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Title: The Story of the Upper Canadian Rebellion - Volume 2
Date of first publication: 1885
Place and date of edition used as base for this ebook:
  Toronto: C. Blackett Robinson, 1885 (First Edition)
Author: John Charles Dent (1841-1888)
Date first posted: 16 September 2007
Date last updated: 16 September 2007
Project Gutenberg Canada ebook #22

This ebook was produced by: David T. Jones



THE STORY OF THE
UPPER CANADA REBELLION


BY

JOHN CHARLES DENT

AUTHOR OF "THE LAST FORTY YEARS" &C.

VOL. II.

[Illustration: The cutting-out of the _Caroline_]
Engraved. by H. B. Halls, Sons NEW YORK

TORONTO

PUBLISHED BY C. BLACKETT ROBINSON

1885


THE STORY

OF THE

UPPER CANADIAN REBELLION;

LARGELY DERIVED FROM ORIGINAL SOURCES AND DOCUMENTS.

BY JOHN CHARLES DENT,

_Author of "The Last Forty Years," etc._

       *    *    *    *    *

    "Well, God be thanked for these rebels."--_I Henry IV._, Act iii. sc. 3.

    "Truth is not always to be withheld because its expression may wound
    the feelings of public men, whose official acts have subjected them to
    public censure. If it were, history and biography would cease to be
    guiding stars, and, above all, would offer no wholesome restraint to
    the cruel, or corrupt, or incompetent exercise of authority."--_Tupper's
    Life and Correspondence of Major-General Sir Isaac Brock_.

    "We rebelled neither against Her Majesty's person nor her Government,
    but against Colonial misgovernment....We remonstrated; we were
    derided....We were goaded on to madness, and were compelled to show
    that we had the spirit of resistance to repel injuries, or to be
    deemed a captive, degraded and recreant people. We took up arms, not
    to attack others, but to defend ourselves."--_Letter to Lord Durham
    from Dr. Wolfred Nelson and others, confined at Montreal, June 18th,
    1838_.

       *    *    *    *    *

=Toronto:=

C. BLACKETT ROBINSON, 5 JORDAN STREET.

1885.



_Entered according to Act of the Parliament of Canada, in the year 1885,
by _C. BLACKETT ROBINSON, _in the office of the Minister of Agriculture_.


[Transcriber's Note: Obvious printer errors, including punctuation, have
been corrected. All other inconsistencies have been left as they were in
the original. Certain typographical conventions of the time of original
publishing have been changed for greater clarity. The Publisher's
"Corrigenda" have not been incorporated into the text.]


CONTENTS.


                                                                    PAGE.
CHAPTER XIX.
ON THE BRINK                                                           9

CHAPTER XX.
SIR FRANCIS DOES NOT APPREHEND A REBELLION                            24

CHAPTER XXI.
THE REBELS AT MONTGOMERY'S                                            42

CHAPTER XXII.
"GENERAL" MACKENZIE                                                   54

CHAPTER XXIII.
THE FLAG OF TRUCE                                                     69

CHAPTER XXIV.
SHERIFF JARVIS'S PICKET                                               92

CHAPTER XXV.
MAHOMET AND THE MOUNTAIN                                             111

CHAPTER XXVI.
THE SKIRMISH                                                         121

CHAPTER XXVII.
SAUVE QUI PEUT                                                       139

CHAPTER XXVIII.
DR. DUNCOMBE                                                         151

CHAPTER XXIX.
MR. BIDWELL'S BANISHMENT                                             159

CHAPTER XXX.
NAVY ISLAND                                                          175

CHAPTER XXXI.
THE CAROLINE                                                         194

CHAPTER XXXII.
FILIBUSTERING ON THE FRONTIER                                        219

CHAPTER XXXIII.
JUDGMENT AND EXECUTION                                               238

CHAPTER XXXIV.
WINDSOR AND THE WINDMILL                                             257

CHAPTER XXXV.
MACKENZIE IN EXILE                                                   270

CHAPTER XXXVI.
FRUITS OF THE REBELLION                                              283

CHAPTER XXXVII.
CONCLUSION                                                           301

APPENDIX                                                             331


CORRIGENDA.

VOLUME I.

P. 37, line 9, for "agast," read "aghast."

P. 116, line 15, for "Dumfries," read "Dundee."

P. 163, line 8 from bottom, delete "Willis."

P. 316, line 4 from bottom, for "Parsons," read "Parson."

P. 353, line 8 from bottom, for "McNab," read "MacNab."

P. 371, line 13 from bottom, for "constitution," read "constitutions."

VOLUME II.

P. 22, line 10 from bottom, for "Committee on Privileges," read "Treason
       Commission."

P. 40, line 12 from bottom; the John Hawk mentioned here has died since
       this line was written.

P. 86, delete last line. The original statement is without place or date.
       The error occurred through transcribing from what professed to be
       a printed copy. To the original is appended the following certificate:

"I hereby certify that I have seen Mr. Carmichael read the above and sign
 his name to the same, declaring in the presence of his Maker that it is
 true.

"Aug. 30th, 1852. (Sgd.) W. T. AIKINS, M.D."

The note on p. 317 should be modified accordingly.




THE STORY

OF

THE UPPER CANADIAN REBELLION.




CHAPTER XIX.

ON THE BRINK.


Mackenzie's departure for the north took place towards the end of the
first week in November. Intelligence of his movements in the rural
districts reached Toronto from time to time, but he sent no direct
messages either to Rolph or Morrison, who, for some days, supposed
that he was merely ascertaining the sentiments of the Radicals on the
subject of the insurrection which he had so vehemently advocated.
Erelong, however, intelligence of a most surprising nature reached
their ears. They were informed that Mackenzie, Lount, Matthews,
Fletcher, Gorham, Jesse Lloyd and others had had a secret meeting in
the township of East Gwillimbury, at which an immediate rising had
been resolved upon. It appeared that plans of more or less
definiteness had been arranged, and that Thursday, the 7th of
December, had been named as the time for taking possession of the
capital and inaugurating a Provisional Government under the direction
of Dr. Rolph. This astounding intelligence came to Rolph and Morrison
from seven or eight different persons, all of whom had received it
either directly or indirectly from Mackenzie himself, some by letter
and some by personal communication. They were all persons who could be
depended upon not to betray the plot, but it was well-nigh
inconceivable that Mackenzie should have communicated so momentous a
secret to so many individuals before notifying the prospective head of
the new Government himself, who had thus had no opportunity of
expressing either approval or disapproval. It furnished one more
example of Mackenzie's utter unfitness for any position in which
discretion and judgment were needed.

Rolph and Morrison took counsel together. They felt that they were
unsafe in the hands of so leaky a vessel as Mackenzie, who had evidently
been so impressed by a sense of his own importance that he had been
utterly incapable of keeping the secret, although he must have been
conscious that upon the keeping of it the success of the movement, as
well as the personal safety of those participating in it, might probably
depend. They moreover learned that in the course of his peregrinations
about the country he had made the most unwarrantable use
of their names, and had most culpably misrepresented their views and
sentiments. He had held them up to the Radicals as the real projectors
of the movement, and as most anxious to place themselves at
its head. There could be no doubt that their names had been a tower of
strength to him in his machinations, and that he had used them without
scruple, thereby inducing persons to acquiesce in the rising who would
otherwise have held aloof from it. There could be equally little doubt
that the mainspring of his action at this time was not patriotism, but a
burning desire to revenge himself upon the Government. To this desire
every other feeling had become subordinate, and he was prepared to risk
the sacrifice of everything and everybody on the chance of attaining his
end. Such were the deliberate, conclusions, at which Rolph and Morrison
arrived, and they determined that they would work no longer with such
an ally, unless, after becoming acquainted with all the facts, they should
be of opinion that the rising was inevitable, and that it was likely to be
conducted by cooler and wiser heads than Mackenzie's.

During the third week in November Mackenzie reached Toronto from the
north. Soon after nightfall he presented himself at Dr. Rolph's house,
to whom he briefly communicated what had been done. Between four and
five thousand men, he declared, would repair to Montgomery's tavern in
small detachments during the early days of December, and would place
themselves under the command of Samuel Lount and Captain Anthony
Anderson, of Lloydtown. The latter had had some military experience,
and was a man of great courage and firmness. He had drilled hundreds
of the farmers in North York into a state of comparative efficiency,
and they would follow with confidence whithersoever he might choose to
lead them. This was a subject of grave anxiety to Dr. Rolph. Owing to
the want of preparation on the part of the Government, there seemed to
be no likelihood of any actual conflict. Still, it was highly
expedient that the revolutionary movements should be directed by some
one of competent military knowledge and experience, who would know how
to act in case of any unforeseen emergency. Mackenzie, in response to
repeated and searching questions from Dr. Rolph, represented Anderson
as being thoroughly competent to the military leadership. "The men,"
said he, "will follow his lead as if he were the Duke of Wellington."
The insurgents were to be at Montgomery's[1] in full force on
Thursday, the 7th, when they would march into the city, possess
themselves of the arms at the City Hall, seize Head and his advisers,
and proclaim a Provisional Government. The revolution would then be
complete, and it was almost certain that all this might be
accomplished without the loss of a single life. The people, so
Mackenzie declared, were not only ready, but eager for the decisive
moment to arrive. He fortified many of his statements by what seemed
to be satisfactory evidence. For instance, he produced portentously
long lists of signatures appended to a formal and distinct agreement
to rise in arms against the Government.[2] He produced letters from
several trusted Radicals, in which the state of public opinion in
their respective neighbourhoods was reported upon in terms not to be
mistaken. All that was asked of Dr. Rolph was that he would give the
project his sanction, and that he would agree to accept the direction
of the new Government.

The Doctor was thus led to regard the prospects of the impending
revolution as decidedly hopeful. He however required time for
consideration; whereupon Mackenzie proceeded to the house of Dr.
Morrison, whither he arrived about nine o'clock at night. Dr. Morrison
did not receive him with as much complaisance as Dr. Rolph had done.
Morrison considered that Mackenzie had abused his confidence, and did
not fail to tell him so in good round terms. He informed him that he
had assumed an authority which had never been conferred upon him; that
in determining upon the rising, and more especially in fixing it for
so early a day, he had acted rashly and without consideration.
Mackenzie received the reproof with an ill grace. "He appeared," says
Dr. Morrison,[3] "to be greatly agitated and exceedingly terse in his
conversation with me, censuring me for not taking a more active part
in the matter; whereupon I rejoined I had done all I could, and all
that had been required of me in respect to it."

In the course of the same night Rolph and Morrison had a private
consultation at the house of the former. Morrison keenly felt
Mackenzie's remarks about lukewarmness in the cause of the people, and
was prepared to go heart and soul into the enterprise if there was
really a good prospect of success. Rolph considered that the prospect
was at any rate sufficiently bright to justify them in taking a hand
in the game. But they were both of opinion that a skilled military
leader should be had, and that until this was effected they ought not
to permit themselves to be regarded as finally committed to the
project. They resolved to present this view of the case strongly to
Mackenzie, and to cooperate with him in securing the services of such
a leader as seemed to be called for by the nature of the enterprise
and the magnitude of the interests involved.

During an interview between Rolph and Mackenzie on the following day,
the Doctor pressed this view of the matter very earnestly. Mackenzie,
who was exceedingly anxious to secure the cooperation of Rolph and
Morrison, and was comparatively indifferent as to mere matters of
detail, readily gave in his acquiescence. In response to questions as
to where an available person might be found, he stated that he could
obtain the services of one of the most efficient and thoroughly
trained officers in the country. This was Colonel Anthony G. W. G. Van
Egmond, a native of Holland, who had formerly served under Napoleon
Buonaparte, and who is also said to have held a commission in the
British service.[4] He had at this time been a resident of Canada for
some years. His home was in the Huron Tract, of which he was the
pioneer settler, and where he owned some thousands of acres of land.
He held advanced opinions in political matters, and had unsuccessfully
contested the representation of Huron with Captain Robert Graham
Dunlop, the Tory candidate. His opposition to the Compact was such
that he might safely be depended upon to enter into any project which
held out a fair prospect of putting an end to their rule. He was
somewhat advanced in life, having entered upon his sixty-seventh year;
but he was hale and hearty, and as he had served with distinction
under the most famous soldier the world has ever seen, there could be
no reasonable doubt as to his military qualifications. It was arranged
that Mackenzie should lose no time in communicating with him. This and
other preliminary arrangements having been agreed upon, Drs. Rolph and
Morrison appear to have given in their assent to Mackenzie's proposal,
though neither then nor at any other time was it understood that
either of them was to take any part in directing the movements of the
insurgents.

And here it becomes necessary to deal with a series of
misrepresentations deliberately and repeatedly made by Mackenzie, and
echoed with great variety of circumlocution by numberless writers who
have accepted his statements without investigation. In several
published accounts of his exploits, he declares that the rebellion was
due to the action of twelve leading Reformers, who met in Toronto "one
day in November,"[5] and agreed to assemble a force on Yonge street,
which was to advance upon and capture Toronto on the 7th of December.
Mr. Lindsey, following this version of the story, says: "There were
about a dozen persons present when the decision was come to...The
management of the enterprise was to be confided to Dr. Rolph as sole
Executive, and the details were to be worked out by Mr. Mackenzie."[6]
This presentment having been accepted as true by Mackenzie's
biographer, has been followed by all subsequent writers who have dealt
with the subject. As a consequence, the most erroneous ideas have been
disseminated with reference to the inception of the movement, and as
to the true reason of its failure. The simple fact of the matter is
that there was no meeting of "twelve leading Reformers" in Toronto as
stated by Mackenzie, nor was any meeting ever held in Toronto at which
a scheme of rebellion was determined upon.[7] Neither the management
of the enterprise nor the responsibility of an Executive was ever
conferred upon or accepted by Dr. Rolph. It suited Mackenzie's
purpose, after the collapse of the insurrection, to concoct several
inconsistent and self-contradictory stories, with the design of
removing the obloquy of failure from his own shoulders to those of
others. He acted a most ignoble part, and betrayed the confidence of
every man who had trusted him. This would appear to have been done
from a feeling of envy and disappointed ambition. In spite of all his
protestations and prevarications, in spite of all his successive
twistings and turnings, in spite of the narratives which he
periodically gave to the world, the indubitable fact remains that
Mackenzie and he only was the originator of the Upper Canadian
rebellion. It was in his ill-balanced brain--inflamed by hatred of the
Government by whose machinations he had been expelled and excluded
from Parliament--that the seed of insurrection first germinated. It
was by him that the project was first communicated to Lount, Lloyd,
Matthews and others in the rural districts. It was by his urgency and
stimulating arguments that the latter were induced to embark in it. It
was by him that rebellion was first mooted at the secret caucus held
at Doel's brewery in Toronto during the second week in October. It was
by him that the scheme was afterwards submitted to Dr. Rolph and Dr.
Morrison. It was owing to his representations that those gentlemen
were induced to give a qualified assent to it. It was by him that the
people were finally roused to take up arms, many of them being led to
do so through his culpable misrepresentations of the attitude of Rolph
and Morrison. It was in large measure due to his hot-headed
incompetence and self-importance that the project proved a total and
ignominious failure. Finally, it was to his disclosures that a
vengeful Government were indebted for information which enabled them
to successfully prosecute many persons who had been to a greater or
less degree concerned in the rising, but who would have escaped the
consequences of their complicity therein but for his published
revelations. His conduct in this respect appears the more blameworthy,
inasmuch as the sufferers had been led into rebellion by Mackenzie
himself, who, at the time of his disclosures, had escaped from the
Province, and was beyond the reach of its tribunals. While he was
enjoying a safe asylum in the United States, and taking the whole
world into his confidence with respect to the movement and the persons
concerned in it, his victims filled the gaols of Upper Canada or
suffered ignominious deaths upon the scaffold. No language is too
strong to characterize his conduct at this crisis. If ever there was a
case in which silence would have been becoming--nay, in which silence
was imperatively inculcated by all laws of honour and right
feeling--that case was furnished by Mackenzie's circumstances after
his escape from Upper Canada. Yet, instead of maintaining silence, he
unbosomed himself to every stranger who would listen to him, and
poured out oceans of ink in a vain endeavour to prove that he had
acted the part of a wise man, while all those with whom he had been
associated had acted the parts of poltroons or fools. This course of
action would have been bad enough, even if he had kept to the truth.
As remarked by Dr. Rolph[8]: "Had the American Revolution in its
infancy been conducted with these sorts of patriotic narratives after
every reverse, criminating every one but Washington, and exposing in
the first six months every secret friend and secret association in
revolutionary operations, it would have effectually and speedily
extinguished that spark of liberty which the wisdom, freedom and
fidelity of our forefathers husbanded into a flame." Unfortunately,
Mackenzie did not confine himself to truth, or to anything in the most
distant degree resembling the truth. Whenever he had any purpose to
serve he did not permit himself to be hampered by any squeamish
considerations as to facts. In order to make proselytes he invented
the most improbable stories. During his incessant journeyings hither
and thither before the outbreak, he not only wilfully misrepresented
the sentiments of leading Reformers, but he actually succeeded in
convincing a number of people that Chief Justice Robinson and his
brothers were cognizant of the contemplated Rebellion, and that they
secretly favoured it. He repeated the same absurd story, both orally
and in print,[9] long after the enterprise had collapsed, and when so
outrageous a falsehood could deceive nobody except the people of the
United States, who knew nothing of the facts. A sensible man would
have accepted defeat and made the best of it; but Mackenzie had no
sooner set foot on United States soil than he appeared to lose what
little judgment he had ever possessed. He allied himself with the very
lowest class of border ruffians, many of whom were so imposed upon by
his representations that they banded themselves together to invade
Canada, and to harass the peaceable citizens along the frontier. When
he found that even these persons were beginning to fathom the
pettiness and malignity of his motives, he began to pour out his
various narratives, in which he did what he could to throw the blame
of failure upon his several collaborateurs, and to exalt himself into
something resembling a hero. All the other chief participants in the
revolt maintained silence, and determined to let the dead, irrevocable
past alone. Thus it came about that Mackenzie's own narratives have
hitherto furnished almost the sole groundwork for the most important
passages in the history of the Upper Canadian Rebellion.

On the afternoon of Friday, the 24th of November, Mackenzie once more
left Toronto for the north. It had been resolved that he should notify
as many of the different unions as possible of the intended movement,
and that he should make final arrangements for the assembling of not
fewer than two thousand persons at Montgomery's, all of whom were to
reach there between six and ten o'clock in the evening of the 7th of
December. The insurgents, having mustered in force, were then to
advance upon the city and proceed diect to the City Hall, where they
were to be joined by Rolph, Morrison, and such other of the Toronto
Radicals as should meanwhile have been intrusted with the secret. The
arms in the City Hall having been secured, Head and his advisers were
to be seized and held in durance. Dr. Rolph was then to be called upon
to assume the direction of the Civil Government. Morrison and other
leading Radicals were to give in their adhesion, after which there
could be no doubt of the cooperation of the great bulk of the city's
population. It was believed that a permanent military occupation would
be wholly unnecessary, as, when once the sceptre should have passed
away from the hands of Sir Francis Head, a very small proportion of
the people would be ready to take up arms to restore him to power.
Rolph and Morrison were meanwhile to hold themselves in readiness to
carry out their share of this programme. It was understood between
them and Mackenzie that they were to communicate the project to such
of the Toronto Radicals as they might deem safe, but that no active
cooperation was to be expected from them until the insurgents should
have actually entered the city in force. Rolph's assumption of the
direction of affairs was to be in response to a demand from the
insurgents themselves, after they should have possessed themselves of
the insignia of office. Mackenzie's assertion that the "Executive in
the City" was, to "join the army at Montgomery's"[10] is a clumsy
falsehood, invented by him for the purpose of self-exoneration, and
contradicted by all the facts and circumstances of the case,
independently of the assertions of Rolph and Morrison.

From the time of setting out northward on the 24th, Mackenzie appears
to have conducted himself with greater indiscretion than ever. He was
full to overflowing of the momentous project, and brimmed over
whenever he found an opportunity for so doing. His first
stopping-place was the house of a Radical farmer near Hogg's Hollow,
on Yonge Street, about six miles north of Toronto, where he remained
all night. He had supplied himself with some type, paper, and a small
printing-press, by means of which he was enabled to strike off and
distribute a handbill in which the "brave Canadians" were adjured to
get ready their rifles, and "make short work of it." "A connection
with England," it ran, "would involve us in all her wars, undertaken
for her own advantage, never for ours; with governors from England we
will have bribery at elections, corruption, villainy and perpetual
discord in every township, but independence would give us the means of
enjoying many blessings. Our enemies in Toronto are in terror and
dismay; they know their wickedness and dread our vengeance." Before
leaving the neighbourhood of Hogg's Hollow on Saturday morning he
divulged the plan of the intended rising to at least two persons, one
of whom [11] was friendly to the Government, and lost no time in
communicating the news to Sir Francis Head. As it happened, the
revelation did little or no harm to the insurgents, for the
Lieutenant-Governor and his Councillors refused to believe that there
was anything in the story, which they persisted in regarding as one
more exhibition of Mackenzie's malignant imbecility.

From Hogg's Hollow Mackenzie proceeded northward to the house of David
Gibson, which, as previously mentioned, was near the present village
of Willowdale.[12] Gibson was still unaware of the intention to rise
on the 7th of December, and Mackenzie, with his usual inconsistency,
abstained from acquainting him with it.[13] This reticence, as
Mackenzie afterwards alleged, was due to the fact that Gibson was a
member of the Provincial Parliament, and that it was only fair to him
that he should be left in ignorance as long as possible. There was no
doubt as to Gibson's cordial acquiescence and cooperation when once
the outbreak should have begun, but Mackenzie deemed it advisable that
he should be left in the dark until the insurgents should be actually
in arms.

From Gibson's Mackenzie proceeded to the township of King, where, in
conjunction with Lount, Fletcher, Anderson and others, he set himself
to prepare his adherents for the coming enterprise. It would be as
difficult as it is wholly unnecessary to trace his operations in
detail. He moved about with his customary energy, and was well
seconded by his rural coadjutors. Silas Fletcher acted as a medium of
communication between Mackenzie and Rolph, and was twice in Toronto
during the eight or nine days preceding the outbreak. Dr. Rolph
learned, through him, that Colonel Van Egmond had consented to lead
the insurgents into the city, and that he would be at Montgomery's for
that purpose in the forenoon of the 7th. Rolph and Morrison still
continued to keep the most important details of the plot locked in
their own breasts, though a number of persons in the city were so far
taken into confidence that they were made aware of the fact that an
early subversion of the Government was in contemplation. And so the
last days of November glided quietly by.

NOTE TO CHAPTER XIX.

I have taken the responsibility of stating, in the text, that no
meeting of twelve leading Reformers was ever held in Toronto at which
a scheme of rebellion was agreed upon, and that neither the management
of the enterprise nor the responsibility of an Executive was ever
conferred upon, or accepted by, Dr. Rolph. As these statements go to
the root of the whole story of the Rebellion, and as they are in
direct contradiction to Mackenzie's account, upon which all others
have been founded, it is incumbent upon me to adduce satisfactory
evidence of the truth of my assertions. This I now proceed to do. In
the first place the story which has hitherto obtained currency rests
upon the sole and unsupported word of Mackenzie himself, to which no
one who knew him would attach much importance. To any one familiar
with his peculiar style of writing, the bald manner in which the
statement is made is in itself sufficient to awaken doubt. If such an
important meeting was held, how is it that we have no particulars of
the proceedings from Mackenzie's pen, more especially as he gives a
very full account of the infinitely less important meeting which took
place at Doel's brewery during the second week in October? See
Lindsey's _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., pp. 53--56. He would have
been certain to preserve very full notes of such an event, and would
have rushed into print with them upon every conceivable opportunity.
Yet, in his _Narrative_, the whole matter is disposed of in one brief,
bald paragraph which bears the clearest evidence of his powers of
invention. He even abstains from saying, in so many words, that the
meeting was held in Toronto, though the context plainly shows that he
intended his readers to believe so. See his _Narrative_, as above
quoted, p. 8; and Lindsey's account, founded upon it, in _Life of
Mackenzie_, vol. ii., pp. 56, 57. But it is not necessary to resort to
arguments founded upon conjecture, however plausible. Who were these
"twelve leading Reformers"? If they belonged to Toronto, they must
certainly have included Dr. Rolph, Dr. Morrison, M. S. Bidwell, the
two Baldwins, James Hervey Price, the two Lesslies, and the
Armstrongs, as well as Mackenzie himself. Yet of all these, Mackenzie,
so far as appears, is the only one who ever heard of the meeting, or
of the appointment of an Executive, until the appearance of
Mackenzie's _Narrative_. Doctor Rolph never alluded to the matter
without giving the most vehement denial to both statements. The denial
is constantly reiterated in his correspondence, and some of the most
cogent arguments in his _Review of Mackenzie's Publications_ are
founded upon such a denial. So much, then, for Dr. Rolph. What about
Dr. Morrison? The following is a copy of a written statement made by
him about ten years subsequent to the Rebellion. It has never hitherto
been published, and merits a careful perusal. It is an unstudied
document, and its syntax is in some places very defective, but it
bears the impress of sincerity and truthfulness in every line. As will
be seen, it not only negatives the story about the meeting of "twelve
leading Reformers" and the appointment of an Executive, but also
confirms many other statements contained in the text.

DR. MORRISON'S STATEMENT.

"About the middle of October, 1837, Mr. Mackenzie urged on myself, and
told me he had conversed with Dr. Rolph, that the troops having all
left for Lower Canada, and the Lower Canadians being about to make a
revolutionary move, we (meaning the Upper Canadians) were bound to do
so also, and that a messenger ought to be immediately sent to Lower
Canada in order that a mutual understanding might exist between the
Reformers of both Provinces in the matter, and pressed it upon me very
earnestly that I should be that messenger, against which I
remonstrated, declining from prudential motives engaging in it. Some
short time after he came to me again, and informed me he had prevailed
on Mr. Jesse Lloyd, of Lloydtown, in the Township of King, to go, and
said he could give him letters to Papineau, T. S. Brown, of Montreal,
and others, and wished me to write also to introduce Mr. Lloyd as a
person confided in by the Reformers. I accordingly gave him a simple
letter of introduction to Dr. O'Callaghan, editor of the late Montreal
_Vindicator_.

"Mr. Lloyd proceeded to Montreal, and in a short time returned,
bringing no letters for any one except Mr. Mackenzie, who professed to
have received only one, and that was from Mr. Brown, and which he
showed to Dr. Rolph and myself at Dr. Rolph's, in presence of Mr.
Lloyd. It seemed to be merely a letter on business, alluding to some
particular time when he might correspond with him again. This,
Mackenzie said, was the subject agreed upon between them as a signal,
if he coincided with his views on a revolutionary movement, and Mr.
Lloyd stated the Lower Canadians were all ready and prepared, and
stated so soon as the ice began to float in the river opposite
Montreal, they intended to cross over and entrench themselves in some
part of the country adjacent, but wished us, the Reformers of Upper
Canada, to make the first move, giving them notice of the time when we
should do so, and that they would second us; whereupon Mr. Mackenzie,
Dr. Rolph and myself agreed to meet at my house that evening to take
the matter into serious consideration. On the same evening Dr. Rolph,
Mackenzie and myself met as agreed upon, and we discussed the
propriety of an immediate revolution or any at all. Dr. Rolph and
myself having much doubt as to whether the people were desirous of it,
or would engage in it, Mr. Mackenzie strenuously opposed our views, by
insisting that the people desired it, and that forthwith. And as a
proof that they were, he assured us he had received lists, signed by
some thousands, for the avowed purpose, and upbraided us very
vehemently for forsaking the people if we did not go with them in
their wishes, which were to depose the Government and establish one of
their own, and especially under so favourable a crisis, there being no
troops left in the garrison. We therefore consented that he might
proceed into the country, and consult with the different political
unions on this important subject, and bring it to their decision, and
if they were for a revolution, and willing to effect it; and when he
had done so to inform us of the result. And we then also laid down a
plan by which we might take possession of the arms, and put into
custody the different officers of Government, establish a Provisional
Government, and, if possible, by such a plot achieve a bloodless
victory over the enemies of Canada.

"It was then perfectly understood by Dr. Rolph and myself that the
whole sanction we then gave to Mackenzie was to make the foregoing
investigation, and to which he agreed, provided we would allow him to
make use of Dr. Rolph's and my own name to the people in his
communications with them relative to his mission. To this we
consented, on the principle that we wished to accomplish nothing but
what the people were desirous of doing themselves. If they voluntarily
desired to effect a revolution we would give them our countenance. In
this sense and no other was Mackenzie authorized to mention our names.

"Mackenzie then left the house, Dr. R. and myself remaining. When in
conversation together Dr. R. observed that he would call on Mackenzie
and get him to point out on his lists such persons as he thought would
be suited to execute such an undertaking, and get them to meet
together and enter into two resolutions, one expressive of a
determination to effect the independence of the Province, and another
to unite to do so by physical force. These were to be entered into
without recording them.

"While Dr. R., Mackenzie and myself were discussing these points
together, I did not understand that any wish was expressed or
understood that either Dr. R. or myself were to have any command over
the forces of the insurgents. In fact, it was always a source of
regret to us that individuals fit for it were not among us, although
it was often insisted upon by Messrs. Lloyd and Mackenzie that they
were to be met with among the people north of the Ridges. Never at any
time in the course of these conversations was it even hinted that such
services were expected of us; and during the interview above alluded
to Dr. Rolph and myself repeatedly and peremptorily laid down the
injunction that private property was to be respected, and that we
considered all moneys in the banks, not actually belonging to the
Government, as private property....No appointment of an Executive
Committee was made; neither were any powers delegated to Dr. Rolph or
to Mackenzie or any other than those before stated, nor am I aware
that there was any meeting early in November of twelve leading
Reformers of the city, appointing an Executive Committee, of which Dr.
Rolph was one, or in any way deliberating on the subject. If there had
been such a meeting, no doubt I would have known it, conferring either
on Dr. Rolph the powers of an Executive or on Mackenzie the details,
arrangement or whole management of revolutionary movements.

"I saw nothing again of Mr. Mackenzie till about the Wednesday week
before the outbreak, when he called at my house between eight and nine
at night, or maybe a little later. I had casually heard before from
various persons, to whom by some means the intelligence must have come
through Mackenzie, of the intended outbreak and the time fixed upon,
and was greatly surprised, as at the primary interview already spoken
of at my house, Mr. Mackenzie especially, as well as Dr. Rolph and
myself, entered into the strictest assurances to each other of secrecy
and confidentiality. Mackenzie then informed me for the first time
that he had appointed Thursday, the 7th December, for the rising,
without entering into any details or further particulars. I then told
him that it was not intended that he should take upon himself any such
authority, and was very fearful he had been premature. I enquired if
he had acquainted Dr. Rolph with this, and what was his remark. He
replied that he had, and that Dr. Rolph had made no objections. He
appeared to be greatly agitated, and exceedingly terse in his
conversation with me, censuring me for not taking a more active part
in the matter; whereupon I rejoined I had done all that I could, and
all that was required of me in respect to it.

"(Signed) T. D. MORRISON.

"As to Fletcher, when I heard of the assemblage on Yonge Street, I was
convinced in my own mind that it would prove a failure, and was glad
of the opportunity of making Fletcher the medium of my advice, which
was that they should disperse at once. I then sent Fletcher to Dr.
Rolph, who gave him a similar advice with myself, and sent him up
Yonge Street to the multitude."[14]

    *    *    *    *    *

It is thus sufficiently clear that neither Rolph nor Morrison had any
knowledge of the meeting of twelve leading Reformers, or of the
appointment of an Executive. Mr. Bidwell's ignorance of the whole
enterprise has been made sufficiently clear on a former page. See vol.
i., pp. 362, 363, note. From Robert Baldwin's own testimony we know
that he was equally ignorant. See his evidence as given before the
Committee on Privileges, and printed in the Appendix to the Journal of
Assembly for 1837-'8, p. 406. Dr. Baldwin was informed of the
impending insurrection, but not until after the actual arrival of the
rebels at Montgomery's, and it is clear that he knew nothing about any
meeting of Reformers or appointment of an Executive. See Appendix, as
above. James Hervey Price, John Armstrong, Robert McKay, and John
Elliott were all examined in open court on the trial of Dr. Morrison
for high treason at Toronto, on Wednesday, the 24th of April, 1838.
They were all leading Reformers, and must have known if any such
important steps had been taken as alleged by Mackenzie. Yet they all
emphatically denied upon oath any knowledge of either the meeting or
the appointment. Mr. Price "never heard of the existence of an
Executive Committee until he read Mackenzie's narrative," and solemnly
disavowed ever hearing of it before. See p. 18 of the pamphlet giving
an account of the trial. Armstrong testified that he knew nothing of
an Executive Committee to cooperate with Mackenzie. _Ib_., p. 3. McKay
stated that he did not believe there ever was an Executive Committee
in Toronto, such as stated by Mackenzie in his narrative. _Ib_., p. 3.
Elliott testified that he had no knowledge of any Executive Committee
to correspond with Mackenzie, or to cooperate with him in the
Rebellion. _Ib_., p. 3. James Lesslie assured me a short time before
his death that the story about twelve leading Reformers was a clear
invention of Mackenzie's. He added that the Rebellion was first
conceived by Mackenzie, who by his persuasions obtained the
cooperation of Lount, Matthews, Lloyd and others, as stated in the
foregoing pages. David Gibson's oral and written communications abound
with evidence that he never heard of either meeting or appointment,
and that he regarded both as inventions of Mackenzie. In a letter
written by him, and now lying before me, are the following words: "I
am not aware of any Executive Committee having existed--never heard of
their appointment by any body of Reformers--never was at any meeting
of the kind for such an appointment, nor ever heard of such Executive
Committee from Mr. Mackenzie until I met him in the State of New
York." Mr. Gibson adds that Mackenzie, while in John Montgomery's
house in Rochester, after the latter's escape from Upper Canada,
prepared with his own hand a statement which he induced William Alves
to sign, and which he afterwards published on pp. 100-102 of the
_Caroline Almanac_. In this statement Dr. Rolph is referred to as "our
own Executive," but the phrase--indeed the sntire narrative--is
Mackenzie's, and not Alves's, although the latter was induced to
append his name. The authenticity of Silas Fletcher's letter, in which
Rolph is also referred to as the Executive, is dealt with at full
length in a note to p. 34, _post_, to which note the reader may refer
if he deems it worth while. But further testimony is surely
unnecessary. It is plain that the idea of the Rebellion was originally
the work of Mackenzie; that he won over Lount, Matthews, Lloyd and
several others in the rural districts; and that the plan, so far as
there was any plan, was arranged by them without any conference with
the Radicals in Toronto, who were only made aware of it after the day
of rising had been fixed upon.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] A tavern on the west side of Yonge street, about four miles north
of Toronto.

[2] These lists were abandoned by Mackenzie upon his flight from
Montgomery's. They fell into the hands of the Government, who were
thus enabled to identify many persons as "rebels" who otherwise would
never have been suspected.

[3] See the statement in Note at end of this chapter.

[4] Colonel Van Egmond's career was a most active and varied one. He
is said to have been lineally descended from the celebrated Count
Egmont who figured so conspicuously in the history of the fall of the
Dutch Republic, and whose death forms the subject of Goethe's tragedy.
He was, as stated in the text, a native of Holland, where he was born
in the year 1771. He served as an officer in the Dutch army during the
French invasion of the Netherlands towards the close of the last
century. After the establishment of French domination in his native
land, he served in the Dutch contingent under Napoleon, whom he
accompanied during the disastrous campaign against Russia in 1812.
Immediately after his return from Russia he joined the Allied Armies,
and was with Blucher during that general's advance on Waterloo, whence
he was carried wounded from the field. Soon after the close of the war
he migrated to America, and settled in Indiana County, State of
Pennsylvania, where he resided for about eight years, after which he
removed to Upper Canada and took up his abode in what is now the
County of Waterloo. He subsequently removed to the Huron Tract, and
settled in the neighbourhood of the present town of Seaforth. Here he
remained until his death, to be hereafter referred to. Some of his
children and grandchildren still reside in and near Seaforth, and the
neighbouring village of Egmondville is named after the family.

Colonel Van Egmond inherited considerable wealth, which he brought
with him to America. His enterprise and business ability enabled him
to add to his means, and at the time of his venturing his fortunes
upon the Upper Canadian Rebellion he was, for those times, a rich and
prosperous man. He was actuated by no sordid or selfish motive, and
must have been largely impelled by an enthusiasm for the cause of
freedom. "Colonel Van Egmond," says a local authority, "was a gallant
soldier, an enterprising pioneer, a generous friend and an educated
gentleman. He was a personal friend and companion of Sir John Colborne
when both were officers in the Allied Armies at and preceding
Waterloo; and although he died in prison with a charge of treason
hanging over him, he gave his life for what he firmly believed the
sacred rights and liberties of the people." The same authority refers
to his military career as covering a space of twenty-five years of
"perhaps the bloodiest period of modern European history," and adds
that "during this career he was wounded fourteen times, and covered
with scars."

[5] See _Mackenzie's Own Narrative of the Late Rebellion, with
Illustrations and Notes, Critical and Explanatory, exhibiting the only
true account of what took place at the Memorable Siege of Toronto, in
the middle of December, 1837_. The narrative was originally dated by
Mackenzie from Navy Island, and published in _The Jeffersonian_, a
newspaper issued at Watertown, in the State of New York. It was
reprinted in pamphlet form in Toronto early in 1838, the introduction,
illustrations and notes being supplied by Mr. Charles Fothergill, who
has already been referred to in the text. See vol. i., p. 196.

[6] _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., pp. 56, 57.

[7] See Note at end of this chapter.

[8] See his _Review of Mackenzie's Publications on the Revolt before
Toronto, post_.

[9] See, for instance, the _Caroline Almanac_, p. 98. Among David
Gibson's papers I find a statement in his handwriting in which the
following words occur: "In page 98 of his _Caroline Almanac_ he
[Mackenzie] says: 'Mrs. L. [Lount] like me, is sure that the Robinsons
were for the revolt.' I have no doubt Mackenzie made such representations
to have effect with a certain class, to get their aid, or to keep them at
home; but my opinion is he had no grounds for any such assertion."

[10] See his Narrative, _ubi supra_, p. 8.

[11] This was Mr. James Hogg. It suited Mackenzie afterwards to assert
that he had purposely misled Hogg, or that Hogg had purposely misled
the Lieutenant-Governor on the subject. In the _Caroline Almanac_, p.
102, it is said that "Mr. Hogg made several pretended revelations to
Sir Francis, the value of which I well knew; they put the Governor on
a wrong scent." This is another instance of Mackenzie's power of
invention. Hogg made no "pretended revelations" to Sir Francis. He
revealed to him the simple truth that the outbreak was to take place
on Thursday, the 7th of December; and he was enabled to do this solely
in consequence of Mackenzie having communicated the fact to him. See
Warne's broadside published in Toronto immediately after the outbreak.
It is clear enough that Mackenzie invented the "pretended revelation"
story in order to cover up his own indiscretion in disclosing such a
secret.

[12] The farm is still in the occupation of his son, Peter S. Gibson,
to whom I am indebted for the use of valuable MSS. relating to the
Rebellion.

[13] In a MS. statement written by Gibson a quarter of a century
later, I find the following sentences: "When Mr. Mackenzie went out on
his last trip he called at my house, and said, he was going to
agitate, but said nothing of rising in arms against the Government. I
supposed his trip to be of the usual character, for effect in England,
to cause the recall of Sir F. B. Head. I learned first of the rising
from Silas Fletcher on the previous Saturday." Mr. Gibson means on the
Saturday previous to the outbreak, which would be Saturday the 2nd of
December. In a subsequent part of the same statement, Gibson says: "He
[Mackenzie] said to me when in the United States, 'I got you so deep
into it you could not back out.'"

[14] The application of this postscript will be understood by
reference to the penultimate paragraph of the statement of John Hawk,
appended to chapter xx.; and by a perusal of the subsequent portion of
the narrative referring to the proceedings of Tuesday, the 5th of
December.




CHAPTER XX.

SIR FRANCIS DOES NOT APPREHEND A REBELLION.


Meanwhile, in spite of repeated warnings, the Government continued to
rest in undisturbed confidence. Anyone who ventured to hint to them
that Mackenzie's agitation had at last produced fruit, and that a good
many people in the Home District were ripe for revolt, was laughed at
and ridiculed for his pains. Nothing could rouse them from their
fatuity. All through the autumn they received regular intelligence of
the secret drillings, of the manufacture of pikes, and of other
seditious proceedings on the part of the Radicals throughout the Home
and Gore Districts. But all was to no purpose. "If a prophet had risen
from the dead," wrote Charles Fothergill,[15] a few weeks later, "his
admonitions would have been ineffectual." They persisted in regarding
all the preparations as being merely for effect, and to intimidate the
Government. Colonel Fitz Gibbon, whose superabundant loyalty prompted
him to be ever on the alert, appears to have obtained early
intelligence of the intention to rise in arms. It will be remembered
that he had long before begun to make preparations for such a
contingency.[16] He had from time to time bored Sir Francis Head and
other members of the Government on the subject, and his incessant
importunities had led to his being regarded in the light of an
alarmist. As for Sir Francis himself, he felt as secure as though he
had had ten thousand armed veterans at his back. When Sir John
Colborne had applied to him to know how many of the Upper Canadian
troops he could spare for service in the Lower Province, he had
promptly and unhesitatingly replied "All," and all had been sent. Not
only the capital, but the whole of the Province was thus left
defenceless. The last troops sent out of the Upper Province for
service in Lower Canada were withdrawn from Penetanguishene in
November. They consisted of a subaltern officer and thirty men. When
they were on their way from Penetanguishene to Toronto, Colonel Fitz
Gibbon urged the Lieutenant-Governor to keep them in the city, in
order that their presence might have an effect upon the local militia.
"No, not a man;" answered his Excellency--"the doing so woulcd destroy
the whole _morale_ of my policy. If the militia cannot defend the
Province, the sooner it is lost the better." "Then, sir" entreated the
Colonel, "let us be armed, and ready to defend ourselves." "No,"
responded Sir Francis "I do not apprehend a rebellion in Upper
Canada."[17]

Remonstrances from other quarters were met in a similar spirit. The
Government appeared to have been smitten with a most unaccountable
blindness, and could not be made to understand that there was any
cause for either alarm or preparation. They took no steps to guard the
arms in the City Hall, which, as previously mentioned, had been
committed to the charge of the municipal authorities, who had
appointed two constables to watch over them at nights. There was
absolutely nothing to prevent the seizure of these arms by a handful
of determined men. Colonel Fitz Gibbon was apprehensive lest the
rebels should come into the city separately, so as to attract no
attention, and conceal themselves in the houses of Radical citizens
until they should be in sufficient force; when, at a given signal,
they might rush to the City Hall at midnight, and gain easy possession
of the temporary arsenal. To guard against such a possibility he
induced his rifle corps, whom he continued to drill with vigilant
regularity, to volunteer a nightly guard of fifteen or twenty men to
watch the City Hall, and to furnish two sentries to guard the
approaches to Government House. Having brought matters to this pass,
he presented himself before Sir Francis to gain the requisite
permission, which, to the Colonel's chagrin, was refused. "But that I
do not like to undo what I have already done," remarked his
Excellency, "I would have those arms brought from the City Hall and
placed here in the Government House, under the care and keeping of my
own domestics."[18]

The Lieutenant-Governor seemed to believe that he was hedged by a sort
of divinity, and he lived in a Fool's Paradise of over-confidence
until the rebels were veritably at his gates.

When the crisis was over, it suited Sir Francis Head to represent
himself as having long anticipated the Upper Canadian Rebellion,[19]
and as being fully prepared for it by reason of his unbounded
confidence in the loyalty of the great bulk of the people. He even
went so far as to record that he had purposely ignored all the
preparations of the rebels, in order that they might be led on to
commit some overt act which would enable him to strike them with
greater effect. "I considered," he wrote "that if an attack by the
rebels was inevitable, the more I encouraged them to consider me
defenceless the better."[20] Again: "I felt that, instead of either
trying to conciliate Mr. Mackenzie, or make his fortune by a
Government prosecution, I had better let him come within the reach of
the law, and then let it hang him."[21] He does not seem to have been
conscious that in so writing he was doing his utmost to brand himself
with infamy. If he had really encouraged men to rebel in order that he
might have an excuse for hanging them, he would have been one of the
basest of mankind. But it is clear that this idea was a mere
afterthought, adopted and placed on record for the purpose of
conveying the impression that he was a shrewd and far-seeing man.[22]
That he was kept well-informed respecting the preparations of the
rebels is quite true. It is also true that he forebore to prosecute
Mackenzie for treasonable articles in the Constitution, and that he
did so for the deliberate purpose of thereby leading the editor to
publish something so grossly treasonable that it could not be
ignored.[23] But, so far as the actual outbreak was concerned, he and
his Councillors were taken completely by surprise. They did not
"apprehend a rebellion in Upper Canada." They did not for a moment
believe that any practical results were to follow the drilling and
other preparations, and they greatly underestimated the number of the
disaffected. That any deliberate attempt would be made to capture the
city and overturn the Government seemed too utterly absurd to be
gravely discussed.

Towards the end of November news reached Toronto of the repulse of
Colonel Gore by the Lower Canadian rebels under Dr. Wolfred Nelson.
This could not fail to have an inspiriting effect upon the disaffected
in Upper Canada. Colonel Fitz Gibbon was keenly alive to this fact,
and relaxed none of his vigilance. He felt certain that an outbreak
was imminent, and took such precautions against a surprise as were
within his power. He prepared a list of those persons living west of
Yonge Street, and within the city limits, upon whom he felt that he
could depend for assistance in case of a revolt. This list he
submitted to the Lieutenant-Governor, stating that it was his
intention to call personally upon each of the men, and to warn them to
keep their arms loaded and ready to hand, so as to be constantly
prepared to repel an attack. His plan was that the Mayor, Mr. Gurnett,
should prepare a list of the loyal men residing in that portion of the
city lying east of Yonge Street, who should receive a similar warning.
Arrangements were to be made for the ringing of the bell of Upper
Canada College at any hour of either day or night whenever an outbreak
should take place.

This was to be the signal for the ringing of other bells, throughout
the city. Upon hearing the sound, every man west of Yonge Street was
to seize his arms and run to Parliament House; while the men east of
Yonge Street were to repair to the City Hall. "For the doing of this,"
remarked Colonel Fitz Gibbon, "I desire to have your Excellency's
sanction; but permit me to tell your Excellency that whether you give
me leave or not I am determined to do it. I say so with all respect to
your Excellency as the representative of my Sovereign. You are so
convinced that we are in no danger that you will take no measure of
precaution; but I, being fully convinced that the danger is most
imminent, am determined to take every measure in my power to devise
for the protection of my family and friends."[24] Sir Francis gave a
sort of reluctant sanction to the plan, and the Colonel proceeded to
the City Hall and communicated it to the Mayor. That functionary had
heard various rumours of an impending insurrection, and had been urged
by several members of the Council, as well as by other citizens, to
take some precautions for the public safety; but up to this time he
had not been disposed to attach much weight to the rumours, or to
encourage what he regarded as a spirit of timorousness on the part of
the inhabitants. In any case he would do nothing at the instigation of
Colonel Fitz Gibbon, whose conduct he regarded as a piece of officious
interference. He accordingly warned no one, and gave no instructions
as to the ringing of bells. The Colonel himself, before the day
closed, started on his rounds from house to house to warn the trusted
loyalists west of Yonge Street. He got very little thanks for his
pains from the loyalists themselves. They regarded him as a
well-meaning but troublesome fanatic, who had pondered so much on the
wickedness of the Radicals that he had become a monomaniac on the
subject. Some of them believed that his exuberant zeal ought to be
checked by the authorities, lest he should create unnecessary alarm in
the public mind. Among the names on his list was that of Chief Justice
Robinson. Calling at the latter's abode, he was shown into the
library, where he received an unmistakable snub. "I cannot partake of
your apprehensions," said the Chief Justice, "and I am sorry to see
you alarming the people in this way."[25] In deference to the Chief
Justice's wishes, the Colonel agreed to warn the heads of families
only, in order that the young men might not be thrown into a state of
unnecessary excitement. There were a hundred and twenty-six names on
his list, and he continued to leave his warnings at house after house
from day to day, but the Rebellion broke out before his self-appointed
task had been half accomplished.

The Constitution meanwhile continued to appear with regularity,[26]
but its tone was not perceptibly worse than it had been for the past
twelvemonth, and there was no additional ground known for instituting
proceedings against its editor. On the 29th of November a document
purporting to be a draft of a constitution, intended to be submitted
to the proposed Reform Convention, appeared in its columns; but, like
everything else from the same source, it was regarded as a mere
ebullition of Mackenzie's teeming fancy, and not worth serious
consideration from men of sober minds. Mackenzie, however, had by this
time succeeded in widely disseminating his handbill, and in causing
most of the disaffected in the Home District to be notified of the
contemplated rising on the 7th of December. The feeling throughout
some of the townships was so restless that it could not be concealed.
The local supporters of the Government in these places could not shut
their eyes to what was going on about them. They felt certain that the
Radicals were preparing for an early attempt against the established
order of things, and they lost no time in communicating their
convictions to the Government. Several copies of the handbill were
laid hold of and forwarded to headquarters. James Hogg, who had been
informed by Mackenzie of the actual day of the intended outbreak,[27]
had ridden into town and acquainted Sir Francis Head therewith, but as
he admitted that Mackenzie had been his informant no weight whatever
had been attached by the Lieutenant-Governor to his communication.
Intelligence was now brought into the city at almost every hour of the
day from Pickering, King, East Gwillimbury, Markham and elsewhere, to
the effect that mischief was in the air, and that Upper Canada was on
the verge of troublous times. The warnings continued to arrive in such
numbers that they could no longer be absolutely ignored, more
especially as many of the inhabitants of the city were beginning to
share in the belief that there was something of a very unusual nature
in the atmosphere, and to urge upon various dignitaries that some
steps ought to be taken for the protection of the city. Accordingly,
on Friday, the 1st of December, a meeting of the Executive Council was
held. There were various matters requiring consideration, and after a
session of several hours an adjournment took place until the morrow.
The adjourned meeting on the following day does not appear to have
been a formal or official meeting of the Council, as it was not
confined to members of that body. It was attended by the
Lieutenant-Governor, the Hon. William Allan, the Hon. R. B. Sullivan,
Chief Justice Robinson, Judge Jones, Attorney-General Hagerman,
Solicitor-General Draper, and Allan MacNab, Speaker of the Legislative
Assembly. The probability of a Radical revolt against the Government
was discussed at considerable length. The only person who took no part
in the discussion was Mr. Allan. All the rest were clearly of opinion
that the idea of a revolt was too absurd to occupy their attention.
Attorney-General Hagerman declared his firm conviction, as he had done
many a time before during the past few months, that not fifty people
in the Province could be got to take arms against the Government. This
sentiment was echoed all round the table, except by Mr. Allan, who, so
far as then appeared, had no opinion whatever on the subject. While
the matter was thus being disposed of, Colonel Fitz Gibbon's name was
announced, and a moment later he was admitted into the Council
Chamber, hot and breathless with haste and excitement. He reported
certain information which had just reached his ears. A magistrate from
one of the northern townships had a few minutes before called upon him
and acquainted him with the nature of the preparations for rebellion
in the rural districts. It appeared that a blacksmith whose forge was
not far from the magistrate's house had for some time past been
engaged in the manufacture of pike heads; that this had been done
secretly, no persons except trusted Radicals being admitted to the
shop; that other persons in the same neighbourhood had been engaged
day and night in the manufacture of hickory handles, and that when
questioned on the subject they had represented these as being intended
for handles for hay-rakes and pitchforks. Drilling was practised
nightly, and everything pointed to the conclusion that the public
peace would erelong be seriously disturbed. This was certainly
important news, but the Colonel's proclivities for scenting out
rebellion were so well known, and he was moreover in such a state of
excitement, that his account of the matter was accepted at a very
large discount. These repositories of official wisdom could not or
would not credit the possibility of rebellion. It seemed as if nothing
could rouse them to a true sense of their position. Some of them could
not forbear from actual rudeness to the Colonel when he expressed
himself as to the state of matters in the northern part of the Home
District. "You do not mean to say," queried Judge Jones, turning
towards him with a scarcely repressed sneer in his voice and tone,
"that these people are going to rebel?" "Most distinctly I do,"
responded Colonel Fitz Gibbon; upon which the Judge turned towards the
Lieutenant-Governor, and in a contemptuous tone exclaimed, "Pugh,
pugh![28]" But the Colonel was not to be flouted out of his
convictions, and continued to state them with a vigour and an
earnestness which at least proved his perfect sincerity. He urged that
his informant should be questioned in person by the gentlemen present.
After some deliberation it was determined to adopt this course. The
magistrate, being close at hand, was sent for, and upon his arrival he
was examined by the Lieutenant-Governor and the Attorney-General in an
adjacent room. Upon the return of the inquisitors to the Council
Chamber, the Attorney-General remarked: "The statement made to us by
Mr.____ does not make half the impression upon one's mind as was made
by Colonel Fitz Gibbon's statement: the information he brings us at
third or fourth hand." Mr. Allan, who up to this time had maintained
silence, now spoke out. "What would you have, gentlemen?" he
asked--"Do you expect the rebels will come and give information at
first hand? How can you expect such information but at second, third
or fourth hand? I am as long in the country as most of you, gentlemen.
I know the people of this country as well as most of you, and I agree
in every word spoken here to-day by Colonel Fitz Gibbon, and think
that an hour should not be lost without preparing ourselves for
defence.[29]" These plain words of common sense produced their effect,
but the others surrendered their opinions with an ill grace, and as
though deferring to a spirit which should be checked rather than
encouraged. Sir Francis himself sided with the quietists, and for a
time it seemed as though no steps whatever would be taken for the
defence of the city. While the discussion was at its height Colonel
Fitz Gibbon urged the immediate putting into the garrison of all the
half-pay officers and discharged soldiers who could be found in and
around the city. To this Sir Francis objected. "What," he enquired,
"will the people of England say, if they hear that we are thus arming?
And besides, it will offend the militia if we pass them by and employ
the military." The Colonel very emphatically expressed his opinion to
the contrary, adding that the militia would be glad of an opportunity
to rally round the regular military as a nucleus. At last, after
several hours' conference, his Excellency said: "My opinions are
unchanged. I hold that there is no danger whatever; but if, as I am
informed, the magistrates and principal inhabitants of the city are
apprehensive of danger, let them address me to that effect. I will
tell them that I entertain no fears for the public peace; but to allay
theirs, and in compliance with their solicitations, I will order
measures of precaution to be taken.[30]" At this very moment, the
Mayor, who had at last become awake to the possibility of danger, was
waiting in the next room to have an interview with his Excellency on
the subject.[31]

The result of the day's deliberations was that the Government resolved
upon the arrest of Mackenzie and the organization of two regiments of
militia. It was also deemed prudent to place the fort in charge of a body
of militia, and to invest Colonel Fitz Gibbon with the authority of
Adjutant-General.[32] There was however no undue haste in the carrying
out of these arrangements, and the Colonel was not made acquainted
with his accession of dignity until the morning of Monday, the 4th. On
the same day a General Order was drawn up, appealing to the various
militia officers in the Province, and embodying instructions for their
guidance. This was sent to the printer to be put in type, but everything
was done with the utmost calmness and leisure, there being no suspicion
on the part of the Government that there was any need for unusual
despatch. At this very moment Samuel Lount, Anthony Anderson,
Jesse Lloyd and Silas Fletcher, with a considerable body of insurgents
at their backs, were on the march to Montgomery's.

And yet Sir Francis Head did not apprehend a rebellion in Upper Canada.

It was known to a good many persons in the city on Saturday that a
special meeting of the Council was in session, and that some of the
judges and chief officers of State had been summoned to attend. Dr.
Rolph, who obtained early intelligence thereof, felt a good deal of
anxiety on the subject. Knowing, as he did, that the revolt was to
burst forth in five days, and knowing how much was involved in success
or failure, the proceedings of the Government had a special
significance for him. What could this unusual session portend? What
was the nature of the Council's deliberations? Had they become
acquainted with the plot? Mackenzie's imprudent methods and his
abnormal length of tongue rendered such a contingency not very
unlikely. In the course of the afternoon several items of news reached
the Doctor which tended still further to disturb his equanimity.
Several persons who had been examined before the Council during the
morning spoke openly of what they had seen and heard while in the
Council Chamber. From these revelations it appeared that the
Government had seen copies of Mackenzie's handbill, and that they had
received repeated warnings of an approaching insurrectionary movement.
During the afternoon Silas Fletcher called upon Dr. Rolph with a
message from Mackenzie to the effect that all was going on well, and
that their friends would be at Montgomery's in full force on the night
of the following Thursday. The information received up to this time as
to the intentions of the Government was too vague to justify the
Doctor in sending any discouraging message to Mackenzie, so he
contented himself with merely informing Fletcher of what he had heard,
and instructing him to communicate the same to Mackenzie.[33] But
Fletcher had hardly taken his departure for the north ere other
unpleasant items of intelligence began to reach Dr. Rolph's ears. One
of these, which emanated from a trustworthy source, was to the effect
that Mackenzie's arrest had been determined upon, and that a warrant
for the purpose had actually been issued and placed in the hands of
the Sheriff. Allan MacNab, before starting for his home in Hamilton
that evening, informed several persons that the Provincial militia
were to be notified to hold themselves in readiness, and that he
himself was at once about to organize the militia of the Gore
District. Other rumours, some true and some false, were whispered
about from mouth to mouth as the evening passed by for instance, that
the Orangemen of the city were to be supplied with arms from the City
Hall; that the garrison was to be filled with pensioners; that within
the next week the city was to be placed in a state of defence, and
that active measures were to be resorted to for the punishment of
persons disaffected to the Government, whether in Toronto or elsewhere
throughout the Province. With such apparently well-founded rumours as
these reaching him at every turn, it is not strange that Dr. Rolph
should have felt much disquietude. It seemed not improbable that the
Executive had become aware of Mackenzie's design in all its details,
and that they were even now taking measures for his destruction. It
was certain that if the insurgents were in a position to anticipate
their proposed attack by two or three days they might easily succeed
in capturing the city, for it was evident that the Government were not
prepared for immediate action. After consulting with Dr. Morrison,
Rolph determined that at all events Mackenzie and his men should not
fall into a trap without warning. Mackenzie's exact whereabouts was
not known to the Doctor, but he took it for granted that Gibson would
know where he was to be found, and he accordingly despatched a
messenger named John Mantach to Gibson's house out on Yonge Street. It
was not deemed prudent to commit anything to writing, but the
intelligence which had reached the Doctor from credible sources was
briefly communicated to the messenger, with instructions to
recapitulate the same to Gibson for transmission to Mackenzie. Rolph
expressed the opinion that if even so small a force as thre hundred
resolute men could be got together and mustered secretly on the
outskirts of Toronto by the following Monday, it would be quite
practicable to take the city, as the Government were not contemplating
an attack at so early a date, and would be completely taken by
surprise.[34]

It was late at night when Mantach reached Gibson's house. Gibson was
much surprised at the message, having only heard that day for the
first time thatthere was to be a rising on the 7th.[35] He did not
know where to find Mackenzie, whom he had not seen since Saturday, the
25th ultimo;[36] but the message would be equally effective if
delivered to Lount, and it was safe to assume that Lount was either at
or in the immediate neighbourhood of his home. Thither, accordingly,
at 4 o'clock on the morning of Sunday the 3rd, another messenger--one
William Edmundson, a friend of Gibson's--was despatched with the
important tidings, which he received direct from the mouth of Dr.
Rolph's own emissary.

When Edmundson reached Lount's abode, near Holland landing, he was
compelled to deliver the message to Mrs. Lount, her husband being from
home. It will thus be seen that this verbal message, involving various
important details, passed through several intermediaries after leaving
the lips of Dr. Rolph. It was delivered first by the Doctor to
Mantach, next by Mantach to Gibson and Edmundson, then by Edmundson to
Mrs. Lount, and finally by Mrs. Lount to her husband. It is thus quite
possible that when it reached its final destination it varied somewhat
from what it had originally been. The only reason, however, for
supposing that any such variation took place is the fact that
Mackenzie, when all had been lost, sought to throw the blame of
failure upon Dr. Rolph, by representing the message delivered to Lount
as a peremptory mandate from the Executive--a mandate which he, Lount,
was bound to obey. The message, as despatched by Dr. Rolph, and as
received and re-despatched by Gibson, was as above stated, and
Mackenzie, instead of endeavouring to misrepresent or find fault with
it, ought to have been grateful therefor from the bottom of his heart,
as it saved his limbs from the racking rheumatism of the prisoner's
cell, and his neck from the hangman's noose.[37] It would have been
impossible for him to avoid arrest until Thursday, if he had been
going about the townships as usual, and if he had once found himself
in the custody of the Sheriff he would never have escaped therefrom
but by the scaffold, as his papers would themselves have been amply
sufficient to ensure his conviction, and the Government would have
been glad enough to avail themselves of such an opportunity of ridding
themselves of him.

Lount and Anderson had meanwhile been busy with preparations, and had
everything in readiness for conducting their forces to Montgomery's in
time to make the descent upon Toronto on the following Thursday. Early
on the morning of Sunday, the 3rd, they had despatched Nelson Gorham
and a Radical named McCarty to Montgomery's to make arrangements for
providing the men with food when they should reach the tavern. Lount
returned home within a few hours after Edmundson's visit. Upon
receiving the message from his wife, he again sought out Anderson, who
was at a house in the immediate neighbourhood. The two resolved to act
upon the message. It was clear to them that, "if the townships could
accomplish the enterprise on Thursday, when the Government would be
prepared, it would be still easier to do it before the preparation was
effectually begun."[38] They accordingly sent out notifications to the
men composing "the Lloydtown Company" to hold themselves in readiness
to march to Montgomery's on the morrow instead of on Thursday. The
company consisted of more than a hundred volunteers, nearly all of
whom mustered on the following (Monday) morning, according to command,
at a point a few miles south of Holland Landing. The leaders divided
the men up into several parties, and proceeded by different routes, in
order that their march might be less likely to attract attention.
While moving towards their destination they permitted nobody to pass
them on the way, lest the news of their march might be conveyed to the
Government. A few persons were turned back, and made to promise not to
attempt to pass southward. Others, known to be zealous supporters of
the Government, were taken prisoners and compelled to march to
Montgomery's. The largest detachment of insurgents, consisting of
about forty persons, marched southward with Anderson at their head.
Lount proceeded alone by a more circuitous route, in order to notify
several other small companies, and to conduct such of them as were
available to the appointed place.

Anderson and his men reached Montgomery's between eight and nine
o'clock in the evening. They had had a long day's march of more than
thirty miles, and were weary and footsore. They had brought few arms
with them, partly because the advance of a body of armed men along the
public highways would have proclaimed their purpose to every one
encountering them on their march, but chiefly because Mackenzie, at a
meeting held at Machell's Corners[39] a few nights before, had stated
that a small supply of arms and ammunition was concealed at
Montgomery's, and ready for use. A few muskets would have been
sufficient, as the men depended upon supplying themselves from the
stores in the City Hall. It was found, however, that nothing whatever
had been provided in the way of arms and ammunition; and, worse still,
there were no rations for the men. The change of day had of course
deranged the plans which had been formed for the commissariat, and
there was practically nothing to eat in the house. It was not until
the larders of the neighbours had been pressed into service that the
weary volunteers were enabled to in some measure appease their hunger
by a limited supply of such comestibles as dry bread, doughnuts,
crackers and cheese. They felt not unreasonably disposed to grumble,
but the arrival of Lount a short time afterwards, with eighty or
ninety men whom he had collected on the way, and most of whom were
armed in some fashion or other, restored them to good humour. Some of
them proposed to march into the city and carry out their designs
forthwith, but the general opinion was in favour of resting for the
night and making an attack after an early breakfast on the following
morning. This plan was finally adopted, and the men were informed that
when they were ready for repose they might stretch themselves out upon
the bare floor wherever they could find room. Foragers were out during
the greater part of the night, picking up such provisions as were to
be had from the farmers. But events of a more exciting nature than
foraging expeditions were to take place before the dawn of another
day.

And still Sir Francis Head did not apprehend a rebellion in Upper
Canada.

NOTE TO CHAPTER XX.

When Dr. Rolph's papers came into my hands some months ago, I found
among them a written statement made more than thirty years since by
John Hawk, a nephew of Samuel Lount, and a former resident of the
township of King. Mr. Hawk, who took an active part in the Rebellion,
is still living, and resides near the village of Harley, in the County
of Brant. He distinctly remembers all the matters referred to in his
statement, which he confirms in every particular, and no one
conversing with him could entertain any doubt either as to the
accuracy of his memory or the clearness of his convictions. I have
thought it best to insert the statement in this place, as a
considerable part of it deals with matters treated of in the foregoing
chapter. The other portions, dealing with matters subsequent in point
of time, will be referred to in future pages.

STATEMENT OF JOHN HAWK, NEPHEW OF SAMUEL LOUNT.

I was down at Mitchell's [Machell's i.e., Aurora] Corners on Sunday,
the 3rd day of December, 1837, to speak for a keg of powder and one
hundred pounds of lead for Thursday, the 7th, which was the day my
brother, who had attended a meeting held by Mackenzie a short time
previously, told me Mackenzie had fixed for the rising.

I had just left the Corners, about two o'clock in the afternoon, when
Wm. Edmundson overtook me and told me the day of the rising had been
altered to Monday, the 4th. I asked him who altered the day, and he
said to the effect that the word had come from Gibson. I went on and
told the news at Lloydtown, and the next morning started with the
Lloydtown company, numbering about one hundred, commanded by Anthony
Anderson and my brother. We [40] got to Montgomery's at between ten
and eleven o'clock on Monday evening. Lount had not then arrived. We
did not find the arms which Mackenzie had stated at the meeting above
mentioned were concealed at Montgomery's, nor anything to eat. We did
not expect a large quantity of arms, as we relied on the four thousand
stand of arms in the City Hall, but we looked for what had been
promised. I and many others wanted to go into the city on Monday
night, but we were overruled. We could have taken the city that night
or the next morning easily. On Tuesday morning, at Montgomery's,
Mackenzie, mounted on a white horse, made us a little speech, before
we started for the city. He said he would be the Commander-in-Chief
for that day, or "for the time being," or words to that effect.
Mackenzie afterwards went west towards Captain Baldwin's. When the
Flag of Truce came up the first time we gave a cheer when we saw Dr.
Rolph and Mr. Baldwin with it. My uncle, Mr. Samuel Lount, said to me:
"Here, Jack, hold my rifle I will have to talk with them, as
Mackenzie isn't here." I remember his words and the whole scene
vividly. I wasn't more than ten yards distant from my uncle during the
conversation, which lasted, I should think, from three to five
minutes. When the party turned and went back towards the city I handed
my uncle back his rifle. He said nothing to me about the object or
result of the truce. Mackenzie joined us before the Flag of Truce came
up the second time.

I saw Mackenzie strew papers on the floor in a room in Horne's house,
and then set fire to them. When the fire was well started he came out
and mounted his horse and rode up towards Montgomery's, and the word
was to follow him. We were all very much surprised at his going
_from_, instead of _towards_ the city. We all expected to push right
into the city at once. There were then between four and five hundred
of us, besides those at the College Avenue and the Don. I heard
Mackenzie say he burnt Horne's house because he was the worst Tory in
the city. Everyone I knew was angry and disgusted at our going back to
Montgomery's. The men began to say that Mackenzie was afraid to go
into the city. I remember John Fletcher, a son of Silas Fletcher,[41]
who came out from the city and arrived among us while Mackenzie was
setting fire to Horne's house, saying to me, "What are they fooling
about here for? If they come in they can take the city without firing
a shot." When we got back to Montgomery's there was nothing to eat. I
think about one-third of the Lloydtown people left that night in
disgust.

I left the next morning (Wednesday) with Nelson Gorham, who was to
take a message to Dr. Charles Duncombe. We did not expect Dr. Rolph,
Mr. Baldwin, Mr. Bidwell or Dr. Morrison to join us, though we thought
they were favourable to the rising. I didn't hear any one asking for
them.

(Signed) JOHN HAWK.


FOOTNOTES:

[15] See his annotated edition of Mackenzie's Navy Island _Narrative_,
p. 5, note.

[16] Vol. i., p. 322.

[17] See Colonel Fitz Gibbon's _Appeal to the People of the Late
Province of Upper Canada_, p. 10.

[18] _Ib_., p. 11.

[19] See his dispatch to Lord Glenelg dated 19th December, 1837.

[20] _Ib_.

[21] _Narrative_, chap x.

[22] "The excuse of Sir Francis, when he suddenly found
himself attacked by armed rebels, was that he had all along foreseen
and desired the insurrection, and even pretended unconsciousness, in
order to tempt an outbreak. In order to avoid this imputation of
negligence, Sir Francis's vanity seeks refuge in the guilt of one of
the most detestable practices of the most unscrupulous tyranny. He
would load himself with the crime of having trepanned a number of
ignorant and heated political opponents into the guilt and peril of
treason: of having given facilities to crime in order that he might
find a pretext for punishment...But, by taking the credit of all this
unreal villainy, Sir Francis only accumulates on his own head an
additional weight of imbecility. The only palliation of such schemes
is to be found in the vigour and skill with which their success is
ensured; and if Sir Francis insists on having purposely brought the
insurrection to a head, it is still more incumbent on him to show that
he had taken good care also to provide means for suppressing it. To
provoke an insurrection, even for the purpose of crushing hostile
designs, we regard as utterly unjustifiable under any circumstances;
but to provoke one, leaving it to the chapter of accidents whether it
shall turn out successfully or not, can hardly entitle a Government
even to the approbation of the most unscrupulous Tories." _London and
Westminster Review_, vol. xxxii., pp. 444, 445.

"He not only provoked the insurrection by his violence and injustice,
but he encouraged it by what all others condemn as a blind and
credulous apathy, and his own excuse would place in the yet more
odious light of a most mischievous connivance; and he then did
whatever human imbecility could do to render it successful.
Fortunately, the British Government had some more trustworthy servants
to rely on in the hour of danger; but even their fortitude might have
been unsuccessfully exerted had not that lucky destiny, which seems to
love something like equality in contests, matched Sir Francis with an
antagonist, in the person of Mackenzie, possessing less common sense
and presence of mind even than himself." _Ib_., p. 441.

[23] See vol. i., pp. 376, 377.

[24] See Colonel Fitz Gibbon's _Appeal_, etc., p. 12.

[25] _Ib_., pp. 12, 13.

[26] The last number was issued on the 29th of November. The
outside of the number for the following week was printed, but the
premature breaking out of the Rebellion prevented its publication.

[27] _Ante_, p. 18, and note.

[28] I adopt Colonel Fitz Gibbon's own rendering of this expression,
which may perhaps be due to his knowledge that Judge Jones was of
Welsh extraction.

[29] My authorities for this episode, in addition to the usual
sources, are, 1. Colonel Fitz Gibbon's _Appeal, ubi supra_, pp.
13--15; 2. Certain MS. notes, memoranda and letters written by the
Colonel, and now in the possession of his family, from whom they were
obtained for my use through the kind offices of Walter Mackenzie,
Esq., of Toronto, who was a warm personal friend of Colonel Fitz
Gibbon.

[30] _Narrative of Occurrences in Toronto, Upper Canada, 1837_; MS. by
Colonel Fitz Gibbon. He adds: "From the whole tenor of his
Excellency's observations, it was plain to me that he had it entirely
at heart to prove to the Government and people of Britain that he
could preserve Upper Canada in tranquillity during the winter by his
own management, without a single soldier, or a step being taken to
guard against or to prevent disturbance." The Colonel had several
weeks before suggested to Sir Francis the filling-up of certain
vacancies and promotions among the officers of the city regiments of
militia. This was a matter requiring attention, and it ought not to
have been neglected, even had there been no talk of insurrection, as
the regiment could not possibly be maintained in a state of efficiency
without officers. Sir Francis, however, stubbornly refused to act upon
the Colonel's suggestion, having determined to "leave all things as
they were during the winter," and "having no apprehension of any
movement on the part of Mackenzie or his adherents."

[31] _Ib_.

[32] Colonel Coffin, Adjutant-General _de facto_, was in poor health,
and had survived his energies, insomuch that his services were not
available. Colonel Fitz Gibbon was accordingly appointed _Acting_
Adjutant-General. See _Appeal_, p. 15.

[33] In the seventh chapter of Mackenzie's _Flag of Truce_ is
published a letter from Fletcher to Mackenzie, dated "Fredonia, July
29th, 1840," wherein an account is given of the alleged writer's
interview with Rolph on the occasion referred to in the text. Mr.
Lindsey has embodied this letter in his Life of _Mackenzie_, vol. ii.,
p. 72. The following are the most salient passages of it: "On the
Saturday afternoon previous to the outbreak back of Toronto, between 3
and 5, I called to see Dr. John Rolph at his house on King (Lot)
Street {This is an error. Dr. Rolph lived on Queen Street, which was
then known as Lot Street. King Street was never called by that name.},
and asked him, as he was the Executive, whether any alteration was to
be made or ordered by him in the time of rising. He said that as those
who had the direction of the affair had, with his consent, fixed the
day for Thursday, the 7th December, at Montgomery's as a place of
rendezvous, he would make no change or alteration whatever....Dr.
Rolph's exact words to me were: 'No, by no means; I shall expect every
man to be active and vigilant, so as to be able to get up the
expedition and come in on the 7th and take the city." Assuming this
letter to be genuine, it is of little significance. As explained in
the text, it was not until after Fletcher's departure that Rolph heard
the disquieting news which caused him to send off his messenger, so
that he might very well have informed Fletcher that he had no
alteration of plan to suggest at that time. Moreover, it must be
remembered that Rolph's message did not _order_ a change of day. It
merely conveyed certain intelligence which had reached the sender's
ears, and _expressed the opinion_ that precipitated action would be
judicious. See _post_, p. 37. Mackenzie's chief object in publishing
Fletcher's letter, however, was to attempt to prove that Rolph at
least tacitly admitted that he was the Executive. But the inherent
absurdity of the epistle is apparent in almost every sentence. What,
for instance, could be more unlikely than that Fletcher should apply
to Dr. Rolph to know whether he had determined upon altering the date
of the rising? Up to this moment there had been no hint of any change
of date. Why, then, should the idea of a change of date have entered
into Fletcher's mind? Then, what more unlikely than that he should
accompany such a query by the formal statement that "he [Dr. Rolph]
was the Executive?" Next, is it at all probable that Fletcher would
for considerably more than two years carry in his mind "Dr. Rolph's
exact words? "If Dr. Rolph really used the "exact words" imputed to
him in the letter, he spoke in a much more awkward and slovenly
fashion than was his wont. But "worse remains behind." Fletcher,
according to the testimony of those who knew him most intimately, was
an illiterate man, utterly incapable of writing such a letter as the
one above quoted from. It may possibly have been written by Mackenzie,
and signed by Fletcher at his instigation. Mr. Lindsey probably has
the original. A reference to it will settle the question whether it
was really written by Fletcher. As to its having been composed by him,
the idea is too ridiculous to be entertained for a moment by any one
who knew Fletcher's modes of expression.

Nelson Gorham, who was long a business partner of Fletcher's, and who
was in partnership with him at the very time when the foregoing letter
purports to have been written, is certainly entitled to speak on this
question with authority. The following is his deliberate written
testimony, given in the month of June last, and now lying in
manuscript before me. His present address is Yarmouth, Massachusetts,
U.S., whither he removed a few months since.

STATEMENT OF NELSON GORHAM.

"I have carefully read the letter purporting to have been written by
Silas Fletcher to William L. Mackenzie, and have no hesitation in
saying that Silas Fletcher did not write that letter; and I form this
conclusion for the following reasons:

"_First_. Silas Fletcher could not write. He could barely scrawl his
name in a crude way.

"_Second_. At the time when that letter is dated, Silas Fletcher and
myself were copartners in business at Fredonia, and all his
correspondence, private and otherwise, was written by me as his
amanuensis. I wrote for him no such letter as the one designated, or
any in any way like it.

"_Third_. At that time, as well as prior to and subsequently, I was
frequently corresponding with Wm. Lyon Mackenzie upon matters
connected with the Canadian Rebellion of 1837. In all our
correspondence Mr. Mackenzie did not broach to me anything like what
appears in the letter purporting to have been written by Silas
Fletcher, and, as I was quite as cognizant of matters connected with
that Rebellion as was Mr. Fletcher, I assume that so material a matter
as is made to appear in that letter would naturally have formed one of
the subjects of our correspondence. It never did.

"_Fourth_. At a Council of War held on Tuesday night, Dec'r 5th, 1837,
where Mackenzie, Fletcher, Gibson, Matthews, Lount and myself were
present, and when everything connected with the flag was fresh in the
recollection of all, nothing of this kind was named or mentioned, but
the desirability of sending some persons into the city to obtain
information and open communication with friends there was strongly
urged and determined upon.

"(Signed) NELSON GORHAM."

To present any further accumulation of evidence may seem like piling
Ossa on Felion, but as it is necessary that the reader should have a
clear apprehension of the utter worthlessness of the testimony adduced
by Mackenzie, and of the dishonesty of his methods in dealing with
matters relating to the Rebellion, I submit the following extract from
a letter written by "General" Donald McLeod to Dr. Rolph. The original
is in my possession. No one, except perhaps Mr. Gorham, was better
qualified to pronounce an opinion on the subject.

"As regards Mr. Fletcher's letter, I have only to state, in addition
to what I have formerly written to you on the subject, that in his
speeches delivered at Hammond, Watertown, Sackett's Harbour, Ontario,
Oswego and Rochester, while in my company to Navy Island, he
invariably laid the blame of the failure on Mr. Mackenzie's bad
management and indecision, and hardly ever spoke of Dr. Rolph but in
the highest terms of praise as a Reformer. From the wording of that
letter, and from my knowledge of Mr. Fletcher, I am fully convinced in
my own mind that he never put a pen to it, otherwise than to sign it
when handed to him by Mr. Mackenzie or some one of his friends,
without troubling himself about the correctness of its contents,
counting it of little or no importance, seeing the affair was all
over, and not expecting it should ever be produced by Mackenzie for
any sinister purpose afterwards.

"Again, in reference to the postscript to this letter, which states
that you cautioned him, Mr. Fletcher, not to say anything of what
transpired on the other side--meaning Canada--that expression, I
solemnly declare, could not have been uttered by you in the
conversation with him in my presence at the Eagle Hotel in Rochester
without my hearing it. I am therefore convinced that the whole of that
letter and its postscript is a malicious fabrication of Mackenzie's or
some one of his friends at Fredonia by his direction, in order to
defend his conduct, and exonerate himself from all blame as a chief
actor in the affair of December, '37."

In future pages I shall present further testimony from General McLeod
on the subject of Mackenzie's conduct. Meanwhile it may be assumed
that the foregoing statements, read in connection with the known facts
and arguments previously adduced, pretty effectually dispose of all
question as to the value--to say nothing of the authenticity--of Silas
Fletcher's letter.

[34] Gibson, in a MS. statement, says: "Word was sent by Dr. Rolph
through me to Mr. Mackenzie and Mr. Lount that the Government were
aware of Mackenzie's movement, and were probably preparing for the
Thursday, the day named by Mr. Mackenzie, and that it would be better,
to save the shedding of blood, to come down three days sooner, and
take them by surprise, and to come down secretly." Commenting upon
Mackenzie's mendacious account in the _Caroline Almanac_, Gibson
further says: "Page 98, _Caroline Almanac_--'and therefore Colonel
Lount and his men must be in town on Monday night.' I say no such
thing. The messenger gave me the information that if Lount could
muster 300, and could come down privately, and take them by surprise;
and if not to wait until the day appointed by Mackenzie; and that was
the message sent by Mr. Edmundson to Mr. Lount."

[35] _Ante_, p. 19, note.

[36] _Ante_, pp. 18, 19.

[37] "How nearly he was the victim of the Government instead
of Mr. Lount! And had his papers been seized, those which he left,
with a regret, slightly mentioned, for the implication of others,
would have yielded all needful evidence to visit him with the
scaffold. When in this jeopardy, and ignorant of it in the country,
what proved his salvation? The accelerated movement by his Executive.
He was saved by a violation of the pretended stipulation that no
attempt should be made to alter the day of revolt without first
consulting him." Rolph's _Review of Mackenzie's Publications, post_.

[38] See Rolph's _Review of Mackenzie's Publications_, etc., _post_.

[39] Now the village of Aurora.

[40] The _we_ refers to the small detachment of which Hawk formed one,
and which must have been about the last of the Lloydtown Company to
arrive at the tavern.

[41] Mr. Charles Doan, of Aurora, says "son of William, not Silas."




CHAPTER XXI.

THE REBELS AT MONTGOMERY'S.


It is now time to return to Mackenzie, who at last accounts was making
his final tour in the northern townships of York. Having successively
visited Lloydtown, Stouffville, Machell's Corners, Newmarket and other
centres of Radical opinion, and having notified the adherents of his
cause to be on hand at Montgomery's on the night of the 7th, he
retraced his steps southward. All that remained to be done prior to
the moment for decisive action was to make arrangements for the
commissariat. On Sunday, the 3rd of December, about five o'clock in
the afternoon, he reached the house of David Gibson. He then learned
for the first time of Dr. Rolph's message, and of its transmission to
Lount. He displayed much angry excitement, which Gibson believed to be
due to chagrin at Rolph's presumption in venturing to interfere with
his plans. Gibson was not able to inform him whether Lount intended to
act upon Dr. Rolph's suggestion, as there had been no time to hear
from Holland Landing since Edmundson's departure. Mackenzie, however,
who had provided for an attack on the city on Thursday night, and had
made all his calculations accordingly, determined to prevent any
variation from his programme, and to that end he despatched one of
Gibson's servants to Holland Landing with instructions to Lount to
keep to the original arrangement.[42] Another messenger was despatched
to Dr. Rolph in the city, requesting him to come out and confer with
Mackenzie, in order that they might take counsel as to what was best
to be done. Dr. Rolph was absent from his house on professional
employment, and his reply did not reach Mackenzie until next day, as
will presently be mentioned. Mackenzie passed that night at Gibson's
house. At a late hour Gorham and McCarty arrived, with the
intelligence that they had been to Montgomery's, as instructed by
Lount, to arrange for supplies, but that the proprietor had declined
to undertake such a responsibility. This news caused a loud ebullition
of temper from Mackenzie, who declared his intention of coercing
Montgomery into compliance. On the following morning--Monday, the
4th--he and Gibson repaired to the tavern to see what arrangements
could be made for the reception of the men on Thursday.

Montgomery's tavern was a large wayside inn, with a broad platform in
front, and with a lamp suspended over a central doorway. It stood
within a few feet of the site now occupied by the brick hotel at
Eglinton. It was owned by John Montgomery, a prominent Radical of
those days, but was leased to a tenant named John Linfoot, who had
taken possession on the previous Friday.[43] Montgomery, however, was
a temporary boarder in the house, and in this way became identified
with the Rebellion.[44] He had for years taken a conspicuous part in
the local elections, and had all along been a violent supporter of
Mackanzie. He was a man of considerable means, and had sunscribed
liberally to the fund for defraying Mackenzie's expedition to England
in 1832 and 1833. Two or three months before the outbreak he had seen
fit to take exception to some of Mackenzie's methods, which he had
criticized in tolerably plain language. This had led to his being
excluded from the most secret of the Radical councils ever since,
though he continued to do his utmost for the advancement of the
general Radical policy. As a consequence of his exclusion from the
inner mysteries, he was not in the secrets of the conspirators. Like
almost every other Reformer in the country, he was aware that some
scheme was on foot for subverting the Government, but he had no
knowledge as to its nature, nor as to the time when it was to be
consummated. He received his first intimation on the night of Sunday,
the 3rd, when Lount's messengers arrived with a request that he would
act as commissary to the insurgents. The request took him completely
by surprise. It seemed to him that the project was altogether
premature, and that its success was more than doubtful, more
particularly when conducted under such auspices. He declined to have
anything to do with furnishing supplies, and advised the messengers to
return to their homes. The messengers then repaired to Gibson's as
previously mentioned, and there they remained all night.

Mackenzie had no sooner reached the tavern on Monday morning than he
poured out the vials of his wrath upon Montgomery's head with
unstinted hand. He reproached him for having deserted the cause in
refusing to act as commissary, and with being much more desirous of
advancing his own interests than those of his party. Montgomery
appears to have taken these reproaches very coolly. He replied that he
had deserted no cause, and that his regard for the welfare of his
party was too well known to stand in need of any confirmation. While
Mackenzie fumed and stormed about, a messenger arrived from Dr. Rolph,
with a reply to Mackenzie's request for an interview. The Doctor sent
word that he would be at the house of James Hervey Price about one
o'clock in the afternoon. Mr. Price's house was several hundred yards
away across the fields to the north-west.

Mackenzie, accompanied by Gibson, repaired to Mr. Price's at the hour
appointed, and found Dr. Rolph there before him. The disasters which
had recently befallen the insurgent arms at St. Charles, in Lower
Canada, had exercised a dispiriting influence upon the Doctor. The
movement in that Province, from which so much had been anticipated,
had practically come to an end. It had proved a signal failure, and
its collapse had been attended by many deplorable circumstances. The
insurgent forces under "General" Thomas Storrow Brown had been routed,
slaughtered, and dispersed. Some of the leaders had been arrested;
others had sought safety in an ignominious flight. Martial law was
about to be proclaimed, and the disaffected districts would soon be
swept by devastating troops. White flags were encountered at every
turn, and in some instances they proved an inadequate protection to
the inhabitants. There seemed too much reason to fear that Sir John
Colborne, after achieving so complete a triumph in Lower Canada, would
turn his arms in a westerly direction, and that he would have a force
at his back which would be irresistible. Full particulars of the
nature of Sir John's preparations to stamp out insurrection had
reached Toronto within the last twenty-four hours, and Dr. Rolph felt
that the insurgents of Upper Canada should govern themselves
accordingly. His own belief was that the defeat at St. Charles and its
attendant circumstances had wrought an entire change in the prospect
as regarded both Provinces, and that anything beyond a temporary
success, even in Upper Canada, was of extremely doubtful achievement.
He was not the man to advocate the playing of a game where the
probabilities seemed largely against him, and he was in favour of an
immediate abandonment of the movement by all persons concerned in it.
The only alternative was to act with promptitude and vigour. The
Doctor informed Mackenzie and Gibson that on the forenoon of the
previous day (Sunday), before the news of Sir John Colborne's
preparations had reached him, he had sent a messenger to Lount direct,
informing him that the Government seemed to be less on the alert than
he had supposed, and that Lount should govern himself accordingly[45].
It was certain, however, that a warrant was out for Mackenzie, and
that it would be executed if any opportunity were afforded. The Doctor
did his utmost to impress upon Mackenzie that the wisest thing to do
would be to abandon the movement and send the men back to their homes,
by which means their prosecution for treason would be avoided. To this
counsel Mackenzie would not even listen with patience. It was too
late, he said, for him to talk about withdrawal. If he had embarked in
a leaky vessel he would stand the consequences, and "the men" would
share his fortunes.[46] Finding him immovable on this point, Dr. Rolph
then urged that not a moment should be lost. The Government were
unprepared, but they were to some extent alive to the importance of
making preparation, and would not long be without adequate means of
defence. The intention to take the city on Thursday night had by this
time become known to thousands of persons, and if it had not already
been communicated to the Government, it would certainly be so before
many hours. Everything was to be gained by precipitating the movement.
The merest handful of resolute men could effect the capture of the
city, provided that they set about it at once. All these matters were
distinctly pointed out by Dr. Rolph to Mackenzie and Gibson. The
latter fully concurred in the Doctor's arguments; but Mackenzie, while
admitting that they were not without weight, was still disposed to
abide by the Thursday arrangement, as by that time the insurgents
would have assembled in such force that no effective opposition on the
part of the Government would be possible. It was evident, however,
that the question of accelerated movement must in great measure depend
upon Lount, from whom nothing had yet been heard. If he were actually
on the way, with a force of men openly at his back, there could no
longer be any pretence of concealment, and the sooner the attack upon
the city was made the better.[47] During this interview Mackenzie made
no pretence whatever that Rolph was entitled to act in an executive
capacity. Indeed he rather seemed to find fault with the Doctor for
having taken upon himself to interfere.[48] However, after a
conference of nearly two hours, it was understood that they were to be
guided by Lount's action. Should he, in the course of the next few
hours, present himself at Montgomery's with any considerable number of
men, there could be no doubt that an immediate advance would be
advisable. If, on the other hand, Lount should have concluded to act
upon the previous arrangement, the only thing to be done would be to
take every conceivable precaution, and to move with effect when the
appointed time should arrive. On this understanding the trio
separated, Rolph riding back into town to await the course of events.

Mackenzie and Gibson, upon leaving Price's house, proceeded separately
by devious routes to an old structure a short distance in the rear of
Gibson's farm, known as Shepard's mill, which had long been a secret
rendezvous for the Radicals of the neighbourhood. There, according to
a previous arrangement, they found several local insurgents engaged in
casting bullets. They had not long been there ere Gibson's servant,
who had been sent north to communicate with Lount on the previous day,
arrived with the intelligence that Lount, Anderson, Lloyd and
Fletcher, with the Lloydtown Company and a number of other volunteers,
were already on the road, and might be expected at the tavern during
the evening. The course of future action, therefore, was no longer
doubtful. The rebels were in arms, and the Rebellion had begun. Their
southward march had already aroused the whole country side, and their
designs would certainly be known to the Government before the night
was over. The city must be theirs before the next sunrise.

Mackenzie accepted the inevitable with apparent cheerfulness.
Recognizing the importance of as far as possible cutting off
communication with the city, and thereby preventing news from reaching
the Government, he returned to Montgomery's and placed three lines of
guard across Yonge Street. The first of these was placed directly
opposite the tavern, the second about seventy yards farther north, and
the third about sixty yards to the south of the tavern. A line of
guard was also placed on the first road to the westward, running for
some distance almost parallel with Yonge Street. No one who was not
recognized as friendly to the rising was permitted to pass southward,
and a good many persons who sought to do so were arrested and conveyed
within the tavern as prisoners. Soon after eight o'clock the
insurgents began to arrive in small detachments of ten to twenty at a
time.[49] By nine o'clock they mustered about ninety men, among whom
were all the original organizers of the insurrection except Lount, who
did not present himself until somewhat later. They were accompanied by
a few loyalists who had been taken prisoners en route in order to
prevent them from carrying intelligence into the city. The
dissatisfaction of the jaded volunteers at finding that no
arrangements had been made for providing them with food has already
been referred to. Mackenzie was furious at Linfoot, the landlord, who
refused to take any steps to obtain supplies unless he were supplied
with payment in advance. Linfoot was not a Radical, nor even a
sympathizer with Radicals. He was simply a man of no polities
whatever, who believed in looking sharply after his own interests, and
was not desirous of opening an account with such doubtful customers as
the insurgents. In vain Mackenzie shrieked and screamed at him, shook
him by the collar, and threatened the direst consequences.[50] He was
too stoical to be moved by any such means. Mackenzie had been supplied
with a limited amount of money collected by subscription among the men
in the north to carry on the campaign, and to this fund he was now
compelled to have recourse. By dint of great exertions, as mentioned
towards the close of the last chapter, a very light and meagre supper
was at last provided. It went some distance towards allaying the
hungry cravings of the men, who however were weary with their long and
unaccustomed march. They were moreover dispirited at the apparent lack
of method and organization. They had been led to suppose that they
would find great numbers of volunteers at the tavern, ready and
anxious to join them in invading the city and overturning the
Government. The reality fell so far short of their anticipations that
some of them gave utterance to their disappointment, and charged their
leaders with having deceived them. A few words of explanation,
however, quieted these murmurings, and a good many of them expressed a
desire to be led into Toronto at once.

The consideration of future action could no longer be postponed. A
Council of War was held, at which Mackenzie advocated an immediate
advance, and even offered to lead the men into the city himself. He
was however overruled by the other leaders, who urged, truly enough,
that the men were in no condition to engage in such an enterprise
until they had had a night's rest after their unwonted fatigue, and
had been provided with suitable food. It was further pointed out that
reinforcements might confidently be expected during the night, so that
by postponing action until the morning, their operations might be
undertaken with a tolerably assured prospect of success. Mackenzie
yielded to these representations, and the men were informed that
nothing would be required of them for that night, except from time to
time to relieve guard. Colonel Van Egmond was not to be looked for
until Thursday, but little importance was attached to his absence, as
the men professed their readiness to be led by Lount and Anderson. It
was evident that Anderson had inspired them with great confidence in
his military skill and experience, and that they would follow him with
enthusiasm whenever, he thought proper to place himself at their head.
An understanding was accordingly arrived at that the advance on the
city was to be made at daylight on the following morning, which would
be Tuesday, the 5th.

Under these circumstances, the proper thing would have been to seek
repose and get through the night as quietly as possible. But
Mackenzie's nerves were strung up to a high pitch, and his restless
spirit would not permit him to remain tranquil at the tavern. He
proposed that he, accompanied by two or three more, should advance
into the city on a reconnoitring expedition, in order that the precise
state of affairs there might be ascertained. This was a foolish
proposal, due simply and solely to the state of Mackenzie's nerves.
Such an expedition was wholly unnecessary, as Dr. Rolph had acquainted
him with the state of the city at mid-day, since which time no very
remarkable change could very well have taken place. It was as useless
for any practical purpose as was Brewer's master-stroke on behalf of
Mr. Veneering, in going down to the House of Commons to see how things
looked.[51] Under all the circumstances, however, a proposal of this
kind was certain to find seconders. Four of the insurgents promptly
volunteered to accompany Mackenzie. One of these was no less important
a personage than Captain Anthony Anderson himself, upon whom the men
chiefly relied to lead them on the morrow. Another was Joseph Shepard,
a member of a well-known Radical family resident on Yonge Street, near
Gibson's.[52] The other two were respectively named Edward Kennedy and
Robert Smith. The little party set out for the city a few minutes
before ten o'clock.[53] Before recording the exciting adventures which
they were destined to encounter, it will be well to glance at the
state of affairs in the capital, and at the efforts made by the
loyalists to the north to convey intelligence of the true state of
affairs to the authorities.

Colonel Fitz Gibbon had no sooner received his appointment as Acting
Adjutant-General of Militia, on the morning of Monday, December 4th,
than he began to display more vigilance than ever. He allowed himself
no rest, but hurried about from place to place on very slight
pretexts, or on no pretext at all. His condition appears to have been
very much like Mackenzie's on the evening of that day, his nerves
being strained to such a pitch that inertia was impossible to him. It
is undeniable that his vigilance amounted to fussiness, and that he
was greatly disposed to magnify the importance of his office; but it
is equally certain that he was almost the only supporter of the
Government in the city who truly appreciated the gravity of the
situation. He continued in a state of preternatural excitement
throughout the day, and indeed for many days afterwards. He did his
utmost to kindle a corresponding excitement in the hearts of everybody
with whom he conversed, but, so far as Monday was concerned, with
little or no effect. When he buttonholed and harangued his
acquaintances on the streets they either laughed outright at his
predictions of danger, or else humoured him by pretended acquiescence.
In short, he was treated like an unruly or hysterical child, with
whose wildest fancies it is deemed best to comply, lest his excitement
may be intensified by opposition. As night approached his
apprehensions of danger increased. He believed that he had been marked
out by the Radicals for destruction, and feared to remain at his own
house lest he might be assassinated by some emissary of Mackenzie. He
determined to pass the night at his office in the Parliament
Buildings, and invited a number of friends to watch with him
there.[54] Those who accepted the invitation noticed that he was in a
restless, disturbed state, and feared lest his mind should give
way.[55] Before ten o'clock his solicitude for the city's safety
became so much intensified that he could not resist an impulse to
communicate his fears to the Lieutenant-Governor in person. Leaving
his friends on guard at his office, he proceeded to Government House,
where he was ushered into the presence of his Excellency's daughter
and his sister, Mrs. Dalrymple. In reply to his request for an
interview, he was informed by Mrs. Dalrymple that the Lieutenant-Governor
had been fatigued during the evening, and had gone to bed. The Colonel,
however, was so importunate that his Excellency was roused from his
repose, and soon presented himself in his dressing-gown. "I told him,"
writes Colonel Fitz Gibbon,[56] "that I apprehended some outbreak
would take place that very night, which fear I deemed it my duty
to communicate to him." Sir Francis, concealing his irritation
as best he could, and doubtless inwardly cursing this officious
busybody for intruding upon his slumbers without cause, received
the communication without appearing to be in the least affected
thereby, and anon got back to his bedroom. He did not in the least
apprehend a rebellion in Upper Canada. The Colonel returned to his
office, where he was soon after informed by a man who had ridden
into the city by way of Crookshank's Lane that a body of rebels was
approaching the city from the north. This was news calling for
immediate action. Among the friends collected around him was a young
student at law, who was destined to attain high eminence in the
forensic annals of this Province, and whose name was John Hillyard
Cameron. This youth waa straightway despatched by Colonel Fitz Gibbon
to ring the bell of Upper Canada College. He proceeded to carry out
his instructions, but had hardly begun to tug at the bell-rope ere he
was requested by one of the teachers to desist, upon the ground that
there was probably no truth in the story about the approach of the
rebels. The Colonel himself mounted a horse which had been kept in
readiness in a stable near by, and galloped to the houses of the
principal personages residing west of Yonge street, calling upon the
occupants to turn out and defend the city. The latter were for the
most part incredulous. Some of them flatly refused to cross their
thresholds on any such absurd pretext. An emissary of Colonel Fitz
Gibbon presented himself in front of Judge Jones's house, and summoned
him in stentorian tones to come forth. The Judge's Welsh blood boiled
up at being disturbed at such an hour. "What is all this noise about?"
he asked, emerging into the street "who desired you to call me?"
"Colonel Fitz Gibbon," was the response. "Oh!" exclaimed the Judge,
"the over zeal of that man is giving us a great deal of trouble."[57]

Having done his utmost to arouse the friends of the Government to a
sense of their danger, Colonel Fitz Gibbon proceeded on horseback up
Yonge Street on a reconnoitring expedition. He was accompanied by
George Brock, a student at law, and W. Bellingham, afterwards an
officer of the 32nd Regiment. The trio rode rapidly northward as far
as the ravine in front of Sheriff Jarvis's residence at Rosedale,
fully two miles from Government House. As they encountered no one on
the way, and as everything seemed quiet and still, the Colonel began
to doubt the truth of the news he had heard. In order to make certain,
however, he sent Brock and Bellingham forward in the direction of
Montgomery's, with instructions to ascertain whether any rebels were
approaching, and to return and report to him in the city, whither he
immediately returned to organize and arm the inhabitants. On his way
southward he met two persons on horseback,[58] who proved to be
Archibald McDonald, wharfinger, of 36 Front Street, and John Powell,
one of the aldermen representing St. Andrew's Ward in the City
Council. They informed him that they had heard of the approach of the
rebels, and that they intended to ride out as far as Montgomery's to
ascertain if the rumour were true. As they were both well-known Tory
supporters of the Government, the Colonel expressed his satisfaction,
and begged them to make haste, so that they might overtake Brock and
Bellingham. They then proceeded on their respective ways. Colonel Fitz
Gibbon called at several points on his return journey, and gave
instructions as to what should be done in the event of the approach of
the rebels. This occupied him nearly an hour, after which he once more
betook himself to Government House to warn Sir Francis of approaching
danger. He found Mr. Powell there before him. How this came about will
be related in the next chapter.

FOOTNOTES:

[42] Mackenzie's own account is as follows: "I instantly sent one of
Mr. Gibson's servants to the north, countermanded the Mond movement,
and begged Colonel Lount not to come down, nor in any way disturb the
previous regular arrangement."--See his _Narrative_ p. 8. This is of
itself sufficient to dispose of Mackenzie's absurd invention about Dr.
Rolph being sole Executive. If Rolph was the Executive, and if he had
actually ordered, instead of suggesting, a change of day, how came he,
Mackenzie, to countermand that Executive's order, and to instruct one
of the military commanders to fly in the teeth of the supreme
official's instructions? "The value and usefulness of an Executive,"
observes Dr. Rolph, "ceases with the toleration of such
insubordination; and if Mr. Mackenzie contemplated the imposition of
the whole responsibility upon his Executive, he should have been the
last to embarrass his operations...It would not be surprising had Dr.
Rolph, as his supreme sole Executive, instantly subjected him to a
drum-head court-martial, and its summary consequences." _Review of
Mackenzie's Publications_, etc., _post_.

[43] See Linfoot's evidence on the trial of Montgomery at Toronto for
high treason, on Monday, 2nd April, 1838.

[44] It has often been stated, both verbally and in print, that John
Montgomery had no sympathy with the Rebellion, and that he paid the
penalty of being found on the premises. No one who makes such an
assertion has any knowledge of the facts. Indeed, no one who takes the
trouble to read the proceedings on his trial will entertain any such
opinion. The real nature of his connection with the Rebellion is
disclosed in the text.

[45] This is the only foundation for Mackenzie's story that Rolph had
"endeavoured to countermand his orders to Lount, through Mr. George
Bolton, on finding he had been deceived."--See _Caroline Almanac_, p.
100.

[46] Gibson MSS.

[47] The uncertainty of the three conspirators at this time as to
their future action is clearly admitted by Mackenzie himself. He says:
"The three [Rolph, Gibson, and Mackenzie] were unable to decide on the
precise course to be adopted that night, because they could not tell
whether Lount would come or stay, whether if he came he would travel
secretly, so that his men might be scattered in farm houses, or
whether he would come armed and openly through the mud." See _Caroline
Almanac_, p. 100.

[48] This is made abundantly manifest by the written statements of
both Rolph and Gibson.

[49] They appear to have subdivided while on the road, probably in
order that they might attract less attention.

[50] See evidence of Linfoot and others on the trial of Montgomery.

[51] See _Our Mutual Friend_.

[52] Mr. Shepard, who was then a very young man, is still living, and
apparently little the worse for the approaches of age. His home is a
farm near Lansing Post Office, about half a mile south of the Gibson
homestead. It seems almost unnecessary to say that the events of that
night are indelibly graven on his memory. I am indebted to him for
several facts recorded in the text.

[53] Mackenzie, in his _Narrative_ (p. 9), says this was "about eight
or nine o'clock," but his nerves were in such a condition that he
probably took no note of time. The attendant circumstances show
plainly enough that it must have been nearly ten when he and his
companions set out from Montgomery's.

[54] See his _Appeal_, _ubi supra_, p. 15.

[55] I record this fact and several others in the above paragraph upon
the evidence of the late John Hillyard Cameron, who communicated them
to persons in Toronto. Mr. Cameron was one of those who watched with
Colonel Fitz Gibbon at his office in the Parliament Buildings, as
stated in the text, and was thus fully qualified to speak on the
subject.

[56] _Appeal_, p. 16.

[57] Fitz Gibbon's _Appeal_, p. 16. Fitz Gibbon's MS. _Narrative_.

[58] Powell and Macdonald do not appear to have been together when
they were first met by Colonel Fitz Gibbon, though they joined forces
before he separated from them. See appendix to Fothergill's reprint of
Mackenzie's _Narrative_.




CHAPTER XXII.

"GENERAL" MACKENZIE.


As previously mentioned, Mackenzie and his four friends started on
their ill-advised expedition a little before ten o'clock at night.
They had not long taken their departure ere was shed the first blood
poured out in the Upper Canadian Rebellion.

The minds of the inhabitants residing on Yonge Street and some of the
contiguous highways had been not a little exercised throughout this
fateful day at seeing the numerous bodies of well-known Radicals on
their southward march. Some of the latter were armed, and their object
could not well be mistaken. An emergency meeting of loyalists was
promptly held at the house of Lieutenant-Colonel Moodie, on the
northern outskirts of Richmond Hill,[59] where it was resolved that no
time should be lost in conveying intelligence of the state of affairs
to the Government. A letter was written to Sir Francis Head, and
committed to the care of a Mr. Drew, who started for the city on a
fleet horse, but was intercepted and taken prisoner by the insurgents
before he had ridden two miles. His capture soon came to the ears of
Colonel Moodie, who thereupon resolved to proceed into the city in
person. Several other gentlemen volunteered to accompany him, and the
little party set out by way of Yonge Street. It must have been about
ten o'clock in the evening, or a little later, when they found
themselves stopped by the guard which had been placed across the road
a short distance to the north of Montgomery's. Colonel Moodie and two
of his companions Captain Hugh Stewart and a Mr. Brooke determined to
fight their way through, and to push on in spite of obstructions. They
passed the northernmost guard without serious difficulty, and soon
found themselves in front of the tavern, where they were compelled to
encounter the second guard. Here again they presented an impetuous
front, and burst through. They pressed on amid loud shouts from the
insurgents until they approached the southern guard. Hearing the order
commanding them to halt, and perceiving a formidable array of pikes in
front of them, Colonel Moodie called out: "Who are you, who dare to
stop me upon the Queen's highway?" and so saying, he discharged his
pistol at the guard. By way of response, several guns were fired by
the insurgents, and Colonel Moodie fell from his horse, exclaiming: "I
am shot--I am a dead man." He had received a mortal wound. His two
companions made resolute attempts to break through and proceed on
their journey. Brooke was successful in forcing a passage. Stewart was
made prisoner and conveyed within the tavern, whither also the dying
form of Colonel Moodie was borne. Dr. McCague, a surgeon residing a
few miles to the northward, was summoned, and was soon in attendance,
but he could do nothing beyond slightly alleviating the sufferings of
the dying man, who had been injured internally. A good deal of
sympathy for Colonel Moodie and his family was expressed by the
insurgents, who were doubtless moved by the manifestations of agony
which ever and anon reached them from the room in which the wounded
veteran was rapidly passing to his final account. The Colonel survived
only about two hours. To this day it is not known with any degree of
certainty by whose hand he fell.[60]

This, then, was the first blood spilled in the Upper Canadian
Rebellion, and it was shed by the insurgents. But not many minutes
were to elapse before the death of an insurgent at the hands of a
loyalist was to make the numerical balance even. Mackenzie and the
four scouts who accompanied him had not proceeded far on their journey
ere they met several insurgents who had been down the road to
reconnoitre, and who were now returning to the tavern with Brock and
Bellingham, whom they had encountered a mile further down, and
captured as prisoners of war. The quintette continued to advance
southward until they approached the top of Gallows Hill, when they
foregathered with two men on horseback. There was no moon, and the
night was dark, but as the two horsemen advanced to close quarters
they proved to be Powell and McDonald. Mackenzie, who was a little in
front of his companions, called a halt, and, presenting a pistol, rode
up to Powell and commanded him to surrender himself a prisoner. A
parley ensued, during which Mackenzie explained the situation at
unnecessary length, and with a degree of candour altogether uncalled
for by the circumstances. The democrats, he said, had risen in arms,
and as they were desirous of preventing that fact from being
prematurely known in the city, it was necessary that Powell and
McDonald should surrender their arms and proceed to Montgomery's as
prisoners. As those gentlemen were by this time surrounded by
Mackenzie and his four companions, all of whom were armed with rifles,
any effective resistance was out of the question. The weaker party
sullenly acquiesced, Powell stating that they had no arms. "Well,"
responded Mackenzie, "as you are my townsmen and men of honour, I
would be ashamed to question your words by ordering you to be
searched."[61] Surely the force of courteous imbecility could no
farther go. Can it be believed that he would hazard not only the lives
of one or more of his companions, but the success of the whole
enterprise, merely for the purpose of showing courtesy to two men who,
as he well knew, contemned and despised him, and who would consider
themselves fully justified in deceiving him?

Consigning the two prisoners to the keeping of Anderson and Shepard,
who returned with their charges in the direction of Montgomery's,
Mackenzie proceeded on his journey, followed at a short distance by
the other two insurgents who had set out with him from the tavern. He
had advanced as far as the bottom of the hill when he heard the sound
of galloping hoofs in his rear. Another moment, and Powell and
McDonald passed him at full speed, riding southward like the wind. It
was clear that they had escaped from custody. Mackenzie called out to
them to stop, and, as no attention was paid to his summons, he fired
at the rapidly-receding form of Powell. The bullet sped wide of the
mark, but as the hunted man heard it whistle by him his temper was
aroused, and he turned moodily to bay. Biding briskly up to Mackenzie,
he snapped a pistol in his face. The priming flashed in the pan, and
did no harm. Powell, wheeling about again, put his horse to its utmost
speed, and soon left his would-be captor far behind. McDonald had
turned back in trepidation during the altercation between Mackenzie
and Powell, but afterwards resumed his flight until stopped by the
toll-gate near Bloor Street, where a few minutes later he once more
yielded himself a prisoner to Mackenzie, and was taken back to
Montgomery's.

It is now in order to inquire how Powell and McDonald had regained
their liberty. Powell had been assigned by Mackenzie to the custody of
Captain Anderson; McDonald to that of Shepard. The four rode slowly
northward towards Montgomery's, from which, at the time of their
capture, they were distant about two miles. Anderson and his prisoner
were about ten yards in advance of the others. Powell learned from
Anderson's conversation that a body of insurgents was collected at
Montgomery's, and that an early descent upon Toronto was in
contemplation. Hardly had these facts been communicated ere the
insurgent captain and his prisoner were confronted by a man on
horseback. "Halt!" shouted Anderson--"who are you?" "Thomson," replied
the horseman. "Then, Mr. Thomson," exclaimed Powell, "I claim your
protection I am a prisoner." The _soi-disant_ Thomson was in reality
the identical Mr. Brooke who had forced his way through the guard near
the tavern about five minutes before. The darkness of the night did
not admit of his seeing any of the opposing horsemen with much,
distinctness, but he was personally acquainted with Powell, and
quickly recognized his voice. "Powell," said he, "the rebels have shot
poor Colonel Moodie, and are advancing on the city." So saying, he
turned aside, and spurring his horse sharply, continued his course
southward at a rapid pace. Anderson and Shepard turned to fire at him,
but they were impeded by their prisoners, and the fugitive made good
his escape. He seems, however, to have encountered other obstacles on
his route, as he did not reach the city until more than an hour
afterwards, by which time the bells were ringing and the inhabitants
already astir.

The intelligence which he had just received did not tend to restore
the already-disturbed equanimity of Mr. Powell. If the rebels had shot
Colonel Moodie, it seemed not unlikely that he himself would be the
next victim. He regarded the rebels as little better than assassins
with whom no loyalist's life was safe, and he resolved to make a bold
push for liberty. Notwithstanding his statement to Mackenzie, he had
two loaded pistols in his pocket, which he had borrowed from the high
bailiff when starting on his expedition. He attempted to fall back,
but Anderson kept a wary eye upon him, and declared that if he tried
that game he would get a bullet in his body. They were moving steadily
northward, and would soon be at Montgomery's. If there was to be any
attempt at escape, the sooner it was made the better. Seeing that the
moment for decisive action had arrived, Powell quickly reined back his
horse, drew forth one of his pistols, and discharged the contents at
the insurgent captain. The shot struck the victim in the back of the
neck. He fell from his horse like a sack, and never spoke or moved
again. The spinal cord was severed, and death must have been
instantaneous. Powell then wheeled about and rode swiftly southward.
All this was the work of a moment. McDonald, seeing what had taken
place, also wheeled his horse and applied the spur. Shepard discharged
his rifle at them, but darkness and excitement prevented him from
taking any aim, and the bullet sped on its way innocuous. He followed
them for a short distance, but, being badly mounted, he abandoned the
pursuit, and returned to Montgomery's.

Powell's encounter with Mackenzie in his rapid flight southward has
already been described. After his vain endeavour to shoot the
insurgent chief, he sped down Yonge Street to the end of what is now
known as the Davenport Road. There he turned to the right, and, having
proceeded along the highway for about twenty yards, he abandoned his
horse, and hid himself behind a log in the adjoining bush. This action
on his part was due to a fear lest pursuers were behind him, and he
was desirous of avoiding any rencontre which might prevent him from
making his way into the city and arousing the inhabitants. He remained
hidden for a few moments, when, hearing no sound indicative of
pursuit, he emerged from his retreat and ran across what now forms the
Queen's Park to the Queen Street Avenue, down which he made his way
with such speed as shortness of breath and a full habit of body
inclining to corpulence admitted of. Passing out into Queen Street, he
proceeded down Simcoe (then called Graves) Street to Government House,
where the Lieutenant-Governor, who did not apprehend a rebellion in
Upper Canada, slept the sleep of the just. He had been roused from his
slumbers by the ringing of the college bell about an hour before, but
upon learning that the bell had been rung by direction of Colonel Fitz
Gibbon, he had serenely composed himself again to rest. Had the
Colonel and Mr. Powell been as supine as he, the representative of
Majesty would actually have been surprised in his bed and captured in
his nightgown.

It was no time to stand upon ceremony. Mr. Powell made his way, not
altogether without obstruction,[62] to the Lieutenant-Governor's
bedside, and hurriedly told his story. Even then the sluggard could
hardly be made to believe in the reality of the danger which menaced
his capital. At last, says the chronicle, he "appeared to believe in
the reality of the thing".[63] He arose and began to dress himself,
while his informant departed for the City Hall to take steps for the
defence of the place. As Powell was hastening down stairs he was met by
Colonel Fitz Gibbon, who was on his way to arouse his Excellency for
the second time on that eventful night. A brief explanation followed,
after which the Colonel passed on to Sir Francis's bedroom. As soon as
his Excellency had completed his toilet, he consigned his family to
the care of some friends, by whom they were conducted to "a place of
safety,"[64] after which he and his Acting Adjutant-General proceeded
to the City Hall.

