Progeny Unbound: Peace Be to This House

By Charles Law

In this fifth and final installment of the Hart family dynasty chronicles, Charles Law turns to mid-nineteenth century Quebec, Canada, to capture the rise and fall of the next generation of the Hart family.

What is this third generation of Harts to make of their forbears pursuit of wealth? The cousins, the multiple grandchildren of Dolly and Aaron Hart, were taught to revere their grandfather, though none ever knew him while he was alive. But they have little reason to emulate so illustrious a personage who, after all, was no more than a shopkeeper, sutler, fur trader, and minor landowner before he died in 1800.

Instead, this generation clings to Harts legend of being a British army officer; most become lawyers, doctors, or industrialists because of the money he accumulated and his sons Moses and Ezekiel aggrandized. These fortunes require protection via the lawand it was rather farsighted that several of the cousins learned the law.

In the year or two following the suppression of the Papineau-led rebellion in Canada, this learning is put to more political purposes, and Aaron Philip, Aaron Ezekiel, and Adolphus Mordecai are all involved in the aftermath of that failed struggle. In their hands, the dynasty takes a different turn, perhaps one far removed from their patriarchs enduring legacy.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trafford Publishing
• Release date: Mar 7, 2011
• ISBN: 9781426955532

Charles Law

Charles Law is a semi-retired journalist and publisher born in Saskatchewan, educated in Winnipeg and Montreal, and now residing in Toronto, Canada. His other novels include Aaron’s Covenant, Spake Unto Moses, Ezekiel Rebuffed, and Brother Benjamin.

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Contents

P A R T O N E

One

Two

Three

Four

Five

Six

Seven

Eight

Nine

P A R T T W O

Ten

Eleven

Twelve

Thirteen

Fourteen

Fifteen

P A R T T H R E E

Sixteen

Seventeen

Eighteen

Nineteen

Twenty

Twenty one

Twenty two

Twenty three

Twenty four

Twenty five

Twenty six

P A R T F O U R

Twenty seven

Twenty eight

Twenty nine

Thirty

Thirty one

Thirty two

Thirty three

Thirty four

Thirty five

Thirty six

Thirty seven

Thirty eight

Thirty nine

Forty

P A R T F I V E

Forty one

Forty two

Forty three

Forty four

Forty five

Forty six

Forty seven

Forty eight

Forty nine

Fifty

P A R T S I X

Fifty one

Fifty two

Fifty three

Fifty four

Fifty five

Fifty six

Fifty seven

Fifty eight

T H E H A R T S A N D J U D A H S

Ezekiel Hart married a sister of Abraham Judah in England

NEXT G E N E R A T I O N

Aaron Hart = Dorothea Catharine Judah

(b. 1724) (b. 1747)

Moses (1768) Ezekiel (1770) Uriah(1771) Miriam (1772) Samuel (1774) Catharine (1776) Charlotte (1777) Benjamin (1779) Alexander (1782) Elizabeth (1783) Sarah (1784)

??? Hart = Naphtali Joseph

Abraham Joseph (17??) Judah Joseph (1762)…Henry Joseph (1775)

Judith Hart = George Joel

Henry Hart = Elisabeth Visscher

Ezechiel (1783) Harman Visscher (1784)

Moses Hart = Esther Solomon

Samuel Judah = Elizabeth Ezekiel

Bernard (1777) Abraham (17??) Catharine (1788)

Isaac Judah

Uriah Judah = Mary Gibbon

Henry (177x) Sarah (1776)

Marian Judah = David Manuel

Hannah (1766) Catharine (1768) Dorothea (1771)

Dorothea Judah = Aaron Hart)

(see above

Elizabeth Judah = Chapman Abraham

(b. 1763) (b174?)

THE HARTS/ JUDAHS/ DAVIDS/ JOSEPHS

T H I R D G E N E R A T I O N

Moses Hart = Sarah Judah

(1768-1852) (1776-1827)

Areli Blake (1800) Louisa Howard(1801) Orobio (1803)

Other children of Moses Hart:

Alexander Thomas (1804) Benjamin Moses (1810?) Henry (1811?) Esther (1814?) Ezekiel Moses (1817) Moses Ezekiel Moise (1818) Orobio Moses (1820?), Aaron Moses (1823) Reuben (1824) William (1826) Thomas Nathan Vulge (1827) Elon (1829, d. 1830) Sarah Dorothea (1829)

Abraham Samuel Pierre (1830) Charlotte Matilda (1831) Elizabeth (1832) Samuel Judah (1839) Andrew (1842)

Ezekiel Hart = Frances Lazarus

(b. 1770) (b. 1769)

Julia (1795) Emma (1796) Samuel Bécancour (1798) Esther Elizabeth (1800) Harriet (1801) Aaron Ezekiel (1803) Catharine (1804) Henry Ascher (1805, d. 1805) Caroline Athalia (1807) Henry (1808) Ira James Craig (1809) Abraham Kitzinger (1811) Miriam Hadley (1812) Adolphus Mordecai (1814)

Uriah Hart = Miriam ?

( 1771-179x) (b. 177?)

