24 
NATURAL RESOURCES OF QUEBEC 
province, the French-speaking element is gradually gaining ground. In- 
deed, the French-Canadian population has overflowed into the New 
England states and forms a large portion of the operatives in the textile, 
shoe and other manufacturing industries there. The new settlement 
districts of the province are attracting a predominantly French popula- 
tion. 
The Habitant —The rural French Canadian, known as the habitant, 
has long been famed in song and story sharing honours with the pictu- 
resque voyageur. But under modern conditions they have both greatly 
Spinning wheel— Baie St. Paul 
changed. An influence that has contributed much to modernize the 
younger generation is the accessibility of the cities by automobile. The 
spinning-wheel is often removed to the attic and the ‘étoffe du pays’, 
is seldom seen except in certain districts where the demand for homespun 
by American tourists has revived interest in the industry. Always a 
steady, industrious, thrifty home-loving individual, strongly attached 
to his church and fond of political discussion the habitant is known as 
a practical farmer. He reads the city and agricultural papers, is a member 
of a co-operative dairy or cheese factory, wants a rural mail and good 
roads. Although much of the boisterous enthusiasm of the old-time 
“Rouges et bleus” has disappeared, the habitant has remained a keen 
politician and there is yet a weak spot in his heart for a good orator.