:: . • : : .. I liisili :: ' ! • : • ■ • : : •:. • ■ :li: \ : ' : : • ■: ' ■ ::::: i :i: ■ jpHiiiiili iaifeislijn'iinjnml .:::«;;Ki:|J3n3cjai : ; i:: l4eujdvird to examine the patents of l nets in conjunction with the * 1X1 J^rms was notified by the Secretarv of State for the Home Department tba? “a wide discretion should be alW^- .so that all who can fairly be have a good tide should such good title consisting of i lenged use of the title for * erations, although doubts may talned respecting the descent o: even the creation of phv dignity.” It is likewise stated that it was /never contemplated that the commit tee should exact “strict proof of his rights to the title from every person claiming to be a* baronet/' The Secretary of State for the Home Department, by whose orders and at whose instance the publication of the “Roll of Baronets” is now made, en¬ deavors to save himself by the con¬ cluding clause of the preamble, which is to the effect that “inclusion in the roll does hot give, or purport to give, an in¬ defeasible title to the persons enrolled,” and that the roil “has not the author¬ ity of legal decision.” Aid to Impostors. It may be asked then, what is the use of this Roll of Baronets, since the sole purpose and intention of Edward VII. in decreeing its compilation have been set at nought? His decree especially stipulated, that it should include only .“persons who should for the future be officially recognized as entitled to aihe dignity.” The preamble of the Roll of Baro¬ nets in the Gazette of Feb. 20 last indeed places a premium upon impudent usur¬ pation of baronetcies, since it admits the doctrine that the use of the dignity without warrant for several generations constitutes froifa henceforth a good title to the honor. UnJtU now it has always been understood that baronetcies, like peerages, could only be bestowed by the sovereign, as “the fountain of all hon- i ors.” From henceforth, however, ac¬ cording to Secretary of State McKenna in the Official okzctte, the grant of a patent by the monarch will be super¬ fluous. All that is necessary is a wholly unauthorized assumption for two or three successive generations. I have mentioned above that many of the bogus baronets refer to America in support of their pretensions. A word of explanation is necessary for this. Charles I., who owing to his v warfare with Parliament was in constant pe¬ cuniary straits, found in the sale • of baronetcies a considerable revenue. JIe # endeavored to conceal the purely finan¬ cial nature of the transaction by de¬ claring that the "ioneys thus obtained would be aevotga/R) the colonis^fc^ Nova Scotia and authorized the pur¬ chasers of these so-called Nova Scotia baronetcies to adopt the armorial bear¬ ings of Nova Scotia. A Titled Traffic. In order still to strengthen further the impression that the funds secured by means of ^iese baronetcies were to be expended in American colonization . instead of furnishing him with the means to fight Parliament lie con¬ ferred upon Sir William Alexander, sub¬ sequently created Earl of Stirling, tb<- right of selling baronetcies on this side of the Atlantic in connection with that peer’s scheme for the colonization of Nova Scotia. Lord Stirling is known I to have had at least 200 patents signed by King Charles in blank given to hkrij for the purpose. According to some| authorities the number of these patents was still larger. The vicissitudes of Lord Stirling’s colonial venture were such, Noya Scotia soon afterward falling into the hands of the French, that ho record was kept of the baronetcies thus sold,' all data on the subject, such as h^re I may have been, having been lost. The result is that the majority of the se?i styled baronets have no other pretext j for the assumption of the dignity their bare unsupported statement tha they are descended from one or an¬ other of the American colonists to whom Lord Striling sold the Nova Scotia ba r- i onetcie's at his disposal. The only use that King Edward’s royal warrant of Feb. 11, 1910. has therefore been is that it designates ^ baronetcy as a “dignity.” There had always been up to that time a doubt about the matter, even among the baronets themselves. For the late Sir Wilfrid Lawson, who was for many years Father of the House of Commons, is on record as defining a baronet as “a man who has ceased to be a gentle¬ man, and who has not become a noble¬ man.” Baronets were a favorite butt of the satire of Thackery, whose novels are full of sarcasm at their expense; while Lord Baconsfield made no secret of his contempt for the order, to which lie repeatedly gave expression both in his conversation and in his writings, describing it in one of his novels as "a species of title, not for the aristocracy hut for the middle classes ” * Copyright, 1»H by the B rentwood Company. W| ScvK (Xi^jL fjii^ VINDICATION OF THE RIGHTS AND TITLES, POLITICAL AND TERRITORIAL, ALEXANDER, EARL OE STIRLING & DOVAN, AND LORD PROPRIETOR OF CANADA AND NOVA SCOTIA. BY JOHN L. HAYES, CO0N8ELLOB AT LAW. WASHINGTON: GIDEON & CO., PRINTERS. 1853. v. a Hi. A' ••X A country larger than Great Britain and France united was given, in the early part of the 17th century, with powers almost regal, to Sir William Alexander, of Menstrie, a descendant of Somerled, king of the Isles. But Sir William Alexander was less distinguished for birth than for ability and accomplishments. An ornament of the court of James the 6th, of Scotland, who called him his philo¬ sophical poet, he followed that Prince to London, and publish¬ ed a volume of poems which placed him in the highest rank among Scotch poets. He was created a knight, a gentleman of the chamber, and a privy councillor. From that moment he renounced literary glory to occupy himself with politics and government. James 1st had granted letters patent to a company for the establishment of an English colony in North America; but this company, terrified at the difficulty of the enterprise, wished to give it up, when Sir William Alexander, more courageous, obtained a grant of Nova Scotia, with the title of Hereditary Lieutenant, by charter dated Windsor, 10th September, 1621 In a few years Sir William Alexander was made a Scotch peer, as Lord Alexander of Tullibodie, Viscount of Canada Viscount and Earl of Stirling and Earl of Dovan, and in¬ vested with immense territories in the new world and large es- tates in Scotland. The following royal charters under the great seal were grant¬ ed to the Earl of Stirling, and were recognised and confirmed by act of Parliament in the presence of King Charles the 1st. These are all on record at Edinburgh: 10th September, 1621. Original charter of Nova Scotia. 4 VINDICATION OP LORD STIRLING. 12th July, 1625. Charter of Novo Damus of the lands, lordship and barony of Nova Scotia. 3d May, 1627. Charter of the country and dominion of New Scotland. 2d February, 1628. Original charter of Canada, including fifty leagues of bounds on both sides of the River St. Lawrence and the Great Lakes. There were other patents and charters, among them letters patent of April 22d, 1635, “for a tract of Maine and the Island of Stirling, (Long Island,) and islands adjacent;” and the char¬ ter of Novo Damus, dated 7th December, 1639, which was a re grant of all the lands and honors which the Earl had at any time received from James 1st and Charles 1st. This chattel is the only one attempted to be disputed. But its existence is wholly unnecessary to support the present Earl’s title to the lands and honors. These charters gave the Earl of Stirling vast political and administrative powers. He was made his Majesty’s hereditaiy lieutenant general over the whole countries of Nova Scotia and Canada. He was also made justice general, high admiral, lord of regality, and hereditary steward. The power was con¬ ferred upon him of making officers of state and justice, of con¬ ferring titles of honor, of coining money, and the privilege of making laws concerning the public state, good and government of the country. He had the power of appointing one hundred and fifty baronets, called Baronets of Nova Scotia, who were to take precedence of all other baronets. Under this power the first Earl actually made over one hundred baronets; nearly fifty of the present baronets in Great Britain hold their titles from patents granted by the first Earl of Stirling. It is proper to remark that the expenses of the first coloniza¬ tion had already been incurred by Sir William Alexander be¬ fore the first charter of 10th September, 1621, was granted by James 1st, and that is the reason alleged in the charter for the grant: “For these causes, as well as on account of the faithful v ! f v. VINDICATION OF LORD STIRLING. 