Essays in the History of Canadian Law, Volume VI: British Columbia and the Yukon

Description

This sixth volume in the Osgoode Society's distinguished series on the history of Canadian law turns to the a central theme in the history of British Columbia and the Yukon - law and order. In the early days of British sovereignty, the frenzied activity of the fur trade and the gold rush, along with clashes between settlers and Natives, made law enforcement a difficult business. Later, although law and order were more firmly established, tensions continued between the dominant populations committed to the practice and rhetoric of British justice and those groups owing allegiance to other value systems (such as Native peoples, Asian immigrants, and Doukhobors) or those resisting authority (criminals and the criminally insane). These essays look at key social, economic, and political issues of the times and show how they influenced the developing legal system. The essays cover a wide range of topics, and explore the human as well as the legal dimensions of their subjects, relating specific cases to broader theory. They demonstrate that English law has been flexible enough to accommodate diversity and is, therefore, pragmatic. The volume also proves that there is no single Canadian legal culture: geography, demography, politics, economics, and military considerations have had an impact on the shape of our legal culture. The introduction by John McLaren and Hamar Foster pulls together the many regional themes to provide a clear overview of the legal complexities of the period. Dedications Contents Foreword • The Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History Acknowledgments Contributors Introduction 1 Hard Choices and Sharp Edges: The Legal History of British Columbia and the Yukon PART I: ABORIGINAL PEOPLE AND THE LAW 2 Letting Go the Bone: The Idea of Indian Title in British Columbia,1849-1927 • HAMAR FOSTER 3 ‘Where Is the Justice, Mr Mills?’: A Case Study of R. v. Nantuck • ALAN GROVE 4 Tonto’s Due: Law, Culture, and Colonization in British Columbia • TINA LOO PART II: VICE, CRIME, AND POLICING 5 Swift Justice and the Decline of the Criminal Trial Jury: The Dynamics of Law and Authority in Victoria, BC, 1858-1905 • NANCY PARKER 6 A Distant Edge of Authority: Capital Punishment and the Prerogative of Mercy in British Columbia, 1872–1880 • JONATHAN SWAINGER 7 Vancouver Vice: The Police and the Negotiation of Morality, 1904–1935 • GREG MARQUIS 8 The Making of Criminal Insanity in British Columbia: Granby Farrant and the Provincial Mental Home, Colquitz, 1919-1933 • ROBERT MENZIES PART III: RELIGION AND EDUCATION 9 Judgments of Solomon: Law, Doctrine, and the Cridge Controversy of 1872–1874 • RUSS BROWN 10 Creating ‘Slaves of Satan’ or ‘New Canadians’?: The Law, Education, and the Socialization of Doukhobor Children, 1911–1935 • JOHN MCLAREN PART IV: LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE 11 After Union Colliery: Law, Race, and Class in the Coalmines of British Columbia • ROSS LAMBERTSON 12 For God, Country, and the Public Purse: ‘Liberal’ Politics and the Campaign for Family Courts in British Columbia, 1939-1945 • DOROTHY E. CHUNN PART V: THE LEGAL PROFESSION 13 Fighting Spirits: The Yukon Legal Profession, 1898–1912 • BURT HARRIS 14 Exclusionary Tactics: The History of Women and Visible Minorities in the Legal Profession in British Columbia • JOAN BROCKMAN Index Publications of The Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History