Page:Early western travels, 1748-1846 (1907 Volume 9).djvu/338

 period for which Canadian timber is exempted from paying duty in Britain, is about to expire, and a fear is entertained that a tax may be imposed by parliament at their next session. The subject excites much interest at present, and in the event of a timber tax being enacted, it may operate as a test for Canadian loyalty.

The government of the Canadas consists of a governor, a legislative council, and a house of assembly in each province. This organization is vested with the power of making such laws as are not {306} contrary to the acts of the British Parliament. The legislative council is summoned by the governor, under the authority of the king, and its members are appointed for life. The assembly is elècted by freeholders, whose qualification is possessing landed property to the yearly value of forty shillings or upwards; or possessing a dwelling house and lot of ground in towns to the yearly value of five pounds, or paying for one year, at least a rent of ten pounds. These assemblies continue for four years at most, but can be dissolved before the termination of the full period. Quebec is the seat of justice for the lower district of the lower province. The court consists of a chief justice and three puisne judges, and public business is conducted by a solicitor-general and an attorney-general. The criminal laws are the same as those of England, but in civil cases the old coutume de Paris is retained. The existence of French laws in the lower province is said to be repulsive to people from Britain, and is probably one of the causes that determines many of them on settling in Upper Canada.

The climate of Canada varies between extremes of heat and cold. A temperature of 96° of Fahrenheit's scale has been observed at this place in summer, and it is