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is b , a .‘Alnt‘m’ Who. d" the Home of at its lab" 2 V ido, and which were ordered to. be printed, is the

;. (fkcriptivo account of P. E. Island—then called St.

John's Island—furnished to government, by the late Samuel ,.Holland, Esq. Surveyor General of British North America, so far _ back as the year 1765. Lot attentive observers contrast its thco

‘ Downing Street, _ r 18th November, 1840. Sir; ; _ . . ' I search having been made for the ancient , 5 OI Prince Edward Island, and for the Mapcr ll - ' x. 194‘ QIGeOrgetoWn, which you ivere desirous'ofobtain- I I 5- the information of the Hmse of Assembly, I re- iglgflttostats, that no trace can be found of those docu- ments. 1 I obclose, however, a copy of a description ofthe Inland, drawn up by Mr. Holland, in October, l765, u , which I hope will prOVe useful to the Assembly. ‘ ‘ ~ I have the honor to be, Sir, Your most obedient servant,

- . . (Signed) J. Russeu. Liam. Governor ' r..- - — Sir Charles A. Fitz Roy, . 51.43. 6m. doc. I; . a

81'. Joan’s is divided into three Counties—.King’s County, on the East part, has four Parishes, Viz: St. George’s, St. Andrew’s, St. Patrick’s, and the East

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3 iron srxmc 'rnc '1'"an PRINCIPAL’TOWNS , (as raoroseo), on was-r roonneo. ‘

The capital, called Charlottetown, is proposed to be built upon a point of the harbour, betwixt York all! I'lillsborough Rivers, as being one of the best, and near- ly a centrical part of the Island; has the advantage.“ an immediate and easy communication with the interior parts of the Island, by means of the three fine R1V_e|'5 0f Ilillsbowugh,Yor,k, and Elliot. The ground desrgned for the Town and Fortifications is well situated upon a regular ascent from the water side ; a fine riyulet will run through the Town ; a Battery or two, some distance advanced, will entirely command the harbour; at} 899' my attempting to attack tlie‘Tuwn cannot do it wrthout great diflicultics, viz: having passed the batteries at'the entrance of the harbour, they must attempt a passage up Hillsborough or York Rivers, the channels of both of which are intricate, and the entrance of the respec- tive channels will be so near the Town that it must also be attended with the greatest hazard. Should they land any troops on either side of the Bay of Hillsborough. they must still have the river ofthe same name on the East, or Elliot and York Rivers on the West, to pass, before they could effect any thing of consequence. AS this side ofthe Island cannot have any fishery, it may probably be thought expedient to indulge it with-some particular privileges; and as all judicial and civil. as well as good part of the commercial business Will be transacted here, it will make it at least equally flourish- ing with the County Towns. ceoncc'roivx.

f Recommended to be built upon that point of-land called Cardigan Point, there being a good harbour for ships ofany burthcn on each side of Cardigan River, 0“ the North, or Montague River upon the South side; but

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l’ Parish; and subdivided into twenty Townships, con- taining in all 406,000 acres. Queen's County, near the ‘iuiddle ofthe Island, has five Parishes, viz :—Charlotte, ,Hilllborbugh, Grenville, Bedford, and Saint John’s, and

l" will subdivided into twenty Townships,. and contains in

f jlll 453,4;20‘acres. Prince County, in the North West

.‘ art, is divided into five Parishes, viz :-—St. David’s,

i ichtnond, Halifax, Egmont, and the North Parish, and

' subdivide into twenty-three Townships, containing in \v d1467,00 acres.

son. AND PRODUCE. « The soil in general on the South, and South East , side of the Island, a reddish clay, though in many places it is sandy, particularly upon the North coast; from the .But Point to St. Peter's, is a greyish sand. .The “'00de fawn this coast, from the East Point as far Southward as V illsborough River, and to Bedford Bay on the “fest, um entirely destroyed by fire, about twenty-six years since—it was so extremely violent, that all the fishing vessels at St. Peter’s and Morel, upon St. Peter’s Bay . and Morel, were burned. In many parts round the Island, is rough steep coast, from forty to sixty feet high—— in some places a hundred—compbsed of strains ofa soft ~'red stone, which, when exposed to the air for some time, becomes harder, and is not unfit for building. _,Wherever this sort of coast is, it diminishes considera- rbly every year upon the breaking up ofthe frost, which 'rnoulders away a great part of it. It may probably be ’ ‘owin to this cause that the Sea betwixt the Island and Ilthc ontinent is frequently of a red hue, and for that season hymen people called the Red Sea; on the ' NW and Sotflh East side, it has received some addi- tion by the banks of sand which the Sea has thrown in . pThere are no high hills in this part of the Island, but merely a small ascent inland. The Rivers are properly ‘Sol Creeks, the tides flowing up to the heads, where / :genorolly streams of fresh water empty themselves. In .3 , most parts of the Island the sarsnpnrella root is in great i . abundance, and very good. The mountain-shrub and i'btliden-hair are also pretty ’common, of whose leaves and berries the Acadians and Soldiers frequently make . a kind of tea. The ground is in general c0vered with, strawberries in their different seasons, which are very .~,_. good; with proper care, it produces most kinds of grain, ' wheat, barley, oats, peas, beans, doc; also, cabbage, cauliflower: and potatoes, very good, in great abundance}; emote, turnips, 61.0. In those places which have been .csttled, and are still tolerany cleared, is very good grass ; _ jun great part of the lands formerly cleared are so overgrown with brush and small wood, that it will I). extremely diflicult to form a true estimate ofthe "‘ cleared lands, or to make it fit for the plough again. a ' be proper to observe here, that very few houses mentio ed in the explanation of the Townships are good {gloomy thing, and by no means tenantable, except one or two at St. Peter’s, kept in repair by the officers, and one built by me at Observation Cove.

