken a deep interest in Rupert's Land or the North- West-Indian Territories, and have from time to time transmitted to those in authority by letter, petition or otherwise, the information I have possessed on th» subject. Of late, and since my second return to England, my attention has been in a more especial manner drawn to the affairs in those regions, and as, after much research, 1 have not been able to discover any single work, which gives a lucid and full accoimt of the salient points thereof in a convenient form, aud as I feel that the magnitude of the subject increases in urgency and importance, I have compiled these notes thereon ; and now beg leave most respectfully to enclose them for the perusal and aid of Her Ma- jesty's Ministers in legislating for that country, and would couple therewith my humble prayer that the wrongs of suffering and injured parties may be in* quired into, and redressed, aod that measures may h» early taken which shall alike prevent their recur- rence, and be commensurate with the spirit of pro- gress, and the requirements of that great country. 1 believe, Your Grace, that my notcB nut only 126)37 L ''WjS?fP?'P'> v^' ■hew sufficiently the fertility and mineral value of those regions, and the vast conseqnenoe of opening thiv great Overland route, but that they also dearly demonstrate that the whole of these Territories, both for civil and criminal purposes, are, by Act of Par- liament, exclusively placed under the Queen's Courts •f Siigland and Canada ; and that the present Hud- son's fiay Company simply started on the footin^^ •f a Licensed*" Firm of Trade ; which last expired in 1859 ; and as that Charter or License has not been lenewed, the nctme of the Company exists now with- out even that footing, as an unlicensed firm ; and I also believe Unregistered *, and, therefore, it may be without due bgal security to innocent shareholders, a state of things which is regarded by those who ful- ly comprehend this startling position to be one of great public moment. And from the investigation, I have made. Tour Grace will allow me further to express my belief that, the Hudson's Bay Company could not establish a claim to any proprietory rights in the Soil on the old Charter before a competent tribunal,- not so much as *Iu the Times of November 2nd. 1867, a notice appeared for **a General Court of the Hudson's Bay Company to be held in London on the 19th* insi to elect a Governor and Deputy Governor for the ensu- ing year, in pursuance of the provisions of the Char- ter" ; but there is no Charter in force, the only le-r gal one having expired in 1859» and there has been nu fresh renewal since. alue of opening dearly 38, both >f Par- Courts t Hud- footinf^ expired lot been w with- and I may be iiolders, jho ful- I one of Your iefthat, blish a the old uch as notice [s Bay mt to fiDBU- Char- ily le-: be^n 111 ' a imall slice of laud immediattjly around HiKinon'i Bay, bocauue, "on the coaHts,' "confiueH," "adjacent", i^nd *'within the StraitH", was the lan^uu^e eri)|)loyi.'d in the Charter^, in (w»'n^iug itn limitH, and ihat evnn i^ii» fractional part wa8 expressly laid down tlutrein to be regarded, "an ono of the plantationn or (/olonifg of the ciown" ; and because, atnon^ other roHHotiH, t^e qaeHtion which was raised by the njB[)ectiv<4 claimants thereto was finally settled in 1^21, whrn t^e Crown was autLoriaod under the Act tln'n paHHcd to l^icense, anv Company, person or pernonH to tnide in those parts, and to reserve any section thereof for tlio Qrection of New Colonies at any time it hIiouM deom proper ; anJ the Crown actually did on the renewsd of said lyicenac make reservation for any portion of the territories, as the correspondence which paKHod, shows ; and with the exercise of tliat ri^ht and th.tt condition imposed, the Hudson's Bay Company re- ceived the License without a scruple. If, Your Grace, the Government should think fit to toke any of their posts, buildings or improvemeutti for colonial purposes, compensation would naturally be made to them, in like manner as it would be done to otlier Companies or individuals, who also have their trading establishments in the land. And although. Your Grace, I have endeavoured in these notes to state the whole case clearly and im- partially, yet I would not be understood as wishing ^Charter King Charles 11. 1070. vis^SWffllRiwR."wf IV iha^any transactions should take place betweian th6 Goveriinient and the Hudson's Bay Company, or other parties out there, Other than in the fairest spirit, and with the most liberal hand, and with that wisdom which would make the most of every existing element for laying the foundation and advancement of new Settlements ; but, for anjjr Company stiJl to put forth tenitorial claims that were long ago renounced, and ure utterly unfounded, and to ask the nation to pay them two millions of money or eo, for land which already belongs to the nation, and thus constantly furnish obstacles against a Settlement, and thereby perpetually block up the country, is preposterous; moreover, it is derogatory to the splendour of the Crown, the honcur of Parliament, and the dignity of the Judges and Courts of the realm, and inflicts se- rious wrong on the subject, for any Company oi trade, whether at home or abroad, and whatever its rauk, to arrogate to itself and to exercise legislative, judicial, and executive functions without lawful Com- missions under the Great Seal from the chief fount- ain of authority* If, Your Grace, the principle of assumption be once admitted, may it not be reasonably asked, what it) (he use of the Crown or of Parliament ? And yet in real candour, do not these notes prove that the Hudson's Bay Company is found exactly in this si- tuation ? And if it be further alleged, that there are f>^h<)r trading firmB,and persons engaged in agricultural purMuits out th^re, on British Ground, comprising Amerieaiis, Nativen or Canadian half-breedn, uho ef thoniMt'lvoH do ap{M)int their own MagittrttM, an<) constitute t leir own oouitti, and in so far follow the example set them by the Hudson's Bmj Company, may it not further be aaked, does this widening of the assumption either lessen the evil or form an ade- quate set off thereto ? Or is the greater to be tolera- ted, and the lens to be put down, and fresh data to bo afforded for the renewal of the promulgation of the sentiment of '*one law for the rich, and another fur the poor" '*. Besides, Your Grace, these persons or communi- ties out theref who assume to perform Magisterial powers, do so with their hands clean and free as to any penal bond against it, whilst the Hudson's Bay Company did tie their own handa, and those of their servants, not to occupy such a position, and to refer all such matters to the English and Canadian Courts* And in favour of the former it may also be urged that they have been prompted to it for self-protection , and in the spirit of setting up a sort of provisional Govemmeiht for the time being till Her Majesty shall establish an elective form of Government for which they have again and again sent their Petitions across the great waters to the British Authorities. Finally, I will only beg leave to trouble. Tour Grace^ with one other utterance of opinion that, if the Set- tlement of this question be long delayed, not only may there be the increase of subjects across the line -jTo wil, ruvta^e la pv:urio. -- ,jaa)»-tMH»a«i-.vi;.- ' "t^^^HhSSe^S*Wi. ^■■.- yi from' the TJniled States, whicti the spirit of advance- ment thwVe, and the treasures in this fine country tnny iflike contribute to brin^ about, leading to the formHtioR of SetHements and the exercise of Magis" i'rial jnrisldiction assumed by themselves, things cal' culated to weaken Canada and British Columbia^ whivn by judicious and timely le^nlation both might be strengthen od nnd the entire frontier made impreg- iiable So as to resist effectually Fenianism or hostile attacka from any quarter!}^, but that also a state of things may hereafter be brought about, which may perplex the English Cabinet and tax the counsel of liritish St&tesmen to the utmost, if net involve our fconnfry in the fiercest, saddest aiid most sanguinary of Wars, to i^y tiothing of jeopardizing the exi^titig' Ohrististn Settlements by past ttnd preset collisions and ottibreaks^ and by the continuance of a coiidltioti of things bordering on Anarchy < I have the honoiir to be. My Lord Duke, Tbtn* Grace's Most Obedient and Humble SerTiint»> Griffith 0. Oorbett, Cle^k, M. 'D, ' ' "J:Several times the frontier has been endangered by Fimianism, and at this date it is still threatened* idvance- country f to the Magis" aga cal- 3lumbia, h might impreg- r hostile state of ch may unsel of jlve our igainary existing- ollisions onditioii INTRODUCTION. ierriiiit,- IJW.. gered ened. The writer of these sheets was sent out in con- nexion with the Foreign Mission work from England to Montreal in 1851, and in the following year ho was despatched thence through Canada and the State? vid the Mississippi to the Red River Settlement in Rupert's Land. In the year 1855 he visited England, and in 1857, he gave evidence before a Select Com- mittee of the House of Commons on the condition of the Hudson's Bay or Indian territories*. In the same year he returned to the Red River Settlement vift the Hudson's Bay* An account of his Missionary tours appeared in the Hampshire Chronicle and is an- nexed in Appendix K. And during the whole of his residence in those regions, besides pursuing his avo- cation as a minister and Medical Missionary, he pur- sued one unvarying course, as occasion called for it||,' of associating with every movement in the land which was calculated to impart correct information to the British public and to the British Government on the condition of that long neglected and down trodden country. He has traversed that land from Hudson's Bay up to the sources of the Red River, which com- prises a distance of over 1000 miles in the heart of that Continent* And in 1862, as it was believed sev- *See his evidence in the Blue Book, Hudson's Bay Company 1857 pp. 137 — 160. ijSee his Letters in the Nor- Wester, and the Buck's Chronicle, and other public documents, and his Missionay Map 1857, &c. V '■ era] unfounded reports were abroad as to the practi- cabilit)r of opening a road between the Red River and the Lake of the Woods to establisli communication with Ca ida vik Lake Superior, he responded to a wish very generally expressed to unite in forming a party to explore that section of tlie cuuntiy, and to trace out any eligible sites for Missionary operations. Accordingly, a party consisting of five persons, each having a horse, and each carrying his own axe, gun, ammunition, chart, compass, and other light equip- ments, t^tarted on this expedition; and after passing over about 25 miles of fine prairie land, they entered, and pierced the Great Forest for between 50 and 60 miles till they reached the neighbourhood of the Lake of the Woods, frequently cutting a track to pass be- tween the trees ; and then they returned without any accident, save some of their clothes torn to shreds, with the most satisfactory report as to the great ease of laying open a road along that line of country, which may be seen from the subjoined account of hia Lecture thereon : — •*Thb Lake Superior Route" •*0n Wednesday Evening last the Rev. G. 0. Cor- bett gave a lecture at Headingsley, descriptive of that Section of the Lake Superior Route, which lies between this Settlement and the Lake of the Woods. His lecture was illustrated by diagrams of th e coun- tiy, which he himself had drawn on canvass, which enabled his audience to follow him with ease in his h( P th CO graphic and ihteresting sketches. l/Te had the pleai- ure of listenitig to his valuable address, and were more forciblj than ever impressed with the fact that the road to the Lake of the Woods can be easily made a good one. The Rev. Gentleman stated that he had been over both the Hudson's Bay, and the St. Paul's lines, and that neither of them was so good as the one he had just passed over, even in its present condition. We are happy to have this valuable testi- mony in favour of the route§", &c. Immediately afker this, certain circumstances transpired, which eventual- ly obliged the author to revisit England, and during hiis second sojourn in this his native land, his atten- tion has been most closely drawn to the condition of these territories ; and still finding considerable lack of knowledge respecting these immense regions, and entertaining a fervent desire for England to do her duty towards one of the oldest and largest colonies of the British Empire, he has compiled the folio wiijg notes on the history, law, and resources of those partH, in the hope that they may be useful to all, and assist those who are in high station or authority by helping to place them upon proper vantage-ground ou the quest' '^ns in hand ; and likewise excite intertint among those who are blessed with leisure and means, and induce them to contribute their substance, weight, and influence to spread Christianity all over tliat con- tinent, and to proiuote Christian colonization and JThe Nor- Wester Nov. 1862, ^kmmmsmM Christian Ipmmmiities under legal and proper (3to^ yemment, from one end of the land to the other. In these papers, it will be seen, as if specially pre- arranged by Divine Providence, that, along the line of route proposed to be opened between Lake Supe- rior, Red River, and British Columbia, there are ex- hibited four 1 1 most important valleys suitable for the foundation of flourishing Settlements and colonies, namely, the Kaministaqua, the Rainy River, the Red River Settlement, and the Sasketchewan. Here are four most eligible tracts of country, exactly in the line of communication, eminently fitted for instant occupation as centres of light, and civilization, and colonization. Let then the Government and the Christ- ian church conjointly seize these spots, and set the requisite machinery in motion, and the means of easy trafific and rapid mail communication will soon be es- tablished between Lake Superior and the Red River Settlement, and thence to the Saskatchwan, and to British Columbia. The Frontier would then be duly secured either against aggressions from the South by the subjects of the United States or a descent from the North from that portion of the country which till ^recently was denominated Russian Territory in Ame- .V^ ' 'rica, — ^the grand overJan J route would be opened, — I (There are other most inviting sections, but the above four are like so many vast pillars for this over- land-bridge, containing all the elements for future Kingdoms. oper Go- )tber. [ally pre- ^ the line ike Supe- re are ex- >le for the colonies, r, the Red Here are tly in the or inetant ettion, and the Christ- id set the kns of easy oon be es- led River n, and to in be duly South by cent from which till yin Ame- opened, — ts, but the this over- br future facilities would be created for Her Majestlf s subjects to hold direct intercourse and trade with the mother country through Canada or Columbia instead of being obliged as at present to pass out vi& the United States or round it, or spend the produce of their ca- pital in that country thereby enriching a foreign kingdom, — a line of depots would be formed, and re-r sources in the existence of Christian -Settlements would be developed, whence to draw all needful sup- plies and assistance for further discoveries in those vast regions, and for overtaking the same with Christ- ian Settlement and for the spread of light and know- ledge to the remotest sections of that continent. The writer has conversed much in the country with those who are acquainted with Rainy River and those parts, and he believes it to be as described herein ; and he has also seen and handled the gold, both as mixed with Sand and as separated from it by Quicksilver, which has been discovered on the Saskatchewan ; and from the accounts given him of other wealth t in that country, he has no doubt, that if Great Britain {It is singular to notice that whilst the writer is finishing the above passage a paper from abroad reaches him with the iotelligence, that the Hon. Mr. Ramsay, a member of the f[. S. Senate, has just pro-' f^^ posed to the Committee on Foreiji^i Relations, thai' the Indian or Hudson's Bay territory should be iu-, oorporated into the Union ; *'that Canada with the con- sent of Great Britain, shall cede to the Unitod States ' ^^'^^HBttllHPwIWR. ^ ■ WHHH I MI * "- iH fi * !l does not at once energetically step in, difficulties will spring up between us and the United StateB||, and we may lose those magnificent parts just as we lost the richest portion of the Red River valley when the last boundary line was .un, which would involve the further disadvantage of having a foreign power oc- cupying the large area between Upper Canada and British Columbia. Divine Providence has committed that extensive country to our trust for the very high- the districts of North America west of longitude 90 degrees on conditions following 4„^, and that the North-west Territory shall be divided and organized into Territories of the United States, not less than three in number, with all the rights and privileges of the citizens and Government of Montana Territo- ry, so far as the same can be made applicable". Nor- Wester Jan. X9. 