Samuel Judah (1789)

Catharine Hart = Bernard Samuel Judah

(1776-1859) (1777-1831)

Samuel (1799) Aaron Hart (1801) Jonathan (1803) Edward (1806) Miriam (1807) Abraham (1810 d. 1815) Alfred (1812) Washington (1814) Louisa (1818)

Charlotte Hart = Moses David

(1777-1844) (1767-1814)

Moses Eleazar (1813)

Benjamin Hart = Harriot Judith Hart

(1779-1855) (1786-1849)

Frances (1807) Henrietta (1808?) Ephraim (1810?) Aaron Philip (1811) Arthur Wellington (1813) Baruch Frederick Weber (1814) Theodore (1816) Henry Naphtali (1817) Helen (1819) Benjamin Moses (1820) Emily Abigail (1822) Julia, Joel (1823) Reuben (1824) Hannah Constance Halton (1826) Dorothea Catharine (1828) Elizabeth Weston (1829)

Alexander Hart = Mary Ann Douglas

(1782-1835)

Alexander Louisa

Elizabeth Hart

(1783-1840)

Sarah Hart = Samuel David

(1784-1831) (1766-1824)

Eleazar (1811) Aaron Hart (1812) Moses Samuel (1816) Phoebe (1818) Frances (1820) Sophia (1822) Samuel (1823)

________________________________________________________________

Brandele Abigail David = Andrew Hays

(1762-1801) (1742-17??)

Lazarus (1784?) Moses Judah (1789)

David David

(1764-1824)

Samuel David = Sarah Hart

(1766-1824) (see above)

Moses David = Charlotte Hart

(see above)

Frances David = Myer Michaels

(1770-1838?) (1760-1815)

________________________________________________________________

Bernard Samuel Judah = Catharine Hart

(1777-1831) (see above)

Samuel(1799) Aaron Hart(1801) Jonathan (1803) Edward (1806) Abraham (1810) Alfred N (1812) Washington (1814) Louisa (1818)

Henry Judah = Mary Gibbon

(177x- 1838)

Thomas Storrs (1804-1895) Henry Hague (1808-83)

Sarah Judah = Moses Hart

(1776-1826) (see above)

________________________________________________________________

Henry Joseph = Rachel Solomons

(1775-1832) (1780-1855)

Henry (1806) Matilda (1807) Levy (1808) Catharine (1810) Benjamin Solomons (1811) Rebecca (1813) Jacob Henry (1814) Abraham (1815) Jesse (1817) Sarah (1819) Gershom (1821) Esther (1823)

F O U R TH G E N E R A T I O N

Children of Moses Hart

Areli Blake Hart = Julia Seaton

(1800-1857)

Henry Thomas William Blake Christopher Charles Edward Amelia Henrietta

Orobio Hart

(1803-1824)

Alexander Thomas Hart = Miriam Judah

(1804-1852) (1807-87)

Moses Alexander (1841) Augustus (1842) David Alexander (1844) Lewis Alexander (1847)

Louisa Howard Hart

(1804-1857)

Benjamin Moses Hart =

(1810?)

Henry Moses

Henry Hart =

(1811?-1847)

Esther Hart

(1814?)

Moses Ezekiel Hart = Domithilde Pothier

(1817) = Georgianna Pothier

Anne-Georgianna (1854) Louis-Napoleon-Hormides (1866)

Aaron Moses Hart = Marguerite McCarthy

(1823-93)

Edward ( ) Moses Orobio (1847) Rebecca( ) Benjamin-Moyse (1865)

Thomas Hart = Agnes McCaffrey

(1825)

Alexander Thomas (1863-63) Emma Rosa (1866) Charles Ezekiel (1880)

Sarah Dorothea Hart = Neree Hercule Desilets

(1829-18xx)

Charlotte Matilda Hart = Joseph Ludger Desilets

(1831-18xx)_

Samuel-Judah Hart

1841

Reuben Moses Hart

(1843-1918)

Children of Ezekiel Hart

Emma Hart

(1796-1839)

Samuel Bécancour Hart

(1798-1859)

Esther Elizabeth Hart

(1800-1860)

Harriet Hart

(1801-1855)

Aaron Ezekiel Hart = Phoebe David

(1803-1857) (1818-18??)

Frances Lazarus (1851) Sarah (1852) Asher (1853) Emma , Dorothea (1855) Sophia David (1856)

Caroline Athalia Hart

(1807-1883)

Henry Hart

(1808-1842)

Ira James Craig Hart

(1809-1883)

Abraham Kitzinger Hart

(1811-184x)

Adolphus Mordecai Hart= Hannah Constance Hart

(1814-1879) (1822-1898)

George Ezekiel(1846) Abraham Emile (1847) Gerald Ephraim ((1849) Asher (1850) Harriot Judith (1852) Miriam Hadley (1854)

________________________________________________________________

Children of Benjamin Hart

Frances Hart = Raphael Schoyer

(1807-49) (1800-1865)

Benjamin Hart (1836) David Arthur (1839) Ernest Augustus (1843) Albert Asher (1845) Frank Reuben (1848)

Aaron Philip Hart

(1811-43)

Arthur Wellington Hart = Selena Ezekiel

(1813-91)

Harriet Blanche (1842-61)

Baruch Frederick Weber Hart = Elizabeth Johnson

(1814-94)

Katie (1865) Elmira (1873) Lucie (1878) Elizabeth Stringer

Theodore Hart = Frances Michaels David

(1816-87) (1820-1844)

Sarah Harline (1842) Fanny Augusta (1844)

= Mary Kent Bradbury

(1812-92)

Charles Theodore (1846) Frederick L’Estrange Levey(1851) Robert Augustus Baldwin (1852) Edith Marie (1854)

Henry Naphtali Hart = Jane Elizabeth Church

(1817-188?) (1812-188?)