5 and acceptable service of our beloved councillor, Sir William Alexander, knight, to us rendered and to be rendered, who, first of our subjects, at his own expense, endeavored to plant this foreign colony, and sought out for colonization the divers lands circumscribed, &?c., we do grant, &c.” This immense grant was therefore not a mere favor; it was a reward for efforts made and expenses incurred in colonizing these great wastes of the new world. Soon after obtaining the charter of 10th September, 1621, the Earl devoted the whole of his large fortune to the enter¬ prise of colonization, where every thing was to be created; and the grant is less extraordinary since the King had no money in his treasury, nor a navy, which was only created in the time of Cromwell. The country was inhabited by savages and threat¬ ened by France, which claimed it by reason of the discovery of Canada by Jaques Cartier in 1534. The paramount claim of the English crown was founded on the discovery of the con¬ tinent of North America by Sebastian Cabot in 1497, who took possession in the name of Henry 7th. The vast expenses of colonizing and fortifying, all carried on under the superinten¬ dence of the Earl’s eldest son, who inhabited during twelve years Port Royal, in Nova Scotia, as governor of the new col¬ ony, was worthy of recompense; and when, through the ina- ability of the King to aid the Earl, the country at length fell into the hands of the French, J10,000 sterling was granted to compensate him for his losses. This grant expressly stated, “it is no wise for quitting the title, rights, or possession of New Scotland, or any part thereof, but only for the satisfaction of the losses aforesaid.” This sum has never been paid, and is still due, with interest thereon, to the heirs of the first Earl. Through the surrender just mentioned Nova Scotia became Acadia, and only finally returned to England at the peace of 1763. During the French occupation Lord Stirling and his sons vainly attempted resistance. The rights of the family were 6 VINDICATION OF LORD STIRLING. necessarily suspended. Nevertheless, in the various negotia¬ tions and treaties between England and France, they have been repeatedly brought forward by England in support of her claim of sovereignty; the royal charters and legislative acts in favor of the Earl of Stirling and his heirs being her strongest ground of argument. The British Government produced these charters before the late King of the Netherlands, when he sat as arbitrator on the question of the northeastern boundary. The troubles which desolated the three kingdoms during the 17th century, overturned rights and titles of property, ruined some ancient families, and impoverished others. The rich do¬ mains of the Stirlings in Scotland, partly on account of debts incurred by the family to carry out the schemes of colonization, and partly on account of the civil and religious agitations of that period, passed into other hands. Before proceeding to detail the circumstances which have occasioned the delay in the assertion of the claims of the Stir¬ ling family, we will very briefly allude to the fact that during the last century pretensions were vainly set forth to the lands and titles of this family. Canada was still under the French rule when, in 1758, William Alexander, afterwards a general in the American army during the revolution, appeared in Great Britain, and, assuming the title, presented himself as heir to the lands and honors. Gen. Alexander was probably descended from some one of the many Alexanders of the clan brought to Nova Scotia by the first Earl of Stirling, all of whom were driven to the south by the French. The tradition of relationship to the Earl doubtless induced him to set up his claim. It is sufficient here to say, that he took up the title and bore it without having gone through the proper legal steps or formalities to support it, and that he did not claim to descend from the first Earl, but from a supposed uncle, which descent could have given him no title to the lands or honors He nre sented his claim to the House of Lords, which no Scotch peer was required to do; but the fact of the existence of lineal de VINDICATION OP LORD STIRLING. 7 scendants of the first Earl, who were then mere youths in col- lege, being notorious, the House of Lords rejected his claim. He re-embarked for America, where he died without issue male, in 1783. The last male descendants of William, first Earl of Stirling, were in consequence of the civil wars, religious troubles, pro¬ scriptions, confiscations, and revolutions which agitated Eng¬ land during more than a century, a Presbyterian minister at Birmingham, who died in 1765, a man greatly honored for his piety; and Benjamin Alexander, 8th Earl of Stirling de jure, a learned physician who died in London in 1768. The rights of Benjamin passed to his eldest sister, for, by the Scottish law of descent, as well by the limitations of the charters, the eldest heir female of the last heir male takes the inheritance. This sister dying unmarried in 1764, the rights finally passed to ano¬ ther sister, Hannah Alexander, de jure 2nd Countess of Stir¬ ling. The last heiress of the titles and rights of the house of Stirling, married in 1769 William Humphrys of the Larches, in Warwickshire. Of this marriage, out of eight children, three only survived, Alexander 9th and present Earl, and two daugh¬ ters. Thus the rights of the family were, during fifty years, in fe¬ male heirs, or, in other words, during that period the circum¬ stances of the family were such that no steps could be taken to pursue rights which, without being disregarded or contested, required to be established. But before the transmission of these rights to females, John and Benjamin Alexander were too ex¬ clusively occupied with their education and establishment in their professions even to take up their rank. The earlier as¬ sumption of the honors of the family was prevented by other obvious reasons. 1st. Because the old Scotch estates had, during the civil wars, been seized by others, who, thus powerful, were ready to de¬ fend them at all hazards. 2d. Because Canada and Nova Scotia were only fully re¬ stored to England at the peace of 1763, a short time previous — 8 VINDICATION OP LORD STIRLING. to the deaths of both John and Benjamin, last heirs male of the first Earl. 3d. Because the papers of the family had been scattered, lost, or stolen. 4th. Because during the wars between England and France under the republic, the present Earl and his father were de¬ tained in France as prisoners of war with thousands of English, and it was only after a detention of twelve years, and after mak¬ ing many efforts to recover considerable sums of money which had been confiscated there, that he returned in 1815 to his own country. 