1868. And as showing the further attention of men's minds to this country it may be mentioned that in the same number of the above journal are a series of resolutions which the Hon. W. Mc Dougall has submitted to the Canadian Legislature to stimulate action in regard to the aforesaid territory. ||The author also brought over with him a speci- men of what a native found in great abundance in one part, and submitted it to Professor Miller, King's College, London, and he pronounced it to be Nitrate of Potash. The natives also assured the writer of the existence of many precious, sparkling stooes. f *^ est Cif purposes, and if we prove unfaithftil to tbat truHt, we may look for the manifestation of the prin- ciple of the Divine Government in dishonouring us by taking it from us, and handing it over to others, who may prove a thorn in our side. During the last ten years, the writer is aware that it has been circu- lated, — *a new H. B. company has been formed which will infuse new life into things — ^the overland line talked of is to be opened — Canada has underta- ken the enterprise and commenced the work^and to questions put in the House of Commons the answer has been returned — Her Majesty's Government hopes in the next Session of Parliament to bring in a Bill to lay the foundation of a satisfactory measure*, &c.* And in this way there has been the steady postponement of any really practical or effectual ac- tion in the matter. And the writer believes it will be but failure, if not utter defeat, to trust to any in this *Some two or three years back a deputation attend- ed at the Colonial office headed by the Noble Earl of Shaftesbury urging the Government to legislate for this territory as it was practically without any Government, and on June 13th. inst* the question was renewed in the House of Commons. Sir H. Yer- ney Bart., the Hon. A. Kinnaird, Lord Milton and other members taking part in the debate, and com- plaining of the perpetual delay in the matter, and the unsatisfactory answer was made of again referring to corrospoudoncc with Canada, (fee* ♦ ,; ! ::. hiifriness, and that nothing short of a bill passed by the Imperial Parliament, erecting the requisite ma- chinery along the line of route singled out, with po- wers for the complete opening of that country, will ever constitute adequate strength and means for it. And why should not this be done ? The ground is clear fur Parliament to walk in and parcel the terri- tory out as to it may seem goodf . If any one has a claim to proprietary rights, it is the Aborigines and natives, and these they have again and again pre- ferred at the Colonial Office§, and they might be most easily adjusted on the principle fol]o\7ed in the Uni- ted States, for in all their treaties Reserves are held and guarded for the poor natives, and some portion of the Annuities for great tracts of their country is expended in rendering them aid in the shape of car- penters and blacksmiths in layipg the basis of Indian Settlements : and in so far it furnishes useful auxilia- ries to the Missionaries in rearing Christian settle- ments. In conclusion, although we have held this In- dian country for about 200 years, and boast ourselves as being superior to the Americans, yet we have nev- er entered into such a lawfultreaty with the Abori- ginies and natives out there. And then as to the Hudson's Bay Combany their License expired in fit has the facility for opening that the population of natives, is very thin, less than the rate of 500,000 to 500,000 Square miles ! §See Appendix Blue Book 18i>G p. 439. f '^^ -se iBsed by site ma- with po- itry, will IB for it. rround is the terri- ne bas a gines and .gain pre- ht be most a the Uni- iB are beld ae portion country i« ipe of car- is of Indian |ful aiudlia- [ian settle- ad tbisln- ft ourselves have nev- ^he Abori- as to the [expired in [pulation of KX),000 to Hue Book 1859, when all their powers wholly ceased, for in 1821 it was decided by the Imperial Parliament, not only that the Queeo's Courts shouJd have absolute jurisdiction in all criminal and civil offences and causes throughout the entire territories, and that no person should be a legal officer for the smallest cause, or the smallest offence except under the Great Seal, but likewise in perfect harmony with thio, it was also decided at the same time by the Legislature that, the H. B. Company could only hold their powers' under the License in virtue of the Act then pasued, which comprehended all the capital, and all the trade, and was made applicable to all their servants, and there- fore, to all the coimtry wheresoever they might trade» or be situated with their posts in those regions. ir.J9.— Since ascertained that mid Company if not Registered Tmder the Aci *,. 10 iili CHAPTER I. Jfotn on the Hiatarif of Rvperft America or the North Wett Indian Tirrltoriea* America was discovered by Christopher Colum- bus in 1492. Canada was first discovered by the ce- lebrated Venetian navigator, John Sebastian Cabot, in 1497. In 1525, Canada was visited by Yerazani, a Florentine, who took possession of it for the King of Fiance. In 1535 it was explored by Jacques Car- tier, who bore a Commission from Francis I.*, and penetrated as far up the river St. Lawrence as Mont- real, then called by the Indians, Hochelaga* After the survey of Hudson's Bay by Calot in 1512, it was re-discovered in 1610 by Henry Hudson, an English navigator, who was trying to finH a North West pas- sage];. Meanwhile the French had colonized Canada, and thence carried on an active fur trade with the Indians inhabiting the country West of Hudson's Bay; and in 1598, Letters Patent were granted by Henry lY. of France, to Sieur de la Roche, appointing him Lieutenant Governor over the countries of Canada, Labrador, and Hudson's Bay, &c. And in 1627, a French Fur Company was established under the im- ♦Work in the Colonies 1865 by S. P. G. JDo. \ \e North Colum- ^ the ce- n Cabot, • ^erazaniy ;he King (jues Car- I.*, and as Mont- .ga. After 12, it was English WestpaB- id Canada, with the [son's Bay; »y Henry iting him »f Canada, 1627, a ier the im- n mediate auspices of Cardinal Richelieu,fand was styled, **La Compagne de la NouveJle France". And to this company a charter was g;rauted by Ring Louis Xni* conveying the whole trade by land and sea from the River St. Lawrence to the Arctic circle. A copy of this Charter will be found among the Par- liamentary papers of Lower Canada. L'Escarbot thus describes the boundaries : "Ainsi notre Nouvelle France a pour limites du cdt^ d'ouest les terres jusqu' k la mer dite Pacifique, au de^k du Tropique de Can- cer ; au midi les iles de la Mer Atl antique du cdt^ de Cube, et I'ile Hespagnole ; au Levant, la Mer du Nord qui baigne la Nouvelle France ; et au septen- trion cette terre qui est dite in connue vers la mer glacde jusq'au Pole Arctique**!|. In 1680, a Canadian Beaver Company was formed, and carried on considerable trade in furs with the In- dians ; and in 1632, by the Treaty of St. Germains- en-Laye, King Charles L of England s^uaranteed to King Louis XII1« of France, the Sovereignty of Ca- nada, Nouvelle France*, &c. In 1668t, a party of English Traders, imder the guidance of two French officers, who had quai relied with their own Govern- ment, founded a factory on the South of Hudson's Bay. And in the same year. Prince Rupert sent out f Fitzgerald on Vancouver's Lard and the Hudson's Bay Company p. 37. See his work generally. ||Bou- chette note p. 3. •B. N. A. by H. T. S. p. i:44, &c. JFitzgerald p. 89. 19 « Tetsel, wtiich was the occasion of erecting fort Charles, on James's Bay ; ard this was the origin of the Hudson's Bay Company, who received a charter from King Charles II. under date 1670. Thus there were now two elements or parties in the field ere long to come into sanguinary cunflict§. By the treaty of Byswick in 1 C96, the whole of Hudson's Bay was re-occupied as belonging to the Ci'own of France, and by the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, a portion of the shores oi Hudson's Bay was ceded to England* and that was the first time the English Crown could claim undisputed possession in these parts** And even in this treaty stipulations were made to continue the privileges of the Company of New France, who had traded under their Charter in Hudson's Bay since the year 1626* In 1759, the war broke out between the French and English, and was terminated by the capture of Quebec, under General Wolfe \ and in the treaty of Peace, in 1763, when Canada was ceded to the British Crown, the French Canadian people be^ came British subjects, and were also guaranteed in their rights and privileges, and trade, all over the country, including the Red Kiver and the Saskat- chewan valleys, where traders resident in Montreal bad completed establishments as early as 1766, and large numbers of French traders must have occupied many of the same localities one hundred years prior §See a minute sketch of this in the work on B. N. A. by It T. S. p. 244--48, !»Fitzgerald p. 43, 19 fort i of rter aere ere eaty Bay iDce, in of land* could And itinue , who ' eince tween y I to the aforesaid Treaty of 1763, when, by the treaty of Fontainbleau, Canada was added to the Britiib Crown. Indeed the whole region of country extending Westward to the Pacific, and northward to Hudson '■ Bay, had remained in the undisputed poseeesion of tie Crown of France for a period of two ceuturies, and was known as, New France*. In 1766, numeroun British Traders, animated by the cession of Canada to ETiglaud, pushed their enterprise throughout the whole of British North America, trading from Mont- real to Hudson's Bay, and to the Pacific shores, pur- suing the old routes of the French Traders. And in 1783, several trading companies, the Courieurs do Bois;];, and the Scotch and blngiish Traders, blended their interests and became a great Association under the title of. "The Nprth West Company". This So- ciety had its head quarters in Montreal, and pos- sessed a capital of ^40,000, which increased three- fold before the end of the century. And so great w is the influence of the various trading associations long prior to this, and so defective did the Hudson's Bay Company feel their charter of 1670 to be, that they petitioned the legislature to pass an Act to confirm their charter. And the House of Commons sanctioned its confirmation by an Act to be in force for Ten Y ears, *Blue Book of 1857 on the Hudson's Bay Comp- any, appendix p. 135. {Search of Sii*. J. Frankiin p. 55 — 449. See also A.Simpson's Search, & Robu ou tied River, and his Columbian Ad veutureii, v 14 but when it reached the Lords t^ree oat the ten were stnick out, and the Act finally became law, "for Sev- en Years and no longer"f. This, however, did not diminish the spirit of trade and enterprise, on the contrary, it widened and consolidated, and in 1697, the Hudson's Bay Company failed in getting a re- newal of the Act, and ever afterwards they continued to trade on their unconfirmed charter. Indeed, so little was their influence, compared with the French and other traders, that from the Treaty of Ryswick in 1696, to the treaty of Utrecht in 1714, almost the whole of the Hudson's Bay Territory was held by the French traders. The Hudson's Bay Company do not appear to have had a single fort in the whole country, except Albany§, and for more than half a century after their existance as » body, all they did was to establish four or five forts on the shores of James's and Hudson's Bay, while the Canadian North West Company carried their enterprise so far as even to psss the Rocky Mountains, and open the rich country of Columbia ; and in 1793, McKenzie, one of its Officers, pushed his way through the Northern defiles of the Rocky Moimtains, and reached the Pa- cific Ocean* in North Latitude 52^. And although the "North West Company" had to contend against another rival association, yet, in 1805, it could point fAppendix D. §B]ue Book 1857 f Dawson's evi- d^Qce) Appendix p. 394, &c. *A* Ross, Adventures in Columbia, and A. Simpson on Oregon territory* \ > i ' to Wl 1 I8t ri- V . u to several trading posts as far distant as the upper waters flowing into the Pacific. In 1804 said rival association coalesced^and immediately the North West Company, started trading posts in several places west of the Rocky Mountains, and a descent was made in 1808, to the Pacific Ocean, by Eraser's river, in North Latitude 49^; whereas, for a period of nearly I5O years after the charter of Charles II. 1670, the Hudson's Bay Company's traffic did not extend to the Rocky Mountains, nor did they trade so far or their agents occupy any of the Indian country about Lake Winipeg or the Red River until a later period. By the cession of Canada, their position was some- what improved, and in the course of time they ad- vanced beyond the shores of Hudson's Bay towards Red River*, and the Saskatchewan ; and the pro- gress of events gradually disclosed their purposes* Advancing to greater trade and prosperity, they seem to have become elated, and commenced to assert the privileges of their defective charter against the "North West Trading Company". And in 1811, the H. B* Company made over to the late Lord Selkirk, one of its eneigetic directors];, 16,000 Square miles oif ""During the trials in 1818 in Canada, Hon* Me* Oillivray gave in evidence that the H. B. Company had no agents in those parts for several years after he had been engaged in the trade there for the North West Company. (Blue Book 1857, Appendix p. 378). |Eraineut Counsel have given opinion that 8ai4 land, on the Red River, right in the main road of the hue of depots and traffic of the **North West Com- pany" of Montreal whose route thence lay by way of Lake Superior to Montreal. And writers remark, that, this was not the plan of a feeble mind. Settlers were imported as if simply to colonize, and a grand depot Whs then formed to meet the demands of their own plans of trade, and enable them with greater ease to Cut off the supplies of the North West Company's agents. The privileges of the charter were asserted by the U. B. Company's agents, and Captain McDo- well was appointed at Red River under the title of **Governor", and in 1814. he issued a proclamation, lind seized some of the supplies of the **North West Company's" agents, and a sort of civil war commen- ced all over the country ; and at Churchill, in north latitude 59^ the Agents of the "North West Com- pany" retaliated, and at Red River in 1815, Governor Mc. Dowell's establishment was burnt to the ground, himself made prisoner, and Mr. Warren killed. And P. Bourke* was conve; ed prisoner from Red Riyer ^raut was invalid. Hence the lands the H. B. Com- pany have sold to Settlers at Red River is an illegal sale, and the H* B. Company may be sued in the Queen's Courts for the money, and the interest there- on which Settlers have paid, and the Company may be otherwise actionable for the offence. This also eliows the insecurity of Settlers. ^A. Ross on Red River, late a member of the Cuuucil, a Magistrate, and Sheriff there. t; i^r j I- if to Port Alexander, and kept in close confinement, and was afterwards dispatched to Fort William, on Lake Superior, lodged in gaol at Montreal for three days, and for want of evidence was liberated, but