fuch conversions, in consequence of their own free exanimation of the grounds of the differences between the doctrines of the two religions and their fubfequent conviction of the errors of the Romish doctrines ;-all hopes of that kind were counter-acted, and almost deftroyed, by the unfortunate measure, adopted in the year 1766, of permitting Mr. John Oliver Briand to return to Quebeck in the character of Bishop of the Province. For, by the power of suspending priests from the exercise of their clerical functions, and depriving them of their benefices, and interdicting the performance of divine worship in whole parishes, which he claimed and exercifed on various occafions, he kept the clergy in fuch a state of terror and subjection to him, that no priest would ever venture to express any doubts concerning the doctrines of the Church of Rome, or take the smallest step towards an adoption of the doctrines of the Church of England. Two remarkable inftances of his exercise of these dangerous epifcopal powers in the Province of Quebeck, exhibit fo clearly the imprudence of the measure of permitting him to return into the Province in the character of its Bishop, that, though they have already been published in the year 1776, in the second volume of my Quebeck-papers, I will here reprint them. They are a tranflation from an extract from a letter written in French by a Roman-Catholick gentleman in the Province of Quebeck to a friend in London in September, 1775.

A Tranflation

A Translation of two anecdotes concerning the conduct of JOHN OLIVER BRIAND, the Popish Bishop of Quebeck; extracted from a Letter written by a person of credit in the Province of Quebeck to his friend at London about the end of September, 1775.

SEVEN years ago Monfieur Vincelot, the Seignior of Iflette, at the requifition of the bishop of Quebeck in his vifitation of the parishes of his diocefe, gave a picce of ground, eight French arpents fquare, for the inhabitants of that parish to build a church upon. And he himself built upon it, at his own expence, an uncommonly fpacious parfonage-house, in which the people of the parish might meet to hear mafs during the time the church would take-upin building. And in this house the priest of the parish lived. At the end of two years Monfieur Briand, the bishop, at the request of the inhabitants of the higher part of the parish, appointed another place for the fituation of the church which the inhabitants of it were to build: and the inhabitants accordingly begun to build the church in this latter place; and in the courfe of three years (they proceeding but flowly in the work) made it fit for the performance of divine fervice. When the building of the church was compleated, Mr. Vincelot refumed the poffeffion of the former fpot of ground and of the parfonage-house which he had built upon it; grounding his right to make this refumption upon the non-performance of the condition upon which alone he had given this ground

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ground to the parish, which was "that they should erect a church upon it." This proceeding gave offence to the bishop, who immediately fent orders to the Curate of the parish to inform Mr. Vincelot, that what he had once given to the church, he could never after refume; and that he, the bishop, therefore required him immediately to restore the piece of ground in queftion to the Curate of the parish; and that, if he refused to do so, he, the bishop, would immediately excommunicate him and all his family. This threat was disregarded by Mr. Vincelot; and he continued to keep poffeffion of the piece of ground. Upon this the Prelate flew into a rage, and immediately commanded the fame Curate of the parish to acquaint Mr. Vincelot that he had excommunicated him, and had extended the excommunication to his wife alfo, if the joined with him in his refusal to restore the land. Upon this Mr. Vincelot brought the matter before one of the courts of Justice, and there openly reproached the bishop with his pasfionate and violent behaviour, and his inordinate ambition and defire of making himself an abfolute ruler in the province, and declared him to be nothing less than a disturber of the publick peace. The Judges obferved a profound filence while Mr. Vincelot was fpeaking, and then decided, that, as the conditions upon which Mr. Vincelot had made the donation of that piece of land to the parish, had not been observed, the land must revert to Mr. Vincelot. This affair happened in the month of May, 1774, and was the occafion of the bishop's relaxing very much from the haughtiness and feverity with which he had before treated Mr. Vincelot.

Another and a much stronger inftance of this bishop's violence of temper happened about four months after

the

the former. A man that lived in the parish of St. John, of which Monfieur Gafpé is the Seignior, wanted to marry a woman who was his coufin, though in a pretty diftant degree. In order to this he applied to the bishop for a difpenfation to enable him to do fo. As Mr. Briand is rather fond of money, he required of this poor man, for the difpenfation he wanted, a fum of money which was greater than the whole value of the land he held in the parish. This threw the poor man man into despair; and he went to the protestant minifter of Quebeck, and defired him to marry him. But the minifter refufed to do fo, and informed him of the reasons which induced him to make this refufal. Upon this the man refolves to take a new course of his own contriving. He invites his relations and friends to his house, and gives them a feast; and, before they fit-down to table, he produces his intended bride; and, in the prefence of the girl's father and of all the company there affembled, the two parties declare their confent to take cach other for man and wife. Now this proceeding was undoubtedly blameable; and the man was liable to be punished for it. But the punishment of the guilty parties was not fufficient to fatisfy the bishop's vengeance. Befides the man and the woman who had been thus married, he excommunicated all the company who had been prefent on the occafion, and all the inhabitants of the parish without exception; fo that Monfieur Gafpé, the Seignior of the parish, and his Wife, who live at the diftance of four miles and a half from the place where this offence was committed, were involved in this excommunication. The Curate of Iflette, who does the duty of the parish of St. John, was fent thither by the bishop to carry this fentence of excommunication into execution. He accordingly comes

to the parish church, and extinguishes the lamp of the principal altar, throws-down the wax-tapers upon the ground, orders the bell to ring, burns the confecrated bread, and carries-away the box that contained it, the calice, and the fun, and reads the fentence of excommunication, and declares that it is to continue in force fo long as the parish fhall harbour within it those two rebels to the authority of the church. Alarmed at this terrible threat, the inhabitants of this unfortunate parish depute their church-wardens to the bifhop to implore his mercy. The church- wardens repair to Quebeck, and on their knees intreat the bishop to takeoff the excommunication. But they could make no impreffion on him. On the contrary he behaved to them with the greatcft rudeness and contempt, faying, "No! I will by no means take-off this excommunication. I will teach you to dread the power of a bishop: and the refl of the province will, in consequence of your example, become more obedient to the church. I therefore command you to drive those two wretches from among you: and, if you obey this command, I will then confider what it may be proper for me to do with respect to the excommunication." The poor church-wardens, ftill on their knees, fell into tears at those harsh words, and faid in anfwer to them, "that, as those persons were upon their own land, they, the other parishioners, bad no authority to drive them out of the parish, as bis Lordship now required them to do but that this could only be done by the Judges." Get you gone, you blackguards, get out of the room this moment;" replied the bishop, and at the fame time opened them the door. Upon this they rofe from their kneeling pofture, to go out of the room. But one of then, growing bolder than the reft, ftayed behind in the room for a short

space