1747

THE GENERAL HOSPITAL OF MONTREAL UNDER MADAME D'YOUVILLE

MADAME D'YOUVILLE—TIMOTHEE DE SILVAIN—CONFRATERNITY OF THE HOLY FAMILY—"SŒURS GRISES"—PERSEVERANCE THROUGH OPPOSITION—FIRE OF 1745—PROVISIONAL CONTROL OF HOSPITAL—ATTEMPT TO ANNEX THE GENERAL HOSPITAL TO THAT OF QUEBEC—THE "GREY NUNS" FORMERLY APPROVED AS "SISTERS OF CHARITY."

It was only in 1747 that the tottering fortunes of the HÔpital GÉnÉral were handed over to Madame d'Youville, but she had long before been designated for this work by M. Louis Normant du Faradon, who had become the superior of the seminary as the successor of M. de Belmont, who died on May 22, 1732. This lady who now enters into the life of Montreal deserves more than passing notice. Marie Marguerite de Lajemmerais was born at Varennes, near the Island of Montreal, on October 15, 1701. Her father, Christophe Dufrost de Lajemmerais, or La Gesmerais, a Breton gentil homme, came to New France in 1687 and served bravely as an ensign under de Denonville against the Iroquois, when he risked his life a number of times and escaped being burned alive by the savages. He was raised to the lieutenancy and under Frontenac he became the commandant of Cataracoui. In 1701, on January 18, he married Marie RenÉe de Varennes, daughter of RenÉ Gauthier de Varennes, who died governor of Three Rivers, and granddaughter of Pierre Boucher de Boucherville. Marie Marguerite was the first of six children left at the death of Captain La Gesmerais, in 1708, in poor circumstances. The widow was married to an Irish gentleman of the name of TimothÉe de Silvain (or Sullivan), who had received his letters of naturalization and an honorary brevet as king's physician in 1724. He accordingly practiced medicine in Montreal to the satisfaction of the seminary and the general public and with the favour of his patron, M. de Vaudreuil. But on the latter's death the other doctors of Canada disputed his right to practice, but unsuccessfully. M. de Silvain as a good Irishman got into trouble with the Sieur de Monrepos, the justice of Montreal, 1744, and a warrant for his arrest was issued. But owing to the mediation of his brother-in-law, captain of the guard, M. de Varennes, he escaped. But de Varennes was permanently deprived of his command in consequence. Whatever his qualities as a medical man, Madame de Vaudreuil, writing to the minister of marine in 1777, in favor of a cadetship for the youngest of his stepsons, states that M. de Silvain had been a true father and had spared no efforts to give the children an education.

On August 12, 1722, Marie Marguerite de Lajemmerais married, in the parish church, a gentleman of Montreal, M. FranÇois Madeleine You d'Youville. It was an unhappy marriage, ending in great poverty through the dissipation and extravagance of the husband who died unexpectedly on July 4, 1730, after eight years of married life, leaving considerable debts, and two boys. Three other children had already died and a fourth died a little after its birth, on July 16, 1730. The widow d'Youville in her grief, without neglecting the education of her children, found consolation in devoting herself to the poor, especially of the hospital of the Charon FrÈres. In addition she gave proof of executive ability as a member of the ladies of the confraternity of the Holy Family, as treasurer, assistant and superior. Such qualities pointed her out to M. LescÖat, her Sulpician director, and to M. Normant, who succeeded him, as the one who could save the utter decay of the hospital. In 1737 Madame d'Youville associated with herself in her charitable work for the poor a virtuous girl, Louise Thaumur Lasource, a daughter of a physician of the town, to whom were added on December 31st two others, Mademoiselle Demers and Mademoiselle Cusson. These finally on October 30, 1738, having rented a house, undertook the care of four or five poor persons, whose numbers soon rose to six. This move met opposition in certain quarters since it was shrewdly guessed that it was the intention of the seigneurs of the seminary, the directors of the new formation, to prepare this band of women to succeed to the care of the hospital. On All Saints' Day, November 1st, as they were leaving their new home, the women were subjected to insults and stone throwing. The foul calumny was quickly insinuated that they supported themselves by selling intoxicating liquors to the savages and were not above indulging in them themselves. Hence they called them the Soeurs Grises, the word, grises, besides meaning grey, also conveying the approbrious suggestion of drunkenness. In France the name "Soeurs Grises" was given to the devoted daughters of Saint Vincent de Paul, whose grey habits were familiar among the poor and wretched. It was an honoured name. But in Montreal the wits used it in another sense. Time has since had its revenge. The hubbub was so great that one of the Recollect Fathers publicly refused holy communion to Madame d'Youville and her companions. A petition signed by M. Boisberthelot de Beaucourt, the governor of Montreal, by eight officers of the troops and twenty others, was sent to M. Maurepas, minister of marine, protesting the action being taken by M. Normant in preparing to seize the house for the Soeurs Grises as soon as the hospital should cease. They prayed the minister to engage the Brothers of the Christian Schools to incorporate the remaining Hospital Brothers into their institute and thus perpetuate the institution, now ready to close for want of subjects.

The sons of de la Salle could not accept Canada, as we have seen. Unless the Sulpicians trained up Madame d'Youville's devoted band, none others were forthcoming to continue the hospital and it must inevitably close. And as to the seminary seizing on the property of the Charon FrÈres, this was but rightful, as M. Tronson, the superior of the Seminary of St. Sulpice at Paris, in the original donation of the vast amount of ground for their institution had stipulated that if the hospital should cease, the lands and the buildings thereon should revert to the seigneurs, unless the brothers should prefer to reimburse the price of the land. This had now become impossible.

