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State of the Province at the end of the month of October — Measure* of resistance entirely passive in their character — Testimony of Lord Gosford — Rumours — A Riot— The Vindicator Newspaper attacked and destroyed — Character of the Paper— Dr. O'Callaghan — The Quebec Arrests— M. Morin — A new Commission of the Peace — Ahurm — ^The Montreal Arrests — TLe Departures— M. Papineau— The Acadia ArreBts— The Rescue. In the midst of the feverish excitement ever consequent upon a state of insun'ection, we have undertaken to present the reader with a cahn narrative of the events connected with the civil war in the Two Canadas. This task, we feel sensible, is not without considerable difl&culty. A popular insurrection is an oc- currence which cannot be viewed with that indifference which the historian ought to possess. On such a question. every man must have his sympathies, not to say, his prejudices. These feel- ings will, unless especial care be taken, materially affect his views. This, however, is a contingency inseparable from con- temporary narrative. It is doubtless an inconvenience ; but it is one which cannot be gotten rid of. All that can be done is, to state the authority with the fact, on all occasions where it is practicable, so that the latter may be tested by the former, and a just conclusion thereby drawn. This 'rule we shall carefully attend to, in the course of the ensuing narrative, and thus we hope to reduce to the very minimum the peculiar defects of a con- temporary memoir. Whilst oontemporarv narration has what may be called its specific disadvantage, it has also its appropriate countervailing advantage. Its pictures are fresh and vivid — events stand out in bold relief — ^the various actors, as well as sufferers, are made to tell their own tales ; and if there be sometimes exaggeration, there is, for the most part, a large predominance of racy truth ; and certainly, a faithful exhibition of the actors' feelings, of their alternating hopes and fears. ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL WAR Under these circumstances, the inconvenience which we have pointed out is one which the public has always been willing to bear, for the sake of the advantages with which it is allied ; the more especially if an honest care be evinced to secure the good, with as small an admixture of the evil as possible. To effect this is our especial object. By throwing into the shape of an introduction to this volume the detail of those events, the effect of which upon the present state of things in Canada was rather remote and indirect than immediate, we are enabled at once to enter upon those inte- resting occurrences which immediately preceded the Canadian insurrection — so immediately, indeed, as to assume with the latter the relation of cause and consequence. Towards the latter end of the month of October, the state of excitement throughout Lower Canada, especially in the districts of Montreal and Three Rivers, was great indeed. The several public meetings which had been held in most of the counties in the latter, and in some in the former district, had been pro- ductive of the firmest determination on the part of the people to carry out, to the letter, the plan of passive resistance detailed in the introduction. By means of the non-consumption of all duty- paying articles, the pc^ular leaders appear to have had every hope of driving the government to a redress of those grievances of which they had so long complained. A letter, written about this time by M. Papineau to Dr. Nelson of St. Denis, and since made public in the Montreal papers — not by M. Papineau's friends, but by his poUtical adversaries — expresses the most vivid hope of success from this expedient, and strenuously urges Dr. Nelson to persevere in the course alluded to. In this view, there is reason to believe, the popular party gene- rally coincided ; as their newspapers, the Vindicator, in English, and the Minerve, in French, continued to urge upon the people the necessity of " destroying the revenue which the resolutions of the imperial parliament proposed to seize,"" by abstaining from the consumption of all articles which, by bearing a customs duty, contributed to that revenue. Some rumours were, it is true, afloat, touching " ulterior objects," " independence," and " re- sistance;" but Lord Gosford, writing on the 12th of October, says, " I do not myself credit these reports, nor yet apprehend any serious disturbance, although there are, I admit, some per- sons of experience and information who think otherwise." * Even as late as the 30th of October, Lord Gosford gives his opinion that the object of " the party fomenting sedition" was not active resistance or revolt, for he states it to be " evident '' Par. Paper, December 23rd, 1837, No. 72, p. 65. — Most of our evi'lence for the statements made in this and the following chapters, is drawn from the series of parliamentary papers ou Canada, printed this session, and numbered 72, 80, 99> and 100. / IN THE CAN ADAS. 3 that one of the main objects of ail the recent meetings and pro- ceedings is to produce an effect in England, and to intimidate, as it is hoped, the imperial and local authorities." * In other words, that moral force wa'^ to be relied on. There is no doubt that, at the beginning of the month of No- vember, the public mind was in a ^rfuUy agitated state ; still there was no appearance of revolt in any part of the country. For this, we have the very best evidence, that of the governor's despatches, wherein lie continued to assure Lord Glenelg that there was no reason to doubt the loyalty and good conduct of the people. Indeed, so strong was his opinion on this point, that in his proclamation of the 29th of November, after the affairs of St. Charles and St. Denis, he speaks of the loyalty of the people as " hitherto uninterrupted." We dwell upon this point as being essential to the right understanding of the true character of the struggle. It is now necessary to remind the reader that drilling had been fbr some time going on, both among the popular party, and among thoeie opposed to them. In a despatch, dated the 6th of Novem- ber, Lord Gosford informs Lord Olenelg, that " large bodies of men are openly drilled tvery Sunday, in and near the city of Montreal ;" that, " in addition to these public driUs, there were daily drills going on of small bodies of men in private yards ;'* whilst, " on the other hand,'' his lordship adds, " the English party in that city have revived an old association, called ' The Doric Club,' and are likewise drilling and arming ; and I have every reason to apprehend that some unfortunate collision will, before long, take place." Thus, then, the armings and the drillings were not confined to one party. They took place openly — no attempt at concealment appears to have been made. And in the same despatch we find Lord Gosford lamenting that " no attempt had been made by the civil authorities to stop this treasonable practice, or to arrest and punish those engaged therein.'"'!' The reasons given for this want of energy were — first, the absence of sworn information to identify the parties : secondly, the want of a civil force suSi- cient to vindicate the law. , The non-interference of the civil authority may possibly have arisen from a dislike to disturb the Doric Club, with whose poli- tical views they coincided ; and as it would be impossible to suppress the one and not the other, both were left undisturbed. This appears the more probable from the statements in their papers, showing generally that they felt confident that, in the event of a collision in the eity, their party would get the better of their opponents. On the day on which Lord Gosford penned the despatch * Par. Paper, No. 72, p. 85. t Par. Paper, No. 72, p. 94. / 4 , ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAK above alluded to, the collision which his lordship feared took place. In the afternoon of Monday, the 6th of November, the society calling themselves the " Sons of Liberty" had a meeting for the purpose (a lawful one, it must be admitted) of expressing their opmion on the resolutions of the Imperial parliament. The meeting was held in a private court-yard, at the west end of the city of Montreal. Whilst the meeting was going on, crowds of the adverse party collected around the place of meeting, and, like all adverse crowds, expressed their dissent by shouts and revilings. Subsequently stones were thrown into the meeting, soon after which it broke up. Two divisions went away ; the third, unfortunately, came into collison with the Doric Club ; stones were exchanged; the Doric Club retreated through a street called St. James's, where some windows were broken in the houses of two magistrates, one of whom was obnoxious to the people from his having called out the troops in 1832, (at an election !) when somo persons were unhappily killed. Whether the windows were broken by accident or design* is not clear, neither is it important ; suffice it to say that the troops were called out and the Riot Act was read, but in the mean time the Sons of Liberty had passed into the suburbs, and had separated. If the matter had ended here, there would have been nothing to regret — ^nothing, certainly, worth recording. But this was not the case. In the course of the same evening, the Vindicator newspaper was destroyed, under circumstances at once dis- graceful to the perpetrators, and to the authorities, by whom they ought to have been restrained. At about six o'clock in the evening, after the dispersion of the Sons of Liberty, their adver- saries rallied, and having broken into the office of the paper in question, they proceeded to demolish the property and cast the types into the street. The worst feature in the case is, that magistrates were pre- sent, and were applied to to protect the property, but remained inactive. It is said they even refused ; but we content ourselves with the fact of their inactivity, which cannot be disputed. Troops, too, were on the spot, but still there was no protection for the property. It has been alleged that friends would have mustered in sufficient force to affijrd such protection, but that they were overawed by the troops, whom they knew to be under the direction of magistrates opposed to them in politics. The impression of the people is, that had a mob, composed of the popular party, attacked one of the constitutional papers, the troops would have been ordered to fire with eager haste. The existence of such an impression is alone sufficient evi- * It has been stated that their doors were opened, so as to afford some of the Doric Club a shelter. If this be true, the stones were, doubtless, thrown dMignedly. IN THE CAN ADAS. 9 dence that there is much to deprecate in the conduct of the magistracy. The newspapers of the " constitutional," or tory party, were not slow to perceive that the first a'tack upon property coming from them, was likely, not merely to do them considerable injury in the minds of right thinking people in this country, but that it was also a dangerous example to their adversaries. Accordingly it was generally alluded to by them as a most untoward event- as a circumstance deeply to be regretted. The tory party of. Canada generally allege that they own the bulk of the propei-ty the province. As far as the moveable property of the cities m of Quebec and Montreal is concerned, the statement is perhaps true. Before they set so bad an example, they should have re- flected that their property was of a destructible nature ; indeed, this seems to have crossed their minds, for a few days after this they made application to the commander of the forces for troops to protect their steam-boats in winter quarters. It is probable, however, that at the moment no very nice calculation as to con- sequences was made. The perpetrators of the act were in an excited state ; the Vindicator was their untiring enemy, to anni- hilate it was their object, and even had it required greater sacri- fices they would willingly have been made. To silence the only liberal paper in the English language was fully worth the risk, and even the obloquy inseparable from its accomplishment. It may be well to conclude this account of the riot in the words of authority. The solicitor-generars official report to Lord Gosf'^rd is couched in the followmg terms : — "A riot took placf last evening, about four o'clock. The accounts in the newspapers cannot be depended on, because party feelings will give an untrue colouring on both sides. Monsieur Martin gives the following statement as correct. " The Patriotes met to the number of about three hundred and fifty, in a large yard opening in Great St. James's-street, near the American Presbyterian church. They had their speeches, and their huzzas, and their treason in private, the gate of the yard being shut. A number of constitutionalists were outside : stones were thrown into the yard, and towards tl;ie close of the meeting, f'own-up boys were seen pushing sticks under the gate. An nglish flag was also carried about. The Patriotes broke out, and drove the constitutionalists before them towards the Bank, breaking the w^indows of Dr. Robertson en passant. They con- tinued moving on victorious, until they reached nearly opposite the Court House ; here the constitutionalists, having been rein- forced by the Doric Club, made a stand, and drove back their assailants in their turn as far as the Place d'Annes, from which the latter made their escape into the suburbs. The troops then came out, and the Doric Club having dispersed, they followed the rioters, who kept in small bodies through the suburbs. Parties 6 ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL WAll of the Doric now re-assembled, broke some of the windows in M. Papineau's house, and then proceeded to the office of the Vindicator^ the interior of which they demolished before the troops could retum." This last statement is an error : the troops were there, except at the commencement of the affray, quite in time, indeed, to have saved the property from destruction. Colonel Wetherall, in his report, states, that he was too late to save the property ; but he states also that the Patriotes were the aggressors, in contradiction to the solicitor-generaVs report ; this vitiates his evidence in the first case.* As this paper and its editor. Dr. CCallaghan, hold a conspi- cuous place in the history of Canadian discontent, we shall make no apology for detaining the reader a short time on the subject. The Vindicator was established about ten years ago, under the title of the Irish Vindicator^ and was then supposed to advocate the interests of the Irish inhabitants of Canada. As the Irish generally adhere to the majority of the assembly, the politics of the paper were from the first decidedly liberal ; and as the then editor was a dealer ih sti'ong language, it had the character, among the anti-popular party, of being a most merciless scarifier of its political enemies. Certain it is, that by its constant ani- mosity to the official class and their partisans, it became as obnoxious to them as it was popular amongst its own immediate readers. In 1832, Dr. Tracy, the editor, was invited to become a candidate for the west ward of Montreal, against a gentleman named Bagg, a tory. At this election, party spirit ran very high : Tracy was of course hated by the anti-popular party, for his con- nection with the Vindicator. Bagg had not been previously an unpopular man, but he was now hateful because he was the oppo- nent of Tracy. The popular party prevailed by a majority of one, Bagg retiring under protest, but not until the troops had been called out, on light grounds as it should seem, and had shot three of the citizens — an event which, like the Boston massacre, will never be forgotten. Soon after this unhappy event, Tracy died of cholera, when the Vindicator fell into the hands of a mere trading scribe, and there seemed eveiy reason to believe that it would lose the confidence of its subscribers. The difficulty, however, was subsequently gotten rid of, sind in May, 1833, Dr. O'Callaghan became its editor, in which office he continued until its destruction, in November, 1837. Dr. O'Callaghan-f- is a native of Ireland, and, we believe, of * Colonel Wetherall takes the merit of savinff M . Papineau's house ; the Solicitor General says the raob went from M. Papineau's house to the Vi dicator office. A mob which had given evidence of its destructive dis- n should have been dispersed or watched. It was intended to give short biographies of the leading men in a separate chapter, but it has been thought more advisable td embody them in the narrative. ^ IN THE CANADAS. 7 Cork ; at least, in and about thai city some of his relatives now dwell. He emigrated to Quebec about eleven or twelve years since, but for some time he does not appear to have mixed in politics ; at least, our early recollection of him is merely as a medical practitioner. It is about the year 1830, that we first remember Dr. O^Callaghan in the character of a politician, attending public meetings during an election at Quebec ; as an elector, question- ing the candidates, and speaking in behalf of those whom he deemed fittest for the trust. There must have been something in his speeches of that day, for we distinctly recollect that he was much abused in a paper owned and edited by ofiicial gentlemen. When the cholera broke out in 1832, Dr. O'Callaghan made himself honourably conspicuous as one of the most assiduous of the medical profession, m relieving the sufferings of the poorer class of people; especially, those of his unfortunate fellow country- men, the recent emigrants from Ireland. The tory paper of Quebec forgot, for the time, his political sins, and he was only thought of as the Samaritan of the pest-house. Soon after this period, the prospectus of a liberal paper made its appearance at Quebec, and it was understood that Dr. O^Callaghan was to be the editor. The project was not, however, carried into execution ; but O'Callaghan, nevertheless, occa- sionally contributed to the existing papers, in a manner to turn the eyes of the proprietors of the Vindicator towards him, in their difficulty wit! their editor, after Dr. Tracy's death. This ended in his assumption of the editorship in May, 1833, as we have stated ; and from that time to the period of its destruction the paper was under his sole control. Notwithstanding he alone was responsible for the contents arid tone of the paper, it was generally considered as the organ of the majority of the Assembly. Not that any one believed the speaker, or any set of members exercised any surveillance or control over its doctrines, but it was not denied that it advocated, and ably advocated their views; and thus by common consent, it was referred to, both by friend and foe, as the liberal organ ; a dis- tinction not always conceded to the Minerve, the liberal paper in the French language. In the management of a Colonial paper the editor is all in all. He must know every thing, — he must do every thing. The " division of labour" is scarcely known among our colonial journal- ists. The editor is the sole lord of both the pen and the scissors, and his work never ends. The Vindicator was published twice a week, and is certainly a standing testimony of the editor's skill and industry. During the period of his "administration," it exhibits all the energy of his predecessor, without his virulence. There was much more care as to facts, and whilst the exposure of abuses was constant, there was much less of mere personal in- T / 8- ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAR vective, than had formerly characterised its pages. In short, it took rank as the best paper in the Canadas ; and even its enemies — those who on principle abstained from purchasing it — were anxious to learn what it said at periods of political excitement. We have before us a long series of the Vindicator^ and if we were called upon to state the leading feature of that journal, we should pronounce it to be the exposure of what has been called the " origin fallacy." The " Constitutionalists'" allege that the quarrel is one of origin ; that it is one of French against English. The majority of the Assembly contend, that the struggle is for good government^ and that origin has nothing to do with the matter. In proof of this, cases ai*e cited where Englishmen — the representatives of English counties, are found voting with the French majority* — whilst French Canadian constituencies are to be found returning British men, — English, Scotch, and Irish, to the Assembly. As if to confirm the doctrine of our editor at the general election of 1834 ; an election which, be it remembered, turned on the application of the elective principle to the Legislative Council, he was returned for a French county, Yamaska ; and what is still more worthy of remark, he ousted a French Canadian, named Badeaux. Use, or rather abuse, had been made of the appeal to origin at this election; but the Canadians replied, "Better a good Irishman than a bad Canadian ;" and so O'Callaghan became member for Yamaska. In the Assembly, he fully justified the confidence which had been reposed in him. He was always at his post, and as ready in debate, as he was indefatigable in committee. He is skilled in the use of the French language, which he speaks publicly — an accomplishment of rare occurrence among "old countrymen;" and, as to his industry, some evidence of that is to be found in sundry reports signed by him, reprinted last session by order of the House of Commons. Here we shall take our leave of Dr. O'Callaghan, until the chronological order of our narrative again brings him before us. Rumours of the excited state of the country now increased from day to day, and various circumstances tended to generate an impression, that the government intended to strike a blow. Two days after the destruction of the liberal paper, the attorney- general unexpectedly made his appearance in Montreal. As this gentleman has been all his life opposed to the Assembly in politics, his proceedings were narrowly watched lay the popular leaders. Whispers of afiidavits, warrants, and arrests, were heard from time to time, but as yet, all was uncertainty and doubt. The public mind was evidently agitated ; men looked suspiciously around them, as they asked " What is Ogden's business here T ^ See this question fully stated in the Introduction. IN THE CANADA8. 9 The mystery was soon cleared up. News reached Montreal that, on the 13th of November, M. Morin and four other persons had been arrested at Quebec, charged with seditious practices. This accusation probably arose out of a meeting which took place in that city in October, where some strong resolutions were passed, condemning the resolutions of the Imperial parliament. There was nothing in the language of this meeting, that we do not oc- casionally witness in this country; but a weak government, like that of Lower Canada, is prone to alarm, ana, as former ex- perience tells us, a vague charge of sedition may be made to spring out of a small matter. M. Morin was obnoxious to the executive of Lower Canada, because he was one of the most active of the majority in the Assembly ; being a good writer, an effective, but somewhat plain and unostentatious speaker, and moreover, one of the hardest workers in the House. M. Morin is the son of a substantial farmer, and was educated at the seminary of Quebec. He chose the law as his profession, and has for some time practised at Quebec ; but for many years he edited the Minerve newspaper, at which time it enjoyed consider- able reputation as a sound and well-conducted paper. M. Morin has sat for seven or eight years for the county of Belle- chasse, in the district of Quebec, where he has some property ; and in 1834, he received testimony of the good opinion of Lis fellow-members by being deputed to bring their petition to this country, and to urge its prayer in any way which should be deemed expedient. M. Morin accordingly gave evidence* before the committee of the House of Commons which sat in 1 834, which evidence may be referred to as embodying the views of the Assembly, on all the subjects in dispute between the two contend- ing parties. M. Morin returned from his mission just previous to the general election of 1834, and was again chosen one of the mem- bers for his own countv; he has since continued his political activity, not merely voting with the majority, but taking a. pro- minent part in preparing most of the public documents put forward by the Assembly. Such being ^.. Morin's character, we must not wonder that he was marked out as an object of attack. Subsequently, M. Morin was admitted to bail. A considerable source of alarm to the liberal party now made its appearance, in the shape of a new commission of the peace for the district of Montreal. From this new commission of the peace were excluded most of the former magistrates, who were known to sympathize with the majority of the assembly. Men of the most moderate, and even passive liberality, were omitted. If * This endence w'"\ suppressed at the time, but will be found printed among the sessional papers of 1837, No. 211. 