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HISTORIC HANDBOOK

OF TUB

NORTHERN TOUR.

W O L V E.

A(;i:u 82.

lil8'i*ViaC flAXDb M)K

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\V u L F F

IIISTOEIC HANDBOOK

OF THE

NORTHERN TOUR.

LAKES GEORGE AND CHAMPLAIN; NIAGARA;
MONTREAL; QUEBEC,

FRANCIS PARKMAN.

BOSTON:
LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY.

1885.

li.

University Press:
John Wilson and Son, Cambridge.

This book is a group of narratives of the most strik-
ing events of our colonial history conncctea witli the
principal points of interest to the tourist visiting Canada
and the northern borders of the tiiitcd States.

The narratives are drawn, wiih the addition of ex-
planatory passages, from « TI:. Conspiracy of Pontiac,"
" Pioneers of France in the New V\' )rld," « The Jesuits
in North America," « Count Frontenac," and " Mont-
calm and Wolfe."

Boston, 1 April, 1885.

CONTENTS.

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIX.

Discovery of Lake Ciiamplain . "^^ 3

Discovery of Lake George

Battle ok Lake Georoe . . ' i^

A \\ixTER Raid . .

e 40

biEGE AXD Massacre of Fort William Hexry . 45

Battle op Ticonderooa .

. T bo

A Legend op Ticoxderoga og

NIAGARA.
Siege of Fort Niagara .......

Massacre of the Devil's Hole ' " ^^

MONTREAL.

The Birth of Moxtreal . -,n-

lOt)

QUEBEC.

IXFAXCY OF QuEnEC .^

A Military :Mi,ssiox 100

Massachusetts Attacks Quebec ....... jo^

The Heights of Abraham . .li

• ° loi

LAKE GEORGE AND L^IKE CIIAMPLALN,

•mmmBBBm

DISCOVERY OF LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

T^IIKS beautiful lake owes its luuue to Samuel de
Clianii)laiii, the founder of Quebec. In IGO'J, lono-
before the rilgrim Fathers landed at Plymouth, he
joined a band of Huron and Algonquin warViors on an
exi)edition against their enemies, the lro(iuois, since
known as the Five Nations of New Yoi'k. While grati-
fying his own love of adventure, he expected to make
important geographical discoveries.

After a grand war dance at the infant settlement of
Quebec, the allies set out together. Champlain was hi
a boat, carrying, besides himself, eleven men, chief
among whom were one Marais and a pilot named La
Routte, all armed with the arquel)use, a species of fire-
arm shorter than the musket, and therefore better fitted
for the w^oods.

They ascended the St. Lawrence and entered the
Richelieu, which forms the outlet of Lake Champlain
Here, to Champlain's great disai)pointment, he found
his farther progress barred by tlic rapids at Chamblv
though the Indians had assured him that his boat couid
pass all the way unobstructed. He told them that
though they had deceived him, he would not abandon
them, sent Marais with the boat and most of th(> men
hack to Quebec, and, with two who offered to follow
I'lm, prepared to go on in the Indian canoes.

LAKE GEOKGE AND LAKE CUAMPLAIN.

The warriurs lifted their canoes from the water, and
in lung procession through the forest, under the Ilickei-
ing sun and shade, bore them on their shoulders around
the rapids to the smooth stream above. Jlere the chiefs
made a muster of tiieir forces, counting twenty-four
canoes and sixty warriors. All endjarived again, and
advanced once more, by marsh, meadow, foi'est, {;nd
scattered islands, then full of game, for it was an unin-
habited land, the war-path and battle-ground of hostile
tribes. The warriors (observed a cei'tain system in their
advance. Some were in front as a vanguard; others
formed the main body; while an e(iual number were in
the forests on the flanks and rear, hunting for the sub-
sistence of the whole ; for, tliough they had a provision
of parched maize pounded into meal, they kept it for use
when, from the vicinity of the enemy, hunting should
become im])Ossible.