5th. Finally, because it was necessary, before commencing so important an affair, to have ample means, which though abundant at first might become insufficient in the case of a long resistance. As soon as the necessary arangements were completed, the present Earl of Stirling proceeded to take the proper meas- uies for the re-establishment and acknowledgment of his rights. He was fortified with evidence to prove the descent of the titles and lands, as follows : William, the first Earl, died in February, 1640, and was succeeded by his infant grandson, the only son of his deceased eldest son, William, 2d Earl. He survived his grandfather six months, and died under eight years of age. He was succeed¬ ed by his uncle Henry, third Earl, who was the eldest surviv¬ ing son of the first Earl; Henry, third Earl, died in 1644, and was succeeded by his only son, Henry, fourth Earl. Henry, fourth Earl, died in 1690, leaving four sons, Henry, eldest and fifth Earl, William, Robert, and Peter, who died before their eldest brother. At the death of Henry, fifth Earl, without issue in 1739, the succession went to Rev. John Al¬ exander, grandson and heir male of John, fourth son of the first Earl, who died in Ireland, in 1666. The Rev. John Alexander, sixth Earl de jure , died at Dublin, 1st November, 1743; four years after the death of Henry, fifth Earl. The VINDICATION OF LORD STIRLING. 9 Rev. John Alexander, sixth Earl de jure , left four children, John, Tth Earl of Stirling de jure , who died unmarried, 29th December, 1765. Benjamin, eighth Earl de jure , who died unmarried, 18th April, 1768. Mary, countess of Stirling de jure, who succeeded upon the extinguishment of all the heirs male, and died unmarried, April 28th, 1794; Hannah, second countess of Stirling, wife of William Humphrys, who died 12th September, 1814. Upon the death of his mother, Alex¬ ander, the ninth and present Earl both de fxcto and de jure , succeeded to the titles and estates of the family. We do not propose here to furnish the evidences of descent, or to detail historically and in the order of time, the steps which were taken by the present Earl of Stirling to establish his rights. We propose to show that— I. It has been judicially established, by courts of compe¬ tent jurisdiction that the present Earl of Stirling is lineally descended from the first Earl of Stirling, and the real heir to his title and estates. II. The title and position of the present Earl of Stirling have been officially recognised on the most solemn occasions in England and Scotland. I. Judicial recognition. By the Scottish law certain judicial proceedings are particu¬ larly and especially provided for the trial of the.fact of heir, ship. He who is truly heir of a deceased person, before he can have an active title to the estate which was in his ances¬ tor, must be served and retoured heir by an inquest. These services proceed upon a brief, called a brief of inquest, and are of two kinds, general and special. The general service proceeds on a brief, issuing from the Scotch chancery, di¬ rected to a judge there, and must be proclaimed at the head borough of the jurisdiction within which the heir is to be served. After the expiration of fifteen days, the service is tried before the Judge. The jury to try the heirship consists of fifteen persons, who are sworn in by the judge to act impar- 2 10 VINDICATION OP LORD STIRLING. daily. The apparent heir produces to the jury his claim as heir, and they may proceed, not only on the evidence offered by the claimant, but on the proper knowledge of any two of themselves, for they are considered both in the light of judges and witnesses. The point of inquiry is, whether the claimant be the next and lawful heir of the deceased. If it appear to the jury that the claim is proved, they serve the claimant, i. e., they declare him heir to the deceased by a sentence, or service, signed by the chancellor of the jury, and attested by the judge. The clerk to the service then prepares a return of the claim of service, with the verdictof the jury to the chancellor; which after being thus recorded and rendered in the chancery books, is called the retour. The general service is com¬ pleted as soon as it is retoured, and carries to the heir the complete right of all the heritable subjects on which the ancestor had not taken seisin. These services are not traversible, or cannot be denied, but must be taken as true, until by regular process of reduction, at the suit of a better claimant , they are falsified. Lord Stirling has been returned by this due form of law: 1st. On the 7th of February, 1826, heir to his deceased mother, Hannah, Countess of Stirling, as heiress to her bro¬ ther, Benjamin, eighth Earl of Stirling, dejure , who was last heir male of the body of William, first Earl of Stirling. 2dly. On the 11th of October, 1830, nearest and lawful heir in general of his great-great-great-grandfather, William, first Earl of Stirling. 3dly. On the 30th May, 1831, nearest and lawful heir of tailsie and provision to his ancestor, William, first Earl of Stirling. When the heir desires to perfect his title to special subjects, in which the ancestor died vested and seized, he obtains what is called a special service. The special service proceeds upon a brief issued from the chancery, directed, in cases like the present, to the sheriff depute of Edinburgh, or his substitute. The service proceeds in the usual form; the jury of fifteen VINDICATION OP LORD STIRLING. 11 being appointed, the claim made, and the evidence offered. The evidence and proof required are more ample in this than in the general service. The principal points to be proved are, that the ancestor is dead, and the precise time of his death, and that he died seized of the land specified in the claim, in whose hands the fee is at the time of service, &c. These heads being proved, the jury serve the heir. An extract of the proceedings returned into chancery, is said to be the retour of the heir’s service. 4thly. By a special service, such as has been described, the present Lord Stirling was, on the 2d of July, 1831, served as nearest and lawful heir in special of William, first Earl of Stirling, to take up the fee of the lands comprised in the aforesaid charters. The following extracts from this important act of court are taken from the records, register house, Edinburgh: “The 10th of June, 1831, a brief was issued forth of his Ma¬ jesty’s chancery, directed to the sheriff depute of the sheriffdom of Edinburgh, specially constituted as aforesaid, at the instance of the said Alexander, Earl of Stirling, &c., for precognoscing him nearest and lawful heir of the said deceased William, Earl of Stirling, his great-great-great-grandfather, in all and sundry lands, and others in which the said William, Earl of Stirling, died last vest and seized as of fee,” &c. “William Swanston, officer of the said sheriff, with wit¬ nesses, passed to the market cross of the burgh of Edinburgh, (fcc , upon the 15th day of June last passed, being a market day, and in open market time duly and openly proclaimed and executed the brieves in due form of law.” “On the 2d July, 1831, the validity of the marriage or the legitimacy of the child. I think this doctrine is laid down in the Duchess of Kingston’s case, in the State trials, 20th volume, I believe. [See Sto. Conf. Laws, Foreign Judgments.] Of course it will be necessary for the present claimant to show in this country that he is the person who obtained those verdicts ; and upon that the ques¬ tion of his heirship must be taken as established. 2d. As to Lord Stirling having lost his rights by laches. In the first place, the grants themselves, so far as the British Crown is concerned, have, by every possible variety of phra¬ seology, attempted to exclude every conclusion of fact or of law against the grantee from not taking possession; so that the British Government at least would be stopped from set¬ ting up this objection. The country was looked upon in the grants, as it was in reality, as a wilderness, of which no use could be made and no actual possession taken. Then as to the lands in Maine. We take for granted that the State will relinquish to Lord Stirling any of his lands which she holds, without insisting upon her immunity from being sued, if she is satisfied that, in point of Jaw, the lands belong to Lord Stirling. As to these lands, the statute of limitations of the State would be no bar; because, if Lord Stirling could sue the State, he was beyond seas, and excepted from the statute. If he could not sue the State, then he was not within the statute, because he had no right of action accrued, which is the point from which statutes of limitation run. But, again, suppose that a title to these lands could have been acquired by adverse possession, still the fisheries would not go as parcel of that possession. The fisheries were granted not as appurtenant to the lands, but as a special per¬ sonal privilege ; and if they had been granted as appurtenant to the lands, it was a special appurtenance to the lands made APPENDIX. 