eir,
who had been captured by Nelson while carrying despatches from General
Colborne, and was butchered by some insurgent _habitants_, in whose
custody he had been placed. At St. Eustache the rebels were severely
punished by Colborne himself, and a number burned to death in the steeple
of a church where they had made a stand. Many prisoners were taken in
the course of the rebellious outbreak. The village of St. Benoit and
isolated houses elsewhere were destroyed by the angry loyalists, and much
misery inflicted on all actual or supposed sympathisers with Papineau and
Nelson. Lord Gosford now left the country, and Colborne was appointed
administrator. Although the insurrection practically ended at St. Denis
and St. Charles, bodies of rebels and American marauders harassed the
frontier settlements for some time, until at last the authorities of the
United States arrested some of the leaders and forced them to surrender
their arms and munitions of war.

In Upper Canada the folly of Sir Francis Head {353} would have led to
serious consequences had Mackenzie and Rolph been capable of managing a
rebellious movement. The Lieutenant-Governor allowed all the troops to
go to Lower Canada, and the capital was entirely at the mercy of the
rebels, had they acted with any spirit or energy. Dr. Rolph, a clever
intriguer--who was to be the president of the new republic--was playing a
fast and loose game, and temporised until the loyal forces from Hamilton
were able to advance to the assistance of Head. Had the rebels, who were
concentrating at Montgomery's tavern on Yonge Street, marched immediately
on the capital, it could have been easily captured, in consequence of the
neglect of Head to take the most ordinary precautions against surprise.
Toronto was mainly saved by the men of the Gore district, led by Allan
MacNab, an ardent loyalist, afterwards a baronet and premier of Canada.
The insurgents, who at no time exceeded eight hundred in all, were routed
at their headquarters. Rolph had previously thought it prudent to fly,
and Mackenzie soon followed. Several lives were lost during this
_emeute_, for it was hardly more, and a considerable number of prisoners
taken. Among the latter were Samuel Lount, an ardent reformer, the first
to arm for the rebellion, and Colonel Von Egmond, one of Napoleon's
soldiers, the leader of the "patriot army." Marshall Spring Bidwell, an
able and moderate leader of the Reformers, for some year