William McKay and the Company. It is given hereunder in full as it is of curious interest and is moreover a very early one, in fact the earliest that has so far been discovered (o).

(0) The original of this contract is in the possession of Mr. James Taylor of Prince Albert, whose father was in the Company's service and had a similiar contract. It is printed on the regular blank form of contract adopted by the company for use in these cases; the parts between brackets are struck out in the original, the italics signify the written portion.

IT IS HEREBY CONTRACTED AND AGREED BETWEEN William McKay of (the Parish of) Hudson's Bay (and County of) North America on the one Part, and the GOVERNOR AND COMPANY OF ADVENTURERS OF ENGLAND trading to HUDSON'S BAY, on the other Part, That the said William McKay shall (embark, when required, on board such Ship or Vessel as the Committee of the said Company shall appoint, and shall proceed to the Settlements of the said Company) in HUDSON'S BAY, (and shall there,) for the term of Three Years, to commence from the Day of the date hereof (his Embarkation,) perform all such work as he shall be required to do, and obey all the Orders which he shall receive from the Governor of the Factory or any other Officer authorized by the said Company: And the said William McKay shall, with Courage and Fidelity in his Station, defend the Property of the Company, their Factories, and Territories, against all Enemies or opponents whatsoever. The said Wm. McKay shall not carry on any trade except for the benefit of the Company and according to their Orders, and in case he shall obtain any Goods by Barter with the Indians or otherwise, the same shall be held by him in Trust for the said Company only, and shall be delivered up to their officers when required. The said William McKay further engages, that he shall not during his abode within the Territories of the said Company aid or abet any persons whatsoever who shall be engaged in any Trade within the Territories of the said Company, contrary to their orders and to the Privileges conferred upon them by their Charter; but he shall, at all Times during his Residence in the said Territories, maintain and defend the Rights and Privileges of the Company, and shall to the utmost of his Power, aid, support, and defend, the Officers appointed by the said Company; and shall obey the Laws and Regulations enacted by the said Company for the good Government of their Territories.

And, in Consideration of the aforesaid Services, the said Company engage to pay to the said William McKay so long as he shall continue in their Service, yearly Wages, after the Rate of Twenty-five pounds per annum, the said William McKay to be employed as a Clerk, and to supply the said William McKay for just and moderate Prices, with such articles as may be necessary for his own use. (And after the Expiration of the aforesaid

It will be remarked that if McKay served his three years faithfully he would get one hundred acres of land "to be held by the said William McKay and his heirs for ever "under the same conditions of obeying the laws and regula"tions of the Company, and of not infringing the privileges granted to them by their charter." A number of contracts made on the same printed form have been referred to and there can be no doubt but that this was the regular agreement made between the Company and its employees under which lands were assigned in the settlement to such of

66

Term of

Years, the said Company shall convey the said back to Scotland, free of Expenses.) But if the said William McKay shall have conducted himself to the full satisfaction of the said Company, and shall desire to remain in their Territories, the said Company shall assign to him One Hundred Acres of Land, to be held by the said William McKay and his Heirs for ever, under the same conditions of obeying the laws and Regulations of the Company, and of not infringing the Privileges granted to them by their Charter. And it is further agreed, That the said Company may dismiss the said William McKay from their Service at any period when they shall see fit. (Provided always, that the said Company bring him back to Scotland free of expense.) It is also agreed, That if the said William McKay intends to quit the Service of the said Company at the Expiration of this Contract he shall give Notice of his Intention to the Officer in authority over him, One Year before; or if the said William McKay be on an Inland Station, he shall give Notice Eighteen Months before the Expiration of the present Contract; and in case he fail to give such Notice, the said William McKay shall be held to have renewed his Engagement for another Year, on the Terms and under the conditions herein contained, in the same manner as if he had signed a new Contract. And it is further agreed, That if the said William McKay shall fail to perform any of the Engagements hereby contracted, he shall forfeit all the Wages and Advantages hereby promised to him. IN WITNESS whereof, this Contract is signed and sealed by the said William McKay and by Thomas Vincent duly authorized by the Governor and Committee of the said Company.

Dated at Albany Factory the Twenty-fifth day of June, 1813.

Witnesseth:

(Sgd.) William Thomas.

(Sgd.) James Slatter.

(Sgd.) William McKay. (Sgd.) Thomas Vincent.

R. Causton & Son, Printers, Finch-Lane, London.

them as had performed their agreement, both during the régime of Lord Selkirk and of the Company.

Now the grantees derived estates in fee simple under these contracts, and, as has been seen, a very large proportion of the titles in the settlement find a root in such allotments to the retired servants of the Company.

A peculiarity of the contracts is that they do not state in what portion of the Company's territories the grants shall be made; as a matter of fact they were made at Red River, but the point would be a nice one in case of an attempt now to compel the Company to carry out the agreement on their part and allot land to some of their former servants who, to the writer's knowledge, claim never to have received such a grant. It is more or less a matter of speculation, and possibly idle, to consider if a proper case for relief were made out what a court of equity would compel the Company to do. It would seem that the matter would largely turn on the time when the agreement was entered into, for it could scarcely be contended on behalf of the Company that a grant of one hundred acres, say on an iron bound promontory of Hudson's Bay, would be a sufficient answer to their agreement to assign a retired servant 100 acres "should he desire to remain in their territories," for he would have no desire to remain They would be probably directed to conform as near as practicable to their undertaking. The number of such claims is necessarily small as the statute of Limitations would bar most of them.

under such conditions.

