become known to his opponents. The pretext afforded by these
disclosures was too good to be neglected. An emissary was despatched to
Berkshire County, where there was no difficulty in ascertaining that he
had been Treasurer of the municipality; that he had been indicted for
misapplying public funds; that a warrant had thereupon been issued for
his apprehension; and that he had then fled beyond the jurisdiction.
Certified copies of the indictment and of several other important
documents bearing on the matter were obtained by the agent, and by him
brought over to Upper Canada. On the strength of the information and
documents thus obtained a petition was filed against the election of Mr.
Bidwell, upon the ground that he was an alien and a fugitive from
justice, who had moreover taken an oath of allegiance to the Government
of the United States. The accused notwithstanding appeared in his place
in the Assembly upon the opening of the session, and when the matter of
the petition came up for discussion he defended himself before the House
with an eloquence and pathos which stirred every heart. He declared, in
language and tones which left no doubt of his sincerity, that he was
guiltless of the embezzlement with which he had been charged, and that
the accusation had been solely due to the machinations of a powerful
clique of enemies. He further urged that, whatever might be the facts as
to the charge, he had never been tried or convicted, and that the
Assembly had no right to assume his guilt in the absence of positive
proof. He admitted having taken the oath of allegiance to the Government
of the United States, but urged that such an oath was required of every
man assuming a public office in all civilized countries; that it applied
only to the period of his actual residence, and was no legitimate bar to
his advancement in another country. Since his arrival in Canada he had
taken an oath of allegiance to the King of Great Britain. That his
loyalty was not open to suspicion was sufficiently manifest from the
mere fact of his having been returned to Parliament by a constituency
the inhabitants whereof were largely composed of United Empire Loyalists
and their immediate descendants. Such was the course of his argument,
which from beginning to end was singularly lucid and clear. But all was
unavailing. He was assailed by the Government party in language such as
is rarely to be met with in the annals of Parliamentary debate in this
c