TIMBER. Red and white oak, neither of which are in plenty or oflnrge growth; beech and maple very good ; black and 'white birch, the former of which is a useful and hand- some wood. The pine is extremely large and fine. In some places is found the curled maple, which takes an .uoellentpolish. Spruce of many kinds is the universal roduce of the whole Island ; from one species of which is got the Balsam of Canada, which the Canadians hold in great repute. From the maple also, at the proper time ofthe year, is extracted a liquor which they boil into a sort of sugar, pretty good and medicinal. ' wnA'r more or run ISLAND Ann ncsr srrua'rcn van t Titans AND risnear, WITH THE REASONS. \ l ‘i’ ‘.Rort'Joy,' Cardigan, and Richmond Bay, are withou ' dispute the only places where ships of burthen can safe _‘ i, 'th‘enter, and consequently most proper to erect the prin j' , ofipITTowus and Settlements upon. In point of fishing” . tchmond Bay has much the advantage of situation; l l

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. . $5.7.-.“ ,

the fish being in great plenty most part ofthe year, and close to the harbour. Ships outward bound from any of the above ports have their choice of two passages out of the G ’ h of St. Lawrence, viz: the Gut ol‘Canso, or d the North Cape of the Isle of Cape Breton, either of which they prefer, as the weather, season of the year, __ or bound to, may make it most advisable. Such parts _.of the lslpnd- on the South West coast, or the places in- . land, not conveniently situated for fishing, may and un- ‘ ~iloubtedly will turn to a general good account, if ‘ proper encouragement be given to settlers, whose busi-,' “ness is the cultivation oflands only—and upon the settling Of the Island, I would humbly recommend that this f particular branch ofpeople should receive the utmost encouragement; the great length and severity of the Winters making it extremely expensive and difficult to ‘ provide sustenance for their stock, as that season is of V very little use to them; besides the very short time they , have. for ploughiiig, ‘sewing, reaping, and making of hay, will take? up their attention so closely while the . and weather continues, that it must of course make the ent'point of clearing of the Island go on but slow.

an; _". The French name for-Charlottetown harbour.

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the latter, though a much narrower channel upon com- ing in, is preferable, as the Bay for anchoring will be close by the Town. Immediately upon entering the river, and going round the Goose Neck, :1 long point of dry sand running halfover the river, and forming one side of Albion Bay, the place for anchorage, upon the Goose Neck, may be erected :1 Pier with great ease, and at a small expense, where goods could be shipped and unshipped with great facility and convenience.

The place proposed for the town is so situated as to require very little difliculty in making it secure, as well as at the entrance into the two respective harbours. It ought not to be omitted mentioning the advantage it >has of a communication inlaird by means of Cardigan, Brudencll and Montague Rivers, from the top of which last to the source of Orwell River is not quite ten miles; and Or well River emptying itself into the great Bay of Hillsborough, makes a safe and short communication betwixt two ofthe County Towns, both winter and sum- mer.

PniNcaTowN.

( Besides the advantages mentioned of Richmond Bay, it is proposed to be built. on a most. convenient spot of ground, as well for its fisheries as fortifications, being situated on a peninsula, having Darnley Bay on the North East, which is a convenient harbour for small vessels, and where they may be laid up to winter; lying at the entrance to Richmond Bay, with all the conve- nient grounds for curing and drying of fish about it, and ships of burtlicn can anchor near in the Buy. For its fortifications, the neck of land can be strengthened with little expense, and some batteries and small works crec- ted along the shore will entirely secure it.