The next document to be considered evidences the, for many reasons, most important estate granted in Rupert's Land. This is also an estate in fee simple and consists in the conveyance by the Earl of Selkirk, by way of lease and release (p), bearing date the 18th and 19th days of (p) Archiepcal

{

Seal.

THIS INDENTURE made the eighteenth day of May in the year of

May, 1818, respectively, on certain trusts as therein mentioned, to the then Roman Catholic Bishop of Quebec and Our Lord One thousand eight hundred and eighteen, Between the RIGHT HONOURABLE THOMAS EARL OF SELKIRK, of the first part;

And the RIGHT REVEREND JOSEPH OCTAVE PLESSIS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP of the DIOCESE OF QUEBEC, Jean Henri Auguste Roux, of Montreal, in the District of Montreal, and Province of Lower Canada, Clerk, Superior of the Seminary of Montreal at Montreal aforesaid, and Vicar General of the said Diocese, Saveuse de Beaujeu, of Montreal, aforesaid, Esquire, Hugues Heney, of Montreal, aforesaid, Esquire, Advocate, Joseph Norbert Provencher, and Severe Joseph Nicholas Dumoulin, of Montreal, aforesaid, Clerks, of the second part;

Witnesseth that the said party of the first part for and in consideration of the sum of five shillings of good and lawful money of the Province of Lower Canada, to him in hand paid by the said Parties of the second part, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, hath granted, bargained and sold, and by these presents doth grant, bargain and sell unto the said parties of the second part their executors administrators and assigns a certain tract, piece or parcel of land, situate, lying and being in the Territories granted to the Governors and Company of Adventurers of England trading into Hudson's Bay to wit in Rupert's Land commonly called the Hudson's Bay Territories, that is to say all that certain tract piece or parcel of land situate lying and being on the East side of Red River and bounded by a line beginning on the Right bank of Red River aforesaid at the mouth of a small river known by the name of the Riviere de la Seine and running in an easterly direction for the distance of one hundred English statute chains along the Southern boundary of a lot of land laid out and assigned to Jean Baptiste La Gimoniere, and thence running due east for the further distance of five English Statute miles, thence due south for four English Statute miles, thence due West until the said line shall reach the said River de la Seine, and thence in a northerly direction, along the stream of the said River de la Seine, to the place of beginning, and also that certain other piece or parcel of land lying being and situate on the right bank of Red River aforesaid and nearly opposite to the mouth of Assiniboine River, bounded on the Westward by the said river and extending in front along the same for the space of three hundred and thirty yards or fifteen English statute chains northward from the boundary of a lot of land assigned to Frederick Damien Heurter, bounded on the southward and northward by lines running at right angles to the shore of the River and extending for the space of fifteen statute chains, and bounded on the eastward by a line parallel to the course of the River, and the Reversion and Reversions, Remainder and Remainders, Rents, issues and profits thereof with the appurtenances, to have and to hold the same and every part and parcel thereof with the appurtenances unto the said parties of the second part,

to Fathers Provencher and Dumoulin, already mentioned, and three others, of the large and very valuable tract of their Executors Administrators and Assigns, from the day next before the day of the date hereof for and during and until the full end and term of one whole year from thence forth next ensuing and fully to be complete and ended, yielding and paying therefor at the expiration of the said term unto the said party of the first part one pepper-corn if demanded. To the intent that by virtue of these presents and by force of the statute for the transferring of uses into possession, the said parties of the second part may be in the actual possesion of the said Premises and appurtenances, and be thereby enabled to take and accept of the grant and release of the Reversion and Inheritance to them and the survivors of them and to such other persons to whom any conveyance or conveyances of the said premises shall or may at any time hereafter be made or who may by the said parties of the second part be associated with them the said parties of the second part in this behalf or with the survivors of them the said parties of the second part by virtue and conformably to one other Indenture to be made bearing date the day next after the day of the date of these presents, for ever upon the trusts and sole intents uses and purposes to be declared thereof in and by the said other indenture so to be made, bearing date the day next after the day of the date of these presents as aforesaid.

In Witness whereof the said parties to these presents have hereunto respectively set their hands and seals the day and year first above writien.

Signed sealed and delivered at
Montreal in the Province of Lower
Canada, where no stamps are used,
in presence of

(Signed) "D. Mondelet."
(Signed) "L. Viger."
(Signed) "L. Th. Bédard."
(Signed) "Cl. Gauvreau."

(Signed) "Selkirk ” (L. S.)
(Signed) "J. O. Plessis,

C. R. Bp. of Quebec." (L.S.)
(Signed) "Roux P. (L.S.)"
(Signed) "Jh. N. Provencher "(L.S.)
(Signed) "Sev. Dumoulin " (L.S.)
(Signed) “S. de Beaujeu" (L.S.)
(Signed) "H. Heney" (L.S.)

Witnesses.

Pour vraie copie.

(Signed) C. Baillargeon, Pth. Secretaire Archeriche de Quebec, 5 Aout, 1870.

THIS INDENTURE made the nineteenth day of May in the year of Our Lord one thousand Eight hundred and eighteen,

Between the RIGHT HONOURABLE THOMAS EARL OF SELKIRK, of the first part,

And the Right Reverend Joseph Octave Plessis, Roman Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of Quebec, Jean Henry Auguste Roux of Montreal in the District of Montreal and Province of Lower Canada, Clerk