144 The French in Prince Edward Island

for the service of the King and the good of the coun- try which he gives them.

“In regard to the corporal who wishes to marry I cannot allow it at present. I have written to the Court in regard to old soldiers who are suitable as settlers to have them discharged when they wish to settle in the colonies. As soon as I hear the intention of the King in this matter, I shall permit those who are worthy to marry, but I shall not allow any sol- dier to marry while he remains in the service.

‘Nor shall I allow Bijeau to use eau de vie. The use of this liquor is pernicious here as with you.”

The conditions set forth above and in other corre- spondence of the period tend to confirm the impres- sion that the sufferings of the Acadians who were forced over to Isle Saint Jean (1749-1751) were quite as acute and widespread as those of their coun- trymen after the Expulsion of 1755. In many cases they did not have as much clothing and personal effects as the English allowed their fellow-sufferers from Grand Pré; and although they received a more cordial welcome in Isle Saint Jean than in the New England colonies, they do not seem to have been much better provided for. The officials at Ile Royale and Quebec sent what they could to the much-tried de Bonnaventure and Degoutin, but far from enough to maintain the refugees in ordinary comfort until they could become self-supporting. Most of the time they were reduced to bread and peas and suffered from lack of meat, while such live stock as they had

26 C11 IV, Vol. 80, p. 28.