Читать книгу The Life of John Graves Simcoe - William Renwick Riddell - Страница 19

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Canada as a province of France after having in 1759 suffered the loss of Quebec, became wholly British de facto by the surrender of Montreal in 1760 followed by the delivery of the Upper Posts. The rule was military but generously considerative of the laws and customs of the French during what has received the name of Le Régime Militaire or Le Règne Militaire^[1].

When by the Treaty of Paris of 1763, Canada was ceded to Britain, it was determined to form a “Government” of Quebec reaching a little west of the Ottawa River, and to reserve the western country for the Indians and fur trade. In 1764, civil administration was established and took the place of military rule. At the time of the Conquest and for some years thereafter, it was the confident expectation of the British authorities and the American Colonists to the south, that Quebec would speedily become Anglicised in race, language and religion: it was believed that most of the French-Canadians would leave the country, that English-speaking Protestant immigrants would come in from the British Isles and American Colonies and that the few French-Canadians who remained would be absorbed into the English mass.

This expectation proved vain: few of the French-Canadians left Quebec, few settlers came in from English-speaking countries, and the French-Canadians then, as always, were tenacious of their race, language and religion.

By the Royal Proclamation of 1763 issued after the Treaty of Paris the King specifically promised “for the security of the Liberties and Properties of those who are or shall become Inhabitants” of the Province, that until there should be a General Assembly elected to make laws for them, “all Persons Inhabiting in or resorting to one said” Colony “may confide in our Royal Protection for the Enjoyment of the Benefit of the Laws of our Realm of England”. It was also stated in the Proclamation—and truly—that express power had been given to the Governor to summon and call a General Assembly as soon as the state and circumstance of the Colony should admit. Few if any of the French-Canadians wanted an Assembly—such a body had been unknown in the French regime—none wanted the English civil law—the criminal law was not objected to except by some of the noblesse.

Guy Carleton (afterwards Lord Dorchester), who was Governor of Quebec from 1768 to 1778, used all his great influence to have the promises, express and implied, of the King brought to naught: and after much discussion and wrangling the famous Quebec Act of 1774 was passed. This extended the Province of Quebec, south to the Ohio (west of Pennsylvania) and West to the Mississippi^[2]: it put an end to the project for a General Assembly, leaving the Province to be governed in the old way by a Governor and a nominated Council; and it reintroduced the French-Canadian law in civil matters. This breach of faith with those—they were few indeed, but there were some—who came to Quebec on the strength of the representations contained in the Royal Proclamation of 1763, can be excused if at all on the ground of high reasons of state. Opinions vary, sub judice lis est, and this is not the place to discuss the question.

The Thirteen Colonies to the South made great efforts to bring Canada into union with them as the Fourteenth. The indefatigable energy and military skill of Carleton coupled with good fortune foiled the armed invaders while Bishop Briand, ever faithful to Britain, prevented the persuasive arguments of Benjamin Franklin and his colleagues, delegates to Canada from the Continental Congress in 1776, from being effective: Canada remained British and on the Peace of 1783, there was no thought of giving her up.

The Old British Empire was rent in twain, in time to be replaced by a greater and more admirable New British Empire.

What the united Empire failed to bring about, a disrupted Empire effected in some degree.

During, and more especially after, the Revolutionary War, many loyal British subjects left the rebellious territory and made their way northward into the loyal British territory: some into the southern part of what is now the Province of Quebec, and some further west to the left side of the Great Lakes and connecting rivers. These were, in general, English speaking and had lived under English law and custom: French-Canadian law and custom irked them, and many were their complaints. No remedy wholly satisfactory, could be found: that which was adopted was inadequate and it did some injustice; but it is hard to see how a better one could be suggested under the very peculiar circumstances. It was decided to divide the Province of Quebec into two Provinces, those of Upper Canada and of Lower Canada, and to give to each a Legislature with power to make such laws as should be thought proper for the particular Province.

The Upper Province was expected to be almost wholly English-speaking and Protestant: the Lower it was known would be for a time at least French-speaking and Catholic, but the hope was not wholly extinct that in time it also would become largely English and Protestant.

Wolford Lodge Interiors

1. The Hall. 2. The Morning Room. 3. The Salon.

Accordingly a Royal Message was presented to the House of Commons by the Prime Minister, William Pitt, February 25, 1791, stating the King’s intention to divide the Province of Quebec into the two separate provinces and recommending the matter to the consideration of the House. A long and acrimonious discussion took place (resulting, inter alia, in the well-known rupture between Burke and Fox); and ultimately the Canada or Constitutional Act was passed and it received the Royal Assent, June 10, 1791. This Statute did not, as is so often said, divide the Province of Quebec nor did it authorize the King to divide it—that was for the King under his Royal Prerogative—but it provided for the government, &c., of the two Provinces at a date to be fixed after they should be formed.

