“Given at the Board at this —— day of ——, one thousand seven hundred and ——.
“To ——
“Acting Surveyor for the District of ——.
CERTIFICATE OF THE ACTING SURVEYOR.
“I assign to the bearer —— the lot No. —— in the Township of ——, in the District of ——, containing —— acres, —— chains, which lands he is hereby authorized to occupy and improve, and having improved the same, he shall receive the same grant thereof, to him and his heirs or devisee in due form on such terms as it shall please His Majesty to ordain, and all persons are desired to take notice that this assignment and all others of a similar nature are not transferable, by purchase, donation or otherwise, on any pretence whatever, except by an act under the signature of the Board for the District in which the lands are situated, which is to be endorsed upon this Certificate.
“Given at ——, this —— day of ——, one thousand seven hundred and ——.
“To ——
“Acting Surveyor for the District of ——.”
But there were many a one who drew land, and never even saw it. It was quickly, thoughtlessly sometimes, sold for little or nothing. Sometimes for a quart of rum. The right jolly old soldier would take no thought of the morrow. A few did not retain their lands, because they were of little value for agricultural purposes; but the majority because they were situated in that remote region in the 4th or 5th concession of the third town, or away up in the 2nd concession of sixth town, or a long way up in the eighth town. Rear concessions of even the first and second townships were looked upon doubtingly, as to whether the land was worth having. Often the land would not be looked after. It not unfrequently was the case that settlers upon the front who had drawn land also in the rear townships, disposed of the latter, not from any indifference as to its future value, but to obtain the immediate necessaries of life, as articles of clothing, or stock, or perhaps food, or seed grain, and now and then in later days to pay taxes. The certificates of the children, entitling them to land when of age, were often disposed of. Even officers found it convenient, or necessary to sell rear land to new comers, for ready money.
Thus it came to pass that a good many never took possession of the land which a prudent Government had granted them. The statement has been made that persons holding prominent positions at the time, and possessed of prudent forethought, as to the value which would in the future attach to certain lots, stood ready not only to accept offers to sell, but to induce the ignorant and careless to dispose of their claims. Consequently when patents were issued, several persons became patentees of large tracts of land, which had been drawn by individual Loyalists, whose names never appeared in the Crown Land Office. The transfer of a certificate or “location ticket,” consisted in the seller writing his name upon the back of the ticket. Occasionally a ticket would exchange hands several times, so that at last when it was presented to obtain the deed, it was difficult to determine who was the owner. The power to thus transfer the certificates, was allowed for several years. But in time Government discovered the abuses which had arisen out of it, and decided that all patents should, thenceforward, be in the name of the person who originally drew the land. Not unfrequently these certificates were lost. The losers, upon claiming land, could not establish their rights; but Government, to meet this misfortune, created a Land Board for each Township, whose duty it was to examine and determine the claims of all who presented them.