Accordingly, when, on April 25, 1849, circumstances made it necessary for
him to proceed to Parliament in order to give the Royal Assent to a Customs
Bill which had that day passed the Legislative Council, he considered that,
as this necessity had arisen, it would not be expedient to keep the public
mind in suspense by omitting to dispose, at the same time, of the other
Acts which still awaited his decision, among which was the 'Act to provide
for the indemnification of parties in Lower Canada whose property was
destroyed during the Rebellion in 1837 and 1838.' What followed is thus
described in an official despatch written within a few days after the
event:--

[Sidenote: Riots.]

When I left the House of Parliament I was received with mingled cheers
and hootings by a crowd by no means numerous which surrounded the
entrance to the building. A small knot of individuals, consisting, it
has since been ascertained, of persons of a respectable class in
society, pelted the carriage with missiles which they must have
brought with them for the purpose. Within an hour after this
occurrence a notice, of which I enclose a copy, issued from one of the
newspaper offices, calling a meeting in the open air. At the meeting
inflammatory speeches were made. On a sudden, whether under the effect
of momentary excitement, or in pursuance of a plan arranged
beforehand, the mob proceeded to the House of Parliament, where the
members were still sitting, and breaking the windows, set fire to the
building and burned it to the ground. By this wanton act public
property of considerable value, including two excellent libraries, has
been utterly destroyed. Having achieved their object the crowd
dispersed, apparently satisfied with what they had done. The members
were permitted to retire unmolested, and no resistance was offered to
the military who appeared on the ground after a brief interval, to
restore order, and aid in extinguishing the flames. During the two
following days a good deal of excitement prevailed in the streets, and
some further acts of incendiarism were perpetrated. Since then the
military force has been increased, and the leaders of the disaffected
party have shown a disposition to restrain their followers, and to
direct their energies towards the more constitutional object of
petitioning the Queen for my recall, and the disallowance