The Order-in-Council which actually effected the formation of the Provinces of Upper Canada and Lower Canada was passed “at the Court of St. James’s, the 24th of August, 1791”. The Act having provided that it was to begin at a day to be fixed by the King on the advice of his Council or by the Governor or Lieutenant-Governor of the Province of Quebec or the person administering the Government there authorized so to do by the King on the advice of his Council, the Order in Council of August 24 directed Dundas to prepare a warrant to be passed under the Royal Sign Manual to authorize the Governor, Lieutenant-Governor or Person administering the Government there, to fix a day not later than December 31 of that year. This was done, the Warrant was executed and in the absence of Dorchester, Governor of Quebec, Major-General Alured Clarke, Lieutenant-Governor, issued his Proclamation at Quebec, November 18, fixing December 26, 1791, as the day for the commencement of the Canada Act.

It is impossible not to recognise that Simcoe was disappointed at the position he was called upon to fill—there can be no doubt that he had originally supposed that he was to be the Governor of Upper Canada with no overlord but the King and the Home Administration: but it was otherwise decided: Dorchester, who had been Governor of Quebec, received a Commission, September 12, 1791, as “Captain General and Governor in Chief of our .... Province of Upper Canada and of our .... Province of Lower Canada”, while Simcoe the same day was constituted “Our Lieutenant-Governor of our Province of Upper Canada” and authorized “in case of his death or during the absence of Our Captain General and Governor in Chief of Our .... Province of Upper Canada .... to exercise and perform all and singular the powers and directions contained in our Commission” to him. The Royal Instructions accompanying the Commission were given to Dorchester, “Our Captain General and Governor-in-Chief in and over Our Province of Upper Canada”: none were given to Simcoe except that his Commission directed him to act “according to such Instructions as he (i.e., the Governor-in-Chief) hath already received from Us and such further Orders and Instructions as he or you shall hereafter receive from Us”. In a word, Dorchester was the Governor and Simcoe but the Lieutenant-Governor with the powers of the Governor only in case of his death or absence from the Province. As it was intended that Dorchester should continue to reside at Quebec, Simcoe’s authority was expected to be generally exercisable. But there was another difficulty, that is, the Command of the Forces—that was given to Dorchester, and Simcoe had but to carry out his orders. The relation of Lieutenant-Governor to Governor in the absence of the latter from the Province was a somewhat puzzling question.

As to the extent of the territory, included in his Province, there was a difference between the Province of Upper Canada de jure and the same Province de facto.

When by the Treaty of Paris, 1783, it was agreed that the United States should have the territory to the right of the Great Lakes and connecting rivers, it was also agreed that “Creditors on either side shall meet with no lawful impediment to the recovery of the full value in sterling money of all bona fide debts” theretofore “contracted^[3]: certain of the States had legislation which prevented British creditors receiving the amounts due to them from American debtors, and refused to repeal this obnoxious legislation. The loosely knit United States admitted inability to compel the carrying out of the stipulation; and Britain retained possession of the Posts at Michillimackinac, Detroit, Niagara, Oswego, Oswegatchie, Point au Fer and Dutchman’s Point with some adjoining territory as security for the fulfilment of the Treaty. Upper Canada, therefore, in fact contained some territory now part of the United States: this continued during nearly the whole term of Simcoe’s regime; negotiations for their surrender had been successfully carried through and the surrender made a few days only before he left Upper Canada.

The inhabitants of his Province were mainly United Empire Loyalists or their descendants: the Loyalists had during the Revolutionary War or on the conclusion of peace crossed into British territory and were mainly on the north side of the River St. Lawrence from the eastern boundary of the Province to the River Trent, on the west side of the River Niagara from a little north of the present Niagara-on-the-Lake to Lake Erie, and stretching along the north shore of Lake Erie to the East side of the Detroit River, up this river and the St. Clair to a short distance north of Lake St. Clair. Detroit was inhabited chiefly by French, although it had a number of English-speaking merchants. The nuclei around which the settlers were gathered were the present Cornwall, Kingston, Niagara and Detroit; and except in the last named practically all were English-speaking.

The numbers have been variously estimated: probably 10,000 is not far from the correct number.

The Indians constituted a difficulty, sometimes a menace: and it was never safe to count on the Colony being left undisturbed by these tribes—not, of course, the Six Nations on the Grand River, but the tribes which had not been closely associated with the British.

At this time, there were serious troubles between the United States and the Indians of the North Western Territory, i.e., the present States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin. This Territory was formed by the Ordinance of 1787 and Arthur St. Clair became its first Governor: the Indians resented the invasion of their territory and early insisted that the white settler should not cross the Ohio: when Treaties were made, there were many complaints that they were not kept. War broke out, and General Josiah Harmar, with regular troops and militia, was badly defeated by the Miamis in 1790. Dorchester was very anxious over the situation: the Indians had been in general friendly with the British and there seemed at least a chance of Britain being brought into the war, especially as there was a well-defined sentiment in the United States in favour of attempting to take possession of the retained Posts by force. The Indians, too, bitterly complained of being betrayed by the British in the Peace Treaty. Dorchester gave specific instructions to the Commandants of the Upper Posts that while “We are at peace with the United States and wish to remain so”, “Common prudence requires a constant vigilance and readiness on our part to meet” a war begun by the United States “however improbable”^[4]: St. Clair was placed in command of a larger army in 1791, and, November 4 of that year, he suffered a still more disastrous defeat at the hands of the Miamis; and it was not until “Mad” Anthony Wayne overthrew them at Maumee Rapids, August 20, 1794, that peace was assured.