PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND. 137 and began practicing in Charlottetown . His public career opened with his election as representative of Char¬ lottetown in the House of Assembly in 1825 In the year 1828 he was appointed attorney and advocate general; made surrogate and judge of probate the same year; became a member of the executive and legislative councils in 1840, acting chief justice during Mr. Jarvis 's absence in 1841. On the in¬ troduction of responsible government in 1851 he resigned every public office except that of surrogate judge of probate, which he held until his appointment as chief justice. In 1853 he was appointed judge of the vice admiralty court. In 1869 he, together with Chief Justice Young , of Nova Scotia , re¬ ceived the honor of knighthood. In 1873 he was for the second time made administrator of the government. In 1874 he resigned the chief justiceship to accept the office of lieu¬ tenant governor of his native Island. He held mis office until the 1st of July, 1879. In the following year, on the 15th of Sep¬ tember, he died. Sir Robert was a singu¬ larly amiable man and his career was marked by great prudence and success. For twenty- three years he was attorney general of the Island, eleven years president of the legis¬ lative council, twenty-two years a member of the executive, seventeen years chief jus¬ tice and twice administrator of .the govern¬ ment, yet so sound was his judgment and so unfailing his tact that he is said never to have made an enemy. He was the first na¬ tive-born chief justice, knight, and lieuten¬ ant governor of this Island. So completely did the supreme court dominate the judicial field in the early co¬ lonial days that the other courts of justice were overshadowed by it and only emerged in the full light at a later day. THE COURT OF CHANCERY. The court of chancery was hampered by its constitution until the year 1848,. when by the enactment of Ilvic, cap. six, P. E. I ., it was placed upon a working basis. The origin of this court and its earliest proceedings are slightly veiled in mystery. Down to the year 1848 the governor or the person for the time being administering the government of this Island presided over the court as chancellor. It appears that in the conduct of his court he was accustomed to be advised on legal points by the chief justice and the attorney general. Doubtless the court was established by royal authority but no warrant or mstruc- tions evidencing such authority are now available. Possibly the powers conferred upon the first governor by royal commission to "erect and establish courts of judicature for the determining and hearing of all causes according to law and equity and to consti¬ tute and appoint judges and commissioners of Oyer and Terminer for the better admin¬ istration of justice" may have been consid¬ ered wide enough to enable the governor to constitute a separate court of equity and p re¬ side over it in person. The court thus constituted went into operation at an early day. The first mention made of it is to be found in the minutes of the executive coun¬ cil 5th November, 1793, in the matter of a bill of costs received by the lieutenant governor for taxation. The council considered it for some time and then decided that it would bear further consideration. Evidently the thing was new. Cambridge v. Bowley was the Jarn- dyce of the Island court. The papers on file may be calculated by the hundredweight. The