kingston chronicle nec rege nec populo sed utroque t4nlv x saturday february 21 1829 no xxxiv poetry the death of the flowers i by the author af solitary ivalks how happily how happily the flowers die away oh could we but return to earth as easily as they just live a life of sunshine of innocence and bloom then drop without decrepitude or pain into the tomb the gay and glorious creatures they nei ther toil nor spin yet jo what goodly raiment theyre a ap parelled in no tears are on their beauty but dewy gems more bright than ever brow of eastern queen endia- demed with light theyouug rejoicing creatures their plea sures never pall nor lose in sweet contentment because so fvee to all the dew the showers the sunshine the balmy blessed air spcud nothing of their freshness though all may freely share the nanny pnrrffss creatures take no heed nor weary of his creeping his speed nor sigh with sick impatience and wish the light away nor when lis gone cry dolefully would god that it were day this act and as the assembly could dot proceed to transact business without being duly qualified agreeably to the commission and instructions of the governor it was deemed advisable to abandon the measure for the present and await further aod bet ter defined instructions from the imperial government besides as the governor thought necessary and convenient it is further ordained and declared by the autho rity aforesaid that an inferior 6ourt of ju dicature or court of common pleas is hereby established with power and autho rity to determine all property above the value of 10 with a liberty of appeal to either pnrty to the superior court or court by his commission was not enjoined pc- i of kings bench where the matier iucoo- remptorily to suramona general assembly test is of the value of 20 and upwards such a step being merely optional so soon all trials in this court to be by as the situation and circumstances of the juries if demanded by either party and province would admit thereof it was this court to sit and hold two terms in e- thought advisable notto do so the present very year at the town of quebec at the circumstances of the province rendering same time with the superior court or the measure by no means necessary it court of kings bench where the mat- would also be premature it was thought terin contest in this courtis above the va and attended with many great public in conveniences as the people of canada were then as they still are to a proverb extremely illiterate and not yet ripe forso great and sudden a share of liberty and of legislative power it being doubted whe- lue of 300 stei ling there were mere than four or five per- j or upwards the sons in a parish in general who could read it was therefore most reasonably appre- either party may if they shall think proper appeal to the go vernor and council immediately and from the governor and couucil an appeal lies to the king and council where the matter in contest is of the value of 000 sterling stances at the time it intervenes for it can as little stand still at any given point as it can decide thrtt the flood of times shall go no further js men move fortvard the laws must move with them and every constituti on of government upon earth like the shores of the sea from the agitation of the element is daily losing or gaining some thing on one side or the other domestic 11 the judges in this court are to deles liwus mcieiure most reasonauly appre- mine agreeable to equity having regard heuded that the calling of an assembly so nevertheless to the laws of knolano as composed instead of remedying and re- faro the circumsiaucesthe present situn- of time thrv nor tremble at uon of things will admit until such time as proper ordinances for the information of die people can be established by he governor and council agreeable to tilt laws of england drop and when their lives arc over away to rest unconscious of the penal doom natures breast no pain have they in dying no shrinking from decay oh could we but return to earth as easi ly as they gulating all the causes ofcomplaiut would have created new ones and become the source of distempered and ignorant fuc- tious highly injurious o the welfare and happiness of the people a truth which was unhappily realized soon after the i the french laws and customs to he gramme di the present oousuiuiiou pro- allowed and admitted in all causes iu this duciug evils which nothing but the speedy t court between the nativks of this pro- intervention power and legislative wis- vince where the cause of action arose be- dom of the mother country can ever effec- fore the first day of october 1764 tually cure the first process of this court to be as to the legality of the ordinances and an attachment agaiust the body laws passed by the governor aod council i an execution to go against ihe body thus engrossing to themselves the whole lands or goods of the defendant legislative power of the province whate- 1 canadian advocates proctors c ver lawyers might say of them on general may practice iu his court on holy principle of constitutional government es- the rest of the ordinance i pcjially such of them us did not receive the they provincial parliament of upper canada- tijf attorney generals speech in answer to da baldwin the attorney general in allusion to the speech of mr lefferty said that if noise were to pass for argument the hod mem ber for lincoln had made out a strongcase in his remarks from the vehemence with which they were uttered might make more impression upon some members in the house than it was reasonable they should he should say a few words upon two or three matters which that hon gentleman had touched upon while ihey were fresh in his memory before he proceeded to notice the very extraordinary hud as h should shew the very unwarrantable attack which the hon and learned me nher from nor folk mr baldwin had chosen to mar for the kingston chronicle lowercanada watchman no vii pro patria watchman what of the night 29th jan 1829 concluded thus formally installed the governor without delay proceeded to the execution