which gave to England all the French possessions in America
eastward of the Mississippi from its source to the river Iberville, and
thence through Lakes Maurepas and Pontchartrain to the Gulf of Mexico.
Spain, with whom England had been at war, at the same time ceded East
and West Florida to the English Crown. France was obliged to cede to
Spain all that vast territory west of the Mississippi, known as the
province of Louisiana. The Treaty deprived France of all her possessions
in North America. To the genius of William Pitt must be ascribed the
conquest of Canada and the deprivation of France of her possessions in
the New World.

The acquisition of Canada, by keen sighted observers, was regarded as a
source of danger to England. As early as the year 1748, the Swedish
traveller Kalm, having described in vivid language the commercial
oppression under which the colonists were suffering, added these
remarkable words:

"I have been told, not only by native Americans, but by English
emigrants publicly, that within thirty or fifty years the English
colonies in North America may constitute a separate state entirely
independent of England. But as this whole country towards the sea is
unguarded, and on the frontier is kept uneasy by the French, these
dangerous neighbors are the reason why the love of these colonies for
their metropolis does not utterly decline. The English government
has, therefore, reason to regard the French in North America as the
chief power which urges their colonies to submission."[142]

On the definite surrender of Canada, Choiseul said to those around him,
"We have caught them at last"; his eager hopes anticipating an early
struggle of America for independence. The French ministers consoled
themselves for the Peace of Paris by the reflection that the loss of
Canada was a sure prelude to the independence of the colonies.
Vergennes, the sagacious and experienced ambassador, then at
Constantinople, a grave, laborious man, remarkable for a calm temper and
moderation of character, predicted to an English traveller, with
striking accuracy, the events that would occur. "England," he said,
"will soon repent of having removed the only check that could keep her
colonies in awe. They stand no longer in need of her protection. She
will call on them to contribute towards supporting the burdens they have
helped to bring on her, and they will answer by striking off all
dependence."

It