allowed them to be jailed indefinitely until they paid their loans to merchants. In March 1837 the Tories passed a law making it cheaper to sue farmers by allowing city merchants to sue in the middle of harvest. If the farmer refused to come to court in Toronto, they would automatically forfeit the case and their property subjected to a sheriff's sale. Among the more than 150 lawsuits they launched that year, the Bank of Upper Canada, sued Sheldon, Dutcher & Co., a foundry and Toronto's largest employer with over 80 employees in late 1836, bankrupting the company. Mackenzie's first plan for rebellion involved calling on Sheldon & Dutcher's men to storm the city hall, where the militia's guns were stored. Budget of Upper Canada The Reformers were incensed at the debt that the Family Compact incurred as the results of general improvements to the province, such as the Welland Canal. The Upper Canada legislature refused to pass a supply bill in 1836 after Bond Head refused to implement responsible government reforms. In retaliation Bond Head refused to sign any bills passed by the assembly, including public work projects. This contributed to economic hardship and increased unemployment throughout the province. Planning Mackenzie gathered reformers on July 28 and 31, 1837 to discuss their grievances with the government. The meeting created the Committee of Vigilance and signed a declaration urging every community to send delegates to a congress in Toronto and discuss remedies for their concerns. Mackenzie printed the declaration in his newspaper and toured communities north of Toronto to encourage citizens to make similar declarations. Farmers organised target practice sessions and forges in the Home District and Simcoe County created weapons for the rebellion. On October 9, 1837, a messenger from the Patriotes informed Mackenzie that the rebellion in Lower Canada was going to begin. Mackenzie gathered reformers at John Doel's brewery and proposed kidnapping Bond Head, bringing him to city hall and forcing him to let the Legislature choose the members of the Executive Council. If Bond refused, they would declare independence from the British Empire. Reformers such as Thomas David Morrison opposed this plan and the meeting ended without consensus on what to do next. The next day Mackenzie convinced John Rolph that a rebellion could be successful and happen without anyone being killed. Rolph convinced Morrison to support the rebellion but they also told Mackenzie to get