J.S. McLennan, Louisbourg: From Its Foundation To Its Fall (Sydney: Fortress Press, 1969)

© Fortress Press

Chapter 7

Maurepas had contemplated improving the administration of Isle Royale before matters had come to a head with St. Ovide. On his dismissal, the Minister acted in the best interest of the colony, for from the applications for the position of Governor he selected Isaac Forant,[1] a captain of the ship of the line. He offered the place to him privately, so that in the event of his declining, the choice of a successor would not be more difficult. Forant did not consider the position worthy of his rank, as Isle Royale was only a not a dependency of New France, and the Governor-Generalships of New France, St. Domingo, Martinique, and Louisiana were held by naval officers of his own standing. After the intimation to him that it was the King's wish that he should go, he made no further difficulties, and set sail on the Jason for Louisbourg, where he arrived early in September 1739. [2]

For the first time the colony was placed under a new administration, for on the same ship was the new Commissaire-Ordonnateur, belonging to a family distinguished in the magistracy, but untried in colonial administration.[3] He had been principal clerk at Rochefort, and began, as the associate of Forant, a colonial career which for ever links his name, François Bigot, with the darker passages of the latest years of French rule in Canada. 

The ample instructions to Forant and Bigot indicate that the Minister was familiar with the condition of affairs at Isle Royale, but do not disclose whether the self-reliance which these officials displayed was the result of instruction or of personal qualities. The contrast between their administration and that of St. Ovide shows clearly how far a system may be modified by the character of the men it employs. St. Ovide and both the Le Normants constantly quarrelled. 

1. Isaac Louis Forant was the son of job de Forant, Premier Chef d'Escadre des Armées Navales. He passed through the ordinary course of naval instruction and promotion, in the course of which he visited Louisbourg and other ports in American waters beginning in 1724. In this year he made charts of the Grand Banks, A. N. Marine, C7, 108, and B⁴ , 48. The Habitant says that the family was of Danish origin and left their country on account of their religion. 
2. His commission was dated April 1, 1739. 
3. His father was a councillor of the Parliament of Bordeaux, akin to Puysieuix, Minister of Foreign Affairs, so that the son entered the King's service in 1723 under favourable auspices. 

They lacked initiative, and found, when they did make decisions, that these were frequently overruled. The merchants, fishers, and officers of the Admiralty complained of their acts. Their official reports to the Minister seem, at times, to have been intentionally inaccurate. The new officials took up their duties in harmony, with vigour and self-confidence, and seem to have had no hesitation in laying before the Minister the exact condition of affairs under their charge. 

Immediately after his installation Forant, calling together the troops at Louisbourg, which consisted, including the garrison of the outports and Isle St. jean, of eight companies of sixty men and one hundred Swiss, told them that any complaints that any of them might make would be carefully considered and justly dealt with. His report on them was far from satisfactory. 

"With the utmost sincerity I may say that I have never seen such bad troops. We would not keep one hundred soldiers, if we discharged all those who are below the regulation height. But without regard to stature and physique I believe that it is better to discharge invalids, who are pillars of the hospital and occasion much expense, and are of no use whatsoever, as well as rascals who not only are incorrigible, but are even capable of leading others into vicious ways. . . . It is better to have fewer men than to have them of this character." [1]

He deals severely with the conditions in which the troops live. In the stately barracks their quarters were wretched. They slept two in a bunk, and Forant immediately requested for them a supply of mattresses and bedding, for the hay on which they slept was changed but once a year, and, therefore, was so infested with vermin that many preferred to sleep during summer on the ramparts. Notwithstanding such conditions and the relations of the men with their officers, so low a standard had the soldiers, that, in response to his invitation, no complaints were manic. 

He then called together the officers of the garrison in his apartment, and laid before them the complaints of their conduct which had reached the Minister. These were, that not all the troops were carried on the rolls ; that verbal leave of absence was given to the soldiers, so that it was said privates had been twelve or fifteen years in the colony and had never mounted guard ; that new recruits had to buy unnecessary clothing, which the officers supplied from the uniforms of the soldiers who had died in the hospital ; that their canteens encouraged the soldiers to drink ; and that the officers obtained provisions in excessive quantities from the King's store. The officers seemed much affected by these charges, and assured him that they were not so bad as they had been represented. They instituted on the spot certain reforms, and he closed the interview by saying that the best way to discredit the bad impressions of the past was to see that in the future no grounds for complaint should occur. 

