he exertion of their best endeavours
that the imperial authority, within its constitutional limits, shall be
exercised in the manner most consistent with their well-understood
wishes and interests."

On the 4th September, 1841, Lord Sydenham met with a serious accident
while riding, and as his constitution had been impaired for years he
died a fortnight later, to the regret of all political parties. He was
succeeded by Sir Charles Bagot, a Conservative and High Churchman, whose
brief administration was notable for the display of infinite discretion
on his part, and for his desire to do justice to the French Canadians
even at the risk of offending the ultra-loyal party, who claimed special
consideration in the management of public affairs. Responsible
government was in a fair way of being permanently established when Sir
Charles Bagot unhappily died in 1843 of dropsy, complicated by
heart-disease; and Lord Metcalfe was brought from India to create--as it
soon appeared--confusion and discord in the political affairs of the
province. His ideas of responsible government were those which had been
steadily inculcated by colonial secretaries since 1839, and were even
entertained by Lord Sydenham himself, namely, that the governor should
be as influential a factor as possible in the government, and should
always remember that he was directly responsible to the crown, and
should consider its prerogatives and interests as superior to all local
considerations.

When Lord Metcalfe assumed the responsibilities of his post, he found in
office a Liberal administration, led by Mr. Baldwin, the eminent Reform
leader of Upper Canada, and Mr. Louis Hippolyte Lafontaine, afterwards
chief justice of Lower Canada and a baronet, who had been at the outset,
like all his countrymen, opposed to the union, as unjust to their
province. What originally excited their antagonism were the conditions
exacted by the legislature of Upper Canada: an equality of
representation, though the French section had a population of two
hundred thousand more than the western province, the exclusion of the
French language from the legislature, and the imposition of the heavy
debt of Upper Canada on the revenues of the united provinces. But unlike
Mr. Papineau, with whom he had acted during the political struggles in
Lower Canada, Mr. Lafontaine developed a high order of discreet
statesmanship after the union, and recognised the possibility of making
French Canada a