Isaac (1839) Maria (1840) Benjamin (1841) Louisa (1843) Caroline (1844) Aaron (1846) Arthur (1847) Elizabeth (1852) Emily (1853) Blanche (1954) Henry (1857) Eugene (1860)

Benjamin Moses Hart

(1820-1891)

Emily Abigail Hart = Samuel B. Hort

(1822-18??) (1816-1892)

Anne Julia, Harriet Frances (1842)

Hannah Constance Halton Hart = Adolphus Mordecai Hart

(1826-1898) (see above)

George Ezekiel (1846) Abraham Emile (1847) Gerald Ephraim ((1849) Asher (1850) Harriot Judith (1852) Miriam Hadley (1854)

Dora Catharine Hart = Alfred Waley Hort

(1828-1898) (1817-1898)

Elizabeth Weston Hart

(1829-34)

________________________________________________________________

Alexander Hart II = Mme Bouchette

(18??-18??)

Louisa Hart

Children of Charlotte Hart and Moses David

Moses Eleazar David = Rosina Florance

(1813-1892)

Charlotte (1848) Nina (1847) Arthur Meredith (1849)

= Ada Abrahams

________________________________________________________________

Children of Sarah Hart and Samuel David

Eleazar David = Eliza Lock Walker

(1811-1887) (1812-1887)

Gertrude Sophia (1840) Arthur Mamdro (1842) Ernest Wilfred (1843) Golde Adela (1846) Carlo Grimaldi (1847) Marietta Beatrice (1849) Hilda Edna (1850) Aleyda Eliza Winnifred (1852) Amy Lillian Ernestine (1854) Charlotte Gwendoline (1857) Eliza Evelyn (1860)

Aaron Hart David =Catharine Joseph

(1812-1882) (1810-1876)

Samuel (1837) Henry (1838) Monte David (1840) Sarah Mathilde (1842) Tucker (1843) Moses Edmund (1844) Fanny (1846) Robert Sullivan (1847)

Esdaile Cohen (1849) Joseph (1850) Harline (1851)

Moses Samuel Hart David= Gertrude Virginia Joseph

(1816-1854) (1825-1914)

Augustus (1847-50) Laurens Joseph (1848) Edith (1850)

Phoebe David= Aaron Ezekiel Hart

(1818-1882) (see above)

Frances Michaels David = Theodore Hart

(1820-1844) (see above)

Sophia Michaels David = Abraham Joseph

(1822-189?) (1815-1886)

Fanny David (1847) Rachel Sarah (1848) Henry (1850) Montefiore (1851) Andrew Cohen (1852) Helen Elizabeth, Catharine Octavia (1854) Crimea Harriet (1855) Jesse (1858) Sophia Celine (1860) Stewart Scott (1862) Georgina Patterson (1863) Martha Maud (1869)

________________________________________________________________

Children of Henry Joseph

Henry Joseph

(1773-1832)

Catharine Joseph = Aaron Hart David

(1810-1876) (see above)

Benjamin Solomons Joseph

(1811-1820)

Rebecca Joseph

(1813-1880)

Jacob Henry Joseph = Sara Gratz Moses

(1814-1907) (1817-18??)

Rebecca (1849) Lizette (1851) Mathilda Inez (1854) Henry (1855) Horace (1857) Caroline Muret (1859)

Abraham Joseph = Sophia David

(1815-1886) (see above)

Jesse Joseph

(1817-1904)

Sarah Joseph

(1819-1903)

Gershom Joseph = Celine Lyons

(1821-1893)

Esther Joseph = Alexander Abraham De Sola

(1825-1882)

Aaron David Meldola (1853) Clarence Isaac (1858)

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P A R T O N E

Entanglement

1838

You were right to deny that I had spoken to Stuart against Papineau;

his name was never mentioned in our conversation and it never arose

between us either directly or indirectly. Nevertheless, I admit

in confidence that I am subject to reproach on this matter in a nearly

similar case. I believe that I told Hart or Sweeney that I consider

Papineau a poltroon, and that but for him we would be in Canada.

I am telling you what I believe, but I should not have said this to

one of our political enemies.

ÉDOUARD ÉTIENNE RODIER

(letter to Ludger Duvernay, April 1, 1838)

Yesterday, at three o’clock, the remains of the late Major Warde, of

the Royals, were interred with military honours. The body was followed

by Major General CLITHEROW, Colonel WETHERALL, the Hon. Lieut.

Colonel GREY, Lt. Col MAUNSELL, and the whole of the officers of

the garrison. The whole of the Royal Regiment attended

the funeral as a firing party.

MONTREAL GAZETTE

(May 30, 1838)

One

Aaron Philip Hart wasn’t certain of his ground. The streets in and about the racetrack bordering the Lachine Road were almost indistinguishable in the first rays of the morning sun. And he had the responsibility of directing his namesake and cousin, Aaron Hart David to their destination. The young doctor had been asked to be on hand if the duelists and the seconds couldn’t work out an accommodation.

Aaron Philip had seldom wandered west of Rue McGill into the area between Griffintown and Pointe-Saint-Charles despite having worked with his father near the Old Port. The Irish laborers who had once been mobilized to dig the Lachine Canal were not his sort of people.

Robert Sweeny, a fellow lawyer, could barely be discerned standing at the edge of the field. Aaron Philip had felt an obligation to act as his second. How could he act otherwise given how other young advocates had stood with him in his earlier encounters with those whom he challenged as a matter of honor?

The relationship between Sweeny and him had grown over the last few months; both had been induced to represent several of the prisoners in Montreal’s Pied-du-Courant prison. It was the relatively new facility overlooking the rapids characterizing the mighty St Lawrence River at this point in its flow. Hence the name.

It had been a most thankless assignment. Sir John Colborne, the emergency administrator of the province who ordered the constitution of 1791 be suspended, once had almost five hundred rebels behind bars. Since December, however, perhaps two thirds of these political prisoners had been released but over 160 Patriotes remained in jail awaiting trial. Canadien avocats were discouraged from offering their services; their loyalty to the Crown could not be vouched for. The burden fell on the British element, men such as he, William Walker and Robert Sweeny. But the latter was always happier behind his desk writing verse than consulting with the rough young men complaining about overcrowding, poor food and freezing nights in their tiny cells.

