124 THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 



to the Governor in the premises asking that the practice should 

 cease. For this and other offences Carleton dismissed the Chief 

 Justice who made his way to England and made complaint to the 

 Home Authorities. The Board of Trade made full inquiry calling 

 Carleton and Livius before them and ultimately decided against the 

 position taken by the former (9). This led to Additional Instructions 

 being sent to Haldimand who had succeeded Carleton (10) and had 

 continued his practice. Accordingly the Governor received Instruc- 

 tions not to select and appoint five Councillors "terming the same a 

 •Privy Council" but to summon "to Council all such thereunto belong- 

 ing as are within a convenient distance." (11). 



• When Sir Guy Carleton (now become Lord Dorchester) was again 

 appointed Governor-in-Chief (12) care was taken in his Instructions 

 to give a specific direction "you are however not to select or appoint 

 any such Members of our said Council by Name to the Number of 

 five as you may think fit to transact such Business or term any select 

 Number of such Members by the Name of a Privy Council but you 

 are on every Occasion where the Attendance of the Members is neces- 

 sary or required to summon all such who may be within a convenient 

 distance." (13). 



Disputes between the Council and the Governor occasionally 

 occurred thereafter; but we do not find any further attempt to exclude 

 any Councillor from participation in all the business of the Council. 



In 1787 an attempt was made to throw the deliberations of the 

 Council open to the public but this failed owing to the opposition of 

 the French Members (14). One of the Members (15) had the curious 

 notion that every British subject had a right to hear the debates of 

 the Legislature passing laws by which he was bound. 



In the same year the Council as the Court of Appeal laid down the 

 extraordinary doctrine that in cases in which the parties were English 

 and no Canadian (i.e. F'rench-Canadian) was in any way concerned, 

 the English law should be applied. This was of course a misinter- 

 pretation of the Quebec Act which by sec. 8 declared that "in all 

 matters of controversy relative to property and civil rights resort shall 

 be had to the Laws of Canada as the rule for the decision of the same," 

 (16). Those advancing this doctrine however received no encourage- 

 ment at the hands of the Home Administration. 



During all the period from the passing of the Quebec Act until 

 1791, there was an almost constant agitation for and against the 

 erection of a House of Assembly elected by the people. While there 

 were exceptions on both sides it may be said that in Canada, speaking 

 generally, the English speaking (or old) subjects favoured while the 

 French-speaking, "Canadian" (or new) subjects were opposed. 



