“Un joli commencement de curé”

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

The French expression “un joli commencement de curé” [a nice start for a priest] is attributed to Gustave-Adolphe Drolet, a former Papal Zouave who had known the young Labelle when he was in charge of the parish of Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle on the U.S. border from 1863 to 1868. This canvas shows the hotheaded Labelle at the time when there was a threat of a Fenian (Irish nationalist) invasion. It includes a number of symbols illustrating the state of mind of people in Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle during those days. The Fenian threat is represented by the shamrocks. The Richelieu light infantry is symbolized by the maple leaves, with the geese in V-formation overhead alluding to the flight of French Canadians to the United States.