Still the canoes advanced, the river wi( ening as
they went, (ili-eat islands appeai'cd, leagues in extent :
Isle a la ^lotte, Long Island, Grande Jsle. Channels
where ships might float and broad reaches of expanding
water stretched between them, and Chami)liiiu entered
the lake which preserves his name to posterity. Cum
bcrland Ilend was passed, and from the opening of the
great channcd between Grande Isle and the main, he
could look forth on the wilderness sea. Edged with
woods, the trancpiil flood sjjread southward beyond the
sight. Far op the left, the forest ridges of the Green
Mountains were lieaved against the sun, patches of snow
still glistening on their tops; and on the right rose the
Adirondacks, haunts in those later years of amateur
sportsmen from counting-rooms or college halh nay,
of adventurous beauty, with sketch-book and jjcncil.
Then the Iroquois made them their hunting-ground ; and

DISCOVERY OF LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

Ml, he
with
id the
Green
snow
,c the
iiateur
nay,
Dcncil.
; and

beyond, in ilie valleys of the ^Mohawk, the Ononda<ra,
and the (Jencsce, stretched the 1 mg line of their live
cantons and palisaded towns.

The progress of tiie party was becoming dangerous.
Tlu'V ehang(Hl their mode of advance, and moved only
in the night. All day, they lay close in the depth of the
forest, sleeping, lounging, smoking tobacco of their own
raising, and beguiling the hours, no doubt, with the
shallow banter and obscene jesting with which knots of

Indi

At twiliu-ht

Indinns ai-e wont to amuse their leisure. At iwuigm
they embarked again, paddling their cautious way till
the eastern sky began to redden. Their goal was the
rocky ])r()niontory where Fort Ticondcroga was long
afterward built. Thence, they would pass the outlet
of Tjake (Jeorge, and launch their canoes again on tluit
Como of the wilderness, whose waters, linii)id as a
fountain-head, stretched far southward between their
thinking mountains. Landing at the future site of Foi-t
William Henry, they would carry their canoes through
the forest to the River Hudson, and descending it, at-
tack, i)erhaps, some outlying town of the ]\Iohawks. In
the next century this chain of Inkes and rivers became
the grand highway of savage and civilized war, a l)loody
debataldc ground linked to memories of momentous
con diets.

The allies were spared so long a progress. On the
morning of the twentv-ninth of Julv, after paddlina* all
night, they hid as usual in tlie hn^st on the western
sliore, not far from Crown Point. The warriors stretched
themselves to their slumliers, and Chami)lain, after
walking for a time through the surrounding woods, re-
turned to take his repose on a ])ile of spruce-boughs.
Sleeping, he dreamed a dream, wherein he beheld the
Iroquois drowning in the lake; and, essaying to rescue

■iti

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIN.

tlicin, lie was told by his AlgoiKiuln fi-ionds that they
were good for nothing and had better be left to their
fate. Now, he hud been daily beset, on awaivcning, by
his superstitious allies, eager to learn about his dreams;
and, to this moment, his unbroken slumbers had failed
to furnish the desired prognosties. The announcement
of this auspicious vision filled the crowd with joy, and
at nightfall they embarked, flushed with anticii)ated
victories.

It was ten o'clock in the evening, when they descried
dark objects in motion on the lake before them. These
were a flotilla of Iroquois canoes, heavier and slower than
theirs, for thev were made of oak or elm bark. Each
party saw the other, and the mingled war-cries pealed
over the darkened water. The Irocpiois, who were near
the shore, having no stomach for an aquatic battle,
landed, and, making night hideous with their clamors,
began to b.Trricade themselves. Champlain could see
them in the woods, laboring like beavers, hacking down
trees with iron axes taken from the Caiuulian tribes
in war, and with stone hatchets of their own making.
The allies remained on the lake, a boAvshot from the
hostile barricade, their canoes made fast together by
poles lashed across. All night, they danced with as
much vigor as the frailty of their vessels would permit,
their throats making amends for the enforced restraint
of their limbs. It Avas agreed on both sides that the
fight should be deferred till daybreak ; but meanwhile
a commerce of abuse, sarcasm, menace, and boasting
gave unceasing exercise to the lungs and fancy of the
combatants, — " much," says Champlain, " like the
besiegers and besieged in a beleaguered town."

As day approached, he and his two followers put
on the light armor of the time. Champlain wore the

I!:

;- if

I— I <

DISCOVKKY OF LAKE ClIAMI'LAIN.

