The Sun.
London, England, 1841-03-11 00:00:00

CANADA.

COPY OF A DESPATCH FROM THE GOVERNOR-GE"'
OF BRITISH NORTH AMERICA TO LORD JOHN massy'''
Government House, Montreal, June 28, 1840.
My Lord,—ln my despatch of the 13th March last,
No. 68, I informed your Lordship that it was ray ill"
tention to re-introduce into the Special Council, at its
meeting, with such modifications as I deemed necessaso
the ordinance for incorporating the ecclesiastics of Pc,
Sulpice, and providing for the gradual extinction olt
seignorial rights within their possessions, which was is
s
year passed by Sir John Colborne and the Council
but which could not be rendered effective under the
powers of the Council as then constituted. I accord:
ingly sent down to them on the 30th ult. the draft ott
an ordinance for that purpose, which, after the foil°
discussion, was passed, and having received roY assert
is included among the ordinances which aecompaDY 17°'
despatch of the 27th instant.
I have already stated to your Lordship, in In 7 deogi
patch, No. 68, my views as to the general pal'crY
this measure and my concurrence in the opinion ac-
0J t
Commissioners of Inquiry, that after so long MI
quiescence by the Government in the claims of the
seminary, it would be impossible with justice noo t°
take advantage of any defect in their legal title to in'
terfere with their property, or to irriose on them torl
of a rigorous nature. It is only necessary, therefore, that t
should direct your attention to th e alterations in the pies"
ordinance, introduced with a view to bring it more jot?
conformity with the heads of the ordinance proposed 1121
Mr. C. Buyer's Report to the Earl of Durhaul,
which alterations, I may remark, are restrictions ePr_
the seminary, and in favour of the public or to'

;ERAD

censitaires.
In the first clause of the ordinance passed by Sir Job!
Colborne and the Special Council, it was provided tile
all rules, &c. for the temporary' government of till
corporation," save only those which are now followt.
and in force," 'should, before corning into operation, u;
approved by the Executive Government. The Presketjt
ordinance requires that not the future rules only, uu_
those also which already exist, should be submitted for
the approval of the Government.,
The second clause of the present ordinance definf:
the purposes and objects to which the property of rie
seminary may be applied, which was omitted 10

_
former.
In the fifth clause, a slight alteration is introduced
the terms of commut Ation, by which an advantage
conferred on the eensitaires. the
By the Bth clause the priority of the hypothec
seminary for the commutation-money, as for de tit,
it represents, is expressly secured, and the droit de;
acute is. abolished with regard to each lot of
tenure is commuted. The object of the rtgree°l a
the opticr
being to put an end to all seignori# rights at
the Poli,
of each individual censitaire, I considered even
tial reservation of any one of these rights by the sego
nary as improper. . ,
By the 11th clause the maximum of arrears which of
be received by the seminary for the fief and seignbe
Montreal is limited to 44,000/. currency, and '°Ar St.
seignories of the Lake of Two Mountains an id
to 12,7001. currency, any surplus to be P
over to the provincial treasury. Gabriel
The 12th clause provides that the farm of St. Ge-,„r
shall be sold by public sale, after notice in the ne'
papers for one month! which toot
In the 13th clause, respect* the investment °f tlitsa
disposable moneys of the corporation, the autlintititba
invest them in chartered and incorporated bodies in

