422 TkANSACTIONS OF THK CANADIAN INSTITUTE. [VoL. VII. 



first bill introduced into the Assembly of Upper Canada, in the first 

 session of the first parliament, September 19th, 1792, was a bill, "to 

 authorize town meetings for the purpose of appointing divers parish 

 officers." But, after passing its second reading, it was ordered that the 

 further consideration of the bill be postponed for three months. On the 

 same day another bill was introduced to authorize "the justices of the 

 peace to appoint annually divers public officers." This, again, was 

 followed by a bill to authorize " the election of divers public officers." 

 None of these, however, managed to get through the House. 



In these proposals we observe the conflict of the two rival American 

 systems typified by New England and Virginia, the one seeking to vest 

 in the people the election of their local officers and the regulation of their 

 local affairs, the other seeking to confine these rights to the justices of 

 the peace in Quarter Sessions, who again derived their positions from 

 the Governor-in-Council. 



Simcoe, in his report on the session to the Home Government says 

 that the lower House " seemed to have a stronger attachment to the 

 elective principle in all town affairs than might be thought advisable."""^ 

 The following session the bill with reference to town meeting was once 

 more introduced and passed, but with such modifications as made it 

 quite harmless as a measure of local self-government. Writing to 

 Colonial Secretary Dundas, in September, 1793,^ Simcoe says that he 

 managed to put off the bill of last session on town meetings as some- 

 thing that should not be encouraged. But as regards the opposite 

 measure proposed, he says that "to give the nomination altogether to 

 the magistrates was found to be a distasteful measure." Many well 

 affected settlers were convinced that fence viewers, pound keepers and 

 other petty officers to regulate matters of local police would be more 

 willingly obeyed if elected by the householders, and especially that the 

 collector of the taxes should be a person chosen by themselves. "It 

 was therefore thought advisable not to withhold such a gratification to 

 which they had been accustomed, it being in itself not unreasonable, and 

 only to take place one day in the year." When we turn to this act* we 

 find that it merely permits the ratepayers to elect certain executive 

 town officers, whose duties were either prescribed by the act, or left to 

 be regulated by the justices in Quarter Sessions. Beyond the permission 

 to fix the height of fences, the town meeting had not legally any 



1 See Journals and Proceedings of the House of Assembly of the Province of Upper Canada, 1792, 

 Canadian Archives, Q. 279-1, pp.87 et seq. 



2 Canadian Archives, Q. 279-1, p. 83. 



■\ Canadian Archives, Q. 279-2, pp. 335 et seq. 

 4 33rd Geo in., cap. 2. 



