THE death of the King made it necessary to hold another general election, and the elections took place in the Autumn of 1837. The new House contained all the members who had been prominent in the cause of reform, with the exception of Mr. Chandler, who had become a member of the legislative council. This was unfortunate both for himself and for the interests of the province, for in that body, of which he continued to be a member for about forty years, he had not the same opportunities of benefiting the country by his abilities as he would have had if he had remained in the House of Assembly. But another member appeared as a representative of the county of York, who fully made up for Mr. Chandler's absence. This was Charles Fisher, who afterwards rose to the highest positions in the Province, and who was the ablest advocate of reform that New Brunswick ever had. Other men may have surpassed him in eloquence, but none had a greater acquaintance with constitutional law, or a more ardent desire to have the constitution of the Province made to conform to the wishes of the people. Both Mr. Fisher and Mr. L. A. Wilmot were born outside of the charmed circle, which included the wealth and aristocracy of the Province. They had none of the advantages of high birth or influential connections; their attempts to put themselves forward as champions of the people were resented by the magnates of that day but New Brunswick owes them a debt of gratitude which it can never repay. Although they were not without human weaknesses their championship of reform, and their efforts on behalf of responsible Government, entitle them to be always remembered with gratitude and affection.

The Legislature met on the 28th of December. The Governor stated that he had called them together thus early for the purpose of inviting their attention to the state of the neighboring province of Lower Canada, so that the people of New Brunswick might be in a position to give their active support to the Royal authority if it should be required. The reply of the House to his Excellency's speech was as hearty in its loyalty, as he could have desired, and it was followed up by corresponding legislation. A new militia act was passed which gave the Governor authority to enroll 1,200 rank and file from the militia regiments of the Province, each of whom was to receive a bounty of £5. The members of this force were to be subject to the provisions of the mutiny act, and might be called upon to serve in any part of the British North American Colonies. In the event of this body of militia being removed from the Province, in the absence of the Queens troops, the Lieutenant Governor, was authorized to call out such militia as he deemed necessary for garrison and other militia duty. The bounty money, for the embodied militia, was to be paid out of the provincial treasury, and also the pay of the militia serving in the Province, called out for provincial duty, but those who served outside the Province were to be paid by the British Government. Fortunately none of the militia were required to serve beyond the limits of the Province, but a number of them did garrison duty in the absence of the regular forces. It is worthy of notice that this act of the House of Assembly, which was limited to two years, was the means of providing a force which became available for the defence of the frontier of New Brunswick, during the boundary troubles of 1838 and 1839.

Under the original constitution of the Province, the Lieutenant Governor filled the office of Chancellor, and was supposed to hear and determine suits in equity. This arrangement was found to be inconvenient, because it was necessary for the Governor to have one of the Judges of the Supreme Court to assist him in his judicial functions. An act was passed at this session of the Legislature, authorizing the appointment of an additional judge to be called the Master of the Rolls, who was to exercise the same authority in the Court of Chancery in this Province, that the Master of the Rolls has in England. The first and only Master of the Rolls appointed under this act was the Hon. Neville Parker, who received his commission in March, 1838. By an act passed in 1854, the Master of the Rolls became one of the judges of the Supreme Court, and all the judges were invested with jurisdiction in equity.

At this session notice was received of the confirmation of three acts which had been previously passed with a suspending clause. One of these was for shortening the number of days during which an election could be held, and for designating the places where the sheriff was required to hold a poll. Under this act elections were limited to eight days, and it was impossible for the sheriff to act, as Sheriff Miller of York had done a few years before, when he refused to hold a poll anywhere else but in the city of Fredericton, although this involved the necessity of voters who lived in the upper part of the county of York, travelling about 150 miles to enable them to exercise the franchise. Another act continued the House of Assembly for the period of six months after the demise of the Crown. This was to remedy the inconvenience that was felt from the mere fact of the demise of the Crown dissolving the House, and leaving the Province without a Legislative body, at a period when it might be necessary for it to be called together. Since then Legislation has been passed which continues the existence both of the British parliament and the Colonial Legislatures, notwithstanding the demise of the Crown. By another act, a portion of the county of Gloucester Avas erected into a separate county under the name of Restigouche, with the right to send one member to the House of Assembly.