43 so by grant and not by force of law, and I think could not be acquired by mere adverse possession of the lands. Upon the whole, I am of opinion that the title of the pre¬ sent claimant is sound in law, and that he ought to recover the lands. I have written these hints hastily and informally, though I have bestowed a good deal of labor in the examina¬ tion. Very respectfully, Your ob’t servant, Signed, A. H. LAWRENCE. [translation.] INSTRUMENT OF SEISIN IN FAVOR OF ALEXANDER, EARL OF STIRLING AND DOVAN, OF THE LORDSHIP AND BARONY OF NOVA SCOTIA IN AMERICA, COMPREHENDING THE LANDS, ISLANDS, AND OTHERS, AFTER MENTIONED. IN THE NAME OF GOD, Amen. Be it known to all men by this per- sent public instrument, That on the 8th day of July, in the year of our Lord 1831, and of the reign of our sovereign lord, William the Fourth, by the grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, the second year, In presence of me, notary public, clerk of the sheriffdom of Edinburgh, and the witnesses subscribing, appeared personally Ephraim Lockhart, writer to his Majesty’s signet, attorney for and in name of the Right Honorable Alexander Earl of Stirling and Dovan, great-great-great grandson of the deceased Sir William Alexander of Menstrie, Knight, the first Earl of Stirling, whose power of attorney was sufficiently known to me, the undersigned notary-public; and passed with us and with Adam Duff, Esquire, advocate, Sheriff-depute of the sheriffdom of Edinburgh, specially constituted by the precept of seisin under inserted, to the Castle of Edinburgh, where by the said precept seisin is to be taken for all and whole the country and others under mentioned, having and holding in his hands the precept of seisin under inserted, directed forth of our. sovereign lord the King’s chancery in favor of the said Alexander Earl of Stirling and Dovan, as nearest and lawful heir served and retoured to the said William Earl of Stirling, his great-great-great grandfather, for giving seisin to him of all and sundry the lands and others after mentioned, contained in the said precept of seisin under inserted ; which precept of seisin the foresaid attorney, in the name of the aforesaid Alexander Earl of Stirling and Dovan, exhibited and presented to the said Adam Duff, Sheriff aforesaid, and desired him to proceed to the execution of the said pre¬ cept of seisin, agreeably to the tenor thereof; which desire the said sheriff finding to be just and reasonable, he received the said precept of seisin into his hands, and delivered it to me, the undersigned notary-public, to be read, pub¬ lished and explained, in the common speech, to the witnesses present; which I did, and of which precept of seisin the tenor follows in these words : “ WILLIAM the Fourth, by the grace of God of the United Kingdom of ‘Great Britain and Ireland King, Defender of the Faith, to the Sheriff of Edinburgh and his Bailies, Greeting. Forasmuch as it is found, by an inquest made by our command by George Tait, Esquire, Sheriff-substitute of the sheriffdom of Edinburgh, as sheriff for that effect, specially constituted, in virtue of a commission under the testimonial of the seal, therein specified, and retoured to our chancery That the deceased Sir William Alexander of Men- < T>™ e u. „ S ht » first E 5 rl 2,f Stirling great-great-great grandfather of the Right Honorabie Alexander Earl of Stirling and Dovan, Viscount of Stirling and Canada, Lord Alexander of Tullibodie, &c., bearer hereof, died at thl faith and peace of the King, last vest and seised as of fee in all and sundry the lands, continents and islands situate and lying in America, within the head or cape commonly called Cap de Sable, lying near the latitude of forty-three de- f. rees north f lom the "Pnoctad line or thereabouts, from which cape towards < the * est > the navft l station of St. Mary, commonly called St. Mary s Bay, and thereafter northwards by a straight line passing APPENDIX. 45 < the inlet or mouth of that great naval station which runs out into the eastern * tract of land between the countries of the Suriquois and Stechemines, to the ‘river commonly called of St. Croix, and to the furthest source or fountain ‘ head thereof on the western part, which first unites itself with the foresaid ‘ river whence, by an imaginary straight line, conceived to proceed overland, ‘ or run northwards, to the nearest naval station, river or source discharging ‘ itself into the great river of Canada, and from it proceeding eastwards by ‘ the coasts of the said river of Canada to the river, naval station, port or ‘shore commonly known and called by the name of Gathepe or Gaspe, and ‘thereafter towards the southeast to the islands called Bacalaos, or Cape ‘ Breton, leaving the said islands on the right, and the gulf of the said great ‘ river of Canada, or great naval station, and the lands of Newfoundland, with ‘ the islands belonging to these lands, on the left, and thereafter to the head or « cape of Cape Breton foresaid, lying near the latitude of forty-five degrees or ‘ thereabouts, and from the said cape of Cape Breton towards the south-west, to ‘ the foresaid Cap de Sable, where the perambulation began, including and com- ‘ prehending within the said coasts, and their circumference from sea to sea, all * the lands and continents, with the rivers, brooks, bays, shores, islands or seas, ‘ lying near or within six leagues of any part of the same, on the western, north- ‘ ern, or eastern sides of the coasts, and precincts thereof, and on the south-east, ‘ (where lies Cape Breton,) and on the southern part of the same, (where is Cap ‘ de Sable,) all the seas and islands southwards within forty leagues of the said •coasts thereof, including the great island commonly called Isle de Sable or Sab- * Ion, lying towards the south-south-east, in the sea, about thirty leagues from Cape 4 Breton foresaid, and being in the latitude of forty-four degrees or thereabouts; ‘ which lands foresaid should in all time to come enjoy the name of Nova Scotia •in America; Which also were vested in William, the said Earl of Stirling, 4 according to a charter of novodamus under the great seal of the kingdom of ‘Scotland, dated the 12th day of July anno Domini 1625, made, given and ‘ granted by Charles, King of Great Britain, France and Ireland, in favour of the 4 said William Earl of Stirling, (then and throughout named Sir William Alex- ‘ ander,) his heirs and assigns whatsoever, heritably : And by which charter it 4 is declared, that the foresaid William Earl of Stirling should divide the fore- 4 said lands into parts and portions as should seem to him fit, and bestow names 4 on them at pleasure; Together with all mines, as well royal of gold and silver, 4 as other mines of iron, lead, copper, tin, brass, and other minerals whatsoever, 4 with the power of digging and causing dig from the land, purifying and re- 4 fining the same, and converting and using them to his own proper use, or 4 other uses whatsoever, as should seem fit to the said William Earl of Stirling, 4 his heirs or assigns, or to those who, in their place, should happen to settle in ‘ the said lands: Reserving only to his said Majesty and his successors the 4 tenth part of the metal, commonly called ore of gold and silver, that shall after- 4 wards be dug or gained out of the earth ; Leaving to the said William Earl of 4 Stirling, and his foresaids, whatsoever his said Majesty, and