By the end of 1976 Canadians had learned to live with the Parti qué-
bécois. The shock of November 15 had been absorbed: the call of the
Toronto Star and Dalton Camp for a national government had gone
unheeded; the stock market had recovered; the prime minister prom-
ised that force would never be used to keep Quebec in Canada and
urged all Canadians to do their bit by supporting bilingualism; and
René Lévesque and his cabinet went about governing their domain.
With Parizeau and Tremblay in finance and industry it was clear that
domestic policies would be moderate. And at the party's annual con-
vention on December 18 the premier urged the rank and file to start
preparing for the referendum--and let the government govern. For
the moment, at least, a clash between the party militants and the gov-
ernment was avoided, as the premier gently reminded the convention
that the government had to be that of all Quebeckers, not just of the
PQ, and had to be free to act on its own initiative.

The goal of independence remained, but the word 'separatism' was
struck from the party vocabulary. The goal was independence and
association, however, and it was clear that 'association' would be
equally emphasized as the government began to prepare for the refer-
endum. In Ottawa at the first ministers conference on December 13
Premier Lévesque explained the nature of the new game and its rules
to his colleagues:

'We have stated clearly, and I wish to repeat it, that we do not claim
to see this vote as a mandate for Quebec's independence. Our com-
mitments are clear on this point: when the time comes, it will be up to

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