PETITION OF THE ACADIANS DEPORTED TO PHILADELPHIA
To His Most Excellent Majesty, Kiug of Great Britain, etc., etc.
The humble Pétition of his subjects, the late French inhabitants of Nova Scotia, formerly settled ou the Bay of Mines, and rivers hereunto belonging; now residing in the Province of Pennsylvania, on behalf of themselves and the rest of the late inhabitants of the said bay, and also of those formerly settled on the river of Annapolis Royal, wheresoever dispersed.
May it please Your Majesty,
It is not in our power sufficiently to trace back the conditions upon which our ancestors first settled in Nova Scotia, under the protection of Your Ma-
jesty's predecessors, as the great part of our elders who were acquainted with thèse transactions are dead; but more specially because our papers, which contained our contracts, records, etc., etc., were, by violence, taken from us some time before the unhappy catastrophe which has been the occasion of the calamities we are now under; but we always understood the foundation thereof to be from an agreement made between Your Ma jesty's Commanders in Nova Scotia and our forefathers about the year 1713, whereby they were permitted to remain in the possession of their lands, under an oath of fidelity to the British Government, with an exemption from bearing arms, and the allowance of the free exercise of our religion.
It is a matter of certainty, — and within the compass of some of our memories — that in the year 1730, General Philii^ps, the Governor of Nova Scotia, did, in Your Majesty's name, confirm unto us, and ail the inhabitants of the whole extent of the Bay of Minas and rivers thereunto belonging, the free and entire possession of those lands we were then possessed of ; which, by grants from the former French Government, we held to us and our heirs forever, on paying the customary quit-rents, etc.. etc. And on condition that we should behave with due submission and fidelity to Your Majesty, agreeable to the oath which was then administered to us, which is as follows, viz. : "We siucerely promise and swear, by the faith of a Christian, that we shall be entirely faithful, and will truly submit ourselves to His Majesty King George, whom we acknowledge as sovereign Lord of New Scotland, or Acadia; so God help us."
And at the same time, the said General Philipps did, in like manner, promise the said French inhabitants, in Your Majesty's name, that they should hâve the true exercise of their religion, and be exempted from bearing arms, and from being employed in war, either against the French or Indians. Under the sanction of this solemn engagement we held our lands, made further purchases, anuually paying our quit-rents, etc., etc.; and we had the greatest reason to conclude that Your Majesty did not disapprove of the above agreement, and that our conduct continued, during a long course of years, to be Buch as recommended us to your gracions protection, and to the regard of the Governor of New England, appears from a printed déclaration, made seventeen years after this time, by His Excellency William Shirley, Governor of New England, which was published and dispersed in our country, some copies of which bave escaped from the gênerai destruction of most of our papers, part of which is as follows:
"By His Majesty's command,
"A déclaration of William Shirley, Esq., Captain-General and Governorin-Chief, in and over His Majesty's Province of Massachusetts' Bay, etc.
<'To His Majesty's subjects, the French inhabitants of his province o^ Nova Scotia: Whereas, upon being informed that a report had been propa-
gated among His Majesty's subjects, the Frencb iuhabitants of his Province of Nova Scotia, that there was an intention to reniove them from their settlements in that Province, I did, by my déclaration, dated 16th September, 1746, signify to them that the same was groundless, and that I was, on the contrary, pcrsuadcd that Hia Majcsty would be graciously pleased to extend his royal protection to ail such of them as should continue in their fidelity aud allegiancc to him, and in no wise abet or hold correspondeuce with the encmies of his crown; and therein assured them, that I would make a favourable représentation of their state and circumstances to His Majesty, and did accordingly transmit a représentation thereof to be laid before him, and I hâve thereupon received his royal pleasure, touching his aforesaid subjects in Nova Scotia, with hi^ express commmxds to signify the same to them in his name: now, by virtue thereof, and in obédience to His Majesty's said orders, I do hereby déclare, in His Majesty's name, that there is not the least foundation for any appréhensions of His Majesty's intending to remove them, the said inhabitants of Nova Scotia, from their said settlements and habitations within the said Province; but that, on the contrary, it is His Majesty's resolution to protect and maintain ail such of them as hâve adhered to and shall continue in their duty aud allegiance to him, in the quiet and peaceable possession of their respective habitations and settlements, and in the enjoyment of their rights and privilèges as his subjeets, etc., etc."
Dated at Boston, the 21st of October, 1747.