By this time bells were ringing all over the city. The inhabitants
were astir, and the streets were alive with bustle and excitement.[65]
It was noticeable that a comparatively small number of the population
enrolled themselves for the city's defence. Not more than from two to
three hundred persons were so enrolled during the entire night.[66]
Those who did so were furnished with arms from the City Hall, and they
held themselves in readiness to obey whatever orders should be given
to them. Among them were all the leading supporters of the Government
and their sons. Judge Jones, having finally brought himself to believe
in the insurrection, bore himself with energy and courage. He formed a
picket of thirty volunteers, and marched towards the northern
outskirts of the city, where he remained on the watch throughout the
night. Chief Justice Robinson, Judge McLean and Judge Macaulay also
presented themselves with muskets on their shoulders, ready to defend
the Government to which they owed their places, and to which it is
fair to suppose they rendered a warm and sincere allegiance. Henry
Sherwood, Captain James McGill Strachan, son of the Archdeacon of
York, and young John Beverley Robinson,[67] son of the Chief Justice,
were appointed aides-de-camp to his Excellency, who sent them
galloping hither and thither with messages. Despatches were forthwith
sent off to Allan McNab at Hamilton, and to the colonels of miltia in
the Midland and Newcastle Districts. The enrolled volunteers lay on
their arms in the City Hall till daylight, the rebels being expected
from one minute to another. During the interval there was no sleep for
Toronto's citizens. Everybody was alert, and on the look-out for a
melodramatic sequel to this ominous beginning of actual armed revolt
in Upper Canada.

At sunrise next morning Colonel Fitz Gibbon rode out and reconnoitred
the position of the insurgents. They had received reinforcements
during the past night, and now numbered at least five hundred men. The
Colonel ascertained, however, that they were a mere half-armed rabble,
without competent leaders or efficient discipline, and that they had
done nothing towards fortifying their position. He was desirous of
making an attack upon them without delay, and to that end galloped
back into the city to obtain the Lieutenant-Governor's permission. To
his great mortification his Excellency positively refused to sanction
such a proceeding. "I will not fight them on their ground;" said he
"they must fight me on mine." In vain did the Colonel urge his views,
until, finding that his arguments produced no effect except to
irritate the Lieutenant-Governor, he desisted.[68] Later in the day he
set about forming a picket to do duty on the northern outskirts, Judge
Jones and his men having withdrawn at daylight. On this proceeding Sir
Francis also laid an imperative interdict. "Do not send out a man;" he
enjoined "we have not men enough to defend the city. Let us defend our
posts; and it is my positive order that you do not leave this building
yourself."[69]

The whole of that day (Tuesday) was spent by the loyalists of the city
in fussy preparations to repulse the rebels on their arrival. The
shops and factories were closed, and business of all kinds was
practically suspended. The most extravagant rumours were afloat. It
was said that volunteers were flocking to Mackenzie's side in great
numbers, and that he would soon be able to advance upon the city with
a force of four or five thousand men, drilled, armed, and thirsting
for the blood of the loyalists. In spite of Colonel Fitz Gibbon's
activity, the time seems to have been to a large extent frittered
away, and the shades of evening found the Government not much better
prepared for an attack than they had been in the morning. The
Lieutenant-Governor placed an interdict upon every proposal made by
the Colonel, whose hands were thus pretty effectually tied down. The
propriety of an outpost-guard on Yonge Street was however so obvious
that the latter ventured to post one there without his Excellency's
knowledge. It consisted of twenty-seven men, under the command of
Sheriff Jarvis, and it was stationed on the east side of the great
northern highway, a short distance above its intersection with McGill
Street. As will presently be seen, it was destined to do good service
to the Government ere it had been many hours in position.

Notwithstanding the amount of time frittered away, however, this
memorable Tuesday, take it for all in all, was the most eventful day
of the insurrection. Sir Francis Head and his advisers were taken so
completely by surprise that they could scarcely credit the evidence of
their senses. They feared that the city would fall into the hands of
the rebels, as it must inevitably have done had the operations of the
latter been conducted with anything like good judgment. They had no
correct appreciation of the spirit by which the insurgents were
actuated, and dreaded the worst consequences. They regarded it as
almost a matter of course that, if the city should come under the
domination of Mackenzie, it would be given up to rapine and pillage.
They saw, in anticipation, the banks robbed and set on fire, the chief
personages imprisoned or massacred, and a ragged rabble enthroned in
state at Government House. It was even feared by some that the entire
city would be set on fire and burned to the ground. Such a prospect
was terrible, but what could be done to avert it? The season had so
far been an open one, and the _Transit_, a small steamer, lay near the
foot of Yonge Street. The families of the Lieutenant-Governor and the
Chief Justice had been placed on board the little craft, so as to be
ready for immediate flight.[70] Having thus made provision for
rescuing the families of some of the chief personages, having mustered
and armed such volunteers as could be trusted, and having despatched
messengers to the rural districts as above mentioned, the friends of
the Government were at the end of their resources. They could do
nothing but wait for the arrival of outside succours.

Yes, one thing might be done. Some time might be gained by parleying
with Mackenzie. If the rebels could be kept from attacking until the
colonels of the rural militia should arrive with reinforcements, it
might still be possible to save the capital from spoliation. This idea
would seem to have originated with the Attorney-General, but the
evidence on the point is not conclusive.[71] At any rate, the idea was
sanctioned by the Lieutenant-Governor, and during the forenoon steps
were taken for carrying it out. The management of the affair was
entrusted to Sheriff Jarvis, who had not as yet been placed in charge
of the outpost-guard on Yonge Street. The Sheriff at first
contemplated riding out in person with a flag of truce to the rebel
headquarters, and there demeaning himself as circumstances should
dictate. But upon consultation with some of his friends he was
strongly dissuaded from adopting this course, as he was known to be a
strong partisan of the Government, and had many bitter foes among the
Radicals, some of whom might possibly avail themselves of such an
opportunity for taking vengeance upon him. It would doubtless be more
judicious if some one with whom the rebels might be supposed to have
more or less of political sympathy were to visit them in the capacity
of a mediator. An accidental meeting with James Hervey Price on Yonge
Street decided the Sheriff on this point. Mr. Price was a prominent
Reformer, and had long been conspicuous in his opposition to the
Government. He would certainly have nothing to fear from the rebels,
who would be far more likely to try to win him over to their side than
to do him any personal injury. These ideas having passed through the
Sheriff's mind, he there and then besought Mr. Price to be the bearer
of the flag of truce. Mr. Price, however, returned a peremptory
refusal, alleging as a reason that he had no influence with the
rebels, and that if he should go out it would be said that he had been
the first to join them. He suggested that the Sheriff should apply to
Mr. Baldwin, Dr. Rolph or Mr. Bidwell.

The Sheriff acted upon the suggestion. Certainly no one could have
been found more suitable for such a mission than Robert Baldwin, who a
few months before had returned from a somewhat prolonged visit to
Great Britain.[72] Mr. Baldwin's position was unique, as he had ceased
to take any part in politics, and was regarded with respect and
confidence by men of all parties. Such an emissary would be certain to
be acceptable to the rebels. His loyalty was above suspicion, and it
was felt to be impossible that he could have any dangerous sympathy
with a rebellion headed by such an one as Mackenzie; yet he was looked
up to by the great body of the Radicals as a man of stainless
patriotism, and it was not improbable that his counsels might have
weight with them. Sheriff Jarvis accordingly waited upon Mr. Baldwin
on behalf of his Excellency, with a request that he would undertake a
mission to the camp of the rebels, with a view to preventing the
effusion of blood. Mr. Baldwin could not well refuse his assent, but
he stipulated that some one else should be associated with him in the
embassy, and he mentioned his friend Mr. Bidwell as a suitable
coadjutor. An orderly was accordingly despatched by the Sheriff to Mr.
Bidwell's house, which was at Number 38 Lot (Queen) Street. More than
two hours seem to have been spent in conveying messages backwards and
forwards between the various personages concerned. Mr. Bidwell had no
heart for the embassy, and declined to be concerned in it. The
Sheriff, accompanied by his orderly, Mr. George Duggan, a well-known
member of the ruling party in those days, then called upon Dr. Rolph.
Up to this time, be it understood, no suspicion of Dr. Rolph's
complicity in the Rebellion was entertained by the Government party,
who regarded him as being on pretty nearly the same political plane as
Baldwin and Bidwell. When he heard Sheriff Jarvis's proposal he at
first refused to have anything to do with the affair. He perceived
that he would be placed in an exceedingly false position if he were to
go out to the rebels as an emissary of Sir Francis Head. He expressed
his opinion that the constitution was virtually suspended, and that
the Lieutenant-Governor was no longer invested with authority to send
out a flag of truce. The Sheriff, however, was urgent, and little
disposed to accept a refusal. The Doctor moreover reflected that by
persisting in his refusal he might subject himself to very grave
suspicion, as it was evident from the Sheriff's remarks that Mr.
Bidwell and Mr. Price had already done. He finally yielded his assent,
and a little before one o'clock in the afternoon he and Mr. Baldwin
set out on horseback for the rebel camp. They were accompanied by Hugh
Carmichael, a carpenter and a resident of Toronto, who was the actual
bearer of the flag of truce. When the party reached Gallows Hill[73]
they encountered the main body of the insurgents, who were slowly
advancing upon the city.

It now becomes necessary to trace the course of events in the rebel
camp subsequent to the death of Captain Anthony Anderson.

When Shepard returned to Montgomery's on Monday night with the
intelligence of the capture and escape of Powell, and of the death of
their most trusted military leader, the insurgents were for a time
almost panic-stricken. Some of them suggested an immediate dispersion
and the abandonment of their enterprise. There seems abundant reason
for believing that the shooting of Anderson proved the death-blow of
the movement. Had he remained at the tavern instead of accompanying
Mackenzie on his senseless expedition, he would have escaped Powell's
bullet. He would have led the men into the city at daybreak on the
next morning. Nothing could have prevented the city from falling into
the hands of the insurgents, for reinforcements continued to arrive
through the night, and early on Tuesday morning the entire force
exceeded five hundred. As has been seen, the Government had only been
able to enrol about three hundred out of an adult male population of
between two and three thousand. A considerable number of the latter
would readily have joined the rebel forces upon their entrance into
the city. The Provisional Government would assuredly have come into
existence. Whether it would have been of long continuance is a
question as to which there is nothing but conjecture to guide us in
forming an opinion. But the shooting of Anderson for a time completely
dispirited the Lloydtown Company, from whom the other insurgents were
much disposed to take their cue. The ringing of the city bells was
distinctly heard, and the fact that the Government were aware of their
proximity could not be ignored.

Mackenzie, Kennedy and Smith returned to Montgomery's about midnight
with McDonald in charge. After the flight of Powell they had continued
to advance towards the city until they had arrived at the Bloor Street
toll-gate, where they had caught up with and re-captured McDonald.
They had then concluded that it would be unsafe for them to proceed
any further in that direction, and had returned with their prisoner.
Two men were sent down the road to convey the body of Anderson to a
neighbouring house, which was done.[74] The rest of the night was
passed in dreary uncertainty as to what the morrow would bring forth.

On Tuesday morning the sun rose upon a still dispirited community at
Montgomery's. The insurgents had the greatest difficulty in procuring
supplies of food. Mackenzie took upon himself to superintend this
department as well as every other, and was in constant hot water with
somebody. He was especially severe in his verbal onslaughts upon
Montgomery, whose lukewarmness in the cause enraged him almost beyond
endurance. He reproached him because he would "neither fish nor cut
bait."[75] Finally, at the urgent entreaty of Gibson and Lount,
Montgomery appears to have consented to act as commissary to the
insurgents, and from that time forward there was no scarcity of
provisions. The leaders were repeatedly in conference during the
morning, but had great difficulty in agreeing upon any definite plan
of operations. Lount declined to assume the responsibility of taking
supreme command of the men during an advance upon the city, alleging
his insufficient knowledge and experience of military tactics. After
various projects had been mooted and negatived, Mackenzie, having
grown utterly impatient of inaction, volunteered to lead the men into
the city himself. His proposal appears to have been assented to, for
about eleven o'clock in the forenoon he mounted a small white horse,
from the back of which he addressed the insurgents in a body,[76]
informing them that he would be their Commander-in-Chief for that day,
and that he would lead them into Toronto. Further reinforcements had
continued to arrive ever since daylight, and at this time the
insurgents numbered between seven and eight hundred. After much
discussion it was resolved that the advance upon the city should be no
longer delayed, and that it should be made simultaneously from two
points. The men were divided into two bodies, one of which was to move
southward by way of Yonge Street, under the command of Lount, while
the other, under the guidance of Mackenzie, was to enter the city by
way of the College Avenue. Upon reaching Lot Street both bodies were
to converge, and take up a position at Osgoode Hall. Having settled
upon this basis of operations a small detachment was sent to inspect
the eastern approaches to the city, and to notify any insurgent
volunteers who might arrive from that direction of the plan for
investing the city. The rebel army then set out from Montgomery's a
little before noon, and marched southward to within a short distance
of Gallows Hill. The prisoners, fifty or sixty in number, having been
placed in charge of Gibson, were marched southward along with the
rebels. This was done partly for effect, to swell the insurgent ranks,
but chiefly because there were no other means of keeping the
prisoners, as a sufficient guard to watch over them at the tavern
could not be spared. When the advancing forces came in front of the
gate of Mr. Robert Stanton, a few yards northward from the brow of
Gallows Hill, Mackenzie called a halt, and, dismounting from his pony,
passed from the road into Mr. Stanton's grounds, and thence, by
tearing down a fence, into the lawn of Mr. James Scott Howard,
immediately to the north. Here a few of the rebels took up temporary
quarters, while Mackenzie made his way into Mr. Howard's house. Mr.
Howard, who was Postmaster of Toronto, was in the city attending to
his duties, but his wife, daughter and son[77] were at home, with one
or two servants. Mackenzie entered without knocking, and demanded that
dinner should be prepared for fifty men. He was referred by Mrs.
Howard to the servant in the kitchen, upon which he waxed exceedingly
angry, and conducted himself in such an outrageous fashion as to
clearly prove that he was a Jack-in-office, whose mental capacity was
unequal to the post which he had arrogated to himself. "He wore a
great coat buttoned up to the chin," says an eye-witness, "and
presented the appearance of being stuffed. In talking among
themselves, the men intimated that he had on a great many coats, as if
to make himself bullet-proof."[78] After shaking his horsewhip in Mrs.
Howard's face, and denouncing the Postmaster to her in most
reprehensible terms, he withdrew, and, with his forces, moved westward
to near Russell Hill, the residence of Admiral Baldwin, while Lount
and his men remained stationary. The simultaneous advance upon the
city was to take place at two o'clock in the afternoon, but while they
waited for the appointed hour to arrive, Dr. Rolph and Mr. Baldwin
reached Gallows Hill with the flag of truce.

FOOTNOTES:

[59] Colonel Moodie was a Peninsular veteran who had served in Canada
during the War of 1812, and had fought at Queenston Heights. After the
close of that war he had retired from active service on half-pay, and
had obtained a grant of a large tract of land. It seemed like fatality
that he should pass unscathed through the perils of two hard-fought
campaigns in the Peninsula, to fall by the bullet of an unknown
insurgent in a petty encounter in front of an obscure wayside inn in
Upper Canada.

[60] Mr. Lindsey is of opinion that the slayer of Colonel Moodie was
one Ryan, who "sometimes went by the name of Wallace." See _Life of
Mackenzie_, vol. ii., pp. 77, 78. I am unaware of the evidence upon
which this opinion is based, but I find that a contrary belief
prevails among such of the insurgents as are still living, and who
were present at Montgomery's on the occasion.

[61] Such is Mackenzie's own story. See _Narrative_, _ubi supra_, p.
10. Mr. Powell declares that the insurgent leader "made no such
courteous speeches, but muttered somewhat of his dissatisfaction."
_Ib_., note 18, and appendix, p. 22. It is certain, however, that no
attempt was made to search for concealed weapons.

[62] See appendix to Fothergill's reprint of Mackenzie's _Narrative_.

[63] _Ib_.

[64] See _The Emigrant_, chap. viii. Where the "place of safety" was
does not appear. A presently mentioned in the text, the family were
subsequently placed on board a steamer in the harbour.

[65] "I walked along King Street to the position I had prepared in the
market-house. The stars were shining bright as diamonds in the black
canopy over my head. The air was intensely cold, and the snow-covered
planks which formed the footpath of the city creaked as I trod upon
them. The principal bell of the town was, naturally enough, in an
agony of fear, and her shrill, irregular, monotonous little voice,
strangely breaking the serene silence of night, was exclaiming to the
utmost of its strength--_Murder! Murder! Murder! and much worse_."
_Emigrant_, chap. viii.

[66] Colonel Fitz Gibbon speaks of having formed upwards of five
hundred men in platoons, in the Market Square. See his _Appeal_, p.
18. This is either a slip of the pen or a lapse of memory. I can find
no survivor of that night who estimates the number of enrolled
volunteers at more than three hundred. The official enrolment is no
longer in existence, having been destroyed at the burning of the
Parliament Buildings in Montreal in 1849.

[67] The present Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario.

[68] _Appeal_, p. 18.

[69] _Ib_.

[70] "He [Sir Francis Head] had his family out in the bay, as if they
were the china, while other folks' families, being but brownware, had
to run all risks ashore."--Mackenzie's _Flag of Truce_, chap. viii.

[71] Fitz Gibbon MSS.

[72] _Ante_, pp. 325, 326.

[73] This name has been familiar in the mouths of dwellers in and
around the Upper Canadian capital for at least fourscore years.
Everybody in the neighbourhood knows the locality so indicated, but
comparatively few persons are familiar with the origin of the term
"Gallows Hill." The elevation is situated a short distance from the
city, about a mile north of Bloor Street. Early in the present century
it was traversed by a rough wagon-road, which ran a short distance to
the west of the present abode of Mr. Justice Morrison. The highest
point of the road was a narrow gorge dug out of the brow of the hill,
with high banks on each side. A large tree, presumed to have been
blown down by a violent storm, lay for many years directly across the
top of the banks, at a sufficient height above the roadway to admit of
the passage of loaded wagons beneath. The story goes that a belated
farmer, driving home from market in the twilight of a summer evening,
was startled when passing beneath this tree at perceiving something
resembling a human form dangling from the huge trunk above. Upon
dismounting from his wagon and ascending the bank, he found the body
of a man suspended from a rope which had been securely fastened to the
tree. The body had evidently been hanging there for several hours, and
life was totally extinct. From that time down to the present, no clue
has ever been obtained, either as to the identity of the body or as to
the circumstances attending the death. The general belief was that the
case must have been one of suicide. Not long after this event the name
of Gallows Hill was bestowed upon the spot, and has persistently clung
to it ever since.

[74] Next day the body was handed over to the relatives of the
deceased, for burial.

[75] See evidence of Hugh G. Wilson, on trial of John Montgomery.

[76] See Hawk's statement, at end of chapter xx.

[77] Mr. Allan McLean Howard, now Clerk of the First Division Court of
the County of York, to whom I am indebted for various interesting
reminiscences connected with the events of 1837.

[78] _Reminiscences of a Canadian Pioneer_, etc., by Samuel Thompson,
pp. 130, 131.




CHAPTER XXIII.

THE FLAG OF TRUCE.


The embassy in charge of the flag of truce advanced northward by way
of Yonge Street, and reached its destination a little after one
o'clock in the afternoon. The body of insurgents under Lount occupied
the brow and slope of Gallows Hill, on and near Yonge Street.
Mackenzie and his forces were nearly half a mile to the west, ready to
march southward through the College Avenue to Lot Street. As the flag
approached the foot of the hill, Lount and Gorham, who happened to be
conversing together for the moment, were not a little astonished to
see Dr. Rolph acting in the capacity of a Government emissary. It does
not appear that the slightest doubt of his good faith crossed their
minds, but as matter of fact they knew little or nothing about his
views on the subject of ihe rising, except in so far as those views
had been retailed to them by Mackenzie, and, to a less extent, by
Fletcher, who, as previously mentioned, had carried messages between
Mackenzie and Rolph. In spite of all that has been written and
published to the contrary, it seems to be tolerably clear that
Mackenzie himself was not present when the flag of truce first arrived
at the insurgent camp. On this point Hawk and Gorham, both of whom
were present, are very explicit.[79] _Per contra_, we have a statement
purporting to have been made by Samuel Lount under circumstances which
would seem to invest it with all the solemnity of an oath. The
authenticity of this document is open to question, but its
spuriousness has never been established, and in the face of such
conflicting evidence no absolute conclusion can be arrived at. The
matter is of importance only as showing the almost insuperable
difficulties which lie in the path of the historian who attempts to
record the minute details connected with this episode in our country's
history. It is at any rate certain that upon the arrival of the flag
at the foot of Gallows Hill Dr. Rolph acted as spokesman, and that,
whether Mackenzie was present or not, it was to Lount that he
addressed himself. Lount advanced a few yards in front of his men, and
so remained during the interview, which lasted several minutes. The
_ipsissima verba_ employed are lost beyond recovery, but Rolph appears
to have stated that the Lieutenant-Governor was desirous of preventing
the effusion of blood, and that an amnesty would be granted to the
insurgents for all offences committed up to that time, upon condition
that they would disperse and return to their homes. A conference then
took place between such of the insurgent leaders as were present. The
conclusion arrived at was that no reliance could be placed upon the
bare word of Sir Francis Head, and that it was not worth while to
consider his proposal until it should be reduced to writing. This
being communicated to Rolph and Baldwin, they agreed to ride back into
the city and obtain a written official document appropriate to the
occasion, with which they would return to the camp of the insurgents.
Lount, on behalf of the latter, agreed to commit no act of hostility
in the meantime, beyond advancing southward as far as the toll-gate,
which was a mile nearer to the city, at the intersection of Yonge and
Bloor Streets.[80]

The embassy returned to the city and reported to Sheriff Jarvis, who
lost no time in laying the matter before the Lieutenant-Governor. But
the nerves of Sir Francis and his advisers had become steadier within
the preceding two hours. Letters had been received from outside
districts, from which it appeared that bodies of volunteers for the
defence of the Government were already on the march for Toronto. Some
of them might confidently be expected to arrive in the course of the
evening. More accurate accounts of the state of the insurgent forces
had also been received, and it was known that Mackenzie, instead of
having four or five thousand fully-equipped troops at his back, had
merely a few hundreds of undisciplined farmers, not many of whom were
armed, and very few of whom were eager for carnage. All things
considered, Sir Francis felt safe, and, with a culpable disregard of
what was due to his emissaries, he refused either to reduce anything
to writing or to hold any further communication with the rebel
leaders. This decision was made known by Sheriff Jarvis to Rolph and
Baldwin, who, as may readily be supposed, felt regret at having
undertaken their embassy. They however felt it incumbent upon
themselves to return to the camp of the insurgents and report the
facts. Riding once more up Yonge Street as far as the toll-gate, they
found the rebel lines extended along Bloor Street, both east and west.
Mackenzie and Lount were together awaiting them a few yards to the
west. They announced the failure of their mission, with which
announcement the armistice of course came to an end. Dr. Rolph then,
requesting Mr. Baldwin to wait a moment for him, rode aside with Lount
and Mackenzie, with whom he conversed in a low tone for several
minutes. By direction of the insurgents Mr. Baldwin had meanwhile
walked his horse westward, intending to return to town by way of the
College Avenue.[81] He was soon re-joined by Rolph, and the two,
having proceeded some distance southward, appear to have moved back to
Yonge Street, and thence down into the heart of the city. They soon
afterwards encountered the Sheriff, to whom they reported their last
interview with the insurgent leaders. Mr. Baldwin then proceeded to
his home, but Dr. Rolph had a busy afternoon before him.

At this stage of the narrative it becomes necessary to consider two
points as to which there have hitherto been much doubt and
misapprehension. First: what was the nature of the communication made
by Rolph to the insurgent leader? Second: was it made during the first
or second journey to the rebel camp in connection with the flag of
truce?

It will conduce to a clear understanding of the matter to consider the
second question first. The evidence on the subject is extremely
conflicting. On the one hand we have the statement of Dr. Rolph
himself, to the effect that during the first visit he neither said nor
did anything which could be construed into impropriety on his part as
the joint custodian of the flag of truce.[82] This account is
confirmed in the strongest manner by Carmichael, the actual bearer of
the flag; also by Robert Baldwin, who was jointly responsible with Dr.
Rolph for the proper conduct of the flag. Evidence more or less
confirmatory is furnished by William Ware, of Toronto; by P. C. H.
Brotherson, of Queenston, and others. The known facts and
circumstances all go to confirm Dr. Rolph's representation. On the
other hand there are the statements of Samuel Lount, William Alves,
and Mackenzie himself. In order that the reader may draw his own
conclusions on the subject the most important evidence on both sides
is subjoined in the form of a note.[83] It is believed that a careful
analysis of the conflicting statements will convince impartial readers
that Dr. Rolph's communication was made during the second visit, and
when he had ceased to occupy a diplomatic position. It must however be
conceded that the question is not entirely free from doubt, and that
there is room for endless argument on both sides.

As to the other point in dispute--the nature of Rolph's
communication--the evidence is tolerably conclusive. It has been
seen[84] that Dr. Rolph, in consequence of the reverses sustained by
the rebels in Lower Canada, favoured an abandonment of the
insurrectionary movement in the Upper Province. The offer of an
amnesty by the Lieutenant-Governor opened the way for such an
abandonment, but this circumstance had little or no weight with the
Doctor, as he felt assured that Mackenzie would not entertain the
proposal. The question of an amnesty being thus excluded, it was
evident to Dr. Rolph's mind that his own future depended upon the
success of the rising, inasmuch as his connection with it could not be
kept a permanent secret, and he could hope for no mercy in the event
of his falling into the hands of his opponents. It was by this time
equally clear that if the insurrectionary movement was to succeed,
there must be no further delay in advancing upon the city. Outside
assistance for the Government would soon be forthcoming, after which
any attempt on the part of an unarmed rabble of undisciplined farmers
would be hopeless. It is evident, then, that Dr. Rolph had much to
gain by the success of the insurrection; that its success depended
upon promptitude of action; and that its failure must inevitably
involve him in utter ruin. Under such circumstances he would be likely
to do everything in his power to contribute to the success of those
with whom his own fortunes were bound up. It may be taken as
conclusively proved that he advised Lount and Mackenzie to waste no
more time, but to proceed into the city without further delay. His
exact words, as remembered and reported by himself and others, were
"Wend your way into the city as soon as possible, at my heels."[85]
That this was at least the purport of his advice is further
incidentally proved by his conduct after his return with Mr. Baldwin
the second time. When the two had made their final report to the
Sheriff, Mr. Baldwin, as formerly mentioned, rode homewards. Dr. Rolph
proceeded to Elliott's tavern, on the corner of Yonge and Queen
Streets, where he found a number of trusted Radicals anxiously
awaiting him, in order to learn the result of the flag of truce.
Several of those Radicals are still living. They are unanimous in
declaring that the Doctor instructed them to lose no time in arming
themselves, as Mackenzie would be in immediately. Dr. Rolph next
summoned a hurried meeting of Radicals at Doel's brewery to devise
means for aiding Mackenzie. The rest of the afternoon was spent by him
in energetic preparations for Mackenzie's arrival. As the time passed
by without any sign of the expected advance, he and his co-workers
were utterly at a loss to understand the delay. Finally, a messenger
was sent out to ascertain the cause.[86] All these indisputable facts
point unmistakably to the conclusion that Dr. Rolph expected the
insurgent army during the entire afternoon. They further prove the
falsity of Mackenzie's statement to the effect that Dr. Rolph, after
the conclusion of the truce, gave directions to the rebel leaders that
they "should not then go to Toronto, but wait till 6 o'clock in the
evening, and then take the city."[86] This, perhaps the most shameless
of all Mackenzie's inventions, is negatived by every witness, living
and dead, who has ever testified on the subject, and is further
contradicted by the course of subsequent events. The mass of evidence
adduced below will, it is hoped, set the question forever at rest.

I have been repeatedly told, especially by the McIntoshes, Carmichael,
Middlemiss, Emery, and also by Drs. See and Hunter that there was a
large body of Reformers collected at Elliott's corner, waiting to know
the result of the truce, and that when Dr. Rolph came down, after
being out the second time, he said to them: "Why do you stand here,
with your hands in your breeches pockets? Go, arm yourselves how you
can! Mackenzie will be in immediately." And further, that Dr. R. also
called a meeting of Reformers at Doel's brewery to devise means for
preparing to assist Mackenzie, when Dr. R. told them not to scruple
about the weapons to take knives, forks, pitchforks, scythes or
anything else, and if they had an opportunity of disarming a Tory not
to let it slip. This meeting I was told was held immediately after the
Dr. got through with the truce. Dr. R. also sent See and Hunter to the
City Hall, to see if the Tories would arm them. Thomas Anderson, in
consequence of the Dr.'s orders, took his fowling-piece and went out
to join Mackenzie. Emery borrowed a musket of Jacques, telling J. he
was going to defend the town, but E. [Emery] told me it was because of
Dr. R.'s order. Middlemiss obeyed the order so far as to take muskets
from three different Tories. John Mills told me that himself and six
more who heard Dr. R. say Mackenzie was coming in directly,
immediately armed themselves, and when he did not come in, according
to their expectation, they waited up all night, so as to be ready as
soon as he might please to come.

As far as I was able to ascertain, the Reformers of Toronto were well
aware of Dr. Rolph's views, and knew perfectly well the reasons that
induced him to be the bearer of the flag of truce. Not one with whom I
conversed blamed him for the part he took in becoming bearer of that
flag.

ROCHESTER, 28th July, 1838.                     (Signed) H. H. WRIGHT.

See and Hunter said there were about one hundred persons at the
brewery, and that they had to break up because the Tories came to see
what was doing. H. H. W.

    *    *    *    *    *

ROCHESTER, Tuesday Evening, 28th August, 1838.

This evening Mr. Peter Watson, in conversation with Dr. Rolph, Mr.
John Montgomery and H. H. Wright, remarked, among other things, that
he was present on Tuesday, the 5th December, 1837, when the flag of
truce brought by Mr. R. Baldwin and Dr. Rolph first arrived at the
camp of the insurgents. He was also present at the termination of the
truce, and heard Dr. Rolph tell Mr. Mackenzie that he thought it would
be best to go into the city at once, and follow, if he pleased,
closely on his (Dr. R.'s) heels. Col. Lount also heard the same
remark, and actually got his men ready, and was marching for the city,
when Mr. Mackenzie ordered them to stop.

Mr. Watson is well satisfied in his own mind that Dr. Rolph did not
recommend Mr. Mackenzie to wait till six o'clock p.m. before going
into the city. He also states that to his certain knowledge Mr.
Mackenzie sent no messenger to town to inform Dr. Rolph or any other
person that the Patriots had assembled, as stated in his _Gazette_ of
the 25th August, 1838.

He confirms the statement made by Messieurs Morden and Shepard, that
they, with others, wished to go into the city on Monday night, and
says there was but one dissenting voice beside that of Mackenzie, and
that was William Poole.

(Signed) H. H. WRIGHT.

The Mr. Watson above referred to is apparently the same individual who
was afterwards induced by Mackenzie to certify to his (Mackenzie's)
courage. See _Flag of Truce_, p. 7.

NOTE TO CHAPTER XXIII.

Referred to _ante_, p. 73.

I present the respective statements in the order which seems most
conducive to clearness of apprehension. The statement of Colonel Lount
is entitled to precedence.

STATEMENT OF COLONEL SAMUEL LOUNT.

The prisoner Samuel Lount, on being asked whether he wishes to make
any statement, says that he did not know of any intention to rise in
rebellion for more than two weeks previous to the Monday on which the
assembly took place at Montgomery's; that while he was with the rebels
he disapproved of many of their acts, particularly the burning of the
[i.e., Dr. Horne's] house, which he did not hear of till after it took
place. I had no idea it was to be a rebellion. I was informed and led
to believe that what we wanted could be obtained easily, without
bloodshed. I opposed the burning of Mr. Jarvis's house, and exerted my
influence to prevent the rebels from going there, as I understood that
Mrs. Jarvis was unwell. When the flag of truce came up, Dr. Rolph
addressed himself to me. There were two other persons with it besides
Dr. Rolph and Mr. Baldwin. He, Dr. Rolph, said he brought a message
from His Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor, to prevent the effusion
of blood, or to that effect; at the same time he gave me a wink to
walk on one side, when he requested me not to hear the message, but go
on with our proceedings. What he meant was, not to attend to the
message. Mackenzie observed to me that it was a verbal message, and
that it had better be submitted to writing. I took the reply to the
Lieutenant-Governor's message to be merely a put-off. I understood
that the intention of the leaders was to take the City of Toronto, aad
change the present form of Government. I heard all that was said by Dr
Rolph to Mackenzie, which is as above related. This was the first time
the flag come [sic] up. I was present also when the second flag come
[sic] up. Dr. Rolph then observed that the truce was at an end. I do
not know who shot Colonel Moodie. I do not know who was on guard.

(Signed) "SAMUEL LOUNT."

Taken before the Commission, 18th January, 1838.

A true copy. (Signed) A. B. HAWKE,

_Secretary to the Commission_.

Now, this statement, confused and dubious as it is in many respects,
is explicit enough as to the time when Dr. Rolph's communication was
made. It distinctly says: "This was the first time the flag came up."
No one who knew Samuel Lount would believe him capable of placing on
record a deliberate falsehood. But it is necessary to bear in mind the
circumstances under which his statement was made. He was in jail on a
charge of treason. He had undergone much suffering and privation while
wandering about the country from one hiding-place to another, and in
attempting to make his escape to the United States. His health had
become seriously impaired, and he was not half the man, physically or
intellectually, that he had been a few weeks before. The evidence of
one in such a condition, more especially if given in reply to
one-sided questions, and if the witness be not subjected to
cross-examination, is worth very little for any purpose. In this case,
Lount was examined before a special committee of Government officials
whose selfish and spurious loyalty was in a highly inflamed condition.
It is easy to conceive that he was badgered and baited almost beyond
endurance by such partisans as Hagerman and Sullivan. But it is also
clear that the evidence was taken down in an exceedingly loose and
slovenly fashion. The first portion of the statement is couched in the
third person--"The prisoner Samuel Lount," etc. It then passes to the
first person--"I had no idea," etc. This is amply sufficient to show
the carelessness or incompetence of the secretary who recorded it. But
the testimony itself is inconsistent and self-contradictory. The
witness is made to say that he did not know of any intention to rise
in rebellion for more than two weeks previous to the assembly at
Montgomery's. In the very next sentence, he says: "I had no idea it
was to be a rebellion." Nothing is more certain than that the
Rebellion and the actual day of rising were finally determined upon
before the middle of November--three weeks or thereabouts before the
assemblage at Montgomery's and that Lount was one of those by whom it
was resolved upon. See _ante_, p. 9. A very mild cross-examination
would doubtless have removed these ambiguities. "I was informed and
led to believe," he is made to say, "that what we wanted could be
obtained easily, without bloodshed." Certainly Mackenzie had
represented matters in that light to the insurgents, and had thereby
induced many to embark in the enterprise who would otherwise have kept
aloof from it. As Lount believed that there was to be no bloodshed, he
may perhaps have persuaded himself that the movement did not
constitute actual rebellion, though such reasoning was unworthy of his
intelligence. He says that there were two other persons with the flag
of truce besides Rolph and Baldwin. Here there is a further error.
There were doubtless other persons who had followed the flag from the
city, and who were near Rolph and Baldwin when the interviews took
place between them and the rebel leaders, but there was no one but
Rolph, Baldwin and Carmichael in official charge of the flag. Then
follows the prisoner's account of Dr. Rolph's communication to him,
which he says was made the first time the flag came up. The only
answer to this is the positive and most circumstantial contradiction
by the flag-bearer, as well as by Roiph, and the confirmatory evidence
of Baldwin, Ware and Brotherson, to be presently considered. These,
however, should go for much, particularly when added to the other
manifest inconsistencies in Lount's statement. "What he [Dr. Rolph]
meant was, not to attend to the message." So runs the statement. Can
any weight be attached to such evidence as this? How could Lount
_know_ what Rolph _meant_? He could judge of the _meaning_ only from
what was said, and, under existing circumstances, could at best form
nothing beyond a plausible conjecture. It is very unlikely that Lount
swore positively to anything more than his strong impression as to
Rolph's meaning. It is quite possible that Lount, in his confusion of
mind begotten of weariness and exhaustion, may have said more than he
would have assented to under other circumstances. There was no
friendly counsel to explain and elucidate his statements, which,
moreover--as has above been clearly demonstrated--were taken down with
a looseness and want of care as culpable as extraordinary. His partial
deafness is also a fact entitled to be taken into consideration. See
David Gibson's letter, _post_, p. 90. It is at any rate certain that
the Radicals generally had no faith in the Commission, and did not
believe that Lount had ever given such testimony as was attributed to
him. Such I find to be the prevalent belief to this day. The late
Judge Wells, of Chatham, who was a warm personal friend of Lount,
entertained very strong opinions on this subject. He deprecated the
attempts made by Mackenzie, during the tenure of office of the
Hincks-Morin Administration, to stir up the memory of the affairs of
1837, and after the publication of the _Flag of Truce_ pamphlet by
Mackenzie he thus wrote to Dr. Rolph:--

"My Dear Doctor:                  "Chatham, C. W., 24th April, 1854.

"That man Mackenzie having had the assurance to send me a couple of
his pamphlets, in which he gratuitously attempts to vindicate the
veracity of our poor old friend Lount at your expense, I write you to
beg that you will take no notice whatever of the fiendish little
ruffian. It is not enough for him that he did all that in him lay to
ruin the most of us in those dreadful times, but he must needs rake
everything up (which he, of all others, if he were an honest man,
ought to leave to history,) to breed disturbance and bad blood among
his former friends. My mind has always been made up that Lount never
made use of the language attributed to him by A. B. Hawke:

"1st. Because he had no object in saying it. If he were not the most
arrant recreant, he would never attempt to implicate his friends more
than was necessary; and Lount was a firm, true man, and could never
have said anything so mean as the expressions attributed to him would
have been.

"2nd. A. B. Hawke, to my knowledge, is a person totally unworthy of
credence, even upon oath. I have known him since he was nearly
starving to death in Bath, above Kingston, from mere loaferism, in
1828-9. He wrote some articles against our dear old friend Barnabas
Bidwell in the newspapers, about that time, signed 'Ichabod Crane,'
which gained him some notoriety with the Tories; and after he got the
office of Em. Agent, in Toronto, he diverted himself, as you may
recollect, in writing against Perry in the _Courier_. He was one of
the most unprincipled and rabid even among such men as Gurnett and
MacNab and Sherwood, and how can any Reformer believe that he
interpreted the words of Lount correctly? I do not, and, as I have
before stated, from what I know of the man I would not believe him at
all in a matter of politics, not even under oath...Please obtain Mr.
Bidwell's opinion of Hawke. With much respect, my dear Doctor,

                Believe me,
                           Yours truly,
Hon. Dr. Rolph.                       "(Signed) WM. BENJAMIN WELLS."

It will perhaps be asked: What object could the Commission have in
misrepresenting the facts or distorting the evidence? The answer is
easily found. They were desirous of making out the strongest possible
case against Dr. Rolph, whose powerful influence had long been exerted
against the cause which they upheld, and against whose return to Upper
Canada they were specially anxious to guard.

In an unpublished statement by Gibson I find the following sentence
bearing upon the subject: "I believe the Clerk of the Board never
heard Mr. Lount give his testimony, but signed it at Mr. Sullivan's
request." Whether the writer had anything beyond suspicion to guide
him in forming this opinion I am unable to say.

Among Dr. Rolph's papers I find a letter written by the late D. D. Van
Norman, of Simcoe, towards the close of the year 1851, which goes far
to confirm the contention that Lount's statement, as taken down before
the Commission in January, 1838, does not correctly represent his
evidence respecting the flag of truce. It is as follows:--

"Hon. John Rolph:

"Dear Sir,--I will just at this moment trespass so far upon your
patience as to say that in a conversation with Mr. Lount in January,
1837 [should be 1838], after the defeat at Toronto, he stated to me
most distinctly that the report so industriously circulated by the
newspapers respecting your violation of sacredness of flag of truce
was wholly groundless and utterly false.

"You may make any use of this you see fit. Hoping it may be of
service, I remain, Sir,

"Your most obedient and very humble servant,

"(Signed) D. D. Van Norman.

"Simcoe, llth Dec., 1851."

In a subsequent letter "from the same to the same," and dated 10th
November, 1852, the statement is reiterated, with the addition of the
words following:--"I probably conversed with Mr. Lount about this
affair at as late a date as any man living."

Amid such a conflict of testimony, who shall decide? All that can
safely be asserted is that Lount's testimony, as it stands, is
inconsistent, self-contradictory and inaccurate, and that no
trustworthy historical narrative can be founded upon it.

Mackenzie's own statement was published in his _Weekly Message_, and
may be found reprinted in the second chapter of his _Flag of Truce_,
as follow: "When Mr. Baldwin and Dr. Rolph came out to our camp on
the Tuesday, with a flag of truce, the doctor took us aside, Mr.
Baldwin sitting still upon his horse, at some distance, as much a
novice concerning the law of flags of truce, I presume, as we were.
Dr. Rolph, the first time they came out, privately advised us what
answer to give. I had said 'Independence,' but the answer sent was a
demand for a free convention in the place of the legislature they had
packed, and that any messages might be in writing. The exact words
were on Rolph's suggestion, for he was the executive or head of the
movement, whom we were all bound to obey...He advised us to follow him
speedily, and we would find Head paralyzed with fear, few followers,
and the city easily to be taken...Lount and I set about it instantly,
one division marching down Yonge Street, and the other in which I was,
passing thro' the College Avenue, both to unite near my dwelling
house, opposite Osgoode Hall. We had got near the city when both
divisions were checked by Messrs. Rolph and Baldwin, and I went to
meet the messengers, who brought us Head's refusal. Dr. Rolph then
advised us not to go into the city till towards dark."

This statement, as far as it goes, is confirmatory of Lount's, and it
was not made under duress. It was made, however, from the most
malignant motives, by a man whose want of veracity was one of his
best-known attributes. It was made many years after the occurrence of
the events referred to, and for the purpose of injuring Dr. Rolph, who
was a member of the Administration. Mackenzie, on re-entering
political life after his return from exile, was a vehement supporter
of Dr. Rolph, until the latter refused to press a claim of many
thousands of dollars set up by the latter against the Government for
alleged losses arising out of the Rebellion which he himself had been
mainly instrumental in bringing about. Mackenzie's actual loss by the
Rebellion was very little, as he was nearly at the end of his
resources at that time, and, like the Murderer in _Macbeth_, was

    "So weary with disasters, tugg'd with fortune,
    That he would set his life on any chance
    To mend it, or be rid on 't."

He nevertheless trumped up a claim of twelve thousand dollars, and
endeavoured to exact from Dr. Rolph the successful urging of this upon
the Government as the price of his Parliamentary support. I have no
reason to believe that Dr. Rolph was more Quixotically scrupulous than
other politicians of his time, but the claim was so utterly absurd
that he must have known that there would be no chance of obtaining
recognition for it. At all events he declined to have any hand either
in presenting or supporting it. _Hinc illae lacrimae_. From the
moment when he refused to support this supremely unreasonable and
extortionate demand, Mackenzie left no stone unturned to injure him in
public estimation. The foregoing was one of the ebullitions to which
his hatred gave rise. Under no circumstances would Mackenzie's
unsupported statement be entitled to much weight. Under the particular
circumstances here indicated it is entitled to no weight whatever.

The assertion that Mackenzie supported Dr. Rolph after his re-entry
into political life is a fact too well known to need any formal proof.
From certain documents in my possession, however, it appears that his
support was for a time of the most enthusiastic nature. In a letter
addressed to Dr. Rolph by George B. Thomson, of Berlin, the writer,
commenting upon the Boulton episode referred to _ante_, p. 73, note,
proceeds to give instances of Mackenzie's enthusiasm on the Doctor's
behalf. He writes: "Mackenzie expressed to me in the strongest
terms"--this was after the Boulton affair--"his gratitude for the
noble manner in which you had stood up for him in the Randal
matter...and expressed his satisfaction that you were in the
Government: that it had secured the Representation Bill, the Extended
Franchise, etc., and that 'in the new Parliament we will send some
good men to stand by him.'" In a subsequent letter Mr. Thomson gives
an illustration of Mackenzie's perfidiousness. "There is a matter," he
writes, "which shows the character of the man, which he told me
himself...He told me that when he was in exile, in his greatest
distress,...Mr. Hincks came privately to see him, and told him that he
would get him pardoned and secure his return to Canada if he would
help him (Hincks) on his return. Mackenzie agreed to this. Hincks then
told him that he must abuse the American Government and the American
people. He said that he did so. In due course of time he was pardoned
and returned, and, said he, 'Hincks expected me to help him,
but'--with a half-suppressed chuckle--'I have been damaging him ever
since.'"

As evidence of Mackenzie's attempt to coerce Rolph into supporting his
trumped-up claims on the Government, I submit one of a number of
letters written by him with that object in view.

Toronto, Feb. llth, 1852.

Private.

Hon. John Rolph,
M.P.P.,
Quebec,

"Dear Sir:

"Sometime since I forwarded to your friend Mr. Morin, Secretary of
Canada, the petition concerning which I wrote you last month,
requesting an immediate enquiry into the disposition of my property,
worth $12,000 at least, seized by Mayor Gurnett in 1837, and part of
which was sold thereafter by Sheriff Jarvis, through his bailiff, Mr.
Beard.

"I have many reasons for asking your prompt assistance in this matter,
some of which only I will now state. When in London I was enabled,
through their own imprudence, to effect the removal of Messrs. Boulton
and Hagerman. It was my wish, acting as I then did for the U. C.
Reformers, to have seen you nominated as Attorney-General, but as Lord
Goderich had made up his mind for Jameson, I could only succeed in
getting the order that you should be Solicitor-General. That
arrangement Sir J. Colborne did not carry out.

"When Sir F. Head came here, sent for me, and asked me who I would
recommend for the Executive Council, your name was the first I gave
in. While you was in office neither yourself nor your colleagues had
seats in Assembly. I had a seat and influence. You was firmly
supported, and, when you resigned, steadily upheld in all you had said
and done.

"Altho', as you well know, I could, had I chosen, have been placed in
a lucrative and influential office, with the concurrence _and by the
request of the Home Government_, had I merely been silent, or bore
less heavily upon the local authorities, yet I preferred an
independent course, eventually to my own loss. When the Assembly was
violently dismembered in 1836, and Head made those violent appeals to
the feelings and passions of localities and classes which gave a
complexion to the Bread-and-Butter Parliament, many persons feared
that with none but Dr. O'Grady to rally the Reformers--a man against
whom there were many prejudices--we would be defeated, and I was urged
to take hold of the press again--and did so, when it had no patronage.

"I had been from October, 1834, out of that business, and entirely at
my own costs and charges, except that I borrowed a small sum from the
bank in which you and Messrs. Lesslie and Hincks were managers--you
being President. I set on foot the _Constitution_ press and book and
binding concern, June, 1836, to help the party in their worst
difficulties, having spent 1835 at the Welland Canal, getting nothing
and paying my own charges.

"Eighteen hundred and thirty-seven followed. The friends of the
country ceased to hope for justice. A change was contemplated. All I
had was engulphed. Your 'People's' Bank held its grip, tho' were I to
tell the position of some who did, they might well be ashamed of their
sharp conduct to me. Mr. Doel would have discharged the balance due
then by putting it to profit and loss--but they held on, hoping to get
more. And Mr. Price, your predecessor, comes back in Dec. from an
unsuccessful poll, and commences an action against me in the Queen's
Bench. Remembering, as we do, his real position in Nov., 1837, that
was, to say the least, not very kind.

"He had got involved in the bank (helping me, while I was upholding
the party), to the amount of 100 pounds. It has been paid back to
him. He charged 31 pounds for a sham Sheriff's sale of my property.
It has been paid him. He now comes forward and asks 47 pounds for
interest, while on the 250 pounds due me from the Welland Canal for
valuable services to the country and to the party, he, and your
colleague, notwithstanding, would allow me _no interest_, after I had
waited 16 years!

"He pledged his word to myself and others that that interest he would
not ask till I was prepared to pay him. I then gave him my note for
it. But as I opposed his return personally, and thro' the _Voters'
Guide_, he prosecutes. I would pay now, but have receipts for over
350 pounds of old debts I have paid recently, and cannot at the
moment.

"Under such circumstances, have I not a right to ask you in your
position to aid me effectually in endeavouring to recover some part of
my property? What right had Gurnett to seize, and keep no record of
what he seized? He refuses all information.

"My wife, as advised by friends, went to you during the difficulty
back of Toronto, stated the danger my property was in, and asked you
whether she might not, while time was given, to cause to be carried
from the premises and placed in safety what could be removed. Acting
on your advice she did nothing. All was lost!

"Last summer, in Assembly, my cause was about as effectual a support
to the Reform views you once advocated as man could give. What enemies
I got by it! Last election _'The Voters' Guides_,' as circulated, and
the compilation and circulation of which cost me many hours of severe
labour at my advanced years, were a powerful means of ridding the next
House of members who would have been ready to neutralize every effort
for Reform, while outwardly attired as Reformers. My personal and
private exertions tended the same way. Who has benefitted by that?
Your political position has been strengthened. My personal position
has been embarassed.

"When it was proposed to place Mr. Boulton on the Bench I was in
Washington, and hesitated not a moment to move the Reformers against
it, through the _Examiner_, and stating that you had been the head of
the old Reformers. When you had got into office I very naturally
expected to be told by you on what principles you had accepted it,
especially after I saw you give credit to Mr. Spence and two others
for placing you there. But I waited your own time. To my surprise I
found you had _come back to Toronto and left it again without giving
me even a hint_. In your January letter you were desirous to get my
advice on public matters; but if I, the oldest working Reformer now in
public life in U. C., after spending nearly a third of a century in
aiding Reform at all sacrifices, must go to Mr. Spence of the Building
Society at Dundas, or Mr. Tiffany, to learn the Reform principles held
now to be cardinal by the Govt., how can I act understandingly?

"When you became an exile you lost nothing. You had a profession. You
had means. I had a large family. Was in a jail. My means were
annihilated. I had no profession, and _at the darkest hour of my life,
where were the friends with whom, wisely or unwisely, I had faithfully
acted_?

"Had I let Mr. Price alone he would not have prosecuted. Had I, since
my return, gone with certain men, or even abstained from thwarting
them, matters would be very different to what they are. It is clear
that as you was long here and did not give me the slightest idea of
your views or prospects, that you did not desire to do so--and, of
course, I will not ask Mr. Spence what, after aiding you very
efficiently, you have perhaps wisely concealed. But when you remember
how the printing establishment was got up, and for what--the sharp
practice of your colleagues in the bank--the burning of my property at
Dundas--and the seizure by Mr. Gurnett of my establishment here, worth
(see the petition) over $12,000, I trust you will come to the
conclusion, that under all the circumstances stated and not stated
here, it is not too much that I, who have not earned $100 since I
returned to Canada, and who, as April, 1849, showed, _dare not
establish a press here and speak my mind_, have a just claim on your
early attention to the matters in the petition; and your
acknowledgement of this letter would oblige,

Dear Sir,

Your respectful servant,

                        Wm. L. Mackenzie.

"That any man, however able, would have difficulties to contend with,
in office at Quebec, is probable, but that there could have been any
in complying with the reasonable suggestions in my former letter, when
you was here on the spot, I do not see and if there had [been], a
reason might have been given for them."

It was Rolph's refusal to support the claim put forward in this letter
which led to Mackenzie's opposition, and to the publishing of the
_Flag of Truce_, to which more than one reference has been made in the
course of the present work.

Mackenzie's statement having been disposed of, the only remaining
evidence on this side is the following

STATEMENT OF WILLIAM ALVES.

On Tuesday, at noon, we were on our march to the city, greatly
increased in strength, when we met Doctor Rolph, our own executive,
and the Hon. Robert Baldwin, with a flag of truce from Sir Francis,
asking what we wanted. Our reply was--"A free convention of the
people." They returned, and Dr. R. advised us to follow him in half an
hour, which we did in two divisions. When a mile from town, the same
messengers returned, and brought Sir F.'s refusal, and then Doctor
Rolph privately advised that we should not enter the city till dark,
while he, meantime, would prepare the town folks. We marched for
Toronto again, as soon as it was dark, about 750 men, for I stood and
counted them in threes as they passed onwards.

The foregoing appeared in Mackenzie's _Caroline Almanac_ in 1840,
under date of December 7th. It was republished by Mackenzie, with
inconsiderable omissions and alterations, in his _Flag of Truce_,
chap. vi. As mentioned in a former note, however (see _ante_, p. 23),
this statement was actually prepared by Mackenzie himself, who induced
Alves to sign it. It is therefore entitled to as much (or as little)
weight as any other statement emanating from Mackenzie and relating to
the Upper Canadian Rebellion. But in this particular case the evidence
is wholly invalidated by the subsequent testimony of the same witness.
Lying before me is the letter of Donald McLeod, referred to _ante_, p.
36, note. "When Mr. Alves," writes the "General," "who was present
with Mr. Mackenzie at Toronto in December, 1837, had returned to
Cleveland from Van Diemen's Land, I handed him a volume of the
narrative, and on reading that part of it which treats of the flag of
truce, he remarked: 'Some parts of this version of the affair are
incorrect. I have no recollection of hearing the Doctor tell Mr.
Mackenzie or any other person to follow him into Toronto in half an
hour, until some time after the flag of truce was at an end.'" Here is
a plain implication that Rolph did not advise Mackenzie to wait until
dark. The narrative above referred to was a book written by McLeod
himself, and published at Cleveland, Ohio, in 1841, giving an account
of the settlement of Upper Canada and of the Rebellion of 1837-'8. The
portion of it dealing with the question of the flag of truce and the
movement near Toronto was copied almost verbatim from Mackenzie's own
accounts in the _Caroline Almanac_ and elsewhere. This is patent to
any one who takes the trouble to make the comparison. Mackenzie was
well aware that such was the case, and that McLeod knew little or
nothing about the affair near Toronto except what he had learned from
his, Mackenzie's, own writings. Yet in 1854, when he was trying to
bolster up his mendacious stories about the flag of truce, Mackenzie
actually quoted McLeod's narrative as confirmatory of his own. McLeod,
long before this time, had discovered the absurdity of the account he
had embodied in his book, and felt ashamed for having been credulous
enough to adopt Mackenzie's version of affairs. When he saw
Mackenzie's reference to himself in the _Message_, in May, 1854, he
wrote to Dr. Rolph a letter from which I transcribe the following
passages:

"It appears Wm. L. Mackenzie, in his _Message_ of the 19th inst., has
quoted from my narrative of the transactions which took place in
December, 1837, near Toronto, that part which alludes to the affair of
the flag of truce, with the view, it appears, to put the truth of his
charges against you beyond any doubt.

"Whether my relation of that affair is confirmatory of his statements
or not I leave the public to judge.

"In the first place I was upwards of 200 miles distant from the flag
of truce at the time it took place; consequently could have no
personal knowledge of the transaction.

"Secondly: my authority when writing the narrative was no less a
personage than the celebrated and renowned author of the _Caroline
Almanac_, published at Rochester by Wm. L. Mackenzie, Esq., Editor of
the _Message_; and from which almanac I transcribed verbatim what he,
Wm. L. Mackenzie, Editor of the _Message_ and formerly of the
_Caroline Almanac_, re-quoted from my narrative to prove the veracity
of his statements.

"It is, therefore, Wm. L. Mackenzie's statements in the _Caroline
Almanac_ of 1840 or thereabouts, testifying to the veracity of the
same W. L. Mackenzie's same statements, re-transcribed from my
narrative, in his _Message_ of 1854."

The statements of Lount, Mackenzie and Alves have now been considered.
They form the entire case on one side. Each one of them, as has been
shown, is open to many objections, and the combined strength of the
three is not far removed from weakness. Even if there were no
countervailing evidence, it could not be said that the case presented
by them is made out with any degree of clearness. But there is a
weight of testimony on the other side which is very hard to get over.
With this testimony it now becomes necessary to deal.

There is to be considered, first, the following

STATEMENT OF HUGH CARMICHAEL, THE FLAG-BEARER.

I have repeatedly seen in the newspapers a statement that when the
flag of truce, in 1837, came up to the late Mr. Lount, Dr. Rolph said
to him he had brought a message from his Excellency the
Lieut.-Governor to prevent the effusion of blood, and that at the same
time he gave Mr. Lount a wink to walk on one side, when he requested
Mr. Lount not to hear the message, but go on with their proceedings,
meaning that Mr. Lount should not attend to the message. I was the
bearer of the flag, and accompanied Dr. Rolph and Mr. Baldwin
throughout the transactions under it.

Upon the arrival of the flag of truce on the ground, Dr. Rolph
addressed Mr. Lount, who stood at a distance, and announced a message
from Sir Francis Head to prevent the effusion of blood, and to offer
an amnesty from the Governor upon peaceably going to their homes.

Mr. Lount accepted the terms, and in behalf of those with him
requested of the flag of truce a confirmation of their authority in
writing.

Dr. Rolph and Mr. Baldwin said they would go back to the city, obtain
it, and return and meet them with it at the Toll Gate; Mr. Lount at
the same time engaging to do no act of hostility. And they immediately
returned with me under the flag to the city for that purpose.

During the going out and staying on the ground, and returning to the
city, as above stated (all of which was done promptly), Dr. Rolph, Mr.
Baldwin and myself being all on horseback, kept in close phalanx, not
a yard apart. Neither of the persons mentioned could have got off his
horse, nor have called or winked to Mr. Lount and walked aside and
communicated with him, nor have said anything irrelevant to the flag
of truce, or against its good faith, as is untruly alleged, without my
knowledge.

Upon returning to Toronto with the flag, as stated, Dr. Rolph and Mr.
Baldwin asked for the expected confirmation of the authority, and
received in answer, that Sir Francis Head had recalled the amnesty. In
company with Dr. Rolph and Mr. Baldwin, I immediately returned with
the flag, in the same compact order as above stated, to Mr. Lount; and
Dr. Rolph, with expressions of regret, announced the retractation of
Sir F. Head.

The flag of truce was then openly and formally declared at an end.

Up to this second and final period of the flag of truce, neither of
the persons mentioned could have got off his horse, nor have called or
winked to Mr. Lount and walked aside with him, nor have said anything
irrelevant to the flag of truce, or against its good faith, as is
untruly alleged, without my knowledge.

(Signed) HUGH CARMICHAEL.

Quebec, 30th August, 1852.

The foregoing was obtained at the instance of Dr. Rolph for the
express purpose of contradicting Mackenzie. It is directly
contradictory of Lount and Mackenzie, and is in perfect accord with
Dr. Rolph's own version of the flag of truce affair. Mr. Lindsey, in
his _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., p. 85, note, says that Carmichael's
statements on the subject were inconsistent, and that he told a very
different story at other times. If Carmichael's evidence is to be
impeached upon the ground of inconsistency, what is to become of
Mackenzie's? But diligent enquiry has not enabled me to discover any
evidence of inconsistency on Carmichael's part, and if Mr. Lindsey has
any such evidence in his possession it is only fair that he should
produce it. So far as my enquiries have extended--and they have been
many and searching--Carmichael always told the same story, and told it
in such a manner as to command the belief of his auditors. Persons who
knew both Carmichael and Mackenzie have assured me that on any
question of veracity they would not hesitate for a moment to accept
the word of the former in preference to that of the latter. I am
therefore unable to concur with Mr. Lindsey when he remarks that "the
weight of the evidence is entirely in favour of the correctness of
Lount's statement." See _Life of Mackenzie_, _ubi supra_.

It next becomes necessary to glance at the

STATEMENT OF ROBERT BALDWIN.

On the return of Doctor Rolph and myself the second time, with the
Lieutenant-Governor's final reply that he would not give anything in
writing, we found the insurgents at the first toll-gate, and turned
aside to the west of Yonge Street, where we delivered this
answer--after which Doctor Rolph having immediately requested me to
wait a moment for him, I did wait some time, during which he was out
of my sight and hearing. I was then directed to ride westerly. This
occupied the time while I waited, and while I was riding at a common
walk from Yonge Street to the College Avenue, probably three-eighths
of a mile. The direction to ride westerly, as I then supposed, was for
the purpose of the flag being returned to the city by the way of the
College Avenue. Shortly after reaching the Avenue, however, I was
joined by Dr. Rolph, and we returned together by the way of Yonge
Street. I have no reason to know what communications took place
between Dr. Rolph and the insurgents while he was out of my sight and
hearing. At the foot of Yonge Street a crowd was collected, waiting,
apparently, the news which we might bring. After waiting some short
time, the Sheriff arrived, to whom we reported that we had delivered
the Lieutenant-Governor's answer, and that no further propositions
were made by the insurgents. Immediately on the delivery of this
answer, I rode up Lot Street towards my own home, and heard as I was
riding on a cheer as from the persons collected at the foot of Yonge
Street, but its object I did not ascertain.

(Signed) R. BALDWIN.

Jan'y 2nd, 1838.

A true copy. (Signed) A. B. HAWKE,
            _Secretary to the Commission_.

It goes without saying that there is no question as to the perfect
veracity and good faith of any statement made by Mr. Baldwin. The
foregoing was made by him before a Government Commission, and may be
seen on p. 406 of the Appendix to the Journal of Assembly for 1837-'8.
It will be observed that he makes no reference whatever to the first
journey, but it may be assumed as absolutely certain that he would
have done so had anything taken place of so extraordinary a character
as a secret conference between his colleague, Dr. Rolph, and the
insurgent leader. Indeeed, no one who knows anything of Mr. Baldwin
would for a moment believe that he would have gone out a second time
with Dr. Rolph if the latter had on the first visit done anything so
disgraceful as to secretly confer with a rebel leader while he, Dr.
Rolph, was the representative of the Lieutenant-Governor. Mr.
Baldwin's silence as to the first visit affords very strong evidence
that there was no treachery or impropriety in connection with it.

The evidence presents itself in a still stronger light when it is
remembered that Mr. Baldwin was subjected to examination by persons
who would have been very glad to elicit a fact so damnifying to Dr.
Rolph as would have been involved in such treachery as Mackenzie in
after years sought to fasten upon him. It will also be remembered that
when Boulton charged Rolph with treacherous conduct (see _ante_, p.
73, note), Rolph attested Mr. Baldwin as his witness to prove his good
faith. It is hard to believe that he would have done this had Mr.
Baldwin been able to testify to his treachery.

STATEMENT OF WILLIAM WARE.

William Ware, of the City of Toronto, Esq., being duly sworn, deposeth
and saith as follows: On Tuesday, the fifth day of December, I went up
Yonge Street on horseback at the time the flag of truce went up the
second time. I was stopped by a man who presented a pike at me. He
said to me: "You cannot go up any further this way; you must go into
that field." This was going up the Gallows Hill, near Mr. Charles
Thompson's. I saw Mackenzie there, and Samuel Lount was sitting on the
fence. I applied to Mackenzie for liberty to go on. He asked me my
business. I said I was going to Van Ostrand's. He said he must speak
to General Lount. He then turned round and said I must not go up. He
made me dismount, and took my horse, which he gave to one of his
followers. He then said I might go home. While I was there I heard one
man say to another: "The light from the Sheriff's house will be the
sign." I understood him to mean that the firing the Sheriff's house
was to be the signal of attack on the town. I then passed on. I saw
Dr. Rolph and Mr. Robert Baldwin go up with a flag of truce. After
their communication with Mackenzie, Mr. Baldwin returned leisurely
down the hill. Dr. Rolph remained for a short time, speaking to
Mackenzie, I think for about two minutes. Mr. Baldwin walked his horse
about three rods, and then stopped, and looked around for Dr. Rolph,
who then came up, and they went off for town together. When the
discussion was going on about my passing up Yonge Street, Dr. Rolph
said, "He must not go." I was much surprised at his interference. I
was up Yonge Street that morning, and I saw a large party in front of
Montgomery's, and I was told by some of the people on the road that at
least fifteen hundred were coming from Lloydtown. I was as near the
body at Montgomery's as I dared. When Dr. Rolph remained behind Mr.
Baldwin, Mackenzie laid his hand upon Rolph's horse, and they
continued in earnest conversation together.

(Signed) Wm. Ware.

Sworn before the Commission, 20th December, 1837.

             (Signed) R. B. SULLIVAN.
A true copy. (Signed) A. B. HAWKE,_ Secretary to the Commission_.

This statement was also made before the Government Commission. It
cannot be accepted as imparting much strength to either side of the
controversy, for there is manifest blundering and misapprehension
throughout. It is quite evident from the contents that the occurrences
referred to in the first part are identical with those referred to by
Mr. Baldwin, on which assumption they must have taken place during the
second visit. Indeed, the witness expressly states that they occurred
when the flag of truce "went up the second time." Yet he places the
scene of action at Gallows Hill, a full mile away from the spot where
the flag of truce was received the second time. The only way of
explaining this testimony is by assuming that he confused certain
episodes of his morning ride up Yonge Street with events that took
place during the second visit of the flag of truce. Yet even that
assumption does not greatly mend the matter. He distinctly refers to
Mr. Baldwin returning "leisurely down the hill" _i.e._, Gallows Hill;
whereas Mr. Baldwin did not proceed farther northward than the _foot_
of Gallows Hill, even on the first visit with the flag. The entire
statement is hopeless confusion, and to attempt to extract any sunbeam
from such an opaque cucumber would involve mere waste of time. So far
as it has any weight at all, it must be accepted as evidence for the
defence.

The following statement of Brotherson is important as proving that Dr.
Rolph, within three days after the affair of the flag of truce, told
the story precisely as he continued to tell it to the end of his life,
and that he uniformly referred to his communication to the insurgents
as having been made "after getting through with the Governor's
business."

STATEMENT OF PHILIP CHARLES HAMILTON BROTHERSON.

Philip Charles Hamilton Brotherson, of Queenston, in the District of
Niagara, Gentleman, being duly sworn, deposeth and saith as follows:
On Thursday night last, as I was informed, John Rolph, Esquire,
arrived at Lewiston, in the State of New York. I was there on Friday
morning, and met the said John Rolph at Lewiston aforesaid. I asked
him why and when he left Toronto, and what news was from thence. He
said that Wm. Lyon Mackenzie commanded a number of men assembled in
arms about three miles from Toronto, for the purpose, as I understood,
of taking Toronto, and that he had been sent to them by the Governor
with a flag of truce; and that after getting through with the
Governor's business he had said to Mackenzie that if he would come
into the town he thought he could take the place. I understood him to
mean that he had advised the said Mackenzie to come in and take the
town. I did not hear the said John Rolph exhorting any person to join
the party in arms in this Province. On being asked in my presence of
the prospects of success of the said party, he said that Mackenzie had
acted unaccountably in not coming into the town; and he said he,
Mackenzie, could have taken the town even on the day the said John
Rolph had gone with the flag of truce, and that he expected the said
Mackenzie in town in half an hour after the said John Rolph had
returned with the flag of truce. Mr. Thomas P. Scovell, Lyman Scovell,
Mr. Spaulding, formerly a member of the Senate of the same State, W.
R. Merrifield and Major Bell, inhabitants of Lewiston, were all
present, and can, if they please, bear evidence to the facts above
stated. The said John Rolph stated upon the occasion above mentioned
that the reason of his leaving Toronto was that some arrests had been
made, and that it could be proved how that he, the said John Rolph,
had sent messages to Mackenzie. In my opinion there is no present
danger of any number of the citizens of the United States joining the
persons in rebellion in this Province, but that if the present
disturbance were to be protracted into Civil War I have no doubt but
that many volunteers would be found at Buffalo who would do so.

(Signed) P. C. H. BROTHERSON.

Sworn on the 12th December, 1837, before the Commission.

             (Signed) R. S. JAMESON,
A true copy. (Signed) A. B. HAWKE, _Secretary to the Commission._

Mackenzie's conduct in so persistently raking up the affairs of
1837-'8 during his subsequent Parliamentary career was very offensive
to the more respectable portion of the survivors among the insurgents.
It was felt that any unnecessary public reference to these affairs by
any one was far from desirable, and that any such reference to them by
Mackenzie was in the highest degree indiscreet and indelicate, not to
say shameless. "Many of Mackenzie's friends," writes Gibson to Dr.
Rolph, under date of 1st December, 1852, "think he was not in his
sober senses when he referred to the affairs of 1837 in the House of
Assembly." One of these friends was a gentleman who took a prominent
part in organizing the "Clear Grit" party, and who is still living in
Canada. From a letter written by him to Dr Rolph on the 6th of
November, 1852, and which is now in my possession, I make the
following extract: "I regret much to hear of Mackenzie's conduct. He
is undoubtedly insane, and I think the time has come to let the public
know it." Some of his well-wishers remonstrated with him on his
unseemly conduct, but by reason of his fiery temper he was thoroughly
unmanageable, and could not be rendered amenable to discipline.

The more he was remonstrated with, the more violent did he become.
Much as his old friends were disposed to pity him on account of his
many misfortunes, they were soon compelled to abandon all hope of
doing anything for him. He was a bundle of contradictions and
impracticabilities. He professed to be disinterested and independent;
yet he could without scruple write such letters as that quoted on pp.
83, 84. He professed to be above accepting any office in the gift of
the Government; yet he endeavoured to coerce members into supporting
personal claims which he knew to be dishonest and unfounded. During
his exile he tried to extort money from his old friends by processes
which it is hardly uncharitable to characterize as blackmail. Much is
to be forgiven to the man who is steeped to the lips in poverty, and
who knows not where to turn for his next meal; but even such indigence
cannot go far to excuse such letters as he wrote from Rochester to
Canada in 1843. On this subject I would fain say no more; but it might
certainly have been expected that a man with such memories behind him
would have refrained from making himself specially invidious, after
his return from exile, by awaking the stilled pulse of the past. Such
was the opinion of many persons who had once been his friends, but
their efforts to restrain him acted as incentives to further
demonstrativeness on his part, rather than as dissuasives. Among
Gibson's papers I find the draft of the following letter addressed by
him to Mackenzie, and bearing date the 5th of March, 1854:--

"Dear Sir:

"I regret to see you continually bringing up old matters connected
with the affairs of 1837. It can do no good, and injures the feelings
of some of your best friends. You must be aware that you have said so
much on many of the subjects that you have got completely astray on
them. I have regretted to see it. When I see the testimony of the late
Samuel Lount contradicting your version in the _Caroline Almanac_, the
inference to be drawn is that you of your own accord burned Dr.
Horne's house, and you would have done the same to Sheriff Jarvis's
had Mr. Lount and myself not interfered.

"I suppose you are aware the late Samuel Lount was dull of hearing.
One day, in the House of Assembly, he asked me if I could hear the
gentleman who was speaking. I told him I could, very plainly. He said
he could not, and had never been aware that he was dull of hearing
until very lately, which I have no doubt will account for the
difference in the testimony of him and Mr. Carmichael.

"You are aware of your own failing a shortness of sight--and you give
the version of others in many cases very far from truth, making
yourself a hero, and your associates cowards. If any great thing was
done, you did it; if any failure, your cowardly associates would not
let you. I have submitted to your charge of being a coward for sixteen
years, and would probably for sixteen more. But I am daily appealed to
in these matters, from your constant allusions to them. If there is to
be a continuance of allusions to these matters, I shall be under the
necessity of publishing to the world a statement of the whole
transaction, with your conversations with me, both in Canada and the
United States, with some letters of yours as circulars to Canadians on
the frontier.

                                  Yours truly,

W. L. Mackenzie, Esq.                            "DAVID GIBSON."

Gibson appears to have written to Dr. Rolph during the following
month, suggesting that Mackenzie's falsehoods should not be allowed to
go unexposed. Rolph's reply is as follows:

Private.                                    QUEBEC, 19th April, 1854.

"My Dear Sir:

"I telegraphed you, I believe, my opinion that we have neither leisure
nor seasonable opportunity to repel Mackenzie's misstatements and
misrepresentations. A general denial of the truthfulness would be
desirable, but I would at present avoid taking up any _particular
point_, or directing his own attention to the evidence of his own
untruthfulness in any statement, however glaring. The time has not yet
arrived. Even the Montreal _Gazette_, the only paper (Tory) which has
yet noticed it in Lower Canada, admits him to be unworthy of credit.
You mention his contradictory representations; but such points are at
present better kept to ourselves. It may do for him to criminate every
one, and to betray every man whom he can; but it would not do for us
to take that course. The time will come, perhaps is not far distant,
when names can be used freely without compromising ourselves or
others. Let us await it, and in the meantime collect such facts as may
hereafter vindicate the truth.

                                      "I am, my dear sir, yours truly,

"To David Gibson, Esq., Elora.                           "JOHN ROLPH."

It may perhaps be thought by some readers that I have encumbered my
pages by an embarrassment of riches by an amount of testimony far more
than sufficient for the full establishment of the statements in the
text. But Mackenzie's inventions have obtained so wide a circulation,
and--owing to their never having been called in question--so general a
belief, that I have felt it incumbent upon me to present the case in a
full and clear light. There will no longer, I think, be much doubt in
the minds of my readers that this far from unimportant chapter in our
history has long stood in urgent need of being re-written.

Before bringing this long note to a close, I may add that Sir Francis
Head represents the mission of Baldwin and Rolph to the insurgent camp
as having been undertaken on Wednesday, the 6th of December, whereas
in fact it was undertaken on Tuesday, the 5th. See his despatch to
Lord Glenelg, dated 19th December, 1837, embodied in the ninth chapter
of his _Narrative_. Whether this misrepresentation was made wilfully
or through sheer carelessness cannot be pronounced upon with
certainty. Considering that the despatch was written when only a
fortnight had elapsed after the occurrence of the event referred to,
it seems almost incredible that the erroneous statement can be
attributed to mere inadvertence. Sir Francis and Mackenzie were
_Arcades ambo_ in the matter of veracity.

FOOTNOTES:

[79] See Hawk's statement,_ ante_, pp. 40, 41. I also find among Dr.
Rolph's papers the following confirmatory letter, written by Hawk in
1854, when Mackenzie, out of a feeling of personal spite, was doing
his utmost to stir up ill blood and to create division in the Reform
ranks by dragging the affairs of 1837 into the political warfare of
the period:

"HAWKSVILLE, 1st June, 1854.

"Hon. John Rolph:

"Dear Sir:

"When you was here I would very much liked to have had a conversation
with you about the affairs of 1837, but there was no opportunity. I
see Mackenzie is trying to make a fuss about the flag of truce. I was
with my uncle and a number of more stationed on Yonge Street at the
Gallows Hill. Mackenzie and some of the party had went west toward
Captain Baldwin's. The flag of truce came up Yonge Street, and uncle
Samuel Lount said to me, as they came near to us, that 'As Mackenzie
is not here I will have to meet them,' and he gave me his rifle and
went a short distance forward, and had some conversation with the
party who came with the flag, after which they turned round and
returned to Toronto, and I went forward to my uncle, having kept the
rest of the men back during the time the flag remained, so that they
should not disturb the conversation. We afterwards went down towards
the toll-gate, and Mackenzie was present when the flag came out the
last time. I do not think my uncle would have been in the rebellion if
he had not been led to believe by Mackenzie that what we wanted would
be obtained without shedding of blood, and that the Robinsons and many
other leading men in Toronto favoured the rebellion.

"I remain

"Your obedient servant,

"JOHN HAWK."

Mr. Gorham gives the strongest testimony to the same effect. In a
letter written last year referring to Hawk's statement on pp. 40, 41,
_ante_, he says: "I have carefully read Mr. John Hawk's statement
relative to events that occurred in connexion with the appearance and
reception of the flag of truce borne by Messrs. Rolph and Baldwin on
Tuesday, Dec'r 5th, 1837, and fully endorse its correctness in every
particular relating to the appearance and reception of that flag of
truce. I was present with the insurgents at that time and place, and
saw Rolph and Baldwin when they rode up to the insurgents' line, not
more than forty feet from where I stood. I was personally acquainted
with both of them. When the flag of truce first returned toward the
city of Toronto, word was passed along the insurgents' line that a
suspension of hostilities was made for two hours, and that during that
time no forward movement was to be made by them toward the city nearer
than the toll-gate. Soon after the suspension of the truce I saw
Mackenzie and others go into Horne's house, and soon after saw smoke
issuing from between the shingles of the roof, and heard the
expressions of indignation and disgust made by many of the insurgents
at that act of vandalism."

Such is the testimony of two persons who were present when the flag of
truce first reached the insurgent camp. Neither of them could have any
purpose to serve by misrepresenting the facts. If Hawk could be
suspected of any such design, it would naturally be supposed that he
would wish to confirm the statement of his uncle, Samuel Lount. Yet
his story is in several respects contradictory of Lount's. The
historical accuracy of the latter will form the subject of future
consideration.

[80] It seems probable enough that Mackenzie may have ridden over and
joined Lount before the reply was given to Rolph and Baldwin. Whether
he sent the blustering messages to Sir Francis Head which he himself
has placed on record is more open to question. See his _Narrative_, as
reprinted by Fothergill, p. 12, where it is stated that in response to
the Lieutenant-Governor's query as to what would satisfy the rebels,
Mackenzie replied "Independence," and demanded an answer within an
hour. It must be remembered that Mackenzie's _Narrative_ was
manufactured for the United States market, and that his chief object
was to write what would be acceptable to the "rout of American
rascaldom" with whom he was associated at Navy Island and afterwards.
Mr. Lindsey states that Mackenzie's reply to Sir Francis's message
was: "Independence, and a convention to arrange details." See _Life of
Mackenzie_, vol. ii., p. 82. Alves's story, which was really written
by Mackenzie, represents the reply as being: "A free convention of the
people." See _post_, p 85.

[81] At the present day the College Avenue extends northward only as
far as College Street. In 1837 the road cut through the trees was
commonly known as College Avenue all the way to Bloor Street.

[82] This statement was publicly made by Dr. Rolph from his place in
the Legislative Assembly of Canada, on the night of Thursday, the 28th
of October, 1852, at which date he held the portfolio of Commissioner
of Crown Lands in the Hincks-Morin Administration. It was made in
reply to a speech by W. H. Boulton, a virulent member of the
Opposition, who then sat in the House as one of the representatives of
Toronto. Mr. Boulton, in the course of his speech, had taunted Dr.
Rolph with having acted a treacherous part in the flag of truce
affair. The Doctor's statement was most explicit in its terms, and was
supported by the statement of the flag-bearer himself, which is
printed in full in the note at the end of this chapter. Dr. Rolph also
referred to Mr. Baldwin as being able to furnish conclusive evidence
on the subject. Mr. Baldwin had then retired from public life, and as
no more explicit demand was ever made upon him, he did not see fit to
keep alive old animosities by voluntarily coming forward with his
testimony. It is reasonable to assume, however, that Dr. Rolph would
not have mentioned Mr. Baldwin's name in such a connection if he had
any reason to fear that gentleman's evidence. It may be added that Mr.
Boulton accepted Dr. Rolph's version, and subsequently expressed
regret for having falsely accused him. See the Parliamentary debates
of the period, and the Quebec _Chronicle_ for Saturday, October 30th,
1852. Dr. Rolph's statement was frequently reiterated, both orally and
in writing, and he never varied in the slightest degree in any of the
details.

[83] See Note at end of chapter.

[84] _Ante_, p. 45.

[85] Among Dr. Rolph's papers I find the following direct and pointed
testimony from Mr. Timothy Parson, a prominent Toronto Radical of
those days, who afterwards was appointed Secretary to the Provisional
Government at Navy Island. Mr. Parson was a well-known merchant of
Toronto for some time prior to the Rebellion, and was recognized as a
man of intelligence and public spirit. He took part in founding the
York Mechanics' Institute, of which he was the first secretary and
librarian.

STATEMENT OF TIMOTHY PARSON.

On the Tuesday following the rising on Yonge St. I followed Dr. Rolph
out to the Patriot camp on his second visit with the flag of truce
from Sir F. B. Head. I was at a short distance when he delivered his
message to W. L. Mackenzie, and did not exactly hear what passed, but
on Dr. Rolph turning to return to the city, I distinctly remember him
saying to the following effect, and I think in the same words: "Wind
your way into the city as soon as possible, at my heels."

On my return to the city I expected them immediately, and told several
friends they were coming.

(Signed) T. PARSON.

ROCHESTER, Oct. 33th, 1838.

The only difference between this account and Dr. Rolph's is the
substitution of the word "wind" for "wend"--an immaterial variation
not at all to be wondered at when it is borne in mind that Mr. Parson
was not at that moment in close proximity to the speaker.

I have fortunately been able to verify the foregoing statement by
means of personal interviews with Mr. Parson, who is still living, and
in the enjoyment of a green old age. His home for many years past has
been Maywood, a suburb of Chicago. My acquaintance with him dates from
the month of September, 1883, when he paid a visit to Toronto, and
when I obtained from him valuable information respecting the affairs
of 1837. While this volume is passing through the press I have enjoyed
the privilege of renewing my acquaintance with him, and of questioning
him as to the statement made by him at Rochester, forty-seven years
since. His memory is keen and unclouded, and he remembers the events
therein referred to with the utmost clearness. He says: "I could
almost swear that I have given Dr. Rolph's identical words."

As Mr. Parson is still remembered with kindness by not a few persons
in Canada, some additional information regarding him may not be
considered out of place. For twenty-five years subsequent to the
Rebellion he resided in Buffalo and St. Louis, whence he removed to
Chicago. During the whole period of his residence in the States he has
been a keen politician, and he was one of the earliest participators
in the Free Soil movement. He has been a member of two Presidential
conventions, and is widely recognized as a man of wise and prudent
counsels, whose abilities and sterling integrity entitle him to
respect. Of late years he has devoted his best energies to the cause
of prohibition, of which he is an earnest and enthusiastic advocate.
For the rest, I may repeat, with very slight modifications, what I
wrote of him more than two years ago in the columns of a Toronto
newspaper. Though he has passed his 78th birthday, he is a hale,
hearty man, who might very well pass for 65, and who bears upon his
face the imprint of regular habits and a well-spent life. His
intellectual powers are evidently as keen and vigorous as they have
ever been, and his spare, well-knit frame appears to be capable of
sustaining him through many more years of the wear and tear of
existence. His voice is clear and mellow, and his language, without
being either pretentious or argumentative, is well-chosen and
impressive.

[86] The messenger was a young man named Henry Hoover Wright, who was
then a medical student in the office of Dr. Rolph, but who is now, and
for many years past has been, one of the most eminent members of the
medical profession in this country. Six months after Dr. Rolph's
departure from Canada young Wright followed him to Rochester, where he
was for some time an inmate of his house, and where he pursued his
studies under the Doctor's direction. The following three statements
were prepared by Mr. Wright while he was thus situated. They were
prepared at the Doctor's request, but the latter, as I am informed by
Dr. Wright himself, did not in any way seek to influence his memory or
judgment in their preparation. I may add that Dr. Wright, in
recounting to me the circumstances described, did not vary an iota
from his written statements of forty-seven years before.

STATEMENTS OF HENRY H. WRIGHT.

[_The portions between brackets have been added by me for the purpose
of making the matter more clear to the reader's mind_.]

On Tuesday, the 5th Dec'r, 1837, I returned [to Toronto by steamer]
from Niagara [whither he had been sent by Dr. Rolph on personal
business]. It was about 1 p.m. when we [the passengers] got in. We
were met on the wharf by a body of men armed with muskets, etc., to
the number of about 12. I went up home [to Dr. Rolph's house]; found
all but James and Mary [domestic servants] absent. At Mr. Bidwell's
saw Mrs. Rolph, who told me the Dr. had gone out Yonge Street with a
flag of truce. Went to see Dr. See and Mr. Hunter at their lodgings.
From them I learned some of the particulars respecting the outbreak. I
came up home again, and met Dr. Rolph, Carmichael, Emery, Armstrong
and a number of others in Lot Street. All were expressing great
surprise that Mackenzie did not come in. Dr. Horne's house had been on
fire at this time about 1/2 an hour. I said I would go out to see the
cause of the delay. Some one requested me to take out word that a body
of men, to the number of 37, were placed in the lodges at the foot of
College Avenue, and in the brick houses on the east side of Graves
[Simcoe] Street. The market and buildings adjacent were occupied by
the Government, who were soliciting volunteers. In going up Yonge
Street I saw no guards, and met with no obstruction from the Tories.
Dr. Horne's house had fallen in only a short time previously to my
passing it, in which neighbourhood I was told they [the insurgents]
were stationed. It was about 3 p.m. I found the main body placed on
Gallows Hill, about a mile further from the city than Horne's house,
which is about a mile from it. There was a guard of one man on foot
with a fusil, and one on horseback. They stopped me, but on [my]
telling my name they knew me, and let me pass. When I got up to the
main body I asked for Mackenzie. I was told he was not there, but that
Gibson and Lount were. I saw Gibson first, and told him my message. I
also saw Lount, and told him the same. I asked why they did not come
in. "We cannot go till General Mackenzie is ready," was the reply, or
words to that amount. I asked again for Mackenzie, and was told he was
a little further up. I galloped on as fast as I could being anxious to
return to the city quickly with information to Dr. Rolph of the cause
of the delay, and the time they [the insurgents] intended to come
in--till I arrived at Montgomery's tavern. No one could tell me where
he was, and after searching, with other persons, over the house, I
asked Montgomery, who said he supposed he [Mackenzie] was in his room.
We again searched the house through, and were as loner as 20 minutes
hunting for him. I went to the stable, and found him ordering a man
off the ground. This man said he was a Patriot; that he had just come
out from Toronto and brought him some news. Mackenzie said: "I don't
know you, and there are too many friends. I don't want anything to do
with you"--and in the end drove him away. I gave Mackenzie all the
information I was possessed of where he would meet most resistance,
etc., and told him the Patriots in town desired me to request him to
hasten into the city. He asked: "What is Dr. Rolph doing?" I said "I
have just got home, and have not had time to learn all the
particulars, but when I started out I was given the message I have
delivered to you." I remarked to him that he had a much smaller body
of men than persons in town supposed, as they rated them at 2,000.[88]
We started for the main body. On the way we were met by small bodies
of men making towards Montgomery's to get their supper. Mackenzie
tried to persuade them to return. Told me to ride on to Gibson and
Lount. After riding slowly some distance, and finding he was so long
coming down, I rode back to find him. By this time it was dusk, and I
found him not 1/4 of a mile south of Montgomery's tavern, where I
[had] left him. He was talking to a group of men who had brought up
the prisoners. He told me to go on to the city, and say he would be in
in half an hour. When I got down to Gallows Hill all the men were
going back, declaring they would go in [to the city] in the daytime,
but that rifles were little use at night. Gibson and Lount said their
men would not make the attempt that night, but that they would be in
by daylight the next (Wednesday) morning.

(Signed) H. H. WRIGHT.

   *    *    *    *    *

I was well acquainted with a majority of the Reformers living in the
northern and western parts of the city of Toronto. We frequently
conversed about the outbreak of the 4th Dec'r, 1837. R. Emery,
Alexander and Thomas Armstrong, Robert, William, and David McIntosh,
H. Carmichael, H. Middlemiss, George Dodd, J. White, George Norton,
William Dutcher, J. Mills, C. Baker, Brewer, Gilbert and E. Wright I
had most opportunities of seeing, and they are men well acquainted
with the views and feelings of their brother Reformers in the city.

[87] See Mackenzie's _Narrative_, _ubi supra_, p. 13. See also the
extract from his _Flag of Truce_, quoted in note at end of this
chapter, where he says "Dr. Rolph advised us not to go into the city
_till towards dark_." "Towards dark" would mean not later than 4.30
p.m. What then becomes of his story about 6 o'clock? The statement of
Alves, also quoted at the end of this chapter, says: "Dr. Rolph
privately advised that we should not enter the city till dark." This
statement of Alves, as elsewhere recorded (see note _ante_, p. 23),
was really penned by Mackenzie, and, I regret to say, must have been
known by him to be false when he penned it. In an unpublished letter
of "General" Donald McLeod now lying before me, dated 25th May, 1854,
I find a straight contradiction by Alves of the statement which
Mackenzie had formerly induced him to sign. See comments on the
"Statement of William Alves," in note at end of this chapter. The
wonder is that such an absurd and inconsistent tissue of lies should
so long have found credence, even though no voice has been raised to
contradict them.

[88] In the original statement this sentence has been partly
obliterated.




CHAPTER XXIV.

SHERIFF JARVIS'S PICKET.


After the departure of Rolph and Baldwin from their second conference
with the insurgents, Mackenzie and Lount proceeded to re-form their
men with a view to an immediate advance into the city. They found,
however, that there was a good deal of insubordination in their ranks,
and that they could not count upon prompt or implicit obedience to
their commands. The men had had time to compare notes, and were in a
moody, dissatisfied state.[89] Most of them had not heard of the
defeat of the Lower Canadian rebels at St. Charles until after their
arrival at Montgomery's. Living, as they did, in the country, where in
those days news travelled slowly, they had remained in ignorance of
many things which had by this time become clear to them. They
perceived that there was no organization among their leaders, and that
the movement was without a competent head. As for Mackenzie, who had
taken upon himself to be their Commander-in-Chief, it was quite
evident that he was not only devoid of military experience, but that
he was totally unfit for such a position in every respect. They could
not fail to perceive that he was nervous and excited to such a degree
as to be not entirely master of himself. All the forenoon he had
swaggered and strutted about like a very Bobadil,[90] to the huge
astonishment of the men. When he now ordered them to march into the
city they replied that they wanted their dinner. Some light rations
were served out in reply to this demand. A few of the men repaired to
the houses in the neighbourhood, and helped themselves to such
comestibles as were to be found.

While these things were doing, Mackenzie committed an act which tended
to still further destroy the confidence and alienate the sympathies of
his adherents. On the east side of Yonge Street, about a hundred yards
to the north of Bloor Street, and nearly opposite the entrance to the
Davenport Road, stood the private residence of Dr. B. C. Horne,
assistant-cashier of the Bank of Upper Canada. Dr. Horne was a Tory,
and a strong supporter of the Government. Like most persons of his
class in Toronto in those times, he entertained, and had often
expressed, supreme contempt for Mackenzie, whose lasting enmity he is
said to have incurred by refusing him accommodation at the bank.
Mackenzie now saw his opportunity for taking private vengeance upon
his enemy. Accompanied by several insurgents, he walked over to the
Doctor's abode, which he entered without ceremony. After demeaning
himself towards the inmates like one who has altogether taken leave of
his senses, he deliberately set fire to the house with his own hands.
The structure was burned to the ground, and the greater part of the
furniture and other contents were consumed. This proceeding was as
senseless as it was outrageous and disgraceful. Regarded in the light
of a revenge, it was beyond measure stupid and idiotic, for it
altogether failed of its purpose of injuring Doctor Horne, who as a
matter of course was fully recompensed by the Government for his loss.
The insurgents, almost to a man, were disgusted at this exhibition of
petty malignity, and some of them expressed their disgust in forcible
language to Mackenzie himself. The word was passed from man to man
that "Little Mac" was completely off his head, and unfit to be at
large. A good many of them came to the conclusion that there was no
hope for a cause which was directed by one who was so obviously unfit
to govern himself, to say nothing of his fitness to direct the
movements of others. They had been led to believe that there would be
no bloodshed: that the city would fall into their hands without the
striking of a blow. It now appeared probable to them that an energetic
resistance would be made, and that the place would not be won without
a determined struggle. Blood had already been poured out, and, to
crown all, their chief had wantonly set fire to the house of a private
citizen against whom it was understood that he had a personal grudge.
This was not to be borne. Something like a hundred of the more
respectable and intelligent resolved that a cause which was upheld by
deliberate arson was not one which it behooved them to countenance any
further, and they then and there abandoned the movement, and quietly
returned to their homes.[91]

Having entered upon a career of wanton destruction, Mackenzie seems to
have felt the spirit of incendiarism strong upon him. Not much more
than a quarter of a mile, as the crow flies, to the north-east of Dr.
Horne's house, nestled the pleasant little suburban villa of
Rosedale,[92] solitarily situated near the crest of an undulating
elevation among a succession of picturesque and romantic dells. It was
the abode of Sheriff Jarvis, who was another object of Mackenzie's
deep-seated animosity. The latter announced his determination to deal
with Rosedale as he had already dealt with the abode of Dr. Horne, and
was actually starting to carry out his threat when Lount and others
interfered, and induced him to forego his purpose. It was in vain,
however, that the leaders attempted to induce the men to march into
the city. Most of the rank and file were much more intent upon getting
their dinner than upon the great cause which they had espoused. They
withdrew to the neighbourhood of Gallows Hill, where they were regaled
with such "unconsidered trifles" as were to be had from the
householders. Mackenzie, finding it useless to argue further with them
until their hunger should be appeased, conducted his detachment back
to the residence of the Postmaster, where he demanded of Mrs. Howard
whether the dinner was ready which he had ordered several hours
before.[93] He was again referred to the servant in the kitchen,
whereupon he became as violent as he had been during the morning, and
used language which no man in full possession of his faculties would
have employed towards a defenceless woman under such circumstances.
Mrs. Howard sat in front of a fireplace in a small room to the left of
the entrance hall. The insurgent leader stept up to where she sat,
and, seizing her roughly by the arm, dragged her to a window which
commanded a view to the southward. "Do you see that?" he demanded in a
loud tone, and pointing to Dr. Horne's burning dwelling about a mile
distant--"Be thankful that your own house is not in the same
condition." Lount, who accompanied him, and who presumably felt
ashamed of his colleague, privately apologized to Mrs. Howard, begging
her to pay no attention to Mackenzie, but to furnish such provisions
as she could command. A considerable number of the men took possession
of the lawn, where boiled beef and whisky were served out to them, and
where they remained throughout the rest of the afternoon. Some of
them, indeed, remained all night. "The family," says an
eye-witness,[94] "were much alarmed, having only one servant-woman
with them" their man-servant having escaped, "for fear, as he said, of
being taken prisoner by the rebels."

Mackenzie and Lount, after having hastily refreshed themselves at
Mr. Howard's, made another ineffectual attempt to induce the men to
march into the city. All their efforts proved unavailing. A few of
Lount's Lloydtown Company were ready, and even anxious, to go in, but
these formed but a small proportion of the aggregate force. The rest
alleged the lateness of the hour, the smallness of their number, and the
insufficiency of their arms as excuses for their inaction. It would be
dark, they said, before they could reach the central part of the city.
Some fighting might probably be necessary, and if so, they preferred that
it should be in broad daylight. Some of them who were armed with
rifles remarked upon the uselessness of such arms in the night-time.
The real fact seems to have been that they expected reinforcements,
and were disposed to wait until these should arrive. Two bodies of
volunteers had come into camp from the township of Pickermg soon
after noon, and had brought word that several other bodies might be
expected from the adjoining townships before midnight. It is no wonder
that these few hundreds of undisciplined farmers and mechanics felt
some hesitation when the hour of trial arrived, or that they were desirous
of waiting for all the reinforcements that were to be had. They were in
a situation which was entirely new to them, and which might well try
their courage and endurance, for they were expected to overturn by
force a long-established Government, and to set up one of their own in
its place. They were expected to accomplish this in the course of the
next few hours, without proper arms in their hands, and without the
assistance of a competent leader. Most of them, however, professed
their willingness to advance upon the city in daylight, and with this
profession the leaders were compelled to be content.

The rest of the afternoon was necessarily spent by the leaders in
practical inaction. Mackenzie wandered about in an aimless sort of
way, apparently intent upon important business, but really doing
nothing. Between three and four o'clock Dr. Rolph's messenger
arrived[95] to ascertain the cause of the delay in marching into the
city. He had some difficulty in finding Mackenzie, and only discovered
him after a long search. He was then at Montgomery's, engaged in a
petty altercation with a man who professed to be a Patriot, but of
whose good faith Mackenzie seemed to entertain doubts.[96] The
messenger was personally known to Mackenzie, and after a brief
conference the two returned down the road in the direction of Gallows
Hill, for the purpose of taking counsel with Lount and others. They
had not left Montgomery's far behind ere they encountered several
small bodies of insurgents, who were proceeding towards the tavern,
for the purpose, as they stated, of getting their supper. Mackenzie
began to expostulate with them, and once more tried to induce them to
march into the city. He requested Dr. Rolph's messenger to ride on
southward to where Gibson and Lount were encamped. The messenger
accordingly rode on slowly by himself, expecting every moment to be
rejoined by Mackenzie, but as this expectation proved fallacious, he
after a few minutes turned his horse's head and again rode northward
to ascertain what was the cause of delay on the part of the insurgent
chief. He found him at the same spot where he had recently left him,
still engaged in expostulations with some of his adherents. It was
then dusk. Mackenzie requested him to ride into Toronto and inform Dr.
Rolph that the advance into the city would be made in half an hour.
The messenger obeyed. When he reached Gallows Hill, on his way
homeward, he had some conversation with Lount and Gibson, who, with
the main body of the insurgents, had been encamped there during a
great part of the afternoon. He was informed that the men refused to
go into the city that night, but that they would go in at daybreak on
the following morning. Such was the conflicting intelligence with
which he returned to Dr. Rolph.

But Mackenzie's expostulations had by this time produced effect upon a
number of his adherents. He was now able to inform them of certain
facts which he had learned from Dr. Rolph's messenger--namely, that
the city was still comparatively defenceless, and that a considerable
body of Reformers was waiting to join them as soon as they should have
made their way into the heart of the city. This intelligence
stimulated a number of them to action. They professed their readiness
to march into the city at once, without waiting for any further
reinforcements. Their example was contagious, and many of Lount's men
came up and yielded their hearty concurrence. A few minutes more, and
an understanding was arrived at that there should be no further delay
in carrying out the project. It was thought best on this occasion to
leave the prisoners behind at the tavern, so that their presence might
not hamper or impede the action of the rebels on entering the city.
They were accordingly left in charge of Gibson and a body of men
deemed sufficient to prevent their escape. The rest of the insurgents
manned themselves with apparent resolution for the enterprise which
lay before them. For the next two hours it seemed not unlikely that
Toronto would indeed fall into their hands, and that the Provincial
Government would be overturned. These things were, to say the least,
an easy possibility.[97] A few minutes before six o'clock the entire
insurgent force, with the exception of those left behind in charge of
the prisoners, was assembled at the Bloor Street toll-gate. More than
half an hour was required to place them in line of march. Then
Mackenzie delivered himself of another brief harangue. "I told them,"
he writes, "that I was certain there could be no difficulty in taking
Toronto; that both in town and country the people had stood aloof from
Sir Francis; that not 150 men and boys could be got to defend him;[98]
that he was alarmed, and had got his family on board a steamer; that
600 Reformers were ready waiting to join us in the city, and that all
we had to do was to be firm, and with the city would at once go down
every vestige of foreign government in U. C."[99]

About ten minutes past six, the men, to the number of between seven
and eight hundred, [100] started on their southward march. Their
number, however, furnished no correct idea of the actual strength of
the corps, as nearly half of the men were unprovided with any arms
whatever except green sticks or cudgels cut from the woods by the
wayside. These unarmed volunteers brought up the rear of the ragged
regiment. In the van were the riflemen, after whom followed about two
hundred men armed with the pikes to which reference has previously
been made. Then came several score of rustics armed with old muskets
and shot guns. Most, though not all of the men, had white badges upon
the lapels or sleeves of their coats. They marched slowly and
steadily, three abreast, with Lount at their head. Mackenzie, as
usual, was here, there, and everywhere. He had for the nonce resigned
the entire military command into Lount's hands, and seems to have
accompanied the expedition as a sort of general adviser and
irresponsible volunteer. He was mounted on a dark bay horse belonging
to one of the prisoners captured on Dundas Street. As the force moved
down Yonge Street several chance wayfarers and an officer of loyalist
artillery were taken prisoners, but no opposition was encountered
until the head of the column had reached a point a few feet northward
of the present intersection of Yonge and Maitland Streets.[101] There,
in the garden of Mr. William Sharpe, behind a fence on the eastern
side of the road, were Sheriff Jarvis and sixteen of his
outpost-guard, which had been advanced in the course of the evening
from near the corner of McGill Street. The other eleven[102] were
stationed among the trees on the opposite side of the road, a few
yards further north, on the Elmsley property. No sooner had the head
of Lount's column reached this spot than the Sheriff gave the word to
fire. The twenty-seven men composing the guard promptly obeyed the
order, and discharged their pieces at the insurgents, after which they
were seized with panic and took to their heels, running southward
towards the city at full speed. The Sheriff called aloud to them to
stop, and tried to rally them, but they continued to fly, and were
soon beyond the reach of his voice, whereupon he, too, quietly made
his way down into the city out of harm's way. Had the insurgents
promptly followed, there is little doubt that the city would have been
won, for several bodies of Toronto Radicals with arms in their hands
were waiting in different convenient places, ready and anxious to join
their ranks. But panic had also seized the hearts of Lount's
followers. The fire of the guard had spread consternation among them,
although it seems to have been delivered very much at random, and
without any definite aim having been taken. One of the insurgents was
slain by the discharge.[103] The only other immediate results of it
were several more or less serious wounds, two of which ultimately
proved fatal.[104] Lount at once perceived whence the fire proceeded,
and gave the word to his men to return it. Those in front obeyed the
order, but without any effective result, as they were in a state of
excitement and trepidation. Mackenzie states that after the delivery
of their fire, Lount and the men in front fell flat on their faces, in
order to give an opportunity to those behind to fire over them, and
that when those behind saw the riflemen in front falling down, they
imagined that those who fell had been killed or wounded by the enemy's
fire. He adds that they thereupon "took to their heels with a speed
and steadiness of purpose that would have baffled pursuit on foot,"
and that "in a short time not twenty persons were to be found below
the toll bar."[105] It is at any rate certain that the insurgent
forces retreated northward with great precipitation, and that they did
not pause until they had placed the toll-gate between themselves and
the city. Their leaders vainly made the most strenuous efforts to
rally them. No arguments would induce them to face the weapons of
their enemies again that night. They professed themselves ready to
again advance upon the city in daylight, but not in the dark.

Thus passed away the last opportunity for success on the part of the
insurgents, and Sheriff Jarvis's outpost-guard had probably been the
means of saving the city and the Government from at least a temporary
humiliation.[106] The city, as has already been said,[107] was not
much better prepared for an attack at this time than it had been in
the morning, and would have fallen an easy prey to determined
invaders. The Lieutenant-Governor and his advisers had spent the
greater part of the day in fruitless discussion, and in anxious
expectation of the arrival of outside succour from various officers of
militia. The sun had gone down, however, without any such succour
having actually arrived, and the semi-beleaguered Tories were once
more filled with anxious solicitude. Two hours after dark came the
ineffective attempt of the insurgents to enter the city. Its
ineffectiveness did not tend to reassure the supporters of the
Government, as they made no doubt that the attempt would be renewed in
the course of the evening. But before many hours had passed there was
a material change in the aspect of affairs. Soon after nine o'clock a
small body of armed volunteers arrived from the eastern part of the
County of York; and scarcely had the fact been communicated to the
Lieutenant-Governor ere a loud shout announced the arrival of Allan
MacNab by steamer from Hamilton, with upwards of sixty "Men of
Gore"--_i.e_., militiamen from the Gore District in his train. The
announcement filled the Lieutenant-Governor with transports of
delight, insomuch that for a moment he became well-nigh
hysterical.[108] Mr. MacNab had had some military experience, and was
regarded by Sir Francis as a host in himself. The force which he
brought with him consisted of picked men, and was a material accession
of strength to the Government. He moreover brought word of other
succours which might confidently be looked for before the next
morning. Almost at the same moment a spy brought in word that a large
number of the insurgents had lost all heart in the movement, and had
left for their homes; that the leaders were unable to induce those who
remained to make another attempt to enter the city, and that nothing
further was to be feared from them during the night. All these items
of intelligence combined to cheer the spirits of the defenders of the
city, and from this time forward Mackenzie's was an utterly hopeless
cause.

A careful watch was kept in the city throughout the night, which, so
far as concerned the citizens generally, passed without any incident
worthy of note. The Radicals, who had been on the alert all the
previous afternoon, anxiously expecting the arrival of Mackenzie and
his men, were utterly disheartened. The retreat of the entire
insurgent force at the fire of Sheriff Jarvis's outpost-guard afforded
conclusive evidence that they were not to be trusted in an encounter.
It also afforded evidence that their leaders were devoid of
experience, and unfit for the duties which they had undertaken to
discharge. Dr. Rolph and Dr. Morrison recognized the unwelcome fact
that the sun had set upon their hopes. They perceived that to keep the
men any longer hovering upon the outskirts of the city would be
useless and criminal. Accordingly, soon after the arrival of MacNab
and the men of Gore, they despatched a messenger[109] to Mackenzie at
Montgomery's, acquainting him with the state of affairs, and advising
an immediate dispersion. Mackenzie was as little disposed to act upon
such advice as he had been during the conference at Mr. Price's house
on the previous day. He carefully concealed the message from the
volunteers generally, and would have concealed it from the leaders had
such a course been practicable.[110] The leaders, however, were at one
with Mackenzie on this subject, and were unanimously of opinion that
it was now too late to withdraw from the enterprise. They were all
known to the Government by this time. Their complicity in the movement
was indisputable, and they could not hope to escape prosecution. They
felt that nothing was to be gained by submission, and that their only
hope lay in determined and successful action. Thursday was the time
originally appointed for the assembling at Montgomery's. On that day
Colonel Van Egmond would arrive to direct their military operations.
No notification of the accelerated movement had been given except to
those residing within the circle of Lount's immediate influence. On
Thursday, therefore, numerous reinforcements from various quarters
might be looked for. A formal resolution was come to that they should
wait for reinforcements and Colonel Van Egmond, and that a determined
strike for the possession of the capital should then be made.
Meanwhile, all that could be done was to wait as patiently as might be
for the appointed time.

The leaders passed the night at Montgomery's. The men were quartered
in the tavern, stables and outhouses, and in the houses of residents
in the neighbourhood. A few of them appear to have spent the night on
Mr. Howard's lawn.[111] The interval was marked by numerous
desertions, and by the arrival of a few new volunteers from the rural
districts. Most of those who had returned to their homes during the
previous afternoon had taken their arms with them. It seems tolerably
clear that on Wednesday morning the entire insurgent force did not
exceed six hundred men, a great many of whom had not only lost confidence
in Mackenzie, but had survived their enthusiasm for the cause in
which they had embarked, and only continued to be identified with it as
the less of two evils.[112] Nothing of importance could be accomplished
until the arrival of Van Egmond and additional reinforcements. Wednesday
was accordingly spent by most of the men in hanging about the
tavern, and in discussing the probabilities of the morrow. Early in the
forenoon Nelson Gorham, John Hawk and another insurgent were
despatched westward to the London District with messages to Dr. Charles
Duncombe, who had succeeded in raising a miniature rebellion there.

Soon after the departure of these messengers, Mackenzie, Lount, and a
small body of men proceeded westward to Dundas Street, for the purpose
of intercepting the westerly bound mail, and thus preventing Government
intelligence from being disseminated in that direction. They succeeded
in their object. The stage containing the mail-bags, together with the
horses, driver and several passengers, was seized by Mackenzie upon its
arrival at the Peacock Inn,[113] and conveyed to the headquarters at
Montgomery's. Mackenzie ransacked the mail, in which he found
letters from members of the Government to their friends in the country,
acquainting them with the state of affairs in the city, and intimating
that "the loyal volunteers" would soon be able to march out against the
rebels and defeat them. The information thus obtained does not seem
to have been worth the trouble taken in obtaining it.

Mackenzie acted most wantonly throughout the whole of this
transaction. Admitting, for the sake of argument, that the seizure of
the mail was necessary as a measure of self-defence, or that it was at
any rate justifiable in the interest of the insurgents, Mackenzie was
bound by all laws of honour and right feeling to act with moderation,
and not to interfere with private correspondence further than was
absolutely unavoidable. He apparently did not recognize any such
rules. He helped himself to as many of the letters as he wanted, and
distributed the newspapers broadcast among the men from an upper
window of the tavern.[114] He has been charged with abstracting money
from the mail at this time, and though he himself denied the charge,
there seems good reason to believe that it was well-founded. There is
at all events no doubt that during the expedition to Dundas Street he
was guilty of clear and undisguised robbery on the highway, not once
only, but several times. On two of these occasions the robbery was
attended by an exhibition of heartlessness such as could not have been
looked for from Mackenzie--heartlessness of which, it is to be hoped,
he would not have been guilty if he had been thoroughly alive to what
he was doing.[115] The fact was that the insurgents' exchequer was
running short, and had to be replenished. Mackenzie was in sore
straits as to ways and means. He adopted such modes of replenishment
as presented themselves, probably without much consideration as to the
ultimate consequences to his reputation. His mental condition was such
that it would be unfair to judge him by any rigorous standard. Still,
he was measurably responsible for his acts, and for these it is
impossible to make any adequate apology. He thus afforded the
Lieutenant-Governor an opportunity of officially reporting to Lord
Glenelg that he, Mackenzie, had "committed every description of
enormity," and that he had "plundered many inoffensive individuals of
their money."[116] Sir Francis returned to this charge again and
again, classing all the rebels in one common lot as thieves and
vagabonds, and declaring that Rolph and Mackenzie had merely concocted
the rebellion in order that they might have an opportunity to plunder
the banks and then abscond to the United States.[117]

While Mackenzie was still engaged in examining the correspondence
obtained from the mail-bags, two disquieting items of intelligence
reached him in a roundabout manner from the city. The first of these
disclosed the fact that Dr. Morrison had been arrested for high
treason. The second related to Dr. Rolph, who, it was said, had left
the city and ridden westward towards "the head of the lake."[118] The
intelligence came from a trustworthy source, and could not be
discredited. Mackenzie, Lount, Gibson and Fletcher held an immediate
consultation. They vied with each other in deploring the miscarriage
of their enterprise of the night before, whereby their weakness had
been exposed to the authorities. It was deemed prudent to keep the
news, as far as possible, to themselves, but in spite of this resolve
the facts became known to the men, whose spirits, as might have been
anticipated, were not cheered thereby. A few cases of desertion are
said to have occurred during the afternoon in consequence of the
disclosure. It is not strange that the insurgents should by this time
have come to regard the craft upon which they were embarked as a
doomed ship which could not much longer resist the action of the
waves, and which must inevitably go to pieces within the next few
hours.

No other events worth recording took place in the rebel camp on
Wednesday. There was a pretence of drill-exercise during the afternoon
and evening, which passed gloomily away. Most of the men sought
repose early, in order to be as fresh as possible for the struggle which
could not be delayed beyond the morrow.

FOOTNOTES:

[89] Mackenzie endeavours to convey the impression that this
dissatisfaction arose, at least in part, from the fact that the
insurgents had seen Dr. Rolph in custody of the flag of truce, and
that they were thus led to conclude that the Doctor no longer favoured
the rising, but was on the side of the Government. See _Weekly
Message_, _passim_, and _Flag of Truce_, chap. viii. See also
Lindsey's _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., pp. 84, 85. I can find no
confirmation of this view of the case. From Mr. Wright's statement
(see _ante_, p. 78), it appears that the Toronto Reformers "knew
perfectly well the reasons that induced him [Dr. Rolph] to be the
bearer of the flag of truce." If the insurgents were less correctly
informed than the Toronto Reformers as to the Doctor's motives, the
fault was Mackenzie's own. Why did he not explain the position of
affairs to them? He himself alleges that he purposely abstained from
doing so, lest the explanation should leak out, and thus lead to Dr.
Rolph's arrest. This lame excuse is repeated by Mr. Lindsey.
"Mackenzie," he writes, "did not venture to tell the real state of the
case to more than five or six persons; for if it had been publicly
announced, the fact might have reached town and occasioned the
Doctor's arrest." This is a strange story to come from a man who, only
the night before, had placed such blind trust in Mr. Powell a known
supporter of the Government as to accept his bare word on so vital a
point as his having arms concealed about his person. "Had he about him
such a treacherous set of Patriots that they would have instantly
deserted with the intelligence for the Doctor's arrest? Could he trust
the word of Tory Powell, and not trust his Patriots in such a
case?...Strange, that he should have selected, if true, such abandoned
men! Strange, that he ever expected Dr. Rolph to join men thus ready
wickedly to betray him!" See Dr. Rolph's _Review_, _post_. Had
Mackenzie shown the same regard for others of his fellow-insurgents he
would not have so carelessly permitted his private papers to fall
into the hands of the Government, in his precipitate retreat from
Montgomery's. By this most criminal carelessness many persons were
inculpated in the Rebellion, and were condemned to suffer the penalty
of their share therein, who would otherwise have escaped the vengeance
of the ruling faction in the Province.

[90] This, I think, was not due, as has sometimes been alleged, to
cowardice, but to overstrained nerves. One of the insurgent survivors
of that memorable 5th of December informs me that he knew the cause
was hopeless from the moment when Mackenzie harangued the men before
leaving Montgomery's. He says: "Little Mac conducted himself like a
crazy man all the time we were at Montgomery's. He went about storming
and screaming like a lunatic, and many of us felt certain that he was
not in his right senses. He abused and insulted several of the men
without any shadow of cause, and Lount had to go round and pacify them
by telling them not to pay any attention to him, as he was hardly
responsible for his actions. If we had locked him up in a room at the
tavern, and could then have induced Lount to lead us into the city, we
should have overturned the Government without any fighting worth
talking about." Another survivor said to me, in the course of
conversation: "I got to Montgomery's on Monday night, a few minutes
after Colonel Moodie had been shot. I seemed to feel that our
enterprise was hopeless, and I should have gone back home at once if
it hadn't been for fear of being called a coward. All day on Tuesday
Mackenzie went on like a lunatic. Once or twice I thought he was going
to have a fit." Dr. Rolph always informed Mrs. Rolph that if the
movement had been successful it would have become imperatively
necessary for the Provisional Government to arrest Mackenzie for a
time, as he would have been totally unmanageable. The verbal and
written testimony of other insurgents, including Gibson and Gorham, is
to the same or a similar effect. Mackenzie's treatment of Mrs. Howard
was no doubt attributable to the strain upon his nervous system rather
than to any spirit of mere ruffianism. See _ante_, p. 68, and _post_,
p. 96. A similar palliation may probably be found for his burning of
Dr. Horne's house, and for other extraordinary acts committed by him
during this exciting period.