10 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIt, WAR these had been fierce active politicians, there would have been nothing veiy remarkable in it, provided the active men on the other side had been omitted also. But this was not the case : the rejected were many of them men who had taken no part in the public meetings of the summer ; whilst of those who were retained, many were among the most violent of the anti-popular party. Of course it would be alleged by the local executive, that the men who were retained, however violent, were well affected towards the government; — were, in short, of the governing party. This may, perhaps, be deemed a good and sufficient reason by many persons into whose hands these pages may fall ; all that we desire to show is, that it created alarm in the niinds of the liberal party. So long as liberal magistrates remained, there was some chance of escaping the horrors of a gaol by being liberated on bail. The new commission of the peace destroyed this hope. A very few days confirmed these fears. On the evening of the 16th of November six persons were arrested and cast into prison, charged with high treason. Among these were Andr6 Ouiraette, the prepident of the. young men's society, called the Sons of Liberty, together with some members of the committee ; and Louis Michel Viger, a member of the Assembly and president of the People's Bank. T'- » gentleman had not mixed in politics for some time, except in the Assembly, at a public meeting of his own constituents, and at the meeting of the six counties, one of which he represented. Hence his arrest created a feeling of insecurity, and consequently of alarm, in the minds of all those who, without being active politicians, nevertheless coincided in opinion with the majority of the assembly. It had already been whispered that warrants were issued, or were about to be issued, against the leading members of the assembly — M. Papineau, Dr. O'Callaghan, M. Ovide Perrault,* and others. In order to judge of the effects produced on their minds by these rumours and arrests, it is necessary first to con- sider the constitution of the courts of justice, and the relation which the threatened parties bore to the judiciary : and second, to take in consecutive order all the events which had recently occun-ed. The threatened leaders had been for years endeavouring to render the judges responsible to the Assembly ; and they felt that the judges could not but feel considerable animosity towards them. An act, providing for the summoning of juries on a fair principle, had expired, and had not been revived ; so that the sheriflTs will determined the mode of summoning. Now the sheriff is also an officer whom the Assembly had sought to render responsible, and to his ill-will they felt themselves in a manner entitled. In ad- dition to this, the executive — the prosecutor in the expected pro- ceedings, had, on the 15tb of October, paid the judges and the sheriff, in virtue of the eighth resolution of the imperial parlia- * M. Perrault's name is not on the attorney-general's list. IN THE OANAOAS. 11 tnent; and this the Canadian leaders regarded as equivalent to the bribing of their judges. With such feelings predominant in their minds — no matter whether those feelings were justifiable to their full extent or not — it must be quite clear that confidence* in the courts of justice was entirely out of the question. We have perused a private letter, written by one of the parties under the excited feelings alluded to, and stating that " with such a combination of circumstances against them, they saw in the gaol only a road to the scaffold." They regarded the destruction of the Vindicator, the attorney-general's visit, the new commission of the peace, and the arrests, as a preconcerted chain of opera^ tions on the part of the executive to convert the plan of passive resistance, from which they hoped so much, into a state of active - revolt, capable of being put down by force. Such was the im- pression under which the Canadian leaders withdrew from the city of Montreal, about the 17th or 18th of November last. It has been asked, " W hy were not the chief offenders arrested at once ? Why was it permitted to transpire that warrants were out against the gentlemen in question ? Assuredly," it has been said, " M. Papineau ought to have been the first person arrested ; — you denounce him as the chief fomenter of discon- tent, and yet you studiously, as it should seem, give him time to escape, and pounce only on the inferior persons of the drama. You had it in your power," it is further urged, " to take such a step before susjjicion of your design could possibly have entered into the minds of M. Fapineau's friends. Wliile you were sounding the tocsin by Morin's arrest, by the new magistracy, by your ostentatious preparations — ^you ought to have been busied in possessing yourself of the chief offender. The course you have adopted lays you open to the suspicion of intending either to drive the leaders into exile, or, perhaps, into revolt." There is, it must be confessed, some unexplained mystery in the conduct of the local executive, in relation to the proceedings of November. Lord Gosford is himself, in all probability, not chargeable with any such design ; but his executive council is com- posed of men, between whom and the Assembly had long existed a perpetual feud : and it is possible they may have deemed it wise and proper to pursue the course pointed out, the more especially as M. Papineau had clearly kept himself within the bounds of the law, his measures of agitation notwithstanding. In the meantime, all persons attached to the local government were encouraged to form themselves into volunteer companies, "f* and were furnished with arms by the commander of the forces. A regiment of volunteer cavalry had long existed in Montreal. This was immediately strengthened, and promotion given to the officers ; though not, as it appears, without giving umbrage to * For some facts of a character to warrant this feeUngf, see Chap. iii. t For details on this subj«ct, see Chap. iii. 12 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAR some who considered their merits to have been overlooked i A rifle corps was also either formed, or re-organised ; and various olhity of the lake Champlain navigation.* The execution of these wirrants was entrusted to a party of eighteen of the royal Montreal volunteer cavalry, who, accompanied by a constable, succeeded in making the arrest. It should be observed that the regular road between Montreal and St. John's is by steam-boat to La Prairie, and thence by rail-road. By this route the prisoners could have been conveyed to La Prairie in fifty minutes, and thence to Montreal in thirty more. For some reason or other, however, the longer and more difficult route, by Chambly and Longueil, was chosen. Probably this course was adopted for the purpose of intimidating. It was natural for the volunteers to think that the parading their prisoners through the counties would have a beneficial moral effect ; and it is also not inconsistent with human nature, to suppose that a feeling of triumph at their success may have caused the captors to prefer the longer route. Be this as it may, the result was anything but fortunate to the volunteers. At several parts of their route they fell in with armed parties; but they were not molested until almost within sight of the city. Just before reaching Longueil, on the shore of the St. Lawrence, opposite Montreal, they were met by an armed party of the peasantry, of considerable strength, who demanded the release of the prisoners. This demand was, of course, not complied with ; when immediately the cavalry were fired upon, and three of their number, and some of their horses wounded. Hereupon they discharged their pistols and galloped off", leaving their prisoners. A further account states that " there were about sixty men on the knees, so as to take a deadly aim, when Malo (the constable) called out, " Do not fire ! " and the command was given to the cavalry to halt, which was fortunately promptly obeyed, as a considerable portion of the enemy's fire, given at the same moment, proved ineffectual, owing to their an- • See Chap, ii., and Map. tS TMK ('ANADAS. 18 ticipating the continued advance of the troop. The cavalry then wheeled about, and discharged their pistols among the crowd, and, it is reported, with some effect."* There is one reason for the escape of the cavalry, not thought of by the Montreal editors, though, as it seems to us, a more probable one than any ye*; given — the assailants may have feared to injure the prisoners. It is curious, that in the report of the law officers of the crown-f", the cavalry are called "a body of mounted police," and one of the newspapers contended, against some disputant, that they were "acting as special constables;" this was evidently done to bear out Sir John Colborne, who had expressed his un- willingness to employ the militair until the civil force had proved inadequate. In all probability, tne employment of these persons was much more obnoxious to the people, than the resort to a regular military force would have been, for the very obvious reason that the cavalry consisted of their political opponents, and they would naturally regard the step as an unfair and partial arming of their political enemies against them. As may be imagined, the return of the cavalry created great agitation in the city of Montreal. A despatch was forwarded to Lord Gosford, detailing all the particulars; and recommending (such was the conjecture of the Montreal papers) a partial decla- ration of martial law. On the following morning, four companies of the Royals, a party of the artillery with two field pieces, and about twenty of the cavalry proceeded, under the command of Colonel Wetnerall, to the scene of the rescue; or, as it was stated, on special duty not yet disclosed, between Longueil and Chambly. This force was accompanied by two magistrates, and the deputy sheriff of the district, **to authorise its movements." Its opera- tions will be detailed in the next chapter. Of the absentees, little was known at the time.:{: The Montreal Courier we find expressing itself in the following manner : — " Conflicting reports are current as to the locale of the un- arrested leaders, and of M. Papineau in particular. By some, it is confidently stated that he is in town ; by others, that he has even left the country, and has crossed the line. We believe neither report to be correct. The authorities, we trust, will lose no time in following up the blow they have now struck. They have passed the Rubicon, and the success of their measures must henceforth depend mainly on their promptness. " No stone must be left unturned to insure the arrest of every man against whom evidence can be found to warrant a fair hope of his conviction. " There is a little doubt expressed in some quarters, as to the fact of a warrant being out against Papineau ; but we trust, there is no ground for such a doubt. * Montreal Herfild. fPar. paper, Dec. 23, 1637, No. 72, page, 109. X November 20. u ACCOUNT Oif THE ClVlI, WAK ; < n *' The number of warrants prepared is, we l)eHeve, considerable ; and some one of them must be for the head offender." It is now known that there was a warrant. Moreover, at a meeting of the executive council at Quebec, on the 23d of November, the following report was agreed to : — " His excellency laid before the board the official communica- tion from the attorney general, stating, that warrants had been issued for the approhenaion of Louis Joseph Papineau, and twenty-six others, for high treason; and there being reason to suppose that M. Papineau had absconded from Montreal, and that he is now in the district of Quebec;" " It waH ordered by the advice of the board, and after having examined M. Duval, one of the queen's counsel on the subject, that immediate stt>ps be taken for the apprehension of M. Papineau ; and that it being expedient that a warrant, signed by a justice of the peace, for tno five districts of Montreal, Quebec, Three- Rivers, St. Francis, and Oasp6, should issue for this pur- pose ; it was further ordered, that M. Duval be directed to draft the warrant in accordance with the advice given by him on the Bubject."* We have now brought to a close our narrative of the events which immediately preceded the first military movement against the people of the country watered by the river Richelieu. The details of this movement will form the subject-matter of the next chapter, the present we cannot better conclude than with a short biographical notice of M. Papineau. The family of M. Papineau was originally from the west of France, whence they emigrated about a hundred and fifty years ago to Canada, then more generally called New France. The father of M. Papineau, who is still living, exercised the profession of a notary — an occupation of considerable importance under the civil law of France, which prevails in Lower Canada, inasmuch as the whole business of conveyancing, of drawing settlements, mairiage contracts, wills, &c., is assigned to them. Moreover, being better educated than their neighbours, the office of general dispute-settler to their neighbourhood falls tacitly into their hands. The elder M. Papineau was a member of the first Assembly ,-f- summoned under the constitutional act in 1792, and he continued to be elected to each succeeding Assembly, until he retired from public life in 1814, universally respected by his compatriots. Louis Joseph Papineau, the subject of this brief notice, was born in the year 1787, and was educated at the seminary of Quebec. He studied for the legal profession, and was in due course admitted to the bar ; but he never practised, having * Par. paper, Dec. 23, 1837, No. 72, p. 114. t He sat first for the county, and efterwardfi for one of the wards of thp city of Montreal. • IN THR CANADA«. Ifl •ds of thp determined to devote JiiniHt'lf to public life, which his election to the Asaeinbly in 1809 ailbrdud him an opportunity of doing. His first election he probably owed to the rewpeet due to his .name, but he soon earned a reputation for himself by the energy and talent he displayed as an advocate of popular rij^hts ; and, on his father''s retirement, he wa^ invited to represent the west ward of the city of Montreal, for which he haa continued to sit to the present time. On the elevation of Mr. Speaker Panct to the bench m 1815, M. Papineau was chosen to succeed him, the Assembly thus conferring on him the highest honour they have it in their power to bestow. In the same year, peace was concluded with the United States of America, and as soon as the Assembly had gotten tlirough certain matters of legislation, arising out of the late war, the old disputes about money were renewed.* The offer of the Assembly to take upon themselvea the civil expenditure was repealed, and England being in a state of embarrassment, it was accepted. Then came the manifold efforts of the official party to avoid being amenable to the Ass^nbly, and the counter exertions of the Assembly to bring them under their control. In all these dis- putes M. Papineau took a prominent part, and he rose greatly in the estimation of his compatriots. In 1822, a proposal was brought before parliament to unite the two provinces of Upper and Lower Canada. This measure was not popular in either province. In Lower Canada especially, the opposition was very grp-'t; petitions were prepared, and were signed by no less tlian t)0,000 persons, out of a population of 400,000, and M. Papineau was deputed with Mr. John Neilson of Quebec, to convey the petitions to England, and there to support their prayer. M. Papineau accordingly proceeded to England, having first resigned the speakership. This mission was successful. The two delegates returned to Canada in 1824, when i,hey were enabled to communicate to the Assembly that the decision was for the present abandoned ; and moreover, that "if the consideration of an union of the provinces should be resumed, the colonial minister pledged himself that the circumstance should previously be notified through the governor, to the inhabitants of the colony, in order? to enable them to be heard in parliament if they should think proper, by commissioners, by petition, or in such other manner as they should see fit."^ Shortly after this period, the disputes between the Assembly and the executive, respecting the appropriation of the putHc money, became greatly aggravated by the conduct of the Earl of Dalhousie, who pursued a series of arbitrary measures which greatly exasperated the A ssembly and the people.]: Lord Dalhousie unwisely imparted to the disputes a personal character, as Sir * For complete details respecting these disputes, see the Introduction, t Journal of Assembly, 1824. J See Introduction. 16 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAR James Craig hAd done in 1810. He dismissed with ignominy from the magistracy those who were opposed to his policy, and even refused to ratify the Assembly's choice of M. Papineau as speaker. On this, as well as on all other points, however, he was beaten by the firmness of the Assembly ; as a matter of principle, they would certainly have persisted in their choice, and they were doubly disposed to do so, on account of their attachment to the object of that choice. The Earl was afterwards recalled, but not until he had set the province almost in flames; the exas- perated state of the public mind resulting in the petitions of 1827, and the committee of 1828.* We shall not further pursue M. Papineau's political course. To do so, would be to write the history of the disputes with which he is so completely identified over again We shall content ourselves by saying, that his master spirit has guided the course of the Assembly down to the latest period. With its virtues and its errors he is undoubtedly identified ; and his public conduct must be approved or condemned, in the precise measure of the reader's approval or disapproval of the course adopted by the Assembly. In person, M. Papineau is considerably above the middle stature ; his countenance is p»'ave, and, at times, even stern ; in conversation, however, his expression is not unfrequently playful, though without interfering with the dignity of his air and manner. By his private acquaintances and friends he is greatly esteemed as a man of amiable disposition, and his address is certainly en- gaging ; — yet, by his enemies, he is deemed a man of ungovern- able temper — an accusation not unfrequently made against public men who are in the habit of expressing with force and energy, both of language and manner, the indignation which they feel. M. Papineau's commanding eloquence is admitted by all par ties. He is thoroughly acquainted with the English language, which he makes use of, when the occasion requires it, with the same fluency as that with which he speaks his mother tongue. He is thoroughly acquainted with what may be called the consti- tutional history, both of this country and the United States ; and is even versed in the occult mysteries of our party politics. He has been said to be an enemy to trade ; this, however, will be appreciated when we know who are his accusers. They are the colonial merchants, a class of men whose life-blood is restric- tion and monopoly. M. Papineau is, in fact, an enemy to trade, in the same sense that Mr. Poulett Thomson, Sir Henry Parnell, Mr. Warburton, and others of similar views are its en-^mies. ' To characterii;e, in short, M. Papineau's political principles, a single word will suffice — he is, by conviction, a democrat ; — a state of mind which he owes, perhaps, more to the circumstances ; t * See Introduction. !'i 1 X IN THE CANADAS. IT by which he is surrounded, than to any acquired theoretical views concerning government. In a countn^ where the mass of the people are singularly equal in point of social condition, — where everything tends to self-government, it is difficult to be other- wise. Here the matter is entirely different : those who are theo- retically democratic find great difficulty in casting a^de their anciejDit associations — ^prejudices, though they be. In judging of the state of q>inion in Canada, we shall do well to bear this continually in mind. 6 N T) If I il 18 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAH CHAPTER II. THE SEVEN DAYS* CAMPAIGN ON THE RICHELIEU RIVEft. Description of the Country watered by the Richelieu River, extending from Lake Champlain to the River St. Lawrence. Departure of the troops under Colonels Gore and Wetherall — ^Their force — Object of the Expedition — Plan — Preparations at St. Charles — Mr. Brown. The affair of St. Denis — Nelson — Perrault — Lieutenant Weir — Retreat of Co- lonel Gore. The affair of St. Charles — ^The Retreat — Skirmishing— An intercepted Despatch — Alarm in the City — Rumours — Close of the Campaign. MAP OP THE SEAT OP THE CAMPAIGN. NO m TH • LATjMI. H . STATE OF N EW VORK r > 1 5 C.'^'N STATE OF \^j <; VERMONT Before we enter upon the military operations against St. Denis and St. Charles, it will he necessary for the right understanding IN THE CANADAS. 19 thereof, to describe briefly the theatre of the contest.. To assist in gaining a clear conception of the relative position of the several places named in the despatches, and other accounts, the reader is requested to refer to the annexed map, comprising a triangular- shaped district, based on the boundary line of the United States, and extending to the island of Montreal on the north-west, and to the mouths of the Richelieu and the Yamaska rivers on the north-east. The River Richelieu,* which, with its tributaries, waters the whole of this district, flows out of Lake Champlain in a northerly direction, and empties itself into the River St. Lawrence, about forty-five miles below Montreal. It forms the northern end of a great chain of water communication, commencing at New York, and embracing the Hudson River, the Champlain Canal, and the lake of the same name. This river is of great importance in a commercial as well as in a military point of view. St. John"'s is the northern limit of the ship and steam navigation of the lake ; and is therefore a place of considerable trade. The direct communication hence to Mon- treal is by a rail-road to La Prairie, a diistance of eighteen miles, and thence by steam-boat to the city. The navigation of the Richelieu River, from St. John''s to Chambly, can only be per- formed in flb,t-bottomed boats, or bateaux, as there is much in- terruption from rapids. A canal, however, is in com-se of con- struction, to avoid these rapids. From Chambly, where there is a fine basin, the course of the river is smooth and tranquil, though shallow, and therefore requiring steam-boats drawing but little water. Between Sorel and St. Denis the channel is of greater depth. By a series of fortifications along the whole course of the river, the communication with Lake Champlain is completely con- trolled. Isle aux Noix is an island situated only ten miles from the American lines. It lies low, but u well fortified, and com- pletely commands the channel of the river. During the war, a thirty-two-gun ship, the Confiance, was built here. At St. John''a there is also an old fort, but it has been long suffered to fall into decay. Fort Chambly, on the south-west side of the basin, is a place of some, though not of very great strength. It was built by the French, previous to the conquest, and looks more like a county gaol than a fort : it has no outworks, and the storehouses are wholly unprotected. Let the reader now carry his eye to the confluence of the river with the St. Lawrence. On the eastern bank stands Sorel, or William Henry, a small town of about fifteen hundred inhabit- ants, forming a stopping-place for the Quebec and Montreal steam-boats, where they usually take in fuel. The French had a fort here ; we hpve a barrack with some slight defences, where * It is also called the Chambly River, and occasionally the Sorel. 