colonies is omitted.
By the 14th clause, the seminary is required to
nish "a full, clear and detailed statement" of their roe
venue and expenditure, in such manner and feral, 6130
with such attestation of correctness," as the Gelree
shall prescribe, instead of the summary statemec'flast
quired under the former ordinance ; and finalle.,a;csil
the extended powers of the Governor and
Council, the the ordinance is made permanent. es°
Your Lordship will perceive that none of t'sad
alterations affect the principle of the ordinance!, si
that their object and tendency is to bring 11,0,
much as possible into accordance with the stitee
ment made under Mr. Charles Buller 's cehteecili
lion. The ordinance passed last year und°llllo
failed to carry into effect some of the provisions %of
agreement, and the conditions imposed on the 50,1; its
wereless stringent than they should have been to most
accordance with his Report. chap objection bate
been completely removed by the ges introduce
the special council. aid
I have every reason to believe that, notwitbstae
city,
the clamour .raised by a few individuals in thietod
and the violence of the press, the measure is aPPreeisi
by the moderate men of all parties. In the 'er seaistA
council there as ere but two members who voted %fess
it, and although the persons who signed the of 3,
to the Throne transmitted in ray despatch, ins, ie
have since sent an agent to England, they d"l'Pee to
answer to an unofficial communication which I Illanitite
them, to suggest any alterations or modifications -
ordinance.
"a,„00
In fact, it is not possible to deny that the 'nos t°
agreement with the seminary are most advanteg the
the censitaires, arid such as no other seigneur witceol°
province, whether the Crown, or an individual, ,a
consent to accept, and this accordingly is not den'
the parties. For years past the loudest cornpluicl spore
been made by the inhabitants of Montreal. aD
especially by the British community, of the luielseiss6
they suffered fsom the seignorial tenure Pc"-
by the seminary. tasfig,
The strongest representations were repeatee,ooe
to induce the Legislature or the Government t°B,l thie
if not to compel, a settlement of the matter ; af-„eor
settlement is now effected, upon terms far more thei
able, in a pecuniary sense, to the censitaires uncoils
possessors of property under the seminary, thaPeora'
have been anticipated, and to which, last Year, S-
ing to Mr. Buller's Report, they assented. i uerler
The only ground, therefore, on which, as e;e0o te
stand it, the parties who have signed the Pehl:t
the Queen, oppose this settlement now, is t..",tb tb
set up an objection to any settlement at all "ale; ti°
seminary, al!eging that that body has no legal rsirjete:
the property, and that the matter must be cec,-, lbw
as entirely new, and, therefore, not authotiste Of
establishment of a corporation for such PurPi°-
with such an amount of property at its disposal,,
Upon this, I have only to remark, that if at
title of the seminary be a bad one, the eller eeil
longs to the Crown, and the faith of the theGra/ji
pledged to the seminary, by repeated Acts for 0 tba
sixty or stvonty years, as is sufficiently she° issibitl
Report of the Commissioners, it -would not be Peels
for the Ministers of the Crown to resume the Freoriost/
or assent to any Act which should deprive the sc.stios'
of it, without a fair and equiteble compeneot pre
Less than what is now given to them would ee
bably be considered sufficient for this eurlii!sei; cos
:
thus the only effest of now refusing to ratify terrotiou.
tract would be (so far as mere pecuniary eeesiuctee Irt
to
itio, o
arc involved), not to reduce the advantages
minary, but to place the Crown in the Pesa to de'
Seigneur, compensating, as it is in honour WO sever
the latter, but offering very different and less °f cop'
tageous terms to the censitaires, for the right ° 01
mutation.
But in a political point of view, the
this ordinance would be most disastrous• iiis'ftecijoiltel,
of contention, the matter was at last final-4;00:8
between the contending parties, through the Id by
Mr. Buller; the bargain thus made was ratimegaies'is
Legislature here ; it was approved by her t 00.0
Government and by both Houses of Parliarneu 'OOO3l
special clause introduced int o the Canada Goverinsetslhe;
by the Duke of Wellington, I believe, enabling f`; on
merit to receive legal force. After all this,
tibsesti
representation of some few individuals, ow 006° g
disalloWsreyee-stig
up ail that has thus passed, and to leave the qvaitbetio
open to fresh discussion and fresh exeiteneetthoseat
the possibility of the Crowe being able to cote see
the measure which the
peCtioners offset fella ee#
namely, the abandonment of the seminars'',
tail the most disastrous consequences upon the. .450
Upon these considerations, I adhere to the optiopviu, enj
my predecessors, Lord Durham and Lord Ses he orai.
earnestly recommended the confirmation °I" t
be frcl
Hance by her Majesty.
Undoubtedly, if I considered the Crown t°
_,•,,,,t leg
from any obligation, and that (supposing thest7eorati?!
right to be with it and not with the o.7pristio;
I was at liberty to recommend the 31),.1) the Prot
that I thought best, I should not 1311`e a 00
sent one. Although the seminary '6 sestlY is
useful body, and manages its affairs g'vlittioghic,
the advantage of the province, Wouldioiv,
under such circumst d t less esc slh
ances, aop a A OV e use
tributien of such large Crown funds ; une, whose hoe
would increase them greatly by making floe .0
would then be the censitaires of the Crof.c not is
their freedom at a much higher rate. nut coo
its Pre for
a situation, hampered as the Crown is
re • fere,
A the n V
engagements, to take such a course, an. -
cdope
the same reasons, I come to the same co
those to whom I have above referred have dont;
I have, &c.,ipS
'iee S'
(Signed) C. POULETT THOA stss

On Wednesday of last week the oath .of °°•,g I
taken by Lord Sydenham, at Montreal, on assul,eeii'
government of Canada, in the presence of th, of pci
L.) meil, the Judges, the Clergy, and the tic
partments. Salutes were fired, a numerously' a' gicefl
levee was held, and in tLe c% ening a grand tall was
by his Lordship. co Isips'
After the taking of the oath the following Pr
tion was issued ; vo
" A PIZOCLAMATION.
Queen I 11,t,
~ In obedience to the commands of the f 1.,-'
this day assumed the government of tie province,°.r Oil,
nada. Upper and Lower Canada, separated I:)..ci il,
years, are once more re-united, and heneeforwBl
form but one province, under one adminiitration. Lot 00
" On my exiival in Lower Canada I declared that to 00
of the main objects of my mission was t 0 put an ell, to re.
suspension of the constitution in that provins,_olostite:
store to its inhabitants the full benefits o theritian
tio Ito
tions. That object is accomplished•
which fixes the union, representative governseent;eir orb
By e ifor,,, 40_
established, and that control by the PeoPle over