THE HUDSON'S BAY COMPANY'S STATEMENT AS TO THEIR TRADE WITH THE INTERIOR, PRIOR TO 1763.* As long as Canada was held by the French the opposition of wandering traders (coureurs des bois) was insufficient to induce the Company to give up their usual method of trading. Their servants waited at the forts built on the coast of the bay, and there bought by barter the furs which the Indians brought from the interior.† But after the cession of Canada to Great Britain in 1763, British traders following in the track of the French, penetrated into the countries lying to the north-west of the Company's territories, and by their building factories brought the market for furs nearer to the Indian seller.t The Company finding their trade seriously affected, extended the field of their operations, and sent parties to establish themselves in the interior. In process of time all smaller opposing interests were absorbed either by purchase or coalition in the North-West Company of Montreal, which thus became the sole rival and competitor to the Hudson's Bay Company. During many successive years a most disastrous contest was carried on between these two companies. Wherever one Company established a trading post, there at once the other Company also commenced operations. This system of close competition From the "Statement of the Hudson's Bay Company, 1857," pp. 4, 5. This printed statement was furnished by the Company to the Dominion Government for the purposes of the present arbitration. + And the French had their forts and posts on the rivers and lakes of the northern watershed, and carried away the best of the trade, even pushing their operations to the very shores of the Bay, as at La Carpe, Temiscamingue, and on the east coast, to the north of Slude River. In the west the French had forts on nearly all the lakes and rivers-five of which on the Saskatchewan -one at its very source in the Rocky Mountains. See also evidence, pp. 395-6 ante. rapidly produced a general state of disorganization, resulting in scenes of violence and bloodshed between the Indians, the trappers and the traders, in the interests of the rival Companies. THE BRITISH COLUMBIA ACT, 1866. AN ACT FOR THE UNION OF VANCOUVER ISLAND WITH THE COLONY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA. * [6th August, 1866.] BE it enacted by the Queen's most excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled and by the authority of the same, as follows: 1. This Act may be cited as "The British Columbia Act, 1866." 2. In this Act the Term "Governor," means any officer for the time being lawfully administering the Government. 3. From and immediately after the proclamation of this Act by the Governor of British Columbia, the colony of Vancouver Island shall be, and the same is hereby united with the colony of British Columbia, and thenceforth those two colonies shall form and be one colony, with the name of British Columbia, (which union is in this Act referred to as the union). 4. On the union taking effect, the form of Government existing in Vancouver Island as a separate colony shall cease, and the power and authority of the Executive Government and of the legislature, existing in British Columbia, shall extend to and over Vancouver Island but in order that provision may be made for the representation of Vancouver Island in the Legislature of British Columbia after the union, the maximum number of Councillors in the Legislative Council of British Columbia, after the union, shall, until it is otherwise provided by lawful authority, be twenty-three instead of fifteen. 5. After and notwithstanding the union, the laws in force in the separate colonies of British Columbia and Vancouver Island respectively at the time of the union taking effect shall, until it is otherwise provided by lawful authority, remain in force as if this Act had not been passed or proclaimed: save only that the laws relative to the Revenue of Customs in force in British Columbia at the time of the union taking effect shall, until it is otherwise provided by lawful authority, extend and apply to Vancouver Island; and until it is otherwise provided by lawful authority, the Governor of British Columbia shall have, in relation to the territory for the time being under his Government, all the powers and authorities for the time being vested, in relation to the United Kingdom, in the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury, or in the Commissioners of Customs with respect to the appointment of Warehousing Ports, and the approval and appointment of warehouses or places of security in such ports, and everything consequent thereon or relative thereto. 6. Nothing in this Act shall take away or restrict the authority of the Governor of British Columbia, with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council thereof, to make laws for the peace, order and good government of British Columbia either before or after the union: nor shall anything in this Act interfere with the exercise of any power that would have been exerciseable by Her Majesty in Council if this Act had not been passed. 7. Until the union, British Columbia shall comprise all such territories, within the dominions of Her Majesty, as are bounded to the south by the territories of the United States of America; to the west by the Pacific Ocean and the frontier of the Russian territories in North America; to the north by the sixtieth parallel of north latitude; and to the east from the boundary of the United States northwards by the Rocky Mountains and the one hundred and twentieth meridian of west longitude; and shall include Queen Charlotte's Island, and all other islands adjacent to the said territories, except Vancouver Island and the islands adjacent thereto. * Imperial Act, 29 & 30 Viot. o. 67, (1866). 