1. Moved by J. H. Filion, seconded by Mr. Boisseau, that Mr. Burroughs be appointed chairman, and Mr. Rochon be requested to act as secretary.
2. Moved by Mr. Wilfrid Prévost, seconded by J. A. H. Mackay, That a public dinner be given to the Hon. J. A. Berthelot, by the bar of the district of Terrebonne, as an acknowledgment of our esteem and respect for his honour.
3. Moved by J. A. H. Mackay, seconded by J. H. Filion, That the chairman and Mr. Wilfrid Prévost be delegated to interview his honour, and express the desire of the bar to give him a dinner, and in order that he may fix the date that he will find convenient.
(Signed) C. S. Burroughs, Chairman,
(Signed) A. Rochon, Secretary.
Judge Berthelot regretted that he could not accept a demonstration which would be so creditable for himself from the bar of the district of Terrebonne, being on the eve of sailing for Europe, during a leave of absence which had been granted to him by the Government for recuperating his health, which was slightly impaired by his strict attendance to his judicial duties. Before his appointment to the bench in 1859, he had been called upon to fulfil the office of assistant judge in Montreal for six months, in 1855 and 1856, during which time the judges of the province had to act as such during the sittings of the Seignorial Court for Lower Canada. On the 28th of November, 1875, his Lordship Archbishop Bourget, intimated to Judge Berthelot that he had just received from Rome a letter from his Excellency Monsignor Roncetti, Ablegate, informing him that His Holiness Pius IX. had been pleased to appoint him Commander of the Order of St. Sylvestre, by an apostolical writ, dated the 24th of September then last, enclosed with the Ablegate’s letter, adding that His Holiness had been so kind and so generous that through the agency of His Eminence Cardinal Antonelli, he had consented to give to Mr. Berthelot himself the decoration of the Commandery of the Order of St. Sylvestre, which he had confided to the care of Mr. Harel, procurator of the archbishop. The newspaper Le Monde, of Paris, France, on the 28th of December, 1875, noticed this honour granted to Judge Berthelot in the following terms:
We do not doubt that the appointment of Judge Berthelot will be hailed with pleasure by the numerous friends that he has in France, who have had occasion to appreciate, during his several visits to our continent, how he was worthy in all respects, of the high distinction which had been conferred upon him.
His Excellency, Monsignor Roncetti, in a letter bearing date of February, 1876, wrote as follows to Judge Berthelot:
My Dear and Honoured Commander,—With your very kind letter of the 20th of January, for which I am very thankful, I have also received, through the agency of Mr. Harel, your letter for his Eminence Cardinal Antonelli, who entrusted me with his answer, which you will find herewith:—In renewing my sincere congratulations, I beg to present my homage to the most excellent lady, Madame Berthelot, to your dear children, and to accept at the same time the assurance of my most perfect esteem and profound respect. Expecting with the greatest impatience the day when I will see you in Rome, I have the honour to be, my dear and honoured Commander,
Your most humble and devoted servant,