after returning to Fort William, he was again arrested, and tried in the court of King's Bench in Canada, and acquitted. Proceedings were instituted by the late Lord Selkirk against the employee and partners of the "North West Company", who had resisted th© pretentions of the Hudson's Bay Company, and in consequence, a battle was fought in the Frog Plains, at Red River, in which twenty one lives were lost, including Governor Semple, Mr. White, his Secretary, and others of the Hudson's Bay Company*. Lord' Selkirk had hired one hundred men from Montreal, and on arriving at Fort William, the head quarters! of the North West Company, he seized that estab- lishment. A Commission of inquiry was now ap-' pointed, consisting of Colonel Col tman and Major ^ Fletcher, who were sent from Canada^ invested with^ full authority to commit the guilty of either side for^ trial before the Canadian Courts, and in refsrence to • these disputes between the Hudson's Bay and Nortk'^ West Companies, the Governor General ol^ Canada^* received a despatch from the late Earl Bathurst by' order of His Royal Highness, the Prince Regent, under date February, 1817, in which the following' *A. Roes on Red River, late a member of the council, a Magistrate and Sheriff thorer ]) IS occurs : "Ton wijl also require tinder similar penal- tiee the restitution of all forts, buildings or trading stations, with the property they contain, ^hich may liave been seized or taken posBessiou of by either party to the party who originally established or con- structed the same, and who were possessed of them previous to the recent disputes between the two Com- panies. You will albo require the removal of any blockade or impediments by which any party may have attempted to prevent or interrupt the free pas- sage of traders ur others of His Majesty's subjects, or the natives of the country, with their merchandise, furs, provisions, and other effects, throughout the Rivers, Lakes, Roads, and every other usual route or communication heretofore used for the pur- pones of the fur trade in the interior of North Ame- rica ; and the full and free permission for all persons, to pursue their usual and accustomed trade without binditmce or molestation" ; and in conclusion, the same object is insisted upon : "The mutual restora- tion of all property captured during these disputes, and the freedom of trade and intercourse with the Indians until the trials now pending can be brought to a judicial decisior, and the great question at issue with respect to the rights of the two Companies shall be definitely settled*". In acco' ""ance with the early occupation by the Canadians of the Hudscn's Bay ■ . ■ ■ I ■ I I - I ^ *Biue Book on Uudson's Bay Company 1857 ap- pi^ndix p. 395,. . '\ penal- rading 1 may either T con- them )Com- )f any y may e pas- ibjects, andise, mi the UBual le pur- Ame- ersons, ithout D, the estora- sputes, th the rought It issue B shall early 8 Bay ►7 ap- 4 } 19 Territory, and the Indian country generally, not Only did the courts of Canada take cognizance of causes relating to those regions, but it is very interesting to trace that concurrent with the growth of the Ca- nadian and British traffic in tho6e parts, the Impeti- al Parliament passed an Act in the 43rd. year of the reign of King George III. in 1802* extending the Jurisdiction of the Courts of Canada to the remotest portions of paid territories,makingall parties, whether *It is very interesting to .. dee in tracing the history of these Acts that, in 1690, the H. B. Com- pany's charter was confirmed by an Act pasHed to oe in force for seven years; that this Act not having been extended, and therefore the charter not having been renewed, that country remained destitute of said Ju- risdiction, and hence the necessity of passing the aforesaid Act 43 Geo. III. c. 138, for so it declares in the preamble that it was not at present ''cogniz- able by any jurisdiction whatever", the Imperial Parliament then legislating, as if no charter, and con- sequently, no jurisdiction under it existed ; which Act was furthur extended and consolidated, after every effort was made to the contrary, by the next Act passed 1 & 2 Geo. IV. c. 66. Sec. V. investing the Queen's Courts of Canada with exclusive jurisdiction in both civil and criminal causes throughout the length and breadth of the land, and dimply recogniz- ing the new Hudson's Bay Company on the footing of a License of trade for a term of vcars. 1 *H||^^^^*V Ettdftott's Baj Oompany*! agents or others, «d^ countable to tM^id Courts ; *'The Act to be in fullforee Mdthin any of the Indian Territories beyond the pro- vinces of Canada, or in other parte- of America not within the limits of the United States". And many of the Trials then pending, to which the late Earl Bathurst alluded in his dispatch, and the aforesaid commission of inquiry were held, in virtue of the tenor of that Act. Some of the Trials were for mur- der, some for arson, robbery, and high misdemean- ours \ and some of the parties were prosecuted as principals, and some as accessories, and several ot the trials took place in Toronto, then called the towh of York, in 1818 ; and resulted in the acquittal of all the parties, on all the charges, though if; was not denied, that some of them had been in the battle, in which, however, they contended they were in defence of their just rights. Some of the trials also took place in the ordinary course of procedure, inasmuch as it was entertained, that many of those distant parts, where the offences had been committed, during said disputes, were within the boundaries of the Provin- ces of Canada, and so could be legally disposed of without resorting to the special Act for the Indian regions beyond. And as respects the Canadian Juris- diction Act 43 Geo. Ill* o. 138 over the Indian ter- ritories, it is recorded, that in May 1818, Charles de Reimhard was tried at Quebec, for murder com- bitted in 1816, on the river Winipeg* ( < 14 r 1 > t * lert, mt^ iill force thepra- rica not d many ^te Earl foresaid of the »r xnur- temean- uted as 'era! ot betowh ittal of ras not ttle, in iefence k place uch as parts, said rovin- led of 'ndian uns- Q ter* larles com- I ^ < 14 Exception was taken to the Jurisdiction of the Court, on the ground, that the locality was not in the In- dian Territory, but within the limits of Upper Canar da, but the court overruled the objection, and held that the place in question was within their Jurisdic- tion. The Court, the Attorney-General, and the Coun- sel for the prisoner, alike concurred in the fact, that, the Biver Winipeg, was a part of the country pre- viously belonging to France, and ceded by the treaty of Paris, in 1763 ; and ai no stage of the proceed- ings was the question of its being a part of the Hud" son's Bay Territories for a moment entertained. The prisoner in this instance wasfound guilty, aud sentenced to death, but as there was a reference to the Imperial Parliament, execution was delayed, and he was ultir mately released. Respecting these trials, one or two points of interest may here be noticed. During said trials the following passage occurs in one of the char- ges of the Chief Justice : "Mr* Attorney-Gene^^al has put in evidence the latitude and longitude of the Frog Plains, but does not put in evidence whether this la- titude and longitude be within or without the Bound- aries of Upper Canada ; I do not know whether from 9(P to 100° or 150° form the limit of Upper Canada", in other words, the Court could not affirm that Cana- da had any western limit, and the court was right, for no limit had ever been as^gned* Aud absolute evidence existed so far as to (Hrove, that tbe Province extended beyond the Lake of the Woods, wit iioui ^'^ * i V ing how far beyond, but it was not the duty of the Attorney-General to quote it, because he was prose- cuting for a conviction as directed by a Special Com- mission from Lower Canada, under a particular Act. An acquittal, however, of all the parties rendered any special verdict unnecessary. And it is worthy of note, that the question raised was solely, whether the Scene of the outrages at Red River, was in Canada, or the Indian territory, and not whether it was in Canada, or the Hudson's Bay territory. The latter alternative was not even entertained, and was almost entirely ignored on the trials, as manifestly too absurd to to make a stand upon it. And the case for the defence was based upon a Justification of resistance to the assumed authority of the Hudson's Bay Company, whose preposterous pretentions in clothing their a- gents with commissions and titles, as **Govemors", *'Majestrates", and **Sheri£fs", &c, at Red River, and elsewhere, were treated with ridicule, without detract- ing from the individuals ; and the judgments of the courts were recorded against them. And we find that in Feb. 1819, in the city of Toronto, William Smith, under Sheriff of the Western District, ob- tained £600 damages against the late Lord Selkirk, then at the head of a large armed force, for resisting him in the execution of a Writ of Restitution, foond- ded upon a verdict obtained at Sandwich, Canada, in 1816, and resistance also to a Warrant for his Lord- ship's arrest At the same time, Daniel Mc. Kenzie ti J f ■'^"- 28 of the J prose- il Com- lar Act. ired any ofnote, e Scene , or the Canada, ernative entirely surd to defence to the )mpany, their a- mors", er, and detract- of the ive find Villiam ct, ob- ^elkirk, sistiiig foand- ada, in Lord- Kenzie I obtained .£1,5C0 damages for forcible detention by Lord Selkirk. Criminal proceedings also were insti- tuted, and a bill of indictment was found against the late Lord Selkirk himself, and the leaders of his par- ty, for their illegal transactions ii> the Western Ter- ritories, and on the waters flowing into Lake Winipeg*. Finally, the two rival companies merged into one body. And the Act 1 & 2 George IV. cap. 66, was passed, in 1821, by l;he Imperial Parlian^ent, which completely ignored the pretentions of the Hudson's Bay Company, and was framed expressly to remove the possibility of doubt on the question of the Juris- diction of the Courts of Canada over all those remote regions, and to set at rest the rights of the respec- tive claimants, and thus, in point of fact, the very highest authority in the British Empire, actually con- solidated the Canadian claim and influence in those parts, i^nd instead of leaving this or that company or any person or persons in the future, to put forth this or that pretention or right in any part of said territory, the Act authorized the Crown to issue a License of trade to ant Company, person or persons for 21 Years, requiring the holder of said License to pay a nominal annual rent to the Crown, and bind- ing said party in the penal sum of <£5,000 to send all causes and all prisoners for trial to Canada. And in virtue of this Act, the new Company, composed *Blue Book H. B. Company 1867 Appendix 395- 7. (Red River also flows into Lake Winipeg) ■^nn^fj^^^^w opw, purijy of the Hudson's Bay, and partly of the **.NortU Weeti Asuuciation", obtained a License of Xnfud^j.fKid entered into the lequired bond. And this cunsjiitHt^d the New Hudson's Bay Company, upon th§ Qew footing of a License for a term of years, in ^hich new, position, they nut only found themselves, f^nditl^eir agents aud servants, and all the inhabitants i^ tho^B regions clearly made amenable to the Queen'a Qom*t)» in Canada or Westminster, but also bind- ijug said company and its agents, under the heavy penalty of ^r^OOO, to transmit all prisoners and alll causes, to be tried in Can^dsit. Ere long, however, . the old spirit, which, as we have seen, had. already become conspicuous in putting forth pretentions, and > U> iivvolying the country in blood- shed, it seems, re-t> appejM^s, bjursts out, aiid spreads oyer the country^ in i spite, of tti^, dijtin raised ;by the courts of Canada, and •■ backed by tjaie, recent Act of the Imperial Parliameitt, , apd, ajt^ough, it.ha^.now, apd.then received sufficient. \^nii\g to return tq its. legal a^i/ql picpper footing, yet, . iV.h^^ cpnjl^i^ed down to th<^, pr^^e^t:day to prosecute r 8pj[}h a sy§tem^ of trade, ^nd tp arrogate. such autho- ' *In the iBiiie Book on the Hudsonis Bay Company 1657, Sir G. Simpson admitted two cases had been ^ sent to Canada in his time (Question 1040). And' Questions 1390—91 bring out the name of one Creole \^ Grajsse and his accomplices, who were sent to Ga- liij^a for, trial. |Th^ only exception to this would be a Court pi.Bj^pprd for minor causes under the Great \ '\ i f mL i5 )any )eeii ^ leolo Ca- be reat \\ I »' i rity and to exercise Buch powers, that not only are the express Acts and penal bond violated, but that also, as writers affirm, culminate in making, "the na- tive a slave, and the Settler a rebel". And as if the Company had at first acted with some regard to their new obligations, and with bonie deference to said Acts of the Imperial Parliament, certain prisoners were at an early period sent to Canada for trial*, but in 1835, the late Sir G. Simpson, the Company's Go- vernor, in one of his annual tours through the count- ry, formed a Council at Red River, of which he be- came a member and President, and at which sundry laws were passed for the Government and the Settle- ment, said Council to be styled the "Council of As- fiiniboia", and to exercise judicial and legislative functions. And in keeping with this assumption, in 1836, the first petty jury was empannelled, and Den^ nis was convicted and flogged with difficulty]; ; and in 1 840, as if it were the gradual unfolding and com- pletion of a definite scheme, the Company sent out an agent and gave him the title of, "The Recorder of •Ruperts Land" to discharge the office of Judge, and to act as the legal adviser of the Company. Great dissatisfaction ensued, and in 1814, Colonel Caldwell a waff sent out there with 200 pensioners, and he was armed with a Commission, signed B. Hawes, Colonial Seal without which even such a court could not be lawfully held. *See Appendix A & B. |A. Ross on Red River. 9^ office, "to inquire into certain allegations against the Company of insufficient and partial administration of justice*". In 1849, the French, at Red River, rose m-masae, in this would-be Court against this Com- pany's Judge in the cause of Sayer. v. said Compa- fay, for trading in furs, but fearing to carry forward their designs, he was set at liberty ; and shortly after It scene of great excitement followed, in the cause of Foss-v-Pelly, the latter, it was believed, having been subjected to manifest injustice, and subsequently, Petitions were sent to the Houses of Parliament, and many persons of influence both in Canada and in England energetically sustained them, and a Select Committee of the House of Commons was appointed, and sat, and investigated the condition of these ter- ritories, which ended in taking Vancouver's Island, and the mainland west of the Rocky Mountains out of the Company's hands, and, in the bill introduced, which erected those parts into a Crown Colony under the name of, ^'British Columbia". And it also recom- mended that, o. Ihe expiry of the above mentioned License of the Company, the southern latitudes, known as, *'the fertile belt", which stretches from Lake Superior to the base of the Rocky Mountains, should be thrown open to colonization, and placed on a like Status vrith that of the other Colonies of the British Empire. lu the same year troops were sent from Canada to Red River, through Hudson's Bay, .' ~ ~~ *Blud Book 1867. " I t' • '^ >com- tioned liudes, from [tains, ;edon ^f the Bent Bay. « l» and some of the Company's agents, possibly suppos- ing it afiforded them some advantage, arrested one Mr. B who was engaged on an expedition of free tra<1e, but, it seems, that his activity at head quarters soon secured his freedom* About the same time the Canadian Government sent into those regions an exploring party, headed by Professors Hinds and Dawson, who eventually fur* niflhed a report most favourable on the fertility of the soil and the facilities for inter-communication. In 1859, Petitions were again forwarded to the Imperi- al Parliament, signed by the clergy and people, and another was also subscribed by the Bishop and Cler- gy, and subjoined is the body of the latter : *'The Petition of the Right Reverend, the Bishop of Ru- pert's Land and of the undersigned Clergy aforehaid. Humbly Sheweth, — ^That we look with deep auxiely on the present state of things in this country and un the prospect of the approaching expiration of the Charter of the Hon. Hudson's Bay Company, beg- ging leave to lay before your Rt. Hon. House the expression of our sentiments of the subject : That this country is in an anomalous*" condition wholly different from all other parts of the British Empire, without a Governor subject to the control of the Crown, the present Officer being appointed by, and subject to, the H. B. Company, that the law has been administered by a Judge, appointed by, and ♦See Appendix F. G. H. & J. y'^^r'pi.W'^SW- \ ffubject to, the control of the said H. B. Oompatny ; that the present legislative body, cnlled the Gover- nor and Council of Assiniboia, are nominated exclu- sively by said H. B. Company, and are limited in their proceedings and actions by the provisions of said Company's Charter ; that we cannot fail to no- tice a growing dissatisfaction in the Aiinds of the people with regard to the above state of things ; that free Emigration to other countries, as Australia and Canada, has been assisted from time to time by Par- liamentary Grants, no such help has ever been ex- tended to this land, although there is a large country to the south of the Saskatchewan and Winipeg rivers, which might afiford a comfortable home and easy sub- sistance to large numbers of our fellow coimtr^men, that we have felt much encouraged by the legislation of the last Session of Parliament, in which the coun- try west of the Rocky Mountains was admitted to the full privileges of a British Colony, and has alrea- dy received from the Crown, a Governor, a Recor- der, and a Commissioner of Lands and Works : We respectfully crave the same privileges, in the hum- ble hopes, that the desires of Her Gracious Majesty* may thereby be fulfilled, and that this Continent in an unbroken line, may be peopled by Her loyal and obedient subjects. We therefore pray, &c. *The Queen had been pleased to make an allu- fiion to this route in Her speech on the opening of Par- liament* X A ^pvAm W-^xm <" I » I . 