1. I.R. vol. 26. 

Forant on his previous cruises had visited Louisbourg and was familiar with its requirements. Knowing its dependence for defence on artillery, he had provided in France a wooden cannon to serve as a model. He brought it with him on the Jason, mounted it in the barracks, and thereafter gun drill took place every Sunday. This he did as preliminary to the establishment of an artillery company, the necessity of which he urged on the Minister as the troops were unskilled in serving artillery. 

The unsettled state of affairs in Europe directed the attention of Forant and Bigot to the military condition of Louisbourg. They wrote that in a time of peace it was suffering from the scarcity of provisions,[1] and in time of war a privateer or two in the Gulf and the Strait of Canso could reduce them by famine, unless there were more ample stores. It was necessary to send out more guns with their equipment, and to remount those already on the ramparts, as their carriages had decayed. They pointed out that it would be inadvisable to attempt the preservation of guns by dismounting them for the winter, as, if they were attacked, it would be very early in the year before they could get them remounted. Forant wrote to urge the Minister to begin the war by attacking Acadia. With two frigates, two hundred regular troops, two thousand muskets for the Acadians, whom the English would probably disarm, the expedition under his command, he would answer for the result. Acadia joined to Isle Royale would make a flourishing colony, [2] and desiring secrecy he wrote in his own hand a letter, [3] displaying his eagerness for attack : " I have the honour to say only, that in the situation in which we find ourselves we require fewer forts and less outlay to attack than to defend ourselves." [4] The principle was sound ; when war came it was, however, the enemies of Isle Royale who acted on it. 

The garrison needed strengthening. He pointed out, as St. Ovide had often done, that it was inadequate to do more than ordinary duty, but he could get on with the increase of two or three companies and the artillery company. He begged the Minister not to be deterred by the expense of more barrack accommodation, for he could provide for eight more companies by giving up his own house, and utilizing for himself that of Verrier, who was to go to France the following year. 

Bigot was not less active, on his side, in carrying out the Minister's instructions. He introduced a system of supervision of the King's stores which was, in his view, called for in a country where officials owned boats, and in consequence had crews to feed, and were interested in other commercial ventures 

1. Vaudreuil, who commanded the Jason, had supplied several vessels with provisions which they could not obtain in the town. 
2. Nov. 14, vol. 21, f. 72. 
3. Nov. 16, f. 86.
4 "J'ay 1'honneur de vous dire seulement que dans la situation où nous nous trouvons il nous faut moins de fortes (?) et de depances pour ataquer que pour nous defandre."  

which they had more at heart than the interest of the King. He established an office at the warehouse to supervise the distribution of stores, and made an attempt to introduce the contract system in the purchase of supplies. His first effort, asking tenders for molasses for three years, was unsuccessful, on account of the high price asked by the merchants, who feared war. During the course of the war with Spain the French merchants had enjoyed the benefit of Spanish markets for fish over those of England, but its ending would throw them open to competition with England. This caused Bigot to look to the West Indies for an extension of the trade in fish, and he suggested to the Minister the imposition of a duty on salt beef to promote in these islands the consumption of cod, if it would not hurt the commerce of France. 

He promoted experiments for the manufacturing of fish-glue, which seemed to be successful. He was the first persistent friend of the Cape Breton coal trade, which seems to have languished, for he at once sent a sample to France, and, as it again proved good, he continued in later years his attempts to develop this important industry. He supported his case by pointing out that the coal mines of Cape Breton supplied New England, and that their produce would be two- thirds cheaper in France than the coal which the King was then buying. 

While their letters of instructions had carefully defined their respective duties, Forant and Bigot seemed to have worked in entire harmony and acted together on matters which, strictly, were exclusively entrusted to one or the other of them. Bigot gave his opinion on military matters, and we find not only a desire to secure the best interests of the traders of the place on the part of Bigot, but that he associated Forant in his dealings with these matters. Le Normant had left an elaborate memoir dealing with the fisheries, which for some years had been unprofitable. He proposed in it various remedies. Bigot and Forant, before making any report on the matter, called together the principal traders of the place, and discussed the subject with them. They also called a general assembly of the inhabitants and arranged with them the rates to be established for wintering boats in the little harbour, which had been made in the Barachois de Lasson. 