Almost eight years had passed since Aaron Philip was admitted to the bar. It had become a family tradition. His model had been cousins Aaron Ezekiel Hart, who now practiced in Quebec City and Tom Judah, who eventually migrated to Montreal. Subsequently cousins Eleazar David, Henry Judah and Adolphus Mordecai Hart joined the legal fraternity. It would have made quite a debate if they ever got into the same courtroom or the same living room. But distance and politics kept them apart. Greetings, Sweeny! Is there any reason for me to try finding a way out of this mess?

He received only a grunt though it was true that there was no reading the man’s eyes. At five in the morning it was still too dark to delve into explicit passions. And it was passion at play here. The previous evening Sweeny described the offence that had engendered the challenge. It appeared that Warde, a popular Major in the garrison army, had done a most dishonorable thing. At the supper table on Beaver Hall Hill Sweeny had received a letter written by Warde to Sweeny’s attractive wife, the former Miss Temple. The fact that Warde had never engaged with the woman didn’t deter him from writing a steamy letter to her. His excuse was that he had been receiving flowers and messages from an unknown party and chose to have the courier followed. The trail led to the Leprohon house, where the Sweenys boarded. For some unexplained reason the letter was delivered to the lawyer, who was also a Captain in the local Voltigeurs as well as a published poet. Without finishing his meal he quickly jumped to his feet and searched out the culprit to issue his challenge.

Aaron Philip strode over to Warde’s second. They knew each other because Captain Mayne had been part of an earlier duel, standing for a Lieutenant Ormsby at the end of the previous October when the latter faced off with the Patriote Édouard-Étienne Rodier. That incident also occurred at the racetrack. Are Major Warde pistols in good order?

Mayne nodded. He is prepared for the challenge though to his mind he did nothing he should be ashamed of. You know from personal experience, Hart, that nobody shoots to kill.

The soldier was alluding to the fact that Aaron Philip had been involved in duels with such notables as colleague Henry Driscoll, Francis Johnson and Bartholomew Gugy. The encounter with young Johnson had been at the corner of Sherbrooke and University and therefore not out of sight of Montrealers. (The Gugy affair had occurred in Quebec City.) In retrospect Aaron Philip had never anticipated serious harm as a result of these shenanigans. But Sweeny and Warde were experienced combatants; they had both returned from fighting the rebels south of the St Lawrence but a few months before.

Conforming to the rules of combat, Mayne and Aaron Hart handed each other the pistols that were to be employed in order to check whether these weapons were equally lethal. Sweeny, being the offended party, had agreed that at the sight of first blood, the duel would be ended even if the wound were minor. He could have demanded that the engagement go on till one man was so severely wounded as to be physically unable to continue the duel – or even until there was a mortal wound.

The parties themselves approached the seconds and stood back to back, pistols in hand. Sweeny had insisted on a relatively low number of paces, (The insult had been that grave.) They walked the set number and turned to shoot. God damn! They’re serious. Warde had slumped to the wet ground and blood was flowing from his chest. Both seconds rushed to his side; he was indeed mortally wounded.

Sweeny seemed in a daze. As for his second, the shock was almost as devastating. He had had prescience in warning Aaron Hart David the previous day that there might be bloodshed. His cousin had promised to be ready to assist. But what good was that? The wound to Henry John Warde was obviously fatal. If only the army Major had not been so foolish as to send a love letter to Mrs. Sweeny!

*     *     *

Later that morning Aaron Philip appeared at the house on Rue des Récollets almost as a penitent schoolboy. Benjamin Hart would be less than forgiving. His father had become renowned as the leading magistrate in Montreal, the man whose rectitude had been tested by the events of the previous autumn. Though his son was not a principal in the duel, this participation in such a deed would be regarded as reprehensible by the many of those who already resented having a Jew speak for the British denizens of the city. As for the Canadien majority, the loathing of this particular justice of the peace could not but intensify. I’ve always warned you, Philip, not to make ‘honor’ your cipher. And coming at such a delicate time.

Do you think, papa, that my representations at the court-martials will be compromised as a result? I know that Warde was well liked by Clitherow and his staff. Aaron Philip realized that though he had proper sufferance as a defense counsel, the garrison officers had little patience for those who sought mercy for traitors. Major General Clitherow would probably chair the court procedures.

The interview was interrupted by the appearance of Aaron Philip’s mother at the door. The imperious Harriot Judith Hart didn’t often respect a closed door in her home. In any event, she was too disturbed to offer an apology. What have you done, Philip dear? Everybody on the street is talking about the shooting.

It shouldn’t have happened, mama. But you do know Robert Sweeny. He is a jealous man; though not foolhardy. I think he will get out of the country before he is prosecuted.

Benjamin intervened. That won’t happen until there is an inquest. I will enquire whether old man Mondelet is ready to act with dispatch. As the coroner he is bound to proceed even if most duels are officially overlooked. A death, however, cannot be ignored.

Is there anything I should be doing, papa? Will there be any guilt attached to me?

"I think not, but everything is up in the air. A messenger reports that the new Governor sailed into Quebec harbor on the Hastings last Friday. I intend to travel to the capital to meet with Lord Durham before this week is out. It is so the case that Arthur Wellington is to sail from there to Portsmouth this very time."

Do you believe you will be welcome? I’ve been told the new Governor is a well known Radical who had even quarreled with Earl Grey when they were in the Cabinet together. Will he be firm in putting an end to this insurrection? Aaron Philip never had a high opinion of the Whig government in London despite the resolutions Lord Russell had introduced in the British Parliament the year before, the resolutions that had driven the Patriotes to violence. How will young Durham, the son-in-law of Earl Grey, respond to this crisis?