20 ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL WAR a company, and sometimes a smaller number, are usually sta- tioned. On the opposite shore is a blockhouse, which may in some degree protect the channel. The places included in the military operations will be found in the following order, proceeding south from Sorel : — St. Ours, St. Denis, St. Charles, St. Hilaire, on the east bank of the river ; and Chambly and St. John's, already described, on the west. The villages on this river, situated in seigneuries of the same names — with the exception of St. Hilaire, which is in the seig- neurie of Rouville — are from two to three leagues (six to nine miles) from each other. The seigneurie of St. Ours contains about six thousand inhabitants ; and the village consists of about ninety houses, many of them well built. The parish church is a handsome edifice, and stands in the centre of the village. The seigneurie of St. Denis is not much above half as populous as St. Ours ; nevertheless, the village is certainly as large, and perhaps rather larger. The church is a handsome building with three spires ; and on the side of the village, towards St. Ours, stands a large stone house, the property of Madame St. Ger- main, the widow of the late seigneur — a house which was made to play a conspicuous part in the events we are about to relate. The seigneurie of St. Charles does not contain more than six- teen hundred souls ; and the houses roimd the parish church and seigneurial house do not probably number thirty. In our narra- tive, however, it is a place of some importance. The seigneur of St. Charles, Mr. Debartzch, is a person who has for many years played a singular and not very creditable part in the politics of Canada. For many years he was the most violent of the popular party. He was continually urging his political associates to resist by force ; he it was who, in 1831 or 1832, organised the five counties, and so paved the way to the present outbreak. He is a man of considerable ability and education, and writes well. A few years ago, he set up a printing press in the village, and established a weekly newspaper called, L Echo du Pays. It was well edited, but was distinguished for its excessive violence, openly recom- mending rebellion to the people. In 1 834, in a speech he made in the Montreal convention, he is reported to have used language of similar tsnor. No man was then more violently denounced by the anti-popular papers, no epithet was bad enough for him ; now he is Lord Gosford's chief adviser. When at school, it is said, his great delight was to set two little boys to fight for apples, and when the strife was highest,, he quietly walked away. His political conduct is now somewhat similar. St. Hilaire is the name of a parish in the seigneurie of Rouville, rather than of a village, as there are only a few houses around the parish church. The place is remarkable for an IN THE UANADAS. 21 insulated mountain of surpassing beauty, about 1100 feet high, visible from a gi*eat distance in all directions. All the villages on this river derive their importance from the wheat trade, the district being well cultivated, and the farmers intelligent and wealthy. The roads generally are in good order, running in lines parallel with the river. These roads are known as the Concession roads, as they divide the different ranges of lands conceded, and to be conceded, and therefore called Les Concessions. The whole of the country between the Richelieu and the Yamaska is level, and as it was early settled there is not much wood. For this reason, it affords regular troops a great advantage over the undisciplined peasantry. In the American revolutionary war, our troops were beaten by the forests* more than by their adversaries. Having now given the reader an idea of the country, we proceed to the immediate subject of the chapter. Colonel Wetherall, as we have 8een,f left Montreal with four companies of the royals, and detachments of the royal artillery, and the Montreal ca- valry. This force was accompanied by two magistrates, and the deputy sheriff, and its destination was Chambly. On the march, the houses of the habitansX were generally deserted; mounted scouts were observed reconnoitering, and in many places, women and children making towards the back Concessions. The troops were also somewhat annoyed by armed parties of the peasantry, and seven prisoners were taken, with which the troops marched to Chambly. On the 22nd, Colonel Gore left Montreal by a steam-boat, on route for Sorel, having under his command the flank companies of the 24th regiment, under Lieutenant-colonel Hughes, the light company of the 32nd commanded by Captain Markham, one howitzer (twelve-pounder) under Lieutenant Newcomen, and a party of the Montreal cavalry, under Comet Sweeney. Colonel Gore reached Sorel the same evening, where his force was aug- mented by two companies of the 66th, under Captain Crompton; making it in all, about four hundred men. The object of the expedition we shall state in the words of Sir John Colborne, the commander of the forced, who, in his despatch of the 29th of November, addressed to Lord Fitzroy Somerset, writes as follows : — "The law-officers of the crown, and the magistrates of Montreal having applied to me for military force, to assist the civil power in apprehending Mr. Papineau, and other traitors, who were supposed to be at the villages of St. Denis and St. Charles, 1 ordered strong detachments to support the civil authorities in the execution of their duty. '> f ill M P3 m t \ See Chap. v. t Chap i. p. 13. X The peasantry are so called. I 22 ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL WAR (( St. Denis is seven miles to the northward of St. Charles, on the right bank of the Richelieu ; the former, sixteen miles from Sorel, the latt6r, about seventeen miles from the Ferry of Chambly, opposite Pointe Olivi^re. *' Colonel Gore and Lieutenant-colonel Hughes, with five companies, and a howitzer, were ordered to proceed from Sorel to St. Denis ; and five companies and two gims to move from Chambly on to St. Charles, under the command of Lieutenant- colonel Wetherall of the royal regiment, accompanied by two magistrates, to execute the warrants . against those individuals charged with high-treason ; and, it appeared probable, that the appearance of the troops at these points, and entering the villages nearly at the same time, would aiford an opportunity of taking into custody the leaders of the revolt." * This plan of combined operation from opposite directions, seems to evince considerable judgment on the part of Sir John Colbome. Had it been successful, the effect must have been to hem in the accused parties, and to surround them at some point of union between St. Charles and St. Denis, before they could possibly escape to the south of the frontier. Between the time of Colonel WetheralPs ^ departure from Montreal, and the commencement of his march from Chambly, time had been given to the insurgents at Chambly to make some rude preparations for defence. It may be here proper to mention, that the people of St. Charles were suspicious of Debartzch, and had come to the determination of keeping him a prisoner at his residence in the country. They were fearful, that if he were permitted to go to Quebec or Montreal, his undoubted influence with the governor might operate against the safety of any of their number who might be under accusation. Under this im- pression he was confined to his own house. Through the inter- ference, however, of some of the leading men of the neighbour- hood, he was liberated, and he proceeded at once to Quebec, where we find his name on the minutes of the council of the 20th of November,*!* advising, and authorising the military operations which were then in progress. It appears to have been after the departure of Debartzch from St. Charles, that Mr. Browne arrived at the village. Being aware that a military force was in motion, it was deemed expe- dient to strengthen their position as much as possible. Debartzch's house was made head quarters, and with the assistance of a strong party of habitans, Browne proceeded to throw up a line of rude fortification around the portion of the village which they occupied. This line 'iicluded some three or four large bams stocked with grain and hay ; a circumstance which the reader * Par. paper. No. 80, (in continuation of 72,) p. 3. fPar. paper, No. 72, p. 114. 'j-a •ajp"'" tSUwmSii^WM IN THE CANADA9. 23 \vill do well to bear in mind, as it exercised a considerable influ- ence on the ultimate fate of the village. We have seen that the intention was to make a simultaneous movement on the two villages. Colonel Gore being instructed to march up the river, and Colonel Wetherall to march down the river at the same time ; the distance being about equal in both cases. Colonel Gore appears to have been prompt in obeying his in- structions. He reached Sorel at six o'clock in the evening of the 22nd, and marched thence at ten o'clock at night. The march was a difficult one. " The roads being deep," says Colonel Gore in his report ;* " the march was severe — although the dis- tance was only eighteen miles — it having rained violently all night, the mud and water reaching to the knees ; I did not reach the small but rapid river which crosses the road four miles and a half from St. Denis, until some time after daylight; in order to arrive at my destination with as little delay as possible, I took the back road to avoid the village of St. Ours, and passed the small river by a bridge higher up than the one by, the main road; also, for the purpose of taking on an intelligent guide, who had volunteered to lead." Leaving Colonel Gore for the present, within a league and a half of the village, let us turn to an account of the preparations which were then making for the reception of the troops. This accojint, we must observe, is from an eye-witness. It has already been printed in some of the newspapers, and we have ascertained that it is genuine. Moreover, with only two exceptions, namely, the force employed, and the respective losses, it agrees generally with Colonel Gore's statement. " The detachment sent to Sorel, per the steam-boat, landed at that place on Wednesday night, the 22nd November, and at ten o'clock, guided by a man named Jones, they set out for St. Denis, eighteen miles from Sorel, and six from St. Charles. Instead of passing through St. Ours — an intermediate village — ^they took a back road through the Concessions, unknown to the people along the bank of the river. It was not until two or three hours before their arrival at St. Denis, on Thursday the 23rd, that Mr. received information of the expedition. 'He immediately sent notice to the people of the vicinity, of the threatened attack. There was a warrant, be it remembered, against Mr. ,f and several others of the notables (leading men). It was forthwith determined to resist the progress of the troops through St. Denis, well knowing that scarce a man would be left in the village, if once the troops got possession of the place. The tocsin was * Par. paper, No. 8, p. 4. t So in the original. It is generally stated in the anti-popular accounts, that Dr. Wolfred Nelson conunanded at St. D^s. li' i \ ■'^. 24 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAR Hi immediately rung, and before the troops arrived barricades were thrown up at the entrance of the village, and between three and four hundred men were collected, but ill-armed, all with the intent of opposing force to force. Mr. having thrown out some Bharpshooters along the fences, withdrew the main body of his men, within a large stone store or house on the right of the entrance of the village." Let us now return to Colonel Gore''s report, omitting only some unimportant passages. " On approaching St. Denis, a strong body of armed men (the sharpshooters above alluded to) moving along a wood, skirted my flank ; all the houses along the road were deserted, and on neai*- ing St. Denis, I was attacked by skirmishers occupying the houses and barns on the road, and along the banks of the river Richelieu; these were rapidly driven in by Captain Markham to the main entrance. I found the place was strongly occupied, and the entrance defended by a large fortified stone house, and a barri- cade crossing the road, and flanked by a building and houses, from which a severe fire was commenced." The advance was then reinforced, and a fire from the gun opened upon the house ; but after the day had considerably ad- vanced, and sixty round shots had been fired without efiect, six only being left; when Captain Markham had become wounded in three places, and the men much jaded ; when it became evident that the ground could hardly have been maintained during the night, and there appeared some risk that the bridge in the rear might be broken down ; when frost having succeeded the rain and snow, the mens' clothes were freezing on them. Colonel Gore determined to fall back, which was accordingly done, but not without considerable annoyance from the pursuing enemy. At the bridge, Colonel Gore states, they were compelled to aban- don their gun. The horses had fallen, the wheels had frozen in the mud, the men were worn out, and in danger of freezing also, so that no other course was left to the Colonel than to spike the gun and leave it. On the following morning at 11 o'clock, the troops reached Sorel, and on the ensuing day arrived at Montreal, having lost, according to a statement annexed to his report, 1 sergeant, 5 rank and file killed ; ] captain, 9 rank and file wounded ; 6 rank and file missing. His estimate of the force opposed to him is 1600, of whom he calculates 100 must have been killed.* The account from which we have already quoted differs from that of Colonel Gore with regard to the numbers engaged, and to the loss on both sides. In other respects, there is a general agreement in the two ac- counts, whilst the discrepancies are unimportant. " The advanced picket of the troops," says the narrator, " was , , * Par. paper. No. 80, pp. 4, 5, IN TirR CANAnAS. 25 allowed to pass unmolested, but when the main body came up, a round of fire was sent in upon them from the house which made them stagger. This battle between the peasantry and the troops continued from nine in the morning till half-paat three in the after- noon with unabated mge, and so desperate was the contest, that a piece of artillery belonging to the troops, was five different times in possession of the adverse parties ; it finally remained in the hands of the Canadians * Between three and four o'clock, the regular troops foimd themselves obliged to retire from the field. One of the officers, Captain Markham, had received four wounds. Their loss was estimated at 50 killed and about 16 wounded. The precise number cannot be ascertained, as it was said a party of soldiers was employed in throwing their dead into the river. The loss on the Canadian side was eight killed." With regard to the statements of killed, it should be observed, that both parties would naturally be desirous of hiding theirovm dis- asters. False returns of killed and wounded form, we believe, part of the modem and perhaps also of the ancient system of warfare. Napoleon has been accused of having invented it, but we cannot help thinking it is coeval with the existence of falsehood, and it is certain that the English have not disdained to adopt it. Colonel Gore's force was exposed, foi- more than six hours, to the fire of a large body of men rendered cool by that feeling of security which stone walls imparted. Under such circumstances, it is difficult to believe that his loss was only six men killed. Again, the pear santry being screened by stone walls which resisted the round shot, and by the barricade, it is equally difficult to believe that they lost 100, though they may have lost more than eight. The official account of 16 wounded and missing, agrees well enough with the other account of 15 or 16 wounded, for some of the missing were wounded, and were afterwards recovered. Being correct in one respect, it is fair to presume that the narrator was not far wrong in the other, the more especially as an officer of bravery and reputation, as we hear Colonel Gore is, would scai'cely have retreated on so small a loss. On the other hand, it is probable that more than eight of the peasantry were killed ; the struggle for the gun must have been attended with some loss. Probably the numbers on either side did not greatly differ ; but judging from the character of the stiuggle, from the position of the parties engaged, and lastly, from the retreat of the troops, it is probable the balance of loss was against the latter. Amongst the slain on the side of the Canadians was one whom his countrymen will long deplore, namely, M. Ch.»Ovide Perrault, member for the county of Vaudreuil. He wa3 one of those who left the city after the first arrests, though his name * We have been informed by a gentleman lately in Canada, that the Cana- dians actually fought for this gun with bludgeons, many not having fire arms. E \ II { M ACCOHNT OF THE CIVIL WAR I does not appear in the list of 26 appended to the attorney- general's report* of the 18th of Noveniher. M. Perrault, who was not above 27 years of age when he fell, was a member of the Montreal bar, having studied the law under Mr. D. B. Vigor, somv time delegate from the Assembly of Lower C/anada to this country. His practice latterly was considerable and increasing, an advantage which he owed to his knowledge, his eloquence, and his accurate acquaintance with the English as well as his own language — a qualification of no small use in a country where the criminal law is English ; the civil law, French ; and the commercial law a mixture of both ; where juries are composed of men of either origin, and where the court interpreters are especially ignorant .t For some years previous to his election as a member of the Assembly, M. Perrault had taken an active part in politics. He wrote in the Minerve, in the French language, and in the Vindicator in English ; and was an active member of the Montreal Convention assembled in 1834, one of the chief objects of which seems to have been to prepare the public mind for the coming elections, by explaining, by means of publishet' resolutions, the principles of the contest. When the general election took place, M. Perrault was in- vited to represent the county of Vandreuil, and as the contest hinged on the elective principle, the application of which to the council he had rendered himself conspicuous in advocating, he was returned without difficulty. In the Assembly, during the long session of 1835, he fully justified the choice of his constituents. He proved himself as ready in debate as he was laborious in committee ; and being well acquainted with, being in fact a warm admirer of our great jurisprudential writers, our Benthams, and our Austins, he would, had he lived, have advanced his character as a philosophical legis- lator. In a young country like Canada, the death of such a man is a public loss. In all the social relations, M. Perrault exhibited those qualities which entitled him to the regard of his fellow citizens, to 'the affection of his friends. Generous in his sympathies, enlarged in his benevolences, imbued with a strong sense of religion, yet without a tinge of bigotry, tolerant of the opinions of others, he possessed a truly liberal mind. The beautiful language of Tacitus is especially suited to the mournful aspirations of his friends. " Si quis piorum manibus locus ; si, ut sapientibus * Par. paper. No. 72, p. 100. f At a trial for infanticide, a medical gentleman was examined. He stated that he practised as an accoucheur, the interpreter said, " Monsieur dit qu'il est sage feme." — the gentleman says he is a midwife, as the gentleman was one of that class, who are not unfrequently designated as " old women," the gravity and decorum of the court was somewhat disturbed by the mistake IN THE CANADAO. placet, non cum corpore cxtinguuiitur, iua|ught picture, whether true or false. Tliat it is false, let us, for the sake of humanity, hope ; indeed, even without any testimony to set it aside, we think it is not difficult to show that the details could not by possibility have been made known, and therefore to sup- pose them true is to suppose a miracle. The account, be it observed, is a detailed one; minute in tlio extreme, such, indeed, as could not have been given, except by an eye-witness or an inventor. Where was the eye-witness? It was not pretended that there was one. It was on the contrary dis- tinctly stated, that the men were only two, and that neither had been taken. If then, of the only three witnesses, two were not to be found, and one was dead, how could such details appear ? The reader may decide the question. Having thus shown that the newspaper accounts cannot be true, we shall offer another, which certainly appears to be more probable. It was furnished us from a private and authentic source; nevertheless, we recommend the reader to examine its intrinsic claim to probability, and to take it on its own merits, * Par. paper, No. 80, p. 8. . IN THE CANAOAH. 29 " At the period of Colonel Gore''8 expedition, the troops were about two leagues from St. Denis, having taken the ConcesHions road, when, at about five or six in the morning. Dr. Nelson heard of their approach. About the same time, Lieutenant Weir was brought m by some habitans who had stopped Mr.Weir"'8 con- veyance at a short distance from the village. Weir, who was then in plain clothes, stated, that he was visiting St. Denis and St. Charles, in order to purchase wheat. The habitans replied, that this was not the time when the merchants usually purchased wheat, and that they believed he belonged to the trooi)s which were in full march against them. Tnis he denied, and the habitans then carried him before Dr. Nelson. Weir again repeated the same story, but the language he used, raised Dr. Nelsoifs 8u«[)icions, and on examining his baggage, it was discovered who he was. At len^4h. Weir avowed himself, demanded his liberty, and stated that he would pay any sum as ransom. This, Dr. Nelson of course refused, but stated, that although he had been taken as a spy, he should, nevertheless, be treated as a gentleman ; at the same time, he was told to consider himself a prisoner. Weir, then, breakfasted with Dr. Nelson, and waa afterwards placed under the charge of some persons in a room in the house. " When the troops approached the village, and the firing com- menced, Mr. Weir's guards appear to have thought, that if they remained there, the prisoner would not be secure ; they accord- ingly, in the absence of Dr. Nelson, determined to transport him further in a caleche.* They tied his hands, but so feebly, that Weir, when the caleche had advanced only a few hundred yards from the house, on hearing the firing, broke his bonds, struck his guards, leapt suauenly from the chaise, and commenced running in the direction of the troops. It was then that one of his guards called upon him to return, and Weir continuing his course, he was at once fired upon. That shot was the cause of his death. A Captain Jarlbert is accused of having barbarously murdered him ; he was not even present at his death." This account is much more consistent with the treatment of other prisoners whom the fortune of the contest placed in the hands of the people of St. Denis. On Coflonel Gore"'a retreat, it will be recollected, there were five soldiers missing. These were wounded, and remained with the insurgents. On his second expedition they were recovered, and Colonel Gore reported that they had been well treated.