The business of the colony went on in a satisfactory way. Twelve vessels had been built in Isle Royale during the year, eight had been bought from New England, and Bigot urged on the Government to give the same shipbuilding bounty, 5 £. a ton, as was given in Quebec. The Minister was informed in relation to foreign trade that only one English vessel had come, which was sent by Armstrong, Governor of Nova Scotia, with a little flour, the proceeds of which had been exchanged for French goods. Permission had been readily granted for this trading, as Forant and Bigot were desirous of placating Armstrong on account of the missionaries of Acadia. The abundant crops of Isle St. jean, where there was now a considerable Acadian population, encouraged there the further clearing of land. 

They secured, by employing these judicious methods, a willing acceptance of their proposed regulations before they were issued, and in the only case of conflict of jurisdiction, Forant asserted his supremacy over the officials of the Admiralty so tactfully that there was no friction about this matter, nor over the release by him and Bigot of a vessel from the western shore of Newfoundland, which the Admiralty officials had condemned on technical grounds. 

There was no disagreement between them when it came to the consideration of a most important proposal made by Beauharnois and Hocquart to establish a warehouse at Louisbourg which, kept permanently supplied, would prevent the famines to which the colony had throughout its existence been exposed.[1] They said, with sound judgment, that if the storehouse were the King's every one would depend on it, while if it belonged to a company it would ruin commerce. 

The following year, 1740, was opening with plans for further development when the career of Forant was cut short, in the inclement spring of Louisbourg, by an attack of pneumonia, to which he succumbed on May 10, after an illness of thirteen days. He was buried, at Bigot's instance, and in spite of the criticism of some of the military, in the chapel of the citadel, Bigot considering that his position as Governor entitled him to this unusual honour. His eulogy of his late associate was handsome. Forant knew character, he recalled to better courses his subordinates who had fallen away, was upright, and inspired by a sense of justice which was all-important in an establishment full of cabals. Bigot begged that a successor like him should be sent out. Forant testified in his will to his high opinion of Bigot, for the latter was made his executor ; and in the disposition of his property showed his interest in the colony where he had ruled so short a time by bequeathing a fund for the education of eight daughters of officers in the Convent of the Sisters of the Congregation. After a short interval this bequest was made effective. 

The few months in which they administered the colony were too short to show many results, but the harmony with which they worked, the intelligence with which they grasped the situation, their interest in trade, their conciliatory attitude to the people, make it reasonable to believe that had Forant been appointed at the time St. Ovide became Governor, and ruled as long, the condition of Louisbourg would have been very different.

Bourville again took charge. At different intervals he had served six years in all as acting Governor. He now unsuccessfully applied for the position. While he discharged its duties he continued to make plans for defence, and representations of the needs of the place in the same strain as his predecessors. 

1. Vol. 21, p. 23. 

He arranged to put, in event of attack, the fishermen and sailors at the outlying batteries, and reserve his troops, unfamiliar with artillery, for the defence of the walls. The successor to Forant chosen by Maurepas was Du Quesnel,[1] who hurriedly left France for his new post, where he arrived on November 2, 1740, and at once assumed the duties of the position. 

When Du Quesnel was installed the defence of the town at once occupied his attention. He stumped forth to inspect the work, for he was one-legged, a cannon-ball having carried away one leg and shattered the other when he was on the Admiral's ship in the action off Malaga in 1704. He found the works of the town in good condition, agreed with the view expressed in one of Forant's latest letters (February 8), that the royal battery was unsatisfactory on account of the lowness of the embrasures on the landward side, important in a place where a surprise was more to be feared than a regular attack. He repeated the complaints of St. Ovide, Forant, and Bourville, that the garrison was inadequate.[2] He asked for fifty more Swiss, as some of the troops knew not their right hand from their left. Their supply of arms was short, and Bigot joined him in asking for fifteen hundred more muskets, that the inhabitants might be armed. [3]

Du Quesnel and Bigot represented that the supply of powder should be kept up to its present quantity, so that the five tons they had recently received would be available for privateers should war break out. They asked for six twelve-pound guns of the new model, which had commended itself to Du Quesnel. 

