First crest of the Rolland Company, 1882

The Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste enshrined the maple leaf as the emblem of Canada, comparing the people with the tree: “This tree—the maple—initially young and battered by the winds, seems to wither, struggling to draw sustenance from the earth. But soon it extends its boughs toward the sky, tall and strong, defying storms and triumphing over the wind, which is now powerless against its strength. The maple is the king of our forests; it symbolizes the Canadian people.”