BIRDS, BEASTS, AND FISIIES.K '

Here are Bears, Otters, Martins, Foxes, red, black, and grey, Lynxes or Wild Cats, Minxcs, Musk Rats, and some, though very few Czirribou, a kind ofa Deer; Ilares extremely good, but in the winter are white. Oi" birds, may be accounted the Eagles of their several spe- cies, though not very common; llawks,Partridges, a kind ofa Thrush, called Robins, in great abundance, who sing vcry agreeably; of birds of passage there are a great variety, as Doves, lvhich come in July and Au- gust, Corbcjeaux, a kind of a Woodcock, which fly together in large flocks ; Plover, Snipes, Curlews, Ou- tards, a. large and fine sort of Wild Goose; the Brant Goose, a smaller sort, but of excellent flavour ; Ducks of many kinds, Tecl, Moyaques, Cacois, Marchaux, Cacoas, Carmes de Roche, Goelans, Esterlets, Margotts, Godes, Sea Pigeons, Perrigains, &.c., many of which are peculiar to this climate; but in the winter there is scarce a bird to be seen except Partridges, and some few straggling wild fowl, who either wdit. to breed,'or are else crippled, and are disabled from accompanying the rest upon their return. Fish—both Sea and River fish there is great abundance, and extremely good, viz: Cod, Turbot, Hollybut, Thombock, Sturgeon, Place, Flouiiders, Mackerel, and Gasperau, a kind ofa Mac: here], but smaller, and often used as bait for Codfish. In the rivers and lakes, are also very fine Trout and Eels, Smelts; also, in More] River are some Salmon; along the coast and in the rivers are Lobsters, Oysters and Muscles, extremely good and in great plenty, be- sides a shell fish they call Clams, and another named Razor Fish—iii short, for beasts, birds, and fish, no place can wish to be more plentifully stored, though the chase of theorist attended with difficulty and trouble, and requires muCh patience.

NATURE AND arrears or THE CLIMATE.

The time of setting in of the frosts in winter and their breaking up in the spring is very uncertain, sometimes being a difference of three or four weeks. In general it is observed, that about October there usually begins to be frosts morning and evening, which gradually in- crease in severity till about the middle of December, when it becomes extremely sharp; at this time a Nonh- west wind, with small sleet, seldom fails. In a little time the rivers on‘the Island are frozen tip, and even some distance from land, upon the Sea coast, the ice soon becomes safe to travel upon, and is at least from 2'2 or ‘24 to 30 inches thick. The snow upon the ground and in the woods is often a surprising depth, and no possibility of passing except upon snow shoes. The Acadians now have recourse to little cabins or huts in the woods, where they are screened from the violence of the weather, and at the same time have the convenience of wood for fuel so near them. ' Here they live upon the fish they have cured in t e summer, and other game {which they frequently kill%s Hares, Partridges, Lynxes or Wild Cats, Otters, Mar us, or Musk Rats none of which they refuse to eat, as their necessities piess them. In the spring the riycrs seldom break up till April, :1 the snow IS not entirely off the ground ti blay. It ought to be observed here, that as St. Jolih’s is fortunately not troubled with fogs as the neiahboufing Islands of Cape Breton and Newfoundland, minim is it so settled and constant a climate as Canada' here is quick and frequent change of weather, as “In, snow bail and hard frosts, which sometimes suéceed eacli other in a very small space of time.

The res ective divisions of the_IsI r . _ . 0 possible, agreeably. to my instructions ; aha dgzésilqgsthe the Counties, Parishes, and Townships ongv It lines Mannetic North and South, or East and . es f r the; beige the most. easy _way of runningdhe lines 1(1) na- Survreyors that will be employed on this servrce, t phod tural situation ofthe Island liavmg fayoured thlsgle 'mc; It is not possible to divude the Counties or Parisljshl ve more equal parts, as the lines othermse won alo been too much confounded and confused; it has :8 been observed in dividing the Townships to give tdean a share of What natural advantages the Island afi'or e . The two inland lots that could not be brought to any Township are left undetermined. There are 520 acrgs preserved for the first Lot, havmg 1000 yards to t e North, South and West from the centre of Fort A'mherst, and to the East as far as the water Side; but it must also be remarked that theI first Lot takes up almost all a ed lands of Port 0y. tIREI‘llliSrd may be some smalllbrooks in the centre of the ‘ t ex ressed in the ) an. . IalThde "socalepproposed to ivork with, I was obliged to alter to that of 4000 feet to a yard, as we found that suf- ficientlv large and expressive; but should any part be re- quired to be ofa still larger scale, it shall be done whenever ordered. The project for laying'out the County Towns will be sent by the first opportunity from Loursbourg. Throuubout the whole survey has been observer] the greatest :xactness ; and all Rivers and Creeks are sur- veyed as far as a boat or canoe would go, or the chain- men penetrate, but sometimes we were obliged to stop, by inaccessible woods and swamps.

(Signed) SAMUEL HOLLAND. Island St. John’s, Observation Cove, October 5th, 1765.