"I pray that he will. He must! Papineau is still at large and my sources tell me that the exiles are not reconciled to the defeat of their forces. Do you not think that it is on my mind when I go upstairs to our shul these mornings?"

Aaron Philip chose not to reply. The new synagogue at the corner of Rue Chenneville and Rue Lagauchetière was almost ready for occupancy. It would be incumbent on his father, perhaps the most dedicated orthodox Jew in town, to attend services more often than did other worshipers in the congregation. But he wouldn’t have Arthur Wellington at his side albeit son number two was as devout as his father. God forbid that his brother’s sojourn in England resulted in further embarrassment for Benjamin Hart! Papa could never accept such a possibility for his favorite son.

*     *     *

The sound of drumming resounded along Rue Notre-Dame as Aaron Philip took an unostentatious place on the sidewalk. Major Henry John Warde was being buried this first week of June. Aaron Philip felt his presence was essential; he was, after all, one of the last men on earth to see the Warde alive. There is no escaping this incident. The inquest had been conducted before a jury several days earlier. Cousin Aaron Hart David provided the testimony that demonstrated how Warde had met his fate. He actually opened the body in front of the jurors by introducing his finger into the gaping wound. The bullet had struck a vertebrae and the doctor had bone fragment in his hand to show the onlookers.

Nevertheless, Jean-Marie Mondelet, the rheumatic coroner of longstanding in Montreal, asked for a political verdict. He got it; the jury ruled that the late Major Henry John Warde came to his death, in consequence of a gunshot wound inflicted by some person unknown in a duel the morning of May 22. Aaron Philip grinned; quelque personne inconnu despite the newspaper accounts and the verbal evidence that had identified Robert Sweeny as the man firing the fatal shot. Sweeny, however, had conveniently skipped the country to avoid the possibility that there would be retribution.

The body of the slain soldier, encased in a coffin topping the wagon, passed by. His comrades, the 1st Regiment of Foot, constituted the firing party that accompanied the funeral. Major General Clitherow led the procession and all the other top-ranking officers in the district paid their respects to Warde. Dueling may be illegal, but the code required that they pay their respects to the fallen officer. The murmurs in the crowd suggested that not everybody was in agreement with that code. There had been too much death in recent months.

With regard to the persons who have been apprehended for

political offences and are now in confinement, Her Majesty’s

Government desires that such of them as you think it right at once

to liberate should not be brought to trial, unless they can be tried by ordinary tribunals of the country. In case, therefore, a reference

to the ordinary tribunals should not, in your judgment, be

yet advisable, a law ought to be passed for the suspension of

the HabeasCorpus Act, which will enable you to detain

such persons in prison till the arrival of Lord Durham.

COLONIAL SECRETARY LORD GLENELG

(letter to the Sir John Colborne, February 19, 1838)

Eight prisoners held in Montreal are to be transported to Bermuda

under pain of capital punishment if they return without authorization.

Another sixteen exiles are under indictment for high treason;

they include Papineau, Côté, O’Callahan, Robert Nelson, Rodier,

Brown, Duvernay, Chartier, Gagnon, Cartier, the two

John Ryans, Perrault, Demaray, Davignon and Gauthier

ORDINANCES OF JUNE 28, 1838

Two

Adolphus Mordecai Hart was no stranger to the Pied-du-Courant prison. Though he still made Trois-Rivières his home, the shortage of eligible lawyers able to represent the prisoners awaiting trial in Montreal gave him scope to advance his profession. His father had encouraged him to follow this predilection; Ezekiel Hart had long had some sympathy for the rebel cause despite his aversion to the violence. And he knew that three of his sons, Aaron Ezekiel, Adolphus and Ira Craig, had actively promoted the election of Patriotes to the Legislative Assembly.

The uprising in the district of Trois-Rivières last autumn had been limited to demonstrations in support of Papineau and his associates. One or two habitants on the other side of the St Lawrence had been brought up before Judge Vallières prior to the declaration of martial law. Adolphus did not hesitate to defend them with vigor in court albeit one result was that he was fined five louis for contempt. And to think that my older sister once lived with Vallières!

The admission to the Pied-du-Courant took longer than it needed to be even though the guards undoubtedly recognized Adolphus for who he was. Perhaps it was the early summer heat that was bothering them. Or they weren’t ready to acknowledge somebody in his mid-twenties behaving so self-assuredly. Adolphus took all this in stride.

He was led to the appropriate cell on an upper floor. The malodorous product of unwashed bodies and stale urine saturated the corridor but Adolphus had come to expect these conditions. He had only to bear them for a very limited time. His client didn’t have that luxury. In fact, his client was stretched out asleep on a cot when the turnkey admitted him into the cell. From then on everything said would be in the French language, though having grown up in Trois-Rivières Adolphus had no trouble with that. There was but one question on the mind of the prisoner and in his drowsiness he blurted it out. Would he soon be facing a firing squad?

There have been executions in Upper Canada. Colborne has pursued a more prudent course. Nevertheless, the intention is to take you to trial. You and dozens of others. Who knows how the verdicts will go? Adolphus thought he was giving the man an honest answer. He had not reckoned on how knowledgeable the prison population was; contact with the outside world was maintained through visits by family and counselors. "Is there not a new Governor in Quebec? Perhaps he will restore habeas corpus and allow jury trials?"

