126 THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 



19. Conrad Gugy. 



20. Picothé de Bellestre. 



21. Jean Baptiste Bergères de Rigauville. 



22. John Fraser. 



AU appeared, were sworn in and took their seats at the first meeting of the 

 Legislative Council held at the Castle of St. Louis, Quebec, 1777, July 9, Peter 

 Livius the new Chief Justice was sworn in in the place of William Hey, the retiring 

 Chief Justice (he had succeeded as Chief Justice in May of the same year), 1777, 

 July 9, Henry Caldwell and John Drummond were sworn in, also. 



1777 August 28, William Grant (afterwards Sir William Grant, Master of the 

 Rolls in England) was sworn in. 



1778 March 3, Paul Roch (de) St. Ours succeeded his father (No. 12 above). 

 Sir Frederick Haldimand succeeded Sir Guy Carleton in June, 1778; in his 



Royal Instructions, April 15, 1778, the Councillors named were Nos. 1, 2 (now 

 Peter Livius) 3, 4, 5 (called "Cuthbert") 6, 7 (called L'evesque"), 8, 9, 10 (called 

 "Mabeane"), 11 ("Chaussegros de Lery"), 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20 ("Picotte de Bele,s- 

 tres"), 22 Henry Caldwell, John Drummond, William Grant, Rocque St.' Ours 

 Junior, Francis Baby and De Longueuil (this was Joseph de Longueuil). Shortt and 

 Doughty, pp. 475, 590. 



In Lord Dorchester's (Sir Guy Carleton's) Instructions, August 23, 1786, the 

 Councillors named were Nos. 1 (now Henry Hope, Lieutenant-Governor), 2 (now 

 William Smith, Chief Justice), 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10 (now called "Mabane"), 11 (as in the 

 last list), 14, 20 (now named "Picotte de Bellestres"), 22, Henry Caldwell, William 

 Grant, Rocque St. Ours Junr., Francis Baby, De Longueuil, Samuel Holland, George 

 Davison, Sir John Johnson, Bart., "Charles de Lanaudiere" (16) ? de Boucherville, 

 and "Compte de Pre;" "de Boucherville" was René Aimable (de) Boucherville and 

 "Compte du Pré", Le Conte Dupré. 



(4) Shortt and Doughty, pp. 403, 420. 



(5) Shortt and Doughty, pp. 464, sqq. 



(6) The Instructions are in Shortt and Doughty, p. 478. Haldimand took the 

 advice of some of his Councillors as to the advisability of passing such an ordinance. 

 Hugh Finlay, the Postmaster General appointed by the Home Administration, 

 approved: George Allsopp, who had been Registrar and Clerk of the Council, also 

 approved, but suggested an amendment. George Pownall, his successor in office, 

 advised that the consideration of the matter should be "put ofï till the next year or 

 some time of more tranquility and regularity." William Grant (afterwards Sir 

 William Grant, Master of the Rolls), approved and said, "The Court appointed may 

 not be ideally good but it is better than the one now existing and more in accordance 

 with the British Constitution." He adds the interesting if not convincing argument 

 "A Court with judges who know the law is better than one with judges who have 

 only common sense." 



The Council finally decided that "the passing of an ordinance in conformity 

 thereto (i.e. to the Royal Instructions) would neither tend to the good of the people 

 of this Province nor to a speedier or more impartial Administration of Justice." 

 It is apparent that the chief objection was not to the proposed constitution of the 

 Court of Appeal so much as to the proposition that the Chief Justice of the Province 

 (always an English Barrister) should sit and preside in the Courts of Common Pleas 

 which administered the French Canadian law and whose judges had had much 

 experience in that law. The proposal was that the Chief Justice of the Province 

 should not only sit in the Courts of Common Pleas but also in appeals from the Courts 

 in which he presided. 