8. After the union, British Columbia shall comprise all the territories and islands aforesaid, and Vancouver Island and the islands adjacent thereto. 9. The Acts described in the Schedule to this Act are hereby repealed; but this repeal shall not invalidate any Order in Council or other Instrument issued under the authority of those Acts or either of them, or any act done, or right or title acquired by virtue of those Acts, or of either of them, or of any such order or instrument. THE BRITISH NORTH AMERICA ACT, 1867. (Further Extract.) 146. It shall be lawful for the Queen, by and with the advice of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, on Addresses from the Houses of Parliament of Canada, and from the Houses of the respective Legislatures of the Colonies or Provinces of Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, and British Columbia, to admit those Colonies or Provinces, or any of them, into the Union, and on Address from the Houses of the Parliament of Canada, to admit Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory, or either of them, into the Union, on such terms and conditions, in each case, as are in the Addresses expressed, and as the Queen thinks fit to approve, subject to the Provisions of this Act; and the Provisions of any Order in Council in that behalf shall have effect as if they had been enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. THE RUPERT'S LAND ACT, 1868. AN ACT FOR ENABLING HER MAJESTY TO ACCEPT A SURRENDER, UPON TERMS, OF THE LANDS, PRIVILEGES AND RIGHTS OF "THE GOVERNOR AND COMPANY OF ADVENTURERS OF ENGLAND TRADING INTO HUDSON'S BAY," AND FOR ADMITTING THE SAME INTO THE DOMINION OF CANADA.* [31st July, 1868.] WHEREAS by certain Letters Patent, granted by His late Majesty King Charles the Second, in the twenty-second year of His Reign, certain persons therein named were incorporated by the name of "The Governor and Company of Adventurers of England, trading into Hudson's Bay," and certain lands and territories, rights of government and other rights, privileges, liberties, franchises, powers and authorities, were thereby granted, or purported to be granted, to the said Governor and Company in His Majesty's Dominions in North America: And whereas by the British North America Act, 1867, it was (amongst other things) enacted that it should be lawful for Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, on address from the Houses of the Parliament of Canada, to admit Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory, or either of them, into the Union on such terms and conditions as are in the address expressed and as Her Majesty thinks fit to approve, subject to the provisions of the said Act: And whereas, for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of the said British North America Act, 1867, and of admitting Rupert's Land into the said Dominion as aforesaid, upon such terms as Her Majesty thinks fit to approve, it is expedient that the said lands, territories, rights, privileges, liberties, franchises, powers and authorities, so far as the same have been lawfully granted to the said Company, should be surrendered to Her Majesty, her heirs and successors, upon such terms and conditions as may be agreed upon by and between Her Majesty and the said Governor and Company as hereinafter mentioned. Be it therefore enacted by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the * Imperial Act, 31-2 Vict., c. 105. advice and consent of the Lords, Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: 1. This Act may be cited as Rupert's Land Act, 1868." 2. For the purposes of this Act, the term "Rupert's Land" shall include the whole of the lands and territories held, or claimed to be held, by the said Governor and Company. 3. It shall be competent for the said Governor and Company to surrender to Her Majesty, and for Her Majesty, by any instrument under sign manual and signet, to accept a surrender of all or any of the lands, territories, rights, privileges, liberties, franchises, powers and authorities whatsoever, granted or purported to be granted by the said Letters Patent to the said Governor and Company, within Rupert's Land, upon such terms and conditions as shall be agreed upon, by and between Her Majesty and the said Governor and Company Provided, however, that such surrender shall not be accepted by Her Majesty until the terms and conditions upon which Rupert's Land shall be admitted into the said Dominion of Canada shall have been approved of by Her Majesty, and embodied in an Address to Her Majesty from both the Houses of the Parliament of Canada, in pursuance of the one hundred and forty-sixth section of the British North America Act, 1867; and that the said surrender and acceptance thereof shall be null and void, unless within a month from the date of such acceptance Her Majesty does, by Order in Council, under the provisions of the said last recited Act, admit Rupert's Land into the said Dominion: Provided further that no charge shall be imposed by such terms upon the Consolidated Fund of the United Kingdom. 4. Upon the acceptance by Her Majesty of such surrender, all rights of government and proprietary rights, and all other privileges, liberties, franchises, powers and authorities whatsoever granted, or purported to be granted, by the said Letters Patent to the said Governor and Company, within Rupert's Land, and which shall have been so surrendered shall be absolutely extinguished: Provided that nothing herein contained shall prevent the said Governor and Company from continuing to carry on in Rupert's Land or elsewhere trade and commerce. 