1. Jean Baptiste Louis Le Prévost, Seigneur du Quesnel, de Changy Pourteville et d'autres lieux. I have found little about his professional advancement. He was made captain, October 1731, and had evidently been in the West Indies, for his wife was Madenioiselle Giraud de Poyet, daughter of the Lieutenant de Roi at Martinique. The Habitant says, " Poor man, we owe him little ; he was whimsical, changeable, given to drink, and when in his cups knowing no restraint or decency. He had affronted nearly all the officers of Louisbourg, and destroyed their authority with the soldiers. It was because his affairs were in disorder and he was ruined that he had been given the government of Cape Breton." There is no evidence in other sources to confirm this view. 
2. An analysis of the guards made in 1741, after the troops had been increased by 80, shows how they were disposed:

Guards and Reliefs- 

Citadel, King's Bastion ..............................      94 
Queen's Bastion..........................................       94 
Port Dauphin Gate......................................      76 
Maurepas Gate ...........................................      76 
Store-house, Treasury Hospital Battery ...    103 
Artillerymen ................................................       16 
In Hospital .................................................        20 
Royal Battery ..............................................       70 
Island Battery ............................................        10 
At Port Dauphin ........................................        25 
At Port Toulouse ........................................        26 
Isle St. jean .................................................       41 

A total of 651, while the whole force was 710. With the Island Battery ungarrisoned, it certainly left no effective combatant force. Bourville wrote in August I740 that 556 men could not fill the posts (vol. 23, p. 71)
3. They had in store only five hundred at this time.

These cannon were intended for the defence of the town ; but in addition they asked for a supply of guns and shot, for the same purpose as the extra supply of powder, the use of privateers. [1]

The condition of affairs continued so threatening that he asked the officers who had received permission to go to France (Verrier, Cailly, Commander of the Swiss, De Pensens, and Sabatier) to remain at their posts, to which they all cheerfully consented. He also took up a scheme of attack after consultation with Du Vivier, Du Chambon, the senior officer being at Isle St. jean. [2] They discussed Forant's plan of attack on Annapolis. They emphasized the necessity of sending the two men-of-war for which he asked at the same time as the Basque fishermen who left France in February. They called the Minister's attention to the fact that, as the English would probably not remain passive, and Louisbourg would be their objective if they took the field, that the defences of that place should not be weakened. Du Vivier presented an alternative scheme to that of Du Quesnel. It was to select two hundred men of the Louisbourg troops, who were to proceed late in the autumn to Acadia, and lie hidden in the forests until snow made travelling possible. Then, reinforced by the Indians and Acadians, the latter being induced to join the expedition by the payment of lavish prices for their provisions and supplies, these forces should rush the feeble defences of Annapolis over its snow-filled ditch, and overpower its small garrison.[3] They would require for the expedition two hundred troops, eight hundred muskets, two hundred haversacks, and 40,000 £ in cash. These, if the plan was approved, the Minister was asked to send. 

While these military matters, being of the most vital concern, were engrossing the attention of the authorities, the ordinary commercial business of the colony was being carried on. The energy of the administration in the colony seemed to have been reflected in the bureau of the Minister, for the reports from Isle Royale now received a more careful examination than they had in the past. Bigot's attention was called to the fact that although the catch of fish in 1739 was valued at 3,06l,465 £, and in 1740 at 2,629,980 £, seventeen more vessels had come from France in the latter year. These either had returned not fully laden or had bought English cod. Bigot dealt with the matter with his accustomed openness . [4] He admitted that smuggling went on. 

1. They asked for 6 of six pounds with 900 shot, 24 of four pounds with 4500 shot, and copper ladles for hot shot (I.R. vol. 22, p. 215). As the letter of the Habitant is the most generally known contemporary account of these years it may be pointed out that in reference to sending out privateers, as well as in other matters, the actions of the local officials, of which the writer complained, were known to and encouraged by the Minister. 
2. Letter, December 1, 1740. 
3. Five companies each of 31 men. 
4. He further points out that the captain's personal ventures are not included in returns, nor those of the exports of Ingonish, the most important place after Louisbourg. I have found no evidence that the practice was different this year than at previous times, and hazard the surmise that it was the ease with which the excuse passed scrutiny that opened to him the possibilities of enriching himself by improper means.

