Had arisen between Gifart
and his vassals, touching boundaries and seigniorial rights, though
the learned historian Ferland, has failed to particularize, whether
among those controverted rights, was included the Droit de Chapons
and Droit de Seigneur; could the latter unchaste, but cherished
right of some Scotch and German feudal lords, by a misapprehension of
our law, in the dark days of the colony, have been claimed by such an
exacting seignior as M. de Gifart? One hopes not.
Be that as it may, the stone mason and savant Jean Guion had refused
to do feudal homage to "Monsieur de Beauport," and on the 30th July,
1640, six years after the date of the inscription, under sentence
rendered by Governor de Montmagny, he was made to do so.
Who will decipher the I.H.S. - M.I.A. the letters at the top of the
plate? Is there no defendant of the haughty Seignior of Beauport, Rob.
Gifart, to give us his biography, and tell us of his sporting days; of
the black and grey ducks, brant, widgeon, teal, snipe, and curlew,
etc., which infested the marshy banks of the stream - the Ruisseau de
l'Ours, on which he had located, first his shooting box, and
afterwards his little fort or block-house, against Iroquois
aggression? Dr. Gifart was a keen sportsman, tradition repeats. Did
the locality get the name of Canardiere on account of the Canards,
the ducks, he had bagged in his time? Who will enlighten us on all
these points?
ENQUIRER.
Quebec, 8th April, 1881.
QUERY. - Would I. H. S. stand for Jesus Hominum Salvator? and M.I.A.
for Maria-Josephus-Anna? - the Holy Family - asks Dr W. Marsden.
COUNT D'ORSONNENS LETTER
A monsieur J. M. LeMoine, president de la Societe Litteraire et
Historique de Quebec, etc., etc, etc.
CHER MONSIEUR,. - Votre lettre du 1er avril, publiee dans le Morning
Chronicle, en groupant, autour du premier Manoir canadien, des
grands noms canadiens, des faits historiques et des traditions, semble
vouloir nous faire regretter encore plus la perte d'un monument dont
il ne reste plus qu'une plaque de plomb gravee sans art, avec une
inscription sans orthographe. Je suis alle, comme bien d'autres, voir
ce morceau de plomb, qui contient, autant que l'imprimerie peut le
representer, l'inscription suivante:
I.H.S. M.I.A.
LAN 1634 LE
NTE
25 IVILET.IE.ETE-PLA
PREMIERE.P.C.GIFART
SEIGNEVR.DE CE.LIEV
La premiere ligne a ete, sans doute, gravee avec une pointe,
l'incision plus indecise est aussi moins profonde, de meme que les
lettres NTE ajoutees au-dessus de PLA, pour faire le mot plante, que
l'art du graveur ou la largeur du ciseau n'avait pas su contenir dans
la troisieme ligne.
Les lettres des trois dernieres lignes ont ete coupees avec un ciseau
de un demi-pouce de large, l'incision est nette et bien dessinee; on
voit encore les lignes qui ont ete tracees dans toute la largeur de la
plaque, an moyen d'une pointe pour guider le ciseau du graveur.