V;^

A. 'ill

'/J

1,1 -:

doublet nud loiijjj hose then in voguo. Over the doublet
he buckled on a breastplate, and probably u back-pieet;,
while his thiji'lis were jji-otected by cnin.sfs of steel, and
his head by a plumed casciuc. Across his shoulder liun<!:
the strap of his bandoleer, or annnunll ion-box ; at liis
side was bis sword, and in his hand his arquebuse, wliieli
he bad loaded wilh four balls. Such was the (M|uipni(!nt
of this ancient Indian-fiuhter, whose exploits date eleven
years before the landing of the Puritans at IMynioutb,
and sixly-six years before King Pbilip's War,

Each of the three Frenchmen was in a separate canoe,
and, as it grew light, they ke])t tliemselves hidden,
either by lying at t'ie bottom, or covering themselv<>s
witii an Indian robe. The canoes a[))»roaelu>d the shore,
and all landed without opposition at some distance from
the lro(|uois, whom they presently could see filing out of
their barricade, tall, strong men, some two hundi'ed in
number, of the boldest and fiercest warri(U-s of North
America. They advanced through the forest with a
steadiness which excited the admiration of Chamitlain.
Among them could be seen several chiefs, made con-
spicuous by their tall })lumes. ?ome bore shields of wood
and hide, and some "were covered with a kind of armor
made of tough twigs interlaced with a vegetable iibre
snp))osed by Chamjdain to be cotton.

The allies, growing anxious, called witli loud cries
for their champion, and opened their ranks that he
might pass to the front. He did so, and, advancing
before his red companions-in-arms, stood revealed to
the astonished gaze of the Iroquois, who, beholding the
warlike apparition in their path, stared in mute amaze-
ment. But his arquebuse was levelled ; the report
startled the woods, a chief fell dead, and another by
his side rolled among the bushes. Then there rose

LAKE r.EOnOK ANT) LAKE rilAMI'LAlN.

from tlu' iillios a yell, wluch, says (1iaini»lain, would
Iiave drowned a Uiiiiidcr-cdaj), and tlio fori st was lull of
whizzini; arrows. For a moment, tlu; Inxjuois stood
firm and sent htuk Ihelr arrows luslily; bnt when mi-
otlier and iuiotlier gunsli(>t came from the thiekets on
Iheir (liink, Ihey broke and fled in unconlrollahh; terror.
Swifter (lum hounds, the allies tore throUL^h the bushes
in piMsuit. Some of the Inxiuois were killed; more
were itiken. (.^imp, canoes, ])rovisious, all v.cre aban-
doned, and many weapons fhrnj;' down in (he panic
flight. The aivpiebuse had done its work. The vic-
tory was ('omi)lete.

The victors made a pi-onipt retreat fi-om the scene of
their triumjih. Three or four days brought them to
the mouth of Ihe Richelieu. Here they separated; the
lluroiis and Algonquins mad(> for the Ottawa, their
homeward route, each with a share of jtrisoners for
future torments. At ])arting they invited (!iiamplain
to visit their towns and aid them again in their wars,
— an invitation which this j)aladin of the woods failed
not to accc])t.

Thus did New France rush into collision with the
redoubted warriors of the Five Nations. Here was the
beginning, in some measure doubtless the cause, of a
long suite of murderous conflicts, bearing havoc and
tlamc to generations yet unborn. Cham})lain had in-
vaded the tiger's den ; and now, in smoihered fury, the
patient savage would lie biding his day of blood.

DISCOVERY OF LAKE (iEOIlOIi

<:,

TT wns <liii-h-11ii-('o years siiinc Cliamplain liad first
■*■ attarkod tlio Inxiiicis. Tlicy liad nursed their umth
for more llian a n(.,H.rati(m, and at lenii'tli (1,,'ir hour
was coni.>. 'J'li,. \)uivh traders at Fort Orai.nv. now
Al])any, had suf.plied them with firearms. Tli(> Mo-
hawks, the most easterly of 't]i(> Ji-.xpu.is nations, had,
anion.ir tlieir seven or ei-lit hundred warriors, no h-ss
. .11 three hundred armed Avitli the aniuehuse. Tlujy
were masters of flie thunderbolts wJiicli, in the liands of
riiamplaln, liad struck terror into tlieir hearts.

In the early mornino- of the second of Auirust, 10-12
twelve Huron canoes were movin,": slowly alonir the
northern shore of the expansion of the i<t. LawTcncc
known as the Lake of St. Peter. There were on hoard
about forty persons, ineludin.tr fo„r Frenchmen, one of
thembein.cr the Jesuit, Isaac Jonues. DuriiK^ the Inst
autumn he, with Father Charles Raymbanlt, Imd i)assed
alonu: the shore of Lake Huron northward, entered the
sfrait Ihrou-]) wliicli Lake Superior discharires itself
pushed on as far as the Sault Sainte .Afarie, and preached
the Faith to two thousand Ojibwas, and ofher Al-on-
qnins there assembled, ffe was now on his return from
a far more ])erilous errand. The Huron mission was
in a stat(^ of destitution. There was need of clothinn-
for the priests, of vessels for the altars, of bread and
wmc for the eucharist, of writin- materials, - in short