[91] The evidence as to Mackenzie's setting Horne's house on fire is
overwhelming. In fact, it is not a matter which admits of any shadow
of doubt, and I should deem it unnecessary to argue the question were
it not that Mr. Lindsey presumably upon Mackenzie's authority
represents the fire as having been caused by the upsetting of the
stove. See _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., p. 90: The inference
evidently intended to be drawn is that the upsetting of the stove was
accidental. But it is clear that Mr. Lindsey did not really believe
that there was any accident about the burning of the house, as he
deems it necessary in the same paragraph to apologize for what he
admits would have been "dastardly arson" if committed in time of
peace. Moreover, as Mr. Lindsey must have known, Mackenzie admitted
over and over again that he burned the house deliberately, claiming,
however, that he did so in obedience to the directions of Dr. Rolph.
He repeatedly made the same admission in print. In his Navy Island
_Narrative_, and in fact in all his early narratives, he carefully
suppressed all particulars of the burning of Dr. Horne's residence,
merely remarking that it was "destroyed" by "the Reformers" because it
was a resort for Tory spies--though he took special pains to
anathematize Sir Francis Head for burning Montgomery's and Gibson's.
In his _Message_, and in the eighth chapter of his _Flag of Truce_, he
attributes the felonious act to Dr. Rolph's orders. It is singular
that he should have been so solicitous to obey the Doctor's orders in
this solitary instance, when he was so insubordinate in every other
case. But as matter of fact there never was the slightest foundation
for the assertion. Dr. Rolph gave no such orders, and Mackenzie's
allegation that he did so is precisely on a par with a score of other
assertions made by him in connection with the Rebellion.

There are persons still living who were eye-witnesses of Mackenzie's
incendiarism. I have seen and conversed with three of them, and I am
informed that there are many others. There are other persons living
who have heard him boast of having set fire to Horne's house. But it
would be a waste of time to enter further into the discussion of a
question as to which there is really no room for doubt. The reader
may, if he pleases, consult the testimony of John Hawk, _ante_, p. 41,
and of Nelson Gorham, _ante_, p. 70, note. The following extract from
a letter written by Gibson to Dr. Rolph, dated December 1st, 1852,
bears upon the point. I reproduce it, not as matter of evidence, but
as mere matter of interest in connection with this subject.

"I understand Mr. Mackenzie says you were the principal, and he was
only carrying out your instructions.

"After the second meeting, at the toll-gate, Mr. Mackenzie set fire to
Dr. Horne's house. Mr. Lount came to me and wished me to use my
influence with Mackenzie and stop such proceedings, and Mr. Lount and
myself prevented him burning Sheriff Jarvis's house. I cannot see how
the proceedings on that occasion could be according to your
instructions given to Mr. Lount, when he was, so far as lay in his
power, preventing Mr. Mackenzie from destroying property. [See Lount's
evidence before the Treason Commission, _ante_, p. 79.] Since I
returned from the United States Mr. Jarvis said to me jocularly:
'Gibson, I wish you had let Mackenzie burn my house. I would have been
well paid for it, as Dr. Horne was.' The above transaction is well
known, although Mackenzie represents the burning of Mr. Montgomery's
and my premises as the first hostile act of that character, in his
_Caroline Almanac_ [p. 102], withholding from the public that he
commenced the burning."

[92] Toronto's most picturesque suburb is named in honour of the
whilome abode of Sheriff Jarvis. The abode itself is now the home of
Mr. Arthur Harvey.

[93] _Ante_, p. 67.

[94] Mr. Allan McLean Howard, quoted in Thompson's _Reminiscences of a
Canadian Pioneer_, p. 132.

[95] _Ante_, pp. 75, 76.

[96] See statement of H. H. Wright, _ante_, p. 77.

[97] "We are sure that we are far from stating anything which will not
meet with universal assent in Upper Canada when we say that had
Mackenzie, during the Monday or Tuesday, attacked Toronto with 200
men, he would have seized the arms, ammunition and money in the town;
that he would have captured Sir Francis unless he had run away; and
that had the capital fallen into the hands of the rebels, a large
proportion of the country people who joined Sir Francis on the
Wednesday and Thursday would have joined Mackenzie. All who will
reflect on the nature of civil war must see the fearful odds which a
day's success, and the possession of the capital and its resources,
would have given the rebels. For their not obtaining it we have no
reason to thank Sir Francis Head."--_London and Westminster Review_,
vol. xxxii., pp. 448, 449.

[98] Mackenzie's unhappy propensity for misrepresentation shows
itself, even here. He could not be candid and truthful, even when
candour and truthfulness would have served his purpose far better than
insincerity. He knew perfectly well that Sir Francis had more than
"150 men and boys" at his back, although the number of his defenders
was too small to admit of successful opposition had the insurgents
been ably commanded, and in deadly earnest.

[99] See his Navy Island _Narrative_, reprinted by Fothergill, p. 13.

[100] In Alves's statement written by Mackenzie for the _Caroline
Almanac_ (see _ante_, p. 85) the number of men is represented as 750.

[101] Maitland Street had no existence at that time, nor until more
than ten years afterwards. The ground now forming the Yonge Street end
of it was then owned by Mr. Alexander Wood from whom Alexander and
Wood Streets respectively derive their names and the William Sharpe
mentioned in the text. The southerly thirty feet of it belonged to Mr.
Wood, and the remainder to Mr. Sharpe.

[102] The guard, it will be remembered (_ante_, p. 61), consisted of
twenty-seven men, besides Sheriff Jarvis himself.

[103] Mackenzie expresses the opinion that this man was killed by the
fire of his comrades from behind. See his _Narrative_, _ubi supra_, p.
14. I cannot learn that he had any ground for such an opinion, and I
believe the fact to be as stated in the text. The man's name was James
Henderson. He was a discharged British soldier, and for some time
before the rising worked as a cooper in Davidtown, now the village of
Sharon. He had been married only a few months at the time of his
death. His widow still resides in Sharon, and I recently had an
interview with her at her home in that village. She informed me that
she never saw her husband, dead or alive, from the time he left her on
Monday morning for Montgomery's. I learn from other sources that his
body was left lying in the road when the rebels took to their heels.
One of my informants--a hale old man of patriarchal age was the last,
except Lount, to leave the spot. He rolled the body over to near the
fence on the eastern side of the road, after which he and Lount
followed in the wake of their retreating comrades. Mr. Sharpe then
lived in a house close by. His daughter, Miss M. A. Sharpe, who now
resides at No. 22 Maitland Street, informs me that her mother watched
the dead body from a window throughout the night, "to keep the dogs
from it." Early next morning Colonel Fitz Gibbon presented himself,
and Mrs. Sharpe held a candle for him while he examined the body. An
hour or so later the Colonel sent a cart in which it was removed, but
I cannot learn whither it was conveyed or what became of it. It was
never seen again by any of the friends of the deceased, and there is a
prevalent belief among them that it was handed over to the surgeons
for dissection. Miss Sharpe informs me that it lay all night on the
eastern side of the road, exactly in front of the building now
occupied as a chemist shop by Mr. J. H. Hutty.

[104] The two men who died from their wounds were James Kavanagh and
Edgar Stiles, both of the township of East Gwillimbury. Kavanagh was
shot in the groin, Stiles in the shoulder. They were able to leave the
ground without assistance, but strength soon failed them, and they
were conveyed to Montgomery's by their comrades. They were afterwards
removed to the house of Mr. Snider, nearly opposite the tavern,
whence, after the fight on Thursday, they were conveyed to the
hospital, where they both died. Kavanagh's son John, from whom I
learned some of the foregoing particulars, is now Postmaster at
Sharon. George Fletcher, a nephew of Silas, was shot in the left foot.
After reaching Montgomery's he was conveyed into the kitchen, when it
was found that the bullet was still in one of his toes. His uncle
Silas undertook to cut it out with a penknife, but became violently
sick, and had to abandon the effort. Mackenzie then attempted the
task, but his hands shook with nervousness to such an extent that he
completely lost control of the knife, which ran into his hand,
inflicting an ugly wound. The bullet was then cut out by Judah Lundy,
who still resides on the southern outskirts of Sharon village.

[105] See his _Narrative_, p. 14.

[106] Sir Francis Head, in a left-handed manner, claims credit for
having posted this guard. "I was enabled, by strong pickets," he
writes, "to prevent Mr. McKenzie from carrying into effect his
diabolical intention to burn the city." See his despatch of December
19. As matter of fact the posting of Sheriff Jarvia's picket was due
to the prudence of Colonel Fitz Gibbon, who posted it, not only
without Sir Francis's instructions, but without his knowledge, and in
direct opposition to his positive command. See _ante_, p. 61.

[107] _Ante_, p. 61.

[108] I make this statement upon the testimony of an eye-witness, but
Sir Francis's own written words afford sufficient evidence of its
truthfulness if, indeed, his words are to be credited upon any subject
whatever. "I was sitting," he writes, "by tallow-candle light in the
large hall [_i.e._, in the City Hall], surrounded by my comrades, when
we suddenly heard in the direction of the lake shore a distant cheer.
In a short time two or three people, rushing in at the door, told us
that 'a steamer full of the men of Gore had just arrived!' and almost
at the same moment I had the pleasure of receiving this intelligence
from their own leader. I have said that my mind had been tranquilly
awaiting the solution of a great problem, of the truth of which it had
no doubt; but my philosophy was fictitious, for I certainly have never
in my life felt more deeply affected than I was when, seeing my most
ardent hopes suddenly realized, I offered my hand to Sir Allan McNab."
_The Emigrant_, chap. viii. Sir Francis here discounts the honours of
the subject of his remarks, as Mr. MacNab was not knighted until some
months after the episode referred to.

Mr. MacNab, as stated in the text, reached Toronto between nine and
ten o'clock on Tuesday night. Sir Francis, in officially announcing
the outbreak, represents the arrival as taking place "in the course of
Wednesday." See his despatch of December 19th, in _Narrative_, chap.
ix. This was probably done in order that the Colonial Secretary might
not require him to account for his "masterly inactivity" in not
advancing against the rebels until Thursday.

[109] This was young John Fletcher, a nephew of Silas Fletcher. It is
to him that Dr. Morrison refers in the postscript to his statement on
p. 22, _ante_. See also the penultimate paragraph of Hawk's statement,
_ante_, p. 41.

[110] Gibson's MSS.

[111] See Mr. Howard's narrative, in Thompson's _Reminiscences_, etc.,
p. 132.

[112] One of the survivors, in conversing with me on this subject a
short time since, said: "We staid with the others because we knew we
should be arrested if we went home. We didn't stay out of any love for
Mackenzie. We had found him out, and knew that he was useless for any
purpose but _jaw_." He added that if at this time he had been asked to
choose between the domination of Mackenzie and the domination of the
Compact, he would without hesitation have chosen the latter. His words
were: "I would have voted for Head and Hagerman."

[113] A wayside hostelry situated on the south side of Dundas Street,
about four miles westward from the City Hall, and near the present
village of West Toronto Junction.

[114] Prout's MS. narrative. These facts are confirmed by several
surviving insurgents with whom I have recently conversed. Mackenzie
himself admits that he handed over a number of the papers to the
prisoners, "for their amusement." See Fothergill's reprint of his
_Narrative_, p. 18.

[115] These are matters as to which Mackenzie's biographer maintains a
discreet silence, though there is no more doubt as to their having
taken place than there is as to the fact of the insurrection itself.
There are persons now living in Toronto who received the details of
some of these transactions directly from the persons robbed. In the
notes to the Toronto reprint of Mackenzie's Navy Island _Narrative_ is
the following contemporary record: "This wretched, bad man [Mackenzie]
pretended he robbed no one. He robbed many with his own hands, and
among them a poor woman of _her all_." See the _Narrative_, p. 15,
note. This, be it remembered, is the testimony of a gentleman who,
while he contemned Mackenzie, was strong in his opposition to the
Government and the oligarchy, and who himself wrote manfully and
vigorously in the cause of Reform. He appends to his statement the
following testimony, which he says is "only one of many vouchers":--

"I, Thomas Cooper, of the city of Toronto, hereby certify that on
Wednesday, the 6th of December last, I was travelling from the City
into the Township of Toronto, in company with James Armstrong, of the
Humber, both being on horseback. About one o'clock in the day, as far
as I recollect, both of us stopped at Mr. Farr's of the Peacock Inn,
to get a glass of beer, and fastened our horses to a post. On going
back to our horses, we found them removed to a shed, and were
proceeding to mount them, when we were taken prisoners and handled
very roughly; both our pockets were searched, and my purse taken from
me; when just at that moment Mackenzie made his appearance, and asked
the man who had rifled my pockets how much money was in my purse; the
man said he did not know, but handed the purse to Mackenzie, who
counted it and found eleven pounds five shillings; he took therefrom a
two dollar note and a one dollar note, which he returned to me in the
purse, and the remainder of the money he put in his own pocket: he
also took my horse, which cost me 27 pounds 10s., and a nearly new
bridle and saddle. From Mr. Armstrong he took four dollars in money,
and one pound of tea, two pounds of coffee, and also his horse and
bridle and saddle. Mr. Armstrong was so alarmed from the rough
treatment we received that he jumped over a fence and ran across a
field, when two men fired after but happily missed him. I was also
witness to Mackenzie's seizure of the trunk of the servant-girl of the
house, which contained all her clothes, and, as she alleged, fifteen
dollars in money. The poor girl entreated to have her clothes and
trunk returned, and said he might take the money, but Mackenzie was
deaf to her entreaties, though made on her knees. The woods resounded
with her lamentations; and I was further witness to the robbery of a
poor wayfarer travelling to Toronto, who happened to be passing at the
time; he took him prisoner and searched his person, on whom he found
only half a dollar. The poor man was clothed in rags; and when
deprived of his money, the tears coursed down his cheeks.

"In about two or three hours after this, the Western Mail arrived at
the Peacock, which Mackenzie also robbed, and carried off horses,
coach, and all.

"All this I do solemnly declare to be true.

"Toronto, February 10th, 1838. (Signed) THOMAS COOPER."

By reference to The City of Toronto and the Home District Commercial
Directory, for 1837, I find Thomas Cooper set down as "Gentleman, Lot
Street west."

Mr. Samuel Thompson, in his _Reminiscences_ (pp. 123, 124), records
another instance of robbery by Mackenzie at this time: "A lady, still
living, was travelling by stage from Streetsville, on her way through
Toronto to Cornwall, having with her a large trunk of new clothing
prepared for a long visit to her relatives. Very awkwardly for her,
Mackenzie had started, at the head of a few men, from Yonge Street
across to Dundas Street, to stop the stage and capture the mails, so
as to intercept news of Dr. Duncombe's rising in the London District.
Not content with seizing the mail-bags and all the money they
contained, Mackenzie himself, pistol in hand, demanded the surrender
of the poor woman's portmanteau, and carried it off bodily. It was
asserted at the time that he only succeeded in evading capture a few
days after, at Oakville, by disguising himself in woman's clothes,
which may explain his raid upon the lady's wardrobe; for which, I
believe, she failed to get any compensation whatsoever under the
Rebellion Losses Act. This lady afterwards became the wife of John F.
Rogers, who was my partner in business for several subsequent years."

It will be seen from the concluding sentence that the writer, Mr.
Thompson, received his information on the subject in the most direct
manner. But there is no need to adduce further testimony, as Mackenzie
himself, in his supplementary narrative, admits that he was guilty of
robbery. He says: "Thirty or thirty-five dollars were taken from a
Tory magistrate suspected to be a spy, because it was feared he might
bribe some one with it in order to effect his escape." Rolph, in his
Review, comments upon this admission in the following words: "If he
searched a Tory magistrate for cash, magnetic in its nature, why not a
Tory alderman for arms, more repulsive in their properties? If the one
would use his cash, would not the other use his pistol for his escape?
And if he could trust a Tory alderman's word that he was unarmed, at
night too, on a reconnoitring expedition, why could he not trust his
once chosen Patriots with the offer of so contemptible a bribe? To do
the Patriots justice, we believe the revolutionary cause would have
been as safe with the money left to the Tory magistrate as when
transferred to Mackenzie's pocket."

[116] Despatch of Dec. 19th. See Head's _Narrative_, chap. ix.

[117] Mr. Hincks, upon establishing _The Examiner_ in Toronto in the
following year, thus commented in his paper on Sir Francis Head's
absurd declaration: "With regard to Mackenzie, it has been so much the
fashion to accuse him of every crime which has disgraced humanity,
that people really forget who and what he is. We can speak impartially
of Mr. Mackenzie, more particularly because those who know us well
know that we have never approved of his political conduct. Let us not
be misunderstood. We agreed with him on certain broad principles, more
particularly Responsible Government and the Secularization of the
Clergy Reserves, and when those principles were involved we supported
him, and shall never regret it. As a private individual we are bound
in justice to state that Mr. Mackenzie was a man of strict integrity
in his dealings, and we have frequently heard the same admitted by his
violent political opponents. He was not a rich man, because he never
sought after wealth. Had he done so, his industry and perseverance
must have insured it. We do not take up our pen to defend the
political characters of either Dr. Rolph or Mr. Mackenzie, but when
these false and malignant slanders are uttered we shall always expose
them. Are there ten persons in Upper Canada who believe that the
object of either Dr. Rolph or Mr. Mackenzie was to rob the banks and
abscond to the United States?" Sir Francis Hincks, in reference to
this paragraph, several years since expressed to me his opinion that
Mackenzie, at the time of committing the robberies mentioned in the
text, was reckless and unstrung to such an extent as hardly to be
accounted a responsible being. He characterized Mackenzie as
cantankerous, unpractical and unreliable as to his word; but he added:
"He would not have committed robbery if he had been in his sober
senses."

[118] Gibson's MSS.




CHAPTER XXV.

MAHOMET AND THE MOUNTAIN.


In the city, matters had assumed a totally different aspect.
Throughout the whole of Wednesday, volunteers continued to arrive from
all points, insomuch that before night it became difficult to provide
accommodation for them. Cobourg, Whitby, Port Credit, Hamilton, St.
Catharines, Niagara, each sent its tale of men, and at sunset more
than twelve hundred armed volunteers were at the service of the
Government.[119] Arms had also been served out to many heads of
households of approved loyalty. The doors and windows of the principal
public and private buildings had been fortified by barricades of
two-inch plank, behind which were placed armed musketeers ready and
eager to shoot down any venturesome Radical who might dare to raise
his rebellious head. In the course of the day the Lieutenant-Governor
removed his headquarters from the City Hall to the Parliament
Buildings, whither also the spare arms and ammunition were
transferred.

The intelligence which had been conveyed to the insurgent camp as to
the arrest of Dr. Morrison and the flight of Dr. Rolph was well
founded. The Lieutenant-Governor and his advisers had remained in
consultation until a late hour on Tuesday night. MacNab's arrival, and
the news which he brought as to the prospective advent of succours,
had imparted new life to their hopes. They felt that the crisis, so
far as the Government party were concerned, was past, and that they
might with safety assume the offensive against the rebels. As a
preliminary step they determined to arrest Dr. Morrison, against whom
they believed they had sufficient evidence to ensure his conviction of
high treason. They had up to this time conceived nothing more than a
strong suspicion against Dr. Rolph, and did not venture to adopt any
hostile measures towards him.

Dr. Morrison's arrest was easily effected. About ten o'clock in the
forenoon of Wednesday, as he was making his daily round of visits, he
was informed that the authorities had invaded Mackenzie's house and
office, and that a diligent search had been made in both places for
treasonable documents. Mackenzie's printing office was on King Street,
but his private residence was on the west side of York Street, a short
distance south of Lot (Queen) Street. When this information reached Dr.
Morrison he was in the near neighbourhood of York Street, and about to
pass down that thoroughfare for the purpose of visiting a patient. He
had not proceeded many yards, and was in fact directly in front of
Mackenzie's dwelling, when a Government emissary approached and
took him prisoner. In the course of the day he was marched off to jail.
An application to be admitted to bail was at once made on his behalf,
but was refused, and he lay in durance for many weeks before this
indulgence was granted to him.

This arrest was an event eminently calculated to add to the excitement
throughout the city. It was witnessed by a medical student who resided
in the house of Dr. Rolph, and whose sympathies were strongly enlisted
on the side of the insurgents. He was in fact the identical young
gentleman who had been despatched to the rebel camp on the previous
afternoon.[120] He lost no time in acquainting Dr. Rolph with what he
had seen, and in advising him to seek safety in flight. Dr. Rolph
speedily made up his mind. There was no longer any hope of success for
the rebels. His own connection with the movement could not fail to
become known, and he might count upon being prosecuted with the utmost
rigour of the law. Dr. Morrison's arrest seemed to indicate that the
Government had already become possessed of criminatory evidence
evidence which was quite as likely to compromise himself, Dr. Rolph,
as the gentleman who had actually been deprived of his liberty. If so,
no time was to be lost. In a very few moments one of his horses--a
gray three-year-old colt--was saddled, and his young friend had
mounted it and ridden westward along Lot Street. He himself followed
leisurely on foot. A short distance up the street he encountered Chief
Justice Kobinson and two of his sons, who were probably on their way
to the Lieutenant-Governor's headquarters in the Parliament Buildings.
A grave salute was exchanged between them, after which each proceeded
on his way. The Doctor continued his walk until he reached the spot
where Dundas Street branches off northward from Queen Street, where he
found his young friend awaiting him with the horse, from which he had
dismounted. They exchanged quiet and undemonstrative farewells, after
which Dr. Rolph mounted the horse and proceeded along Dundas Street,
while the young medical student returned to the city.

The Doctor made the best of his way to the United States. His journey
was not unattended with peril, for any Tory whom he met on the way
might possibly resolve to arrest him, and his complicity in the
Rebellion was susceptible of proof. He, however, rode westward about
twelve miles without any mis-adventure, and was approaching the River
Credit, when he encountered a company of loyalist volunteers _en
route_ for the capital. The gentleman in command was well acquainted
with Dr. Rolph's political proclivities, but would probably not have
suspected him of having any connection with the Rebellion had he not
thus met him far from home, and evidently prepared for a long journey.
In reply to a demand as to his destination, the Doctor produced a
letter which he had received on the previous day from his
brother-in-law, Mr. Salmon, of Norfolk, acquainting him with the
serious illness of his (Dr. Rolph's) sister, Mrs. Salmon, and
requesting his presence at her bedside. This was deemed satisfactory,
and the Doctor was allowed to proceed; but not long afterwards the
officer, for some reason, became suspicious, and sent two volunteers
in pursuit of the fugitive, who was soon overtaken and brought back to
Port Credit. He was greatly agitated, and a gentleman who was present
at the time informs me that he trembled visibly. While he was still in
detention, Dr. James Mitchell, of Dundas, a former student of Dr.
Rolph's, arrived, and doubtless with perfect sincerity represented the
absurdity of supposing that Dr. Rolph would really ally himself with
such an one as Mackenzie for any purpose. The argument prevailed, and
the Doctor was again permitted to resume his journey. Dr. Mitchell
exchanged horses with him, remarking: "Your beast does not seem equal
to so long a journey you had better take mine," or words to that
effect. Rolph directed his steps to the house of Mr. Asa Davis,[121]
on the outskirts of the village of Wellington Square, in the township
of Nelson. Mr. Davis was an advanced Radical, and an old friend and
client of Dr. Rolph, who, it will be remembered, had formerly
practised the legal profession at Dundas, which is only a few miles
distant from Wellington Square. He was cordially received, and invited
to pass the night there, but he deemed it wisest to push on without
delay. He however obtained an hour's rest and a fresh horse,[122] He
pursued his journey throughout the night, and early on the following
morning reached the Niagara River, near Queenston. He soon placed the
river between himself and danger. More than five years elapsed before
his foot again trod Canadian soil.

Meanwhile, volunteers continued to pour into Toronto. It seems
tolerably certain that a not insignificant proportion of these were
Radicals, who had set out from their homes for the express purpose of
joining Mackenzie, but who, hearing that his cause was hopeless, made a
virtue of necessity, and tendered their services to the Government. Of
arms and ammunition there were enough and to spare, so that there was
no longer any excuse for allowing insurrection to raise its head on
the very confines of the capital. At a Council meeting held at
Archdeacon Strachan's house on Wednesday night it was resolved that an
attack upon the rebels should be made on the following morning.
Attorney-General Hagerman, who, four days before, had been so certain
that not fifty men in the Province could be got to take arms against
the Government,[123] now declared that everything depended upon the
success of the projected attack, and he did not hesitate to express
his belief that if the loyalist troops were defeated on the morrow the
Province would be irretrievably lost.[124] In this opinion the
Lieutenant-Governor declared that he coincided. How important, then,
that victory should be rendered secure by the adoption of every
precautionary measure that could be thought of. How important, above
all things, that the success of the movement should not be imperilled
by its direction being entrusted to incompetent hands. Allan MacNab,
who was a prime favourite of Sir Francis Head, had during the day been
appointed to the command of the Home District Militia, and in the
course of the evening it came to the ears of Colonel Fitz Gibbon that
MacNab was to take the chief command of the Government forces during
the forthcoming attack. The Colonel was righteously indignant at being
thus set aside for one who certainly had no such claims as he to
whatever distinction the supreme command could confer. "For here,"
writes Colonel Fitz Gibbon,[125] "let it be observed that I was a
Colonel of Militia before Mr. MacNab had any rank in that force, and
he was almost wholly without military knowledge. I could not help
feeling the strongest indignation at the idea of any man then in the
city being appointed to the command other than myself. For most
assuredly I, of those then present, was best qualified to plan,
arrange, and successfully make that attack. In me, above all others,
was full confidence placed by all. For three days and two nights was I
incessantly employed in putting all in a state of preparation in the
city. I was best known in the Province as a disciplinarian. To me
would obedience be more readily given than to any other man in Upper
Canada." This presentation of the case is substantially correct.
Certainly no person had exerted himself to repel an attack upon the
city to anything like the same extent as Colonel Fitz Gibbon. No other
person--certainly no other whose services were then available could
boast of an equal share of military training and experience. The only
possible objection which could be urged against entrusting him with
the chief command was that he had worked himself up into a state of
morbid excitement. His excitable condition, however, does not appear
to have in any respect interfered with his military judgment. Fussy as
he was, all his plans for the brief campaign seem to have been
dictated by good sense and competent knowledge.[126] It is no wonder
that his bosom swelled with a sense of injustice when he learned that
a young and comparatively untried man was to be placed over his head.
The knowledge came to him while he was attending the above-mentioned
Council meeting at the Archdeacon's. He remonstrated warmly, and
considerable discussion ensued, in the course of which Attorney-General
Hagerman strenuously advocated the claims of Mr. MacNab, who, it
appeared, had that day received a promise from his Excellency that
he should have the command. No final decision on the subject was
arrived at during the session, and the Colonel withdrew in a state
of mind far from charitable towards those who, as he believed, had
conspired to rob him of the honours which were his just due. Early
next morning, however, he was informed by Sir Francis that Mr. MacNab
had released him from the promise, which had been given, and that he,
Colonel Fitz Gibbon, was to command during the attack. With proud
exultation in his heart and in his eye, he at once set himself to work
to mature and slightly modify a plan of attack which he had partly
sketched out two hours before.

For a few moments the veteran of the Beaver Dams appears to have
nearly succumbed to the multiform perplexities of his situation. "It
was now broad daylight," he writes,[127] "and I had to commence an
organization of the most difficult nature I had ever known. I had to
ride to the Town Hall, and to the Garrison and back again, repeatedly.
I found few of the officers present who were wanted for the attack.
Vast numbers of volunteers were constantly coming in from the country
without arms or appointments of any kind, who were crowding in all
directions in my way. My mind was burning with indignation at the idea
of Colonel MacNab or any other militia officer being thought of by his
Excellency for the command, after all I had hitherto done for him. My
difficulties multiplied upon me. Time, of all things the most
precious, was wasting for want of officers, and for the want of most
of my men from the Town Hall, whose commander was yet absent, till at
length the organization appeared impossible. I became overwhelmed with
the intensity and contrariety of my feelings. I walked to and fro
without object, until I found the eyes of many fixed upon me, when I
fled to my room and locked my door, exclaiming audibly that the
Province was lost, and that I was ruined, fallen. For let it not be
forgotten that it was admitted at the conference at the Archdeacon's
the evening before that if the attack of the next day should fail the
Province would be lost. This, however, was not then my opinion, but I
thought of my present failure, after the efforts I had made to obtain
the command, and the evil consequences likely to flow from that
failure; and I did then despair. In this extremity I fell upon my
knees, and earnestly and vehemently prayed to the Almighty for
strength to sustain me through the trial before me. I arose and
hurried to the multitude, and finding one company formed, as I then
thought providentially, I ordered it to be marched to the road in
front of the Archdeacon's house, where I had previously intended to
arrange the force to be employed. Having once begun, I sent company
after company and gun after gun, until the whole stood in order."

From all which it will be seen that, though his sense of his
responsibilities was so great as almost to unhinge his mind for a few
brief moments, he at last proved equal to the occasion, and fully
justified the confidence which had been reposed in him. When the time
of trial came his nerves did not fail him. He led the column to the
attack, and personally directed every movement. He did what he could
to prevent the victory then gained from being abused. The affair, of
course, could not be classed as a great military achievement. Colonel
Fitz Gibbon had nearly or quite eleven hundred men at his command. The
force opposed to him did not consist of much more than one-third of
that number, and at least half of the rebels were unarmed. Still, the
interests at stake were momentous, and defeat would have involved very
serious consequences. So that the skirmish has an historical
significance far more than proportionate to the number of men engaged,
or to the immediate incidents connected with it. Colonel Fitz Gibbon
is fully entitled to whatever credit attaches to a victory gained
under such circumstances, and where such dire penalties waited upon
defeat.

It was near noon before everything was in readiness for marching
against the enemy. The entire force was mustered in three divisions.
The main body, consisting of between six and seven hundred men, was
placed under the direction of Colonel Allan MacNab, who had been
favoured with this distinction as a recompense for his release of the
Lieutenant-Governor from his promise some hours before.[128] Attached
to this main body were two guns, which were placed in charge of Major
Carfrae, of the militia artillery. The right wing, consisting of fully
two hundred men, was commanded by Colonel Samuel Peters Jarvis, of
Ridout and type-riot fame.[129] The left wing, somewhat less strong
numerically, was commanded by Colonel William Chisholm, of Oakville.
Judge McLean also attended and gave his assistance in directing the
movements of this corps.[130] The arrangement was that the main body
should advance directly up Yonge Street; the right wing meanwhile
moving northward by the fields and by-ways about half a mile eastward,
and the left wing advancing in a similar manner up the College Avenue
a short distance to the west. The three bodies, all of which were subject
to the direction of Colonel Fitz Gibbon, were to converge at Montgomery's.

The word to advance was given precisely at twelve o'clock by his
Excellency in person,[131] and the cavalcade moved northward in three
divisions, according to the preconcerted arrangement. The main body on
Yonge Street was joined or followed by a considerable number of unenrolled
volunteers, who were too curious to see the fight, and too anxious
as to the result to remain quietly behind. The army was also attended
for some distance by Dr. Strachan--"the bold diocesan of the Church
of England," as he is called by Sir Francis Head[132]--and other ministers
of religion. These reverend gentlemen judiciously withdrew upon the
first exchange of shots with the rebels, though as Sir Francis observes,
many of them "would willingly have continued their course, but with
becoming dignity they deemed it their duty to refrain."[133] The city was
meanwhile guarded by a body of armed militia under the command of
Judge Macaulay. Civic affairs, as usual, remained under the direction
of the mayor, Mr. George Gurnett.

The day was, for the time of year, a remarkably fine one. The air
was clear; not a threatening cloud was to be seen in the sky, and the
sun shone out with revivifying brightness and splendour. The arms and
accoutrements of the volunteers reflected back the bright rays, and were
visible as far as the eye could reach. Two bands discoursed martial
music, which doubtless roused the enthusiasm of the men, and inspired
them with a desire to emulate the deeds commemorated in the strains
which greeted their ears. The windows and housetops along the chief
thoroughfares were crowded by men, women and children, who waved
miniature flags and lustily cheered the cavalcade as it passed along.
The volunteers responded in kind, and the welkin rang again. Never had
the streets of the little Provincial capital presented so stirring an
appearance--not even when the guns of the invader had thundered along
its water-front in 1813. To many who beheld the scene, and who
participated in the enthusiasm which it was eminently calculated to
arouse, this 7th of December was the most memorable day of their
lives. They paused not to speculate upon possible consequences. To
them it was sufficient that more than a thousand armed volunteers were
in motion, and that they were going out against "rebels." The name of
"rebel" was odious to their ears, and any one to whom it could
properly be applied was pretty nearly on a par with him who had broken
every command in the decalogue. It never occurred to them that there
may be such a thing as rebellion against the constitution, and that
such an offence may possibly, under certain circumstances, be even
more culpable than rebellion against the Crown.[134] Nearly all the
citizens, except the most ultra-Radicals, took up their stations on
the housetops with their neighbours. It was a time to try men's souls.
Many of those who had been disposed to sympathize with the rising now
perceived that the time for such a project was past, and they did not
think it necessary to draw down suspicion upon themselves for a lost
cause. They accordingly cheered with the rest. The few who felt too
strongly on the subject to dissemble their real sentiments prudently
remained within doors.

Upon the arrival of the main body of volunteers at the summit of
Gallows Hill, they were distinctly perceived by the rebel sentinels
posted a short distance south of Montgomery's. Intelligence was
instantly conveyed to the leaders. Mahomet had refrained from visiting
the mountain, and here was the mountain rapidly approaching Mahomet.
Before proceeding any further with the narrative, it is expedient to
return for a short time to the camp of the rebels.

FOOTNOTES:

[119] "In the afternoon reinforcements arrived in the _Traveller_
steamboat from Niagara, and more from the District of Gore in the
_Burlington_, and the town was crowded with men. Our numbers now
seriously embarrassed us, and it became imperatively necessary to
attack the rebels the following day."--Fitz Gibbon's MS. _Narrative_,
_ubi supra_.

[120] _Ante_, pp. 75, 76.

[121] Mackenzie arrived at the self-same spot on the following
Saturday, after his flight from Montgomery's. See Lindsey's _Life_,
vol. ii., p. 109.

[122] He also obtained a companion, in the person of one of Mr.
Davis's sons, who accompanied him on horseback to the frontier.

[123] _Ante_, p. 30.

[124] MS. _Narrative of Occurrences in Toronto_, _Upper Canada_,
_1837_, by Colonel Fitz Gibbon.

[125] _Ib_.

[126] MacNab proposed to attack the rebels at three o'clock in the
morning, a plan which Colonel Fitz Gibbon vehemently and successfully
opposed, declaring it to be in the highest degree inadvisable. "It was
utterly impossible," he writes, "to organize the confused mass of
human beings then congregated in the city during night-time, for then
it must be done, to be ready to march from the city after one o'clock,
so as to reach Montgomery's at three. I declared it to be impossible
to induce unorganized men to make a night attack in great numbers,
under any circumstances. Such an attempt would have ruined us, for
there were many rebels then in the city waiting only the turning of
the scale to declare themselves. A reverse must therefore have been
most injurious to us, if not disastrous." MS. _Narrative_, etc., _ubi
supra_.

[127] MS. _Narrative_, etc., _ubi supra_. The curious reader will do
well to compare this account with that given in Colonel Fitz Gibbon's
_Appeal to the People of Upper Canada_, p. 27.

[128] _Ante_, p. 115.

[129] _Ante_, vol. i., pp. 13, 131, 132.

[130] It would appear that Colonel Chisholm's command of the west wing
was only nominal, and that he was really sent out with a small force
to the neighbourhood of the Peacock Inn. A gentleman now living in
Toronto, who took a prominent part in the operations of the west wing,
assures me that the real commander of this body was Judge McLean. He
adds that the Judge's directions were ably supplemented by those of
Colonel O'Hara.

[131] "I was sitting on horseback, waiting to hear the officer
commanding the assembled force order his men to advance, and was
wondering why he did not do so, when one of the principal leaders rode
up to me, and told me that the militia wished me to give them the word
of command, which I accordingly did."--The _Emigrant_, chap. viii.
Upon which Colonel Fitz Gibbon, in the MS._ Narrative_ already quoted
from, remarks: "This was the only command he [Sir Francis Head] gave
till the action was over."

[132] _The Emigrant_, chap. viii.

[133] _Ib_.

[134] "I confess I have no sympathy with the would-be loyalty of
honourable gentlemen opposite, which, while it at all times affects
peculiar zeal for the prerogative of the Crown, is ever ready to
sacrifice the liberty of the subject. That is not British loyalty. It
is the spurious loyalty which at all periods of the world's history
has lashed humanity into rebellion."--_Speech of Solicitor-General
Blake, on the Rebellion Losses Bill of 1849_.




CHAPTER XXVI

THE SKIRMISH.


Colonel Van Egmond, faithful to his undertaking, reached the insurgent
camp about eight o'clock on Thursday morning. Within a few minutes of
his arrival he was seated at breakfast in a private room of the
tavern, along with Mackenzie, Lount, Gibson, Silas Fletcher and John
Montgomery.[135] At the conclusion of the meal, the six straightway
proceeded to hold a Council of War. Montgomery had by this time lent
himself to the inexorable conditions of his situation, and was as deep
in the Rebellion as any of the rest. A stormy discussion ensued, in
the course of which Mackenzie so far lost his self-control as to
threaten to shoot Colonel Van Egmond.[136] The cause of dispute was as
to the most effective mode of attacking the Government forces.
Mackenzie's proposal was that an immediate advance should be made upon
the city. To this Van Egmond and the others vehemently opposed
themselves. The looked-for reinforcements had not arrived, and could
not reasonably be expected to arrive until later in the day. The
forces at the disposal of the Government were known to be vastly
superior in numbers to those of the insurgents, which, owing to
repeated desertions from the cause, were reduced to about five
hundred. The Government troops were known to be well armed and
equipped, whereas the bulk of the insurgents were without proper
equipments of any kind. The proposal to make an immediate attack was
therefore characterized by Van Egmond as "stark madness," and it was
this expression which drew down upon his head the hot anger of
Mackenzie.[137] How the dispute was accommodated does not appear.
Probably Van Egmond was informed by Lount and the other leaders of the
condition of Mackenzie's nerves, and governed himself accordingly. At
all events, the plan propounded by Van Egmond, and subsequently agreed
upon, was that no attempt to capture the city should be made until the
arrival of a sufficiency of reinforcements to render the success of
such an attempt at least feasible. News had been received that the
militia were likely to be sent out to attack them at Montgomery's in
the course of the day. It was manifestly desirable to stave off such
an attack until the arrival of reinforcements; and with a view to
effecting this object, it was deemed prudent to divert the attention
of the Government forces to another quarter. Sixty men, under the
command of Peter Matthews, of Pickering, were detailed to proceed
eastward to the bridge over the River Don, at the eastern confines of
the city. They were to burn the bridge, and thus cut off communication
with the city from that point. They were also instructed to intercept
the eastern mail, and in a word to do anything and everything likely
to draw the Government troops in that direction. The detachment
departed on this hazardous mission a little before ten o'clock in the
forenoon.

The next two hours and more glided away without the occurrence of any
event of importance at Montgomery's. The expected reinforcements did
not arrive, nor was any intelligence received from them. Van Egmond
made an attempt to review the men, who, since the departure of
Matthews and his threescore, mustered about four hundred strong. Of
these, probably two hundred were armed with pikes or rifles. Some
general directions were given as to what course should be followed in
case of an early attack from the Government troops. Scarcely had this
been done ere William Asher, a scout who had been down near the
College Avenue, ran up with the intelligence that a regular army of
militia, escorted by a band of music, was moving northward from the
Parliament Buildings. The effect produced by this item of news was
less marked than might have been anticipated, for several times during
the early morning word had been brought in that the troops were
advancing up Yonge Street, and in each case the alarm had proved to be
groundless. The insurgents had by this time become so accustomed to
the cry of "Wolf" that they were slow to believe in the animal's
presence without actual demonstration. A few minutes later, however,
the sentinels posted a short distance down the road from the tavern
could distinctly discern the glitter of the militia's accoutrements,
as they poured in endless succession over the brow of Gallows Hill.
The word was quickly passed back to Montgomery's. At least half of the
men were at that moment in and about the stable-yard. Silas Fletcher
rushed up breathless, exclaiming: "Seize your arms, men! The enemy's
coming, and no mistake! No false alarm this time!"[138] Then, indeed,
the rebels woke up to the occasion. Mackenzie and Van Egmond mounted
each a horse and rode a short distance southward, until they not only
saw the glitter of weapons, but could perceive what seemed to be an
overwhelming force steadily advancing against them. The strains of
martial music were also distinctly audible to them, and there could be
no doubt that the decisive hour had arrived. They rode hurriedly back
to the tavern, and began preparations for the fight which could not be
postponed for many minutes. About a hundred and fifty of the men were
placed in a belt of woods a hundred and fifty yards or so west of
Tonge Street, and nearly half a mile south of the tavern. Three-score,
or thereabouts, took their stand in the fields to the east. The rest,
having no arms, could be of no service for purposes of defence. Some
of them stood inactively beside the tavern while their comrades bore
the brunt of the attack. Others sought safety inside the building.
Scarcely had the fighting men gained their respective positions ere
the cannonading began. The Government troops encountered very little
resistance. When the main body reached the summit of the hill
immediately to the north of what is now Mount Pleasant Cemetery, they
placed their two guns on the western side of Yonge Street, and opened
fire in a north-westerly direction upon the rebels in the belt of
woods. The trees, bushes, and brush-heaps in the fields afforded such
protection that there were no casualties from the discharges of the
cannon, but the rushing of the balls among the trees, and the crashing
of the branches as they fell, created a considerable uproar. The
rebels made a pretence of returning the fire with their muskets, but
were speedily thrown into confusion. Just then the west wing of the
loyalists arrived on the ground. Their arrival caused a speedy
evacuation by the rebels of the woods in which they had ensconced
themselves. The latter retreated northward without any attempt at
order. The cannon were then moved some distance farther up the road.
Their muzzles were directed due northward, and two round shot were
sent through the body of the tavern. Immediately there was a stampede
from inside, the insurgents pouring out like bees from a hive, and
"flying in all directions into the deep, welcome recesses of the
forest."[139] The prisoners had been removed from the building some
minutes before. Gibson, who had had the care of them, perceiving that
the loyalist forces were overwhelming, and that there was no hope of
success for the insurgent cause, had concluded that nothing was to be
gained by detaining his charges any longer. With the assistance of a
number of his fellow-insurgents, he had conducted them out at the back
door of the tavern, and thence to some distance away, when he had
restored them to their liberty. They afterwards uniformly bore
testimony to the kind treatment which they had received at the hands
of Gibson and his assistants during their detention at Montgomery's.

The skirmish did not last longer than from fifteen to twenty minutes
at the outside. The roll of killed and wounded was, all things considered,
surprisingly brief. Our so-called histories of Canada might very well
lead the unsophisticated reader to believe that what they grandiloquently
call "the battle" of Montgomery's Farm was a sanguinary affair.
Mr. MacMullen, writing many years ago,[140] at a time when there should
not have been much difficulty in getting at the facts, has gravely
recorded that "the loss of the insurgents was thirty-six killed and
fourteen wounded, while the loyalist force only sustained a loss of three
slightly wounded."[141] This statement, like a good many others in the
same volume, is probably due to the author's having written his work at
Brockville, where he could not refer to original authorities, and had no
means of verifying his data. It is evident that his account of the Upper
Canadian Rebellion was largely founded upon Mr. Lindsey's _Life and
Times of William Lyon Mackenzie_. For the statement with respect to
the "thirty-six killed and fourteen wounded," he is said to have been
indebted to a contemporary account in _The Brockville Recorder_.
Whencesoever it was derived, it is by far too wide a departure from fact
to be tolerated in what professes to be an historical work. Yet it has
ever since been adopted without question by writers who have been too
careless or too indolent to investigate the matter for themselves. It
has even found its way into our school histories, and has obtained a
wide and general acceptance alike among young and old.[142] So easy is
it to disseminate error. As simple matter of fact the death-roll of
"the battle" of Montgomery's Farm contained only a single name that of
Ludwig Wideman, of lot number one in the eighth concession of the
township of Whitchurch. He fought on the side of the insurgents, and
was shot through the head in the field immediately to the south of the
tavern, just before the close of the engagement.[143] No supporter of
the Government was slain, or even seriously wounded. The entire number
of wounded is not easy to ascertain. I can learn of only eleven on the
side of the rebels and five on the side of their opponents, but there
were probably others. At least four of the wounded insurgents[144]
subsequently died in the hospital.

Mackenzie's own account of the fight at Montgomery's is throughout
false and misleading. Lindsey's narrative of the affair is founded upon
it. As has been seen, MacMullen's is largely founded upon Lindsey, and
nearly every other account is founded upon MacMullen; so that it is
hardly to be wondered at if the generally-accepted beliefs are far wide
of the truth.

Mackenzie's story, as related in his Navy Island _Narrative_,[145] is that
when he perceived the Government troops approaching he asked the
men if they were ready to fight a greatly superior force, well-armed, and
with artillery well served. "They were ready," he continues, "and I bade
them go to the woods and do their best. They did so, and never did men
fight more courageously. In the face of a heavy fire of grape and
canister, with broadside following broadside of musketry in steady and
rapid succession, they stood their ground firmly, and killed and
wounded a large number of the enemy, but were at length compelled to
retreat. In a more favourable position I have no doubt but that they
would have beaten off their assailants with immense loss. As it was
they had only three killed and three or four wounded...The manly
courage with which two hundred farmers, miserably armed, withstood the
formidable attack of an enemy 1,200 strong, and who had plenty of
ammunition, with new muskets and bayonets, artillery, first-rate
European officers, and the choice of a position of attack, convinces
me that discipline, order, obedience and subordination, under
competent leaders, would enable them speedily to attain a confidence
sufficient to foil even the regulars from Europe."

This passage is so thick-set with misrepresentations that it may
properly be characterized as wholly and absolutely false from first to
last. Assuming that Mackenzie addressed the men in such language as
above set down, he thereby proved how unfit he was to discharge such
duties as he had taken upon himself. What words of cheer for a little
band about to engage in a desperate encounter with long odds! Such
discourse from the mouth of a leader might well make cowards, even of
veteran soldiers, to say nothing of untrained farmers and mechanics.
But such of the survivors as I have been able to confer with have a
very different tale to tell about Mackenzie's language at that
critical moment. He appears to have done his best to inspire them with
hope, by telling them that if they could keep up the fight for an hour
or two the expected reinforcements would be sure to arrive, and that
their victory would be assured. As to the rebels having "stood their
ground firmly, and killed and wounded a large number of the enemy," it
has already been seen that not one "enemy" was either killed or
seriously wounded. As to the rebels having "only three killed and
three or four wounded," it has been seen that but one was killed, and
that eleven or more were wounded. The falsetto rhodomontade about the
desperate valour of the men, and their ability, under different
circumstances, "to foil even the regulars from Europe," is simply too
childish and nonsensical for grave criticism. It is possible that if
Queen Anne had left thirteen vigorous sons behind her at her death,
George the First would never have sat on the throne of Great Britain;
but the supposition is so widely removed from the actual fact that no
sensible person would waste time in considering the mere possibility.
The rebels who fought at Montgomery's were neither better nor worse
than other volunteers under like circumstances. They were mostly farm
rustics who had never seen a pitched battle, and who had left their
homes without any notion of taking part in one. They were not
Spartans; Montgomery's farm was not Thermopylae; and assuredly
Leonidas was not there. When they were attacked by a force which there
was no chance of their successfully opposing, they, after a faint show
of resistance, chose the better part of valour. When, for the mere
purpose of magnifying his own office, Mackenzie represented these
"embattled farmers" as withstanding the onslaught of "an enemy 1,200
strong," and as so bearing themselves as to justify speculation as to
what their dauntless intrepidity might have accomplished under more
favourable circumstances when he indulged in these representations,
he, as usual, cast consistency to the winds. Surely he had forgotten
that it was these same farmers who, only thirty hours before, had,
according to his own account, fled helter-skelter at the fire of
Sheriff Jarvis's picket: who, to quote his exact words, "took to their
heels with a speed and steadiness of purpose that would have baffled
pursuit on foot."[146] That is to say, he attributes the failure of
the attempt on Tuesday night to the arrant cowardice of these very men
who, on the following Thursday, are exalted into demi-gods of
valour--into heroes who needed nothing but "discipline, order,
obedience and subordination," in addition to competent leadership, to
render them upon the whole more than a match for Cromwell's
Ironsides.[147]

A number of the Government troops, perceiving the rebels utterly
discomfited and flying for their lives, advanced as far northward as
the tavern. Among those who so advanced was the Lieutenant-Governor
himself. Two mounted militia officers, however, contrived to get ahead
of all the rest. One of these was Judge Jones, whose reflections on
the subject of Colonel Fitz Gibbon's "over zeal" had doubtless
undergone considerable modification since the preceding Monday
night.[148] The other was Alexander McLeod, Deputy-Sheriff of the
Niagara District, who, as will hereafter be seen, was destined to gain
a sort of dubious immortality in Canadian annals. They were both men
of high spirit, and, as might have been expected from the positions
which they respectively filled, of excessive zeal for the side of
authority. They rode up impetuously in advance of their comrades, and
captured two insurgents who were attempting to escape. Judge Jones,
with intent to drive out any skulkers who might still be hiding within
the tavern, rode his horse bodily against the door of the bar-room,
and sought to force an entrance, all booted, spurred and mounted as he
was. Colonel MacNab, who was some hundred yards or so down the road,
caught sight of him as he was making this attempt. Not recognizing him
in the distance, and believing him to be one of the rebel leaders, the
future knight of Dundurn promptly gave the command to some musketeers
near him to "shoot that man!" Several marksmen accordingly brought
their pieces to bear, when a voice from the ranks was heard: "Don't
fire! It's Judge Jones."[149] This exclamation was probably the means
of saving the Judge's life. In another moment the troops were on the
spot. The two prisoners who had just been taken were brought up to
where his Excellency sat on horseback before the raised platform in
front of the tavern. Sir Francis appears to have felt that he could
afford to be merciful. After addressing to them a few words of advice,
he pardoned them, and ordered their immediate release. This was
magnanimous; but the "Tried Reformer" seems to have been determined
that posterity, in reviewing his conduct, should never find the velvet
glove without the tiger's claw. What he did with one hand he forthwith
undid with the other. Having pardoned "all that remained of
Mackenzie's army," he deemed it necessary to "mark and record, by some
act of stern vengeance, the important victory that had been
achieved."[150] He gave orders that the tavern, which had "long been
the rendezvous of the disaffected," and the floor of which had been
"stained with the blood of Colonel Moodie,"[151] should then and there
be destroyed. He personally ordered those nearest him to set the place
on fire, and his order was readily obeyed. The furniture in the
different rooms on the ground floor was speedily in a blaze. The
flames spread to the building itself, and thick clouds of smoke,
followed by forked tongues of fire, soon began to pour out of the
windows and doors. Yet another moment, and the entire structure was a
mass of flame. The conflagration, we are informed by Sir Francis, was
"a lurid telegraph which intimated to many an anxious and aching heart
at Toronto the joyful intelligence that the yeomen and farmers of
Upper Canada had triumphed over their perfidious enemy, responsible
government."[152]

Having taken a leaf out of Mackenzie's book by setting fire to the
property of a private citizen, Sir Francis seems to have been actuated
by a similar spirit of wanton and progressive incendiarism. David
Gibson, as the reader knows, had long been an opponent of the
Government policy, and had made his hostile influence felt in the
Assembly. He was an ally of Mackenzie's, and was known to have talten
part with the rebels at Montgomery's. Would it not be well to visit
him with some signal mark of reprobation? His house was about four
miles further up Yonge Street. The Lieutenant-Governor resolved that
it should share the fate of the tavern, and gave orders to that
effect. He appears to have blown hot and cold by turns. In obedience
to his commands a detachment of about forty men rode up Yonge Street
to set fire to Gibson's house. On their way they met Colonel Fitz
Gibbon, Captain Halkett and others, who had been in pursuit of
Mackenzie, but who had turned back after chasing the fugitive for
several miles. On encountering the detachment moving northward, and
upon learning whither they were bound and on what errand, the Colonel
was disagreeably surprised, for this mode of dealing with an utterly
broken and discomfited enemy was not in accordance with his ideas of
honourable warfare.[153] He demanded of them strictly whether they
were quite certain that they had positive warrant from the
Lieutenant-Governor for what they were about to do. As he received a
reply in the affirmative, there was nothing for it but to allow the
men to pass. Upon overtaking the rear of the homeward-bound column,
the Colonel was met by Henry Sherwood, who gave him a message from his
Excellency to the effect that Gibson's house was not to be burned, and
that the men were to be recalled. Captain Strachan, a son of the
diocesan, was accordingly sent in headlong haste to prevent the
detachment from carrying out the order they had received. The Captain
caught up with them in ample time, and brought them back with him. But
before they had overtaken the main body Sir Francis's hot fit was once
more upon him. Reining in his horse, he sent back for Colonel Fitz
Gibbon. Upon that officer's presenting himself, Sir Francis directed
him to see that Gibson's house was burned immediately, and then to
return to town. "Already," writes the Colonel,[154] "I had seen with
displeasure the smoke arising from the burning of Montgomery's house,
which had been set on fire after I advanced in pursuit of Mackenzie,
and I desired to expostulate with his Excellency, but he quickly
placed his right hand on my bridlearm, and said 'Hear me! let Gibson's
house be burned immediately, and let the militia be kept here until it
is done'--exactly repeating his order; and then he set spurs to his
horse and galloped towards town." There was thus no room for argument.
Colonel Fitz Gibbon, having at the moment no officer of rank at hand
to whom he could entrust the supervision of the unpleasant duty,[155]
was compelled to see it done himself. The house and outbuildings were
set on fire and burned to the ground. Mrs. Gibson, with her four young
children, was driven to find shelter in the house of a neighbour. The
men carried off a pig and a quantity of poultry slung across their
saddle-bows. Poor Mrs. Gibson!

As she watched the destruction of her once happy home, and reflected
upon the uncertain fate of her husband, whom she had not seen since
his departure with Mackenzie early on Monday morning, it is not very
surprising if she invoked a sinister blessing upon Sir Francis Head
and those by whom he was surrounded.[156] She was not destined to see
her lord again until she joined him after his escape to the United
States, as will hereafter be recorded.

Before returning to town, Sir Francis, accompanied by a number of his
troops, advanced some distance up Yonge Street. During this advance a
few prisoners were taken, but were released by Sir Francis after being
briefly admonished, and ordered to return to their homes and their
allegiance.[157] Upon retracing his steps to the neighbourhood
of the tavern his Excellency found a considerable number of wounded
rebels, who had been picked up in the fields, and placed side by side
near the burning building. Several of the loyalists who had received
wounds had already been conveyed to the city hospital. By order of Sir
Francis, arrangements were now made for the care of the wounded
insurgents. They were placed in carts and conveyed to the hospital,
where they received such care and relief from suffering as the
institution afforded. The body of Ludwig Wideman was handed over to
his cousin for interment.[158] The volunteers appear to have helped
themselves freely to chickens, geese, and whatever of value was to be
found in the stables and outhouses of the tavern. One article of booty
discovered on the premises occasioned no little surprise. It was a
flag, on which was inscribed the words:

BIDWELL AND THE GLORIOUS MINORITY.
1837, AND A GOOD BEGINNING.

This was an old political banner which had been used in an election
contest five years before, but the hasty preparation and scanty exchequer
of the insurgents had constrained them to use such arms and ensigns as
chance placed at their disposal. The old banner had been pressed into
service, and the figure 7 had been substituted for the figure 2. The
Government party, however, being unacquainted with the facts, were for
a time disposed to regard the flag as an exceedingly good find, as it
seemed to identify Mr. Bidwell with the Rebellion. Persons who have read
the first volume of this work with attention[159] do not need to be informed
that Mr. Bidwell was innocent of all complicity in that enterprise;
but, as will hereafter be seen, the capture of this flag was fraught
with unpleasant and, for a time, disastrous consequences to him.

The discovery of another article of booty in one of the rooms of the
tavern was attended with still more disastrous consequences to many
persons in Upper Canada. This was a large carpet-bag containing
Mackenzie's papers. Perhaps none of Mackenzie's indiscretions is more
blameworthy than his having left these documents where they were
liable to fall into the hands of the Government. Among them was an
approximately complete set of the "rolls of revolt," in which were
inscribed the name and address of almost every insurgent in the
Province. By the aid of these documents, and of certain criminatory
correspondence found along with them, the Government were enabled to
arrest and prosecute scores of persons against whom they had
previously entertained no suspicion.[160] It might not unreasonably
have been supposed that the custodian of such dangerous papers would
have made some effectual disposition of them before going into action,
more especially as he must have known that he was going upon a forlorn
hope, and that the discovery by the Government of the bag and its
contents would involve many of his friends in utter ruin. He took no
pains whatever to prevent such a calamity, but left all his papers in
the bag, which was secured by a small padlock, on a table in his
bedroom, where they were seized and handed over to Sir Francis Head.
Such conduct on Mackenzie's part not only indicated his want of the
commonest prudence, but showed a cruel and heartless indifference to
the welfare of many persons whose only offence against the law
consisted in having been too much influenced by his own selfish and
evil counsels. It was little less culpable than a wilful betrayal of
his adherents, and is still regarded in that light by the descendants
of his victims.

In the course of the forenoon,[161] a proclamation had been issued by
the Lieutenant-Governor, offering a reward of a thousand pounds for
the apprehension and delivery up to justice of Mackenzie, and five
hundred pounds for the apprehension and delivery up to justice of
Gibson, Lount, Jesse Lloyd or Silas Fletcher. At the close of the
skirmish this proclamation was freely distributed among the people
assembled there. Its circulation stimulated several Government
supporters to action, and they set off northward on horseback at
break-neck speed, in the hope of capturing some one or more of the
rapidly-retreating fugitives. Sir Francis remained in the
neighbourhood of the burning tavern until towards the middle of the
afternoon, when, in a complacent and self-glorifying frame of mind, he
leisurely set out on his return to town. His progress all the way to
Government House was attended by loud and apparently enthusiastic
cheering from the crowds assembled on the streets.

NOTE TO CHAPTER XXVI.

[See _ante_, p. 126.]

I am thus precise in indicating the personality of the one slain rebel
because the most erroneous ideas are prevalent upon the subject of the
slaughter-roll at Montgomery's. For the reasons stated in the text,
the general impression is that thirty-six men were slain there. But it
appears there are those among us who go to the other extreme. _The
Toronto World_, in its leading editorial article of Monday, January
1st, 1883, takes the ground that "not a single human being" was killed
at the affair at Montgomery's, and seems to lean to the belief that no
one was even wounded there. "We assert," says the writer, "that there
were not thirty-six, nor twenty-six, nor sixteen, nor six persons
killed at that battle. We go farther, and re-assert that not a single
human being was killed; and we are prepared to prove what we say by an
overwhelming array of evidence, consisting of eye-witnesses who are
still living. To commence with, we offer the following names: Mr.
Charles McGrath [Magrath], barrister, of this city, and his brother
William, both of whom were present in command of loyalist troops. Mr.
Stephen Jarvis, who rode out of Toronto after loyalist troops, and was
as near to them as a skittish horse would allow him to get. Sheriff
Jarvis, of Toronto, who was an eye-witness. Mr. Alexander Manning, who
came down Yonge Street, from the north, as one of the militia, and
went over the ground just after the battle. Mr. James C. H. Stitt, who
lived in Toronto at the time, and knew all the circumstances of the
battle. Mr. Charles Durand called into the _World_ office to
substantiate the _World_'s account. Mr. Charles McGrath [Magrath], in
addition to saying that no one was killed, is of the impression that
not a single casualty of any kind occurred...All the others state
positively that no one was killed; and all of them had the means of
knowing. The number of witnesses could be greatly increased if
necessary, but the names given would be a sufficient guarantee that
their version of the affair is the correct one. If we turn to the
despatches in which the affair is officially reported, the statement
that no lives were lost is corroborated. In Sir Francis Head's
despatch to Lord Glenelg, dated December 19, 1837, there is nothing to
indicate that there were any casualties of any kind to report. And his
despatch to Mr. Fox, British minister at Washington, dated January 8,
1838, makes it quite clear that no one was killed. 'On the 7th of
December,' the Lieutenant-Governor says, 'an overwhelming force of
militia went against them (the insurgents) and dispersed them without
losing a man; taking many prisoners, who were instantly released by my
order. The rest, with their leaders, fled.' As all who were not taken
prisoners made good their escape, it follows that none could have been
killed. Sir Francis Head was present at the scene he describes, and
all the facts must have come before him as Lieutenant-Governor...Even
for historians it is easy to transcribe without criticism, and without
testing the accuracy of alleged facts; it is a more difficult thing to
exercise the critical faculty, detect errors and correct them. The
history of Canada is yet to be written."

Of a surety the history of Canada is yet to be written; but let us
hope that it will be written by a more competent and discriminating
hand than the one which penned the article in the _World_ from which
the foregoing extract is taken. The writer, I understand, himself lays
claim to the name of an historian, and his article is in itself a
conclusive proof of the truth of his words about the easiness of
transcription without criticism, and "without testing the accuracy of
alleged facts." I will not here mention the writer's name. Suffice it
to say that he was and is the very last man on earth who ought to have
been betrayed into such truly incomprehensible blundering and
falsification as is contained in his _World_ article. He evidently has
no faith whatever in the written words of Mackenzie, who, as mentioned
in the text, states that the rebels "killed and wounded a large number
of the enemy," and that the rebels themselves had "three killed."
These statements were published by Mackenzie in his Navy Island
_Narrative_, originally written for the Watertown _Jeffersonian_. They
are substantially repeated by him in subsequent publications; and in
his _Caroline Almanac_ (p. 51), published two years later, he records
the shooting of Wideman. Nay, in his account entitled _Winter
Wanderings Ten Years Since_, written in 1847, and published in the
Toronto _Examiner_ of Wednesday, October 6th, of that year, he
expressly states, in describing the skirmish at Montgomery's, that "a
ball struck my worthy friend, Capt. Wideman, in the head, killing him
on the spot." Any one as familiar with Mackenzie's productions as the
writer of the article in the _World_ may be presumed to be, ought
surely to have known of this definite statement a statement the truth
of which it was easy to verify and ought to have avoided so palpable
an error as is involved in his positive assertion that "not a single
human being" was killed at Montgomery's. It is fair to say, however,
that no one had better reason for distrusting any statement made by
Mackenzie than the writer above mentioned, and he is not to be blamed
for disbelieving any testimony from that quarter. Still, why did he
not take proper means to test the truth or falsity of the particular
statement under consideration, instead of betraying such unaccountable
want of familiarity with the subject more especially when, as in the
article referred to, he undertook to correct the blunders of others.

To go at once to the root of the matter treated of in this article in
the _World_, which professes to prove that "not a single human being
was killed" at Montgomery's: There is no more doubt as to Ludwig
Wideman's having been shot through the head and killed during the
progress of the skirmish than there is as to the fact of the skirmish
itself. There are three persons in Toronto at this moment who saw him
fall. He was struck by a bullet which passed through the centre of his
forehead and came out at the occiput. I have conversed with at least
twenty persons who saw him lying dead on the field, and who saw the
hole made by the bullet. Further, the body was conveyed to Whitchurch
by a cousin of the deceased, and was there interred by his relatives
under the belief that it was dead. I do not intend to enter into
surgical details, but I may say that, considering the nature of the
wound and the condition of the body, it cannot be said that this
belief on the part of the relatives was unreasonable.

While preparing this work for the press, I have visited the former
home of the dead man, and have had an interview with his son, Philip
Wideman, who resides on lot number thirty-five, in the eighth
concession of the township of Markham, which is close beside the old
homestead, and only separated from it by the town-line between Markham
and Whitchurch. I have also visited the last resting-place of the
deceased, which is in the graveyard of Union Church, in the eighth
concession of Markham, a little more than a mile from his former
abode. Above the grave is erected a monument of bluish stone,
containing the following inscription:

IN MEMORY OF
LUDWIG WIDEMAN

WHO DIED

Dec. 7, 1837.
AE 56 years.

ELIZABETH WIDEMAN

WIFE OF

LUDWIG WIDEMAN
DIED APRIL 28, 1852.

AE 55 YEARS.

From Mr. Philip Wideman I learned a good many interesting particulars
respecting the life and death of his father. The latter held a
lieutenant's commission in the Canadian militia, and rendered good
service to the Crown during the War of 1812. He was always loyal to
the Government of Upper Canada until the general election of 1836,
some particulars whereof have already been given in the first volume
of this work. During that election he rode to Newmarket to exercise
his franchise, but as he was known to be a Reformer the strongest
attempts were made to prevent him from voting. Notwithstanding that he
was known to have resided on his farm for more than thirty years, and
that he had spent two years fighting for his country at the time of
her utmost need, a demand was made that he should take the oath of
allegiance. He felt all the just indignation which such treatment
might be expected to arouse, and from that time forward was prepared
to adopt any and every means to destroy the domination of the Compact
which had the Lieutenant-Governor under its thumb. This it was which
goaded him into rebellion. His memory is tenderly cherished by his
descendants, who regard him as a martyr to the cause of Canadian
liberty.

With a view to the final clearing-up of this question, I have taken
the trouble to subject the evidence adduced in the _World_'s article
to a somewhat rigorous examination. The result has fully justified my
anticipations. The statements are false and frothy from first to last,
and the writer of the article had no warrant whatever for his utterly
nonsensical assertions. It will be noticed that he brings forward
seven persons whom he claims to have been "eye-witnesses," to prove
that "not a single human being" was killed at the fight at
Montgomery's. All these "eye-witnesses," says the _World_, "state
positively that no one was killed, and all of them had the means of
knowing." The gentlemen named are Charles Magrath whose name is
mis-spelled and his brother William, Stephen Jarvis, Sheriff Jarvis,
Alexander Manning, James C. H. Stitt and Charles Durand. The result of
my investigation into the evidence thus submitted is as follows:
Charles Magrath, having died since the appearance of the article
referred to, is no longer available as a witness. His brother William
lives at some distance from Toronto, and as the evidence is
sufficiently conclusive without him I have not thought it necessary to
write to him on the subject. The remaining five witnesses I have
personally seen and questioned minutely. Mr. Stephen Jarvis informs me
that he did not advance near enough to the fighting at Montgomery's to
be able to give any evidence on the subject from personal observation.
By no latitude of language can he properly be referred to as an
"eye-witness." He however knew, by common report, that at least one
man was killed there; and he adds: "I certainly never told anybody to
the contrary." Mr. Sheriff Jarvis informs me that he went out with the
Government volunteers, but was not actually on the fighting-ground. He
however always supposed that several persons were killed at the
battle, and most certainly never in his life said anything to justify
the assertion that "not a single human being was killed" there. Mr.
Manning, not having been present at the fight, and not having been in
any sense an "eye-witness," can of course only speak from hearsay, but
he declares most emphatically that he never said that no one was
killed there. Mr. Stitt's words I took down verbatim from his own
lips. I may remark, in passing, that there is not, and to the best of
my knowledge there never was, any man in Toronto bearing the name of
"James C. H. Stitt." The gentleman whom the writer probably had in his
mind is Mr. James Stitt, of No. 593 Yonge Street, one of the oldest
residents of this city. He says: "I was nowhere near Montgomery's on
the day of the fight, and know nothing about who or how many were
killed. Whoever says I told him that no man was killed there does not
tell the truth. I never said anything of the kind." The remaining
witness, Mr. Durand, speaks still more emphatically. He says: "Of
course I never said any such nonsense. How could I, when I knew
better? I know that Wideman was shot dead in the fight, and I know the
man who claims to have shot him." I called upon the gentleman referred
to by Mr. Durand. He informs me that he fired at the man, who fell,
and that he afterwards saw the bullet-hole through his forehead. The
late Mr. Rogers, one of the loyalist volunteers, assisted in carrying
the dead body from the field.

So far as to the alleged "eye-witnesses," whose "overwhelming
evidence" is adduced to prove that "not a single human being was
killed" during the skirmish at Montgomery's Farm. It is manifest that
there has been something more than mere incompetence here. There must
have been downright dishonesty and falsification. After this
exposition it would be a waste of time to deal with the silly attempt
at argument founded on Sir Francis Head's despatches. The writer in
the _World_ remarks: "It is a difficult thing to exercise the critical
faculty, detect errors, and correct them." Even this is a baseless
fiction. It is not at all difficult to detect such glaring errors as
those of which his article is chiefly made up. For such a purpose only
a very moderate share of "the critical faculty" is needed. One thing
at least is clear: historical criticism is not this writer's forte,
and it would become him to find a less ambitious place for the
products of his "critical faculty" than the editorial columns of a
daily newspaper.

I have thought it desirable to go fully into this matter, because it
is highly necessary that such "historical criticism" should be exposed
and stamped out. The blunders of the writer in the _World_ are far
more dangerous and less pardonable than MacMullen's, for MacMullen at
least made a legitimate use of such materials as he had before him,
and did not deliberately falsify the record.

FOOTNOTES:

[135] See evidence of John Linfoot and others, on the trial of John
Montgomery for high treason at Toronto, on Monday, 2nd April, 1838.

[136] Gibson's MSS.

[137] Gibson's MSS. Readers who take the trouble to compare this
account with that given by Mackenzie in his Navy Island _Narrative_,
_ubi supra_, pp. 16, 17, and repeated by Mr. Lindsey in his _Life of
Mackenzie_, vol. ii., pp. 91-93, will find about as wide a diversity
of statement as could very well be imagined. The account in the text
rests upon the written testimony of Gibson, who was known as a
conscientious and truthful man. It is incidentally confirmed by verbal
statements made by Montgomery and others, as well as by the subsequent
course of events. Mackenzie's story rests upon his own unsupported
word. How much that word was worth, even when uncontradicted by
stubborn facts, readers of these pages are able to judge for
themselves. It is to be regretted that persons who profess to write
history should allow themselves to be beguiled into recording
so-called "facts" upon the unsupported evidence of such a witness as
Mackenzie, more especially when the "facts" relate to his own conduct.

In the foregoing paragraph I have used the expression "unsupported
word" advisedly. It is true that in the _Caroline Almanac_ there are
certain "Extracts from a letter from Capt. Alves to Mr. Rudd, N. Y.,"
and that these extracts seem to confirm Mackenzie's account of matters
at Montgomery's on Thursday, the 7th of December. But whoever has read
the foregoing pages with attention is aware that these so-called
"Extracts" were really written by Mackenzie himself, and that Alves
subsequently repudiated at least a portion of them. See _ante_, pp.
23, 85.

[138] Nearly all the details of the skirmish at Montgomery's have been
derived from survivors who participated therein on one side or the
other.

[139] _Emigrant_, chap. viii.

[140] The original edition of his history was written and published
within twenty years after the affair at Montgomery's.

[141] MacMullen's _History of Canada_, 2nd edition, p. 452.

[142] I must plead guilty to having once believed it myself upon the
strength of Mr. MacMullen's work, and of having embodied it in a
sketch of the life of W. L. Mackenzie written for _The Canadian
Portrait Gallery_. Other errors of mine in the work last named are
traceable to similar causes. I was so credulous as to accept the
published statements of my predecessors, without subjecting them to
the test of personal investigation--a line of conduct which I have
long since found it necessary to abandon when dealing with topics
relating to Canadian history.

[143] See note at end of this chapter.

[144] These four are in addition to the two men Kavanagh and Stiles
who died from wounds received on the previous Tuesday night. See
_ante_, p. 102, note.

[145] Fothergill's reprint, pp. 17, 18.

[146] See his Navy Island_ Narrative_, quoted _ante_, p. 102.

[147] Mr. Mackenzie's biographer, after adopting and embodying
Mackenzie's account of the battle, with the sanguinary particulars as
to the rebels having "killed and wounded a large number of the enemy,"
remarks that "Some are of the opinion that the fighting lasted an
hour." (See _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., pp. 95, 96.) It is possible
that "some" may be of that opinion, just as it is possible that "some"
may be of opinion that one o'clock is identical with London Bridge.
But no person has any ground for such an opinion. According to every
survivor, whether Tory or Rebel, with whom I have conversed on the
subject--and I have conversed with between twenty-five and thirty the
entire skirmish at Montgomery's lasted barely twenty minutes.

[148] _Ante_, p. 52.

[149] _Emigrant_, chap. viii. I have conversed with two persons who
distinctly remember this episode. I should be chary of recording it
upon the unsupported testimony of Sir Francis Head.

[150] _Emigrant_, chap. viii.

[151] _Ib_.

[152] _Emigrant_, chap. viii.

[153] Fitz Gibbon's MSS. See also Fitz Gibbon's _Appeal_, _ubi supra_,
p. 28.

[154] _Appeal_, pp. 28, 29.

[155] Captain Duggan, it appears, was at hand, but was excused from
undertaking the duty. "It was now late in the afternoon," writes
Colonel Fitz Gibbon, in the MS. _Narrative_ from which several
extracts have already been made, "and the house was nearly four miles
distant. I then directed Lieutenant-Colonel Duggan to take command of
a party which I wheeled out of the column and countermarched, and see
the house burned; when he entreated me not to insist on his doing so,
for that he had to pass along Yonge Street almost daily, and he
probably would on some future day be shot from behind a fence. I said,
'If you will not obey orders you had better go home, sir.' Again he
spoke, and I then ordered him to go home; but he continued to express
his reasons for objecting, and I said, 'Well, I will see the duty done
myself,' and I did so, for I had no other officer of high rank near me
to whom I could safely entrust the performance of that duty; and with
the party I advanced and had the house and barns burned at sunset, and
then returned to town." Compare this account with that given by the
same hand in _Appeal_, p. 29.

[156] Sir Francis, in his despatch of December 19th, embodied in the
ninth chapter of his _Narrative_, endeavours to convey the impression
that the militia were so carried away by their superabundant loyalty
that they voluntarily set fire to Gibson's house, and that nothing
could have restrained them from thus testifying their hatred for
rebellion. "The militia," he writes, "advanced in pursuit of the
rebels about four miles, till they reached the house of one of the
principal ring-leaders, Mr. Gibson, which residence it would have been
impossible to have saved, and it was consequently burned to the
ground." The construction here is bad, but the spirit manifested is
worse, as the writer tries to throw upon the militia the
responsibility for his own ill-advised act. No sooner did Colonel Fitz
Gibbon become aware of the contents of this despatch than he addressed
a letter to Lord Glenelg, acquainting him with the facts. Sir Francis,
in subsequently publishing his _Narrative_, was compelled to eat his
own words, but he did so in a clumsy and half-hearted fashion, by
simply appending a brief note to the paragraph of the despatch above
quoted with reference to the burning.

[157] Among those who were so admonished by the Lieutenant-Governor
was a young man who has since become widely known to the people of
Upper Canada. He was then a beardless youth in his seventeenth year,
and resided at home with his father on a farm in the township of
Vaughan, twelve or fifteen miles from the scene of the skirmish. While
the rebels were quartered at Montgomery's he was on a visit to an
uncle a staunch loyalist who resided on Yonge Street, a mile and a
half or thereabouts north of the tavern. When the cannonading began,
his curiosity got the better of his prudence, and he started for "the
seat of war," not to take part in the contest, but merely out of
curiosity, and to see whatever was to be seen. While on the way he
passed a horse standing saddled and bridled by the roadside,
apparently abandoned by its owner. Women and children, frightened by
the disturbance, and by the roar of cannon-shots which had passed over
their houses, were hurrying northward in terror, filling the air with
their cries, and evidently anticipating speedy annihilation. While
engaged in explaining to the fugitives that they would be quite as
safe in their houses as on the public roads, the youth saw a little
man rush down a lane west of Yonge Street, mount the abandoned horse,
and ride swiftly away to the northward. As the fugitive galloped past,
the youth recognized him as Mackenzie. His hand was bleeding, but not
disabled, for he plied with great vigour a stick which he had probably
picked up during his flight across the fields. The blood on his hand
doubtless proceeded from the wound he had given himself on the
preceding Tuesday night, when attempting to extract the bullet from
the foot of George Fletcher, as detailed _ante_, p. 102, note.
Sufficient time had not elapsed for the wound to heal, and he had
probably accidentally re-opened it in his excitement while scrambling
in haste over the fences. It seems not unlikely that the horse had
been placed in readiness for an emergency, as suggested _post_, p.
140.

The firing soon afterwards ceased, and the youth, seeing the
glistening accoutrements of the troops near Montgomery's, did not
think it prudent to advance further southward, and erelong retraced
his steps to the house of his relative. The Lieutenant-Governor's
advance-guard soon arrived. They assumed that all the residents in the
neighbourhood were rebels, either in deed or in sympathy, and made
prisoners of all males who came in their way. The Lieutenant-Governor
himself soon afterwards rode up, and, addressing the proprietor of the
house who, it will be remembered, was a loyalist--informed him that as
he had not been found in arms he would be released. The proprietor
attempted to explain, but Sir Francis was in too much of a hurry to
listen. He however turned towards the young man, who was standing
close by, and expressed regret that so respectable-looking a youth
should have been found in such company. He then directed both uncle
and nephew to return to their allegiance. By this time the latter had
found his tongue. He repudiated all connection with the rebels, and
stated that there was no need for him to return to his allegiance,
inasmuch as he had never departed from it. Sir Francis thereupon rode
away.

The youth was destined to attain considerable distinction in the
public annals of Canada. He is still living, and is known to the
present generation as the Hon. William McDougall.

[158] See note at end of this chapter.

[159] Vol. i., pp. 361, 362, and note.

[160] See _ante_, p. 11, and note.

[161] The proclamation bears date Tuesday, the 5th, but it was not
circulated until the morning of Thursday, the 7th.




CHAPTER XXVII.

SAUVE QUI PEUT.


The farce of Rebellion, so far as Toronto and its vicinity were
concerned, was completely played out. The leaders well knew the fate
which awaited them in the event of capture, and with one accord sought
safety in flight. Van Egmond and Lount, who had directed the movements
of the insurgents in the belt of woods below the tavern soon perceived
that any attempt to hold the position would be in vain, and gave the
word to the men to save themselves. Almost before the word was uttered
the rebels were in full retreat northward, whither their leaders
followed them. Lount, who was on horseback, rode up along the second
fence behind Mr. Price's house, and thus gained the side-line about a
mile further to the northward. Thence he proceeded eastward to Yonge
Street, encountering flying rebels at almost every step. A few of
these had contrived to supply themselves with horses, and all were
eager to put as many miles as possible between themselves and the seat
of Government before nightfall. A brief parley ensued as to whether it
would be more judicious to fly together or separately. While it was in
progress Van Egmond rode up and joined the group. Just then, the smoke
from the fire of the burning tavern rose in dense masses before their
eyes. The sight impelled them to break off their parley and hasten
from the ground. They scattered and fled in every direction except to
the southward, where they would almost certainly have fallen into the
hands of the militia. The majority of them proceeded northward by way
of Yonge Street. Those on horseback of course distanced those on foot,
but all got over the ground at a rapid rate, and soon left the scene
of their defeat far behind.

Mackenzie, during the brief engagement, had stationed himself near the
belt of woods occupied by the insurgents. Hearing the word given that
the day was lost, and seeing the men flying in full retreat, he
likewise proceeded to make good his escape. Running northward over a
ploughed field to the rear of Mr. Price's house, he passed along
immediately to the rear of the spot now occupied by the dwelling of
Mr. Elias Snider. Here he encountered a gentleman who still lives in
that neighbourhood, and who had strongly sympathized with the
movement. The face of the fugitive was blanched, and, as might have
been expected, he was in no mood for sustained conversation. In reply
to an enquiry as to how the day was going, he hurriedly replied "All
right," and proceeded to spin over the field to the north as fast as
his little legs could carry him. Upon reaching the side-line, he found
a horse ready saddled, which had probably been placed in readiness
there for an emergency, and upon which he made his way across to Yonge
Street, and thence northward to Hogg's Hollow. On the way he
foregathered with Silas Fletcher, who was also on horseback, and
making the best of his way northward. They continued their journey
with all speed, scarcely pausing to exchange a word. Near the Golden
Lion Inn, close upon four miles north of Montgomery's, they overtook
Van Egmond and several other insurgents, from whom they learned that
Lount was a short distance ahead. They also found that they were hotly
pursued by a number of mounted adherents of the Government, among whom
was Colonel Fitz Gibbon himself. Van Egmond was nearly overcome by
fatigue, and sought shelter on a neighbouring farm.[162] The others
continued their flight by different routes. Mackenzie himself,
accompanied by an insurgent whose name was John Reid, diverged
westward from Yonge Street, and made for Shepard's mill, which, it
will be remembered,[163] had long been a rendezvous for the Radicals.
Before reaching this spot they found that they were hotly pursued, not
only by Colonel Fitz Gibbon and his party, but by other emissaries of
the Government, who were anxious to secure the large reward which had
been offered for the capture of the insurgent chief. Having arrived at
the mill, Mackenzie was advised to make for the United States without
a moment's delay. The few steamers plying on Lake Ontario had been
secured by the Government, so that it would be necessary for him to
proceed by land, round the head of the lake, and thence to the Niagara
frontier. This advice being in accord with his own views, he resolved
to act upon it, and forthwith set off in a westerly direction towards
the River Humber. He soon came up with Lount and a number of others,
all intent upon escape across the borders by the nearest practicable
route. They did not long remain in each other's company, deeming it
most prudent to separate. Mackenzie proceeded westward to Dundas
Street, where he took temporary refuge in the house of a Radical
farmer named Wilcox. Thence, during the next three or four days, he
made his way to Buffalo, encountering much fatigue and hardship on the
journey.[164]

Fletcher, Lloyd and Gorham also succeeded in escaping to the
United States within a short time after the collapse of the movement
near Toronto. Rolph, as already detailed, had made his escape before,
and Morrison was in jail. The fate of the other four persons most
actively concerned in directing the movement--Lount, Matthews, Gibson
and Van Egmond--still remains to be recorded. Lount, upon separating
from Mackenzie, as just narrated, proceeded to the northern part of
the township of King, where he was compelled to spend two nights
without shelter in the woods. His sole companion was Edward Kennedy,
who, it may be remembered,[165] had accompanied Mackenzie on his
foolish reconnoitring expedition on the night when Anthony Anderson
met his fate at the hands of Mr. Powell. The two made their way
westward from one place of hiding to another. A price, as they knew,
was set upon Lount's head. Any supporter of the Government who should
recognize him might be expected to take steps for yielding him up to
the nearest magistrate or officer of militia. The fugitives suffered
untold miseries in the course of their wanderings, and several times
narrowly escaped capture. On the night of Saturday, the 9th of
December, they took refuge in the house of David Oliphant, a Radical
who lived in the township of Eramosa. Thence they proceeded to the
neighbourhood of Guelph, and in the course of the next few days made
their way through Dumfries,[166] Burford and Oakland to the village of
Waterford, where they were for a time concealed in a hay-mow
contiguous to Grover's tavern. They were known to be in the vicinity,
and militia lay in wait for them at every turn. After lying perdu in
this place for two days, they stole away by night to the village of
Mount Pleasant, where they spent upwards of thirty hours embedded in a
straw-stack. They next repaired to West Flamboro', where they
separated for a time, Kennedy taking shelter with some of his children
who lived in Dundas, and Lount being secreted in the houses of Obed
Everett, Squire Hyslop, John Hathaway and others.[167] But emissaries
of the Government were perpetually on their trail, and they could
never feel safe for a single moment. Time after time they were on the
very brink of capture, but their friends stood by them loyally, and
their own vigilance was unremitting. They were soon compelled to
retrace their steps westward. They found protection for a brief season
in the house of Mr. Latshaw, near Paris, with whose assistance they
were conveyed by night to the neighbourhood of Simcoe. They were by
this time wellnigh worn out by fatigue, anxiety and exposure, and
determined to make a bold attempt to reach the United States.
Proceeding to Long Point, they embarked in a small open boat belonging
to one Deas, a French-Canadian sympathizer, who lived near by. In this
frail craft they tempted the dangers of Lake Erie, and sought to cross
over into Pennsylvania. They were accompanied by Deas himself and a
boy, who probably went with them for the purpose of bringing back the
boat. For two days and two nights they buffeted the waves in a vain
endeavour to make the opposite shore. Their sufferings were terrible.
The bitter blast seemed to penetrate their very marrow, and they had
but little clothing to protect them from its fury. Sleep was out of
the question, as the weather was rough, and their united efforts were
required to manage the boat and keep it clear of water. They were in
constant danger of being swamped. Several times the waves passed over
them, drenching them to the skin, and chilling them with a chillness
which seemed more horrible than death itself. They likewise suffered
the pangs of hunger, for their only provision consisted of a piece of
pork, which was soon frozen.[168] At last, when their energies were
nearly exhausted, it seemed that they were to reach the fruition of
their hopes. The welcome southern shore was near at hand, and in their
delight at prospective freedom and safety they almost forgot their
sufferings. But fate seemed to have registered a decree against them.
A strong southerly wind arose, and in spite of all their efforts, blew
them back into the lake and towards the Canadian shore. They toiled
with renewed desperation for hours, until, perceiving the uselessness
of their exertions, they permitted the boat to drift. They soon found
themselves off the mouth of the Grand River, and as certain death from
cold awaited them if they remained in the boat, they ran her ashore
and disembarked. A farmer who resided a short distance away had
watched them for some time before they landed, and, believing them to
be smugglers from the other side of the lake, he got together a few of
his neighbours, by whose aid he arrested the party and conveyed them
to Dunnville. They were examined before two magistrates: David
Thompson--who afterwards sat in the Assembly as member for Haldimand
and Squire Milne. Those gentlemen did not recognize either of the
prisoners, but believed them to be either rebels or sympathizers from
across the borders, and forwarded them to Chippewa, where, as will
hereafter be seen, the Canadian militia had by this time assembled in
great numbers. On the morning succeeding their arrival there, Lount
was recognized in the guard-house by Mr. William Nelles, of Grimsby.
As a consequence he was sent on to Toronto, and lodged in jail with a
number of his former friends and fellow-insurgents. Kennedy, the
faithful companion of his long wanderings, was committed to jail at
Hamilton.

Poor Matthews fared little better, except that his sufferings were of
briefer duration. It will be remembered that on the morning of
Thursday, the 7th of December, two or three hours before the skirmish
at Montgomery's, he had been sent eastward with sixty men to burn the
Don bridge, intercept the eastern mail, and draw off the attention of
the militia in that direction. The eastern approaches to the capital
were for the time undefended. After the ineffectual attempt of the
rebels to enter the city by way of Yonge Street on the preceding
Tuesday evening, a company, under the command of Mr. Walter Mackenzie,
had been sent down to guard the entrance by way of the Don bridge, and
had remained there throughout the night, but had withdrawn early on
Wednesday morning, since which time no guard had been stationed there.
Matthews appears to have succeeded in capturing the mail, but I cannot
learn that he appropriated its contents to his own use and that of his
men, as Mackenzie had done with the western mail the day before. He
crossed the bridge with his forces a few minutes after noon, and
advanced for some distance along King Street into the city. But this
was a dangerous game, and could not long be played with impunity. A
detachment of militia, under the command of George Percival Ridout,
was promptly sent out against him from the City Hall, and he was
compelled to beat a hasty retreat. In retracing his steps, he ordered
his men to fire the Don bridge. The order was obeyed, and the flames
rapidly extended to a tavern at the eastern end of it. The attempt to
destroy the bridge was a failure, the fire having been extinguished
before any serious damage had been done,[169] but the tavern, together
with the adjacent stable, driving-shed and toll-gate, was totally
destroyed. The opposing troops did not approach near enough to each
other to admit of great carnage, but there was some musket-firing on
both sides, and the hostler of the tavern was fatally shot in the
throat.[170] Matthews's object was not to come to a close engagement,
but merely to draw off the militia from the main body. He therefore
kept at a tolerabty safe distance from Mr. Ridout's detachment, and
when the latter reached the Don bridge they found no enemy to oppose
them, the insurgents having retreated half a mile to the northward.

Early in the afternoon the result of the affair at Montgomery's became
known to Matthews and his men, who straightway abandoned their
operations, and adopted measures to save themselves from arrest. They
divided up into small knots, and took to the woods in different
directions. Matthews himself, with a handful of his neighbours from
Pickering, spent Thursday night, Friday, and a part of Saturday
forenoon hiding behind logs and in clumps of bushes in the several
ravines which now form part of the picturesque suburb of Rosedale. On
Saturday evening, a little before six o'clock, they reached the house
occupied by John Duncan, on the south half of lot number twenty-five
in the third concession of East York, near the town-line between East
York and Markham. They were eleven in number, including their leader.
They would have been sure of a warm welcome from Mr. Duncan under any
circumstances, for he was a Radical of the Radicals; but their welcome
was none the less warm from the circumstance that they were well-nigh
starved, and stood greatly in need of his assistance. A supper was
speedily prepared for them, whereof they heartily partook.[171] They next
required a few hours' repose, after which they intended to make for
Pickering, where they hoped to be able to secrete themselves until the
storm had blown over, or, at the worst, until they could escape to the
States. Beds were made up for most of them on the floor of the principal
room of the house. No soporifics were needed to woo them to
repose, for probably not one of them had slept for ten consecutive minutes
since the previous Wednesday night, and even such fitful snatches
as they had been enabled to take had been in the exposed woods and
on the cold, hard ground. A small bedroom adjoining was assigned to
Matthews, who slept soundly almost as soon as his head touched the
pillow. The members of the family sat up, but without keeping any
light except such as was afforded by the burning logs in the fireplace.
A heavy snow-storm came on during the evening, and seemed
to offer an obstacle to the departure of the men, who could readily be
tracked through the fresh snow by the emissaries of the Government.
A little before midnight the watchers were disturbed by the sound of
voices without. Upon looking through the windows they perceived that
the house was surrounded by armed men, and that retreat was cut off
in every direction. The insurgents in the large room were roused from
their deep slumbers, and in another moment loud knocking was heard
at the door. The fresh arrivals were between fifty and sixty in number,
so that there was no possibility of successfully opposing their ingress.
Some of the more impetuous of the rebels, however, could not bear the
idea of surrendering their liberty without a struggle.[172] As the militia
entered a succession of shots was fired, and several persons were slightly
wounded, but of course there could be but one end to so unequal a strife.
The insurgents were handcuffed and marched out in a half-dazed condition
into the keen winter midnight. One of them had received a bullet
in his leg during the melee, but he was compelled to tramp with his
comrades over twelve miles of rough road to Toronto, where all the
eleven were handed over to the custody of the jailer.

Gibson also underwent his full share of perilous wanderings, but was
so fortunate as to avoid capture. After setting free the prisoners, as
narrated in the last chapter, he separated from his companions, and
struck eastward by devious ways through the townships of Scarboro' and
Pickering. After some days and nights of weary exposure to the rigours
of an Upper Canadian December, he arrived at the house of a friend near
the village of Oshawa. There he spent between four and five weeks. A great
part of this period was passed by him in the seclusion of a strawstack,
and it was seldom that he ventured in-doors for a comfortable
night's rest. Several other fugitives from Montgomery's were at the
same time concealed in the neighbourhood, and all were waiting for an
opportunity to escape across the lake. Arrangements were finally made
by their friends, and they set off by night from Oshawa in an open boat.
They fortunately encountered no severe weather, and made the opposite
shore without being subjected to any such miseries as had fallen to the
share of Lount and Kennedy.

Poor old Colonel Van Egmond's fate was a most melancholy one.
After taking refuge on the fram of an in surgent near the Golden Lion
Inn, as already narrated, he flattered himself that his greatest danger
was over. His equanimity, however, was destined to receive a rude
shock before he had lain many hours in concealment. The place was
searched, and he was discovered by a detachment of militia, to some of
whom he was personally known. He was forthwith convoyed to Toronto
jail. Being sixty-seven years of age, he was ill-fitted to endure the
rigours of his cell, which during the long winter nights was sometimes
almost Arctic in its temperature. He was attacked by a complication
of maladies, and among the rest by inflammatory rheumatism. It
became necessary to transfer him to the city hospital, where he rapidly
sank into a state of inanition. Ere many days he found refuge from
his broken constitution and ruined hopes in the grave which waits for
all. A number of other insurgents also died while in hospital, but as no
records of the institution have been preserved I have been unable to
obtain a complete list of them.[173]

Owing to the capture of Mackenzie's rolls of revolt, a great many
insurgents of less note than the preceding were arrested from day to
day at their homes. Among them were some of those who had been
discharged by the Lieutenant-Governor after the battle, and commanded
to return to their allegiance. Before the end of December the jail of the
Home District was filled to repletion, and erelong other jails throughout
the Province--notably those of the London, Gore and Midland Districts--also
contained a considerable number of rebel prisoners. It was by
this time clear that the spirit of disaffection had been widely extended,
though, except in the districts above mentioned, it had not taken hold
of any considerable proportion of the inhabitants. Public sentiment
everywhere now underwent a speedy reaction. Whatever savoured of
Radicalism was regarded as something to be utterly stamped upon and
crushed out of existence. Many of the insurgents repented of their
rashness, and hastened to tender their allegiance afresh. Even among those
who refused to surrender their Radicalism by reason of their ill-fortune,
there was little sympathy for Mackenzie. It was felt that to his
hot-headed incapacity, more than to any other cause, the ignominious
collapse of the insurrection was chiefly to be attributed. Some of his
former adherents, feeling that their sufferings had been brought about
by his reckless blundering, ardently longed for his capture, in order that
he might pay the penalty of his misdeeds.[174] Such sentiments as these
were especially strong in the breasts of the wives and children of the
prisoners, who not unnaturally looked upon Mackenzie as the direct
cause of their misfortunes, and as the unprincipled destroyer of their
domestic happiness.

It was indeed a trying ordeal for men of Reform principles. Arrests
and imprisonments were matters of daily occurrence. Little attention
was paid to technicalities, and many persons were seized and walked
off to jail without the intervention of any magistrate or other officer
of the law. Supporters of the Government conceived themselves to
be fully justified in arresting any one who was known to have professed
Radical opinions. This spirit manifested itself in some exceptionally
high-handed proceedings. Several hundred persons assembled
at Bradford, in the township of West Gwillimbury, and formed themselves
into a sort of vigilance committee. Without any pretence of
authority, they intruded into the houses of suspected persons, seized
all arms found on the premises, and, in not a few instances, made
prisoners of the inmates. They then set out on a march to Toronto,
passing through Davidtown, Holland Landing and Newmarket, and
making prisoners on the way of whomsoever they thought fit. Each
prisoner, upon being seized, was pinioned by one arm to a strong central
rope, and was thus paraded along the highway amid the hootings and
jeerings of his captors. By the time Toronto was reached the number
of seizures had footed up to between fifty and sixty. The unhappy prisoners
presented an ignominious spectacle as they were marched down
Yonge Street into the city. Many of them were wealthy, respectable
yeomen, and some of them had had no part in the insurrection. Upon
being handed over to the authorities they were thrown indiscriminately
into jail, where some of them were doomed to languish for months before
being brought to trial.

Some of the Toronto Reformers were treated with exceptional severity.
A number of them who had had no knowledge of or participation in
the insurrection were arrested and imprisoned without any explanation
being vouchsafed to them. They were huddled together in cells wherein
the atmosphere was at once cold and foetid. To have been prominently
identified with the cause of Reform was in itself sufficient to provoke
the strong suspicion, and in some cases the vengeance, of the Government.
Guards were placed in charge of the shops of some of those
suspected, and a system of petty pilfering was carried on. Mr. Samuel
Thompson, in his Reminiscences,[175] relates how he, as one of a corporal's
guard, was placed in charge of Lesslie's stationery and drug-store,
which was on King Street; and this was far from being an isolated
instance. Many of those arrested suffered severely both in purse and
in person, and failed to obtain any recompense whatever on either score.

FOOTNOTES:

[162] This farm is now owned and occupied by the identical Joseph
Shepard who was present at the shooting of Anderson by Powell on the
preceding Monday night. See _ante_, p. 58, and p. 50, note.

[163] _Ante_, p. 47.

[164] As mentioned in a previous note (_ante_, p. 136), Mackenzie, in
1847, wrote an account of his adventures during the four days
succeeding his escape from Montgomery's. This account was published in
the Toronto _Examiner_, and also in the _Globe_. A considerable
portion of it has been incorporated by Mr. Lindsey in his _Life of
Mackenzie_, vol. ii., chap. v.

[165] _Ante_, p. 60.

[166] "It is maintained by a militia officer still living that Samuel
Lount, for many years member for Simcoe, and Mackenzie's chief
lieutenant at Gallows Hill, was secreted for some days near Gait. It
was suspected by the magistrates at the time; and the gentleman
referred to always claims that Lount could have been taken in or at
least close to Galt, but that his arrest would have convicted others
of high treason who had done nothing but harbour one who had been
outlawed. A sharp look-out was kept, however. Lount, who is said to
have been part of the time in the then almost impenetrable swamp below
the late Mr. Crombie's house, was, one Sunday morning, moved on to a
farm-house near Glenmorris. A local magistrate, being notified, is
said to have entered the front door of the house as Lount went out of
the back door."--_Reminiscences of the Early History of Galt_, and the
Settlement of Dumfries, by James Young; pp. 162, 163.

[167] I have derived these particulars chiefly from a statement
prepared and published by Kennedy at Dundas in 1849, but partly also
from verbal conference with some of the persons mentioned in the
narrative.

[168] "For two nights and two days we were in that open boat. Our
sufferings were great beyond description; we were strangers to sleep,
and toiling continually. We had a piece of pork, but it was frozen.
When near Erie the wind blew us back into the lake, and we drifted to
the mouth of the Grand River, where we would have froze to death if a
farmer who had watched us drifting on the lake had not taken us
prisoners, with the aid of a party."--See Kennedy's statement,
mentioned in preceding note.

[169] An old lady named Mrs. Ross, who was once cook to Sir F. B.
Head, and who still lives in Toronto, claims to have quenched the
fire, and thus saved the bridge from destruction. She further states
that while engaged in putting out the fire she received a bullet in
one of her knees, which was extracted by Dr. Christopher Widmer. She
evidently believes the story herself, and there is nothing in it
inherently incredible.

[170] It seems probable that the shot was fired by one of the loyalist
militia across the river.

[171] I have learned most of the particulars concerning the capture of
Matthews and his companions from an eye-witness--Mr. William Duncan,
who now resides in Toronto, but who then lived with his brother John,
and was present in the house during the whole of the eventful evening
referred to in the text. He distinctly remembers the appearance of
Matthews, when, upon rising from the table after finishing his supper,
he remarked: "I know my doom if I am taken" at the same time drawing
his hand significantly across his throat.

[172] Matthews was a large, stout man, possessed of great personal
strength. One of the militia rushed into the chamber where he lay, and
placed the muzzle of a rifle against his breast before he had been
roused from sleep. It was indeed this action which awoke him. His
first impulse was to make a fight for it. He put away his assailant as
one might brush a fly from his sleeve. He seemed merety to touch the
disturber of his slumbers, when the latter struck the wall behind him
as though he had been impelled by a catapult. But others rushed in and
threw themselves upon the recently-awakened rebel, and he submitted
himself to the inevitable conditions of his situation. He was marched
off to jail with his companions.

[173] James Kavanagh and Edgar Stiles were among the number. See
_ante_, p. 102, and note; also p. 126, and note.

[174] "One of them, named Jacob Kurtz, swore most lustily the same
winter that if he could catch his old leader he would shoot
him."--Thompson's _Reminiscences_, etc., p. 133. I find that this
feeling was not uncommon among the Germans of Markham and Whitchurch.

[175] P. 128. The author informs us that he found in the store "a
saucy little shop-boy, who has since developed into the portly person
of Alderman Baxter, now one, and not the least, of our city
notabilities." The late Mr. James Lesslie, a short time before his
death, wrote me the following letter, as illustrative of the methods
adopted by the Government in dealing with the property and persons of
those suspected of complicity in the Rebellion:--

"EGLINTON, 16th March, '85.

"Dear Sir:--

"There are some facts connected with the wrongs inflicted upon me and
my brother William, who was my fellow-prisoner in December, 1837,
which should be known. For two weeks all the property in my shop and
dwelling was in the hands of the militia, and what amount may have
been taken I never knew; but when my sister, who then kept house for
me, returned home, she found all her preserves gone. What else
disappeared we knew not. After two weeks' imprisonment we were brought
before the Treason Commission, of which Mr. R. B. Sullivan was
Chairman. They had not any charge against us, but having all letters
of leading Reformers seized by the Government, a reference was made to
two or three having no bearing upon the case before them--letters
written by my brothers and others. After we had received an
acquittance from the Attorney-General (Jameson), my brother William
shortly afterwards was proceeding to Montreal, towards Rouse's Point,
where he was going to be married. When journeying by stage towards
Kingston, while passing through Shannonville, the officer of a troop
of cavalry, who knew him when he formerly was in business in Kingston,
at once seized him, and sent him, under the charge of some of his
subordinates, if not by himself, and had him imprisoned, without any
charge being made against him, in the Common Jail. Some days after I
was told in Toronto that Sir Francis B. Head had received a letter
from Captain or Colonel Bonnycastle that one of the Lesslies was
arrested and in jail. When I heard it I went to see the
Lieutenant-Governor to see if it were true, and I found it was. I told
him that it was a gross outrage, as he [William], with myself--as Sir
Francis must have known--had been unjustly imprisoned in Toronto for
two weeks before, without any charge being made against us, and had
been acquitted by the Treason Commission, after being brought before
them as criminals. I asked him to order that my brother should be at
once liberated, but he refused, and said I should go down myself and
see about it. I then asked hitn whether he would give me a pass for my
own safety, but he refused, and I therefore gave him to understand
that I had no intention of being exposed to the same wrong. About a
week after his [William's] imprisonment he was released, went to
Rouse's Point, and returned with his bride to Toronto, where he died
in 1843. I felt it to be my duty to put the Imperial Government in
possession of the outrages which were being perpetrated through the
Province, and drew up a petition, and sent it to be presented by Sir
Henry Parnell, the M. P. for Forfarshire, in which my native place,
Dundee, was situated. It was duly delivered, and Sir F. B. Head had a
communication from the Imperial Government relating to it....I am,

"Yours truly,

"JAMES LESSLIE."




CHAPTER XXVIII.

DR. DUNCOMBE.


As has been hinted at on a former page,[176] Dr. Charles Duncombe was
meanwhile engaged in enacting on a small scale in the London District
the part played by Mackenzie on a larger stage in the neighbourhood of
Toronto. The history of his operations is not of much importance, and
there is no necessity for entering upon them in great detail. The
Doctor was a man of undoubted courage, was possessed of a sincere zeal
for Reform, and could stir men's blood by the vigour of his oratory;
but here his qualifications as the leader of an insurrectionary
movement ceased. He possessed little faculty for organization, and
none of his lieutenants seems to have been much better endowed than
himself in this particular. Ever since his return from Great Britain,
whither he had gone on a fruitless mission to present his case against
Sir Francis Head,[177] he had been filled with bitterness against the
ruling faction in Upper Canada. This bitterness had probably been
intensified by the report of the Parliamentary Committee appointed to
investigate the charges made by him against the Lieutenant-Governor.
[178] At all events, his feelings were not much less inimical to the
Government party than were those of Mackenzie himself, and when the
latter began to organize for the "monster demonstration" to be held in
Toronto, he communicated his plans to Dr. Duncombe, and sought his
co-operation, which was readily promised. Later, when an actual and
forcible subversion of the Government had been determined upon, the
Doctor was let into the secret, and was requested to second the
movement by organizing the Radicals of his district. He appears to
have undertaken this task with some reluctance, as he recognized the
disastrous consequences of failure, and could not ignore the fact that
success was in any case doubtful. Ultimately, however, he accepted the
role assigned to him, and consented to head a local movement having
objects in common with those of the Radicals of the Home District.
Word was conveyed by the Doctor and his immediate agents to many
trusted Radicals throughout the counties of Oxford, Norfolk and
Middlesex, and the result was the gathering of a number of persons
near the village of Oakland during the closing days of November. A
Provisional Committee was formed, and officers were appointed to
collect arms and manage details, but everything was done in a loose,
off-hand manner, and upon the whole the organization was not
materially better or worse than among Mackenzie and his colleagues.
Dr. Duncombe nominally exercised a sort of general supervision, and,
having once entered upon the project, devoted himself to it with
characteristic energy. Meetings were held in various rural
communities, and were attended by a few of the local Radicals, but as
a rule the Reformers of the London District held themselves aloof from
active rebellion. The plan, in so far as there could be said to be any
plan, was to assemble in full force at the village of Scotland, and
march thence through Brantford to Hamilton, which places were to be
taken and held on behalf of the Provisional Government to be meanwhile
instituted at Toronto by Mackenzie and his colleagues.

Sir Francis Head and his advisers were not left in ignorance of the
state of feeling throughout this part of the Province. Their
supporters kept them supplied with regular information as to the
prevalence of what they called "disloyal sentiments," and in a few
instances recommended strong measures by way of checking insurrection
in the bud. In some localities it was proposed to call out and arm the
local militia. Absalom Shade, the pioneer settler of Gait, a firm
supporter of the Government party, was applied to by the authorities
at Toronto to say whether it was advisable to adopt this course in his
neighbourhood. His reply is said to have been, in effect, that the
inhabitants were "mostly Scotch, mostly quiet and inoffensive"; but
that it would be better "not to put arms in their hands."[179] A
similar feeling of uncertainty prevailed among the Tories in many
parts of the London, Western and Gore Districts. It was feared that
the yeomen were not to be trusted with arms, lest they should employ
them for the redress of grievances for the removal of which they had
long petitioned in vain.

While the insurgents of the Home District were yet at Montgomery's,
Dr. Duncombe's adherents began to march, as directed, towards Scotland
village. Some of them marched from considerable distances. Three small
detachments, under the command of Henry Fisher, Robert Anderson and
Joshua G. Doan, came all the way from Yarmouth and Bayham, and there
were a few volunteers from places still further westward. Many of
those who assembled were substantial yeomen who had fought valiantly
against the invader during the War of 1812, and who, to paraphrase a
well-known quotation, had been "cradled into rebellion by wrong." They
risked property, name and fame, life itself, in a cause which they
deemed a righteous one. But they constituted but a small portion of
the inhabitants, and their struggle was hopeless from the beginning.
Hundreds--nay thousands--of farmers would have joined their ranks had
there been a competent head to organize them and lead them to victory;
but few were disposed to play for so heavy a stake with all the
probabilities against them. Some honest Reformers even went the length
of dissuading their neighbours from joining the insurgent ranks, and
thereby bringing down inevitable ruin upon themselves without
effecting any correspondent good. The greatest array of rebels that
ever mustered at one time under Duncombe's auspices does not appear to
have exceeded three hundred in number. They suffered from the same
drawbacks as those which attended upon their fellow-insurgents at
Montgomery's. There was no proper commissariat, no competent leader,
no adequate organization, and--last, not least--there was an
insufficiency of arms. It was inevitable that such a force should melt
away like newly-fallen snow at the approach of a well-equipped and
fairly-organized militia, such as was sent against them.

The Government seem to have received tolerably full information as
to Duncombe's movements from day to day. No sooner had the militia
returned to Toronto from Montgomery's, on the afternoon of the 7th
of December, than preparations were made for despatching Colonel
MacNab westward to the London District with five hundred men at his
back. There was no necessity for retaining him in Toronto, as the
Rebellion bubble had utterly collapsed, and the militia at the disposal
of the Government were amply sufficient to meet any emergency which
could reasonably be expected to arise. Moreover, additional volunteers
continued to flock into the city from all quarters, and in considerable
numbers, insomuch that it was impossible to provide suitable accommodation
for them, and on Friday, the 8th, it became necessary for the
Lieutenant-Governor to issue a notice declaring that there existed "no
further occasion for the resort of militia to Toronto." A local guard,
partly composed of persons of recognized wealth and position, was
formed to protect the city, and was kept on more or less active duty
throughout the whole of the ensuing winter. On Saturday, the 9th, a
general order was issued authorizing the whole of the militia of the
Bathurst, Johnstown, Ottawa and Eastern Districts to proceed to the
Lower Province in case of their services being needed, and render
assistance to Sir John Colborne in quelling insurrection there.[180]
Colonel MacNab[181] marched westward to Brantford, and thence to the
township of Burford, where, as usual in such emergencies, his men were
billeted upon the local farmers; in most cases very much to the
latter's dissatisfaction. He received the zealous co-operation of
Charles Strange Perley known to the inhabitants of Burford in later
days as "Colonel" Perley--a local magistrate of U. E. Loyalist stock,
who had long been known as one of the most zealous supporters of the
Government to be found in the district. Upon the first intimation of a
local outbreak Mr. Perley had bestirred himself to some purpose, and
had succeeded in raising a company of militia, of which he had
personally taken command. He now entertained Colonel MacNab with
overflowing hospitality, and, at the head of his company, escorted him
to Scotland. This was on the morning of Thursday, the 14th of
December, precisely a week after the affair at Montgomery's.
Simultaneously with this movement, three detachments of loyalist
volunteers advanced upon the village from London, Woodstock and
Simcoe. The combined force of Government supporters was far more than
sufficient to defeat such volunteers as Dr. Duncombe had been able to
enlist in his service. The Doctor, however, had exercised wisdom by
not venturing upon a pitched battle. The rebels had disbanded and
dispersed, and when the Government forces entered the village they
found no one to oppose them. Dr. Duncombe and some of his followers
succeeded in escaping to the States. Others returned quietly to their
homes, where many of them were subsequently arrested by the militia,
and lodged in jail at Hamilton, London and Simcoe.

Never had the outlook for Reformers in Upper Canada been so gloomy as
during the few weeks immediately succeeding the skirmish at
Montgomery's. A wave of sentiment which was supposed to be loyalty,
but which in a vast number of cases was mere deference to power and
authority, swept over the land with a force which carried everything
before it. It is so easy to be strong upon the stronger side, and it
is so hard to face calumny and contempt for an unpopular and defeated
cause. It was the policy of the Government party to cast the Rebellion
in the teeth of the Reform party at large. Rebellion, it was said, was
the legitimate outcome of such principles as had all along been
advocated by Reformers. To have been connected, in ever so remote a
degree, with the Reform party, was to incur the odium of disloyalty,
and of being classed with the man who, it was said, had made rebellion
a cloak for incendiarism and highway robbery.

NOTE TO CHAPTER XXVIII.

The following particulars respecting Dr. Duncombe will probably be
interesting to a considerable circle of Canadian readers, more
especially to those residing in the counties of Brant, Oxford and
Norfolk. They are extracted from a "History of the County of Brant,"
published at Brantford in 1833. The writer professes to have obtained
his information as to Dr. Duncombe from trustworthy sources among
others from the Doctor's daughter, Mrs. Tufford, formerly of
Bishopsgate village, and from other persons of competent knowledge. We
are informed that at the time of the breaking-out of the Rebellion
"the whole of the east centre of Burford township, from the town-line
westward to Boston village, was owned by Dr. Duncombe." The narrative
then proceeds thus: "This gentleman, an American by birth, had settled
in Burford some years after the end of the War of 1812, and purchased
the land on which the present village of Bishopsgate is built, with
about two hundred acres besides. Dr. Duncombe was one of the first to
practise the medical profession in Burford and the adjacent townships.
Being a man of as much energy as professional skill, he was sought
after through a wide radius of territory, and acquired both fortune
and reputation. In personal appearance he was somewhat below the
average height, but with an active muscular figure, pleasing features,
and lips and brow expressive of a resolute, determined nature. His
manner in public or private speech is described as singularly winning.
He had the true orator's gift of apt illustration and eloquent
language....Such was the celebrated Dr. Duncombe, as we picture him
from the accounts given by those in Burford who knew him, and by those
who remember him as a speaker in Parliament at Toronto, and from the
portrait now in possession of his daughter.

"All through the north-western and southern part of Brant County, and
above all in his own township of Burford, Dr. Duncombe acquired great
influence. His frank amiability, his readiness to take any trouble in
order to extend the benefit of his professional skill to his poorest
neighbours, endeared him to all in Burford. He was also a good
practical farmer, and on all agricultural matters in thorough sympathy
with his rural friends, who also had the good sense to appreciate the
culture and oratorical powers which they themselves did not possess.
Soon he wa& elected member of Parliament, and there justified the
choice of his constituents by his oratorical powers no less than by
the determined resistance with which he met the attempts of the Family
Compact oligarchy to curb the rising spirit of the Reform movement.
The reformers of Burford had reason to be proud of their
representative, who soon became one of the recognized leaders of the
Reform movement...Through years, and amid the bitterness of patient
effort, the Reformers struggled to obtain what are now regarded as
people's rights by constitutional means. At length the limit of
patience seemed to be reached, and William Lyon Mackenzie resolved to
appeal to arms...Neither he nor Duncombe had any of the qualifications
of military leaders except personal courage. Nor, among Dr. Duncombe's
friends in Burford, was the movement organized with any definite
shape. It was generally understood among those of the Reformers who
favoured Mackenzie's bolder policy that there would be a rising in
Burford and the adjacent townships to support, if successful,
Mackenzie's movement on Toronto. The more moderate Reformers held
aloof...But though there was no conspiracy, and scarcely any settled
plan, there was much furbishing up of old rifles and muskets, much
melting of bullets; and a movement was contemplated by all the
township, led by men who had seen service in 1812, and with a force
composed of no ordinary plebeian insurgents, with everything to gain
and nothing to lose, but by many of the most substantial of the
Burford farmers--men who risked in the cause for which they were
prepared to die not only their lives, but in each case a considerable
landed property, reclaimed from the wilderness by the labour of years,
and the sole hope of support for wife and children. Such men were
Stephen Landon, a veteran of 1812; such were Jacob and Adam Yeigh, who
were distinguished officers in the same war, and whose well-merited
military decoration was only cancelled by their patriotism in 1837.
These and many others, though armed only with rifles with which they
were accustomed to bring down the wild bird on the wing, would have
formed the materials of no contemptible insurrectionary force. But as
a matter of fact, no insurrection took place. Among other military
measures which had been neglected was the necessity for constant
communication between the force under Mackenzie and Lount and that
which was ready to rise under Duncombe...The greatest excitement
prevailed; the Patriots gathered round Duncombe, and besought him to
aid a movement which might support their Toronto friends who had risen
for Canadian independence. Duncombe does not seem to have approved of
Mackenzie's hasty action; at first he did not wish to head a rising;
but willing to show that he had the courage of his opinions in a cause
which he believed to be just, he consented to become their leader,
appointing a rendezvous at the village of Scotland, with the purpose
of marching by Oakland Plains and Hamilton. Meetings of his followers
were held at a house on the township line between Blenheim and South
Dumfries, as also at McBain's Mills, a mile beyond the village of Ayr,
and through Burford, at several points. It was resolved to collect
arms, and this duty was assigned among others to Mr. Tufford, of
Bishopsgate. Burford, husband of Dr. Duncombe's daughter. He did not,
as alleged by a witness at his trial, make any forcible seizure, but
got together what firearms could be obtained from sympathizers. A
gathering of about three hundred men actually took place under Dr.
Duncombe at Oakland Plains. They were well-armed, resolute men, and
would no doubt have been largely reinforced for the attempt on
Hamilton had not Duncombe resolved to abandon that attempt and
disperse the insurgent force on learning not only of Mackenzie's
failure at Toronto, but the approach of Sir Allan MacNab with an
overwhelming force to attack his lines at Scotland. The insurgents
scattered in every direction. Jacob Yeigh escaped to the United
States; Duncombe was enabled, after many adventures, to reach the same
asylum by the fidelity and courage of Charles Tilden; Stephen Landon
and others returned home, keeping more or less in concealment.

