When the year 1665 began, the French colony on the shores of the St Lawrence, founded by the valour and devotion of Champlain, had been in existence for more than half a century. Yet it was still in a pitiable state of weakness and destitution. The care and maintenance of the settlement had devolved upon trading companies, and their narrow-minded mercantile selfishness had stifled its progress. From other causes, also, there had been but little growth. Cardinal Richelieu, the great French minist

Let us take a glance over the colony at the time when Courcelle and Talon landed at Quebec after an ocean journey—there were no fast lines then—of one hundred and seventeen days. In 1665 Canada had only three settled districts: Quebec, Three Rivers, and Ville-Marie or Montreal. Quebec, the chief town, bore the proud title of the capital of New France. Yet it contained barely seventy houses with about five hundred and fifty inhabitants. Then, as now, it consisted of a lower and an upper town. In

It was the special task of Tracy and Courcelle to rid the colony of the Iroquois scourge. The Five Nations [Footnote: The Iroquois league consisted of five tribes or nations—the Mohawks, the Cayugas, the Senecas, the Onondagas, and the Oneidas.] had heard with some disquietude of the body of trained soldiers sent by the French king to check their incursions and crush their confederacy. At the beginning of December 1665, the Marquis de Tracy received an embassy from the Onondagas. They desired to

Tracy had led a successful expedition against the Iroquois and coerced them into a lasting peace. He had seen order and harmony restored in the government of the colony. His mission was over and he left Canada on August 28, 1667, Courcelle remaining as governor and Talon as intendant. From that moment the latter, though second in rank, became really the first official of New France, if we consider his work in its relation to the future welfare of the colony. We have already seen something of his

In the preceding chapter a sketch has been given of Talon's endeavours to promote colonization, agriculture, shipbuilding, and commerce, to increase the population, and to foster generally the prosperity of New France. Let us now see how he provided for the good administration and internal order of the colony. In 1666 he had prepared and submitted to Tracy and Courcelle a series of rules and enactments relating to various important matters, one of which was the administration of justice. Talon w

In the instructions which Talon had received from Louis XIV on his departure from France in 1665 it was stated that Mgr de Laval and the Jesuits exercised too strong an authority and that the superiority of the civil power should be cautiously asserted. The intendant was quite ready to follow these directions. He had been reared in the principles of the old parliamentarian school and was thoroughly imbued with Gallican ideas. But at the same time he was a sincere believer and faithful in the per

Talon returned to France in an auspicious hour. It was perhaps the happiest and brightest period of the reign of Louis XIV. France had emerged victorious from two campaigns, and the king had just signed a treaty which added to his realm a part of the province of Flanders. The kingdom enjoyed peace, and its prosperity had never been so great. Thanks to Colbert, the exchequer was full. In all departments the French government was displaying intelligent activity. Trade and commerce, agriculture and

When Talon arrived at Quebec, New France had again just escaped an Indian war. A party of Iroquois hunting near the country of the Outaouais met two men of their nation who had been prisoners of the Outaouais and had succeeded in escaping. These informed their fellow-tribesmen that the Outaouais village was undefended, almost every warrior being absent. The Iroquois then attacked the village, destroyed it, and brought with them as prisoners about one hundred women and children. The Outaouais war

In the survey of Talon's first term of office mention was made of the many enterprises he set on foot for the internal progress of the colony. One of these was shipbuilding. During his second term a stronger impulse was given to this industry. One of the intendant's first official acts after his arrival in 1670 was to issue a decree for the conservation of the forests suitable for shipbuilding purposes—to prohibit the felling of oak, elm, beech, and cherry trees until the skilled carpenters sent

The author's larger work, 'Jean Talon, Intendant de la Nouvelle France', is the principal source of information for the foregoing narrative. Consult also Parkman, 'The Old Regime in Canada'; Colby, 'Canadian Types of the Old Regime'; Kingsford, 'The History of Canada', vol. i.; the chapters, 'The Colony in its Political Relations' and 'The Colony in its Economic Relations,' by Adam Shortt and Thomas Chapais, in 'Canada and its Provinces', vol. ii....