St. Peter
street was so named in memory of Messire Pierre le Voyer d'Argenson, who,
in 1658, came to Quebec as successor to M. de Lauzon. M. d'Argenson was,
in 1661, succeeded by the Baron d'Avaugour.
On the site on which the Quebec Bank [86] was erected in 1863, there stood
the offices, the vaults, and the wharf of the well-known merchant, John
Lymburner. There were three Lymburners: John, lost at sea in the fall of
1775, Mathew, and Adam, the most able of the three; they were, no doubt
related to each other. The loyalty of Adam, towards the British Crown, in
1775, was more than suspected; his oratorical powers, however, and his
knowledge of constitutional law, made him a fit delegate to England in
1791, to plead the cause of the colony before the Metropolitan
authorities. His speech on the occasion is reported in the Canadian
Review, published at Montreal in 1826.
Colonel Henry Caldwell states that, in 1775, Governor Guy Carleton had
ordered a cannon to be pointed from the wharf on which stood Lymburner's
house, with the intention to open fire upon the Bostonais, should
they attempt a surprise on the Sault-au-Matelot quarter. Massive and
strongly built stone vaults (probably of French origin), are still extant
beneath the house adjoining, to the south of this last, belonging to the
heirs Atkinson.
On the site of the offices of Mr. McGie stood, in 1759, the warehouse of
M. Perrault, l'aine, from a great number of letters and invoice-bills
found in the garret, and which a friend [87] has placed at our disposal,
it would seem that M. Perrault had extensive commercial relations both in
Canada and in France. A curious letter to M. Perrault, from Bigot's
notorious councillor, Estebe, then in Bordeaux, was found in this
tenement. It discloses a sad state of things in Old France. This old
document dates of 24th February, 1760, a few months subsequent to the
Battle of the Plains and a few weeks prior to that of Ste. Foye, in April,
1760.
"BORDEAUX, 24th February, 1760.
"To Monsieur Perrault,
Quebec:
"SIR, - It was with heartfelt pleasure I received your favour of the
7th November last, since, in spite of your misfortunes, it apprized me
of the fact that both you and your lady were well.
"I feel grateful for the sympathy you express in our troubles during
our passage from Quebec to Bordeaux. I wish I could as easily forget
the misfortunes of Canada as I do the annoyances we suffered on the
voyage.
"We learned, via England, by the end of October last, the
unfortunate fate of Quebec. You can imagine how we felt on hearing of
such dreadful news I could contain neither my tears nor my regrets on
learning the loss of a city and country to which I owe everything, and
to which I am as sincerely attached as any of the natives.