The transfer of the casual and territorial revenue to the Province, placed the surplus funds of many years, amounting to about £150,000, at the disposal of the legislature, and put the Province in an excellent financial condition. The people of New Brunswick had reason to congratulate themselves on what had been achieved in the direction of good government. They had obtained control of the Crown lands of the province and were able not only to appropriate the revenues arising from them, but to designate in what manner these lands should be managed. They had been able to obtain for the province the control of the customs revenues which were collected under parliamentary acts, and to reduce the salaries of the officials who collected them, to a more reasonable scale than had prevailed before. They had succeeded in obtaining legislation, giving the right to solemnize marriages to the ministers of all denominations of Christians, and they had removed from the statute book the obnoxious laws which prevented persons of the Roman Catholic Church, from filling public offices or holding seats in the legislature. They had also secured the separation of the executive council from the legislative council, a measure of reform which deprived the council of a great part of its power to do evil by retarding the progress of useful legislation. But although all this had been achieved, much more remained to be done before the province could be said to have a constitution which gave the people control of its affairs. There was an executive council but this council was not in any way responsible to the people. The first executive council, appointed in February, 1833, did not contain a single member who had a seat in the House of Assembly. The heads of departments, such as the surveyor-general, the Provincial secretary and the attorney-general, were not required to have seats in either branch of the Legislature. They were responsible not to the voters of the Province, but to the Lieut.-Governor, who made and unmade them at his pleasure. All these evils were apparent to those who made a study of the British constitution, which the constitution of New Brunswick was supposed to resemble, and there were men in the House of Assembly, such as Charles Fisher and L. A. Wilmot, who were determined that executive responsibility should be introduced in this Province, as it was in the mother land. These men were more advanced in their views than many of their colleagues, such as John R. Partelow, who had done excellent service in the work of obtaining for the Province the control of the casual and territorial revenues. But when the agitation came for responsible government and all that it implies, men like Partelow held back because they considered that the existing system worked well enough, and that it gave them advantages that they would not have enjoyed under responsible government. Thus it was that the reform party in the House of Assembly was weakened at the very time when it ought to have been strengthened, and the hands of reformers like Fisher and Wilmot were tied, because they could not command the support of a majority in the House of Assembly. Many reasons contributed to check responsible government. The principal one perhaps was the selfishness of members, who were unwilling to surrender the initiation of money votes, into the hands of the executive. This was reasonable enough, so long as the executive Council was not composed of men owed their positions to the support of the House of Assembly, but with a properly constituted executive, the initiation of money grants should have been surrendered as a matter of course. Under the existing system, it was almost impossible to keep the expenditure down, for where every member had the right to move a grant of money, a system of log-rolling was introduced, under the operation of which, money was granted, not on the merits of the claim, but because those who voted for it expected the mover of the grant to vote for their grants when their turn came.

The Legislature again met on the 15th of January, 1839. Sir John Harvey, in his opening speech, dealt with many topics of importance, and suggested many improvements with respect to roads and other matters in connection with the internal economy of the Province. He referred to the attacks which had been made upon the neighboring province by armed bands of marauders from the United States, and advised that improvements be made in the militia law for the purpose of adding to its efficiency. He stated that he had caused several volunteer companies of militia artillery, to be formed, and placed under the direction of an experienced militia officer, and he advised that the commander-in-chief be empowered by law, to form the several companies of militia artillery, and those of the sea fencibles, into battalions, at his discretion. He advised that greater encouragement be given to agriculture, and that a system of bounties, properly guarded, should be created for the benefit of the fishermen. Sir John Harvey's suggestions were always well received by the legislature, and the militia law was amended, and in the manner he advised.

