left to ages to measure the value of the benefits conferred by the late change and reforms. How flattering to Canadians of all ranks, that this corner of the empire becomes the firft of any of its remote appendages, upon that envied foun dation ! —that rare ltruifture of human policy ; which adverting to the natural, inevitable, and providential distribution of mankind into Rich and Poor, wit h qualities appropriate to their con dition, and of adverfi bia{fej, restrains the spirit and vices incident to each class, and creates a controul upon both, by the elevation of a third order , which in its own turn is corrected by the other two ; and all singly or conjointly operate the welfare of the whole. The Angularity fuggelted, will doubtJefs form an ingredient, among the incitements to the ge neral gratitude las the country, for so honorable a pre-eminence over the reft of the provinces ; (I trust) it will be molt sensibly felt by ihe devout Canadian, whose recolletftion of the hard condi tion of these neglected branches of the domini on of France will admire and adore, that myste rious providence, by which the separation of Canada from that kingdom, became the way of her escape, from the miseries to which France (as we can now fee) was then destined, and that theconqueft so mach dreaded herefrom the long continued enmity of the rival provinces in her vicinity, by drawing this country into a connec tion with a brave and generous nation, which has been the means of accelerating the advance ment of the Canadian French to that degree of felicity and security, which neither the provinc es lately Briiifh, nor the European French, who put every thing at risk for it, as yet have acquir ed, and which England free as her spirit is, ne ver gave to the colonies planted by her own hand. According to the form of the New Conftituti on, as pa fled into an Adt by the Parliament of Great Britain and fan&ioned by the King, the number of members of the legislative councils is limited as follows : Seven for Upper Canada, and fifteen for Lower Canada, the legislative councillor's heirs to succeed in totation, if wor thy. The number of members to compose the lioufes of aflembly in the two provinces, are 16 for Upper Canada, and 50 for Lower Canada,the province to be divided by proclamation. Voters eligible who have rented a house of iol. per an num one year. The proclamation with refpec?t to the division of the province, to be prior to the ill of January, 1792. The executive councils are likewise to call the legislative councils and houses of aflembly before the expiration of the said year 1 792. The Bishop of Nova-Scocia governs the Cler gy in these provinces, who are to be allowed as tythes one seventh of all grants of lands. Among others the following Toaps were given at the principal entertainment in the celebration of the Coihmencement of the New Cunflilutton uj Canada, December 26. THE KING, by found of trumpet, flourifh with rhree times three cheers,and God save the King. New Constitution, do. Rule Brirannia. The glorious Revolution of 1688. The Queen and Royal Family. The Governor General of British America. The Lieut. Governor General Clarke, and the Province. Lieut. Governor Simcoe, iand the Province of Upper Canada. The Peers and Commons of Great Britain who maintained the cause of the People of this Province and supported their petition. The friends of Freedom who meet to celebrate this day. May the New Constitution (peak the will and promote the happiness of the people. The Liberty of the Press and n.ay freedom be guided by wisdom and decorum. Tiial by Jury—and may the right of Jurymen to protect the innocent, remain for ever inviolable. May the Britifti Nation be ever united with all free Nations, to promote the Liberty and Hap piness of all mankind. May all the inhabitants of Canada be grateful to Great-Britain. May all civil diftiniftions among men be founded on public utility. May the feelings which have produced this hap py meeting find their way into the hearts of the rising generation. Peace on earth and good will towards all men. The Constitution of Great Britain drank with three cheers The French Revolution, and true liberty to the wbole world. May the Agriculture of this province procure us an ample supply of good wines. Liberty of Conscience drank with three cheers. . The abolition of the Feudal Syttein. May Agriculture cause Commerce to flourish and Commerce sustain Agriculture. May the fire of Liberty extend itfelf to the frozen climate of Hudson's Bay. IC?" Health and Ready Money. CONGRESS. PHILADELPHIA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, FRIDAY, January 6, 1791- The Memorial of John Churchman, presented a few days finee, was taken into co/ifideration. —It was moved by MR. PAGE, that the memorial