I,AK1', (JKOIJc;!', ANI» I.AKi: (11 A M I'l-AI N.

i»r rvorvlhiiiu" ; iunl, ciiily in (lie snmiiicr of (lie jirrsnil
yciir, .lo^Mcs liad tlc'srrnilcd (o 'riiirc I{i\(M's ;iii(| (^Miclicc
Nvilli tli<> Ihnttii I liiilns, li» |)Vi)ciir(> (lie ikm-cssmiv hii|)-
plics. II(> li:i(l iit'*'oiii|>lisIu'«l liis tusk, inul wjis on liis
\v;i\ li;n'k It) (lie iiiissioii. N\ illi liiin were w leu Huron
conxtMls. ;iM<l Miuonu" (licni m moIimI Cliiisl iiiii cliicr, Miim-
liU'Iic Ahiilsislni'i. OMkms dl" (lie |>:irly were in ('(ihi'hc
(»!' ills! riH'luMi lor lt;i|i(isiu: Imt llic LTcnlrr |i:irl were
lu^alliiMi, w !ios(> «';ino<"s wnr dcrply IjhIcii wiih llic pfo-
cvv{\^ iA' llirii- Icu'lijuns willi lln> l«'it>nrli rui-lf;Hlri s.

•loU'Mcs sal in our <»! Ilir Icadiiiii; cantics. Mr was
iwvn a1 Orleans in 1<'»<I7, and was (liiily live years ol"
ni!,(V His o\ al lace and lli(> delicale jmrnld of liis Icat-
ures indicated a modest, tlionuldlnl, and relined nalnre.
lie w as eonstitutionally timid, with a sensil i\e conscience
and ureal reliiiions snsoept iltilit ies. Il(> was a linislied
seludar, and luiulit have uaiued a lilei'ary repntation ;
hut ]\o had idioseu another eaiMMT. and on(> I'oi" wliich he
sciMned hut ill litled. iMiysieally, how(>vei', he was well
nialcluMl witli his work : lor, thonuh his frame was slight,
ho w;is so acii\(\ that uon(> of the Indians could siir|)ass
him in running.

With him W(>re two yonn'j; m(M\, Kent' (loujiil and
Ouillanme (.\)ntm\\, (A';<;jf>' of tln^ mission, — that is to
say, laymei\ who. from a ndigioi'.s motive and witjiont
pay. had attaclu>d themselvi^s to th(> siM'vice of the
Jesuit s, rion|>il had formerly entered n|)on the .lesnit
novitiate at Talis, hut failing IkmIiIi had ohliuvd him to
leave it. As soon as ho was ahlo, he eanu^ to (^uiadn,
olTcred his sorvioes to the Superior of tht> mission, was
onij)loyeil for a time in the Innnhlost oIVum^s, and after-
wards hcoamo an attendant at the hos))ital. At longlli,
to his delight, ho roooived jiormission to go np to the
llurons, whore tlio surgical skill which ho had acquired

DISC'OVKKV <>l" I-AKi; (iKOIKH;.

\v!iH /i;?T:ill,v rif'cilcil ; jmd lie \v;is now dii lii-^ u;iy lliitlior.
IIJM (.'olll|iMllii)|i, < 'olll lire, Wiis ii liiilll ol ililcHiLj'i'lK'c iiixl
vip,(»r, ;iiiil '»l ii, clinraflcr ((iimlly disiutcirsliil. Ilolli
were, lik<' .loii'ins, in IIm- IoicmkisI cinnM's ; \.iiili' llu;
loiiiili l*'r( iii'liiiiiiii w:iN uilii llir iin('iiii\( rh'd lliirnns, in

TIlC l\V(I\C CMIKH'S lljul IT.'IcIkmI tln' \V<'s(<in ( ll'l ol' lll(!

