 The population grew slowly under French rule, thus remained relatively low as growth was largely achieved through natural births, rather than by immigration.To encourage population growth and to redress the severe imbalance between single men and women, King Louis XIV sponsored the passage of approximately 800 young French women (known as "les filles du roi") to the colony.Most of the French were farmers ("Canadiens" or "Habitants"), and the rate of population growth among the settlers themselves was very high.