should be re fered to a feletft committee. Mr. Williamfon objetfted to the reference—he remarked generally that the fubjecfi had already been before Congress, and had consumed much time. In the Senate, he understood, it had not received any great attention. With ref'peift to the prosperous Hate of the finances, on which the petitioner appears to found his hopes, he would not pretend to determine the state of the Trea sury ; but if it was full, and flowing, he conceiv ed there were other expeditions which would call for all the money we had to i'pare. Mr. Page moved to refer the memorial to the conlideration of a feledt committee—he hoped there would be no opposition to this motion, as the ingenuity of the memorialist, and the impor tance of the objects he had in view, entitled him to the attention of the house. He (aid lie had prelented the memorial to the house last week, at the defile of the memorialist, and had moved that it fhou|d lie on the table for the confidera lion of members; that one objecfl of the memo rialist could not so well be stated to the house as to a committee, where numbers of his papers and calculations might be examined ; that if he should attempt to do Mr. Churchman justice in the house, he might be charged with affetftation, or he might Hot be heard, or if heard, he might not be fuffi ciently undcrftood—he therefore hoped that the memorial might be refered to a feletft commit tee.--In reply to Mr. Williamfon, he was sorry to find that a gentleman, whose name flood on the lift of philosophers, instead of aiding him in countenancing a philosophical enquiry, should oppole even his motion that the house would re fer it to the consideration of a felecft committee. He had not presumed to fay that there was mo ney in the Treasury to be (pared for such purpo ses— or that even-is we had money, that we had a right to give it to Mr. Churchman, if he should prove the truth of his theory ; nor had he, Mr. Page, laid that Mr. Churchman would find the magnetic pole—lie had only affirmed that Mr. Churchman s ingenuity, which was acknowledg ed by many competent judges, and the import ance of the objetffs he had in view (one of which the member himfelf confefled deserved attention, and the other was confefled by several philoso phers and learned societies in Europe) deserved the attention of the house. Sir, added Mr. Pacre, I affirm, since 1 am thus compelled tofupport my motion, that Mr. Churchman's theory, whether he shall be able to find by his proposed voyage the magnetic pole or nor, is a proof of his inge nuity, and is preferable to that of the great Hal ,ey- The latter supposed four magnetic poles, and that they resided within the bowels of the earth ; the former supposes but two, and that one of them is ill the neighbourhood of one of the United States, and within the reach of the fifh ing voyages of another. Since Dr. Halley's the ory has been exploded which did not long account tor the variation of variation, as it is called, and which he explained by an hy'pothefis w'hich has been called extravagant, as it supposed theearth a hollow (hell, with a nucleus within, revolving freely and carrying round it the four points which he supposed attracted the magnetic needle, and gave it its direction ; no theory, except Mr! Churchman's, has been offered to the world which solves so many phenomena of the variation of the needle, and bids fair to be of real use. 1 assisted (by the invitation of one of the committee of the Congress at New-York, to whom Mr. Church man's memorial was refered) in the examination of his theory > elpedting the finding the longitude of any place whose latitude is known, and where* the variation is known, and I did put it to the test ,n this manner I gave Cook's voyages to one of the committee, and desired him to tell me the latitude of any place and the variation found <here, and 1 calculated what the longitude ought to be according to the theory, and conftan.lv found u to be nearly that stated in the voyaoe*- the committee compared Mr. Churchman's caten ations o the longitude which they demanded of htm with that given by Cooke, and found a won derfu agreement ; and I have since seen many of Mr. Churchman's companions of this fort which agree with observations so nearly, as in jnftify my assertion that the theory {hews the in- 318 genuity of Mr. Churchman ; and I will add ti, although it may not l,e generally appl ied tQ ' fi J nig the longitude because of the fmalluefsof"a nation in some places, and other circuinltance?' yet it may be used in many pi if the truth *f theo, y be once eltablifhed ; and whateve can contribute to the discovery of longitude a sea, Mil be worthy os-encouragement • I* granting,hat the variation of the needle could not be applied to the discovery of the longitude