another Anglo-French conflict, from which the English emerged
victorious, we find in the ensuing half century the establishment of a
definite policy of colonial permanence.

The abuses connected with the admirals' jurisdiction had been
partially corrected by the authority, on appeal from them, of the
King's commanders stationed off the island. Still, the evils were very
real, and extorted recognition even from the gang of west country
monopolists who strangled for so long the growth of the island. We
find a recommendation offered by them to the Board of Trade with
astounding assurance, that the 3000 odd men, women, and children, who
by this time composed the population of Newfoundland, "should be
encouraged to settle in Nova Scotia--as they might be of service
there, where inhabitants were wanted."

The colonists themselves had other and better remedies. A
spontaneously elected Assembly passed ordinances which attest the
sincerity of the general desire for reform. In 1728 the informing zeal
of Lord Vere Beauclerk elicited a decisive step from the Board of
Trade, and Captain Henry Osborne was appointed the first Governor of
Newfoundland (1729), with authority to appoint justices of the peace.
Even at such a moment the cloven hoof of prejudice peeped through, and
Osborne and his justices were explicitly warned to interfere in no way
with the privileges of the admirals, as defined by 10 and 11 William
III. Governor Osborne addressed himself to his duties with great
energy. He appointed justices and constables, carved the island into
districts, and erected prisons and stocks. His influence was weakened
by his departure when the season ended, for till the nineteenth
century the governors, like the fish, were migratory. A tedious
quarrel followed between the justices and the admirals as to the