his successors, 4 might in any way demand of other metals, copper, steel, iron, tin, lead, or 4 other minerals, that they may so much the mere easily bear the great charges 4 of extracting the foresaid metals, together with pearls and other precious 4 stones whatsoever, quarries, woods, copses, mosses, marshes, lakes, waters, 4 fisheries, as well in salt water as in fresh, of royal fishes as of others, hunting, 4 hawking, commodities and hereditaments whatsoever: Together with full 4 power, privilege and jurisdiction of free regality and chancery for ever; and 4 with the gift and right of patronage of churches, chapels ana benefices, with 4 tenants, tenandries and services of free tenants thereof, together with offices of 4 Justiciary and Admiralty respectively, within the bounds above mentioned re¬ spectively: Together also with tne power of erecting corporations, free ‘boroughs, free ports, towns and boroughs of barony,and of appointing mar- 4 kets and fairs within the bounds of the said lands, and of holding courts of 4 justiciary and admiralty within the boundaries of the said lands, rivers, ports ‘and seas; together also with the power of imposing, levying and receiving all 4 tolls, customs, anchorages, and other dues of the said boroughs, markets, fairs 4 and free ports, and of possessing and enjoying the same as freely in all re- 46 APPENDIX. 4 spects as any greater or lesser baron in the kingdom of Scotland has enjoyed, ‘ or shall be able to enjoy them, at any time past or to come; with all other * prerogatives, privileges, immunities, dignities, casualties, profits and duties 4 belonging and pertaining to the said lands, seas, and bounds of the same; and 4 which his said Majesty shall have power to give and grant, as freely and in as 4 ample form as he himself or any of his noble progenitors has granted any 4 charters, letters patent, infeftments, gifts, or patents, to any subject of what- 4 soever degree or quality, to any society or community, planting such colonies 4 in whatsoever foreign parts, or exploring foreign lands, in equally free and 4 ample form as if the same were inserted in the said charter: Making, consti- 4 tuting and appointing the said William Earl of Stirling, his heirs or assigns, 4 or their deputies, his said Majesty’s Hereditary Lieutenants-general, to repre- 4 sent his royal person, as well by sea as by land, in the countries, sea-coasts 4 and boundaries foresaid, in repairing to the said lands, so long as he shall 4 continue there, and in returning from the same; to govern, rule, punish 4 and pardon all subjects of his said Majesty who shall have happened 4 to go to the said lands, or to be inhabiting the same, or who shall 4 have engaged in trade with them, or shall remain in the same places, and to 4 be favourable to them; and to establish such laws, statutes, constitutions, reg- 4 ulations, instructions, forms of government, and ceremonies of magistracies 4 within the said bounds, as to him, William Earl of Stirling, or his foresaids, 4 for the government of the said country and its inhabitants, in all causes, crimi- 4 nal as well as civil, shall seem fit; and to alter and change the said laws, regu- 4 lations, forms and ceremonies, as often as he, or his foresaids, for the good 4 and advantage of the said country, shall be pleased, so that the said laws were 4 consistent, as much as they could be made, with the laws of the said kingdom 4 of Scotland; And giving and granting free and plenary power to the foresaid 4 William Earl of Stirling, and his foresaids, of conferring favours, privileges, * pmnlrtvmonta nnH linnnnra nnnn _ :*1T /l.II_J, jQ those contracts . . . . -- D ,--ids, under the subscription of himself or of his foresaids, and the seal mentioned in the 4 said charter, of disponing and overgiving any portion or portions of the said 4 lands, ports, naval stations, rivers, or any part of the premises; of erecting 4 also inventions of all sorts, arts, faculties, or sciences, or of practising the same in whole or in part as to him, for their good, shall seem fit; also of giving 4 granting and bestowing such offices, titles, rights and powers as to him shall 4 appear necessary, according to the qualities, conditions and merits of the per- 4 sons; With power to the said William Earl of Stirling, and his heirs and assigns, of erecting, founding and constructing common schools, colleges and 4 universities, sufficiently provided with able and sufficient masters, rectors, re¬ agents, professors of all sciences, learning, languages and instruction, and of providing for sufficient maintenance, salaries, and living for them to that ef- feet, As also of instituting prelates, archbishops, bishops, rectors and vicars • ’ an( * P ar i®h churches, and of distributing and dividing all the fore- said bounds of the said country into divers and distinct shires, provinces and parishes, for the better provision of the churches and ministry, division of the shires, and all other civil police; And likewise of founding, erecting and in¬ stituting a senate of justice, places and colleges of justice, council and session, senators thereof, members for the administration of justice within the said coun¬ try, and other places of justice and judicature: Further, of erecting and ap- pointing also secret and privy councils and sessions for the public good and advantage of the said country and giving and granting titles, honours and dignmes to the members thereof, and creating their clerks and members; And , fPP°> nt '"g seals and registers with their keepers; and also of erecting and insti- tuting officers of state, a chancellor, treasurer, comptroller, collector, secretary, advocate or attorney-general, a clerk or clerks of register, and keepers of rolls | J" stlce . c ' erk - dl £ e f c , tor °r directors of chancery, conservator or conservators of , th f e P r ‘ vll fp s of th ® sa,d country, advocates, procurators and solicitors there- of, and other members necessary: And further, of giving, granting and dis¬ poning any parts or portions of the said lands and iSrdsfilp of Nova Scotia, APPENDIX. 47 < Earl of Stirling or of his said Majesty and his successors, either in blench-farm, < feu-farm, or in ward and relief, at their pleasure, and to intitle and denomi- ‘ nate the said parts and portions by whatsoever styles, titles and designations « should seem to them fit, or be in the will and option of the said William Earl ‘of Stirling and his foresaids; which infeftments and dispositions shall beap- > proved and confirmed by his said Majesty and his successors freely, without ■ any composition to be paid therefor: Moreover, his said Majesty and his < successors shall receive whatsoever resignations shall have been made by the « said William Earl of Sterling, and his heirs and assigns, of all and whole the > foresaid lands and lordship of Nova Scotia, or of any part thereof, in the hands 1 of his said Majesty, and of his successors and commissioners, with the teinds » and teind-sheaves thereof included, and others generally and particularly above ‘mentioned, to and in favour of whatsoever person or persons, (provided ‘they are his Majesty’s subjects, and live under his obedience,) and they ‘shall pass infeftments thereon, to beholden in free blench-farm of his said ‘ Majesty, his heirs and successors, in manner above mentioned, freely, with¬ out arty composition: Moreover, giving, granting and committing power ‘ to the said William Earl of Stirling, and his heirs and assigns, of having and ‘ lawfully establishing and causing coin money in the said country and ‘ lordship of Nova Scotia, and for the readier convenience of commerce and ‘agreements amongst the inhabitants thereof, of such metal, form and fashion * as they shall appoint or fix : Further, giving, granting, ratifying and con- ‘ firming to the said William Earl of Stirling, and his heirs and assigns, all places, ‘privileges, prerogatives and precedencies whatsoever, given, granted and re- ‘ served, or to be given, granted