The Sun.
London, England, 1836-08-20 00:00:00

AFFAIRS OF CANADA.

Mr. HUME had a petition to present, which he hoped
would arrest the attention of the House for a short time.
The petition had been put in his hand within one hour, and
it had arrived by a neither of the House of Assembly of
Upper Canada, who came to represent to the House
and the Government the awful manner in which affairs
were proceeding in that country. He had net gone
into the general state 'of Canada the other evening,
because of the want of documents and a full know-
ledge of the facts ; but if the statements of this petition
could be verified, (and the gentleman who banded him the
petition assured him that every statement could be), it would
be impossible for Government to continue Sir F. Head in the
situation he was most unworthily filling. Thopetition went on
to state that violence and outrage bad been used by the
Tories, and sanctioned by the Government, in order to se-
cure the return of their supporters. In that country the
governor had the power of appointing not only the return-
ing officer, but also of fieing the time and place of election ;
he had used that power most arbitrarily at the late election,
even to the altering of the polling place after it had
been once fixed.—(Hear, bear.) Also that be. had
employed the Orangemen at the elections, notwith-
standing the orders of the Government, founded upon the
resolutions of that House, had arrived full a month before.
There was a law in force in Canada, whereby the free-
holders were required to have been registered from three
months before they voted ; but at the late election, Sir F.
Head granted creebolds, even after the elections had been
begun, and they voted as having patents from the Cro‘;n
The petition stated the electors had been overwhelmed
and their franchises rendered of no avail, and he therefore
p-ayed the floozie to make . such inquiries into the
grievance, and to adopt such measuyes, as would do
justice to the people of Canada. He (Mr. Hume)
had been unwilling to lose that opportunity of call-
ing the attention of the House to the subject, but if there
had been 'time he should have proposed the appointment
of a Committee to have inquired into those violent out-
rages by which the people of Canada had been so
grossly imposed upon. He trusted that, at all events,
the government would sent out one or more of the Com-
missioners of Canada to procure such information as would
put them in
.possession of the facts of the case. He hoped
and trusted that his Majesty's Government would see
justice done in the matter, because if public officers were
in that way allowed to outrage decency, the sooner an
enqurey was made for the purpose of ascertaining the truth
of these allegations the better.

Sir G. GREY did not know how the Hon. Member
could reconcile his statement the other evening that Sir
Francis Head was not guilty of the charges brought against
him, with the presentation of the petition now read by him.
How had the petitioner got there ? The petitioner, although
a successful candidate, avowed himself one of the defeated
,;:arty, and came there smarting under the disappointment,
with those excited feelings which characterised all contested
elections carried on either in that country or in any other.
The petition contained allegations against not alone the
Government but the returning officer, for having admitted
improper votes. Why had not these charges been brought
before the House of Assembly—(Hear, hear)—which
would have saved the Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Duncombe)
the trouble of coming to that country, and where the means
of establishing the charges were within reach ?-----(Hear.)
With respect- to the conduct of the Lieutenant-Governor,
there were no specific allegations in the petition ; it dealt
only in generals. The Lieutenant-Governor had acted
according to his instructions, and it would be contrary to
those instructions for him to have mixed himself up with
parties while he was representing his Sovereign in that
country. He (Sir G. Grey) denied the truth of the accusations
made against the Lieut.-Governor, but those accusations
should immediately be sent out to him, and if be chose to
answer lie could do so ; further he would not go.

Mr. HUME explained. It appeared to him that, a pe-
tition was the best mode by which justice could be done.
Mr. G. F. YOUNG thought that the truth of this
question had been put in a form wholly unanswerable by
the Hon. Bart. (Sir G. Grey.) The matters complained of
must come before a judicial tribunal, and it was therefore
unfair to prejudge this question. There were tribunals in
Canada, where the enquiry ought to be begun; and then,
if anything were proved, there would be a ground for a
Parliamentary enquiry ; but the' present course would do
nothing further than prejudge the question.
Mr. WARBURTON and Mr. WIT,KR SI!
PP3Red the peti-
tion, OA dgetided ON; conduct of Mr. Hume in presenting
it. It was only on the 14th of last month that the peti-
tioner left the country, and that as soon after the elections
as he could. .