Page:Haiti- Her History and Her Detractors.djvu/176



The cries of "Liberty forever!" "Down with tyranny!" were heard on all sides as Dessalines fell dead. In the Western and Southern provinces, where the insurrection had inflamed the people's minds, the Emperor's death provoked a strong reaction against the political regime he had established. The discipline of the army felt the effect of this reaction; soldiers deserted their regiments. And the citizens seemed to think that there was no longer any restraint to their will. There was but little show of authority and it looked as though license had replaced Dessalines's absolutism. This state of affairs was far from being satisfying to Christophe, who had become Chief of the Provisional Government. In reality he had the same ideas as Dessalines concerning the prerogatives of a ruler. Moreover, the insurrection had not had time to