and reserved to the said William Earl of Stir- ‘ ling, and his heirs and assigns, and his successors, Lieutenants of the said ‘ country and lordship of Nova Scotia, over the knights-baronets and remanent ‘ portioners and associates of the said plantation, so as the said William Earl of ‘Stirling, and his heirs-male descending of his body, as Lieutenants foresaid, ‘ might and could take place, prerogative, pre-eminence aud precedency, as well ‘ before all squires, lairds and gentlemen of the said kingdom of Scotland, as ‘ before all the foresaid knights-baronets of the said kingdom, and all others ‘ before whom the said knights-baronets, by privilege of the drgnity gaanted to * them, can have place and precedency: All and whole which province and * lands of Nova Scotia, with all the boundaries and seas of the same, were ‘united, annexed and incorporated into one entire and free lordship and barony, ‘ to be called by the foresaid name of Nova Scotia in all time to come; and by ‘ which charter it is ordained, that one seisin, to be taken by the said William ‘ Earl of Stirling, and his foresaids, at the Castle of Edinburgh, without any ‘ other special or particular seisin by himself and his foresaids, at any other ‘ part, shall stand and be sufficient, in all time coming, for all and whole the ‘country above mentioned, with all the parts, pendicles, privileges, casualties, ‘liberties, and immunities thereof; as in the said charter, comprehending divers ‘other conditions, provisions, limitations and restrictions, with many and great ‘ privileges, immunities, dignities and honours, is more fully contained ; And ‘ in which lands aforesaid, the foresaid William Eail of Stirling was duly infeft, ‘ in virtue of the precept of seisin inserted in the end of the said charter, accor- ‘ ding to instrument of seisin following thereon, dated the 29th day of September, ‘and recorded in the General Register of Seisins, &c. kept at Edinburgh, the ‘ 1st day of October anno Domini 1625 : And that the said Alexander Earl of * Stirling and Dovan is nearest and lawful heir of the said deceased William ‘ Earl of Stirling, his great-great-great grandfather, in all and sundry the lands ‘ and others foresaid ; Ano that he is of lawful age ; And that the said lands * and others, with the pertinents, are holden immediately of us in chief. Where- ‘ fore we require and command you, that ye give seisin thereof to the foresaid ‘ Alexander Earl of Stirling and Dovan, or his certain attorney, bearer hereof, ‘ without delay, saving the right of every person whatsoever, and taking se- ‘ curity of two pennies Scots money, by duplication of the blench farm-duty of ‘ the foresaid lands and others as above mentioned, lying as above, due to us ; 48 APPENDIX. ‘ and this no wise ye leave undone, these presents after the next term being to ‘ no purpose. Witness myself at Edinburgh, the 7th day of July, and in the ‘ second year of our reign, 1831. ‘ To the Sheriff of Edinburgh and his Bailies, for Alexander Earl of Stirling ‘and Dovan, to his great-great-great grandfather. ( Signed ) ‘ William Campbell Jr. Sub.’ AFTER reading and interpreting which precept of seisin, in the common speech, to the witnesses present, the foresaid Sheriff, in virtue of the said pre¬ cept of seisin, and of the dispensation therein contained, and the office of bail- iary therein committed to him, gave and delivered heritable state and seisin, actual, real and corporal possession of the said lands and others above specified, with the pertinents, to the before-named Alexander Earl of Stirling and Dovan, heir aforesaid, and that by delivery of earth and stone of the ground of the said Castel into the hands of the said attorney, for and in name of the said Alexan¬ der Earl of Stirling and Dovan, after the tenor of the said precept of seisin above inserted, and dispensation contained in the same, in all points. Where¬ upon, and upon all and sundry the premises, the foresaid attorney asked instru¬ ments from me, the undersigned notary-public. These things were so done at the said Castle of Edinburgh, within the outer gate there, in virtue of the dispensation foresaid, between the hours of eleven forenoon and twelve noon, on the day of the month, in the year of our Lord, and of the reign of our sov¬ ereign lord the King, above written, in presence of David Byars, clerk in the office of the clerk of the sheriffdom of Edinburgh, and William Wilson, second son of me, notary-public, residing in Lyndoch Place, at Edinburgh, witnesses to the premises specially called and required, and this public instrument with me subscribing. And I truly, James Wilson, clerk of the diocese of Edinburgh, and clerk of the sheriffdom of Edinburgh, and notary public, by royal authority, and by the Lords of Council and Session, according to the tenor of the act of Parliament admitted, because at all and sundry the premises, whilst they were, as is be¬ fore stated, so said, done and performed, [ was, together with the before- named witnesses, personally present, and all and sundry these premises I saw, knew, and heard so performed and said, and took a note of them ; therefore I, being called and required, prepared therefrom this present public instru¬ ment, by another hand, upon this and the six foregoing pages of parchment, duly stamped, with the marginal addition on page third, faithfully written, and have rendered it in this form of a public instrument; and in faith, corro¬ boration and testimony of the truth of all and sundry the premises, have sign¬ ed and subscribed the same with my sign, name and surname, used and wont. Veritas. Ja. Wilson, N. P. Dav. Byars , witness. Wm. Wilson, witness. At Edinburgh, the twelfth day of August one thousand eight hundred and thirty-one years, this sasine was presented by Ephraim Lockhart, writer to the signet, and is recorded in the one thousand six hundred and forty-sixth book of the new General Register of Sasines, Reversions, &c. and on the 102, 103,104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, and 111th leaves thereof, conform to the act of Parliament made there anent in. June 1617, by me, depute-keeper of said Regis- ter * Ar. Wishart. APPENDIX. 49 [ TRANSLATION. ] INSTRUMENT OF SEISIN IN FAVOUR OF ALEXANDER, EARL OF STIRLING AND DOVAN, OF THE LANDS, COUNTRY AND LORDSHIP OF CANADA AND OTHERS. IN THE NAME OF GOD, Amen. Be it known to all men by this pre¬ sent public instrnment, That on the 8th day of July, in the year of our Lord 1831, and of the reign of our sovereign lord, William the Fourth, by the grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, the second year, In presence of me, notary-public, and the witnesses subscribing, appeared personally Ephraim Lockhart, writer to his Majesty’s signet, as procurator and attorney, specially constituted, for and in the name of the Right Honourable Alexander Earl of Stirling and Dovan, Viscount of Stirling and Canada, Lord Alexander of Tullibodie, &c. great-great-greai-grand¬ son and heir of the deceased Sir William Alexander, Knight, the first Earl of Stirling, whose power of procuratory was sufficiently known to me, the under¬ signed notary-public; and there also appeared Thomas Christopher Banks, Esquire, residing in No 19. Duke Street, Edinburgh, bailie in that part speci¬ ally constituted, in virtue of the charter under mentioned, and precept of seisin therein contained, to the Castle of Edinburgh, the place for giving seisin of the lands and others under written, in virtue of the union and dispensation con¬ tained in the said charter and precept of seisin under written ; the said attorney having and holding in his hands a certaip extract registrate charter, made, giv¬ en and granted by Charles, King of Great Britain, France and Ireland, under his Great Seal, containing therein the precept of seisin for giving to the foresaid Sir William Alexander, his Majesty’s Hereditary Lieutenant of the country and lordship of Nova Scotia in America, and his heirs and assigns, heritably for