1 %N 80 » « •9^^ 1 And soon after this, two enterpriiiing and talented gentlemen, Messrs. Ross and Coldwell, arrived from Canada with the materials for fitarting a Newspaper at Red River, under the title of, "The Nor'- Wester", which excited great curiosity in that remote part of the world, and received in due course its share of cen- sure from many of the agents of the Company for re- gistering the facts, and reflecting the opinions of the people in those territories. Moreover, clote upon these events, a new Governor an J Recorder ar- rived at Red River from the Company, and in a lit- tle while, one of the fiercest contests arotse which had happened since the days of 1816. The Governor, Recorder, and all the Company's people sought to uphold and enforce rigidly the Company's assumed rights and laws over all persons. Petitions, and counter- Petitions ; public meetings, and counter-puh- lic meetings were held ; and finally, a Petition, earn- estly praying for a redress of grievances, was signed by the great majority of the people, and transmitted to the Colonial ofiBce in 1862. And during this sharp conflict, persecution was dealt out with a high hand against those who had taken prominent part in advo- cating said petition to Parliament ; one, an English clergyman*, was imprisoned, and after a large memo- rial, which had been presented to the Governor tor ""And the position of another ^vas placed in great peril, he Lad before this lost his salary for sigiiing a Petition for removing the grievances in this country. ■-TJrrft:»?»»j v-isr«»r?»»:'»r- 30 his release, was refused by said Official, his congre- gation went in (»pen day, and buret open the Corapa- ny'i orison, and conveyed him back to his Station. Another, was a Scotch Schoolmaster, who had taken part on the same side, and joined in the Release, and he was arrested by the Company's Sheriff, and one of their constables, and closely confined in their gaol; whereupon, an armed cavalry arose, and advanced before Fort Garry Gates, and deputed (heir Captains, Messrs. Hailette and Bourke, to wait on said Gover- nor for said prisoner's release, and to drop this kind of policy, but, on their being met with his deliberate refusal, the armed force, arranged themselves in or- der, with their guns pointed, ready to die in the main- tenance of what they believed to be right, cleared . aside the outer stockades, burst the prison doors, and gave freedom to its captives ; a series of public meet- ings instantly succeeded, pledging a general arming of the popVilatiou in defence of said Release, and of the legitimate ground en which they considered they stood. And before this tire of public opinion the Com- pany's agents quailed and reluctantly gave way. An- other step in the same direction on the Company and . its partisans would most likely have involved the Settlement again in bloodshed, and the country would liave presented afresh the scenes of 1816, which, with the decisions already against them by the Courts of Canada on that occasion, and after the binding obli- ' gations in the present License, must have made them I , : • * 31 the less excusable, and the more heavily liable before the competent tribunals and the authorities of the Crown. The dangers and difficulties which extended to, or threatened others, did not free the situation of the Editors of the "Nor'- Wester" in like manner, from peril, and an early opportunity offering, they sold out, and went down to Upper Canada, where they still reside, and enjoy the exercise of unfettered freedom. D* Schiiltz, the present Editor of that Jour- nal, however, is now speaking out in plain terms, and keeping up the Protest, which has ever been made against the aforesaid anomalies and the refusal of the Company's assumed Legislative Council, in sitting with closed doors against the reporters of the Press*. Finally, the foregoing facts demonstrate the urgent necessity for effectual and immediate Imperial Legis- lation for the whole of that Territory, and as said Company's License has recently expired, a fitting op- portunity is now afforded for it. *It is striking that on finishing these sheets, tidings of a fresh outbreak reaches the writer, direct from Bed River, in announcing the imprisonment and for- cible release of Dr. Schultz, the present Editor of the Nor'- Wester there, as follows : — *'Once more the doors of the H. B* Co's Prison have opened to the persuasion of an oaken beam hand- Jed by the stout arms of men who were as careless of the frowns as of the favours of that august H. B. Company — The cane occured thiswise. In one of the ■^•''^.^v ■■^nf'r^f^m- Quaterly Courts, Judgment was obtained against ^herifit' Mc. K. for a sura of money. Being Sheriff, he paid half, and succeedtd in cajoling the simple minded agent uf the Plaintiff, into bringing an action against Dr. Schutz. his former partner, for the other half. By some artful dodging, a Judgment was ob" tained against the Doctor in bis absence, and his ap- plication for a trial of the case before a jury, was dis* regarded by our Hudson Bay Judge. The Dr., thus treated, refused to pay unless a trial was given and the agent of the Plaintiff, feeling probably the in- justice of the position, would not push it. The Sheriff^ meanwhile caught in England, pays the other half, and then follow the events of Friday. A t nine on the morning of Friday, the Sheriff with fk potise of constables entered the trading house of Dr. Schutz, and the Dr. appearing, a demand was made by Mc. K. for the immediate payment of the sum. Dr. asked to see his authority for its collection, which Mc. K. refused to show, and said that he must seize the goods. Dr. said that none of his property should go without the evidence of proper authority* The Sheriff then declared every thing seized, and di^ rected the constables first to take out a pair of plat- form scales, which they proceeded to do, until stopped by the Dr. who then proceeded to secure the door which had been opened by Mc. K. The Sheriff then laid hands on the Doctoi, but was thrown over on some bags (tiot struck) and on rising he directed the '*., ! I h i\ ■i M^^ M looip khen on the I ■5f- constables to arrest Dr. Schultz for an assault on the Officers of the Law. The Dr. told him that he was willing to be arrested, but oot willing that bis pro- perly should be removed. The Dr. then gave him- self up and o£fered no resistance, till very rudely ta- ken hold of by two constables when he threw them off (without striking) aud then Mc. K. calling on all present to assist, declared that the Doctor must be bound, and directed one of the constables to bring a rope. The Dr. said that was unnecessary, but that he would submit to be tied so long as no indignity was offered* The Dr. then held his arms to be tied, which was done by the constables, without opposition. Mc. K., however, then began tightening the rope till the effect was painful, and being warned to desist, he re- fused, and so was again thrown over by the now tied Prisoner* After this there was no resistance, and the Dr. was hurried off in a cariole without being allowed to put on his overcoat* Dr. Cowan was sent for, but shirked the case, and sent for Goulet. While waiting for the arrival of Goulet, Dr. Schultz requested, as there were a number of constables pres- ent, that the Court House doors should be locked, and that he should be unbound long enough to write a note to his wife, who as yet knew nothing of his case. This was refused, and the effort of writing while in this bound condition caused so much pain that '^y a violent effort one arm was freed, which Mc. K. perceiving, made a rush, but was met and floored. H^K' ■^rm'v"-'^- -S^WIiSfiK^'^ t'«d and pulled till the lLT ''.''""'"'^ "'"''='' "« o'the^oUelpWPri.^^^j^-'-d fro- the ^ oers of tho Law Got th'^' """'* °" *''« ^- the Prisoner, it beinJtL T *"""'*''*'' '° <««»"»•* •n -d locked up S'r:„r'"""'"'"'''^ ^''"■«* '•ft to reflect o,,'^ i,e vaulTn"" "''' *^' ^'- ^^ '•>•• "'"lo" tl.e belief 3 ^T "'^««^»<^- -«-, Constable Muliiga^ :;:fit'\ "" '''"'•'« noi^ seized goods iu the nl 1 ''''*'"«^ "^ «•>• Sohultz. wisLd to ba^^^ eS^, it r-*".' T""*" **">• JIulligan refused to JoT, ^""* """^ S''«"«'. '•«. where he reJ.e^m'ZZ'll'^r'''''''^ •nd half frozen that "hirle wl-7 \T''^''''"''«^ «» be "let out" and em«r! ^ u ''"«"y Petitioned I*«. Mo. K a^ .«? * • '^"'™«'«'y cursing fhe ^- ni.ht-fall the n^etVaS « tSr'.'^ J^rv men sped their ho^es to the Towr K ™- *"■ '-' "thers as e„i,ed a. themstC^' 'J^'!. *''*^ H..K whether to break open the HuT ^*'"™^ "" "'"'^'•^-.gfatitsUdrl L'r-t' r '"'' '--"-'■ews.ifeHarbe:r;,ir •♦^ i:> f *N' ^B be* An* I they Iwait the 118- •s* ^ ll> •ion to him bj the Fort authorities, decided the ques- tion at onoe, **the Doctor must not stop even one night under this accursed roof. In the meantime Mrs. Schultz had been granted permission by the Sheriff to take some food to her husband, and re- mained with him till the noise of many 8lajr;^bell8an-t/y^/^'^ nounced the glad tidings of ^Jease. First a party at the door, to obtain peaceable entrance, then a re- quest from the Doctor to let his wife out of the in- ner door of the Prison, then a rush of the Doctor himself who grappled with the constables who were barricading the door, then the upsetting of the jailor and the bolts drawn by the Doctor's wife and then as the expectant crowd saw the attack on the Doctor within, came the heavy thump of the oaken beam, soon the crash of breaking timbers, and then the loud hurrah, with maledictions on Mc. K. and the escort of the Dr. to his home. It is well to know that no disreputable characters were among the party. When the constables, of which there are said to have been six with ei^ht **specials", ceased to resist, the Victors ceased their efforts, and no violence was used but the breaking of the door, and the marks of a clenched ^st on one of *\e special constable's face would not have been there had he not rudely assaulted Mrs. Schultz in in her endeavours to draw the bolts." In connexion with this case furthernews haK ju.st tom.B to hand that the Company's judge huving or- ■'-'1i^;^3>?i^-H^!»^-'"*-.-»is^- • t f U I '- d«red the -Sheriff to i-dgo .nd bench ieMrS""*"' ^ *^^ '^ ■*. «nd toot up his cap w b/?T ""* '"^'^ W ^-other issue of tk^ NoX'J^''^ ^ood .norni^J, -»e io hand, contains a «IS\:f'' '■- ^ * kere give the substance -J *""■ "^''Woh ^-Lt:t,t.tTrvt^^^ »^ patriotic hundred S. C's, we« .d^ "t"* "''- «^ ♦he money which you ^TX. T//*"^ "'<'«»* » pottage giCen to us r«eo.^°7 '"""""o P«P nffi** .• and that said dfeh o^ "'"'" ^'^ °" ''irth- ^'50 in the cooking. ^ ""^ "<"* 'he peop/e ^-^^-rt^^^r-'-'othem^^^^^^ «)>ment. -We for the mannerfaSf ' '°'''^°" '^Po- JW yon should at o^^ atr '"^"^ ^''' '"-•<«• °f tte pubhc ftnds ioT "f "'P"a*« • Wge portion P'-n of stone «.dTr,^;'' '^^^ »' •'"Wing . „,, eannon.soastoensur^1;fcfj;. '^f /»«fied -tt ''e^her^fterinca«.,«ted.h;;i?'''''^^'^-«" to ^o-ShSra'tore' tf ' 7-*" '--h .vonr power by fro,vn2 1^ * ^ '^ *« ^^'^^ W '5^ «ir I. J ofT'y^Xtr'''""""-"'"^* ^e latest tidings from jjj R*^' **"»'& »<■•" 'ift: •; f %^' n told said uld keep Lomingl! has just of whioh patriotio en three and that 3 amonc^ ble pap ir birth- people the successor of Dr. S. — having had his press thtMt* ened, his printed sheets stolen from his office and iiia person imprisoned, and his application for redress having been refused has driven him to Canada. The last mail actually brings the intelligence of an- other outbreak at Red River, in the imprisonment of an Indian by the H. B. Company, and his forcible rescue by the Indians. And alarming apprehensioug are entertained for the safety of the Settlement. lies col- ^ment, 1 'espon- nonies. Portion new with rs to fcmg >* iese N* B, — ^The rapid progress of events in this ter- ritory, indicating its very serious position, make the publication of these notes to be of immediat<9 conse- quence. ■^--^ tSRBJ^P?^' u t- \^ CHAPTER II. Notes on the Lam of Rupert' a America or the North Weat Indian territoriea. The Hudson* e Bay Company claim proprietory rights and control over said country under et Charter granted by King Charlee 7i., 167Q, and herein is submitted legal notes on the law of the eass, 1. The non-fulfilment of tlie conditions imposed in the Charter is sufScient to invalidate it* On this head is the opinion of the ahle Counsel Mr. Edward Bearcroft : *'Al80 if such a charter could be consid- ered legal and valid in its commencement, it will be voidable by Sci* Fa., if the parties neglect to endeav- our by reasonable and adequate means to carry the provisions of it into effect""'. The scope of the said charter was to promote discovery and enterprise, and to spread Christianity among the natives. In this di- rection what has been done? In 1719, two vessels were fitted out, the Albany Frigate and the Discove- ry Sloop, that is to say, fifty years after the date of said Charter. And this expedition was undertaken by Captain Knight, who was Governor of a factory, on Churchill River, who was stimulated to it by the re- ports of the Indians regarding the existence of rich mines. He pointed out to the Company that they were *Fitzgerald p. 76, dj. ' < , » ( » bound by their charter to make discovery, "wa -jd on the Secretary of State, and his firmness led the Com- pany to comply. In 1769, fifty years later, Hearne commenced his expedition, for the gain of the copper mines, north of Churchill. In 1836, that is 70 years later, the enterprising traveller, Thomas Simpson, ibommenced his discoveries, and in that year, the Com- pany opened negotiations for the renewal of their Li- cense, reduced the supply of spirituous liquors to the In-^ dians, and called for Missionaries. In this enterprise of Hearne's, the Company seem to have been stirred up by the fact that the Government were sending out the expedition of Dease and Simpson, under the then Cap- tain Back ; and again in 1846. when the late Sir John, Franklin was dispatched by the British Government to carry on discoveries in those parts. Dr. Rae, was sent out by the Company*. Thus, from 1670, there have been four expeditions, and the two first were un- dertaken, not to obtain Geographical information, but to discover copper, and were in a great measure trad- ing speculations, and the other two were entered upon irhen the Government sent out its own expeditions. Do such expeditions amount to a fulfilment cf the conditions of the Charter ? But it is alleged, that they have not only forfeited it on this ground, but even deterred others. One writer quotes : **It has been ge- nerally supposed, and with reason, that the Hudson's *For a further account ofexpeditions for discovery in those regions see Appendix L "f^^-.