of his high and important functions the first tiling done was the nomination of eight councillors whom he was authorised by his commission and instructions to make with the orumance is taken up appointment of justices of the express sanction of the king no authority peace and the inferior officers of the courts except the highest in the state could im- of law throughout the province pugnthe legality of the ordinances made it soon however appeared evident that for the establishment of the laws of eng- j notwithstanding the full and ample as well land iu the province aud the necessary tri- j as explicit manner in which this ordi- bunals and officers for administering thern the governors commission contained il most ample powers on this head and xpli nance established in the province the eng lish courts of i aw and forms of procedure the intended enactment would have been wfe do by these presents give and grant incomplete without some legislative mca- untoyou the said james murray full pow- 8l relating to the tenure and conveyance erand authority with the advice and of lands accordingly on the 6th of no- consent of our said council to erect j vember following an ordinance was pass- coustitute and establish such and so many e declaring jhat until the 10th day of courts of judicature and publick justice august then ntrt the tenures of lands in within our said province under your go- respect to such grants as were prior to the vernmem as you and they shall think fit cession by the definitive treaty of peace and ring and determin- j the rights of xbkrrilanca a nrnrticed heforr and necessary for the heariug ing all causes as well criminal as civil c even if an assembly had been called as originally intended the powers thus conferred could not be called of inheritance as practiced before that period should remain to all intents and purposes the same the consequence to use the words of sir james marriott the expiration of this date is obvi- aftcr could not be called in question for they are entirely aud absolutely confiu- ous that the rights of inheritance and tenures ed to the governor mid council and 1 would be changed to the laws of inc- i choice of thus constituted the cover- 1 therefore whatever laws were made for land so far as this ordinance and declara- nor and council in virtue of the said the establishment of courts of justice in the tion could kgaliy change them on the province must be held binding on the same day ith november 1764 another people and looked upon as the lounda- uommissiou and instruction found them selves invested with powers and preroga- tue most m magnitude ordinance was bv the king tives of no ordinary important of these was the power to sun nn i and call general assemblies of the freeholders aw planters of the province to he called the assembly of the province of quebec with the advice nnd consent of which council and assembly after be- iog duly qualified the govern r wascm- powered to make laws for the puhlick peace welfare aod good government of the province such laws not to be re pugnant hut as near as may he agreea ble to the hiws and statutes of this our kingdom of greatbritain but it may be asked if the governor really possessed the power of convoking a general assem bly and enacting laws iu the manner here set forth why instead of proceeding to do so iu a leal and constitutional manner did he restrict the whole legislative power of appointed passed for registering iiouof their rights and the best security of grants conveyances and other instruments in their persons and property uutil abrogated writing of or concerning any lands tene- ments or hereifyt within this pro- vince this ordinance termed the he- gistry office law aud w hich had it remain- or parliament accordingly on the 17th of september 1764 a law entitled an ordinance for re gulating and establishing the courts ofju- ed in force till this day might well deserve dicature justices of the peace quarter ses- the proud appellation of the magna char- sions bailiffs and other matters relative to ta of lower canada contained the follow- tht distribution of justice in this province ing clause and every deed or con- was passed part of which i shall make no veyancu of or concerning any lands tene- apology for transcribing verbatim whereas it is highly expedient and ne- ments or hereditaments in this province shall within the space of forty days next ccssary for the well governing of his ma- after the respective dates thereof bo regis- jestys good subjects of the province of icred iu the said office in words at length quebec and fur the speedy and impartial j aud for want of such registry every such pf justice among the same deed orconveyance shall be judged fraud- i ulcnt against any subsequent purchaser for a valuable consideration the que- lislrihulion that proper courts of judicature with pro per powers and authorities and under pro per regulations should be established and uc gazette of the 25th february 1765 c li the province to himself aud bis couucil and that neither his commission empowers him to make seeing nor instructions laws otherwise than with the advice and consent of the council and assembly h could ttie laws actually made by the- vernor and council alone heiug only of the constituent branches of the pre scribed legislature be binding upon ihe people this is indeed an important in quiry and which considered abstractedly might involve alike the fundamental prin ciples of good government and the dearest rights of the people but iu so far as it concerns the present disquisition the ob jection can easily be obviated with respect to a general assembly the fact is that though one had been summon ed and chosen for nil the parishes but que bec it was discovered upon reference to the commission that it could not sit in consequence of the restrictions therein contained arising from the test act of thev5tb charles ii which prevented the measure of an assembly being executed in a colony where all the principal old inha bitant were of the roman catholic reli gion f no discretionary powers were given to the