^ Under these circumstances, we cannot help indulging ourselves with the hope that when the matter comes to be investigated, as it will shortly be, Lieutenant Weir s death will be found to have been such as not to revolt I . II * A kind of cabriolet, t See Lord Gosford's despatch of 6th December, 1837; Par. No. 80, p. 14. paper. i) hi m flO ACX:!OUNT OP THE CIVIL WAR i r I humanity; at least, not to a greater extent than the ordinary chance of war ought to do. We must now return to Lieutenant-colonel Wetherall, whom we left at Chambly, under orders to march upon St. Charles at the same time that Colonel Gore marched upon St. Denis. On Wednesday evening, at the time appointed, he left Chambly with four companies of the royals, one company of the 66th, a detachment of artillery with two field pieces, and a party of 20 of the Montreal cavalry, crossed the river to the east bank, and resumed his march towards St. Charles. By the time Colonel Gore had reached St. Denis, Colonel Wetherall had scarcely reached Rouville or St. Hilaire, a distance of about ten miles ; the delay being caused, according to a Montreal paper, by the miserable state of the roads. At St. Hilaire, Colonel Wetherall halted for about forty-eight hours. Here, we must observe, that there are some unexplained circumstances which force us into the field of conjecture, which render it necessaiy that we should demand the reader's careful attention to certain pieces of evidence, and especially to dates, by which we hope to throw a strong ray of light upon the whole matter. Colonel Wetherall's first two despatches, dated the 26th and 26th of November, and referred to in his published despatch ol the 27th,* have, for some unexplained reason, been suppressed. The first, dated from St. Hilaire, explains the cause of his delay ; the second, is the report of his attack on St. Charles. In the absence of these despatches, we are compelled to make use of the evidence of a Montreal paper, strongly opposed to the Canadians. Fortunately, however, we have the means of confronting one piece of evidence with another; and in the end, we doubt not that the truth will be sifted out. The paper in question tells us, that on arriving at St. Hilaire, " after encountering the worst of weather and roads during the night, and the forenoon of Thursday," the troops "found a bridge of considerable size removed, and were forced to bivouac there for the night." • " The next day," continues the same paper, " appears to have been spent in getting up a new bridge, refreshing the troops, and obtaining information. Maj jr W arde, with the grenadier com- pany of the Royals from St. Johns, also joined the main body, we believe, during that day.-f* Major Warde had reached Cham- bly too late to join in the march, and had thereupon taken the precaution to procure scows and bateaux for the conveyance of his company down the river to Rouville (St. Hilaire), by which means they arrived at that pKce fresh, and well prepared for service." ♦See Par. paper, K^th Jan. 1838, No. 80, p. 6. t niis increaaed Colonel Wetherall'e force to about five hundred men. IN THE CANADAS. 8t We must now crave the reader's attention to Colonel Wether- all's despatch of the 27th of November (Monday), written at St. Charles. It seems to be a mere recapitulation of the two suppi«ssed documents, and runs as follows : " I had the honour yesterday, (Sunday, 26th), to report the successful result of my attack on the stockaded post of the rebels, at this place. " In my letter of the 25th of November, (Saturday), I stated the circumstances which induced me to susperd my march towards St. Charles, and to order a company from Chambly to my support^ and I then said that I should wait at St. Hilaire, for his Excellency's further orders : this despatch was sent by Dr. Jones of the Montreal cavalry, and I hoped for his Excellency's answer during the following night. Not having received it at nine o'clock yesterday (Sunday) morning, I concluded that my messenger had been interrupted, and having learned that the basin at Chambly was frozen over, and every probability of a retreat being cut off, should such an event occur, I resolved on the attack. " The march was accomplished without opposition or hindrance, except from the breaking dovm of the bridges, &c. &c., until I arrived one mile from this place, when the troops were fired at from the left or opposite (west) bank of the Richelieu, and a msn of the royal regiment wounded ; several rifle shots were also fired from a barn immediately in our front. I burnt the barn. " On arriving at two hundred and fifty yards from the rebel works, I took up a position, hoping that a display of my force would induce some defection among these infatuated people ; they, however, opened a heavy fire, which was returned. I then ad- vanced to another position, one hundred yards from the works, but finding the defenders obstinate, I stormed and earned them, burning every building within the stockade, except that of the honourable Mr. Debartzch, which, however, is much injured. The loss on the side of the rebels was great ; only sixteen prisoners were then made. I have counted fifty-six bodies, and many more were killed in the buildings, and their bodies burnt. '• I shall occupy this village until the receipt of his Excellency's orders." , The loss on the part of the troops is stated to have been three killed, and eighteen wounded. The next day (the 28th) we find Colonel Wetherall at Chambl), having abandoned his intention of occupying St, Charles. " Having received information on Sunday night " (the night before he had expressed the above determination) that " a con- siderable body of the rebels had assembled at Pointe Oliviere," he "resolved upon attacking them in preference to marching on St, Denis," This is the first mention made of marching on St. Denis. It could have been the intention only up^ to Sunday I ^^ii;i ij.Hi : I ■ ^ K 32 ACCOUNT OK THE CIVIL WAR night, for at that time he formed the resohition to attack the rebels at Pointe Oliviere ; on Monday we find him stating that he shall occupy St. Charles until the receipt of orders ; and on Tuesday, we find him at Chambly, after having dispersed the armed peasantry at Pointe Oliviere. These apparent inconsis- tencies — this seeming vacillation would, we doubt not, be clearly explained by the suppressed despatches, so also would the delay at St. Hilaire. Not having those despatches, however, we must content ourselves by carefully examining the evidence before us ; and here we think we shall find a fact stated in the following passage from the letter which we have already quoted, of ma- terial service. " Immediately after the battle of St. Charles," says the writer, " Colonel Wetherall sent forward an express to Montreal, de- manding a reinforcement from Sir John Colborne. The mes- senger bearing Sir John's answer (one of the cavalry) was inter- cepted at St. Hilaire, and made prisoner by a body of men, who had assembled and threatened the ColoneFs rear. The letter was opened, and Sir John Colborne told Colonel Wetherall that no assistance could be given him, and that he should make the best of his way back to Montreal. In pursuance of these in- structions (which the patriots politely communicated to the Colonel, after they had read them) the body of troops under his command immediately retreated on Chambly, harassed on their flank by some straggling skirmishers. From Chambly, they pro- ceeded to St. Johns, and to the number of 600, including the soldiers in garrison at Chambly and St. Johns, embarked on the railroad, carrying with them all the stores at those two posts, having, previous to their departure, disarmed all the loyalists, into whose hands they had previously placed arms, as volunteers." The answer intercepted by the insurgents was doubtless that which Colonel Wetherall so anxiously waited at St. Hilaire, in fact he expected none other ; and as we learn from it that he had demanded a reinforcement ; and as, moreover, we know that he ordered Major Warde's company from St. Johns, the in- evitable inference is, that, while at St. Hilaire, he had heard of Colonel Gore's disaster, and this is doubtless the chief of the " circumstances which induced him to suspend his march," stated in his letter of the 27th, as having been detailed in that of the 26th, from St. Hilaire. This supposition ripens into con- viction, when it is remarked that the answer was intercepted at St. Hilaire. St. Hilaire is not in the road from Montreal to St. Charles ; and the fact of the messenger being arrested there, is a proof that he expected to find Colonel Wetherall in that vil- lage. The letter-writer, in saying that Colonel Wetherall applied for a reinforcement after the battle, makes a hasty assumption. We have no evidence of anything of the kind after the battle. A reinforcement was not then wanted. At St. Hilaire, on the ,1! i ^ ' IN THE CANADAS. 33 contrary, we have evidence that he did want a reinforcement, and that it was for that purpose alone that he suspended his march. The subsequent transmission of the intercepted letter to Colonel Wetherall, also explains liis sudden change of mind on the night of the 27th, or the morning of the 28th. Sir John Colbome"'s refusal of a reinforcement is also sus- ceptible of an explanation, perfectly consistent with Sir John's character as an able soldier. Colonel Gore returned to Montreal on the 26th, the day on which Colonel Wetherall wrote. Having been decidedly defeated, Colonel Gore certainly would not undervalue his enemy. This created a great degree of gloom in Montreal, which was not dissipated until the news of the burning of St. Charles reached the city on Monday morning, (the 27th,) or perhaps on Sunday night.* On the Saturday, the talk had been of an attack upon the city from the north, and all the streets on that side, with the exception of one (or two) for the purpose of ingress and egress, were barricaded. Under this state of doubt and alarm, it is not at all surprising, that Sir John Colborne not merely refused a reinforcement, but ordered Colonel Wetherall to make the best of his way back with his whole force to the city. We have not a doubt but that our conjectures on this head would be abundantly confirmed were che suppressed despatches published. There is a conclusion, and a curious one, which remains to be stated ; namely, that had Sir John's answer reached Colonel Wetherall, as he expected, at St. Hilaire, the attack upon St. Charles would never have been made. Colonel Wetherall would have immediately obeyed the order it contained, with the same promptitude which he afterwards exhibited on the final receipt of the answer. The whole character of the war would have been changed. The country would have been evacuated without a single success, and the Canadians would have been emboldened in their subsequent operations ; in short, it is quite impossible to foresee to what result it might not have led. Thus to a mere accident, is the local government of Canada indebted for the suppression of the insurrection in the section of country watered by t'le Richelieu. The ".ccount from which we have already quoted, contains some curious and interesting particulars of ihe attack upon St. Charles, which are not be found elsewhere. As in ihe case of St. Denis, the only material discrepancy between the ofiicial and the non-official accounts, relates to the loss on either side. The armed force of the insurgents is not stated by Colonel Wetherall. " This post" (St. Charles) says the writer, "was defended by about 300 Canadians who had guns. There were a large num- ber of men without armSy on the ground, who had been employed • It appeared in the papers of Monday aa a report. i; I 'i Ik! Jit ' !8 34 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAR during the two preceding days, as workmen, in hurrying on the completion of the stockade, or rude Hne of fortifications, hastily traced by Mr. .* These men were not merely of no assistance — they did but create confusion during the fight. You will remember that the right of this stockade was composed of three or four bams, in which was stored a quantity of grain f^nd hay. The hahitanSy who had gone to work, had lodged about fifty or sixty of their horses, unfortunately, in some of these out- houses. When the troops first commenced the attack, they were received with such a hot fire, that they were obliged to abandon or change their ground. The hottest of the fire was from the barns, where the Canadians, from loop-holes previously cut, bore upon the troops in a most galling manner. The troops imme- diately threw shells into the barns, and set them on fire. This was totally unexpected. Immediately, in consequence of the in- flammable nature of their contents, the barns were in one blaze ; the horses within broke loose and ran mad through the camp. The unarmed peasantry fled likewise, and in a short time all was confusion. The fight Igsted about an hour and a half. Colonel Wetherall had his horse shot under him ; so had Mr. David (a Jew,) commanding the cavalry. The loss of the patriots did no , exceed 28 killed (Colonel Wetherall said bQ) ; the troops had 15 killed and 16 wounded. The Tory papers of Montreal, who receive their information from the official circles, admit that the Canadians fought with uncommon desperation ; "f- indeed, some of * T. S. Browne. We throw into the form of a note the few facts in our possession respecting Mr. Browne. He was bom in New Brunswick, but his father, a man of respectability, removed to Woodstock, in the State of Ver- mont, when the subject of this note was young ; thus, though by birth a British subject, he is by education — ^by early habit — an American. For many years he carried on the business of a hardware merchant {Anglic^, a whole- sale ironmonger), and latterly was in difficulties, bm not to the extent of bank- ruptcy, Mr. Browne is a man of considerable energy ; and for some years previous to the late unfortunate occurrence, had taken an active part in poli- tics. He wrote constantly in the newspapers, and occasionally p aduced political poems of considerable nierit. When the cholera broke out in 1834, (the second visitation,) Mr. Browne was one of the sanitary committee, and did much to alleviate the suflferings occasioned thereby. A report, which was then drawn up on the subject, we have heard attributed to him ; those who are curious on the subject will find it reprinted in one of the numbers of the Canadian Portfolio. , Browne was one of the Sons of Liberty, and we learn from the official des- patches, that he was badly wounded on the 6th of Nov. His part in the aflFairs of St. Charles, the reader is already acquainted with. On the evidence before us, he appears to have acted somewhat rashly, but as all the evidence is that of his opponents, we should not judge too hastily. After the battle, he escaped into the United States with considerable difficulty : an account of this escape has appeared in the New York papers ; we shall make use of this account in Chapter iv. t One paper said " the Canadians fought like tigers ; " adding, in con- firmation of the text, " many of them plunging into the river and drowning themselves, rather than be taken." Another says, " the poor deluded IN THE CANADAS. 35 in con- the people, sooner than fall into the hands of the enemy as prisoners, flung themselves into the river, whereby many were droMTied." On the last day of November, the troops under Colonel We- therall reached Montreal with thirty-two prisoners, twenty-five from St. Charles, and the seven previously captured. Among these prisoners it should be remarked, were none of those whose capture was the express object * of the expedition, and whom the peasantry had risen to defend. The people were dispersed ; but they had only risen in consequence of the threatened presence of the troops. Theirs appears to have been a defensive warfare, and their great error certainly was in making a stand against the troops at all. At St. Denis it happened to be successful ; at St. Charles it failed ; but then Dr. Nelson is a man of great mental vigour, and Mr. Browne appears not to have acted with much less judgment; however, had Colonel Gore's force been equal to that of Colonel Wetherall — with two guns, be it observed — St. Denis might have fallen. Had the operations of the insurgents been of an oifensive, instead of a defensive character, it would not have been difficult for them to have seized upon Isle-aux- Noix, St. Johns, Chambly, Sorel, and the intermediate villages. That they neglected to do so when those stations were scarcely defended, is a proof that they had no preconcerted plan. To a set of men contemplating rebellion in a country such as we have described, the possession of the above places, with the arms and ammunition, but, above all, with the artillery they contained, would naturally have been a primary object. The very first out- break would have been an attempt upon one of these forts. The possession of one would have proved the key to the whole ; and when all were occupied, that section of the country might have been deemed theirs. On the return of the troops to Montreal, it is painful to state that ample evidence is said to have been exhibited that the village had been plundered. Watches and other portables of value were exposed for sale without disguise, and the amount of plunder which fell to the share of some of the men is said to have been consider- able. The French Canadians are in the habit of keeping money in their houses. Being a simple agricultural people, and not familiar with the habits of a commercial community, they have, what we should consider a strange and unaccountable prejudice, against paper money; hence a paper dollar is no sooner taken than it is exchanged for " argent dm*'' — hard money — and deposited in the hoard, to be used only for such purposes as money will alone attain. wretches fought with a degree of bravery worthy of a better cause." It is necessary to mention this, as it has been stated on high authority that the Canadians would not fight — an error which we fear may have operated inju- riously on her Majesty's councils in the management of the colony. * See Sir John Colborne's despatch of the 29th November, ^eady quoted II « »; M ll ■Ml 36 ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL WAR The poor people of St. Charles had no time to secure their hard-earned savings, as " the attack occupied about one hour" * only. It is due to the magistrates who accompanied the troops to say, that they exerted themselves to the utmost to save the property of the unfortunate inhabitants from plunder, and their persons from insult. In some cases they succeeded. In a house wherein one of the magistrates f had taken up his residence, the most revolting scene would have taken place but for his humane interference ; but the fact of interference being necessary in one case, affords melancholy evidence that many circumstances of bar- barity must have occurred out of the cognizance of the magistrates and the deputy sheriff, who we believe was also present, and being a native Canadian would of course do all in his power to avert the evils to which we are compelled to allude. What could three men do, against an unrestrained body of five hundred ? We have now brought to a close our narrative of the military operations in Lower Canada down to the end of November last. The events not of a military character, which in the mean time took place, and the measures adopted by the local government to secure tranquillity, or to strengthen their own position, will be detailed in the following chapter. * Col. Wetherall's despatch of 27th Nov. t Mr. Bellingham. r-1 iil IN THK OANADAS. ST CHAPTER III. BXECUTIVE EXPEDIENTS. MARTIAL LAW. Arming the Volunteers — State of Montreal in November — A Monitory Proclamation — How received by the Anti-popular party — Probable effect on the Liberals — Magistrates' Address — ^Tlie Rewards — ^The Charges— Proposal to call the Assembly .together — Rejected — Proceedings preliminary to pro- claiming Martial Law — The Proclamation — Lord Gosfora's Resignation. The last chapter was exclusively devoted to the detail of the combined military movements upon St. Denis and St. Charles, and to such of the events connected therewith as were confined to that locality. The time occupied, it will be remembered, was the last week of the month of November. In the present chapter, we shall describe the various measures which the local government at the same time adopted, for the purpose of strengthening its own position, so as to enable it the more effectually to prevent any further outbreak ; or in the event of such an occurrence, to put it speedily down. We have re- served the narrative of these measures for a separate chapter, in order to avoid breaking in upon the ston^^ told in the last. The formation of volunteer corps in Montreal we have already alluded to,* but, to render the history complete, it is necessary that we should carry our narrative somewhat back. As early as December, 1836, that portion of the population opposed to the views of the Assembly had evinced a strong desire to obtain arms and accoutrements from the government. Application had been then made by a body of young men of the *' constitutionalist" party to be formed into a rifle corps ; but Lord Gosford per- ceiving, in all probability, that the granting of such a request would be nothing more nor less than arming one portion of the population against another, very properly as it seems, refused the request. In the month of September last, an application of a similar character was made by more than 300 inhabitants of the city of Quebec. This application was refused on the 7th of October, and Lord Gosford, writing to Lord Glenelg, on the 12th of the same month, states his motives for so refusing, in the following words : — " I still thought it prudent to decline, at the present, proposals that could not have been accepted without incurring the risk of applications of the same nature from other quarters, which it * Chapter i. p. II. i.'i m ii ill t pi '5 1 / i i '\\ ''•iff K 1 1 ihli ;.■ I 88 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAK i jjl i' ' 1';; 1 ;! r 1 J! jjl i I might have been dangerous to grant, but difficult to refuse, had this been entertained ; nor without giving rise, both in the pro- vince or elsewhere, to inferences that the strength and progress of the agitators are greater than they really are, and that the local executive was in a state of alarm, inferences which it is one , of the great objects of the movement party to create, and to dis- seminate as widely aspossible *.■" We can find no official documents among the parliamentary papers on Canada, recently published, showing at what precise time Lord Gosford's scruples were overcome. The cavalry employed in the middle of November, as " mounted police," or " special constables," had been for many years in existence as wc have already stated. The first mention we find of arming the party opposed to the Assembly was about the time that it was determmed to employ military force in making the arrests. From that time, the arming of the constitutionalists went on rapidly, so much so, that, on the 27th of November, the Montreal Courier, one of the papers of that party, was enabled to announce as follows : — " The four volunteer battalions muster considerably above 2000 men. All are now armed and officered, and a large pro- portion of the companies have gone through some little drilling. By the time the river closes, they will make a pretty garrison."" For the purpose of arming these volunteer corps, 6000 stand of arms had been transmitted to Montreal from the armoury at Quebec. On the 24th of November, Sir John Colborne, in a letter to Lord Gosford, communicating Colonel Gore"'s defeat, expresses himself as follows : " The civil war has now commenced, and I intreat your lord- sliip to form volunteer corps at Quebec, and to raise a corps for general service." In compliance with this request, Lord Gosford immediately sanctioned the " embodying, and paying as troops of the line, 800 men, for the purpose of assisting until the 1st of Maj' next, in the performance of garrison and other military duties, and as required for the security of the fortress in case of attack." The principal conditions between the government and the corps were, that they should be furnished with arms and accoutre- ments by the government, and that such of the men as might be found to require them, should be furnished with great coats, to * Par. paper. No. 72, p. 65. t From the same paper, we learn that, at the funeral of Lieutenant Weir, 7th Dec, 1837, " A mifitary gentleman stood at the Quebec gate, as the pro- cession passed, and counted 3154 men under arms, exclusive of officers; of these very few, comparatively, were regulars, owing to the absence of the greater part on duty out of town." IN THE CANADAS. 