hostages, till the return of the aforementioned French and Canadians. We oblige our selves on the other part, to send back, in safety, the two officers left with us, in two months and a half, etc., etc." This was signed in duplicate. It has been remarked that Captain McKay's signature preceded that of Washington, by which it would appear that he had asserted his right of precedence, as a Royal officer. M. de Gaspé says that Washington should never have signed such a capitulation. His friends assert that he never did. Or, if he did, that a fraud had been practised on him, as he did not know a word of French till many years after. But the capitulation is inconsistent with itself. It permitted a man charged with an atrocious, cold-blooded murder, to march out with all the honours of war, "as they wished to prove their desire to treat them as friends." This capitulation, too, is granted by the brother of the murdered man, who was specially sent in command, that he might avenge his brother's blood which was crying from the ground.The history of the world does not afford such another instance of Christian conduct. Is any reliance to be placed on the testimony of Indians, who had most probably been active participators in the slaughter? We have read many instances of the whites being unable to restrain their Indian allies, but this is the first case in which we are told that, unless the Indians had rushed forward to prevent it, the whole of Jumonville's party would have been cut to pieces. Dussieux is evidently incorrect as to the numbers under McKay and Washington. He says there were 500; another French Canadian historian, Garneau, says 400. We have no means at present of ascertaining the exact amount. All we know is that Washington had under him one hundred and fifty The number of Captain McKay's Independent Company is not stated; Lord Mahon says the whole force was 400. It is men. curious to note how completely Garneau differs from Bancroft, Dussieux and others in his narration. He says, "Contrecœur, on learning the tragic end of Jumonville, resolved to avenge his death at once. He put six hundred Canadians and one hundred savages, under the orders of the victim's brother, M. de Villiers, who started directly. Villiers found on his arrival at the scene of the late skirmish, the corpses of several Frenchmen; and near by, in a plain, the British drawn up in battle order, and ready to receive the shock. At Villiers' first movement to attack them, they fell back some intrenchments which they had formed and armed with nine pieces of artillery. Villiers had to combat forces under shelter while his own were uncovered. The issue of the battle was doubtful for some. time; but the Canadians fought with so much ardour, that they silenced the British cannon with their musketry, and, after a struggle of ten hours' duration, obliged the enemy to capitulate so as to be spared an assault. The discomfited British engaged to return the way they came; but they did not return in like order, for their retrograde march was so precipitate, that they abandoned all, even their flag." Whom are we to credit ?* on In closing this paper we wish to say, that as neither of the parties had power to declare war or peace, the articles of capitulation, even had they contained nothing which could be objected to, were of no effect, and according to the interpretation of public law were in no respect binding. On the contrary, in such cases, the government of the country of either party objecting, required and commanded its subjects to pay no respect to it, but to act as if they had never been parties to it. We mention this here as it may have something to do in forming our estimate of the conduct of Robert Stobo, whose case we next propose to bring under review. Garneau also says that the British loss was 58 and the French 73. From the abyss of heaven a meteor flame The princess lay Sleeping so fair the beauty of the place Seemed centred in the wonder of her face. Entranced I stood and speechless in my love, Softly as a flower Opens its eyes, awaked by April shower, She opened hers. Francesca, they were thine, Ruthlessly beautiful as deadly wine Which smiles and kills! I drank that wine and fell And Hope fell too and darkness as of hell Clouded and blotted out the blessed light, MONTREAL. Yet Love, which hath slain me, Death cannot kill, Are to each other all here as above. Thou sayest it is grievous to recall Thou still art mine, Francesca; I am thine; Oh! for one ray of that supernal light Forgive me thou, Francesca. I to thee Mayhap we may not alway suffer thus. ! AN HISTORICAL NIGHT IN THE OLD CANADIAN PARLIAMENT. A BY S. J. WATSON. T three o'clock, on the afternoon of Wednesday, June the 15th, 1864, Mr. Wallbridge, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada, took the chair. Before he declared the sitting of that day to be closed, an event took place which delivered the death-blow to the system of government under which that Legislative Assembly was authorized to exist as representing the people of the provinces of Upper and Lower Canada. The weather that afternoon was warm even for the City of Quebec. The rock, on which the Parliament House stood, was hot to the touch; the sky above was without a cloud to break the eye-paining monotony of its burning blue; the streets were airless and sultry; and on the great river there was scarcely a breath of breeze to entice a ripple into play. The sultriness outside could be borne; inside the Parliament House, the sense of heat was almost overpowering. But, in spite of the oppressive atmosphere, the great majority of members were in their places; for the current of politics at that time was turbulent. The opposing parties were almost equally balanced; and in case of battle it was difficult to guess at the result. hundred thousand dollars advanced by the Province in 1859 to redeem bonds of the City of Montreal, but, in