governor willi respect to the administration of tie oaths pres hy the gentlemen nominated were the following william gregory paulus emilius irvin h t cramnne adam mabane walter murray samuel holland thomas luun fraucis mounter f mariott his excellency tto governor by and with the advice consent aud assistance of taius a public notification of this ordinance dated registers office the same day thus it is evident that the english 6 ud with the advice consent and 08- sistce aforesaid doth hereby ordain and declare that a superior court of judicature o court of kings uench be established in this province to sit hold terms in the town of quebec twice in every year viz one to begin on theslst day of january called hilary term and the other on the 21st day of june called trinity terra in this court his majestys chief jus tice presides with power to determine all civil aud criminal causes agreeable to the laws of encland and to the ordi nances of this province and from this court an appeal lies to the governor and couucil where the matter in contest is a- bove the value of 000 sterling and from the governor and couucil an appeal lies to ihe kiug and council where the matter in contest is of the value of 500 sterling or upwards in all trials in this court all his ma jestys subjects in this colony be admitted on juries without any distinction and his majestys chief justiceonce in every year to hold a court of assize and general gaol delivery soon after hilary term at the towns o montreal and trois rivieres for the more easy aud con venient distribution of justice to his ma jestys subjects in these distaut parts of the province aud whereas an inferior court of judi cature or court of common pleas is also mis majestys council aud by virtue of the laws were legally introduced into this i power aud authority to him given by his j province both iu form aud in practice aud j jestys letters patent under the great i so contiuued during the space of ten years 1 of great britain has thought fit to or- i without auy material objections except i and declare and his said excellency those arising from national prejudice and preconceived aversion to a system of laws but little understood amongst a more en- i lightened people than the french caua- r i dians this foundation of just laws and a liberal government so wisely and judici ously laid by the governor and council of the province and sanctioned by the appro bation uf if- majesty ought never to have been disturbed yet the contrary was dene by the impolitiek and tyrannical quebec act oi774 an act that will ever reflect disgrace on its authors and the empire at large and an act that musx at no dtstyui period give place to more patri- couucils we con- memorable words of sir james m irriott after certain new regulations have been submitted to withpaiieuce by his majestys new cana dian subjects for a space of thirteen years though with some such complaining as is natural upon a change of masters the foundation which has been laid for an ap proximation to the manners and gore nmtffc of the new sovereign couuiry must either contiugtohe built upon or otherwise the wlftilo that has been done must be thrown down and the canadians must be restore integrum to all their ancient laws a usage a manner of proceeding as iicg with the progressive state of hum affairs as with the policy of any possibl c government which cannot revr but must necessarily take up things otick add enlighteued elude in the aud 6 ou the state of existing circum- upon the government of the country thocourts of justice thejudges individu ally and in a particular manner upon hiim self as a member of the government i e begod to say upon this occasion and he would repeat it on every occassion ot the kind that however little personal attacks of this sort had to do with the matter under discussion he felt himself exceedingly oblig ed to any h member who would venture to adopt the floating calumnies of scurrilous newspapers and make them the matter of grave accusation in this house while they rested ou no other authority than that of the despicable conductor of a slanderous paper no respectable public officer could without injury to his character descend toa refutation or indeed to any notice of thein but when a representative of the people thought proper iu his place to lend the weight of his credit whatever that raijiht be to those tales of malice or of envy theu the opportunity was afforded which every upright servant ofthe crown must desire to vindicate his character from unjust as persions he did not therefore object while the house was listening to a long tirade a- gaiost his public conduct that the absurd and malicious stories related to them had no connexion- whatever with the subject which was before the committee he suf fered the learned member to proceed with out interruption aud the committee had heard him with patience to the end the blame of deviating from the question did not rest with him and he was sure he should be heard with at least equal patience while ho exposed the utter want of reason and of justice io the whole list of charges which the hon member from norfolk had brought against htm- but he would first re mark shortly upon the only two topics in troduced by the hon member fbtf liucolu flerty which required atfy notice chosen to make himself auc ipstru- propagating a malicious mistatc- ofsome persons who his informant was it mattered little it was sflieient to know that the tale he had picked up was utterly and notoriously false a w the in dividual mr desjardins whose name he had mentioned he was a guileless person incapable of doing injury to the character of any man he was now dead hut to the last moment of his life he the attorney gene ral was sure that the sentiments which that individual entertained towards him were those of kindness and of gratitude and that there must be hundred of persons well aware of that fact he had been pro fessionally engaged against mr desjardius in a question of title to land between him and a neighbour who was well known to many members of the