The decision to end this manuscript in 1943 was made before health issues intervened. Research into events in 1944, as understood in Montreal, suggested that the deep divide between the French Canadian majority and the English- language minorities widened and hardened. The provincial election of August 1944, that brought Maurice Duplessis back into power, was particularly disturbing to examine. In Montreal’s predominately English-language ridings. Premier Godbout’s Liberals won two thirds of the vote with the CCF second at 11 percent. French language districts split their votes between the Union Nationale and the Bloc Populaire, parties opposed to Canada’s war effort.

During the campaign Duplessis had campaigned against, conscription of young men into the army, workers into the factories ,women into the arsenals and children into school. He persisted in claims first made in 1943 that tens of thousands of Jews were to be settled in Quebec. Once in power he resumed his war against trade unions, communists and “socialists”. The outline of these events is well documented as are the events of the fall of 1944 when the second conscription crisis erupted and there seemed little to add. 

Coverage of the war in the city’s newspapers provided no insight into events, even after all four Montreal-based regiments were in action in Normandy. Censorship, including self-censorship by editors, denied readers access to information about command decisions and their consequences for the Canadian forces . There seemed little point in continuing.

          Thank you for your interest.