And this is farther confirmed by a letter, dated 29th of June, in the same year, wrote to our deputies by Mr. Mascarene, then Your Majesty's chief commander in Nova Scotia, whieh refers to Governor Shirley's first déclaration, of which we hâve a copy, legally authenticated, part of which is as foUows, viz. :
"As to the fear you say you labor under, on account of being threatened to evacuate the country, you hâve in possession His Excellency William Shirley's printed letter, whereby you may be made easy in that respect: you are sensible of the promises I bave made to you, the effects of which you hâve already feit, that, I would protect you so long as, by your conduct and fidelity to the Crown of Great Britain, you would enable me to do so, which promise I do again repeat to you. ' '
Near the time of the publication of the before mentioned déclaration, it was required that our deputies should, on behalf of ail the people, renew the o?.th formerly taken to General Philipps, which was donc without any mention of bearing arms, and we can with truth say, that we are not sensible of altération in our disposition and conduct since that time; but that we always continued to retain a grateful regard to Your Majesty and your Government, notwithstanding which, we hâve found ourselves surrounded with difficulties unknown to us before. Your Majesty determined to fortify our Province and
eettle Halifax; which the French looking upon with jealousy, they ma de fréquent incursions through our country, in order to annoy that settlement, whereby we came exposed to many straits and hardships; yet, from the obligations we were under, from the oath we had taken, we were never under any doubt, but that it was our indispensable duty and intercst, to remain true to your Government and our oath of fidelity, hoping that in time those difïiculties would be removed, and we should see peace and tranquillity restored; and if, from the change of affairs in Nova Scotia, Your Majesty had thought it not iuconsistent with the safety of your said Province to let ua remain there upon the terms promised us by your Governors, in Your Majesty 's name, we should doubtless hâve acquiesced with any other reasonable proposai whieh might hâve been made to us, consistent with the safety of our aged parents, and tender wives and children ; and we are persuaded, if that had been the case, whereever we had retired, we should hâve held ourselves under the strongest obligations of gratitude, from a thankful remembranee of the happiness we had enjoyed under Your Majesty 's administration and gracious protection. About the time of the settlement of Halifax, General Cornwallis, Governor of Nova Scotia, did require that we should take the oath of allegiance without the exemption before allowed us of not bearing arms; but this we absolutely refused, as being an infringement of the principal condition upon which our forefathers agreed to settle under the British Government.
And we aequainted Governor Cornwallis, that if Your Majesty was not willing to continue that exemption to us, we désire liberty to evacuate the country, proposing to settle on the Island of St. John, whcre the French Governnieut waswilling to let us hâve; which proposai he at the time refused to consent to, but told us he would acquaint Your Majesty thercwith and return us an answer. But we never received an answer, nor was any proposai of that made to us until we were made prisoners.
After the settlement of Halifax we suffered many abuses and insults from Your Majesty 's enemies, more specially from the Indians in the interest of the French, by whom our cattle was killed, our houses pillaged, and many of us pcrsonally abused and put in fear of our lives, and some even carried away prisoners towards Canada, solely on account of our résolution to maintain our oath of fidelity to the English Government ; Particularly Eene LeBlanc — our public notary — was taken prisoner by the Indians when actually travelling in Your Majesty 's service, his house pillaged, and himself carried to the French fort, from whence he did not recover his liberty but with great difiiculty, after four years, captivity.
We were likewise obliged to comply with the demand of the enemy, made for provisions, cattle, etc., etc., upon pain of military exécution, which we had reason to believe the Government was made sensible was, not an act of choice on our part, but of necessity, as those in authority appeared to take in good part the représentations we always made to them after anythingk of that nature had happened.
Notwithstanding the many difliculties we thus laVjoured uudcr, yet we dare appeal to the several Governors, both at Halifax aud Annapolis Royal, for testimonies of our being always ready and willing to obey their orders, and give ail the assistance in our power, either in furnishing provisions and materials, or making roads, building forts, etc., etc., agreeable to Your Majesty's orders, and our oath of fidelity, whensoever called upon, or required thereunto.
It was also our constant care to give notice to Your Majesty 's commandera, of the danger they from time to time hâve been exposed to by the enemy's troops, and had the intelligence we gave been always attended to, many lives might hâve been spared, particularly in the unhappy alïair which befell Major Noble and his brother at Grand Pre, when they, with great numbers of their men were eut off by the enemy, notwithstanding the fréquent advices we had given them of the danger they were in; and yet we hâve been very unjustly accused as parties in that massacre.