ever, seisin of all and sundry islands lying within the gulf of Canada, between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, at the mouth and entrance of the great river Canada, where it falls and enters into the said gulf, (including therein the great island Anticosti): Also of all and sundry inlands lying within the said river Canada, from the said mouth and entrance up to the head, first rise and source thereof, wheresoever it is, or the lake whence it flows, (which was thought to be towards the great bay of California, called by some the Vermillion Sea,) or within any other rivers falling into the said river Canada, or in whatsoever lakes, waters or straits, by which either the said great river Canada or any of the said other rivers pass, or in which they run out: And further, of fifty leagues of bounds on both sides of the aforesaid river Canada, from the said mouth and entrance to the said head, spring and source thereof; also on both sides of the said other rivers falling thereinto ; as also on both sides of the said lakes, straits or waters by which any of the said rivers pass, or in which they terminate: And likewise, of all and whole the bounds and passages, as well on the waters as on the land, from the foresaid head, spring and source of the river Canada, wheresoever it is, or whatsoever lake it has its course from, to the foresaid bay of California, whatsoever shall be found to be the distance ; with fifty leagues altogether on both sides of the said passage over against the said head of the river Canada and bay of California ; and likewise of all and sundry islands lying within the said bay of California ; as also of all and whole the lands and bounds adjacent to the said bay on the west and south, whether they be found a part of the continent or main land, or an island, (as it was thought to be,) wnich was commonly called and distinguished by the name of California: Moreover, of all and sundry other lands, bounds, lakes, rivers, straits, woods, forests and others that shall have been explored, conquered or discovered at any time to come by him the foresaid Sir William Alexander, or his successors, their confederates, associates, or others in their name, or having power from 50 APPENDIX. them, upon both sides of the whole bounds and passage aforesaid, from the mouth and entrance of the said river Canada, where it discharges itself into the said gulf of Canada, to the said bay of California, or islands in the seas thereto adjacent, which were not heretofore really and actually possessed by others, either the subjects of his said Majesty, or the subjects of any other Christian prince or constituted orders in alliance and friendship with his Majesty: With full and ab¬ solute power to him the said Sir Wm. Alexander, and his foresaids, (and to no others,) their stewards, servants, and others in their name, of planting colonies and engaging in trade in the before-named places or bounds, or any part of them particularly marked out, and of expelling or debarring ail others from the same; also of allocating proportions of ti.e lands thereof to whatsoever person or per¬ sons shall j>eem to him fit, and upon the same terms, conditions, restrictions, and regulations within all the forenamed bounds, as he could do in Nova Scotia, by whatsoever charters or patents granted to him by his said Majesty’s father, or his Majesty himself, also with s *ch and as great »rivileges, liberties, and immunities in all the foresaid places or bounds, islands, and others above writ¬ ten, as well as in the sea and fresh water as on land, as the said Sir William Alexander had i , Nova Scotia by his prior charters or patents of Nova Scotia; which privileges' contained in the said prior charters, and every one of them, his said Majesty ordained to be equally sufficient and valid, and willed to be altogether of the same strength, force, and effect, as if they had severally been particularly and one by one granted and set forth word for word in the said charter, as to the not particular insertion of which in the said charter his said Majesty for ever dispensed : By which charter also it is ordained and declared, that it should in nowise be prejudicial or derogatory to whatsoever rights, char¬ ters or patents granted to the foresaid Sir William Alexander, or his aforesaid, of or concerning Nova Scotia, at whatsoever time preceding the date of the said charter, or to any head, clause, article or condition therein set forth; as also, that it should be without prejudice to any prior charter granted by his said Majesty, or to be granted at any time to come, to whatsover Baronets within Scotland of the country of Nova Scotia: And his said Majesty specially prohibited and debarred all and sundry his subjects, of every degree or condition, in any of his kingdoms or dominions, from making any plantation, or engaging in any trade in the said places or bounds, bays, rivers, lakes, islands and straits above written, or in any part thereoz, without the special advice, permission and con¬ sent of the foresaid Sir William Alexander, or his foresaids; and with special power to the said Sir William Alexander, and hjs foresaids, of seizing, taking and apprehending all and sundry persons who shall be found to be in business and engaged in trade in any part of the said places or bounds contrary to the said prohibition, and of confiscating their ships and goods, and disposing thereof at pleasure to their own proper uses, without rendering any count or reckoning in any manner for the 3ame, or any part thereof; and of doing all other things within all and whole the forenamed bounds or spaces, as freely and fully to all intents, purposes and ends as the foresaid Sir William Alexander, and hi3 foresaids, could have done within the said country of Nova Scotia, or the said kingdom of Scotland, in virtue of any of the said letters patent, prior charters or patents: All and whole which lands, spaces or bounds, islands and others above set forth, were erected and united into one whole and free lordship, to be called of Canada, belonging and pertaining to the before-men¬ tioned Sir William Alexander and his foresaids, heritably for ever; ordaining seisin at the said Castle of Edinburgh, or upon the soil and ground of the fore- said lands, bounds and islands, or any part thereof, to be taken by the said Sir William Alexander, or his foresaids, to be in all time to come sufficient for all and whole the forenamed lands, bounds, islands, and others above specified, or any part or portion thereof, as to which his said Majesty for ever dispensed; as in the said charter and precept of seisin inserted in the end thereof, compre¬ hending divers other clauses, is more fully contained: As also the foresaid at '° rney r HAVING an , d » 0LDIN J G lahls , ha „ nds a certain general retour of the service of he before-named Alexander Earl of Stirling, &c. as nearest and lawful heir of the foresaid Sir William Alexander, the first Earl of Stirling, his great-great- great grandfather, expede before the bailies of the borough of Canongate near APPENDIX. 