"Meanwhile Colonel MacNab and his militia regiments arrived at the
village of Bishopsgate in Burford, where they were billeted on the
reluctant farmers and storekeepers of that 'Rebel Hold,' as the
village was styled in the 'loyal' parlance of the day. A warmer
welcome was extended to the Royalist officers and men at the mansion,
always a hospitable one, of the late Colonel Charles Perley, a
vehement partisan of the Family Compact Government, one who carried
his loyalty so far as to consent to sit as a juror on a case where a
cousin of his own was being tried for his life. Great were the
preparations for baking bread and slaughtering sheep and oxen; fervent
and deep the toasts quaffed to the confusion of the rebels who had not
rebelled. In unopposed triumph Colonel MacNab and his warriors marched
south through Burford to Scotland, which village they occupied...Dr.
Duncombe recovered his property, which had been confiscated, except a
farm of two hundred acres, which, with characteristic generosity, he
had deeded in the name of the infant child of the friend who had
secured his escape, on which farm that child, now grown to manhood,
resides. Duncombe lived through an honourable and successful career of
some years in the States."

To which it may be added that during the year 1843 Dr. Duncombe, Dr.
Rolph, Dr. Morrison, David Gibson, Nelson Gorham and John Montgomery
each received a pardon under the Great Seal for complicity in the
Rebellion, and were thus enabled to return to Upper Canada. All except
the first-named availed themselves of the privilege, and spent the
rest of their lives here; but Dr. Duncombe had formed plans for a
permanent residence in the United States. He paid a visit to the
Province where he had once been proscribed as a traitor, but soon
returned to the land of the stars and stripes, where the rest of his
days were passed in comfort and prosperity.

FOOTNOTES:

[176] _Ante_, p. 106.

[177] _Ante_, vol. i., p. 340.

[178] _Ante_, vol. i., pp. 330, 346.

[179] _Reminiscences of the Early History of Galt_, etc., by James
Young; p. 155.

[180] Head's _Narrative_, chap. ix.

[181] It may be asked, why was not Colonel Fitz Gibbon sent on this
expedition, instead of Colonel MacNab. There was more than one good
and sufficient reason. MacNab was a great favourite of the
Lieutenant-Governor, who naturally desired to throw what honour and
advancement he could in the way of his protege. Then, MacNab was a
much younger man than Colonel Fitz Gibbon, and was better acquainted
with that part of the country where his services were needed. Colonel
Fitz Gibbon, moreover, had by this time been worked up into such a
state of excitement that it was feared by some that his nerves would
give way altogether, and he almost immediately afterwards resigned the
post of Adjutant-General, which had been conferred upon him on the
previous Monday. Upon reaching his home about seven o'clock in the
evening, after overseeing the burning of Gibson's house and
outbuildings, he was so overcome as to be unable to dismount from his
horse, and was forthwith compelled to take to his bed. In his MS.
narrative, from which I have already made repeated quotations, he
writes: "I arrived at my house about seven o'clock, reduced to the
last degree of exhaustion by fatigue, cold, and want of food and rest,
but suffering most from deeply wounded feelings from the treatment of
his Excellency, whose conduct had so nearly brought ruin and disgrace
upon me. I mean the disgrace that would have fallen upon me had I
failed that morning to organize the militia for the attack, after the
efforts I made to obtain the command. For my belief was that his
Excellency did not care one straw for me more than as an instrument to
be used to forward his own objects, and that as Colonel MacNab had
Parliamentary influence, he would sacrifice me to conciliate him. On
awaking the following morning and reviewing the events of the previous
days, my mind became exasperated at the wrongs which had been intended
for me, after my having made efforts almost superhuman in the defence
of the city and the Province; and recollecting, too, that on former
occasions during the late war, and subsequently, repeated attempts had
been made to take from me the fruits of my military knowledge and
personal energy and exertions, I resolved to retire from the militia
staff of his Excellency, from a conviction that no cordiality or
goodwill could exist between us and I did retire." Cf. his _Appeal_,
pp. 29, 30, 31, where he acquits Colonel MacNab of all underhand
designs against him. "In justice to Sir Allan MacNab," he writes, "I
will here state that in no one particular did I see cause to be
displeased with his conduct towards me in those transactions. I
consider him as having acted only in obedience to the orders received
by him."




CHAPTER XXIX.

MR. BIDWELL'S BANISHMENT.


Among those who were doomed to suffer most grievously from the
untoward state of public opinion indicated in the concluding paragraph
of the last chapter was Mr. Bidwell. He had long been among the very
foremost in the ranks of Upper Canadian Reform. His refusal to
accompany Mr. Baldwin with the flag of truce on Tuesday, the 5th, had
subjected him to grave suspicion. The fact of his refusal was known
and discussed all over the city before the day was out. Persons with
whom he had long been on terms of friendship now looked askance at
him. He was exceedingly sensitive to public opinion, and this coldness
on the part of his former associates cut him to the heart. On
Wednesday he sought and obtained a conference with Attorney-General
Hagerman,[182] in the course of which his position was freely
discussed. Mr. Bidwell deprecated the suspicion with which he was too
evidently regarded, and declared his innocence of all complicity in
the insurrection, at the same time professing his readiness to submit
both himself and his papers to examination. Mr. Hagerman replied that
there was no desire to subject him to such an ordeal, but that it was
not strange if he was regarded with distrust, owing to his political
principles, and his uniform opposition to the Government. The
Attorney-General, however, remarked that he personally acquitted Mr.
Bidwell of all complicity in the revolt.[183] The conversation led to
nothing, except to increasing the perturbation of Mr. Bidwell's mind,
and to making him even more unhappy than before. Next morning, an hour
or two ere the militia started out for Montgomery's, Mr. Bidwell and
the Attorney-General again encountered each other, when the
conversation of the previous day was resumed. Mr. Hagerman intimated
that it had been reported that Dr. Rolph had left the city and gone to
the London District, and enquired if Mr. Bidwell knew the object of
the journey. Mr. Bidwell appears to have been made acquainted with the
secret of Dr. Rolph's departure, for he informed the Attorney-General
that although the Doctor had given out that he intended to go to the
London District, he in fact had not gone there, but to the United
States. "I confess," writes Mr. Hagerman, "I was startled at this
information, for at that time I was not aware that Dr. Rolph was in
any way implicated in the Rebellion, and I could not understand why he
should, as he had done, clandestinely leave the country. Mr. Bidwell
told me that Dr. Rolph's reason for going away was two-fold: first, he
feared he might be apprehended and committed on suspicion of
correspondence with traitors; and secondly, he was afraid that
Mackenzie and other traitors might attempt to send messages and
address letters to him, and thus apparently implicate him in their
schemes, with which he was resolved to have nothing to do."[184] The
Attorney-General appears to have from that moment comprehended Dr.
Rolph's position. It was absurd to suppose that he had fled from the
Province unless he had been concerned in the insurrection. As for Mr.
Bidwell, though he had had no part or lot in the movement, he felt
that he would have to endure a share of the odium attaching to it, and
that the ordeal was more than he could bear. "I well remember his
saying," continues the Attorney-General, "that he had little hope of
being restored to happiness while he remained here; and I did not
hesitate to tell him that I thought he would do wisely to leave the
country: that his professed political opinions were entirely at
variance with the monarchical institutions of England, and that he
must now either abandon those opinions or be constantly subject to
annoyances and mortifications." It is possible that this advice "to
leave the country" may have been given with perfect disinterestedness,
though it would have been less open to suspicion if it had proceeded
from one who was not a bitter political opponent of Mr. Bidwell, and a
rival of that gentleman for an appointment to a seat on the judicial
bench. It is presumable that the Attorney-General had good reasons for
believing that but for his own influence over the Lieutenant-Governor
Mr. Bidwell would have been appointed to a judgeship some months
before this time. He knew to a certainty that Mr. Bidwell's presence
in the country must operate as a bar to his own elevation to the
bench, at least until after that gentleman should have received such a
mark of distinction.[185] At all events, the next time the two
gentlemen met, Mr. Bidwell had been frightened into acting on
Attorney-General Hagerman's advice.

Mr. Bidwell, being thus an object of suspicion, was made to feel his
doubtful position very keenly. The discovery of the flag at
Montgomery's on Thursday was for the time regarded as conclusive
evidence of his complicity in the rising. It would have required a
brave man to stand up against the odium which now attached to his name
throughout the capital; and, speaking in a physical sense, Mr. Bidwell
was not brave. He was in fact constitutionally timid, and had long
been in weak health. He knew the bitterness of his rivals and
opponents, who were even now "chuckling that they had Bidwell in their
power."[186] He felt utterly broken down. His agitation reached its
climax when, early in the forenoon of Friday, the 8th the day after
the skirmish at Montgomery's he was informed that his letters had been
confiscated in the post office, and that they were to be opened by the
members of the Executive, in Council assembled. This was the keenest
humiliation of all. Between ten and eleven o'clock he presented
himself in a state of great agitation before the Lieutenant-Governor
at Government House, where he seems to have held language very similar
to that formerly employed by him when conversing with Attorney-General
Hagerman.[187] The most erroneous notions are prevalent as to what
took place at this interview. The general belief, founded upon
accounts in works professedly historical, is that Sir Francis gave Mr.
Bidwell the option of expatriating himself or of having his letters
opened in his presence there and then; and that Mr. Bidwell chose the
former alternative lest his correspondence might be the means of
getting himself or some of his disaffected friends into serious
trouble.[188] As matter of fact no such option was even hinted at. On
the contrary, Sir Francis deprecated the confiscation of Mr. Bidwell's
correspondence, and stated that this had been done without his orders,
adding that he would not permit the letters to be opened by any one
except Mr. Bidwell himself. Mr. Bidwell, having a clear conscience,
and feeling certain that the correspondence could contain nothing of a
nature compromising to himself, requested the Lieutenant-Governor to
open the letters, in order that his innocence might be made clear, and
that there should be no after-suspicion of him. This Sir Francis
positively refused to do, saying that he had too much respect for Mr.
Bidwell to test his loyalty by any such means. There can be no
reasonable doubt, however, that the Lieutenant-Governor had fully made
up his mind to cajole or coerce Mr. Bidwell into leaving the Province.
His reasons are perfectly intelligible. It is unnecessary to insist
upon the secret influence of Hagerman over Sir Francis, because,
however strong the probability may be that such influence was brought
to bear, there is no direct evidence of the fact. But Sir Francis had
abundant reasons of his own for getting Mr. Bidwell out of the
country. Had he not been instructed by the Colonial Office that it was
the wish of the Home Government that Mr. Bidwell should be promoted to
the bench upon the next vacancy?[189] Had he not informed the Colonial
Secretary that though Mr. Bidwell was a man of irreproachable moral
character and of high legal acquirements, he was nevertheless tinged
with disloyalty, and the associate of persons who were desirous of
effecting the separation of the colony from the parent state of
exchanging the British constitution for "the low, grovelling
principles of democracy"?[190] Had he not expressed his conviction
that the welfare of the Province depended upon "never promoting a
disloyal man"?[191] Had he not finally refused in the most positive
terms to obey the mandate of his superiors by raising Mr. Bidwell to
the bench?[192] Was he not daily expecting his amoval from the office
of Lieutenant-Governor, partly on account of this refusal?[193] If he
could now show that he had all along been in the right, and that Mr.
Bidwell was really disloyal, would he not disarm the Colonial Office,
and at the same time vindicate his own judgment and perspicacity? If
Mr. Bidwell could be frightened out of the country along with
Mackenzie, Rolph, and others implicated in the Rebellion, the Colonial
Office would certainly come to the conclusion that he had been guilty
of treason, and that the Lieutenant-Governor had been right in
objecting to confer honourable dignities upon him. If this could be
brought about, Sir Francis would achieve a signal triumph, and would
probably not only be continued in his post as Lieutenant-Governor, but
would be allowed to have things pretty much his own way for the
future.

Mr. Bidwell, then, must be got out of the country by hook or by crook.
Crook was tried first, and unhappily it succeeded. Sir Francis
declared to his interlocutor entire confidence in the latter's
integrity, and in his freedom from complicity in the insurrection. He
however expressed regret that circumstances looked black against him,
and that "certain other persons" had not the same confidence that he
himself had. He stated that Mr. Bidwell had come to be regarded by the
indignant community as "the Papineau of his party"; that the capture
of the flag had confirmed them in this opinion; and that he, Sir
Francis, was blamed on all sides for not apprehending him. He also
referred to a letter written several months before by Mr. Bidwell to
Dr. E. B. O'Callaghan, a prominent Montreal journalist and politician,
who was almost as deep in the Lower Canadian insurrection as Papineau
himself. In that letter, which had got into print, the writer had
expressed himself as looking with deep interest on the struggle going
on in the Lower Province between an insulted, oppressed and injured
people and their oppressors. "All hope of justice from the authorities
in England," wrote Mr. Bidwell, "seems to be extinguished." This,
though a perfectly legitimate expression of opinion, was capable of
being twisted into rank treason, and Sir Francis enlarged upon it with
considerable garrulity, expressing his own individual belief that no
disloyalty had been intended, but at the same time declaring that such
language was in itself "very suspicious." Having wrought Mr. Bidwell
up to the required state of trepidation and misery, Sir Francis then
began to push home certain arguments which he must have felt convinced
would so act upon the nerves of his listener as to effect the object
in view. He stated that martial law was about to be proclaimed, and
that it would be impossible for Mr. Bidwell to avoid arrest; that the
country was wild with wrath and excitement; that the exasperated
loyalists were at such a time likely to rush to quick judgments, and
that he, Mr. Bidwell, was especially obnoxious to them as one of the
ablest of their adversaries; that "certain prominent persons" had
fully made up their minds that Mr. Bidwell was guilty, and that he
should be brought to justice; that if he were brought to trial in the
existing state of public opinion he could not hope for an acquittal;
that he, Sir Francis, would be unable to afford him any protection
whether as to person or property if he remained; and that under such
circumstances, out of respect for his talents and virtues, and with
best wishes for his welfare, he, Sir Francis, thought it would be in
the highest degree advisable for him to leave the Province
immediately. Mr. Bidwell, in his weakness, was easily imposed upon by
this specious rhetoric. He foresaw embarrassment, imprisonment,
personal and professional ruin staring him in the face. He knew that a
fair trial was not to be hoped for, and, though conscious of perfect
innocence, he deemed it not impossible that he might be convicted of
complicity in the Rebellion and hanged. He doubtless remembered the
conviction of Robert Gourlay and Francis Collins. He felt perfectly
overwhelmed by the manifold perils of his situation, and speedily made
up his mind to act upon the Lieutenant-Governor's suggestion, which he
moreover regarded for the time as proceeding from his Excellency's
kindness and goodwill. He was so far imposed upon that he actually
consented to sit down that very moment and write a letter to the
Lieutenant-Governor the contents whereof were practically dictated by
the latter in which he expressed a strong sense of his Excellency's
kindness. Having written the letter, and having thus armed Sir Francis
with a formidable weapon against himself,[194] he made his adieux and
departed. When leaving the house he encountered Attorney-General
Hagerman on the threshold, but did not acquaint him with the
determination at which he had arrived.[195] Having made up his mind to
leave the country, he tarried not upon the order of going, but took
passage in the _Transit_ for Niagara, and crossed over on the
following Sunday morning, which was the lOth.[196] On the evening of
the same day he joined Dr. Rolph at Lewiston, whence on Monday, the
llth, he addressed to Sir Francis Head a note announcing his arrival,
and deploring the unhappy chain of circumstances which had led to his
expatriation. "I deeply regret," he wrote, "that your Excellency
should think my former political life and opinions, the garbled
extracts of a hasty and carelessly-written letter to Dr. O'Callaghan
in August last--published without my consent, and without the
qualification and limitation of the context--and the finding of a flag
at Montgomery's tavern inscribed 'Bidwell and the Glorious Minority,'
which I suppose had been prepared for some election or public meeting,
but certainly not for such a purpose as a revolt, and never used, I
believe, by the insurgents--sufficient reasons for signifying to me
your wish that I should suddenly and forever leave my home and
country, with all their ties and connexions, the scene of my dearest
attachments and happiest recollections, the birthplace of all my
children, and the burial-place of three of them; and that I should
come to a land where I am a stranger, and where I am without a
profession, and without the means of providing for those dear to me.
But I submit to a necessity--which, however, is deeply
painful--conscious of my innocence." From all which it is perfectly
plain that a great and cruel wrong was inflicted upon Mr. Bidwell;
that he was for all practical purposes cast out and banished from
Upper Canada as effectually as Robert Gourlay had been banished
eighteen years before. True, the banishment in this latter instance
was effected without recourse to legal process, and was made to assume
the appearance of a voluntary act on the part of the victim. But Sir
Francis well knew the timid, sensitive nature of the man with whom he
was dealing, and wrought upon it with a tolerable assurance of
success. Taking all the circumstances into consideration--the
bitterness of his enemies and the political predilections of the
judges--Mr. Bidwell was subjected to a fearful duress. His dread lest
he might be hanged for participation in a Rebellion wherein he had no
share was by no means so groundless as at first sight it appears. At
least one man who still lives to tell of his wrongs, and who appears
to have had nothing whatever to do with the Rebellion, was soon to
receive sentence of death for complicity therein--a sentence which was
afterwards commuted to one of lifelong expatriation.

Mr. Bidwell did not make a long stay on the Niagara frontier. With
broken health and uncertain prospects he betook himself to New York,
where he was soon after admitted by courtesy to the bar of the State.
He was subjected to wider and more formidable competition than he had
ever been compelled to encounter in Upper Canada, but he erelong
succeeded in making his presence felt, and in establishing a high
professional reputation. The first case of importance which engaged his
attention after settling in his new home was that of James Fenimore
Cooper, the distinguished novelist, against William Leet Stone, editor of
the New York _Commercial Advertiser_. The suit was for libel, and arose
out of a review by Stone of Cooper's _History of the United States Navy_,
more especially of that portion of it relating to Commodore Perry's
conduct at the battle of Lake Erie in September, 1813. The matter
involved was thus not devoid of interest for Canadians. Mr. Bidwell
represented the defendant, and conducted the case with a skill and
power of argument which won the admiration of his professional
brethren, and may be said to have established his reputation as one of
the foremost legal luminaries of the New York bar. From that time
onward his practice steadily grew, and for more than a quarter of a
century his career was one of uninterrupted prosperity and honour.

It may not be amiss to further anticipate matters here by recording
the particulars of the last interview ever held between Mr. Bidwell
and Sir Francis Head. It took place during the closing days of
March, 1838, when the latter had bidden an eternal farewell to Upper
Canada, and was waiting in New York for the sailing of the vessel which
was to convey him to Liverpool. Sir Francis had his headquarters at
the City Hotel, where Mr. Bidwell made a voluntary call upon him, and
was received with much appearance of cordiality. Towards the close
of a long interview, in the course of which Canadian affairs formed
the principal topics of discussion, Mr. Bidwell rose to withdraw. Sir
Francis requested him to remain, as he had something of importance
to communicate. I give the continuation of the story in Mr. Bidwell's
own words:--[197]

"He [Sir F. Head] then said that in order to avoid the appearance
of double-dealing, he thought it right to tell me what had occurred
between Her Majesty's Government and him about me; that he had
been required by Lord Glenelg to appoint me a judge, and to restore Mr.
Ridout, and that he refused to do this, which had led to his resignation.
I replied that I had not called upon him to enter into explanations,
but as a proof that I entertained no vindictive feelings, and was
disposed, notwithstanding my conviction of the injustice I had received
at his hands, to treat him with the respect due to the station which he
had filled; but as he had introduced the subject, candour and justice
to myself required me to say that after I had resided nearly twenty-six
years in Upper Canada, and had during all that time been a peaceable
and obedient subject, and had borne, as he had admitted, an irreproachable
and exemplary character, to take advantage of an occasion when I
could not exercise any choice, to compel me suddenly to leave a country
in which I had formed all my attachments, connexions and habits
where alone I had a home, or property, or a profession was exceedingly
arbitrary, unjust, and cruel, involving, as it might and probably
would, the ruin of myself and family. He replied, it was one of the
consequences of the Rebellion, and he regretted it. I said _No_--it
was _his_ act, not that of the rebels. I could not blame them for it;
but I would not pursue the subject, as I did not wish to say anything
disagreeable to him."

And so saying, Mr. Bidwell, without any formal leave-taking, and with
righteous but rigidly-repressed indignation swelling his breast, left
the presence of the man who had so grievously and cruelly wronged him.
He had long since realized that advantage had been taken of his
weakness and want of nerve, and that Sir Francis, in sending him out
of the country, had not been actuated by kindness, or a regard for
his, Mr. Bidwell's, own interests. But he had not before been made
aware of the intentions of the Imperial Government towards himself, nor
of how those intentions had been frustrated by the Lieutenant-Governor
for his own selfish purposes. The memory of all that he had
suffered--the consciousness of all that he had lost--came upon him
with such force that he found it impossible to remain any longer in
the presence of the cunning, selfish, unscrupulous blunderer.
Assuredly the circumstances were such as to justify the anger even of
a patient and much-enduring man. But anger could not find a permanent
resting-place in the heart of Mr. Bidwell. It is said that his gentle
spirit misgave him before he had walked a block from the hotel, and
that he was inclined to return and take a respectful leave of Sir
Francis. He could not bear that the sun should go down upon his
wrath.[198] He, however, did not succumb to this impulse, but slowly
bent his steps homeward. The two men never again encountered each
other in life's pathway.

Having anticipated so far, it may be as well to make a final end of
Mr. Bidwell's story in this place. When the first shock arising from the
Upper Canadian Rebellion had had time to spend itself, and when the
truth as to Mr. Bidwell's banishment had become known in this country,
a good many persons began to agitate for his recall. His return was
earnestly desired, not only by his erewhile colleagues, but even by some
who had formerly been opposed to him in politics, and who, while they
recognized his great moral and professional worth, felt that he had
received cruel injustice at the hands of the Lieutenant-Governor. There
were others, however--Sir Francis Head and the Attorney-General--who
had a manifest object in opposing this movement.[199] The _Patriot_
newspaper, which was the chief organ of the Government, came out with
an article traducing Mr. Bidwell, and proposing that his name should
be struck from the roll of the Law Society for having taken part in a
"traitorous conspiracy against Her Majesty's Government in this
Province." Mr. Bidwell was not here to defend himself against the
wholly groundless accusation, but he found an efficient champion in
the Reverend Egerton Ryerson. Mr. Ryerson had not always acted with
Mr. Bidwell in political matters, and indeed had sometimes opposed
him; but he was at this time stationed at Kingston, where Mr. Bidwell
had long resided, and where his blameless life and true Christian
character were well known. Having obtained full knowledge of all the
circumstances connected with the expatriation, Mr. Ryerson wrote and
published a long and vigorous statement setting forth the most
important facts, and vindicating Mr. Bidwell from the various matters
alleged against him. Sir Francis Head was accused of tyranny in
banishing an innocent man, and of injustice in not recalling him when
it had become clear to all who chose to investigate the question that
he had not participated in the revolt. Extracts were inserted from
private letters written by Mr. Bidwell since leaving Canada, in which
he most solemnly protested his innocence, and complained of the ruin
inflicted upon himself and his family. The statement took the form of
a letter to _The Upper Canada Herald_, published at Kingston, and
appeared in the number of that paper dated Tuesday, May 8th, 1838. It
was not given to the public with Mr. Ryerson's name, but was signed "A
United Empire Loyalist." As Sir Francis Head had left the country, and
in any case could not very well have replied in person to this
strongly-worded indictment against himself, Mr. Attorney-General
Hagerman took up the cudgels on his behalf. Mr. Hagerman, moreover, as
the reader is aware,[200] had his own reasons for presenting Mr.
Bidwell's conduct in the most unfavourable light, and in preventing
that gentleman's return to practise at the Upper Canada bar. His reply
appeared in _The Patriot_, and bore date the 17th of May, 1838. It set
forth a number of facts which up to that time had not been generally
known, and argued the case from a point of view widely removed from
that of the contributor to the _Herald_. If allowed to stand without a
rejoinder, this pronunciamento of Attorney-General Hagerman's would
have left the question in a very unsatisfactory light so far as Mr.
Bidwell was concerned. But Mr. Ryerson was stirred to rejoin in an
elaborate letter which occupied nearly nine columns of closely-printed
type, and which was regarded by the Reverend gentleman himself as the
strongest piece of argumentative writing ever penned by him. It
admitted most of Mr. Hagerman's facts, but set forth other facts in
avoidance, and argued the question from first to last with great
subtlety and vigour.[201] It concluded by removing the veil of the
anonymous from the face of "A United Empire Loyalist." "I am, as
ever," wrote Mr. Ryerson, "by parental instruction and example,
personal feeling and exertion, a United Empire Loyalist. Or, lest I
should be accused of sheltering myself under the mask of a borrowed
name in controversy with a gentleman entitled to respect who comes out
in his own name; or lest I should be charged with making statements
and maintaining positions the responsibility of which I shrink from
meeting, I beg to subscribe myself your very obedient humble servant,
Egerton Ryerson." This letter produced a remarkable effect upon public
opinion, for it was issued in pamphlet form and widely circulated.
Some of the friends of the Government did not hesitate to denounce it
as a mischievous and insincere production, written for some ulterior
object, and not primarily in the interests of Mr. Bidwell. Such
charges are easily made, and are generally hard to disprove. I can
only say that careful enquiry and investigation have failed to
disclose to me any satisfactory evidence of insincerity on the part of
Mr. Ryerson throughout the whole of this transaction. He was a man who
rarely acted from unmixed motives, and may perhaps have had some
secondary purposes of his own to serve, but, so far as appears, his
sympathies were genuinely aroused on Mr. Bidwell's behalf, and his
championship of that gentleman's cause was honourable alike to himself
and the subject of it. It is also worth while to note that his second
letter was the first really strong presentation of the cause of
constitutional freedom which emanated from the press of Upper Canada
after the Rebellion. It afforded evidence that there was at least one
writer left in the country who, in dealing with Family Compact abuses,
did not scruple to call things by their right names, and that there
was at least one newspaper left which dared to print his opinions. By
its perusal more than one Reformer who had been brought to the brink
of despair by the prospect which the future held out, and by the
obloquy which attended upon persons of recognized Reform opinions
whenever they appeared in public, were encouraged to look forward to
better things.

The condition of affairs, however, was not propitious to Mr. Bidwell's
recall. Before such a consummation could by any possibility have been
brought about some years had elapsed, and the exile had secured a
position at New York which removed one of the chief reasons for
recalling him. Upon the accession to power of Messieurs Lafontaine and
Baldwin in 1842, a number of Mr. Bidwell's admirers, being desirous of
his return to Canada, urged their views upon Mr. Baldwin, who held
office as Attorney-General for Upper Canada in the reconstructed
Government. It was urged that a judgeship should be offered to Mr.
Bidwell as an inducement for him to return to this country. Mr.
Baldwin was himself one of the exile's warmest friends, and would
gladly have welcomed him back; but it was out of the question to
appoint a resident of the United States to a seat on the judicial
bench of Upper Canada. Mr. Baldwin stated, in effect, that if Mr.
Bidwell would return, there was no one who would have a superior claim
to a seat on the bench in case of a vacancy. There was, however, no
vacancy at the time. The Union of the Provinces had but recently been
accomplished, and Canada was still in a state of transition, so that
it might very well be that before the occurrence of a vacancy on the
bench Mr. Baldwin might be out of office. Mr. Bidwell naturally felt
reluctant to remove to Canada on an uncertainty; and there the matter
dropped. The chances and changes of political life removed Mr. Baldwin
from office within a few months after, and at the same time removed
the Reform Government from power. After the accession of what has been
called the second Lafontaine-Baldwin Administration in 1848 the
subject was again pressed upon Mr. Baldwin, with results very similar
to those above referred to. Mr. Bidwell was fated to spend the
remainder of his days in New York, where he continued to be held in
high honour and respect until his death, which occurred on the 24th of
October, 1872.[202]

FOOTNOTES:

[182] The interview took place on the public street. The two gentlemen
encountered each other while Mr. Bidwell was on his way to the
Attorney-General's office. See Mr. Hagerman's letter to _The Patriot_,
dated 17th May, 1833, and the reply of "A United Empire Loyalist" (the
Rev. Egerton Ryerson) in _The Upper Canada Herald_ of May 29th.

[183] "The rebellion, as every one knows, broke out on Monday night,
the 4th December. On the Wednesday morning following I met Mr. Bidwell
in the street. He told me that he had been anxious to see me, and that
he had written me a note to say so that his object in seeking the
interview was to tell me that he felt he must be looked upon with
distrust, and that from the circumstance of his always having been
identified in politics with the leaders of the insurrection it was
reasonable to suppose that he might be suspected by the Government of
being implicated in their treasonable movements. He, however, very
earnestly protested his innocence, and declared his perfect
willingness to submit himself and all his papers to the closest
scrutiny and investigation. I replied that for my own part I did not
believe that he had participated in the revolt, and that I was not
aware that any officer of the Government suspected him. I further told
him that there was no desire to subject him or his papers to
examination, and that I felt quite confident that the Government would
not direct anything of the kind. I then remarked to Mr. Bidwell that
although I did not think he was directly concerned in the Rebellion,
he must feel that he ought not to be surprised if, as he suspected, he
were looked upon as a disaffected person. His constant opposition to
the Government, and the political principles which he had ever
professed and upheld, had without doubt encouraged the disloyal to
persevere in that course of conduct that had resulted in
rebellion."--_Letter of Attorney-General Hagerman_, _ubi supra_.

[184] _Ib_.

[185] "The whole case of Mr. Bidwell seems to be this. In contempt and
most disloyal disobedience of the Sovereign's commands, a
determination was formed by Sir F. Head, if not by certain others in
Toronto, to resist at all hazards Mr. Bidwell's appointment to the
judgeship. A favourable opportunity presented itself to settle that
question forever, and Mr. Bidwell's ruin was resolved upon, either by
getting him out of the Province or by a relentless and deathly
persecution of him in it. The former plan, as the most humane, was
tried first, and it succeeded. Mr. Bidwell, we are told, consented to
go; and so have martyrs consented to go to the stake rather than do
worse. But all history shows that an act of executive injustice under
any free constitution of Government is to its own future health and
vigour and reputation like the worm at the root of Jonah's
gourd."--See letter of "A United Empire Loyalist" (the Rev. Egerton
Ryerson) in _The Upper Canada Herald_ of Tuesday, May 29th, 1838.

[186] _Ib_. Mr. Ryerson adds: "Sir, you know Mr. Bidwell's physical
debility. You know he has been a dying invalid during the greater part
of his public life. You know that for years he was considered far
advanced in a decline, and was not expected to survive from session to
session. You know, too, that physical courage is seldom associated
with physical debility. It were not therefore surprising if Mr.
Bidwell had been much more discomposed than you represent him to have
been."

[187] As stated in the text, the visit of Mr. Bidwell to Government
House was made in the forenoon of Friday, the 8th of December, as is
fully proved by the date of his letter written at the conclusion of
the visit, and quoted _post_, p. 166, note. Sir Francis Head, in _The
Emigrant_, chap, viii., represents it as taking place on his (Sir
Francis's) return from Gallows Hill, which was on Thursday, the 7th.
But the error as to the date is the smallest of all the mis-statements
of Sir Francis with reference to this affair in the work referred to.

[188] Sir Francis Head's own account, given in the eighth chapter of
_The Emigrant_, conveys these ideas in the most explicit terms. He
writes: "I very calmly pointed out to him [Mr. Bidwell] the
impropriety of the course he had pursued; and then observing to him,
what he well enough knew, that were I to open his letters his life
would probably be in my hands, I reminded him of the mercy as well as
the power of the British crown; and I ended by telling him that, as
its humble representative, I would restore to him his letters
unopened, if he would give me, in writing, a promise that he would
leave the Queen's territory forever. Mr. Bidwell had concealed in his
heart some good feelings as well as many bad ones; and as soon as his
fears were removed, the former prompted him to express himself in
terms which I will not undertake to repeat. Suffice it, however, to
say, that he retired to the waiting-room, wrote out the promise I had
dictated, and returning with it, I received it with one hand, and with
the other, according to my promise, I delivered to him the whole of
his letters unopened."

Mr. Bidwell's own account, as given in the following letter,
contradicts this story of Sir Francis in the clearest terms, and fully
bears out the version of the affair given in the text. The letter was
written by Mr. Bidwell five months after his expatriation, and was
published by "A United Empire Loyalist"--in other words, the Rev.
Egerton Ryerson--in _The Upper Canada Herald_ of Tuesday, May 29th,
1838.

"New York, May 4, 1838.

"My Dear Sir:

"I perceive that _The Patriot_ has published my note to Sir
Francis,[quoted _post_, p. 166, note] and affirms that the option was
offered me of remaining or of having my letters opened. This is not
true. Nothing of the kind was hinted. On the contrary, Sir Francis
assured me that the letters had been sent to him without his orders,
and that he never would allow my letters to be opened. I asked him to
open them, as I did not want to have any suspicions about them
indulged afterwards, but he refused to do it, and said he had too much
respect for me to allow it. Indeed, on the Wednesday previously I
expressly informed the Attorney-General of my own accord that I was
willing to undergo the most full and unreserved examination, and to
let all my papers be examined.[_Ante_, pp. 159,160 and note]

"The terms of my note were dictated, or at least suggested, to me by
Sir Francis, and referred particularly to his expressions of personal
regard. The object of drawing such a note from me is now apparent; but
I was not then aware that he had received orders from Lord Glenelg to
make me a Judge.

"The interest you so kindly take in my welfare is my only apology for
troubling you with this explanation.

"I am, dear sir, yours truly,

"(Signed) Marshall S. Bidwell."

[189] _Ante_, vol. i., p. 355.

[190] _Ib_.

[191] _Ib_.

[192] _Ante_, vol. i., p. 356.

[193] The Colonial Secretary's despatch signifying acceptance of his
Excellency's resignation was already on its way to Toronto, but of
course Sir Francis was not then aware of the fact. Sir Francis had
made a sort of left-handed tender of his resignation more than
eighteen months before; and in his despatch dated 10th September, 1837
(_ante_, vol. i., p. 356), in which he refused to reinstate Mr. Ridout
in office or to raise Mr. Bidwell to the bench, he had resigned in
more formal terms.

[194] The following is the text of the letter:

"Toronto, 8th December, 1837.

"Sir:--

"In consequence of the kind conversation of your Excellency this
morning, I have determined to leave this Province forever.

"I am aware that the circumstances to which your Excellency alluded
are calculated to give rise to suspicions against me in relation to
this insurrection; and while they would be likely to render my further
residence in this Province unpleasant, they make your Excellency's
kindness the more worthy of my deep and lasting gratitude.

"I am confident, at the same time, that the investigations which will
now of course be made will fully remove these suspicions from your
Excellency's mind, and will prove that I had no knowledge or
expectation that any such attempt was in contemplation.

"I have the honour to be, most respectfully, your Excellency's
grateful servant,

"(Signed) MARSHALL S. BIDWELL.

"His Excellency Sir Francis Bond Head."

[195] See Attorney-General Hagerman's letter, _ubi supra_.

[196] The last letter he is known to have written before bidding a
final adieu to his home in Toronto was penned on Saturday, the 9th. "I
am leaving the Province," he writes, "at the request of the
Lieutenant-Governor, suddenly and forever. I am apprehensive that he
suspects me of participation in the revolt, but I am certainly
innocent, as will be apparent upon an investigation into the origin,
extent, etc., of the conspiracy. I suppose my past political course,
exertions and opinions have been the cause; but whatever may be the
cause, I think it best to comply with the Lieutenant-Governor's
expressed wish, especially as it was accompanied with many expressions
of kindness, and these in times when the slightest circumstance, to
minds excited by prejudice and alarm, may appear conclusive evidence
of guilt." This extract is quoted in Mr. Ryerson's reply to Hagerman
above referred to. Mr. Ryerson himself was the friend to whom the
letter containing it was addressed.

[197] See Mr. Ryerson's second letter, _ubi supra_, in which Mr.
Bidwell's express words are quoted. See also _In Memoriam: M. S.
Bidwell_. New York; 1872. Printed for private circulation.

[198] _In Memoriam_, etc., _ubi supra_.

[199] _Ante_, pp. 161, 164, 165.

[200] _Ante_, p. 161.

[201] See the letter itself in _The Upper Canada Herald_ of Tuesday,
May 29th, 1838, several times quoted from in the present chapter. As
stated in the text, the letter was also issued in pamphlet form, but
is at this day rarely to be met with except in the libraries of
collectors of Canadiana. Its title is _The Cause and Circumstances of
Mr. Bidwell's Banishment by Sir F. B. Head, correctly stated and
proved by A United Empire Loyalist_. Kingston, 1838.

[202] Dr. Ryerson, in _The Story of My Life_, edited by Dr. Hodgins,
p. 194, has the following with reference to Mr. Bidwell: "In 1842, on
the recommendation of Hon. Robert Baldwin, any promise given by Mr.
Bidwell not to return to Canada of which no record was found in any of
the Government offices was revoked in 1843, by the Governor-General
(Lord Metcalfe)." There is evidently some confusion of dates here. The
revocation could hardly have taken place both in 1842 and 1843.
Moreover, Sir Charles Metcalfe did not become Lord Metcalfe until
after 1843. Dr. Ryerson adds: "In conversation, in 1872, with Sir John
Macdonald in relation to Mr. Bidwell's early life, Sir John informed
me that some years before he himself had, while in New York, solicited
Mr. Bidwell to return to Canada, but without success. Sir John said
that he had done so, not merely on his own account (as he had always
loved Mr. Bidwell, and did not believe that he had any connection
whatever with the Rebellion), but because he believed that he
represented the wishes of his political friends, as well as those of
the people of Canada generally."




CHAPTER XXX.

NAVY ISLAND.


The insurrectionary movements in the Canadian Provinces had naturally
excited a good deal of interest in the various towns and villages
along the adjacent frontier of the United States. From the moment when
it had become known in Buffalo, Lewiston, Oswego, Ogdensburgh and
elsewhere along the border that a portion of the Canadian people had
risen in arms against constituted authority, there had been a
widespread sympathy among the inhabitants for the cause of the
insurgents. In some instances, doubtless, this sympathy was due to a
sincere enthusiasm for the cause of freedom. There is a generous
feeling implanted in the human heart which inclines it to at least
passively take the weaker side in a quarrel, whatever may be the
particular merits of the quarrel itself. The sympathies of the crowd
are generally elicited on behalf of the under dog in the fight. In so
far as the sympathy of the inhabitants of the frontier towns of the
United States was attributable to such causes, it furnished no ground
for reproach against those who entertained it. But there can be no
manner of doubt that by far the greater part of it was traceable to
sources much less noble. In a large majority of cases the feeling was
engendered, not by love for freedom, or by any deep-seated sympathy
for struggling weakness, but by dislike to Great Britain and British
institutions. Such sentiments had been widely cherished in the United
States ever since the days of the Revolution. Subsequent events had
tended to foster old antipathies, and to keep alive the recollection
of many events which might well have been permitted to sink into
oblivion. Little more than twenty years had elapsed since the close of
the last war between the two countries, and the memory of it was still
comparatively fresh in the minds of the people, more especially of
those residing on the frontier to which the actual conflict had been
chiefly restricted. Accordingly, no sooner did the news of the
insurrection cross the boundary-line than a considerable amount of
agitation began to manifest itself. The public sentiment found
vehement expression in the local newspapers, many of which were filled
to repletion with apocryphal accounts of insurgent successes. In
several places public meetings were held, and resolutions passed
expressive of a desire for the early and complete triumph of the
insurgent arms.

When Dr. Rolph reached Lewiston he found the little community in
a ferment. He was received with open arms, and there seemed to be a
fixed determination on the part of the inhabitants to elevate him into
the position of a martyr to the sacred cause of liberty. They persisted
in treating him as a distinguished visitor who had arrived among them
under circumstances which rendered it imperative that he should be
lionized. He was allowed to have no peace, and was pestered day and
night by callers and deputations of the kind so graphically depicted in
the pages of _Martin Chuzzlewit_. He was made the recipient of a florid
address of condolence. On the day after his arrival a crowd collected
in the street in front of the hotel where he was staying, and called
aloud upon him by name. Upon his presenting himself at a doorway
in the second story a speech was demanded of him, to which demand he
responded in a few vigorous remarks which the audience received with
great favour. He spoke freely about the corrupt administration of affairs
in the Canadas, and expressed a hope that the people of those Provinces
would erelong be relieved from the intolerable burdens which they had
long been compelled to bear. The crowd cheered him to the echo, but
he seems to have recognized how little such applause was worth. He
had not at this time made up his mind as to his future course. He felt
that he had shipwrecked his life, and that in his long-maintained war
with the Compact he had at last been ignominiously beaten. He could
see no means of getting back any portion of what he had lost; unless,
indeed, it should turn out that Dr. Duncombe had been successful in his
operations in the London District, and that the support of the people
along the frontier could be made to take a wide and practical shape.
He had been led by Mackenzie to suppose that Duncombe was able at
any moment to place himself at the head of a body of three or four
thousand insurgents, and that this great force would begin to move
upon Toronto as soon as insurrection should have fairly raised its head
in the Home District. It was just possible that all this might be
true, and Dr. Rolph refused to abandon all hope until he should hear
of the success or otherwise of Duncombe's enterprise. He would
willingly have cooperated with Papineau and Nelson, with a view to
the subversion of the Governments in the two Canadas,[203] but with
Mackenzie he was resolved to have nothing more to do; unless, indeed,
the little firebrand could be rendered entirely subordinate to some cooler
and more competent head than his own. It was clear to his mind that
Mackenzie had blundered most egregiously from first to last, and that he
was totally unfit to have any voice in directing such a movement as the
one which had so signally failed at Montgomery's.

So far as to Dr. Rolph. Meanwhile, how fared it with Mackenzie? Upon
reaching Buffalo, the latter found himself in a congenial atmosphere,
for he had been in correspondence with a number of persons there on
the subject of an impending change in the Government of Upper Canada,
and was not received as a stranger. On the day preceding the affair at
Montgomery's he had written to the editors of a Buffalo newspaper
asking for assistance.[204] The publication of his letter, the
stirring editorial remarks by which it was accompanied, and the
contradictory news which was hourly received from Canada, were of a
nature to excite considerable comment. The general state of feeling in
the frontier towns has already been referred to. In no other town was
the public pulse so excited on behalf of "the Canadian patriots" as in
Buffalo. That place, from its geographical position with reference to
lake navigation, and to the canal system of the State of New York,
contained a large floating population of persons out of employment.
Low types of boatmen, raftsmen, lake sailors, navvies and ruffians
generally were always to be found there in abundance. Such persons
naturally looked with favour upon any enterprise which seemed to hold
out a promise of irregular service and a fair share of plunder. There
were also a few fairly reputable citizens who were glad enough to
avail themselves of any opportunity of testifying to their hereditary
hostility to the British lion. They had been led by common report to
believe that the Canadian people were ready to throw off the Imperial
yoke which had long galled their necks. Some were not averse to
lending countenance to such an undertaking, though very few who had
much to lose manifested a disposition to risk either person or
property therein. In consequence of news received from Canada an
executive committee had been formed nearly a week before Mackenzie's
arrival, for the avowed object of "calling future meetings in relation
to the affairs of the Canadas," and of adopting "such measures as
might be called for by public opinion." Public opinion! Truly, a large
proportion of the people of Buffalo would willingly enough have seen
the Canadas cut aloof from Great Britain, just as, during the great
American Rebellion, there were thousands of Canadians who would gladly
have hailed the success of the Confederacy. But the great bulk of
respectable citizens appreciated at their true value the mouthings of
the rabble horde who shrieked themselves hoarse over the eternal
principles of liberty in general and the wrongs of Canadians in
particular. Nothing was easier, however, than to collect a crowd and
make a demonstration. On the night following Mackenzie's
arrival--Monday, December llth--a meeting was held in the local
theatre. Mackenzie himself was too much overcome by the fatigues of
his journey to attend, but two or three spread-eagle orators were
present, and regaled the crowd with mendacious accounts of the state
of affairs in Canada. A certain amount of enthusiasm was easily worked
up among such an audience, and the meeting closed with three cheers
each for Mackenzie, Papineau and Rolph. So far as the last-named
gentleman was concerned, there was small excuse for the plaudits which
greeted the mention of his name in that audience. He certainly had no
intention of working with such tools, and bitterly repented him of the
tremendous blunder he had committed in acting in concert with such a
conspirator as Mackenzie.

As for Mackenzie himself, he was in his element. He found himself
the most notorious personage in Buffalo. People stared at him as he
passed along the streets, and he was an object of interest wherever
he went. He found that he could move public audiences to stentorian
cheering, and that, like Rolph, he was looked upon as a sort of patriot
martyr. He was not wise enough to discern how little real strength lay
behind all this exuberance, and was very willing to acquiesce in the
general estimate of himself. He was not slow to take advantage of
the temporary influences which operated in his favour. Before he had
been twenty-four hours on United States territory he, in concert with
several other personages as ripe for mischief as himself, had formed
the design of an invasion of Canada. The most prominent of his allies
was Rensselaer Van Rensselaer, a degenerate scion of an old Dutch
family which had been settled in New York State for more than two
hundred years, and several members of which had attained to some
distinction in the annals of the Republic.[205] Van Rensselaer was a young
man of more ambition than brains, who was desirous of re-enacting
on Canadian soil the achievements of General Houston in Texas. He
and Mackenzie soon came to an understanding. A regular crusade
against Canada was to be set on foot, and as many recruits as possible
were to be enlisted in the cause. Van Rensselaer himself was to have
the supreme military command, a responsibility which he was not much
better fitted to assume than Mackenzie himself, as he had had but a
very desultory military training, and was of somewhat unsteady habits.
He was however possessed of a good address, and seemed to be supremely
self-confident, insomuch that he not only imposed upon Mackenzie, but
likewise upon Dr. Rolph, between whom and himself there would appear
to have been an interview.[206] He represented that he could obtain
the support of persons of wealth and high social position; that
numerous military friends of his would eagerly join in the enterprise;
that a hundred thousand dollars could be raised within a week, and
that thousands of enthusiastic volunteers could be enlisted within a
few days. Assuming the truth of these representations, and further
assuming that Dr. Duncombe had a large and enthusiastic following in
the west, the success of such an attempt seemed at least possible. Dr.
Rolph, with his usual wariness, declined to identify himself with the
movement further than to give Van Rensselaer the benefit of his
knowledge of Canadian affairs. Mackenzie, however, entered into the
project with his customary rashness and impetuosity. It was settled
that the "Friends of Liberty" should make their headquarters on a
small, well-wooded island situated in the Niagara Kiver, nearly
opposite the village of Chippewa, three miles or thereabouts above the
great waterfall, and known as Navy Island. The spot was well chosen.
The island being the property of Great Britain, there could be no
pretence that the Government of the United States was in any way bound
to interfere with operations undertaken there. Being within easy
cannon-range of the Canadian shore, artillery could be employed to
some purpose against any opposing force which might be quartered at or
near Chippewa; whereas the island itself, being heavily wooded,
afforded admirable opportunities for throwing up entrenchments and
guarding the occupants from attack. Any hostile forces attempting to
land on the island would have at least one of the elements against
them, for the current of the mighty river sweeps past at such a rate
that navigation by means of small boats has to be managed with some
degree of care. Finally, the eastern shore was near enough to be
easily accessible as a base of supplies. All these advantages were
doubtless taken into consideration. It was agreed that as soon as a
sufficient force could be organized an advance was to be made into the
interior of Canada, the inhabitants whereof were to be invited to join
in a bold stroke for liberty. Mackenzie was still possessed with the
idea that a large proportion of Upper Canadians were ready to fight
against the Compact if they could see a reasonable prospect of
success. He believed that by uniting the invading forces with those of
Dr. Duncombe, and with other Canadian volunteers who would flock to
the standard, a sufficient army might be got together to strike awe
into the Provincial Government.

Such was the plan whereby it was proposed to subjugate a large and
well-settled Province. Assuming its projectors to have been sincere,
they proceeded upon the false assumption that the Reformers who
constituted a majority of the population of Upper Canada were ready
for any political change which would rid them of the Family Compact.
There could have been no greater mistake. The love of Britain and
British institutions was strongly implanted in the hearts of the
people. Family Compact misrule had done much to weaken this feeling,
and had driven a few extremists into open rebellion. Had Mackenzie
succeeded in his operations at Montgomery's, it is probable that the
Upper Canadian Reformers generally would have recognized the
Provisional Government. Insurrection would have raised its head all
over the Province. The Rebellion would have been at least a temporary
success, and nothing short of the military power of Great Britain
would have sufficed to put it down. But there were comparatively few
Upper Canadian Reformers who were prepared to exchange even the
galling yoke of the Compact for republicanism and annexation to the
United States. And by this time the yoke had been strongly re-adjusted
and fettered. It was not to be got rid of by any spasmodic effort.
Loyalty or what passed for loyalty was fairly rampant throughout the
Province. All hope of subverting the Government of Upper Canada had
passed away with the defeat at Montgomery's. Probably not one per
cent, of the population had any sympathy with Mackenzie's plan for
subjugating the Province by the aid of a horde of self-seeking
adventurers from the United States.

Meanwhile, the campaign was begun with that excess of demonstration
which generally goes hand-in-hand with weakness and incompetence. On
the night of Tuesday, the 12th, another meeting was held at the
Buffalo theatre, which was crowded to the doors. Mackenzie, who
appeared to be in high spirits, and to have entirely recovered from
his fatigue, was present on the occasion. He spoke for more than an
hour, and produced a very decided impression. He drew cunning
parallels between the sufferings of the Canadians and those of the
inhabitants of the thirteen colonies who had cast aside their
allegiance to the British Crown sixty years before. Such a discourse
was sure to be favourably received. Several American citizens followed
Mackenzie, and delivered short speeches, after which an adventurer
named Thomas Jefferson Sutherland, then a sojourner in Buffalo, arose
and declared that he intended to proceed to Canada as a volunteer, to
assist the inhabitants in obtaining their independence. He appealed to
others present to join him in this righteous crusade. A paper was
produced, and signed by a small number of persons in the audience. The
signatories pledged themselves to mutual support and cooperation, "for
the commendable purpose of aiding and assisting" the Canadians in
their struggle for liberty. Appeals were made for arms and munitions
of war, and the Eagle Tavern was appointed as the temporary
headquarters and recruiting office for volunteers. From the Eagle
Tavern the recruits were to be conveyed by night to Whitehaven, a
little village on the eastern side of Grand Island,[207] where Van
Rensselaer and Mackenzie were to call for them and escort them to the
permanent headquarters on Navy Island.

The scheme proceeded with wonderful rapidity. Before the night was
over a long and wordy proclamation had been drawn up by Mackenzie and
sent to press. Small sums of money had been contributed and subscribed
by Buffalonians to meet current expenses, and something had been done
in the way of providing arms, clothing and other necessaries for a
campaign. The recruits were for the most part made up of the very
offscourings of the Buffalo slums vagabonds who, in the language of a
local newspaper, were "ready to cut any man's throat for a dollar."
The fact of the matter appears to be that most of the men understood
the truth, which was simply that the troubles in Canada afforded a
specious pretext for a succession of raids into that country, whereby
plunder might be secured. The Navy Island project had a spice of
adventure about it, and met with the cordial approval of many persons
of this class. It was promptly carried into effect, so far as its
initiatory stages were concerned, though on a much less formidable
scale than had been contemplated. It was probably accelerated by a
rumour to the effect that Sir Francis Head had made, or was about to
make, a requisition on the Governor of New York State for the
surrender of Mackenzie as a fugitive from Upper Canadian justice.
Throughout the early morning of Wednesday, the 13th, Sutherland
perambulated the streets of Buffalo at the head of a drum and a fife,
and followed by a rabble of half-drunken vagabonds who professed their
eagerness to strike for their altars and their fires. Late in the
afternoon of the same day, Mackenzie and Van Rensselaer, according to
the previous arrangement, repaired to Whitehaven, where they had been
led to believe they would find two pieces of artillery, four hundred
and fifty stand of arms, and a large stock of provisions, clothing and
accoutrements, in addition to several hundreds of armed volunteers.
The reality fell far short of their expectations. Only twenty-four
volunteers had enrolled themselves. Among them were seven or eight
Canadian insurgents from the Home District, who had escaped across the
lines after the defeat at Montgomery's, and who were ready to fall in
with any project, however desperate, which held out the slightest hope
of vengeance against the Compact from whom they had suffered such
grievous wrongs. Conspicuous in their ranks was Nelson Gorham, who for
some weeks thereafter proved one of the most useful and efficient of
Mackenzie's allies. As for the sixteen or seventeen casual recruits
who had been picked up in Buffalo, their appearance indicated that
they were of the Pistol and Bardolph species. Falstaff would assuredly
have refused to march through Coventry with such a handful of
disreputable tatterdemalions at his back. The supplies and munitions
were so few and insignificant as to be hardly worth taking into
consideration.[208] "Needs must," however, is under certain well-known
desperate circumstances the only rule of action, and with such
material as the leaders found ready to their hands they proceeded on
board a flat-bottomed scow to Navy Island, whither they arrived in the
grey of the following morning. Mackenzie lost no time in issuing and
distributing his proclamation, which, as already mentioned, had been
prepared and printed at Buffalo the night before, but which bears date
"Navy Island, December 13, 1837." It professed to emanate from
"William Lyon Mackenzie, Chairman _pro tem_ of the Provisional
Government of the State of Upper Canada." It contained a number
of recitals of facts, with a full proportion of recitals of
fiction. The principal grievances of Upper Canadians were briefly set
forth, and the "platform" of the Provisional Government was outlined
with some minuteness. The latter included the establishment of "a
Government of equal rights to all, secured by a written constitution,"
to be sanctioned in a convention which was to be called as early as
circumstances would permit. It further included the establishment of
"civil and religious liberty in its fullest extent"--a sort of
indefinite generalization which would seem to comprehend pretty nearly
every blessing under the sun; but as this clause was open to objection
on the score of vagueness, a number of specific "planks" were laid
down. Among these were the abolition of hereditary honours, and of the
laws of entail and primogeniture; a legislature composed of a senate
and assembly chosen by the people; an executive, to be composed of a
governor and others officers elected by the public voice; a judiciary,
to be chosen by the governor and senate; cheap laws; trial by jury; an
elective shrievalty; free trade and a free press; vote by ballot;
frugality and economy in the carrying on of the Government. All these
were doubtless things greatly to be desired by zealous Reformers who
sincerely had at heart the welfare of the country and of humanity. But
the rabble rout to whom it was necessary to appeal, and whose
cooperation it was necessary to secure, was composed of persons not
likely to be consumed by zeal for the progress of the human race.
Metal more attractive must be found before political economists of
this kidney could be induced to embark in an enterprise fraught with
personal peril. Mackenzie proved equal to the occasion. Confidence was
expressed that ten millions of fair and fertile public lands would
soon be at the [Provisional] Government's disposal; and it was
promised that three hundred acres thereof would be the portion of
every volunteer who should personally assist in bringing "the glorious
struggle" to a conclusion. All aggressions upon private property were
strictly forbidden; but Mackenzie must have known that the prohibition
was very unlikely to be respected by such recruits. It is significant
how Mackenzie still clung to Dr. Rolph as to a tower of strength. The
Doctor, since his arrival at Lewiston, had been called upon by many
gentlemen of wealth and position. All had been impressed by his
bearing and conversation, and had come to the conclusion that a cause
supported by him must have a great deal to recommend it.[209] Had he
chosen to openly identify himself with Mackenzie and Van Rensselaer,
the invasion of "American sympathizers" would have assumed much more
serious proportions. But Rolph had utterly lost any confidence he
might ever have had in Mackenzie, and Van Rensselaer was an untried
man. It was not even certain that any appreciable body of volunteers
could be got together for such a purpose as was contemplated. Until a
considerable force should be collected and organized, and until it
should be apparent that there was some prospect of the success of
their operations, Dr. Rolph determined to have no actual participation
in the movement. He had expressly and clearly refused to hold office
in the "Provisional Government," or to be in any way identified with
it for the present. He had positively forbidden Mackenzie to make use
of his name in the proclamation as one of the promoters. He had,
however, consented that Mackenzie might go so far as to announce that
he, Dr. Rolph, favoured the movement, and of this privilege Mackenzie
availed himself to the utmost. He dragged the Doctor's name by the
heels into his proclamation, and rang the changes upon it in three
different places, insomuch that it was well-nigh impossible to glance
at the broadsheet without seeing "Dr. John Rolph" staring you in the
face. Reference was made to the Declaration of Independence which had
been adopted at Toronto in the previous summer, and which, it was now
stated, had been drawn by "Dr. John Rolph" and Mackenzie himself.[210]
It was most mendaciously added that this Declaration had received the
sanction of a large majority of the people of the Province west of
Port Hope and Cobourg, and that it was well known to be "in accordance
with the feelings and sentiments of nine-tenths of the people of this
State."

This proclamation, be it remembered, was Mackenzie's first public
written utterance after his flight from Montgomery's. Being prepared
by himself, to serve an important purpose, it must be presumed to have
been written with as much forethought and deliberation as he was
capable of exercising on any subject. If, as he afterwards alleged,
Dr. Rolph was to blame for the failure of the attempt on Toronto, the
Doctor's blameworthiness was then well known to him. In the
proclamation, however, there is not even the most distant attempt to
hint at anything of the kind. So far from there being any such
attempt, Mackenzie is careful to specially exonerate the Doctor, and
to hold him up to the admiration of his readers. He refers to him as
"that universally beloved and well-tried eminent patriot Dr. John
Rolph." Subsequently, when he had been utterly repudiated by the
Doctor, he attributed the failure at Montgomery's to Rolph's having
accelerated the movement by changing the date from Thursday, the 7th
of December, to Monday, the 4th.[211] The proclamation assigns a
totally different cause. It expressly states that "The reverses in the
Home District were owing, first, to accident, which revealed our
design to our tyrants, and prevented a surprise; and second, to the
want of artillery." Nay, so boundless is Mackenzie's love and
admiration for the man whom he afterwards so villainously maligned,
that he refers to the latter's expatriation as one of the high "crimes
and misdemeanours" of Sir Francis Bond Head. He actually goes the
length of offering a reward of five hundred pounds for the
apprehension of the Lieutenant-Governor, "so that he may be dealt with
as may appertain to justice." Not only is Dr. Rolph completely
exonerated by him, as above specified, for changing the day for the
descent upon Toronto, but Mackenzie entirely cuts the ground from
under his own feet in respect to the flag of truce. In after years, as
the reader of the foregoing pages is aware, Mackenzie charged the
Doctor with having violated the flag, alleging that he exchanged
treasonable communications with the rebel leaders on the occasion of
his first visit to the insurgent camp with Mr. Baldwin,[212] No man in
Mackenzie's position, provided he had had any self-respect, or any
regard for his own honour, would have made such a charge, even had it
been well-founded. Assuming his story to be true, he was guilty of a
dastardly breach of confidence in repeating it. This subject has been
dealt with pretty fully in a previous chapter, but the Navy Island
proclamation affords an additional proof that when Mackenzie charged
Rolph with violating the flag of truce, he was guilty not only of
deliberate treachery, but of shameless falsehood. In this
proclamation, an original issue of which is now lying before me,
occurs the following sentence: "I am personally authorized to make
known to you that from the moment that Sir Francis Bond Head declined
to state in writing the objects he had in view, in sending a flag of
truce to our camp in Toronto, the message once declined, our esteemed
fellow-citizen, Dr. John Rolph, openly announced his concurrence in
our measures, and now decidedly approves of the stand we are taking in
behalf of our beloved country, which will never more be his until it
be free and independent." Awkwardly constructed as this sentence
undoubtedly is, it is at least specific as to Mackenzie's indorsement
of the statement that Rolph's concurrence was not openly signified
until after the Lieutenant-Governor's refusal to ratify his flag of
truce. This refusal was after the return of Rolph and Baldwin from
their first journey to the rebel camp; and it was consequently
impossible that Rolph could have communicated with the rebel leaders
until his second visit. All which goes to prove that the charge of
violation was a mere afterthought with Mackenzie, invented by him to
gratify his own malice, and to injure one who, whatever his faults,
appears to have been blameless in respect of this matter.

Eleven persons, in addition to Mackenzie himself, were mentioned in
the proclamation as composing the Provisional Government. They were
Nelson Gorham, Samuel Lount, Silas Fletcher, Jesse Lloyd, Thomas
Darling, Adam Graham, John Hawk, Jacob Rymall _(sic)_, William H.
Doyle, A. G. W. G. Van Egmond, and Charles Duncombe. Several of these
names were inserted without the consent, or even the knowledge, of the
persons concerned. Samuel Lount, for instance, was still secretly
wandering about Upper Canada, waiting for an opportunity to escape to
the States. Dr. Duncombe was still in the London District, and had not
yet secured his own safety. Colonel Van Egmond was suffering untold
agonies in Toronto jail, and doubtless cursing the day when he had
been beguiled by Mackenzie into risking life and fortune in an
enterprise which had brought him to such a pass. Thomas Darling
promptly repudiated all connection with the affair, and denounced
Mackenzie for publishing his name. Dr. Rolph's strict prohibition
restrained Mackenzie from announcing him as a member of the
Provisional Government, but the proclamation was so worded as to
convey the impression that the Doctor was really a member of it. The
membership was said to include "two other distinguished gentlemen
whose names there are powerful reasons for withholding from the public
view." It is tolerably certain that by these two "distinguished
gentlemen" Mackenzie intended to indicate Rolph and Bidwell, and thus
the announcement seems, for the time, to have been generally
understood.[213] There was further intentional misrepresentation in
the announcement that the aid of "General Van Rensselaer, of Albany,
of Colonel Sutherland, Colonel Van Egmond, and other military men of
experience" had been secured. Colonel Van Egmond's painful situation
has just been referred to, and it was certain that little aid was to
be expected from him. As regards "Colonel" Sutherland--by whom the
aforementioned Thomas Jefferson Sutherland was meant to be
indicated--the announcement was of little importance, as he had
neither character nor military rank to lose. But the proclamation was
a villainous libel upon old General Van Rensselaer, of Albany, who had
led an honourable career, and who stood high in the estimation of his
fellow-countrymen. His only serious misfortune consisted in the
paternity of an unsteady, ne'er-do-weel son, who permitted Mackenzie
to pass him off as a "General," and thus confuse him in the public
mind with his highly-respected father.

Such were the principal contents of the Navy Island proclamation,
which was soon sown broadcast along the United States frontier. It
certainly produced an immediate effect. The prospect of plunder, and
of a share of those ten millions of "fair and fertile" lands,
constituted an irresistible bribe to a swarm of impecunious vagabonds.
The street loafers of Buffalo, Rochester and Oswego believed that
their time had come. They flocked to Navy Island in great numbers. But
appearances there did not come up to their anticipations, and most of
them had no sooner set foot on the island than they found their
enthusiasm greatly moderated. They were shrewd enough to perceive that
there was an utter want of method and organizing capacity, and that
neither Mackenzie nor Van Rensselaer was fit to be entrusted with the
direction of military operations of any magnitude. A good many of them
entirely lost confidence in the movement, and refused to have anything
to do with it. They were not disposed to risk their safety upon so
hazardous an experiment until they could see tolerably clear prospects
of success. Some returned to the American side and waited the course
of events. Others took a more sanguine view of the situation, and
enrolled themselves among the champions of liberty. Ere many days had
elapsed the number of recruits had rolled up to somewhat more than a
hundred. Huts of rough pine boards were hurriedly thrown together for
the accommodation of the "Patriot army," the largest shanty of all
forming the headquarters of the Provisional Government. A flag was
hoisted, upon which two stars were depicted as representing the two
Provinces which were soon to be converted into two independent States.
Entrenchments were rapidly thrown up, and, a number of cannon having
been procured, fire was opened on the Canadian shore. But the force
was still too inconsiderable to attempt an invasion of Upper Canada,
the Government whereof by this time had thousands of enthusiastic
volunteers at their disposal. A large force of militia had already
marched to the frontier, and were now encamped at Chippewa, in the
very face of the enemy. The fair and fertile acres having thus proved
an insufficient inducement, Mackenzie resolved that the cupidity of
"sympathizers" should be still further appealed to. To make such an
appeal effectively was no easy matter under the trying circumstances
in which he found himself. He was almost without means, as his utmost
exertions had failed to extract from the pockets of his supporters in
Buffalo any appreciable amount of ready money. Van Rensselaer's
promises had proved to be the most veritable pie-crust, as he had up
to this time attracted neither recruits nor cash. Moreover, the
relations between him and Mackenzie were already becoming perceptibly
strained. As money, therefore, was not forthcoming, there seemed to be
nothing for it but to issue promises for money, the performance of
which must of course depend upon the success of the projected
invasion. On the 19th of the month Mackenzie issued a second
proclamation, offering "three hundred acres of the most valuable lands
in Canada," in addition to a hundred dollars in silver, "payable on or
before the 1st of May next," to every volunteer who should join the
forces on Navy Island. This appeal seems to have been attended with
some degree of success, and to have given a slight impetus to the
movement. But meanwhile the "Chairman Pro Tern." of the Provisional
Government was absolutely at his wits' end for ways and means.
Provisions must be had from day to day, and the exchequer was empty.
The only resource was to further discount success by paper promises to
pay. A quantity of scrip was issued, payable four months after date,
at the City Hall, Toronto. The signatures appended were those of "W.
L. Mackenzie, Chairman pro tern. Ex. Com.," and "T. Parson,"[214] who
acted as secretary. The name of David Gibson was also placed at the
foot as "Comptroller," but this was done entirely without Mr. Gibson's
knowledge or consent, and was afterwards emphatically repudiated by
him. Indeed, at the time when the scrip was issued Mr. Gibson was
hiding in a straw-stack in the vicinity of Oshawa,[215] and did not
make his escape from Canada until some time afterwards. He was never
identified with the Navy Island project, and indeed never became aware
of it until it was just on the eve of collapse.

The scrip issued by Mackenzie was accepted by one or two persons at
Buffalo in return for small quantities of supplies, but it never
became current, and was the subject of many poor jokes along both
sides of the frontier. The "Patriots," however, contrived to exist.
The movement had by this time assumed the character of a mere
marauding expedition into Canadian territory by a gang of United
States desperadoes. As such it promised more satisfactory pecuniary
results than any regular invasion would have done, and some of the
more enthusiastic sympathizers in Buffalo, Black Rock and Batavia
yielded to urgent solicitations, and contributed food, clothing and
other necessaries for a temporary winter campaign. The public sympathy
of the people of the frontier began to declare itself in various ways.
Some of the local authorities winked at or openly encouraged acts on
the part of Mackenzie's gang which ought to have been promptly and
rigidly repressed. The latter were permitted to arm themselves from
the State arsenals upon the most flimsy and absurd pretexts. In one
instance an officer permitted a number of them to remove a cannon to
Navy Island upon their informing him that they merely wished to borrow
it for a short time to shoot wild ducks. Other artillery was obtained
upon pretexts not much more rational,[216] and the filibusters found
themselves in high favour. Still, recruits came in but slowly, and as
the year drew towards its close their number did not exceed a hundred
and fifty,[217] But a series of events now occurred which gave an
impulse to the movement, and for a time threatened to produce
consequences much more serious to Canada than any which were likely to
result from the operations of Mackenzie and his myrmidons on Navy
Island.

FOOTNOTES:

[203] Erelong a correspondence was entered into with a view to such
cooperation. A part of this correspondence is in my hands; but it
throws no additional light upon the Upper Canadian portion of the
story, and it ultimately came to nothing.

[204] The following is the full text of his letter:

_To the Editors of the Buffalo Whig and Journal_:

Sirs,--The Reformers of this part of Upper Canada have taken arms in
defence of the principle of independence of European domination--in
plain words they wish this Province to be a free, sovereign and
independent state. They request all the assistance which the free
citizens of your Republic may choose to afford.

I address this letter to your office, because you have expressed a
friendly wish towards us in the Buffalo _Whig_. We are in arms near
the city of Toronto--two and a half miles distant.

Your faithful servant,

Yonge Street, Dec. 6, 1837. W. L. Mackenzie.

[glyph: hand] American editors will be pleased to copy this letter,
whether they are or are not favourable to Canadian freedom. W. L. M.

[205] His father, General Van Rensselaer, of Albany, commanded the
United States militia during the attack on Queenston Heights in 1812.

[206] In a narrative prepared by Van Rensselaer, and published in the
Albany Advertiser of March 30th, 1838, the writer states that "Dr.
Rolph went so far as to propose, himself, and to insist, that I should
have the power to arrest any member of the Executive Council, provided
it became necessary to do so, in order to prevent his interference in
my department." Dr. Rolph's papers contain only a very brief account
of this transaction, nor have I any minute knowledge of the
constitution of the Executive Council here referred to, beyond that
furnished by Mackenzie in the proclamation subsequently mentioned in
the text. Dr. Rolph, however, was probably ready enough to avail
himself of the services of anybody likely to forward his views. If he
was to have any connection with the enterprise against Canada he would
be certain to make some such stipulation as that above quoted from Van
Rensselaer, as he well knew that Mackenzie would inevitably interfere
in any plans that might be formed, and that such interference would
most probably be disastrous. It is clear, however, that Dr. Rolph had
no official connection with the movement, and that the period during
which he continued to in some measure lend his countenance to it did
not extend beyond a few days. He soon discovered Van Rensselaer's
incompetence, and could not fail to be disgusted with the character of
the so-called "American sympathizers" who enlisted in the cause.

[207] An island of great extent, situated in the Niagara River
immediately above Navy Island, from which it is only separated by what
may be called a wide strait. It is more than ten miles in length, and
extends to within eight miles of Buffalo. It belongs to the Republic,
and forms part of the State of New York.

[208] From a private letter written last year by Nelson Gorham, I
learn that the supplies included 250 pounds of boiler punchings, to be
used as a substitute for grape. This may probably be taken as a
general indication of the nature of the supplies furnished duritig the
first day or two of occupation. The Buffalo _Journal_ refers to these
punchings as "terrible ammunition," and says: "These are sewed up in
bags for grape shot, and must do terrible execution."

[209] A correspondent of the Rochester _Democrat_, writing from
Lewiston under date of December 10th, remarks as follows: "Since
meeting with Dr. Rolph my sympathies are greatly strengthened in
favour of the Patriots. One could not well be otherwise after hearing
their wrongs portrayed by one so intelligent and eloquent as he
is...He is strong in the belief that the principles of free government
will prevail sooner or later, if not now, in the Canadas; but says
their friends must recollect they have to contend against fearful
odds, without arms or ammunition, or experienced military leaders.
Their spirit, he says, is strong, but the body weak, from disabilities
beyond their control. He thinks three-fourths of the people would be
found rallying round the standard of rebellion should it be ones
successfully raised...Mackenzie's fatal error seems to have been that
when he struck the first blow he did not take possession of Toronto.
If he had done so, the universal opinion is that no further opposition
would have been made, and that by this time Upper Canada would have
organized a free government."

[210] Mr. Lindsey gives a different account of the authorship of this
document, which he declares to have been "a joint production in which
O'Grady's and Dr. Rolph's pens were engaged." See _Life of Mackenzie_,
vol. ii, p. 17. As I have already stated in this work (vol. i, pp.
364, 365), I am of opinion that Rolph had no hand in its preparation,
but the matter is hardly worth considering, unless for the purpose of
exposing Mackenzie's self-contradictions. I say "self-contradictions,"
because it is to be presumed that Mr. Lindsey had Mackenzie's
authority for his statement.

[211] _Ante_, p. 38.

[212] _Ante_, chap, xxiii.

[213] Mr. Bidwell, in order to disabuse the public mind of the idea,
wrote from Lewiston to the Buffalo and Rochester papers, denying that
he was one of the two individuals mentioned by Mackenzie. His letter,
dated 20th December, is copied in several of the Canadian newspapers.

[214] Mr. Parson, learning that he had become an object of suspicion
to the Government, had secretly fled from Toronto and joined Mackenzie
at Buffalo. See _ante_, note on pp. 74, 75.

[215] _Ante_, p. 147. Mackenzie's biographer states (_Life of
Mackenzie_, vol ii., p. 139,) that "Gibson, Gorham, and others who
were on the island with [Van Rensselaer] have left on record their
opinion that his [Van R's] intemperance ruined the prospects of the
Patriots." It is to be presumed that this statement was made upon
Mackenzie's authority, as its mendacity is eminently characteristic of
him. Gibson was a man of character and good pecuniary position in the
world, and Mackenzie was anxious to make it appear that so respectable
a personage was identified with him. Hence the forgery of his name to
the scrip. As matter of fact, Gibson was never on Navy Island during
its occupation by the "Patriots," and it would be interesting to see
the "record" which Mr. Lindsey declares him to have left on the
subject of Van Rensselaer's intemperance.

In Mr. Gibson's private copy of _The Life and Times of W. L.
Mackenzie_, which I have personally examined, I find the following MS.
note written in the margin opposite the statement above quoted from p.
139 of the second volume: "Gibson was never on the Island while it was
occupied, and is not aware that V. Rensselaer was addicted to such a
habit." It is true enough that Van Rensselaer was really of somewhat
dissipated habits, but Gibson appears to have had no knowledge on the
subject, and as he was a truthful man, he could hardly have "left on
record" any such opinion as the one attributed to him. His family
utterly repudiate the assertion that he ever was on Navy Island with
Mackenzie.

On finding this direct conflict between Mr. Lindsey's testimony and
that of Mr. Gibson and his family, I caused a letter to be written to
Nelson Gorham, who must on all hands be admitted as a satisfactory
witness, as he was with Mackenzie on Navy Island during the entire
period of occupation, and could not avoid knowing the facts as to
Gibson having been on the island or otherwise. His letter, a part of
which I subjoin, proves the statement in the _Life and Times_ to be
utterly devoid of truth.

"Yarmouth, Mass., May 31st, 1885.

"My Dear Sir:

"Mr. Gibson's family is quite right in asserting that he never went on
Navy Island. Mackenzie, when he improvised the Provisional Government
of Canada at Navy Island, discarded the ceremony of consulting with
any one, but it came full-fledged from the incubator of his own
brain...Not long after our occupation of Navy Island the question of
supplies became a source of anxiety to me, and I wrote to a gentleman
of reputed wealth, who was an ardent sympathizer with our cause,
requesting his views as to the best way of devising ways and means. He
did me the favour to answer my letter, and suggested that, as a
temporary arrangement for the supply of immediate wants, the
Provisional Government might issue scrip, countersigned by some of its
members, who were reputed persons of property, and that he would
indorse this scrip to the extent of three thousand dollars: that this
would relieve our immediate wants, and give time for perfecting a more
mature scheme for floating a loan. I submitted this to Mr. Mackenzie,
but he emphatically objected to it, and nothing came of it...

"Yours most truly,

"(Signed) Nelson Gorham."

Mackenzie appears to have subsequently thought better of the proposal,
and to have acted upon it, so far, at least, as the mere issue of the
scrip was concerned. The forgery of Gibson's name seems to have been
his own conception.

[216] Here, for instance, is a letter, upon the strength of which the
official to whom it was addressed delivered over ten pieces of State
artillery to the bearer:

"Buffalo Head Qr Jany 18 1838.

"Col H B Ransom commander in Chief at Tonawanda.

"Pleas sen on those pieces of Canon which are at your place let the
same teams come on with them.

"Your in hase

"W Scott Commander in Chief on the "Frontiers of Niagara."

No one can believe that Colonel Ransom was really imposed upon by such
a document. General Scott, from whom it professed to come, was a
graduate of William and Mary College, the compiler of the General
Regulations of the Army, the translator from the French of a system of
military tactics, and one of the most conspicuous personages in the
United States. If the Commander-in-Chief at Tonawanda accepted the
missive in good faith he was totally unfit to-occupy so responsible a
position.

[217] "At no time before the burning of the _Caroline_ was the number
on the island more than 150,. and at no time thereafter more than 450.
I personally enrolled every volunteer."--_Private letter from Nelson
Gorham_.




CHAPTER XXXI.

THE CAROLINE.


The Upper Canadian Government, as a matter of course, were not unmoved
spectators of what was going on along the Niagara frontier. For some
days after the affair at Montgomery's there was much excitement in
Toronto, the inhabitants whereof had been so startled out of their
equanimity by the fact of an armed insurrection at their doors that
they waited in hourly expectation of some new and indefinite calamity.
The public mind had become alarmed, and was easily thrown off its even
balance. The wildest rumours were circulated from day to day, and
every fresh rumour tended to revive the general agitation, insomuch
that the public pulse did not become fully tranquillized throughout
the winter. Being desirous of obtaining all the light possible on the
subject of the outbreak, his Excellency, by the advice of his
Councillors, appointed a Commission "to inquire into the several
causes of treason or suspicion of treason during the recent
disturbances." It was strictly a close official inquiry, Mr. Sullivan,
President of the Council, acting as Chairman. The Commission sat at
intervals extending over about six weeks. A number of persons were
examined as to their knowledge of the rising, but the information
obtained by this means was of little importance as compared with what
had been derived from Mackenzie's papers. The testimony given before
the Commission by Lount, Ware, Brotherson and Robert Baldwin has been
set out in a note to a previous chapter,[218] and an attempt has there
been made to estimate its value. Dr. Morrison, who lay in jail
awaiting his trial for high treason, voluntarily appeared before the
Commission, and denied all knowledge of or participation in the revolt
a denial for which, under the circumstances, he ought not to be held
to a severe account, as he well knew that his life hung trembling in
the balance, and he could not in strictness be said to have had any
participation in the revolt as finally consummated by Mackenzie. Dr.
Baldwin also voluntarily presented himself, and denied all
participation in the Rebellion. Upon cross-examination he admitted
that on Monday or Tuesday, the 4th or 5th of December, he had received
a communication which for the first time had induced him to believe
that Dr. Rolph was a party to the designs against the Government. He
firmly refused to give the name of the person from whom he had
received this communication, stating that, although he had not been
pledged to secrecy, he had firmly made up his mind to take all the
consequences of so refusing. As matter of fact he had received his
information from Mr. Francis Hincks, who for several days was in
hourly expectation of arrest, but who fortunately escaped that
indignity.

The whole atmosphere of the capital was charged with suspicion.
Men were suspicious of their best friends, and in some cases even of
members of their own households. The distrust did not attach merely
to persons known to be of Radical proclivities, but was extended to all
who did not profess unbounded zeal for the Government. A notable
case of strangely misdirected suspicion was that of Mr. James Scott
Howard, Postmaster of Toronto. Mr. Howard was veritably ground
between the upper and nether millstone. It has been seen that he was
denounced by Mackenzie;[219] that his substance was confiscated to feed
the insurgents,[220] and that his wife was insulted and maltreated by their
leader,[221] He now in turn became an object of suspicion to the Government.
No man's loyalty was less open to question than Mr. Howard's.
He was in no sense a politician, and had never taken any part in public
affairs. He had spent eighteen years of his life in the employ of the
Post Office department, and was admitted to be an honourable and
efficient public servant. He came of ultra-loyal stock, and was of
decidedly Conservative proclivities. All his sympathies were on the
side of authority, and no man in the community was less likely to be
in harmony with any projects of rebellion, more especially of a
rebellion with such an one as Mackenzie at its head. Yet, within two
days after the affair at Montgomery's, he found himself an object of
distrust at headquarters, and on the 13th of the month he was formally
notified of his removal from office. No charge was officially brought
against him, but after urgent and repeated endeavours by him to learn
the grounds upon which he had been removed, he was informed that he
had long been supposed to have a bias in favour of the political
opinions of "the republican faction" in the Province, and that his
son--a lad of ten years of age[222]--was in the habit of reading the
Radical newspapers. The first allegation was wholly without
foundation. As for the second, it was not unnatural that a boy of ten
years should have been attracted by the spicy personal scurrilities of
the _Constitution_, or that he should have read them in preference to
the duller columns of the _Patriot_; but surely a more flimsy pretext
for dismissing an old and esteemed public official could hardly have
been devised. A more serious matter alleged against him was that
certain letters had been addressed by John[223] and Joseph Lesslie, of
Dundas, to their brothers James and William, in Toronto, under cover
to Mr. Howard. The object in so enclosing them appears to have been
merely to expedite their delivery. But, as has been seen,[224] the
Lesslies of Toronto had become objects of suspicion to the Government,
and had been arrested. They were committed without any information
having been laid against them, and without the issue of a magistrate's
warrant. Nothing was proved against them, nor were they even brought
to a formal trial, but were released without any accusation. Mr.
Howard's conduct, however, in "suffering the secret correspondence of
traitors" to pass through his hands, was deemed sufficient, when added
to the other alleged delinquencies above mentioned, to justify his
peremptory dismissal from the public service. Nothing could have more
clearly indicated the absence of any true and impartial balance in the
direction of affairs. A successor to Mr. Howard was appointed in the
person of Mr. Charles Albert Berczy.[225]

The excitement throughout the city and the country adjoining continued
for many days unabated. The news of the utter collapse of Duncombe's
movement, and of the clean sweep made in the London District by
Colonel MacNab, was so far reassuring; but the self-same day which
brought intelligence of these events to the capital brought also the
news of Mackenzie's Navy Island enterprise. The public excitement now
reached fever heat. It seemed unbearable that Canadian territory
should be thus desecrated, and that, too, mainly at the instigation of
a man who had once posed in the _role_ of a genuine lover of his
country. The indignation of the Reformers generally was quite as
vehement as was that of the Tories at this outrage, and many hastened
to place their services at the disposal of the Government. Sir Francis
had already opened communications with the Hon. William L. Marcy,
Governor of the State of New York, acquainting that dignitary with the
fact that public meetings had been held in Buffalo to procure
countenance and support for the disaffected in Upper Canada, and
suggesting that the exuberance of these sympathizers should be
restrained.[226] Sufficient time had not elapsed to admit of his
having received any reply to his missive, but he seems to have felt
somewhat dubious as to the extent of the assistance to be expected
from that quarter. Happily, it was unnecessary for him to depend very
strongly upon such assistance. The Government now had a formidable
array of men ready to answer to their beck and call, among whom were
many retired officers of the army and navy of Great Britain. No time
was lost in despatching a considerable force to the frontier. Before
Mackenzie had been long on the island the opposite Canadian shore was
occupied by eighteen hundred armed volunteers, and the number
thereafter increased from day to day. Arrangements had been made for
calling out the general militia of the Province, in case of their
services being needed,[227] and many persons--Reformers as well as
Tories--without any formal enlistment, voluntarily repaired to the
scene of action, eager to have a share in ridding the land of the
unclean horde whereby it was menaced. Pending the arrival of Colonel
MacNab on the ground from his western expedition, all the forces along
the frontier were temporarily placed in command of Colonel Kenneth
Cameron, a retired officer of the 79th Highlanders who had fought at
Waterloo, and who now occupied the post of Assistant Adjutant-General
of Militia in Upper Canada. Sir Francis Head, immediately upon hearing
that Navy Island had been occupied, sent a swift messenger to Colonel
MacNab, instructing him to proceed to the front and assume command of
operations there. The Colonel promptly obeyed the mandate, taking with
him most of the volunteers who had accompanied him westward, so that
when he reached his destination and relieved Colonel Cameron of the
command, he found himself at the head of about twenty-five hundred
men. Various harmless demonstrations in the shape of marchings,
counter-marchings and reviews were resorted to, in the hope that such
displays of strength might induce the enemy to evacuate their
quarters; but the position of the filibusters was a strong one, and it
soon became apparent that it would be no easy matter to dislodge them.
To dislodge them by force, indeed, was a thing not to be attempted,
for the Lieutenant-Governor had expressly commanded that the militia
should meanwhile act strictly on the defensive, and not fire a single
shot in the direction of the island. This was done upon the pretext of
avoiding possible international complications with the United States,
though, as Navy Island formed part of Upper Canada, the precaution
savoured of unnecessary timidity. Preparations were set on foot for
the fitting out of a flotilla of armed vessels and gun-boats, to be
used for the purpose of clearing the island of the intruders; but the
process was a slow and tedious one, necessarily involving much delay.
As for Mackenzie and his adherents, they knew the strength of their
position. The island is situated about the middle of the stream, which
is here nearly three miles in width. The current is swift, strong, and
treacherous. As previously stated, the navigation of these waters in
small boats, even by persons familiar with the character of the stream
and the various cross-currents, is not unattended with danger.[228]
Only a mile and a half lower down begin the resistless Rapids which
have swept so many lives to a swift and terrible ending in the mighty
chasm a short distance below. The "Patriots" had turned the natural
advantages of the place to account for purposes of defence. They had
felled trees into the water along the western and northern shores,
which materially increased the difficulties of landing. They had
thrown up entrenchments, and had ranged a number of cannon near the
water's edge, forming a regular military encampment. They from day to
day kept up an irregular fire upon the Canadian shore, between six and
seven hundred yards distant, but the casualties resulting therefrom
were fewer than might have been expected. Up to the time at which the
narrative has now arrived, not one of the militia had been killed, or
even seriously wounded. A horse had been slain by a cannon ball, and a
number of houses along the shore had been more or less perforated.
These, so far as the Canadians were concerned, were about the only
results of the bombardment. The distance from shore to shore was too
great to admit of muskets being used with effect, and of this the
"Patriots" soon became aware. Firing from the Canadian shore having
been strictly forbidden, the militia were compelled to figure as
living targets, without making any response in kind. Indeed, in the
absence of bomb mortars or rockets, it is difficult to see what
effectual response could have been made without actually landing upon
and taking forcible possession of the island. This, though it might
doubtless have been accomplished, would have been no child's play, and
would almost certainly have been attended with great loss of life. The
militia in the meantime sustained their trying ordeal with greater
equanimity than could with any show of reason have been expected of
them.[229] The most unsatisfactory feature of all, from the Canadian
point of view, was that nothing was done towards ridding the island of
the intruders. It seemed monstrous that a petty handful of adventurous
filibusters should be able to take possession of our territory, and
not only hold it in spite of us, but make it a base of hostile
operations. The militia generally fumed at the inaction manifested by
their Colonel. Had they known the truth they would have laid the
responsibility upon other shoulders, for Colonel MacNab was in nowise
to blame. He was as impatient as were any of his men to whip the
dwarfish war from out our territory, but was restrained by the
peremptory commands of the Lieutenant-Governor, who went over from
Toronto in person to watch the course of events. Sir Francis reached
Chippewa on the night of Tuesday, the 19th of the month, at which time
the filibusters had been in possession six days. He reviewed the
militia, which by this time included a body of Indians from the Grand
Eiver and elsewhere, who had come down to do battle for their Great
Mother. He remained on the ground several days, but might as well have
staid at the seat of Government for any good he effected by his
journey. Colonel MacNab urgently requested to be permitted to assail
the enemy in their stronghold, but Sir Francis would not consent that
any attack should be made unless in case of an attempt on the part of
the "Patriots" to gain a footing on the mainland. And so the days
glided by in wearisome inaction.

Such a significant event as an armed uprising, having for its object
the subversion of the Provincial Government, had been deemed a matter
of sufficient importance to justify an extraordinary session of the
Legislature, which was accordingly assembled on Thursday, the 28th,
when the year had only three days more to live. The Lieutenant-Governor,
in his opening Speech, gave a garbled account of some of the main
facts of the outbreak, and indulged in much self-glorification.
The complicity of "a considerable number of Americans" in the affair
at Navy Island was strongly deplored. "I am informed," said his
Excellency, "that Americans from various quarters are hastening from
the interior to join this standard of avowed plunder and revolt; that
cannon and arms are publicly proceeding there; and that, under these
circumstances, it becomes my painful duty to inform you that, without
having offered to the United States the smallest provocation--without
having entertained the slightest previous doubt of the sincerity of
American alliance--the inhabitants of this Province may in a few days
be called upon by me to defend their lives, their properties, and
their liberties from an attack by American citizens, which, with no
desire to offend, I must pronounce to be unparalleled in the history
of the world."

But before the Legislature had time to settle down to any regular
sessional business, news of a most important nature arrived from the
Niagara frontier.

Mackenzie and his adherents had by this time become comparatively
indifferent to the risks which they ran. A fortnight's occupation of
Navy Island had inured them to the perils of their situation, and they
were not without hope that they would erelong really be able to effect
a landing on the Canadian shore. They did not know that the inactivity
of the Provincial militia was due to the peremptory mandate of the
Lieutenant-Governor. They believed--and circumstances certainly
appeared to bear them out in believing--that their foes were afraid to
attack them. Meanwhile their cause, though it can hardly be said to
have prospered, did not altogether languish. A few new recruits came
in almost daily, and supplies of provisions were obtained with much
less trouble and anxiety than during the first few days of occupation.
There was however some difficulty about the transport accommodation.
Mackenzie and Van Rensselaer, who by this time quarrelled pretty
nearly every hour in the day about some petty detail or other, were
agreed as to the desirability of procuring the assistance of a river
steamer. Fortune smiled on their desires, for, encrusted in the ice
adjacent to a dock at Buffalo, was precisely such a craft as they
needed. She was a little steamer of forty-six tons, called the
_Caroline_, belonging to one William Wells, of Buffalo, and originally
constructed by the man afterwards known as Commodore Vanderbilt. She
had been intended for salt-water sailing, and was copper-bottomed.
Wells, upon being applied to, was willing enough to hire out his boat,
but was not sufficiently enthusiastic in the "Patriot" cause to risk
his property in such a hazardous undertaking without indemnity. This
difficulty was easily surmounted, and seventeen of his fellow-citizens
were induced to join in a bond to protect him from loss in case of the
capture or destruction of his vessel. One Gilman Appleby, a lake
sailor resident in Buffalo, was placed in command, and on the 28th of
December the steamer was cut out of the ice and taken down the eastern
channel of the river to Navy Island. There was by this time a manifest
disposition on the part of nearly all the inhabitants of the frontier
to favour the expedition against Canada, in so far as they could do so
without involving themselves in pecuniary loss, or in complications
with the State authorities. The nature of the service on which the
_Caroline_ was to be employed was no secret to any one in Buffalo who
chose to keep his eyes and ears open, yet the collector of the port
raised no question about giving her a clearance.

The steamer reached Navy Island early in the afternoon of the 28th,
and at once began to ply backwards and forwards between the island
and Fort Schlosser, a hamlet on the eastern mainland, consisting at that
time of a wharf and a neighbouring tavern. The tavern had all along
been a rendezvous and place of resort for the "sympathizers," and
now drove a more flourishing trade than it had ever done before. The
presence of the _Caroline_ in these waters, plying backwards and forwards
at intervals of a few minutes, gave the place an aspect of unwonted
liveliness, and during the whole of the afternoon the deck of the steamer
was crowded with passengers. Supplies and munitions of war, including
a piece of artillery, were also conveyed across to the island. These
things were done openly, and without any attempt at concealment;
indeed, Appleby and his crew felt proud of their employment, and gave
loud expression to their elation. But the traffic had not been going on
more than an hour or two ere Colonel MacNab and his officers became
aware of it. No wonder that they waxed wroth, more especially as they
had been kept in inaction for more than a fortnight, with the enemy
hardly beyond musket-range. It was impossible to see with any clearness
from the Canadian shore what was going on at the other side of the
river, partly by reason of the distance, and partly on account of the
dense woods on Navy Island. As it was deemed important to know all
that could be learned, in view of a possible attempt to utilize the steamer
to land the filibusters on the Canadian shore, two men were despatched
in a small open boat to watch the _Caroline's_ movements, and to report
the same to the Colonel in command. One of these was Captain Andrew
Drew, an officer of the Royal Navy, whose professional career had been
rendered noteworthy by several acts of gallant intrepidity, and who had
recently been entrusted with the direction of the naval department. The
other was the Alexander McLeod mentioned on a former page.[230] Regardless
of their danger, and of a score or more of musket-shots fired at them
by the "Patriots," they proceeded in a skiff round the head of Navy
Island, until they were able to obtain an unobstructed view of the eastern
channel of the river. They perceived the steamer anchored at a temporary
wharf which had been constructed on the eastern side of the island,
and, to judge from appearances, she had laid up for the night. Their
return was more hazardous than their outward journey had been, for a
number of sharpshooters lay in wait for them on the shore of the island,
and bullets whistled past them so long as they remained within range.
Their boat was struck and splintered in a dozen places, but they themselves
escaped unscathed,[231] As soon as their report had been made to
Colonel MacNab, a council of war was held, at which it was resolved
that "the piratical craft" must be promptly arrested in her mischievous
career. How this might successfully be effected without unnecessary
sacrifice of human life was a matter requiring some time for
deliberation. Colonel MacNab and Captain Drew conferred together for
several hours, and the _modus operandi_ was not finally settled until
the following morning, when a determination was arrived at that the
steamer should be captured and destroyed during the darkness of night.

While the deliberations were in progress between Colonel MacNab and
Captain Drew on the night of the 28th, several of the officers dined
long and drank deep. They worked themselves up into a fervid loyalty
which knew no bounds, and burned to do something to relieve the stolid
inaction to which they had for the last two weeks been condemned.
After a long discussion Lieutenant Graham, of Woodstock, proposed that
a number of them should forthwith effect a landing on Navy Island and
carry off the nearest sentry. The proposition met with enthusiastic
approval, and the proposer forthwith betook himself to the
headquarters of "the naval brigade," as it was called--a body
consisting of about a dozen experienced boatmen who every day manned a
well-built gig which lay moored in the adjoining creek.[232] The men
readily responded to his commands, and the expedition was soon under
way. It was about three o'clock in the morning when the "brigade" were
thus unceremoniously turned out for special duty. They worked with a
will, but their exertions proved futile, owing to want of time. In
order to effect a landing on the island it was necessary to row far up
stream against a strong current, and then a landing had to be made on
the mainland and a countersign given before the main object of the
enterprise could be proceeded with. The expedition had been too late
in making a start, and before all the preliminary steps had been taken
the first streaks of daylight began to appear on the horizon. To
attempt to land and capture a sentry except when darkness prevailed
was of course out of the question, and the adventure had to be
abandoned. The brigade, however, rowed entirely round the island, the
occupants whereof kept up a frequent but innocuous fire upon them.
They were also fired upon by a number of American sympathizers
at Fort Schlosser, who took a small cannon down to the wharf and
discharged it at them, but without doing any injury. Having
circumnavigated the island, they returned to their headquarters at
Chippewa with very little to show for their temerity.

Next day, which was the 29th, the _Caroline_ resumed her trips to and
fro between the island and Fort Schlosser. She was seen to convey
several small cannon across to the island, and plied her vocation to the
evident satisfaction and enjoyment of her captain and crew. The "Patriots"
meanwhile kept up a constant fire all day on the Canadian shore,
accompanying the roar of their artillery with loud yells of derision. These
accumulated insults were intolerable, and some of the militia officers
murmured at Colonel MacNab's inaction. But as the day wore on they
became aware that something unusual was afoot, and looked forward
impatiently for what the next few hours might bring forth. Soon after
nightfall preparations began to be made for the expedition. The command
was entrusted to Captain Drew, whose experience had rendered him well
qualified to undertake such a responsibility. None but the officers
had any idea of the precise nature of the adventurous game that was
to be played, and even they were not all made acquainted with the full
particulars until the very last moment. Volunteers were called for, but
the only information vouchsafed was that Captain Drew wanted a few
men with cutlasses, who were ready, if necessary, to follow him to the
devil. There were hundreds of the militia who would willingly have
taken part in such an achievement, even had it been of the desperate
nature which these words implied; but only fifty or sixty men were
needed, and the requisite force was speedily enrolled for the service.
All the members of the naval brigade were included in the enrolment,
and no one was permitted to take part in the enterprise except those
who were accustomed to the water, and to the management of a boat.

The expedition at the outset consisted of seven boats, each containing
seven or eight men in addition to the officer in command. A start was
made a few minutes after nine o'clock. Colonel MacNab imparted his
final instructions to Captain Drew on the beach, just when the men were
on the point of embarking. It was believed that the steamer would be
found anchored in Canadian waters on the eastern side of Navy Island,
but this was not certain, and Captain Drew's instructions were sufficiently
explicit to take and destroy the _Caroline_ "wherever he should
find her." As has been observed by an actor in the stirring events of
that memorable night, the last five words of that order "nearly fired the
continent as well as the _Caroline_."[233]

The first destination of the expedition was a point about a mile up
stream from Chippewa, a short distance above the spot known as
Whisky Point. Thence a final departure was to be made through the
strait intervening between Navy Island and Grand Island. Captain
Drew himself was in command of the first boat, which was pulled steadily
up the river in dead silence. The night being excessively dark, it was
necessary to hold a port-fire over the stern as a guide to the others.
Only five of the seven boats which had started from Chippewa reached
the final point of departure, one of the remaining two having grounded
on a shallow, and the other being unable to make way against the current,
being provided with an insufficient number of oars. After waiting
their arrival for fifteen or twenty minutes, the commander of the expedition
determined to delay no longer, and the five boats accordingly set
out across the stream. Captain Drew's boat took the lead, as before.[234]
Upon reaching the opposite side of the island the Captain perceived
that the steamer was not anchored in Canadian waters, but was moored
to the wharf on the American side at Fort Schlosser. He ordered his
men to rest on their oars until the other boats were alongside. Upon
the latter's near approach, he said, in a tone loud enough for all to
hear: "The steamboat is our object--follow me." The men then resumed
their oars, and the expedition glided silently across the fast-flowing
river. As they approached the _Caroline_ they perceived that she
headed up stream, and was well lighted up. More than two hours had
elapsed since the departure from Chippewa, and it was not far from
midnight. The rowers proceeded cautiously, making very little noise,
and, owing to the excessive darkness, the sentry on board the doomed
steamer did not become aware of their proximity until they had arrived
within fifteen or twenty yards of her. In the first moment of
surprise, he seems to have thought that the approaching boats were
occupied by Indians. "Who goes there?" he shouted, in peremptory tones
"Answer, or I fire!"[235] "Friends," replied Captain Drew. He then
hurriedly demanded the countersign. "I will give it to you when we get
on board," was the Captain's response. Then the derelict sentry awoke
to the danger of the situation, and discharged the contents of a
musket at the nearest boat. The charge went wide of its mark, and
struck the boat immediately astern, doing no harm. "Turn out, boys,"
he shrieked, "the enemy's coming." It was natural, under the
circumstances, that such a command should be acted upon with all
imaginable promptitude. But no promptitude could avail to save William
Wells's property. The Canadians were in possession of the _Caroline_
in less time than it takes to tell the story. Captain Drew and his men
did their work quickly and well. Just at the moment when the sentry
sounded his alarm and fired his musket, the foremost boat arrived
alongside, and one of the crew grappled the steamer with a
boarding-pike. Drew, cutlass in hand, sprang over the starboard
gangway, and was followed by the other occupants of the foremost boat.
The crews of the other boats boarded fore and aft on both sides. There
was no general attempt at resistance on the part of those on board,
and nothing deserving the name of a serious conflict. It was simply a
vigorous kicking out of doors on the one hand, and, with two or three
exceptions, a terrified submission on the other. There were in all
thirty-three persons on the vessel, ten of whom composed the crew,
while the other twenty-three were casual lodgers who had been
permitted to spend the night on board, in consequence of the
neighbouring tavern being so full as to have no accommodation for
them. Most of them had been wrapped in slumber until aroused by the
cry and the fire of the sentry, and were so completely taken by
surprise that they seem to have had no time to think of resistance.
They came pouring up the companion-way from below, and were driven
ashore at sword's point almost before they had time to realize their
situation. Many of them shrieked with fright, believing that the last
moment had arrived for them, and there was noise enough for a pitched
battle. Says an eyewitness: "There was the loudest hullabaloo I ever
heard in all my life. You would have thought that two mighty hosts
were contending for the victory."[236] Shots were fired on both sides.
Three or four of the steamer's crew who were provided with cutlasses
showed a disposition to use them, but they were speedily disarmed and
driven on shore--not, however, until Lieutenant McCormick had been
seriously wounded, while two others received wounds of less
importance. The performance was at an end almost before it had begun.
The most dangerous part of the expedition having thus been
successfully achieved, the next thing was to dispose of the steamer.
Richard Arnold, a vigorous young man who had acted as stroke-oar of
the foremost boat, went below by the Captain's orders, and started a
fire under the boiler with intent to get up steam. All the occupants
of the vessel, with the exception of the two prisoners hereafter
mentioned, having been driven ashore, Lieutenant John Elmsley and a
number of privates were detailed to step upon the wharf and cut the
steamer from her moorings. While they were so engaged, a fire of
musketry was opened upon them from a number of American sympathizers
stationed near the neighbouring tavern. They proceeded with their
work, however, undeterred by these demonstrations, and by the yells
which resounded far and near on every side. Elmsley himself, at the
head of sixteen men armed with cutlasses, advanced about thirty yards
towards the tavern, and there came to a stand, while the rest of his
party completed the casting-off. As soon as this task was accomplished
the entire party returned on board the steamer, and immediately
afterwards resumed their places in the small boats. Meanwhile, Arnold,
as instructed, took a hurried run through the vessel from end to end,
to make sure that no one was left on board. He informed Captain Drew
that all was right. "Then," said the Captain, "set her on fire."
Arnold hastened down to the engine-room, took from the furnace the
wood which he had kindled, and applied it in several places to the
wood-work of the steamer. For a moment it seemed as though the
material would not ignite, but all of a sudden it blazed up with fury,
and almost before Arnold could reach the deck the vessel was in a
blaze. All the rest of the boarding-party had returned to the boats,
and Arnold thus found himself the last man on board. He was quickly in
his place in Captain Drew's boat, but was unable to take an oar by
reason of his having received a heavy stroke from a cutlass on his
arm. The boats towed the blazing steamer out into the river, to
prevent her from setting fire to the wharf. Having conveyed her about
two hundred yards from shore, they found it impossible to take her any
farther, owing to the power of the current. They accordingly cut her
adrift and abandoned her. Down she went at a tolerably good speed for
about two hundred yards, when she became entangled in a bed of rush
weeds, which brought her to a full stop for several minutes. Then she
drifted loose, and away she went again, keeping well in to the eastern
shore. But the flames had by this time pretty effectually destroyed
her wood-work, and she had not been carried far down the river before
her lights were quenched, and all suddenly became as dark as the
grave. It is probable that the metal portion of her sank to the
bottom, as her engine was to be seen there in shallow water for many
years afterwards. Small portions of her charred woodwork were carried
over the falls, and minute fragments were subsequently picked up even
in the lower reaches of the river; but the prevalent notion that the
steamer was carried bodily over the great cataract is altogether
without foundation. Like a good many other erroneous ideas which have
obtained currency on matters connected with the Upper Canadian
Rebellion, it is largely due to perverted accounts written by
Mackenzie himself,[237] and to still more perverted pictorial
illustrations published by him. Very few words will suffice to prove
the absurdity of the story that the _Caroline_ went over the Great
Horseshoe Fall in an intact, burning mass, as represented by
Mackenzie.[238] As above mentioned, the steamer was towed out about
two hundred yards from the American shore, and then allowed to drift
whithersoever she would. Had she passed on down the stream, she would
have continued near the American shore, and had she been carried over
the cataract at all she would have plunged over on the American
side, far enough from the Horseshoe, and with Goat Island intervening.
But it was impossible that she should pass over on the American side
intact, as the bridge across from the eastern mainland to Goat Island
would have intercepted her progress.[239] Upon the whole, it may be said
that there are few episodes in our history which have been more strangely
misrepresented than this of the destruction of the steamboat _Caroline_.

The Canadians, having accomplished the object of their expedition,
and having abandoned the steamer to her doom, turned their bows up
stream and pulled with hearty goodwill. A hot fire was kept up against
them while they were passing the island, but the bullets whistled
harmlessly over their heads. They soon reached Chippewa, not a little
fatigued by their labours, but brimful of enthusiasm, and ready enough
to start out on any fresh enterprise having the discomfiture of the
"Patriots" for its object.

The only serious casualty sustained by the Canadians was the
wounding of Lieutenant McCormick, who had been shot in several
places, in addition to receiving two ugly strokes from a cutlass.
These combined mishaps left their mark upon his frame during the rest
of his life, and he was never again quite the same man as before. A
pension of a hundred pounds a year, computed from the date of his
injuries,[240] was conferred upon him for his gallant conduct. This he
continued to draw as long as he lived, and after his death it was
generously continued to his widow. Arnold's wound was deep enough
to cause him to be invalided, but it soon healed, and did not permanently
disable him. The only other member of the boarding-party who
was wounded was Captain Warren, formerly an officer of the 66th
Regiment. His injury was of little account, and he was able to resume
his duties on the following day.[241]

The casualties on the other side were fewer than could reasonably have
been expected, considering the nature of the enterprise and the celerity
with which it was carried out. Only one man is known to have been
killed outright. This was Amos Durfee, a resident of Buffalo, who was
shot dead on the wharf, and whose body received greater honours after his
death than had ever been bestowed upon it during his lifetime. Subsequent
investigation went to show that the fatal shot was fired from the
land side, and it was probably intended for the boarding-party. A few
other persons were more or less seriously wounded, but no deaths resulted
therefrom. It was for some time loudly asserted that several members
of the steamer's crew were missing, as well as two or three casual
occupants. There does not seem to have been any truth in the assertion,
so far, at least, as the crew were concerned. As for the lodgers on
board, they were mostly strolling vagabonds unknown to each other and
to the people of the neighbourhood. Such persons are not easily traced,
and anxious enquiries are not often made about them. It may have
been that some of them were drowned during the melee, as was persistently
declared, but no satisfactory evidence to that effect was ever
brought forward, and the probabilities are decidedly the other way.[242]

Two prisoners were taken by the Canadians during the skirmish.
One of these was a Canadian insurgent named Silvanus Fearns Wrigley,
who had enlisted with Dr. Duncombe in the London District, and had
fled to the Niagara frontier upon the dispersal of the Doctor's forces.
Having made his escape across the river, he had resolved to join the
"Patriots" on Navy Island, and was on the _Caroline_ for the express
purpose of being conveyed thither on the following day. As he avowed
himself to be a subject of Her Majesty, he was taken prisoner and placed
in one of the small boats, instead of being driven ashore. He was never
brought to trial, but after being detained for about three months was
discharged, upon giving bail for his future good behaviour. The other
prisoner was a lad named Alfred Luce, a native of Lower Canada, who
had also been in arms under Dr. Duncombe, and had escaped with
Wrigley. As it appeared that his place of domicile was not quite free
from doubt, and that there was some ground for arguing that he had
become a resident of the United States, he was set at liberty on the
following day, and supplied with money to take him across the river by
way of the ferry below Niagara Falls.

The achievements of this night were followed by consequences
altogether unlocked for by those who took part in the expedition. Up
to this time the feeling along the United States frontier had been
unfavourable to Canada, but with most of the inhabitants it had not
taken any decided shape. Henceforward it was intensified fourfold on
the part of those who had previously entertained it, while it spread
to quarters where there had formerly been mere indifference. Persons
who had passively sympathized with the operations of the "Patriots"
now became active participants therein. It was felt that the American
eagle had received a gross insult which could not be effectually wiped
out without blood. United States territory had actually been invaded
by a foreign petty military force, who had taken the life of one
citizen of the Republic, and had wantonly destroyed the property of
another. The whole frontier was mentally up in arms. Nor was the
sentiment confined to the frontier. It found loud expression in New
York, Boston and Philadelphia, to say nothing of a hundred smaller
communities. For several days a war with Great Britain would have been
accepted by the inhabitants of the Northern States generally as a
highly popular measure. It was not till this feeling began to make
itself powerfully felt, and until grave international complications
seemed likely to arise between Great Britain and the United States,
that the ultra-loyal militia of Upper Canada began to doubt the wisdom
of the act which had provoked such unmistakable manifestations of
hostility.

   *   *   *   *   *   *

NOTE TO CHAPTER XXXI.

The Richard Arnold mentioned in the foregoing chapter was well known
in Toronto, where for many years before his death, on the 18th of
June, 1884, he was a ticket and passenger agent for the Grand Trunk
Railway. It was not until within a few months before his decease that
I became aware that he was the last man on board the _Caroline_, and
that it was by his hand that she was set on fire. I was naturally
desirous of hearing the story of the cutting-out from his own lips,
and called upon him at his office for that purpose. I subsequently
spent an evening with him at his house on Parliament Street, in the
course of which I received from him a full and clear account of the
enterprise. The narrative was published in a Toronto evening newspaper
at the time, but obtained a very limited circulation, and has probably
not been seen by half a dozen readers of these pages. As it is of the
highest value, being the honest testimony of a conspicuous
participator in the adventure, and as it will probably be the means of
correcting a good many popular errors on the subject, I here reproduce
it. I should perhaps add that the language employed, though expressed
in the first person, is generally my own; but the entire narrative was
submitted to and approved by Mr. Arnold before being sent to press.

NARRATIVE OF RICHARD ARNOLD.

On the breaking-out of the Rebellion I was engaged in the
boat-building business at Wellington Square, or, as it is now called,
Burlington. Though I was a young man of twenty-five, I had spent years
in navigating the lakes, and I enjoyed the reputation of understanding
my business. Well, one fine December day when I was at work as usual,
I saw a long line of sleighs coming fast along the road from Oakville.
They were filled to overflowing with men, young and old. On each
sleigh was mounted a red flag. When they reached the place where I was
at work, I learned that they were bound for Hamilton, where they were
going to attend a meeting, in response to a sudden call issued by
Colonel MacNab. They urged me strongly to accompany them. I was
anxious to go, but I had only recently married my wife, who fondly
entreated me to stay at home. My father, however, who was a veteran of
1812, told me that if I didn't obey my country's call at such a time I
was unworthy of the stock from which I had sprung. This statement of
the case accorded with my own inclinations, and my wife's entreaties
were disregarded. I proceeded to Hamilton, and there learned the whole
story about the rebels, how they were entrenched, with a horde of
Yankee sympathizers, on Navy Island. My patriotism was thoroughly
aroused, and I eagerly joined a body of volunteers who were directed
to proceed by forced march to the frontier. Off we started in sleighs,
taking the upper road, on top of the mountain. It was, as I have said,
a forced march, and we made the journey with such rapidity that
several of our horses died on the road from fatigue. The only pause we
made was at Disher's tavern, a place of entertainment well known in
those days. We reached Chippewa on the 25th of the month. The next day
I and several other volunteers accompanied Captain Drew on a
reconnoitring expedition. We set out from Chippewa Creek in a small
boat, and proceeded to circumnavigate Navy Island, where we could see
the rebels in full force. As we approached the island they fired round
after round at us, and the bullets whistled thick and fast over our
heads. Our position was one of extreme peril. "What a fool I am,"
exclaimed Captain Drew, "to be here without a pick-up boat. Should we
be disabled we shall find ourselves in a tight place." One of the
rowers in our boat was completely overcome by fear, and funked. "I
can't help it, boys," said he and threw himself at full length along
the bottom of the boat. We made the trip, however, without any
accident. The next day we made another expedition in a large
twelve-oared gig, with a picked crew, chiefly composed of lake
sailors. Again the shots whistled over our heads, and struck the water
on both sides of us, but in the course of a few hours we found
ourselves back again in Chippewa Creek without having sustained any
injury. We had by this time become used to being under fire, and
didn't seem to mind the sound of the whistling bullets.

On the night of the 28th a number of the militia officers dined with
Colonel MacNab at his quarters. The after-dinner festivities were kept
up until a late hour, and some of the officers (doubtless feeling the
effects of the generous wine) resolved upon the desperate project of
landing in a boat on Navy Island, and seizing and carrying off the
nearest sentry. Of course I, in common with the rest of the privates
of the "naval brigade," knew nothing about this project at the time.
Well, about 3 o'clock on the following morning, several of the
officers entered our quarters, and roused us by crying out: "Hurrah
for the gig's crew!" "What to do?" was the very natural but most
unmilitary enquiry. "Oh, never mind--none of your business," replied
Lieutenant Graham, of Woodstock, who had been placed in charge of the
expedition. "Come along as quick as you can, with your oars; no arms
are required." The effects of Graham's dinner were very perceptible,
and he certainly was not sober. We followed his lead, in total
ignorance of our destination, or of what was contemplated by him. The
expedition, however, proved abortive. To effect a landing on Navy
Island it was necessary for us to row a considerable distance up
stream, and then we had to pull inshore and land, in order to give the
countersign, All this delayed us so long that the first indications of
daylight began to appear, and the idea of landing on the island had to
be abandoned. We, however, proceeded on our way round the encampment
of the rebels, who kept up a pretty constant fire upon us. They had a
small cannon mounted upon an ox-sled, which they kept driving along
the shore, discharging a shot at us from time to time. That we escaped
unhurt was due to their unskilful firing, rather than to any possible
good management on our part. We rowed all the way around the island,
and when we arrived opposite Schlosser we found that the American
sympathizers on the shore were watching us with eager attention. They
brought a small cannon down on to the wharf, and fired at us several
times. We pulled with a will in order to get out of range, and in this
way, before we knew what we were doing, we had made considerable way
down the river. As I have said, we were under the command of
Lieutenant Graham, who lived at Woodstock, and was not familiar with
the dangers of navigating the Niagara River. All on a sudden, several
of us discovered that we were just on the point of entering the
rapids. Robert Sullivan, one of the crew, called out: "Stop rowing,
boys, for God's sake! Do you see where we are? We are going straight
over the falls!" "Silence!" responded Lieutenant Graham, "or I will
blow your brains out. It is for me, not you, to give orders." "Oh,
very well," replied Sullivan, drawing his oar into the boat, "if I am
to go over the falls I may as well go without brains as with them."
Here we all joined in, and after hurriedly representing to Graham the
danger of our position, we began to pull up stream. A little longer
and it would have been too late. Even as it was, it was a long time
before our oars could produce any effect on the current, and it was
about ten o'clock in the forenoon before we found ourselves once more
in safety in the mouth of Chippewa Creek.