The new England vessels brought mostly tar, pitch, and planks, and in return bought rum and molasses, for which there would be an inadequate outlet if it were not for this trade. He informed the Minister that Sieur Lagarande, the richest and most charitable merchant of Ingonish, was concerned in this contraband trade, but that the principal place where it took place was at Petit de Grat. This could easily have been prevented by efficiency on the part of the officer at Port Toulouse, Du Bois Berthelot. A boat to watch this commerce which was carried on with Canso should be kept, but that unless manned and officered from a man-of-war, it would be useless. Somewhat later he pointed out that French and English vessels were accustomed to meet at Martengo,[1] a port to the westward of Canso, where they exchanged cargoes without molestation from either French or English officials. The new vigour in the home administration, or confidence in Bigot's representations, is shown by the removal, when these reports were received, of Du Bois Berthelot from Port Toulouse, and by the authorization given to Bigot to arrange with D'Aubigny, captain of the man-of-war on the station in 1741, for the proposed coast- guard, for which a barge of thirteen oars was sent out. This searching statement of the actual state of affairs, the proposal of remedies, and the immediate acceptance of the suggestions by Maurepas, are without counterpart in the previous history of Isle Royale. 

The first dispatch received in July by the Louisbourg authorities intimated to them that the political situation was unchanged, that only through necessity would the King be drawn into war, but if France should become involved, the two men-of-war which the King proposed to send to American waters would be dispatched to Louisbourg to protect the fisheries, and carry out plans Maurepas had previously sent them. He referred them also to his instructions to Forant, and with a confidence for which his own acts had given little ground, expressed the view that while the English might make an attempt on Louisbourg, the reports he had received led him to the opinion that it would be without success. Instead of establishing two more companies he increased the eight already at Louisbourg by ten men each, sent fifty more Swiss, and enough recruits to bring all the companies up to their full strength of seventy men. Fifteen thousand pounds of powder, eight hundred muskets, and some cannonball were shipped out with them. Du Quesnel accepted these supplies, only as an instalment of what was necessary. They had, he reported, in their armoury, not a pike, pistol, or sword, and needed mortars as much as small arms. They were, however, doing all they could. Satisfactory progress was being made on the fortifications.[2] They had increased the number of workers by bringing in 

1. I.R. vol. 23, p. 17.
2. The transfer of this work from Ganet to Muiron, the new contractor, was made without loss of time.

the soldiers from the outports, while abolition of Monday as a holiday, and their efforts to prevent the soldiers getting drunk on rainy days, made the work more effective. The population was divided into militia companies of fifty men each, and Verrier projected a small bastion on the landward side of the Royal Battery [1] to overcome the weakness of that fortification. The only disquieting reports received, except those from headquarters, were rumours which reached them from the West Indies of depreciations on French commerce by English privateers, and the appearance off the port of a suspicious vessel. They sent out Morpain, the port captain, in search of her. He cruised along the coast and entered the smaller harbours without any result. 

The Swiss had always given some trouble in their dealings with the Governor, as they were tenacious of the privileges granted to their regiment the Karrer, possibly because the Louisbourg detachment included its leading company, " la compagnie Colonelle" but this year Cailly, their captain, made the most serious disturbance by refusing, on a question of precedence, to assemble his men when ordered by Du Quesnel. His refusal was formal and in writing, so that Cailly was dismissed ; but his wife having made intercession for him with Du Quesnel, the latter brought his influence to bear on the Minister, which led to Callly's reinstatement.[2]

The necessity of pushing on the works, and of safe-guarding the morals, not only of the troops, but of the people of the town, led the authorities to make, after a long interval, efforts to limit the sale of drink. St. Ovide had never found the settled season which Costebelle thought was necessary before it could be effectively dealt with. Du Quesnel and the captains agreed that the canteens which they had kept, and were a considerable source of profit to the company commanders, [3] should be suppressed. He noted that Du Vivier had never kept one, having taken the course of giving his men a little money when they wished to divert themselves, an indication of his being well off; the result possibly of those commercial ventures of which the merchants of Louisbourg had complained. They dealt with the public sale of drink by regulations which prohibited traffic in it to any who were capable of earning a livelihood in some productive employment. Those who engaged in it must have a licence and display a sign ; they were forbidden to sell to soldiers on duty or working, to sal *Tors and hired fishermen who were supplied by their masters, or to any one during the hours of divine service, and after the retreat had been beaten ; the penalty for an infraction of any of these rules being the confiscation of their supply and a fine of 100 £. Further efforts to improve the morals of the place 

