A Period of Transition 153

more vacant land available. This means that he is often forced to share his property with his children so that the resulting parcels of land are too small to provide for the needs of everybody. Consequently, fishing has become more or less a necessity. And this state of affairs will become worse as time goes on'”

Pascal Poirier recommended emigration and resettlement as solu- tions to the problem. He was careful not to promote fishing, because, like most Acadian leaders of the time, he maintained that the well- being of the Acadians depended on farming. As an occupation, fishing was considered to be considerably inferior to agriculture and even disastrous for the Acadian economy. However, the Honourable Stanis- las F. Perry did not share this view. During a meeting with the inhab- itants of Nail Pond, near Tignish, he assured his audience, comprised mainly of fishermen, that their work was useful and worth encourag- ing. He told them that “fishing was not a contemptible activity as some people believed and should not be trod upon; fishermen had the right to receive help and encouragement because there is no other occupation more lucrative than fishing” (TR)'*. However, speeches of this kind were not heard at the National Conventions of the Aca- dians. If the fisheries issue was raised, it was generally in negative terms.

THE NATIONAL CONVENTIONS OF THE ACADIANS

The Acadians on Prince Edward Island were not the only ones overwhelmed by social, economic, cultural and political problems. In fact, francophones throughout the Maritimes found themselves in a more or less similar situation. It was logical that Acadians from the Island join forces with their compatriots to examine their status and the direction their development should take. Between 1881 and 1890 they met for three large congresses or conventions, as they were called at the time, which were held in Memramcook (New Brunswick), Miscouche (Prince Edward Island) and Church Point (Nova Scotia). A fairly large number of Islanders were in attendance.

Actually, the first important meeting of Acadian leaders took place in Quebec city in 1880 for Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day, the national holiday of French Canadians. That year, the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste in Quebec city invited North American francophones to gather for a