One of the most important acts of the session, was to provide for the prompt payment of all demands upon the provincial treasury. Up to that time the fact that a man received a warrant on the treasury in payment of his claim, by no means implied that he would speedily be in possession of the money. The treasury might be, and frequently was, out of funds and holders of warrants had to wait their turn, and sometimes took payment in instalments. This was so much the case, that treasury warrants were sold at a discount, being purchased by capitalists, who took care to exact a sufficiently high rate of interest. By the act referred to, the provincial treasurer was authorized to make arrangements with some one of the banking institutions of the Province, for the purpose of obtaining money with which to pay off all treasury warrants. This plan greatly improved the credit of the Province and had the best effects in enabling it to obtain what money it required, on the most favorable terms. The same system has been followed until the present time, so that a man with any legal claim on the provincial treasury, can always be certain of having it promptly paid.

While the Legislature was in session information was received of recent attempts on the part of the State of Maine to take possession of the disputed territory. The Legislature of Maine had from the first displayed a very truculent spirit with regard to this question, and endeavored to force the Government of the United States into a position of direct hostility to Great Britain. If the people of Maine had been allowed to have their own way, there would have been a war between the two nations, and the result might have been such as to reduce the territory of Maine very considerably, for, at that time, the state had no good means of communication with the Madawaska district, and any contest waged in that quarter, between Great Britain and the United States, would have been greatly to the disadvantage of the latter. In 1837, the Governor of Maine sent a person named Greely to the disputed territory, for the purpose of taking a census of the people of Madawaska, under the claim that they were citizens of the United States. Sir John Harvey at once communicated with the Governor of Maine, remonstrating against this conduct, and he sent one company of the 43rd Regiment to Woodstock and another to Grand Falls, to support the authorities against any lawless incursion from the other side of the line. They took with them 500 stand of arms and a supply of ammunition, which, in case of necessity, was to be placed in the hands of the militia volunteers.

The next move on the part of the Governor of Maine was to send 200 armed men into the Madawaska district on the Aroostook River, with the avowed purpose of driving off persons who were stated to be cutting timber there. The British subjects in that vicinity showed a disposition to take up arms and repel the invaders, but Sir John Harvey issued a proclamation, forbidding any hostile steps and assuring the people that he would take proper measures for the protection of the Province. As it was learned that some persons from the county of Carleton were going into the disputed territory for the purpose of cutting timber, in defiance of the orders of the Governor, James A. McLauchlan, the warden of the territory, was instructed to follow them and put a stop to their proceedings. Sir John Harvey also communicated with the British minister at Washington who laid the facts before the Government of the United States. That Government was not as prompt to act as it might have been, and rather seemed to justify the conduct of the Governor of Maine. The latter denied the claim put forward by Sir John Harvey and the British minister, that an agreement existed that Great Britain was to retain possession of the disputed territory until its ownership was-determined. This was a vital point, if it was the object of the Government of the United States to prevent the difficulties leading to a war, for with a disputed jurisdiction and a reckless Governor, backed by an equally reckless people, there was no saying to what result these difficulties would lead. The New Brunswick timber cutters, who were most concerned to repel the invasion of the Maine militia, armed themselves and surprised Mr. Mclntire who was at the head of the American party, carrying him off to Fredericton. Mr. McLauchlan, the New Brunswick warden, was seized by an American party, and conveyed a prisoner to Bangor. The Governor of Maine sent a warlike message to the Legislature and obtained authority to order out 8,000 militia, and a vote of $800,000, to assist to obtain possession qf the disputed territory. Before the middle of February 600 more Maine militia men had been sent to the border and they began to erect fortifications. Sir John Harvey sent a special messenger to Quebec, to give information as to what was going on to Sir John Colborne, who immediately ordered the 11th Regiment and a body of artillery to march to Madawaska. The Legislature of Nova Scotia was in session at this time, and it passed a series of resolutions, expressing the utmost indignation at the attempts to seize the Madawaska territory, and authorized the Governor to call out one-third of the militia force of the Province to the extent of 8,000 men. It also voted the sum of £100,000 for the payment of this force to assist in the defence of New Brunswick. These proofs of the sympathy of the sister province were extremely gratifying to the people of New Brunswick, and received the cordial thanks of the Legislature. That body placed the entire resources of the Province in the hands of the Lieutenant Governor for the purpose of resisting the threatened invasion.

