In the general election of June 1896, Wilfrid LAURIER and the Liberals were confronted with what had been a recurring challenge in Canadian politics since 1890: the Manitoba school crisis. The right of access to separate schools for the local Catholic minority, which had been flouted, became the most important stake in this historic election. This situation alarmed, among others, many members of the francophone electorate in Quebec, whose votes were vital to Laurier’s ascent to power. Favourable to a negotiated settlement around which the Anglo-Protestant majority could rally, the Liberal leader was strongly criticized, especially by Louis-François LAFLÈCHE, bishop of the diocese of Trois-Rivières:
“[In a sermon, Laflèche] unequivocally condemned Wilfrid Laurier* as ‘a rationalist Liberal’ promoting ‘a doctrine completely contrary to Catholic doctrine’ and asked people not to support the party leader.”