And although we hâve been thus anxiously concerned to manifest our fidelity in thèse several respects, yet it has been falsely insinuated, that it had been our gênerai practice to abet and support Your Majesty's enemies; but we trust that Your Majesty will not suffer suspicions and accusations to be received as proof sufficient to reduce thousauds of innocent people, from the most happy situation to a state of the greatest distress and misery. No, this was far from our thoughts; wee steemed our situation so happy as by no means to désire a change.
We hâve always desired, and again désire that we may be permitted to answer our accusers in a judicial way. In the meantime permit us, sir, hère solemnly to déclare, that thèse accusations are utterly false and groundless, so far as they concern us as a collective body of peoole. It hath been always our désire to live as our fathers hâve done, as faithful subjects under Your Majesty's royal protection, with an unfeigued résolution to maintain our oath of fidelity to the utmost of our power. Yet it cannot be expected but that amongst us, as well as amongst other people, there hâve been some weak and false-hearted persons, susceptible of being bribed by the enemy so as to break the oath of fidelity. Twelve of thèse were outlawed in Governor Shirley's Proclamation bef ore mentioned ; but it will be f ound that the number of such falsehearted men amongst us were very few, considering our situation, the number of our inhabitants, and how we stood circumstanced in several respects; and it may easily be made to appear that it was the constant care of our Deputies to prevent and put a stop to such wicked conduct when it came to their knowledge.
We understand that the aid granted to the French by the inhabitants of Beaubassin has been used as an argument to accelerate our ruin ; but we trust that Your Majesty will not permit the innocent to be involved with the guilty; no conséquence can be justly drawn, that, because those people yielded to the threats and persuasions of the enemy we should do the same. They were situated
80 far from Halifax as to be in a great measure out of the protection of the English Government, which was not our case; we were separated from them by sixty miles of uncultivated land, and had no other connection with them than what is usual with neighbors at such a distance; and we can truly say, we looked on their défection from Your Majesty's interest with great pain and auxiety. Nevertheless, not long before our being made prisoners, the house in which we kept our contracts, records, deeds, etc., was invested with an armed force, and ail our papers violently carried away, none of which hâve to this day been returned us, whereby we are in a great measure deprived of means of making our innocence and the justness of our complaints appear in their true light.
Upon our sending a remonstrance to the Governor and Council, of the violence that had been offered us by the seizure of our papers, and the groundless fears the Government appeared to be under on our account, by their taking away our arma, no answer was returned to us; but those who had signed the remonstrance, and some time after sixty more, in ail about eighty of our elders, were summoned to appear before the Governor in Council, which they immediately complied with; and it was required of them that they should take the oath of allegiance without the exemption which, during a course of nearly fifty years, has been granted to us and to our fathers, of not being obliged to bear arms, and which was the principal condition upon which our ancestors agreed to remain in Nova Scotia, when the rest of the inhabitants evacuated the country; which, as it was contrary to our inclination and judgment, we thought ourselves engaged in duty absolutely to refuse. Nevertheless, we freely offered, and would gladly hâve renewed our oath of fideiity, but this was not accepted, and we were ail immediately made prisoners, and were told by the Governor, that our estâtes, both real and personal, were forfeited for Your Majesty's use. As to those who remained at home, they were summoned to appear before the commandera in the forts, which we showing some fear to comply with, on account of the seizure of our papers, and imprisonment of so many of our elders, we had the greatest assurance given us, that there was no other design but to make us renew our former oath of fideiity; yet, as soon as we were within the fort, the same judgment was passed on us as had been passed on our brethren at Halifax, and we were also made prisoners.
Thus, notwithstanding the solemn grants made to our fathers by General rhilipps, and the déclaration made by Governor Shirley and M. Mascarene in Your Majesty's name, that it was Your Majesty's resolution to protect and maintain ail such of us as should continue in their duty and allegiance to Your Majesty, in the quiet and peaceable possession of their settlements, and the enjoyment of ail their rights and privilèges as Your Majesty's subjects; we found ourselves at once deprived of our liberties, without any judicial proeess, or even without any accusera appearing against us, and this solely grounded on mistaken jealousies and false suspicions that we are inclinable to take part with
Your Majesty's enemies. But we again déclare that that accusation is groundleesB; it was our fixed resolution to maintain, to the utmost of our power, the oath of fidelity whith we had taken, not only from a sensé of indispensable duty, but also because we were well satisfied with our situation under Your Majesty 's Government and protection, and did not think it could be bettered by any change which could be proposed to us. It has also been falsely insinuated that we held the opinion that we might be absolved from our oath so as to break it with impunity, but this we likewise solemnly déclare to be a false accusation, and which we plainly evinced by our exposing ourselves to so great losses and sufferings rather than take the oath proposed to the Governor and Council, because we apprehended we could not in conscience comply therewith.