39 be delivered up or accounted for, when the corps should be dis- banded. Tliat the officers should be appointed by the govemor-in-chief, that they should rank junior to all officers of their respective grades in the line, and that none should be considered as having any claim to half-pay or other allowance in right of their com- missions, after the corps shall have been disbanded. That the men should be between nineteen and fifty ; five feet three inches and upwards in height, and subject to approval by the governor. Finally, that the pay and rations should be the same as those allowed to her majesty's regiments of the line.* •' On similar conditions," says Lord Gosford in his despatch of the 30th November, f an additional number of 250 for the artillery service, have, on the application of the officer com- manding that force, and on recommendation of the command- ant of the garrison, been also organized. I have further sanctioned the formation of volunteer corps in this city and else- where, furnishing them only with arms and accoutrements, which are to be returned when the occasion for which they are supplied shall have ceased to exist. These measures, in which Sir John Colborne has concurred, were the more necessary, as troops from the Lower Provinces might not, at this particular period of the year, be enabled to come to our assistance for some time, although three expresses have been furnished by Sir John, to urge their making the attempt, and by the existing law, the militia of the province can, I believe, be called out only in case of war with the United States, or invasion, or imminent danger thereof." The result of these measures was, that by the 12th of December, the day previous to Ihe marching of the troops upon St. Benoit and St. Eustache — an expedition which will be found described in a subsequent chapter — the armed volunteers throughout the province were as follows : — Cavalry . . . . 257 Artillery .... 72 Infantry .... 8573 Total t 8902 We have already mentioned,§ that after the defeat of Colonel Gore at St. Denis, a consideralile degree of alarm, amounting to something very like panic, exhibited itself at Montreal. It should now be mentioned that Montreal, though not the capital, is the commercial metropolis of the Canadas. It is situ- * See these conditions given at length in Par. paper. No. 80, p. 1 1 . t Ibid. p. 9. X The regular troops exceeded 4000, making in all about 13,000 men at Sir John Colborne's disposal. § Vide, Chap. ii. p. 33. biJ ':'ili 40 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAR ^1 il ii i ated on an island of the same name, formed by the mouths of the Ottawa, or Grand River. Isle Jesus lyinff north, and Isle Perrot, a smaller island, on the west. It is the nead of the ship naviga- tion of the St. Lawrence, the broken waters of La Chine rapid being immediately above it. Its precise position will best be learned from the Map. At the census of 1831, the cities of Quebec (the capital) and Montreal, were about equal in population, but the rate of increase being greater in the latter than in the former, and several circum- stances having occurred to move a portion of the trade formerly enjoyed by Quebec to Montreal, the growth of the latter city has received a further impetus, and it is now computed to contain about 40,000 inhabitants. Formerly Montreal was fortified, but no vestiges of the defences now remain, the citadel hill having been levelled a few years since to make way for some handsome private residences. The town within the ancient limits is small, but it is surrounded by extensive subm'bs, containing the great mass of the population. These suburbs are the Quebec on the north-east (down the river); the St. Louis on the north; the St. Lawrence on the north and north-west ; the St. Antoine on the west ; and the Recollect suburbs, and Grifiintown on the south-west and south (up the river) ; of these, Grifiintown contains the business quarter towards the mouth of the La Chine canal, whilst the St. Lawrence suburbs open a communication with the back of the Island, and the country lying north-west of the city. The Island is generally level, but immediately behind the city, and commanding it, is an isolated mountain from which the Island and city take their name. A few pieces of artillery and mortars in this hill (for although called the mountain^* it is no more) might destroy Montreal. It is from this quarter that the town is especially assailable, numerous streets running in parallel lines towards the mountain, and communicating with high roads towards the country where the insurgents were said to be in force. When the news of the defeat arrived, it was appre- hended, that a descent might bo made on the city. The mass of the population were known to be favourable to the politics of the Assembly, and it was therefore concluded, that the appear- ance of a force on the northern side of the city would be a signal for a general rising. This probably accelerated the arming of the volunteers, and it certainly led to the barricading of the streets of the St. Lawrence suburbs. There is only one thing against the reasonableness of the expectation of a rising, namely, that the Canadians of the cities do not often possess arms. Such a rising might nevertheless have taken place, but it would * It is eo called, though erroneously, from the word Montague ; what we mean by the word mountain, the French express by the word, mont. Jr IN THR CANADAH. 41 certainly have led to a frightful slaufrhter at the hands of the armed volunteers, who, as we ahall hereafter sec,* are not to be restrained when let loose upon their political opponents. At this time, as we are informed, Montreal presented a curious appearance. Armed men appeared in every comer of the streets. A gun or a sword was the evidence of attachment to the existing order of things ; or to speak in Colonial parlance of " loyalty ;" whilst to walk aboutidmarmed, was taken as strong presumption of disaffection. An English gentleman, who of course, wanted all motive to the amusement of Canadian rebel shooting, has described to us his position at that time as being sufficiently painful. As he walked along the streets, armed men scowled suspiciously at him ; he was constantly talked at as he passed along, bv knots of lounging striplings, and once was howled at by a " loyal " mob. All this should not be wondered at, — it was the result of alarm. All who were not with them they deemed to be against them, and the partizanship of a native Englishman, they looked upon as their right, in return for what they religiously believed to be their loyalty. In order to account for this state of the public mind, it should be here observed, that the most exaggerated rumours were brought to Montreal, and perhaps even generated there, respecting the numbers, character, and pro- ceedings of the insurgents. It was at one time stated that 4000 men were in arms at St. Charles. Colonel Gore stated that 3000 were reported to be at St. Denis, though he himself did not believe there were 1500, the fact being, that ha was assailed by just so many amied men, as could occupy the windows of the houses, near his point of attack. Again, 2000 men were stated to be at Grand Brul6. The armed men at the rescue, stated ultimately at 60 men, were at first said to be 300 ; indeed, when- ever armed men appeared, they were counted by the hundred, and sometimes by the thousand. The accounts which appeared in the Vermont papers also bore the same exaggerated character. It is unnecessary to remind the reader, +hat having the benefit of time and distance, we h«».ve been enabled to build our narrative on more authentic statements ; but in accounting for the state of alarm, which prevailed during the latter half of November, and the first half of December, we must not leave these reports out of calculation, and we may further assume that they had their effect on the minds of the civil and military authorities, as we have seen in one case detailed in the last chapter. In the midst of the military operations, the executive did not wholly neglect to address itself to public opinion. On the 29th of November, Lord Gosford issued, what in a subsequent despatch is called " a monitory proclamation."" This document, after attribut- ing the "blind and fatal excitement," to the 'machinations of evil designing men," which had at length succeeded in implicat- * Chapter v. o 'A I™ i ■ ».n 42 Arf-OlfNT OK TIIR riVIL WAR ) ■ i ing a part of a hitherto peaceable and loyal population in the first excesses of a reckless and hopeless revolt," continues aa follows : — " As the representative of our most jrracioua sovereign, I now most solemnly address myself to the inhabitants of this province, but more especially to the misguided and inconsiderate population on the river Richelieu, in the district of Montreal. I address myself to your good sense and your personal expeiience of the benefits you have received, and of the tranquillity you have so long enjoyed under the British government. You possess the religion, the language, the laws, and the institutions, guaranteed to you nearly seventy years since. Vou know not the burthen of taxes ; the expense of your military defence is defrayed by Great Britain ; the prosperity and happiness which have hitherto pervaded this province, proclaim honourably and undeniably the political wisdom which watches over your safety, encourages yoiu* commerce, and fosters your rising industry. The spontaneous confidence of the British Parliament bestowed on you a constitu- tion ; your representatives complained of grievances — their com- plaints were promptly and fully investigated ; grievances when proved to exist were removed at once ; redress, the most ample, but unavoidably, gradual, was unreservedly promised ; and up to this momenf> that promise has been scrupulously observed ; but the demands of your leaders are insatiable — the language of re- form has speciously concealed the designs of revolution. " I have thus far deemed it my duty to explain the injustice and inadmissibility of the objects for which your leaders contend, and for the attainment of which they would wantonly sacrifice you and your families. The tiaitor^^s designs of these political agi- tators have bean at length unmasked ; I now, therefore, call upon those who have been thus far deluded, to listen to the language of reason, sincerity, and truth — listen to the language of your respectable and trustworthy clergy — listen to the representations of those worthy and loyal proprietors, whose interests are identi- fied with your own; and whose prosperity, in common with yours, must ever be graduated and governed by the internal tranquillity of this province. Return to that allegiance to your sovereign, which you have now, for the first time, violated ; and to that obe- dience to the law, which you have hitherto invariably maintained. Spurn from you your insidious advisers — reject, with abhorrence, their self-interested and treasonable counsels — leave them to that retribution which inevitably awaits them — retire to your homes, and to the bosoms of your families — rest assured that a powerful and merciful government is more desirous to forget than to resent injuries ; and that within that sanctuary you will experience ro molestation." This proclamation, the object of which was to detach the people from their political leaders, gave great offence to the party op- posed to the Assembly — the "well-affected" party. The Montreal IN THE C'ANAnA0. 48 Herald^ the organ of that party, after observing that Lord Oo8- ford " has a happy knack of ruining the country by proclamations," asHails his Lordship in a strain of bitter invective for that which, we are quite sure, the British reader will consider an estimable feature in the document, we mean the humane assurance with which we have closed our quotation. From this conimentary wo Khali make a few extracts, for the purpose of showing the 'Ufficulty of satisfying the " well-affected.^' " His third proclamation hassoNvn the seeds of future insurrec- tion, by pi-omising that all the rebels, without one distinctly spe- cified exception, * will experience no molestation.*" His Lord- hip's conduct reminds us of a little anecdote, to the effect that nis Lordship's countryman, Dick M.artin,* had ridden a horse to death, with a view to prevent the baiting of a jackass. Equally regardless of the nobler creatures (the Herald's party), their re- spective victims, Richaid exclaims, oA, the poor jackass ! and Ai*chibald,*f oh, the poor hahitans ! " After stating, that so long as " certain ruffians of his Lordship's pet race — his French allies"' — had the best of it, no proclamations were issued, the Herald continues — '* Hut now a change comesovcrtho spirit of hisLordship^s dream. At St. Charles, the French allies fared but badly, and then and not till then, is issued a proclamation. Oh, the poor jackass f Oh, the poor hahitans ! Are not these undeniable facts sufficient to justify an assertion, which we repeatedly heard on Saturday last, that the Earl of Gosford is at heart a rebel. " Let us now consider, as definitively as poh ible, the extent of his Lordship's promised pardon ; that pardon ems to bo offered to all but * a few evil-minded and designing raei who, b\ way of an elegant variety, are elsewhere styled * leaders, * political agi- tators,' and 'insidious advisers.' " Now every person, whose sentiments are known, is willing and anxious that a certain degi'ee of clemency may be extended to all who may have been mere tools ; but we cannot admit that the ' leaders,' and so forth, are accurately described as ' a few evil- minded and designing men.' It is not the execution of the six ov eight demagogues, to whom his Lordship manifestly alludes, that can restore and preserve the tranquillity of the province. Every local agitator^ of every disturbed parish, must be tried, and, if convicted, must he deprived of all his property, and hanged. H is thus that the actually guilty will be struck down, and the pro- bable causes of future turbulence be cut off;" Now let it be observed, that this truly revolting language is the expression of the feelings of a class; the party among whom the paper in which it appeared extensively circulates, is that * Meaning the member for Galway. f Archibald Acheson, Earl of Gosford, 44 ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL WAR which 18 opposed to the assembly. It is this party into whose hwius, arms have been placed. Our readers cannot but shudder when they picture to themselves the possible conbequences of the possession of power by men who can relish such sentiments.* The proprietor and editor of this paper are liable to be called on to serve on juries. They belong to the class out of whom a Montreal jury would certainly be chosen. Of their fitness for that office, where a political offence was to be tried, let the above extract, and the note below, enable the reader to judge. As Englishmen, we cannot but have a sort of constitutional horror of martial law ; but we submit with deference, that a court of English officers would be a safer tribunal than one conijfjosed of such men aa the author of these tiidy revolting passages. As the popular papers are destroyed, it is difficult to say what feelings the proclamation is calculated to excite in the minds of the Assembly and its friends. The humanity of the pledge with which it concludes, will but ill compensate for the continued pro- scription of th^ " leaders" to whom the people have shewn so strong an attachment. .The "benefits,"" too, Lord Gosford recites, have often been conjiu-ed up before the Canadians, without pro- ducing that strong sense cf gratitude which many, and Lord Gosford among the number, seem to think they ought to excite. As to religion, and other rights, guaranteed to them, they con- sider it as the mere performance of a solenm promise, and there- fore not a matter of merit, especially as they accuse the imperial government of withholding some benefits, to which they deem themselves entitled. The prosperity they enjoy, those who think about the matter, are conscious that they owe, not to the gcern- ment, but to the productiveness/of industry in a new country ; * This is the same paper from which the following extract found its way into the London papers, and elicited expressions of tneir astonishment and disgust. It was copied, with approbation, into other papers, of the " well aflFected" party. " Tho punishment of the general leaders, however gratifying it might be to the English inhabitants of the province, would not make either so deep or so durable an impression on the great body of the people, as the sight of a foreign farmer on every local agitator's land, and of the com- parative destitution of his widow and orphans — ^living and lasting proofs of the folly ard wickedness of rebellion. The most vigorous exertions ought to be made, in order to identify and convict every local agitator, and to this purpose, most of the miserable creatureswho were brought to town on Thursday, should be applied. They should be employed as witnesses against all such * notables' as Duvert and Durocher, their own leaders in guilt, and partners in misfortune. A vigorous course of this kind would moreover have the effect of settling a large ? umber of ' foreigners' in the most turbulent and most opulent i)art o*' Lower Canada, and thu' at once ameliorate political evils, pjxd promote agricultural improvement. To return to our original proposition, the funds raised in this way ought to remunerate every loyal man that may have suffered from the rapacity and cruelty of the savages. " In accomplishing all this, no time should be lost ; a special commission ought immediately to be issued for the trial of the present batch of imprisoned traitors. It would be ridiculous to fatten fellows all the winter for the gallows." IN THE CANADAa. 45 moreover, the Canadians sometimes cast their eyes towards the neighbouring states, where they see prosperity without the " po- Utical wisdom" to which Lord Gosford alludes ; the grievances, which his Lordship assserts to have been redressed, the Canadians consider the very point in dispute ; and they would perhaps open the reports signed by his Lordship, as one of the commissioners, and point out many severe cases of grievance admitted to be still in existence. Thus, whilst the proclamation has excited the animosity of one party, it does not seem calculated to produce much effect on the other. The Lower Canadian insurgents appear to have been subdued by the arms of the military, without being convinced by the statements of the proclamation. Lord Gosford himself seems to be of this opinion. " What may be the effect of this ad- dress," says his Lordship,* " upon the minds of the misguided peasantry, it is difficult to say ; they have disregarded my former warnings, the pastoral letter of their countryman, the Roman Catholic Bishop of Montreal,f and the peaceful advice of their clergy, and it may be that my present proclamation will meet with no better reception." Another monitory document was circulated a few days before Lord Gosford 's proclamation, which, owing to the character of the parties whence it emanated, was not likely to have any effect. It is IS an address signed by fourteen French Canadian magistrates, all, with one exception, obnoxious to their fellow countrymen as enemies of the Assembly, a,nd friends of their enemies; and that one exception, once one of the most popular men in Canada, is likely to become obnoxious by this his last act. This address warns the people of " certain perfidious men who have pushed on isolated indi- viduals to commit acts unworthy of men who know how to respect the public peace and the laws." It then advises them to return to their homes, and to rely on the protection of the British government, reminds them that " the vengeance;}: of the laws will be equally prompt and terrible," and concludes by stating, that they who call the people back to peace, believe themselves to be the most devoted servants of their country. t. Immediately after issuing the monitory proclamation of the 29th November, which, it seems to have been expected, would cause the people to abandon their leaders, '\with the advice of the executive council, and on the recommendation of the attor- ney-general," his Lordship issued three proclamations, offering rewards for the apprehension of twenty individuals, of whom the following is the list, with the sums offered : — L. J. Papineau (Speaker) . . .£'1000 ,i Dr. W. Nelson .... 600 ; T. S. Brown .... 