n 1773 and 179 in 1782 (_Mich. Hist. Coll._, VII, p. 524).

The best people in the province continued to hold slaves. On February
19, 1806, the Honourable Peter Russell, who had been administrator of
the government, and therefore head of the State for three years,
advertised for sale at York "A Black woman named Peggy, aged 40 years,
and a Black Boy, her son, named Jupiter, aged about 15 years," both
"his property," "each being servants for life"--the woman for $150 and
the boy for $200, 25 per cent off for cash. William Jarvis, the
secretary, two years later, March 1, 1811, had two of his slaves
brought into court for stealing gold and silver out of his desk. The
boy "Henry commonly called prince" was committed for trial and the
girl ordered back to her master. Other instances will be found in Dr.
Scadding's very interesting work, _Toronto of Old_, Toronto, 1873, at
pp. 292 sqq.

[22] A number of interesting wills are in the Court of Probate files
at Osgoode Hall, Toronto. One of them only I shall mention, viz.: that
of Robert I.D. Gray, the first solicitor general of the province,
whose tragic death is related above. In this will, dated August 27,
1803, a little more than a year before his death, he releases and
manumits "Dorinda my black woman servant ... and all her children from
the State of Slavery," in consequence of her long and faithful
services to his family. He directs a fund to be formed of L1,200 or
$4,800 the interest to be paid to "the said Dorinda her heirs and
Assigns for ever." To John Davis, Dorinda's son, he gave 200 acres of
land, Lot 17 in the Second Concession of the Township of Whitby and
also L50 or $200. John, after the death of his master whose body
servant and valet he was, entered the employ of Mr., afterwards Chief,
Justice Powell; but he had the evil habit of drinking too much and
when he was drunk he would enlist in the Army. Powell got tired of
begging him off and after a final warning left him with the regiment
in which he had once more enlisted. Davis is said to have been in the
battle of Waterloo. He certainly crossed the ocean and returned later
on to Canada. He survived till 1871, living at Cornwall, Ontario, a
well-known character. With him died the last of all those who had been
slaves in the old Province of Quebec or the Province of Upper Canada.

[23] _Mich. Hist. Coll._, XIV, p. 659.

[24] A fairly good account of the Underground Railroad will be found
in William Still's _U