^-j - — _ V, \J,!l.»L" ' " 4.__ m ^jg«3* ,«jMiHi^^*""' , K -^ ^iEw5-..'v.;'.V-.^-^nm. •V ---^ m^^mm^ r Bay Company, though bound by their Charter to make the discovery of the North- West passage, hath taken every method to prevent the accomplishment of it. And it is notoriously known that Captain Mid- dleton, who, in 1740, was sent out by the Government upon that service was publicly charged with his hav- ing received ^5,000, as a bribe from the members of the Company to defeat the undertaking, or at least conceal the necessities of it*. And the legislature being made sensible of these proceedings, in allu- sion to a false journal of his voyage, passed an Act for the encouragement of adventures to attempt the discovery of the North- West passage, offering at the same time so liberal a reward as would probably pre- clude the effects of bribery in preventing the success of any future expedition. And on the non-fulfilment of spreading Christianity in the land and the small amount of trade:(. 2. On the Invalidity of the Charter granted by Charles II* 1670, without the sanction of Parliament* If the Crown has the right to grant away the waste and unoccupied lands in the ColonieSv it never did possess the right to confer a monopoly in trade}. Lord Coke in his exposition of the Statute of Magna *Middleton's Geography. Folio. Lond. 1778. Vol* ii., pp. 18, 19. {See Appendix E. & C. §Nor can it confer the right without the Sanction of Parliament to tax Her Majesty's subjects, which is notwithstand- ing arrogated by the Company, ■ I §*■■ Cbarta says : **A11 monopolies ooncerniDg trade apd traffic are against the liberty and freedom declared and granted by the great Charter, and against divers other Acts of Parliament*." The Statutes 21 James I. cap. 3, declare that, all monopolies and all Charters granted to any persons or bodies, corporate for the sole buying, selling, &04 of any thing within this realm, are altogether contra* ry to the laws of this realm, and so are and shall be utterly void, and of none e£fect. Again, "It appeareth by the preamble of the ^ ct that grants and monopo- lies, are against the ancient and fundamental laws of the Kingdom^^^ this Act is forcibly and vehemently framed for the suppresfeion of all monopolies, for mo-^ nopolies in time past were even without law". > 3. On the Territorial Extent of the old Charter* > Even if the Crown had the right to grant such a charter, its language clearly restricts it to only . % portion of the vicinity of Hudson's Bay ; on which is submitted the Opinion of late Lord Brougham, Sir Arthur Pigott, and Serjeant SpaukieJ : "The grant of the soil is limited to the coasts adjoining and pla- ces not already possessed 3 that the territorial grant *2 Inst. p. 62-64. ^Pending the proceedings nar- rated in the historical section of this work, the North West Company obtained the opinion of eminent counsel, the correctness of which was decided by the subsequent judgment given in the courts in Canada, cap. I. aforumcntionjdy : ■%SF«K^?^.W 4S was not inteiided to comprehend a'! the lands that might be approached through Hudson's Straits by laud or water, but is limited by the relation and prox- imity of the territories to Hudnon's Straits. ** Within the Straits" must mean such a proximity to the Straits as would give the lands spoken of a sort of affinity or relation to Hudson's Straits, but which are not even approached by the Canadians through or by the Straits in question. The lands now claimed or part of them, were traded in and occupied by the French traders of Canada, and such lands would be express- ly excepted out of the grant, and the right of British subjects to visit and trade in those regions would fol- low the natural rights acquired by the King in vir- tue of the conquest and cession of Canada, and as en- jo)red by the French Canadians previous to that con- quest and cession, for they are neither within the Straits, nor approached by those regions". And their opinion further was that, "in no case could the Red Kiver or the Saskatchewan be included, within the range of said old Charter", The terms, "Hudson's Bay Territory", as used in said Charter or Acts of Parliament, can only be made to apply to such ter- ritories as lie, "within the Straits" of Hudson's Bay, and were in 1670, actually in possession of the Crown of Kngland. Besides, as this Charter was granted to encourage trade and discovery, it could not have been the design of King Charles II., to dislodge the French Canadians, who then occupied certain parts 4t of Hudson's Bay, or to stop their arduous enterprises in pushing their trade up the streams nearly 1,000 miles, for they are expressly exempted from all in- terference by the terms of said Charter*". 4. The language of said Charter Invalidates it. And on this point is subjoined the opinion of the aforesaid eminent Counsel: **Be8ides that t lis Char- ter attempts to erect a joint-stock Company and to grant an exclusive right of trade, there are various clauses in the Charter, particularly those impowering the company to impose fines and penalties, to seize or confiscate goods, or ships, and seize or arrest tiie persons of interlopers &c., which are altogether ille- gal and were always admitted to be t^o, and among other times, and even at the time, when the preroga- tive in this matter was maintained at its height, to grant an exclusive right of trade, we are clearly of opinion, that they and their Officers, agents, or ser- vants, could not justify any seizure of goods, impo- sition of fine or penalty, or an'est or imprisoumbut of the persons of any of His Majesty's subjectb". On which is also added the opinion of the eminent law- yer Mr. Edward Bearcroft : "If the Hudson's Bny Company or those under their authority shall veutui-e to seize the person, ships or goods of a Britibli sub- ject, the action is by action of trespass agHiiist the Company, or against the persons, wlio do the act complained of, and, the action may be brought in ♦Fitzgerald p. 31-34. %^:"m' 44 ' any Court of Westminster*". 5. The prior occupation of Hudson's Bay and the lands contiguous, by the King of France and his sub- jects, Invalidates said Charter. The country which said Charter purports to have conveyed to the Hud- son's Bay Company in 1670, did not at that time be- long to the Crown of England, and could not there- fore be legally the subject of a grant. (Nemo dat quod non hahet) The question as to the rights of France and England to the territory of Hudson's Bay, was in dis- pute many years before, and was not decided till ma- ny years after the date of said Charter, and was not finally settled till the treaty of Utrecht in 1713; and said Charter itself is so guarded in its wording that it supposed it was already occupied by anotherChrist- ian Prince. 6. The said Charter was Invalidated by the Articles of Capitulation between France and England, even supposing it contained any legality at all. Article 42 : ''The French Canadians shall continue to be governed according to the customs of Paris, and the laws and usages establibhed for this country, and they shall not be subject to any other imports than those which were established under the French Do- minions!". *Fitzgerald p. 74. ^Certain old customs and laws are always admitted to be in force among a people conquered or taken under the British flag, as in Mauiitius. 45 7. The said Charter was Invalidated by the Treaty of Ryswick in 1697. If said Charter retained the least validity whatsoever, it was officially extinguisher', by this Treaty, which made over to France a very large part, if not the whole of the territory claimed by the Company under this Charter of 1670. In re- ference to which, Charlevoix says : "Pour ce qui est de la Baye d' Hudson elle nous reste toute entiere parceque nous eu etions les possesseurs actuels'*'"* And Mr. Bearcroft in his history of the United States, in allusion to this writes, **In America, France retained all Hudson's Bay and all the places of which she was in possession at the beginning of the war". Explanatory of the two foregoing sections, let it be observed, that, in a time of entire peace between the two countries, an expedition is dispatched from Ca- nada, commanded by Chevalier de Trayes, and he takes the forts which were established by the Hud- son's Bay Company, on Hudson's and James's Bay, and drives away their possessor^ upon the plea that, the country occupied by their Forts was part of the Dominions of the French King, and at the close of the war, it was declared by an express Article in the Treaty between France and England, that the count- ry so captured, though retaken by the English during the war, shall be restored to the Dominions of the Frencli King. In theTreaty ot Ryswick,pro vision \\ as m ade for the commissioner8,"to examine and determine the lights and *Fitzgerald p. 42-44, %k^'- I V H :i 46 particulars which either of the said Kings had to places situated on JBLudsoji's Bay, except those parts which were taken by the French during the peace which preceded the war, which parts are to belong to France". Thus, there was a National acknowledgement that those countries did not belong to the Crown of Eng- land at the time they were taken in the peace preced- ing the war. And had the Company possessed any valid rights under said charter there would have been a clear case for compensation, when in this manner, it was made over to France, and all possible rights for ever rescinded* 8. Said Charter was entirely Ignored by Imperial legislation in fixing the International Boundary Line betwnen the British possessions in North America and the United States in 1818. The H. B. Company say, the aforesaid Charter gave them proprietory]; rights and privileges of trade cc extensive with all the wateis that run into Hudson's Bay; but this Boundary Line cuts off, and makes over to the Uni- ted States the largest and most fertile part of the Red River valley, the sources of whose waters are this ]:Though upon this point some hold that even the old charter did not confer proprietory rights in the Hoil until the Company had '"purchased" any land of the natives or occupiers, as "purchase" is the lan- guage of said charter; and for that certain further pow- ers would be necessary, before they could treat as Land Commissiouers for the Queen. m* ;h all this Urn- Red this 4T moment some 300 miles to the south of said line, and it now forms important sections of the greatest states recently created in the Union. And the Goyemment was aware that this tract of country was within thd limits claimed by the Hudson's Bay Company under their old Charter, for Mr. Mc. Gillivary in 1815, in- formed the Colonial Minister : "The settlers by pro- ceeding up beyond the forks of the Red River have got to the Southward of the Latitude of 49°, so that if the line due West from the Lake of the Woods is to be the Boundarv of the United States, and if con- rary to my expectations, Lord Selkirk's colony should continue to flourish, it will not then be a British, but an American settlement, unless specially excepted in the adjustment of the Boundary*". Now, had the Charter been valid, this would have a£forded good grounds for a fair claim to compensation, whereas the Act of the Crown is done quite irrespective of such considerations!. 9. The Act 2nd. William and Mary, 1690, promul- gated the invalidity of the said Charter. The Com- pany found it impossible to keep out interlopers, and hence petitioned Parliament for an Act to confirm their Charter, and the Hoase of Commons passed an *See appendix to Blue Book 1857 and Fitzgerald. {The opinion of Mr Bearcroft was that anyone might act in respect to the whole of that territory, as if no such chaiter existed, and this may have been a da-r ta of actiou iu this iuetance. ■ * jt,-. 4d ^ct for a term of Ten Years, but in the House of Lords it was cut dr/rn to "Seven Years andn'^ long- er". And on tbis, the eminent Counsel already quoted gave tbe opinion : "A legislative declaration of tbe insufiSciency and inadequacy of the Charter for the purposes proposed in it without the aid and authority of the Legislature". At the close of the Seven Years, an effort was made to get said Act renewed, but fear- ing its rejection, the project was abandoned, and said Charter has remained unrenewed to this day. 10. Act 42 King George II . cap. 138, Ignores said Charter. In 1803, concurrent with the rapid progress and great extent of the traffic by the French and British Traders over those regions, the aforesaid Act was passed, and extended the jurisdiction of the Courts of Canada over the Indian territory ; and just half a century ago, the pretentions of the Hudson's Bay Company were put to the test before the Cana- dian Courts, and judgment was recorded against them, of which proof will be found in the preceding histo- cal notes (See cap. I.). IL Act 1 & 2 of King George IV., cap. 66, passed in 1821, completely sets aside the old Charter. The Hudson's Bay Company, and the "North West Com- pany ", carried on their disputes in respect to the un- restricted exercise of their rights all over the count- ry ; and after the above decisions of the CanadiaTi Courts thereoTi, the two Companies mutually agreed tu bhare the trade throughout the whole of the terri- t ^"^ 49 ouse of a"^ Jong- 7 quoted of the for the athority 1 Years, >ut fear- iDd Baid Ignores e rapid French foresaid Q of the and just udson's Cana- it them, histo- passed •. The Com- le un- count- oadiaTi greed terri- tory, and on this principle, they merged into one as- sociation, when said Act was passed to enahle the Crown to grant a License of trade throughout the In- dian territory to any Company, person or persons, for the term of twenty-one y^^ars. And thus, the old Hud- son's Bay Company's existence was extinct, and in their accepting this New License, on this foundation, they necessarily r^ linquished for ever every vestage of the old License or Charter of 1670, and bound themselves in submission to the Law Courts of Cana- da and England, and to the Annual payment of rent to the Crown for the land*. And to sweep away every subterfuge and every fragment for doubt upon these matters, the Act says : "And whereas doubts have been entertained, whether the Provisions of an Act 43 King George III., entitled an Act for extending the Jurisdiction of the Courts of Justice in the Pro- vinces of Lower and Upper Canada to the trial and punishment of persons guilty of crimes and offences within certain parts of North America adjoning said Provinces, extended to the territories granted by Charter tc the said Governor and Company, and it is expedient that such doubts should be removed, and that the said Act should be further extended ; Be it therefore enacted by the King's Most Excellent Ma- "'Even, from the most ancient grant downwards, tiie lands were ever to be regarded as "the plantations or colonies of the Crown and to be governed as near to the a« ngi'ccubk' Laws ol England". I^M^t^ wmr^t i« 60 iosty. by nnd with the advice and consent of the Lordfl Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in the present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, that from and after the passinj; of this Act, it shall be lawful ftjr His Majesty, bis Heirs and Suc- cessors, to make grants, or g^ive his Royal License to any body corporate or Company, or person or per- sons for the exclpsivo privilege of trading with the Indians^,^.j, and that from and after the expiration of the time and period of 21 years, it shall be lawful for His Majesty, his Heirs or Successors to reserve siich rents in any future grants or Licensps to be made to the same or any other parties, as shall be deemed jnst and reasonable, with security for the pay- ment of the rent ; and such rent