1. This was not built. 
2. Vol. 23, 60, 72.
3. Du Quesnel says that they must shut their eyes to the profit which the officers make from supplying their men, as the pay of a captain, 1420 £ is too little. He also speaks well of Du Chambon, who succeeded him, as he never engaged in trade, he was poor.

were made by the Minister sending from the West Indies a negro to apply the rack to criminals. [1]

The influence for good exerted by Forant was losing its effect. Du Quesnel said that things were slipping back into bad ways, that his efforts to right them had made him unpopular, but that he carried with him the best of the officers and citizens. He praised Bigot, who, he added, had no other object than the good of his service. The Minister showed his confidence in them in the most satisfactory way. Du Quesnel received an indemnity of 5000 £ for the expenses of his removal to Isle Royale, and Bigot, making his request with a statement that he had never expected to ask for anything but advancement, says he was compelled, by the expenses ot living at Louisbourg, to solicit an increase in his salary. The Minister sent to him an additional pool. with a commendation of his zeal. Somewhere in the man were the potentialities of the Bigot of Quebec. They do not appear in the frank, intelligent letters of one who was a favourite with his associates, who asked for a second Forant as Governor, from whom a Minister demanded no more than to continue as he had begun, who placed in him, as years went on, increasing confidence, and, un-solicited, gave him promotion.

In 1742 Bigot had to deal with those economic conditions which so often had injured the colony. In May they sent an express to warn Maurepas that Louisbourg was again on the verge of starvation. They had attempted to obtain flour at Canso, but without success, and they were further disquieted by the report that the exportation of provisions from New York and New England was forbidden. Nevertheless, in the emergency, they sent a vessel there with some hopes of obtaining a cargo for it, as an officer [2] of Canso was interested in the venture. 

Du Quesnel and Bigot suggested that to avoid the recurrence of these periods of scarcity a store-house for flour from New England should be established at Louisbourg. This would have given no immediate relief even it permission were given to undertake its founding. The situation demanded prompter remedies. In June the soldiers were persuaded to submit to the limitation of their bread to a pound a day, which set free about three hundredweight of flour to be distributed among the needy. The fishermen also cut down their consumption, which helped matters ; but the curtailment of food was uncomfortable, and the dearth of vegetables produced ill-health among the 

1. Vol. B, 72, f. 10. 
2. It seems a fair surmise that this was Bradstreet, then an officer of this garrison, who was related to several of the officers at Louisbourg. Bradstreet says that he was thoroughly familiar with Nova Scotia, so that this connection would have arisen probably through the De la Tour family. He was certainly interested in trade, for in 1741 he visited Louisbourg, carrying to Du Quesnel the congratulations of Cosby. He there sold his schooner, bought rum with its proceeds, and laid out two thousand crowns in the port (I.R. vol. 23, f. 57).

people. This distressing condition continued until August, when some relief was obtained by the arrival of small vessels from New England and Quebec, and in September the arrival of the store-ship from France brought abundance. But to fully justify Du Quesnel's description of Isle Royale as an unhappy colony, as the fishing had been a failure, the people were too poor to buy food at the high prices asked. Bigot, who had previously seen the agricultural resources of the Miré, and regretted that so fair an estate on its banks had been given to St. Ovide, saw this year, on a tour of inspection to the northern parts, the agricultural lands along the Bras d'Or lakes, which made him certain that the island might become self-sustaining. The Minister sent a prompt reply which denied approval to the recommendation of a store-house for New England flour, although he had previously been told that the merchants of Quebec did not fear the competition of New England. In this he followed the same policy as the Navy Board of the Regency which had disapproved in 1716 of Costebelle's suggestion of a permitted trade with New England. Costebelle had accepted the decision without protest. Bigot did not hesitate to warn Maurepas that, if his views were carried out, the colony would be injured. Crops in Canada would in the future fail, as they had in two successive years. If Isle Royale must depend on France alone, without drawing any part of its supplies from New England, the cost of living would be so permanently enhanced that it would carry on its business at a great disadvantage. He returned to the matter the following year, and showed that flour from New England delivered at Louisbourg cost less [1] than French flour delivered at Rochefort. In addition to this disadvantage, the shipment of flour with which he made comparison was so poor in quality that it could only be used by mixing it with that from the British colony. 

