North American. [volume] (Swanton, Vt.) 1839-1841, 1840-12-02
swANToN, VT. DECEMBER 9, 1870.


Provincial Ordinances, which lhe House
had declared To be extine', and Tor the re-
yivAi Of which committee Of the House
in the session OF ises had impeacaed Lord
Dahousie. Indeed Sir James kempi must
have been possessed Of some very iascipa.
ting qualities TO have escaped tina, esnsuTe
whish he deserved as well as the unfoHa-
nate Count Dalhouss, who had been
Justly tainted with Ignorance and lkwills
in recalling TO lie two old ordinances
which had been annulled and declared vsid.
Before leaving The country Sir James
Kempt issued . commission Of the peace
for the Dis,ric, OF Quebec, which splaced
the msgistracy Of that District on no bet
ter footing than !. was before. as far as il,
regards the French population. Ia the
list for the District of Montreal, he ap-
pears to have had little mofe regard for
the native population.
Lord Aylmer who was commissioned
az Governor General on the iethsof July,
arrived at Quebec in the ship Herald, on
the 18Th September, where he landed with
his family. Sir James Kemp, left in the
same ship on The GOTH Of the same month.
He LETT the Icins of the Provincial Adj
minis,ratien in the hands Of q less fortu-
nate man than himself but we venture to
say equally as honest (if honesty can
he found in Colonial Governor who ar
rives in the Province with his hands bound
and his tongue tied.)
Before discussing The acts Of the sue
cessor Of Sir James K,mpt, we shall lay
before our readers the account Of dreadful
accident which We ought 10 have mention
ed before this time and which happened 10
May, 1929. On The Southern side Of the
River La Graisse at about three miles
from the Parish Church, in the seigniory
Of Rigaud, the shores Of the river are
remarkable for their height which 10 about
from so 10 60 feet above the level Of the
water, the shore being very perpendicular
on one side, whilst on the other side Of The
river, the shore 10 less bold. On Sun
day whilst the family Of a man named Sa
hourin whose house was built nj yer,
short distance from the southern shore
was quietly busy in their household, the,
were suddenly alarmed by a loud nos
and they discovered that the house wa
moving from its foundation. A yount
man by the name of Leblanc who was il
the house with his mother, fled at the frs
alarm, but bis flis affection induced hin
to return to rescue his mothers life. Bot
of them succeeded in leaving the tottcr
ing house and were already at a ceuai
distance, when suddenly the earth opens
under them and they both descended int
a vast and irightful grave from which the
could not be extricated, although the pea
pie OF the vicinity, after the alarm had sub
sided, dug to great depth and after niue
and aborious but fruitless exertion, wer
obliged to abandon il. The wife Of th
owner Of the house in making her eseap
was buried neck deep into the movin
, earth, and her lie was preserved but wit
the greatest difficulty. Nothing but fe'
broken and scattered pieces of the hou.
could be found, the rest having cvidentl
been buried. A barn which was on III
hill behind the house, presents the ne
!. spectacle Of being now on a small island
tne new bed which the river has forme
at the place where the buildings once s,oot
There exists now q bend IN the river o.
poste the place where this awful catastr
phe happened. The new hills are vel
steep and in the form Of pyramids, Il
water flowing through interrupted fell
10 this sad accident Two lives were los
q son rerishing in the iaudsble endsav
10 rescue an afcctionate mother.
Our readers are already informed III
y the new Catholic church had been dedie
Il ted and consequently opened for divi
O service. II became necessary 10 reno
. the walls OF the old church which stood
If the middle Of NotTe-Deme street and "