The Canadian Government amended Section 32 of the Manitoba changing the date on which occupancy of land in Manitoba had to be sworn form March 9th to July 15th.
Statues of Canada (1875), Chapter 52: An act to amend “An Act respecting the appropriation of certain lands in Manitoba.”
Sprague argues that this amendment was passed to undermine the ability of Metis peoples to obtain patents for their land. Thomas Flanagan argues that an individual did not have to be present on their land to gain a patent. One just had to have evidence of occupancy and affidavits from neighbours corroborating that reality. Flanagan’s comment overlooks the fact that as most Metis families left during the summer, there would be few or no neighbours to sign affidavits to confirm someone’s occupancy on the land.