Such periods of scarcity as this had been passed through not infrequently. Nothing, however, had arisen in the past to affect the fundamental advantages of Isle Royale in its great industry, but in these years complaints of the quality of the fish it sent to European markets were heard. As we learn from English sources [2] that the curing of fish at Canso was bad, these complaints of the poor quality of French shipments give basis for a confirmation of the reports that the merchants of Louisbourg bought Canso fish, as they were cheaper than their own catch. [3] In the midst of these discouragements, the promise of a new trade gave encouragement to its people. It had been thought that Louisbourg would prove an admirable port of call for French merchantmen on long voyages. This year the Baleine of Nantes, from Vera Cruz to Cadiz, called at Louisbourg for provisions and a convoy for the remainder of her voyage. Her cargo consisted of treasure and such 

1. 16 or 17 £, as against 17 £, 18 £, 18 £ 10 s. (vol. 25). 
2. C.O. 5/5 ; B.T.N.S. 5. 
3. Weeden, p. 595/6.

valuable commodities as cochineal and indigo. She was followed by other vessels of the same kind, but this course proved disadvantageous to the port and disastrous to most of the vessels. [1] 

The possibilities of war seemed in Europe no nearer, although, in July, Du Quesnel was warned that they might change at any moment. Du Vivier's plan had been considered, and Du Quesnel was told to get all the information he could. In reply he informed the Court that an engineer had come to fortify Annapolis Royal in brick, and to erect fortifications at Canso, which should not be permitted. He asked for orders, either to openly stop the work, or to stir up the Indians against the English. A further cause of uneasiness was the action of an English man-of-war which had prevented the French from fishing off Canso, but Du Quesnel was not in a position to act firmly. The Minister had not responded to their demands for further troops and supplies. He would not consider their proposals for additions to the fortifications. Those already projected, he wrote, must be completely finished before any new work should be undertaken. The King was surprised that after so many years there was so much work in an incomplete state. Moreover, the state of the Royal treasury was such, that they could not send out the supplies and munitions for which the Governor had asked. Du Quesnel's answer was reasonable : they would do the best they could, although the supplies were essential. He accepted a suggestion of the Minister to minimize their demands for artillery, by moving the guns from one battery to another, which they would do if the field carriages were sent. His view was that the outlay already made on Louisbourg, as well as its importance, demanded that he should be put in a state to respond to the confidence placed in him. [2]

With the long break in its activities caused by the winter season it was easy for the hopeful to trust that when the season reopened things would be better, for they had closed in gloom. The colony was in the most miserable condition it had ever been. The purchases of supplies at exorbitant prices to avoid starvation made it impossible for the people to carry out the engagements into which they had entered. Bigot looked forward to a certain loss on the shipments of provisions which had been sent out to sell to the people in the two preceding years. The French merchants complained to the Minister that they could not continue shipments to Isle Royale unless they were paid for previous ventures. Moreover, they were also deterred by the fear of finding their market forestalled by arrivals from New England, and although official information had been given to all the shipping ports of 

1. The treasure ships which called in 1744 hampered the military operations and reduced the number of men in the town by shipping many in their crews. In 1745 the ships were captured. 
2. Vol. 24, Oct. 7, 9, 22, 24.

France in the previous autumn of the need of supplies at Louisbourg, this official intimation produced little effect. Bigot rose to the situation and was able to report that he had collected from the people 32,000 £, [1] more than he had expended for supplies, and in the autumn the French ships which had come out had sold their cargoes well. [2]