liiikc of Si. rdcr, wlicrc il is llllcil wiMi iiiiiiiniiiiil»I<;
isliinds. TIh' lurcsl, \v;is close on IIm ir ri^lil, llicy k<|it,
ni';ii- Jlic shore lo !i\oi(! llie ciiirenl, jinil llie sliiiMow
wilier lielore IImiu was ecncied willi a dense <ji()wfli of
tall hnlnislies. Suddenly llie, silence was frii:lil fully
Idoken. The war-wliooji rose fioni ainoiiL!; the nislicH,
niiiii!'le<l willi (he i«'|»oi1h of ^nins and Hk! whisllinL^ of
liiillels ; and several I ro(| in »is canoes. Ii lied u ilh w ariiois,
)iuslied oiil from (heir conee;ilineii( , ;iiid hoi'c down ii|(ori
.Ioj;iies and his eoni|ianions. 'I'he lliirons in (he rear
w(M'c seized willi a, shameful panic. The) Iciipcd !i-,|iore ;
left canoes, ha'jiiaL''e, and weapons; and (Nd iiilo (he
woods. The I'Veneh and Ihe Chrislian Ilnrons made
(i,L>'nl- for a, (inie; hu( when (hey saw anolher Heel of
canoes approaehin^ \'yi)\\] the op]io.sile shores or inlands,
tlicy losi heai(,an(l lliosc escaped wlio couhl. ^Joiipil
was soi/('(l amid trininphant ylls, as were also s<;vr'ra!
of Iho llnron conveils. Jo^iies sfd'anL'' info the hijl-
nishcs, and niiuhi liave escjiped ; hut when Ik; saw
(Joiipil and the neophytes in the clulcdies of (he Iroquois,
lie had no liciiii to ahandon them, hut canio out from
liis hidinu-place, and pive himself up to the astonishr-d
victors. A few of lliem had remained to e-uard the
fu'isonci's ; the rest wei"c cliasin^'' the fii^dtives. Jolhics
mastered his a,ii:ony, and hcLMii to haptiz(; those of the
captive converts who needed hajitism.

Couture had eluded pursuit ; but when he thought of

-■ i

K! -

L.VKE GEORGE AXD LAKE CIIAMPL.UN.

Jogues and of what perhaps awaited him, he resolved to
share his fate, and, turnin«:]f, retraeed his steps. As ho
aj)pronched, five Iroquois ran forward to meet him ; and
one of them snaj)i)ed his gun at liis breast, but it missed
fire. In his confusion and excitement, Couture fired his
own piece, and hud llie savage de;id. The remaining
four sprang ujton him, stripped off all his chjthing, tore
away his ilnger-nails vrith their teetli, gnawed his fin-
gers with the fury of famislied dogs, and thrust a sword
througli one of his hands. Jogues l^rolvc from his guards,
and, rusliiug to his friend, threw his arms about his
neck. The Iroquois dragged him away, beat him with
their fists nnd war-chibs till he was Fcnseless, and, when
he revived, lacerated his fingers with their teeth, as they
had done those of Couture. Then they turned upon
Gou})il, and treated him with the same feroi'ily. The
Huron prisoners were left for the present unliarmed.
More of them were brought in every niomeut, till at
length the number of captives amounted in all to twenty-
two, while three ITunms had been killed in the fight
and pursuit. The Iroquois, about seventy in number,
now embarked with their ]irey ; but not until they had
knocked on the head an old Ilui'on, whom .Jogues, with
his mangled hands, had just ba))tized, and who refused
to leave the place. Then, under a burning sun, they
crossed to the spot on which the town of Soi'cl now
stands, at the mouth of the River Richelieu, where they
encamped.

Their course was southward, up the River Richelieu
and Lake Champlain ; thence, by way of Lake George,
to the ^[ohawk towns. The pain and fever of their
wounds, and the clouds of mosquitoes, which they could
not drive off, left the pi'isoners no ])eacc by day nor
sleep by night. On the eighth day, they learned that a

DISCOVERY OF LAKE GEORGE.

large Iroquois war-party, on their way to Cauatla, were
near at hand ; and they soon ai)proachcd their cam}), on
a small island near the southern end of Lake Chaniplain.
The warriors, two luuidred in number, saluted their vic-
torious countrymen with volleys from their guns ; then,
armed with chibs and thorny sticks, rangi^d themselves
in two Unes, between which the cai)tives were compelled
to pass up the side of a rocky hill. On the way, they
were beaten with such fury, that Jogues, who was last
iji the line, fell powerless, drenched in blood and half
dead. As the chief man among the French captives, ho
fared the worst. Ilis hands were again mangled, and
fire applied to his body ; while the Huron chief, Eustache,
was subjected to tortures even more atrocious. When,
at nldd. the exhausted sufferers tried to rest, the voun<>:

1 ' %/ CD

warriors came to lacerate tlieir wounds and pull out
their h;iir and beards.

