circulate in the 18th century, such as the 15- and 30-deniers. These gold coins, known as the mousquetaire, were meant to pay soldiers and civil servants but did not stay in circulation very long. The name is believed to have come from the cross on the reverse of the coins, which resembled the crosses on the cloaks of the legendary musketeers. Another coinage that was used was the sol (sou). The sol was equivalent to the size of a 20th-century one-cent coin and was produced between 1738 and 1756. The Sol was rated at 12 deniers. The double sol was produced until 1764, although large shipments to Quebec and Cape Breton ended in 1756. The double sol was rated at 24 deniers. End of French rule French rule came to an end with the conquest of Quebec by the British in 1760. The value of the card money and the ordonnances de paiement plummeted, since their value had come from the promise by the French government that they could be redeemed for coinage. Under the Treaty of Paris, 1763, the French government agreed to continue to redeem the paper money, and three years later introduced a series of government debentures to replace the paper money. However, the state of France's government finances was poor, and by 1771 the debentures were essentially worthless. After New France fell, the card money and ordonnances were redeemed at only one-quarter of their face value. As a result, the habitants of Quebec were left with a deep distrust of paper money which lasted for generations. British colonial rule: 1760–1825 Shortage of currency The shortage of currency continued under British rule. Although historical economists disagree on the reasons for the shortage, the effect was that a wide variety of foreign coinage and paper instruments, such as colonial Treasury bills and notes from different merchants, were used in commercial transactions. One account from Nova Scotia in 1820 illustrates the confusion caused by the lack of unified currency: a customer in a market bought vegetables costing six pence, and paid with a £1 Nova Scotian Treasury note. His change back consisted of ninety-three separate items: eight paper notes from different merchants, ranging in value from 5 shillings to 7 1/2 pence; one silver coin; and eighty-four copper coins. Colonial governments could be imaginative in domesticating foreign currencies. For example, in 1808, officials in Prince Edward Island punched out