Page 56 [56]
OCR
42 -— Arvin Stoddard, Chantry. John Johnston, Delta. William Wiltse, Delta. Amos Wood, Delta. William Brown, Elgin. No return. Ebenezer Halladay, Elgin. Ira Mitchell, Elgin. David Stevens, Elgin. William Moore, Elgin. Abraham Elliot, Escott. James Thomas, Escott. | Joseph Derbyshire, Farmersville. Joel Parish, Farmersville. Henry Humphrey, Frankville. Services not proven. John G. Lloyd, Gananoque. Nicholas Roseback, Gananoque. Harry Chipman, Harlem. John Griffin, Lansdowne. Benjamin Chase, Lyndhurst. William Gilfillan, Lyndhurst. William F. Bush, Newboro. John Kilborn, Newboro. Horace F. Sheldon, Portland. Thompson Brown, Phillipsville. Alvin T. Halladay, Phillipsville. Boswell Edgley, Rockport. Peter McCue, Rockport. Smith Seamen, Rockport. William Wright, Rockport. John Stoliker, South Lake. Hiel Sliter, Sweet’s Corners. David Sliter, Warburton. Robert T. Rorison, Westport. No return CHAPTER XIII THE RISE or RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT, AND THE REBELLION OF 1837. AT an early date after the war of 1812, the two antagonistic principles—peisonal and popular Government—came_ into collision, terminating in a victory for the latter. A review of the struggle belongs to the domain of general history, but, to understand subsequent events, it is necessary to take up the thread, as told in the lives of the great men of that eventful period. The foundation-stone of Canadian greatness is Responsible Government, to secure which, the Rebellion of 1837 was but an incident, bringing, in its train of evils, results pregnant with blessings to all classes of citizens. The victory was won with difficulty, the strife was bitter, and the contest full of passion and fanaticism. Yet, to the careful student, the lesson conveyed is one of profound instruction. An analysis of the | motives that held sway, discloses the fact that the colonial policy of England was, for many years, governed by no set principles, and in no wise calculated to favor the enjoyment of constitutional liberty. The rebellion of the American Colonies, in 1776, failed to impress the authorities of Downing Street with the knowledge that the AngloSaxons are by nature fitted for self-government, and will not long brook arbitrary measures. A recognition of this all-important fact would have saved Canada from years of confusion and the Stain of a rebellion. The object of the constitutional party was excellent, though individuals, from the end, driven to adopt a course, not only suicidal to themselves, but to the common country. Theirs was a laudable desire to develop and improve the country—to take power from the hands of the few, and place it in the franchise of the many—to destroy the rigid circle of exclusiveness which hedged in the representative of Imperial power, and build up a constitution in unison with the spirit of the age. In Upper Canada, the Crown and Clergy Reserves interfered with the settlement, and cast many additional burdens upon the struggling pioneers. Kemonstrances, which were presented to the Governor, received the most contemptuous treatment, aggravating the popular desire discontent and increasing the for rights held inalienable by citizens of the mother country, but withheld from the colonists. The appearance of Gourlay, about 1817, was the signal for an united effort, in the end, destined to overthrow the “Family Compact,” which, for so many years, held the administration of public affairs in the hollow of its hand. Gourlay could not be silenced—his brain was full of schemes, which led to discussion and the fostering of a public spirit. He addressed inquiries to the various municipalities respecting the condition of the roads, number of population, and general wants of the people, which led Sir Peregrine Maitland to adopt severe measures to crush the spirit of inquiry. Meetings were held, and delegates appointed to draft an address and send a commission to England, for the purpose of laying the condition of Upper Canada before His Royal Highness the Prince Regent. Gourlay was eccentric, but animated by a desire to advance the best interests of the Province, and paid the penalty for his patriotism by being persecuted in a variety of ways, Even the meetings of delegates were prohibited, and parties who attended denounced as traitors. Neither Gourlay nor William Lyon Mackenzie appear to have conceived the idea of Responsible =~