reality, given to the Grand Trunk Railway Company. The Financial Commission (a Committee of Investigation appointed by Parliament), had elicited the particulars of this transaction, but on account of the manner in which the liability had been transferred from one account to another, no opportunity had been afforded of bringing the whole matter before the representatives of the people. He argued that the Province was in serious danger of losing this sum, unless instant measures were taken to recover the money from those on whom the responsi bility should be placed. He informed the House that, in the year 1859, the City of Montreal had issued, to the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railway Company, bonds to the amount of $100,000. Owing, however, to an arrangement between the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Kailway and the Grand Trunk, the latter corporation assumed the task of paying the bonds. It failed in its engagement, and the Province redeemed them out of its own exchequer. This payment had for its sole authority an Order in Council; the Order in Council had for its foundation a report of the then Finance Minister-the Hon. Mr. Galt. This report recommended that the bonds should be redeemed by the Province, and should be held by the Receiver-General until the advance was repaid, an until Montreal should make good its indebtedness to the Municipal Loan Fund. In the month of September following the As soon as the preliminary routine business was finished, the Hon. A. T. Galt, at that time the Minister of Finance, rose to move that the Speaker should leave the chair, in order that the House might go into Committee of Supply. This proposition at once brought to his feet the Hon. A. A. Dorion, one of the leaders of the Lower Canadian Opposition. He stated that during the last night on which the Com-issue of the bonds by the City of Montreal, mittee of Supply sat, some curious revelations were made concerning a sum of one although the city had only fulfilled its obligation as to the Loan Fund indebtedness, the bonds which the Government were steps should be taken in order to recover bound to retain, until its advance was the money. He laid particular stress on repaid, were handed over by the ReceiverGeneral to the Treasurer of the City of Montreal. In December, 1859, the Hon. Mr. Galt, being in England, wrote to one of the officers of his department, stating that the financial agents of the Province had acceded to his desire to charge the Province with the sum of $100,000. After this time, the sum was not mentioned in the communications of the financial agents. Further, no action was taken by Hon. Mr. Galt, up to the time when the Ministry with which he was connected, resigned their seats, May, 1862, to put this matter right. But in the December of 1862, Mr. Galt's successor, Hon. Mr. Howland, the present Lieut.-Governor of Ontario, finding that the accounts of the Provincial agents did not agree with those in the Receiver-General's office, called the attention of the financial agents to the fact. They answered, stating that they knew nothing of the transaction. In his evidence before the Financial Commission, Hon. Mr. Galt stated that he had made the arrangement, previously referred to, when in England, and that Mr. Baring-one of the financial agents—and Mr. Blackwell, Managing Director of the Grand Trunk, were present. The Hon. Mr. Holton, who was Finance Minister, at the time the Financial Commission was in session, transmitted to Baring and Glyn, a copy of the evidence given by the Hon. Mr. Galt. They replied that no member of their firm had any recollection of authorizing the payment in question. They further added that as Hon. Mr. Galt was very methodical in conducting all business matters with them, they had no doubt that had there been any such agreement as was alleged, it would have been reduced to writing. Mr. Dorion observed, in conclusion, that the question now was whether the Province should lose the $100,000; and it had also to be decided upon whom the liability rested, and what the fact that the money had been given away without the authority of Parliament, and finished by moving an amendment to the effect that the Speaker should not leave the chair. This amendment was seconded by Hon. Wm. McDougall. The seconder sat, of course, on the Opposition benches. He was regarded by the House as a good debater, and as an aspirant for political fame, there were few of his compeers who seemed destined for much higher success. The Reform party regarded him as a man who, in the future, might win his way to one of the grades of leadership. And the Government side feared his facility of declamation and rapidity of attack-even though one of the members of the Administration, Hon. T. D. McGee, not very long before, had styled him, in the course of a caustic speech, "one of the most overrated men in the house." On this occasion, Hon. Mr. McDougall did not make a speech; but merely contented himself with seconding the motion. The Government, though taken by surprise, at once saw the full scope of the amendment; and accepted it as a resolution of want of confidence. And so the debate began, and continued all that sultry afternoon. The discussion was dry by nature. There was no opportunity for brilliant speech-making; for Demosthenes himself could not wax eloquent over the multiplication table. Very few of the best speeches are ever heard in Parliament during the prosy interval that comes between three and six o'clock. Sunshine and eloquence seem, in our age, to be antagonistic to each other. One might as well try to make Hamlet and his fortunes appear to advantage on a stage without gaslight, as to evoke eloquence out of Parliamentary speakers before the evening lamps are burning. Hamlet must have the footlights blazing, and the back-ground in shadow, before he can "sport his suit of sables." |