nous and faithless, the leaders of those Canadians were demanding their covenanted rights as they understood them. Louis J. Papineau, an orator of the character of Laurier of the present day, was leading the movement. He had drawn up the famous memorial, or bill of grievances, to the British crown. Though not a successful military leader, and, indeed, discountenancing the use of force, he was a thrilling orator, and had fired the heart of the French-Canadians with the hope of equal rights; and created the determination to acquire these, if not by agitation, then by revolution.
It happened that in the town of Terrebonne, where the little F. X. Matthieu was living, there was a highly educated civil officer, a notary public the office of notary then being a profession that required special legal, and classical education. The name of this notary was Velade; and, besides his official duties, he was schoolmaster, receiving a small stipend from the government, and nominal fees from his pupils. Velade was a student of government, and a great admirer of the United States. American liberty and law as developed in this country, he taught in his school almost to the entire neglect of the Canadian system. This he not only taught, but actually instituted. Every term his school held an election after the American plan. Some of the boys also regularly celebrated the Fourth of July, carrying American flags. This was in connection with some young men from the United States who had come to Terrebonne, and started a nail factory. With this extreme Americanism, however, the townspeople were not altogether pleased, and sometimes broke up their demonstrations.
While still a mere boy, Matthieu went to Montreal, where he was engaged in clerking, and there acquired a certain impress and manner that distinguishes him even yet from the farmer. Being already imbued with ideas