house and although it had become his duty to his clicut to re sist strenuousl the pretensions o desjar- dinscn that occasion he desjardins was so far above any mean spirit of resentment on that account that apprehending he might be involved with another person one nevills about other property he had retained him the attorney general to be his counsel in the event of auy such litiga tion and upon this the hon members in formation must have built the very uugene- rous statement which the house had heard as to the particular case spoken of the in sinuation had been that be had acted op pressively towards desjardins he felt he might easily despise all such assertions but he could not forbear relating that so wide ly different was the truth from the state ment or rather the insinuation which the committee had heard that although he bad succeeded iu behalf of mr uiukleyin the two actions agaiust desjardins he hud not to this hour received the cots of acti on or even the disbursements and was perhaps even iu strictness responsible to his client for the indulgence he had shewn to desjardins having directed the sheriff not to enforce a process against his person which had without his knowledge beeu taken out upon which he understood des jardins had been arrested the hon member for lincoln had al luded to another case in order to arraign the conduct ofthe superior court of the country in language certainly not very delicate to be used here or in any quarter an ejectment it seems was tried this year on the eastern circuit in which a mem ber of this house mr randall was stated to be indirectly concerued and it was urged as a reflection upon the court that the same judge who tried the cause at nisi prius decided in trie court of appeals upon the correctness of his- own judgment now the remark only shewed how little fit the hon gent was to set up for a re former of our courts for he evidently nei ther knew their duties nor the distinctions among them in the case alluded to some points were reserved at the trialthese poiuts must be disposed of in term time it was no case of appeal uor was the court a court of appeal the judge who reserv ed the points at the trial of course gave his judgment as he was bound to do upon them when they were argued in bank if that judgment was wrong why was it not appealed from by giving their judgment at the court of kings bench enabled the party to appeal of course we should pro bably be told by these gentlemen that the court of appeals was good for nothing and that no justice could be got there but it must be remembered that to make the grievance complete the king and council must be incompetent or corrupt also be cause the property in question heio of i large value an appeal to england is open i to both parties and instead of venting i their calumnies against our own tribunals the views or interests of one or other ofthe litigants the more just aud decent course would be to carry the case to the highest i i tribuual and see what is there thought of j the judgment which has been given here again if any injustice had beeu done to mr randall such was the uature of the action of ejectment that a judgment was not final if he had a claim to the proper ty he might aud ought to sue it anin action and bring that actiou before the king and council he would now pass to the strange med- ley of accusations against public men and j public measures which the hon member fornorfolk mr baldwin bad contrived to introduce into this discussion thereby turning a committee upon his excelleu- cys message on the particular case of sir collins intoageneral committee ofgriev- ances and he could not but call the re collection of the committee to the very disadvantageous light in which the hon member had thought proper to exhibit himself to the house aod to the country in the course of the petulant inconsiderate and utterly groundless attacks which ho had chosen to make attacks which he would take up ia the order they had beeu made which he would shew to be utterly unwarranted and such as could only he ascribed to a disposition soured and dis appointed or to an understanding utterly perverted his acquaintance with ihe hon and learned member was of long standing the relation of tutor and scholar had once ex isted between them and from that recol lection he had derived a respect for his cha racter as an individual that had not been destroyed by the extreme injustice he had exhibited towards himself individually as a member of ihe douse fu his private re- lationsin society he saw there was much to esteem and he respected him for his in tegrity in his personal transactions but from his observations of his public conduct t during the time they had sat together in a former parliament he must declaieitto be impossible that any candid and honora ble mind could seriously approve of it for it was at once ungenerous and unjust he seemed io have a mind formed for brood ing over the most unworthy suspicions and suffered feelings nor ofthe mostamiable or euviablc kind so far to overcome bis judg ment and to obscure all sense of justice that he would with a degree of heat and impatience that almost prevented his ut terance inveigh against the public autho rities of his country and support his in vective by statements of fancied grievan ces which vanished the very instant they were examined so here the hon and learned member upon an occasion that uei- ther called for nor justified such a display of ill temper had sought relief for his inind by bringing up as charges against him the attygenl occurrences of seven or eight years standing and imputing to him con duct and intentions which if there was the slightest foundation for them ought to disgrace him as a public officer and as a man all that time has ho been wearing the smile and holding out the hand of friendship while it is now evident that he has been lormeoted with a fceliug towards the atty- g for which god knows he had never given him cause and which goads hiro on to conduct iu the highest de cree unjustifiable and indefensible the hon aud learned member