unfitness of Sir Peregrine Maitland for his high
office; which led to his being cordially hated throughout the length
and breadth of Upper Canada; and which doubtless had something to do
with his removal to another sphere of action.

One day about the middle of May, when the enclosure had been erected
about six weeks, and when the season's regular flow of tourists had
fairly set in, the landlord of the Pavilion received a call from Captain
George Phillpotts, of the Royal Engineers, who then held command in the
District. The latter demanded why Forsyth had presumed to fence-in the
Government reserve. Forsyth replied, denying that the reserve belonged
to the Government, and asserting his own title thereto, whereupon he was
informed that unless the enclosure was removed without delay, he,
Captain Phillpotts, would himself undertake its removal. Forsyth
professed to feel strong in his rights, and threatened to prosecute the
Captain or any one else who might interfere with his property. Here the
interview ended. Several days afterwards--on the 18th--the landlord was
summoned to his door by a message that a gentleman there wished to see
him. The gentleman proved to be Captain Phillpotts, who was accompanied
by a sergeant and four other soldiers in fatigue jackets, without arms.
Major Richard Leonard, Sheriff of the Niagara District, and Augustus
Jones, who had made the original survey of the property forty-one years
before, were also in attendance. The Sheriff, who had merely accompanied
the party at the Captain's request, took no part in the subsequent
proceedings, but contented himself with quietly looking on. Mr. Jones
had been brought for a specific purpose, and, at the request of Captain
Phillpotts, he then and there made a hasty re-survey of the reserve, the
limits of which he indicated by pickets. Upon the completion of this
task, the Captain demanded that Forsyth should immediately remove the
enclosing fence, and upon his refusal to do so, the soldiers, under
orders from their Captain, deliberately cut and threw down the fence,
exposing the gardens, meadows and about sixty acres of growing crops to
waste. A blacksmith's shop which had been erected on the reserve was
demolished, and the building material thrown over the bank. The Captain
avowed that he was acting under express orders from the
Lieutenant-Governor, which proved to be the fact.

Having accomplished his purpose, Captain Phillpotts and his soldiers
departe