The torpor of malnutrition affected the commerce of the country. The people would not take up the manufacture of glue, nor the shipment of " noües de morues," for which a market had been found in France. Bigot's efforts to push forward the coal trade had not met with much success. The coal was too light for the heavy forging on which it had been again tested at Rochefort. Its export was further hampered by the prohibition to take it on men-of-war or the store-ships of the navy, on account of the danger of spontaneous combustion, although merchant vessels made no objections to carry it to the West Indies. Above all, the fishery was a failure. A fortuitous circumstance relieved the military aspect of the food supply. Alarmed by the appearance of caterpillars in Canada, its authorities wrote in July 1743 to those of Isle Royale that they must obtain for them from New England at least 4000 barrels of flour. They acted promptly, for Hocquart said that on them depended the salvation of Cahada. Du Vivier was sent to Canso with a credit of 80,000 £ to buy this supply. He had completed the purchase before a second letter came from Quebec informing them that the pest had disappeared and the harvest promised well, so there was no longer a necessity for the supply. Sixteen or seventeen hundred barrels were delivered that autumn, and more would have been sent had the authorities of Boston and New York not been advised by the English court to be on their guard. They had in consequence prohibited further shipments to Louisbourg. The anonymous Canso agent of the French was at Louisbourg when this news was received. He said the authorities would not have interfered with further shipments had he been on the spot, as he would have cleared the vessels for Placentia, and further promised, should it be at all possible, to continue shipments the following year even if war broke out ; an incidental verification of the view that commerce was a more dominant factor in the eighteenth century than national animosity. Bigot proposed, and the Minister consented, to use this extra supply as a reserve which would give rations for the troops until October 1745. There were other foreshadowings of the strained relations with England than the forbidding of exportation to Louisbourg. The English man-of-war at Canso captured a vessel of Du Chambon on her voyage from

 1. On previous occasions of the same kind his predecessors had never succeeded in making more than trifling collections. 
2. The returns of commerce do not indicate as serious a falling-off in vessels as might be expected from the phrasing of these letters.

Isle St. Jean to Louisbourg, and Du Vivier returned to Canso, this time in his military capacity, and made such representations that the vessel was released. The slackness with which the colonial affairs of England and France were administered, is shown by the fact that Cosby and Du Vivier had copies of the Treaty of Utrecht which differed in the points of the compass determining the fishing boundaries, as had the documents to which Smart and St. Ovide referred in 1718. In a score or more of years this needless cause of misunderstanding had not been cleared up. 

The year was unsatisfactory in a military way. Men were scarce in France the King's treasury was low and this affected the strengthening of Louisbourg, but the Minister promised to do the best he could the next year, when they might expect enough cannon for one flank of each battery. Signals were arranged for the men-of-war, which were to be dispatched as soon as the rupture took place. The companies were full, so only thirty recruits were sent out, which left unanswered Du Quesnel's insistent demand for reinforcement. Their efforts to push on the work had produced results, the walls were complete, the parapet and one gate on the quay were finished, as well as the supplementary batteries at the Prince's Bastion and the Batterie de la Grave. He pointed out again that the work at the Dauphin Gate was necessary as well as the razing of Cap Noir, which commanded all the southern fortifications. This, Du Quesnel said, had never been proposed by the engineers, as the recommendation of this course would have exposed their mistake in not including this eminence within the walls of the town. 

As in all emergencies, the ordinary business of life went on much in its accustomed way, funds were allotted, ecclesiastical and civil matters dealt with, promotions were made, gratuities distributed. Six young ladies were enjoying the advantages of Forant's bequest ; and two chats-cerviers were sent from Louisbourg for the King's menagerie, to succeed in La Muette the one whose fondness for music had been the delight of the Royal children. [1]

The condition of Louisbourg was in the highest degree unsatisfactory. It was the key to Canada, it gave a base for fishery, but it was inadequately supplied with provisions and munitions of war ; its garrison was not only inadequate, but of poor quality ; its artillery required an increase of seventy-seven guns to make all its fortifications effective. For ten years the plan of attack, if an attack was to be made, had been laid by its Governors before the Minister, and these documents had not all been pigeon-holed. They were known to Maurepas himself, and there exists a memorandum which is marked "presented to the King" (porté au roi), dated June 20, 1743, which gives a résumé of the history of Louisbourg.[2] This places the responsibility of its 

1. De Goncourt, Portraits entimes, p. 8. 
2 I.R. vol. 26, p. 210.

condition on Louis XV. himself. So much of evil in his career has been attributed to the malign influence of Madame de Pompadour, that it may be noted that at this time when, more than in later years, he neglected his colony, she was Madame d'Étioles, and had never seen His Most Christian Majesty, except in the hunting field.