shall be deemed part of the Land Revenues of His Majesty, his Heirs and Successors, and be applied and accounted for, as the other Land Revenues of His Majesty", &c. &c. And in the 5th. Section of this Act: "V. And be it de- clared and enacted, that the said Act passed in the 43rd. year of the reign of his late Majesty entitled an Act for extending the Juri^ diction of the Courts of Justice in the Provinces of Lower and Upper Canada, to tbe trial and punishment of persons guilty of crimes and offences within certain parts of North Aiiierica adjoining the said Provinces, and all the clauses and Provisions therein contained, shall be deemed and construed and it is and are hereby res- pectively decijvi't'd, to extend to and over and to bo 51 le Lords prenent of the Act, it id Sue- License or per- ith the ition of lawful reserve I to be hall be he pay- deemed is Heirs for, as c. &c. eitde- in the tied an rts of Einada, ty of orth I the II be res- p bo \- in full force in and through all the territories here- tofore granted to the Company of Adventures of Eng- land trading to Hudson's Bay ; any thing in any Act or Acts of Parliament, or this Act, or in any Grant or Charter to the Company to the contrary notwith- standing" ; and in Section : "V I. And be it further enacted that from and after the passing of this Act, the Courts of Judicature now existing, or which may be hereafter established in the Province of ^Ipper Canada, shall have the same Civil Jurisdiction, Pow- ei and Authority, as well in the cognizance of Suits, as in the issuing of Process, mesne and final, and in all o( jr respects whatsoever, within the said Indian Territories*** and that all and every Contract and Agreement, Debt, Liability, and Demand whatsoever made, entered into, incurred, or arising within the said Indian Territories and all and every Wrong and Injury to the Person or to Property, Real or Person- al, committed or dune within the same, shall be deemed to be of the same nature, and be cognizable by the same Courts, Magistrates, or Justices uf the Peace, and be tried in the same manner, and subject to the same consequences in all respects, as if the same had been made, entered into, incurred, arisen or committed or done within the said Province of Upper Canada". And in Section : "VII. And be it further enacted, that all Process, Writs, Orders, Judgements, Decrees, and Acts whatsoever, to be issued, made, delivered, given, and done by or under iMif * Hi' Js r*l^ Mm €1 the Authority of the said Courts, or either of them, shall have the same Force, Authority, and Effect within the said Indian Territory and other parts of America as afore£;aid, as the same now have within the said Province of Upper Canada". In said Act there is also a provision made, authorizing the Go- vernor General of Canada to issue Commissions for the appointment of J ustices, and for Her Majesty* to *Hence the Queen may at any time under the Great Seal in virtue of this Act appoint Justices of the Peace to take evidence or hold a Court of Record in any part of that country in matters involving the amount up to ^200, but for causes and offences be- yond that value even Her Majesty could not appoint legal officers* The English law is so tender of the lives and liberties of Her Majesty's subjects both in its letter ami spirit, that the fullest advantage shall be afforded to the parties affected before competent tiibunals, and hence the Legislature decided in this instance that ]io trading company should try its own servants or parties whose interests might be opposed to theirff in remote places where no legal assistance , could be obtained, but should have every legal aid and an impartial hearing before duly appointed Jud- * ges of integrity and learning, and who should be perfectly free from interest to either side. Tbe wri- ter is not awaie that Her Majesty has up to the pres- ent hour aj^pointed Justices or a Court of Record under the Great Seal even for the trial of the minor t t :' W-i- J»i^■ ^-■.„^54>S#-'"' ■**<=" 53 of them, tnd Effect parts of ve within said Act the Go- isions for ajesty* to mder the istices of 3f Record ving Ihe nces be- t appoint r of the 3 both in ?e shall mpetent in this its own opposed sistance ^a] aid d Jud- uld be wri- e pres- Record minor r"Hi appoint one or more Justices to take evidence in any suit or to hold a "Court of Record" in any part of that country, for the trial of Crizninal offences, and misdemeanors, and also of Civil Causes, and their ac tion and finding are to be of full force in every part of the heretofore Chartered or Indian Territory ; and such Court is to be appointed in the manner laid down in the Act, but even such a Court, "shall not try any offender upon any Charge, or Indictment for any Felony made the subject of Capital Punishment, or for any offence, or passing sentence affecting the life of any offender, or adjudge or cause any offender to suffer Capital Punishment or Transportation, or take cognizance of or try any civil action or suit, in which the cause of such suit or action shall exceed in value the amount or sum of <£200 ; and in every case of any offence subjecting the person committing the same to Capital punishment or transportation, the Court or any Judge of any such Court, or any Jus- tice or Justices of the Peace, before whom any such offender shall be brought, shall commit such offender to safe custody ; and cause such offender to be sent in such custody for trial in the Court of the Province of Upper Canada" (Section XII.). And to remove causes and offences limited in the Act, and therefore, at the present moment, there is no legal officer, Jus- tice of the Peace or lawful Court of Record in the whole country, as directed or authorized by the aforesaid last Act of Parliament passed. Chartered TernW' theT^'^ ' *° oaH their "Old *h;* " « to be « 4" w'T'-r ''^■" -p-*^ nton-es heretofore wanted / .f^ "'" '"«""i. any ter- venturersofEn^IaS^t "■" ^"'"P'-'y of aJ. America as afore«»5"'°T ™°'' °*''«"- P«^ o^ ^'barter of the GoT^TSd "^"' *•"■" ^'='' »' « -^ Adventurers of a,„ntl^°"'P''"y °f Merchant *"« contra^ »ot.£<£.?^f «»<';- » Ba,. to /"«''• then, is the C^a^f^*!""^^)- I-« what the their "Old n repeats, n any ter- of Ad- Baj, aa parts of or in any iierchant B Bay, to Rupert's 'itories*. »d new xamina- ouse of is time Canada ion of of ac- Iseeuis, ption spite ser- and [ross- (chief JEarl 892. ^5 executive fuDctlonp, styling them. "Govemor", ** Re- corder", 'Sherir', ♦'Governor of the gaol", "Gaoler", "Clerk of the Court", "Constables", &c. And as if they were not content with exercising judicial func- tions within the limits of minor causes and offences or up to ,;t;200, to which even a duly constituted Court under Her Majesty's hand and seal is expressly restricted by the Act, the Company's agents and would- be Justices of the Peace, have actually gone the full length of arresting, trying, sentencing, and imprison- ing Her Majesty's subjects in that territory from the smallest to the highest allegations of crimes and even serious causes against this express prohibition of the Imperial Parliament, and against tLe tenor of the pe- nal bond of X.'>,000 which said Company officially signed and sealed"*. In concluding this branch of our subject, we put it to the common sense of mankind, whether liio Im- perial Parliament can for a moment longer tolerate such a gross systematic violation of the Law, which it is believed has endangered the very existence of Christian settlements, — has involved irreparable in- jury, loss of freedom, and ruin to many of Her Ma- jesty's subjects, — in which said agents sit and judge, and sentence, and imprison, without Commissions, making them Justices under the Great Seal, — without *See copy, of said bond or covenant in the Blue Book on the Hudson's Bay Company 1857. Appen- dix p. 434. , V ^ ^ . ,,...y,;r «^ "WI^^%WfS^ 56 \ I: III certfficates of qualiHcation as members of the legal profession, — without the aid to the party accmsed of qualified Barristers or Solicitors, — without that im- partiality of position which is ever held to be an es- sential ingredient in holding the balance with an even hand between contending parties, and not to add* — the remoteness of those parts and the poverty of the aggrieved individuals confronted with a rich Compa- ny — making a remedy nearly impossible*, and in so fur, placing the Company and its Agents beyond the reach of Justice, and in the haughty position of set- ting at defiance alike the subject and the Imperial Parliament*. *This is very well illustrated by a case where the injured party brought an action in the Common Pleas against one of the chief agents of the Company, and sustained it for nearly tour years, without his being able to bring it up for final judicial deci- sion — ^the influence of such being so great that he can be kept at bay thia length of time ! - ti ; ■ . < ■•: ■: ) i^.?,; ii ■ . . >i> I ' ■ ' i ■-;■', 1 t «^ H ) legal ised of lat im- j an 68- an even addv — r of the Compa- id in BO ond the I of set- Imperial liere the on Pleas lany, and lOut his al deci- that he CHAPTER III. - ) Notes on the Extent, Physical features, and Resoureei of the country, the Facilities which exist for Intercommu- nication, and the Importance of Immediately Opening these Territories, As might be expected, after the amalgamation of the two fur trading companies in 1821, their trade not only embraced the Indian territories generally, but spread so far as to compass certain islands of the sea beyond these regions, so that one writer probab- ly in taking the widest extent of their sway into ac- count, says : "History does not furnish another ex- ample of an association of private individuals, exert- ing so powerful an influence over so large an extent of the earth's surface, comprising 4,500,000 square miles"** In respect to that counirj called Rupert's Ame- ica or the Indian territory, come writers estimate it at 370,000 square miles ; but a more general estimate is that of 500,000 square miles. A country so vast must needs have great variety of climate and productions, but the three leading phisical features are, the woodt, the barren]:, and the praibib country ; *Professor Hind* |The term barren is used as de- noting more a Mineral than an agricultural section of the country. 1 1 6? and we may also name the in^erresting facts, tbat the waters which take their rise ii» the centre of the Con- tinent of North America, East of the Rocky Mount- ains, flow in four diiferent directi(jns, into the Arctic Ocean, the Hudson's Bay, the River St. Lawrence,and the Gulf of Mexico. It is unquestionably a cold count- ry in winter, but it is a dry cold, alike healthy and exhilarating. The isothermal lines show that certain parts of the Saskatchewan, wliich are farther north than Red River, comprise the milder climate of the two, which is borne out by facts ; and men who are competent from personal observation assert that, the the cold is far more disagreeable at Fort Churchill, north latitude 59", than at Peel's river upon the Arc- tic Circle. But now I shall transcribe sketches on the forego- ing particulars generally. The first sketch is from one of the Company's late Governors, who in star- ting from Fort William, on the Western Shores of Lake Superior, and proceeding thence to the Red River* and the Saskatchewan, and across the Rocky •The Red River, in British Territory, is now 140 miles long by the winding of the stream, from 200 to 250 ft. broad with a moderate current, and dis- charges itself by six different channels into Lake Wi- nipeg. The sources of it go some 300 miles farther south, and were lost by England, and gained by the XJ. S., when the International Boundary Line was run in 1818* f *^^ ftd ;bat the ae Con- Mount- I Arctic Qce,aud 1 count- hy and certain r north of the vho are ;hat, the lurchill, the Arc- forego- jis from tin etar- lores of e Red Rocky )w 140 )m 200 Ind dis- ike Wi- farther by the Ine was Mountains; writes : "After leaving Fort Wilh'am the navigation for the first 50 miles is much obstructed by rapids and shallows j after halting we came upon the Kaministaquia river, and in our little squadron in full song we darted merrily up the beautiful river, where verdant banks formed a striking aad agreeable contrast with the sterile and rugged coast of Lake Superior. Early in the forenoon next day we reached the mountain portage formed by the Kakabeka falls, the Kaministaquia here taking a sudden turn, leaps into a deep and dark ravine, itself a succession of leaps, inferior in volume alone to the Niagara Falls. The Kakabeka has the advantage of it in height of fall and wildness of scenery. About the middle of the descent a beautiful rainbow at the time of our vi- sit spanned the charming waters, harmonizing sweet- ly at once with the white foam, the green woodif, and the sombre rocks. The River during the day's march passed through forests of elm, oak, pine, birch, &c., being studded with isles not less fertile and lovely than its banks, and many a spot reminded as of the rich and quiet scenery of England. The paths of the numerous portages were spangled with violets, roses, and many other wild flowers, while tha currant, the goosberry, the plum, the cherry, and even the vine were abundant. All this bounty of nature was imbued, as it were, with life by the cheerful notes of a variety of birds, and by the restless flutter of butterflies of the brightest huee„|^^the Kaministaquia presented a ^PPP^ hkiii^ .i^.X>.>- i».iliyaVJi 6ft I . i! perfect paradise. One canuot pass : through this fair valley without feeling that it is destined sooner or later to become the happy home of civilized men, with their bleating flocks, and lowing herds, with their schools and their churches, with their garners and so-* cial hearths. The next day we reached dog portage jus'^ly admired by all who see it* At the spectator's* feet is stretched a panorama of hill and dale, cheq* uered with the various tints of the pine, the aspeD^ and the oak, while through the middle, meanders thef silvery stream of the Kaministaquia, after doubling and turning, as if willing to linger on so Icvely a spot" J And advancing further up these regions till he crosses Rainy Lake, he writes : **The River which empties Lm la Pluie into Lake of the Woods is in more than: one respect decidedly the finest stream on the whole route. From Fort Francis downwards, a stretch of nearly 100 miles, it is not interrupted by a single impediment, while yet the current is not strong enough to retard materially an ascending traveller, nor are the banks less favourable to agriculture than the wa- ters to navigation, resembling in some measure, those ^ of the Thames near Richmond. From the very brink of the river there is a gentle slope of green sward- crowned in many places with a plentiful growth of birch, poplar, beech, elm, and oak. Is it too much' for the eye of philanthrophy to discern through the> vista of futurity this noble stream, connecting as it does, the fertile shore* of two spacious lakes, with' iL*^" m 8 fair ler OP men, bi their tnd80« ortager itator's' cbeq« aspeiifi' )r8 thet ^uUing k spot" J crosses tmpties re than whole tch of single inough: or are le wa- it those brink I sward bh of much' [h the^ as it wiih< crowded steam boats on its bosom and populous towns on its borders"* And on reaching the Saskatche- wan^* — which, as its name implies, has a swift current, and is one fourth of a mile in width, and is navigable for Steamers for 700 miles in adirectline, — in fjpeak- ing of his journey near this finer river and through those parts which border on Edmonton, he observes : "Our route lay over hilly country, so picturesque in character, that almost every commanding position presented the elements of an interesting panorama". He futhex says that he saw, **red earth, rich in mi- neral productions, a seam of coal ten feet in depth can be traced for a considerable distance along the sides of the Saskatchewan, and that he found raspber- ries of large size and fine flavour there, and noticed the carcases of several thousand buffaloes". And then as to Bow river in that vicinity he adds : "It is 500 yards across, and runs through a country very much resembling an English park". And then he esti- mates this fertile section of the country to be, "at least as large as England^". *Sir G. Simpson's narrative round the world pp. 36, 37, 38, 45, 46, 84, 101. jThe Saskatchewan is navi- gable fur boats and canoes almost from its source, in the Rocky Mountains, throughout a course of 1,400 miles to its mouth, where it empties into Lake Wini- peg, interrupted only by one rapid, which could bo easily overcome. The sources of the Saskatchewan on the one side, and the Columbia on the other, aro C*^ (M!