Adolphus was in no hurry to reply. If juries were drawn from the majority population, the Crown would probably fail to get convictions. A panel of British inhabitants, on the other hand, could not be expected to give the defendants a fair hearing. Lord Durham would be facing a conundrum unless he proceeded with court-martials rather than let civilian courts adjudicate. Our best hope is that punishment will be restricted to the more prominent leaders of the revolt and that an amnesty will be declared for the remainder. Unfortunately I have failed to determine how you are regarded by the authorities.

"I fear, Monsieur Hart, that I am seen as one to be punished. The jailer has been pressing me to confess my guilt with the promise that there will be leniency as a result. It has been said that Messrs. Nelson, Des Rivières and Marchesseault have given depositions for this purpose."

The revelation shook Adolphus; Wolfred Nelson was not a Patriote who would cooperate readily with the British military. His reputation as an organizer of the resistance to the troops invading the Richelieu valley had spread up and down the province. A noted medical doctor, a leading citizen of Saint-Denis on the Richelieu, the brother of Robert Nelson, who had escaped to Vermont: Was he so desperate that he would betray his own conscience? But Adolphus was there to give advice. Should he be advocating that this fellow cooperate with his jailer? Would this naïve rebel not be betrayed in the final analysis? The state may not be willing to show weakness when under attack.

*     *     *

The tavern was just down the street from the Courthouse on Rue Notre-Dame. Adolphus realized that if he dropped in for refreshments, he would likely encounter others from the legal fraternity. He could not have been more perceptive; sitting at a table near the window was his cousin Aaron Philip in the company of William Walker. The two Harts weren’t especially close though there was but three years difference in age. Living a hundred and fifty miles apart was certainly a factor, but the contrasting political persuasions were undoubtedly an overriding consideration. The plight of the detainees and the need for them to have representation was only now bringing the two together.

Walker seemed friendly enough. He got to his feet to shake hands. Though his roots were in Trois-Rivières, the undersized lawyer had made his reputation as linguist, scholar and orator while practicing in Montreal. He had received province-wide attention because of his vocal support of the union of the two Canadas when it became a national issue over fifteen years before. Subsequently Walker led in the formation of Montreal’s Constitutional Association and was its spokesman during a trip to London’s Whitehall three years ago.

Another beer was ordered and Adolphus recognized that the two were celebrating. Indeed, Aaron Philip was jubilant. We’ve done it. The confessions by the eight principal prisoners open the way for a settlement of all the outstanding cases. You have lost yourself a client, Dolph.

Apprised of who were included in the eight prisoners, Adolphus was secretly relieved that his client was not one of them. A dilemma resolved. It surprises me that Wolfred Nelson would plead guilty. He’s not that sort of fellow.

Walker drained his glass before replying. "True, there was not much contrition. In his private letter to the Governor he stated that he had rebelled against colonial misgovernment. Yet he doesn’t deny defying constitutional order."

What happens next?

This is Tuesday. Queen Victoria’s coronation is on Thursday. The Governor has decided to issue an ordinance on that date. It will order the proscribed eight be transported to Bermuda. There will be amnesty for everybody else unless they participated in the execution of Chartrand and Weir. Walker was referring to two men, one a soldier, shot by the rebels prior to the skirmishes. The death of Weir, in particular, had become a rallying point for the British militias recruited to fight the rebels in November and December.

And what is to happen to Papineau and the others beyond the reach of the Crown? My guess is that the Doric Club will be unsatisfied with such a resolution of the matter. Adolphus didn’t hesitate to cite the Doric Club, the band of Anglo constitutionalists who had spearheaded the British opposition to the Patriote insurrection. Cousin Aaron Philip had been one of the organizers of this unofficial militia.

Aaron Philip scowled at the mention of the Doric Club. You presume, but you are right. The exiles will not be ignored. Those who have taken refuge across the border are to be barred from returning here on pain of death. That includes Papineau, O’Callaghan, Robert Nelson and Côté.

Walker filled in. Actually sixteen of these rebels are to be banished for life. You know them: not only four just mentioned but also Rodier, Brown and Duvernay. I take great pleasure from Duvernay being on the list; his La Minerve has been the bane of our existence. Believe it or not, I have actually been in contact with Robert Nelson, who it seeking my advice. He may be setting up an army of exiles but at the same time he wants to recover the bail money he will forfeit if he does not return to this jurisdiction. A very complicated fellow!"

The discussion was interrupted by a beckoning from one of the tavern’s patrons at another table. Walker got to his feet in order to satisfy his curiosity. As he departed, Adolphus was once more made aware of the man’s chronic limp. It was public knowledge that it was the result of a duel fought some years before. Another affair of honor during which a fellow lawyer, one named Campbell Sweeney (no relation to the outcast Robert), delivered a bullet that shattered Walker’s leg between the ankle and the knee. What silliness! Adolphus had never been a member of this fraternity. Walker, on the other hand, had helped organize the playfully named "Brothers in Law", the Montreal-based social group justifying this kind of behavior.

Adolphus used Walker’s temporary absence from the table to enquire about the health of Aaron Philip’s immediate family. The latter did elaborate on his father’s recent visit to Quebec. Adolphus was all ears; few had the opportunity of meeting Lord Durham. Is it true that the new Governor is approaching the aftermath of the rebellion without prejudice?

Papa was both disappointed and confused by what he heard. He had traveled to the capital with the aim of having himself appointed to the Special Council. He is of the opinion that Major General Colborne ignored his contribution in standing up to the French during the past several months. It was only logical that he should be one of those responsible for advising the new regime. Instead the Governor’s first act was to dismiss the Special Council altogether.

"Was your father not impressed with the Executive Council Durham put in its place?

The five were his own people. None of them has an intimate knowledge of Canadian affairs.

Adolphus could only guess at the degree of Benjamin Hart’s disappointment. His uncle undoubtedly needed some sign of official approval to offset the disrepute in which he was being held among most Canadiens.

