Request by numerous Montréalers for the maintenance of the canal along rue Saint-Paul, 10 June 1734.

To Monseigneur hauquard
Knight, King's counsellor In His [Majesty's] Council, Intendant of justice the police And of finance For All of Nouvelle france.

It is true that Public calls were made by the late monsieur Des Chambaut, the then Lieutenant general of This Jurisdiction, for the Construction of the said Canal, And that afterwards Each of the possessors of the lots were to Maintain it to ensure the proper Flow of the Waters from the said Pond; the said Canal reaches a Cistern of the sisters of the Congregation of This city And when it Is full, there is a Canal that passes Between sieurs joncquaires And Lestage that Leads the said waters to the St Laurent river, which Is its natural Course; And since the Said Tax for the Construction of the said canal there has Been a lax in justice And even many judgements rendered As stated, And this is why the said Supplicants request that the said Canal be maintained knowing that if Another were Built to lead straight to the said river it would Cost a Considerable amount as Land would have to be excavated approximately fifteen to sixteen feet Deep And when the said Canal becomes Blocked another excavation would be needed of the Said Land across rue St paul, which would hinder the public considerably as they could not pass through to attend to business; Moreover the Contracts of the said supplicants do not oblige them at all to [use] the said Canal other than to transport their refuse to the said pond, which they have not been able to do, the said la Brose father And son having Prevented [them] saying that the more refuse is disposed of there, the more the water Is Made to Rise in the said pond, and that they are unable to Work in their Shops, which are

entrenched Much Below the street level, and it is true that the Waters flow in through the windows; And meanwhile they complain that they receive the Waters from the said supplicants who are merely Hindered by the Waters from rue nostre dame because of the negligence of the above-mentioned, And others who have been Condemned by the said judgements; And the said supplicants Were pleased to find Waters flowing inside the said Canal otherwise the remainder of the city would have Burned; That is why it is necessary to maintain the said Canal For public usage in Conformity with the said judgement; this is why the said supplicants submit to the said judgement rendered in the said Jurisdiction, And having Contributed to the taxes requested by the deceased sieur de Chambeaut who in his lifetime was lieutenant general As mentioned, the said supplicants are appealing to you Monseigneur, so that this be granted them.
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[signed]huber
[signed]viger
[signed]marie beaudry
[signed]Daguilhe
[signed]X
[signed]X
[signed]X