Though Frontenac was not the author of this severe measure,
duty required him to enforce it. Perrot was a friend and
defender of the coureurs de bois, whom he used as employees
in the collection of peltries. Under his regime Montreal
formed their headquarters. The edict gave them no concern,
since they knew that between them and trouble stood their
patron and confederate.

Thus Frontenac found an excellent occasion to put Perrot
in the wrong and to hit him through his henchmen. The
only difficulty was that Frontenac did not possess adequate
means to enforce the law. Obviously it was undesirable
that he should invade Perrot's bailiwick in person. He
therefore instructed the judge at Montreal to arrest all
the coureurs de bois who were there. A loyal attempt was
made to execute this command, with the result that Perrot
at once intervened and threatened to imprison the judge
if he repeated his effort.

Frontenac's counterblast was the dispatch of a lieutenant
and three soldiers to arrest a retainer of Perrot named
Carion, who had shown contempt of court by assisting the
accused woodsmen to escape. Perrot then proclaimed that
this constituted an unlawful attack on his rights as
governor of Montreal, to defend which he promptly imprisoned
Bizard, the lieutenant sent by Frontenac, together with
Jacques Le Ber, the leading merchant of the settlement.
Though Perrot released them shortly afterwards, his tone
toward Frontenac remained impudent and the issue was