Thus we, our ancient parents and grandparents — men of great integrity and approved fidelity to Your Majesty — and our innocent wives and children, became the unhappy victims to those groundless fears; we were transported into the English Colonies, and this was done in so much haste, and with so little regard to our necessities and the tenderest ties of nature, that from the niost social enjoyments, and afiBueut circumstances, many found themselves destitute of the necessaries of life. Parents were separated from children, husbands from wives, some of whom hâve not to this day met again ; and we were 80 crowded in the transport vessels, that we had not room even for ail our bodies to lay down at once, and consequently were prevented from carrying with us proper necessaries, especially for the support and comfort of the aged and weak, many of whom quickly ended their misery with their lives. And even those aniongst us who had suffered deeply from Your Majesty's enemies, on account of their attachment to your Majesty 's Government, were equally involved in the common calamity, of which Eene LeBlane, the Notary Public before mentioned, is a remarkable instance. He was seized, confined, and brought away among the rest of the people, and his family, consisting of twenty children, and about one hundred and fifty grandchildren, were scattered in différent colonies, so that he was put on shore at New York, with only his wife and two youngest children, in an infirm state of health, from whence he joined three more of his children at Philadelphia, where he died without any more notice being taken of him than any of us, notwithstanding his many years' labor and deep sufferings for Your Majesty's service.
The miseries we hâve since endured are scarce sufficiently to be expressed, being reduced for a livelihood to toil and hard labor in a southern clime, so disagreeable to our constitutions that most of us hâve been prevented by sickness from proeuring the necessary subsistenee for our familles; and therefore are threatened with that which we esteem the greatest aggravation of ail our sufferings, even of having our children forced from us, and bound eut to strangers and exposed to contagions distempers unknown in our native country.
This, compared with the affluence and ease we enjoyed, shows our condition
to be extremely wretehed. We hâve already seen in this Province of Pensylvania two hundred and fifty of our people, which is more than half the mimber that were landed hère, perish through misery and varions diseases. In this great distress and misery, we hâve, under God, uone but Your Majesty to look with hopes of relief and redress:
We therefore hereby implore your gracions protection, and request you may be pleased to let the justice of our complaints be truly and impartially enquired into, and that Your Majesty would please to grant us such relief, as in your justice and clemency you will think our case requires, and we shall ourselvcs bound to pray, etc.
No. IV,
(See Vol. II., page 237.)
A relation of the misfortnes of the French N entrais, as laid before the Assembly of the Province of Pennsylvauia by Jean Baptiste Galerue, one of the said people.
About the year 1713, when Annapolis Eoyal was taken from the French, our fathers being then settled on the Bay of Fundy, upon the surreuder of that country to the English, had, by virtue of the treaty of Utrecht, a ycar granted them to remove with their effects; but aggrieved at the idea of losing the fruits of so many years' labor, they chose rather to remain there and beeome the subjects of Great Britain, on the condition that they might be exempted from bearing arms against France, most of them having near relations amongst the French, which they might hâve destroyed with their own hands, had they consented to bear arms against them.
This request they always understood to be granted, on their takiug the Oath of Fidelity to Her Majesty Queen Anne; which Oath of Fidelity was by us, about 27 years ago, renewed to His Majesty King George by General Phi. lipps, who then allowed us an exemption from bearing arms against France; which exemption, till lately (that we were told to the contrary), we always thought was aproved by the king.
Our Oath of Fidelity, we that are now brought into this Province, as those of our people that hâve been carried into neighboring Provinces, hâve always invariably observed, and hâve, on ail occasions, been willing to afiford every assistance in our power to His Majesty 's Governors, in erecting forts, making roads, bridges, etc., etc., and providing for His Majesty 's service, as can be testified by the several Governors and officers that hâve commanded in His Majesty 's Province in Nova Scotia; and this, notwithstanding the repeated solicitations, threats, and abuses which we hâve continually, more or lésa,
suflfered from the French and Indians of Canada on that account, partieularly ten years ago, when 500 Freneh and Indians came to our settlements, intending to attaek Aunapolis Royal, whieh, had their intention succeeded, would hâve made them masters of ail Nova Scotia, it being the only place of strength then in that Province, they earnestly solicited us to join with, and aid them therein; but we, persisting in our resolutiont to abide true to our Oath of Fidelity, and absolutely refusing to give them any assistance, they gave over their intention, and returned to Canada.