had availed him self of his privilege of speech to ascribe mo- lives aud intentions to the government to the judges and to all whom it suited his purpose to traduce much of his censure had been directed personally to him the atty genl he shouldtherefore exer cise the same privilege of ascribing to the hon member the only motives aud the only feelings by which he could possibly accouut for the extraordinary part he had taken on this aud other occasions me did not hesitate to say that from the time he the atty genl had beeu appointed io discharge the duties of his present ollice ihe hon and learned member seemed io have iudulged a feeling of envy towards bim which did little credit to bis heart and which rendered him ouall occasions inca pable ofdoingjusticeto his official conduct the house even in this session had heard from the hon- members own lips in public debate that he desired aud looked forward to a change which should place bis learn ed friend the member from middlesex at the head of affairs as he believed he term ed it and doubtless though he forbore to assign to himself the situation which he was co fill in the new arrangement he in tended to take some ofilce of consideration in company with his learned friend this early avowal of his hopes said the atty genl explains the hon members con duct his object is to rise by destroying the reputation of others and following his un hallowed course he has ventured upon this farrago of absurd accusations with which he had detained the committee aud which shall be presently exposed lie the at torney general would assure bim that in his attempt to take the house by surprise for any purpose of this sort ho was under valuing the sense of justice of the house itself and that in imagining he could by such means gain the object he had in view he paid an indifferent compliment to the character of his sovereign and of his go vernment he the atty genl assured him he would find that iu this free couu- try those who faithfully discharged their duty to their king were out to be pulled down bv any such combinations that it was idle to make extravagant add absurd which must at last be brought forward tl refute them and that whatever his ov uncharitable disposition might prompt him to attempt he would learn that persons who could fearlessly defy the most rigorous inquiry iuto their conduct were not to be put down by rudeness clamor or injus tice the honorable and learned member had given his seutiments upon the cse of coliins among the various matters he had gone iuio and so far ho was in order but the sentiments he had made on this bead were tinged with the same prejudice that seemed to disqualify him absolutely from judgiug fairly upon any thing in which he the a g was concerned he the a g had for inauy years discharged the duties of crown officer and be never heard that he had in any other instance been charged with acting rigorously towards a dcfco- dsjyrso he desired on this occasion to shew that far from acting with severity all this pretended grievance was huilt up on circumstances that could not possibly have occurred if he had uot departed from the usual course in order to coucede to the defeudant or rather to his counsel very unusual indulgences he had certainly pronounced the statement made by mr baldwin before the select committee to be unfair and unjust and he should prove it lobe so making every allowance for ihe bias of a counsel it was not such an account of the occurrences described as he should have expected from auy gentleman ofthe profession to make the select committee had merely placed before him a page of evidence which he supposed to have beeu given by mr baldwin junior he understood the committee to say it was dr baldwin but it was immaterial whether if wut iveirily ilironuuidlu copied verbatim almost into the report adopted by the committee and he found now that a long account of dr baldwin was also giveu into the committee and a statement of mr carey and another per son with none of which did the select committee make him acquainted when he attended at their request it certainly was a novel and not very satisfactory proceed ing which had been got up in this case a defendant on trial for libel has three coun sel to defend him who exert all their inge nuity in his behalf but happening to fail he is convicted and dealt with as other per sons convicted of offending the laws he then petitions theassembly calumniating the court and the crown officer and the crown officer is requested to attend a se lect committee where he find the leadiug counsel acting in a new character as member of this select committee and bu sily employed upon the testimony of the o- ther two counsel in furnishing out a re port upon the conduct of the court and the attorney general he ventured to say that it would be somewhat difficult to find a parrallel in the annals of some centu ries iu the parliament of england it was never his desire to discharge ady public du ty free from responsibility no man ought to be entrusted with power upon such terms he was ready therefore at all times to accouut to the government whose ser vant he was and to meet in any judicial proceeding whatever charge the malice of any one might prompt him to prefer but no man could with safety submit to render au account of his official conduct iu an swer to statements not made under the solemnity of an oath and to a body from whom he could not demand as a matter of right that when they found the statements made to them wholly unfounded they should candidly and unequivocally declare them to he so he had therefore contend ed himself with giving to the committee the names of several gentlemen who had been present in court and could give a clear aud at least disinterested account of the proceedings as they had received them from the defendants counsel he mention ed to them the solicitor general who had taken no part iu the proceedings before or at the trial the clerk of assize mr mcvuhtv a barrister and the associate judge and he had no doubt many ofthe grand and potty jury could have given the