Secret inquisitions, or, Nova Scotia as it was, is, and may be

This is an interesting publication for a number of reasons, not least of which that it is anonymous, though it appears to have been written by a woman —perhaps it’s Mary Jane Katzmann? Maybe someone with a better eye than me as to her writing style could confirm or deny. “The lingering tinge of despotism” referred to here certainly still exists, in some ways it might be stronger than ever.


“It is a delicate subject to contrast the rapid advance of civilization with the lingering tinge of despotism, still hovering over the whole, and, by the irresistible chains of self interest, aiding the reinstation of that opacity, from which it has so lately emerged.”

“This one thing is certain, it must be a strong, singular, and extraordinary event which will draw a woman of Nova Scotia sufficiently forward to even give an opinion undeservedly, still less to undertake the responsibility of influencing others. Perhaps if it were not so, this country might, ere this, have attained a higher position; for there are many parts of a topic upon which a silent observer is capable of forming a correct opinion, just from the fact of being wholly and pecuniarily uninterested.”

“Preston is a district six miles beyond Dartmouth, and upon its arid and harsh soil you may perceive the black log hut of the Maroon, descendants of the rebels of Jamaica; of whom it can be only said, that, did they possess a more fertile tract of land, they might have been a more prosperous people.”

One of the people. “Secret inquisitions, or, Nova Scotia as it was, is, and may be” Boston : J. French; London : Turbnor, 1856. https://www.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.61065/6?r=0&s=1