Meanwhile the four ladies pursued their course, providing the means of sustenance for themselves and their poor by their own needlework till death struck down Mademoiselle Cusson on February 20, 1741. To add to her afflictions Madame d'Youville was afflicted with a knee trouble for six or seven years, which kept her inactive to her chair. Hardly had she recovered when on the last day of January, 1745, an hour after midnight, the house was burned down to the delight of her enemies, who according to her biographer, M. Sattin, exclaimed: "You see that violet flame? It is caused by the burning of the eau de vie kept for the savages." The fire drew the sisterhood nearer to one another and on February 2d, by an act passed before M. Normant, they put all their goods in common and drew up a religious rule of life. A house was offered them by a rich trader, M. Fontblanche, but this the governor, M. de Beaucourt, seized on as more suitable for himself. A charitable Madame Lacorne offered her house, but this was shortly afterwards relinquished for a more commodious one near the parish church to house the three ladies and their nine poor dependants. Meanwhile, things were going from bad to worse at the HÔpital GÉnÉral, so that at last the administrators of the hospital by letters of August 27, 1747, handed over the provisional control to Madame d'Youville, one of the conditions being that the two remaining hospital brothers should be cared for. This happened under the governor general, the Marquis de Beauharnois, and Intendant Hocquart. The work of making the sadly needed repairs to the dilapidated buildings occupied September and on October 7th Madame d'Youville and her companions took up residence. These latter were Mlles, Thaumur, Demers, Rainville, Laforme, Verroneau and Mlle. Despuis, who remained nine years as a boarder. The hospital now began to realize its title of gÉnÉral, for none but four old men were found there. Soon the number of sick and weak began to increase of either sex without exception of age or condition and the aims of its original charter were being realized. An early side development was the establishment in the top part of the building of a refuge for fallen women, which the soldiers of the town called "Jericho." But changes in government were occurring. M. de Beauharnois was replaced by M. de La GalissoniÈre while awaiting the release of M. de la JonquiÈre, detained a prisoner in England. The Intendant Hocquart was replaced by M. Bigot.

New schemes were soon on foot, one of which was to unite the General Hospital to the HÔtel Dieu of Quebec or of Montreal, or to General Hospital of Quebec, which latter was approved of by M. de la JonquiÈre, recently arrived in the colony, and M. Bigot, in a letter to the minister on October 1, 1749. The object was to lessen expenses by curtailing the number of public institutions. But its justice did not appeal to the Montrealers, who were asked to transfer their aged and sick to Quebec, when the HÔpital GÉnÉral had been founded by Montreal charity for the infirm of their own town. Accordingly, Madame d'Youville and her companions, backed up by M. Normant, petitioned the governor general, the intendant and the bishop, but with little success, owing to the predilection of M. Bigot for the general hospital at Quebec.

On November 23, 1750, an ordinance secretly prepared at Quebec on October 15th, was suddenly proclaimed in Montreal announcing by the sound of the drum that the transfer of the hospital to Quebec was to take place and that the nuns of Quebec could at once sell all the buildings, together with furniture, not easily removable to Quebec, and that those who were opposed to the sale could make their protests to M. Bigot with three months! A curious derangement of the usual practice. It is related that Madame d'Youville was out marketing for her poor when she heard the announcement, for the first time, of her downfall. The people, who by this had changed in their opinions toward the "Soeur Grises" murmured long and loud against this injustice to Montreal in favour of Quebec. A petition was drawn up by M. Normant addressed to the minister and a copy was made to be sent by way of a request to the bishop, the governor general and the intendant, both being signed by the ecclesiastics of the seminary and by more than eighty notables of the town, as the head of whom were the governor, then M. de Longueuil, the lieutenant of the king, the town major, the officers and the magistrates. This petition showed that the union of the hospitals of Montreal and Quebec was null, being contrary to the express word of Louis XIV, given to the citizens in 1692, two years before the foundation of this establishment, namely, that the hospital should subsist in perpetuity at Montreal without being able to change its place or the nature of its pious work, and concluded that as the private charity of many had founded this hospital the ordinance of October 15th could not be legitimate. This petition Madame d'Youville took to Quebec. But while being kindly received by the governor she received scant courtesy from M. Bigot. Meanwhile the case had gone to France, the Quebec religious had begun to take legal possession of the hospital lands and to remove the furniture to Quebec, and July, the time for the evacuation of the hospital by Madame d'Youville, was approaching. At last M. Bigot received the letter of July 2, 1751, of the minister to the governor general and the intendant, ordering the suspension of the execution of the ordinance of October 15, 1750.

Finally on June 3, 1753, letters patent were signed by the king at Versailles, handing over the privileges granted in 1694 to Madame d'Youville and her companions to the number of twelve administratrices. The community received their habit, which was approved by a mandement, of Mgr. de Pontbriant on June 15, 1755. The sisters chose the grey costume, now so familiar, and which was then known in France as "cafÉ au lait." They wished to preserve the name of "Grey Sisters" or Soeur Grises given them first in derision. They received their formal investiture of their habits on August 25th at the hands of their patron, M. Normant. Their formal name was, however, "Sisters of Charity."