ver to take possession of the North-West Territory for Canada. He was accompanied by army members with 300 rifles. When the news reached the Mtis, they decided to make their own army. On October 16, Riel was elected secretary of the Mtis "National Committee", and John Bruce was elected president. Five days later, the Committee sent a warning to McDougall telling him not to enter the country without permission from the Committee. Riel let it be known that he was opposed to McDougall's arrival and asked the English to join him. He told them that he remained faithful to the British Crown but that he objected to the unfair way the government came into the West. On October 30, McDougall, Cameron and Joseph-Alfred Norbert Provencher, arrived in Pembina where they read the Committee's note. They refused to listen to this warning and the next day, Cameron and Provencher went to St. Norbert where they were stopped and told to go back to the American border. On November 2, the Mtis took possession of Fort Garry. They than established their control over the area. However, their power was quite unstable as they could only rely on the support of the French Catholic population. A series of meetings were held to encourage supporters, but without any success. Several people against the way McDougall was treated. However, an agreement was reached on the research of a list of rights. On November 23, Riel established a provisional government. This surprised the English-speaking people. On December 10, Riel's Provisional Government's flag flew on the flag pole at Fort Garry. On December 27, Louis Riel became president of the Provisional Government. To this point in time the Canadian government had been unaware of all the problems at Red River. Macdonald sent a special commissioner to explain his position to the Mtis.On January 9, 1870, 12 prisoners including Thomas Scott escaped from the Fort. On January 23, John Schultz managed to escape as well. On Fe...