*     *     *

The last task left for Adolphus before his boarding of the steamer for Trois-Rivières was a call on Augustin Cuvillier, the president of Montreal’s Board of Trade. Approaching Cuvillier’s store on Rue Saint-Paul, Adolphus wasn’t certain what to expect. The street traffic was busy enough; a mid-week walk on Rue Saint-Paul in late June was bound to be clamorous despite the current sour mood of many of its inhabitants. As for the Cuvillier establishment itself, the front door was ajar. Presumably the proprietor was at home.

An auctioneer, the man had reached the age of sixty having suffering many ups and downs. Once a staunch Patriote, Cuvillier had even traveled to London ten years before in the company of its other spokesmen – notably Denis-Benjamin Viger and John Neilson – to protest the rule of a former Governor of the province. But he was also a man of commerce and vehemently opposed to the agrarian philosophy of Papineau and his cohort. In fact, it was his performance in business that had brought Adolphus to Cuvillier’s door this afternoon.

Cuvillier had issued paper currency during the recent conflict because specie payments to the troops had been suspended. It was to be redeemed once order had been restored, but the failure of a Montreal merchant set Cuvillier back about £3,000 and a run on his bills ensued. In Trois-Rivières Moses Hart had been holding some of this paper and wanted compensation from Cuvillier. Adolphus had agreed to act for his uncle.

The place was deserted when Adolphus entered the premises. Cuvillier emerged from a rear office. Introductions were exchanged and Adolphus thought it only proper to compliment the Canadien on the look of his store. It had been expanded a year or so before.

Cuvillier didn’t mind explaining. I’ve had a successful run in business over the past several years. Like your Uncle Benjamin I have become a leading importer of manufactured goods, fish, salt and liquors. I have even dabbled in the stock of bankrupt merchants and have been selling the shares of various banks. I have found that very satisfying. It was the Bank of Montreal that did me in during the ‘20s. Nevertheless, two years ago I was named a Montreal director of the Bank of British North America. They can’t keep a good man down.

And yet I’m here to collect on what you owe my Uncle Moses.

Another bad stroke of luck! Never mind, I’ll work something out.

Adolphus marveled at the equanimity of the man. So many of his compatriots certainly regarded him a chouayen, a traitor to his people. His recent actions spoke for themselves; during the rebellion he was a Major and commander of Montreal’s 5th Militia Battalion. As a magistrate the previous November he had co-signed the requisition for military assistance that enabled British troops to march to Saint-Denis. In January he had helped found the Association Loyale Canadienne du District de Montréal. Adolphus enquired as to its program.

Cuvillier had no objections to expounding on it. "We are, of course, critical of the rebel leaders but at the same time we are dedicated to saving our constitution. I have previously campaigned actively against the prospect of uniting the two Canadas. You are too young, Monsieur Hart, to remember how strongly I argued against a parliamentary bill tabled in ’22 that would have forced Canadiens to give up the protections written into the 1791 constitution.

Is there much support for your position?

We are making common cause with the Bishop, who opposes talk of Union despite his support of the government during the uprising. Lartigue did manage last January to plead with Lord Gosford to keep the constitution in force, though once the Governor left for London the following month, it was apparent that General Colborne didn’t see things that way.

Adolphus had never been informed on what was going on at the Château Saint-Louis. Now that he is in London, will not Gosford advise against it?

That may be a waste of time. Gosford appears to have little influence with Lord Glenelg. The Colonial Secretary has been in correspondence with Colborne, who would have taken over mid-February if Gosford hadn’t injured himself falling on ice. In any case, Gosford is gone and Durham is here. The new Governor, I suspect, may not have the same reverence for the Constitutional Act as written over forty years ago.

At this point Adolphus shifted back to talking about the debt. His Uncle Moses would never forgive him if he hedged on the matter. No moneylender could afford to be soft on the subject of repayment and Moses Hart was no exception.

I do not know if you have had news from Albany. I can tell you for my

part that I am utterly disgusted with that source. Our friend Dr. Nelson

has been there and has not brought back very pleasant news.

On the one hand Maître O’Callaghan wailing that all is lost and looking

for work in a print-shop; on the other, the great chief pacing from

one end of his room to the other, barely willing to receive Dr Nelson

whereas many strangers are admitted to his company.

DR CYRILLE COTÉ

(letter to Ludger Duvernay, January 26, 1838)

Papineau has abandoned us for selfish and family motives regarding

the seigneuries and his inveterate love of the old French laws.

We can do better without him than with him. He is a man

fit only for words and not for action.

DR. ROBERT NELSON

(letter to J.B. Ryan, February, 1838)

Three

Cyrille-Hector-Octave Côté rose this morning less than appreciative of the early summer breeze sweeping in from the open window. He did, however, cross to the window to gaze down on the rushing stream; the Saranac River flowing into Lake Champlain was oblivious to the turmoil in his own mind. Why can’t my woes dissolve within nature’s turbulence?

It had not been an easy few months during this spring. He and Robert Nelson had yet to live down the abortive venture undertaken at the end of February. Several hundred of their Patriote followers had sought to cross into Bas-Canada from Vermont only to be scattered by British troops waiting in readiness. How could all of their planning be so easily compromised?