at lea, yet_ an easy and certain method of ffndino the variation is a most desirable iliing and f great conference to geography, navi g a tio „ an ° c ftirveymg; and it Mr. Churchman's theory be true, not only the variation, but the alteration of that variation will be found by an easy calcnla t.on at any place whose longitude and latitude' is known, and tor any given time; and he puts the truth of his theory to the test, whirl, few theories have been willing; to do, of a single ex permient, a voyage to Baffin's Bay. The United States need not be ashamed to encourage the me morialift: the British Parliament encouraged voyages to ascertain the truth of Halley's theory and, if I nnftake nor, when that was abandoned' it was supposed that the poles of the earth infl,,' enced the needle ; the Parliament offered 20 00c!. to any one who would go to the north pole and at the expence of their go/vernment, the attempt has been made. But Mr. Churchman only re quires that a voyage be made within 14 degrees of that pole—and all I have allied is, that his me morial be refered to a committee to examine his theory, his calculations and vouchers, refpetTtinw the probability of its truth, and the reasonable* nefSjOt his petition. If the committee fliould think his theory worthy of the experiment, lie proposes to eftablilh its truth; and this h'oufe lheuld not think Congress authorised to grant money for that purpose ; they may recommend Mr. Churchman and his theory to the patronage of the legislatures of the filler dates, whose au thority and ability to enable the memorialist (0 prosecute his enquiries cannot be doubted any more than their readiness to lirten to a recom mendation so worthy of Congress. On the other hand, fliould the committee be of opinion that Mr. Churchman's is a mad projection, and that his petition ought to be rejected, let the house, it fatisfied with their report, confirm it by their unanimous vote—Where then is the danger of refering the memorial to the confederation of a committee? But if the house reject the mor'an for a reference, and the ingenious memorialist be obliged to apply to foreign countries, whose learned societies have already applauded his the ory, and fliould there meet-with encouragement, and be enabled to establish its truth, may we 110 c be in danger of incurring the censure of the li beral and enlightened world ? Mr. Clark made some observations on the fub je<ft. He said that the variation of the needle was already fufficiently understood by all land lurveyors, otherwise they were not fit fsr their business; and with regard to any discoveries by sea, he had little hopes from them, after all the frnitlefs attempts which have been made by the ablell navigators and philofophei s of Europe. Mr. Seney said that there was ,a degree of at tention due to all applications from men of ge nius, and as Mr. Churchman's memorial comes supported by many refpetftable vouchers, it ought certainly to be refered to a committee:—if Congress fliould not deem it proper to give him the aid he requires at present, perhaps it may be recommended to the next house, to affoid him encouragement. Mr. Williamlon faicl it was the very'fatrte pe tition which had been before Congress the la It leffion, when there were only three or four mem bers who appeared to support ir. Mr. I'age laid it was not out of order to recon sider the fubjecft—and to condemn it ra/hly, with out a proper inveftigaNon, would be to render Congress ridiculous in the eyes of the world. Mr. Murray hoped the houie would appoint a committee—he was not in Congress when this Subject was before decided against. This was a queflion 011 which lie was incompetent to decide, but he could feel fufficiently for the literary re putation of the houle, and the great interest ot science, to believe, that to commit the bulinefs to a committee, would belt comport with the dig nity of the subject. Something more than was then submitted to the wisdom of Congress, is now brought forward—at lead Mr. Churchman foal ledges. Let those gentlemen who wilh to have an opportunity ot gratifying a laudable curiosity, he indulged— When a man of science conies here with luppofed discoveries in the active sciences, we owe it to the fubjeift, to ourlelves, and to hu man nature, togive his propositions fair play and mature consideration. We can not do this with out a reference to a committee. Weoughtto be cantiotis how we haflily decide 011 the views and experiments of philosophical applicants, and ought to take warning from the disgrace of other nations whom history has held up for their pre mature rejection of enterprises and schemes ot science. Columbus, him 'elf, Columbus, to w ho" 1 we owe our country, trjvelled about a philofo
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