LAND QUESTION

To promote settlement on P.E.l. and to repay those having claim on the Crown, the British disposed of the land in P.E.|. by holding a lottery. The number of applicants was so great that the sixty-seven townships into which Captain Holland had surveyed the island were awarded by way of the ballot box. The original landlords of Lot 55 included F. McKay, S. McKay, and H. Findlay, Post— master, Quebec; while Lord R. Townshend was the landlord for Lot 56.

The landlords, as well as the tenants, had certain conditions of settlement. The tenants were to pay ” quitrents” of a certain rate, and these rents were often paid to landlords that either did not live on the island or did not take an active interest in supporting their end of the deal. Needless to say, this infuriated the tenant farmers. The farmers had often left their homeland to escape the oppression of powerful landlords, and they refused to stand for the same treat- ment in the New World. For example, if their crops failed, the landlord could seize the tenant farmer’s effects and sell them to pay the rent, and evict the farmer.

The issue often led to friction between the landlords and tenants and this friction was known to break out in violence. The most famous protest in the area was no doubt the murder of Edward Abel, but other protests occurred.

In 1840, five local men were noted in the newspaper as being “Absent From The Fair”. These men had become very irate at the forced sale of a fellow farmer’s cows which had been ordered by Lord Townshend’s widow. The farmers conspired to bid no higher than six pence on cows worth eight pounds but this did not relieve their high anger at the injustice they saw in the sale. The sheriff, who was conducting the sale, was pelted with snow balls and frozen horse manure.

Eight days before the Souris Fair on July 21, 1840, the Supreme Court found James Howlett, William Blackett, John Howlett, John Coffin, and John McKie guilty of riot and assault and were fined and given prison sentences of up to ten months.

The farmers also involved themselves in political protest by supporting the Escheat Party, a party considered treasonable by some proprietors. The organiza- tion of this party in 1830 was led by William Cooper of Sailor’s Hope. Mr. Cooper can be considered to be one of the most notable residents of this area, as his agitation helped to lead to the dissolution of quitrents.