His vex'se making was, of course, of 

 a very simple and unfinished kind. One 

 of Ills constant fasliions was to end it 

 up witli a declaration that it was 

 made by Falcon, the singer of his 

 people. 



"Qui en a fait la chaii»on< ? 

 Un poete de Canton; 

 Au bout de la cbanson 

 Nous vous le nommeros. 

 Un jour etant a) table 

 A boire et a; chianter 

 A chanter tout au long- 

 La nouvelle cbanson. 

 Amis, buvons, triuquons 

 Saluons la clianson 

 De Pierriche Falcon 

 Ce faiseur de chansons." 

 the last line being often varied to 

 "Pierre Falcon, le bon garcon." 



ADAM THOM, 

 Judge and Philosopher. 



In tlie year after the fight of "Seven 

 Oaks" and the sacking of Fort Doug- 

 las, Lord Selkirk's men re-captured 

 the fort His lordship personally set 

 things to rights in his colony, and the 

 two rival fur companies united four 

 years afterwards. For fourteen years 

 after tlie union of the fur companies 

 the affairs of the lied River settlement 

 were still administered by Eord Sel- 

 kirk's heirs In 1835 the Hudson's 

 Bay company bought out the rights 

 of the private owners and established 

 a council and company government in 

 the settlement. In the course of a 

 few years the need of better courts 

 was felt, and in 1839 the subject of 

 til is sketch, familiarly known as 

 "Judge Thom," came to Red River. 

 He was a native of Aberdeen, born in 

 1802, educated at King's college in his 

 native town, and had for a number of 

 years been a political writer, a law- 

 yer, and an assistant on Lord Dur- 

 ham's brilliant staff of young men in 

 Canada. 



Judge Tliom's Arrival in Red River, 

 as the epecial choice of Governor 

 Simpson, at once gave him a position 

 and standing of great importance. He 

 became a most influential man in the 

 Red River Settlement, He had a 

 marvellous gift of language, and by 

 many in the settlement was looked up 

 to as an oracle. Of warm and at- 

 tractive manner he was soon a favor- 

 ite of the people, and his ardent tem- 

 perament led him to undertake many 

 kind services for the settlers. 



As has been said, "When the Bish- 

 opric of Rupert's Land was founded, he 

 became the registrar; when the Kil- 

 donan church w^anted a deed he drew 

 itt uip and made it s>o firm in its provi- 

 sions that when changes were neces- 

 sary a few years ago in the tenure. 



they were very difficult to make. 

 Though the agent of the Hudson Bay 

 Company, and therefore bound to 

 carry out the policy of the company, 

 as to not encouraging the entrance of 

 too many religious bodies on Red River 

 he is said to have had a hand at the 

 same time in framing the petitions 

 forwarded to London by the Presby- 

 terians of Kildonan. Rev. John Ryer- 

 son, on his visit to Red River in 1854, 

 tells of his going down to Kildonan to 

 hear a lecture from Judge Thom "On 

 the State and Progress of the Red 

 River Settlement," and the hearer 

 says that the subject w^as treated 

 "with great elegance, beauty and ab- 

 ility." 



ADAM THOM 



The circumstances of the times were, 

 however, trying for the new judge. The 

 relation of the settlers on the Red Riv- 

 er to the Hudson Bay Company had 

 become very unsatisfactory. The com- 

 pany, by their charter, no doubt, bad 

 a monopoly of the fur trade. But the 

 mass of the people being hunters, and 

 finding it difficult otherwise to gain a 

 living, had recognized this — ^and indeed 

 the company had not inforced this 

 claim. For some reason — according 

 to some, on Judge Thom's advice — it 

 was decided to enforce the right of the 

 company. Accordingly, in 1844, Gov- 

 ernor Christie issued two proc- 

 lamations, placing great restric- 

 tions on the settlers. These 

 were tyrannical and severe enact- 

 ments. Cases are cited in which set- 