In the course of the afternoon we got word from Captain Drew to
prepare for an important expedition on that night. We were all ready
enough for fun, but we had had enough of Lieutenant Graham's
incompetence and drunken bluster, and we point-blank refused to go
unless we were informed what we were to do, and who was to command us.
The boat's crew appointed me as their emissary to confer with Captain
Drew, who informed me that he himself was going to take the command.
As to the nature of the enterprise itself he vouchsafed no
information. "You must see," said he, "how impossible it would be to
carry on any military enterprise successfully if the privates, as well
as the officers, were to be taken into confidence. You may depend upon
it that I shall lead you into no unnecessary danger, and that I shall
take my full share of it." I explained all this to the men, and they
were satisfied, for their confidence in the Captain was unbounded.
There was no scarcity of boats, a good many of which had been sent
over by sleighs from Port Maitland, St. Catharines, Niagara, and
elsewhere. I should think there must have been at least forty or fifty
small row-boats ready for use. Well, as we members of the "naval
brigade" had been up the greater part of the previous night, and had
had rather an arduous forenoon's work, we went to bed before sundown,
so as to be in readiness for our proposed nocturnal expedition. We
were aroused about 9 o'clock in the evening, and as everything was in
readiness we were not long in getting off. The night was dark, cloudy
and starless. The expedition consisted, as far as I can remember, of
seven boats, each containing seven men, i.e., four rowers and three
sitters. I was stroke-oar in the first boat, in which was Captain Drew
himself. A port-fire, as it is called, was held over the stern of our
boat, in order to enable the other boats to follow us through the
darkness without difficulty. Up to this time we members of the crew
supposed that we were going to land on Navy Island, but I was soon
undeceived by Captain Drew, who informed me that we were bound for
Schlosser, and that we were going to capture the _Caroline_. He asked
me if I knew how to start an engine. I replied in the affirmative.
"Very good," said he "as soon as we are on board the steamer it will
be your duty to hurry down to the engine-room, see how much water
there is in the boiler, and get up steam as quickly as possible." As
we drew near the American shore we perceived that the _Caroline_ was
well lighted up. She headed up stream, and of course was moored to the
wharf at Schlosser. Owing to the darkness of the night, the sentry on
board the steamer did not perceive us until we were close in. He
called to us in a loud, peremptory tone, and demanded the
counter-sign. "I will give it to you when we come on board," replied
Captain Drew. This response did not satisfy the sentry, upon whom the
true situation of affairs seemed to flash all in a moment.

A shot was fired--I suppose by the sentry which passed harmlessly by
us, but struck the boat immediately astern. The rest of our exploit
was performed with lightning-like rapidity. One of the crew of our
boat seized a boarding-pike and clutched hold of the steamer. Captain
Drew sprang over the rail, cutlass in hand, and was the first man on
board. I followed, intending to make my way instanter to the
engine-room. I had no sooner reached the deck than I was struck by a
cutlass on the arm, and got a pretty deep gash just above the elbow.
With the assistance of one of the crew I managed to hurriedly bind it
up with my handkerchief. While this was going on I saw Captain Drew
and another officer driving the crew of the _Caroline_ ashore at the
point of their swords, as also a number of men who, as it afterwards
appeared, did not belong to the steamer at all, but had merely been
sleeping on board. There was the loudest hullabaloo I ever heard in
all my life. You would have thought that two mighty hosts were
contending for the victory. Beyond what I have stated, however, there
was very little active opposition to us, for the crew and occupants of
the steamer were taken completely by surprise, and were terrified out
of their wits into the bargain. As soon as my wound was bound up I
made the best of my way down to the engine-room. The fire was pretty
nearly out, but there was plenty of water in the boiler, and there was
also plenty of wood and kindling close at hand, so I was scarcely a
moment in starting the fire. I had no sooner done so than a big,
rough-looking chap came out from behind the boiler, where I suppose he
had been asleep. He advanced towards me with a huge cudgel in his
hand. I drew my pistol and covered him. "If you don't drop that
stick," said I, "I will blow your brains out." He collapsed at once,
and yielded himself to me as a prisoner. Holding him by the arm, I
conveyed him on deck, where we were both taken prisoners by Hamilton
O'Reilly, a Canadian officer of militia. O'Reilly was excited, and
scarcely knew what he was about, insomuch that I had some difficulty
in making him understand who I was.

There is not much more to tell. As soon as the crew and lodgers of the
_Caroline_ had all been driven ashore, the Canadians re-embarked in
the small boats. Captain Drew ordered me to take a run through the
steamer and see that no one was left aboard. I did so, and found no
one. I was just about to embark in the small boat when Drew called out
to me to set fire to the steamer. I obeyed by rushing down to the
engine-room, taking the wood out of the furnace, and applying it to
the most combustible parts of the vessel in several places. I then got
into the small boat, and the _Caroline_ was cut loose from her
moorings. Captain Drew and I were the first two Canadians to board the
steamer, and the last two to leave her. Before we cut her off from the
wharf she was all in a blaze. We towed her out a short distance, so as
not to set fire to the wharf; then we cut her adrift and abandoned her
to the current. She glided about two hundred yards down stream, when
she stuck fast on a bed of rush weeds near the American shore. After a
while she got herself loose, and passed on down the river, but the
lights soon went out, and my belief is that she sank to the bottom
then and there. Her engine was distinctly visible at the bottom of the
river near that spot many years afterwards, and if any portion of the
vessel went over the falls it could only have been isolated pieces of
her timbers. The rebels on Navy Island, seeing the lights suddenly
quenched, took it for granted that she had gone bodily over the falls,
and were the first to spread the report to that effect. When a
sensational story of that kind once gets afloat it is not easily
checked in its career. A few moments' consideration would convince any
one familiar with the spot that the _Caroline_ could not by any chance
have passed bodily over the cataract. We only towed her a few yards
out from the wharf at Schlosser, when, as I have said, we abandoned
her to the current. Now, if she had passed on continuously down
stream, she would of course have passed down by the American shore,
and thus have been carried over the American fall. But the bridge
connecting the American shore with Goat Island was built at that time,
and would have arrested her career.

For my own part, what between bodily fatigue and the exhaustion
produced by loss of blood, I was pretty well done up by the time our
party had returned to Chippewa. The wound in my arm was deep, and I
was invalided and sent home in a sleigh next day. I was conveyed home
by way of Stamford village, and as we were passing through there,
Alexander McLeod, who was then Deputy Sheriff of the Niagara District,
came out of a house where he had been passing the night. He asked as
to the blaze he had seen the previous night in the river above the
falls, near the American shore; and it was then that he heard for the
first time of the cutting-out and destruction of the _Caroline_. This,
I need hardly tell you, was the same McLeod who was subsequently
arrested and tried in the United States for having been concerned in
the burning of the vessel. As for me, I reached home in due course,
and you may be sure my wife was delighted ta see me. I was strong and
healthy, and my wound healed rapidly, leaving me none the worse. And
that, sir, was what I had to do with the affair of the _Caroline_.

FOOTNOTES:

[218] See note at end of chap, xxiii., _ante_.

[219] _Ante_, p. 68.

[220] _Ante_, p. 97.

[221] _Ante_, p. 96.

[222] Allan McLean Howard, now Clerk of the First Division Court of
the County of York.

[223] John Lesslie was Postmaster at Dundas, but was dismissed from
office at this time for suspected complicity in the revolt.

[224] _Ante_, p. 150, note.

[225] Mr. Howard himself attributed his dismissal in great measure to
the machinations of his successor, Mr. Berczy. A full account of the
whole matter may be found in a pamphlet published at Toronto by Mr.
Howard in 1839, entitled _A Statement of Facts relative to the
Dismissal of James S. Howard, Esq., late Postmaster of the City of
Toronto, U. C._

[226] See the communication dated "Government House, 13th Dec., 1837,"
in Head's _Narrative_, chap. x.

[227] See Head's despatch to Lord Glenelg, dated 28th December, 1837,
embodied in the ninth chapter of his _Narrative_.

[228] "There is probably nowhere a more dangerous piece of water to
navigate than that immediately above the Falls and about Navy Island.
The current runs from four to five miles an hour, so smoothly and
quietly that when upon the river it is impossible to tell how you are
drifting unless you take bearings upon shore, when, if you desist from
rowing for a minute, it makes you shudder to feel how quietly and
rapidly you are gliding down to the fearful cataract whose sounding
waters are roaring in your ears, and whose column of white spray
towers tip before you. The river below Navy Island is almost three
miles across from shore to shore, and it is only about a mile and
a-half to the rapids, so one can readily imagine the difficulty of
navigating a piece of water of that shape with so rapid a current. A
broken oar, a strong wind down stream, a capsized boat, or a little
carelessness, and the poor boatman is lost beyond all hope. When all
this is considered, and that this operation had to be performed at
night, the danger will appear in all its force. The most skilful
ferryman will refuse to cross at night, unless it is singularly clear,
so that the opposite shore can be seen."--_The Burning of the
Caroline_, by G. T. D. [the late George Taylor Denison], in _The
Canadian Monthly_ for April, 1873.

[229] "Occasionally the armed guard, their bayonets glittering in the
sunshine, were observed marching along the shore to relieve the
sentries; and while their appearance was drawing upon them the fire of
the American artillery from Navy Island, a number of young militiamen
were to be seen in the background of the picture running after the
round shot that were bounding along the ground, with the same joy and
eagerness that, as school-boys, they had run after their football.
Sometimes a laugh, like a roar of musketry, would re-echo through the
dark forest, and sometimes there would be a cheer that for a moment
seemed to silence the unceasing roar of the falls."--_The Emigrant_,
chap. x.

[230] _Ante_, p. 128.

[231] One or two similar expeditions with larger boats, and with a
greater number of men, had been successfully undertaken before this
day--the 28th--but the arrival of the _Caroline_ had materially
strengthened the hands of the filibusters, and had otherwise increased
the dangers of such achievements. The expedition of Captain Drew and
McLeod, too, was accomplished in a small boat, with a single pair of
oars. The loss or splintering of an oar, or the disabling of one of
the occupants of the skiff by a musket-shot, would probably have been
attended with disastrous consequences to the expedition.

[232] Chippewa Creek.

[233] _The Cutting-out of the Caroline, and other Reminiscences of
1837-38_, by Robert Stuart Woods, Q.C. Chatham, Ont., 1885.

[234] In addition to the accounts embodied in the so-called histories,
and in various official reports and returns, I have before me the
narratives of seven different persons who took part in the expedition.
The variation among them as to matters of detail is even greater than
might reasonably have been expected. Captain Drew's own report to
Colonel MacNab is clearly erroneous on several points. For instance,
he reports five or six of the enemy killed--a statement which he of
course believed to be true, but which the consensus of evidence
subsequently obtained appears to pretty clearly negative. The more
comprehensive account forwarded by Sir Francis Head to Mr. Fox,
British Minister at Washington, is fairly accurate. I find no two
authorities agree as to the names of the officers in command of the
boats which took part in the expedition. That Lieutenant Sheppard
McCormick was in command of one boat there is no manner of doubt, but
I find his name altogether omitted by one narrator, and it is
incorrectly spelled by nearly very one of them. Captain Drew spells
both this officer's names incorrectly--thus: "Shepherd McCormack." The
Captain also errs in the "Return" appended to his report, where "John
Arnold" is mentioned as severely wounded. There was a John Arnold in
the expedition, but he sustained no injury. The wounded man was
Richard Arnold, who set the steamer on fire as subsequently mentioned
in the text, and whose personal narrative is given at the end of this
chapter.

[235] See _The Cutting-out of the Caroline_, etc., _ubi supra_, p. 3.

[236] See the narrative of Captain Richard Arnold, appended to this
chapter.

[237] Head must also take his share of the responsibility. See the
account in his despatch to Lord Glenelg, dated 9th February, 1838, and
embodied in the eleventh chapter of his_ Narrative_.

[238] See the engraving on the first page of his _Caroline Almanac_,
published at Rochester two years after the events commemorated in this
chapter. A fac-simile of it is here reproduced, in order that the
reader may judge of the little man's methods of dealing with facts. It
may seem absurd to attempt to criticise such a production as this,
where distance and proportion are utterly ignored; where every law of
perspective is wilfully violated, and where there is evidently a
deliberate attempt to mislead. But to mislead was henceforward one of
the guiding principles of Mackenzie's life, and it is well that the
reader who has scant leisure for the investigation of facts should be
in a position to perceive this characteristic at a glance, as he may
do by means of the above fac-simile. It will be seen that the
_Caroline_ is represented as being rather nearer the Canadian shore
than is the tongue of Navy Island, which protrudes a little to the
left of the middle of the engraving; whereas in point of fact, as
stated in the text, she kept close in to the American shore, and never
passed anything like so far westward as Navy Island. The steamer is on
the very brink of the Great Horseshoe, and is about to take her last
flying leap into the awful abyss; whereas there was no possibility of
her being carried down the Canadian channel of the river. She is also
represented as being about to plunge over in one solid, connected
mass; the fact being that before she had passed half way down the
rapids she was utterly destroyed. In the original, several persons are
depicted near the bow of the vessel, holding out their hands in a
piteous but hopeless appeal for help. This detail has been
insufficiently brought out in the fac-simile, but is plain enough to
be seen in the original, and was intended to convey the idea that a
number of citizens of the United States were deliberately consigned by
the Canadians to this horrible fate. Yet when this engraving was
prepared Mackenzie knew perfectly well that not a soul was on board
the steamer after her abandonment by the Canadians, and that in
representing otherwise he was disseminating a monstrous falsehood--a
falsehood, too, which would readily find credence with many persons
who knew no better, and which would tend to the perpetuation of
ill-blood against his fellow-countrymen for years to come. In order
that I may not be accused of misrepresenting his intentions, I quote
his verbal description of the thrilling scene, written to accompany
the illustration. It will be found on pp. 107, 108, of the _Caroline
Almanac_, under date of December 29th. He speaks of "the ill-fated
vessel passing onwards with fearful speed towards the great falls in a
blaze of flame, the elements of fire and water combining in their fury
to send into eternity those who had hid themselves in the boat from
the dagger of the assassin." He then proceeds as follows: "A faint
view of 2 or 3 persons holding out their hands in desperation may be
seen near the bows of the boat...She was set in a blaze, cut adrift,
and sent over the falls of Niagara. We witnessed the dreadful scene
from Navy Island. The thrilling cry ran around that there were living
souls on board; and as the vessel, wrapt in vivid flame, which
disclosed her doom as it shone brightly on the water, was hurrying
down the resistless rapids to the tremendous Cataract, the thunder of
which, more awfully distinct in the midnight stillness, horrified
every mind with the presence of their inevitable fate, numbers caught,
in fancy, the wails of dying wretches, hopelessly perishing by the
double horrors of a fate which nothing could avert; and watched with
agonized attention the flaming mass, till it was hurried over the
falls to be crushed in everlasting darkness in the unfathomed tomb of
waters below. Several Canadians who left the Island in the _Caroline_
that evening, to return next day, have not since been heard of, and
doubtless were among the murdered, or hid on board and perished with
the ill-fated vessel."

[Illustration: The _Caroline_ going over the Falls]

The figure lying in the left foreground, on the wharf adjoining the
storehouse, is intended to represent Amos Durfee, the only person
known to have been slain during the mele. In the middle distance are
the boats returning to Chippewa.

The die used for the cloth-bound copies of this present work was cut
without strict regard to genuine historical and topographical details,
inasmuch as the _Caroline_ is represented as altogether too near the
brink of the falls. But this was a necessity, if the steamer and the
falls were both to be depicted in an illustration of such dimensions.
The other absurd and revolting accessories of Mackenzie's picture have
been carefully omitted.

[239] Judge Porter's first bridge was built as far back as 1817, about
forty rods above the site of the present one. The second was
constructed about two years afterwards on the site of the present
bridge. This second bridge was in existence at the time of the
_Caroline_ affair, and with frequent repairs and one almost entire
renewal, stood firm until 1856, when it was removed to make way for
the present iron structure.--See Holley's _Niagara, its History and
Geology_, 1st edition (Toronto, 1872), p. 81.

[240] See U. C. Statute 1 Victoria, cap. 46.

[241] See Col. MacNab's letter to Col. Strachan, dated January 1st,
1838, published in Appendix to Journals of U. C. Assembly, 3rd
Session, 3rd Parliament, pp. 89, 90.

[242] "The story of any person being on the steamer when she went over
the falls was never believed by any of us. Even Durfee was not killed
on the boat, but on the land; and the evidence of the prosecution
showed that the shot was from the land side. I saw no one on her when
we left, and the evidence given on McLeod's trial shows that Captain
Drew and his men were anxious to let the men get ashore, and simply
capture the boat, which was tied to the dock."--_The Cutting-out of
the Caroline_, etc., _ubi supra_, p. 3.




CHAPTER XXXII.

FILIBUSTERING ON THE FRONTIER.


At the present day there are probably not many persons to be found
among us who would seriously attempt a full justification of the
high-handed proceedings detailed in the last chapter. Contemplated in
the light of subsequent developments, the destruction of the
_Caroline_ must be admitted to have been a rash and injudicious deed;
a deed to which the people of the United States could hardly have been
expected to submit with tameness. It involved a temporary occupation
of their territory by the militia of a foreign state. It involved the
destruction by foreigners, in American waters, of valuable property
belonging to an American citizen. Those by whom it was achieved could
hardly have hoped or intended to carry out their designs without loss
of life to a certain number of the President's subjects. According to
the highest authorities, the act was justifiable by the law of
nations; but, leaving out of the question any discussion as to the
strict letter of international law, the exigencies of the time were
such as to call for the exercise of great forbearance and discretion
on the part of the commander of the Upper Canadian forces. It is easy,
however, to be wise after the fact, and there was undoubtedly another
side to the question. In passing judgment upon the conduct of Colonel
MacNab, it is only fair that all the circumstances should be
considered; and it must on all hands be admitted that he was subjected
to very great provocation.[243] He was a man in whom devotion to the
British Crown was ingrained and inherent. His native instincts and his
personal interests all pointed in the same direction. He had just been
engaged in putting down what had threatened to be a dangerous revolt.
He had seen a number of the inhabitants of an adjoining State
exhibiting the strongest sympathy with this revolt. He now saw them
actually participating therein, and engaged in a hostile and unlawful
occupation of Canadian territory. As far as he could perceive, the
local authorities of the United States made no real attempt to check
these proceedings on the part of their people.[244] When he saw a
steamer belonging to a citizen of the United States actively engaged
in conveying artillery from the national arsenals to the assistance of
filibusters whom he regarded as no better than pirates; when he saw
this artillery daily and hourly brought to bear against his
headquarters on the Canadian shore; when he saw the houses and
property of peaceable Canadians injured or destroyed thereby; and when
he saw these proceedings openly sanctioned or abetted by American
officials it is not much to be wondered at if his patience gave way,
and if he resolved to abate the intolerable nuisance by any means at
his command. And when he found--as he subsequently did--that the
carrying out of his resolution met with the official approval of Her
Majesty's representative in Upper Canada, and that his conduct was
hailed by his fellow-countrymen as gallant and patriotic; when he
received the thanks of nearly every high official in the Province,
together with more substantial rewards; and when, finally, he received
knighthood at the hands of his Sovereign, and was hailed as Sir Allan
Napier MacNab, he is not much to be censured if he was confirmed in
the belief that he was entitled to take a pretty large modicum of
credit to himself. It has been seen how a former passage in his life
gave an impetus to his fortunes, and lifted him out of obscurity.[245]
The events of the 29th of December, 1837, gave an additional and
exceedingly vigorous propulsion to his career, insomuch that he was
thenceforward one of the foremost personages in Upper Canada. The
people vied to do him honour, and to signify their appreciation of the
vigorous blow he had struck on his country's behalf.

The people of the United States, and more especially the inhabitants
of the State of New York, naturally took a somewhat different view of the
transaction. The most exaggerated stories were afloat, all of which
obtained ready credence. For some time it was generally believed that
the crew and passengers of the_ Caroline_, consisting of a number of
peaceable American citizens, including several women and children,
had been ruthlessly butchered and sent over the falls by a ruffianly
horde of Canadian militia. The frontier newspapers went fairly wild with
excitement, and clamoured for an immediate declaration of war. Public
meetings were held all along the border, at which the most
bloodthirsty resolutions were passed. On the 2nd of January, Governor
Marcy, in a special message to the State Legislature, drew attention
to the affair, alleging that the territory of the State had been
invaded, and a number of citizens murdered by an armed force from
Upper Canada. "The crew and other persons in this steamboat," he
wrote, "amounting to thirty-three, were suddenly attacked at midnight,
after they had retired to repose, and probably more than one-third of
them wantonly massacred." President Van Buren, in a message to
Congress, intimated that a demand for reparation would be made.
General Winfield Scott was sent to the frontier, armed with large
discretionary powers for its protection, and for the preservation of
the peace. He acted with the calmness and moderation which was to be
expected from one entrusted with such responsibilities, and did much
to modify the general exasperation; but it was long before the public
mind recovered its normal tone, and for some time war between Great
Britain and the States was by many regarded as all but
inevitable.[246]

The "sympathizers" who had joined Mackenzie's movement naturally did
their utmost to fan the flame which had been kindled, and conducted
themselves with the most reckless disregard of international
amenities. Their avowed object was to provoke a war between Great
Britain and the States; or, failing that, to arouse public feeling
along the frontier to such a pitch that a large proportion of the
inhabitants might be induced to voluntarily join in a comprehensive
raid into Upper Canada. On the afternoon of the 10th of January, while
Lieutenant Elmsley and a number of men under his command were
examining the channel between Grand Island and Navy Island, they had
occasion to approach within two hundred yards of the former. Scarcely
had they done so when they were hailed by some officers in uniform who
were stationed on the island, under the shadow of the stars and
stripes hoisted upon a tall flag-staff. The officers, who were
attended by about a score of privates, demanded what the Canadians
were doing. Elmsley replied that they were examining the channel. The
Americans then requested the Canadians to go ashore and land, and upon
the latter's declining the invitation, they were greeted with a
discharge of firearms. One of the bullets struck the rudder-head of
Elmsley's boat, and almost at the same moment the batteries on Navy
Island opened fire. The Canadians found the situation too warm, and
quietly withdrew, the Americans continuing to fire upon them until
they were beyond range. The facts were duly reported to Colonel
MacNab, and by him communicated to General Scott. This, though it was
the most aggravated breach of international law committed by Americans
wearing the uniform of the Republic, was a by no means isolated
indication of the prevalent feeling among the inhabitants; and the
filibusters counted largely upon the continuance of this feeling for
the success of their enterprise.

But lawlessness and ruffianism were not to have their own way
unchecked. Sir John Colborne, as Commander-in-Chief of Her Majesty's
Forces in British North America, had become disgusted at the
inactivity of Sir Francis Head, and at the continued occupation of
Canadian territory by a horde of vagabonds. The season being an open
one, he despatched a quantity of mortars and heavy artillery up the
St. Lawrence, a portion of which speedily found their way to Chippewa.
A vigorous fire was then opened on Navy Island, which soon became
untenable by Mackenzie, Van Rensselaer, and their adherents. The
number of the latter increased considerably during the few days
following the destruction of the _Caroline_, and was now about four
hundred and fifty.[247] But the shot poured in upon them thick and
fast from the Canadian shore, and they were in no humour to remain. On
the 13th of January Van Rensselaer announced his intention to evacuate
the island, taking his forces along with him; and this intention he
carried out on the following day, retiring to the eastern mainland,
whither he had no sooner arrived than he was arrested and held to bail
for breach of the neutrality laws of the United States. Mackenzie was,
of course, compelled to evacuate at the same time. The local
authorities resumed possession of the artillery and munitions which
had been taken from the arsenals, and the "Patriots" thus found
themselves in no condition to make good their forcible claim to those
"fair and fertile" lands which Mackenzie had held up before their eyes
as so tempting a bait.

On the morning of the 15th the Canadian militia were in actual
occupation of Navy Island. Some of the "Patriots" had taken refuge on
Grand Island, while others had returned to the eastern mainland. They
had secured the services of a steamer called the _Barcelona_ to convey
them to the Michigan frontier, where it was their purpose to join
their forces to those of certain of their co-workers who had already
set on foot a series of raids into Upper Canadian territory. To this
steamer were transferred such arms and munitions as were left to them
after the resumption by the State of its property. Captain Drew and a
force of men were detailed to watch the motions of the vessel, and to
prevent her from landing her passengers on Canadian soil. In carrying
out his instructions he anchored two schooners in American waters, and
proposed to intercept the _Barcelona_ if she attempted to pass. This
led to further hostile demonstrations on the part of American troops,
and to a strained correspondence between General Scott and Colonel
MacNab. Happily, however, the danger passed by. The "Patriots,"
finding that they were closely watched, and that they would not be
permitted to proceed westward with the steamer, disembarked themselves
and their few belongings on Grand Island, and apparently abandoned
their purpose. During the few days preceding their evacuation of their
encampment on Navy Island, there had been an almost incessant exchange
of hostilities between them and the militia on the Canadian shore, and
a considerable quantity of their munitions had been destroyed or
rendered useless. So far as casualties to life were concerned, they
had come off better than their opponents. Three of the militia had
been killed in the interval,[248] whereas only one of the "Patriots"
had been slain and but one wounded during the entire period of
occupation.[249]

By this time the evil results arising out of the affair of the
_Caroline_ began to make themselves unpleasantly apparent throughout
the entire length of the frontier between Canada and the United
States. That spirited but injudicious proceeding had given a fair
excuse for the exhibition of feelings on the part of American citizens
which had been latent ever since the last war, and which had only
needed such an incentive to spur them into activity. For the nonce,
everything British or Canadian was regarded by them with consuming
hatred. In not a few instances, Canadians travelling on business or
pleasure through the Republic were openly insulted and reviled.
Conspiracies against the peace of Canada began to be hatched all along
the border from Maine to Michigan, and the Provincial Governments were
compelled to make preparations for dealing with petty invasions
distributed over a wide area. The cutting-out episode, moreover, took
place at a singularly inopportune moment for Canada, as the insurgents
who had fled across the border in all directions had in themselves
done much to attract attention and sympathy to their cause. A good
many of them had found safety in Detroit, where much compassion was
manifested for them, and where a course of procedure was adopted
towards them similar to what had been adopted with regard to their
fellow-exiles in Buffalo. They were held up as living monuments of
tyranny, and as martyrs in a sacred cause. Public meetings were held,
at which resolutions were passed expressive of sympathy for the
fugitives, and of indignation against the corrupt Government which had
hunted them from their native land. A council of "the Friends of
Canadian Liberty" was formed, and active preparations were made for
what was pretentiously styled an invasion of Canada. An organization
was set on foot for warlike purposes, and recruits were enlisted for
"the Patriot Army of the North West." It is not difficult to imagine
the impetus which the _Caroline_ affair gave to such manifestations as
these. Many persons who had previously paid little attention to the
prevalent cry were now roused to fury against Canada; and some who had
always borne the character of peaceable citizens now came forward with
contributions of money in aid of the projected invasion.

During the last two weeks of the year 1837 there had been several
petty manifestations of disaffection in the Western District of Upper
Canada, especially by the Radicals near Windsor and Sandwich.
Evidences were not wanting that some sort of understanding existed
between these disaffected ones and the refugees and sympathizers on
the other side of the Detroit Eiver. These latter, again, were acting
in concert with the filibusters on Navy Island, and messengers were
constantly passing to and fro with intelligence from the respective
leaders to each other. On the very day before the destruction of the
_Caroline_, Van Rensselaer sent "Colonel" Thomas Jefferson Sutherland
westward to cooperate with the local "Patriots" in promoting a
movement against Upper Canada from Detroit and its vicinity.
Sutherland proceeded by way of Cleveland, where a number of agitators
were already at work, and where he found nearly two hundred recruits
ready to follow him. At the head of this company he proceeded to join
the army of the North West.

In the closing paragraph of the first chapter of this work it was
intimated that another brief glimpse of Robert Gourlay would be
afforded before the close of the narrative. The time for obtaining
that glimpse has arrived. During the winter of 1837-'38 Mr. Gourlay
was sojourning in Cleveland, where he owned some property, and had
numerous friends and well-wishers. The shameful treatment which had
been meted out to him in Upper Canada nearly twenty years before,
though it had left an abiding mark upon his character and
constitution, had not embittered him against the colony, nor had it
rendered him indifferent to the welfare of the Empire of which it
forms a part. From his cradle to his grave he was a loyal subject, and
no man was less likely to be drawn into any sort of cooperation with
the filibusters whom he encountered at every turn during this period.
He regarded Mackenzie and his American sympathizers with feelings of
contemptuous abhorrence, and did what he could to circumvent their
machinations. His exertions were of course ineffectual to prevent them
from carrying on their enterprises, but he rendered good service to
the colony by sending over important information as to their
movements. For so doing he received letters of thanks from Sir Francis
Head, who moreover invited him to return to Upper Canada. This he
declined to do until the reversal of the sentence of banishment which
had been pronounced against him in 1819, and until that sentence
should be pronounced to have been unjust from the beginning. How far
he obtained satisfaction in this respect may be learned by referring
to the sketch of his life in _The Canadian Portrait Gallery_.[250]

Sutherland, upon leaving Cleveland with his recruits, proceeded to
Gibraltar, a small village in Wayne County, Michigan, on the west
bank of the Detroit River, at its confluence with Lake Erie. His
object was to conduct a movement against Amherstburg, on the Canadian
side, which was undefended except by a small body of Provincial
militia hastily collected by John Prince, a magistrate of Sandwich
afterwards widely known as Colonel Prince--Colonel Thomas Radcliffe,
and other loyal inhabitants of the western frontier. Sutherland bore
a letter from Van Rensselaer directing him to proceed as he might
deem most advisable, "after consulting with the Canadian and American
friends of the cause." Upon reaching Gibraltar he found a considerable
force of Patriots assembled there, nominally under the command
of "General" Henry S. Handy, a resident of the State of Illinois.
Handy had organized a regular staff of officers, and had secured the
control of several boats and scows for purposes of transport. He had
also got together a large supply of arms and provisions, and was evidently
intent upon making an effective campaign. Among the boats
was the schooner _Anne_, which had been loaded at Detroit with cannon
and muskets from the Michigan State arsenal, and then brought down
to the mouth of the river. Stevens T. Mason, Governor of the State,
having been appealed to by Mr. Prince to stop these proceedings, had
professed his anxiety to prevent any violation of the neutrality laws,
but his efforts had up to this time been almost wholly ineffective. Some
of the United States troops had hampered the motions of the "Patriots"
by capturing their only steamer, the _McComb_; but when another steamer,
the _United States_, had encountered the schooner _Anne_ with several
cannon bristling on her deck, and evidently intent on mischief, she had
quietly looked another way, and allowed the filibusters to pursue their
schemes without disturbance. Sutherland, immediately upon his arrival
at Gibraltar on the night of the 7th of January, laid claim to the command
of the expedition by virtue of his orders from Van Rensselaer, who
was recognized as the generalissimo of the entire army of invasion.
Handy was not personally present to support his own claims, and the
other officers were not unanimous in favour of investing Sutherland
with the command. A council of war was held, at which there appears
to have been a good deal of discord.[251] It was finally determined that
Van Rensselaer's authority should be respected, and that Sutherland
should for the time be permitted to assume the direction of affairs.
Next morning news arrived that Governor Mason and the United States
Marshal, accompanied by a strong force of troops, were on the way
down from Detroit to put a stop to their proceedings and break up their
organization. They accordingly embarked on board the boats and
scows at their disposal, and took refuge in Canadian waters, where they
remained until the Governor and his forces returned to Detroit. The
command of the schooner _Anne_, which was the principal vessel engaged
in the service of the Patriots, was bestowed upon Edward Alexander
Theller, an Irish-Canadian, who had practised medicine among the
habitans in the Lower Province, and had been a member of a Free Love
Association in the State of New York. He was a blustering, mendacious,
yet withal courageous fellow, full of loquacity, but greatly wanting in
discretion.[252] The movements of the rest of the boats were directed by
Sutherland himself, who, as soon as the Governor and Marshal had
retired from the neighbourhood, made a demonstration against
Amherstburg and the neighbouring island of Bois Blanc. The Canadian
militia, to the number of several hundreds, had collected at these
points, and were ready to meet the invader, although they were very
ill provided with arms and ammunition. Sutherland's force was
numerically greatly superior to that of the militia, and was moreover
thoroughly equipped; but when the valiant commander saw the bold stand
made against him he did not attempt to land. After an ineffective
discharge of artillery upon the Canadian shore he moved back to near
the American side of the river. Theller, in the _Anne_, had meanwhile
been drifting out into the lake, and unable to afford any assistance.
The sails and rigging of the schooner were imperfect, and were also
unskilfully managed, so that the crew had no proper control of her.
After several hours spent in experiments, these defects were in some
measure remedied, and Theller determined upon immediate action. Taking
advantage of a favourable breeze, he ran his vessel up the channel
between Bois Blanc and Amherstburg. The militia on shore had been
watching his proceedings throughout the day, and were well acquainted
with his purpose, which they were prepared to withstand to the last
man. They had no heavy artillery, but they opened fire upon the enemy
with muskets, thereby inflicting some serious wounds upon her crew.
Theller, who had cannon on board, discharged several rounds into the
town, doing some damage to the houses, but not causing any loss of
life. After tacking hither and thither for some time, the _Anne_
withdrew out of range. Meanwhile, Sutherland, with a force of sixty
men, had effected a landing upon Bois Blanc, and issued a proclamation
inviting the patriotic citizens of Upper Canada to rally around the
standard of liberty. A number of Canadians who had occupied the island
for the purpose of defending it had withdrawn to the mainland, to
assist in repelling the attack upon Amherstburg, so that nobody was
left to respond to this proclamation, even had there been any disposition
to do so. Such Canadians, however, as would have been likely to be
influenced by the invitation had already passed over into the States
and joined the Patriot cause. A few copies of the proclamation by some
means found their way to the eastern shore, but they had no other
effect than to excite the risibilities and increase the vigilance of the
militia.

Next morning--which was the 9th--the _Anne_ again appeared before
Amherstburg, and renewed her cannonade upon the town. The Canadians
kept up a galling fire of musketry upon her throughout the day, destroying
her rigging, killing her helmsman and creating general devastation
on board. Towards nightfall the ill-managed vessel became unmanageable,
drifted near the shore, and, according to Theller's own account,[253]
ran aground. At all events she lay at the mercy of the Canadians,
who plunged into the water up to their armpits and advanced upon her.
Without loss of time they boarded and carried her in gallant style,
hauling down her flag amid uproarious cheering. They found on board
twenty-one persons in all, including the dead helmsman, eight wounded,
and twelve others, among whom was "Brigadier-General" Theller himself.
The capture was an important one, as the schooner had on
board three cannon, two hundred muskets, with bayonets and accoutrements,
and a quantity of ammunition and stores commodities of which
the militia stood greatly in need. Two of the cannon were afterwards
mounted as trophies of war upon the adjacent fort. The prisoners were
sent eastward to London, and thence to Toronto, where they were
subsequently brought to trial and sentenced to various punishments.
An account of Theller's transfer to Quebec, and of his escape from the
citadel of that place, will be found in the second volume of his _Canada
in 1837-88_, but it should be read with a constant eye to the salt-cellar,
as the writer's mendacity here finds constant exercise. Sutherland
appears to have been frightened out of his judgment by the capture of
the _Anne_. He immediately withdrew his forces from Bois Blanc, and
took refuge on Sugar Island, considerably nearer to the American side of
the river. By this proceeding he forfeited the confidence of the Patriot
officers and men, a considerable number of whom refused to cooperate
with him or obey his orders any longer. It is not worth while to follow
his fortunes in minute detail. He repaired to Detroit, where he sought to
enlist volunteers and organize an expedition against Canada on his own
account. In aid of his design he issued another proclamation, addressed
"to the deluded supporters of British tyranny in Upper Canada." This
being a clear and undisguised breach of the neutrality laws, it could not
be ignored by the authorities. He was arrested and required to find bail,
which, however, was readily forthcoming. He continued to take an active
part in the movements along the western frontier for the next few weeks,
when he was captured on Canadian territory and sent to Toronto. By
this time his mishaps and irregular mode of life had completely shattered
his nerves. During his incarceration at Toronto he made an ineffectual
attempt to commit suicide by opening a vein in each arm and each
instep. A short time after he was tried by court martial, and sentenced
to transportation to one of Her Majesty's penal colonies for the term of
his natural life. This sentence, however, was not executed. Doubts
having arisen as to the constitutionality of his trial, he was transferred
to the citadel at Quebec, where he occupied the same cell with Theller. He
was detained in prison for some months, when an order arrived from
England for his liberation. After his enlargement he returned to the
States, and sank back into the obscurity from which he ought never to
have emerged.

It would serve no useful purpose to detail at length the various
machinations of the Patriots against the western frontier. They were
kept up throughout the winter and early spring, and though they
occasioned much disorder and anxiety in this Province, there was never
any prospect of their success. All the actual attempts at invasion
were conducted with great want of judgment, and were doomed to
inevitable failure from the beginning. The most important of them were
the movements on Fighting Island and on Point Pel Island. The former
took place on the 25th of February, and was led by "General" Donald
McLeod, a Scoto-Canadian refugee who had formerly been a schoolmaster
at Brockville. Fighting Island is a long, narrow strip of marshy
ground situated in the Detroit Eiver, within the Canadian boundary, a
short distance below Sandwich. It was occupied by McLeod and his men
as a preliminary to effecting a landing at Sandwich; but a brisk fire
from the Canadian shore compelled them to retreat, and upon reaching
the mainland of Michigan they were disarmed and dispersed by United
States troops. The affair &t Point Pel Island was more serious. The
scene of the conflict is a large island in Lake Erie belonging to
Canada, situated about thirty-five miles south-easterly from
Amherstburg, and eighteen miles or thereabouts from the Canadian
mainland.[254] Soon after the evacuation of Navy Island, such of the
Patriots as had not grown weary of filibustering had proceeded
westward along the southern shore of Lake Erie, with intent to join in
the raids upon the western frontier of Upper Canada. They mustered at
Sandusky, Ohio, where they were joined by a considerable number of
fresh recruits. Towards the close of February the entire body, to the
number of about five hundred, under the command of a local sympathizer
named Bradley, crossed over in boats from the United States shore and
took possession of Point Pelee Island. The few inhabitants were made
prisoners, and their property was confiscated to the uses of the
invaders, but they were not subjected to personal maltreatment. By
this time a few British regular troops of the 32nd Regiment had
reached the western frontier from the Lower Province, and the Western
District was in much better condition to resist and repel invasion
than it had previously been. Colonel John Maitland, an officer of
experience, had been invested with the command of the forces in the
District, and by means of drill and instructions had materially
increased the efficiency of the militia. Intelligence of the
occupation of Point Pelee Island soon reached Amherstburg, and on the
3rd of March a number of regulars and militia set out from the
Canadian mainland and crossed over to the island on the ice. A sharp
engagement took place, resulting in considerable loss of life to the
invaders, thirteen of whom were killed and forty wounded. A few were
also taken prisoners and sent on to London for trial. The Canadian
militia had to mourn the loss of one of their number. One of the
regulars was also slain, and of twenty-eight who were wounded several
afterwards died in hospital at Amherstburg. The Patriots fought
valiantly, but they were no match for the regulars, and were glad
enough to make their escape back to Ohio.

For some weeks after this episode there was comparative tranquillity
on the western frontier--a tranquillity due much more to the determined
stand taken by the Canadians than to any repressive measures adopted
by the American authorities. The Governors of the border states issued
argumentative proclamations forbidding the levying of war, but their
injunctions were frequently violated before their very eyes without any
attempt being made to vindicate the law. The Federal Government held
back from interference upon the ground that the matter fell properly
within the jurisdiction of the several States; and it was only when they
could not avoid it that the authorities of Michigan and Ohio took upon
themselves to interfere.

On the very day of the evacuation of Navy Island, Mackenzie sent to
the Watertown _Jeffersonian_ his narrative of the Rebellion near
Toronto, from which numerous quotations have been made in the
foregoing pages. In this narrative, which was subsequently reprinted
at Toronto, with notes and additions,[255] he gave an account of the
affair totally at variance with the story which he had previously been
accustomed to tell. In his proclamation issued only one short month
before, he had attributed the failure of the rising partly to
accident, and partly to the want of artillery.[256] In verbal
conversation he had repeatedly asserted the same thing. He now
assigned a different cause for the failure, attributing it in large
measure to the conduct of an "Executive," who, as he alleged, had been
appointed at a meeting of twelve leading Reformers, and had afterwards
changed the day for the descent upon the city. The Executive was not
specially named, but it was evident that the writer meant to indicate
Dr. Rolph.

The truth with respect to this episode of the change of date is
already known to the reader[257] who is also aware that no such
meeting of "twelve leading Reformers" had ever been held, and that no
Executive responsibility had ever been conferred upon or accepted by
Dr. Rolph.[258] Why, then, did Mackenzie now begin to malign the
individual who, only a month before, had been officially characterized
by him as "our esteemed fellow citizen," and as "that universally
beloved and well-tried eminent patriot"?[259] Why did he now seek to
belittle the man whose expatriation he had so recently referred to as
one of the "crimes and misdemeanours" of Sir Francis Head?[260] The
answer is brief, and to the point. Since the issue of his
proclamation, Dr. Rolph had utterly thrown Mackenzie and his schemes
overboard, and had refused to have any further cooperation with him
for any purpose whatever.

The Doctor's mind does not appear to have been fully made up as to his
future line of action until a few days before the _Caroline_ affair,
when he paid a visit of an hour's duration his first and only visit to
Navy Island.[261] What he saw there probably disgusted and repelled
him, as he soon after refused to act as treasurer, "to receive all the
moneys which may be subscribed within the United States on behalf of
the Canadian patriots struggling to obtain the independence of their
country;"[262] and this refusal was almost immediately followed by a
renunciation of Mackenzie and all his projects. He had made common
cause with the latter for the subversion of a corrupt and tyrannical
Provincial Government, but he was not at all disposed to join in what
was evidently intended to be a series of marauding expeditions into a
land which had so recently been his home. The Doctor soon after took
up his abode in Rochester, and devoted himself to the practice of his
profession. A few weeks later he was joined by Mrs. Rolph, who was
shocked at the change which the brief interval of their separation had
made in his appearance. His hair had become grizzled, and his
countenance bore an anxious, careworn expression which had never
before been seen upon it. There could have been no plainer proofs of
the mental strain through which he had passed. He erelong succeeded in
building up a practice sufficient for the maintenance of his family,
but his sojourn in Rochester was probably upon the whole a somewhat
gloomy and unsatisfactory epoch in his career. He must have been
perpetually haunted by the remembrance of all he had thrown away. "A
sorrow's crown of sorrow," says the laureate, "is remembering happier
things." Dr. Rolph had fully earned the right to wear his crown of
sorrow, and, though it was not flaunted needlessly in the eyes of the
world, he continued to wear it, with a few brief intermissions, during
all the rest of his life. It cannot be said that his misfortunes
established any special claim to the sympathy of posterity on his
behalf. He had played a foolish and desperate game, where the odds
were tremendously against him, and he had no ground for complaint
because the penalty of failure was exacted from him.

Gibson, who had succeeded in making his escape from Canada in an open
boat as already recorded,[263] also sojourned in Rochester for a brief
season about the time of Rolph's removal thither. His hatred of the
Compact had by no means abated, and he would willingly have joined in
any rational movement for the subversion of the Provincial Government;
but his disgust at Mackenzie's proceedings was as great as Rolph's,
and he refused to have anything whatever to do with the projected
raids into Canada. He had no quarrel with the land which had long been
his home, and where he had spent many happy and prosperous years. He
had risen in arms against the Provincial Government, not for the
gratification of his own vanity, or for the purpose of wreaking
vengeance upon his personal enemies, but from a sense of public
oppression and wrong. The movement in which he had taken part had
proved a failure, but he did not therefore wish to see the homes of
his friends and the birthplace of his children overrun by a horde of
foreign ruffians eager for plunder and rapine. His chief care was to
put himself in the way of earning a livelihood. By Rolph's advice he
applied to Mr. Bidwell who had by this time taken up his abode in New
York for a certificate as to his character and professional abilities.
Bidwell responded by sending the desired certificate, and at the same
time wrote him a letter, which has already appeared in these
pages.[264] Gibson soon afterwards obtained professional employment at
Lockport, where important public works, including the enlargement of
the locks on the Erie Canal, were then in progress. He was joined by
his wife and little family, and quietly settled down to peaceful
pursuits. He enjoyed a fair share of prosperity during his five years'
sojourn in the States.

As for Mackenzie and Van Rensselaer, they continued to prosecute
their schemes against Canada. Each did so, however, on his own
account, as they were by this time on such ill terms that they could not
act in unison. Van Rensselaer's arrest has recently been mentioned.
He had no difficulty in procuring bail, and his projects were not further
interfered with at that time. Mackenzie went through a similar experience.
During a temporary visit paid by him to the eastern mainland
just before the evacuation of Navy Island he was arrested for breach of
the neutrality laws, and compelled to find bail. In setting on foot a
warlike movement against Canada after his escape to the United States,
he had clearly abused his right of asylum. He had done his utmost
to provoke a war between the States and Great Britain, and his proceedings
had been so notorious that the authorities could not close
their eyes to them. The arrest, however, was a mere formality, as some
of the "sympathizers" provided bail for him, and he was permitted
to return to his headquarters. After the evacuation he seems to have
sojourned for a brief season at Rochester, but he cannot be said to have
just then had any fixed place of abode, as he was almost constantly
running hither and thither, agitating among the Canadian refugees,
addressing caucuses of filibusters, and prompting them to buckle on
their armour in the sacred cause of liberty. His outward acts were
subject to greater circumspection than they had formerly been, and
he was compelled to govern himself accordingly, but he nevertheless
managed to keep alive the excitement, and to accomplish a great deal
of mischief. He took part in secretly organizing a movement against
Kingston, in aid of which he carried on a correspondence, but he appears
to have withdrawn from it because the chief command was given to
his enemy, Van Rensselaer. The latter made an ignominious failure
of the expedition. On the 22nd of February he assembled a large body
of filibusters at French Creek, on the southern shore of the St. Lawrence.
As a preliminary to a descent upon Kingston, he conducted his men in
boats to Hickory Island, an island forming part of Upper Canada, and
situated down the river, about four miles below Gananoque. Throughout
this enterprise Van Rensselaer was aided by Bill Johnston,[265] a native
Upper Canadian who was well acquainted with the local topography, and
professed to be able to render valuable assistance. The Canadian
authorities obtained early intelligence of the movement, and assembled a
large body of militia at Kingston from the Midland and Johnstown Districts.
Preparations were made for an advance against the filibusters,
who however did not await an attack, but got back to the United States
shore with all expedition, and there dispersed. This was upon the whole
the most ignominious of all the failures on the Upper Canadian frontier,
and from this time forward Van Rensselaer's influence was perceptibly
on the wane.

FOOTNOTES:

[243] "When a people have been insulted and aggrieved as the people of
Upper Canada have been, it is not to be supposed that they can feel it
necessary to perplex themselves with researches into books upon the
laws of nations they will follow a more unerring guide in obeying the
irresistible instinct of self-preservation."--_Despatch from Sir F. B.
Head to Mr. Fox, British Minister at Washington, dated 80th January,
1838_.

[244] As matter of fact such attempts were really made, but they
appear to have been conducted in a supine, half-hearted way, and were
wholly ineffectual until the destruction of the _Caroline_ rendered
more vigorous action imperative. As early as the 19th of December
Governor Marcy had issued a proclamation calling upon Mackenzie's
rabble to desist from their unlawful projects, and calling upon
citizens generally to abstain from interference with the affairs of
the Canadas.

[245] _Ante_, vol. i., pp. 223, 224.

[246] As previously intimated in the text, Sir Francis Head signified
his official approval of the cutting-out of the _Caroline_. He did so
in the most unequivocal language, and with the least possible delay.
He does not seem to have ever altered his opinion as to the wisdom of
the enterprise. In _The Emigrant_, chap, x., published long years
afterwards, he refers to "this act of calm justice and cool vengeance"
i.e., the destruction of the _Caroline_--as having "produced
febrifugal results highly beneficial." He adds: "It struck terror into
those who, with bands and banners, were marching from all directions
to invade us; and by thus inducing them to halt, the United States
Government were not only obliged, but were enabled to exert
themselves." This is a characteristic specimen of Sir Francis's
rhetoric, and was certainly not borne out by facts. The truth, indeed,
could not well have been more perversely misrepresented. One of the
Lieutenant-Governor's most caustic critics gives a much more accurate
account of the matter. "It is very difficult," he writes, "to say
whether [Sir Francis Head] compromised the safety of the Province more
by the backwardness he exhibited in grappling with dangers over which
he ought to have triumphed immediately, or by the rashness with which
he threw himself upon yet more formidable perils which he had no
occasion to encounter at all...He represents Upper Canada, in fact, as
having been in great danger till the affair of the _Caroline_, but as
having been saved by that bold, just and necessary exploit. We
maintain, on the contrary, that there was not the slightest danger
till the destruction of the _Caroline_; that there was no necessity
for that act, and that it could not have taken place had Sir Francis,
at the outset, done his duty in crushing the invasion: that that act,
in truth, created all the danger which ever did exist, and which,
unfortunately, is not yet removed."--_London and Westminster Review_,
vol. xxxii., No. 2, article vi. The reader will bear in mind that when
these words were written the difficulty between the two Governments
had not been adjusted. The same writer adds: "Instead of at once
sweeping off the invaders and freeing the British soil from their
presence, he remained with folded arms, looking at this band of
ragamuffin loafers; feasting his volunteers; distributing commissions
among the Family Compact, and magnifying the force of his enemy and
the danger of his position. He made, in fact, a campaign of three
weeks out of what should have been a skirmish of ten minutes; and by
not crushing his contemptible adversary at once, he allowed the
occurrence of the unhappy affair of the _Caroline_, which nearly
rendered the invasion successful, besides exposing the country to the
imminent peril of an American war...The fact is that the destruction
of the _Caroline_ was the only event which gave at all a serious
character to the business of Navy Island. Instead of terrifying, it
irritated the population of the border States; instead of diminishing,
it greatly increased, or rather created, the disposition to join the
invaders...This exploit, to which Sir Francis Head attributes the
saving of the Province, was thus in fact the only event that gave the
invaders a single chance of success."

[247] _Ante_, p. 193, note.

[248] See Colonel MacNab's letter to Lieutenant-Colonel Strachan,
dated Chippewa, Jan. 19th, 1838.

[249] Nelson Gorham, in a recent letter, writes as follows: "The
casualties on the island were, one killed with a round shot, and one
slightly wounded by a splinter...During all the time we occupied the
island the greatest number in the hospital was six, of whom Benjamin
Lett was one. William Johnson, of the Thousand Islands, visited Navy
Island once, bringing with him a nine-pound field gun...We captured
one spy, and I was personally instrumental in saving him from the fate
of a spy." The slain Patriot was Nelson Beebe, formerly a gunner in
the U. S. Army.

[250] Vol. iii., pp. 240-256. On the 17th of January, 1838, Gourlay
wrote a characteristic letter to Van Rensselaer, pointing out the
fatuity of the course which that doughty filibuster was pursuing. The
letter has several times been published, but a brief quotation from it
would seem to be in order here. "Never," wrote the Banished Briton,
"was hallucination more blinding than yours. At a moment of profound
peace, putting on armour, and, led by the little editor of a
blackguard newspaper, entering the lists of civil broil, and erecting
your standard on Navy Island, to defy the armies of Britain! David
before Goliath seemed little; but God was with him. What are you, in
the limbo of vanity, with no stay but the devil?"--a sentence which,
as Mr. Rattray remarks, is eminently Carlylesque.

[251] See _Canada in 1837-38_, by E. A. Theller; vol. i., p. 126.

[252] Theller's connection with the movements against Canada was
probably chiefly due to a desire to possess the three hundred acres of
land and the hundred dollars in silver which had been promised by
Mackenzie to every volunteer. Mackenzie's promise had been restricted
to volunteers for the Navy Island expedition, but it seems to have
been regarded as general in its application, and was probably so
represented by the leaders. That the idea had been present to
Theller's mind is clear from language which he puts into the mouth of
one of his fellow-prisoners, who is made to say that he had been
induced to join the Canadian refugees partly by the love of fighting,
and partly in order to obtain "the three hundred acres of land and the
hundred dollars in specie offered by Mackenzie."--See _Canada in
1837-38_, vol. i., p. 153.

[253] See _Canada in 1837-38_, vol. i., p. 136. According to other
accounts she did not ground until some minutes after her capture. Col.
Radcliffe's report to Col. Strachan would seem to support the latter
conclusion.

[254] The peninsula known as Point Pelee juts out to within about nine
miles of the island, but it was then a mere marsh, and would have
afforded a treacherous footing for an invading force.

[255] _Ante_, p. 14, note.

[256] _Ante_, p. 187. By "artillery" he appears to have meant "arms,"
as, in the very next sentence of the proclamation, he says: "Three
thousand five hundred men came and went, but we had no arms for one in
twelve of them, nor could we procure them in the country."

[257] _Ante_, pp. 33-38.

[258] _Ante_, pp. 14-17. See also note at end of chap. xix.

[259] _Ante_, p. 187.

[260] _Ib_.

[261] "Dr. Rolph visited the island once for a short time, returning
in about an hour. Mr. Bidwell never came to the island."--_Private
letter from Nelson Gorham_. Among Dr. Rolph's papers I find a letter
written by the late William Hamilton Merritt, of St. Catharines, to
Mrs. Rolph, at Toronto, dated the 15th of December, 1837, when the
excitement in Buffalo was at its height, and when Mackenzie had only
just taken up his quarters on Navy Island. Coming from such a source,
the letter affords conclusive proof that Rolph was not even then
openly taking part in the filibustering movements along the frontier.
Mackenzie persistently sought to create an impression that the Doctor
was at one with him in his project for invading Canada, and not only
spoke of him as an ally, but brought his name before the American
public whenever he could find an opportunity for so doing. Mr. Merritt
evidently speaks from personal knowledge. "I have much pleasure"--so
runs his letter--"in stating that, having returned late last night
from Fort Erie, I am quite certain that Mr. Rolph has taken no part
whatever in the excitement which has existed in Buffalo. I would not
have named it to you, but as reports prevailed here that he was taking
an active part, I feared they had reached you. I have made the same
communication to the Government...Mr. Bidwell has not been in
Buffalo."

[262] Mr. Lindsey was apparently aware of this refusal when he wrote
his _Life of Mackenzie_. See p. 132 of the second volume of that work.

[263] _Ante_, p. 147.

[264] See vol. i., pp. 362, 363, note.

[265] The name of this worthy is always misspelt in the various
histories of Canada. He himself spelled it as above. See his manifesto
dated 10th June, 1838, a copy of which may be found on p. 45 of
Leavitt's _History of Leeds and Grenville_.




CHAPTER XXXIII.

JUDGMENT AND EXECUTION.


The Upper Canadian Legislature meanwhile continued in session. Various
measures were passed for checking the movements of the filibusters
against the Province, and for dealing with persons found in arms
therein against the public peace. One of these provided for a
practical suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act. It was enacted that
persons in prison at or after the passing of the Act, under warrant of
the Lieutenant-Governor in Council, upon charge of high treason,
suspicion of high treason, or treasonable practices, might be detained
without bail, and that ithey should not be tried without an order from
his Excellency in Council. Another Act provided for the speedy trial
of subjects of Her Majesty, as well as of persons being citizens or
subjects of a foreign power, taken in arms in this Province. Provision
was made for the trial of such persons either by Court Martial or by
any Court of Oyer and Terminer or General Jail Delivery. By a
subsequent measure it was enacted that any person charged with high
treason might at any time before his arraignment present a petition to
the Lieutenant-Governor praying to be pardoned, and that the
Lieutenant-Governor in Council might thereupon grant a pardon on such
conditions as might appear proper; and that in case any person so
pardoned under the Act upon condition of being transported from the
Province should afterwards voluntarily return without lawful excuse,
contrary to the condition of his pardon, he should be deemed guilty of
felony, and suffer death as in cases of felony. Dr. Rolph, Dr.
Duncombe and David Gibson were formally expelled from the Assembly for
their complicity in the Rebellion. Dr. Morrison, Robert
Alway (one of the members for Oxford) and Elias Moore (one of the
members for Middlesex), being in prison awaiting their trials, their
cases were for the time left in abeyance. Pensions were awarded to
Lieutenant Sheppard McCormick[266] and to the widow and children of
Colonel Moodie,[267] whose blood was the first shed in the Upper
Canadian Rebellion. A Bill was passed by the Assembly granting a
hundred guineas to procure a sword to be presented to Colonel MacNab,
as a token of the regard in which his services were held, "for the
promptitude and ability displayed by him in aiding to suppress the
late Rebellion, and in defending the Niagara frontier from invasion by
a piratical force." By the same Bill a sum of seventy-five guineas was
granted to procure a sword for Captain Drew, as a memorial of the
estimation in which his services were held for the capture and
destruction of the _Caroline_. These grants, however, were doomed to
failure. The Bill was sent up to the Legislative Council, and not
returned. A new Bill was thereupon presented, which on its third
reading was subjected to an amendment that led to its being shelved,
and the matter was not again brought before Parliament. The
Legislature, after a somewhat busy session, was prorogued on the 6th
of March.

In less than three weeks after the prorogation the disastrous
administration of Sir Francis Head came to a close. Having received
from the Colonial Secretary a formal acceptance of his resignation, he
communicated the fact to the Legislature, at the same time announcing
that he had had the misfortune to differ from Her Majesty's Government
on one or two points of colonial policy. The two Houses received the
intelligence with very strong marks of disapprobation. The Assembly,
by a vote of 23 to 5, passed an Address to His Excellency expressive
of profound regret. That this was no mere formality is made
sufficiently clear by the following extract from the Address: "If your
Excellency's measures and policy have not given satisfaction to our
Gracious Queen, we are driven to inquire in the most humble and
respectful, but solemn manner, what course of policy it is that is
expected by Her Majesty from Her Majesty's representative in this
Province. Deeply impressed with the duty of submission to the
constitutional exercise of the royal prerogative, we do not question
the right of the Sovereign to select her representatives in this or
any other colony of the Empire; but we nevertheless feel ourselves
impelled by a sense of duty suggested by a desire to maintain our
allegiance (and which on our part can never be laid aside or
forgotten), humbly, but earnestly and emphatically, to declare that if
anything be calculated to shake the attachment of Her Majesty's now
truly loyal and devoted subjects to her royal person and Government,
it is by acts of injustice, or the manifestation of ungenerous
distrust towards servants who have served the British nation so
faithfully and nobly as your Excellency has done...We beg to assure
your Excellency that this House and the people of this Province will
regard your Excellency's relinquishment of its government as a
calamity of a most serious nature, and which may result in
difficulties and dissensions that cannot be easily repaired or
reconciled." The Legislative Council passed an Address hardly less
laudatory.[268]

This was a by no means unique specimen of the sort of sentiment which
commonly passed for loyalty in those days. Here, be it noted, was a
representative body almost ready to renounce its allegiance because a
favourite Lieutenant-Governor's resignation had been accepted. What
would have been the feelings of its members had they been subjected to
the course of treatment to which Reformers had been compelled to
submit for many a long year? It is so easy to be loyal when loyalty
brings profit and emolument; when to be loyal is to be prosperous, and
to enjoy the favour of the great. But such is not the loyalty which
builds permanent and stable constitutions; which establishes
safeguards against corruption and tyranny; which recognizes
inalienable rights in every member of the human family. Mackenzie
himself would doubtless have lived and died a loyal subject had he
been in the position of most of the members of that Assembly. If he
had been courted by the Government, and made the recipient of official
favour: had his originally reasonable demands been assented to, or
even received with a fair degree of respectful consideration: he too
might have been induced to regard Sir Francis Head's departure as an
untoward event which bade fair to bring dire calamities in its train.

His Excellency's successor was Sir George Arthur, a gentleman who had
long been employed in the public service of Great Britain, and who had
successively administered the Governments of British Honduras and Van
Diemen's Land. His past experience had not been of a nature to qualify
him for assuming the direction of affairs in such a colony as Upper
Canada. In Van Diemen's Land his time had been largely occupied in
dealing with the most abandoned of mankind, including refractory
convicts and others whom it was necessary to repress with the strong
hand. Such experiences had made him somewhat harsh and unbending, with
little charity towards transgressors of the law, and with decided
leanings in the direction of severity. He was sworn into office on the
23rd of March, and from that moment the fate of the imprisoned
insurgents was largely in his hands. The ceremonial of his
installation was witnessed by Sir Francis Head, who immediately upon
its conclusion set forth on his homeward journey to England. He had
intended to return by way of New York, which was the most direct and
comfortable route; but the feeling provoked by the destruction of the
_Caroline_, the presence in New York State of many angry Canadian
rebels, and the reward which had been offered by Mackenzie for his
apprehension,[269] had combined to arouse his fears, and he had
concluded that it would be unwise for him to venture his person within
the bounds of the Republic. He had accordingly written to Sir John
Harvey, Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia, to secure for him a
passage from Halifax in a man-of-war. This had been done, but on the
very day before his departure he had received intelligence that a
conspiracy had been entered into by a number of Canadian refugees to
waylay and murder him on his overland journey to Halifax. This caused
another change of plan. He now resolved to sail from New York, but in
order that his last resolution should not become known he started from
Toronto by the steamer _Transit_ for Kingston, as though he intended
to proceed direct to Halifax.[270] He was accompanied by Judge Jones,
who appears to have constituted himself a sort of champion and
protector of his patron throughout the journey. From Kingston they
crossed over on the ice to the opposite shore, whence they proceeded
as far as possible incognito by way of Watertown, Utica and Albany to
New York. Sir Francis was recognized by some questionable characters
during the journey, and on one occasion he and his companion were
obliged to make a swift run for it on horseback, sixty mounted
pursuers following hard upon their track. Upon reaching New York they
took up their quarters at the City Hotel, where they remained about a
week; and it was during this interval that the final interview took
place between Sir Francis and Mr. Bidwell, as has been previously
related.[271]

Sir Francis in due course set sail for Liverpool, whither he arrived
on the 2nd of April. He repaired to London, and lost no time in
presenting himself before Lord Glenelg at the Colonial Office. He
grandiloquently represented himself as having saved Upper Canada to
the Empire, and complained bitterly at not having been supported in
his policy by the Home Government. Lord Glenelg was cool and
complaisant, but did not recede an iota from the position he had
assumed when he had determined upon accepting Sir Francis's
resignation. The fact was that the Government had long since
discovered the monstrous blunder they had committed in appointing such
a man to the onerous position of Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada.
They had formed a correct estimate of his character and
qualifications, and had resolved that it would be unsafe to entrust
any important interests to his care for the future. Sir Francis,
however, was not disposed to accept the Colonial Secretary's _ipse
dixit_ as final, and put himself into communication with Lord
Melbourne. His Lordship made short work of his pretensions,[272]
whereupon Sir Francis applied for leave to vindicate himself, as
he termed it, by publishing his despatches. This permission was
refused, and for some months the refusal was respected; but upon the
publication of Lord Durham's Report in the following year, in which
the shortcomings of Sir Francis's administration of affairs were dealt
with at considerable length, the Tried Reformer felt it incumbent upon
himself to take the world into his confidence. The result was the
publication of his extraordinary _Narrative_, to which frequent
reference has been made in the foregoing pages. As has recently been
remarked by Mr. Reeve,[273] whatever credit for discretion Sir Francis
might previously have enjoyed was more than effaced by the
indiscretion of this work. It was nevertheless lauded to the skies by
the _Quarterly Review_,[274] which in the same number denounced Lord
Durham and his Report with patronizing contempt. Among modern writers
there can hardly be said to be any diversity of opinion as to the
character either of the _Narrative_ or its author. The former stands
alone among books as an unconscious revelation of superficiality,
short-sightedness and indiscretion. It seems inconceivable that such a
work could have been written by a man who for more than two years had
occupied so high and responsible a position as that of Her Majesty's
representative in an important colony. Like most works by the same
hand, however, it is eminently readable, and is by no means devoid of
value as a contribution to our country's history. Sir Francis, though
he was not again permitted to try his hand at governing a colony, did
not go wholly unrewarded. In consideration of his "great public
services" a baronetcy was conferred upon him, and the Colonial Office
was liberal in construing and adjusting its pecuniary obligations to
him. He was then permitted to retire to private life, and he survived
until the 20th of July, 1875. After his retirement he devoted much of
his time to literary pursuits, and for many years before his death
enjoyed a Government pension of a hundred pounds a year, "for his
services in the cause of literature." And here, so far as this work is
concerned, the curtain may be permitted to fall upon the exploits and
career of Sir Francis Bond Head.

Sir George Arthur's term of office opened auspiciously. He seemed to
be desirous of conciliating public opinion, and at the same time of
exercising moderation towards the imprisoned rebels. In reply to a
congratulatory address from the mayor,[275] aldermen and commonalty of
Toronto, on the 29th of March, six days after his accession, he
referred to the recent unhappy disturbances, expressing a high
appreciation of the loyalty of the citizens, but foreshadowing a
policy of mercy and forgiveness to the vanquished. "Harshness and
severity," he remarked, "are distinguishing marks of weakness and
apprehension. The country is strong enough to be magnanimous; and as
the inhabitants of Upper Canada have the reputation of being a
religious people, it will now be open to them, both collectively and
individually, to give proof of their Christian professions by
forgiving, without any vexatious upbraiding, the extreme injuries they
have received." Then he quoted Portia's noble argument about the
quality of mercy, and did so with apparent emotion. All this was
strictly in accordance with instructions which were on their way to
his Excellency from the Colonial Office, wherein confidence was
expressed that his influence would be successfully exerted in
moderating the zeal of those who might be disposed to proceed to
extreme measures.[276] Sir George seemed to anticipate these
instructions, and to be imbued with their spirit beforehand. It might
almost have been supposed that the prison doors were about to be
incontinently thrown open, and the inmates set free. Yet at this very
moment the unhappy men who had participated in the Rebellion were
being tried and sentenced from day to day. Many of them were condemned
to death, though in most cases the sentences were afterwards commuted
to imprisonment or transportation. Many others availed themselves of
the provisions of the recent enactment,[277] and petitioned the
Lieutenant-Governor, by whom they were banished without any form of
trial whatever. The "Constitutional Reformers" of Toronto came
forward with a petition congratulating his Excellency on his
accession, and praying that mercy might be extended to the political
prisoners. Sir George's reply was little in accordance with his former
large-hearted utterances. The term "Reform," he remarked, was
altogether out of place at such a time, when so-called Reform had been
made a mere cloak for the commission of heinous crimes. The law, he
averred, must take its course, not only as a matter of justice, but as
a warning to wrong-doers for the future. And the law took its course
accordingly.

A special interest lingers around the fate of Samuel Lount and Peter
Matthews, whose wanderings, sufferings and final capture have already
been recorded.[278] Lount's originally strong constitution had been
greatly shattered by his protracted mental and physical misery.

He was induced to make a partial confession of his connection with
the Rebellion, and, apparently, to sign a written statement embodying
grave charges against Rolph and Mackenzie. The principal contents
of this statement were immediately published to the world in
the columns of the Government organ, the _Patriot_, accompanied by
a succession of characteristic editorial comments.[279] The statement has
already been embodied in a note to the present work, accompanied
by certain arguments as to its authenticity.[280] It seems to be perfectly
clear that Lount made a communication of some kind to the
Commissioners, but it is equally clear that there was great want of care,
to say nothing of clerkly skill, in reducing it to writing; and there
is at least good reason to doubt whether the statement, as published,
embodies a fair and accurate rendering of what Lount intended to
convey. All this has been fully enlarged upon, and the arguments need
not be repeated here. In any case, the statement, as it stands, is not
one which can be referred to with much complacency by the
representatives of either Rolph or Mackenzie.

[Illustration: MRS. LOUNT INTERCEDING WITH SIR GEORGE ARTHUR]

Lount and Matthews were arraigned at Toronto before Chief Justice
Robinson, on Monday, the 26th of March. There was no shadow of doubt
as to their guilt, in a technical sense, and by advice of counsel they
both pleaded guilty. The Attorney-General gave notice that on the
following Thursday, the 29th, he would move for the judgment of the
Court. On the day indicated the prisoners were again placed at the
bar. They were sentenced to undergo the last penalty of the law on
that day fortnight--the 12th of April. The Chief Justice delivered a
long and impressive address, wherein he enlarged upon the heinous
crime of rebellion, and the deplorable consequences which had resulted
to the prisoners and others. The address was listened to with almost
breathless attention by the crowd in the court-room, and the prisoners
themselves were visibly affected when the death-penalty was
pronounced. A different result could hardly have been looked for; but
no sooner did the fact become known than feelings of commiseration and
sympathy began to manifest themselves. These soon spread to the
uttermost parts of the Province, but, as might have been expected,
they were more especially prevalent throughout the Home District,
where the condemned men had long resided. Many supporters of the
Government joined with the Reformers in deploring the sentence, and in
endeavours to bring about some modification of it. Pathetically-worded
petitions, praying for a commutation of the penalty, and signed by all
classes of the community, were sent in to the Lieutenant-Governor. One
of these, signed by over five thousand persons, was personally
presented to his Excellency by Mrs. Lount herself, who went down upon
her knees, and with clasped hands entreated that the life of her
husband might be spared. Sir George, however, was apparently unmoved.
In his former sphere of action he had been accustomed to deal with
petitions from the vilest criminals, who, according to their own
shewing, had been much more sinned against than sinning. He had become
accustomed to the sight of human suffering, and the very nature of his
official duties had imposed upon him the necessity of closing his ears
to the cry of misery. Even the tenderest heart--unless, indeed, it
should break in the ordeal--would become more or less seared and
callous under a long experience of this nature; and the heart of Sir
George Arthur does not appear to have been very susceptible to gentle
influences. He, however, conferred on the subject with his Council,
who communicated with the Chief Justice by whom the sentence had been
imposed. The Chief Justice expressed himself to the effect that he saw
no ground upon which he felt that he could properly recommend a pardon
or respite, in either the case of Samuel Lount or Peter Matthews.[281]
The offended majesty of the law was accordingly vindicated. At eight
o'clock in the morning of the fatal day the tragedy was enacted in
front of the jail, which stood near the present junction of Toronto
and Court Streets. The building faced southward, and there was an open
space intervening between its pilastered front and King Street. On
this space, and in the neighbouring thoroughfares, a great crowd
assembled to witness the moving spectacle of two fellow-creatures
being launched into eternity. The doomed men were attended in their
last moments by two clergymen. One of these was the Rev. James
Richardson, afterwards Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church in
Canada. The other was the Rev. John Beatty, who was likewise a
Methodist minister. There was no attempt, and, apparently, no desire,
on the part of the victims to address the crowd. They bore themselves
with becoming calmness and self-control. Mr. Richardson offered an
impressive prayer on the scaffold, "in which," says a contemporary
account,[282] "the unhappy men appeared to join with a fervour highly
suited to their awful circumstances." Many of the prisoners who were
confined in the jail were permitted to behold the execution from the
windows of their cells. Among them was the captured "Brigadier-General"
Theller, who has left an account of the scene. "On arriving at the
fatal spot," he writes, "although the steps were seven or eight, and
the ascent almost perpendicular, they mounted the stage without the
least faltering: Lount first, followed by the sheriff; then Matthews
and the deputy, Mr. Baird. Some have remarked they thought Matthews
did not ascend with the firmness displayed by his fellow-sufferer; but
they do his memory injustice, for I was looking upon the motions of
both with intense anxiety, to see whether either disgraced his name or
the cause in which he had forfeited life, and there was not, to my
vision, the slightest trepidation. Lount looked up and bowed to us
[i.e., to the prisoners gazing from the jail windows]; then, kneeling
on the trap underneath one of the nooses, the cord was placed about
their necks by the executioner, and the cap pulled over their faces.
One of the clergymen, Mr. Richardson, made a prayer--the signal was
given by the sheriff, and in an instant after these two heroic souls,
the first martyrs to Canadian liberty, were ushered into
eternity."[283] The remains of the two insurgent leaders were interred
in the York General or Strangers' Burying Ground--better known as
"Potter's Field"--on Bloor Street, immediately to the west of Yonge
Street. There they reposed for more than twenty years, after which
they were removed[284] to the Necropolis, where they found a permanent
resting-place. They lie together in one grave, near the western side
of the cemetery,[285] beneath a small plain tablet of white marble,
containing the simple inscription:

SAMUEL LOUNT.
PETER MATTHEWS.

By the taking-off of Lount and Matthews, two large families[286] were
left each without a head, and with tragical remembrances more than
sufficient for a lifetime. Lount's widow and children soon afterwards
removed to the Western States, where some of them still reside. Mrs.
Lount survived to a great age, and died only about three years since.

The trial of John Montgomery took place on Monday, the 2nd of April,
before Chief Justice Robinson. The indictment was for high treason. It
contained two counts, the first of which charged the prisoner with
"compassing or imagining" to levy war against the Queen. The second
charged him with the actual levying of war for the purpose of
overthrowing the Constitution and Government. He pleaded not guilty,
and Mr. Henry Sherwood, who assisted the Attorney-General, opened fire
upon him. He was defended by several counsel, the chief of whom were
George Morss Boswell--known to the present generation as Judge of the
County Court of the United Counties of Northumberland and Durham--and
Robert Baldwin. A great number of witnesses were examined.
Montgomery's presence at the tavern during its occupation by the
rebels was clearly proved. It was further shown that he had assisted
in providing food, and had appeared to act as a commissary. That he
should be found guilty was almost a matter of course. The jury,
however, in returning their verdict recommended him to mercy, and were
informed by the Chief Justice that their recommendation should be
forwarded to the proper quarter. On the 10th of the month he was
brought up for sentence, when a strange scene was enacted. The
prisoner was convinced, rightly or wrongly, that the jury had been
packed in order to insure his conviction. He seemed to have no fear of
death, but was chiefly animated by indignation against his accusers.
Upon being asked if he had anything to say as to why sentence should
not be pronounced upon him, he replied: "I have." Then, after a moment
of breathless silence, he spoke a few impressive words, the purport
whereof was never forgotten by those who heard them. They were
addressed to the Chief Justice, who--as well he might--received them
in mute astonishment. The _ipsissima verba_ I cannot pretend to
reproduce, but they were to the effect following:[287] "I consider
that I have not had a fair or impartial trial. There are men here who
have sworn my life away. The perjured evidence of W. B. Crew, Thome
and Bridgeford will haunt them in after years. They will never die a
natural death; and when you, sir, and the jury, and all those who take
part in my sentence, shall have died and perished in hell's flames,
John Montgomery will yet be living on Yonge Street." Chief Justice
Robinson, upon recovering himself, pronounced the death penalty. The
prisoner was condemned to be hanged on the 24th of the month.
Meanwhile, the scaffold upon which Lount and Matthews had so dearly
expiated their offence was left standing almost in front of the window
of the cell in which he was confined.

The world, however, had better things in store for John Montgomery.
Before the day appointed for his execution Sir George Arthur had
received his instructions from the Colonial Office. The guilt of the
doomed man was not of such a character that it could be atoned for by
nothing short of his death, and his sentence was accordingly commuted
to transportation for life. He was temporarily sent down to Fort Henry,
at Kingston, along with a number of other political prisoners who were
to undergo a similar fate. Thence he and several of his companions
managed to escape to the United States.[288] His extradition was demanded
by the Provincial Government, but the Governor of New York refused to
surrender him, and he repaired to Rochester, where he kept a tavern for
several years. During the term of his exile he showed much kindness
to his fellow-refugees, and his house was a common place of resort for
them.

Many of the spectators who had listened to his impressive prophecy
in the court-room lived to see it at least in part verified. He received a
pardon in 1843, returned to Upper Canada, and for some time resided on
Yonge Street. He built a new tavern on the site of the one destroyed
after the skirmish of the 7th of December, 1837. He survived to a
patriarchal age. For some years before his death he resided at Barrie,
where he breathed his last on Friday, the 31st of October, 1879. Had
he lived a few weeks longer, he would have celebrated his ninety-sixth
birthday.

On Wednesday, the 24th of April--the self-same day that had been
appointed for Montgomery's execution--Dr. Morrison was brought to trial.
The Chief Justice having expressed his unwillingness to preside, the bench
was occupied by Judge Jones. The Crown was represented by Attorney-General
Hagerman, the prisoner by Robert Baldwin, G. M. Boswell
Rolland Macdonald, of St. Catharines. The indictment charged
the prisoner with having composed and published a Declaration at a
meeting held at Doel's brewery on the 28th of July, 1837,[289] with
intent to excite rebellion; also with levying war for the purpose of
subverting the Government of this Province. There was no difficulty in
proving that Dr. Morrison had signed the Declaration, which had been
published in the Radical newspapers early in August, with all the
signatures appended; but the document was not necessarily treasonable,
and the Government had permitted it to pass unheeded at the time. It
was moreover proved that Dr. Morrison, at the meeting held at the
brewery in the following October, had indignantly spurned Mackenzie's
proposal to rebel, and had declared that he would leave the room if
another word were spoken on the subject.[290] The narrative written by
Mackenzie for the Watertown _Jeffersonian_, however, which had been
republished in Toronto, furnished the prosecution with a weapon
against the accused which nearly proved fatal to him. In that
narrative the Declaration of July was represented as the first actual
step in the direction of rebellion, and all that had followed was
assumed to have been the legitimate sequel. It was stated that the
Rebellion had been determined upon at a meeting of "twelve leading
Reformers" held in November, and that an Executive had then and there
been nominated to carry it on. This story seemed probable enough, and
the Attorney-General made the most of it. Dr. Morrison was
unquestionably a leading Reformer, and if any such meeting had been
held it was pretty certain that he would have been present at it. If
an Executive had been appointed, he could hardly be ignorant of the
fact, and there seemed excellent reason for believing that if such an
appointment had been conferred upon anybody he himself had been
invested with the responsibility, either solely or jointly with Rolph.
All this was so obvious that the prisoner's conviction, in the then
state of public opinion, seemed almost inevitable. The sword of
Damocles hung quivering above his head, and it was by Mackenzie's hand
that it had been placed there. Fortunately for the prisoner, however,
the falsity of the story was susceptible of being clearly established.
A number of the leading Reformers of Toronto came forward one after
another, and swore most positively that they had never heard of any
such meeting of "twelve leading Reformers," or of the appointment of
an Executive as stated by Mackenzie.[291] They expressed entire
disbelief in the story. With regard to the second count of the
indictment--the levying of war for the subversion of the
Government--three witnesses swore to having encountered Morrison with
Mackenzie on horseback near Gallows Hill on the night of Monday, the
4th of December. The evidence of these witnesses was probably given in
good faith, but they had in the darkness mistaken one of Mackenzie's
companions for Dr. Morrison;[292] and upon cross-examination their
evidence was pretty effectually broken down. Mr. Macdonald, the junior
counsel, in opening for the defence, indulged in some severe but
well-merited strictures on Mackenzie's conduct,[293] and referred to
Mackenzie himself as a "God-forsaken rebel, murderer, housebreaker and
mailrobber," whose very name could not be mentioned without
abhorrence. A cloud of witnesses were examined, and an alibi was
clearly made out on behalf of the prisoner. Mr. Boswell then addressed
the jury for the defence, and the Attorney-General replied; after
which the case was submitted to the jury by the presiding Judge. The
jury, after some time spent in consultation, sent in a note of inquiry
to the Court, asking to be informed if they could bring in a verdict
for a less crime than high treason. The Judge replied in the negative,
when, after further consideration, the jury returned a verdict of "Not
Guilty," which was received with triumphant bursts of applause. Dr.
Morrison, after he had returned thanks to the Judge for his
impartiality, and to the jury for the attention they had bestowed on
his case, was briefly admonished from the judgment seat. His attention
was called to the long time occupied by the jury in coming to a
conclusion, and to the evident doubts entertained by them as to his
innocence. The Court concluded by expressing a hope that Dr. Morrison
would for the future conduct himself as became a good subject. His
acquittal being complete, the Doctor then left the court-room, and was
escorted to his home by a crowd of friendly fellow-townsmen.

The Doctor had escaped, but he fully realized the fact that his life
had been in great jeopardy, and that he had narrowly missed the fate
of Lount and Matthews. He had no heart to resume the practice of his
profession among his old patients, and determined to quit the
Province. His motions were accelerated by a hint which reached his
ears to the effect that the Attorney-General was preparing another
indictment against him on a fresh charge, and that he would soon be
re-arrested. He took the alarm, and made haste to join his friend Dr.
Rolph at Rochester, which thenceforth became his place of abode. He
does not appear to have ever become reconciled to the change in his
domicile, and was glad to avail himself of the opportunity of
returning to Upper Canada with a number of his fellow-exiles in 1843.

The trials of the insurgents were continued throughout the winter and
early spring. Both civil and military tribunals were engaged in the
enquiries, though the decisions of the courts martial were seldom
fully enforced. The instructions from the Colonial Office to Sir
George Arthur were acted upon, and it cannot truthfully be said that,
after their reception, the Government displayed a bloodthirsty
disposition towards the hundreds of victims who crowded the jails. As
has been seen, many were sentenced to death, but their sentences were
afterwards commuted to transportation, and up to this time Lount and
Matthews alone had suffered the extreme penalty of the law for
participating in the revolt, A few, like Dr. Morrison, were acquitted
for want of proof. Others, whose complicity was made clear, received
sentences not disproportionate to the nature of their offences. Many,
among whom were Robert Alway and Elias Moore, the members of the
Provincial Legislature mentioned on a former page,[294] were released
upon merely giving security for their future good behaviour. Matters
were tolerably quiet along the frontier, and sanguine people began to
hope that the trouble, external as well as internal, was at an end.
That their calculations were far wide of the mark will appear from the
following chapter.

FOOTNOTES:

[266] _Ante_, p. 212.

[267] _Ante_, p. 55.

[268] See _Journal of the Legislative Council of Upper Canada_, 3rd
session, 13th Parliament, under date of Wednesday, January 17th.

[269] _Ante_, p. 187.

[270] Mr. Lindsey, when he wrote his _Life of Mackenzie_, seems to
have supposed that Sir Francis Head carried out his determination to
sail from Halifax. See vol. ii., pp. 131, 132 of that work. Yet _The
Emigrant_ had then been published fully fourteen years, and in the
twelfth chapter, entitled "The Hunted Hare," the facts are set out in
detail.

[271] _Ante_, pp. 169, 170.

[272] In Henry Taylor's Autobiography (American reprint, vol. ii., pp.
259, 260), published last year, there is a ludicrous account of Sir
Francis's interview with Lord Melbourne. Mr. Taylor, who was then a
senior clerk in the Colonial Office, doubtless had Lord Melbourne's
own authority for the story, which is as follows: "After his [Sir
Francis Head's] return from Upper Canada, highly indignant, he
appealed to Lord Melbourne. Lord Melbourne appointed him in South
Street at ten o'clock. He went. Lord Melbourne was dressing. He was
shown up to Lord Melbourne's dressing-room. Lord Melbourne was
shaving. He begged Sir Francis to take a seat. He went on shaving. Sir
Francis stated his case, recounted his proceedings, and alleged that
he had saved the colony. 'And so you did,' said Lord Melbourne, and
went on shaving. Sir Francis, much encouraged, proceeded with renewed
energy, and enlarged upon the risks he had run, and the services he
had rendered, and at last came to a close. Lord Melbourne laid down
his razor, and replied, 'But you're such a damned odd fellow.' And
this was all the answer to his appeal; and I imagine that it was
substantially the true answer. Sir Francis was a man of no ordinary
abilities, but bold beyond the limits of prudence. He had cut a
wonderful somersault, and lit upon his feet. If he were to be employed
again, everybody knew that there would be more somersaults, and nobody
knew where he would light next." "The man who demands the credit of
saving a country," says an able writer already quoted from, "should at
least show that he left it in a better state than it would have been
in had he not interfered; and it would be difficult for Sir Francis to
make out that, had he followed his instructions, and kept on good
terms with his first Assembly, he would have left the Province in a
state of anything like the insecurity and alienation into which it has
been thrown entirely by his measures. Our perfectly sincere and calm
conviction is, that nearly all that is bad, nothing that is good, in
the present state of Upper Canada is to be ascribed to Sir Francis
Head; and that the history of the world affords few instances of a
country being, in the same space of time, afflicted with such evils,
and menaced with such danger, owing to the misconduct of a single
individual."--_London and Westminster Review_, vol. xxxii., pp. 452,
453.

[273] See The Greville Memoirs (Second Part); American reprint, vol.
i., p. 151, note.

[274] For April, 1839.

[275] The mayor was Mr. John Powell, who had been taken prisoner by
Mackenzie on the night of the 4th of December, and who, after shooting
Anderson, had effected his escape and aroused the Lieutenant-Governor,
as narrated at large in chapter xxii. His fellow-townsmen showed their
appreciation of his conduct at the municipal election in the following
January by electing him to the chief magistracy. He had certainly
rendered important aid to the Government, not only in bringing tidings
of the presence of the rebels at Montgomery's, but in sending Anderson
to his last account. Anderson's death was certainly a prime factor in
preserving the city from falling into the hands of the insurgents. He
was the one man in whose military experience the insurgents had
confidence. They would have followed him into the city on Tuesday
morning, and would almost certainly have seized the Lieutenant-Governor
and his Council. His death deprived them of their one military leader,
and this catastrophe, combined with other circumstances which have
already been sufficiently dwelt upon, seemed to take from them all
heart for the enterprise in which they had engaged. Mr. Powell had
therefore fully earned the honour with which his fellow-townsmen
invested him. He filled the office of mayor for three successive
years; namely, in 1838, 1839 and 1840.

[276] See despatch dated March 14th, 1838, in _Canada Papers and
Documents_, vol. ii., p. 481.

[277] _Ante_, p. 238.

[278] _Ante_, chap, xxvii.

[279] See p. 3 of the _Patriot_ for Friday, January 19th, 1838. After
chronicling the fact of Lount's arrest and lodgment in Toronto jail,
the editor remarks: "We learn that Lount has never been able to get
off the main land of Canada, but has been roaming about ever since his
flight from Montgomery's Tavern. We are told he is much worn down in
body and dejected in mind, as well he might be, suffering, as he must
have done, under the pangs of a guilty conscience, having by his
wickedness consigned his wife and family from affluence to penury, and
his sons, if not to speedy death, at least to transportation to the
penal colony of New South Wales for life." After further comments of a
similar nature, the writer proceeds to deal with Lount's confession,
as fol-lows: "General Lount was examined yesterday before the
Commissioners, and fully committed for trial. Among other things, the
General stated that the arch-traitor, Rolph, when he carried out the
flag of truce from His Excellency to Montgomery's, after having
delivered his message, winked at him and Mackenzie to draw them aside,
when he charged them to pay no attention to the flag of truce, but to
proceed, and that he repeated the same on his second journey out with
His Excellency's answer. On being asked what he considered Rolph to
mean by telling them to proceed, he replied that he considered him to
mean that they should prosecute their intentions of taking the city,
and pay no regard to the flag of truce. He declared that a fortnight
before the rising he knew nothing of the real intentions of the
traitors, and had been impressed by Mackenzie with the belief that
they had nothing to do but to march into the city, where they would
find themselves welcomed by the inhabitants; and stated that he had
saved the house of Mr. Sheriff Jarvis from the destruction to which it
had been devoted by Mackenzie. He gave as his reason for this humane
interference that Mrs. Jarvis was reputed to be in ill health, and
that the Sheriff had formerly rendered him personal favours. Captain
Stewart, who was in company with the lamented Colonel Moodie when he
was murdered, and Archibald McDonell, Esq., who was made prisoner the
night that John Powell, Esq., caused the ruffian Anderson to fall from
his horse and break his neck, both appeared before the Commissioners
to testify to the humanity of the General, which, they emphatically
said, they did with heartfelt pleasure, declaring that it was their
full and entire conviction that, but for the determined opposition
both of Lount and Gibson, the whole of the prisoners would have been
butchered in cold blood by Mackenzie...We think no worse of Mackenzie
at this moment than we have thought of him for the last six years. The
United States now have him, and Rolph and Bidwell too. Such precious
articles, however, are rarely to be obtained at small cost, and in
this case it is greatly to be apprehended that America may pay pretty
dear for her whistle...We warrant that Mackenzie's New York creditors
have already heaved many a bitter sigh over his patriotic struggle,
and if they have breathed a single wish for his success, it has surely
been the child of desire to see themselves paid."

[280] See note at end of chap xxiii., _ante_.

[281] Mr. Lindsey (see _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., p. 190), in
commenting upon the trial of Lount and Matthews, says: "Lount had been
a political opponent of the brother of Chief Justice Robinson, by whom
the prisoners were tried. There was indeed no question about their
guilt; but the Chief Justice afterwards performed the ungracious
office of assuring the Executive Council that 'he saw no ground upon
which he felt that he could properly recommend a pardon or respite.'
Attorney-General Hagerman closed his ears to the cry of mercy, and
only regretted that the gallows had not more victims. The general
impression to-day is that the execution of these men was a judicial
murder." In the course of this work I have not hesitated to express my
opinion of both Chief Justice Robinson and Mr. Hagerman. Mr. Robinson,
while he was Attorney-General, lent himself to some most arbitrary and
cruel State prosecutions. Mr. Hagerman followed, and, perhaps, even
improved upon the example of his predecessor. Still, I am by no means
disposed to believe that Chief Justice Robinson was so utter a
disgrace to the judicial bench as Mr. Lindsey seems to imply, and that
he refused to recommend Lount and Matthews to mercy because one of
them had formerly been a political opponent of his brother in Simcoe.
Nor, in the absence of direct evidence, can I readily credit the
assertion that Attorney-General Hagerman showed himself so devoid of
humanity as to express regret that there were not more victims for the
gallows. If Mr. Lindsey has any such evidence at his command, it is
certainly his duty to produce it. If he has none, then the language
above quoted certainly stands in need of some modification.

[282] In the _Christian Guardian_.

[283] _Canada in 1837-38_, vol. i., p. 230. Among the prisoners who
beheld the sad spectacle through the grated bars of the jail windows
was Mr. Charles Durand, now and for many years past a well-known
barrister and attorney of Toronto. Mr. Durand, who for a year or more
prior to the rebellion had practised his profession at Hamilton, was
arrested and committed to jail for complicity in the rising. So far as
I have been able to learn, he had had no connection whatever with the
movement, but he was identified with the Radical cause, and was a
contributor to the Radical press. He was tried, found guilty, and
sentenced to death, but availed himself of the provisions of the
recently-enacted statute [see _ante_, p. 238], and was banished from
the Province. He spent some years in the United States, but returned
to Canada when he could do so with impunity. In the _Caroline Almanac_
I find the following account from his pen of the last days of Lount
and Matthews: "Matthews always bore up in spirits well. He was, until
death, firm in his opinion of the justice of the cause he had
espoused. He never recanted. He was ironed and kept in the darkest
cell in the prison like a murderer. He slept sometimes in blankets
that were wet and frozen. He had nothing to cheer him but the
approbation of his companions and his conscience. Lount was ironed,
though kept in a better room. He was in good spirits. He used to tell
us often, in writing, not to be downcast; that he believed 'Canada
would yet be free'; that we were 'contending in a good cause.' He said
he was not sorry for what he had done, and that 'he would do so
again.' This was his mind until death. Lount was a social and
excellent companion, and a well-informed man. He sometimes spoke to us
under the sill of our door. He did so on the morning of his execution:
he bid us 'farewell! that he was on his way to another world.' He was
calm. He and Matthews came out to the gallows, that was just before
our window grates. We could see all plainly. They ascended the
platform with unfaltering steps, like men. Lount turned his head at
his friends who were looking through the iron-girt windows, as if to
say a 'long farewell!' He and Matthews knelt and prayed, and were
launched into eternity without almost a single struggle. Oh! the
horror of our feelings! who can describe them?"

[284] The removal was effected on the 28th of November, 1859, by four
persons, viz.: 1. George Lount, a brother of Samuel. 2 and 3. Charles
Wesley Lount and William Lount, sons of George, and nephews of Samuel.
4. William Lyon Mackenzie.

[285] The grave is entered on the plan of the cemetery as Number 19,
Section C.

[286] "Capt. Matthews left a widow and fifteen fine children, and
Colonel Lount a widow and seven children." Mackenzie's _Caroline
Almanac_, p. 40.

[287] An obituary notice of John Montgomery, published in the Picton
Times, of Thursday, January 29th, 1880, gives the words substantially
as above, but I have altered the language where it does not correspond
with fact, and where it had evidently been incorrectly remembered by
the reporter.

[288] An interesting account of this escape will be found in an
appendix to Mr. Lindsey's _Life of Mackenzie_.

[289] _Ante_, vol. i., pp. 364, 365.

[290] _Ante_, vol. i., p. 380.

[291] See note at end of chap. xix.

[292] _Ante_, chap. xxii.

[293] "Mackenzie," said he, "was an enemy to the Government. I may
add, with truth, that he has proved himself a greater enemy to the
prisoner at the bar, and the great body of Reformers in the Province,
for it is to him they owe it that Reformers in that witness-box
hesitated to acknowledge themselves such, and that the avowal was at
last made with the honest blush of shame on their cheeks. It is to him
they owe it that Her Majesty's Attorney-General could utter sneers at
that ever-honoured name. It is to him, and to official partisans as
bad as him, they owe the foul calumny that 'All Reformers are rebels
in their hearts, and would be so in deed if they dared.' In short, it
is to him, and him alone, they owe it that the term is now made to
signify all and everything but what it really means...Gentlemen, upon
the whole I am glad this trial has taken place. I think it will have a
good effect, because in the progress of it you will have a good deal
of evidence that will make you think better of some of your neighbours
and fellow-townsmen than you perhaps now do. It certainly seems to me
a strange perversity of judgment that people who would not take
Mackenzie's word for a brass farthing: who would not even believe his
oath in a matter of sixpence worth: should yet place implicit reliance
in his statements when those statements tend to no less than the
destruction of the fair fame of some of the most wealthy and
influential of their townsmen. I have no doubt now but the learned
Attorney-General and most of his friends very religiously believe in
the existence of the Executive Committee that has been so much talked
of, and I have no doubt that it has cost them hours of hard thinking
to settle in their own minds the particular individuals that composed
this Committee. And now, what grounds have they for this uncharitable
belief? Why, nothing but the bare word of the despised and
God-forsaken rebel, murderer, housebreaker and mailrobber whose very
name they cannot mention but with abhorrence. We shall prove to you,
gentlemen, by witnesses upon witnesses, that there was no such
Committee, and that so far from the Reformers of the city being
connected with the rising, they were as ignorant of it as
yourselves...The history of the rebellion I take to be shortly this.
After the troops were sent away (because I do not think that Mackenzie
himself ever thought of such a thing till after they were sent away)
Mackenzie formed the idea of taking possession of the arms, and
finding by the result of the experiment at Doel's that he need look
for no assistance among the Reformers of the city, he had recourse to
his ignorant and deluded adherents in the back townships, and with
their assistance he thought to take the arms, together with the city
banks and Governor, and then, with the help of Americans who would
move in from the States, he hoped to find revolutionizing the whole
Province but an easy task."--_Trial of Dr. Morrison, M.P.P., for High
Treason_. Toronto, 1838. Pp. 7, 13.

[294] _Ante_, pp. 238, 239.




CHAPTER XXXIV.

WINDSOR AND THE WINDMILL.


While matters were thus apparently settling down to their normal
condition, the Province was startled from end to end by an occurrence
which took place in the upper reaches of the St. Lawrence River, on
the night of the 29th of May. The_ Sir Robert Peel_, a Canadian lake
steamer chiefly owned by residents of Brockville, and valued at ten
thousand pounds, while on her way westward to the ports at the head of
Lake Ontario, called at Wells's Island, near the American shore, for
the purpose of replenishing her supply of wood. While moored to the
wharf she was boarded by the notorious Bill Johnston and a gang of
twenty-one persons, some of whom were Canadian refugees, the rest
being American sympathizers. It was the middle of the night, and the
passengers, among whom were a number of women and children, were
sleeping quietly in their berths. The crew were taken completely by
surprise, and were in no condition to make any successful resistance.[295]
The attacking party were thoroughly armed, and had no difficulty in
making themselves masters of the situation. They were disguised in the
garb of Indians, and their savage yells and gesticulations fully
comported with their assumed character. They rushed into the cabins,
roused the passengers, and drove them ashore in a half-nude condition,
together with the officers and crew. Then they plundered the vessel of
such portable articles as came readily to hand, including the purses,
watches and most of the clothing of the passengers. They next
proceeded to tow the steamer out into the stream, but in endeavouring
to do so they grounded her bow upon a shoal; whereupon they abandoned
their Indian character, and spoke in their native vernacular. Cries of
"Remember the _Caroline_" resounded on all sides, and the scene was a
veritable Pandemonium. The steamer was doomed, and the fate of the
_Caroline_ awaited her. The river pirates--for such they might well be
called--applied the torch to her wood-work, and watched close by until
she had burned to the water's edge. Then they returned to the New York
shore. A little while after daylight, another steamer--the
_Oneida_--arrived at the island, took the passengers on board, and
conveyed them in safety to Kingston.

This outrage aroused tremendous indignation through the country, and
the Provincial Government offered a reward of five thousand dollars
for the conviction of any of those who had taken part in it. Strong
representations on the subject were made to Governor Marcy, who issued
a proclamation offering a reward of five hundred dollars for the
arrest of Johnston, and smaller sums for the arrest of the other
participators. This, however, was the veriest farce, for most of the
pirates were well known, and indeed they made very little attempt to
conceal their identity. Several of them who were too demonstrative
were arrested and brought to trial, but were acquitted by the jury in
the face of the clearest evidence. Johnston himself meanwhile remained
at large, finding a safe retreat among the labyrinthine passages and
innumerable islands of the St. Lawrence. His immunity from arrest made
him bold, and on the 7th of June he and a number of his gang made a
descent upon Amherst Island, situated a few miles above Kingston, and
then forming part of the Midland District. They plundered several
farm-houses of money and such portable commodities as were to be found
there, and then made their escape down the river. They also engaged in
several other petty marauding expeditions, insomuch that they became
the terror of the inhabitants along the contiguous Canadian frontier.
Upon the facts being represented to Sir John Colborne, he determined
to rid the neighbourhood of such an infliction, and detailed four
bodies of marines to search the intricacies of the Thousand Islands
from west to east. Governor Marcy at the same time made a similar
investigation among the islets near the southern shore of the river,
and also stationed a contingent of troops on the mainland, to prevent
a repetition of such outrages as the burning of the _Sir Robert Peel_.

These combined proceedings proved efficacious. Johnston and his gang
were compelled to retreat and disband, and for the time nothing more
was heard of them. Raids of more or less importance, however,
continued to be made from time to time by other American sympathizers
at various points. During the early days of June an American
adventurer named James Morreau organized an expedition on a large
scale across the Niagara frontier into the township of Pelham. His
followers, consisting of more than a hundred persons, accompanied him
over on the 7th of the month, when he issued a proclamation announcing
himself as a liberator of Canada. The invaders made a night attack on
a small detachment of Provincial dragoons stationed in a wooden
building at the Short Hills. The dragoons were taken by surprise, and
were too few in number to successfully oppose their assailants. They
were robbed and stripped of their clothing, and the building occupied
by them was set on fire and burned. Several of the farm-houses in the
neighbourhood were also attacked and plundered. Then the chances of
the game turned against the invaders. By this time the whole township
and surrounding country were up in arms, and the gang were compelled
to seek safety in flight. Most of them succeeded in making good their
retreat across the frontier, but about a score of them, including
Morreau himself, were captured and consigned to jail at Niagara. The
leader was speedily tried, found guilty, and hanged. A number of his
followers were transported to Van Diemen's Land, whence one of them
wrote home a series of letters which have since been published in a
volume well known to collectors of _Canadiana_.[296]

Several other raids of less moment took place during the summer, and,
though they were mere burlesques upon invasion, and did not in any
measure imperil the stability of the Government, they kept the
population of the frontier in a state of perpetual anxiety, and were a
source of considerable expense. But as the summer glided by, rumours
of a nature well calculated to seriously disturb the public mind of
the inhabitants of Upper Canada began to make themselves heard. A very
short time sufficed to prove that these rumours were well founded. It
became known that a widespread organization against the peace of this
country was in course of formation in the States along the frontier.
Hostile operations were no longer confined to a few adventurers picked
up from the slums of the border towns, but were participated in by
thousands of American citizens of good social and financial standing.
The affair of the _Caroline_ and the angry discussions to which it had
given rise had awakened a spirit of hostility and vengeance which
would not be appeased. A secret and extensive combination was formed
for the actual conquest of Canada, and for its complete severance from
the mother-country. The headquarters of the combination appear to have
been at Cleveland, but its ramifications extended along the entire
length of the frontier, and its operations, in their inception, were
conducted with much discretion, energy and intelligence. The members,
among whom were to be found high public officials of the Federal and
State Governments, formed themselves into secret local associations
which they called Hunter's lodges, binding themselves by solemn oath
to obey the orders of their superior officers, and to devote their
energies to the advancement of the cause. One or more of these lodges
was to be found in every important centre of population along the
frontier, and the entire membership of the organization must have been
anywhere from fifteen thousand upwards. Lodge-meetings were held with
regularity, and were numerously attended. Judges, magistrates, church
officials, and even ministers of religion did not scruple to ally
themselves with these contemners of all laws.[297] A constitution for
the new State of Canada was drawn up and approved, and the principal
public officials were determined upon. A "national bank," to be called
"The Republican Bank of Canada," was projected, with a nominal capital
of seven and a half millions of dollars. Money to a large amount was
actually contributed, and between four and five thousand stand of
arms, together with a corresponding quantity of ammunition and stores,
were purchased and paid for. The services of a large number of lake
steamers were secured for the purpose of landing hostile forces on
Canadian territory.

The Provincial Government at Toronto were kept pretty accurately
informed as to the machinations of the filibusters. This was effected
partly by means of hired spies, and partly through the agency of the
Federal Government at Washington, which at several critical
conjunctures furnished early and important information. The danger was
sufficiently menacing to produce much anxiety, and the Governments of
the two Canadian Provinces roused themselves to united action. A large
militia force was called out and organized, and bodies of armed
volunteers were kept in readiness for any emergency which might arise.
Several well-equipped gunboats were placed on Lakes Erie and Ontario.
These preparations were made none too soon, for during the month of
November Canada was invaded at two different points.

Had the operations of the invaders from first to last been conducted
with the same good judgment which characterized their early phases,
the consequences to Canada could not have failed to be disastrous in
the extreme. By this time, however, the difficulties inseparable from
such undertakings had arisen, and the combination was much less
formidable than it appeared. The roll of membership was long, and
included the names of hundreds of wealthy and influential persons.
Such persons, however, as a general rule had no mind to take any share
in actual hostilities. They were prepared to lend their countenance,
and to provide a certain proportion of funds; but they were not
prepared to imperil their lives by girding on the sword and marching
to the front. When the time came for an actual muster for the purpose
of crossing over and planting a hostile standard upon Canadian soil,
the members of the combination who had most at stake manifested great
reluctance to move. With comparatively few exceptions, it was only
the unemployed and adventurous members who were enthusiastic to take
arms. Then also ensued the inevitable rivalry among the leaders, and a
failure to render efficient support to one another. The Major was
jealous of the Colonel, and the Colonel of the General. With
dissension among the officers, it was natural that there should be
insubordination and want of discipline among the rank and file. Add to
all this the innumerable difficulties which could not fail to attend
upon the management of a combination of such extent and of such a
character--a combination which had to be carried on in defiance of the
laws, and in the face of the United States Marshal--and it will no
longer be matter of wonder that the operations of the invaders were so
ineffective. These, however, were matters as to which Canadians were
not fully informed; and on the face of it the hostile movement
certainly seemed to be one against which it was necessary to guard
themselves by every means within their reach.

The earliest of the invasions above referred to took place in the
Lower Province. Its details form no part of the present "Story," and
all that need be said about it in these pages is that it proved a
signal failure. The movement against the Upper Province concerns us
more nearly.

Early in November the filibusters began to assemble their forces in
considerable numbers at Oswego, Sackett's Harbour, French Creek,
Ogdensburg, and other places along the St. Lawrence. At Syracuse,
Watertown and other inland centres there was also great activity among
well-known "sympathizers," and messengers were constantly passing to
and fro between those points and the frontier. It was clear that some
movement against Canada was afoot, and timely warning was conveyed to
the Provincial authorities. About nine o'clock on the morning of
Sunday, the llth of the month, the steamer _United States_, commanded
by Captain Van Cleeve, set out from Oswego. She was a regular lake and
river steamer, and customarily plied between Oswego and the ports down
the river as far as Ogdensburg. On the present occasion she started
with about a hundred and fifty passengers on board, all, or nearly
all, of whom were filibusters _en route_ for the Canadian shore. They
had with them as part of their personal luggage a large supply of arms
and ammunition, which were packed away out of sight in boxes
and kegs, in order that they should not be forced upon the notice of
the Captain, who would be bound to take cognizance of them if they
were naked before his eyes. Upon calling at Sackett's Harbour and Cape
Vincent additional forces and armaments were taken on board, and the
steamer proceeded on her way eastward. On reaching the foot of Long
Island, two schooners--the _Charlotte of Oswego_ and the _Charlotte of
Toronto_--were taken in tow, and lashed one on each side of the
steamer. These were also crowded with men and munitions of war. One of
the schooners was under the direction of "Commodore" Bill Johnston,
who has already figured in the narrative; the other was commanded by
"Colonel" Niles Gustaf Schobtewiski Von Shoultz, a native of Poland,
who had been led to cast in his lot with the marauders from a sincere
conviction that he was thereby advancing the cause of liberty. The
entire expedition was nominally under the command of "General" John
Ward Birge, but it was to Von Shoultz that the men specially looked
for guidance. Their numbers gave them confidence, for they mustered,
all told, between five and six hundred men. While on the way down they
opened the boxes and armed themselves from the contents. Upon nearing
Morristown, about an hour before midnight, the schooners were unlashed
from the steamer. They quietly dropped astern, the steamer meanwhile
proceeding on her way to Morristown, and thence to Ogdensburg, whither
she arrived a little before daylight on the morning of Monday, the
12th.

The schooners, after being cast loose, proceeded to Prescott, where
the filibusters proposed to disembark and take possession of Fort
Wellington. The _Charlotte of Toronto_ actually drew up to one of the
wharfs and made fast; but some dispute arose as to the best method of
attack, and while this was in progress the other schooner grounded
near the opposite side of the river, and was thus unable to be of
assistance. At the same time it became evident from the preparations
on shore that the inhabitants of Prescott were alive to the danger
which menaced them, and were determined to give the invaders a warm
reception. The _Charlotte of Toronto_ accordingly drew off from the
wharf and dropped about a mile and a half down stream, where she took
up a position opposite a stone windmill which had been erected in 1822
by a West India merchant. The structure was of great strength, its
walls being several feet thick. Near by were several other stone
houses standing on or close to the main highway leading east and west.
The situation was thus an exceedingly strong one, as it commanded the
approaches by both land and water. Here a number of the invaders
landed and entrenched themselves, confidently expecting to be joined
by many of the inhabitants of the neighbourhood.

Meanwhile, the _United States_, soon after reaching Ogdensburg, had
been taken possession of by a force of filibusters who had assembled
there in such numbers as to be able to defy the local authorities.
They placed two cannon, one of which was the property of the State of
New York, on board the vessel, and then, having got up steam, moved
westward to the assistance of the grounded schooner. All the forenoon
was spent in ineffective efforts to extricate the _Charlotte of
Oswego_ from her position, the steamer being seriously hampered in her
operations by a little British armed steamer called the _Experiment_,
which had arrived on the scene and opened fire upon both the
schooners, as well as upon the _United States_. In the course of the
afternoon a small American steamer called the _Paul Pry_ set out from
Ogdensburg, and succeeded in dragging the schooner from the bed of
ooze in which she had lain embedded. Upon being set free, she
proceeded to the neighbourhood of her consort near the windmill, and
there took up a position, the _Experiment_ keeping up a brisk but not
very disastrous fire upon her. The _United States_ succeeded in
landing a body of filibusters near the windmill during the afternoon,
and a number of small boats also landed small bodies of men on the
Canadian shore. The ensuing night was passed by the filibusters at the
windmill in throwing up earthworks and otherwise strengthening their
position.

On Tuesday morning United States Marshal Garrow, who had arrived at
Ogdensburg during the preceding night, crossed over and took
possession of both the schooners, which were thus prevented from
rendering any further assistance to the filibusters. The same official
also took possession of the steamer _United States_. The British armed
steamers _Cobourg_ and _Victoria_ about the same time reached
Prescott, and proceeded thence down the river to the immediate
vicinity of the windmill, upon which they opened fire. A simultaneous
attack was made upon the filibusters from the land side, a number of
the local militia having assembled, together with a portion of the
83rd Regiment. A sharp engagement followed, the result of which was
that the invaders were compelled to take refuge inside the mill and
the stone buildings adjacent to it. They lost two officers and eleven
men, and thirty-two of them were taken prisoners. The loss on the side
of the Canadians was not much less. The fight from first to last was
watched from the American shore by great crowds, who kept up an
enthusiastic cheering by way of encouragement to the filibusters.
Several boatloads of them attempted to cross over to the assistance of
their countrymen, but were driven back by the armed steamers in the
river.

The filibusters having retreated within the mill and the other stone
structures, upon the walls of which the Canadian forces were unable to
make any impression without large artillery, the next two days were
spent in comparative inaction, pending the arrival of effective
armaments. On Thursday, the 15th, a large body of troops and a
quantity of heavy artillery were despatched to Prescott from Kingston.
They did not reach their destination until the afternoon of Friday,
the 16th, but they made short work of the campaign when they were once
on the ground. The rest of the story is soon told. The guns were
placed in position at about four hundred yards distance from the
windmill. An hour before dark fire was opened simultaneously from
these and from the steamers in the river. The headquarters of the
filibusters speedily became untenable. A white flag was displayed, and
an unconditional surrender followed. A hundred and sixty prisoners,
including eighteen wounded, were taken and conveyed to Kingston. A few
of their companions escaped to the woods, and finally made their way
across the river in small boats. The rest of the force was slain, but
it is impossible to state the precise number, as no trustworthy return
on the subject was ever made. The loss was at least twenty, and was
probably twice that number. The loss on the British side was two
officers and fourteen rank and file killed, and about sixty wounded.

Among the prisoners captured at the windmill was Von Shoultz, the
leader of the filibustering expedition--a gentleman altogether too good
for the company in which he was found, and with which he had allied
himself. He was a man of liberal education, of soldierly character and
bearing, and of high aspirations, who under favouring circumstances
might well have won honourable fame. He could have had no small or
merely selfish motive in joining the ranks of the filibusters, for he
was possessed of considerable property, and had nothing of the brigand
in his disposition. He had however fairly forfeited his life, and the
state of public feeling in Canada was such that he could not expect
mercy. He and a number of his fellow-prisoners were brought to trial
before a court martial at Kingston. He was ably defended by the
present Premier of the Dominion, then a young man whose way in the
world was yet to be made. The eloquence and forensic skill displayed
by the clever young counsel did much to advance his own fortunes, but
were of no efficacy to save the life of his client, who was hanged at
Kingston on the 8th of December. A number of the other prisoners taken
after the battle at the wind-mill underwent a similar fate. Of the
remainder, some were transported, while others were sentenced to
longer or shorter terms of imprisonment; but the majority of them,
being young men under age, who had evidently joined the expedition
from thoughtlessness or love of adventure, were pardoned by the
Lieutenant-Governor and permitted to return to their homes in the
States.

This was the most serious invasion which had yet taken place. It would
have been more serious still but for the interference of the United
States authorities, who, tardily roused to a sense of their
responsibilities, had despatched a body of troops to Ogdensburg under
the command of Colonel Worth. These troops broke up and dispersed
several hundreds of filibusters who were on the point of passing over
to the opposite shore to the succour of their comrades. It is matter
for regret that equally determined measures were not resorted to some
days before, in which case there would have been no invasion, and many
lives would have been spared. The Federal Government had been ready
enough to supply information derived from paid spies as to the
intended movements of the combination, but had been slow to take
measures for forcible repression. The representations of Mr. Fox,
however, had by this time produced effect. Both the Federal and State
Governments perceived the impolicy of allowing hardly-disguised
warfare to be organized and carried on within their borders against a
friendly power. The expedition against Prescott had been organized in
the most open manner, and before the eyes of any citizen of the State
of New York who chose to look at it. It had disturbed the peace along
the frontier for many miles along both sides of the river. President
Van Buren resolved to do his duty. He put forth a proclamation
enjoining that no countenance or encouragement should be shown to
those who, by their breach of the neutrality laws, had forfeited all
claim to protection. Citizens generally were called upon to assist in
bringing these persons to trial and punishment. Nor was this
proclamation a mere official utterance. The authorities began to make
arrests right and left, and to signify plainly that toleration had
reached its limit. A second movement from Cleveland against
Amherstburg was promptly nipped in the bud, and the filibusters
realized that their occupation was at an end.