51 Edinburgh, the 11th day of October, anno Domini 1830, and duly retoured to his Majesty’s chancery; and having a certain special retour of the service of the said Alexander Earl of Stirling, &c. as nearest and lawful heir aforesaid, expede before the Sheriff-substitute of the sheriffdom of Edinburgh, the 2d day of July in the year first above written, and likewise retoured to the said chan¬ cery ; which service includes a general service of the same kind and character; by either of which services the said Alexander Earl of Stirling, &c. acquired right to the foresaid charter, and to the precept of seisin still unexecuted, and all the other clauses therein contained; as in the retours of the said services respectively is also contained; Which extract charter, with the said retours, the foresaid attorney exhibited and presented to the said bailie in that part law¬ fully constituted as is before stated, and desired him duly to execute the com¬ mand and office committed to him by the said precept of seisin ; Which desire the said bailie finding to be just and reasonable, he received the said ex¬ tract charter and retours into his hands, and delivered them to me, notary-public, to be read, published and explained in the common speech to the witnesses present; Which I did, and of which precept of seisin, contained in the said extract charter, the tenor follows in these words: ‘AND further, we have ‘made and constituted, and by the tenor of our present charter we make and ‘ constitute * and any one of them, jointly and severally, our bailies in that part, giving and * granting to them, and any one of them, our full power and special warrant for * giving, granting and delivering to the foresaid Sir William Alexander, and his ‘aforesaid, or to their certain attornies, having or producing this our present ‘charter, heritable state and seisin, and also actual, real and corporal possession ‘of all and sundry the forenamed lands, bounds, rivers, lakes islands, straits ‘ or passages, and others whatsoever, generally and particularly above set forth, ‘ of the said country and lordship of Cunada, at our said Castle of Edinburgh, or ‘ upon the soil and ground of any part of the foresaid lands and bounds or ‘ places, or in both manners, at the pleasure of the said Sir William Alexander ‘and his foresaids, commanding them, and any one of them, that on sight ‘ hereof they, or any one of them, forthwith give and deliver heritable state ‘and seisin, and also actual, real and corporal possession of all and sundry the * forenamed lands, places or bounds, islands, rivers, lakes and others foresaid, ‘ generally and particularly above set forth, to the foresaid Sir William Alex- ‘ ander and his foresaids, or to their certain attorneys, having or producing this ‘ our present charter, upon any part of the ground of the said lands, or at our ‘ Castle of Edinburgh, or in both manners, as shall appear best to him and ‘ his foresaids, by delivery of earth and stone to the foresaid Sir William and ‘ his aforesaid, or to their attorneys, having or producing this our present char- ‘ ter at the said Castle, or upon the soil and ground of the said lands and others ‘ above written, or in both manners, at the pleasure of the said Sir William and ‘ his foresaids; which seisin so to be given by our said bailies in that part to ‘ the foresaid Sir William and his aforesaid, or to their attorneys having or pro- ‘ ducing this our present charter, we, for us and our successors, decree and ‘ ordain to be good, lawful, valid and sufficient in all time coming, dispensing, ‘ like as we, by the tenor of our present charter, dispense, as to all that can be ‘ objected against the same, whether in form or in effect: Finally, we, for us ‘ and our successors, with advice and consent foresaid, will, decree, declare and ‘ ordain, that this our present charter, with all and sundry privileges, liber- ‘ ties, clauses, articles and conditions above mentioned, be ratified, approved ‘ and confirmed in our next Parliament of our kingdom of Scotland, or, at the * will and pleasure of the said Sir William Alexander and his foresaids, in any ‘ other Parliament of the said kingdom hereafter to be holden, to have the ‘ strength, force and effect of a decree of that supreme court; for doing which, ‘ we, for us and our successors, will and declare our said charter, and the ‘ clauses therein contained, to be a sufficient mandate or warrant, promising, on ‘ the word of a King, the same shall be so done and performed. In witness ‘ whereof we have ordered our Great Seal to be appended to this our present ‘ charter, before witnesses, as in others, our cousins and counsellors, James ‘ Marquess of Hamiltoun, Earl of Arran and Cambridge, Lord Aven and In- APPENDIX. 52 ‘ nerdaill, William Earl Marischal, Lord Keyth, &c., marischal of our king- ‘ dom, George Viscount Duplin, Lord Hay of Kinfawins, our chancellor, 4 Thomas Earl of Hadingtoun, Lord Bynning and Byres, &c., keeper of our * Privy Seal, our beloved familiars and counsellors Sir William Alexander of 4 Menstrie, our principal secretary, Sir James Hamiltoun of Magdalenis, clerk ‘ of our rolls, register and council, Sir George Elphingstoun of Biythiswod, our ‘justice-clerk, and Sir John Scot of Scottistarvett, director of our chancery, ‘ Knights ; at our palace of Whythall, the 2d day of February, in the year of 4 our Lord 1628, and of our reign the third.’ AFTER reading, publishing and explaining which extract charter, and precept of seisin and retours, in the common speech, to the witnesses present, the foresaid Thomas Christopher Banks, bailie in that part aforesaid, again received the said extract charter and retours into his hands, and in virtue and by the strength of the same and of the office of bailiary committed to him, gave and delivered to the before- mentioned Alexander Earl of Stirling, &c., heir aforesaid, for himself, his heirs and assigns, heritable state and seisin, and also actual, real and corporal pos¬ session of all and sundry the forenamed lands, bounds, rivers, lakes, islands, straits or passages, and others whatsoever, generally and particularly above ex¬ pressed, of the said country and lordship of Canada, after the tenor of the aforesaid charter, the union and dispensation contained in the same, and the said precept of seisin above inserted, in all points by delivery of earth and stone of the ground of the said Castle into the hands of the said Ephraim Lockhart, attorney foresaid, for and in name of the before-mentioned Alexander Earl of Stirling, &c. Whereupon, and upon all and sundry the premises, the foresaid attorney asked instruments from me, notary-public. These things were so done at the said Castle of Edinburgh, within the outer gate there, in virtue of the union and dispensation aforesaid, between the hours of eleven forenoon and twelve noon, on the day of the month, in the year of our Lord, and of the reign of our sovereign lord the King, above written, in presence of David Byars, clerk in the office of the sheriff-clerk of Edinburgh, and William Wilson, writer there, witnesses to the premises specially called and required, and this public instrument with me subscribing. And I truly, John M’Gregor, clerk of the diocese of Edinburgh, and notary- public, by royal authority, and by the Lords of Council and Session, accord- mg to the tenor of the act of Parliament admitted, because at all and sundry the premises, whilst they were, as is before stated, so said, done and per¬ formed, I was, together with the before-named witnesses, personally present, and all and sundry the premises I saw, knew and heard so performed and said, and took a note of them: therefore I, being called and required, pre¬ pared therefrom this present public instrument, by another hand, upon this and the two foregoing pages of parchment, duly stamped, faithfully written, and have rendered it in this form of a public instrument; and in faith, feorro- boration and testimony of the truth of all and sundry the premises, have signed and subscribed the same with my sign, name and surname, used and wont. * Dav. Byars , witness. Win . Wilson , witness. Verum crede. Jn. M‘Gregor, N. P. At Edinburgh, the twelfth day of August, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-one years, this sasine was presented by Ephraim Lockhart, writer to the signet, and is recorded in the one thousand six hundred and forty-sixth book ° f ,| S rTfi Aversions, &c. and on The 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, and 119th leaves thereof, conform to the act of Parliament made thereanent in June 1617, by me, depute-keeper of said Re- Ar. Wishart. 's v. tjuabsy fit ; :■ ; . • • ■ •'! ; I : . ; : " ^ ■ : rr ; : ' ^ • • - . • •••••;•••':■ •. . : ; : ■ . • • . . : : . ' : ' • ■ . : *! , 1 *1 <“ * / >i.,! V* M m * T «‘« * jijjiii Jf!, v t —cHJ ■ i iSiKlili - v ; ■ ' ' ^ : :: ::: ; : • ' . . • . : -• ■i-iij liiiliPlP • ■ : .... j \tlil