Of course, it was not a matter of abandoning the fight against British rule in their homeland. Preparations for an early return to Bas-Canada were underway, albeit it was far from certain that Côté’s colleagues here in the Border States were close to consensus on how to achieve a true Canadien republic. The Patriote’s titular leader, Louis-Joseph Papineau, had demurred in January when it came to the declaration of independence penned by Robert Nelson in anticipation of these insurrectionists marching onto Canadian soil. Others were also sniping at the leadership of Nelson and Côté. And to think that but a year ago Côté was still a family doctor administering to the medical needs of the habitants in Napierville and the neighboring villages of L’Acadie! Now he was ensconced in an upstairs room of a boarding house in Plattsburgh trying to oversee a conspiracy within a hostile environment. Along with Nelson, Lorimier, Gagnon and others, Côté had been arrested soon after the February fiasco for violating the American neutrality law, albeit a sympathetic Vermont jury quickly discharged them from custody. Nevertheless, the news from Washington and Albany was still discouraging. Not only had President Van Buren been successful in getting that neutrality law passed by Congress in March, but also New York Governor Bill Marcy, true to his membership in the Albany Regency, gave short shrift to any overtures for support to the exiles.

Not that Côté was in serious physical danger. Plattsburgh was a creature of the American Revolution, founded by a Zephanian Platt after the 1783 peace treaty. The western shore of Lake Champlain still retained its frontier look: the Adirondack horizon; a series of river rapids that made the Saranac a haven for fishermen and frolicking canoeists; frame-housed villagers open-hearted in their acceptance of fugitive Canadiens in their midst.

Côté was still at the window when a rap at the door interrupted his reverie. More bad news? There was no good reason not to open the door. Lucien Gagnon was standing in the hallway, a beatific smile on his face. Côté reacted with unfeigned surprise. His boon companion was back from an incognito trip to their old stamping ground, the Richelieu valley’s L’Acadie.

Their embrace was heart-felt. Côté had had cause to worry about Gagnon’s travel. General Colborne had stationed troops at border points and the British settlers were generally eager to pounce on suspected insurrectionists. But here he is, safe and sound!

Once seated, Gagnon responded to Côté’s enquires. "It was good to get back to L’Acadie. You know that Sophie returned to Saint-Valentin once repairs were made to our farm. It was une joie! She is counting on me spending time with them during the summer though I’ve told her my first responsibility is to the cause."

I only wish all of our people were as dedicated as you.

"What are you implying, mon ami?

Perhaps I’m too sensitive. But all I hear from Rodier is criticism. He is now living in Burlington. Being on the other side of the lake, he is less amenable to the discipline of the collective. He does agree with us on Papineau’s shameful retreat on our principles but at the same time he is suspicious of everything we say and everything we do.

Does Édouard-Étienne not accept our new strategy? Gagnon looked puzzled.

"He agrees that we failed in February because we neglected security. The concept of building up the Frères-Chausseurs makes sense to him." Côté did indeed take pride in pushing for an army practicing secrecy in an organized fashion. Under the Grand Aigle, the designated major general of the force, would be Aigles in as many districts as possible. The latter would form companies under the supervision of two Castors, essentially captains, and five Raquettes, each of which bringing together nine men under his command. Nelson and Côté could expect the populace to respond to the appeals of the Raquettes once hostilities commenced and arms and ammunition were made available.

Gagnon got to his feet. "There are risks in traveling north. They have a £100 reward posted for my capture. Even so, I am confident that whether I shall be in Laprairie, in Chambly or in Beauharnois, the farmers there will not betray me. We shall have many chasseurs ready to serve our Aigles when the time comes.

"Bon homme! Did you know that Lorimier is here in Plattsburgh? His Henriette joined him just a few weeks ago and promises to spend most of the summer in a boarding house down the street while he’s off to recruit chasseurs."

Where will he go?

We think it best that he travel to the western counties. Deux-Montagnes, Beauharnois. What do you think?

Gagnon didn’t answer directly. He had a question of his own. "What are we to tell the habitant? Can we assure him that there will be the weapons and ammunition to make a success of any uprising?"

I know what you are thinking, Lucien. But we must operate on the basis of the Americans eventually blessing our efforts by giving us tangible aid. They are already giving sanctuary to Mackenzie and his people. Côté had been in correspondence with William Lyon Mackenzie, who had retreated to Navy Island in the Niagara River following the failed rebellion in Upper Canada. Like Nelson, Mackenzie had set up a provisional republic and seemingly has the moral support of the administration in Albany.

Gagnon nodded in agreement. "I trust that God would not have me back away from such a just cause. And when I travel through our parishes in the next few weeks, I can be sure that there will be many willing recruits for the Frères-Chasseurs."

If only we can inspire them! Duvernay, who is also in Burlington, is determined to acquire printing equipment so that he can play his usual role in our struggles. A frown had returned to Côté’s visage.

"Must we wait for Duvernay to use his pen? Even without a printing press, Brown has made himself noticed. In April he has, according what I’ve been told, published a long article on the rebellion in the Vermonter."

Côté shook his head. It was addressed not for the readers we covet. In any case, Brown is departing for Florida. We are all without gainful employment.

Can you hold out for long? Gagnon’s tone was solicitous.

Côté didn’t reply immediately. Yes, he was still a doctor and there were limited opportunities to practice medicine in this community. But could he dare bring his family to Plattsburgh?

*     *     *

The phaeton hired by Coté and Robert Nelson was adequate for the journey that would take them as far as Albany. But this light four-wheeled horse-drawn vehicle had seen better days and their muscles were paying the price for having made that choice. Actually their destination was the Fish Kill, the river flowing into the Hudson at Saratoga, 40 miles north of the New York capital. On one bank of the river was the old Schuyler house, a reminder that the British contingent under General Burgoyne had surrendered here just over fifty years ago. It was regarded by just about everyone that this British defeat was the turning point during the American Revolution.

It being June and as yet no coordination between Louis-Joseph Papineau and his former acolytes, Coté and Nelson had reckoned that one more effort should be made to make peace