Sir John Harvey called out for active service 850 of the militia which were held in readiness to march to the scene of action. These were made up of drafts from several militia battalions. This force was sent to Woodstock, to be held in readiness for any emergency, but fortunately their services were not required. The Government of the United States began to see that matters were becoming serious, and that it would hardly be prudent to allow itself to be dragged into a war with Great Britain in consequence of the lawless action of the state of Maine. Major General Winfield Scott was sent to Maine for the purpose of taking command of the troops in that state, and he was especially charged with the duty of maintaining the peace and safety of the northern and eastern frontier. General Scott was a distinguished soldier, who knew what war was, for he had taken part in the war of 1812, and afterwards commanded the troops of the United States in the Mexican war. He immediately made a proposition to Sir John Harvey, that the Governor of Maine would at once withdraw the military forces of the state from the disputed territory, leaving only a small civic posse under a land agent, to protect the timber recently cut and to prevent further depredations. This proposal was assented to by the Governor of New Brunswick in a letter to General Scott, in which he conveyed to him the assurances of his warmest personal consideration, and so the Aroostook War, as it has been termed, came to an end. It was an event which might have had serious consequences and if it had resulted in a war between two nations of common origin who should always be friends, the Governor and legislature of Maine would have been responsible for this outrage on civilization. Their conduct was wholly without excuse, but it was quite in line with that of the men in the congress of the United States who forced on the war of 1812. There are no people so ready to do battle and to embroil nations as those whose position would exempt them from military service, and who are not likely to feel any of the personal inconveniences of a war. If those who are the strongest advocates of war were always compelled to march in front of the armies, we would hear less of warlike resolutions from congresses and legislatures. In one respect the Aroostook war did good, for it cemented the feeling of a common nationality between the Provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, and brought them into closer sympathy with each other. It also illustrated the patriotic feeling of our own people, and proved that they were at all times ready to maintain the authority of Great Britain, and to defend the flag under which they lived.

Although there was no more danger of an armed collision over the boundary question, the conduct of the Governor of Maine in stirring up strife, had a tendency to produce strained relations between the two governments. He kept a force of 200 armed men in the Aroostook territory, who proceeded to build what was virtually a fort armed with cannon, a result which certainly was never contemplated under the arrangements made between General Scott and Sir John Harvey. Hearing that the British authorities had a force of regulars at Temiscouata Lake for the purpose of guarding the approach to Canada, he magnified the two companies stationed there into two regiments, and complained to the Washington authorities on the subject. These annoying circumstances, fortunately, were not allowed to impair the good understanding that had been arrived at, and the Governor of Maine was balked in his desire to bring on a war. New negotiations were entered into between the two governments with a view to a final settlement. Daniel Webster, who became Secretary of State in 1841, had the distinction of bringing the long controversy to a close. The result was reached by direct negotiations, and in 1842, Lord Ashburton arrived at Washington, armed with full power from the British Government to conclude a boundary treaty. This treaty, which is generally known as the Ashburton Treaty, was settled on the 9th of August, 1842, and it fixed the boundaries between the two countries as they exist at present. It was more favorable to Great Britain than the award of the King of the Netherlands, but less than the British authorities had originally claimed. Lord Ashburton has been much censured, for making this treaty, by persons who know nothing of the merits of the question, and who allow their own prejudices to influence their opinions. The treaty was certainly a most favorable one to New Brunswick, in view of the fact that Mr. Oswald, the British Commissioner, who negotiated the treaty of 1783, had agreed to an impossible boundary on a range of highlands which did not exist, or, if it existed at all, was far to the north of the river St. John. It is unfortunate that under the Ashburton Treaty, the State of Maine should project into New Brunswick like a wedge, and should prevent us having a short line of communication to Montreal and the West through British territory. But Lord Ashburton got the best boundary that was then possible, and it is safe to assert that as good a settlement could not have been obtained at a later period, or under any -other circumstances. Apart from that, almost any settlement was better that a state of continual border warfare and constant friction with the Maine officials, who acted very much as the Southern secessionists did at a later period, when they threw off the authority of the Federal Government. The Southern States are not the only ones that have defied the authority of the Govermnent at Washington and refused to abide by its orders.