At Cloninell Assizes, on the 17th August, four men named Ryan were indicted for setting fire to the dwel- ling-house of Patrick Walsh, and James M‘Carthy for, being accessory before the fact. The only Witness exa- mined for the prosecution, seems to have been John Lysaght; who said that he was of the partyaflnd that M‘Carthy sent them ou~the errand and provided the materials for their-crime. Part of this witness’s eVi- dence is worth giving at length, for the cool atroctty of its admissions—

Judge Torrens—“ Was it you murdered Noonan ’l” Witness—“No, Ijoiiied in it.” Mr. Hatchell—"‘ How many men did you murder before this?” ,WitneSs— “ None.”

‘ Mr. Hatchell~“ You went with the party to the burn- ing for the love of amusement ’l”—f‘They induced me to go with them, but did not force me: I was not very unwilling to go aftér I got the liquor ; but when I brought the gun had no-sucli intention.” “Did you load the gun before you went out?”——-“ I did.” “ Had you liber- ty to carry a gun ’l"—”Yes, from a Magistrate, Mr. Coates, who is since dead.”

“ Were you ever tried before you committed the mur- dcr on Noonan 'l"—“Indeed I was: I was tried here for posting a threatening notice, but. it..was no such thing.” “ iVerc you not sentenced to be transported I” —“ I was.” “ Did you not fire shots at the same time ’l” —“ Yes.” Judge Torrens—“ And the reward you gave the Government for bringing you back was murdering Noonan 7”

Mr. Hatchell—“You say you were only present at the murder ofNOonan: now, was it not you that knock- ed down the unfbrtunate man with the but-end ofa blunderbuss’l”——“ Yes, the very first.” “ And do you not call that murdering the man ’l”—“ We were all murv dering him.” “ Were you not one ofthem who carried him into the ditch to hide the body 7.”—“I was.”

“ Did you know Leonard, the smith ’l”—“ I did.” “Did you see him killed ’!”———“I saw him struck, but was not looking on, at his killing.” . “ Did you give a blow then ’l”—“I did not strike a blow at the man.” “ Did you give a blow that day l”—“ Yes, when myself was struck.” -

“ Do you remember Wat. Hayes 'l”—“ Yes.” “ You attacked him, but he shot. you off l”-—“ No, he did not.” “ Was not one of your companions shot by Mr. Hayes I” —“ No, but by a man on the road near me.” (Laugh- tcr.) “ Now tell me, did he not kill one of vour friends?” ——“Oh, he had a party against us, and wriylaid us.”

“Did you remember Jemmy Hughes, who was killed with a liatchct?”——-“ I did.” “ Were you lookino‘ on at his murder '!”——-“ Oh no; he was married to may ,first cousin.” “ \Vere you not taxed with the murder”— “ The whole country knew who was in that affair.”

“ You recollect David Hickey, who was killed at Bil- boa l”—-“ I was in the fair.” “ You were ofthe party I” —“ I was looking at him.” “That was your third mur- der ’!" A Juror—“ HLS' fifth murder!”

“Did you rob Michael Rogers?”—-“ the course oflaw, and was acquitted.” r

H You know ‘Mick Griffin,’ Lord Stradbrokc's/herd 2" —“ I heard he was shot.” ,«

“Vitals Your brbther Caravat accused f this loose- ness“! —“ No; I never heard of it.” “ id you'not say that you would put a rope about M‘Csm’i'y’s neck 1"— “ I did'not. I remember when Kennedy was put out of possession : M‘Carthy’s’ cattle and premises were burned after this, but the country say himself did it, I never asked a farm of Lord Slradbrokc’,‘ but my father or bro- ‘l’e"? m'ght- I never heard ‘Carthy prevented us getting the farm on the groun ofour being so bad. I

married, and bless the cou ry with a wife and three children.” ‘

‘

No; but/Iigot

Mr. Hatchell—J‘ Do yo remember you and your nu- cle carrying away a wet n l”——“ I do." “ Your uncle was transported 'l"——“

“ So you have bee guilty of one abduction, five mur- ders, and one bumi g; what else did you do ’l”

Judge Torrens “ Did you commit a rape 'l”——“ No ” Mr, Hatche]]_‘ Now any of your brothers convicted of rape g”_u Ye ’ “ Were you not charged with holdin the unfortu, e woman while your brother committ g mg rape 1" _“ No, but another brother was.” e . Mr. H chell—“ Would you sugoest any other cr'

m the alogue ofwhich you were lhot ouilty 7” lme

Ju Ye Torrens—-“ Did you steal cattfe ’l”——.“ No ”

.Hatchcll——“ That would be too shabby an alien W I; you came to the house of Walsh you lifted onec:f H yans up to the roof? —-—“ Yes,” H And you m the

I] II the middlelfi