And, about seven years past, at the settling of Halifax, a body of 150 Indians came amongst us, forced some of us from our habitations, and by threats and blows would hâve compelled us to assist them in waylaying and destroying the English, then employed in ereeting forts in différent parts of the eountry; but, positively refusing, they left us, after having abused us and niade great havoc of our cattle, etc., etc. I myself was six weeks before I wholly recovered of the blows received at that time.
Almost numberless are the instances which might be given of the abuses and losses we hâve undergone from the French Indians, on account of our steady adhérence to our Oath of Fidelity; and yet, notwithstanding our strict observance thereof, we hâve not been able to prevent the grievous calamity which is now come upon us, and which we apprehend to be in gieat measure owing to the unhappy situation and conduct of some of our people at Beausejour, at the bottom of the Bay of Fundy, where the French erected a Fort. Those of our people who were settled near it, after having had many of their settlements burnt by the French, being too far from Halifax and Annapolis Royal to expect needed assistance from the English, were obliged, as we believe, more through eompulsion and fear than inclination, to join with and assist the French, as it appears from the articles of capitulation of Fort Beausejour, agreed on between Colonel Monckton and the French commander, at the delivery of the said Fort to the English, which is exactly in the following words:
' * With regard to the Acadians, as they bave been forced to take up arms on pain of death, they shall be pardoned for the part they hâve been taking. "
Notwithstanding this, as the conduct of thèse people had given just umbrage to the Government, and created suspicion to the préjudice of our whole community, we were summoned to appear before the Governor and Council at Halifax, where we were required to take the oath of allegiance without our former exemption, which we could not comply with, because, as the Government was then situated, we apprehended we should hâve been obliged to take up arms, but we offered to take the Oath of Fidelity, and gave the strongest assurances of continuing peaceable and faithful to His Britannic Majesty with that exception. This, in the situation of afifairs, not being satisfactory, we were made prisoners; and our estâtes, both real and personal, forfeited to the king. Vessels being provided, we were^ sometime after sent ofl" with most of
our familles, and dispersed among the English colonies. The hurry and confusion in which we were embarked was an aggravating circumstance attending our misf ortunes ; for, thereby, many who hâve lived in afiSuence, found themselves deprived of every necessary, many familles were separated, parents from chlldren and chlldren from parents.
Yet, blessed be God that it was our lot to be sent to Pennsylvania, where our wants have been relieved, and where we hâve in every respect been recelved with Christian benevolence and charity. Let me add, that, notwithstandjng the suspicions and fears which many seem to be possessed of on our acoount, as though we were a dangerous people, who make little scrupule of breaking our oaths, time will make it manifest that we are not such a people. No; the unhappy situation which we are now in is a plain évidence that this has no foundation and tends to aggravate the misfortunes of an already too unhappy people; for, had we entertained such pernicious sentiments, we might easily have prevented our falling into the melancholy circumstances we are now in, viz., deprived of our substance, banished from our native country, and reduced to live from charity in a strange land; and this, for refusing to take an oath which Christianity absolutely forbids us to violate, had we once taken it, and yet an oath which we could not comply with without being exposed to plunge our swords in the breasts of our relations and friands.
We shall, however, as we have hitherto done, submit to what, in the présent situation of aflfairs, may seem necessary, and with patience and résignation bear whatever God, in the course of His Providence, shall suffer to come upon us. We shall also think it our duty to seek and promote the peace of the country into which we are transported, and inviolably keep the Oath of Fidelity that we have taken to His Gracions Majesty King George, whom we firmly believe, when fully acquainted with our faithfulness and sufferings, will commiserate our unhappy condition and order some compensation for our losses. And may the Almighty abundantly bless His Honour the Governor, the Honourable Assembly of this Province and the good people of Philadelphia, whose sympathy, benevolence and Christian charity, have been, and still are, greatly manifested and extended toward us, a poor, distressed and aflSicted people, is the sincère and earnest prayer of
Jean Baptiste Galerne.
