1672.] FRONTENAC AND THE PRIESTS. 23 



making many apologies, with which I pretended 

 to be satisfied ; though I told them, nevertheless, 

 that their excuses would not pass current with me 

 another time, and, if the thing happened again, I 

 would put the preacher in a place where he would 

 learn how to speak. Since then they have been a 

 little more careful, though not enough to prevent 

 one from always seeing their intention to persuade 

 the people that, even in secular matters, their 

 authority ought to be respected above any other. 

 As there are many persons here who have no more 

 brains than they need, and who are attached to 

 them by ties of interest or otherwise, it is neces- 

 sary to have an eye to these matters in this country 

 more than anywhere else." ! 



The churchmen, on their part, were not idle. 

 The bishop, who was then in France, contrived by 

 some means to acquaint himself with the contents 

 of the private despatches sent by Colbert in reply 

 to the letters of Frontenac. He wrote to another 

 ecclesiastic to communicate what he had learned, 

 at the same time enjoining great caution ; " since, 

 while it is well to acquire all necessary information, 

 and to act upon it, it is of the greatest importance 

 to keep secret our possession of such knowledge." 2 



The king and the minister, in their instructions 

 to Frontenac, had dwelt with great emphasis on 



1 Frontenac au Ministre, 13 Nov., 1673. 



2 Laval a , 1674. The letter is a complete summary of the con- 

 tents of Colbert's recent despatch to Frontenac. Then follows the 

 injunction to secrecy, " estant de tres-grande consequence que Ton ne 

 sache pas que Ton aye rien appris de tout cela, sur quoi neanmoins il est bon 

 que Ton agisse et que Ton me donne tous les advis qui serontnecessaires." 



