us tendency, and to avoid meetings of a turbulent or political
character. But the proclamation produced no abatement in the
agitation; it merely offered one more subject for denunciation.

During this period Papineau and his friends continually drew their
inspiration from the procedure of the Whigs in the American colonies
before 1776. The resolutions of the _Patriotes_ recalled the language
of the Declaration of Independence. One of the first measures of the
Americans had been to boycott English goods; one of the first measures
of the _Patriotes_ was a resolution passed at St Ours binding them to
forswear the use of imported English goods and to use only the products
of Canadian industry. At the short and abortive session of the
legislature which took place at the end of the summer of 1837, nearly
all the members of the Assembly appeared in clothes made of Canadian
frieze. The shifts of some of the members to avoid wearing English
imported articles were rather amusing. 'Mr Rodier's dress,' said the
Quebec _Mercury_, 'excited the greatest attention, being unique with
the exception of a pair of Berlin gloves, viz.: frock coat of {63}
granite colored _etoffe du pays_; inexpressibles and vest of the same
material, striped blue and white; straw hat, and beef shoes, with a
pair of home-made socks, completed the _outre_ attire. Mr Rodier, it
was remarked, had no shirt on, having doubtless been unable to smuggle
or manufacture one.' But Louis LaFontaine and 'Beau' Viger limited
their patriotism, it appears, to the wearing of Canadian-made
waistcoats. The imitation of the American revolutionists did not end
here. If the New England colonies had their 'Sons of Liberty,' Lower
Canada had its '_Fils de la Liberte_'--an association formed in
Montreal in the autumn of 1837. And the Lower Canada Patriotes
outstripped the New England patriots in the republican character of
their utterances. 'Our only hope,' announced _La Minerve_, 'is to
elect our governor ourselves, or, in other words, to cease to belong to
the British Empire.' A manifesto of some of the younger spirits of the
_Patriote_ party, issued on October 1, 1837, spoke of 'proud designs,
which in our day must emancipate our beloved country from all human
authority except that of the bold democracy residing within its bosom.'
To add point to these opinions, there sprang up all over the country
{64} volunteer companies of armed _Patriotes_, led and organized by
mil