The city of St. John had always been subject to the ravages of fires in consequence of its buildings being mainly constructed of wood, and the means of extinguishing a fire being very imperfect. A very severe fire had occurred in 1837. by which many business establishments to the south of the Market Slip, had been destroyed. But in August, 1839, a conflagration, which far surpassed it in magnitude, took place, burning a large portion of the city to the north of the Market Slip which had escaped the fire of 1837. Upwards of 100 buildings were consumed, of which fifty at least were business establishments. The total amount of property destroyed was estimated at £200,000, of which only a small part was insured. No event in the history of the city had produced a greater degree of distress than this awful visitation, which was only surpassed in magnitude by the great fire of 1877, for about 3,000 persons were rendered homeless. The Governor and his council thought the exigency of the situation created by the fire, justified the calling together of the Legislature, and it accordingly met on the 10th of September. A bill was passed requiring buildings erected within certain specified limits in the city of St. John to be constructed of brick, stone, or some other non-combustible material. An act was passed to authorize the widening, straightening and enlarging of Dock and Nelson streets, and the opening of a new street in continuation of Smyth street, all in the burnt district. There was also an act passed to authorize the issue of treasury notes to the extent of £20,000, which sum was to be loaned to the owners of lots whose buildings had been destroyed by the fire, to enable them to rebuild. These were timely measures, and were the means of mitigating, to some extent, the calamity which had overwhelmed St. John. It was then thought that the rebuilding of the city in brick and stone, would ensure it against destruction by fire at any future day, but there were men who saw the great fire of 1839, who lived long enough to learn that this was an entire delusion, and that a city built of brick and stone might be swept almost off the face of the earth, by a fire which had not been checked at the beginning, and which was aided by a high wind, a warm temperature and other circumstances favorable to its extension over a large area.

The legislative session of 1840 began on the 28th of January. The Lieutenant Governor was able to congratulate the Province on the fact that its trade and revenue were flourishing beyond any former period. Every demand on the public treasury had been fully met by the surplus revenue of the current year. He recommended the advisability of committing the care and superintendance of the great roads to salaried officers, so that a uniformity in their construction might be attained. He stated that from representations which had reached him from the sheriffs, he was satisfied that the condition of the jails required much improvement, and that a humane Legislature •should interpose on behalf of the incarcerated debtor. He called attention to communications which he had received from the North American Colonial Association of Ireland, who professed themselves desirous of acquiring land in New Brunswick, for the purpose of placing settlers upon it. This association had a considerable correspondence with the Governor, but they did not become purchasers of land in the Province. This was a sufficiently ample bill of fare for the session which was marked by a degree of harmony which was unusual in the legislative proceedings of New Brunswick. The presence of Sir John Harvey seemed to exercise a soothing effect on the tempers of members of the Legislature. The period of his Government is still remembered as the era of political harmony.

Among the acts passed in the session of 1840, was one to authorize the grand juries, of the several counties, to inspect the public accounts. This was a very necessary reform, and gave the people an opportunity of ascertaining how the sessions were dealing with the county funds. The counties up to that period and for many years afterwards, were governed by the magistrates who were appointed by the Governor, and not under the control of the people. This arrangement sometimes worked well enough where the magistrates were men of high character, but the best of men are liable to abuse their power, and the benches of magistrates throughout the Province, were not free from human infirmities. At this session also provision was made for the first time for the payment of members of the legislative council. This had been recommended by Sir Archibald Campbell, on more than one occasion, but without success, and a good deal of the obstructive spirit exhibited by the legislative council may be attributed to this neglect on the part of the House to put the council on the same footing as their own legislative body. There was no good reason why this should not be done, for it was not fair to ask members of the council to attend at Fredericton without being at least paid their expenses.