^^iM^. .'••• The next description is from Viscount Milton and Dr. Cheadlo : "Althoujrb there is h'ttle land fit for a- gricultural purposes within the boundaries of British Columbia, yet the fertile belt of the Saskatchewan is separated from it only by the barrier of the Rocky Mountains ; and of the beauties and resources of this pleasant land we have already made mention* The rich prairies from three to five feet deep of alluvial soil are ready for the plough, or offer the luxuriant grasses to domestic herds. Woods, lakes, and streams diversify the scene, and offer timber, fiisli, and myriads of wild fowl, yet this glorious country, estimated at 64,000 sqare miles, and millions of acres of the rich- est soil, is, from its isolated position, and the difficul- ties put in the way of settlement hy the governing powers,, hitherto left utterly neglected and useless ex- cept for the support of a few Indians, and the em- ployee of the Uudsons's Bay Company. And this rich agricultural coimtry is but a step, as it were from the goli-fields* It is the very support required to British Columbia* That communication can be es- tablished can be demonstrated. Why, then, should not the miners be supplied with provisions from British territory instead of California, and the gold fields of British Columbia enrich British Subjects 80 close together, that the late Sir G* Simpson could fill his kettle for breakfast out of both at the same tir e. There is water-carriage thus the whole way from London to the Rocky Mountains I I t ««^ ei >n and t for a- British iwan is Rocky I of this I. The alluvial ixuriant streamB myriads ated at be rich- difficuU overning less ex- he em- ud this re from lired to be es- should is from e gold ubjecta could same Ly from rather than American. The advantages of a route a- crosB the continent of America, which passes entire- ly through British Territory, seems palpable enough. The Americans ever in advance of us in like enterprises, have constructed a road and laid a telegraphic line across the continent to California, and have com- menced a Pacific railway and telegraphic wires vik Behrings' Straits. Greater difiiculties had to be en- countered in carrying a road over more barren prair- ies, where wood and water are scarce, and which are infested by hostile Indians. The pass through the Mountains in the U. S. American territory is abrupt and high unlike the easier gradients of the Vermil- lion and Jasper House passes*. Victoria in British *There are three passes over the Rocky Mountains, in British territory, one through Peace river, which flows right through the Mountains, one from the northern branch of the Saskatchewan, and one near the southern branch, the pass which was f allowed by the late Sir G. Simpson, (see H, B. Company, Blue Beck 1857, Q. 6092.) But as showing the movements of Divine Provi- dence in turning mens' minds to open this country, a further Pass has just been discovered and reported to the Royal Geographical Society thus : "Before the Royal Geographical Meeting last evening Mr. A. Waddington explained his proposals for an overland route : "For eleven years he had been engaged in exploring British Columbia, and he hag discovered, S^PB^ff." m^T> «4 Columbia is but 6,053 miles fri)m Hong Kong or a- bout 21 days steaming. If a railway were construct- ed from Halifax to some point in British Columbia, the whole distance to Southampton wt^uld be accom- pliRhed in 36 days, from 15 to 20 days less than by the Qverlaud route vid Suez J". I shall. now quote from the exploring party recent- ly dispatched to that country by the Canadian Gov- ernment : "The idea of a route across America lying wlioUy within British territory is daily becoming more settled and defined. The trade of China and Japan, the gold wealth of Biitish Columbia, and the on the western side of the Rocky Mountains, a route which will serve for connexion with Canada. The western terminus of this route is Bute Inlet, a spa- cious harbour opposite Vancouver's Island. Thence Mr. Waddington found a deep valley, running in a north-easterly direction, and rising by easy gradients to a height of 2,500 feet. At this elevation he found a magnificent plateau, as large as S^gland, and fit for a railway. After proceeding 120 miles the route . a- bnts on a bend of the Fraser river, which encloses tjhe celebrated Cariboo gold fields — on a line with that; pass over the Rocky Mountains, is the Yellow Head Pasi^, which was discovered by Viscount Mil- ton and. Dr. Cheadle". [The Morning Star, March 10. 1868. :{; Viscount Milton's work en Rupert's Land, 1865. p. 303-395. If C*^ fi5 or «- itruct- iinbia, .ccom- an by recent- Q Gov- a lying coming na and and the , a route la. The a spa- Thence ng in a •adieut« |he found indfitfor Iroute a- encloBes ne with Yellow (unt Mil- >tar, 10. 1868. id. 1865. fettile belt forming the northern boundary c " the Great American desert, all give importance to it. The illimitable wastes of Siberia, extending over 80 de- grees of longitude are traversed by Russian couriers in far less time than with all our appliances of steam and telegraph we can receive news from China. The same postal system which there prevails can be far more easily maintained in Britis'. .^nierica, and with this vast advantage, that from ihv3 1 ke of the Woods to the Rocky Mountains, tb.> , utt would be through a country, not only remai^dl^v fertile, but possessing rich stores of timber for fuel, lignite-coal, iron, and salt." And speaking of . * ay River* in the route : *Rainy Lake is 225 miles west of Lake Superior, 50 miles long and 38 broad, and 294 miles round by canoe route, and is 1.600 ft. above the level of the sea. From this flows Rainy river, oh never freez- es for 12 miles between the Falls aud the little Fort, nor between the Falls and the its source in Rainy ri- ver, becau.^e the warm waters coming from beneath a shelter o' ice in their capacious-feeding-lake, re- tain their neat so as to enable them to resist the cold for many miles. Lake Superior is 600 ft. above the level of the sea, and its area is 32,000 square miles* The dividing ridge separating the valley of Lake Supe- rior, from that of the Mississipi, is 475 ft* above the level of the sea. And the elevat^'^^g ridge, dividing the waters which flow to Hudson's Bay, and to the St, Lawrence is, 1,485 ft. above the seSi-level. By the fc;.'fM«t ^W I " "For a distance of 70 miles it presents an area of a- vailable soil of high fertility exceeding 170,000 acres, and extending 4 miles back from its banks, and may be compared to a rich overgrown and long neglected garden, its banks preserving an average altitude ol 40 feet, sustaining a growtli of trees (one elm mea- sured 9ft. Sin. in circumference), the width varying from 200 to 800 yards, and the soil is a sandy loam mixed with vegetable matter, and affording an unin- terrupted water communication for 170 miles to the North- West corner of the Lake of the Woods. We found more birds singing here than all along the route, and the vegetation exhibited the utmost luxu- riance. Sturgeon are numerous in its river, and we caught a pike weighing 10 lbs. by striking it with the paddle*'*. Another testimony is from one who has devoted Pigeon river route, it is 325 miles from Lake Supe- rior to Lake of the Woods : Lake of the W( ods is 75 miles in leagth and breadth, and 400 miles round by canoe route, and is broken up into three distinct lakes by a long promontory, and is 377 ft. above Lake Superior, and from the N. W. point of Lake of the Woods to Red River, the distance by land is 90 miles. St. Croix Lake connects the Mississippi with Lake Superior, and at the height of land, this lake sends waters both to the St. Lawience and to the Hudson^s Bay. [Professor Hind* *Professor Hind on Rupert's Laud, pp. 14, 15, Ac. i IL^ «7 much attention to the country, and points more to the vast regions, scarcely yet known, beyond this fer- tile belt : "There are immense quantities of salt in a very pure state, near Great Slave Lake, and a great abundance of mineral tar, in fact, it is employed by the Hudson's Bay Company for their boats and river craft. The whole of the Mc. Kenzie river is really a mass of minerals, the banks ot the river being com* posed of deep beds of bituminous shale associated with alum and beds of iron and clay. The soil is act- ually plastic in parts with the transfusion of mineral tar. I myself have often driven a pole into some of the natural pits in which it occurs ten feet deep, without finding any bottom. There are also valuable salmon fisheries there, and herrings in the greatest abundance. The river itself is of great depth and would admit vessels of the largest size|. The delta of the Mc. Kenzie river, which is 90 miles in length, (from 67° 40', to 69° 10' N. lat.) and from 15 to 40 miles in width, is formed by flat alluvial islands, which divide the various branches of the river, and issues from the N. W. corner of Great Slave Lake, and is the largest river in the country, varying in breadth from one to three miles, and reaches the Arc- tic Ocean in 69° 40'. At C7° 40' N. lat. it begins to divide into several branches, which at their mouths, occupy a space of more than 40 miles along the shores JA. K. Isbister Esq. M. A. Barrister-at-Law. rth of Iso on e place 1 time abun- Id ran »er por- iB there be had )m the of the in due Rocky Rrhy is n find n that dol- lars a isions 8up- it this re the rise Is with 1 above him on the summit of the moimtains, and he would soon acknowledge the Alps of which he was so fond of talking to be small* When he himself came to the Bed River he felt cross with the Canadians every hour on account of their indiflference to this fine ter- ritory. Americans are wide awake. An old farmer who wanted me to preach at his house showed me the wheat he had raised. He had raised 300 bushels of wheat weighing 68 pounds to the bushed* He had seen there the finest specimens of flax, and fit for thread of the finest quality, for fisheries and other pur- poses, Native hops, woith seventy five cents per pound in St. Paul's could be gathered by the waggon load*". In concluding these pages, the writer adds that both from intercourse with the natives and Europeans who have traversed these regions, and from personal ob- servation of large tracts of this country, he fully corroberates the interresting delineations which the above various writers have drawn. Let there then be instant action in opening, developing, and Christian- izing the length and breadth of the land. Letthe Gov- ernment and Imperial Parliament at once nobly rise to the occasion, absolutely set aside all further parley- ing, and pass an adequate Billf and practically echo :— ♦From the Nor'- Wester, Dec. 28. 1867. fThe Canada Confederation Act of last year. Sec. 147. gives authority increasingly in thifc direction, and has encouraged activity on the part of the Canadian Le- gislature, but Parliament must not stop here. ■11 74 ti^ ) i "Improvement ! on the car of Time, And rule the spacious world from clime to clime: Thy handmaid, arts, shall every wild explore. Trace every wave, and culture every shore. On Erie's hanks where tigers steal along, And thy dread Indian chants a dismal song ; Where human fiends on midnight errands walk And bathe in brains the murderous tomahawk : There shall the flock on thy my pastures stray. And Shepherds dance at summer's opening day. Each wandering genius of the lonely glen Shall start to view the glittering haunts of men ; And silent watch, on woodland height's around The village curfew, as it toils profound"* CAMPBELL. And simultaneously let the Missionary sentiment be increasingly reflected : — My Album is the savage breast. Where darkness reigns and tempests rest, Without one ray of light ; To write the name of Jesus there, To point to worlds both bright and fair, To see the savage bow in prayer, • la my supreme delight. ( ] t f t ] t F a clime: \ xplore. 1 re. i ng. If >ng; T dswalk ; bawk : 1 J stray. 1 ngday. f ylen '•1 [)fmen; 1 J around V » MFBELL. I ntiment 1 rest, ir, 9 75 APPENDIX. A. In the fur trade the standard of exchange is a beaver's skin, a pound of gunpowder is given for 4 beaver's skins, a pound of shot for one beaver, an ell of coarse cloth for 15, a blanket for 12, 2 fishhooks, or S flints for 1, a gun for 25, a pistol for 10, a hat with a white lace for 7, an axe for 4, a checked shirt for 7, a hedging bill for 1, a gallon of brandy for 4, all which was sold at the profit of 2,000 per Cent*. And in reference to the trade over the country gene- rally, the value of goods bestowed for furs is under one twentieth of their value in England, but in other places, and in the outskirts of Canada, where the ex- clusive privilege of trade does not prevail, the prices permanently offered are from two to ten fold greater J. The standard may also vary slightly in different places or at different times. B. During the first twenty years of the existence of the Hudson's Bay Oompany so >;reat were their pro- fits that, notwithstanding c iderable losses suk^- tained by the capture of som f their Forts by tfco French, amounting to £118 K), they were enabled to make a payment to the pi oprietors in 1684 of £0 per Cent. ; another paymei in 1688 of 60 per Cent, and a further payment in 1G89 of 25 per Cent» In •Lieutenant Chappel, 1742, per Fitzgerald p. 147. JA. Simpson p.l50, and King's narrative vol. ii p. 53. ^^%. /' f? 7« 1690 tbe stock was trebled, without any caH being made, besides affording payment to the proprietors of 25 per cent on the newly created stock. From 1692 to 1(S97 the company incurred loss and damage to the amount of £97,500 from the French. In 1720 their circumstances were so far improved that they again trebled their capital stock with only a call of 10 per cent from the proprietors, on which they paid dividends averaging 9 per cent for many years, show- ing profits on the originaly subscribed stock actually paid up of between 60 and 70 per cent per annum, from the yea^ 1690 to 1800 or during a period of 110 years*. C. The entire stock ofthe Company amounted only to ^400,000, the measure of British Traffic lor half a continent ! The number of white servants in their pay was about 1,000, and the number of ships two annually, of about 300 tons each, and two ships were on the North-West Coast. But the Nor'-West Com- pany alone, with half the capital, and in competition, employed 2,000 servants, and as long ago as 1816, it chartered three ships for the trade of the North West Coast, and for trading furs to China, and up- wards of 300 Canadians were employed between the Rocky Mountains and the sea. The Russian fur com- pany employed for that small strip of land, at the extreme Norih West part of the continent, 12 armed ♦British North America 1866, by the Religioas Tract Society p. 244-48* i^-^^ 77 com- the Irmed cioas Teasels and a host of agents. Even the sottlement of the Moravians, on the coasts of Lahrador, employs one ship annually and creates almost half as much trade with England as is derived from the whole of the H. B, Company's Dominions** D. The ship Charles sized in 1868* A case of the owners and proprietors of the ship and gooHs Charles, seized near Hudson's Bay by Captin Walker, Com- mander, who went on board under a friendly pretence, then showed the company's warrant seized her, and ran her purposely on the rocks* The Tort being com- mitted on the high seas, and the goods not having been landed, the proprietors were disabled sueing for satisfaction except in the high Court of Admiralty where no action for < ir jages could be tried, and the owneis applied to the Hudson's Bay Company for satisfaction, who answered, "Some of the members of the Company promised, that if the proprietors would be quiet and still, and not trouble the Company, nor interrupt them in their endeavours to procure an Act of Parliament for confirming their Charter, they would endeavour and