One more attempt at invasion, however, was made on the western
frontier. During the first week of December an armed body composed of
several hundred men embarked at Detroit on board a steamer called the
_Champlain_. They crossed over to the Canada shore, and landed near
Windsor. They next advanced upon the village, captured the handful of
militia on guard there, and set fire to the _Thames_, a small steamer
lying at the adjacent wharf. The steamer was entirely destroyed, as
also were several buildings in the immediate neighbourhood. After
doing much damage from which they could not have hoped to derive any
benefit, a number of the filibusters started on a march down the river
road towards Sandwich, the main body remaining in possession of
Windsor. Those who moved southward were guilty of various deeds of
ruffianism and atrocity. Four men whom they encountered were brutally
murdered, and one, an army surgeon named Hume, was shockingly mangled
and mutilated after being put to death. The miscreants had not
proceeded far southward, however, before they encountered a detachment
of a hundred and seventy militia from Sandwich, under the command of
Colonel Prince. The Colonel, who resided near Sandwich, had been
aroused by the firing of muskets at Windsor, which is only between two
and three miles distant.

He lost not a moment in placing himself at the head of the militia
stationed in the village, and in hastening northward to the assistance
of his fellow-countrymen. While on the way he met the enemy as above
mentioned. The latter took up a position in an orchard, but were
attacked by the Colonel and his force with such determination and
valour that they were soon dispersed and driven in all directions.
Twenty-one of them were killed and over thirty were taken prisoners. A
few of them took refuge in the woods, where they literally perished
from cold and want of food. The rest escaped back to the American
side, whither they were soon followed by the main body from Windsor.
Colonel Prince felt so indignant at the atrocious murders committed by
the invading party that he took summary vengeance upon four of the
prisoners, who by his orders were shot upon the spot. This was
certainly a high-handed proceeding, such as it would be undesirable to
encourage, even in times of excitement, but it must be admitted that
there was great provocation. The shooting was duly reported, in the
most concise phraseology which the facts admitted of. An investigation
was held, and the Colonel received an admonition, but it is doubtful
whether his popularity was not increased, rather than diminished, by
the transaction.[298] The other prisoners were forwarded to London,
where they were in due time brought to trial. Seven of them, including
four Canadian refugees, were sentenced to death and executed in front
of the Court House.

The expedition against Windsor was the last of the filibustering
invasions. Isolated cases of incendiarism and personal maltreatment
could not be altogether prevented, but there were no further organized
attempts against the peace of the Province. The States authorities
caused it to be distinctly understood that there was to be no more
systematic plunder, rapine, murder and mutilation; that persons
engaging in such pursuits would for the future receive no left-handed
countenance, but would be dealt with according to their deserts. All
this doubtless had its effect in preventing much turmoil and
bloodshed; but it would be a great mistake to suppose that Canada was
solely or even chiefly dependent upon either the Federal or State
Governments for her preservation. She was by this time well able to
defend her own frontier, and was in no danger of falling a prey to the
filibustering invader. There had been a thorough re-organization of
the militia, which had been placed on a permanent footing; and a
well-equipped naval force had been established on the lakes. The Upper
Province alone had a hundred and six regiments of militia at its
service, and could have placed forty thousand men in the field on very
short notice.[299] There were also seventeen regiments of the line
distributed over the two Provinces, in addition to a cavalry regiment
and a due proportion of artillery, sappers and miners, and
engineers.[300] Independently of any question as to the justification
or otherwise of the Rebellion, it must be gratifying to every
native-born Canadian to reflect that his country, in the hour of need,
proved equal to the situation in which she found herself placed; that
she required no outside assistance to enable her to repel successive
invasions of her shores by a horde of foreign marauders who committed
robbery, arson, murder and mutilation, under the pretext of conferring
freedom and equality upon the inhabitants.

FOOTNOTES:

[295] The captain of the steamer had been informed immediately upon
touching at the wharf that a number of armed men had been seen on the
island daring the day; but he does not appear to have attached any
importance to the intelligence, and made no preparation whatever for
resistance.

[296] The volume is commonly known as _Wait's Narrative_. Its full
title is _Letters from Van Diemen's Land, written during Four Years'
Imprisonment for Political Offences committed in Upper Canada_. By
Benjamin Wait. Buffalo, 1843. "Colonel" Wait, who had been with
Mackenzie on Navy Island, is, or recently was, living at Duluth,
Minnesota.

[297] "Labourers left their employ, apprentices their masters,
mechanics abandoned their shops, merchants their counters, magistrates
their official duties, husbands their families, children their
parents, Christians their churches, ministers of the Gospel their
charges, to attend these meetings" i.e., the Hunter's lodges "to
which the public officer, the magistrate, the conservator of the
peace, was only admitted by breaking the official oath he had
previously taken to support the constitution and laws of his
country."--See an appeal to the Patriots of Jefferson County, State of
New York, quoted in the _Report from the delect Committee of the House
of Assembly of Upper Canada appointed to report on the state of the
Province_, dated 30th April, 1839.

[298] That is, so far as the Upper Canadian population were concerned.
Public sympathy in the border States of course ran the other way.
Placards were posted up along the public streets in Detroit, offering
a reward of $800 for Colonel Prince's dead body, and $1,000 for his
living body. Soon after the posting of those placards an American was
arrested at Sandwich on suspicion of having come over to murder the
Colonel and convey his dead body to Detroit. He was bailed by the
Collector of Customs at Detroit. For several years afterwards Colonel
Prince's life was in constant danger. To do him justice he never
flinched, but pursued what he deemed to be the line of duty without
regard to consequences.

[299] "The militia army list for Upper Canada alone showed 106
complete regiments, with the full complement of officers and stall,
the names of the two latter grades filling eighty-three
closely-printed octavo pages. There were four battalions of
incorporated militia, organized and clothed like troops of the line;
twelve battalions of Provincial militia on duty for a stated period;
thirty-one corps of artillery, cavalry, coloured companies and
riflemen; while most of the militia corps had a troop of cavalry
attached to them. Thus, with a population of 450,000 souls, Upper
Canada could easily assemble 40,000 men in arms without seriously
distressing the country."--MacMullen's _History_, 2nd edition, p. 472.

[300] _Ib_.




CHAPTER XXXV.

MACKENZIE IN EXILE.


When the narrative last took account of Mr. Mackenzie he was engaged
in travelling about from place to place in the United States, making
inflammatory speeches, and doing his utmost to stir up the people to
engage in filibustering expeditions against Canada. His biographer, in
recording his movements at this time, makes a strenuous attempt to
show that Mackenzie had very little to do with the operations against
Canada subsequent to the affair of Hickory Island.[301] That this
attempt is made in good faith I do not presume to call in question.
Mr. Lindsey, deriving his knowledge solely or chiefly from material
furnished by his father-in-law, doubtless wrote what he believed to be
true on this subject. I have equally little doubt that he has long
since become convinced of his error. However that may be, the evidence
is overwhelmingly against him. The fact is that Mackenzie never
ceased to play the part of a firebrand so long as he had an atom of
influence. With regard to the Hickory Island expedition, he afforded
it all the aid in his power, and indeed practically acted as
adjutant-general to it, until his jealousy was aroused by the
circumstance of the chief command being bestowed upon Van
Rensselaer.[302] He threw it up, not because he disapproved of such
methods of warfare, or because he had become ashamed of acting in
concert with a horde of thievish ruffians for the spoliation of his
old home; but because those who conducted it had formed a correct
estimate of his qualifications, and would not permit him to have any
prominent voice in their councils. He took no part in several
subsequent expeditions; but it was simply and solely because the
filibusters did not invite his cooperation, or even admit him to their
confidence. They had discovered that his stubborn and uncertain
temper, his excitable nerves and unstable judgment, unfitted him for
any prominent place in their ranks. They had also become aware that
his discretion was not to be depended upon, and that it was unsafe to
intrust him with their secrets. "General" McLeod, who for some time
acted as "Commander-in-Chief of the Western Division of the Patriot
Army," appears to have received such convincing evidence of
Mackenzie's inability to keep counsel that he addressed a sort of
circular letter to the prominent filibusters on the frontier, advising
them to let Mackenzie know nothing of their movements.[303] The
majority of the recipients of this circular acted on the suggestion,
and Mackenzie was thenceforward compelled to take a very subordinate
position in the ranks of the filibusters. He nevertheless continued to
spout on behalf of "liberty," and to do as much mischief as lay in his
power. There is good reason for believing that he was privy to several
petty aggressions on private property on the Niagara frontier; that he
instigated several specially lawless ruffians to undertake the blowing
up of the monument which had been erected some years before on
Queenston Heights to the memory of General Sir Isaac Brock;[304] that
he was concerned in an attempt to destroy some of the public works in
connection with the Welland Canal, and that he even went so far as to
carry a keg of powder on his back in aid of that attempt. That he went
about from Rochester to Buffalo, Plattsburg, New York, Philadelphia
and elsewhere and harangued audiences on behalf of the "Patriot" cause
we know from his own _Caroline Almanac_, as well as from the distinct
admissions of his biographer.[305] He established a paper "to express
the views of the Patriots in Canada and their friends in the United
States."[306] We further know from his own testimony that he joined
Theller, after that valiant Free-Lover's escape from the citadel at
Quebec, and that he went about haranguing public audiences as to the
wrongs sustained by the ex-Brigadier-General during his imprisonment.
But what need to accumulate evidence on the subject? The question is
not one which admits of any dispute. The simple fact of the matter is
that, with the spirit of a true dema-gogue, he made a trade of
agitation, and did his utmost to keep up the excitement against Canada
long after that trade had ceased to be either profitable or popular. A
desire for revenge appears to have gained complete ascendency over
him, and to this passion he sacrificed the welfare and happiness of
his family. Instead of devoting himself to some honest and useful
pursuit, whereby he would have been enabled to provide for the wants
of those dependent upon him, he gave up much of his time to attempts
to make farther trouble for the Upper Canadian Government. This could
have been prompted by nothing but revenge, for he well knew that no
good either to himself or others could possibly result from his
machinations. He must also have known that he had become powerless to
do any serious harm. His judgment was notoriously bad, but it was not
yet so hopelessly perverted that he could seriously have believed that
any efforts of his could ever again imperil the stability of the
Government of Upper Canada. He knew that, whatever chance there might
once have been of subverting that Government, the day for such
attempts was past, and that in any case he was the very last man in
the world to enter upon such an undertaking with any prospect of
success. He knew that he was no longer dangerous to anybody. But he
also knew that he might cause a certain amount of trouble and anxiety
to his old enemies, and this seems to have been preferable, in his
estimation, to more legitimate employment. As late as the month of
March, 1839, he devoted himself to hopeless attempts to get up further
expeditions against the peace of Canada.[307] Again, in his _Caroline
Almanac_, published towards the close of the same year, he urges Upper
Canadians to prepare themselves for a change, and to use all the means
in their power to hasten it. If these behests are obeyed, he predicts
that "the last British red soldier" will erelong leave the banks of
the St. Lawrence for ever.

In sooth, these years of exile must from first to last have been years
of misery and deprivation to Mackenzie and his family. As for himself,
he tried first one thing and then another. In May, 1838, he started a
newspaper called _Mackenzie's Gazette_. The place of publication at first
was New York, but the proprietor subsequently removed to Rochester,
where the paper continued to appear with more or less regularity until
some time in 1840. Its policy, from the first number, was to instil hatred
of Great Britain and British institutions into the minds of its readers.
It paid much attention to Irish affairs, and became to some extent the
exponent of the worst phase of Irish opinion in New York. It was of
the exact type of the New York Fenian organs of the present day, and
Mackenzie himself was the legitimate predecessor of O'Donovan Rossa.
During the early months of its existence it devoted much space to
recording the achievements of the filibusters against the Canadas.
Ruffians who perpetrated the most brutal murders in the name of
liberty were held up to admiration in its columns, and referred to
as heroes and patriots fit to be ranked with Washington and Kosciusko.
Among other lucubrations which appeared in its early numbers
was an account of the Rebellion in the Canadas, copied from _The
United States Magazine and Democratic Review_. In this account was
a statement presumably derived from Mackenzie himself to the effect
that the movement near Toronto was precipitated either by the treachery
or criminal indiscretion of one of the insurgent leaders. The
reference here was of course to Dr. Rolph. Many of the Canadian
refugees remonstrated with Mackenzie for inserting this reflection
upon the Doctor, more especially as he himself admitted that there
was no ground for it. He accordingly contradicted the statement as
to Dr. Rolph's treachery, which he characterized as an error;[308] but
his own account, as given in other numbers of the Gazette, was so
shamelessly false and base: there was such a mean attempt to vindicate
himself at the expense of all the other prominent personages concerned
in the revolt: that it aroused great indignation among the better class
of Canadian exiles. Dr. Morrison, who had by this time settled in
Rochester, wrote to Gibson,[309] at Lockport, requesting that he would take
steps whereby Mackenzie's lies might be prevented from becoming
matters of history. Gibson had meanwhile written to Rolph, requesting
him to insert something in the respectable American papers, disclosing
the truth about the matter, and exposing Mackenzie's "villainous
lies." Dr. Morrison and others urged the same request. Accordingly,
Dr. Rolph prepared a long and argumentative paper, dealing with
Mackenzie's various conflicting stories in a masterly and
comprehensive manner. For some reason or other this production never
found its way into print, and it now appears for the first time in the
form of an appendix to the present work.

In September, 1838, Mackenzie appeared before the Marine Court of
the City of New York, where he declared his intention to become a
citizen of the United States, and to renounce all allegiance to any foreign
Prince, Potentate, State or Sovereignty whatever, "and particularly to
the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland." This,
of course, was a mere form, and did not in any degree divest him of
his allegiance to the Crown of Great Britain. His allegiance, however,
had for some time past been purely a nominal allegiance of which
it was out of his power to divest himself. The fact seems to be that
his once earnest but shallow patriotism was dead within him, and
that no new sentiment arose in its place. His biographer informs us[310]
that "he never felt entirely at home in the States, and almost always
continued to sigh for an opportunity of returning to his beloved Canada."
In view of the manner in which he had been accustomed to
speak of "his beloved Canada" for some years past, and of the manner
in which he continued to speak of her during the early years of his
exile, his anxiety to return seems to stand in need of explanation. The
truth is that the disastrous result of his long opposition to authority had
soured his mind. He had become a chronic grumbler, and found fault
with pretty nearly everything and everybody. In the institutions of
the United States, which he had once so extravagantly belauded, he
now found quite as much to stir his animadversion as he had ever
found in the abuses of the Family Compact. Long before his return
to "his beloved Canada" he had become as heartily tired of republican
institutions as he had ever been of the monarchical system. In matters
pertaining to politics and Government, as in most other things in this
world, distance lends enchantment to the view. We are all of us apt to
over-estimate whatever is remote or unattainable, and to undervalue
that which lies at our doors. When Mackenzie was brought face to
face with the system which he had once heralded as the _ne plus ultra_
of human wisdom, he found so much to condemn that he went to the
other extreme, and unwillingly conceded to republicanism the advantages
which it is fairly entitled to claim.

It will be remembered that shortly before the evacuation of Navy
Island he had been arrested for breach of the neutrality laws, and
compelled to give bail.[311] After repeated postponements, the trial came
on at Canandaigua, the capital of Ontario County, New York, on the
20th and 21st of June, 1839. The indictment was for setting on foot
a military enterprise at Buffalo, to be carried on against Upper Canada,
against the peace of the United States. Mackenzie conducted his own
defence, which was from first to last a bid for popularity among the
enemies of Canada, who composed the great majority of the audience.
He however overdid the matter, and disgusted the judge who presided, as
well as many of the respectable persons who were present. He referred
to Queen Victoria as "that girl," and declared that she had no lawful
authority over the Canadas. He spoke of himself as a victim of "British
interest, British influence, and British gold" and enlarged upon his
admiration for the "free institutions" of the United States. His
rhetoric, however, availed him nothing. The evidence was conclusive,
and the jury returned a verdict of guilty. He was sentenced to eighteen
months' imprisonment, and to pay a fine of ten dollars. He was placed
in jail at Rochester, where he dragged out a miserable existence for
nearly eleven months. During the interval he compiled and published
the _Caroline Almanac_, to which frequent reference has been made in
these pages. In criticising this infamous production some allowance
should unquestionably be made for the desperate circumstances in which
Mackenzie found himself placed at the time of its publication. He was
in a foreign country. He had a family dependent upon him for support.
He was without means, and his imprisonment shut him out from the
ordinary avenues of employment. His only resource was to publish a
book which would sell: something which would tickle the foul palates of
the lowest and most abandoned class of the community on the frontier;
which would represent their raids upon Canada, and the atrocious crimes
by which those raids were distinguished, in the light of noble and heroic
achievements, worthy of the emulation of mankind all the world over.
The result of this necessity was the issue of the _Caroline Almanac_. How
far it contributed to the replenishment of the domestic exchequer I am
unable to say; but certainly any man possessed of the least sense of
responsibility would have hesitated before giving such a production to
the world, even under the exacting conditions above referred to. No
mere summary or analysis can convey the slightest notion of the contents
of this closely-packed pamphlet. Nor shall any such summary or
analysis be attempted here. Its very name affords some clue to its
character. The excitement on the subject of the _Caroline_ had not yet
abated on the frontier, and the question still remained unsettled between
the States and Great Britain; so that no name could have been chosen
which would have appealed so directly to the passions and prejudices of
the hour. On the first page appeared what professed to be a representation
of the _Caroline_ on the point of making a plunge over the Horseshoe
Fall, and various features were introduced into the scene for the purpose
of rousing the evil passions of the American people against Canadians.
As this picture has been reproduced in a note to the present volume,[312]
any further reference to it here is unnecessary. But the picture was
not one whit worse than the letterpress. From beginning to end, the
compiler not only indulged in the most outrageous falsehoods, but pandered
to the worst passions of the most lawless and ruffianly class of the
community. Whatever in history or tradition could tend to instil hatred
of England and hatred of Canada into the hearts of his readers was
eagerly pressed into service. Whatever was likely to provoke further
raids into Canada by a lawless and abandoned mob was made the most of.
All the former raids were described with the most wilfully mendacious
perversion of facts, and their want of success was deplored in language
which the author evidently intended to be pathetic. The "American
Patriots" were referred to as having "gained immortal honour for their
race and name."[313] The author's copious vocabulary was strained to find
words bad enough to express his feelings towards "his beloved Canada."
The bird which "files its ain nest" is proverbially an ill one, and if
there is truth in the old saw, Mackenzie was certainly the foulest bird
known to natural history. Chief Justice Robinson was stigmatized as "the
Jeffries of Upper Canada."[314] Other public men who had ventured to
differ from him were treated in the same fashion. Rolph, Bidwell,
Morrison and Gibson all came in for a share of his vituperation. Rolph
and Morrison were condemned for not joining the rebels on Yonge Street;
though readers of the foregoing pages know that those gentlemen were under
no sort of obligation, moral or otherwise, to do so. "It was unfortunate,"
writes Mackenzie, "that Dr. Morrison was allowed to participate
in the matter. It is wonderful how many he contrived to tell
beforehand, although under every bond of honour and good faith to hold
his tongue. He did nothing; was worse, far worse than useless, and
self was ever uppermost with him."[315] To any one who remembers Dr.
Morrison, such language as this is its own most effectual refutation.
To those who knew him not, it may be said that he was about as like
Mackenzie's representation of him as mid-day is to midnight. No word
as to the projected rising had ever passed his lips. Had the case been
otherwise, we may be quite sure that evidence as to the fact would
have come out on his trial, and would have been eagerly laid hold of
as a means of consigning him to the gallows. But for the pure malice
of the thing, it would be ludicrous to see Mackenzie accusing Morrison
of betraying secrets, when as matter of fact the latter was
notoriously a man of close mouth, whereas Mackenzie was so incapable
of keeping his own counsel that he betrayed his great secret to Hogg
and others within a few days of the appointed meeting at
Montgomery's.[316] But Morrison was now hostile to him, and must be
maligned accordingly. Mr. Bidwell fared no better. "Bidwell imitated
Peter, and denied us altogether," wrote Mackenzie; "and being an
American was at once admitted into all the courts of N. Y., while
Mackenzie, an European, went to jail."[317] A letter ostensibly
written by William Alves, a Canadian refugee, was inserted in the
_Almanac_ for the purpose of making it appear by independent testimony
that Mackenzie's conduct had been heroic during the occupation of
Montgomery's--in fact, that he had been the one brave man among a host
of poltroons. As has been seen on a former page, however, this letter
was really written by Mackenzie himself, and signed by Alves at his
request.[318] It has also been seen that Alves subsequently
contradicted his former testimony.[319] In this letter, however, such
as it is, Gibson is accused of cowardice. In fact, Mackenzie attacked
all his former colleagues, one after another, and endeavoured to throw
the whole blame of failure from his own shoulders, where it properly
rested, to theirs. A similar course of falsehood and vituperation was
adopted with respect to the mother-country. He ransacked the history
of the dark ages to find signal examples of tyranny and oppression,
which were served up to his readers with such extraordinary comments
as the most perverse malignity could afford. The story of the butchery
of Sir William Wallace was retailed, with all the repulsive
particulars about disembowelling and dismembering; the moral derivable
therefrom being that "English barbarity" is the same now as it was
five hundred years ago. Her present Majesty was referred to as
"Victoria Guelph, the bloody Queen of England."[320] She was
represented as having urged on the murder of virtuous Canadians, and
as being "as keen for spilling Canadian blood as her mad old
grandfather Geo. 3rd."[321] Every low, mean, lying scandal that human
ingenuity could devise about Her Majesty was dragged in for the
delectation of the American loafers to whom his appeals were
especially addressed. The English Cabinet was referred to as "Victoria
Melbourne's bloody divan."[322] In another place it was said that
"Victoria and the English Ministry and peerage" thirsted for Canadian
blood. To "drive such a hellish power off the continent of America"
was stated to be "doing God good service."[323] A hope was expressed
that Chartism might flourish, and that "the bloody and cruel Guelphs"
might be put down.[324] Passages like these--and the _Almanac_
contains scores of them--sufficiently indicate the character of the
work. And Mackenzie had not the excuse of ignorance. He had been in
England, and had had personal relations with members of the
Government. He knew that the private character of the Queen was
stainless; that neither Her Majesty nor any member of her Cabinet
thirsted for Canadian blood. He well knew that what he wrote was a
farrago of falsehood and impotent malice from first to last. He had
lost all sense of the distinction between right and wrong. Whatever he
might have been in the days of his prosperity, it is clear that he had
by this time become a mere loud-mouthed purveyor of ribald libels. The
man who a few years before had proclaimed through the columns of his
newspaper[326] that disloyalty could never enter his breast, and that
the very name he bore was a sufficient guarantee of his unswerving
fidelity, had now descended so low that he could drag the name of his
Sovereign in the mire for the delectation of the foulest and most
degraded element of a foreign population. As has already been
suggested, much is to be excused to him on the score of poverty, but
even poverty furnishes a very slight excuse for such depths of
self-degradation as his.

He remained in durance for nearly eleven months, when, in response
to numerous petitions, the President remitted the remainder of his
sentence, and he was permitted to go free.

FOOTNOTES:

[301] See _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., pp. 181, 182, 187, 195, 196,
213, etc.

[302] _Ante_, p. 237.

[303] One of these lies before me as I write. The General seems to
have conceived an invincible distrust of Mackenzie at this time. While
on a temporary visit to Lewiston he was informed that the latter, as
stated in the text on p. 272, had taken part in several petty
aggressions on the Upper Canadian frontier, in the course of which the
property of private citizens had been plundered and destroyed; and
that he had instigated Benjamin Lett and others to secretly drop over
to Queenston Heights in the night-time and blow up the monument
erected there to the memory of General Sir Isaac Brock. This dastardly
piece of Vandalism was not consummated until about two years later,
but McLeod, who had himself been a soldier in the British army, and
who had a great veneration for Brock's memory, was supremely disgusted
that such a suggestion should have emanated from Mackenzie, who
moreover, as the General was informed, had induced certain
sympathizers in Buffalo to provide money for carrying it out. About
the same time it came to General McLeod's ears that Mackenzie had
instigated the blowing up of certain works on the Welland Canal, and
that he had actually gone so far in aid of this enterprise as to carry
a keg of powder on his back by night from Buffalo to Black Rock, where
it was conveyed across by Ben. Lett in a boat to the Canadian shore.
General McLeod's indignation knew no bounds. He was ready to afford
every assistance in his power to any regularly-organized filibustering
expedition which might be determined upon in committee, but he had no
sympathy with such exhibitions of petty malignity as this. He prepared
a "General Order" to the effect that persons detected in such acts for
the future would be tried by court-martial and punished. He enclosed a
copy of this order in a private circular to the officers in command of
"Patriot parties on the frontier." From certain papers of General
McLeod in my possession I transcribe the following copies of both
order and circular.

"G. O.

"Officers and non-commissioned officers and men engaged in Patriot
service, detected crossing the lines to plunder, destroy monuments,
public works or private property, shall be tried by a Court Martial,
and punished accordingly.

"(Signed) D. McLeod,

"Lewiston, 1838. _General, Commanding Western Division._

"Certified.                    "(Signed) ASHLEY, _Adjutant-General_."

    *    *    *    *    *

"PRIVATE CIRCULAR. "_Officers in Command of Patriot parties on the
frontier:_

"Sir,--The General in command of the Western Division of the Patriot
Army has been informed by good authority that Wm. L. McKenzie has been
a party to several acts, unjustifiable aggressions on the Canadian
frontier: That he has aided a party to blow up Brock's monument at
Queenston, and also to blow up a public work on the Welland Canal, and
that he carried a keg of powder on his back in aid thereof. I
exceedingly regret it. Nothing can be gained, but much harm can be
done, by a course of warfare so discreditable to the cause we are
engaged in, and the Patriot object in view.

"I enclose you a General Order, as a guide to officers in command, to
be read at the head of every company in the service.

"I have, etc., etc.,

"(Signed) D. McLeod,

"_General, Commanding Western Division_."

[304] See preceding note. Mackenzie's share in laying the
foundation-stone of this monument has been glanced at in vol. i., pp.
123, 124.

[305] See _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., p. 185.

[306] _Ib_.

[307] The following circular, signed by Mackenzie and John Montgomery,
and addressed in Mackenzie's own well-known handwriting, lies before
me. It is surmounted by the device which was commonly used at the head
of circulars issued by the Hunter's Lodges.

"[This is to be considered a private and confidential communication.]

"Rochester, N. Y., March 12th, 1839.

"Dear Sir:--

"You are respectfully requested to attend a Special Convention, to be
composed of Canadians or persons connected with Canada, who are
favourable to the attainment of its political independence, and the
entire separation of its government from the political power of Great
Britain.

"The Convention is to be conducted in a strictly private manner, and
will be held at six o'clock in the evening of Thursday, the 21st of
March inst., in a large room in Rochester, fitted up for the purpose.

"Those to whom this circular is addressed will please attend at
half-past five on said evening, (Thursday, 21st inst.,) at Mr. Wm. L.
Mackenzie's dwelling, (the first brick house on the right hand in
South Clinton street,) from whence they will be directed to the hall
of the Convention.

"You are requested to preserve this circular, with your address on it,
and bring it with you to the place of meeting.

"As matters of importance, affecting the future welfare of Canada,
will be immediately brought before the Convention, you are earnestly
requested to be punctual in your attendance.

"We have the honour to be, Sir,

"Your faithful servants,

"W. L. Mackenzie, John Montgomery."

[308] I transfer Mackenzie's own words from the fifth number of his
_Gazette_, dated New York, Saturday, June 9th, 1838. "In the
statement," he writes, "that the movement 'was precipitated either by
the treachery or criminal indiscretion of one of their leaders' there
is an error. We are of the opinion that the act of hurrying on the
rising, and making that movement partial which would have otherwise
been general, was a fatal indiscretion; but was committed with the
purest and most honourable motives, and might have given us the means
of success, had the gentleman who was the cause of it at once, and
with that frankness which distinguishes his character, come to our
camp and openly identified himself with the revolt, or even kept us
informed of the state of affairs in Toronto on the night of the 4th
December last." The reference to "that frankness which distinguishes
his character" is presumably intended for sarcasm. Certainly Dr. Rolph
merited no such eulogium, even at the hands of his most devoted
admirer.

[309] Dr. Morrison's letter, now in my possession, is as follows:

"Rochester, 28 May, 1838.

"My Dear Gibson:--

"I was pleased to hear that you had met with employment in your
profession, and I hope you will long continue to do so. Since my
arrival in the City this time I have seen Mackenzie's two first nos.
of his _Gazette_, in one of which he pretends to give an additional
version of the Canadian Revolution. There is in my belief in this
statement so wanton a misstatement of facts, and even a contradiction
of what he formerly published as a narrative, that it ought not to go
unexposed, for all this is apparently done for the selfish purpose of
vindicating himself at the expense of others, which is too cruel to be
borne.

"You will perceive by this latter pretended exposition, he makes his
want of success to be owing to three things, principally caused by
others; viz.: 1st, a change of the day, on account of what he calls
false rumours that his movements were known, although his
brother-in-law, or himself, or both, had communicated the facts to
Hogg, and he to the Government. 2nd, that Dr. Rolph desired him not
come into town till Tuesday in the evening, while at the same time the
Doctor told in the city after coming down with the flag of truce he
was at his heels, and advised the people accordingly, and although he
admits that Horne's house was fired as a signal to march into the
city, and was done at between 2 and 3 p.m., as an understanding
between himself and the Doctor. 3rdly, that the Doctor was to have
gone out and did not, pretending this was an arrangement. I am thus
particular, expecting you may have some among you who may be able to
contradict these misrepresentations not for public use at present, but
for future and personal justification...Believe me to be,

"My Dear Sir,

"Yours most truly,

"T. D. Morrison."

Dr. Morrison never forgave Mackenzie for this and subsequent acts of
baseness, and never again admitted him to his intimacy. In after
years, when they had both returned from exile, and were residing in
Toronto and working in a common cause, Mackenzie, in letters now in my
possession, complained that Dr. Morrison kept him at a distance, and
seemed to regard him with aversion. See note on pp. 279, 280, _post_.

[310] See _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., p. 199.

[311] _Ante_, p. 236.

[312] _Ante_, p. 210.

[313] P. 93.

[314] P. 40.

[315: P. 102. How far this represented Mackenzie's honest opinion will
appear from the following extract from a letter written by him to Dr.
Rolph on the 31st of May, 1852, and now in my hands: "Dr. Morrison
early in life lost his situation because of his principles. In his
best days he showed both spirit and principle, ever holding fast to
what he believed to be right. I think that the little degree of
gratitude shown by the people after his return from exile vexed him a
good deal. He stood a trial for life, and had mind and body harassed;
and though he bore up manfully I have no doubt but that many cares and
vexations preyed upon his health. He had not the disposition to dash
in among people who had forgot him, as I did, and hence he was
actually ostracized for his attachment to their rights. I heard a few
days ago that he had had several paralytic strokes, and went next door
to Mr. Baker's, to learn how it was...So far as I can learn, his mind
is weakened a little, and his hand injured; but it is probable he will
come round and be well again, and I wish he may, to see the prosperity
of his country and the triumph of his early principles. You will think
I ought to have called, but on many occasions that I have been with
him at his door and near it neither he nor Mrs. Morrison bade me come
in...Be this as it may, the Doctor was and is one of our truest,
purest, honestest men, and I hope he'll weather these difficulties,
and see more happy days...I remain, Dear Sir,

Your truly obliged Servant,

(Signed) W. L. Mackenzie.

He could hardly expect that Dr. Morrison would willingly have him in
his house, after the way he had written in the Caroline Almanac.

[316] _Ante_, pp. 18, 19, and note.

[317] Caroline Almanac, p. 102. Such rhetoric as this needs but brief
comment. Bidwell had had nothing to do with the Rebellion, and did not
devote himself to robbery and pillage after leaving Canada, as
Mackenzie did. Had he done so and we beg pardon of his shade for the
hypothesis he too would probably have found his way to jail.

[318] _Ante_, p. 23.

[319] _Ante_, p. 85.

[320] Pp. 5, 13.

[321] P. 13.

[322] P. 20.

[323] P. 40.

[324] P. 73.

[325] P. 51.

[326] See the _Colonial Advocate_ for June 10th, 1824.




CHAPTER XXXVI.

FRUITS OF THE REBELLION.


The Canadian Rebellion, which to all practical intents had collapsed
long before this time, might now be regarded as completely and
absolutely at an end. Completely and absolutely at an end, not only as
regarded Canadians, but also as regarded American sympathizers; for
the subsequent machinations of a handful of the latter to provoke a
war between the States and Great Britain came utterly to naught, and
were too insignificant in their scope and effects to deserve more than
the briefest of passing references. What purpose, then, had been
served by this ill-organized and inefficiently-conducted movement:
this revolt which had never contained within itself the essential
elements of success; which for many months had disturbed the public
peace throughout an immense extent of country; which had led to grave
complications and discussions between the representatives of two great
nations; which had gone far towards provoking a sanguinary and ruinous
war between those two nations, with Canada for the battle-ground;
which had involved an incalculable amount of suffering and much
sacrifice of human life; and which, from a military point of view, had
finally resulted in ignominious failure and disaster? Was anything
obtained by way of compensation for these undoubted evils? And, if so,
was the thing obtained worth the price paid for it? These are the
questions which need to be answered by any one who seeks to estimate
aright the significance of the Canadian Rebellion.

When the old Laird of Auchinleck was asked by Dr. Johnson what
Cromwell had done for his country, he replied, in Carlylean fashion:
"God, Doctor, he gart kings ken they had a _lith_ in their necks." In
like manner, if the question be asked: "What did the Rebellion do for
Canada?" the answer must be: It aroused public opinion in England to
the reality of Canadian grievances. It proclaimed aloud to the nation
that the cherished colonial system--so far, at any rate, as Canada was
concerned--had survived its usefulness; that the perennial complaints
of Canadian Reformers had not been the mere inventions of an angry and
jealous-minded Opposition; that a large part of the population of
Canada had for years groaned under abuses such as no people worthy to
enjoy the blessings of freedom could be expected to endure with
patience; and that they would no longer quietly submit to be treated
like the children of a professedly beneficent, but in reality cold,
indifferent, and unsympathizing parent. True, the revolt in the Upper
Province had been easily put down, but that had been largely due to
the inefficiency of the leaders; and in Lower Canada the rebels had
presented a much more formidable front. So widespread a movement could
not have come to a head unless the public discontent had been both
wide and deep.

These conclusions forced themselves upon the English Ministry at an
early period in the history of the Rebellion. They perceived that
there must have been great misapprehension on the part of themselves
and their predecessors with respect to Canadian affairs. It was
evident that the military Governors who had been sent out one after
another had wholly failed to grasp the realities of the situation.
Even now the most contradictory accounts reached them by every
packet-ship. There seemed reason to fear that the Maritime Provinces
would follow the example of the Canadas, and hoist a standard of
rebellion. It was necessary that something should be done, and at
once. Sir John Colborne was for the time in the right place.[327] No
man was less likely to play with so dangerous a weapon as Revolution.
Even with such forces as he had at his command, he would certainly
make an end of open insurrection in the Lower Province. But when the
insurrection should have been put down, a very difficult task remained
for the Civil Administrator. It was necessary that a broad and liberal
policy should be pursued; that the bitter memories of the past should
be as far as possible obliterated; that hostile factions should be
reconciled; that the merits of the long-standing quarrel between the
Government and the people should be carefully enquired into, and that
whatever could justly be done to remove the causes of it should not be
delayed. It seemed inevitable that a satisfactory readjustment of all
the various matters in dispute would involve some more or less
important change in the relations of the colonies to the Empire. The
adequate discharge of such duties as these was of course not to be
expected from Sir John Colborne. What was required was a man of
statesmanlike intellect; a man not wedded to precedent; a man
susceptible to new impressions, and with a leaning in favour of
popular rights. Could a man be found uniting these seyeral
qualifications, it was hoped that a satisfactory solution of the
British American problem might yet be arrived at.

As everybody knows, the gentleman selected by the British Ministry
to unravel the complicated web of Canadian affairs at this juncture was
John George Lambton, first Earl of Durham. His past career seemed
to point him out as one specially suited for the performance of such
duties as those now entrusted to him. He was by descent and by conviction
a Liberal of the Liberals. He came of one of the oldest families
in the realm--a family which had been great and distinguished from the
days of the Plantagenets, and which still maintained sway over the
ancestral domain from which the name of Lambton had originally been
derived. Yet this old and wealthy family at several critical
conjunctures in the national history had opposed the assumptions of
the aristocracy, and identified themselves with the cause of liberty
and the rights of the common people. Lord Durham's father had been a
leading member of the most advanced section of the Whig party, and the
personal friend and ally of Charles James Fox. Lord Durham himself had
been prominently identified with the party of progress ever since
attaining his manhood, and while plain John George Lambton had taken a
very conspicuous part in the House of Commons as an advocate of
Parliamentary Reform. He had married a daughter of Earl Grey, and had
thus strengthened his position with the party to which he belonged.
Everything that education and careful political training could do to
develop his capacity for statesmanship had been taken eager advantage
of. He was unquestionably one of the most accomplished young men in
the nation, and was inspired with a genuine enthusiasm for the welfare
of his kind. He had displayed great aptitude for politics, and was
long regarded as the coming man in the ranks of Reform. After his
elevation to the peerage he had entered his father-in-law's Reform
Ministry in 1830 as Lord Privy Seal, and had had his full share in
maturing and carrying through the great measure of 1832, though ill
health and domestic affliction had prevented him from taking as
conspicuous a part in the debates as might otherwise have been
expected of him. In a word, he had from first to last been identified
with the most advanced phase of political thought of his time. His
general abilities were far above the average. When much in earnest he
was capable of fervid eloquence, and his oratory frequently stirred up
the sluggish atmosphere of the House of Lords. He had spent several
years at the Russian Court, and was conversant with diplomatic usages.
Altogether, it seemed as if he united in his own person all the
qualities which the exigencies of the time in Canada imperatively
called for. Certainly it would not have been easy to find any one
individual possessed of so many elements of fitness.

On the other hand, his Lordship had certain little weaknesses which
rather tended to disqualify him for the great trust reposed in him. He
was naturally self-willed, and had always been accustomed to have his
own way. He was not fond of subordinating himself to the views of
others, and on several notable occasions had shown himself to be not
amenable to discipline. His temper was high, and not always under
control. When thwarted, he was capable of making himself exceedingly
disagreeable. Even at the Council Board he had more than once indulged
in outbursts which had nearly driven the more decorous members from
the room, and which had driven the Prime Minister to the verge of
desperation.[328] His health, too, was far from strong, and his bodily
infirmities tended to increase the irritability of his temper. These were
rather serious disqualifications, but they were not insuperable, and it
was believed that his Lordship would rise with the demands made upon
him. At sueh an important epoch in his life it was thought that he was
not likely to forget how much depended upon him, and it was confidently
predicted that he would acquit himself in a manner befitting his position
and his lineage.

When Lord Durham was first approached on the subject he expressed
great reluctance to accept the onerous responsibilities wherewith it was
proposed to clothe him. The uncertain state of his health, and a full
appreciation of the difficulties which must inevitably await him in the
event of his acceptance, combined to make him hesitate. The Government,
however, were urgent, and in an evil hour for his own happiness,
but in a propitious hour for Canada, he finally yielded his assent. He
was appointed Governor-General of British North America and Lord
High Commissioner, with very full and extraordinary powers. He
addressed himself with energy to the labours before him. Recognizing the
importance of securing efficient subordinates he obtained the assistance
of Mr. Charles Buller, a brilliant and enlightened political philosopher
of the Radical school, who had once been a pupil of Thomas Carlyle,
and who for some years past had sat in the House of Commons. Mr.
Buller came out in the capacity of chief secretary to his Lordship. He
fully justified the high expectations which had been formed of him, and
it is not going too far to say that for the most beneficial results of
Lord Durham's mission to Canada, this country owes him a heavy debt.
Two other gentlemen of great abilities--Edward Gibbon Wakefield and
Thomas E. M. Turton--came out as assistant secretaries. They also
rendered valuable aid, but both of them were men of bad moral repute,
and they thus furnished his Lordship's enemies with a weapon of
offence.

The Lord High Commissioner, buoyed up by high hopes of effecting
lasting good to the colonies and the Empire, reached Quebec towards
the end of May. By this time there was an end to internal discord in
both the Canadas, though, as has been seen, the frontier continued to
be disturbed by filibustering invasions for some time afterwards. His
Lordship remained in this country about five months, nearly all of
which period was passed by him in the Lower Province. Notwithstanding
his almost incessant ill health, he devoted himself to the objects of
his mission with never-failing industry and vigilance. The labours of
his secretaries were tremendous. The variety of the subjects with
which they were called upon to deal--the comprehensiveness of their
enquiries, and the innumerable details attendant upon each separate
branch of enquiry--might well have daunted any but the most thorough
and earnest-minded of investigators. One of the most embarrassing of
all questions calling for immediate consideration was the disposal of
the rebel prisoners who crowded the Lower Canadian jails. Not one of
the latter had yet been brought to trial for their participation in
the Rebellion, and their number was so great that some difficulty was
experienced in finding room for them. The question presented serious
difficulties, and caused Lord Durham and Mr. Buller many an anxious
hour. If the prisoners were brought to trial in the ordinary manner,
the proceedings would last for months, and would keep hundreds of
persons in anxious suspense for an indefinite period of time. Such
prolonged proceedings would not only interfere with the usual course
of justice, but would involve serious expense to the country. All this
expense would moreover be incurred to very little purpose, as there
would inevitably be constant miscarriages of justice. Sympathy with
the revolt was all but universal among the French-Canadian population
from among whom the juries would necessarily be in great measure
selected, and such jurymen would certainly not return verdicts against
their unhappy fellow-countrymen for engaging in a treasonable movement
wherewith they themselves were in full sympathy. Acquittals would
follow in the wake of the clearest evidence of guilt. Such
complications as these would greatly tend to lower the public respect
for the mode of administering the law. On the other hand, to set the
delinquents free would be to encourage them to further insurrection.
The determination finally arrived at by Lord Durham was to proclaim a
general amnesty to all the rebels except the ringleaders and certain
other personages specially named. This determination was carried into
effect by an ordinance dated the 28th of June, the day of the young
Queen's coronation at Westminster. A number of the ringleaders were
induced to place themselves at his Lordship's disposal, whereupon they
were transported to Bermuda without any form of trial whatever, and
sentence of death was pronounced against them in case of their unauthorized
return. This was a merciful and gracious method of disposing
of the vexed question; but it was clearly beyond the scope of Lord
Durham's authority, and intelligence of it no sooner reached England
than his enemies, of whom he had many, attacked him with fierce acrimony.
Lord Brougham availed himself of the opportunity to pay off an
old score of several years' standing, and opened his battery in the House
of Lords. Brougham's example was followed by Lord Lyndhurst, Lord
Ellenborough, and other statesmen of mark. The Government were too
weak to stand up against these assaults, and after one or two attempts
to defend their emissary they yielded to the pressure brought to bear
upon them. The ordinance was disallowed, and an intimation of the
fact was forwarded to Lord Durham at Quebec. Ill news, however,
travels fast, and before the official missive reached its destination his
Lordship learned the facts from the columns of an American newspaper.
He was cut to the heart, and felt as though he had received his death-blow.
The official despatch reached his hands a few days afterwards,
and he concluded that no good purpose was to be served by a longer
sojourn in Canada. He issued an indiscreet proclamation in which he
took the public into his confidence, and explained the nature of his
policy. In the same document he announced the disallowance of his
ordinance, and reflected upon the Home Government for not supporting
him. This proceeding was exceedingly injudicious, and afforded his
enemies a pretext for charging him with having appealed from the
advisers of his Sovereign to the judgment of a still rebellious colony.
The London Times referred to him as "the Lord High Seditioner," and
some of his brother peers declared him to be a more dangerous rebel than
Papineau. The Home Ministry felt bound to recall him; but he did not
wait for an official intimation to that effect. He threw up his place, and
sailed for England, leaving the administration in the hands of Sir John
Colborne. His petulance and irritability, however, which were in great
measure due to the enfeebled state of his constitution and the ruin of his
high hopes, did not render him oblivious of the duty which lay before
him--the duty of putting the Government in possession of the results of
his labours in the Canadas. In due course the celebrated _Report_ which
bears his Lordship's name was presented to Parliament, and from that
time down to the present it may truly be said that the soundness of his
colonial policy has stood in small need of vindication. The _Report_ was
not free from error. Considering its great length, and the wide variety
of matters with which it dealt, absolute freedom from error was well-nigh
impossible; but the errors were not numerous, and were almost wholly
confined to matters of detail. Enlightened opinion has long since
recorded its final verdict, to the effect that Lord Durham's _Report_ is one
of the most masterly State papers of the age. "It is not too much to say,"
remarks a recent writer,[329] "that in the course of the next twenty years
this report changed the colonial policy of the Empire, and the principles
laid down in it certainly converted Canada from a revolted colony into
one of the most loyal dependencies of the British Crown." It was to Mr.
Buller that Lord Durham was indebted for placing his ideas upon paper;[330]
but it was in the generous mind of his Lordship alone that the broad and
liberal policy had its origin. There can be no reasonable doubt that this
Canadian mission, and the thousand anxieties and worries which grew
out of it, materially shortened his Lordship's life. He died in little more
than a year after the publication of his Report. "Canada," said John
Stuart Mill, "has been the death of him." But though his life was thus
cut short almost before he had reached middle age, and though he failed
to climb the pinnacle of political eminence which had once been predicted
for him, he had not lived and toiled in vain. Canada should be especially
tender to his memory, for she is indebted to him for the greatest
political blessings which she now enjoys. And not Canada alone. "The
success of the policy," writes Justin McCarthy,[331] "lay in the broad
principles it established, and to which other colonial systems as well
as that of the Dominion of Canada owe their strength and security
to-day. One may say, with little help from the merely fanciful, that
the rejoicings of emancipated colonies might have been in his dying
ears as he sank into his early grave."

As all the world knows, the Report went very fully into all the most
important questions, internal as well as external, which agitated the
British North American Provinces. The principal defects in the
colonial system were surveyed with a searching eye. The evils arising
from the interference of a colonial department in details of local
government were pointed out with clearness and precision. The capacity
of the colonists for self-government was insisted on. A strong opinion
was expressed to the effect that the direction of their internal
affairs should be entrusted to the colonists themselves,[332] and that
interference on the part of the Home Government should be confined to
matters affecting the relations of the colonies to the mother-country.
The internal affairs of the respective colonies, more especially of
the two Canadas, were reviewed with a statesmanlike combination of
breadth and minuteness. The disastrous effects of Sir Francis Head's
administration of affairs in the Upper Province; the abuses in the
Crown Lands Department; the selfish policy of the Family Compact; the
long-standing grievance of the Clergy Reserves; the impediments to
industrial progress; the animosities in the Lower Province arising out
of difference of race--these and a score of other matters of the
highest public importance were expounded with singular clearness and
impartiality. Finally, a legislative union of the two Canadas was
confidently recommended as a remedy for the manifold evils by which
those colonies had long been beset. "In existing circumstances," said
the report, "the conclusion to which the foregoing considerations lead
me is that no time should be lost in proposing to Parliament a Bill
for repealing the 31st of George III."--the Constitutional Act of
1791--"restoring the union of the Canadas under one Legislature, and
reconstituting them as one Province."[333]

The principles enunciated in Lord Durham's Report found acceptance
with the English Ministry. A Bill founded upon its most important
recommendation was introduced into Parliament by Lord John Russell
during the session of 1839, and a Committee of the House of Commons
was appointed to consider and report thereon. The Committee found that
before they could deal with the subject in a manner befitting its
importance they required still further information. It was also
necessary to obtain the concurrence of the two Provinces whose
political future was so deeply concerned in the proposed experiment.
Charles Poulett Thomson, President of the Board of Trade, was fixed
upon as a proper emissary to obtain the requisite information, and to
gain the assent of the colonists. He went out to Canada in the
capacity of Governor-General in the autumn of 1839. How he succeeded
in his mission has been told at length in various works whose special
scope it is to deal with the subject. It will be sufficient to say
here that Mr. Thomson energetically devoted himself to the task of
carrying out the recommendations of his predecessor, and that, as a
result of his exertions, a Bill uniting the Provinces of Upper and
Lower Canada received the sanction of the Imperial Parliament. It was
by no means universally popular among the colonists. In Upper Canada
the Conservatives were almost universally opposed to it, and had only
been induced to yield a reluctant assent by the urgency and dexterous
finesse of the Governor. This, however, had served the necessary
purpose, and the Upper Province had thus been brought into line. In
the Lower Province the French-Canadian population were still more
hostile; but the constitution had long been suspended there, and no
Legislature was in being to give expression to the popular view. A
Crown-appointed Special Council was the only quasi-representative body
in existence in the Province, and it represented British interests
alone. It had easily been induced to yield assent to the proposed union,
which was accomplished without reference to the French-Canadians. A
peerage was conferred upon Mr. Thomson as the reward of his services,
and, as Lord Sydenham, he had the honour of inaugurating the union
which he had done so much to bring into being.

The Act of Union came into operation on the 10th of February, 1841, by
virtue of a royal proclamation issued five days previously. As has
been intimated, the measure was forced upon the French-Canadians who
formed the great majority of the population in the Lower Province. It
would serve no profitable purpose at the present day to discuss how
far such coercion was justifiable. The union served its end fairly
well for a few years, but it was a measure of temporary utility only.
A time arrived when it wholly failed to meet the requirements of our
Canadian polity, and when a larger scheme, on a broader basis and with
more comprehensive objects, succeeded to its place. But, considered in
the light of a makeshift, the union fully met the views of its
projectors. It was the means of bringing about Responsible
Government--that important concession for which the Reformers of Upper
Canada had contended ever since they had had a recognized existence. A
series of resolutions introduced by Robert Baldwin during the first
session of the First Parliament of United Canada admitted the great
principle. Certain amendments to these resolutions, proposed by Mr.
Samuel Bealey Harrison, the Provincial Secretary, received the
sanction of Parliament, and became part of the constitution of the
land. The amendments were to the same effect as the original
resolutions, but were somewhat more circumscribed in their
application. As finally adopted, they were acted upon by Lord Sydenham
and by his immediate successor, Sir Charles Bagot. During Sir Charles
Metcalfe's term of office as Governor-General a contest arose between
him and his Ministers as to the meaning and application of these
famous resolutions, and thenceforward Responsible Government in Canada
was practically suspended. It was not restored until after the arrival
of Lord Elgin, who enjoys the distinction of establishing on a firm
and secure basis the policy which his illustrious father-in-law[334]
had projected. All these matters are well worthy of the reader's
most careful attention, but they belong rather to the history of
Responsible Government than to the "Story of the Upper Canadian
Rebellion."[335] The Rebellion, then, though it failed in the field,
was very far from being an utter failure. It accelerated the just and
moderate constitutional changes for which the Reform party had for
years contended, and which, but for the Rebellion, would have been
long delayed. It led to Lord Durham's mission, which brought
everything else in its train. From Lord Durham's mission sprang the
union; from the union sprang the concession of Responsible Government,
the end of Family Compact domination, the establishment of municipal
institutions, reform in all the departments of State.

In the foregoing pages it has been shown that the Upper Canadian
Rebellion was the legitimate outcome of Upper Canadian misgovernment:
that it was the fitting sequel to a long course of oligarchical
tyranny and oppression. A majority of the population had for many
years been compelled to submit to the exactions of a minority. They
had been forced to contribute to the support of a Church with whose
teachings they were not in sympathy. Hundreds of them had groaned
beneath the abuses in the Land-granting Department. All the chief
avenues to power and fortune had been closed to them. Whenever a
public place of honour or emolument had become vacant, either in the
Legislative Council or elsewhere, it had been filled from the ranks of
their oppressors. The Province had been subject to the rule of a
succession of military Lieutenant-Governors who had no knowledge of or
sympathy with our local institutions, and who had been mere tools in
the hands of the dominant faction. The purely domestic concerns of the
colony had been subject to frequent interference on the part of a
Colonial Minister thousands of miles away, who was generally the
obedient servant of the Lieutenant-Governor, who in his turn
registered the decrees of the Compact. The possession of the franchise
had furnished no safeguard against these abuses, for success at the
polls had availed nothing. The Executive were not responsible to
public opinion, and could hold their places in spite of overwhelmingly
hostile votes in the Assembly. These, and a multitude of other
collateral evils, had been endured for many years with patience. When
patience had no longer been possible, they had been protested against
with energetic vehemence, but still with due regard to the laws and
constitution of the colony. As these protests not only proved
unavailing, but rather tended to the aggravation of the evils, a third
phase had eventually been reached, which had culminated in open revolt
on the part of a small portion of the population.

Those who actually joined in this revolt formed a very insignificant
proportion of the Reform party generally. They were confined to the
Radical element who were more especially subject to the influence of
Mackenzie. Had the entire body of Upper Canadian Reformers taken part
in the movement there can be little doubt that the Government would
have been at least temporarily overthrown. For a short period, indeed,
owing to the fatuity of the Government and their unwillingness to
believe in the reality of a rebellion, it seemed possible enough that
even the small band who actually took up arms might be successful in
capturing Toronto and seizing the Governor and his Councillors. Such a
contingency was possible up to the night of Tuesday, the 5th of
December, and if the insurgents had had a competent military head
there is no reason to doubt that they would have marched into the city
before that time.

It is perhaps worth while to speculate for a moment as to what
would have been the ultimate result of such a march. That the city
and the Government would have fallen into the hands of the insurgents
may almost be received as a foregone conclusion, for their number was
largely in excess of that of Colonel Fitz Gibbon's volunteers, and there
were hundreds of Radicals under arms in the city who were ready and
anxious to join them when they should once have proved that they were
thoroughly in earnest. Had the Government once fallen into their
hands they would have been reinforced from all parts of the Province,
and ultimately by the great bulk of the Reformers. The Rebellion would
thus have been approved by a decided majority of the entire population
of Upper Canada. A Provisional Government would have been formed with
Rolph at its head. Dr. Baldwin would almost certainly have joined it.
Mackenzie would have been restrained from interfering in such a manner
as to endanger its safety.[336] It is at least fairly to be
conjectured that Robert Baldwin and Mr. Bidwell, upon perceiving that
the revolt was acquiesced in by a majority of their fellow-countrymen,
would have also yielded their allegiance. Suppose all these things to
have taken place: supposing the petty rebellion to have thus assumed
the form of a successful revolution: what would have been the attitude
of the mother-country? Of her power to put down such a revolution
there can be no sort of question. But, is it by any means certain that
she would have felt herself called upon to restore the old order of
things by the strong hand, and contrary to the wishes of a majority of
the Upper Canadian people? Would she even have felt herself justified
in so doing? Her subsequent policy would almost seem to indicate a
negative reply to these questions. She sent out Lord Durham with a
view to enquire into popular grievances. Having learned the nature of
those grievances, she set herself to work to redress them. She
conceded Responsible Government, the absence of which had been the
chief factor of discontent. One by one she conceded every demand the
Reform party of Upper Canada, as a body, had ever put forward. It is
therefore not to be accepted as a matter of absolute certainty that
Great Britain would have felt herself constrained to put down the
Rebellion in the Upper Province, had it succeeded in subverting the
established order of things, and had it received the sanction of a
majority of the people.

Such speculations as these are not altogether futile, for they assist
in enabling us to form a correct estimate of the merits of the
Rebellion. In the face of such facts as are now admitted by persons of
every shade of political opinion, it is impossible to say that the
movement was unjustifiable. Nor can it truly be said that the price
paid for the benefits it conferred was out of proportion to those
benefits. Unhappily, however, a great part of the cost had to be borne
by those least entitled to bear it. The Reform party at large were
long saddled with the responsibility for the rising, and for the
filibustering expeditions which arose out of it. But in this as in all
other matters, time eventually went far to make the balance even.
Public opinion has long since done justice to the men who struggled to
obtain for Canada the advantages of the English constitution.
Everybody now admits that in the long contest which culminated in the
union of the Provinces the Reformers were in the right and their
opponents in the wrong.

It would be untrue, however, to say--as is often said by persons who
know no better--that all the changes for which the insurgents
contended have long since been conceded. There can be no greater
error. Any one who takes the trouble to read Mackenzie's proclamations
will readily perceive that the concessions have stopped far short of
his demands. Our Governors, our Judiciary, our Sheriffs and Justices
of the Peace, are not yet elected by the public voice.[337] Our
connection with the mother-country is still maintained. In a word, we
have not yet become a Republic. But the essential advantages of free
government have long been ours. They would probably have been ours ere
this if there had been no Rebellion, but our fathers would have had to
wait for them, and they had already waited long. Feeble and rash as
the movement undoubtedly was, it hastened the inevitable end, and the
benefits remain to us and to our children. Doubtless there are those
among us who believe that even such manifold abuses as existed half a
century ago in Upper Canada were preferable to Rebellion. But even
such persons will hardly deny that great allowance should be made for
those who took up arms. Others, who have less reverence for authority,
will echo the aspiration of Sir John Falstaff, quoted on the
title-pages to these volumes: "God be thanked for these rebels!" And
such a state of mind is quite consistent with a stern reprehension of
much that was done in those days under the cloak of Rebellion. It must
moreover be borne in mind that most of the rebels took up arms under a
misapprehension. They did so at the instigation of Mackenzie, who
represented to them that the task before them was an easy one, and
that the subversion of the Government could be effected without
bloodshed.[338] When they found out their mistake it was too late for
most of them to retreat. So far as Mackenzie himself is concerned, his
hatred against the Government was so great as to render him desperate.
His exact state of mind can only be surmised, but he probably felt
that he had no stake in the country as things then stood; that there
was at least a possibility of the success of the rising; and that if
failure came he could make his escape to the States, where his
situation would be no worse than it had long been in Canada. He is to
be blamed for misleading his adherents as to the state of public
feeling among the Reformers, and thus endangering their lives and
liberties for his own ends. For this, however, he might be forgiven.
Considering the state of his nerves at the time, some excuse might
even be made for his incendiarism, his highway robbery, his
abandonment of the rolls of revolt and other papers at Montgomery's,
whereby scores of his victims were exposed to the vengeance of the
Government. For his conduct after his arrival in the States: for his
setting on foot a series of plundering and murdering expeditions into
Canada by a mob of foreign ruffians: for his attempts to destroy
public monuments and to blow up public works on the Welland Canal: for
his outrageous published attacks upon all the more reputable among his
former colleagues: for his attempts to saddle upon them the
responsibility for his own ignominious failure: for his persistent
endeavours to bring about a disastrous international conflict: for his
shameless disregard for decency and truth: for his infamous published
attacks upon his virtuous young Sovereign and upon persons and things
which all but the most degraded of human beings hold in respect: for
these things it is impossible to find any adequate excuse whatsoever.
For these he stands arraigned at the bar of history, and no advocate
can hope to secure on his behalf a verdict of "Not guilty."

The ill-feeling against Canada did not cease along the frontier of the
United States until long after the filibustering expeditions were at
an end. From time to time some untoward event would occur to keep
alive the memory of the _Caroline_. In the month of November, 1840,
Alexander McLeod--who, it will be remembered, had fought on the
Government side at Montgomery's[339] and had subsequently accompanied
Captain Drew on a tour of inspection around Navy Island[340]--had
occasion to cross over from the Canadian side of the Niagara River to
Lewiston. He was Deputy Sheriff of the Niagara District, and an
ultra-loyalist. The population of Lewiston were almost entirely made
up of "sympathizers," and McLeod had long been an object of hostility
to them. They chose to believe that he had been concerned in the
cutting-out of the _Caroline_, though he had really had nothing to do
with that exploit, having spent the night of the 29th of December at a
cottage in Stamford village,[341] He was arrested, however, on a
charge of murder and arson--the alleged murder consisting of the
shooting of Durfee, and the arson consisting of the burning of the
_Caroline_. False evidence was produced to the effect that McLeod had
boasted of having been concerned in the cutting-out expedition,[342] and he
was committed to prison. In due course the Upper Canadian Government
represented the facts to the British Minister at Washington, who, on
behalf of the Home Government, avowed the destruction of the
_Caroline_ as the public act of persons in Her Majesty's service, and
demanded McLeod's release. The Government at Washington, however, did
not accede to the demand, alleging that the offence charged against
the prisoner was within the jurisdiction of the State of New York, and
not of the Federal Government. There could of course be no direct
international relations between the British Government and the State
of New York. McLeod was kept in durance in spite of renewed demands
for his release, and the relations between the States and Great
Britain, which, owing to various causes, had for some time past been
far from cordial, now became still more strained. After lying in jail
at Lockport for about eight months, the prisoner had himself taken
before the Supreme Court of New York under a writ of _Habeas Corpus_.
He gained nothing by his motion. The Court discharged the writ, and he
was remanded to jail. After long delay and much exercise of technical
ingenuity on the part of counsel on both sides, the trial took place
in October, 1841, before the Circuit Court at Utica. It lasted eight
days, and resulted in an acquittal. Had the prisoner been convicted
the instigators of the prosecution would probably have gained their
point, for it is tolerably certain that there would have been a costly
and disastrous war.

In the following spring, John Sheridan Hogan, a Canadian journalist
who resided at Hamilton, was twice arrested at Rochester on a similar
charge; but after being subjected to some delay, he was discharged
from custody without undergoing, as McLeod had been compelled to do, a
long term of imprisonment.[343] This was the last expiring effort of
the filibusters to bring about a war. On the 9th of August, 1842, the
Ashburton Treaty was signed, whereby all matters of difference between
Britain and the States were amicably adjusted. The discussions
respecting the Oregon boundary several years later seemed, for a brief
season, to afford a hope to the filibuster that he would again find
employment for his talents, but that danger too passed by. He was not
destined to play any further part in our country's history; though his
legitimate successor has been known to us in more recent times under
the guise of the Fenian raider.

FOOTNOTES:

[327] Lord Gosford, the Governor-General, was recalled early in 1838.
Thenceforward, until the arrival of Lord Durham, Sir John Colborne
filled the dual position of Civil Administrator and Commander-in-Chief
of the Forces.

[328] See _The Greville Memoirs_ (First Part) _passim_, and Le
Marchant's _Memoir of Earl Spencer_.

[329] Mr. Henry Reeve. See _The Greville Memoirs_ (Second Part);
American reprint, vol. i, p. 142, note. Mr. Reeve refers to the report
as embodying the opinions of Mr. Gibbon Wakefield and Sir William
Molesworth on Colonial policy. "What," he asks, "would have been the
result if the Ministers of George III. had treated the complaints of
the American colonies in 1774 with equal wisdom?"

[330] "The whole report was written by Charles Buller, with the
exception of two paragraphs on Church or Crown Lands, which were
composed by Gibbon Wakefield and Mr. Hanson."--_Ib_. The last-named
gentleman afterwards became Sir Richard Davies Hanson, Chief Justice
of South Australia.

[331] _A History of Our Own Times_, chap. iii.

[332] "The British people of the North American colonies are a people
on whom we may safely rely, and to whom we must not grudge power. For
it is not to the individuals who have been loudest in demanding the
change that I propose to concede the responsibility of the colonial
administration, but to the people themselves. Nor can I conceive that
any people, or any considerable portion of a people, will view with
dissatisfaction a change which would amount simply to this, that the
Crown should henceforth consult the wishes of the people in the choice
of its servants."--Report (Canadian folio reprint), p. 91.

[333] _Report_ (Canadian folio reprint), p. 104.

[334] By his marriage with Lady Mary Louisa Lambton, Lord Elgin was
the son-in-law of Lord Durham. "The real and effectual vindication of
Lord Durham's memory and proceedings," wrote Lord Elgin, "will be the
success of a Governor-General of Canada who works out his views of
Government fairly. Depend upon it, if this country is governed for a
few years satisfactorily, Lord Durham's reputation will be raised
beyond the reach of cavil."--See Lord Elgin's _Letters and Journals_,
p. 41. His Lordship's administration of Canadian affairs fully proved
the truth of these words.

[335] Whoever wishes to pursue these important topics further will
find a tolerably full exposition of them in _The Last Forty Years_.

[336] _Ante_, p. 94, note.

[337] See the Navy Island proclamation, the principal portions of
which are abridged _ante_, pp. 184, 185.

[338] See Lount's statement, _ante_, p. 79.

[339] _Ante_, pp. 128, 129.

[340] _Ante_, p. 203.

[341] _Ante_, p. 218.

[342] This evidence has been the means of transmitting McLeod's name
to posterity with an undeserved taint upon it. It is generally assumed
that he really made a false boast of his connection with the
_Caroline_ affair, and the so-called histories of Canada uniformly
represent him as having done so. About five years since I took some
pains to get at the truth about the matter, and ascertained beyond any
reasonable doubt that McLeod was guiltless of any false boasting or
misrepresentation. In a former work of mine I have endeavoured to
correct the erroneous impression. "It is tolerably certain that McLeod
never made any such boast. The only evidence of his having done so
proceeded from persons whose enmity he had incurred through the
discharge of his official duties. McLeod was not one of the most moral
or high-minded of men, but he was no swashbuckler, and was by no means
given to boasting about his achievements. Neither was he addicted to
vaunting his exploits at the expense of truth. It would moreover have
been the height of absurdity for him to lay claim to having been
engaged in such an expedition as that of the 29th of December, as the
names of all who took part in it were enrolled under the personal
direction of Colonel MacNab, and were all well known on the following
day. The simple fact is that the prosecution of McLeod was instigated
by a republican mob, and there was no difficulty in procuring any
evidence which the exigencies of the case might require."--_The Last
Forty Years_, vol. i., p. 173.

[343] Hogan's arrest appears to have been due to his own machinations
to bring about a war. (See Lindsey's _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., p.
280.) His tragical fate is still remembered by many residents of
Toronto.




CHAPTER XXXVII.

CONCLUSION.


Nothing further remains to be done except to glance at the subsequent
career of the leading insurgents who have figured in the foregoing
pages. During the tenure of office of the first Lafontaine-Baldwin
Ministry, repeated attempts were made to obtain a general amnesty for
all the rebel exiles. Sir Charles Metcalfe, who was then
Governor-General, was prepared to grant the request, but with an
express reservation in the cases of Papineau and Mackenzie. To this
reservation Mr. Lafontaine refused to yield, and the matter remained
in abeyance for six years.[344] The chief end of the Ministers was
however effected by a series of special pardons under the Great Seal,
which were issued at irregular intervals until most of the exiles had
returned. Among the earliest of those to whom clemency was extended
were Dr. Rolph, Dr. Morrison, Dr. Duncombe, David Gibson, Nelson
Gorham and John Montgomery, each of whom received a pardon during the
summer of 1843. All of them hastened to avail themselves of the
privilege thus afforded them of returning to Canada. Rolph and
Morrison once more took up their abode in Toronto, and resumed the
practice of their profession. Gibson returned to his farm on Yonge
Street, and Nelson Gorham to his former home at Newmarket. The sequel
of John Montgomery's life has already been outlined.[345] Dr. Duncombe
had formed plans for a permanent residence in the States, and merely
availed himself of the pardon in order to pay a visit to old friends
in Canada.[346] Other exiles were permitted to return from time to
time. The entry of a _nolle prosequi_ enabled even Papineau himself to
come back to his native land, where, as everybody knows, he re-entered
public life, and stigmatized Responsible Government as a cheat and a
fraud. But it was not until after the arrival of Lord Elgin, and after
the formation of the second Lafontaine-Baldwin Government, that a
general amnesty was granted for all offences arising out of the
Rebellion. The measure was introduced by Mr. Lafontaine during the
session of 1849, and encountered no serious opposition from any
quarter. It was rapidly passed through its several stages, and was
assented to by his Excellency on the 1st of February, when the session
was barely a fortnight old.[347]

The only conspicuous insurgent remaining to avail himself of the
provisions of the Amnesty Bill was Mackenzie, whose life, since his
discharge from Rochester jail, had been one of almost continual
suffering and deprivation. While it is impossible to close one's eyes
to his many grave faults and failings, it is equally impossible to
contemplate this portion of his life without commiseration. He drank
the cup of poverty to the dregs, and too often knew the woes of want.
He had entirely lost his sympathy for republican institutions, and
bitterly regretted that he had ever sought to impose them upon the
people of Canada. "Over three years' residence in the United States,"
he wrote, towards the end of 1840, "and a closer observation of the
condition of society here, have lessened my regrets at the results of
the opposition raised to England in Canada, in 1837-8. I have beheld
the American people give their dearest and most valued rights into the
keeping of the worst enemies of free institutions. I have seen
monopoly and slavery triumph at their popular elections." These words
appeared in the last number of his _Gazette_, the publication of which
had been continued, with more or less regularity, during his
imprisonment. For some months after his liberation he appears to
have lived in constant dread of being kidnapped and delivered up to
the Canadian authorities, who are represented by his biographer as
resorting to every expedient to get him into their power "for the
purpose of strangling him."[348] Judge Jones is said to have been
possessed by "a revengeful thirst for the blood of a fallen foe," and
to have dragged the ermine through "the dirty waters of
insurrectionary strife"[349] in order to gratify this thirst. He is
distinctly charged with endeavouring to influence "an American Judge"
to exchange Mackenzie for a number of Prescott and Windsor
prisoners,[350] in which endeavour, it is said, "there can be no
question" that he had "the authority of the Colonial Executive."[351]
"The attempt to obtain possession of a political refugee who had
sought an asylum in another country," writes Mr. Lindsey, "will
forever remain a blot upon his memory."[352] I am wholly unaware of
the evidence upon which these extraordinary statements rest, but it is
incumbent upon any one bringing such charges to assign authority, and
the authority should be something much more worthy of credit than the
unsupported word of Mackenzie. It seems much more probable that the
unhappy man's fears were in large measure the result of poverty, ill
health and broken spirits. But he had sufficient grounds for
uneasiness, without conjuring up imaginary bugbears. He found himself
unable to obtain a livelihood, and was reduced nearly to the point of
starvation. One of his whimsies took the form of opening a law office
in Rochester. He had no legal qualifications for the practice of law,
and the local courts refused to furnish him with the requisite
authority. But his fitness was never called in question, for no
clients came, and the domestic larder was often empty. His desperate
circumstances did not tend to restore his former esteem for the social
and political institutions of the United States. "The more I see of
this country," he wrote, in 1842, "the more do I regret the attempt at
revolution at Toronto and St. Charles."[353] Being, as he himself
admits, "starved out"[354] of Rochester, he removed to New York in the
summer of 1842. He soon obtained a situation there in connection with
the Mechanics' Institute. "He refused situations in two or three
newspaper offices," says Mr. Lindsey, "because he would not occupy a
subordinate position on the press; and this disposition to be
everything or nothing was no bad illustration of his character."[355]
Assuming this to be a correct statement of Mackenzie's motives, the
inevitable inference to be deduced is that he was both heartless and
selfish; that his petty conceit outweighed his affection for his wife
and children. If he had had a proper regard for his family he would
gladly have accepted any employment, subordinate or otherwise, that
came in his way, in order that he might thereby be enabled to provide
them with the necessaries of life. And if he had possessed anything
like a proper estimate of his own qualifications he would have known
that he was unfit to fill any other than a subordinate position on the
press of New York. In the beginning of 1844 he threw up his situation
in the Mechanics' Institute, apparently under the expectation that he
was about to receive a more lucrative place in the Customs. The new
place, however, proved much less satisfactory than had been
anticipated, and he devoted his spare time to the writing of books. He
wrote and published a life of Benjamin Franklin Butler and a life of
Martin Van Buren, neither of which yielded much recompense. In 1846 he
obtained employment on the New York _Tribune_, having apparently
survived his determination not to accept a subordinate position. He
for some time represented the paper at Albany during the session of
the State Legislature. His situation afforded him the means of seeing
further beneath the surface of republican institutions than he had
ever before been enabled to do, and he found that they did not improve
upon acquaintance. "I frankly confess," he wrote, in 1847, "that had I
passed nine years in the United States before, instead of after, the
outbreak, I am very sure I would have been the last man in America to
be engaged in it."[356]

And so the years dragged on with him. He was quite unable to
accumulate anything, and was still often hard put to it to provide
ways and means. He was heartily sick of New York, and of the United
States generally. The great desire of his soul was to be permitted to
return to the land which he had once so contemptuously reviled. In the
beginning of February, 1849, as has been seen,[357] Mr. Lafontaine's
Amnesty Bill received the royal assent. There was thus nothing to
prevent Mackenzie from gratifying his great longing by returning to
Canada. In the fulness of his heart he addressed a missive to Earl
Grey, Colonial Secretary in the Home Government. "A course of careful
observation during the last eleven years," he wrote, "has fully
satisfied me that had the violent movements in which I and many others
were engaged on both sides of the Niagara proved successful, that
success would have deeply injured the people of Canada, whom I then
believed I was serving at great risks...I have long been sensible of
the errors committed during that period...No punishment that power
could inflict, or nature sustain, would have equalled the regrets I
have felt on account of much that I did, said, wrote and
published...There is not a living man on this continent who more
sincerely desires that British government in Canada may long
continue."

So completely had he boxed the compass of political opinion. It is
certainly no reproach to any man to learn wisdom in the school of
adversity, and Mackenzie's lesson had been a long and bitter one. A
review of his subsequent career, however, leads irresistibly to the
conclusion that he had in reality learned nothing during his exile:
that he was the same erratic, unstable creature that he had ever been,
and that his views, political and otherwise, were from first to last
mere reflections of his outward circumstances. His beliefs changed
with the nature of his occupation and his personal surroundings. Every
man is to some extent the creature of circumstances, but Mackenzie,
notwithstanding his strong individuality, was the veriest shuttlecock
in the hands of fate. It is not difficult to conceive of him in the
rdle of either a hot-gospeller of the Middle Ages, or of a devoted
servant of the Inquisition.

His first experiences after his return to Canada were not pleasant
ones. He did not return direct to Toronto, but proceeded from New York
to Montreal, where Parliament was then in session. He visited the
Legislative library, and was engaged in consulting the catalogue when
he was recognized by Colonel Prince, who, it will be remembered, had
good reason for holding the days of 1837-'38 in especial abhorrence.
The Colonel, with characteristic impetuosity, approached his side and
threatened to kick him down stairs if he did not at once leave the
room a not very valiant threat, as Mackenzie was very small and puny
in appearance, being not much larger than a well-grown lad of
thirteen. Mackenzie immediately left the library. His assailant soon
afterwards expressed regret for his conduct, and was forgiven.[358]
The truth is that the arch-rebel's return to Canada was exceedingly
ill-timed. The Province from end to end was in a state of great
excitement owing to the debates on the Rebellion Losses Bill, which
was not the least burdensome of the legacies bequeathed to posterity
by the troubles of 1837-'38. The Tory party were in a ferment. Every
allowance should be made for the feelings which animated them. That
they should oppose the measure was nothing more than might have been
expected, and had their opposition been restricted to ordinary
constitutional means, the Government and the Province at large would
have had no just grounds of complaint. They, however, proved their own
inconsistency by resorting to methods which they had spent their lives
in denouncing. They refused to bow to the popular will, set on foot
serious riots, mobbed the Governor-General in the public streets,
burned the Parliament Buildings to the ground, raided the houses of
prominent members of the Ministry, and wrought irreparable havoc
generally. Many of them soon afterwards joined in a project for the
annexation of Canada to the United States, thereby giving the lie to
all their most loudly-vaunted professions. They proved conclusively
that their loyalty was of that spurious kind which is zealous
only while the sun of prosperity shines upon it. What would have been
their attitude had they been subjected to such grievances as beset the
Upper Canadian Reform Opposition in ante-Rebellion times?

Such was the state of affairs at the time of Mackenzie's return. The
famous Bill passed its third reading in the Assembly on the 9th of
March, and in the Upper House on the 15th. A week afterwards Mackenzie
reached Toronto. His arrival was the signal for a disturbance
which might almost be called a riot. The house in which he was quartered
was assailed with stones and bricks. He himself was burned in
effigy, as also were Attorney-General Baldwin and Solicitor-General
Blake, both of whom had made powerful speeches on behalf of the obnoxious
Bill. For several days it was unsafe for the returned exile to venture
out of doors. The excitement, however, soon abated, and local
society settled down to its normal condition. The figure of the whilome
editor of the _Colonial Advocate_ was once more a familiar object on the
public streets of Toronto. During the following year his family came
over from New York, and he thenceforth found a permanent home among
us. The sufferings he had undergone formed a passport to the sympathies
of many who had known him in other days. He continued to be more or
less straitened for means, but he obtained a certain amount of employment
from the Reform newspapers, and his circumstances, in comparison
with what they had sometimes been during his exile, might almost be
termed prosperous. His most deep-seated grievance at this time arose
from the fact that the Reform leaders ignored his existence. He besieged
Mr. Baldwin with applications on the subject of his losses arising out of
the revolt which he himself had been the principal instrument in bringing
about. After his flight from Montgomery's his creditors had proceeded
against him as an absconding debtor, and whatever property he had left
behind had been sold by due course of law. He now laid claim to be
reimbursed to the extent of twelve thousand dollars, alleging that
Sheriff Jarvis and others had sacrificed and embezzled his effects.
Mr. Baldwin, well knowing that there was no just ground for these
charges, refused to investigate them. With regard to the pecuniary
claim, it was too preposterous to be entertained. The claimant had not
been worth a dollar at the time of his flight from Canada. It is
probable enough that his effects were not sold to the best advantage,
but that was almost inevitable in the case of an absconding debtor,
and it would have been outrageous to attempt to saddle the
responsibility for it upon any one but himself. The country had just
passed through a serious crisis owing to the urging of recompense for
rebellion losses, and the time was not propitious for further
experiments in that direction, even in the case of genuine and
meritorious claims. Mr. Baldwin's refusal to accede to the demand,
added to his icy coldness of demeanour, aroused Mackenzie's bile, and
he began to assail the Government through the press upon every
available pretext.

A growing feeling of dissatisfaction with the Government also arose in
the minds of a good many enthusiastic Reformers, who regarded the
ministerial policy as being too slow for the times. The feeling was
carefully nursed by Dr. Rolph, James Lesslie (proprietor of the
_Examiner_), Peter Perry, David Christie, Caleb Hopkins, and William
McDougall. The last-named gentleman was then a young man under thirty
years of age, who had recently come prominently to the front as an
advocate of advanced Reform opinions. These gentlemen, with others,
were chiefly instrumental in forming a new political wing, which soon
came to be known as the Clear Grit party.[359] Their platform included
many reforms which have long since been accomplished. Mackenzie still
retained a large measure of energy, and was as ready to take up the
trade of an agitator as he had ever been. He professed to be entirely
independent of any and all political parties, but he was in reality an
adherent of the Clear Grits, and joined in their crusade against the
Ministry. He was encouraged to pursue his career of agitation by the
prospect of a seat in Parliament, and in the spring of 1851 he
presented himself to the electors of Haldimand as a candidate for
their suffrages. His opponent was Mr. George Brown, editor and
proprietor of the Toronto _Globe_. Various circumstances operated to
defeat Mr. Brown. The constituency contained a large Roman Catholic
population, and Mr. Brown was then known as a strenuous champion of
Protestantism. He was moreover supposed to be bound up with the
fortunes of the Government, which had steadily lost ground in the more
Radical constituencies. At all events, Mackenzie was returned at the
head of the poll, and at the ensuing session he took his seat in the
Assembly. He acted with the Clear Grits, and did his utmost to defeat
the Government. Among the planks in the Clear Grit platform the
abolition of the Court of Chancery occupied a prominent place. This
plank was taken up during the session with great fervour. Mackenzie
brought forward a motion for the abolition of the Court, and for the
conferring of a larger equitable jurisdiction upon the Courts of
Common Law. In his speech in support of the motion he betrayed, as
might have been expected, a very inadequate knowledge of the
subject-matter. The Court of Chancery, however, had long been
unpopular in Upper Canada. It had recently been remodelled, and
brought under better influences than formerly. Mr. Blake had been
appointed Chancellor, and had done much to take away the reproach
which attached to its name; but sufficient time had not elapsed to
enable him to make his presence widely felt, and the ill-repute of the
Court still continued. Many Upper Canadian members favoured its
abolition, and now supported Mackenzie's proposal. By means of the
French-Canadian votes the Government were able to defeat the motion,
but Mr. Baldwin felt the situation very keenly. It was under his
auspices that the Court had been remodelled, and he felt himself
responsible for it. The question was one of purely local application.
It affected the Upper Province only, and, though he was no stickler
for the double-majority principle, he did not feel justified in
clinging to office when a majority of members from that Province had
signified their disapproval of a local measure which had been carried
through Parliament under his own eye. In a word, he regarded the vote
as a want of confidence in himself on the part of the Upper Canadians,
and announced his resignation accordingly. This was more than the
members had bargained for. A number of them hastened to beg him to
reconsider his decision, alleging that they would by no means have
supported Mackenzie's motion had they supposed that their doing so
would have produced such a result. Mr. Baldwin, however, having fully
made up his mind, was not to be turned from his purpose, and retired
from the Ministry. Soon afterwards Mr. Lafontaine followed his
example, and Mr. Hincks was entrusted with the formation of a new
Administration.

Mr. Hincks addressed himself to the task before him. Mr. Morin,
who was the legitimate Parliamentary successor of Mr. Lafontaine,
successfully undertook to adjust the Lower Canadian membership in
the new Government. Mr. Hincks personally assumed responsibility
for the Upper Canadian portion. His first care was to endeavour to
reconcile the discordant elements in the Reform party. The Clear Grits
had attained to such influence that it was impossible to form a stable
Government without their assistance. Dr. Rolph, who had become their
ruling spirit, was not in Parliament. Since his return he had devoted
himself to the practice of his profession, and had paid very little
attention to politics until after the formation of the second
Lafontaine-Baldwin Government in 1848. He had founded a medical school
in Toronto, which had already attracted to itself much of the highest
talent in the country. As a medical professor and teacher he seemed to
have found his true vocation in life. He was looked up to by the entire
profession, and his pupils conceived for him an ardent enthusiasm. He
was fairly prosperous, and seemed to have settled down in a fitting
groove for the remainder of his days. But when a Reform Government
had come into power he had once more begun to take part in political
discussions. Among the long-standing abuses which had not been
swept away by the union were the Clergy Reserves, upon which, it will
be remembered, Dr. Rolph had in former times delivered powerful
utterances. It had been expected that Mr. Baldwin and his colleagues
would take immediate steps for the removal of this crying grievance.
Before any effective steps could be taken by the Canadian Legislature,
however, it was necessary to obtain the repeal of an Imperial Statute.
The Government had moved in the matter, but the more advanced wing
of the Reformers considered that the question had not been taken up
with sufficient vigour, and that, in a word, the Ministry were
disposed to shirk the question. This belief, combined with other
sources of dissatisfaction, had led to a widespread agitation, and
ultimately to the formation of the Clear Grit party above referred to.
Dr. Rolph's feelings on the Clergy Reserve question had undergone no
change with the lapse of years, and he took a leading part in the
agitation. The new party hailed him as their leader, and proposed that
he should enter Parliament. Such was the aspect of affairs when Mr.
Hincks addressed himself to the task of constructing a new Government
in the autumn of 1851. It was necessary that the Clear Grit element
should be conciliated, and that they should be represented in the
Administration. Approaches were accordingly made to Dr. Rolph, who
accepted office upon condition that Mr. Malcolm Cameron--a gentleman
of advanced opinions, who had held office in the late Government, and
who had long been an important factor in public life in this
country--should also have an office assigned to him. The Doctor became
Commissioner of Crown Lands, and was returned to the Assembly by the
constituency of Norfolk, which he had represented in ante-Rebellion
times.

There seems to be little doubt that Dr. Rolph contributed materially
to drive Mr. Baldwin out of public life. It has been seen that Mr.
Baldwin resigned his seat in the late Government in consequence of the
Upper Canadian vote on the Chancery Bill. Dr. Rolph was known as
an opponent of the Court of Chancery, and all his influence had been
cast against it. While the question had been under discussion he had
written vigorous articles in the _Examiner_ which could hardly have failed
to produce an effect upon public opinion. Rolph's attitude throughout
the ensuing election campaign, and throughout the various complicated
party negotiations which were set on foot at this juncture, was one of
hostility to Mr. Baldwin. The latter, who was defeated at the polls by
an obscure Clear Grit candidate, found himself practically supplanted
by Dr. Rolph in the leadership of an influential wing of Upper Canadian
Reformers. Under the circumstances it was natural that he should
conceive an ill opinion of the Doctor, and from that time forward there
appears to have been no intercourse between them. The relations
between them had never been intimate since Rolph's return from exile,
but they had been accustomed to interchange the ordinary civilities of
life, and to confer together upon matters of common interest to both.
I can find no evidence that they ever met or corresponded subsequent
to the session of 1851, and Mr. Baldwin's sentiments from that time forward
would seem to have precluded any such meeting or correspondence.[360]

And here it becomes necessary to devote a paragraph to the very
remarkable individuality of Dr. Rolph. His general characteristics have
been described with some minuteness in the first volume of this work.[361]
It has been seen that he was a man whom it was not easy to understand;
who often acted from hidden motives, and who took no one into his full
confidence. He was by nature subtle and secretive, much more ready to
receive information than to impart it, and ever on his guard against
verbal indiscretion. These qualities had doubtless been fostered and
developed by his life while in exile. Any one who studies his career with
an honest desire to arrive at the truth will be driven to the conclusion
that his misfortunes had a deteriorating effect upon him. During his
residence in the States he must have been conscious of having wasted
his talents and shipwrecked his life. After his return he found himself
looked coldly upon by persons who had once held him in high respect
and esteem. He knew that his intellectual powers fitted him to take a
high place, and ambition was not dead within his breast. It affords
matter for regret that he allowed himself to be beguiled into re-entering
the political arena. As a professional teacher he had found his niche,
and a wide sphere of usefulness was open before him. In this capacity
there was not another man in the country to be compared to him. On
the other hand, there were scores of second and third-rate men far better
fitted for public life than he. Politically speaking, his mind had not
grown since the old days when he had stood up side by side with Marshall
Spring Bidwell in the Upper Canada Assembly, and faced a ministerial
phalanx with undaunted front. He had paid little attention to politics
during his absence from the country, and, in a political sense, the world
had marched past him. He never fully regained what he had lost.
When he re-entered public life he was not far short of threescore years
old; an age at which not one man in ten thousand is susceptible to new
influences and impressions. He had no enthusiasm for the duties of his
department, which were for the most part performed perfunctorily or
through the medium of subordinates. It was a time of chicanery and
finesse in all the walks of public life. Few politicians trusted each other,
and caballing and plotting were the order of the day. The great objects
which ministers had assigned to themselves upon assuming the reins of
power were in large measure lost sight of. All their dexterity was
required in order that they might be enabled to keep their places. In
such diversions as these Rolph appears to have had his full share. He
had not that high-minded singleness of purpose which had ever been a
motive power with Baldwin, and which had impelled the latter to regard
the loss of office, and even loss of personal prestige, as altogether
secondary considerations when duty clearly pointed out the way. He seems
to have pursued a tortuous course almost from the moment when he succeeded
to office. It is tolerably certain that it would have been impossible
for him or indeed any other Upper Canadian just then to hold office on
any other conditions, and I am far from believing that he was one whit
more culpable in this respect than were most of his colleagues; but he
was a man exceptionally endowed: a man from whom his country had a
right to expect better things. It is sad to think that his later public
career went far to dimmish the splendid reputation which he had gained
in earlier times.

No sooner was Rolph's name mooted as a candidate for Parliament
than Mackenzie came forward and hailed the event as one of the most
propitious signs of the times. All through the ensuing campaign his
pen was gratuitously employed in Rolph's service. Of Mr. Hincks he
professed to be more or less suspicious, but he sounded Dr. Rolph's
praises in every newspaper to the columns of which he could gain
access.[362] No sooner had the Doctor assumed the duties of his office
than Mackenzie began to urge his alleged claims for recompense for
property lost or destroyed in 1837. He continued to urge them with
ever-recurring pertinacity. Some idea of the nature of his appeals on
the subject may be gathered from the letter published in a note to a
former chapter.[363] Thenceforward for nearly a twelvemonth scarcely a
week elapsed during which he did not pester Rolph with long
communications on the subject.[364] Now, there is good reason to
believe that Rolph would willingly have served him in this matter had
it been practicable to do so. The Doctor was no purist. He would
doubtless have been ready enough to provide for Mackenzie at the
public expense, and thereby disarm his opposition. But the claim was
utterly preposterous, and had the Government attempted to perpetrate
such a shameless job their very existence would have been imperilled.
Little more than two years had elapsed since the country had been
shaken from end to end by the Rebellion Losses Bill. The fury of the
Opposition had risen to a height unprecedented in our history. It had
led to the stoning of the Governor-General, the destruction of the
Halls of the Legislature, and to the permanent removal of the seat of
Government from Montreal. What might be expected to be the result if a
supplementary Rebellion Losses measure should now be introduced to
reward the individual who had himself been the prime factor in
bringing about the revolt in Upper Canada? Even had the claim itself
been genuine, no Government would have dared to venture on such an
experiment; and in point of fact the claim was utterly without merit.
Mackenzie had sustained little or no pecuniary loss by the Rebellion,
for the very sufficient reason that he had had little or nothing to
lose.[365] The subject appears to have been informally discussed at
the Council Board, the members of which were not long in arriving at
the conclusion that nothing could be done. No sooner had this
intimation been conveyed to Mackenzie than he began to sharpen his
knife for the Government in general and Dr. Rolph in particular.

About this time Mackenzie began to betray unmistakable symptoms
of mental aberration. His malady was made manifest in various ways,
though it was not until a short time before his death that it had made
sufficient progress to incapacitate him for the ordinary pursuits of life.
He had always been impulsive and eccentric, but up to this period, if
there had been any organic disease, it had not declared itself. The
highest medical authorities in the land now pronounced him to be on the
high road to lunacy.[366] There can be no doubt in any reasonable mind
that their diagnosis was correct, and from this time forward indignation
at his conduct must give way to commiseration for his mental state.
Dr. Rolph learned that Mackenzie was making preparations for an attack
upon him in the Assembly in connection with the flag of truce affair of
the 5th of December, 1837. It became known to him that an attempt
would be made to convict him of violation of the flag, and he set himself
to work to procure evidence in rebuttal. There were two persons living,
either of whom could adduce conclusive evidence on the subject. One of
these was Mr. Baldwin, who had been Sir Francis Head's emissary jointly
with Dr. Rolph himself. The other was Mr. Hugh Carmichael, who had
been the actual bearer of the flag, and who at this time resided in the
township of King, a few miles from Toronto. The relations between
Rolph and Baldwin at this time have already been indicated. They
were such that the former was in no position to ask a favour of the
latter, or even to make a request from him of any kind, unless under very
urgent circumstances. There was, however, nothing to prevent an application
to Carmichael, who could have no reasonable objection to state
the simple facts. Dr. Rolph accordingly wrote to his partner in Toronto,
Dr. W. T. Aikins, requesting him to call upon Carmichael and obtain
his written testimony. Dr. Aikins obeyed, and procured the very clear
and explicit statement which appears in a note on a former page.[367]

The statement was not obtained much too soon, as an opportunity
soon afterwards presented itself to Mackenzie for an assault upon Rolph..
On the night of Thursday, the 28th of October, 1852, Mr. W. H. Boulton,
who sat in the Assembly as one of Toronto's representatives, from his
place in the House made a personal attack upon the Doctor in connection
with the flag of truce.[368] He spoke with great heat, and his manner
was as offensive as his matter. He stated that he did not desire to
charge the Commissioner of Crown Lands with being a traitor and a
betrayer of confidence--"but," said he, "I cannot help stating that in
1837 I _did_ hear of an honourable gentleman who accepted the most
confidential and honourable position that could be assigned to man by
the hands of the representative of his Sovereign, to bear a flag of
truce to a number of deluded people; but instead of suggesting peace,
he recommended fire and slaughter to his fellow-citizens, and then
skulked from the country, leaving his victims to ruin and misery.
Whether the individual referred to was the honourable member for
Norfolk I will not pretend to decide; but the name of this celebrated
character was John Rolph, who appears by the journals to have been
expelled the House for reason by a majority of thirty-seven to two."

These remarks produced a decided sensation in the Assembly. Dr. Rolph
denied that he had been guilty of anything dishonourable in connection
with the flag of truce, and alleged that Mr. Baldwin was well aware of
this fact.[369] He also referred to the statement of the flagbearer in
his possession. The matter was brought before the Assembly a second
time by Mr. Boulton, when Dr. Rolph reiterated his former statements,
which appear to have been finally accepted by the former as
satisfactory. Now, with respect to the flag of truce, Rolph's
position, according to the best opinion I have been able to form, was
quite tenable. The embassy had been practically forced upon him: that
is to say, he would have rendered himself open to suspicion and danger
of arrest had he refused to accept it.[370] Even had he conferred
privately with the rebel leaders on the occasion of his first visit to
their camp, it would be possible to find strong excuses for him. But
the weight of evidence goes to show that he had no secret conference
with them until the second visit, when the embassy was at an end. This
matter has already been considered at length.[371] The flag-bearer's
statement, if true, was decisive; and Rolph further attested the
evidence of Mr. Baldwin. It is to be regretted that Mr. Baldwin did
not feel it to be his duty to come forward with his evidence at this
juncture, as his bare word would have set the question forever at
rest. It can hardly be supposed that his evidence would have been
unfavourable to Rolph, or the latter, knowing the truth, would never
have suggested him as a witness.[372] But, as has been seen, Baldwin
was on ill terms with Rolph at the time, and could hardly be expected
to go out of his way to do him a service. He had retired from public
life, and was not disposed to mix himself up in the quarrels of those
who had in great measure supplanted him. Had any express demand been
made upon him, he would doubtless have told his story; but he
apparently did not feel called upon to volunteer a statement, more
especially as he had given a succinct account of the matter in dispute
nearly fifteen years before.[373] So far as the flag of truce is
concerned, then, Dr. Rolph apparently had no reason to fear the
minutest investigation. But the whole subject was naturally
distasteful to him. He was conscious of having been connected with a
movement which had proved an ignominious failure, and he desired that
the theme, so far as he was concerned, should be consigned to
oblivion. The nature of his connection with the revolt has been set
forth in these volumes. He had certainly had nothing to do with
originating the Rebellion, nor had he taken any actual part in
hostilities; but he had cooperated with Mackenzie as to preliminaries,
and it was to his message to Gibson[374] that the rising had been
accelerated by three days. Under such circumstances he could not
truthfully deny that he had been concerned in the affair, and
Mackenzie was thus enabled to place him in an utterly false position,
and to arouse prejudices against him which have not yet been wholly
cast aside.

Barely a week had elapsed after this episode when it came to
Rolph's ears that Mackenzie was making ready for a ferocious onslaught
upon him through the press and in the Assembly. The attack in
the Assembly was in secret session. It was replied to by Rolph in
caustic language, so far as Mackenzie was concerned, but he took special
care to implicate no other of the insurgents. A few days later it
became known that Mackenzie was about to start a newspaper,[375] and
erelong the paper itself--the _Message_--appeared. No one who examines
a few numbers of this production will entertain much doubt as to the
editor's unsoundness of mind. It was an _omnium gatherum_ of scrappy,
egotistic, puerile, unconsidered odds and ends, many of which had no
bearing upon any practical question, and which served only to give
currency to the writer's malignity against persons whom he disliked.
Dr. Rolph came in for an especial share of this malignity. All that a
diseased ingenuity could devise against him was published to the world
without the slightest regard to honour or truth. The Doctor was powerless
to make any effective reply to these attacks, as he could not enter
upon the discussion of Rebellion topics without compromising other persons
who were still living,[376] Altogether, his hands were pretty effectually
tied, and he was compelled to endure his stripes as best he might.
The attacks could not seriously affect his political position, as Mackenzie
and his paper had no appreciable political influence; but no man likes
to see himself periodically held up before the community as a false and
cowardly traitor. Through this ordeal, however, Rolph was compelled
to pass so long as he remained in public life, and even afterwards. In
1854 Mackenzie issued a pamphlet entitled _Head's Flag of Truce_, which
was largely made up of extracts from various numbers of the _Message_.
It was chiefly directed against Rolph, though Mr. Hincks and other
members of the Government also came in for a large measure of the
writer's denunciation.

Dr. Rolph continued in the Government until the formation of the
MacNab-Morin coalition in September, 1854, though he had been disaffected
for some time previously, and had ceased to be in full accord
with his colleagues. Upon his resignation he joined the ranks of the
Opposition, where he remained until the close of the then-existing
Parliament in 1857, when he retired from public life. It is matter for
regret that he ever ventured upon the troubled sea of politics after his
return from exile, as by so doing he certainly detracted from the high
reputation which he had gained in the old Assembly of Upper Canada.
He accomplished little or nothing for his party, and considerably less
than nothing for himself. He was too old to adjust himself to the
requirements of a new generation, and gave himself up to the personal
and party exigencies of the time, rather than to any mature efforts of
statesmanship. During his tenure of office he made many bitter
enemies, and few or no friends. His aims appear to have been largely
selfish, though by no means sordid, as he never took advantage of any
of the opportunities for enriching himself which must have come in his
way. His political pursuits seriously interfered with the success of his
medical school, and he remained a poor man for the rest of his life.
Indeed, it is hard to conceive of any man with less care or thought about
pecuniary matters. He was no financier, and gave himself no concern
about ways and means. He was moreover free-handed, if not large-hearted,
and every year gave away more than he could well afford in
benefactions to the poor. His sympathies were easily worked upon. At
any tale of woe or suffering his heart and purse-strings readily flew
open. He also became the prey of professional borrowers, who depleted
his pockets without any thought of repayment. And, to his credit be it
said, he was no respecter of persons in his charities, but was as ready to
relieve the needs of his bitterest enemy as of his dearest friend. At a
time when Mackenzie was pouring out concentrated vitriol upon him
from week to week, and doing his utmost to ruin him in public estimation,
Rolph was ministering to the necessities of a needy member of
Mackenzie's own immediate family, who had no sort of claim upon him.[377]
According to the testimony of those who knew him best, he would with
equal readiness have given of his substance to Mackenzie himself.

Mackenzie continued to represent Haldimand in the Assembly until
the month of August, 1858, when owing, no doubt, to poverty and a
consciousness of failing powers he resigned his seat. He had long
ceased to exert any influence upon public opinion. In fact it can hardly
be said that he had ever possessed any such influence after his re-entry
into political life. Upon his return to Canada, he, like Rolph, had
discovered that this country had not stood still during his absence.
New men and new ideas had come to the front. He found himself
nobody where he had once been a considerable personage. He could
still make a rousing speech to a crowd of electors in the country, but he
found that in the House he was merely tolerated out of consideration for
his age and his afflictions. His conduct, in fact, soon caused him to be
looked upon as a sort of licensed joker in Parliament. He seemed to
have no conception of how much there was in his past life which it
would have become him to forget, or at least to permit others to forget.
In his speeches in the Assembly he was constantly dragging in what he
meant to be playful allusions to the troubles of 1837-'88; apparently
forgetful of the fact that those troubles had been no matter for jest to
the families of Lount, Matthews, and many others whose lives had been
permanently and hopelessly darkened through Mackenzie's own counsels.
His biographer records, with much apparent complacency, that "he
always treated the subject jocosely." It is clear that he ought to have
carefully avoided the subject altogether, and that if it had been forced
upon him he should have treated it as a tragedy and not as a comedy.
It had been no comedy to his victims, nor to the members of his own
family. His biographer also appears to regard it as worthy of emulation
that Mackenzie refused to accept office under the Government: that, in
a word, he "treated the offers as little short of insults, such was his
almost morbid jealousy of an attack upon his independence."[378] Surely
the writer of these words cannot have sufficiently weighed their effect.
Independence is a good thing, but for Mackenzie independence was an
unattainable luxury. He was miserably poor. He had a large family
dependent upon him for bread. His first duty was to them, and if they had
not been of less moment in his eyes than the pitiful little self-conceit
which he termed "independence," he would gladly have accepted an office
which would have enabled him to relieve them from want. Independence!
when he was in debt to everybody who would trust him, and
when he borrowed money from every one who would lend! Independence!
when he pestered one political friend after another to indorse his
paper, in order that he might be able to raise money thereon! Independence!
when no rebuff, however rude, could intimidate him from
going back with the same request to the same individual time after
time, frequently to be again repulsed with words which to a really
proud man would have been charged with the bitterness of death itself!
Independence! when an appeal on his behalf had to be made to the
Reformers of Upper Canada to keep starvation from his door, and to
provide him with a home in which he might find shelter from the
weather! And it was surely a strangely distorted sense of independence
which impelled him to refuse an office at the hands of the Government
when he was at the same time pressing them to grant him twelve
thousand dollars upon a claim which, as he well knew, had no
foundation in right. Such independence as this is spurious
independence: as spurious as was the loyalty of those Tories who
inveighed against Rebellion in 1837 and signed the annexation
manifesto in 1849.

The Government had every disposition to stretch a point in his favour.
They went as far to relieve him as they could, and paid him a
considerable sum by way of recompense for services rendered before the
Rebellion in connection with the Welland Canal. The County of York
also came to his relief, and paid him several hundred pounds for past
services. But these benefactions for in that light only can they be
regarded merely staved off the inevitable. He continued to publish his
paper whenever he could raise the necessary funds, but it was rather a
source of expense than of revenue, for as soon as the novelty of the
publication wore off it had to take its stand largely on its merits,
which were not such as to obtain for it any considerable circulation.
About two years before he withdrew from public life a number of his
old Reform friends, recognizing the necessity of doing something for
him, started a subscription on his behalf. A considerable sum of money
was raised, and there seemed to be every prospect that he would be
placed in a position of comfort for the rest of his days. But here,
for the hundredth time in his life, his wrong-headedness and irascible
temper went far to counteract the efforts of his friends. No sooner
did he learn that subscriptions were coming in on his behalf than he
applied to James Lesslie, the custodian of the fund, for a sufficient
sum to enable him to revisit the old country and to make a tour in
Europe. Such a request does not savour much of that sturdy
Independence of which his biographer speaks. Mr. Lesslie was one of
his oldest friends, who had known him from boyhood, and had befriended
him on many an occasion when he had stood in sore need of assistance.
As Mr. Lesslie well knew, the object of the contributors to the fund
had been to provide for Mackenzie's family as well as himself. It had
certainly not been intended that any portion of it should be used in
enabling Mackenzie to travel about the world. Mr. Lesslie, as
delicately as he could, pointed out these facts to Mackenzie, adding
that he had neither the will nor the power to permit any portion of
the fund to be diverted for such a purpose. His refusal roused all
Mackenzie's insane fury. He denounced his old friend with a coarse and
brutal vehemence for which, it is to be hoped, his mental state was
chiefly responsible.[379] He next inserted an advertisement in the
newspapers intimating that he desired no further subscriptions. The
contributions accordingly ceased, and the committee proceeded to do
the best they could for the family with the amount already realized. A
portion of it was invested in a house and lot on Bond Street, Toronto,
to which Mackenzie removed, with his family. Thenceforth until his
death he continued to reside there. The rest of the fund was doled out
to him by the committee as it was needed, for they well knew that if
the whole were advanced to him in a lump sum it would soon disappear,
leaving his family as destitute as before. Meanwhile his malady
continued to make slow progress. He possessed wonderful vitality, and
his constitution instinctively fought against the disease. But the
inevitable came, and the closing years of his life were years of gloom
and despair. The last of the fund was spent, and he had no income from
any source whatever. In 1860 the publication of his paper had to be
discontinued. For long before this time it had appeared only at fitful
and irregular intervals, and it had afforded clear evidence of its
editor's condition. His mental and physical powers steadily gave way,
and softening of the brain disclosed itself by unmistakable signs. He
died at his home on Bond Street on the 28th of August, 1861, at the
age of sixty-six years. Four days later his remains were laid to rest
in the Necropolis, whither he had helped to remove the bones of Lount
and Matthews less than two years before.[380] His own remains lie far
remote from those of his co-conspirators, and in the north-eastern
part of the cemetery.[381]

And so, after more than threescore years of almost incessant turmoil
and strife, William Lyon Mackenzie slept his last sleep, and found the
only repose which was possible to one of such a temperament as his.

In passing judgment upon various portions of his career I have found
it necessary to pronounce a severe judgment upon him. Though severe,
however, it has, I think, been just; and I am quite sure that it has
been honest. Mr. MacMullen, who seems to have known him personally,
and who had watched his course for many years, has summed him up in
terms which so entirely commend themselves to my judgment that I
cannot do better than quote them.[382] "There can be very little doubt
entertained by any impartial or unprejudiced person," he writes, "that
the singular and very imprudent conduct of Sir Francis B. Head
produced in a great measure the wretchedly organized rebellious
outbreak in Upper Canada. His injudicious administration, in the first
place, created a large amount of political agitation. In the second,
the absence of all military preparation to repress armed riots of any
kind, invited the rebellion of a small minority of disaffected
persons...But these circumstances, nevertheless, do not lessen the
criminality of the course pursued by William Lyon Mackenzie, who was
decidedly the leading evil spirit of the crisis, and who must ever be
held morally responsible for much of the bloodshed in Upper Canada at
this period. The progress of time has mellowed much of the asperity
with which his conduct has been regarded, and enabled us to form more
just conclusions as to his principles and his objects. As one traces
his checkered existence, which presents such a strange admixture of
upright intentions and dangerous errors, a doubt of his perfect sanity
cannot fail to be evoked, to receive additional colour from the
softening of the brain that finally resulted in death. Ever unstable
as water, he flits changefully before the eye as the Dundee shop-boy,
the uneasy clerk, the bankrupt shopman, the newspaper editor, the
bookseller, the druggist, the member of Parliament, the agitator, the
political agent to England, the fomentor of rebellion, and the rebel
general. As a refugee in the United States he shifted his occupation
with the same chameleon rapidity as in Scotland and Canada; his
peculiar faculty of getting into difficulties of one kind or another
being in no way diminished, until at length, fully as tired of the
people as they were of him, he was glad to shelter once more his
fortunes under the British flag which he had so impotently essayed to
trample in the dust...He lacked the sterling talent and the sober
judgment which constitute the truly eminent man, and his once great
popularity rested solely on the passions and prejudices of the hour.
He was alike an indifferent writer and a commonplace speaker, and the
very prominent position to which he attained was owing to the
excitement of the times and the paucity of talent in a comparatively
new country. His subsequent return to Canada was fatal to his previous
reputation for ability, and plainly stamped his mediocrity. A weekly
newspaper termed _Mackenzie's Message_ published by him had a brief
existence, and while alive was not distinguished for ably-written
editorials, such as appeared in contemporary journals, but, on the
contrary, for snappish and ill-natured articles, querulous
complainings, and for being the receptacle of all manner of fantastic
odds and ends, the fungi of an energetic and acute, yet diseased and
ill-balanced intellect."[383]

As just mentioned, Mackenzie's death took place in August, 1861. In
the course of the following year his life, written by his son-in-law,
Mr. Lindsey, was published. That work contains much interesting
matter, and is of unquestionable value to the student of our history,
but as the author's materials consisted almost entirely of papers and
documents left behind by Mackenzie, impartiality was hardly to be
looked for. It was inevitable that a book written under such
conditions should to some extent reflect Mackenzie's personal feelings
and enmities. Dr. Rolph, for instance, could hardly expect perfect
fairness of treatment. As matter of fact, the Doctor's conduct in
connection with the flag of truce was misrepresented precisely as
Mackenzie had misrepresented it ever since Rolph had refused to press
his claim for twelve thousand dollars. I feel bound to say that Mr.
Lindsey performed his unpleasant task without coarseness or
unnecessary personal bitterness. Still, the fact remained that
Mackenzie's half-insane falsehoods were accepted and chronicled by his
biographer as grave historical truths, and that Rolph was held up to
the gaze of posterity in an unfavourable and unwarrantable light. The
Doctor felt that it was incumbent upon him to reply to the charges
against him. He however found himself surrounded by serious difficulties.
As far back as 1856 he had become involved in unpleasant
quarrels with the faculty of his medical school. It is unnecessary to go
minutely into the grounds of these quarrels. It will suffice to say that
the other professors considered that Rolph was disposed to arrogate too
much to himself in connection with the management of the school, and
that they were not disposed to submit to his authority. They resigned
in a body at the commencement of a session, and started a rival school.
Rolph was put to great inconvenience, being compelled to carry on the
old establishment with such aid as he could obtain. He himself
frequently got through an amount of lecturing and general work in
connection with the establishment amply sufficient for the energies of
two ordinary men. Then followed litigation between the rival schools
as to which was entitled to the original appellation--the Toronto School
of Medicine. In this litigation Doctor Rolph was worsted, though his
school continued to hold its own in public estimation, and was for some
years carried on successfully. By way of addition to various other
sources of uneasiness, he was conscious of the approaches of age, and of
a perceptible diminution of vigour. Towards the close of 1861 his
failing powers were brought painfully home to him by a paralytic stroke,
which to a large extent deprived him of the use of his right hand and
arm. When the _Life of Mackenzie_ appeared he was unable to write
with facility. Dr. Morrison, who might have afforded valuable assistance,
had been dead for some years. David Gibson was still in the
enjoyment of vigorous health, and the two began to collect material
for an effective reply to Mackenzie's charges. The reasons for maintaining
silence were constantly becoming less and less potent. To
persons in the evening of life, however, a year passes rapidly by,
and before anything had been done towards putting facts upon paper,
Gibson died suddenly at Quebec, of congestion of the lungs. This was
on the 25th of January, 1864. Thenceforward Rolph seems to have
felt helpless to move in the matter of self-justification. Occasionally, in
moments of that fitful vigour which sports with old age, he would begin to
dictate the story of his connection with the Rebellion to his wife; but
these spasmodic efforts never produced any enduring result, as his vigour
soon relaxed and his mind wandered from the matter in hand. He does
not even appear to have made any attempt to arrange his papers in
methodical form. He continued to practise his profession, so far as
he was able, up to the spring of the year 1870, when he retired, and took
up his abode in the house of his son-in-law, Mr. Lyster Hayward, at
Mitchell, in the County of Perth, Ontario. There he lived out the few
months that were left to him. The sands of his life had nearly run
themselves out, and to all practical intents his life's work was over. He
breathed his last on the 19th of October, 1870. He wanted but five
months of completing his seventy-eighth year.

With a single exception, all the persons who figured conspicuously
in the Upper Canadian Rebellion have passed to their rest. The deaths
of Mackenzie, Rolph, Morrison, Lount, Matthews and Montgomery have
all been duly recorded. Jesse Lloyd and Silas Fletcher have also long
since travelled the same dark and unknown road. Nelson Gorham alone
remains to tell the inner story of the original conspiracy from personal
recollection and observation. I have been glad to avail myself of some
of his reminiscences in the foregoing pages.

The Story of the Upper Canadian Rebellion has now been told. In
the telling of it I have not scrupled to combat some prevalent beliefs, and
even to assail some long-cherished convictions. I have been compelled
to take a view of the chief actor in the drama widely divergent from that
taken by his son-in-law in _The Life and Times of W. L. Mackenzie_, and
subsequently echoed by other writers who have accepted that biography
without subjecting its contents to personal investigation. It was
inevitable that there should be such a divergence, as my opinions and
materials have been derived from a wide variety of independent
sources, whereas Mr. Lindsey's were chiefly derived from Mr. Mackenzie
himself. In dealing with matters of fact, as well as with matters of
opinion, I have frequently been compelled to differ from Mr. Lindsey,
though, unless where such a course seemed to be clearly indicated, I
have not deemed it necessary to call attention to what I am forced to
regard as the defects of his work. And I have much pleasure in bearing
testimony to the fact that notwithstanding its shortcomings--doubtless
largely due to the exacting conditions under which it was written--the
_Life and Times_ is an important contribution to Upper Canadian
history, and to a proper understanding of the struggles of the past.

In the foregoing pages I have made no important statement of fact
without assigning authority therefor. I have done my utmost to record
the evidence impartially, and to arrive at the simple truth. I have
not attempted anything in the nature of hero-worship. Such an attempt
would have been altogether out of place. Lount and Matthews were brave
men, and laid down their lives for a cause in which they believed. As
such they deserve to go down to future generations of Canadians. So
far as Rolph and Mackenzie were concerned, they were zealous for
Reform, but I can find little of the heroic in the lives of either. It
is not appointed unto all men to be heroes. Let every man be judged
according to his deeds. "By their fruits ye shall know them."

In a field so full of treacherous and carefully-concealed pitfalls, it
is very difficult, even for the most wary traveller, to avoid
stumbling. In a narrative which is necessarily to a large extent
constructed from innumerable complicated and often self-contradictory
details, it is perhaps too much at any rate for one who lays no claim
to infallibility to hope that there is absolute freedom from error.
But I may at least be excused for saying that whatever care and
diligence could do to avoid error has not been neglected. The result
of much arduous labour is now before the public. It is my confident
belief that the labour has not been in vain.

THE END.

FOOTNOTES:

[344] This delay was bitterly resented by Mackenzie, who, moody and
suspicious, chose to believe that it was due to the laches of the
Ministry. He wrote to Inspector-General Hincks, threaten-ing all sorts
of dire consequences. On the 5th of November, 1843, Mr. Hincks thus
wrote to Dr. Rolph:

"Kingston, 5 Nov., 1843.

"My Dear Sir:

"I have just received a _threatening letter_ from Mackenzie, who says
that if I do not write him immediately he will publish another
'Welland Canal,' shewing up Dr. Baldwin, Dunn, Price and myself,
besides Lesslie, Doel, Beaty, &c., &c. His object evidently is to get
money, and therefore I conclude there is no use in getting any one to
give him advice. Of course such a publication would be 'nuts' to our
friends the Tories, and though it would in all probability be a nine
days' wonder, still, it would do harm. Mackenzie pretends to believe
that we are opposed to an amnesty. Some of his friends in Toronto
might, one would think, set him right on this point, but as I feel
assured that money is what he wants, I think it would not be worth
while taking any notice of him whatever. We shall have a pretty
publication, filled with everything that falsehood and malignity can
suggest...

"Yours faithfully,

"F. Hincks."

[345] Ante, p. 252.

[346] Ante, p. 158.

[347] I here reproduce a note from a former work of mine, in which
this matter of the amnesty is dealt with at considerable length.

