CANADA.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VI, Issue 433, 26 September 1849, Page 3

CANADA.

BURNING OP THE HOUSE OP PARLIAMENT AT MONTREAL.

The work has at length fairly commenced. It was announced yesterday afternoon in all the places of public resort, that his Excellency would go down to Parliament, and sanction numerous bills, particularly the one relating to the Customs. It was never presumed for one moment, however, that the notorious and detested "rebel bill" was to be one of them. At 4 p.m. the hour appointed for the ceremony, a fair assemblage of people were collected in front of the parliamentary buildings. It was not till 5 p.m. that the Governor entered the council chamber, and took his seat on the throne. In the mean time, a rumour had got abroad that the "rebel bill" was, indeed, to be assented to. The report quickly spread, and before the conclusion of the ceremony, a crowd, numbering about lssool s 500 persons, were collected together to receive the representative of British authority, with the along announced honours. The royal sanction was given to forty-eight bills, amongst which, the crowd were informed by those who had been in the interior of the house, was the obnoxious bill. About six o'clock, his Excellency entered the carriage, and was driven off at a rapid rate, amidst curses, yells, hootings, and a shower of rotten eggs, dirt, and stones. Lord Elgin had to run the gauntlet of the various missiles, for the distance of 100 yards. The Carriage windows were dowr, and Colonel Bruce was inside with him. Three eggs entered the carriage, and some struck his lordship in the face. Horses, equipage, foctmen, &c, were all completely covered with the unsavoury missiles. The staff fared very little better. The fact of the royal sanction having been given to the " rebellion losses" bill, now spread like wildfire. By 7 o'clock alarm bells were ringing all over the town, and criers went through the streets calling a mass meeting to be held on the Champ de Mars, at 8 o'clock. By the appointed time, upwards of two thousand people had assembled, and by 9 o'clock, it had swelled to 5,000. A series of resolutions were proposed and passed amidst universal applause. After the passing of the last resolution, one of the popular leaders of the mob got upon the chair, and addressed them in the most violent and inflammatory manner, amidst continued and deafening cheers. The time for action has arrived. We must work. We have passed resolutions enough. They have been disregarded. To the Parliament House ! A chord in the hearts of the multitude had been

touched which every heart re-echoed. The moving thousands, preceded by torches, marched at a furious rate in the direction of the Legislature. At 10 p.m. ei^ht thousand persons were in front of the buildiogs where the Assembly was in full session at the time. A shower of stones "as thick as leaves in Valumbrosa," was poured upon the windows, which from the brilliant manner in which they were lighted, afforded a most tempting mark. When the stones came pouring in, the members of the Assembly thought it time to beat a retreat, and retired into the lobby, there to await the issue of events. No sooner had the members lef% than about one hundred of the mob, armed to the teeth, rushed into tbe Assembly Room, and their leader, swearing he would come Oliver Cromwell over them, seated himself in the Speaker's chair, assumed the hat, and announced with stentorian lungs, " Gentlemen, the French Parliament is dissolved !" adding, " and we are all going to h—llJ"h — 11 J" One brawny fellow then seized hold of the mace which, from the bouse being in committee at the time, lay on the table, and having shouldered it marched off. The rest set to work and the destruction commenced. Whilst this body of men were smashing every thing inside the Legislative Assembly room, a cry of fire was suddenly raised. Colonel Gugy heading the members, clerks and ladies, rushed through the hall of the house, and out at the principal door, agreeably surprised at not finding themselves stopped. The fury and rapidity with which the flames spread can hardly be imagined ; in less than fifteen minutes the whole of the wing occupied by the House of Assembly, was inflames, and owing to the intimate communication between the two Houses, the Upper House was rapidly involved in the same destruction. The mob now amounted to almost incredible numbers, and remained stoical spectators of the scene. The troops arrived shortly afterwards, and were received with loud cheers, which several companies of the 23rd regiment returned. One soldier, a private, fired his musket in the air ; he was immediately arrested, and sent to the guard house. By 11 o'clock, nothing but the smouldering ruins of the House — in which a measure fraught with iniquity and injustice, was introduced, passed and received the royal assent — now remain ; a fitting tribute to the rage of an insulted people. None regret the loss of the building; every one, the splendid libraries, in which were the archives and records of Canada for hundreds of years ; valuable works, from every quarter of the globe, were heaped in profusion within those walls ; eleven hundred volumes of records of the British House of Commons, of which no other copy was extant, were destroyed. Not eighty dollars worth of property was saved. The Queen's picture was saved from the burning buildings, but destroyed in the streets. The party in charge of the mace carried it to Donegan's Hotel, and placed it in the hands of Sir Allan M'Nab. No lives were lost. T. B. Turner, Esq., of the Montreal Courier, Sir Allan M'Nab, and the Hon. W. Badgely, in attempting to save some books from the library were nearly lost. They were obliged to drop the works and rush for the Legislative Council chamber door which, to their horror, they found locked. Their cries were beard by a party in the library of the Council, who had axes, and the panel was smashed in ; they then escaped by a ladder from the balcony. It was rumoured amongst the mob, that the French members were hid in the cellars, and would be destroyed with the fire. The announcement was received with the most brutal cheers. At 12 o'clock, satisfied with the work of the evening, the multitude dispersed. His Excellency the GovernorGeneral, with his family, came into town, and remained all night under the protection of a large guard at Government House. Early this morning, Messrs. Mack, Heward, Montgomerie, and Ferres, proprietor of the Montreal Gazette were arrested on a charge of arson. They were taken before the police magistrates, and after an examination of a few hours, remanded to jail till to morrow. The excitement during the day was intense. A mob of three thousand persons accompanied them to jail. Through the influence of their leaders, the mob were prevented from any outbreak. Had they chosen to do so, the one hundred soldiers who guarded the cabs would have soon been settled. But it was represented that more good would arise from their incarceration for a few hours. In the evening'*it was announced that a meeting would be held on the Champ de Mars to-morrow, at 2 o'clock ; the hon. G. Moffatt to be in the chair; when tbe peace and safety of the country will be discussed. It has already been decided that safety and peace can only be insured by his Excellency going home. Notice will be given himtoquit the confines of Canada before the expiration of the week. Sir Ben. DU rban is to be called upon to administer the affairs of the country till he receives tidings from home. A French magistrate, named Atniott, vrho went with the prisoners, was

