Henry Samuel Chapman

“ Another piece of evidence of the want of preconcerted plan, is to be found in the nature of the warfare. All the leading men in Canada are well acquainted with the history of the American struggle. It is an interesting period to them, for it is not to be denied, that they may one day or other have to enact it. Now, if the present had been deemed the time, they would certainly have taken some lessons out of the book of that history. What is the most conspicuous of these lessons ? evidently that an undisciplined peasantry should never meet the regular troops. ”

“ Benoit likewise, was burnt by those of our fellow-subjects calling themselves loyalists, in defiance of the humane orders of Sir John Colborne, after his back was turned, and in revenge for excesses, outrages, and robberies, said (we dare say truly) to have been perpetrated by the insurgents while in possession of those respective towns, it is impossible to reprobate with sufficient force the barbarous wickedness of such retaliation, or to calculate the effects of such impolitic and frantic ferocity. ”

“ Eusfache and Grand Brulé, give additional colour to this supposition. Had there existed a preconcerted plan of combined and organized movement, some evidence thereof would assuredly have been imparted to the revolt. We ourselves have no pretensions to a knowledge of tactics ; but it seems evident, that the first effort of the leaders of an organized revolt, would have been to secure the means of free communication between the several parts of the country destined to form the theatre of that revolt, and especially with the supposed friendly people of the neighbouring States. ”

“ The whole regular force in Canada, does not much exceed 4000 ; and at the time of the rescue at Longueil, the volunteers were scarcely organized. Sir John Colborne could not, perhaps have taken more than 2000 men into the field, which force must have been much divided. In the actual case, he first subdued one section of the country, the other at the same time waiting his leisure, and then, concentrating all his strength upon that which was deemed one of the strongholds of the revolt, he finally subdued the whole district. ”

“ The only allusion by Sir John Colborne to "the suffering of the village from fire," mentioned by Lord Gosford, is in the following exceedingly vague passage in Sir John's despatch to Lord Fitzroy Somerset : —
"It is scarcely possible to suppose that the loyal and peaceable subjects, whose property had been pillaged, and who had so recently suffered from the outrages committed by the rebels of Grand Brulé and the Rivière du Chêne, a population of the worst character, could be prevented, on being liberated from their oppressor, from committing acts of violence at St. Benoit." ”

“ As for judicial murders, we cannot conceive them to be possible. A jury composed of the persons who thought it "ridiculous to fatten fellows all the winter for the gallows,"103 might have condemned, and an exasperated judge might have sentenced, but we are quite sure neither Lord Gosford nor Sir John Colborne, would have dared to execute, even had they been so disposed. Under these circumstances, we regret the withdrawal from Montreal, mentioned in the first chapter, as an unfortunate, though, we are bound to admit, a very natural error. ”

“ On returning towards town they met parties of their own corps, of the cavalry and lastly of the rifles, all anxious for a share in the honour, no doubt, of the capture.
The body of the unfortunate man was conveyed into the city, where a coroner's jury was impannelled, when a verdict was returned of "Suicide, whilst flying from justice as a rebel."
But little is known to us concerning M. Girod. He settled in Canada a few years ago, and wrote in the papers on agriculture, and especially on the necessity of teaching it in schools. He always called himself a cultivateur. ”

“ Sir John Colbome now finding himself in a position to dispatch part of his force to the upper country. Before we commence our narrative of the transactions in that province, however, there are some occurrences growing out of the recent state of Lower Canada which require to be explained. We allude particularly to the course pursued by the Constitutional Association of Montreal ; a body of intolerant men, who had for some time fallen into insignificance, from which they were suddenly extricated by the events we have related. ”

“ A party of about 150 men also went round and quietly disarmed the "loyalists," for the double purpose of taking the sting out of their adversaries, and of arming their own people. A large number, or rather a large proportion — for the number appears not to have been large — fled to Montreal about the end of the month.
Whilst the country on the Richelieu was in a state to give employment to the troops. Sir John Colborne's force was too small to be divided ; and he does not appear to have been disposed to trust much to the volunteers. ”

“ Another paper says,
"The village having been surrounded, there was no possibility of escape ; and the prisoners say that numbers retreated into the vaults of the church, and the cellars, where they must have perished miserably."
It should be remembered that these statements are not from papers favourable to the insurgents ; they are not therefore disposed to magnify the sufferings of the people at the hands of the troops ; on the contrary, they are disposed to make no statement unfavourable to the government or their agents. ”

“ It should be here mentioned, that the troops were divided into two brigades, one, consisting of the 32nd and 83rd regiments with a part of the artillery, under Colonel Maitland ; and the other, consisting of the 2nd battalion of the royal regiment, the Montreal rifles, and Globenski's volunteers, under Colonel Wetherall ; the object being to attack and enter the village at two or more points at one and the same time. ”

“ He is considered somewhat eccentric in his habits — a circumstance, which, in all probability, arises from his modes of thinking, and his associations generally, being of a character not likely to be thoroughly understood by his neighbours. ”

“ Lord Gosford, in his despatch of the 23rd of December, thus sums up the result of the coup d'etat of the executive, and of the events embracing a period, extending from the 18th of November to the 16th of December.
"Thus have the measures adopted for putting down this reckless revolt been crowned with entire success. Wherever an armed body has shown itself, it has been completely dispersed ; the principal instigators and leaders have been killed, taken, or forced into exile ; there is no longer a head, concert, or organization amongst the deluded and betrayed habitans ”