In Canada extreme conservatism existed side by side with complete lawlessness. At one pole of society were a certain number of obedient human beings, planted out in rows; at the other were the wandering fur-traders, who knew no law and had no fixed dwelling-place. Excluding the officials from France, ill paid and intent on perquisites alone, and excluding French or Canadian merchants, the main constituents in the population of Canada were the seignior, the priest, the habitant, and the voyageur; of these four elements it would be hard to say which was farthest removed from citizenship, as it was understood in England and the English colonies. Yet all these elements were to be combined and moulded into a British community. [Sidenote: Beginning of civil government.] The beginning of civil administration in Canada under British rule was the Royal Proclamation of 7th October, 1763, which has been noticed in the preceding chapter. Before it was issued, an intimation was sent to Murray that he had been selected as the first civil governor of the new British province of Quebec. His commission as governor was dated 21st November, 1763; and the Royal Instructions, which accompanied the Commission, bore the date of 7th December, 1763; but it was not until August, 1764, that he took up his new position and military rule came to an end.[37] [Sidenote: General Murray.] James Murray was still under forty years of age. He proved himself a stanch, loyal, and capable soldier, resolute in critical times, as when he defended Quebec through the trying winter of 1759-60, and later, in 1781-2, held Minorca until his handful of troops, stricken with famine and disease, surrendered their arms, as they said, to God alone. His words and his actions alike testified that he was a humane and just man. Like other soldiers, before and since, having seen war face to face, he was more ready than civilians who had not risked their lives, but breathed threatenings and slaughter from a safe distance, to treat the conquered with leniency. [Sidenote: Difficulties of the situation.] [Sidenote: Ill feeling between soldiers and civilians.]