500 --^ * Despatch of 30th Nov. 1837. Par. paper, No. 80. p. 9- ,1 t See Introduction. '^ J " Vengeance is unknown to the law." Livingston : Penal code for Louisiana. I I ' , feS #6 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAR ^600 500 600 500 500 500 500 500 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 :s that of high treason. E. B. O^Callaffhan, M.P.Pi J. J. Gurnard, M.P.P. . C. H. O. Cote, M.P.P. . J. T. Drolet, M.P.P. . W. H. Scott, M.P.P. . E. E. Rodier, M.P.P. . Amury Girod Jean O. Chenier P. P. Demaray J. F. Davignon Julien Gagnon P. Amiot w . / T. Franchere L. Perrault . . , A. Gauvin . . . L. Gaulthier . R. Desrivi^res The charge against all these persons What evidence, or what affidavits the executive may have, it is impossible to say ; at present, nothing appears in the papers laid before parliament or elsewhere to warrant the charge against many of the names on the list. Some have appeared in arms; they have, doubtless, rendered themselves amenable to such ft charge ; but others are not even kno>\Ti to have appeared in the disturbed district. M. Papineau and Dr. CCallaghan in parti- cular, have been charged with abandoning the people, because they were not among the combatants at St. Denis. Lord Gcsford calls them " the criminal leaders of this reckless insurrection ; "* the Montreal papers hold similar language, yet, with strange in- consistency, call the same men hard names, such as "skulking pol- troons," because they have not been "leaders of this reckless insur- rection." Leaders they were, but it was of the inoral resistance of the people ; that they have embarked in the recent insurrection is, we repeat, no where proved by the evidence hitherto made public. In the early part of the month of December, an attempt was made by some of the members of the Assembly to induce Lord Gosford to call the legislature together. This measure originated with M. Lafontaine, member for Terrebonne; Mr. Leslie, member for the east ward of Montreal; and Mr. Walker, an advocate, who had been M. Papineau's opponent at the last election, and who, in 1835, was the constitutional delegate to this country. Mr. Lafontaine had during the summer, refrained from attending the public meetings which had taken place ; and although an active and influential member of the majority, may probably have deemed himself somewhat less obnc ious to the ruling party, and to Lord (Gosford, than those who had so attended; Mr. Leslie being a mild and benevolent man, and therefore much estewned, even by those who were opposed to ]him in politics, would give weight to * Par. paper, l6th Jan. 1838. No. 80» p. 15. IN THE CAN ADAS. V. T^tu. A. Berthelot. H. T. Huot. L. Methot. A. C. Tachereau. J. F. Deblois. A. N. Morin. J. A. Tachereau. H. Dubord. the application, whilst the association of Mr. Walker, with two gentlemen of the popular party, may probably have been designed to strip the application of all suspicion that it emanated from the most uncompromising section of the liberals. It does not appear from any document, either public or private, to which v;e have had access, that they were delegated by any body of individuals ; but on their arrival at Quebec, they wero joined by twelve members of the Assembly, Mr. Walker having there, as it should seem, ceased to act with them. The ground of their demand, that the Legislature should be called together, was simply this ; that Lord Gosford having re- modelled the Council very recently, he ought, if consistent, to call the Assembly Council together, in order to ascertain if it were possible for the two legislative bodies to act together. Mr. Lafontaine and Mr. Leslie appear to have waited upon Lord Gosford on the 4th or 5th of December. Their verbal communication was afterwards reduced to writing, and signed by the following members : — P. M. Bardy. L. T. Besserer. J. Leslie. L. H. Lafontaine. A. Godbout. In this shape, it was presented as an address to Lord Gosford ; it met with an immediate refusal ; and the same afternoon martial law was proclaimed. Lord Gosford's view of the matter is em- bodied in the following extract from his despatch to Lord Glenelg, dated 23rd December, 1837. " I have recently received an address, dated the 5th instant, from the members of the House of Assembly, whose names are mentioned in the margin, urging me immediately to convoke the provincial parliament, as the only efficacious remedy, in their opinion, for the re-establishment of peace and harmony in the country ; but as this application expressed the individual opinions of onlv 14 out of the 90 members of the House; and as I did not conceive on general grounds that such a course of proceeding would, under existing circumstances, be either prudent or ad- visable, 1 declined to adopt it. Indeed, it would have been a virtual disfranchisement for the session, of several counties, whose members are either in gaol, or fugitives, under the charge of high treason, and for the apprehension of many of whom a reward has been offered. Besides, any measures adopted by the local legisla- ture under the present position of affairs, would probably be here- after considered as the result of a constraint produced by recent events, an impression that could not fail to destroy in the public mind those feelings of confidence and respect which the proceed- ings of a legislative body ought at all times to command." * We can find nothinjjf to object to, considering all the circum- * Par. paper, 2nd Feb. 1838. No. 100, p. 6. Mil ■ ■(■! '. t . li I t.ll m\ 48 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVIL WAR ! i i : i IIIk 11 stances of the case, in tlie determination on the part of the governor. If it had been contemplated to accompany the calling together of the Assembly with a general amnesty, it might have been attended with the most beneficial effects. The insurrection having ceased in the comitry watered by the Richelieu, such a measure of conciliation, nay, of clemency, would have strengthened Lord Gosford's government more than any course of coercion. It would have been a true conquest of the Assembly ; and, although we are convinced that no government but one which is purely elective in its character, can ultimately succeed in America, the immediate effect would have been the generation, to a certain extent, of a yielding disposition on the part of the Assembly. We have been assured that the recal of the exiled members formed part of the plan of Messrs. Lafontaiue and Leslie, but it does not appeal' to have been so understood by Lord Gosford. His Lordship distinctly states the fact of some members being in gaol, and others in exile, as a ground for refusing. The ab- sentees numbered most of the members for the Montreal district, including the Speaker; it does not appear that on the whole, above sixty members were in a condition to attend, so that we do not see how Lord Gosford could well have complied with the doubtless well-intentioned request, without an amnesty, which he does not seem to have been disposed at that time to grant. The proceedings relative to the declaration of martial law next demand our attention. For some time, the newspapers of Montreal had been loudly calling upon the executive to resort to this ex- treme measure, to which, however, his Excellency for some time exhibited a proper reluctance. This reluctance, natural enough to an Englishman, but which the colonial governing party could not comprehend, much less appreciate, gave rise to a report that the power to proclaim martial law, usually inserted in the com- missions of colonial governors, had, either through inadvertence or design, been left out of that of Lord Gosford. Whether this be or be not the case, we find his Lordship addressing Lord Glenelg, as early a£ the 6th of November, to the following effect : — " I have used, and am still using, every endeavour to arrest the progress of anarchy and confusion that is spreading, with great rapidity, throughout the district of Montreal ; but I find the ordi- naiT powers of the executive quite insufficient for the purpose.*" This may have been intended to prepare the imperial govern- ment for the resort to " extraordinary powers ;" and whether such powers were included in Lord Gosford's commission is of little moment, inasmuch as no governor would feel any hesitation in usurping such powers, knowing that it is a principle of the ad- ministration of the colonial office, to protect their governors in all acts against the people. A bill of indemnity * for the proclamation * To show that a reliance that indemnification would not be withheld fiom him, was by no means unreasonable, should he exceed his instructions in the m THE CANADAS. 49 of martial law would, in the case supposed, be sure to await Lord Gosford on his return to this country. On the 20th of the same month, the Executive Council met for the purpose of deliberating on the same subject. At this meet- ing, M. Debartzch was present, and as the insurgents at St. Charles had only a few days before held him in durance in his own house,* it was not wonderful that he should desire the adoption of an ex- treme measure. In short, of the five persons who assisted at this deliberation, no less than three were of the apostate class — a class which seems perpetually on the alert to do some overt act of loyalty, in order, we suppose, to destroy all suspicion of the possi- bility of a backsliding to liberalism. The result of their delibera- tion was as follows : — " It was ordered, with the advice of the board, that inasmuch as the civil authorities in certain parts of the district of Montreal are unable to carry the law into effect without the aid of the military force, it will become expedient, should such a state of things continue, to declare those parts of the said district in a state of insurrection and rebellion.'" Still Lord Gosford hesitated, being all the time subject to the violent abuse of the Montreal anti-popular papers, -f* whose cry was continually for blood. At this time, no intelligence of the transac- tions at St. Charles and St. Denis had reached Quebec; as they had been undertaken, not by order of the executive, but by the com- mander of the fomes, at the demand of the law officers of the crown, and on his own authority. Immediately after these tran- sactions, the magistrates of Montreal had a meeting, at which the following resolutions were passed : — • " That the standard of rebellion has been raised in various portions of this district, and considerable bodies of armed men case supposed, we oiFer Lhe following extract from a despatch of Lord Glenelg's, addressed to Sir John Colborne on the 6th of December last. " To repress by arms any insurrection or rebellion to which the civil power cannot be successfully opposed, is, therefore, a legpitimate exercise of the royal authority; and in the attainment of this object, the proclamation of martial law may become indispensable. It is superfluous to state with what caution and reserve this ultimate resource should be resorted to ; and that it ought to be confined within the narrowest limits which the necessity of the case will admit. But if, unhappily, the case shall drise in any part of Lower Canada in which the protection of the loyal and peaceable subjects of the crown may require the adoption of this extreme measure, it must not be declined. Reposing the utmost confidence in your prudence that such a measurfc will not be needlessly talcen, and relying on your firmness that, if taken, it will be followed up with the requisite energy, her Majesty's government are fully prepared to assume to themselves the responsibility of instructing you to employ it, should you be deUberately convinced that the occasion imperatively demands it. They will with confidence look to parliament for your indemnity and their own. — (Par. paper, Dec. 1837, No. 72, p. 106.) * See chap. ii. p. 22. t We need not fatigue the reader with further specimens of this abuse. Those which will be found at page 43, will suffice. u w u 1 •:<' n liin £ 60 ACCOUNT OP THE CTVIL WAR it! have afisembled, under the command of persons who have publicly declared that their object was to upset the government of this province, and to sever its connexion with the United Kingdom, and who have fired on and killed a number of her Majesty's troops while executing the orders of the civil government. " That there is reason to apprehend that an extensive system of insurrection is in active progress of o^anization in this district, conducted by persons notoriously disairccted to her Majesty's government, who, the regular forms and process of civil law do not permit being immediately arrested and brought to punish- ment, thereby endangering the safety of the city,* and the lives and properties of her Majesty's subjects throughout the district. " That the magistrates, now in special sessions assembled, do represent to his Excellency the Govemor-in-chief, that, in their opinion, the exigencies of the times require that this district be placed under martial law." "f* The sanction afforded by the above resolutions to the declara- tion of martial law by the Governor, seems afterwards to have been deemed by the magistrates of insufficient force ; they there- fore met a second time,, on the 4th of December, and passed the following resolutions, in the way of explanation. *' That, in the opinion of this meeting, the turbulent and dis- affected persons who have incited the peasantry to rebel against her Majesty's government, have been led on and encouraged in their career of crime by a firm belief that whatever might be their political offences they would not be declared guilty by any jury impannelled in the ordinary course of law ; that the great mass of the population in this district having been engaged in aiding and abetting the late treasonable attempts, a fair and impartial verdict cannot be expected from a jury taken indiscriminately from the legally-qualified inhabitants ; and that, unless measures are adopted to ensiwe the equal dispensation of justice, few, if any, even of the most guilty among th'^ rebels will receive the punishment justly due to their crimes ; while the loyal and well- disposed will continue to be exposed to persecution and outrage from those who believe themselves to be beyond the reach of legal retribution. " That the faithful and attached subjects of her Majesty in this district, who have proved their fidelity by a zealous support of the government in times of peril and difficulty, are entitled to claim adf quate protection from the executive of the province ; and that this meeting declares its deliberate conviction, that the only effectual mode of granting that protection, and of arresting the progress of crime and of social disorganization is to place this district under martial law." * See what has been already stated concerning the state of alarm in the city at this time. Chap. Hi. p. 40. t Par. paper, Jan. 16, 1838 No. 80, p. 13. ij: il ill IN THE CANADA S. £1 It will be seen that in the first of these latter resolutions, the magistrates assert that " a fair and impartial verdict cannot be expected from a jury taken indiscriminately from the legally qualified inhabitants ; ' on the other hand, we have seen the lead- ing men of the popular party flying from the city under the impression that the courts offered no protection to them *. Here, it seems, we are thrown into a strange difficulty. V/e have two adverse political parties, both complaining of the constitution of the judiciary, the one because a jury would certainly be in favour of the insurgents, and the other because a jury would as certainly be against them — ^the latter backing their opinion by declining to trust themselves to that which the magistrates declare to be cer- tainly in their favour. This conflict of adverse opinions leads us to infer, that a jury in Canada is as uncertain a matter as a House of Commons' Election Committee. Look at its constitution, and the result may at once be foretold. So also of the Canadian jury ; look to the mode of impannelling it — to the original source of its construction — and, in the case of political offences, the result may at once be predicted. With the protection of the Statute for Summoning Juries, which was in force from 1832 to 18S5, it must be admitted that the government wduld have found it difficult to obtain a verdict. But that law, let it be remem- bered, exists no longer, so that the will of the sheriff (an officer belonging to the same political party as the magistrates) prevails. This the political leaders of the Canadians had long contemplated. They knew that, in a political trial, on a former occasion, the jury was chosen out of a single parish — La Chine, inhabited almost wholly by men of the anti-popular party ; this forbade the idea of chance, and convinced the leading men that a packed jury would be their portion f . Now, whether the impression were correct or not, it must be evident that their state of mind on the point must have been very different to that whhh the magistrates supposed. If therefore the latter had no other reason to demand martial law, they seem to have recommended a truly odious measure somewhat rashly. Secure of a jury favourable to their views, they might have saved themselves the extreme unpopularity of making such a recommendation. Whilst they have underrated the favourableness to their views, of a jury nominated by a crown-made sheriff, they may also have overrated that of a court-martial. If a court-martial even condemn a few of the most active of those taken in arms, it is quite certain that such a tribunal would be slow to imbrue its hands in blood to the extent demanded in the extracts we have given in this chapter %. Earnestly is it to be hoped that neither judicial slaughter nor confiscation will be resorted to. In political strife, it is a poor weapon compared with clemency. The blood of political martyrs cannot be wiped out ; it is calcu- • See Chap. i. p. 11. f See Ibid. J See p. 43, 44. Ji ■ 52 ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL WAB lated, sooner or later to re-ann a tranquillised population. Cle mency, on the otHer hand, achieves a long-enduring victory. However much, therefore, it may disappoint and dissatisfy the constitutionalist party in Canada, who deem it so important that *'the rebels should ro^eive the punishment due to their crimes,""* — " that every local agitator should be hanged, and his property confiscated ;"-f- we feel quite sure that our English readers will join us in the hope that the noble maxim before quoted — " Vengeance is unknown to the law," J will not be found excepted in the case of martial law. The magistrates'" resolutions of the 4th of December, probably arose out of the Governor's tardy compliance with those of the 27th November, for instead of martial-law, on the 29th, the monitory proclamation made its appearance ; before the second set of resolutions left Montreal for the seat of government, how- ever, martial law had been determined on. On the 4th of December, the Council met for the express purpose of sanctioning the measure, and the following is a minute of their proceedings : — "His Excellency laid before the board, the attomeyand solicitor^ general's opinion, and report upon the right of the crown, to declare martial law, together with the attomey-general's draft of a proclamation, dated 28th of November, 1837, declai'ing the dis- trict of Montreal under martial law ; and as it appears by the attorney and solicitor-general's report, that the functions of the ordinary legal tribunals may be considered as having virtually ceased in the district of Montreal, and that scarcely in any part thereof, process of any description can be served, or writs exe- cuted by the ministry of the civil officers ; — " It was ordered, with the advice of the board, that the attomc''- general's draft be adopted; and that a proclamation do accordingly issue, declaring the district of Montreal under mailial law, and empowering, the proper authorities to carry it into effect."§ Proclamation to the above effect was accordingly made the next day, Lord Gosford having previously transmitted to the colonial minister his motives and feelings on the subject to the following effect : — "It has become a serious question with me, whether the insurgent localities should not, as a matter of absolute necessity, be placed under martial law; and I cannot help expressing a fear that I shall be compelled, though with the deepest reluctance, ultimately, and perhaps almost immediately, to resort to this severe, but if matters do not mend, indispensable * Magistrates' Resolutions, p. 50. f Extracts given at p. 43. X p. 45. §Par. paper, No. 80, p. 16. — It is worthy of notice, that Mr. Debartzch who had been present at all the preliminary deliberations on the "ubject, was absent when the time for final decision arrived. The reader will not have forgotten the story of Mr, Debartzch's school propensity of setting little boys to fight, ice, see p. 20., the application of which to the present eubject is curious. ^'i IN THE CANAOA0. 53 measuro. Indeed the great majoritv of the luagiatrates of the city of Montreal in formal session, have recently addressed me urging its immediate adoption."" With the proclamation, and a commission authorising Sir John Colbome to execute martial law, a letter of instructions was also written from which the following is an extract of the material portion : — " It is his Excellency's earnest hope that the declaration of martial law will of itself strike such a salutary terror into the hearts of the disaffected in that district, as will obviate the necessity of having the recourse to these extreme severities, the execution of which is hereby confided to you, and to which, in the present dangerous crisis, and in the absence of all other remedy, his Excellency most reluctantly is compelled to resort. " I have it therefore in command* from his Excellency to in- struct you, that in all cases wherein the unlimited power with which you are now entrusted can be exercised in co-operation with, or in subordination to the ordinary laws of the land ; and that in all cases where from local circumstances, or from a prompt return to their allegiance, the deluded inhabitants of any part of that district display an honest contrition for their past offences, you will revert at once to the assistance of the civil authorities, and impress upon a misguided people the conviction, that her Majesty's government hi this province is equally prompt to pai'don the repentant, and punish the incorrigible. " These instructions will alleviate, in some degi'ee, the apparent severity of a measure which the present painful emergency imposes on his Excellency, and will relieve you from any re- sponsibility which might otherwise arise out of the exercise on all fitting occasions of that leniency, which his Excellency feels as- sured is so congenial to your feelings." In a despatch addressed to Lord Fitzroy Somerset, dated 7th December, Sir John Colbome thus states the spirit in which it was his intention to administer martial law. "I beg to assure the general commanding-in-chief, that although the govemor-in-chief, has considered it necessary to declare the district of Montreal under martial law, I shall, on every oc- casion, avail myself of the assistance and advice of the civil authorities in carry ir» into effect such measures as may be required to restore order, and to protect the property of the loyal inhabitants."'!' From this time, and perhaps even from an earlier date. Sir John Colborne may be considered as governor-general. Up to the date of the latest despatches which have been printed,J Lord Gosford continued to address the Colonial Secretary as governor, whilst Sir John Colbome's military despatches are addressed only * It is the Secretary who ^vrite8. t Par. paper, No, 80, p. 18 I 2nd January, 1838. m :('!■ !!!T ipt, '1:11: m /^ ACCOUXT OF THE CIVIL WAR II to the Military Secretary, Lord Fitzroy Son.erset ; but Lord Gos- ford appears, on most occasions, to have acted with the advice of the commander of the forces, besides which, Lower Canada being virtually reduced to a military government, the chief power has necessarily fallen into Sir John Colbome''s hands. For some time previous to the breaking out of the insur- rection, Lord Gosford appeai-s to have been desirous of being recalled, and we may add, the Colonial Office equally desirous of recalling him. On the 14th of November, which be it remem- bered, was about the time the executive struck the first blow,* Lord Gosford addressed to Lord Glenelg, the following short despatch. . •' Finding from the system pursued by the disaffected in this province, that the decisive measures I nave recently submitted for your consideration, become every day more necessary, it naturally occurs to me, that if it should be determined to take a strong course of proceeding, you might feel desirous to entrust the execution of your plans to hands not pledged as mine are to a mild and conciliatory line of policy. As I stated in a former letter, I would not shrink from difficulties, nor wish to take any step that would in the least degree embarrass her Majesty's ministers ; but I owe it to you, to myself, and to my sense of public duty, fairly and honestly to declare my conviction, that any alteration that may take place in the policy to be ob- served towards this province, would be more likely to produce the desired result if confided to a successor, who would enter on the task free to take a new line of action, without being exposed to the accusation of inconsistency, which just or not, must always prove injurious to the beneficial working of any ad- ministration. My continuance here to this time has been, as you are aware, solely on public grounds ; had I been influenced by private considerations, I should long ere this have solicited my recal, but the principles by which I was actuated, would not admit of an abrupt application of this nature; I therefore confine my communication on this head to acquainting you, that my private wish was to return home, but leaving it entirely to you to take the course you might think best calculated to pro- mote the public service. I can now, however, assign reasons of a public nature for wishing to be relieved, which I could not well have done sooner ; and should you admit their validity, I trust that after what I have said, you will feel no hesitation as regards myself in making such arrangements as you think desirable, "•j- This despatch reached England about the 20th of December last, but more than three weeks previous to its receipt. Lord Gosford's recal had been determined on. On the 27th of Novem- ber, Lord Glenelg, after adverting to "the disinterested manner" in which his Lordship " had left to her Majesty's ministers, the * See Chapter i, page 0. fPar. paper. No. 72, p. 10/. l* IN THE CANADAS. 