nearly torn to pieces ly the mob. ' An assemblage of persons was collected outside the go-vernment-house during the whole day, for the purpose of laying hold of the ministry, and were only prevented from entering the house by the presence of the military, with whom it is the determination of the British party not to quarrel, and it was alsoiy the military's desire. The soldiery enjoyed the fun excessively, and many were the scoffs and jeers passed by both officers and men on the French party. Every now and then one of the ministry would make his appearance at the door, and quickly retire at the ferocious howls of the mob that greeted his presence. The Governor was not in town, he having left in the morning. Half a regiment is stationed at Monklands. About eight o'clock, the mob was augmented to several thousands. Messrs. Lafontaine and Holmes determined to make an attempt to get out in a cab through the mob, which they succeeded in doing, after the cab had been turned round half a-dozen times, the lives frightened out of them, and their clothes torn and bespotted with the yolks of eggs. The frontier of the mob then gave way ; and one of their leaders having given %he word, "To Mr. Hincks' house," the multitude moved off in the direction of Beaver Hall. Three cheers were given for the military as they passed the guard-house. Having arrived at Mr. Hincks' residence, the work of destruction began ; and all the windows and doors of Messrs. Hincks, Holmes, and Wilson's (a radical) dwellings were smashed to pieces. Luckily at tbat moment a cry was made, " To Mr. Lafontaine's," which, together with the account that Mr. Hincks had moved during the day, completely drew off the mob. Immediately upon arriving, the house of Mr. Lafontaine, which was quite new and finished, also the property of Mr. L. himself (although he had not moved into it) was furiously attacked. The outbuildings were set on fire, and the house was completely gutted — furniture smashed, magnificent pier-glasses broken to pieces, feather beds ripped up, and every sort of destruction possible. Three times the house was set on fire, but put out by the leaders. After the work was accomplished, the mob retiring, they found themselves in the presence of a body of troops, for whom, they immediately gave three cheers and passed by. Thus ended the second night, but the worst has to come ; for what is determined to be done to-day, will be led on by men of standing, influence, and wealth. The mob will be armed, and assistance is momentarily expected from the townships. A number of young Frenchmen enrolled themselves as a body guard to protect Lord Elgin, who, strange to say, ran the inevitable consequences of such assistance, viz. : the long talked of war of Taces. The St. Andrew's Society have met, and expelled his lordship from the roll of the Society, returning him, at the same time, his subscription, with interest for all the time it has been in their hands. The Curling Club have met and done the same. It is said that his Excellency bitterly accuses his ministry of having misadvised him. No telegraph reports have been received from Upper Canada, so that we are in ignorance of what is going on. Some underhand work is going on with the telegraph office and the Government, although denied by the managers of the telegraph Au revoir.