5. It shall be competent to Her Majesty, by any such Order or Orders in Council as aforesaid, on Address from the Houses of the Parliament of Canada, to declare that Rupert's Land shall, from a date to be therein mentioned, be admitted into and become part of the Dominion of Canada; and thereupon it shall be lawful for the Parliament of Canada, from the date aforesaid, to make, ordain and establish within the land and territory so admitted as aforesaid, all such laws, institutions and ordinances, and to constitute such courts and officers, as may be necessary for the peace, order, and good government of Her Majesty's subjects and others therein: Provided that until otherwise enacted by the said Parliament of Canada, all the powers, authorities, and jurisdiction of the several courts of justice now established in Rupert's Land, and of the several officers thereof, and of all magistrates and justices now acting within the said limits, shall continue in full force and effect therein. IMPERIAL ORDER IN COUNCIL RESPECTING RUPERT'S LAND AND THE NORTH-WESTERN TERRITORY, 1870.* At the Court at Windsor, the 23rd day of June, 1870. PRESENT: The Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, Lord President, Lord Privy Seal, Mr. Gladstone. * Bound with Statutes of Canada, 35 Vict., 1872, p. lxiii. The Schedules referred to are to be found in same place. Whereas by the "British America Act of 1867," it was, (amongst other things), enacted, that it should be lawful for the Queen, by and with the advice of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, on Address from the Houses of the Parliament of Canada, to admit Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory, or either of them, into the Union, on such terms and conditions, in each case, as should be in the Addresses expressed, and as the Queen should think fit to approve, subject to the provisions of the said Act: And it was further enacted that the provisions of any Order in Council in that behalf should have effect as if they had been enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland: And whereas by an Address from the Houses of the Parliament of Canada, of which Address a copy is contained in the Schedule to this Ordor annexed, marked A, Her Majesty was prayed by and with the advice of Her Most Honourable Privy Council, to unite Rupert's Land and the North Western Territory with the Dominion of Canada, and to grant to the Parliament of Canada authority to legislate for their future welfare and good government, upon the terms and conditions therein stated: And whereas by the "Rupert's Land Act, 1868," it was (amongst other things) enacted, that it should be competent for the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England trading into Hudson's Bay, (hereinafter called the Company), to surrender to Her Majesty, and for Her Majesty, by any instrument under her sign manual, and signet, to accept a surrender of all or any of the lands, territories, rights, privileges, liberties, franchises, powers, and authorities whatsoever, granted, or purported to be granted, by certain Letters Patent, therein recited, to the said Company, within Rupert's Land, upon such terms and conditions as should be agreed upon by and between Her Majesty and the said Company provided, however, that such surrender should not be accepted by Her Majesty until the terms and conditions upon which Rupert's Land should be admitted into the said Dominion of Canada should have been approved of by Her Majesty and embodied in an Address to Her Majesty from both the Houses of the Parliament of Canada in pursuance of the 146th section of the "British North America Act, 1867 "; And it was, by the same Act, further enacted, that it should be competent to Her Majesty, by Order or Orders in Council, on Addresses from the Houses of the Parliament of Canada, to declare that Rupert's Land should, from a date to be therein mentioned, be admitted into, and become part of the Dominion of Canada. And whereas a second Address from both the Houses of Parliament of Canada has been received by Her Majesty, praying that Her Majesty will be pleased under the provisions of the herein before recited Acts, to unite Rupert's Land, on the terms and conditions expressed in certain resolutions therein referred to, and approved of by Her Majesty, of which said resolutions and addresses copies are contained in the schedule to this Order annexed, marked B, and also to unite the North-Western Territory with the Dominion of Canada, as prayed for by, and on the terms and conditions contained in the herein before first recited address, and also approved of by Her Majesty : And whereas a draft surrender has been submitted to the Governor-General of Canada, containing stipulations to the following effect, viz : 1. The sum of £300,000 (being the sum hereinafter mentioned), shall be paid by the Canadian Government into the Bank of England to the credit of the Company within six calendar months after acceptance of the surrender aforesaid, with interest on the said sum at the rate of 5 per cent. per annum, computed from the date of such acceptance until the time of such payment. 2. The size of the blocks which the Company are to select adjoining each of their forts in the Red River limits, shall be as follows: ..... Upper Fort Garry and Town of Winnipeg, including the enclosed park Acres. 500 500 White Horse Plain.. 500 3. The deduction to be made as hereinafter mentioned from the price of the materials of the electric telegraph in respect of deterioration thereof, is to be certified within |