|
"As your Petition relates to a Bill agreed on by the two Houses of Parliament, of which his Majesty cannot take public notice, until it is presented for his royal assent in Parliament, I am commanded by the King to inform you, that you are not to expect an answer."
The Lord Mayor immediately sent the Remembrancer, to present his duty to the King, and inform his Majesty, "That they waited to present their Address, agreeable to his Majesty's order;" which was in a little time complied with; when no other answer was given.
The following is a copy of the City Address:
"To the King's Most Excellent Majesty, the humble Address and Petition of the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Commons, of the City of LONDON, in Common Council assembled:
"Most Gracious Sovereign,
"We, your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Commons, of the City of London, in Common Council assembled, are exceedingly alarmed that a Bill has passed your two Houses of Parliament, entitled "An Act for making more effectual provision for the government of the Province of Quebec, in "North America," which we apprehend to be entirely subversive of the great fundamental principles of the Constitution of the British Monarchy, as well as of the authority of various solemn acts of the Legislature.
"We beg leave to observe, that the English law, and that wonderful effort of human wisdom, the trial by Jury, are not admitted by this Bill in any civil cases, and the French law of Canada is imposed on all the inhabitants of that extensive Province, by which both the persons and properties of very many of your Majesty's subjects are rendered insecure and precarious.
"We humbly conceive, that this Bill, if passed into a law will be contrary, not only to the compact entered into with the numerous settlers of the reformed religion, who were invited into the said Province, under the sacred promise of enjoying the benefits of the laws of your realm of England, but likewise repugnant to your royal Proclamation of the 7th of October, 1763, for the speedy settling the said new Government.
"That consistent with the public faith, pledged by the said Proclamation, your Majesty cannot erect and constitute Courts of Judicature and Public Justice for the hearing and determining all cases, as well civil as criminal, within the said Province, but as near as may be agreeable to the laws of England; nor can any laws, statutes, or ordinances for the public peace, welfare, and good government of the said Province, be made, constituted, or ordained, but according to the laws of this Realm.
"That the Roman Catholic religion, which is known to be idolatrous and bloody, is established by this Bill, and no legal provision is made for the free exercise of our reformed faith, nor the security of our Protestant fellow subjects of the Church of England, in the true worship of Almighty God, according to their consciences.
"That your Majesty's illustrious family was called to the throne of these Kingdoms, in consequence of the exclusion of the Roman Catholic ancient branch of the Stuart line, under the express stipulation that they should profess the Protestant religion; and according to the oath established by the sanction of Parliament, in the first year of the reign of our great deliverer, William the Third, your Majesty, at your coronation, solemnly swore that you would, to the utmost of your power, maintain the laws of God, the true profession of the gospel, and Protestant reformed religion, established by law.
"That although the term of imprisonment of subjects is limited to three months, the power of fining is left indefinite and unrestrained, by which the total ruin of the party may be effected by an enormous and excessive fine.
"That the whole Legislative power of the Province is vested in persons to be solely appointed by your Majesty, and removable at your pleasure, which we apprehend to be repugnant to the leading principles of this free Constitution, by which alone your Majesty now holds, or legally can hold, the imperial crown of these Realms.
"That the said Bill was brought into Parliament very late in the present
session, and after the greater number of the members of the two Houses were
retired into the country, so that it cannot fairly be said to be the sense of
those parts of the Legislature.
"Your Petitioners, therefore, most humbly supplicate your Majesty, as the guardian of the laws, liberties, and religion of your People, and the great bulwark of the Protestant faith, that you will not give your royal assent to the said Bill.
"And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray."]
His Majesty, being seated on the Throne, adorned with his crown and regal ornaments, and attended by his Officers of State, (the Lords being in their robes,) and the Commons, with their Speaker, being in attendance,
The Royal assent was pronounced to the Bill, by the Clerk's Assistant.
Then his Majesty made a Speech, in which he said:—
"My Lords and Gentlemen,
"I have observed, with the utmost satisfaction, the "many eminent proofs you have given of your zealous and prudent attention to the public service, during the course of this very interesting session of Parliament.
"The very peculiar circumstances of embarrassment in which the Province of Quebec was involved, had rendered the proper adjustment and regulation of the Government thereof, a matter of no small difficulty. The Bill which you prepared for that purpose, and to which I have now given my assent, is founded on the clearest principles of justice and humanity; and will, I doubt not, have the best effects in quieting the minds, and promoting the happiness of my Canadian subjects.
"I have long seen, with concern, a dangerous spirit of resistance to my Government, and to the execution of the laws, prevailing in the Province of Massachusetts Bay, in New England. It proceeded at length to such an extremity as to render your immediate interposition indispensably necessary; and you have accordingly made provision, as well for the suppression of the present disorders, as for the prevention of the like in future. The temper and firmness with which you have conducted yourselves in this important business, and the general concurrence with which the resolution of maintaining the authority of the laws, in every part of my dominions, hath been adopted and supported, cannot fail of giving the greatest weight to the measures which have been the result of your deliberations. Nothing that depends on me shall be wanting to render them effectual. It is my most anxious desire to see my deluded subjects, in that part of the world, returning to a sense of their duty; acquiescing in that just subordination to the authority, and maintaining that due regard to the commercial interests of this country; which must ever be inseparably connected with their own real prosperity and advantage."
Anno Decimo Quarto Georgii, III. Regis.
An Act for making more effectual provision for the Government of the Province of QUEBEC, in NORTH AMERICA.
Whereas his Majesty, by his Royal Proclamation, bearing date the seventh day of October, in the third year of his reign, thought fit to declare the provisions which had been made in respect to certain Countries, Territories, and Islands, in America, ceded to his Majesty by the Definitive Treaty of Peace, concluded at Paris, on the tenth day of February, one thousand seven hundred and sixty-three: And whereas, by the arrangements made by the said Royal Proclamation a very large [part of the territory of Canada,] (extent of country) within which there were several Colonies and settlements, of the subjects of France, who claimed to remain therein under the faith of the said treaty, was left, without any provision being made for the administration of civil Government therein, and [other] (certain) parts of the [said country] (territory of Canada) where sedentary fisheries bad been established and carried on by the subjects of France, inhabitants of the said Province of Canada, under grants and concessions from the Government thereof, were annexed to the Government of Newfoundland, and thereby subjected to regulations inconsistent with the nature of such fisheries: May it
|