"Considerable misapprehension appears to exist on this subject, owing
in great measure, doubtless, to inaccurate statements in Mr. Lindsey's
_Life and Times of Wm. Lyon Mackenzie_. It is there alleged that 'by
the end of the year 1843 an amnesty--not general, but very
comprehensive had enabled numerous political exiles to return to
Canada' (vol. ii., p. 290). This is altogether erroneous. No amnesty,
comprehensive or otherwise, was granted in 1843, nor at any time prior
to 1849. Those exiles who returned to Canada before the last-named
date did so either by virtue of special pardons granted under the
Great Seal, or in consequence of official discontinuance of
proceedings against them...'Three years after,' proceeds Mr. Lindsey,
'Mr. Isaac Buchanan wrote to Sir Robert Peel and Lord Palmerston,
begging that they would have Mr. Mackenzie included in the amnesty.
The reply was that before this would be done the Canadian Ministry
must recommend the measure. But the latter were averse to such a
course, and to them alone his continued exclusion from Canada was
owing. The remembrance of this circumstance probably infused some gall
into his opposition to the men who composed this Ministry after his
return to Canada.' See _Life and Times_, vol. ii., pp. 290, 291. There
is evidently a good deal of misapprehension here. _Imprimis_, Sir
Robert Peel resigned office in June, 1846, and was not in power at the
time indicated viz., three years from the end of 1843. But greater
confusion remains behind. At the time when Mr. Buchanan is said to
have applied to Sir Hubert Peel and Lord Palmerston a Tory Government
were in power in Canada, and it was not surprising that they should
decline to recommend an amnesty to Mr. Mackenzie. But it certainly is
surprising that their doing so should have 'infused gall' into Mr.
Mackenzie's opposition to their steadfast opponents, the Reform
Ministers whom he found in power upon his return. The passage is so
dubiously worded that it is not easy to know precisely who were the
men against whom Mr. Mackenzie's opposition is said to have been
directed. Possibly the idea intended to be conveyed is that his 'gall'
was directed against the Tory ex-Ministers, or such of them as still
remained in Parliament. But it is evident that Mr. Mackenzie (whose
opinions are doubtless accurately reflected in his biographer's pages)
cherished a feeling of soreness against the Lafontaine-Baldwin
Ministry which he found in power on his return to Canada; and this,
coupled with the fact that after his election to the Assembly he
opposed the measures of that Ministry, leads to the conclusion that
they, and not their predecessors in office, are the persons indicated
as the objects of his 'gall.' We are told that upon his return he
found Responsible Government administered by persons, 'only one of
whom, Mr. Hincks, paid the least attention to the man who had been
reviled as its author so long as it was deemed odious and unpopular.'
_Life and Times_, vol. ii., p. 293. There was no reason why the
Government should pay Mr. Mackenzie any special attention. As matter
of fact, however, they had been unanimously in favour of procuring an
amnesty whereby he might be enabled to return from exile, and had not
shrunk from the responsibility of urging it upon the attention of
Parliament at the earliest moment when such a course was practicable.
To assert that they did so in consequence of pressure from 'Mr. Hume
and others,' as is said on p. 292, vol. ii., of Mr. Lindsey's work, is
simply to violate historical truth, although Mr. Mackenzie doubtless
believed the contrary, and impressed his belief upon his
biographer."--_The Last Forty Years_, vol. ii., pp. 136, 137, note.

[348] _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., p. 272.

[349] _Ib_., p 273.

[350] _Ib_., pp. 272, 273.

[351] _Ib_., p. 273.

[352] _Ib_.

[353] _Ib_., p. 281.

[354] _Ib_., p. 282.

[355] _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., p. 282.

[356] _Ib_., p. 290

[357] _Ante_, p. 302.

[358] In a letter dated May 8th, 1852, the original of which is in my
hands, Mackenzie writes: "As to Mr. Prince's concessions to me, they
came to little. While I was in the library reading, he came up,
accosted me, insulted me grossly, drove me with threats of violence
out of the library, walked down with me, drove me through the lobby
and into the street, threatening the while to throw me down stairs. I
did not complain, but bore--it then nor afterwards. When I left for
Toronto he followed me next day; passed me on the road to Kingston;
was first there, and at Belleville and Toronto. You know what
occurred. But 'to err is human,' etc. After I returned he expressed
himself sorry, and of course I could not say more. Last session he was
sometimes quite friendly, and at other times denounced me from his
seat as a traitor and rebel. His son is made a Master in Chancery. He
a Queen's Counsel, and fees of 300 pounds given him on the circuit,
while I am unable to get an answer to a petition! One thing is evident
from the Globe: he may be expected to act as a foil to George Brown in
the House, though that may not have influenced his appointment." The
petition here referred to is Mackenzie's petition to be paid $12,000
for property lost through the Rebellion which he had set on foot, as
to which see _ante_, pp. 82-85,' 90, and _post_, pp. 308, 309, 315,
316, 324.

[359] For an account of the origin of this appellation, see _The Last
Forty Years_, vol. ii., p. 190, note.

[360] I feel bound in this place to notice a statement which is often
heard, to the effect that Mr. Baldwin never spoke to Dr. Rolph after
the flag of truce episode on the 5th of December, 1837. This statement
appears to be traceable to erroneous impressions on the part of a
member of Mr. Baldwin's family, on the strength of whose assertions I
was myself led to accept and record it in a former work of mine. See
_The Canadian Portrait Gallery_, vol. i., p. 34. That my informant was
and is perfectly honest in the expression of his belief I have no
doubt whatever, but in the face of such evidence as is now in my hands
I am forced to the conclusion that he is in error. I have in my
possession a number of letters written by Mr. Baldwin to Dr. Rolph
subsequent to the latter's return from exile. They extend over a
series of years, and refer to various topics, public and private. They
are one and all couched in a strain of dignified friendliness, and are
certainly not such letters as a sincere man like Mr. Baldwin would
write to a person to whom he would not speak. There is also the
clearest evidence that personal conferences took place between them:
that on at least one occasion in the year 1848 Mr. Baldwin called at
Dr. Rolph's house, and that in January, 1849, Mr. and Mrs. Rolph
called at Mr. Baldwin's. In a letter dated the 29th of March Mr.
Baldwin refers to the pleasure it would afford him to promote Dr.
Rolph's wishes in the matter of a public appointment. This evidence
and correspondence, I think, fairly disposes of the assertion that
Baldwin never spoke to Rolph after 1837. At the same time, various
little circumstances have led me to conclude that though the two were
on terms of ordinary civility up to 1851, there was not much
cordiality. Mr. Baldwin would certainly feel that Dr. Rolph had
lowered himself by his connection with the Rebellion, and would
moreover condemn him, under the circumstances, for going out with a
flag of truce to the rebels. Dr. Baldwin, who was less austere than
his son, preserved the most affectionate relations with Dr. Rolph
during his exile, as well as after his return, but he died within a
few months after the latter event, and was thus unable to act as a
mediator.

[361] Vol. i., pp. 104-108.

[362] See _ante_, p. 82, _et seq_.

[363] _Ante_, pp. 83, 84.

[364] These communications are all couched in the same strain, which
is one of fulsome adulation of Dr. Rolph, combined with abuse of Mr.
Baldwin. He perpetually refers to the high value which he attaches to
the former's "kind and friendly tone." He has become a pessimist as to
the future of the country, but Dr. Rolph's presence in the Government
is the one bright spot in an otherwise dark horizon. Sometimes he is
disposed to grumble at the little confidence the Doctor reposes in
him. He thinks he should be made acquainted in advance with the policy
of the Government, and is even disposed to think that his advice
should occasionally be asked. He does not relish the idea of "looking
to Mr. Spence and Mr. Tiffany" for a knowledge of official
arrangements. Then he insinuates that his support of Rolph is entitled
to clearer recognition. "It seems to me," he writes, under date of
Feb. 23rd, 1852, "that the course I took in Assembly and through the
press last session my motion which floored Mr. Baldwin and broke up
the Lafontaine-Baldwin union by the resignation of the latter had some
little to do with your advent to office; though in your Dundas speech
everything is made to depend upon Spence and Tiffany; and however
friendly you may be you have avoided my door at all times when here
since." Then, being fearful that he may have offended the Doctor, he
writes to apologize for his seeming querulousness, and begs that it
may be laid to the score of the many troubles he has passed through.
He refers to the greatness of soul displayed by Dr. Rolph in making
allowance for his petty grumblings. On the 8th of March he writes:
"When you would otherwise get angry at my grumbling tone, you call to
mind what I have endured in the last 30 years, and why; and then you
write in a kindly tone. I am glad you can do this--it does me good."
As the months roll by, he becomes importunate on the subject of his
$12,000 claim. On the 8th of May he writes: "I had the humiliation of
waiting on Mr. Baldwin in the matter constantly for 18 months, but in
vain. He felt more anxious to please Osgoode Hall than to do me tardy
justice; more willing to add $1,000 to Gurnett's income than make him
disgorge my substance. I begin to doubt as to redress."

[365] _Ante_, p. 82.

[366] In a letter now lying before me, dated 10th Sept., 1852, and
written by a gentleman still living, who is recognized as one of the
most eminent medical practitioners in Canada, I find the words
following: "Drs. Workman, Morrison and myself think Mackenzie is
slightly deranged. You are aware [here follows a reference to certain
painful circumstances to which further reference is unnecessary.] We
would not wonder to see Mackenzie there [in the Toronto Asylum for the
insane] also." The Dr. Workman here alluded to is known to all readers
of these pages as the most eminent expert in matters relating to
insanity that this country has ever produced. He is still living, and
I have frequently conversed with him on the subject. He is quite
convinced that Mackenzie had the seeds of mental disease in him for
years before their outward manifestation at the period mentioned in
the text. Shrewd non-professional observers were also satisfied of
Mackenzie's mental unsoundness at this time. See _ante_, p. 89.
Others, including the writer of the letter above quoted, have given me
assurances to the same effect.

[367] _Ante_, p. 86. It has been asserted that this statement was
prepared by Dr. Rolph himself in Quebec, and sent up to Dr. Aikins for
the purpose of being signed. This assertion is probably true, as the
statement is dated at Quebec at a time when Carmichael was at his home
in King; but this does not lessen the value of the testimony, as the
whole of it is in Carmichael's handwriting, and must therefore have
been transcribed and approved of by him. Rolph subsequently appointed
Carmichael to a subordinate office under Government. See first
paragraph on p. 87, _ante_.

[368] See _ante_, chap, xxiii.

[369] Mackenzie afterwards accused him of denying on this occasion
that he had been in any way connected with the Rebellion. I can find
no evidence of such a denial in the newspaper reports of the debates,
or in the memory of persons who were present during the altercation.
Rolph certainly denied that he had been the Executive of the movement,
which he was able to do with absolute truth; but when called upon he
uniformly admitted his complicity in the movement itself, which,
indeed, it would have been the most abject folly for him to deny.

[370] _Ante_, p. 64.

[371] _Ante_, chap, xxiii., and note at end.

[372] _Ante_, p. 73, note.

[373] _I. e_., to the Treason Commission. See _ante_, p. 87.

[374] _Ante_, pp. 36, 37.

[375] In a letter which I find among the Rolph papers, dated Dec.
12th, 1852, a prominent Upper Canadian thus writes to the Doctor:
"Mackenzie is about bringing out a weekly paper, to make confusion
worse confounded in the Reform ranks. He gave me a tremendous blowing
up the other day for 'abusing him.' He said I was a hireling did as I
was bid by my masters, etc. He denounced you, and avowed his
determination to put the saddle on the right horse in regard to 1837.
I told him he always was a marplot, and seemed determined to remain
so: that as to 1837 he at least would gain nothing in public
estimation by a discussion of its events, and that I for one was quite
willing to enter on the investigation. He admits he is acting from
personal motives, and will, I have no doubt, produce a great deal of
mischief. His paper will be extensively read, and will injure the
_Examiner_...Lesslie is in no very good humour at the prospect. He is
not entitled to much sympathy, for he has defended him and upheld him
in his abuse of others, and now he will find the viper that he has
warmed into life ready to sting him."

[376] _Ante_, pp. 90, 91. David Gibson, who had been appointed by
Rolph to a Government position, thus writes to the Doctor at this
time. "I enclose a copy of a circular showing the position of W. L.
Mackenzie on 12th March, 1839. [This is the circular reprinted _ante_,
pp. 273, 274, note.] As to the invitation therein, I declined. He then
commenced assailing me, and has at every opportunity done so since,
with a view to destroy my character. If I were to publish a statement
of the affairs of 1837, he could get the public to suspect it was from
a bitterness of feeling I have towards him. Some advise me to let him
alone; others say 'Have at him.' I would rather that my testimony were
given on oath, before some tribunal, than as voluntary testimony, lest
I should be accused of mis-statements. The copy of the circular may be
given to the world with a true statement of the transactions of '37. I
suppose he will be out on me as to my appointment, but it will be very
hard if I cannot bear it. If I write him it will be such a letter as
he may publish if he pleases. His friends here disapprove of his
course, but are unable to prevent him." In a postscript Mr. Gibson
writes: "After seeing Mackenzie's attack of yesterday [this doubtless
refers to one of the periodical attacks against Rolph in the
_Message_] I have again opened this letter with the view of asking you
if you thought it worth while to give his version in the _Caroline
Almanac_, showing his different versions of it; or if it is best to
let him alone. He throws out an insinuation that I am to contradict
Mr. Lount's statement. Not so; I was not present, and cannot say what
took place; but I know it is true as to Mr. Lount preventing him
burning Sheriff Jarvis's house. He has been making his brags that he
is the only man that can break you down, and I have no doubt he will
do all he can." See also pp. 89-91, _ante_.

[377] I have in my possession the most pitifully-worded letters
addressed by this personage to Dr. Rolph. From the strain in which
they are written, and from the receipts and notes which accompany
them, it is evident that these applications were always favourably
responded to, and in such a manner to as save, as far as possible, the
borrower's self-respect. These were simple acts of charity and
benefaction, and it is clear that Rolph never received, or expected to
receive, repayment for his advances. The surviving members of
Mackenzie's family, above all other persons in the world, should
cherish a tender regard for the memory of Dr. Rolph.

[378] _Life of Mackenzie_, vol. ii., p. 298.

[379] For these particulars I am indebted to Mr. James Lesslie
himself, who imparted them to me a short time before his death.

[380] _Ante_, p. 250, note.

[381] In Section O., No. 94.

[382] Mr. MacMullen, in his account of the Upper Canadian revolt, has
to a considerable extent followed the narrative of Mr. Lindsey. His
estimate of Mackenzie, however, is clearly his own and is perhaps the
best piece of character-drawing in his entire work.

[383] _History of Canada_, 2nd edition; pp. 469, 470.




APPENDIX

(Referred to _ante_, p. 276.)


The following review was prepared by Dr. Rolph during the first year
of his residence in Rochester, and while he was slowly working his way
into practice as a physician and surgeon in that city. It was written
at the urgent request of Dr. Morrison, David Gibson, and a number of
their fellow-exiles, for the purpose of exposing numerous malevolent
falsehoods which had been disseminated by Mackenzie. Dr. Rolph's
intention was to publish his review in some influential periodical,
but he appears to have subsequently altered his mind, and it has not
hitherto been given to the world. So far as appears, indeed, it was
never fully completed for publication. It was found among the Doctor's
papers after his death, merely in the form of a rough draft. The
reader will notice several passages where sentences have been left
imperfect, and where that harmony of expression which is usually
observable in Dr. Rolph's writings is altogether wanting. This is
accounted for by the fact that the document, as here printed, is
merely a first sketch, and did not receive any final revision at the
hands of its author. Notwithstanding these defects, it is eminently
characteristic of Dr. Rolph's subtle powers of argument, and of his
faculty for reducing bombastic and mendacious pretensions to the level
of cool reason and common sense. It is the argument of a trained
counsel, skilled in exposing the weak points of his opponent, and in
marshalling his facts in such array that they may be seen from all
points at once. As it stands, it forms an unanswerable indictment
against Mackenzie. The liar stands fairly convicted out of his own
mouth. No one can rise from a careful perusal of it with any respect
whatever for the veracity of the man who combines an inordinate
capacity for vilification and lying with an unaccountable shortness of
memory.

It is important to bear in mind that Mackenzie had not been many days
in the United States before he was emphatically repudiated by all that
was best among his former allies. His method of levying warfare upon
Upper Canada with the aid of the lowest and most ruffianly element in
the border States was not likely to commend itself to any moderate or
just-minded man. He felt his repudiation keenly, but, as was his wont,
instead of endeavouring to amend his own conduct, he sought to revenge
himself by betraying and libelling the men whom he had just before
been holding up to the admiration of the world. At the time when the
following review was written, Mackenzie had issued three several
accounts of the rising in the Home District. Each of these materially
differed from both the others as to important matters of detail. The
earliest in point of time was the Navy Island proclamation dated
December 13th, 1837. When it was written, Mackenzie hoped to secure
Dr. Rolph's countenance and assistance in his projected invasion of
Upper Canada. He accordingly refers to the Doctor in the proclamation
as "that universally-beloved and well-tried eminent patriot, Dr. John
Rolph." The Doctor's expatriation is moreover included among the
"crimes and misdemeanours" of Sir Francis Head, for whose apprehension
a reward of 500 pounds is offered. The conduct of "our esteemed
fellow-citizen Dr. John Rolph" is throughout spoken of in terms of the
highest praise, and he is referred to as having announced his
concurrence in the Rebellion after the refusal of the Lieutenant-Governor
to state in writing the objects he had in view in sending a flag of
truce to the rebel camp. The reverses in the Home District are stated
to have been due "first, to accident, which revealed our design to our
tyrants, and prevented a surprise; and second, to the want of
artillery." Not a word of complaint against Dr. Rolph here. Nothing
but the most fulsome praise. Yet all the Doctor's actions in
connection with the revolt were as well known to Mackenzie at this
time as they ever afterwards became. The change of day, the failure to
join the insurgent ranks, the failure to send out information as to
the state of the city all these things must have been fully present to
Mackenzie's mind when he wrote his proclamation. Assuming that there
had been a violation of the flag of truce, that also was well known to
Mackenzie. Yet, as just

[Illustration: DEATH OF COLONEL MOODIE.]

stated, he distinctly negatives any such violation by declaring that
the Doctor's concurrence in the revolt was not manifested until
_after_ the Lieutenant-Governor's refusal to state his objects in
writing. Dr. Rolph is not only completely exonerated, but is ranked by
Mackenzie only a little lower than the angels. [See _ante_, vol. ii.,
p. 186, _et seq_.] But in less than a month after the issue of this
proclamation Dr. Rolph had explicitly thrown off all connection with
Mackenzie, and had forbidden him to make any further use of his name.
[_Ante_, pp. 233, 234, 235.] Mackenzie accordingly set himself
deliberately to work to malign the Doctor, and to place the blame of
failure upon his shoulders. This he subsequently did in his narrative
in the Watertown _Jeffersonian_, and afterwards in his own _Gazette_.
[_Ante_, p. 274, _et seq_.] Each one of these three accounts differs
in important points from both the others. Mackenzie's inconsistencies
are pretty effectually shown forth in the following review. Had the
latter been written subsequent to the publication of the _Caroline
Almanac_ it would have contained a still more ignominious exposition
of Mackenzie's utter untrustworthiness. As it stands, however, it is
an unanswerable indictment, and must effectually destroy all
confidence in Mackenzie's veracity.

REVIEW OF MACKENZIE'S PUBLICATIONS ON THE REVOLT
BEFORE TORONTO, IN UPPER CANADA.

It is often necessary, for the purpose of prompt intelligence, to give
passing events as they are first presented to the public; but it is
only by subsequent disclosures, and by the comparison of various and
conflicting accounts, and the sources from which they are derived,
that historical truth is written and fully attained.

We have now before us his [Mackenzie's] Proclamation, issued from Navy
Island, in December, 1837; his subsequent narrative, as published in
the Watertown _Jeffersonian_; and his still later additional facts and
explanations given in the 1st and 12th numbers of his _Gazette_; also
an Upper Canada legislative document containing the testimony obtained
from Messieurs Lount and Brotherson, the reported trial of Dr.
Morrison and Montgomery, and a few other papers affording occasional
incidents of the day.

These narratives bear throughout the mark of a laboured and
unqualified attempt to relieve the narrator from at all sharing with
his compatriots the failure before Toronto, by imputing it wholly to
the misconduct of an Executive[384] (subsequently stated to be Dr.
Rolph, and no other person whatever), and to the cowardice of the men
under his command,[385] Indeed, we cannot forbear to remark that
neither Gibson, Lount, Matthews, nor any others of his brave
compatriots, are mentioned as seconding the heroic exertions related
of himself, in animating the courage of the men, or arresting their
flight, "by threats and coaxing."[386] All, without any specified
exception, except himself, "took to their heels with a speed and
steadiness of purpose that would have baffled pursuit on foot."[387]
No doubt this must be an error, which egotism, however, ought not for
a moment to have admitted against companions in arms. With a like
feeling, in his 12th _Gazette_, he claims to himself the honour of
having "_followed_ Lount _from_ the field." It is but justice to his
leading associates to observe, with a comparison not intended to be
invidious, that he did not second the admitted importunity of all
others in daylight, on Tuesday, to march into the city,[388] and that
none of them in the hour of alarm abandoned their papers to the enemy,
or joined in the cheerless and rather intimidating appeal to the men
on Thursday: "Are you ready to fight a greatly superior force, well
armed, and with artillery well served?" and, if so, "Go to the woods,
and do your best."[389] Had Sir Francis Head so addressed his "150
college boys and trembling officials," they might have precipitately
abandoned the capital to Mackenzie's inglorious entrance.

"The Committee of Vigilance formed in Toronto," and "the passing
of resolutions of sympathy and cooperation," and the like, were perhaps
useful preliminary measures; but we question the good faith of volunteering
the statement in the very commencement of a revolutionary
struggle. It is calculated to afford an index for a vindictive Colonial
Government to the individuals known to frequent such assemblages, and
at once becomes a bar to the longer continuance of means, the object of
which is thus revealed. Had the American Revolution in its infancy
been conducted with these sorts of patriotic narratives after every
reverse, criminating every one but Washington, and exposing in the first
six months every secret friend and secret association in revolutionary
operations, it would have effectually and speedily extinguished that spark
of liberty which the wisdom, prudence and fidelity of our forefathers
husbanded into a flame.

We are also told, without reserve, that "twelve leading Reformers"[390]
agreed one day in November that on Thursday, the 7th of December last,
"to attack the City of Toronto, and seize the arms;"[391] and appointed an
Executive, "to correspond with Mr. Papineau and other friends below, afford
intelligence, aid our efforts, and finally join the army at Montgomery's;"
and assigned to Mr. Mackenzie "the entire management of the details."

Leading Reformers, it seems, are not so numerous in Upper Canada as to
admit of such a disclosure against them, without suspicion immediately
pointing to well-known characters, and tyranny seizing them for
victims. A vigilant Government, therefore, has not failed to
investigate this allegation, which, by the laws of honour and good
faith, ought not to have been thus wantonly made by Mackenzie, if
true, while himself a safe refugee, against his compatriots in the
power of an enemy, rioting in the Canadas in Executive carnage in the
field, on the scaffold, and in the prison. It was a similar breach of
good faith to disclose that "the Chairmen of the different
associations were to assume the rank of Colonels, and the Secretaries
that of Captain." It must be a painful reflection to have consigned
many confiding followers to all the insults of suspicion, and the
consequent increased facility of conviction, which has sealed the fate
of numbers in the gaols and penitentiary persons who, had they
foreseen this betraying act, might, upon the dispersion of his army,
have sought, with Mackenzie, an asylum here, instead of remaining in
their homes, to be pointed at by their absconded Chieftain, and led by
the common hangman as sheep to the slaughter.

From the same culpable inconsiderateness, when Sir Francis Head
advanced against him at Montgomery's, he left, in a precipitate
retreat, all his papers to fall into the hands of the enemy, and thus
further inculpated numbers of his compatriots, and embittered their
condition.

With these clues, and an express reference to "a meeting on the 31st
July, at Doel's brewery, and the declaration of Reformers then adopted,"
as overt acts of treason, it was attempted to fasten that crime and its
punishment upon Dr. Morrison, who, it seems, presided at that meeting,
and signed the document. And one shudders at the peril of an excellent
man, thus half convicted on his trial by a cruel and wanton
impeachment from a professed patriot. Mr. Price, an attorney, in his
evidence, says he "never heard of the existence of an Executive
Committee until he read Mackenzie's narrative," and solemnly disavows
ever hearing of it till then.[392] Other members of these
associations, as Messieurs Elliot, McKay and Armstrong, on this trial,
as well as every leading Reformer examined under the Royal Commission
of Inquiry, declared that "they never heard of, nor believe in, the
existence of any such Executive Committee as mentioned by Mr.
Mackenzie in his narrative."[393] From the reported trial of Dr.
Morrison, it appears that there was indeed a meeting of leading
Reformers at Doel's brewery, when Mr. Mackenzie proposed a conspiracy
to take the arms lodged in the City Hall; but the proposition was
scouted, and the proposer silenced.[394] It is denied that any
subsequent meeting took place of the leading Reformers to concert a
revolution, as alleged.[395] If this meeting was fictitious, merely to
give colour to a pretended formal nomination of an Executive, of which
he might the more satisfactorily appear to the American public not to
partake, it is an unworthy artifice. We presume from circumstances
that Dr. Rolph yielded his hearty cooperation with Mackenzie and
others, as distinguished from that sole exclusive executive agency and
responsibility which Mackenzie now attaches to him. Upon the whole,
they appear to us to have been a co-Executive, possibly with others.

Indeed, when he occupied Navy Island, and issued his proclamation, he
appears to have laboured under no such prepossession. It is a
proclamation "by William Lyon Mackenzie, Chairman _pro tem_, of the
Provincial Government of the State of Upper Canada"[396]--a title well
comporting with a full share of executive character brought from
Montgomery's to Navy Island. In that document, speaking of Dr. Rolph,
he says, "causing the expatriation of that universally beloved and
well-tried eminent patriot;" and he even adds, as the specific cause
of his expatriation, because he "made common cause with our injured
people." Whatever concert and cooperation, therefore, existed between
the two, there is here no imputation of an exclusive executive
character; nor, indeed, do we find it till Mr. Mackenzie had no
honours to claim from success, but felt uneasy under the mortification
of defeat.

If Mr. Mackenzie was not the Executive, sole or conjointly, it was
singular he should take upon himself in the country to name the 7th of
December as the day of rising, and then report it to his city
confidants a week before the outbreak. And under the impression he was
a mere "agent," a subaltern leader, whose simple duty was implicit
obedience, it is further singular that upon arriving at Mr. Gibson's,
within an hour's ride of Toronto (nine miles), he should have
unceremoniously and "instantly sent one of Mr. Gibson's servants to
the north, countermanded the Monday movement, and begged Col. Lount
not to come down, nor in any way to disturb the previous regular
arrangement."[397] In his supplementary observations in his 1st
_Gazette_, in corroboration of this sole Executive, he says: "The late
Col. Lount and many others have so stated." But the repetition of an
erroneous statement, perhaps propagated by himself, is no proof of it.
He implicates, we notice, Chief Justice Robinson and others;[398] and
Sir Francis Head informs us, on the authority of the prisoners, that
he used their names freely as yielding their concurrence.

Much of this he has found it necessary to retract, in a way calculated
to impair his historical credit. Mr. Lount's evidence, however, is
before us, given before his execution, under circumstances of
solemnity equal to an oath.[400] In it there is nothing to justify
this reference to him. There is nothing directly or indirectly to
imply that Dr. Rolph constituted an Executive Committee, any more than
Mackenzie or himself. Thus, while Lount would not adopt such a
subterfuge to exonerate himself under prospect of present death,
Mackenzie does so in a secure asylum, to save himself from the charge
of revolutionary indiscretions.

It can, too, scarcely escape observation, that the duties respectively
assigned to each, will not justify this exculpatory transfer of the
whole executive responsibility from himself to Dr. Rolph. The latter
was "to correspond with Mr. Papineau, afford intelligence, aid"--not
direct wholly "our efforts, and finally join the army at
Montgomery's."[401] To himself he assumes "the entire management of
all the details;"[402] and if, in addition to this position, "no
attempt could be made to alter the day without first consulting
him,"[403] was he not a co-Executive? It is strange that such an
hypothetical case as an alteration of the day should be guarded
against in the operations of about a week; for his 12th _Gazette_
informs us that his books of account were carefully posted by his own
hand till within a week of the revolt. And it is still stranger to
arrange that if any such emergency should arrive (as it actually did)
the Plenipotentiary should not be able by possibility to meet it, even
with the concurrence of the whole city, without first consulting him,
floating about the townships among secret societies. But this
extraordinary stipulation may possibly be explained by the fact that
it is the prepared rock upon which to build the charge against his
Executive, of altering the day of movement without his consent, as
will presently appear. In truth, he seems to make himself the most
prominent Executive, but with too much modesty to wear his honours in
a republic.

The late appearance of this transfer of all executive character to Dr.
Rolph is thus explained by him: "I delayed this explanation till
certain individuals had left Canada." If Dr. Rolph was sole Executive,
it affected him only, and a thousand persons going into Canada or
coming out of it could not be prejudiced; while, on the contrary, the
supposition of a plural Executive might, and actually did, lead to
injurious suspicions.

We attach very little importance to any distinction between being
"sole Executive" and an active compatriot with others. But as the
distinction has been made up for the purpose of criminating, these
remarks are entitled to a place. Waiving all dispute about such
official discriminations, we shall proceed to a critical examination
of the narratives as they affect Mr. Mackenzie and his coadjutors.

While Mr. Mackenzie was engaged in the country, Sir Francis Head,
affecting the greatest indifference and incredulity about the
proceedings, was secretly watching the insurrectionary operations.
With a portable printing press to aid his exertions, he admits that he
issued "nearly 3,000 copies of a periodical filled with reasons for a
revolt."[404] This indicates more zeal than sound discretion. It was a
course the very opposite to that pursued by Sir Francis Head, who, we
learn from Mackenzie's 12th _Gazette_, "notwithstanding the attitude
which he deemed it politic to assume, privately made all the
arrangements in his power to be ready to move whenever the proper
moment should arrive." From the same official document it appears that
the vigilance of the Government was increased by these publications
and other circumstances; and the Executive Council came to the
following resolutions:

1. Resolved: That Mr. Mackenzie be arrested for high treason,
   immediately after the publication of his next paper.

2. Resolved: That he be committed to some place of safe keeping in Toronto.

3. Resolved: That his papers be seized if found treasonable.

4. Resolved: That two regiments of militia be organized and armed.

5. Resolved: That a body of militia be placed in charge of the Fort.

6. Resolved: That the militia artillery be increased as the
   Adjutant-General shall advise.

"The very day before these arrangements were to be executed, Mr.
Mackenzie, on the 4th December, carried his insane project into effect
by assembling his 500 deluded followers."

How nearly he was the victim of the Government instead of Mr. Lount!
And had his papers been seized, those which he left, with a regret
slightly mentioned, for the implication of others, would have yielded
all needful evidence to visit him with the scaffold. When in this
jeopardy, ignorant of it in the country, what proved his salvation?
The accelerated movement by his Executive. He was saved by a violation
of the pretended stipulation that no attempt should be made to alter
the day of revolt without first consulting him. Hence, in his 12th
_Gazette_, he says: "If it was a knowledge of these designs that
induced Dr. Rolph to call out Mr. Lount's division by a verbal order
given on the Saturday, or early on the Sunday morning, no doubt he
acted in the main with great prudence." But there is no "if" in his
narratives, where he explicitly says: "His motive was a probable
rumour that Sir Francis was about to arm the Orangemen and Tories, and
fill the garrison with pensioners;" and in another place he mentions
"warrants for his apprehension." In his criminating statement he says
boldly: "that this rumour was unfounded, the event showed"--thus
throwing upon his alleged Executive a burden of proof which official
disclosures have supplied, but which, without them, it might have been
impossible otherwise to have furnished them by the adoption of Mr.
Mackenzie's creed of political morality.

Under these circumstances, it appears that the movement of the 7th
of December was anticipated, and an immediate descent on the city
ordered. In his 12th _Gazette_ and narratives he complains (as if a very
ill-used man) that it would have been better had Dr. Rolph sent an
express to where Mr. Mackenzie was, which Mr. Gibson and himself well
knew. But if we are to pay deference to his narratives as well as to his
veracity, how could it be known? He was "attending secret meetings in
various towns and places, previous to Sunday, the 3rd of December;" and "on
that day rode from Stouffville to Yonge Street,"[405] to his headquarters,
and there received the new orders on the very day they reached Gibson.
The complaint amounts to this: the express, instead of being sent to trace
him out from meeting to meeting, and from place to place (when for the
salvation of his own life there was not an hour to spare), was sent to his
headquarters, where it was received and promptly acted on by one of his
co-patriot leaders, Mr. Gibson, from whom (in his misfortunes borne with
fortitude in himself, and with charity towards all) we have yet seen no
criminations against any one, in Mackenzie's _Gazette_ or any other paper.

He admits the reception of the information "on Sunday evening, at
Mr. Gibson's;" and we have next to examine his subsequent conduct.

We must here once more quote his own words: "I instantly sent one of
Mr. Gibson's servants to the north, countermanded the Monday movement,
and begged of Col. Lount not to come down, or in any way to disturb
the previous regular arrangement;" and he assigns two
reasons--"because neither the other towns nor the citizens of Toronto
were in any way prepared for an alteration, which, if persisted in,
would surely ruin us;"[406] though it saved himself from arrest,
imprisonment and the gallows. The value and usefulness of an Executive
ceases with the toleration of such insubordination; and if Mr.
Mackenzie contemplated the imposition of the whole responsibility upon
his Executive, he should have been the last to embarrass his
operations. The reasons assigned are singularly defective; for the
citizens of Toronto, in ready and easy access of the Executive, could
not fail of preparation; and, upon his own showing, Mackenzie had all
Sunday night and all Monday, and indeed all Monday night, and part
even of Tuesday, to communicate with the other towns. But, instead of
spending the time in consummating the immediate descent upon the
capital, he was countermanding the order, and "begging" other leaders
to be guilty of the same insubordination.

That the duty of warning the other towns was of easy and timely
execution may be gathered from his narratives. In his first narrative
he says: "Only in one instance did we forward a notice of the intended
movement beyond the limits of the County of York; and to Whitby, and
some other towns in it, no circulars were sent. We never doubted the
feeling of the Province."[407] As the country was "ripe for a change," and
the defenceless city an easy conquest, it was a wise and discreet
course, for concerting the revolution with secrecy and despatch, to limit
the immediate operations to these particular townships of the metropolitan
County of York. And with the map of the country before us, displaying
the facility of sending the information, we are astounded at the
fact that the time, ample as it was, was prostituted to defeat, and not to
effectuate, what was regarded as an executive order.

In his 12th _Gazette_, he observes: "Had Dr. Rolph communicated
with Mr. Mackenzie, and Tuesday night been decided on, the couriers
could have crossed the country between Saturday evening and Tuesday
evening, so as to have had upwards of 3,000 men on the ground, ready for
the attack." But as he reached Gibson's on Sunday evening, the couriers
might from that time have been crossing and recrossing the country with
full effect in the work of preparation time which he consumed, under
his scepticism, in issuing his counter-mandate.

Although he "countermanded," and "begged," and "grieved" about it in a
way calculated to produce disunion, yet Lount, we find, determined to
proceed under a rational conviction that if the townships could
accomplish the enterprise on Thursday, when the Government would be
prepared, it would be still easier to do it before the preparation was
effectually begun. This disregard for his counter-authority seems from
the sequel to have soured his mind, by indicating the inferiority of
his influence--the magnitude of which he so often and so largely
mentions--and, therefore, to have abated his duty in carrying out the
subsequent details which had been assumed entirely for his own
management. How otherwise can an excuse be found for his delay? For,
if the brave Lount could bring his division from the extreme of the
county, thirty or forty miles, what difficulty could there be in
mustering them with like intrepidity within the more accessible
limits? Indeed, from Sunday he appears to have been either inactive,
or _active adversely_; for he represents himself on Monday evening
with only 200 men (Lount's division), "wearied after their march, and
in the worst possible humour at finding they had been called from the
extremity of the county, _and no one else warned at all_."[408] Hence
he admits that the complaints of the men were directed against his
insubordination, incredulity, and apathy, which prevented the warning
of the adjacent townships. In his supplementary narrative he says:
"The men expressed great discontent when they found none from the city
and few from the environs waiting for them;" and again, "they had been
told thousands from other townships would be their companions." But
this condition arose from his scepticism and insubordination, in
refusing to warn and assuming to countermand.

While the men were thus reproaching him, he thus reproaches his
Executive: "I then waited some time, expecting the Executive to
arrive, but waited in vain. No one came, not even a message. I was
therefore left in entire ignorance of the condition of the capital, and
instead of entering Toronto with 4,000 or 5,000 men, I was expected to
take it on Monday with 200."[409]

The absence of the Executive is made a complaint, because it left him in
ignorance of the condition of the city; for he speaks of himself as
expected to take Toronto, complaining only of the inadequacy of the
force--an inadequacy we have shown to be the offspring of his own
culpability.

It is hard to question a man's veracity when collating from his own
productions; but how could he expect the Executive at the time he professed
to do so? The expectation is declared in his first narrative; but
in the supplementary one we find that the Executive was actually with
him that very day. He says: "When I saw him on the forenoon (I
now find it is a misprint for afternoon) of Monday, the 4th December,
there was a faint hope that Mr. Gibson's servant would be in time to
prevent the rising that day, as I had requested him; but at all events
the Executive was to be prepared for the event." But to be "prepared
for the event" does not imply that the Executive would ride at sunset
from Mackenzie's headquarters, on Yonge Street, to Toronto, for the
exercise of riding back again immediately.

The question, therefore, presents itself: Why did the Executive, after
visiting Mackenzie's headquarters on Monday afternoon, return to the
city, if that was not the place where he was to be, at all events,
"prepared for the event"?

We learn from the narrative that the Executive, upon his arrival at
Mackenzie's headquarters on Monday, must have been greeted with the
following specimen of mutinous insubordination: "Mr. Executive, I
instantly countermanded the Monday movement, and have _begged_ Col.
Lount not to come down, nor in any way to disturb the previous regular
arrangement. You are acting, Sir, on a mere probable rumour." With
such a salutation, it would not be surprising had Dr. Rolph, as his supreme
sole Executive, instantly subjected him to a drum-head court-martial,
and its summary consequences; or had declined, as possibly he did, all
further cooperation with so dangerous a manager of details. But,
suppose he exercised that forbearance which seemed necessary on the
occasion, for the promised consummation of the liberties of the country,
we have the clearest evidence from the narratives that he was not and
could not be expected again that night.

"The previous regular arrangement was not to be disturbed." In
other words, the rendezvous was to take place on the following Thursday,
on which day, therefore, alone the Executive could have been expected.

The most peremptory countermand had been given, with _begging_ and
grieving. And yet, when a little obliquity becomes necessary to
shoulder everything upon his Executive, he reduces its expected
efficacy to a "faint hope"--a hope so faint that the Executive ought
to have fed his horse on his return to Toronto, and immediately
remounted it for Mackenzie's headquarters. But in reality so _unfaint_
was the hope, so thoroughly satisfied was he that the movement would
be arrested and the previous arrangement prevail, that he omitted, as
we have seen, to "warn any one else at all." Now, if the expectation
of no movement justified the omission to "warn any one else at all"
between Sunday and Monday evening, surely it justified the Executive
in remaining in Toronto until apprised, by the manager of details, of
an unexpected rendezvous.

The narrative informs us that it was Monday, and the supplementary
narrative that "it was near dark on that day when the man returned with
news that about 200 men were on their way from the north; of which
fact neither the revolutionists in town nor in the townships were aware."
Here is a plain admission that the rendezvous was _news_, and that the
Executive, one of the "revolutionists in town," was not aware of it; or
in other words, that he left Mackenzie without intending to return, or its
being expected of him. Indeed, being fully satisfied his counter-authority
would prevail, he admits in his supplementary narrative that, besides
omitting to warn "any one else at all," he had not, in the management of
the details, made any provision to feed and comfort the brave fellows on
their unexpected arrival. "As it was, Lingfoot [Linfoot] (as if he were
to blame) had not a morsel for the men to eat." In another part, this
negligent commissary is described as "a Tory lessee of Montgomery."
That they "grumbled" at Mackenzie for not warning "any one else at
all," and for not having "a morsel for them to eat," is probable in the
extreme. It justified the highest degree of dissatisfaction and distrust
towards him. And if, under these circumstances, they naturally called
for Dr. Rolph, there was a want of generosity, conspicuous in all he has
written, not frankly to inform the men instead of exciting prejudice or
acquiescing in complaint that he was there only two hours ago, and had
returned to the city upon being told: "I had countermanded your march
till Thursday, warned no other townships, and prepared not a morsel for
you to eat. But if you wish, we will send him word."

In no part of any of the narratives, however, do we find, although
the Executive was "at all events to be prepared for the event," that he
ever communicated that event to him. It assuredly was an important
part of the details assumed by him, to apprise "the revolutionists in
town, ignorant of the fact," of the arrival of Lount's division, and that
although a full belief in his countermand would arrest the movement till
Thursday, had induced him not "to warn anyone else at all," or prepare
a morsel for the men to eat, yet, having received "the news" of their
approach, he should repair these omissions instantly to the utmost of his
power, and march that night into Toronto. No such message is pretended
in the narratives to have been sent; and a close examination of his
proceedings from Monday evening till Tuesday noon will show positively
it was wholly omitted. It seems he was waiting for a message instead
of sending one. But having seen his Executive that afternoon, and
heard from him the state of the city, and everything bearing on his
expected operations, he could not reasonably expect a message to tell
him the same things over again; while the absence of a message was
equivalent to one telling that all things remained stationary. The
promptitude of the Executive in penetrating the affected indifference
and unpreparation of Sir Francis Head, and even in anticipating his
secret operations, as is admitted, "within 24 hours," ought to have
greatly strengthened this conviction. Thus in reasonable possession of
all the evidence the Executive could give him, it is nauseating to
read in almost every page his piteous complaints that he knew nothing
about the city, and that the Executive ought to have come out in an
hour or two again to tell him. It was not _positive_ intelligence,
which a brave man might desire, but _negative_ assurances he
plaintively wanted. He wished in a few hours to be told that "the arms
were _still_ unpacked"--implying that, if otherwise, he would not
proceed: that "the Tories were still unarmed"--though he elsewhere
states "the arms were in disorder, rusting unpacked in the boxes in
which they had arrived from Kingston," and therefore unfit for instant
appropriation to use: that "the garrison was still unoccupied"--which
hypothetical fear he might have combated after taking the city: and
that "the city would still welcome him"--though he elsewhere says "we
could not mistake the true feeling of the citizens; it had been too
well proved to their own loss." He seems to have been hysterically
affected with alternate paroxysms of hope and fear; full of every
knowledge and confidence when things were only prospective; full of
doubts and fears when brought to the hour of action.

Now, if he was seized with a sudden fit of the horrors, and, being
haunted with the apprehension of some sudden revolution in everything
against him, he paused in the prompt execution of his purpose, surely
he could send four miles for information as easily as it could be sent
to him. But, amidst all his self-exculpatory condemnation of his
Executive, when excusing himself by charging the men, officers, and
all indiscriminately, except himself, with cowardice, he says: "the
city would have been ours in an hour, probably without firing a shot;
_hundreds of our friends waited to join us at its entrance_." Could
his Executive and friends occupy a more becoming station? But where
was the man who, assuming the entire management of the details, had
only to join them by an undisputed march of half a mile? He was
hovering about the city; and if he talked, as he now writes, against
his Executive, and about his woebegone ignorance of everything, no
wonder if he made cowards of even brave men.

About eight or nine o'clock on Monday evening, he intended, if no
one came with tidings from the city, to go there to get information;
though it was obviously more necessary for him to give it. Instead of
reaching the city, he encountered Alderman Powell, and took him
prisoner; and, most unaccountable to relate, at once divulged the whole
secret, by informing him that "the democrats had risen in arms, and wished
to prevent information of that fact from reaching the city;"[410] and,
according to Mr. Powell, in his presence, "ordered the men to be hurried
on"--but, alas! not into the city. This disclosure of course would make
Powell the more desperate in his resolution to escape at the sacrifice of
any life, and the hazard of his own. Yet, with a refinement of courtesy
ill suited to the magnitude of the interests involved, and the important
details he was solemnly pledged faithfully to execute, he thus accosts
Powell and his companion: "Well, gentlemen, as you are my townsmen,
and men of honour, I would be ashamed to show that I question your
words by ordering you to be searched."[411] And then he placed him, with
the arms which there was every presumption he had concealed, in the
custody of a Mr. Anderson, and thus wantonly consigned his brave
comrade to the known hazard of the very fate he met with. Powell shot
Anderson, and galloped to Government House at midnight, to tell the
Governor that Mackenzie himself had informed him that "the democrats
had risen in arms, were concealing the fact, and hurrying on the men"
though, indeed, he saw none, and heard nothing else of them. How
inexplicable is such conduct of the details committed to his management,
when compared with his admission, in his supplementary narrative, that
"thirty or thirty-five dollars were taken from a Tory magistrate suspected
to be a spy, because it was feared he might bribe some one with it in
order to effect his escape." But if he searched a Tory magistrate for cash,
magnetic in its nature, why not a Tory alderman for arms, more repulsive
in their properties? If the one would use his cash, would not the other
use his pistol for his escape? And if he could trust a Tory alderman's
word that he was unarmed, at night too, on a reconnoitring expedition,
why could he not trust his once chosen Patriots with the offer of so
contemptible a bribe? To do the Patriots justice, we believe the
revolutionary cause would have been as safe with the money left to the
Tory magistrate as when transferred to Mackenzie's pocket.

How soon the tragedy of Anderson's death was over! "After which I
proceeded again towards the city," says he; "_and not many minutes
afterwards_ I was overtaken by Powell," who escaped to Government
House with all the tidings from Mackenzie. Under these disastrous
circumstances, it became his imperative duty to send his Executive the
same tidings also, particularly as he acknowledges that "the Reformers
in the town were ignorant of the fact of their rendezvous," and of
course ignorant that Powell carried from his mouth the information to
Sir Francis Head. The first act of the Government might, and probably
would be, to strengthen themselves by arresting the leading Reformers
in the city, and thereby coax the citizens into cooperation. And
therefore it was his duty to march without the least delay into
Toronto. But, with a strange perversion of purpose, always apparent at
the seeming approach of consummation, he sent no orders to "hurry on
the men," and "judged it _most prudent_ to return to Montgomery's;"[412]
but without sending any information, except through Powell, to the
Governor! The ordinary circumstances of the ringing of a fire-bell at
night, even if heard, would be left to fire-engines and companies, and
certainly could not tell their numbers and position, that Anderson was
killed, and Powell escaped with a knowledge of everything. Nor could
he expect his Executive to go to Government House, or Tory
headquarters, for the very information it was his duty to send.

Alluding to the information Sir F. Head received on Monday night, he
says: "His informant, I _believe_, was Capt. Bridgeford."[413] And in
his 12th _Gazette_ he ascribes it to "the attention attracted by the
procession of 200 half-armed men." But how could he believe it, when
he knew from Sir Francis Head's and Alderman Powell's narratives, as
well as from his own, that the very first information the Governor
received was direct from himself, through Powell at midnight?

After his return to Montgomery's, we find his numbers increase; and
_he_ proposed to march into the city, and _others_ objected, alleging,
as we are told, that Mackenzie was uninformed of the strength of the
fortress; that the other townships had not yet joined the men from the
upper country; and that _gentlemen_ (not now the sole Executive) who
had _advised_ and urged on the movements, and even the Executive who
had ordered this premature Monday rising, stood aloof, and had
"neither joined us nor communicated with us."[414] It does not require
much sagacity to perceive how closely these objections are copied from
Mackenzie's own reiterated self-exculpatory complaints--so closely,
indeed, as to force the belief he himself repeated them so often and
so plaintively as to have been deceived by the echo of his own voice.
But, if true, did it become him by even more than silence, to
_acquiesce_ in these objections, unless he welcomed them as a
loop-hole through which to escape a march into the city? Ought he to
have affected to be overcome with these objections? From his own
narratives we collect that he might have abundantly repelled them, as
follows: "The Executive was here in the afternoon, with me and Mr.
Gibson, and returned to the city, upon being told that I had
countermanded your march till Thursday, warned no one else at all, and
provided not a morsel for any one to eat. As the revolutionists in
town are ignorant of the fact of our rendezvous to-night, we cannot
expect them here; but we can with less delay join them there,
particularly as I heard in the afternoon the state of the city. And
Powell has escaped with the information, which unluckily escaped me,
that we had risen in arms, were concealing the fact and hurrying into
the city. On to the city, therefore, we must go, before the enemy can
act on this intelligence, or our leading Patriots may be first
arrested in the city on suspicion, and we attacked afterwards." All
this is a collation of his own acknowledgments, and was so far a
candid and sufficient answer to the alleged objections as fully to
justify his summoning the men to march. And if, instead of silent
acquiescence, he had invited them, with a fire which kindles others,
the men would have borne him on their shoulders triumphantly into the
town. When asked, at Montgomery's: "Are you ready to fight a greatly
superior force, well armed, and with artillery well served?" they
said: "We are ready;" and he bears his testimony that "never did men
fight more courageously."[415] Had a similar invitation been given to
them on Monday, they would have been equally heroic. Why was not the
_opportunity_ given them to _acquiesce_, as well as to _object_? The
men were not to blame.

On Monday night the men are made to complain that Dr. Rolph kept
aloof, and neither joined them nor sent a message. On Tuesday, on the
contrary, when he visited them with a flag, Mackenzie "durst not tell
more than four or five of them the true state of the case."

Without effecting a junction with the citizens, or acquainting his
Executive with his numbers, position, and degree of preparation, he
remained, augmenting, however, in numbers, to 800, till Tuesday at noon,
when he "obtained correct intelligence that, with all his exertions, Sir
Francis could hardly raise 150 supporters in town and country." The
Executive had already ordered an immediate descent on the city. Why
did he not then execute the details of doing it?

In his 12th _Gazette_, as in his narratives, he says that had he been
consulted there would have been "upwards of 3,000 men on the ground,
ready for the attack;" and in his narrative we read: "Sir Francis says
in his speech, 'they were, generally speaking, without arms; and in fact
most of them had none to bring.' That was the grand difficulty, and
would have been remedied had our movements been delayed till Thursday,
as agreed on." Therefore the Executive was to blame! But in his
Proclamation he tells us: "3,500 men came and went, but we had not
arms for them, nor could we procure them in the country." And in the
first narrative, "to seize the arms we so much wanted." And in the 12th
_Gazette_, "to seize the 6,000 stand of arms with which the revolution was
to be effected." [The following lines are here struck out by the reviewer:
"But why, then, complain of his Executive, when even his own remissness
had not even diminished the expected numbers or means? If the
arms were not in the country, he would not have had them on Thursday;
and instead of 3,000 he had 3,500 men. As the revolution was to be
effected with the 6,000 stand of arms, they were as accessible on
Monday and Tuesday as they possibly could have been on Thursday."]

Hence, it appears, the actual number flocking to his camp,
notwithstanding his omission to warn them, equalled his most sanguine
expectations; and if, upon coming, there were no arms for them in the
country, how can he accuse his Executive of being the cause of the
disappointment, either in numbers or armament? And how could the 6,000
stand of arms be available, if he failed in the detail of leading the
men into the city, to join their fellows and arm them all?

While himself at the head of 800 brave volunteers devoted to their
country, he thus, in his second narrative, again describes Sir
Francis, Head's perilous situation: "He sent them (the flag) on
Tuesday morning, within 24 hours of the outbreak, when he had not 150
supporters, including the college boys, when his guns were being
unpacked and cleaned, and when his family had run into the steamboat,
and he was trembling and about to follow." To this must be added the
alarm, however unfounded, at the exercise of authority and power by
Mr. Mackenzie, not so regarded by all parties as to free them from
personal alarm. [Struck out.--We notice in the periodicals that many
Reformers were apprehensive their cash in the bank vaults might share
the fate of the Justice's cash in his pocket, upon as slight a
pretext. And Mr. Thomas Cooper, we see in a Canadian publication by
Mr. Charles Fothergill, solemnly states, as within his own knowledge,
the particulars of similar transactions: one of a servant girl to the
amount of fifteen dollars, notwithstanding her entreaties on her
knees--perhaps it was her little all--and another of an old man in
rags, of half a dollar; besides four dollars and tea and coffee from
Mr. Armstrong.[416] It is also alleged he agitated in his camp the
revolutionary lawfulness of emptying the bank vaults of cash.] No
doubt the tenor and tone of his political publications also made him,
however unjustly, an object of no unreasonable terror.

In this defenceless and fearful state, it was natural for them to seek
what protection they might imagine necessary to life and property, by
what might, rightly or wrongly, be regarded as the more merciful
interposition of their most influential political opponents. There was
evidently neither time nor disposition in the emergency to inquire who
were radicals or revolutionists. The fate of the city seemed suspended
by a thread. As might be expected, the appeal was made to Dr. Rolph,
Mr. Robert Baldwin, and Mr. Bidwell, through Mr. Sheriff Jarvis, who,
acknowledging the weight of their influence, requested, in the name of
Sir Francis Head, their interposition, without specifying anything
particular.[417] The two former gentlemen appear to have complied; and
all of them would, judging from their lives, have exerted themselves,
not without effect, for the extension of protection to both life and
property, to both Tories and Reformers; properly regarding it as a
mere question of the political ascendency of the people.

Upon going out, it appears from Mr. Lount's evidence that Dr. Rolph
told him he came with a flag of truce from Sir Francis, as their
friend, not to stop the progress of their proceedings, but to prevent
the effusion of human blood.

For the security of all parties it required, as Mr. Mackenzie states,
to be in writing. It was made a condition of the flag in returning,
and so reported to the Governor, through the Sheriff, "that the
Patriots would await his answer for an hour, reserving the right of
changing their position, without committing any act of hostility,
unless attacked." Under this arrangement they advanced to the
toll-gate, within less than a mile of the city, and only half the
distance they were from it before. Yet with what conversion to his own
credit he thus remarks: "I then turned round to Col. Lount, and
_advised him_ to march the men under _his_ command"--not Mackenzie's
own division--"at once into the city, and take a position near
Lawyer's Hall."[418]

The second flag returned, announcing, as Lount states, that the truce
was at an end. It is not in the narratives, or in Lount's evidence,
even intimated that Dr. Rolph was expected to remain. The contrary
inference is apparent, and it seems that by common consent he
proceeded to the city, where Mackenzie admits "nine-tenths of the
citizens were ready to join him."

In his supplementary narrative he avails himself of a plea which had
not suggested itself, or been suggested, to him, before issuing his
first narrative. He says: "When the people, then, saw him and the Hon.
Robert Baldwin, another Liberal, come to our camp with Sir Francis's
flag, as his emissaries, it discouraged them much; neither durst I
tell more than four or five the true state of the case, because it
would have gone to town instantly, and occasioned the Doctor's
arrest."

This is a very singular statement. If the men inquired for Dr. Rolph,
as the expected leader for Mr. Mackenzie of his forlorn hope: if they
asked for him, grumbled and wished him there: if they assembled under
his order on Monday, in spite of Mackenzie's countermand: how could it
be that he durst not tell more than four or five that Dr. Rolph was
still their friend? Had he about him such a treacherous set of
Patriots that they would have instantly deserted with the intelligence
for the Doctor's arrest? Could he trust the word of Tory Powell, and
not trust his Patriots in such a case? If he could not trust them with
a bribe of $30, could he not trust them with his fate? Strange, that
he should have selected, if true, such abandoned men! Strange, that he
ever expected Dr. Rolph to join men thus ready wickedly to betray him!
Stranger, that if Mackenzie "instantly saw Sir Francis's weakness,"
and not his Executive's treachery in the flag; that those about him,
all his equals in property, station, and good sense, were too blind to
see it also! Stranger, that the men should, as stated in a late paper,
when arrayed in rank and file, without exchanging one word with him,
begin to cheer him, only stopped by an intimation with the hand!
Stranger, that he did not, in the course of the afternoon, acquaint
the Executive with the existence of this critical jealousy, that he
might act on it according to his discretion!

Why did he not take the city on Monday afternoon, with 800 men against
"150 college boys and trembling officials"? The Executive, of course,
is to blame. In his supplementary narrative he says: "but when the
flag of truce came the second time, _I was ordered to delay till
night_."

It would seem strange that the Executive should hasten the descent on
the city "within twenty-four hours," collect 800 men for the express
object of prompt action, and then tell them early in the afternoon,
when the city was utterly defenceless, to wait till night!

Against the truth of this excuse we have, before the narratives or any
discussion on the subject appeared, the declaration of Dr. Rolph, as
given in evidence by Mr. Brotherson before the authorities in Toronto,
viz.: "that in a conversation with Dr. Rolph on Friday, the 8th
December, 1837, at Lewiston, he said that Mackenzie had acted
unaccountably in not coming into the town, and that the said Mackenzie
could have taken the said town, even on the day on which he had gone
with the flag of truce; and that he had expected Mackenzie in town in
half an hour after the said John Rolph had returned with the flag of
truce."[419]

This is corroborated by Lount's evidence already quoted; for, after
specifying the object of the flag to be "to prevent the effusion of
human blood," he requested him "not to hear the message," but "to go
on with their proceedings."[420] This, too, comports with the terms of
the answer to the flag, admitting of advances upon the city, as
already noticed.

All this is further confirmed beyond a doubt by Mackenzie himself,
who, imputing, as usual, for his own exoneration, the blame of firing
Horne's house to the Executive, says, in his supplementary narrative,
that he was "to do so before he set off for the city." We have
carefully ascertained that the signal for firing the house--done by
Mackenzie's own hand--was given in about half an hour after the final
return of the flag from the camp, and that this large house had fallen
in ruins a little after the middle of the afternoon.[421] Hence, how
many circumstances combine again to show his strange misapprehension
that when the battle hour was come he was not to fight.

As he admits the men _importuned_ him to march into the city on
Tuesday afternoon, why did not the countermander of orders, if he
really wished it, _importune_ his Executive? As he so pliantly yielded
to alleged objections against marching into the city on Monday, why so
insensible to appeals for marching into it on Tuesday? If he could not
respond to the importunity of the men, why not acquaint his Executive
with it?

We learn from a gentleman who left the Province for the Western
States, substantially as follows: That after Horne's house had been
about half an hour on fire, he heard an expression of surprise from a
number of Reformers that Mackenzie did not immediately come into the
city. Of ihis number was Dr. Rolph. That he immediately visited the
enemy's camp, as requested, and proceeded from the city on horseback
up Yonge Street, without any interruption till he reached the advanced
guard of the Patriots, about four o'clock in the afternoon, about two
miles from the city; and upon seeing Gibson and Lount with the men,
stated the surprise of the Reformers, and inquired why they did not
come in. They answered: "We cannot go till General Mackenzie is
ready." That upon learning Mackenzie was in the rear, he galloped to
Montgomery's, four miles from the city, and searched the tavern, and
inquired for him for twenty minutes in vain. That he did not find him
in the room in which it was said he had just taken his dinner; but
after again searching the house in vain, with a Patriot, he found him
in a stable, ordering a man off the ground, who declared he came with
news from the city; which being discredited or distrusted by
Mackenzie, he was driven away. That he then addressed Mackenzie, to
whom he was personally known; gave him what information he possessed,
and repeated the like message as to Gibson and Lount. That Mackenzie
asked what Dr. Rolph was doing, but never expressed, in answer to the
surprise and request communicated to him, that he had been ordered to
delay till night, but told him to return and say he should be in the
city in half an hour. That after riding slowly, and occasionally
stopping, he again rode back with impatience, and found him only a
quarter of a mile further forward, conversing with some men, who said
they also wanted their dinner; and as fresh groups were returning from
towards the city, it became dusk, and there seemed a general objection
to go in till daylight. But that had Mackenzie been with the men, like
Gibson and Lount, when he arrived at the camp with the message, two
miles from the city, they might have marched into it in daylight, with
an hour or more to spare; and that had he found him readily on
reaching Montgomery's, it would not in the movement have made a
difference of more than half an hour: and that had he not delayed with
altercations, but repaired, at once after he was found, to the camp,
he might still have entered the city in daylight.[422]

In the evening attempt he failed; and as he could not, in the
execution of it, well suggest a complaint against his Executive, he
charges the whole against his army, who, he says, "took to their heels
with a speed and steadiness of purpose that would have baffled pursuit
on foot."[423] And yet then they only saw, within half a mile of the
city, "twenty or thirty of the enemy," and even these also "took to
their heels." It is for the men and officers thus indiscriminately
charged with cowardice to defend themselves. It is singular it should
be so, considering they were men who had volunteered this duty for the
achievement of their country's emancipation.

On the Wednesday morning it does not appear that any attempt was made
to enter the city, and the Government, gaining courage, commenced the
arrest of leading reformers in the person of Dr. Morrison; soon after
which, Dr. Rolph, either unable or unwilling to join his insubordinate
officer, whose men "baffled pursuit on foot," took refuge in this
country, which he reached after repeated arrests.

In the mortification of defeat, seemingly too well deserved, he
complains that the citizens, Executive and all, did not come out to
him and march in with him; in plain terms, did not take into their
hands the execution of the details he had undertaken--a relief which
they, perhaps, would cheerfully have afforded him, had he explicitly,
or even less directly, expressed a willingness to resign.

It would, however, have been a strange policy to leave the city, which
they held, as it were, by their own occupancy of it, and allow the
enemy to barricade the streets and avenues against them, thus
excluding them in an unarmed state. On the contrary, as he says, "600
waited at the entrance of the city[424] to receive and join them." Mr.
Mackenzie admits himself bound to execute the details of another, and
it is no excuse for his misconduct that he would have preferred
marching in under cover of the very citizens, the arming of whom from
the 6000 stand of arms was the professed object of his movement.

In this review, we have assumed the facts stated in the narratives as
the only means at present properly available in the inquiry, and as
far as Mackenzie is concerned, he has no reason to complain of it; but
we desire not to be understood as admitting the truth of them against
any other individuals mentioned by name, or otherwise unavoidably
alluded to in the foregoing pages.

FOOTNOTES:

[384] _Mackenzie's Narrative_ (Toronto reprint), p. 8.

[385] _Ib_., pp. 13-15.

[386] _Ib_., pp. 14, 15.

[387] _Ib_., p. 14.

[388] Here I believe Dr. Rolph to be in error. The weight of evidence
bears out the assertion that Mackenzie was willing and even anxious to
lead the men into the city on Tuesday, but was unable to induce them
to follow him until darkness had set in. This is the view I have taken
in the narrative. See chap. xxiv.

[389] _Ante_, vol. ii., p. 126.

[390] _Narrative_, p. 8.

[391] This sentence, it will be noticed, is imperfect, but the meaning
is perfectly obvious.

[392] _Ante_, p. 23.

[393] _Ib_.

[394] _Ante_, vol. i., p. 378, _et seq_.

[395] See note at end of chap. xix.

[396] _Ante_, p. 184.

[397] _Ante_, p. 187.

[398] _Narrative_, p. 8.

[399] _Ante_, p. 16, and note

[400] _Ante_, p. 79.

[401] _Narrative_, p. 8.

[402] _Ib_.

[403] _Ib_.

[404] _Narrative_, p. 7.

[405] _Narrative_, p. 8.

[406] _Ib_., pp. 8, 9.

[407] _Ib_., pp. 7, 8.

[408] _Narrative_, p. 9.

[409] _Narrative_, p. 9.

[410] _Narrative_, p. 11.

[411] _Ib_.

[412] _Narrative_, p. 11.

[413] _Ib_.

[414] _Ib_., p 12.

[415] _Narrative_, p. 17.

[416] _Ante_, pp. 107-109, and notes.

[417] _Ante_, p. 62, _et seq_.

[418] _Narrative_, p. 12.

[419] _Ante_, p. 89.

[420] _Ante_, p. 79.

[421] See Wright's statement, _ante_, p. 77.

[422] All this information is embodied in Wright's _Narratives_,
_ante_, pp. 76-78.

[423] _Narrative_, p. 14.

[424] _Ib_., p. 13.




INDEX.

    *    *    *    *    *

Aikins, Dr. W. T., obtains Carmichael's testimony on behalf of Dr.
Rolph, ii. 317. See _Corrigenda_.

Alien Act of 1804, its provisions, i. 24; object of its original
enactment, i. 25; Gourlay arrested under it, and ordered to leave the
Province, i. 27, 28; Gourlay arrested and imprisoned at Niagara under
its provisions, i. 28.

Allan, Hon. William, a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note: one
of the Associate Justices on trial of the type-rioters, i. 135; an
eye-witness of the outrage, i. 136; becomes a member of the Executive
Council under Sir F. B. Head, i. 313: a consistent Tory, _ib_.;
attends meeting of the Executive Council just before breaking out of
revolt, ii. 30; expresses his approval of Col. Fitz Gibbon's
preparations for defence, ii. 31, 32.

Alves, William, his alleged statement really prepared by Mackenzie,
ii. 23, 280; his testimony, ii. 73, 85; analysis of, ii. 85;
contradicts his former testimony, ib., 280.

Alway, Robert, member of U. C. Assembly for Oxford, in prison awaiting
his trial, ii. 238, 239; released upon giving security for good
behaviour, ii. 256.

Amnesty, General, to rebels, not granted until 1849, ii. 302, and
note.

Anderson, Anthony, appointed to lead the rebels, ii. 11; drills the
rebels, _ib_.; represented by Mackenzie as a competent leader, _ib_.;
joins Lount in active preparations for revolt, ii. 38, 39; marches to
Montgomery's with his men, ii. 39; his arrival there, _ib_.;
accompanies Mackenzie on a reconnoitring expedition, ii. 50; accepts
charge of Powell, a prisoner, ii. 57; challenges Brooke on the
highway, _ib_.; shot dead by Powell, ii. 58; results of his death, ii.
65; disposition of his body, ii. 66, and note.

Anderson, Robert, marches to Scotland village with a detachment of
rebels, ii. 153.

Angus, Dominie, i. 35.

_Anne_, steamer, hired by the western filibusters, ii. 227; commanded
by E. A. Theller, ii. 228; her manoauvres, ii. 229; captured by the
Canadians, ii. 230.

Appleby, Gilman, placed in command of the _Caroline_ steamer, ii. 202;
proud of his employment, _ib_., 203.

Armstrong, James, signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is
appointed member of a permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and
note.

Armstrong, John, signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and id appointed
member of Vigilance Committee, i. 367, and note; attends the last
caucus at Doel's brewery, i. 379; his axemakers, _ib_., note; his
evidence on Dr. Morrison's trial for high treason, ii. 22, 23.

Armstrong, Thomas, attends last caucus at Doel's brewery, i. 379.

Arnold, Richard, takes part in the capture of the _Caroline_, ii. 208;
fires the vessel by order of Capt. Drew, ii. 209; wounded, _ib_.; not
seriously, ii. 212; his narrative, ii. 214-218.

Arthur, Sir George, succeeds Sir F. B. Head, ii. 241; his character
and past career, _ib_.; his term of office opens auspiciously, ii.
244; replies to an Address from the city of Toronto, _ib_.; replies to
a petition from the Constitutional Reformers, ii. 245; Mrs. Lount's
vain appeal to him, ii. 247; confers on the subject with his
Councillors, ii 248; receives instructions from the Colonial Office to
show mercy to the prisoners, and commutes the sentence of John
Montgomery, ii. 252.

Asher, William, a scout, announces the approach of the loyalist troops
to Montgomery's, ii. 123.


Baby, Hon. James, Inspector-General, i. 132; two of his sons concerned
in the raid on Mackenzie's printing-office, _ib_.; senior member of the
Executive Council, i. 140; his contribution to the fund on behalf of
the type-rioters, _ib_.; his idiom, _ib_., note; his small influence at
the Council Board, i. 140, 215; his deep humiliation by the Executive,
i. 215-218; reasons assigned by him for submission, i. 218.

Bacon, Mary, i. 35.

Bagot, Sir Charles, recognizes the doctrine of Responsible Government,
ii. 293.

Baldwin, Hon. Augustus, joins the Executive Council under Sir F. B.
Head, i. 313; his politics and surroundings, _ib_.

Baldwin, Robert, his character, i. 111, 112; spent the best years of
his life in contending for Responsible Government, i. 112; his Liberal
opinions largely moulded by his father, i. 113; assists in forming the
Reform party of U. C., _ib_.; introduces and carries through the
Assembly the measure abolishing the doctrine of primogeniture as
applied to real estate, _ib_., note; house in which he was born, i.
130; sides with Judge Willis in his contention with Attorney-General
Robinson, i. 176; vilified to the Home Office by Sir P. Maitland, i.
183; applies to the Court of King's Bench, in the person of Judge
Sherwood, for an opinion as to the constitutionality of the Court, i.
187; throws off his gown and refuses to transact further business in
the Court, _ib_.; resumes practice, i. 266; appointed a member of the
committee to protect the interests of Lady Mary Willis, i. 190; also
appointed Lady Mary's solicitor, _ib_.; is applied to by Francis
Collins to conduct a prosecution for murder, i. 199; applies for
permission to do so, which is granted, _ib_.; unsuccessfully contests
the seat for the County of York in the Assembly, i. 228; again
contests the seat and is returned, i. 229; had already imbibed the
idea of a responsible Executive, _ib_.; defeated at next election,
_ib_.; keeps aloof from politics, i. 267, 268; his opinion of
Mackenzie, i. 268; refuses to be a candidate for election to the
Assembly, i. 280; approaches made to him by Sir F. Head to accept a
seat in the Executive Council, i. 306; deliberates, i. 307; his
stipulations as to a responsible Executive, _ib_.; accepts office, and
is sworn in, i. 308; resigns office, i. 311; his reasons therefor, i.
309, _et seq_.; his letter to Peter Perry as to negotiations with Sir
F. Head, i. 308, note, 312; maligned by Sir F. Head to the Colonial
Office upon his visit to England, i. 325, 326; not admitted to an
interview with Lord Glenelg, i. 326; his opinions as to the state of
affairs in Canada, i. 361; less radical than his father, _ib_.; his
evidence before the Treason Commission, ii. 22, 73, 87; suggested by
J. H. Price to Sheriff Jarvis as a proper person to be the bearer of a
flag of truce to the rebels, ii. 63; applied to for that purpose,
_ib_.; accepts, under certain conditions, ii. 64; sets out for the
rebel camp with Dr. Rolph, _ib_.; arrives there, ii. 68; returns to
get Sir F. Head's ratification of the em-bassy in writing, ii. 71;
reports to Sheriff Jarvis, _ib_.; informed that Sir F. Head will not
ratify his embassy, ii. 72; returns with Rolph to the rebels, _ib_.;
rides westward in advance of Rolph, _ib_.; joined by Rolph, _ib_.;
returns to the city and proceeds to his house, _ib_.; his evidence as
to the flag of truce, ii. 22, 73, 87; considered, ii. 87, 88; his
desire for Mr. Bidwell's return to Canada, ii. 173, 174; one of the
counsel for defence on trial of John Montgomery, ii. 251; also on
trial of Dr. Morrison, ii. 252; introduces resolutions into the
Parliament of United Canada recognizing Responsible Government, ii.
293; would probably have yielded his allegiance to the Provisional
Government had the revolt been successful, ii. 296; refuses to present
Mackenzie's claim for $12,000 against the Government, ii. 308; effect
of his refusal on Mackenzie, ii. 309; his chagrin at the vote on the
motion to abolish Court of Chancery, ii. 310; retires from the second
Lafontaine-Baldwin Ministry, _ib_.; charged by extremists with want of
vigour in dealing with the Clergy Reserve question, ii. 311; Dr. Rolph
contributes to drive him from public life, ii. 312; severance of
relations with Dr. Rolph, _ib_.; their previous relations, _ib_., and
note; adduced by Rolph as evidence on the subject of the flag of
truce, ii. 319; probable reasons for his silence, _ib_.

Baldwin, Dr. William Warren, conspicuous among the Fathers of Reform
in Upper Canada, i. 110; his character and social position, _ib_.; his
past life, i. 110, 111; succeeds to much of the property of President
Russell and his sister Elizabeth, i. Ill; sides with Judge Willis in
his contention with Attorney-General Robinson, i. 176; vilified to the
Home Office by Sir P. Maitland, i. 183; Judge Willis's opinion of him,
i. 184; applies to the Court of King's Bench, in the person of Judge
Sherwood, for an opinion as to the constitutionality of the Court, i.
187; throws off his gown, and refuses to transact further business in
the Court, _ib_.; resumes practice, i. 266; appointed on a committee
to watch over the interests of Lady Mary Willis, i. 189; re-elected to
the Assembly, i. 220; moves that Allan MacNab be committed for
contempt, i. 223; moves a similar resolution as to H: J. Boulton, i.
224; defeated at the polls, i. 232; refuses to stand for any
constituency, i. 280, and note; is sent for by Sir F. B. Head, i. 307;
his views as to Responsible Government, _ib_.; accepts the Presidency
of the Constitutional Reform Society, i. 326; his warm language on the
elections of 1836, i. 339; dismissed from the Judgeship of the
Surrogate Court of the Home District, i. 340, and note; more radical
than his son, i. 361; advises Rolph to accept a seat in the proposed
convention, i. 374; informed of the revolt after the arrival of the
rebels at Montgomery's, ii. 22; voluntarily appears before the Treason
Commission, and denies all participation in the Rebellion, ii. 195;
admits that he has been informed of Rolph's participation, but refuses
to disclose the name of his informant, who was F. Hincks, _ib_.; would
probably have joined the Provisional Government had the Rebellion been
successful, ii. 296.

Baldwin, Mrs. (wife of Dr. W. W. Baldwin), appointed on a committee to
watch over the interests of Lady Mary Willis, i. 189.

Ball, John C., juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Ball, Peter M., juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Banished Briton, the. See Gourlay, Robert.

Bank of Upper Canada, a crusade instituted against it by Mackenzie, i.
236.

_Barcelona_ steamer, ii. 224.

Bastedo, David, juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Baxter, Alderman, a clerk in Lesslie's store, ii. 150, note.

Beatty, Rev. John, attends Lountand Matthews on the gallows, ii. 249.

Beebe, Nelson, slain on Navy Island, ii. 225, note.

Beikie, John, present at the theatre at York on an interesting
occasion, i. 148,

Bellingham, W., accompanies Col. Fitz Gibbon on a reconnoitring
expedition, ii. 52; is sent forward to Montgomery's, _ib_.; captured
by rebels, ii. 56.

Bennam, Bet, i. 35.

Berczy, Charles Albert, becomes postmaster of Toronto, ii. 197, and
note.

Berczy, William, obtains an assignment of Markham township, i. 59,
note; the Executive refuse to confirm the grant, _ib_.; his ruin and
departure from the Province, _ib_.; dies at New York, _ib_.

Bernard, Lieutenant, afterwards Captain, his elopement with Lady Mary
Willis, i. 193; sued by Judge Willis, who recovers against him
1,000 pounds, _ib_.

Bidwell, Barnabas, Dr. Strachan's dictum on the question of his
expulsion from the Assembly, i. 23, note; contests the seat in the
Assembly for Lennox and Addington, i. 97; his past history, _ib_.;
enmity against him in Massachusetts, _ib_.; Treasurer of Berkshire
County, Mass, i. 98; accused of embezzlement and falsification, _ib_.;
takes refuge in U. C., _ib_.; settles at Bath, _ib_.; obtains
employment as a schoolmaster, _ib_.; takes the oath of allegiance to
Her Majesty, i. 99; removes to Kingston, _ib_.; author of _The
Prompter_, and of part of Gourlay's _Statistical Account_, _ib_.;
espouses Gourlay's cause, _ib_.; elected to Parliament, _ib_.; the
facts of his past life become known to his opponents, i. 99, 100; an
emissary sent to Massachusetts, i. 100; a petition filed against his
election, _ib_.; his defence, _ib_.; assailed by Attorney-General
Robinson, i. 101; his reply, _ib_.; his expulsion, _ib_.; an Act
passed to practically exclude him from Parliament, _ib_.; his son
returned to the Assembly, i. 103 (see Bidwell, Marshall Spring).

Bidwell, Marshall Spring, a candidate for the representation of Lennox
and Addington in the Assembly, i. 102; contests the constituency three
times, and is finallv elected, i. 103; elected Speaker, i. 102, note;
first counsel for the plaintiff in the type-riot case, i. 135;
dissuades Mackenzie from proceeding criminally against the defendants,
i. 141; fraternizes with Judge Willis, i. 169; sides with Judge Willis
in his contention with Attorney-General Robinson, i, 176; vilified to
the Home Office in consequence by Sir P. Maitland, i. 183; re-elected
to the Assembly, i. 220; elected Speaker, _ib_.; admonishes H. J.
Boulton at the bar of the House, i. 225-228; the admonition eulogized
by the London Times, i, 227, 228; again returned for Lennox and
Addington, but not re-elected to the Speakership, i. 232, 233; defends
W. L. Mackenzie in the Assembly, i. 257, 258; re-elected for his
constituency, i. 277; again elected Speaker, i. 282; his first
interview with Sir F. Head, i. 304; who conceives a distaste for him,
i. 308; officially signs memorial to the King against Sir F. B. Head,
i. 318; lays letter from L. J. Papineau before the Assembly, i. 321;
defeated at general election of 1836, i. 332; defeated by the
Methodist vote, i. 334; maligned to the Colonial Secretary by Sir F.
B. Head, i. 355, 356; the Colonial Secretary instructs Head to elevate
Bidwell to the bench upon the first vacancy, i. 355; his feelings as
to the revolt, i. 361; had no hand in it, i. 362, and note;
MacMullen's error in this respect, i. 362, note; Mackenzie's evidence
on the point, _ib_.; consulted as to the legality of rifle-matches,
_ib_., 375; his letter and certificate of character to David Gibson,
i. 362, note; appointed a delegate to the proposed con-vention, i.
366; arranged by the rebels that he shall be a member of their
Provisional Government, i. 373; declines to have anything to do with
the proposed convention, i. 374; suggested by Price to Sheriff Jarvis
as a proper person to be the bearer of a flag of truce to the rebels,
ii. 63; applied to for that purpose, ii. 64; declines, _ib_.; flag
bearing his name found at Montgomery's, ii. 133; becomes an object of
suspicion, ii. 159; confers with Attorney-General Hagerman, _ib_.;
offers to submit to examination, _ib_.; informs Attorney-General
Hagerman of Rolph's having gone to the U. S., ii. 160; his
constitutional timidity, ii. 162; his letters confiscated, _ib_.;
calls on Sir F. B. Head, _ib_.; the interview, ii. 163, _et seq_.;
departs from the Province, ii. 167; his letters to Sir F. B. Head, ii.
166, note, 167, and note; admitted to the bar of New York, ii. 168;
his subsequent career, ii. 168-174; his last interview with Sir F. B.
Head, ii. 169, 170; Egerton Ryerson's defence of him, ii. 171-173;
writes to the papers denying that he is one of the "distinguished
gentlemen" referred to in Mackenzie's Navy Island proclamation, ii.
189, note; would probably have recognized the Provisional Government
had the revolt been successful, ii. 296.

Birge, "General" John Ward, nominal commander of the Prescott expedition,
ii. 263.

Blacklock, Dr. Ambrose, member for Stormont, seconds Rolph's motion
that H. J. Boulton be admonished by the Speaker, i. 225.

Blake, William Hume, appointed Chancellor, ii. 310.

Bolton, George, messenger from Rolph to Mackenzie, ii. 45, note.

Boswell, George Morss, chief counsel for defence on trial of John
Montgomery, ii. 251; also on trial of Dr. Morrison, ii. 252; addresses
jury on latter trial, ii. 255.

Boulton, D'Arcy, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note; his
gross partiality on the judicial bench, i. 124, 125; attacked by W. L.
Mackenzie in the _Colonial Advocate_, i. 125.

Boulton, D'Arcy (son to the preceding), a member of the Family Compact,
i. 75, note.

Boulton, George, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note.

Boulton, Henry John, present at Gourlay trial, i. 13; acting
Solicitor-General, _ib_.; second to S. P. Jarvis in the duel with John
Ridout, _ib_.; a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note; his
hostility to Judge Willis, and its cause, i. 166, 167; his opinion as
to the constitutionality of the Court of King's Bench for U. C., i.
188; accused of murder by Francis Collins, on account of his
connection with the Ridout duel, i. 172, 173, 198; indicts Francis
Collins, i. 198; a true bill found against him, i. 199; arrested in
court, _ib_.; a faint _umbra_ of Attorney-General Robinson, _ib_.;
tried for murder, _ib_.; acquitted, i. 200; cited to appear before a
Committee of the Assembly, i. 224; refuses to answer questions, _ib_.;
adjudged guilty of contempt, and placed at the bar, i. 225; adjudged
to be admonished by the Speaker, _ib_.; solicitude on the subject
among his friends, _ib_.; long-standing feud between the Bidwells and
the Boultons, and its cause, _ib_., 226; the admonition, i. 226, 227;
succeeds to the Attorney-Generalship, i. 228; returned to the Assembly
for Niagara, i. 233; his advocacy of the "Everlasting Salary Bill," i.
231; his bluster and pretence, _ib_.; his speech on religious
observances in the Assembly, i. 235; refers to Mackenzie in the
Assembly as a "reptile," i. 239; his conduct with regard to the
repeated expulsions of Mackenzie not approved at the Colonial Office,
i. 247; dismissed from office, i. 248; his indignation, i. 249;
controls the columns of the _U. C. Courier_, which begins to utter
disloyalty, _ib_.; goes to England, i. 250; appointed Chief Justice of
Newfoundland, i. 251; his misconduct there, _ib_.; removed from
office, i. 252; returns to U. C. and again becomes member for Niagara,
_ib_.; his perpetual applications to the Home Government, _ib_.;
abandons the Conservative party after the Union of the Provinces, and
acts with Mr. Baldwin, _ib_.; supports Responsible Government and the
Rebellion Losses Bill, _ib_.

Boulton, William Henry, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note;
taunts Dr. Rolph on the subject of the flag of truce, ii. 73, note,
317, 318; expresses regret therefor, ii. 73, note; Rolph's explanation
accepted by him as satisfactory, ii. 318.

Bradley, a filibuster, takes possession of Point Pelee Island, ii. 232.

British Constitutional Society, formed at Toronto, i. 322.

Brock, George, accompanies Col. Fitz Gibbon on a reconnoitring
expedition, ii. 52; is sent forward towards Montgomery's, _ib_.;
captured by rebels, ii. 56.

Brock, Major-General Sir Isaac, not a self-seeker, i. 51, note;
monument to his memory erected on Queenston Heights, i. 123; a copy of
the Colonial Advocate interred beneath it, i. 124; disinterred by
order of Sir Peregrine Maitland, _ib_.; the monument blown up, ii.
271, note; Mackenzie's alleged connection with that act, _ib_.

Brockville, enjoys the privilege of sending a. representative to the
Assembly, i. 69; a rotten borough, _ib_.

Brooke, Thomas Richard, forces his way through the guard at
Montgomery's, ii. 55; encounters two rebels and their prisoners on
Yonge Street, ii. 57; escapes past them, but is long in reaching the
city, ii. 58.

Brotherson, Philip Charles Hamilton, his evidence as to Dr.. Rolph,
ii. 73, 89.

Brougham, Lord, attacks Lord Durham in the House of Lords, ii. 289.

Brown, American Major-General, at siege of Fort Erie, i. 92.

Brown, George, defeated in Haldimand by W. L. Mackenzie, ii. 309.

Brown, Jonah, i. 214.

Brown, Thomas Storrow, letter from him to W. L. Mackenzie, i. 382,
383.

Browne, an innkeeper at Niagara Falls, i. 153; his machinations
against William Forsyth, _ib_.

Buller, Charles, his report on Public Lands and Emigration, i. 58,
note; becomes chief secretary to Lord Durham, ii. 287; the real author
of Lord Durham's Report, ii. 290, and note.

Burwell, Colonel Mahlon, elected to the Assembly for Middlesex, i.
232; returned for London at general election of 1836, i. 332.

Butler's Rangers, grants of territory to, i. 64.


Cameron, John Hillyard, watches with Col. Fitz Gibbon at Parliament
Buildings, ii. 51, note; sent to ring bell of Upper Canada College,
ii. 52.

Cameron, Colonel Kenneth, temporarily commands the Canadian militia on
the Niagara frontier, ii. 198.

Cameron, Malcolm, a member of the Hincks-Morin Government, ii. 312.

Campbell, Sir Archibald, Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick, i. 342;
despatch from the Colonial Office to him as to a responsible
Executive, _ib_.; refuses to carry out his instructions, and resigns
office, i. 343.

Campbell, Mr. afterwards Sir William becomes Chief Justice, i. 12,
note, 132, note; presides on trial of the type-rioters, i. 135; his
ill-health, and consequent absence from the bench, i. 181; obtains
leave of absence and visits England, _ib_.; his attire, i. 191, note;
knighted, i. 228; retires from office, _ib_.

_Canada and the Canada Bill_, by Chief Justice Robinson, i. 341.

_Canada Constellation_, the, one of the earliest
Provincial newspapers, i. 54, 55.

Canadian Alliance Society, formed by Mackenzie and others, i. 281; its
objects, _ib_.; not acceptable to Reformers generally, i. 326.

_Canadian Freeman_, the, edited by Francis Collins, i. 134; attacks S.
P. Jarvis about the Ridont duel, i. 134, 135; publishes Col. Fitz
Gibbon's indiscreet letter, i. 140; a rival of Mackenzie's paper, i.
197; the Executive's attempts to check its publication, _ib_.; its
continued publication, _ib_.; charges Attorney-General Robinson with
"native malignancy," i. 202; its report pronounced by Judge Sherwood
to be a "gross and scandalous libel," _ib_.; edited from York jail by
Collins, i. 210; ceases to exist, i. 212.

Carey, John, editor of the York Observer, testifies that the Judge's
conduct on the trial of Francis Collins appeared to outrage law and
common sense, i. 208.

Carfrae, Major, commands the artillery at Montgomery's, ii. 118.

Carfrae, jr., Thomas, his letter to Dr. Rolph as to the mayoralty of
Toronto, i. 271; intimates to the City Council the purport of the
reply, i. _ib_., 272.

Carmichael, Hugh, bearer of the flag of truce to the rebels, ii. 64;
his evidence, ii. 73, 86; considered, ii. 87; how obtained, ii. 317.
See _Corrigenda_.

_Caroline Almanac_, compiled and published by Mackenzie while in jail
at Rochester, ii. 278; its character, _ib_., _et seq_.

_Caroline_ steamer, purchased in Buffalo for the use of the
filibusters, ii. 202; taken down to Navy Island, and employed for
purposes of transport, _ib_.,_ et seq_.; boarded and destroyed by
Captain Drew and his men, ii. 207, _et seq_.; effect in the United
States, ii. 221, 225.

Cawthra family, the, i. 130.

Chisholm, Colonel William, his command of a part of the militia, ii.
118, and note.

Christie, David, takes part in founding the Clear Grit party, ii. 309.

Clark, Mr., successfully opposes M. S. Bidwell in Lennox and
Addington, i. 102; his return set aside, and a new election ordered,
i. 103.

Clark, Colonel Thomas, one of the commissioners appointed to
superintend the construction of the monument to Sir Isaac Brock, i.
124; ordered by Sir P. Maitland to disinter and remove the _Colonial
Advocate_ from beneath the monument, _ib_.; protests against the vote
on the Wild Lands Assessment Act, i. 218; his evidence on the subject,
i. 219; a member of the Legislative Council, _ib_.

Claus, Hon. William, a member of the Legislative Council of Upper
Canada, witness for the Crown in the Gourlay trial, i. 14; head of
Indian department at Niagara, _ib_.; shady transactions with the
Indians, _ib_.; in conjunction with Dickson, hears the case against
Gourlay under the Alien Act of 1804, and orders Gourlay to leave the
Province, i. 27, 28; he and Dickson issue order of commitment against
Gourlay, i. 28; Sir Arthur Piggott's opinion as to his conduct, i. 30;
proceedings instituted against him by Gour-lay, _ib_.; action lapses,
_ib_.

Clear Grit party founded, ii. 309; becomes powerful, ii. 311; its
assistance necessary to the formation of a stable Government, _ib_.

Clergy Reserves, their injurious effect upon the country's prosperity,
i. 63, _et seq_.; their origin, i. 63, 64; had much to do with
bringing about the Rebellion, i. 64; mode of their appropriation, i.
65; a curse to the Province, i. 67; agitation on the subject, i. 68;
Rolph's famous speech on the subject in the Upper Canada Assembly, i.
104, 345; the opinions of Reformers not unanimous on the subject, i.
120; endowment of the rectories by Sir John Colborne, i. 292-295;
dealt with in Lord Glenelg's instructions to Sir F. B. Head, i. 299;
motion in the Assembly for disposing of them for purposes of
education, i. 344, 345.

Coffin, Colonel, Adjutant-General of Militia, i. 157; his attendance
before a Parliamentary Committee not permitted by the Lieutenant-Governor,
_ib_.; evidences of collusion, i. 157, 158; warrant issued against him
by the Speaker, i. 159; his house forcibly entered in order that the
warrant might be executed, _ib_.; brought to the bar of the Assembly,
_ib_.; committed to jail, _ib_.; confined three days, _ib_.; sues the
Speaker for false imprisonment, _ib_.; fails in his action, i. 159,
160; his ill-health, ii. 33, note.

Colborne, Major-General Sir John, succeeds Sir P. Maitland as
Lieutenant-Goyernor of Upper Canada, i. 206, and note; his character
and past life, i. 206; vain appeals to him on behalf of Francis
Collins, i. 205-207, 209-211; allies himself with the Family Compact,
i. 206, 209; largely influenced by Dr. Strachan and Attorney-General
Robinson, i. 209; burned in effigy at Hamilton, i. 223; his
one-sidedness and consequent unpopularity among Reformers, i. 241;
inveighed against by certain Tories in the Assembly for permitting
Mackenzie to take the oath before the Clerk of the Executive Council,
i. 260; urges Dr. Rolph to found a permanent medical college, i. 267;
ungracious correspondence between him and the Colonial Office, i. 285;
Lord Glenelg, Colonial Secretary, resolves upon his recall, _ib_.; he
himself solicits his recall, i. 292; his endowment of the rectories,
i. 293; execrated therefor, i. 295; leaves Toronto for Montreal, i.
296; public demonstrations in his favour, _ib_.; appointed
Commander-in-Chief of the Forces, _ib_.; goes to Quebec, _ib_.; Upper
Canada College established by him, i. 300; kept informed as to the
proceedings of the rebels in Lower Canada, i. 377; removes troops from
Toronto to Kingston, _ib_.; removes troops from Upper Canada, i. 383;
despatches mortars and heavy artillery to Upper Canada, ii. 223;
harries Bill Johnston, ii. 258; not likely to play with revolution,
ii. 284; fills the dual position of Civil Administrator and
Commander-in-Chief of the Forces, _ib_., note; unfit to deal with a
constitutional crisis, ii. 285.

Collins, Francis, editor of the _Canadian Freeman_, i. 134, 195, _et
seq_.; writes against S. P. Jarvis, i. 134, 135; asserts that Sir P.
Maitland was a subscriber to the fund for the type-rioters, i. 140;
brought before Judge Willis on indictments for libel, i. 171; his
address to the court, _ib_., _et seq_.; his gross charges against
Attorney-General Robinson, _ib_., 198; moves that the Attorney-General
be compelled to proceed against H. J. Boulton and S. P. Jarvis for old
offences, i. 172, 173, 198; is directed by Judge Willis to go before
the Grand Jury, i. 174, 198; his character and past life, i. 195;
works as a compositor in the office of the _Upper Canada Gazette_,
_ib_.; reports the debates in the Assembly, _ib_.; his reports offend
the House, _ib_.; applies to be appointed King's Printer, i. 196; his
application refused with scorn and contumely, _ib_.; his indignation,
_ib_.; claims descent from the Irish kings, _ib_.; his personal
appearance, _ib_.; continues to report the Assembly's proceedings, i.
197; establishes the _Freeman_, _ib_.; his journalistic style, _ib_.;
the Executive refuse him remuneration for his labours, i. 198;
publishes the facts in his paper, _ib_.; two bills of indictment laid
against him, _ib_.; arrested and gives bail twice, _ib_.; applies to
Robert Baldwin to conduct prosecution, i. 199; his rabid characterization
of officialdom, i. 201; tried and acquitted on an indictment for
libel, i. 202; indicted, tried, and convicted of a libel charging
Attorney-General Robinson with "native malignancy," i. 101, note, 202,
203; his severe sentence, i. 203, 204; disproportionate to his
offence, i. 204; facts indicative of injustice, i. 208; lies in jail
for months, i. 205; exertions on his behalf, i. 205, _et seq_., 211;
his moving but ineffective petition to the Lieut.-Governor, i. 209;
resigns himself to his fate, _ib_.; edits the _Freeman_ while in jail,
i. 210; his open letters to Attorney-General Robinson, _ib_.; his case
taken up and inquired into by the Assembly, _ib_.; their Address to
his Excellency, _ib_.; to the King, i. 211; alleged plot to release
him from jail, i. 223; set at liberty, i. 212; his subsequent career
and death, _ib_.

Colonial Advocate newspaper, founded by W. L. Mackenzie, i. 115; its
founder's motives, i. 116, 117; is removed from Queenston to York, i.
120; advocates a State provision for the Clergy, _ib_., note;
advocates Responsible Government, i. 122; its first number interred
beneath Brock's monument, i. 121; disinterred by order of Sir
Peregrine Maitland, _ib_.; claimed by Mackenzie, _ib_.; attacks Hon.
D'Arcy Boulton, i. 124, 125; determination to suppress it, i. 127;
difficulties attending its publication, _ib_.; moribund, _ib_.;
criticises certain members of the Compact, i. 128; attacks Hon. J. B.
Macaulay, _ib_.; office of publication, where situated, i. 130; raided
by persons connected with the Family Compact, _ib_., _et seq_.;
subsequently burned down, i. 130, note; trial of the raiders, i. 135,
_et seq_.; the paper receives a new lease of life, i. 141-143; becomes
in some respects a source of weakness to its proprietor, i. 242; its
office attacked, i. 244; its publication deputed to other hands during
Mackenzie's absence in Britain, i. 245; its publication discontinued
by him, i. 281, and note.

Colonial Office, its interference in the domestic affairs of Upper
Canada, i. 68.

Commissioner of Crown Lands first appointed in 1827, i. 58.

Constitutional Reform Society formed in Toronto, i. 326.

Constitution of Upper Canada under Act of 1791, i. 48, et seq.; i. 65,
et seq.

Cooper, Thomas, his evidence as to Mackenzie's robberies on the
highway, ii. 107, note.

Cornwall, town, enjoys the privilege of sending a representative to
the Assembly, i. 69; a rotten borough, _ib_.

Crookshank, Hon. George, a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note.


Dalhousie, Earl of, his strictures on the conduct of Captain Matthews,
i. 147.

Dalrymple, Mrs., sister of Sir F. B. Head, her interview with Col.
Fitz Gibbon, ii. 51.

Davenish, William, a juryman in the case against Francis Collins, i.
207, and note; his alleged partiality, _ib_.

Davis, Asa, assists Dr. Rolph in his flight from Upper Canada, ii.
114.

Dean, John, i. 35.

Deas, a French-Canadian, accompanies Lount and Kennedy in a boat on
their flight, ii. 143.

Derby, Earl of. See Stanley.

Dickson, Hon. William, a member of the Legislative Council of Upper
Canada, witness for the Crown in the Gourlay trial, i. 14; his past
life, _ib_.; his duel, _ib_.; purchases the township of Dumfries,
_ib_.; connected by marriage with Gourlay, i. 25; his grievance owing
to the partial interdiction of immigration to Canada from the United
States, _ib_.; causes of his hostility to Gourlay, i. 26; his
consultation with Swayze, _ib_.; causes the arrest of Gourlay under
the Alien Act of 1804, i. 27; hears the case against Gourlay, whom he
and Glaus order to leave the Province, i. 27, 28; causes Gourlay's
arrest and commitment, i. 28; Sir Arthur Piggott's opinion of his
conduct, i. 30; proceedings instituted against him by Gourlay, _ib_.;
action lapses, _ib_.; his action in the matter of the petition for
relief against the Wild Lands Assessment Act, i. 216-219; his
remonstrance with Hon. James Baby and ex-Chief Justice Powell, i. 218.

Doan, Joshua G., marches to Scotland with a detachment of rebels, ii.
153.

Doel, John, signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i. 316; his
brewery a frequent place of meeting for Reformers in Toronto, 364;
meeting there to discuss "the Declaration," i. 365, 366; signs
Declaration, and is appointed member of a permanent Committee of
Vigilance, i. 367, and note; attends last caucus at his brewery, i.
378.

Doel's Brewery, a frequent place of meeting for Reformers in Toronto,
i. 364; meeting there to discuss "the Declaration," i. 365, 366; last
important meeting there, and by whom attended, i. 378, _et seq_.

Draper, William Henry, returned for Toronto at general election of
1836, i. 332; his abilities, _ib_.; becomes Solicitor-General, i. 355;
attends meeting of Executive Council just before outbreak of revolt,
ii. 30.

Drew, Captain Andrew, entrusted with the direction of the naval
department on the Niagara frontier, ii. 203; his voyage of inspection
round Navy Island in an open boat, _ib_., and note; confers with
Colonel MacNab, ii. 204; entrusted with the cutting-out of the
_Caroline_, ii. 205; receives final instructions, and sets out with
his men, _ib_.; his instructions, ii. 206; commands first boat, _ib_.;
boards and carries the steamer, ii. 207, _et seq_.; orders her to be
set on fire, ii. 209; detailed to watch the _Barcelona_, ii. 224;
anchors two schooners in United States waters, _ib_.; Bill passed by
U. C. Assembly granting 75 guineas to buy him a sword, ii. 239; grant
fails, _ib_.

Drew, Mr., starts from Richmond Hill with a letter of warning to Sir
F. Head, at Toronto, ii. 54; taken prisoner, _ib_.

Duggan, George, acts as Sheriff Jarvis's orderly, ii. 64; his
altercation with Colonel Fitz Gibbon, ii. 131, note.

Duncan, John, shelters Matthews and other rebels, ii. 145; who are
captured in his house, ii. 146, 147.

Duncombe, Dr. Charles, returned to the Assembly for Oxford, i. 277;
re-elected at general elections of 1836, i. 340; sent to England on a
mission against Sir F. B. Head, _ib_.; which is unsuccessful, _ib_.;
his statement forwarded to Sir Francis, who remits it to the Assembly,
i. 346; dealt with there, _ib_.; his Excellency vindicated, _ib_.;
joins in the project for revolt, and takes charge of the Western
Division, i. 375, ii. 151; messages sent to him from Montgomery's, ii.
106; his cooperation with Mackenzie, ii. 151, 152; his plans, ii. 152;
assembles his men at Scotland village, ii. 153; disperses his forces
and escapes to the United States, ii. 155; expelled from the U. C.
Assembly, ii. 238; receives a pardon, and returns to Canada, ii. 301,
302; but does not remain, _ib_. See also note at end of chap, xxviii.

Dunlop, Capt. Robert Graham, defeats Colonel Van Egmond in a political
contest in Huron, ii. 13.

Dunn, Hon. John Henry, Receiver-General, protests against a School
Bill in the Assembly, i. 216, note; coerced into consenting to an
erasure of his protest, _ib_.; shirks the vote on the Wild Lands
Assessment Act, i. 217; not a member of any political party, i. 308;
accepts office in the Executive Council under Sir F. Head, _ib_.;
sworn into office and gazetted, _ib_.; resigns, i. 311; reasons
therefor, i. 308, _et seq_.

Durand, Charles, banished for alleged complicity in the Rebellion, ii.
249, note; returns to Canada, _ib_.; his account of the last days of
Lount and Matthews, _ib_.

Durfee, Amos, killed at the capture of the _Caroline_, ii. 212.

Durham, John George Lambton, Earl of, his characterization of the
Family Compact, i. 51; on the issue of patents during the Upper
Canadian elections of 1836, i. 329, note; chosen by the Home
Government to deal with the Canadian crisis, ii. 285; his character
and past life, _ib_., 286, 287; unwilling to accept the responsible
post offered him, ii. 287; consents, and is appointed Governor-General
of British North America and Lord High Commissioner, _ib_.; secures
the assistance of C. Buller and others, _ib_.; proceeds to Canada,
_ib_.; his labours and ill-health, ii. 288; his mode of dealing with
the rebel prisoners in Lower Canada, _ib_., 289; exceeds his
authority, _ib_.; attacked in the House of Lords by Brougham and
others, ii. 289; disallowance of his ordinance, _ib_.; his indiscreet
proclamation, _ib_.; referred to by the London Times as the "Lord High
Seditioner," _ib_.; throws up his place and sails for England, _ib_.;
his Report, ii. 290; its character, _ib_., _et seq_., and notes;
chiefly prepared by C. Buller, ii. 290, and note; his death, ii. 290;
John Stuart Mill's remarks on, _ib_.; what Canada owes him, ib., 291;
recommends a restoration of the Union of the Canadas, ii. 292.

Dutcher, William A., his foundry on Yonge Street, i. 379, note.


Edmundson, William, sent by Gibson to Holland Landing, with message to
Lount, ii. 37, and note; delivers same to Mrs. Lount, ii. 37; informs
John Hawk of day of rising, ii. 41.

Elgin, Lord, Responsible Government restored and established during
his term of office as Governor-General of Canada, ii. 293; son-in-law
of Lord Durham, _ib_., note; his confidence in Lord Durham's views,
_ib_.; mobbed in the streets, ii. 307.

Ellenborough, Lord, attacks Lord Durham in the House of Lords, ii.
289.

Elliott, John, Secretary-in-Ordinary to the Radical Committee, i. 367;
signs "Declaration," and is appointed a member of a permanent
Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note; his testimony on the trial
of Dr. Morrison, i. 378, note, ii. 22, 23; attends the last caucus at
Doel's brewery, i. 378.

Elliott, Thomas, signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is appointed
member of a permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note.

Elliott's Tavern, a frequent place of meeting for Reformers in
Toronto, i. 364.

Elmsley, Chief Justice, his acquisitions of public lands, i. 61.

Elmsley, Hon. John, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note;
resigns his seat in the Executive Council because it was impossible
for him to act independently, i. 250, note; his letter of resignation,
_ib_.; joins the Executive Council under Sir F. B. Head, i. 313; a
consistent Tory, _ib_.; takes part in capture of the _Caroline_, ii.
208; fired on while examining the channel between Navy Island and
Grand Island, ii. 222, 223; reports the facts to Colonel MacNab, ii.
223.

Everett, Obed, shelters Lount during his wanderings after the affair
at Montgomery's, ii. 142.

Everlasting Salary Bill, the, i. 233-235.


Family Compact, i. 70; chap, iii.; what it was, i, 71; its origin and
nature, i. 71, _et seq_.; Lord Durham on, i. 74, 75, note; origin of
the term, i. 75; Mackenzie's analysis of the chief members of, i. 75,
76, note; nearly all members of the Church of England, i. 76; their
bigotry and intolerance, i. 77; contrasted with the aristocracies of
other lands, i. 79, _et seq_.; continue their course of yielding
nothing to popular demands, i. 96, 97; W. L. Mackenzie's account of,
i. 117; how far liable for the press riot, i. 129; their policy and
privileges, i. 231; spurious character of their loyalty, i. 249, 250.

Ferguson, Bartemus, editor Niagara _Spectator_, i. 33, note; his
sympathy for reform, i. 42; seized while in bed and imprisoned in
Niagara jail, i. 43; tried for sedition, _ib_.; his sentence, _ib_.;
the indictment against him, _ib_.; some of the penalties against him
remitted, i. 44; did not die in jail, as recorded by D. McLeod, _ib_.,
note.

Fisher, Henry, marches to Scotland village with a detachment of rebels
to the aid of Dr. Duncombe, ii. 153.

Fitz Gibbon, Colonel James, his origin and past life, i. 137; his
gallant services during the War of 1812, _ib_.; obtains a post in the
Adjutant-General's office, and subsequently becomes Deputy
Adjutant-General, _ib_.; a Justice of the Peace, i. 137, 138; his
character, i. 138, _et seq_.; favours the side of authority, i. 139;
takes up a subscription for the type-rioters, _ib_., 173; his
indiscreet reply to an attack in the Freeman's Journal, i. 140;
appointed Clerk to the Legislative Assembly, i. 142; his attestation
of H. J. Boulton's confession of his connection with the Ridout duel,
i. 172; forms a drill corps in Toronto, i. 322; his anticipations of
insurrection, _ib_.; obtains early intelligence thereof, ii. 24; his
importunities on the subject, ii. 25, _et seq_.; his precautions
against a surprise, ii. 27-29; his interview with Chief Justice
Robinson, ii. 28; attends before the Government in Council with
important information, ii. 30, 31; flouted by Judge Jones, ii. 31;
appointed Acting Adjutant-General, ii. 33, note; his nervousness, ii.
50; fears assassination, ii. 51; calls at Government House and
notifies the Lieutenant-Governor of his apprehensions as to an
outbreak on that night, _ib_.; learns that the rebels are approaching
from the north, ii. 51, 52; despatches John Hillyard Cameron to ring
the bell of Upper Canada College, ii. 52; rouses the citizens, _ib_.;
Judge Jones's annoyance, _ib_.; proceeds out Yonge Street on a
reconnoitring expedition, _ib_.; his companions, _ib_.; meets Powell
and Macdonald on his return journey, ii. 53; repairs to Government
House, and finds Powell there before him, _ib_.; accompanies Sir F.
Head to City Hall, ii. 59; advises an immediate attack, ii. 61; forms
a picket to do duty on the northern outskirts, _ib_.; handicapped by
Sir F. Head's orders, _ib_.; posts a guard on Yonge Street without Sir
F. Head's knowledge, _ib_.; examines the dead body of James Henderson,
and has it removed, ii. 102, note; learns that Colonel MacNab is to
command the loyalist troops against the rebels, ii. 115; his
indignation, _ib_.; MacNab gives way to him, ii. 116; prepares a plan
of attack, _ib_., 117; his overstrained nerves, ii. 117; entitled to
whatever credit attaches to the victory at Montgomery's, ii. 118;
displeased at hearing of Sir F. Head's command to burn Gibson's house,
ii. 130; receives message on that subject from his Excellency, ii.
131; is again ordered to see Gibson's house burned, _ib_.; obeys the
order, _ib_.; his altercation with Captain Duggan, _ib_., note; his
letter to Lord Glenelg, exposing Sir F. Head's misrepresentations, ii.
132, note; pursues the rebel leaders on their retreat from
Montgomery's, ii, 140, 141; reaches his home in a state of exhaustion,
ii. 154, note; resigns the post of Adjutant-General, _ib_.; becomes a
Military Knight of Windsor, and dies there, i. 138, 139.

Fletcher, George, wounded by the fire of Sheriff Jarvis's picket, ii.
102, note; rude surgery practised upon him, _ib_.

Fletcher, John, sent as a messenger to Mackenzie, ii. 22, 41, 105, and
note.

Fletcher, Silas, acquiesces in Mackenzie's plans for a revolt, i. 372;
attends, when 7th December fixed on as time of rising, ii. 9; informs
Gibson thereof, ii. 19, note; acts as means of communication between
Mackenzie and Rolph, ii. 19; informs Rolph that Van Egmond had
consented to lead the rebels, _ib_.; his alleged letter as to the
question of an Executive, ii. 23, 34, note; his alleged account of his
interview with Rolph, ii. 34, note; its absurdity, _ib_.; disproved by
Nelson Gorham's statement, ii. 35, 36, note; his attempt to remove a
bullet from his nephew's toe, ii. 102, note; takes part in a Council
of War, ii. 121; rouses the rebels upon the approach of loyalist
troops, ii. 123; 500 pounds reward offered for his capture, ii. 135;
his flight from Montgomery's, ii. 140; escapes to the States, ii. 141;
his death, ii. 329.

Forsyth, William, his inn at Niagara Falls, i. 152; his encroachments
on public rights, _ib_., 153; his rival, Browne, i. 153; refuses to
remove an enclosing fence, which is demolished, i. 154; rebuilds the
fence, which is again demolished, i. 155; proceeds to obtain redress
by course of law, _ib_.; is unsuccessful, i. 156, 157; petitions the
Assembly, i. 157; sells his property and removes, i. 161; merits of
his case considered, i. 155, 161.

Fothergill, Charles, becomes King's Printer, i. 196; dismissed from
office for voting against the Government, _ib_., note; his liberal
opinions, _ib_.; permitted to overdraw his account, _ib_.; succeeded
by Robert Stanton, _ib_.; his edition of Mackenzie's _Narrative_, ii.
14, note; his remarks as to the supineness of the Government, ii. 24.

Fox, Mr., British Minister at Washington, despatch to him from Sir F.
B. Head on the subject of the _Caroline_, ii. 219; his representations
as to the conduct of filibusters, ii. 266, 299.

Frazer, Colonel, seizes W. L. Mackenzie in the Assembly, i. 259.


Gallows Hill, origin of the name, ii. 64, 65, note.

Galt, John, appointed on a Committee to watch over the interests of
Lady Mary Willis, i. 189, and note.

Galt, Mrs. John, appointed on a Committee to watch over the interests
of Lady Mary Willis.

Garrow, United States Marshal, seizes two steamers in the service of
the filibusters, ii. 264.

Gibson, David, his character and past life, i. 279; returned to the
Assembly for First Riding of York, _ib_.; his house used as a
rendezvous for party caucuses, _ib_.; a member of the Special
Committee on Grievances, i. 283; re-elected at general election of
1836, i. 332; votes alone against Allan N. MacNab for the Speakership,
i. 353, note; M. S. Bidwell's letter and certificate to him, i. 362,
note, ii. 236; signs Declaration at Doel's Brewery, and is appointed a
member of a permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note;
assists Mackenzie in his career of agitation, i. 370; visited by
Mackenzie, but not informed by him of date of rising, ii. 19, and
note; learns of it from Fletcher, ii. 19, note; his statement as to
the meeting of "twelve leading Reformers," ii. 23; his account of the
authorship of Alves's statement, _ib_.; receives message from Rolph,
by John Mantach, ii. 37; forwards same to Lount, _ib_.; informs
Mackenzie thereof, ii. 42; repairs to Montgomery's with Mackenzie, ii.
43; goes to Price's with Mackenzie to meet Rolph, ii. 44; coincides
with Rolph's views, ii. 46; goes to Shepard's Mill, ii. 47; induces
Montgomery to act as commissary, ii. 66; the prisoners placed in his
charge, ii. 67, 99; Mackenzie's conduct offensive to him, ii. 89, 90;
his letter to Mackenzie as to Lount's partial deafness, ii. 90;
Rolph's letter to him as to Mackenzie's inventions, ii. 90, 91; takes
part in a Council-of War, ii. 121; dismisses the prisoners, ii. 125;
their testimony as to his kindness, _ib_.; his house burned by order
of Sir F. B. Head, ii. 130, 131; reward of 500 pounds offered for his
capture, ii. 135; his escape to the United States, ii. 147; his name
signed to scrip issued by Mackenzie on Navy Island, ii. 191; not
identified with the Navy Island project, ii. 191, 192, and note;
Gorham's testimony respecting, _ib_.; sojourns in Rochester, ii. 235;
refuses to cooperate further with Mackenzie, _ib_.; settles at
Lockport, and is joined by his family, ii. 236; expelled from Upper
Canada Assembly, ii. 238; letter to him from Dr. Morrison as to
Mackenzie's falsehoods, ii. 275, and note; writes to Dr. Rolph to
contradict same, t&., 276; is pardoned and returns to Canada, ii. 301,
302; re-settles on his farm on Yonge Street, ii. 302; appointed to a
Government position, ii. 320, note; his letter to Rolph about
Mackenzie's attacks, _ib_.; dies at Quebec, ii. 328.

Gibson, Mrs., compelled to leave her home, with her children, ii. 131,
132.

Gilbert, E. B., signs Declaration at Doel's Brewery, and is appointed
member of a permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note.

Gipps, Sir George, his amoval of Judge Willis from office, i. 194;
litigation with Judge Willis, _ib_., note.

Givins, Colonel, Superintendent of Indian Affairs, i. 157; summoned
before a Parliamentary Committee, _ib_.; his attendance not permitted
by the Lieutenant-Governor, _ib_.; evidences of collusion, i. 157,
168; the Speaker issues a warrant against him, i. 159; his house
forcibly entered and his arrest effected, _ib_.; brought to the bar of
the Assembly, _ib_.; committed to jail, _ib_.; confined three days,
_ib_.; sues the Speaker for false imprisonment, _ib_.; fails in his
action, i. 159, 160.

Glenelg, Lord, Colonial Secretary, i. 285; lays the Grievance
Committee's Report before the King, _ib_.; resolves to recall Sir John
Colborne, _ib_.; looks about for a successor, i. 286; pitches upon Sir
F. B. Head, _ib_.; tradition as to verbal mistake in the latter's
appointment, i. 287; embarrassed by Sir F. B. Head's communications to
the U. C. Legislature, i. 298; his instructions to Sir F. B. Head, i.
298, _et seq_.; mystified at the apparent success of Sir Francis, i.
336; conveys to the latter an intimation of His Majesty's
gratification, i. 343; reception of Sir F. B. Head after his return
from Upper Canada, ii. 242.

Glennan, Mr., conversation alleged to have been held at his house, i.
91.

Goderich, Lord, Colonial Secretary, i. 245; dismisses C. Hagerman,
Attorney-General, and H. J. Boulton, Solicitor-General, from office,
i. 248; his missive on the subject, _ib_.; vacates the Secretaryship,
and becomes Lord Privy Seal, i. 249; created Earl of Ripon, _ib_.;
succeeded by Mr. Stanley, afterwards Earl of Derby, _ib_.; expresses
his approval of H. J. Boulton's appointment as Chief Justice of
Newfoundland, i. 251; his opinion as to ecclesiastical Legislative
Councillors, i. 254, and note.

Gore, Colonel, repulsed by the Lower Canadian rebels under Dr. Wolfred
Nelson at St. Denis, ii. 27.

Gore, Francis, growth of abuses during his administration, i. 48;
arrives in Upper Canada as Lieutenant-Governor, i. 86; takes part with
his Councillors against Judge Thorpe, i. 86-89; solicits and obtains
Judge Thorpe's recall, i. 88, 89; his letter on the subject, i. 89;
convicted of libel, _ib_.