98 entirely free and unembarrassed discussion of the question ;^' as to his "continuance in office" or his " retirement from it,"" continues as follows : — " At the same time, it is impossible not to perceive that the course of policy which must now be pursued, will be more con- veniently followed out by one less implicated than yourself, in the events of the last few years. Merging therefore, in a sense of public duty, all personal considerations, we have felt ourselves under an obligation to avail ourselves of the generosity with which you have placed the disposal of your office at the unembarrassed discretion of her Majesty's ministers, and to advise her Majesty to relieve you at once from the government of Lower Canada . . . Enclosed is a despatch which you will deliver to Sir John Col- borne, on whom, in conformity with the terms of the commission, the administration of the government, until the arrival of your successor, will devolve." From this time forward the despatches of Lord Glenelg have been addressed to Sir John Colbome, and by the first or second week in January, Lord Gosford, we shall most probably find, will hav 3 ceased to exercise the office of governor m any way. The civil government of Canada, having been virtually destroyed by the proclamation of the 6th of December, Sir John Colborne will, most likely, remain at Montreal, as long he deems his pre- sence, in the slightest degree, necessary. Lord Gosford's desire to be recalled cannot be wondered at. His position must, for a long time, have been painful in the extreme. He went out to Canada with the reputation of being a liberal man ; he was, moreover., the representative of a liber^ government ; he permitted it to be understood that his instruc- tions were also of the most liberal character ; in short, all his talk was of liberality and conciliation. Presently, Sir Francis Head published his Lordship's instructions with his own, when it was found that there was not a single line which the majority of the Assembly deemed of a liberal character.* The consequence was, that the Assembly from that moment believed themselves deceived ; they believed most firmly that Lord Gosford and the Colonial Office, had unequivocally lent themselves to a con- spiracy to obtain a vote of supplies. The first feeling of the Assembly had been that of excessive indignation; that feeling, however, at length gave place to unconquerable distrust. The consciousness of being thus regarded, must, under any circum- stances, be sufficiently painful. Whilst he is thus obnoxious to the Assembly and people of the province, he is by no means popular with the Assembly's enemies — the anti-popular party. In Canada, there can be no middle term, no neutral ground * See the Introduction. ni M ■ M It: :'l i 56 ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL WAR •i if 1 ' 1' lIJ in politics. The social equality of the people converts them into a state of natural democracy, whilst on the other hand, the forcible maintenance of power in the hands of a minority, renders them from their mere weakness, intolerant of any countenance given to the governed many. Fear, in short, must always render a minority clad with undue powers, tyrannical. We see it in Ireland — in the slave-states of America — in all of our Colonies where we have attempted to raise a forced aristocracy. Let us not wonder, therefore, that the bare idea of conciliation made the whole governing party, Lord Gosford's enemies. His aasumption of the office of governor was the signal for the most virulent attacks in all their papers; and almost the last sound heard within the walls of the House of Assembly, was a diatribe against the governor — not from the mouth of Fapineau, O'Callaghan, Lafontaine, or Perrault, the orators on the popular side ; but from that of Andrew Stuart, the best and most honourable, as well as the most eloquent man of the anti-popular party. Lord Gosford's longing desire for recal was therefore, in all probability, generated not a great while after his arrival. In his private letters to Lord Glenelg, he appears to have expressed that desire pretty frequently; at length the supposed necessity for a more coercive line of policy affords an excellent opportunity to ministers of carrying their mutual desires into effect. Lord Gosford appears throughout to have been utterly unfit for his office. On what ground he was appointed, it is difficult to say. All that was previously known of his Lordship was, that he had shown firmness in one particular case at Armagh. But that case presented no great difficulty ; popular opinion nad been for some time setting against the orange mstitutions, and in oppos- ing them, he merely permitted himself to be borne along with the tide. Backed by popular opinion, it is not difficult to be firm ; but it requires far other powers to deal with two excited parties contending for the mastery, as in Canada. Such powers Lord Gosford has certainly not exhibited. We have now brought to a conclusion the narration of the executive measures of the government of Canada, connected with the insurrection. In the . next chapter, we shall return to the further military operations on the River Richelieu, IN Tim l-ANAUAS. «T ■♦ '■^.■-■■^/ti-'iij CHAPTER IV. MILITARY OCCUPATION OP THR RirHELIKU. Departure of Colonel Gore — His Force — A Conjecture — His March — No Enemy — The Escape — The Burnings — Occupation of the Villages — Sympathy in Vermont — A Skirmish and Capture — Tlie District quiet. Want of plan on the part of the Insurgents. OuB second chapter closed with the sudden return of the troop.s from the expedition against St. Charles, we now take up the nar- rative of the second military operation in that section of the country. After the evacuation of St. Charles on the 27th or 28th of No- vember by Colonel Wetherall, it was reported that the insurgents had again taken possession of the village. Further accounts stated that the armed force had retired upon St. Denis; that the insurgents were there still in considerable force ; and that they were making such defences as were in their power. It was also understood that the peasantry were in arms in other parts of the country. Withih the city, at the same time, the alarm had somewhat subsided. Wetherall liad returned, to a certam extent successful ; the volunteer force was great and increasing ; and the north-west side of the city had been put into a tolerable state of defence ; so that the commander of the forces found himself in a position to spare a considerable regular force to complete the conquest of the disturbed district. Accordingly, on the 30th of November (Thursday), Colonel Gore left Montreal, by steam-boat, for Sorel, where he arrived the same evening, having under his command nearly eight hundred men, with three field pieces, and a supply of Congreve rockets. This force consisted of four companies of the 32nd, two companies of the 66th, two companies of the 83rd, and one company of the 24th, together with the necessary detachment of the artillery, and a small detachment of the volunteer cavalry, in all nearly 800 men. A rumour was current at Montreal, at the time that the real ' ' ion of this force was St. Benoit, otherwise called Grand the supposed intention being that it shoiUd, instead of pro- g to Sorel, land at the lower end of the island, and march agi A the insurgents with as much secresy and dispatch as pobaible. This proved a mere conjecture. The river Richelieu was the destination of the force, and its object was to disperse the insurgents and to occupy the country. On the mor 'g of the 1 st of December, Colonel Gore attempted I VI 'I ■' m 66 ACCOUNT OP THE CIVFL WAR fj I I . ] I to break the ice of the RicheHeu with the steam-boat, John Bull ;* but on proceeding one mile, he found it utterly impracticable. He was, therefore, compelled to land the troops and march to St. Ours, the first village on the river, where ho halted for the night. His object, in attempting to ascend the river, was doubtless, (under the impression that St. Denis was still occupied) to avoid the harass and fatigue of a march, of which he had already had fatal experience. Let us here leave Colonel Gore for a time, in order to present to the reader a few extracts frcm a letter from Mr. Brown to the JVew York Daily Express, giving the details of his escape from St. Denis. After the affair of St. Charles, it appears that many of the insurgents, who had arms, repaired to St. Denis ; the rest, together with the unarmed, dispersing to their homes. Here they re- mained until the news arrived that the troops were at St. Ours, and it became necessary to determine at once or *he course to be pursued. Accordingly, seeing that there was no simultaneous rising elsewhere, and that to continue in force — which Brown asserts they could have done — would only be to draw the enemy after them (for he admitted they would have been compelled to re- treat) to the great loss of life and destruction of property, they prudently determined on flight. *' We, therefore," sajs Mr. Brown, "told our men to ro home q..ietly for the present, and to be in readiness to assemble at the first signal. For ourselves, a full pardon to all had been offered, on condition of our being deliveredinto the hands of Government ;-f- and we felt no ambition to become the vicarious sacrifice for the political offences of the county of Richelieu. * * With these considerations we determined on visiting the States." Accordingly, Mr. Brown and his companion, whom he does not name, but who may be presumed to liave been Dr. Wolfred Nelson, with five Canadians, " who considered emigration expedient," left St. Denis in carts towards the boundary of Missisquoi county, but being apprised that the roads were occupied by militia, they were compelled to take to the woods. " After breakfast," continues Mr. Brown, " we crossed to the right or northern bank of the Yamaska river, and continued walk- ing until night-fall, when" we found ourselves in a tremendous vnndfall, the prostrate treesj crossing in every direction, through which we forced ourselves, like small fish through a salmon net, • The John Bull is, perhaps, one of the largest and most powerful river boats in the world. She has two engines of 140 horse-power each, and can work theqi up to a much greater power. She can tow three or four laden ships up the rapid current of Montreal. t He alludes, doubtless, to the monitory proclamation of the 29th November t l*"or an animated description of the falling of a tree, see Cooper's novel of ^ The Pioneers." IN THE CANAOAS. 69 until we arrived at a swamp, when darkness prevented our going foi*ward. The proximity of some huts prevented our makmg a fire. To compensate for the absence of sleep for the last forty hours, I had the consolation of getting my back against a tree, witli mv knees drawn up, to keep my feet out of the water, which refreshmg posture was disturbed about two o'clock in the morning by violent rain, which lasted until day-light, at which time our march was resumed. The outer world was fair and beautiful ; but in the forest, the constant dripping from the trees was like a shower-bath from an ice-h' r> occupy the church in considerable force, the guns still continued 'to cannonade the church. I then, agreeable to the directions of your Excellency, changed direction to the right with the brigade, the 3 2d regi- ment leading, covered by its light company, and followed by the 83d regiment, under the command of Lieutenant- colonel the Honourable Henry Dundas, with a view of securing the roads and bridges* from the opj)08ite side of the town, leading to the * The two bridges mentioned in our description of the village at page 7l. .1 i i if ru B' 74 ACCOUNT OF THB CIVIL WAR Grand Brul6 r d, where it was supposed that the rebels would eventually mako a stand; the troops at this moment were within musket-shot of the town, and found the greatest difficulty in their advance, owing to the ruggedness of the ploughed fields, the depth of snow, and the strong fences they had to break through; they exerted themselves for this purpose with the greatest energy, and having obtained possession of the roads and bridges, succeeded in taking a number of prisoners, who were running in great confusion from the town. My object being here accomplished, I left detachments of the 83d to seciu'e these places, and pushed in advance with the whole of the 32d regiment towards the church, and occupied houses close to it, on that side of the town. After remaining there some time, firing on the rebels in the church, I found myself obliged to withdraw from that advanced situation, as the regiment was then unavoidably exposed to the fire of our own artillery from the opposite side of the town, as well as that of the rebels, but I detached the grenadiers 1st and 2d companies, to fayourable positions, to intercept any of the rebels attempting to escape from the church, and which answered effectually, as, upon the taking of that building, a number of the rebels fell under the fire of part of these companies. On an at- tack like this upon a town, much remains with the individual superintendence of commanding officers of battalions, and, about this time, the 83d regiment were, by your Excellency's orders, directed to enter the town in another direction, in support of the 2nd battalion of the royal regiment ; fortunately we experienced no loss, owing to the favourable cover afibrded the troops by the number of houses :n this neighbourhood ; the 32d regiment had only one man severely wx)unded."* It appears to have been after the fire from the artillery had been opened on the church, that the second brigade came up. Colonel Wetlierall in his report states, " At about 600 or 700 yards from St. Eustache the cdiiillery were found in position, battering the church and adjoining houses. " I was here directedf to follow up the 1st brigade, which was making a detour of the village, for the purpose of cutting off" the retreat of the rebels by the St. Benoit road ; but on arriving opposite the centre of the village, I was directed to enter it, which I did, and having advanced up the main street, occupying the most defensible houses, nd meeting with no opposition, I repor d the circumstance to the Lieuter^at-general, who desired me U letach an officer to bring up the artillery ; in executing this duiy the officer was driven back by a fire from the church, * Par. paper, No. 99, page 13. f This was apparently by the same order that Colonel Maitland was instructed " to change direction to the right with the brigade," so as to secure the bridges and road to St. Benoit. R!„ IN THE CANADA*. ' To and the artillery entered the village by the rear, and opened their lire on ihe church-door, at the distance of 230 yards, while some companies of the royal regiment and the rifles occupied the houses nearest to the church ; after about an hour's firing, and the church-doors remaining unforced, a party of the royal regi- ment assaulted the Presbytery, killed some of its defenders, and set it on fire. " The smoke soon enveloped the church, and the remainder of the battalion advanced ; a straggling fire opened upon them from the Seigneur's house, forming one face of the square in which the church stood, and I directed the grenadiers to carry it, which they did, killing several, taking many prisoners, and setting it on fire. " At the same time, part of the battalion, led by Major Gugy, Provincial Assistant Quarter-master-general, and commanded by Major Warde, entered the church by the rear, and drove out and slew its garrison, and set the church on fire ; 118 prisoners were made in these assaults."* Such is the official accounts of the attack upon St. Eustache, and of its result. It is sufficiently meagre, and gives no \t / clear conception of the destruction which took place. The Church, the Presbytery, the Nunnery, together with the houses of the Seigneur Dumoiit, Dr. Chenier, Scott and many others were des- troyed. The following is from the Montreal Herald, the sicken- ing print from whicu we have already quoted. -f* " On Thursday evening the village of St. Eustache presented a heart-rending appearance, the whole of the lower portion being one sheet of lurid flame. It is supposed that about fifty houses have been burnt, and nothing now is left of them but stone walls or solitary chimneys. The moon looked blue and wan through the thick and curling smoke, and seemed as if mourning over the melancholy scene. " It is conjectured that froni 160 to 200 were killed by the military, or perished in the flames. The stench from the burn- ing of the bodies was very offensive." Another paper saj s, ' 't> " The village having been surrounded, there was no possibility of escape ; and the prisonei'S say that numbers retreated into the vaults of the church, and the cellars, where they must have perished miserably." It should be remembered that these statements are not from papers favoui«,ble to the insurgents ; they are not therefore disposed to magnify the sufferings of the people at the hands of the troops ; on the contrary, they are disposed tomake no statement unfavourable to the government or their agents. All the liberal papers had been put down, or had ceased to appear, and their proprietors and editors were in jail or 'n exile .J Hence we have, as we stated on a for- * Par. paper, No. 99, p. 14. f Chapter iii. page 43 and 44. t O'Callaghan, Duvernay, Louis Perrault, and Boucnette. M /' ii! ;!• ml 76 ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL AVAR mer occasion, to make the best we can of one-sided evidence, a task neither pleasant nor easy. Lord Gosford's summary of the march upon St. Benoit, appears to be a clear statement of what took place, we therefore adopt it without alteration. " On the following morning, Friday, the 15th, the troops left St. Eustache for St. Benoit, where it had all along been under- stood the gi'eatest preparation for resistance had been made, and arrived there shortly after mid-day, unopposed, having on their march been met by a deputation of Canadians, who announced the flight of their leaders, and the anxiety of those remaining in the village to lay down their arms and to surrender unconditionally. If diey had not taken this step, the loss of life must have been very severe, as they were completely hemmed in, a force under Major Townshend, consisting of a part of the 24th regiment and a party of volunteers, having, as a combined movement, marched from Carrillon in the opposite direction, and arrived at St. Benoit shortly after Sir John entered it. During the brief stay of the troops at that place, from 150 to 200 individuals surrendered themselves with their arms, and were discharged, in pursuance of a proclamation issued by Sir John Colborne immediately after the affair of St. Eustache, calling upon the habitans to come in and lay down their arms, and as- suring those who should obey, provided they were not especially implicated in the graver crimes of insurrection, of a free pardon. ' I regret to add, tliat this village suffered severely by fire, but whether from design or accident I am not yet informed. The exasperation of the settlers of British origin in the neighboui*^ huod was, I understand, very great, in consequence of the se- verities they had previously experienced at the hands of the other inhabitants of the parish, and it is not improbable that the desire of retaliation may have led to this destruction of property. It was not the work of the troops.""* The only allusion by Sir John Colborne to " the suffering of the village from fire," mentioned by Lord Gosford, is in the fol- lowing exceedingly vague passage in Sir John's despatch to Lord Fitzroy Somerset : — " It is scarcely possiblvj to suppose that the loyal and peaceable subjects, whose property had 1 een pillaged, and who had so re- cently suffered from ihe outrages committed by the rebels of Grand Brule and the Riviere du Chene, a population of the worst character, could be prevented, on being liberated from their oppressor, from committing acts of violence at St. Benoit." In short, there is abundant eviv^ence that these despatches arc prepared for the public eye. In the second chapter we pointed out a flagrant ease of the suppression of despatches, one of which is V -' I * Par. papers, No. Itjo, p. 3. ^■^'•m IN THE CANADA*, 7T the detailed official report of the affair of St. Charles. Here we have to notice a similar case of suppression of evidence the most important. St. Benoit surrendered, the people had thrown them- selves on Sir John Colbome's mercy, Lord Gosford, in his pro- clamation of the 29th of November, had promised the forgetful- ness of transgressions to all who would put down their arms ; yet, in spite of these promises, the village that night was laid in ashes. It was boldly asserted, in some of the Montreal journals, that the houses of some of the leaders being intentionally set on fire the rest caught by accident. Unfortunately for this statement, the houses of the village are not contiguous, but are much scattered, many being separated from the " leaders'"" houses by the little river which runs through the village. We need not, however, trouble ourselves by trying the statement on its own merits, as a few days after the circumstance occurred, Major Townsend, in reporting his arrival at Carrillon, informed Sir John Colborne that " every house in the village was set on fire," and that it was " the volunteers who were the instruments of the infliction," adding, that it was impossible to restrain them. Now, this report or despatch of Major Townsend is not to be found among the papers relating to this expedition, published by order of the House of Commons ; neither is Sir John Colborne's proclamation promising pardon. Sir John Colborne did not bum the village, it is true ; but, in neglecting to protect it, did he keep the promise held out by his proclamation ? The letter of his proclamation — yes ! its spirit — No ! It certainly does appear to have been Major Town- send's duty to see that Sir John's pledge was religiously redeemed, and yet he pretends that the volunteers could not be restrained. To prevent so shocking an outrage Major Townsend should have shown his determination to use his bayonets, and the restrained volunteers would have been saved from this shocking act of barbarity, by which, be it remembered, the aged and the in- firm, the women and their infants, were turned into the woods, in the depth of a Canadian winter, to perish. The tale of horroi"s, resulting from this bai-barous act, remains yet to be learned. The Times newspaper, by no means inimical to Sir John Col- borne, and certainly far from friendly to the Canadians, cannot restrain its indignation on the occasion, as the following extract will testify : — " If the loose narratives, Canadian or republican, may be safely trusted, we fear that much unnecessary, and therefore indefensible, suffering, has been inflicted upon the inifortunate, many of them, no doubt, guiltless, inhabitants of the scene on which, and in whose neighbourhood, the attack was made by Sir J. Colbonie. * * The statements on every side agree tliat the whole village of St. Eustache was burnt to the ground. It would rejoice us to believe what we see asserted in one of the letters just arrived, that it was the insurgents themselves who set fire, by accident, to St. :■ [ ' II \wm I : i M 78 ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL WAR i< i;;' r II ii I Eustache, and destroyed their own habitations with those af many peaceable citizens. If, on the other hand, it be confirmed by the next advices that not only St. Eustache, but St. Benoit likewise, was burnt by those of our fellow-subjects calling themselves loyal- ists, in defiance of the humane orders of Sir John Colbome, after his back was turned, and in revenge for excesses, outrages, and robberies, said (we dare say truly) to have been perpetrated by the insurgents while in possession of those respective towns, it is impossible to reprobate with sufficient force the barbarous loicked- ness of such retaliation, or to calculate the effects of such impolitic and frantic ferocity. It is incredible that Sir J. Colborne, or any experienced and well educated commander, could have tolerated such proceedings. It is equally so that any regular, well-discip- lined, and highly- officered troops like those of England, could have executed them."' After the surrender of St. Benoit, Sir John Colborne ordered Colonel Maitland, with his regiment, to proceed to St. Scholas- tique, a villag^^ of ten houses. There was of course no resistance ; in short, resistance was at an end in every direction. The following is the official return of killed and wounded, as made up after the return of the troops : — " Montreal, 20th December, 1837. " Royal Artillery — 1 corporal, 2 privates, wounded. " 2d Batt. Ist or Royal Regt. — 1 private killed ; 4 privates Wounded. "32d Regt. — 1 private wounded. *' Total — 1 private killed ; 1 corporal, 7 privates, wounded. " N.B. — Major B. C. A. Gugy, Provincial Assistant Quarter- master-general, was also severely wounded." The number of killed on the side of the peasantry is stated, in the Montreal papers and in Lord Gosford's despatch, at about 100, whilst the prisoners amounted to about 120. The exagge- rated nature of the previous reports now became apparent. There were neither fortifications nor cannon* ; they were but ill supplied with arms, and so destitute of ammunition, that, it is said in some of the accounts, marbles (which of course broke into powder at the discharge) were used for balls. The troops, therefore, had little more to do than to take up a position at a safe distance, (600 or 700 yards, according to Colonel Wetherall), with their artillery, and resort to the firebrand and the bayonet only when confusion had been produced. The persons residing in this county against whom warrants could not be served in consequence of the rising of the peasantry, appear, by Lord Gosford's dispatch, to Jiave been J. J. Girouard, and W. H. Scott, the members for the county, the Rev. Mr. Chartier, cur6 of St. Benoit, Dr. J. O. Chenier, and Anmry Girod ; the last of whom was a Swiss. • There were two wooden cannon bound wnth hoops, and calculated to sustain three or four discharges. ^ JN THE CANADAi". 