74 THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
fixed at New Dublin. Mr. McNutt having involved the Government 
by his two transportations hither in the expence of near £500, I thought 
it high time to give him notice that unless his Plan could be better 
supported in point of expence it could not possibly be carried further 
without peremptory orders from the King’s minister and a public fund 
allotted for that purpose. He took his departure from hence very 
suddenly and without any notice to the Government of his going, and, 
as I find he proposes to repair again to England, I thought it necessary 
to state this much of his proceedings and shall upon rendering the 
accounts of the expence incurred by Mr. McNutt write more particularly 
upon the impracticability of his schemes for accomplishing any settle- 
ments in the Province.” 
A good deal of MeNutt’s difficulty arose from the fact that while 
the Lords of Trade had on the 5th March, 1761, recommended to the 
King in Council that lands in Nova Scotia should be provided for his 
settlers upon the terms stipulated by him, it was not until two years 
later that the Lieut. Governor received positive instructions to grant 
the lands. Consequently when Colonel McNutt arrived with his 
second lot of immigrants in 1762, the Lieut. Governor declined to 
admit them as settlers, alleging that he had not received any orders 
so to do. 
On his arrival in London Colonel McNutt made a very emphatic 
statement to the Lords of Trade concerning the opposition he had 
encountered at Halifax. His memorial is, of course, an ex parte state- 
ment, yet it is difficult to believe that he had not good ground for 
complaint in view of the fact that four members of the Council wrote 
in his favor to Governor Ellis, who was then in England. 
Among other things McNutt charges his enemies at Halifax with 
having informed the people he brought from Londonderry that provi- 
sions for their voyage and the cost of transport had been paid by 
Government, that he had deceived his countrymen and had moreover 
not one foot of land in the Province to offer them. McNutt says that 
those who interfered with him were a class of sycophants whose inten- 
tion it was to obtain grants of the best lands in the province, in order 
to settle thereupon as their tenants the very people he was introducing 
into the Province. The settlers he had already brought were advised 
by a Halifax magistrate, one Scott, by no means to give notes to McNutt 
for the provisions furnished during the winter. In consequence of 
many discouragements some of the immigrants embarked in the spring 
for New England, and part of those that remained became “tenants to 
Belcher & Company.” According to McNutt the Lieut. Governor 
not only declined any interference in his behalf but tried to induce 
the Council further to embarrass him by only allowing five or six acres 