did not doubt to persuade the Com- pany to give some satisfaction to the proprietors, who did reJy on their integrity ; but when they had ob- tained an Act of Parliament, did forget, and do now deny their promise, and the proprietors did then pe- tition the House of Commons that, in the event of passing an Act to confirm their Charter, a clause ♦Fitzgerald p. 131, 132. r T****'"'"""* /■ 78 1 i i might be inserted enabling them to ciue, &c»'\ See also the case of the Felt makers against the bill de- pending for confirming their charter*. E. In 1608 the city of Quebec was founded by Champ- Iain, and in 1612 four Recollect priests were sent thence from France to convert the Indians, and in 1635 a College of Jesuits was established, and in 1670, the R. C. Bishopric of Quebec was found ed|, and then in course of time priests were dispatched into the Indian country, numbering at present two Ro- man Catholic Bishops and a staff of priests and nuns in Rupert's Land. In 1845, Governor Semple, ob- served in his tours in that country that, he had trod- don the ruins of various buildings, but there was not the trace of a church to be seen. In 1820, the Rev. J. West of the Church Missionary Society was sent out. The late and devoted Bishop of Quebec, the Rt. Rev. Dr. Moimtain, who pierced the heart of that country in a canoe from Montreal, gives utterance to his deep sorrow at the absence of spiritual provision in that land. In 1849, that is to say, 179 years after the old charter of Charles II. was granted to the Hudsjon's Bay Company, the first bishop was conse- crated for Rupert's Land, and since that Seef was •Tracts relating to various trading companies in the British Museum, found by the marks, — "^Jli?." vol. K. J Work in the Colonies by Society Propagation of the Gospel 1865. f^^ *^® order of time the creation of this Bishopric ranks about midway on the North 79 founded there has been a considerable increase in the Clergy and Missions. The salary of the Bishop is only about ^700, which arose from the private gift of a gentleman engaged in the fur trade about which fund there was a suit. And finally the Court of Chancery tied down the Company to make an an- nual payment of j£300 per annum towards the salary of the Bishop as a Chaplaincy*. The Governor and Deputy Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company being two out of three Trustees, and the other is the Lord Bishop of London. The Wesleyan and Presbyterian denominations also have Missions there. And in reference to the sources of support, the late Sir George Simpson wrote that four-fifths fall on the different Christian Societies. Moreover, instan- ces of discountenance, obstruction, and even of per- secution to the Misfeionaries will be found upon the highest testimony under Questions in the Blue Book 1857,— Questions, 4,354; 2,683, to 2711, and 3612. Also in Fitzgerald's work, p. 189, and on other testiniony. F. A specimen on the administration of justice : To discover an English boy who was missing from one of the Hudson's Bay Company's posts — ^Two Esqui- maux Indians were seized and confined in separate apartments, and in a remote apartment a musket was American Continent or the 27th., there being in all 47 Bishoprics on that continent. Work by S. P. S. 1865. *Blue Book on H, B. Company 1857, p. 852 & 247. 1l i n mi ml I .^. >-*kr i 80 diRcharged, and the settlers entering the room in which one of the Esquimaux was confined, they in- formed him by signs that his comrade had been put to death for decoying away the boy, and that he wrould undergo the same fate unless he restored the absentee. The Indian promised everything and gain- ing his liberty he made his way into the woods, and wa/s never afterwards heard of. For some time the other Indian was kept prisoner, but one day he tried to escape b^r boldly seizing the sentinel's fire-lock at night, but the piece accidentally going off, he was BO terrified at the report that he was easily replaced in confinement, and the poor Indian was deprived of the use of his reason, and becoming troublesome, a conference was held to decide upon the most eligible mode of getting rid of him, and it being decreed good policy to deter the natives from similar offen- ces by making him an example they accordingly shot the poor maniac in cold blood, without giving themselves the trouble to ascertain whether he was really guilty or innocent*. 0. From the Blue Book on the Hudson's Bay Com- pany 1857, — The Board of the Hudson's Bay Company in Lon- don appoints all important agents in the country* The Governor and Council at Red River are both ap- pointed b)^ the Hudson's Bay Company, and likewise "^Lieutenant Chappel, his voyage to Hudson's Bay in H. M. S. Rosamond p. 156. See Fitzgerald p. 175, .1 81 flVlIlg was Com- Lon- luntry. jth ap- Is Bay V 175, hold oiSce during pleasure (Question 2051*). The na- ture of the Governor's authority is the Supervision of of the Company's affairs ; presiding at their councils in the country, and the principal direction of the whole interior management, the executive power re- sides in the Governor and bis council (Question 1150*). The directors in Loudon have the supervision of the Acts of the Council (Question 1170*). Tjie Governor is the executive all over the territory (Ques- tion 1 171-2*). His appointment is by the Governor and Company in England, who are the superiors, and they have supreme direction, the Governor is posi- tively their servant, and revoked at their will and pleasure, what they desire him to do, he is bound to do (Question 1371-81*). H. On appointment of Magistrates — ^They act as Ma- gistrates by reason of the Commission they receive from the Company, constituting them factors. (Ques- tion 1191-2*). I. In 1,500 Gasper de Cortereal was sent out by the Portuguese; and he discovered a large part of the North Eastern coast of Labrador to the extent of 600 or 700 miles, and is supposed to have discovered Hudson's Straits. Sebastain Cabot made an unsuc- cessful voyage to those regions in 1517. Frobisher discovered Frobisher's Strait, and visited Hudson's Strait in 1577-8. Davis discovered Davis's Strait and Cumberland Strait in 1585-7. Hudson passp-d through *Blue Book, 1857, "" . r :« •»Viii.',«Ai: • ' »n^ "vv> "^>. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) *-A^. 1.0 I.I lASIM |2.5 ^ Ufi IIIII2.0 l!i& IL25 III 1.4 1.6 I (?^ <% ^ / Photographic Sdenoes Corporation 23 WKT MAIN STRHT WnSTM.N.V. 14SM (7U)I71-4S03 4^ 4^\ WrS .^t i^o 4^ .^ ,V4 fe \ ^. ^. ^ r 82 the Strait into the Bay named after him. In 1612-14, Button, Bylott, and Baffin made many discoveries in and around Baffin's Bay* In 1631 James and Fox explored wuch of the region around Hudson's Strait. i flu l|l8 two vessels were dispatched by the British Government undor the command of Sir John Ross and Sir Kdward Pariy to re-examine the shores of Baffin's Bay, and Parry was convinced th«t Lancas- ter Sound was wothy of further exploration, and in 1819-22 he traversed the sound to a distance of 540 miles, and discovered Cornwallis, Bathurst, Melville, Cuckburn, Winter Islands, Bank's Island, Regent's Inlet, Fury and Ht cla Straits, and Repulse Bay. And as it seemed probable a North- West Passage might exist through Regent's Inlet, a wealthy individual, Sir Felix Booth, furnished all the expenses for a new adventure under the command of Ros?, who during a severe trial of difficulties in those regions, from 1829 to 1832, discovered land, which he called Boothia Felix, whilst his Nephew, Sir James Clark Ross, dis- covered the position of the North Magnetic Pole* It was then entertained that a strait might exist between the main land and Boothia Feiix ; and siccessive por- tions of the North Coast of America were discovered. Between the discoveries of Capt. Beechey, who ad- vtmced to Point Barrow (71° 28' N. Lat., and 156° 10' W. Long.), only a coast line of about 130 miles remained undiscovered, and this tract was largely ex- plored in 1837, by Messrs. Dease and Simpson. East \ 83 512-14, Bries in id Fox Strait. British ) Ross Dres of Ljancas- and in of .'>40 [elville, legeut's y. And might ividual, a new ire por- ^vered, )0 ad- 166° miles ^\y ex- East of the Mackenzie river, the coast line as far as Point Turn-again (near lOQ" W. Long., and 68° 30' N. Lat.) was discovered b^^ the la^e Sir John Franklin, and late Sir J. Richardson, and the distance be^een/tMs Cape and Point Victory, does not much exceed 300 miles. Dea&e and Simpson advanced to 106° W. Long» in 1838, so that the whole distance left unexplored was not much over 200 miles, and in the next year they advanced as far East as 93° W. Long, Sir George Back made two journies to the same regions, in one of which he made many discoveries near 96° W. Long* In 1845 the British Government again sent out an expedition under the late Sir John Franklin and Capt. Crozier in the ships Erebus and Tenor, and three parties were dispatched by Government in search of the missing navigators by way of Behring's Strait, another by Barrow's Strait, and a third by the Mac- kenzie river. In 1847-8 Dr. Rae explored the coast from Lord Mayor's Bay to 69** 42' N, Lat. 85« 8' W. Long, a point within a few miles of Fury and Heel a Strait. And the question is still open, whether Ross conjectured, that Boothia is a peninsula connected with the main land of America, and not an Island, is correct or not*. J* Professor Hind in making up his report as to the way in which justice is administered in Red River, records a case which came before the Company's Quarterly Court, Deo. 28. 1859. It was alleged that •N. Encyclop»dia VoK VIII. p. 1018-20. 184«* w mm 84 two girls had stolen money from one of the Company's forts, and the Company's agent tried them on the charge ; one was acquitted and the other conHemned. The Company's agent was thus at once the prosecu- tor, judge, and everything else in the proceedings ! On which Professor Hind modestly remarks, — "the mode in which justice is administered in the Settle- ments is rather of an undetermined character"* "RUPERT'S LAND." K. "The Rev. G. 0. Corbett, having visited the neigh- bourhood of Porchester for a season, has given a se- ries of lectures and a reading on Rupert's Land in the parochial schoolroom, and as these extended over sev- eral hours, though of great interest, we can only give a faint outline. In the year 1851 Mr. Corbett was sent out from England to Montreal, where among other duties, he visited the General Hospital of that city, and had ma- ny precious opportunities of speaking the word ot salvation to the sick inmates ; and where also he re- ceived some medical instruction. He was then sent on to Rupert's Land, and his line of travel lay through the United States and up the Mississippi River, and thence branching out on the western route towards the Missouri River, he finally reached the Red River Settlement, after about 700 miles of rough travelling, through an entirely uncivilized part of the country. He commenced his ministratios with a temporary charge of St. Andrews, the largest station of the C. M. S., H npany s on the lemned. )r08ecu- edings I I,— "the Settle- B neigh- in a se- id in the ver sev- oly give [* Is*) and in addition to bis ministrations, he also acted as a medical missionary at the direction and appioval of his Bishop* Subsequently, he formed an entirely new station on the Assiniboine River. In 1855 he visited England, and during this period great interest was awakened towards Rupert's Land, both among Chris- tian friends and on the part of the British Govern- ment. After attending the medical department at King's College* for a season, he returned to his sta- tion at Headingly, Red River Settlement. His course this time was through the Hudson's Straits, in the Prince of Wales, and thence from the sea-shore about 800 miles inland by small boats. He now set to work and raised new mission buildings, the numbers in this new settlement quickly increased, and his sphere of usefulness was greatly widened, and this station is still flourishing. The rev. lecturer narrated many things on the difE- . *The author's admission thereto was from the re- commendation of the Rt. Rev. Bishop Anderson, and he now takes this opportunity of thankfully acknow- ledging the kindness of all, and the Medical and sur- gical Staff at this College and its Hospital, due espe- cially to W. A. Guy Esq. M. B., F. R. C. P., &c., under whose medical care he was for the first year ; and to Henry Smith Esq. F. R. C. S., and President of the London Medical Society, for his unabated kindness during the last three years in his very instructive class at the Hospital, V. -ill; y ;«*» 86 culties and dangers of travelling; on the climate, its heat and cold, its snowy regions and burning prairies; on the manners and customs uf the Indians ; and ou the advancement of Christian missions out there* To the good work of the 0. M, S., the S. P, G., and the G. & 0. C. S., in so far as he had seen their operations, and had assisted at their stations, he bore express tes- timony. There were congregations under each of these societies comprising Indians, half-breeds, and a sprink- ling of whites, which stood out in pleasing contrast with the savage Indians around. Besides, some had been raised up from among the natives, and were now ordained ministers carrying the glad tidings of the the Saviour's love to their own countrymen. Details were also given illustrative of the power of the grace of God, and of the opportunities afforded of ministering the word of life where he never would have been called but for the medical treatment he was accustomed to render. The rev. gentleman forcibly described the unvarying respect given to the mission- ary whether in visiting the tent or the rude log-house, and the protection and veneration as shown to their dead by the Christian natives, and even by the savage Indians, was graphically pourtrayed. In his own la- bours a fair measure of the divine favour had been voucheafed : — ^The people of St. Andrews had peti- tioned for his longer residence among them, and when finding it could not be so, they sent him help in his project of forming a new station from its foundation. f"»^ 87 During his first visit to England, he received a pe- tition from the people out there to return, who pledged subscriptions towards building him a parsonage-house, and when out there he was further solicited to open out another new station, a testimonial of esteem was presented to him for ministerial and medical useful- ness, in which his Bishop concurred ; and by the Rupert's Land Scientific Institute he was nominated to be a member of the Medical Branch Committee. Indeed, his people, and those in the settlement gene- rally, had even put their lives in jeopardy for him, and had since his present visit to this country ex- pressed their desire for his return. The promise of God, "Lo ! I am with you alway," &c., he had found to hold good, and the purpose of God in His word that, ''All flesh shall see the salvation of the Lord", he was confident must be developed and become triumphant. Mr, Corbett, in his "Reading", with which was com- bined music and singing, and which is carried on by the self-denying efforts of the ladies in the parish, gave a rapid and interesting sketch of his passage among the icebergs and of the incidents of a "Camp scene in a pine forest", of which he was one of tho encampment. The Vicar wa« present at a fonner "Reading", and delivered a "Reading" on a subject to show his good wishes, and evinced an interest that in proportion as they are conducted with wisdom they may be a means of improvement and enjoyment to all* The Vicar was rlso present at nealy all the lectures t. ' .^1 [ t' 88 and manifested the deepest interest. It might be added that the above lecturer delivered] an account of Rupert's Land in the Market Hall, Fareham, where the V^icar of that parish, and the! Chaplain-General of the Navy, and many others pres-j ent exhibited the most lively interest". From the Hampshire Chronicle, April 27, 1867. ERRATA. P 5. Introduction, first foot-note belongs to p, 6 (t)— 2nd. on p. 5. (||). P. 25. for 1814 read 1848. P. 77. for sized read seized. P. 77. for 1868 read 1683. P. 85 foot-note, after admission, first. . P. 7d. instead of bushed read bushel. K. M£NOE * BBOTHEBB, PRJKTKBS, PIBK TZUtAS, DULWICB. .«* l\ ei r.