Page 104 - index

that al1 the Parliaments and "Counscils YupPrieurs" had
sent answers to bis questions, says: "II s'agit à présent de
se servir de tant de bons matériaux pour en former une loi",
which shoiild be of zt nature to stimulate iurllier exerîion
in the same direction and in t,hc same letter he says the
ohjeït was "à établir des régles certaines et iinifoimes sus
ce qui fait le sujet d'une divcraité de jurisprudence."
But, whatc~er may he the infeionce to hc derived from
t,hesî letters, the Ordinance of 1781 contains within itself
abundont cvidencc Lhat it was not intented to he a mere
declaration of existing Iaw It cont.aiiis soine provisions
which are undoubtedly new. Thus Art. 4.5 enacts that the
period of preacriptiun shall I>e t,hirtg ycars after the day of
the birth of the last child of the donoi. And Ar.1. Sri itself
is inore strigent in its details than the lnwi'Si unqiiam."
Rut Art. 47 is derisivr «il this question. It repr.11~ "toutcs
ordonnances, lois. coiit,iiines, statuts et ueageo" ïuritraiy
to the piaviaioris containcd in the Ordinance,andprovides
that dunations mnde before its piihlication werc not to be
attacked iindei prptext tha.t they ivere not in confornlity
with its niles; "notre intention étant qu'rllcs soient ex&-
rées ainsi qu'rllcs ûimicnt pli et dû l'êti.eauparavant,et que
les rontcstatioiis n6es ct rl naître sui. leur exéciition soient
decidées s~ivant ICR lois et In juiisprudence qui ont eii lieii
jusqii'à pr6sent dans nos cour? à ret Cgard."
Cornidering. thi:ri, tht this Ordinancc enacts n npiv lav
on the point in question il u:oiiM no1 be of force Iri Canada
unless il hnd been ~egis'ered thme. The Appeliants' Counsel
rclicd on thv iiiji~nction of thr: Orclinancc rcquiring it to hc
obeyerl "dans tout notr.~? ro'nuinc, torres ct pays de notre
obéi~ssnco," but a ltoyal Ordinaiice: published ;ifter the
establishiiiciil of "Le C:onseil Supérieur" in Canada by the
Edict of 1653, dit n»t take effect in that province proprio vi-
gore until it was registered : Hiitchinson vs Gillespie (1)
les Seun HospitalièreadeSt-JO& vs Rliddeliniss above
(1) 4 3filurre'a P. C. 371.