Petition of James Holms, 19 November 1847, Northumberland County. Transcription.

That your Petitioner in the year 1838 agreed
with Barnaby Julian and others, Chiefs of the Julian
Tribe of Indians on the Little south west River, for
the Lease or purchase of a part of the Indian Reserve
on the north side of the said River, known as Lot number
Two, containing One hundred and thirty seven acres, and
at present occupied by your Petitioners Brother Robert
Holms

That the Said Chiefs proposed to fix the
Yearly rent which your Petitioner should pay for the said
Lot, at the Sum of Twenty shillings, provided Your
Petitioner would pay them the sum of Sixty pounds,
which your Petitioner agreed to do, and as your Petitioner
having paid the said sum of Sixty pounds, the said
Chiefs executed a Lease of the Said Lot to your Petitioners
son William Holms; the receipt for which sum your
Petitioner handed to Moses H. Perley Esquire

That in the year 1840, your Petitioner agreed
with the said Chiefs, for a Lease of a certain other
part of the said Reserve, on the south side of the said River, known as lots No 16 and 17, and containing Four hundred
and seventeen acres or thereabouts, for which your Petitioner
paid them at the time the sum of Fifty pounds, in addition
to the rent of Four pounds per annum.

That in addition to the amounts which your
Petitioner paid the Indians at the time; from their continual
application to your Petitioner for assisstance, and from
their great necessities, and the extreme wants of the Tribe
at certain seasons of the year; your Petitioner was induced
in order to relieve their distress, to advance them in provisions
and supplies, at different times, a large amount on
account of the rent which was hereafter to become due to
the said Indians, and the said Chiefs have now actually
received from your Petitioner, the rent of said Lands for
the next five years, amounting to twenty five pounds.

That those advances were made to the said
Chiefs by your Petitioner, believing that the settlers would
not be disturbed by the Government, in any case where
they had made a fair, and equitable arrangement with
the Indians; and under the impression, that the Government
would sanction and confirm an arrangement advantageous
to the Tribe, and one in which your Petitioner was actually
paying four shillings per acre for the Land, in addition
to the yearly rent of Five pounds.

That the said Lots are highland, on which there
is little or no Intervale; that there is no lumber of any
value on them; nor did your Petitioner ever take any Lumber
off the said property, as the Indians had sold the Lumber
that was on the peace to other persons, who had removed
whatever was worth taking away, previous to your Petitioners
arrangement, and your Petitioner was induced to enter into
the said arrangement at the time, chiefly with a view
to relieve the wants of the Tribe, (having always felt
friendly towards them), and at the same time to secure
land near his own residence, on which his family might
at some future period settle; and not with any immediate
prospect of benefiting himself.

That the said Land being advertized for sale,
and being of value to your Petitioner only in an agricultural
point of view, and your Petitioners Children not yet being of
such an age as to permit him to go on and improve it
according to his original intention; Your Petitioner has
therefore up to the present time, made very little improvements
on it; and as the only preference the occupier of Indian
land, has over a stranger at the time of sale, is the
Amount of Improvements, Your Petitioner although he has
actually paid for the said land one hundred and ten
pounds, besides the amount of twenty five pounds anticipated rent, without getting any benefits therefrom would be plased
on not better footing at the time of sale than a stranger,
who had no paid anything for it.

Your Petitioner has for years past, carried on a
large business in lumbering and has from the pressure
of the times, and other circumstances, been so reduced
that he will be unable to purchase the property at the
present rate per acre; having already paid such a large
sum for it, Your Petitioner feels that he would not be put
on a fair footing with other settlers who have never paid
anything by way of purchase to the Indians, as your Petitioner
has done - at the same time your Petitioner is quite willing
to relinquish the said land if the amount which he
has paid the Indians be refunded to him, or added at the
time of sale to the amount of the Improvements.

Your Petitioner would therefore humbly pray
Your Excellency, to take the circumstances of his
case into Your Excellencys favourable consideration,
and either direct the Commissioner to add the
above amount of One hundred and thirty five pounds,
to the amount of Petitioners improvements on the said
Land, or refund the same, or reduce the price
of said land to enable Your Petitioner to purchase
it, or else to permit Your Petitioners land to remain unsold, and under the original
arrangements with the Indians, Your Petitioner
paying the yearly rent, or in such other
way as to your Excellency may seem meet,

629
729
Land
James Holms
Petition respecting
the lots he occupies
on the Little South
West Indian Reserve
Dec 21/47

In Col Feb 10/48
To Hand over

29 X

The lots herein mentioned were advertised for
Sale on the 12 Ins^t at 5/- an acre
will not now proceed Mr. Salter's evaluations of
Recp^ts are as follows [illegible: 2 words] £42.10 N^os 16 & 17 £18. -