An act was also passed which provided for the taking of another census of the Province. This was done in the spring of 1840 and it showed New Brunswick to have a population of 156,162, an increase of 36,705 over the population six years before or about 20,000 more than the natural increase during that period. In these six years therefore about 20,000 persons had been added to the population of the Province by immigration. The county that showed the greatest increase was St. John, which had upwards of 12,000 added to its population. The city of St. John had upwards of 20,000 inhabitants, and the population of the territory now embraced in the city of St. John was 26,923. This census contained some interesting statistics which might serve as a guide to the strength of the various denominations of Christians. There were altogether 270 places of worship in the Province, of which the

Church of England had 61, the Presbyterians 32, the Methodists 44, the Baptists 61, Roman Catholics 51 and other denominations 21. These figures showed clearly that the claim of the Church of England to be the church of the majority of the people of the Province was far from being justified. The Province possessed two hundred and forty-seven grist mills and five hundred and seventy-four saw mills, but these mills were of course much less efficient than those of the present day. There were 435,861 acres of land cleared, and the stock upon the farms consisted of 18,282 horses, 90,260 horned cattle, 141,053 sheep and 71,915 swine. The Province had made great strides in the course of ten or twelve years, and it had more than doubled its population in sixteen years or since the year 1824. This was a gratifying condition of affairs, and although many of the immigrants who came to our shores were in very reduced circumstances, they added materially to the wealth of the Province, for New Brunswick needed above all things a greater number of workers to till its waste places.

In no department of industry had the growth been greater than in ship building. The returns laid before the Legislature showed that in 1839, 28,358 tons of shipping had been registered at the port of St. John, most of which had been built at that city or in its vicinity. During the same year 9,000 tons of shipping had been registered at the port of Miramichi. St. John then owned 82,191 tons of shipping and Miramichi 12,803 tons. These figures show the importance which the business of ship-building and ship-owning had attained in a Province which had only been founded about half a century before, and which had grown slowly during the first years of its existence. Shipbuilding in New Brunswick, was destined to attain a still greater development in later years, until checked by the introduction of iron ships, which being much superior to wooden vessels, after a time made the building of the latter unprofitable. In the meantime, however, about the year 1872, St. John had grown to be the fourth port of the British Empire in the ownership of ships, and it still retains a respectable position in that respect.

The Honorable Thomas Baillie, who had held the position of Surveyor General and Commissioner of Crown lands, by appointment of the imperial authority, was not a general favorite in New Brunswick. Whatever may have been his merits as an administrator, extravagance and ostentation . were the features in his character which were most prominently discerned by the public, and his management of the Crown lands was not satisfactory to a majority of the people, especially to those who were engaged in lumbering. Soon after the transfer of the casual and territorial revenue to the Province, the House of Assembly began to agitate for a reduction of his salary. After some correspondence with the Home authorities, it was agreed that it should be reduced to £1,200, which was not much more than half what he had been receiving. This was done on the plea that, as his duties as commissioner of crown lands had been taken over by the executive council, he was only entitled to half of his former salary. At the same time the Crown land office was entirely re-organized, and a new scale of salaries made for the employees. A committee was appointed to investigate Mr. Baillie's accounts, and they reported that he owed the Province upwards of £3,000. Whether this was the case or not, at that time Mr. Baillie was financially embarrassed, in consequence of having entered into a number of outside speculations, and he seems to have become panic stricken, for in January, 1840r he sent in his resignation to the Governor, on condition that he should receive a pension of £600 a year. The Governor accepted it, and appointed the Honorable John Simcoe Saunders, provisionally, to fill the office. This pension was the subject of a correspondence with the Home authorities who-agreed to the arrangement which the Governor had made, but the House of Assembly refused to vote any pension to Mr. Baillie, and that official was re-instated in his office as Surveyor-General, after being out of it for about two years. He held the-position until the year 1851.