79 Of these Dr. Chenior was killed in the church at St. Eustache, Scott was taken at St. Scholastique, Girod made his escape at the time, but subsequently shot himself rather than fall into the hands of the volunteers, and M. M. Girouard and Chartier were not to be found. The circumstances attending Girod's death are detailed in a letter in the Montreal papers, written by one of the volunteers disputing for the credit * of the capture with " one of the regulars,' who appears to have claimed it to the great indig- nation of the volunteer. It seems that about three or four days after the affair of St. Benoit, intelligence was received by a party of volunteers at Longue Pointe, just below Montreal, that Girod was at Pointe aux Trembles. The persons who gave the infornmtion acted as guides. On arrivmg at the spot, " at a small distance back," says the writer, " in a field adjoining the roa^^ nd in con- tinuation of the line fence, there was a short piece of ciose boarded fence, with another piece forming a right angle, behind this iGirod had screened himself. The Canadian guide having ad- vanced and looked over the fence, saw Girod, and retreated in great terror towards Higgins, (a volunteer), who was advancing, and kept advancing towards the inclosure. At this moment, it is presumed, Girod had seen Killigan (another volunteer) and me advancing upon the side of the inclosure running parallel with the road, and in consequence he stepped out of it by an opening into the field upon the other side of the line fence. He stooped on passing through, (so says Higgins, for I could not see it,) and on raising his head, seeing Higgins advancing from one point. Captain Clarke from another, and Killigan and me from a third, he could not but perceive that all chance of escape was hopeless. At this moment Girod called out, Halloo ! drew from his breast a pistol, which caused Captain Clarke to turn rapidly round and retreat some paces, and also caused Higgins to stop and raise his musket to the present, when instead of levelling at any of the party he lodged the ball in his own brain." On returning towards town they met parties of their own corps, of the cavalry and lastly of the rifles, all anxious for a share in the honour, no doubt, of the capture. The body of the unfortunate man was conveyed into the city, where a coroner's jury was impannelled, when a verdict was returned of " Suicide, whilst flying from justice as a rebel." But little is known to us concerning M. Girod. He settled in Canada a few years ago, and wrote in the papers on agriculture, and especially on the necessity of teaching it in schools. He always called himself a cultivateur. In 1835, he commenced 11-,- . • . I - J . , * Though it does not appear on the letter, it is most likely a dispute for the blood-money, £500 having been offered for Girod's apprehension. I 1 r 80 ACCOUNT OF THE CIVIL WAR I! il printing a work on Canada, entitled " Notes diverses sur le has Canada^" the first livraison only is published ; it is a useful statistical collection, but not very skilfully arranged. Girod is said to have served under Napoleon, but ne does not appear to have known much of military tactics. He appears to have been singularly rash and deficient in judgment. M. Girouard after undergoing great hardships, surrendered himself to Mr. Simpson, the collector of the customs at the Coteau du Lac, whom he knew and at whose hands he could feel assured of the most humane and considerate treatment. Mr. Simpson, probably for tha purpose of protecting him from insult in his adversity, accompanied him to Montreal, where he was immediately lodged in jail. Jean Joseph Girouard, who has been long known to his coun- trymen as a very active politician, was bom at Quebec, and is now about forty-two years ef age. His father was a notary of very high reputation, ranking among the first lawyers* in Canada. His fatlier was drowned when he was young, and his grandfather and uncle both at different times, lost their lives by a similar casualty. Girouard was educated at St. Eustache, under M. Gatian, the cure of that parish, and afterwards commenced studying for his father''s profession, to which in due time he was admitted. He settled at St. Benoit, and soon acquired a very extensive prac- tice, enjoying a high reputation as a legiste, his opinions on points of conveyancing (involving very frequently the multitudinous and minute rights and duties of the seigneurs and tenants), being sought in all quarters. With such a reputation, it is quite impossible for any one in Canada to keep out of the Assembly, even if he were desirous so to do. He was accordingly elected one of the representatives of his county in 1831, and he has continued a member ever since, acting always with the majority. M. Girouard is a man of extensive acquirements independently of his professional knowledge. His conversation is instructive ancl at the same time cheerful and animated, and his disposition is such as to cause him to be greatly esteemed by his friends. He is considered somewhat eccentric in his habits — a circumstance, which, in all probability, arises from his modes of thinking, and his associations generally,, being of a character not likely to be thoroughly understood by his neighbours. From his great talents and acquirements, his energy, and his honest and uncomproniising character, his surrender may be deemed to have conferred a great prize on the antipopular party. * Let us here remind the reader, that a notary is not a mere bill protester as in this country, but a conveyancer, and, therefore, a property-lawyer. I k i IN THR CAN A DAS. 81 Lord Goaford, in his despatcli of the 2JJrd of December, thus sums up the result of the covp d'etat of the executive, aud of the events embracing a period, extending from the 18th of November to the 16th of December. " Thus have the measures adopted for putting down this reck less revolt been crowned with entire success. Wherever an armed body has shown itself, it has been completely dispersed ; the prin- cipal instigators and leaders have been killed, taken, or forced into exile ; there is no longer a head, concert, or organization amongst the deluded and betrayed habitans ; all the newspaper organs of revolution in the province, the " Vindicator,'''' " Minerve,"" and " Liberal,^'' are no longer in existence, having ceased to appear about the commencement of the present troubles ; and, in the short space of a month, a rebellion, which, at first, wore so threatening an aspect, has, with much less loss of life than could be expected, been eifectually put down. It will, however, still be incumbent on the executive government to maintain for some time longer a guarded and vigilant attitude." "Of M. Papineau's movements or place of refuge nothing is known ; and of the 20 other individuals who have been most conspicuous in the late insurrection, four have been killed, — Ovide Perrault, M.P.P., Julien Gagnon, J. O. Chenier and Amury Girod ; eight are in prison, — Wolfred Nelson, W. H. Scott, M. P. P., Desrivieres, F. Tavemier, R. S. M. Bouchette, G. P. de Boucherville, A. Ouimet and the Rev. Mr. Blanchette, cure of St. Charles ; and the remaining nine, mentioned in the margin, are supposed to be now in the United States. The total number of persons in custody on charges of high treason or sedition amounts to 169.''* i'>ift i.e *;5i^^;' , The nine mentioned are the following : — E. B. O'Callaghan, M. P. P. C. H. O. Cote, do. A. Jobin, do. E. E. Rodier, do. J. J. Girouard, do. J. T. Drolet, do. : r Rev. M. Chartier, cur6 of St. Benoit, • L. Duvemay. T. S. Brown. Of these, M. Girouard, as we have seen, had surrendered him- self, increasing the number of prisoners to 170. ''''^ In the course of our observations on the transactions on the Richelieu river, we stated, what appeared to us, some strong grounds for believing that the revolt was not premeditated — that, in short, its true character was a rising of the people to pro- tect from arrest their most respected fellow citizens. The af- : uv' ■•'•?:'■ ;h. » Par. paper, No. 100, p. 4. '^iA'! i .; M '/If rri\( ,^ A»iiK li I 1 !.. il jiiC |9 ' i 82 ACrOlINT OF THK CIVIL WAU fairs of St. Eusfache and (Jraiid Brule, give additional colour to this supposition. Had there existed a preconcerted plan of combinea and "organized movement, some evidence thereof would assuredly have been imparted to the revolt. We our- selves have no pretensions to a knowledge of tactics ; but it seems evident, that the first effort of the leaders of an organized revolt, would have been to secure the means of free communica- tion between the several parts of the country destined to form the theatre of that revolt, and especially with the supposed friendly people of the neighbouring States. In the case of the river Richelieu, we liave seen how this could have been effected. It seems that, out of the force under Colonel Gore, 400, or certainly, not over 600 men, were deemed sufficient to garrison the whole line. Three times as many armed peasantry ought to have been sufficient for a similar purpose. The effect of this would have been, to enable the undoubted sympathy of the state o^ Vermont, and that part of New York bordering on Canada, i » manifest itself in the shape of aids of arms, ammuni- tion, provisions, clothing, and above all, of men, which, in such a case, could enter Canada without difficulty by the open path of the Richelieu. With regard to the rising at Grand Brule, an equally obvious course presented itself. On the St. Lawrence, about five leagues from the mouth of the Ottawa, is the Coteau du Lac, where there is an old fort, or block-house, which, at the commenceriient of the disturbances, was in a totally defenceless state. If there had been any preconcerted plan of operations, it seems to us obvious, that the very first step would have been, to*taarch secretly across the county of Vaudreuil, and seize the fort in question. The effect of this would have been, first, to keep open a com- munication with Upper Canada ; second, to effect the same object with the state of New York, and thence, with the Richelieu ; and, lastly, to secure a large supply of artillery which has lain there since the war of 1812 — 15. All this might have been done, almost at one and the some moment, had there been the fore- thought which has been alleged ; and, it could scarcely have been prevented, even had the plan been known, provided every point had been attacked simultaneously. The whole regular force in Canada, does not much exceed 4000 ; and at the time of the rescue at Longueil, the volunteers were scarcely organized. Sir John Colbome could not, perhaps have taken more than 2000 men into the field, which force must have been much divided. In the actual case, he first subdued one section of the country, the other at the same time waiting his leisure, and then, concentrating all his strength upon that which was deemed o.ie of the strongholds of the revolt, he finally subdued the whole district. Another piece of evidence of the want of preconcerted plan, is to be found in the nature of the warfare. All the leading men in :il IN THE CANA0A8. Canada are well acquainted with the history of tlie American strug- gle. It is an interesting period to them, for it is not to be denied, that thev may one day or other have to enact it. Now, if the pre- sent had been deemed the time, they would certainly have taken some lessons out of the book of that history. What is the most con- spicuous of these lessons ? evidently that an undisciplined pea- santry should never meet the regular troops. In the American war, whenever the provincials met the regulars, the latter wero victorious. They were continually gaining advantages, and yet in the long run, they invariably retired from the seat of war. How was this ? Simply because they were vanquished by the difficulties of the country. How was Burgoyne's army captured i After being harassed by the riflemen planted in every bush, Burgoyne suddenly found his progress stopped by a sort of chevaux defrize of prostrate forest trees. From these he retired, when, to his dismay, he found that his retreat had been cut off by the same means. He tried the right — the left — the same barrier presented itself. To force a way through it was impos- sible, as it was covered by unseen rifles. To remain within the enclosure was to starve — he had no alternative but to surrender. Almost every road in Canada presents facilities for this sort of warfare. Across the hollows of the roads, trees might be thrown, so as not to be perceived by advancing troops until close upon them. In the confusion incident upon such a surprise, heightened by a brisk fire from rifles in the woods, nearly every single shot telling, their retreat might be cut off by a similar barricade in tjieir rear — skilful axe-men could do this in less than ten minutes. In this position, a body of troops would be a prey to the rifles of the peasantry, or would be compelled to sur- render. Of this mode of warfare, every reader of American history is cognizant ; and we feel confident that had there been any exten- sive plan as alleged, it must have been carried into effect — it could not possibly have escaped their notice. That it was neglected, affords, we repeat, a strong presumption that no plan existed. The great error of the political leaders appears to have been withdrawing from the city in November; although, entertaining the feelings they did respecting the constitution of the courts of justice, and the measures of the executive, we cannot feel much surprise at the course they adopted. Had they, however, submitted for a while to the persecution which was designed for the^ii, that persecution would, in the long run, (unless there be any evidence which has not as yet transpired to justify it), have reverted on their political adversaries. As for judicial murders, we cannot conceive them to be possible. A jury composed of the persons who thought it " ridiculous to fatten fellows all the winter for the gallows,""* might have condemned, and an exasperated judge might * See Chap. iii. p. 41, note. I ! IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 4 /. /- ^!v \° 1.0 I.I 11.25 ■ 50 ""^" m m 1^ 2.5 ill 2.0 1.8 U IIIIII.6

f rebellwn, while it marks the humane disposition of the govem- 1 lent, proclaims, at the same time, its consciousness of strength and security, will, probably, produce tranquilUsing effects in the h'therto disturbed sections of the country ; and give the best ai swer to the false statements, that have, most industriously, been cu culated in the tdjoining States, of the cruelty and oppression alLged to have been practised against the insurgents, and the Ca ladians generally." ' Che other two classes, the " local agitators," and the " leaders," nu , like light and darkness, the one into the other ; the difference bei Qg founded on the nature of the evidence which the law officers of ihe crown can obtain, warranting, in their opinion, charges of hif h treason in some cases, and of sedition in others. dp to the latest accounts, nothing seems to have been deter- mi led as to the time and manner of bringing the prisoners to tri il. If it be left to the ordinary authorities, unrestrained by th( obligations of the writ of habeas corpus, it is greatly to be fea red they will be kept for a long time in gaol without a trial. Th s has been done already in Canada, and may be done again. M. Bedard, the father of the present Canadian judge, was cast int( I prison on a charge of high- treason. There he was kept for mo: e than a twelvemonth, at the end of which time his pridon-door was opened, and he was told ha might go. At first he refused, and tried to get legal redress ; but he soon grew tired of the attempt, and abandoned his prison. If justice were done to the Montreal prisoners, we ought now* to hear of their trials. The next question which will arise is, how are they to be tried, by the ordinary tribunals, or by a court-martial i The question of the legaliti/ of martial law was argued before the judges oi Lower Canada, on the 28th of December. Mr. James Stuart, formerly attorney-general of the province, and Mr. Walker, to whom allusion has already been made, being heard against it ; but the attorney-general, Ogden, declining to reply, the matter rested with the judges. Their decision will probably be, that it is expedient, and therefore not illegal. We are told by Sir Mat- thew Malef, that martial law is in truth and reality no law, but February. t Hist. C. L., c. ii. IN THE CANADAS, 87 something indulged, ratlter than allowed, as law. It is, in fact, a violation, a destruction of law — the violators being screened by an ex post facto law, called a bill of indemnity. This we have seen, is distinctly promised Sir John Colbome by Lord Glenelg ; it will be justified by the plea of necessity or expediency; and to talk of its legality or illegality is a mere idle question, fit only for discussion by a debating society. Our law-writers tell us that martial law should not be resorted to in time of peace, when the regular courts are open to all per- sons, to j.-eceive justice according to the laws of the land. Now, although Lower Canada has but recently ceased to be in a state of civil war, it is admitted that peace is restored, hence the ordinary courts should be again thrown open. This will probably be done. Sir John Colbome will doubtless feel how offensive to public opinion in this country the resort to martial law must necessarily be; and he will therefore be glad to relieve himself of this respon- sibility as soon as what he deems a fitting opportunity so to do shall arise. — What occasion so fit as the return to peace ? By whatsoever tribunal the prisoners may be tried, it is highly probable that many convictions will t^ke place. Political offences, at least such as fall short of high treason, are so extremely vague and uridefi!»ed, that tribunals predisposed to convict, will be satis- fied with evidence of an equally lax and doubtful character. Words spoken during the excitement of a public meeting, such as we see reported in every provincial newspaper in this country, will be sufficient to carry home the minor charge. The county meetings held during the summer to denounce Lord John Russell's resolutions, and to recommend the adoption of the scheme of passive resistance, and more especially the meeting of the six counties, will afford ample evidence of sedition, as the Canadian courts will understand the term. High treason, on the other hand, being an offence more strictly defined, the convictions will, in all probability, be few. Sir John Colbome will, doubtless, be anxious to obtain as many convictions as possible, if it be only to afford her Majesty an opportunity of exercising the prerogative of clemency. On the 28th of December, Lord Gosford empowered commis- sioners all over the country to administer the oath of allegiance. This will, without doubt, be universally taken, as those who took up arms to defend their leading men, did not consider that in so doing they were violating their allegiance to her Majesty. Their political struggles have little or no reference to this country ; they consider themselves as being engaged in a struggle against a political party opposed to them ; and however much they may feel aggrieved, that the imperial government occasionally sides with their political adversaries, they do not as yet appear to have seriously contemplated the violation of their allegiance beyond the resistance of what are called the Queen's warrants, with which it ||f lip 1 4 If I "^ t . 88 ACCOimX OF THE CIVIL WAR would he extremely difficult to persuade a Canadian habitant, her Majesty has much to do. Some few loyal addresses were now presented to Lord Goaford from French Canadians — namely, one from La Prairie, with 230 signatures ; one from St. Vincent de Paul, on Isle Jesus, with 453 signatures ; and a third from Montreal, with 1283 signatures. These addresses express in a " free, candid, and sincere manner," the " fidelity and inviolable attachment " of the signers, to her Majesty. They denounce certain unnamed persons for having abused their confidence. " Unhappily," says one of these addresses, " they have blinded, led away, even obliged several of our brothers to engage in this parricidal struggle, and blood has flowed, and civil war has desolated several parts of a territory, in which the most profound peace had before perpetually reigned." " It is impossible," says the La Prairie address, " to take our leave, without expressing to your Excellency the admiration which we feel respecting all the acts of your Excellency"'s administration, which exhibit a degree of benevolence, of liberality, of magnani- mity, with which it is rare to meet in a man placed in the midst of the difficult circumstances which have recently presented themselves." The three addresses are all of the same character, though clothed in different language, and of a very different length. All express great attachment to her Majesty — ^all denounce certain persons who have blinded the people — all flatter his Excellency. His Excellency, in return, express 3S his satisfaction that they now see things so clearly, and promises to convey their addresses to the foot of the throne. We marvel that more of these addresses have not been got up and presented. The return oi tranquillity, and the prostrate state of the leading men of the popular party, were seized upon by the " Constitu- tionalists," or by the party opposed to the Assembly, as a proper moment to reiterate their complaints and demands. A meeting took place on Saturday, the 30th of December, which, according to the Montreal Herald, the organ of the party, was " indifferently attended."* At this meeting, " the report of the Executive Committee for the past year was read and adopted ;" and as it embodies the views of that party, in their own words, we shall make some extracts from it. Before we do so, however, we must remind the reader of a broad distinction which the constitutional party j^as been always anxious to confound. The majority of that party is composed of persons of British descent ; but the majority of the inhabitants of British descent do not acknowledge the principles of that party. * " Montreal Herald," 1st Jan. 1838. \ ■ f IN THE CANAPAS. i This is, the reader will admit, an important distinction — a dis- tinction which strips i,ne constitutionalists of all right to call themselves the " British party." The commissioners, in their report, explain the reasons why the British inhabitants of the townships return members favourable to the views of the Assem- bly, and opposed to the constitutionalists; and it is probable, for this reason, that the report, from which we are about to quote, quarrels with the commissioners. The great >In of the commissioners, the grievances of the party, and tb