Gorham, Nelson, assists Mackenzie in his career of agitation, i. 370;
acquiesces in Mackenzie's plans for a revolt, i. 372; attends, when
7th December appointed as time of rising, ii. 9; his statement as to
Silas Fletcher, ii. 35, 36; sent to Montgomery's to make victualling
arrangements, ii. 38; fails in his mission, ii. 44; proceeds to
Gibson's, ii. 43, 44; surprised to see Rolph with the flag of truce,
ii. 69; his testimony on that subject, ii. 69, 70, and note; goes
westward from Montgomery's with messages to Dr. Duncombe, ii. 106;
escapes to the United States, ii. 141; joins the ranks of the
invaders, ii. 183, 184; his testimony as to Gibson's not having been
on Navy Island, ii. 191, 192, note; his testimony as to the number of
men on Navy Island, ii. 193, note; his account of the casualties on
Navy Island, ii. 224, note; his letter about Rolph's visit to Navy
Island, ii. 234, note; receives a pardon, returns to Canada and
settles in Newmarket, ii. 302; still living, ii. 329.

Gosford, Lord, Governor-General, recalled, ii. 284, note.

Gourlay, Robert, his trial at Niagara, i. 9, _et seq_.; his appearance
in the prisoners' dock, i. 14, 15, 33, _et seq_.; his character, i.
16, 18; his parentage and past life, i. 17, _et seq_.; a native of
Fifeshire, i. 17; fellow-pupil of Thomas Chalmers at the University of
St. Andrews, i. 17, 18; Chalmers's letter to him, i. 18, note; offers
to take charge of an expedition against Paris, i. 18; his relations
with Arthur Young, _ib_.; his characterization of Young, _ib_., note;
his travels through Great Britain, i. 18, 19; marries and settles down
in Fifeshire, i. 19; his quarrel with the Earl of Kellie, _ib_.;
removes to Wily, in Wiltshire, _ib_.; agitates for a reform of the
poor laws, _ib_.; litigation with the Duke of Somerset, i. 20; reduced
in circumstances, i. 20, 21; sails from Liverpool for Canada, i. 21;
speaks and writes volubly on public abuses, _ib_.; sets on foot a
scheme of immigration, _ib_.; becomes obnoxious to the Executive, i.
22; his thirty-one printed questions, _ib_.; his convention at York,
_ib_.; advocates a petition to the Imperial Parliament, and the
sending of deputies to England, _ib_.; a crusade organized against him
by the oligarchy, i. 23; prosecuted for libel, i. 24; arrested and
imprisoned at Kingston, _ib_.; his trial and acquittal, _ib_.;
arrested and again acquitted at Brockville, _ib_.; arrested under the
Alien Act of 1804, i. 27; taken before Dickson and Glaus, _ib_.;
adjudged to leave the Province within ten days, i. 28; does not obey
the order, _ib_.; arrested and lodged in jail at Niagara, _ib_.; taken
before Chief Justice Powell under a writ of habeas corpus, i. 28, 29;
remanded to jail, i. 29; his sufferings, i. 29-33; obtains the
opinions of eminent English counsel, i. 30; institutes proceedings
against Dickson and Claus, _ib_.; actions lapse, _ib_.; his belief as
to the jury in his case being packed, _ib_.; the grounds of his
belief, i. 31; the indictment against him, i. 34; his mental condition
during the trial, i. 34, _et seq_.; pleads "Not Guilty," i. 34; his
musings during the trial, i. 35, 36; found guilty of refusing to leave
the Province, i. 36; sentence of banishment pronounced upon him, i.
37; leaves Upper Canada, i. 39; his shattered faculties, _ib_.; sinks
down exhausted by the wayside, _ib_.; his opinion as to the death of
the Duke of Richmond, i. 41, 42; repairs to Boston and ships for
Liverpool, i. 44; his prosecution the first remote germ of the Up-per
Canadian Rebellion, i. 46; his remarks on a hereditary nobility in
Upper Canada, i. 55; on the restriction of the right of solemnizing
matrimony, i. 79, note; not the first victim of Executive tyranny, i.
86; his sojourn in Cleveland, ii. 226; his services to the Upper
Canadian Government, ii. 227; thanked by Sir F. Head, and invited to
return to Upper Canada, _ib_.; refuses, _ib_.; his letter to Van
Rensselaer, ib., note.

Gourlay, Mr., father of Robert, i. 17; his characterization of his
son, i. 18; bankruptcy, i. 20, 21.

Gowan, Ogle R., returned for Leeds at general election of 1836, i.
332.

Graham, Lieutenant, proposes a night landing on Navy Island, ii. 204;
commands the expedition, _ib_.; and note at end of chap. xxxi.

Grant, Commodore Alexander, growth of abuses during his
administration, i. 48.

Grier, John, juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Grievance Committee appointed, i. 282; its membership, i. 283; its
Seventh Report, _ib_., _et seq_.

Gurnett, George, editor of _U. C. Courier_, i. 249; calls upon the
Lieutenant-Governor as to guarding the city against the rebels, ii.
33; retains the direction of civic affairs in Toronto during the
affair at Montgomery's, ii. 119.


Hagerman, Christopher Alexander, present at Gourlay trial, i. 13; a
member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note; one of the counsel for the
type-rioters, i. 135; his specious argument, _ib_., 136; his hostility
to Judge Willis, and its cause, i. 166, 167; appointed a puisne judge
of the Court of King's Bench, i. 189; stigmatized by the _Freeman_ as
"our old customer," i. 202; receives verdict of jury on trial of
Francis Collins for libel, i. 203; his practical coercion of the jury,
_ib_.; confers with Judge Sherwood as to sentence on Collins, _ib_.,
211; his conduct an infringement of decency, i. 207, 208; summoned
before a Parliamentary Committee, but refuses to answer questions, i.
210; leaves the bench and becomes Solicitor-General, i. 228; returned
to the Assembly for Kingston, i. 233; his advocacy of the "Everlasting
Salary Bill," i. 234; his remarks on religious observances in the
Assembly, i. 230; refers to W. L. Mackenzie in the Assembly as a
"spaniel dog," i. 239; his conduct with regard to the repeated
expulsions of Mackenzie not approved at the Colonial Office, i. 247;
dismissed from office, i. 248; starts for England, _ib_.; learns of
his dismissal upon his arrival, _ib_.; admitted to an interview by the
new Colonial Secretary, and restored to his stewardship, i. 249;
returns home in triumph, _ib_.; Rolph's estimate of him, i. 266;
attacks Mackenzie in the Assembly, i. 282; his brilliant speech in the
Assembly on the dispute between Sir F. B. Head and his Councillors, i.
317; returned for Kingston by acclamation at the general election of
1836, i. 332; refuses to believe in the possibility of rebellion, i.
376; ii. 30; instructed to report to the Lieutenant-Governor when
Mackenzie has gone far enough to make his conviction certain, i. 377;
attends meeting of Executive Council just before the outbreak, ii. 30;
expresses his incredulity, _ib_.; his change of opinion, ii. 115;
advocates Colonel MacNab's claims to the chief command of the loyalist
forces against the rebels, ii. 116; his conferences with Bidwell, ii.
159, 160, and note, 161; advises Bidwell to leave Upper Canada, ii.
161; defends Sir F. B. Head in the Bidwell affair, ii. 171, 172; moves
for judgment against Lount and Matthews, ii. 247; his alleged cruelty,
ii. 248, note; conducts prosecution against John Montgomery, ii. 251;
and against Dr. Morrison, ii. 252.

_Halifax Recorder_, the, on Captain Matthews's
case, i. 150.

Ham, Mr., returned to the Assembly for Lennox and Addington, i. 103;
his election set aside, _ib_.

Hamilton, Peter, his affidavit on Gourlay's application under a writ
of _habeas corpus_, i. 29.

_Hamilton, Hon. Robert, his affidavit on the application of Gourlay
under a writ of _habeas corpus_, i. 29; his acquisitions of public
lands, i. 61._

Handy, "General" Henry S., commands the western filibusters, ii. 227;
organizes a staff of officers, and secures transports, _ib_.

Hanson, R. Davies, Assistant Commissioner of Crown Lands and
Emigration, his report, forming part of Appendix A to Lord Durham's
report, i. 65, note; his share in the preparation of the report, ii.
290, note.

Harrison, Samuel Bealey, his resolutions on the subject of Responsible
Government, ii. 293.

Harvey, Sir John, succeeds Sir Archibald Campbell as
Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick, i. 343; secures a passage from
Halifax for Sir F. B. Head, ii. 241.

Hathaway, John, shelters Lount after his escape from Montgomery's, ii.
142.

Hawke, A. B., Secretary to Treason Commission, ii. 81.

Hawk, John, his statement, ii. 40, 41; his letter as to the flag of
truce, ii. 69, 70, and note; his death, see _Corrigenda_; conveys
messages westward to Dr. Duncombe, ii. 106.

Hayden, John, a juryman in the case against Francis Collins, i. 207;
ignorant of the meaning of the word "malignancy," _ib_.

Hayward, Lyster, Dr. Rolph dies at his house, ii. 329.

Head, Sir Edmund Walker, i. 287.

Head, Sir Francis Bond, appointed Lieut.-Governor of Upper Canada, i.
286; tradition as to his appointment being due to a mistake as to his
identity, i. 287; his unfitness for the position, i. 286, _et seq_.;
his character and past life, i. 288, _et seq_.; supplied with a paper
of instructions, i. 291; schooled by Mr. Stephen, _ib_.; sails for
Canada by way of New York, _ib_.; reaches Toronto, _ib_.;
misapprehensions about him there, i. 291, 292; sworn into office, i.
296;. produces a favourable impression, i. 297; commended by Joseph
Hume to Mackenzie, _ib_.; welcomed as a "Tried Reformer," i. 296, 397;
receives congratulatory addresses from both Houses of Parliament upon
his assumption of the Government, i. 297; delivers his first speech to
the Legislature, i. 297, 298; the proceeding not relished by the
Assembly, i. 297, note; precedent therefor, _ib_.; his communications
to the Legislature embarrass the Colonial Secretary, i. 298, 304; his
instructions from Lord Glenelg, 298, _et seq._; his interviews with
leading Reformers, i. 304; his account of his first meeting with
Mackenzie, i. 304, 305; conceives a distaste for the Reformers of
Upper Canada, i. 306; makes advances to Robert Baldwin to accept a
seat in the Executive Council, _ib_.; his dislike for Mr. Bidwell, i.
308; applies for advice only to Chief Justice Robinson, i. 309;
nominates persons to office without consulting his Council, _ib_.;
refuses to defer to the advice of his Councillors, _ib_.; receives and
replies to their remonstrance on the subject, i. 310, 311; surrenders
himself to the Compact, i. 312; his reasons therefor, i. 311, 312;
provides himself with a new Council, i. 313; address to him passed and
presented by Reformers, i. 314, 315; his manner of receiving it, 315;
sarcastic rejoinder to his reply, i. 315-317; the Assembly report
against him, and recommend the stoppage of the supplies, i. 317;
nullifies grants of the Assembly, i. 318; address passed by the
Assembly and forwarded to the King, charging him with deceit and
falsehood, i. 318, 319; charged with being the d--dest liar and
d--dest rascal in the Province, i. 319, note; sets his mind against
concession to Reformers, i. 323; resolves to dissolve Parliament, i.
324; his manoeuvres, _ib_.; floods the country with replies to the
electors, _ib_., _et seq_.; his blatant despatches, i. 325; suggests
to Lord Glenelg how Robert Baldwin should be treated, i. 326; his
challenge to an imaginary invader, i. 325, and note; action of certain
Toronto Reformers thereon, i. 327; his brief reply to the deputation,
i. 327, 328; dissolves Parliament, i. 328; makes himself a party in
the ensuing contest, _ib_., _et seq_., and notes; his success, i. 332,
335; maligns Mr. Bidwell to the Home Office, i. 335; his success a
mystery at the Home Office, i. 336; ill effects of his policy begin to
appear, _ib_., _et seq_.; dismisses Dr. Baldwin, George Ridout and J.
E. Small from certain offices, i. 340, and note; his tour through the
Province, i. 342; receives instructions that the Executive Council
must possess the confidence of the people, _ib_.; his protests to the
Home Office, i. 343; haying received Dr. Duncombe's case against him,
remits same to Assembly, by whom he is vindicated, i. 346; Dr. Rolph's
powerful speech against him, i. 104, 346; instructed by Lord Glenelg
to restore Mr. Ridout to office, but fails to do so, i. 352; convenes
an extra session, i. 353; maligns Mr. Bidwell to Lord Glenelg, who
instructs him to elevate that gentleman to the bench upon the first
vacancy, i. 355; his refusal either to do so or to restore Mr. Ridout,
i. 356; refuses to believe in the possibility of rebellion, i. 376;
ii. 19, 24, 25, 26; removes several thousand stand of arms from
Kingston to City Hall, Toronto, i. 378; his reply to Sir John
Colborne's application for troops, ii. 24; his tergiversation, ii. 26,
27; reluctantly sanctions Colonel Fitz Gibbon's plans for preventing a
surprise, ii. 28; discredits Hogg's information as to the impending
revolt, ii. 18, and note, 29; roused out of bed by Colonel Fitz
Gibbon, who apprehends an immediate attack upon the city, ii. 51;
still incredulous, _ib_.; finally roused to a sense of danger by
Powell, ii. 59; provides for his family's safety, and accompanies
Colonel Fitz Gibbon to the City Hall, _ib_.; declines the Colonel's
advice to attack the rebels, ii. 61; sanctions the idea of parleying
with the rebels, ii. 63; refuses to ratify his embassy, ii. 71, 72;
his misrepresentation as to the date of the flag of truce, ii. 91; his
delight at the arrival of MacNab with succours, ii. 103, and note;
claims credit for posting Sheriff Jarvis's patrol, _ib_.; removes his
headquarters to the Parliament Buildings, ii. 111; is reassured, ii.
111, 112; entrusts the command of the militia to Colonel Fitz Gibbon,
ii. 116; gives the word for the militia to advance, ii. 119, and note;
pardons prisoners at Montgomery's, ii. 129; orders the burning of
Montgomery's tavern and Gibson's house, ii. 129, 130; countermands the
order as to Gibson's house, and re-issues it, ii. 131; his
misrepresentations on the subject, ii. 132, note; advances up Yonge
Street, and admonishes and releases certain prisoners there, ii. 132;
admonishes William McDougall, _ib_., note; gives directions for the
care of the wounded, ii. 133; issues proclamation offering reward for
capture of rebel leaders, ii. 135; issues notice that no more militia
needed in Toronto, ii. 154; his conference with Bidwell, ii. 162, _et
seq_.; induces Bidwell to leave the country, _ib_.; his last interview
with Bidwell, ii. 169, 170; defended by Hagerman for his conduct in
the Bidwell affair, ii. 171, 172; appoints a Commission of Inquiry,
ii. 194; communicates with the Governor of New York State, ii. 197;
sends message to Colonel MacNab to proceed to the Niagara frontier,
ii. 198; forbids aggressive measures against the invaders, _ib_.;
reaches Chippewa, and remains there several days, ii. 200; convenes an
extraordinary session of the Legislature, ii. 201; his opening speech,
_ib_.; signifies his approval of the destruction of the _Caroline_,
ii. 220, 221, note; his administration comes to an end, ii. 239, _et
seq_.; receives formal acceptance of his resignation, ii. 239;
communicates the fact to the two Houses, _ib_.; receives an address
from the Assembly, ii. 239, 240; and from the Legislative Council, ii.
240; witnesses the installation of his successor, ii. 241; sets out on
his journey to England, _ib_.; changes his route, _ib_.; accompanied
by Judge Jones, ii. 242; his adventures, _ib_.; sails for Liverpool,
_ib_.; presents himself at the Colonial Office, _ib_.; calls on Lord
Melbourne, _ib_., and note; refused permission to publish his
despatches, ii. 243; publishes his _Narrative_, _ib_.; its character,
_ib_., 244; a baronetcy conferred upon him, ii. 244; his subsequent
career and death, _ib_.

Henderson, E. T,, signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i. 316.

Henderson, James, slain by the fire of Sheriff Jarvis's picket, ii.
101, note; what became of his body? ii. 102, note.

Hereditary nobility, the creation of provided
for by the Constitutional Act of 1791, i. 55;
right of creation not exercised, _ib_.

Heward, Charles, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note; takes
part in the raid on the office of the _Colonial Advocate_, i. 132; is
sued therefor, and mulcted, i. 136.

Heward, Stephen, an active spirit among the Family Compact, i. 132.

Hillier, Major, Secretary to the Lieutenant-Governor, his message to
the Hon. James Baby, i. 217; confers with ex-Chief Justice Powell, i.
218.

Hincks, Mr., afterwards Sir Francis, informed by Mr. Roebuck that Sir
F. B. Head's appointment was due to a verbal misapprehension, i. 287;
his belief in the story, i. 288; becomes Secretary of the
Constitutional Reform Society, i. 326; heads a deputation to the
Lieutenant-Governor on the subject of a foreign invasion, i. 327; his
remarks on the general election of 1836, i. 334, note; his testimony
as to Mackenzie and Rolph, ii. 109, note; informs Dr. Baldwin of
Rolph's participation in the revolt, ii. 195; expects arrest, _ib_.;
threatening letter received by him from Mackenzie, ii. 301, note;
entrusted with the formation of a Government, ii. 310; forms the
Hincks-Morin Government, ii. 311, 312.

Hogan, John Sheridan, twice arrested at Rochester on a charge of
having been concerned in the _Caroline_ affair, ii. 300, and note;
discharged from custody, ii. 300; his tragical fate, _ib_., note.

Hogg, James, informed of the plan of the intended revolt by Mackenzie,
ii. 18, and note; reveals same to Sir F. B. Head, _ib_., 29.

Holmes, John, juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Hopkins, Caleb, takes part in founding the Clear Grit party, ii. 309.

Horne, Dr. Robert Charles, King's Printer, i. 195; publishes the Upper
Canada Gazette, _ib_.; deputes Francis Collins to report debates in
the Assembly, _ib_.; summoned to the bar for publishing offensive
matter, _ib_.; apologizes and is reprimanded and cautioned, _ib_.;
indignity sought to be imposed upon him by Attorney-General Robinson,
_ib_., note ; not sanctioned by Assembly, _ib_.; ceases to be King's
Printer, i. 196; assistant cashier of Bank of Upper Canada, ii. 93;
refuses Mackenzie accommodation there, _ib_.; his house burned by
Mackenzie, ii. 94, 95, and note.

Howard, Allan McLean, present at Mackenzie's intrusion upon his
father's premises, ii. 67, and note; charged with reading Radical
newspapers, ii. 196.

Howard, James Scott, Postmaster of Toronto, Mackenzie's intrusion upon
his premises, ii. 67; becomes an object of suspicion to the
Government, ii. 195; his character and position, _ib_., 196; dismissed
from office, ii. 196; succeeded by C. A. Berczy, ii. 197.

Howard, Mrs. J. S., her treatment at the hands of W. L. Mackenzie, ii.
67, 68, 96, 97.

Hume, Joseph, his "baneful domination" letter, i. 272, _et seq_.;
commends Sir F. B. Head to Mackenzie, i. 297; lays before the House of
Commons Dr. Duncombe's case against Sir F. B. Head, i. 340.

Hunter, James, signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is appointed
member of Vigilance Committee, i. 367, and note.

Hunter, Lieutenant-Governor Peter, finds objectionable features in the
public service, i. 47; his characterization of President Russell, i.
48; murmurings against conniption first heard during his term of
office, i. 83.

Hyslop, Squire, shelters Lount after his escape from Montgomery's, ii.
142


Jackes, Franklin, moves in the City Council that W. L. Mackenzie be
Mayor of Toronto, i. 271.

Jackson, John Mills, his _View of the Political Situation of the
Province of Upper Canada_. i. 84; extracts from, i. 84, 85, 88.

Jameson, Robert Sympson, appointed Attorney-General of Upper Canada,
i. 251; his opinion as to W. L. Mackenzie's right to take the oath
prescribed for members of the Legislature before the Lieutenant-Governor,
i. 258; appointed Vice-Chancellor, i. 350.

Jarvis, George S., returned for Cornwall at general election of 1836,
i. 332.

Jarvis, Samuel Peters, present at Gourlay trial, i. 13; his duel with
John Ridout, _ib_.; a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note; heads
the raid on W. L. Mackenzie's printing-office, i. 131; his age, _ib_.;
when called to the bar, _ib_., note; Jarvis Street, Toronto, named,
after him, _ib_.; his parentage, i. 131, 132; son-in-law to Chief
Justice Powell, i. 132; Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, _ib_.; private
secretary to Sir. P. Maitland, _ib_.; by him that the outrage was
planned, _ib_.; his subsequent career, i. 133; writes letters to the
papers about the outrage, in one of which he avows himself as its
originator, i. 133, 134; his _Statement of Facts_, i. 134, 141;
attacked, by Francis Collins in _The Canadian Freeman_, i. 134, 135;
his contribution to the fund on behalf of the type-rioters, i. 141;
Collins moves the Court of King's Bench that Attorney-General Robinson
be compelled to proceed against him criminally, i. 173, 198; is tried
with other rioters, found guilty, and fined, five shillings, i. 200;
commands the right wing of loyalist militia against the rebels at
Montgomery's, ii. 118.

Jarvis, William Botsford, a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note;
defeated by Robert Baldwin in a contest for the representation of York
in the Assembly, i. 229; having been returned to the Assembly, carries
through the measure incorporating the City of Toronto, i. 264, 265;
takes command of a picket-guard on Yonge Street, ii. 61; takes charge
of the negotiations respecting a flag of truce, ii. 63; asks Price to
be the bearer, who refuses, _ib_.; applies to Robert Baldwin, _ib_.;
despatches an orderly to Bidwell, ii. 64; calls on Dr. Rolph, _ib_.;
his urgency, _ib_.; suspicious of Bidwell and Price, _ib_.; Rolph and
Baldwin report to him, ii. 71; submits the matter to Sir F. Head,
_ib_.; acquaints Rolph and Baldwin with his Excellency's decision, ii.
72; narrow escape of his house from being burned by Mackenzie, ii. 96,
and note; quarters part of his picket in Sharpe's garden, ii. 101;
gives the word to fire, _ib_.;. charged by Mackenzie with embezzling
his effects, ii. 308.

Jarvis, William, Provincial Secretary, i. 131, 132.

Jarvis, William M., a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note.

Johnston, Bill, visits Navy Island, ii. 225, note; aids the movement
against Kingston, ii. 237; his name generally mis-spelled, _ib_.,
note; captures and burns the _Sir Robert Peel_, ii. 257, 258; his
further depredations, ii. 258; compelled to disband, ii. 259; commands
a schooner during the Prescott expedition, ii. 263.

Jones, Alpheus, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note.

Jones, Augustus, surveys land on west bank of Niagara River, i. 151;
his re-survey of the Government reserve there, i. 154.

Jones, Charles, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note.

Jones, Henry, a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note.

Jones, James B., juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Jones, Jonas, member for Grenville, introduces a Bill into the
Assembly prohibiting the holding of conventions, i. 44, 96; a member
of the Family Compact, i. 75, note; re-elected for Leeds at the
general election of 1836, i. 332; appointed a Judge of the Court of
King's Bench, i. 354, 355; refuses to believe in the rebellion, i.
376; ii. 31; attends meeting of Executive Council just before
outbreak, ii. 30, _et seq_.; expresses his incredulity, ii. 31; his
irritation at being disturbed by Colonel Fitz Gibbon's emissary, ii.
52; forms a picket and watches on the northern outskirts of Toronto,
ii. 60; his conduct at Montgomery's, ii. 128, 129; accompanies Sir F.
Head to New York, ii. 242; presides on trial of Dr. Morrison, ii. 252;
admonishes the Doctor, and is thanked by the latter for his
impartiality, ii. 255; his alleged machinations to obtain the
surrender of Mackenzie, ii. 304.

Jones, Thomas Mercer, a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note.


Kavanagh, James, dies from wounds received from the fire of Sheriff
Jarvis's picket, ii. 102, and note.

Kennedy, Edward, accompanies Mackenzie on a reconnoitring expedition
from Montgomery's, ii. 50; returns to Montgomery's, ii. 66;
accompanies Lount after the retreat from Montgomery's, ii. 141; his
wanderings, capture, and committal to jail, ii. 141-144.

Ketchum, Jesse, returned to Assembly for County of York, i. 228; signs
and presents sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i. 316.

Ketchum, William, signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is
appointed member of permanent Vigilance Committee, i. 367, and note.

King, James, a participant in the raid on the Colonial Advocate
office, i. 132.

King's College, a source of contention between the Legislative Council
and the Assembly of Upper Canada, i. 300; Lord Glenelg's remarks on,
in his instructions to Sir F. Head, _ib_.

Kurtz, Jacob, his desire to shoot Mackenzie, ii. 148, note.


Lafontaine, Mr., refuses to accept an amnesty on behalf of the rebels
unless complete, ii. 301; introduces and carries Amnesty Bill, ii.
302; retires from the second Lafontaine-Baldwin Ministry, ii. 310.

Land-Granting Department, honeycombed by jobbery and corruption, i.
58, _et seq_., and notes.

Latshaw, Mr., shelters Lount and Kennedy, ii. 142.

Leonard, Major Richard, Sheriff Niagara District, present at the
"Niagara Falls Out-rage," i. 154; sued by Forsyth, who fails in the
action, i. 156, 157; belief that he manipulated the jury lists, i.
157, note.

Lesslie, James, his movement on behalf of Mackenzie at a caucus of
Reform members of the first City Council of Toronto, i. 269, 270;
seconds motion that Mackenzie be mayor of the city, i. 271; signs and
delivers sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i. 316; withholds his
signature from the "Declaration," i. 365; induces his brother William
to erase his signature, _ib_., note; appointed a delegate to the
proposed Radical convention, i. 366; his statement as to the inception
of the rebellion, ii. 23; his account of the treatment sustained by
his brother and himself during the rebellion, ii. 150, note; his
letters from his brothers addressed un-der cover to the postmaster at
Toronto, ii. 196; takes part in founding the Clear Grit party, ii.
309; custodian of the Mackenzie subscription fund, ii. 324; abused by
Mackenzie for refusing to divert the fund from its proper use ii.
325.

Lesslie, John, Postmaster at Dundas, his letters to his brothers in
Toronto, ii. 196; dis-missed from office, _ib_., note.

Lesslie, Joseph, his correspondence with his brothers in Toronto, ii.
196.

Lesslie, William, signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i. 316;
induced by his brother James to erase his signature from the
Declaration at Doel's brewery, i. 365, note; attends last caucus at
Doel's, i. 379; treatment sustained by him during the Rebellion, ii.
150, note; his correspondence from his brothers addressed under cover
to J. S. Howard, ii. 196.

Lett, Benjamin, wounded on Navy Island, ii. 224, note; said to have
been instigated by Mackenzie to blow up Brock's monument, ii. 271,
note.

Linfoot, John, becomes tenant of Montgomery's tavern, ii. 43; refuses
to furnish supplies to the rebels, ii. 48; Mackenzie's fury at him,
_ib_.

Lloyd, Jesse, acts as a medium of communication between the Radical
leaders in the two Provinces, i. 370; acquiesces in Mackenzie's plans
for a rising, i. 372; conveys messages to Mackenzie about the movement
in Lower Canada, i. 378; favours the idea of a rising in Upper Canada,
_ib_.; conveys letter to Mackenzie from T. S. Brown, of Montreal, i.
382, ii. 21; his conference with Mackenzie and others at Rolph's
house, i. 382, 383; joins in fixing rising for 7th December., ii. 9;
500 pounds reward offered for his capture, ii. 135; escapes to the
States, ii. 141; his death, ii. 329.

Long, Ralfe M.. juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Lount, Mrs. Elizabeth, wife of Samuel, receives message as to
accelerated movement against Toronto, ii. 37; communicates same to her
husband, ii. 38; her vain appeal to Sir George Arthur on her husband's
behalf, ii. 247; her death, ii. 250.

Lount, Gabriel, father of Samuel, i. 278.

Lount, Samuel, returned to the Assembly for Simcoe, i. 277; his
parentage, character, and past life, i. 277-279, and note; defeated at
general election of 1836, i. 332; sympathizes with and participates in
Mackenzie's discontent, i. 358; assists in promoting Union meetings,
_ib_.; his example followed by others, _ib_.; an active worker with
Mackenzie, i. 370; acquiesces in Mackenzie's plans for a rising, i.
372; manufacture of pikes at his blacksmith's shop at Holland Landing,
i. 375; joins in fixing time of rising for 7th December, ii. 9;
appointed to command the rebels, ii. 11; receives message as to
accelerated movement, ii. 38, 39; resolves to act upon it, ii. 39; his
active preparations, _ib_.; marches to Montgomery's, _ib_.; his
nephew's account of his reception of the flag of truce, ii. 41, 69,
70, note; induces Montgomery to act as commissary, ii. 66; declines
the supreme command of the rebel forces, _ib_.; commands a body of
rebels on a march down Yonge Street, ii. 67; his astonishment at
seeing Rolph with the flag of truce, ii. 69; his statement before the
Treason Commission, ii. 70,73,79; analysis and examination of same,
ii. 79, _et seq_.; converses with Dr. Rolph, ii. 70, 72; agrees to an
armistice, ii. 71; his partial deafness, ii. 90; prevents Mackenzie
from burning Sheriff Jarvis's house, ii. 96, and note; apologizes to
Mrs. Howard for Mackenzie's conduct, ii. 96, 97; leads the rebels
towards the city, ii. 100; the head of his column fired on by Sheriff
Jarvis's picket, ii. 301; returns the fire, ii. 102; his tactics,
_ib_.; his vain efforts to rally his men, ii. 102, 103; takes part in
a Council of War, ii. 121; 500 pounds reward offered for his capture,
ii. 135; escapes from Montgomery's, ii. 139; his wanderings, capture,
and committal to jail, ii. 141-144; his shattered constitution, ii.
245; principal contents of his statement published in the _Patriot_,
ii. 246, and note; arraigned, ii. 247; pleads guilty, and is sentenced
to death, _ib_.; appeals on his behalf, _ib_.; his wife's vain appeal
to Sir George Arthur, _ib_.; executed, ii. 248, 249, and note; his
remains buried in Potter's Field, but afterwards removed to the
Necropolis, ii. 250, and note; removal of his family to the Western
States, _ib_.

Luce, Alfred, captured on the _Caroline_, ii. 213; set at liberty,
_ib_.

Lundy, James, juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 3L.

Lundy, Judah, cuts a bullet out of the toe of George Fletcher, ii.
102, note.

Lyndhurst, Lord, attacks Lord Durham in the House of Lords, ii. 289.

Lyons, Captain John, participates in the raid on the Colonial Advocate
office, i. 132; dismissed from office by the Lieutenant-Governor, but
soon after appointed Registrar of the Niagara District, i. 133.


Macaulay, James Buchanan, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note;
a member of the Executive Council, i. 128; attacked by W. L. Mackenzie
in the _Colonial Advocate_, _ib_.; replies in a pamphlet, _ib_.; which
is replied to in the _Advocate_, i. 128, 129; knighted, and becomes
Chief Justice of the Common Pleas for Upper Canada, i. 128; appointed
to conduct the defence for the type-rioters, i. 135; leading counsel
for the defence, _ib_.; alleged to have been an eye-witness of the
raid, i. 136; applies for bail on the criminal trial of H. J. Boulton
and J. E. Small for participating in the Ridout duel, i. 199;
shoulders a musket in defence of the Government, ii. 60; guards the
militia in the city during the affair at Montgomery's, ii. 119.

Macdonald, John A., defends Von Shoultz, ii. 266.

Mackenzie, Walter, guards the eastern entrance to Toronto, ii. 144.

Mackenzie, William Lyon, his analysis of the chief members of the
Family Compact, i. 75, note; one of the founders of the Reform party
of Upper Canada, i. 113; his energy, impulsiveness and love of
notoriety, _ib_.; birth, parentage and early life, i. 114; emigrates
from Great Britain to Canada, i. 115; employed on the Lachine Canal,
_ib_.; opens a store at York, _ib_.; removes to Dundas, _ib_.; marries
Miss Isabel Baxter, _ib_.; removes to Queenston, _ib_.; abandons
mercantile pursuits and founds _The Colonial Advocate_, _ib_.;
character of his writing, _ib_.; his probable motives in becoming a
journalist, i. 116, 117; his own account of his motives, i. 117; his
power to move audiences, i. 118; his personal appearance, _ib_.; his
ill-balanced organization, _ib_.; contrasted with Rolph, i. 118, 119;
removes from Queenston to York, i. 120; advocates a State provision
for the clergy, _ib_., note; the instability of his opinions, i. 120,
note, 121; his utterances probably contributed to Mr. Wilson's
election to the Speakership, i. 121; advocates Responsible Government,
i. 122; his bitter invective, _ib_.; conflict with the Government and
the official party generally, i. 123, _et seq_.; accuses Sir P.
Maitland of indolence, i. 123; takes part in the second funeral of Sir
Isaac Brock, i. 123, 124; inters a copy of his paper beneath the
monument, i. 124; which is disinterred by order of the Lieutenant-Governor,
_ib_.; his criticism on Judge Boulton, i. 125; his Billingsgate
vocabulary, _ib_.; difficulties attending the carrying-on of his
paper, i. 127; criticises Hon. J. B. Macaulay and others, i. 128;
replies to Macaulay's pamphlet, _ib_.; his office and residence, i.
130; withdraws to the United States pending a settlement with his
creditors, i. 127, 130, note; raid on his establishment, i. 130; the
perpetrators, i. 131, 132; intelligence of it reaches Mackenzie, who
returns to York and sues the rioters, i. 135; employs J. E. Small to
conduct the prosecution on his behalf, _ib_.; rejects offers of
compromise, _ib_.; the trial, i. 135, 136; counsel employed, i. 135;
recovers a verdict of 625 pounds, i. 136; is dissuaded from proceeding
criminally against the rioters, i. 141; a decided gainer by the riot,
_ib_.; his paper receives a new lease of life, i. 141-143; his
forbearance commended, i. 142; his erroneous account of the conduct of
Capt. Matthews, i. 146, note, 147; returned to the Assembly for the
County of York, i. 220; sets on foot a system of inquiry and
agitation, _ib_.; his want of judgment, i. 221; a creature of impulse,
_ib_.; unpractical and unmanageable, _ib_., note; all the accounts of
the Upper Canadian Rebellion traceable to him, i. 221, 222; re-elected
for York, i. 233; his speech and motion respecting religious
observances in the Assembly, i. 235; moves for an inquiry into the
state of the representation, _ib_.; institutes a crusade against the
Bank of Upper Canada, i. 236; further motions and speeches, _ib_.; a
prosecution for libel kept hanging over him, i. 237; motion against
him for breach of privilege in publishing reports of the proceedings
in the House, i. 237, 238; its defeat, _ib_.; gets up various
petitions to the King and the Imperial Parliament, i. 238, 239; is
charged with libelling the House of Assemby, i.239; defends himself
with much ability, _ib_.; characterized as a "reptile" by
Attorney-General Boulton, _ib_.; and by Hagerman as a "spaniel dog,"
_ib_.; found guilty, and expelled, i. 240; repeated elections and
expulsions, _ib_., _et seq_.; i. 255, _etseq_.; did not command the
respect of the leading members of his own party, i. 242; proceeds to
England to represent various grievances at the Colonial Office, i.
245; while there puts himself in connection with leading Radicals,
_ib_.; present in House of Commons at third reading of Reform Bill,
_ib_.; returns to Canada, i. 253; results of his mission, _ib_., _et
seq_.; its cost, and by whom it was borne, i. 253, note; his _Sketches
of Canada and the United States_, i. 75, note, 253, note, 254; his
belief as to Rolph's appointment as Solicitor-General, i. 255, and
note; ejected from the Assembly by force, i. 256, 257; applies for
leave to take the oath prescribed for members of the Legislature
before the Lieutenant-Governor, 258; takes the oath before the Clerk
of the Executive Council, _ib_.; his notoriety consequent upon his
expulsions, i. 264; sympathy with him at York, i. 265; elected an
alderman, _ib_.; caucus, resulting in his election to the mayoralty,
i. 269-272; Robert Baldwin's estimate of him, i. 268; Rolph's
estimate, _ib_.; sounds Rolph's praises throughout the Province,
_ib_.; action of a caucus of Reform members of the first City Council
of Toronto respecting him, i. 269; elected first mayor of Toronto, i.
272; installed in office, _ib_.; his indiscretion and want of judgment
in that capacity, _ib_.; his conduct with reference to Mr. Hume's
"baneful domination" letter, i. 272, _et seq_.; denounced as a rebel
in consequence, i. 273, _et seq_.; vote of censure passed upon him in
Toronto, i. 275; criticised in the Council, i. 276; activity in the
matter of the cholera visitation, _ib_.; places a woman in the stocks,
_ib_.; elected for Second Riding of York, i. 279; discontinues the
publication of the _Advocate_, i. 281; assists in forming the
Canadian Alliance Society, _ib_.; defeated as a candidate for St.
David's Ward, Toronto, _ib_.; upon his motion, the proceedings
relative to his expulsions are expunged from the Journals of the
Assembly, i. 282; attacked by Hagerman, _ib_.; moves for and obtains
the appointment of a Special Committee on Grievances, _ib_.; Chairman
thereof, i. 283; his interview with Sir F. Head, i. 304; not accepted
by Reformers as their mouthpiece, i. 305; his disinclination to
discuss the Grievance Report with Sir F. Head, _ib_.; denounces R. B.
Sullivan, i. 313; his indiscretion taken advantage of by Sir F. Head,
i. 328, 329; defeated at the general election of 1836, i. 332; his
chagrin and indignation, i. 337, _et seq_.; many of his constituents
tired of him, i. 338; unfair means used to defeat him, _ib_.;
establishes the _Constitution_, i. 339; petitions the Assembly against
the return of E. W. Thomson, i. 347; how dealt with, i. 348, 349; sows
discontent among the people, i. 356, _et seq_.; his diatribes against
Sir F. B. Head, i. 357; in conjunction with Lount and others,
establishes Union meetings, i. 358; the idea of rebellion takes shape
in his mind, i. 360; reviews, in the _Constitution_, the state of
affairs in Lower Canada, _ib_.; his testimony as to Bidwell's
connection with the rebellion, i. 362, note; attends meeting at Doel's
brewery, and proposes and carries a motion expressive of sympathy with
Papineau, i. 365; signs Declaration, and is appointed a member of a
permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note; "Agent and
Corre-sponding Secretary" to the Radical Committee, i. 367; his
radical motion, _ib_.; addresses himself to his work as Agent and
Corresponding Secretary, i. 368; important nature of his duties,
_ib_.; intent on mischief, i. 371; plan for revolt communicated by him
to Lount and others, i. 372; arranged that he shall be a member of the
projected Provisional Government, i. 373; forms plans for immediate
action, and hastens to Toronto, i. 378; summons caucus at Doel's,
_ib_.; unfolds his plans, i. 379, 380; which are scouted by Dr.
Morrison and others, i. 380; calls on Dr. Rolph, _ib_.; with whom he
discusses scheme of revolt, _ib_., 381; conference with Dr. Morrison,
i. 382; conference between him, Rolph, Morrison and Lloyd, at Rolph's
house, _ib_.; further conference at Morrison's, i. 383; his urgency,
_ib_.; starts for the north to rouse the people to arms, i. 384; sends
no messages to Rolph or Morrison, ii. 9; he and others hold a secret
meeting in the country, and appoint 7th December as time of rising,
_ib_.; represents Rolph and Morrison as the real projectors of the
movement, ii. 10; his want of reticence, ii. 9, 10; calls on Rolph
with important news, ii. 10; asks Rolph to give in his adhesion, ii.
11; his representations as to Anthony Anderson, _ib_.; shows rolls of
revolt to Rolph, _ib_.; his abandonment of these rolls upon his flight
from Montgomery's, _ib_., note, 134; visits Morrison, ii. 12; suggests
Colonel Van Egmond as Commander-in-Chief, _ib_.; his deliberate and
repeated mis-representations, ii. 14-17, and notes; the only
originator of the rebellion, ii. 15, 23; chiefly responsible for its
failure, ii. 15; his disregard for truth, ii. 16, 20-23; represents
the Robinsons as being favourable to the revolt, ii. 16, and note; his
own narratives the sole groundwork for former histories of the revolt,
ii. 17, 20, note; final departure for the north, ii. 17; plan of
revolt, _ib_.; discloses same to several persons, ii. 18; prints and
distributes handbills, _ib_.; visits Gibson, ii. 19; does not disclose
plan to Gibson, _ib_.; uses Silas Fletcher as a medium of
communication with Rolph, _ib_.; his story about the meeting of
"twelve leading Reformers" a pure invention, ii. 14, 20-23; the real
author of "Alves's" statement, ii. 23; his arrest determined on by
Government, ii. 33; visits centres of Radical opinion, and notifies
his adherents of the projected revolt on 7th Dec., ii. 42; arrives at
Gibson's, and learns of Rolph's message, _ib_.; his anger thereat,
_ib_.; despatches message of countermand to Lount, _ib_.; despatches
messenger to Rolph, ii. 42, 43; passes the night at Gibson's, ii. 43;
repairs to Montgomery's, _ib_.; his anger at Montgomery, ii. 44, 66;
receives message from Rolph appointing meeting at Price's, ii. 44;
attends the appointment, _ib_.; advised by Rolph to disperse his
forces, but refuses, ii. 45, 46; goes to Shepard's Mill, ii. 47;
returns to Montgomery's and places guards, _ib_.; his fury at Linfoot,
ii. 48; advocates an immediate advance on the city, and offers to lead
the men himself, ii. 49; his proposals negatived, _ib_.; his
nervousness, _ib_.; starts, with others, on a reconnoitring
expedition, ii. 50; captures Brock and Bellingham, ii. 56: meets
Powell and McDonald, _ib_.; explains the situation, and takes them
prisoners, _ib_.; does not search them for arms, _ib_.; sends them to
Montgomery's, and proceeds on his way southward, _ib_.; overtaken by
Powell and McDonald, ii. 57; fires at Powell, _ib_.; recaptures
McDonald, _ib_.; returns to Montgomery's, ii. 66: addresses the
rebels, informing them that he will be their Commander-in-Chief for
that day, ii. 66, 67; leads a body of the rebels down Yonge Street,
ii. 67; calls a halt at Gallows Hill, _ib_.; enters Mr. Howard's
house, _ib_.; his treatment of Mrs. Howard, ii. 67, 68, 94, note, 96,
97; his garb, ii. 68; moves westward, _ib_.; probably not present when
flag of truce first arrived, ii. 69-71, and notes; doubtful
authenticity of his blustering message, ii. 71, note; conference with
Rolph, ii. 72; his statement as to the flag of truce, ii. 81, _et
seq_.; circumstances under which it was made, ii. 82; George B.
Thomson's testimony as to his treatment of Hincks, ii. 82, 83; his
letter to Rolph as to his claim for $12,000, ii. 83, 84; quotes
McLeod's transcripts of his own statements respecting the flag of
truce, ii. 85, 86; his conduct offensive to his former colleagues, ii.
89; his attempts at blackmail, ii. 90, 301, note; letter to him from
Gibson as to Lount's partial deafness, ii. 90; his overstrained
nerves, ii. 92, 93, and note; burns Horne's house, ii. 41, 70, note,
93-95, and note; wishes to burn Sheriff Jarvis's house, but is
restrained by Lount and others, ii. 96; unable to induce the rebels to
enter the city, ii. 92, 93, and note; 97; his conference with Rolph's
messenger, ii. 98, 99; his expostulations with the insurgents, ii. 99,
100; accompanies the expedition to the city, ii. 100; endeavours to
rally the men, ii. 102, 103; his ineffective attempt at surgery, ii.
102, note; receives message from Rolph and Morrison, advising him to
disperse his forces, ii. 105; conceals the message, _ib_.; loss of
confidence in him, ii. 106, and note; intercepts and seizes the
western mail, ii. 106; appropriates the contents, ii. 107; guilty of
highway robbery, ii. 107, _et seq_., and notes; hears of the arrest of
Dr. Morrison, ii. 109; and of the departure of Dr. Rolph, _ib_.;
threatens to shoot Colonel Van Egmond, ii. 121; prepares for an
engagement, ii. 123; his account of the skirmish, ii. 126, _et seq_.;
his flight witnessed by Win. McDougall, ii. 132, note; his papers
captured, ii. 134; disastrous consequences, _ib_.; reward of 1,000
pounds offered for his capture, ii. 135; his flight from Montgomery's,
ii. 136, note, 140; escapes to the U. S., ii. 140, 141: indignation
against him among the rebels and their families, ii. 148, and note;
reaches Buffalo, ii. 177; his letter to the Buffalo _Whig and
Journal_, _ib_., note; enthusiastic reception, ii. 178, _et seq_.;
joins in a design for invading Canada, ii. 179; allies himself with
Van Rensselaer, _ib_.; addresses a meeting at the theatre, ii. 182;
lands on Navy Island and issues a proclamation, ii. 184; its contents,
_ib_., _et seq_.; his references therein to Dr. Rolph, ii. 185-188;
offers a reward of 500 pounds for Sir F. B. Head's capture, ii. 187;
issues a second proclamation, offering 300 acres of Canadian land and
$100 in silver to recruits, ii. 190; quarrels with Van Rensselaer, ii.
190, 201, 236; issues scrip payable at the City Hall, Toronto, ii.
191; his forgery of Gibson's name, ii. 191, 192, and note; his account
of the _Caroline_ affair, ii. 210, _et seq_., and note; evacuates Navy
Island, ii. 223; his narrative in the Watertown _Jeffersonian_, ii.
233; thrown over by Rolph, ii. 234; continues to plot against Canada,
ii. 236; arrested for breach of neutrality laws, and held to bail,
_ib_.; sojourns at Rochester, _ib_.; takes part in organizing a
movement against Kingston, but withdraws because command given to Van
Rensselaer, ii. 237, 270; his conduct commented on by counsel on trial
of Dr. Morrison, ii. 254, and note, 255; continues to play the
firebrand, ii. 270; "General" McLeod warns prominent filibusters not
to entrust him with their plans, ii. 271, and note; his alleged
cooperation in an attempt to blow up Brock's monument, and in the
destruction of certain public works on the Welland Canal, ii. 271,
note, 272; McLeod issues a General Order and circular in con-sequence,
ii. 271, note; probably guilty of petty aggressions on the Canadian
frontier, ii. 272; goes about with Theller haranguing audiences
against Canada, _ib_.; makes a trade of agitation, .; his desire for
revenge, ii. 273; circular issued by him and Montgomery summoning a
special convenoion at Rochester, _ib_., and note; starts _Mackenzie's
Gazette_, ii. 274; its policy, _ib_.; copies therein an untruthful
account of the revolt, _ib_.; contradicts same, ii. 275; Morrison's
contempt for his baseness, ii. 275, 276, note; complains that Morrison
keeps him at a distance, _ib_., 279, 280, note; declares his intention
to become a citizen of the United States, ii. 276: his change of
opinion as to United States institutions, ii. 277, 303, 304, 305, 306;
tried for breach of the neutrality laws, ii. 277: his references to
his Queen, _ib_., 281; found guilty, and sentenced to fine and
imprison-ment, ii. 277; placed in jail at Rochester, _ib_.; compiles
and publishes the _Caroline Al-manac_ while in jail, ii. 278;
character of that work, _ib_., _et seq_.; stigmatizes Chief Justice
Robinson as "the Jeffries of Upper Canada," ii. 279; set free, ii.
282; review of his conduct, ii. 298; Sir C. Metcalfe refuses to grant
an amnesty to him, ii. 301; his threatening letter to Sir F. Hincks,
_ib_., note; his poverty and sufferings during exile, ii. 303-306; his
dread of being kidnapped, ii. 304; removes to New York city, _ib_.;
obtains a situation in the Mechanics' Institute there, _ib_.; his
spurious independence, ii. 305, 323, 324; his lives of Van Buren and
Butler, ii. 305; a general amnesty enables him to return to Canada,
ii. 306; returns by way of Montreal, _ib_.; insulted by Colonel
Prince, ii. 306, 307, and note; reaches Toronto, ii. 308; a riot
ensues, _ib_.; sympathy felt for him, _ib_.; obtains employment,
_ib_.; ignored by Reform leaders, _ib_.; claims $12,000 for losses
incurred through the revolt, _ib_.; besieges Mr. Baldwin to press same
on the Government, _ib_.; preposterous nature of the claim, _ib_.;
assails the Government through the press, ii. 309; elected to the
Assembly for Haldimand, ii. 309, 310; brings forward a motion for the
abolition of the Court of Chancery, ii. 310; his ignorance of the
subject-matter, _ib_.; an enthusiastic supporter of Rolph, ii. 314,
315; suspicious of Hincks, ii. 315; presses Rolph to take up his
alleged claim against the Government, _ib_., and note; assumes an
attitude of hostility towards Rolph and the Government, ii. 316;
betrays symptoms of insanity, _ib_., and note; attacks Rolph in secret
session of the Assembly, ii. 319; replied to by Rolph, _ib_.; starts
the _Message_, ii. 320 ; its character, _ib_.; issues _Head's Flag of
Truce_, ii. 321; a member of his family succoured by Rolph, ii. 322,
and note; resigns his seat for Haldimand ii. 322; his conduct in the
Assembly, ii. 322, 323; paid for former services in connection with
the Welland Canal, ii. 324; paid by the County of York for past
services, _ib_.; a subscription fund started on his behalf, _ib_.;
applies for a portion of it with a view to a tour in Europe, _ib_.;
his abuse of James Lesslie, _ib_., 325; provided with a house on Bond
Street, Toronto, ii. 325; without income, _ib_.; progress of his
malady, _ib_.; death and burial, _ib_., and note; Mac Mullen's
estimate of him, ii. 326, 327; his Life published, ii. 327; character
of that work, _ib_., 329, 330.

Mackenzie, Mrs. (mother of W. L Mackenzie), witnesses the raid on her
son's printing-office, i. 130, and note.

Mackintosh, John, returned to the Assembly for the Fourth Riding of
York, i. 280; reelected at general election of 1836, i. 332; signs
Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is appointed member of a permanent
Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note; attends last caucus at
Doel's brewery, i. 378.

MacMullen, John, his History of Canada quoted, i. 94, 222; his error
as to M. S. Bidwell's connection with the revolt, i. 362, note; his
account of the "battle" at Montgomery's, ii. 125, and note; his
summing-up of Mackenzie, ii. 326, 327.

MacNab, Sr., Allan, Serjeant-at-Arms, i. 258, note; expels Mackenzie
from the Assembly by force, i. 257, 259.

MacNab, Mr., afterwards Sir Allan Napier, an impecunious young lawyer
of Hamilton, i. 223; is summoned to appear before a Committee of the
Assembly, _ib_.; refuses to answer questions, _ib_.; is insolent and
indiscreet, _ib_.; his written defence of his conduct, _ib_.;
committed to jail for contempt, _ib_.; his letter to the Assembly,
_ib_.; set at liberty, _ib_.; the turning point in his career, _ib_.;
returned to the Assembly for Wentworth, i. 224, 233, 332; his
commonplace volubility and High Toryism, i. 224; obtains high
distinction and eminence, _ib_.; his subsequent career outlined,
_ib_.; moves against W. L. Mackenzie for publishing reports of
Parliamentary proceedings, i. 238; objects to the reception by the
Assembly of a petition as to Mackenzie's expulsion, i. 256; his
amendment as to Mackenzie's expulsion, i. 257, note; declares his
intention to vote for committing Mackenzie to jail, i. 260; censures
the Lieutenant-Governor, _ib_.; re-elected at the general election of
1836, i. 332; elected Speaker to the Assembly, i. 353; attends meeting
of Executive Council just before outbreak, ii. 30; states that he is
about to organize militia in Gore District, ii. 30; messages
despatched to him from Toronto, ii. 60; reaches Toronto with upwards
of sixty "Men of Gore," ii. 103; a favourite of Sir F. Head, ii. 115;
appointed to command the Home District Militia, _ib_.; gives way to
Colonel Fitz Gibbon as to the command of the loyalist forces during
the attack at Montgomery's, ii. 116; commands the main body, ii. 118;
commands musketeers to shoot Judge Jones, ii. 129; marches westward
against Dr. Duncombe, ii. 154; entertained by Colonel Perley, ii. 155;
reaches Scotland, and finds no enemy there, _ib_.; notified to proceed
to Niagara frontier, ii. 198; obeys the order, _ib_.; compelled by Sir
F. Head to inaction, ii. 200; is informed of how the _Caroline_ is
employed, ii. 203; resolves to destroy her, _ib_.; confers with
Captain Drew, ii. 204; imparts final instructions to Captain Drew, ii.
205; his conduct considered, ii. 219, _et seq_.; receives Lieut.
Elmsley's report, and communicates same to General Scott, ii. 223; his
strained correspondence with General Scott, ii. 224; Bill passed by
Upper Canada Assembly granting 100 guineas to buy him a sword, ii.
239; grant fails, _ib_.

Maitland, Colonel John, commands the Canadian forces in the west, ii.
232; drives the filibusters from Point Pelee Island, _ib_.

Maitland, Lady Sarah, wife of Sir Peregrine Maitland, i. 41; her
disagreement with Lady Mary Willis, i. 170.

Maitland, Sir Peregrine, son-in-law of the fourth Duke of Richmond, i.
41, 43; hints at the propriety of enacting a law to prevent the
holding of conventions, i. 44; attacked in the Colonial Advocate, i.
123; orders a copy of the paper to be disinterred from beneath the
column erected to Sir Isaac Brock, i. 124; accused of being a
contributor to the typeriot fund, i. 140; spies employed in the public
service during his tenure of office, i. 145, and note, 162; orders the
perpetration of the Niagara Falls outrage, i. 151, 155; his consequent
unpopularity, i. 153, 154; his abuse of authority perpetrated as
Commander of the Forces and not as Lieutenant-Governor, i. 155, 156;
instructs Attorney-General Robinson to defend actions brought by
Forsyth, ii. 156; indications of collusion between him and public
officials, i. 157; declines to permit the attendance of the latter as
witnesses before a Committee of the Assembly, _ib_.; his flimsy
pretext for refusing, i. 158; prorogues the Legislature, i. 159; his
despatch on the subject of the Niagara Falls outrage, i. 160; the
Colonial Secretary's opinion of his conduct, _ib_.; transferred to
Nova Scotia, i. 161; his decade of misrule in Upper Canada, i. 162,
219; visited at Stamford Cottage by John Walpole Willis, i. 165; his
remarks on a projected court of equity, _ib_. 169; hostilities between
him and Judge Willis, i. 170, 171, 178, 179; his despatch to the
Colonial Secretary against Judge Willis, i. 179; his opinion of the
laws of Upper Canada, _ib_.; maligns the Judge in subsequent
despatches, i. 183, 190,191; his characterization of Rolph, Bidwell,
and the Baldwins, i. 183; is notified by Judge Willis of his decision
as to the non-constitutionality of the Court of King's Bench in Upper
Canada, i. 186; suspends Judge Willis from office, i. 189; his attire,
i. 191, note; his hostility to the _Freeman_, i. 197; succeeded in
office by Sir John Colborne, i. 205, 206, note.

Mantach, John, sent by Dr. Rolph on a message to Gibson, ii. 37.

Marcy, Hon. William L., Governor of New York State, written to by Sir
F. B. Head, ii. 197; issues proclamation calling upon Mackenzie's
rabble to desist from invading Canada, ii. 220, note; his special
message to the State Legislature, ii. 221; representations made to him
on the subject of the destruction of the _Sir Robert Peel_, ii. 258;
harries Bill Johnston, ii. 259.

Markland, Hon. George Herchmer, Inspector-General, i. 305; resigns
office, i. 311.

Mason, Stevens T., Governor of Michigan, his
preservation of the neutrality laws, ii. 228.

Matrimony, solemnization of, the right not generally accorded to
ministers of religion, i. 78.

Matthews, Captain John, returned to the Assembly for Middlesex, i.
107, 108; a staunch Reformer, i. 108, 144; his intellectual character,
i. 108; colleague of Dr. Rolph, _ib_.; his birth and social standing,
i. 144; his advocacy of Reform renders him odious to the Tories,
_ib_.; his indiscretion, _ib_.; a system of espionage adopted towards
him, i. 145; dogged by myrmidons of the Executive, _ib_.; pretext for
impugning his loyalty, _ib_.; attends the theatre at York, i. 146; his
conduct there, _ib_., and note; secretly accused to the military
authorities, i. 147; officially called upon for an explanation, _ib_.;
ordered to proceed to England, _ib_.; applies to the Assembly for
leave of absence, i. 148; which is refused, _ib_.; the Assembly sets
an enquiry on foot, _ib_.; the evidence elicited, _ib_.; the report
exonerates Captain Matthews, i. 149; the United States press on the
subject, i. 149, 150; the press of the Maritime Provinces thereon, i.
150; stoppage of his pension, _ib_.; resigns his seat in the
Assembly, and returns to England, _ib_.; his pension restored, _ib_.

Matthews, Peter, acquiesces in Mackenzie's plans for a revolt, i. 372;
attends secret meeting, when time fixed for 7th December, ii. 9;
detailed from Montgomery's to the Don bridge, ii. 122; captures the
mail, ii. 144; retreats and fires the Don bridge, ii. 144, 145; learns
of the defeat at Montgomery's, and escapes, ii. 145; takes refuge with
John Duncan, _ib_.; captured and marched to jail, ii. 146, 147;
arraigned before Chief Justice Robinson, ii. 247; pleads guilty and is
sentenced to death, _ib_.; vain efforts to have the sentence commuted,
_ib_.; Chief Justice Robinson declines to recommend a pardon or
respite, ii. 248; his execution, ii. 248, 249, and note; his remains
buried in Potter's Field, ii. 250; removed to Necropolis, _ib_., and
note.

McCague, Dr., attends at the deathbed of Colonel Moodie, ii. 55.

McCarty, an insurgent, sent with Gorham to Montgomery's to make
victualling arrangements, ii. 38; failure of their mission, ii. 44;
repairs to Gibson's, ii. 43, 44.

_McComb_ steamer captured, ii. 228.

McCormick, Sheppard, wounded at the capture of the _Caroline_, ii.
208, 212; pensioned, ii. 212, 239; pension continued to his widow, ii.
212.

McDonald, Archibald, accompanies Powell on a reconnoitring expedition,
ii. 53, and note; captured by Mackenzie and others, ii. 56; escapes,
but is recaptured, ii. 57; taken to Montgomery's, ii. 66.

McDonnell, Alexander, an Associate Justice on the trial of the
type-rioters, i. 135.

McDonnell, Bishop, Legislative Councillor, Lord Goderich's opinion
respecting, i. 254, note.

McDougall, Peter, takes part in the raid on Mackenzie's
printing-office, i. 132; his contribution to the fund, i. 141.

McDougall, William, his rencontre with Sir F. B. Head after the affair
at Montgomery's, ii. 132, note; is an eye-witness of Mackenzie's
flight, _ib_.; takes part in founding the Clear Grit party, ii. 309.

McGill, John, a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note.

McGlashan, Andrew, signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i.
316.

McKay, Robert, signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i. 316;
signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is appointed member of a
permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note; attends last
caucus at Doel's, i. 379; his evidence on Dr. Morrison's trial, ii.
22, 23.

McLean, Archibald, present at Gourlay trial, i. 13; member for
Stormont in the Assembly, i. 233; elected Speaker, _ib_.; his
character and past life, _ib_.; re-elected at the general election of
1836, i. 332; again elected Speaker to the Assembly, i. 343; accepts a
seat on the bench, i. 353, 354; shoulders a musket in defence of the
Government, ii. 60; commands left wing of militia against the rebels
at Montgomery's, ii. 118, and note.

McLellan, M., signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i. 316.

McLeod, Alexander, Deputy Sheriff of Niagara District, his conduct at
Montgomery's, ii. 128, 129; accompanies Captain Drew on a tour of
inspection round Navy Island, ii. 203, and note; arrested on a charge
of having taken part in the _Caroline_ affair, ii. 299; in which he
had no concern, _ib_.; false evidence produced against him, _ib_.; his
release demanded on behalf of the British Government, _ib_.; the
demand not acceded to, _ib_.; the taunt of a boaster attached to his
name undeserved, _ib_., note; taken before the Supreme Court of New
York on a _habeas corpus_, ii. 300; remanded, _ib_.; tried at Utica and
acquitted, _ib_.

McLeod, "General" Donald, his _History of the Canadian Insurrection_,
i. 44, note, ii. 85; incorrectly states that Bartemus Ferguson died in
jail, i, 44, note; his letter as to Silas Fletcher, ii. 36, note; his
account of the flag of truce admitted by him to have been taken from
Mackenzie's account, ii. 85; Alves admits to him the incorrectness of
his story, _ib_.; commands the filibusters in the affair of Fighting
Island, ii. 231, 232; issues a circular to prominent "Patriots,"
counselling them to let Mackenzie know nothing of their plans, ii.
271, and note; his General Order as to plundering, etc., ii. 271,
note; his circular against Mackenzie for having aided in the attempted
destruction of Brock's monu-ment, etc., _ib_.

Melbourne, Lord, his reception of Sir F. B. Head, ii. 242, and note.

Merritt, Thomas, Sheriff of Niagara District, i. 38, and note.

Merritt, Hon. William Hamilton, espouses Gourlay's cause in the
Canadian Assembly, i. 38, note; his approval of Mackenzie's expulsion
from the Assembly, i. 260; his letter to Mrs. Rolph about Dr. Rolph's
conduct in the United States, ii. 234, note.

Metcalfe, Sir Charles, Responsible Government suspended during his
term of office, ii. 293; refuses to grant an amnesty to Papineau and
Mackenzie, ii. 301.

Military Lieutenant-Governors a grievance to Upper Canada, i. 69; ii.
284, 294.

Mill, John Stuart, his remark on the death of Lord Durham, ii. 290.

Mills, John, signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i. 316;
attends last caucus at Doel's brewery, i. 379.

Milne, Squire, preliminary examination before
him of Lount and Kennedy, ii. 144.

Milton, John, juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Milton, Lord, brings Judge Willis's case before the House of Commons,
i. 192.

Mitchell, Dr. James, prevails with Dr. Rolph's captors to set him
free, ii. 114; exchanges horses with Dr. Rolph, _ib_.

Molesworth, Sir William, his opinions on colonial policy embodied in
Lord Durham's Report, ii. 290, note.

Montgomery, John, signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is
appointed member of a permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and
note; his tavern appointed a place of meeting for the rebels, ii. 11,
and note; description of tavern, ii. 43; nature of his connection with
revolt, _ib_., and note, 44, 66; a contributor to the fund for
defraying cost of Mackenzie's expedition to England in 1832 and 1833,
ii. 43; declines to act as commissary to the insurgents, ii. 44;
Mackenzie's indignation thereat, ii. 43, 44, 66; consents to act as
commissary, ii. 66; takes part in a Council of War, ii. 121; his
tavern burned, ii. 130; his trial, ii. 250-252; his extraordinary
address to Chief Justice Robinson, ii. 251; sentenced to death, _ib_.,
252; commuta-tion of his sentence to transportation for life, ii. 252;
escapes from Fort Henry to the United States, _ib_.; pardoned and
returns to Canada, ii. 252, 301, 302; his subsequent career, and
death, ii. 252; issues a joint circular with Mackenzie summoning a
special convention at Rochester, ii. 273, note.

Moodie, Lieutenant-Colonel, an emergency meeting of loyalists held at
his house, ii. 54; proceeds to the city in person to warn the
Government of impending insurrection, _ib_.: he and his companions
stopped by the guard at Montgomery's, _ib_.; attempts to force his
way, and is shot, ii. 55; conveyed within the tavern, _ib_.; his
death, _ib_.; his slayer un-known, _ib_., and note; his past life, ii.
54, note; his death announced by Brooke to Powell, ii. 57; pension
granted to his widow and children, ii. 239.

Moore, Elias, member of Upper Canada Assembly for Middlesex, in prison
awaiting trial, ii. 239; released upon giving security for good
behaviour, ii. 256.

Morgan, Captain William, presumed to have been slain for disclosure of
the Masonic ritual, i. 27, note; Isaac Swayze's boastings on the
subject, _ib_.

Morin, Hon. A. N., adjusts the Lower Canadian portion of the
Hincks-Morin Government, ii. 311.

Morreau, James, commands the Short Hills expedition, ii. 259;
captured, tried, and executed, _ib_.

Morris, William, member for Lanark, moves resolution for expulsion of
W. L. Mackenzie from the Assembly, i. 257, note.

Morrison, Dr. Thomas David, receives Dr. Rolph's decision as to his
seat in the first City Council of Toronto, i. 271; announces same to
Council, _ib_.; elected to Assembly for Third Riding of York, i. 280;
his character, _ib_.; appointed a member of the Special Committee on
Grievances, i. 283: mayor of Toronto, i. 315; meeting of Reformers
held at his house, _ib_.; re-elected at the general election of 1836,
i. 332; his action in the Assembly on Mackenzie's petition against the
return of E. W. Thomson, i. 348; speaks on the union of the Provinces,
i. 351; signs the "Declaration," i. 365; appointed a delegate to the
proposed Radical convention, i. 366; and a member of a permanent
Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note; attends last caucus at
Doel's brewery, i. 378; repudiates Mackenzie's scheme, and threatens
to leave the room, i. 380; conference between him, Rolph and
Mackenzie, _ib_., _et seq_.; acquiesces in the revolt, i. 382; writes
a letter introducing Jesse Lloyd to Dr. O'Callaghan of Montreal,
_ib_.; ii. 21; learns of the secret meeting in the country, when time
of rising fixed for 7th December, ii. 9; resolves to move no further
with Mackenzie, ii. 10; visited by Mackenzie, whom he berates for
assumption of authority, ii. 12; again assents to the revolt, _ib_.,
13; his written statement as to his connection with the revolt, ii.
20-23; sends John Fletcher to Dr. Rolph, ii. 22, 105, and note;
arrested and lodged in jail, ii. 112; refused bail, _ib_.; voluntarily
appears before the Treason Commission, ii. 195; denies all complicity
in the revolt, _ib_.; his trial, ii. 252-255; acquitted, ii. 255;
receives a hint that another indictment is preparing against him,
_ib_.; proceeds to Rochester and takes up his abode there, ib.; writes
to Gibson to take steps for contradicting Mackenzie's falsehoods, ii.
275, and note; urges Rolph to same purpose, ii. 276; his contempt for
Mackenzie's baseness, ii 276, note, 279, 280, note; pardoned and
returns to Canada, ii. 301, 302; settles in Toronto, ii. 302; his
death, ii. 328.

Murray, Sir George, his explanation to the House of Commons of the
case of Judge Willis, i. 192, 193.


Navy Island, selected as the headquarters of the invaders of Canada,
ii. 180; occupied, ii. 184; becomes untenable, ii. 223; evacuated,
_ib_.

Nelles, William, recognizes Lount in the guardhouse at Chippewa, ii. 144.

New York Enquirer, the, on Capt. Matthews's case, i. 149, 150.

Niagara Falls Outrage, see chap. vii.

Niagara Falls Pavilion, inn kept by William
Forsyth--see Forsyth, William, i. 152.

Niagara Town, enjoys the privilege of sending a representative to the
Assembly, i. 69; a rotten borough, _ib_.

Norton, Hiram, member for Grenville, his motion in the Assembly as to
the Clergy Reserves, i. 344, 345; moves recommittal of Bill to prevent
the dissolution of the Provincial Parliament upon demise of Crown, i
350.


O'Callaghan, Dr. E. B., Jesse Lloyd introduced to him by letter from
Dr. Morrison, i. 382.

O'Grady, Dr. William J., signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head,
i. 315; alleged joint author of "Declaration," i. 364; signs
Declaration and is appointed member of a permanent Committee of
Vigilance, i. 367, and note.

O'Hara, Colonel, supplements Judge McLean's command of the left wing
of militia against the rebels at Montgomery's, ii. 118, note.

Oliphant, David, shelters Lount and Kennedy after the affair at
Montgomery's, ii. 142.

Osgoode, Hon. William, first Chief Justice of Upper Canada, frames the
statute under which the Court of King's Bench was originally founded
in Upper Canada, i. 182, note.


Palace Street, Toronto, why so named, i. 130, note.

Papineau, Louis Joseph, his letter laid before the Assembly by Mr.
Bidwell, i. 321; Sir F. B. Head's construction of the letter, and his
action thereon, i. 324, 325; motion expressive of sympathy with him
carried at Doel's brewery, i. 365; Sir C. Metcalfe refuses to grant
him an amnesty, ii. 301; the entry of a _nolle prosequi_ enables him
to return to Canada, ii. 302; re-enters public life, and opposes
Responsible Government, _ib_.

Parke, Thomas, member for Middlesex, speaks on the union of the
Provinces, i. 351.

Parson, Timothy, signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i. 316;
attends last caucus at Doel's brewery, i. 379; his character and past
life, ii. 74, 75, note; his statement as to the flag of truce, _ib_.;
his subsequent career, ii. 75, note; flies to the States and joins
Mackenzie at Buffalo, ii. 191, note.

Perley, Mr. afterwards Colonel raises a company of militia, ii. 155;
entertains Colonel MacNab, and marches with him to Scotland village,
_ib_.

Perry, Peter, returned to the Assembly for Lennox and Addington, i.
108; the colleague of M. S. Bidwell, _ib_.; his characteristics, i.
108, 109, 110; overshadowed by Robert Baldwin after the Union, i. 109;
his past life, _ib_.; re-elected to the Assembly, i. 220, 232, 277;
presents a petition from York electors as to W. L. Mackenzie's
expulsion, i. 256; defends Mackenzie in the Assembly, i. 257, 258;
moves that Mackenzie is entitled to sit and vote in the House, i. 259;
Robert Baldwin's letter to him as to negotiations with Sir F. Head, i.
308, note, 312; reads the letter to the Assembly, i. 312; defeated at
general election of 1836, i. 332; defeated by Methodist vote, i. 334;
takes part in founding the Clear Grit party, ii. 309.

Pew, William, juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Phillpotts, Captain George, R.E., demolishes fence at Niagara Falls,
i. 154, 155; sued by Forsyth, who fails, i. 156, 157.

Piggott, Sir Arthur, his opinion on the Gourlay case, i. 30.

Porter. Judge, his bridge between Goat Island and the American shore,
ii. 211, note.

Powell, Grant, a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note.

Powell, John, Alderman for St. Andrew's Ward, goes out Yonge Street on
a reconnoitring expedition, ii. 53, and note; encounters Mackenzie and
others, ii. 56; yields himself a prisoner, _ib_.; his account of the
capture, _ib_., note; consigned to the custody of Anthony Anderson,
ii. 57; shoots Anderson, and escapes, ii. 58; his rencontre with
Mackenzie, ii. 57, 58; abandons his horse, and hides, ii. 58; reaches
Government House, and rouses Sir F. Head, ii. 53, 59; thrice elected
to the mayoralty, ii. 244, note.

Powell, Hon. William Dummer, Chief Justice, presides at Gourlay trial,
i. 11; one of the practical directors of the administration, _ib_.;.
hears the argument on Gourlay's behalf under writ of _habeas corpus_,
and remands the applicant to jail, i. 29; Sir Arthur Piggott's opinion
of his conduct, i. 30; pronounces sentence of banishment on Gourlay,
i. 37; his large acquisitions of public lands, i. 61; a member of the
Family Compact, i. 76, note; father-in-law to S. P. Jarvis, i. 132;
ceases to be Chief Justice, _ib_., note; his declining influence, i.
215; protests against a School Bill, _ib_.; protest enrolled in the
Assembly Journal, but erased by his consent, i. 215, 216; coerced into
voting with the Government, i. 218; his "new light," _ib_.; Speaker of
the Legislative Council, _ib_.

Powers, William, juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Prescott expedition, ii. 262, _et seq_.

Price, James Hervey signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i.
316; signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is appointed member of a
permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note; refrains from
attending the last caucus at Doel's brewery, i. 379; his evidence on
the trial of Dr. Morrison, ii. 22, 23; interview at his house between
Rolph, Gibson and Mackenzie, ii. 44; declines Sheriff Jarvis's
proposal to be the bearer of a flag of truce to the rebels, ii. 63;
suggests Baldwin, Bidwell, or Rolph, _ib_.

Prince, Colonel John, defends the western frontier of Upper Canada,
ii. 227; appeals to the Governor of Michigan to preserve the
neutrality laws, ii. 228; advances from Sandwich against invading
filibusters, ii. 267; encounters and defeats the enemy, ii. 268; his
summary vengeance, _ib_., and note; his maltreatment of W. L.
Mackenzie, ii. 306, 307, and note.

"Protestant Clergy," disputes as to meaning of the term, i. 66, 67.


Radcliffe, Colonel Thomas, defends the western frontier of Upper
Canada, ii. 227.

Radenhurst, John, his evidence on the land-granting system, i. 60, 61.

Randal, Robert, i. 214.

Rankin, Charles, his evidence on the system of land-granting, i. 61,
note.

Rectories, endowment of, by Sir John Colborne, L 292-295.

Reform party of Upper Canada formed, i. 113; material composing it, i.
119; shows symptoms of a want of cohesion, i. 231; two wings formed,
_ib_.; success at the polls rendered nugatory, i. 232; small number of
Reformers desirous of rebellion, i. 360, 361; would probably have
recognized the Provisional Government had the revolt been successful,
ii. 296.

Reid, John, accompanies Mackenzie on his flight from Montgomery's, ii.
140.

Responsible Government, only practised in a very modified form under
the Constitutional Act of 1791, i. 49, _et seq_.; the Reform party
devote themselves to obtaining a full recognition of it, i. 119, 120;
Robert Baldwin spent the best years of his life in contending for it,
i. 112; the subject dealt with perfunctorily in Lord Glenelg's
instructions to Sir F. Head, i. 302, 303; the case of Responsible
Government as between Sir F. Head and his Councillors, i. 307, _et
seq_.; letter from R. Baldwin to Peter Perry on the subject, i. 308,
note, 312; Tory opinion as to, i. 317; despatches on the subject to
Sir F. B. Head and Sir Archibald Campbell, Lieutenant-Governor of New
Brunswick, i. 342; resolutions introduced into the Parliament of
United Canada by Robert Baldwin, ii. 293; amendments thereto by S. B.
Harrison, _ib_.; passed, _ib_.; acted upon by Lord Sydenham and Sir C.
Bagot, _ib_.; suspended during part of Sir C. Metcalfe's tenure of
office, _ib_.; restored and established under Lord Elgin, _ib_.

Reynolds, M., signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is appointed
member of a permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note.

Richardson, Charles, student in office of Attorney-General Robinson,
i. 132; takes part in the raid on the Colonial Advocate office, _ib_.;
appointed Clerk of the Peace for the Niagara District, i. 133.

Richardson, Rev. James, attends Lount and Matthews on the gallows, ii.
249.

Richey, Welsley, his evidence as to the issue of patents during the
election of 1836, i. 331, note.

Richmond, Charles Gordon Lennox, Fourth Duke of, his descent, i. 41;
his death from hydrophobia, i. 40, 41, 42, note; father of Lady Sarah
Maitland, i. 41; Mr. Gourlay's belief as to his death, i. 41, 42.

Ridout, George, his comments on the general election of 1836, at the
Constitutional Reform Society, i. 339; dismissed from certain offices
in consequence, i. 340, and note; appeals to the Colonial Secretary,
i. 354; who directs that he be reinstated, i. 352, 354; not a member
of the Constitutional Reform Society, i. 354.

Ridout, George Percival, commands a detachment of militia, ii. 144.

Ridout, John, slain in a duel by S. P. Jarvis i. 13, 131, 198; see
Boulton, Henry John; Small, James Edward; Jarvis, Samuel Peters;
Collins, Francis.

Ripon, Earl of see Goderich, Lord.

Robinson, John Beverley, counsel for the prosecution in the Gourlay
trial, i. 12; his parentage and past life, _ib_.; the son of a U. E.
Loyalist, _ib_.; present at the surrender of Detroit and at the battle
of Queenston Heights, _ib_.; successively Attorney-General,
Solicitor-General, and Attorney-General, _ib_.: officially prosecutes
criminals from Red River, _ib_.; his personal appearance and capacity,
i. 13; prosecutes Gourlay at Kingston, i. 24; at Niagara, i. 12, 34; a
member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note; his character, i. 93;
records his vote against the repeal of the "Gagging Law," i. 96;
assails Barnabas Bidwell in the Upper Canada Assembly, i. 101; replied
to by Mr. Bidwell, _ib_.; Francis Collins's comments upon, i. 101,
102, note; his letter on the laying-out of the lots on Niagara River,
i. 152, note; instructed to defend suits arising out of the Niagara
Falls outrage, i. 156; his emoluments therefrom, _ib_., note; the
probable author of Sir P. Maitland's despatch on the subject, i. 160;
his sentiments towards Judge Willis, L 166, 167, 169; hostility
between them, _ib_.,170; applies to be appointed Chief Justice, i.
170; serious altercations in open court between him and Judge Willis,
i. 171, _et seq_.; accused by Francis Collins of employing spies and
informers, and of gross neglect of his duties, i. 172; admonished by
Judge Willis, i. 175-177; his opinion as to the unconstitutionality of
the Court of King's Bench, i. 188; his ineffectual attempt to
humiliate Dr. Horne, i. 195, note; his dislike of the _Freeman_, i.
197; consents to Mr. Baldwin conducting the prosecution against H. J.
Boulton and J. E. Small for murder, i. 199; refuses a similar assent
on the trial of the type-rioters, i. 200; presses an indictment
against Collins, i. 200, 201; lays a fresh indictment for a libel on
himself, i. 202; his arbitrary conduct, i 204, _et seq_.; is hissed on
the streets of York, i. 208, 209; his management of Sir John Colborne.
i. 209; contemplates a further prosecution of Collins, i. 210; his
inexorableness, i. 211; his majority decreased upon his re-election
for York, i. 220; becomes Chief Justice of Upper Canada, i. 228;
continues, in conjunction with Dr. Strachan, to direct the policy of
the Government, _ib_.; adviser of Sir F. Head, i. 309, 310, 312; his
_Canada and the Canada Bill_, i. 341; refuses to believe in the
possibility of rebellion, i. 376; his reception of Colonel Fitz
Gibbon's warning, ii. 28; attends meeting of Executive Council just
before outbreak, ii. 30; shoulders a musket in defence of the
Government, ii. 60; passes sentences of death upon Lount and Matthews,
ii. 247; declines to recommend a pardon or respite, ii. 248, and note;
presides at trial of John Montgomery, ii. 250; the prisoner's
extraordinary address to him, ii. 251; pro-nounces sentence of death
upon the prisoner, ii. 251, 252; expresses his unwillingness to
preside on trial of Dr. Morrison, ii. 252; stigmatized by Mackenzie as
"the Jeffries of Upper Canada," ii. 279.

Robinson, John Beverley, Jr., appointed aide-de-camp to Sir F. Head
during the revolt before Toronto, ii. 60, and note.

Robinson, Hon. Peter, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note;
Commissioner of Crown Lands, i. 305; his dubious position, i. 306;
resigns office, i. 311.

Robinson, William Benjamin, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75,
note; returned to the Assembly for Simcoe, i. 233; hissed while
speaking in the Assembly, i. 260, 261; re-elected for his
constituency, i. 277; re-elected at general election of 1836, i. 332.

Roebuck, John Arthur, informs Sir Francis
Hincks that Sir F. B. Head's appointment
was due to a verbal misapprehension, i. 287.

Rolph, George, his case against Simons and others, i. 168; Judge
Willis's judgment thereon, _ib_.; seconds Dr. Baldwin's motion as to
Allan MacNab's committal for contempt, i. 223; his brother John's
legal practice transferred to him, i. 266.

Rolph, John, his high abilities, i. 104; his personal appearance, i.
104, 105, 107, 108; his great caution and secretiveness, i. 105; his
general characteristics, i. 106; his parentage and early life, i. 106,
107; his immigration to Canada, i. 106; serves as a volunteer during
the early part of the War of 1812, _ib_.; pay-master of militia,
_ib_.; taken prisoner, _ib_.; liberated, _ib_.; returns to England and
enters one of the colleges of Cambridge University, _ib_.; his
intellectual precocity, _ib_.; repairs to London and studies law,
_ib_.; called to the bar of the Inner Temple, _ib_.; studies under Sir
Astley Cooper, and is enrolled a member of the Royal College of
Surgeons, _ib_.; returns to Canada, _ib_.; settles on land in
Charlotteville, i. 107; called to the bar of Upper Canada, _ib_.;
practises law and medicine concurrently, _ib_.; adviser and friend of
Colonel Talbot, _ib_.; one of the originators of the Talbot
Anniversary, _ib_.; opposes the Family Compact, _ib_.; coolness
between himself and Colonel Talbot, _ib_.; removes to Dundas, _ib_.;
returned to the Assembly for Middlesex, i. 104, 107; makes his
presence felt in the Assembly, i. 107; contrasted with W. L.
Mackenzie, i. 118, 119; moves in the Assembly for a Committee of
Investigation in the case of Capt. Matthews, i. 148; fraternizes with
Judge Willis, i. 169; sides with Judge Willis in his contention with
Attorney-General Robinson, i. 176; vilified to the Home Office by Sir
P. Maitland, i. 183; throws off his gown, and refuses to transact
further business in the Court of King's Bench, i. 187; resumes
practice, i. 266; appears on behalf of Francis Collins on the criminal
procedure against the type-rioters, i. 200; re-election to the
Assembly, i. 220; moves for a Committee of Investigation, i. 223;
moves that H. J. Boulton be admonished by the Speaker, i. 225;
defeated in Middlesex, i. 232; his opinion of Judges Robinson,
Sherwood and Hagerman, i. 266; abandons the legal profession and
resumes the practice of medicine, _ib_.; transfers his legal practice
to his brother, _ib_.; removes from Dundas to York, i. 267; reaches
high eminence in his new calling, _ib_.; establishes a medical class,
_ib_.; urged by the Lieutenant-Governor to found a permanent medical
college, _ib_.; takes a leading part in politics, _ib_.; Dr. Ryerson's
eulogium upon him, _ib_., note; his opinion of Mackenzie, i. 268;
elected an alderman for St. Patrick's Ward, Toronto, i. 265; fixed
upon for the mayoralty, i. 269; his surprise at the action of the
Reform caucus, i. 270; but assents thereto, _ib_.; the Conservative
members favourable to him, i. 271; resigns his seat in the Council,
_ib_.; his letters on the subject to Dr. Morrison and Mr. Carfrae, i.
271, 272; refuses to be a candidate for election to the Assembly, i.
280, and note; accepts office in the Executive Council under Sir F.
Head, i. 308; sworn into office and gazetted _ib_.; resigns, i. 311;
reasons therefor, i. 308, _et seq._; returned to the Assembly for
Norfolk at general election of 1836, i. 332, 333; his great speech on
the Clergy Reserves, i. 104, 345, and note; his speech against Sir F.
B. Head, i. 104, 346, 347; his speech on Mackenzie's petition against
the return of E. W. Thomson, i. 348; his motion at close of session as
to a union of the Provinces, i. 351; his views as to the state of
affairs in Upper Canada, i. 361; alleged joint author of
"Declaration," i. 364; doubt on this subject, i. 365; regret among the
Radicals at his not taking active part with them, i. 366; appointed a
delegate to the proposed Radical convention, _ib_.; the rebels appoint
him administrator of the projected Provisional Government, i. 373; is
advised by Dr. Baldwin to accept a seat in the proposed Radical
convention, i. 374; refrains from attending last caucus at Doel's
brewery, i. 379; conferences between him, Mackenzie, Morrison and
Lloyd, i. 380, _et seq_.; weighs the probabilities, and gives in his
adhesion to the revolt, i. 383; hears of the secret meeting held by
Mackenzie and others in the country, at which time of rising was fixed
upon for 7th Dec., ii. 9; resolves to move no further with Mackenzie,
ii. 10; visited by Mackenzie, and again gives in his adhesion, ii.
10-14; urges the importance of a skilled military leader, ii. 12;
never appointed Executive, ii. 14, 20-23; sends John Fletcher with a
message to the rebels, ii. 22; hears of the meeting of the Executive
Council, ii. 33; is informed by Silas Fletcher that the rebels will be
at Montgomery's on night of 7th Dec., ii. 34; hears disquieting news,
ii. 35, 36; sends message to Gibson for Mackenzie, advising that the
revolt be accelerated, ii. 37; meets Mackenzie and Gibson at Price's
house, ii. 44; dispirited by result of rising in Lower Canada, _ib_.;
his advice, ii. 45; suggested by J. H. Price to Sheriff Jarvis as a
proper person to be the bearer of a flag of truoe to the rebels, ii.
63; applied to for that purpose, ii. 64; refuses, but afterwards
consents, _ib_.; sets out for the rebel camp with Robert Baldwin,
_ib_.; arrives there, ii. 68; acts as spokesman, ii. 70; his
conference with Lount, _ib_., 71; returns to the city to obtain the
Lieutenant-Governor's ratification, _ib_.; reports to Sheriff Jarvis,
_ib_.; informed by Sheriff Jarvis that Sir F. Head refuses to ratify
his embassy, ii. 72; returns with Baldwin to the rebels, and announces
the failure of the mission, ii. 72; his secret communication to the
rebel leaders, _ib_.; conflicting evidence, _ib_., _et seq_.; his
speech in reply to W. H. Boulton, ii. 73, note, 318; proceeds to
Elliott's tavern, and instigates them to take up arms at once, ii. 75;
summons a meeting at Doel's, _ib_.; sends messenger to Mackenzie,
_ib_.; letter to him from Judge Wells, as to Mackenzie and A. B.
Hawke, ii. 81; letters to him from D. D. Vannorman, as to Lount and
flag of truce, _ib_.; letter to him from Mackenzie, as to his claim
for $12,000, ii. 83, 84; his communication to P. C. H. Brotherson, ii.
89; his letter to Gibson as to Mackenzie's inventions, ii. 90, 91;
despatches messenger to Mackenzie advising him to disperse his forces,
ii. 104, 105, and note; informed of Dr. Morrison's arrest, ii. 112;
his flight to the United States, ii. 113, 114; reaches Lewiston, ii.
176; enthusiastically received there, _ib_.; his interview with Van
Rensselaer, ii. 180; declines to join the movement against Canada,
_ib_., 186; forbids Mackenzie to use his name as one of the promoters,
ii. 186; consents that Mackenzie may announce that he favours the
movement, _ib_.; how the permission was taken advantage of, ii. 186,
_et seq_.; indicated as the executive by Mackenzie in the Watertown
_Jeffersonian_, ii. 233; refuses to cooperate further with Mackenzie,
ii. 234; his visit to Navy Island, _ib_., and note; settles in
Rochester, ii. 235; joined by Mrs. Rolph, 16.; his conduct considered,
_ib_.; expelled from the Upper Canada Assembly, ii. 238; urged by
Gibson, Morrison and others to expose Mackenzie's falsehoods, ii. 275,
276; prepares _Review of Mackenzie's Publications_, etc., ii. 276; see
also Appendix; pardoned and returns to Canada, ii. 301, 302; settles
in Toronto, _ib_.; takes part in founding the Clear Grit Party, ii.
309; their leading spirit, ii. 311; forms a medical school, _ib_.; his
high qualifications as a teacher of medi-cine, _ib_.; re-enters
political life, and becomes Commissioner of Crown Lands in the
Hincks-Morin Government, ii. 312; contributes to drive Mr. Baldwin out
of public life, _ib_.; an opponent of the Court of Chancery, _ib_.;
writes against it in the _Examiner_, _ib_.; severance of relations
with Mr. Baldwin, _ib_.; their previous relations, _ib_., and note;
his remarkable individuality, ii. 313, 314; his course as a
politician, ii. 314; his candidature hailed by Mackenzie, _ib_.;
refuses to support Mackenzie's claim against the Government, ii. 315;
attacked by Mackenzie in consequence, ii. 316, _et seq_.; secures
evidence in rebuttal, ii. 317; obtains Carmichael's statement, and
adduces Mr. Baldwin, _ib_., 318, 319; replies in the Assembly to W. H.
Boulton's charge in connection with the flag of truce, ii. 318;
Mackenzie attacks him in secret session, ii. 319; replies, _ib_.;
attacked by Mackenzie in the _Message_, ii. 320; and in _Head's Flag
of Truce_, ii. 321; resigns office and joins the Opposition, _ib_.;
retires from public life, _ib_.; unsatisfactory nature of his later
political career, _ib_.; his benefactions, ii. 322; assists a member
of Mackenzie's family, _ib_.; his conduct misrepresented in Mr.
Lindsey's _Life of Mackenzie_, ii. 327; prepares to reply to charges
against him, ii. 328; involved in quarrels with the medical faculty,
_ib_.; stricken by paralysis, _ib_.; vainly attempts to dictate the
story of his connection with the Rebellion, _ib_.; retires from
practice, and dies, ii. 329.

Rolph, Thomas (father of John), a physician of Gloucestershire, i.
106; emigrates thence to Canada, _ib_.

Ross, Mrs., claims to have quenched the fire at the Don bridge, ii.
145, note.

Rowan, Lieutenant-Colonel, letter to him from Chief Justice Robinson
on the Government Reserve on the Niagara River, i. 152, note.

Russell, Miss Elizabeth, receives grants of land, i. 47, note; resides
in Dr. Baldwin's family, and leaves her property to him at her death,
i. 111.

Russell, Lord John, introduces Union Bill into
the British Parliament, ii. 292.

Russell, Hon. Peter, assumes the direction of the administration after
Simcoe's departure, i. 47; his grants of land to his sister and
himself, _ib_., note, 51; described by his successor as "an avaricious
one," i. 48; connected by ties of relationship with the Baldwins, who
succeed to most of his property, i. 111.

Ryan, alias Wallace, the alleged slayer of Colonel Moodie, ii. 55,
note.

Ryerson, Dr. Egerton, his eulogy on Dr. Rolph, i. 267, note; reference
to him in Hume's "baneful domination" letter, i. 272, _et seq_.;
maligned by W. L. Mackenzie, _ib_.; his personal contempt for
Mackenzie, i. 333; his predominating influence in Upper Canadian
Methodism, _ib_.; goes to England to obtain a charter for the Upper
Canada Academy, _ib_.; his manipulation of the Wesleyan Methodist vote
at the general elections of 1836, i. 333, 334, and note; his letters
to the London Times, and to prominent Methodists in Upper Canada
during his absence in England, i. 334; his defence of M. S. Bidwell,
chap. xxix. _passim_, and notes.


Samson, J. H., member for Hastings, his dissenting vote on the Address
in Reply, i. 220; his motion in the Assembly that W. L. Mackenzie be
heard in his defence, i. 259; declares for committing Mackenzie to
jail, i. 260; censures the Lieutenant-Governor, _ib_.

Scarlett, Sir James, his disagreement with J. W. Willis, i. 170.

Scott, Thomas, Chief Justice, the public stocks broken in his
presence, i. 84, and note; Dr. Scadding's account of him, i. 84, note.

Scott, General Winfield, sent to Niagara frontier to preserve the
peace, ii. 221; his moderation, _ib_.; receives Colonel MacNab's
report as to treatment sustained by Lieutenant Elmsley, ii. 223; his
strained correspondence with Colonel MacNab, ii. 224.

Servos, William, juryman on the Gourlay trial, i. 31.

Shade, Absalom, member for Halton, approves of W. L. Mackenzie's
expulsion from the Assembly, i. 260; his advice as to arming the Galt
militia, ii. 152, 153.

Shannon, James, signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i. 316.

Sharps, Miss M. A., her information as to James Henderson's body, ii.
102, note.

Sharpe, William, part of Sheriff Jarvis's picket stationed in his
garden, ii. 101.

Shepard, Joseph, accompanies W. L. Mackenzie on a reconnoitring
expedition from Montgomery's, ii. 50, and note; accepts charge of
McDonald, a prisoner, who escapes from him, ii. 57, 58; returns to
Montgomery's, ii. 65.

Sherwood, Adiel, a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note.

Sherwood, George, a member of the Family Compact, i. 76, note.

Sherwood, Henry, a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note; takes
part in the raid on the Colonial Advocate office, i. 132; his
parentage, _ib_.; a student in Attorney-General Robinson's office,
_ib_.; attains a prominent place in the ranks of the official party,
i. 250, note; loud in his denunciations of the dismissal of Boulton
and Hagerman, _ib_.; his spurious loyalty, _ib_.; returned for
Brockville at general election of 1836, i. 332; appointed aide-de-camp
to Sir F. Head during the revolt before Toronto, ii. 60; conveys
message from Sir F. Head to Col. Fitz Gibbon, ii. 131; assists
Attorney-General Hagerman at trial of John Montgomery, ii. 251.

Sherwood, Levius P., a puisne judge of the Court of King's Bench, i.
181; a member of the Family Compact, i. 75, note; father of Henry
Sherwood, i. 132; Judge Willis's opinion of him, i. 167, and note; his
judgments dissented from by Judge Willis, i. 178; with whom he sits on
the bench, i. 181, 182, 184; takes a firm stand against Judge Willis,
i. 185, 186; sits alone on the bench after Judge Willis's withdrawal,
i. 186; does not feel strong in his position, i. 187; his evasive
reply to certain inquiries as to the case in dispute, _ib_.; his
attire, i. 191, note;, presides on the trial of an indictment for
libel against Francis Collins, i. 202; improperly influenced, i. 202,
203; confers with Judge Hagerman as to sentence, _ib_.; his severity
tends to lower public confidence in the judiciary, i. 205, 208; his
inconsistency, i. 208, 211; summoned before a Committee of the
Assembly, but declines to answer any questions, i. 210; his letter to
the Lieutenant-Governor's secretary, i. 211; Rolph's estimate of him,
i. 266.

Short Hills Expedition, ii. 259.

Simcoe, Lieutenant-Governor John Graves, i. 46, 47; his description of
the Provincial constitution, i. 48, 215; his encouragement of
immigration to Upper Canada, i. 57.

Simons, T. G., and others, sued by George Rolph, i. 168.

_Sir Robert Peel_ steamer, captured and burned, ii. 257, 258.

_Sketches in Canada and the United States_, by W. L. Mackenzie, i.
254, and note.

Small, James Edward, attorney for Mackenzie in the case of the
type-rioters, i. 135; one of the counsel for the plaintiff, _ib_.;
charged as an accessory in the Ridout duel, i. 198; a true bill found
against him, i. 199; arrested, _ib_.; tried, _ib_.; acquitted, i. 200;
defeated as a candidate for the representation of York in the
Assembly, i. 228; again defeated, i. 229; speaks warmly at the
Constitutional Reform Society, after the general elections of 1836, i.
339; dismissed from certain offices in consequence, i. 340, and note.

Smith, Robert, accompanies Mackenzie on a reconnoitring expedition
from Montgomery's, ii. 50; returns to Montgomery's, ii. 66.

Stanley, Mr., afterwards Earl of Derby, succeeds Lord Goderich as
Colonial Secretary, i. 249; admits Mr. Hagerman to an interview, and
reinstates him in office, _ib_.; earns for himself the sobriquet of
"the Rupert of Debate," _ib_., note; receives H. J. Boulton, and
expresses himself satisfied with the explanations afforded, i. 250.

Stanton, Robert, succeeds Charles Fothergill as King's Printer, i.
196, note; intrusion upon his grounds by the rebels, ii. 67.

Stewart, Alexander, one of the counsel for the plaintiff in the ease
of Mackenzie vs. the type-rioters, i. 135.

Stewart, Hugh, made prisoner while attempting to force a passage
through the guard at Montgomery's, ii. 55.

Stiles, Edgar, dies from wounds received from the fire of Sheriff
Jarvis's picket, ii. 102, and note.

Strachan, Captain James McGill, appointed aide-de-camp to Sir F. Head
during the revolt before Toronto, ii. 60; sent to countermand the
order as to burning Gibson's house,, ii. 131.

Strachan, Rev. Dr., one of the practical directors of the
administration, i. 11; believed to have organized the crusade against
Gourlay, i. 23; his one-sidedness, _ib_.; his dictum on the question
of expelling Barnabas Bidwell from the Assembly, _ib_., note; the
chief directing spirit of the Family Compact, i. 76, note; on "an
established religion," i. 77; his management of Sir John Colborne, i.
209; his sinecure salary under a School Bill, i. 215; Lord Goderich's
opinion of his retention of his seat in the Legislative Council, i.
254, note; his responses before the Grievance Committee, i. 284;
conference of the Government at his house, ii. 114; attends the
militia for some distance on the march to Montgomery's, ii. 119.

Strathmore, Earl of, applies for professional advice to J. W. Willis,
i. 163; who forms an attachment for his Lordship's daughter, _ib_.;
consents to a marriage between his daughter and Mr. Willis, _ib_.;
exerts his influence on behalf of his son-in-law, i. 164.

Sullivan, Robert Baldwin, elected to the City Council of Toronto for
St. David's Ward, i. 281; elected Mayor, _ib_.; becomes a member of
the Executive Council under Sir F. B. Head, i. 313; his politics and
surroundings, _ib_.; denounces W. L. Mackenzie, _ib_.; his character
and abilities, i. 313, 314; present at meeting of Executive Council
just before outbreak of revolt, ii. 30; acts as Chairman to Treason
Commission, ii. 194.

Sutherland, Thomas Jefferson, addresses a crowd at the theatre in
Buffalo, ii. 182; beats up the streets for recruits for an invasion of
Canada, ii. 183; is sent to cooperate with the filibusters in the
west, ii. 226; goes from Cleveland to Gibraltar, ii. 227; claims and
obtains the command, ii. 228; makes a demonstration against
Amherstburg, ii. 229; lands on Bois Blanc island, _ib_.; frightened
out of his judgment, ii. 230, 231; withdraws from Bois Blanc to Sugar
Island, ii. 231; forfeits the confidence of his men, _ib_.; repairs to
Detroit, ib.; his capture and attempt at suicide, _ib_.; his
subsequent career, _ib_.

Swayze, Isaac, his consultation with Hon. William Dickson, i. 26; his
character and past life, i. 26, 27; his deposition as to Gourlay, i.
27; his boastings as to the abduction and murder of Morgan, _ib_.,
note.

Sydenham, Lord see Thomson, Chas. Poulett.


Talbot, Colonel Thomas, a friend of John Rolph, i. 107; coolness
between them, _ib_.

Thompson, Andrew A., a juryman in the case against Francis Collins, i.
207, and note; his alleged predetermination to convict, _ib_.

Thompson, David, his preliminary examination of Lount and Kennedy,
after their capture, ii. 144.

Thompson, Hugh Christopher, i. 214.

Thompson, Samuel, forms one of a corporal's guard, ii, 150, and note.

Thomson, Charles Poulett, appointed Governor-General of Canada to
promote a union of the Provinces, ii. 292; goes to Canada, _ib_.; his
exertions effect the passing of the Union Bill, _ib_.; created Lord
Sydenham, ii. 293; recognizes the principle of S. B. Harrison's
Responsible Government resolutions, _ib_.

Thomson, Edward William, defeats W. L. Mackenzie in the Second Riding
of York, i. 338; his politics, _ib_., and note; unfair means used to
secure his election, i. 338; his return petitioned against by
Mackenzie, i. 347, 348;. confirmed in his seat, i. 348; disappoints
his constituents, _ib_.

Thorpe, Judge, driven from the Province, i. 46; his appointment as a
puisne judge, i. 86; his endeavours to make the administration of
justice respected, _ib_.; taken into confidence by grand juries,
_ib_.; Family Compact influence arrayed against him, _ib_.; described
as a dangerous and revolutionary personage, _ib_.;. his remarks in
reply to an address from the Grand Jury of London District, i. 87;
lays certain complaints from that district before the Lieutenant-Governor,
_ib_.; charged with having instigated the complaints, _ib_.;
institutes proceedings of the nature of _scandalum magnatum_, _ib_.;
which are defeated, _ib_.; returned to the Assembly, i. 88;
complained of by Lieutenant-Governor Gore to the Home Government, i.
89; his suspension from office, _ib_.; returns to England, _ib_.;
institutes proceedings against Gore, who is convicted of libel, _ib_.;
appointed Chief Justice of Sierra Leone, _ib_.; compelled to return to
England through ill-health, _ib_.; carries home a petition from
certain inhabitants of the colony, _ib_.; discarded by the Ministry,
_ib_.; his appointment as Chief Justice annulled, _ib_.; dies in
obscurity and neglect, _ib_.

Theller, Edward Alexander, commands the schooner _Anne_, ii. 228; his
character, _ib_.; his demonstration against Amherstburg, ii. 229;
captured, ii. 230; sent to London, and thence to Toronto, where he is
brought to trial and sentenced, _ib_.; transferred to Quebec and
escapes, _ib_.; his _Canada in 1837-38_, _ib_.; his account of the
execution of Lount and Matthews, ii. 249; goes about in the United
States with Mackenzie haranguing audiences to make war against Canada,
ii. 272.

Tims, Dr. John Edward, signs sarcastic rejoinder to Sir F. B. Head, i.
316; signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is appointed member of a
permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note.

Turton, Thomas E. M., comes to Canada as assistant secretary to Lord
Durham, ii. 287; a source of weakness to his Lordship, _ib_.


United Empire Loyalists, their privileges as to public lands, i. 58;
grants to them and their children the constant subjects of bargain and
sale, i. 60; their lands sometimes unsalable, i. 62; certain territory
assigned to them, i. 64.

_United Empire Loyalist_ newspaper, its account of the trial of the
type-rioters, i. 136, note.

_United States_ steamer, ii. 262, _et seq_.

Upper Canada College, established by Sir John Colborne, i. 300; a
ground of offence to many Reformers, _ib_.; Lord Glenelg's remarks on,
in his instructions to Sir F. Head, _ib_.

_Upper Canada Gazette_, the mouthpiece of the Government, i. 54; a
copy of it interred beneath the monument to Sir Isaac Brock, i. 124.

_Upper Canada Guardian_, the, an early Provincial newspaper, i. 55.


Van Buren, Martin, President of the United States, his intimation to
Congress on the subject of the _Caroline_, ii. 221; his proclamation
as to filibusters, ii. 267.

Van Cleeve, Captain of the _United States_ steamer, ii. 262.

Van Egmond, Colonel Anthony G. W. G., ii. 12; his character and past
life, ii. 13, and note; having been applied to by Mackenzie to lead
the rebels, gives his consent, ii. 19; reaches the insurgent camp, ii.
121; threatened by Mackenzie, _ib_., 122; his plan, ii. 122; reviews
the men and prepares for an engagement, ii. 123; directs the movements
of the insurgents, ii. 139; gives the word to the men to save
themselves, _ib_.; his escape, _ib_.; seeks shelter on a farm, ii.
140; captured and lodged in jail, ii. 147; his sufferings and death,
ii. 147, 148.

Vankoughnet, Philip, pugnacity displayed by him at the York theatre,
i. 148; seconds Mr. Samson's motion that W. L. Mackenzie be heard at
the bar of the Assembly in his defence, i. 259.

Van Norman, D.D., his letters to Rolph about the flag of truce, ii.
81.

Van Rensselaer, Rensselaer, joins Mackenzie and others in a plot for
invading Canada, ii. 179; his character and qualifications, _ib_.; has
an interview with Dr. Rolph, ii. 180; his lavish promises, _ib_.; his
narrative, _ib_., note; his incapacity apparent, ii. 189, 190; his
strained relations with Mackenzie, ii. 190, 201; his intemperance, ii.
191, note; evacuates Navy Island, ii. 223; continues to push his
schemes against Canada, ii. 236; arrested and held to bail for breach
of neutrality laws, ii. 223, 236; commands the movement against
Kingston, ii. 237; which proves a failure, _ib_.; his influence wanes,
_ib_.

View of the Political Situation of the Province of Upper Canada, by
John Mills Jackson, i. 84, 85.

Von Shoultz, Niles G. S., commands a schooner during the Prescott
expedition, ii. 263; cap-tured at the Windmill, ii. 265; his
character, _ib_., 266; tried by court-martial at Kingston, ii. 266;
defended by John A. Macdonald, _ib_.; executed, _ib_.


Wait, Benjamin, transported to Van Diemen's Land for taking part in
the Short Hills expedition, ii. 259; his _Narrative_, _ib_., note.

Wakefield, Edward Gibbon, comes to Canada as assistant secretary to
Lord Durham, ii. 287; in some respects a source of weakness to his
Lordship, _ib_.; the Report embodies his opinions on colonial policy,
ii. 290, note; his share in its authorship, _ib_.

Wallace, alias Ryan, the alleged slayer of Colonel Moodie, ii. 55,
note.

Ware, William, his testimony as to the flag of truce, ii. 73, 88;
considered, ii. 88.

Warren, Captain, wounded at the capture of the _Caroline_, ii. 212.

Washburn, Simon, applies to the Court of King's Bench, in the person
of Judge Sherwood, for an opinion as to the legality of the Court, i.
187.

Waters, Charles, member for Prescott, i. 283; a member of the Special
Committee on Grievances, _ib_.

Watson, Peter, his testimony as to the flag of truce, ii. 78.

Wells, Hon. Joseph, Bursar of King's College, i. 305, 306; resigns
office, i. 311.

Wells, William, owner of the _Caroline_ steamer, ii. 202.

Wells, William Benjamin, extracts from his _Canadiana_, i. 56, 57, 59;
returned to the Assembly for Grenville, i. 277; his letter as to
Mackenzie's falsehoods, ii. 80, 81.

Wesleyan Methodist Body generally opposed to W. L. Mackenzie, i. 333;
their vote decisive of the general elections of 1836, i. 334, and
note.

Wideman, Ludwig, slain at Montgomery's, ii. 126, and note at end of
chap. xxvi.; his body delivered to his cousin for interment, ii. 133.

Wilcox, Mr., Mackenzie finds refuge in his house after his flight from
Montgomery's, ii. 141.

Willcocks, Joseph, goaded into treason, i. 46; Sheriff of the Home
District, i. 90; expresses opinions against the Family Compact, the
Clergy Reserves, etc., _ib_.; declares himself on the popular side,
_ib_.; votes for Judge Thorpe as a member of the Assembly, _ib_.;
dismissed from office, _ib_.; establishes _The Upper Canada Guardian_,
i. 91; persecuted by the ruling faction, _ib_.; returned to the
Assembly, _ib_.; tried before the Assem-bly on a frivolous charge,
_ib_.; found guilty and committed to jail, _ib_.; compelled to
relinquish the publication of his newspaper, i. 92; volunteers on the
breaking out of the War of 1812, and fights at Queenston Heights,
_ib_.; becomes disheartened and deserts to the enemy, _ib_.; obtains a
commission in the United States army, _ib_.; killed at the siege of
Fort Erie, _ib_.

Willis, Hon. John Walpole, misapprehension as to his case, i. 162,
163, 192; his origin and past life, i. 163; his published works,
_ib_.; marries a daughter of the Earl of Strathmore, _ib_.; his social
advantages and disadvantages, i. 164; mentioned in connection with a
Court of Equity contemplated in Upper Canada, _ib_.; is offered a
puisne judgeship of the Court of King's Bench in Upper Canada, _ib_.;
accepts the offer, i. 165; proceeds to Canada with his family, _ib_.;
his infelicitous marriage, _ib_.; domestic trials, _ib_.; visits the
Lieutenant-Governor at Stamford Cottage, _ib_.; his dispute with the
Lieutenant-Governor as to the projected Court of Equity, _ib_.;
proceeds to York, _ib_.; sworn into office, i. 166; enters on his
duties, _ib_.; lionized by society, _ib_.; arouses jealousies against
himself, _ib_.; his want of tact, i. 167; his opinion of his brother
judges and the Attorney-General, _ib_., and note; his first judgment,
i. 168; his unnecessary self-vindication, _ib_.; his efforts to bring
about the establishment of a Court of Equity, i. 169; prepares a Bill
for the purpose, which is introduced into the Assembly, _ib_.; attends
the debates, and fraternizes with leading members of the Opposition,
_ib_.; his ineffectual attempts to influence the Attorney-General as
to the equity scheme, _ib_.; discovers that the Government are hostile
to the scheme, _ib_.; his opinion of Attorney-General Robinson, i.
169, 170; the equity project having been temporarily abandoned by the
Home Government, he applies for the office of Chief Justice, i. 170;
his strained relations with Attorney-General Robinson, _ib_.; incurs
the hostility of the Lieutenant-Governor, _ib_.; who determines to
effect his removal from office, i. 171; his serious collisions with
Attorney-General Robinson, i. 171, _et seq_.; permits Francis Collins
to accuse the Attorney-General in open Court, i. 171-174; admits H. J.
Boulton and J. E. Small to bail on an indictment for murder in
connection with the Ridout duel, i. 199; affected to tears on the
trial, _ib_.; his eloquent charge, i. 200; his lenient sentence on the
type-rioters, _ib_.; his interminable squabbles, i. 178; announces for
publication a work on Upper Canadian jurisprudence, i. 178, and note;
its motto, _ib_.; gives great offence, i. 178; opposition
announcement, _ib_.; the Lieutenant-Governor calls the attention of
the Colonial Secretary to Judge Willis's conduct, i. 179; the Judge's
course espoused by Reformers in Upper Canada, i. 180; his head too
weak for his position, i. 180, 181; hostility between him and Judge
Sherwood, i.181; its consequences, _ib_.; Judge Willis's
investigations, i. 182; decides that the Court of King's Bench cannot
sit in term unless all the three judges are present, _ib_.;
communicates his decision to the Colonial Secretary, i. 183; maligned
by the Lieutenant-Governor, _ib_.; his opinion of Dr. Baldwin, i. 184;
communicates his decision to the Provincial bar, _ib_.; his comments
upon the illegality of certain practices of the Lieutenant-Governor,
_ib_., 185; declines to sit any longer on the bench, i. 185; his
altercation with Judge Sherwood, i. 185, 186; retires from the bench,
i. 186; notifies the Lieutenant-Governor of his retirement, _ib_.;
consequences of his decision, i. 187; which is in opposition to the
opinions of the law officers of the Crown, i. 188; his reply to the
Executive as to his duties, i. 188, 189; "amoved" from office, i. 189;
excitement in the Province in consequence, _ib_.; addresses of
condolence to Judge Willis, _ib_.; petitions in his favour to the King
and to the Imperial Parliament, _ib_.; requisition to him to represent
Lincoln in the Upper Canadian Assembly, _ib_.; meeting of his
sympathizers held in Toronto, _ib_.; a committee appointed to guard
the interests of his family during his contemplated absence in
England, i. 189, 190; proceeds to England, i. 190; espionage system
employed against him, _ib_.; acrimonious despatches against him
forwarded by Sir P. Maitland to the Colonial Office, _ib_., 191; upon
reaching England, prepares a statement of his case and forwards same
to Colonial Office, i. 191; his attire, _ib_., and note; case referred
to Privy Council, i. 192; decided against him, _ib_.; appointed to a
judgeship in Demerara, _ib_.; largely to blame for his own downfall in
Upper Canada, _ib_.; excitement there, _ib_.; his case brought before
the House of Commons, _ib_.; Sir George Murray's explanation, _ib_.;
elopement of Lady Mary Willis, i. 193; Willis vs. Bernard, _ib_.;
plaintiff recovers 1,000 pounds damages, _ib_.; appointed to the
bench of the Supreme Court in New South Wales, _ib_.; appointed
resident Judge for the District of Port Philip, _ib_.; comes into
conflict with the Governor, Sir George Gipps, i. 193, 194; again
"amoved" from office, i. 194; order of amoval reversed for
irregularity, _ib_., and note.

Willis, Lady Mary Bowes Lyon, a daughter of the Earl of Strathmore, i.
163; her marriage to John Walpole Willis, _ib_.; resides at Hendon, i.
164; her patrician ideas, i. 165; petty jealousies between her and the
ladies of her husband's family, _ib_.; removes to Upper Canada with
her husband, _ib_.; overwhelmed with attentions, i. 166; her dispute
with Lady Sarah Maitland, i. 170; a committee appointed to protect her
during her husband's absence in England, i. 189, 190; strained
domestic relations, ii. 190; forms the acquaintance of Lieutenant
Bernard, i. 193; elopes with him, _ib_.

Willis, Mrs., mother of John Walpole Willis, i. 164; resides at
Hendon, _ib_.; strained rela-tions with her son's wife, i. 165; goes
to Upper Canada with her son and his household, _ib_.; returns to
England, i. 190.

Willis, Miss, sister of J. W. Willis, accompanies her brother and his
household to Upper Canada, i. 165; her strained relations with Lady
Mary, _ib_.; remains at York with her sister-in-law, upon the
departure for England of her mother and brother, i. 190; rides out
with Lieutenant Bernard, i. 193; an accomplished equestrienne, _ib_.;
remains at York to wind up her brother's affairs, after the departure
of Lady Mary, _ib_.

Willis, Rev. W.D., brother of J. W. Willis, i. 191.

Willis vs. Bernard, i. 193.

Willson, John, Reform candidate for the Speakership, i. 110; elected
to that dignity, _ib_.: his election probably contributed to by W. L.
Mackenzie, i. 121.

Wood, Alexander, two streets in Toronto named after him, ii. 101,
note.

Worth, Colonel, commands United States troops at Ogdensburg, ii. 266.

Wright, Edward, signs Declaration at Doel's brewery, and is appointed
member of a permanent Committee of Vigilance, i. 367, and note.

Wright, Dr. Henry Hoover, a medical student in the office of Dr.
Rolph, ii. 76, note; sent by Rolph to the rebel camp, ii. 75, 76; his
statements, ii. 76-78, notes; his conference with Mackenzie, ii. 98;
confers with Lount and Gibson, _ib_.; assists Dr. Rolph in his flight
from Toronto, ii. 112, 113.

Wrigley, Silvanus Fearns, captured on board
the _Caroline_, ii. 213; discharged on bail, _ib_.

Wyatt, Mr., Surveyor-General, dismissed from office, i. 46, 90;
professes respect for the conduct of Judge Thorpe, i. 90.

[End of _The Story of the Upper Canadian Rebellion - Volume II_
by John Charles Dent]