At this time the attention of the legislature and the people, was directed to the necessity of making some better provision for the care of the insane. In St. John especially, it was found difficult to deal with them, there being no suitable place where they could be kept. For some time lunatics were confined in the gaol, under the warrant of a magistrate, as not safe to be at large, and as the gaols were small they had to be shut up with criminals, who were not likely to use them with much humanity. Doctor George P. Peters, of St. John, who had charge of the poor establishment, which included the gaol and work house, represented the state of the insane to the overseers of the poor, and, on his representation, the lunatics were removed to the Alms house. That arrangement improved their condition, but it was found very inconvenient, and an application was made to the board of health for liberty to fit up a building which had been erected for a cholera hospital, so that it could be made to accommodate the lunatics. This temporary asylum was put in operation in the beginning of 1836, at the cost of the city of St. John, and it at first contained but a small number of patients. In the same year the Legislature addressed the Governor,, asking him to appoint commissioners to ascertain the most eligible site for a provincial lunatic asylum, and an estimate of the probable cost for land and buildings. These commissioners reported at the session of 1837, and presented a plan for a proper building. They thought that the number of insane persons in the province might amount to 150, and therefore a building of considerable size would be required for their accommodation. Nothing was done at that time to carry out the plan of building a provincial lunatic asylum, but grants were made by the Legislature to assist the overseers of the poor in St. John, to maintain a temporary asylum there, and reports of its condition were regularly sent to the provincial government. In 1840, the number of patients in the asylum was 72 of whom 40 remained at the end of the year. At this time it had become practically a provincial institution, and it was enlarged at the cost of the province, and about £1,500 annually was granted for its maintainance. Out of this small beginning grew, in the course of time, the splendid establishment with its annex, afterwards erected in the parish of Lancaster near the city of St. John, in which nearly 600 insane persons are confined.

The attention of the Legislature had also been called to the advantages that would arise from a geological survey of the Province, its resources in minerals being wholly unknown to its people. In 1838, Dr. Abraham Gesner, a geologist of some eminence, was appointed by Sir John Harvey, to make a geological survey of the Province, and a grant of £200 was made by the Legislature for that purpose. His first report was presented to the Legislature in 1839, and an additional grant of £300, was made to him for his services. A committee was appointed to inquire whether the geological survey of the Province should be continued, and they reported in favor of it, and the sum of £250 was appropriated for that purpose. Dr. Gesner's second report was laid before the House in 1840, and five hundred copies of it ordered to be printed. He was granted £350 for his services, and a further grant of £250 was passed to enable the Governor to continue the geological survey. To this grant was added the proviso that no further grant be made for this purpose. This was a very illiberal declaration and it had to be departed from, because at the following session the Legislature again granted Dr. Gesner £350 for his services, but an additional £200 grant to enable the Governor to continue the geological survey was negatived by a vote of 17 to 8, although the lieutenant Governor had, in his speech, recommended the continuance of this work. The modern reader may infer from this that the intelligence of the average member of the Legislature in 1842, was not of a high order, for, if the members had understood the needs of the Province, they would have cheerfully agreed to continue this highly important work. There is no doubt that Dr. Gesner did much, while engaged in his geological survey, to disclose the mineral resources of the Province. His conclusions may not in all cases have proved to be entirely sound, and he may have been somewhat optimistic in his views, but such a spirit is much better than that system of depreciation in which some, more recent, geological surveys of the Province have been conducted. Dr. Gesner made a number of valuable discoveries of mineral deposits, the most important of which was the albertite in the county of Albert, which brought so much profit to those who engaged in the work of mining it. He was a thorough believer in the future of the Province as the seat of important mining industries, and his views which were for a long time ridiculed, are now beginning to be justified. The recent growth and development of mining enterprises in this Province, is the best proof of the correctness of Dr. Gesner's ideas with regard to the mineral wealth of New Brunswick.