Capítulo 94: Shoot Me... If You Dare
Fort St. Johns, Quebec, the United States of America
November 15th, 1789
Former president and Marine commandant Samuel Kim never expected he would be back in Quebec with an army with him again. Then again, Quebec was making its displeasure at the recent Supreme Court ruling publicly known. The crisis reached a breaking point when the Canadian state declared it would secede if the ruling were not overturned. This action forced President Jefferson's hand, and due to his loyalty to the United States and his friendship with Jefferson, Samuel accepted a commission to lead a group of Marines to settle the matter peacefully. Or forcefully if it came down to war. Until the negotiations ended, he was officially a Lieutenant General again, though Major General Joseph Warren remained as the Commandant of the Marines.
"You think they would really shoot at us?" Major General Israel Putnam asked. The man was old, as the years had not been kind to him. He was just a shade over seventy years old, but the former general from Massachusetts looked closer to eighty than seventy. However, due to his role in Quebec during the Revolutionary War, he was asked to be one of the delegation members. He accepted dutifully and met Samuel for the first time in several years.
"We can only hope they won't," Samuel replied with a frown, "Not when we guaranteed that we will not attack."
The group sent by the federal government consisted of one thousand Marines, all armed and ready for action. However, General Kim's orders were clear; they were not to attack any of the Quebecois militiamen unless they were fired at first. The former president didn't want the situation to escalate and sought to mediate this crisis peacefully. The last thing they needed was an unprovoked attack that would galvanize the people of Quebec.
Fort St. Johns, which was the fort where the negotiations would be held, was currently occupied by the Quebec state militia. The federal fort was "peacefully" seized by state militia members and was in a strategic position to protect the capital city of Montreal. Instead of the usual flag with the fifteen stripes and twenty stars, there was a flag of Quebec flying proudly at the top of the fort. To Samuel, it was the ultimate form of irony as it was also the first fort he seized in his liberation of Quebec. Now, he was returning to "capture" the fort on behalf of the United States.
When the group arrived at Fort St. Johns, they were greeted by members of the Quebecois militia and government. Governor Tessier personally greeted General Kim and led the delegation to a small meeting room within the fort. All the Marines except a pair of guards remained outside the fort, waiting for the final outcome of the negotiations. They stared down the two thousand or so Quebecois militiamen that manned the fort.
"It's good to see you in uniform once again, General Kim," The governor said cordially.
The Korean-American man had to smile at that comment, "It does bring back some good memories. Memories of a more united time."
"I assure you that if our demands are met, we will gladly remain united with the other states."
"Then let us discuss what you have in mind."
Governor Tessier rattled off the list of terms that Quebec wanted from the federal government, "The overture of the New York v. Von Steuben, a ban on any immigration of Africans from the Caribbean to Quebec, the right of Quebec to operate a state militia, and the right to allow Catholicism to be the official religion of our state."
"Outrageous! If we allow you to have special treatment, then all the other states will call for their own conditions to remain in the United States!" Putnam thundered.
General Kim held up his hand to calm the man, "The courts will not overturn the case, as I have no authority over the courts. The federal government can not allow a state to ban certain types of immigrants exclusively, as that would be directly against the current laws. The current president has been working on a bill that would allow states to have their own individual militias, a "National Guard," if you will. Finally, establishing Catholicism as the official religion of Quebec would go against the very spirit of the First Amendment and would open doors for the other states to do the same."
"So you reject all our requests except one."
"I'm afraid so, but we are here to negotiate on the matter."
The two men spoke with one another for a period of three hours, discussing and arguing every fine point of the list of conditions stated by the governor. After the three hours passed, it became clear that the two were at an impasse as Samuel was unwilling to concede the parts about immigration or religion.
"The state will adjust the laws accordingly, so a ban on sodomy may be enforced, just within the framework of the Von Steuben case. The state will maintain a "National Guard." However, the state will still be subject to accepting African immigrants, but they may be placed in a certain region in Quebec. And a definite no on the state religion issue. That is what we have so far." Governor Tessier announced, "I am still not satisfied."
"Why are you so persistent on the issue of immigration all of a sudden, Governor?"
"Because while some states may have Negros to deal with daily, Quebec has no place for them. Yes, they are citizens, but it can upset the fragile balance within our state! Think about it, there are hardly any slaves, or Africans, in this state. We are afraid that these fleeing slaves from the Caribbean will settle in Quebec as they are "French" in some sense!"
"Most of them are settled in Florida and other southern states."
"A thousand or so opted to travel to Quebec in the past year, and they have settled in a cluster around the southern area, in a place named Toronto!"
"And why is that a huge problem?"
"Because... we were planning on having Quebecois settle the area! Citizens and righteous folks that have been a part of our state for years! And besides, that is not the only problem I have with the current proposal. Hardly any of our requests have been fulfilled!"
The former president and Marine crossed his arms, "The federal government will not budge any further on those issues."
"Then I'm afraid it is secession, then."
General Kim stood up and walked out the door with General Putnam in tow. The governor barked a few orders after the men started leaving, but to everyone's surprise, the former Marine walked into the courtyard and stood in front of the two thousand militiamen waiting for the end of the meeting.
"It has come to me that the governor and I are at a point where we can no longer see eye to eye," Samuel shouted, "The governor has declared that the state will secede due to the issue between the state and the federal government. Therefore, Quebec is now in a state of rebellion."
Surprised faces greeted the man as he continued, "However, I recognize that Quebec does have issues with our current government, and I have tried to the best of my abilities to work out a compromise. Those willing to start this rebellion may fire as I have failed."
"Are you mad?" General Putnam asked as the former president stepped forward and spread his arms.
Samuel did not reply as he walked before the militiamen, "Here is your former president, who bled and fought for your state to be free. Unfortunately, if your state continues down this path, you will be forced to face me on the battlefield. If you are unwilling to shoot me, your secession movement will not succeed. So fire if you are truly willing to break free from the United States."
After a tense three minutes, none of the militiamen fired. One by one, they lowered their arms. Not even the private guards of the governor dared to fire on the Father of the United States.
"We do not settle issues and divisions within our nation with threats of rebellion, but with words, debates, and laws," Samuel continued, "I understand that many of you are frustrated, but this is not the way to go, gentlemen. This will only cause further divisions, bringing our great nation's downfall. If you truly want to make a difference, then run for office and vote! Debate on the national stage and make your voice heard in a peaceful, civil manner! Now, I ask you humbly, not as the former president, but as a fellow American citizen, to put down your arms and go home! Those that do will be forgiven for their actions today. And our nation can move on from this crisis."
Within a few hours, the American flag, once again, flew next to the Quebec flag over the fort, and Governor Tessier was arrested on charges of treason against the United States. However, Samuel made it known that if this happened again in the future, then he would be much less forgiving to the offenders.
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