“Au poste !”

Painting by Dominique Beauregard from the « Les Stations du curé Labelle »

In Au poste!, the fabulist painter invites us into the parliamentary office where Labelle spent long hours “chained to his desk,” working for the well-being of his fellow citizens and to promote colonization. On the front panel of the desk, two scenes illustrate the two main reasons that prompted him to accept the position of deputy minister: the completion of the railway and the amendment of the legislation governing Crown Lands (abolishing forest reserves and removing the permanent restrictions on the harvesting of pine—conditions that worked against the establishment of settlers). Behind the desk is Labelle’s bookcase, an exact reproduction of his real one. On the shelves are the books that inspired him, those written by his friends who were authors and publications related to colonization and other topics that interested him.

In May 1888, Labelle accepted Quebec Liberal Premier Honoré Mercier’s offer to become Deputy Minister in the Department of Agriculture and Colonization. Recruited for his integrity and competence, and not for his political allegiance, he was one of the few clergymen, if not the only one, of his day to hold a position in a government department. He accepted the post subject to certain conditions: “To uphold my dignity as a priest, I accepted this position on condition that I would not be paid a salary like the other public servants, but rather an allowance to cover my travel expenses, and that I would enjoy complete independence in the administration.”