In the morning thev resumed their iournev. And
now the lake narrowed to the sem[)lance of a tranijuil
river. Before them was a woody mountain, close on
their right a rocky promontory, and between these flowed
a stream, the outlet of Lake George. On those rocks,
more than a hundred y(>ars after, rose the; ramparts of
Ticondero:2:a. Thev landed, shouldered their canoes and
baggage, took their way through the woods, passed the
S])ot where the fierce Highlanders and the dauntless
regiments of England breasted in vain the storm of
lead find fire, and soon reached the shore where Aber-
cromliie landed and Lord Howe fell. First of white
men, Jogues and his companions gazed on the romantic
lake that bears the name, not of its gentle discoverer,
but of the dull Hanoverian king. Like a fair Naiad of
the wilderness, it slumbered between the guardian moun-
tains that breathe from crag and forest the stern poetry

1 ■

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIN.

of war. But all then was solitude ; and the clang of
trumpets, the roar of cannon, and the deadly crack of
the rifle had never as yet awakened their angry echoes.'

Again the canoes were launched, find the. wild flotilla
glided on its way, — now in the shadow of the heights,
now on the broad expanse, now among the devious chan-
nels of the narrows, beset. with woody islets, where the
hot air was redolent of the pine, the spruce, and the
cedar, — till they neared that tragic shore, where, in
the following century. New England rustics baffled the
soldiers of Dieskau, where Montcalm ])l:uitcd his bat-
teries, Avhcre the red cross waved so long amid the
smoke, and where at length the summer morning was
hideous with carnage, and an honored name was stained
with a memory of blood.

The Iroquois landed at or near the future site of Fort
William Henry, left their canoes, and, with their ])rison-
ers, began their march for the nearest ]\Ioha\vk t{nvn.
Each bore his share of the plunder. Even Jogues,
though his lacerated hands were in a frightful condition
and his body covered with bruises, was forced to stagger
on with the rest under a heavy load. He with his
fellow-prisoners, and indeed the whole party, were half

I :

! t

' Lake Goorpc, according to Jogiics. was called hy tlic ^Foliawks
" Andiatarocte," or Place where the f.dle closes. " Aiidintaraqiic " is
f()\in(l on a map of Sanson. Spofford, Gazetteer of New York, article
" Lake George," says that it was called " Canideri-oit." or Tail of the
hike. Father Martin, in his notes on Bressani, prefixes to this name
that of " Iloricon," but gives no original authority.

I liave seen an old Latin map on whicli the name " ITori(!oni " is set
down as belonging to a neighboring tribe. This seems to be only a
misprint for " Iloricoui," that is, "Irocoui," or "Iroquois." In an old
English map, prefixed to the rare tract, A Treatise of New Enrjland, the
" Lake of Ilierocoyes " is laid down. The name " Iloricon," as used by
Cooper in his fxist of the j}fohi<an!i, has no sufficient historical foundation.
In 1646, the lake, as we shall see, was named " Lac St. Sacroment."

DISCOVERY OF LAKE GEORGE.

starved, subsisting chiefly on wild berrios. They crossed
the upper Hudson, and, in thirteen days after leaving
the 8t. Lawrence, neared the wretched goal of tlieir pil-
gi-iniage, a palisaded town, standing on a hill by the
banks of the River Mohawk.

Such was the (irst recorded visit of wliite men to Lake
George. In the Iroquois villages Jogues was subjected
to the most frightful sufferings, llis friend (jloupil
was murdered at liis side, and he himself was saved as
by miracle. At length, with the lielj) of the Dutch of
Albany, he made his escape and sailed for France;
whence, impelled by religious enthusiasm, lie returned
to Canada and voluntarily set out again for the Ii-oquoia
towns, bent on saving the souls of those who had been
the authoi-s of his woes. Reaching the head of Lake
George on Cori)us Christi Day, 1G40, he gave it the
name of Lac 8t. Sacrement, by which it was ever
after known to the French. Soon after his arrival the
Iroquois killed him by the blow of a hatchet.

L'l I

BATTLE OF LAKE GEORGE.

Ri y

Hi !'

I' K

"POR more than a century after the death of Jogues,
-*• Lakes George and Champlain were the great i-oute
of war parties between Canada and the British Colonies.
Courcelles came this way in 16GG to lay waste tlie Mo-
hawk towns; and Mantet and Sainte-IIelciie, in 1690,
to destroy Schenectady in the dead of winter ; while,
in the next year, Major Schuyler took the same course
as he advanced into Canada to retort the blow. When-
ever there was war between France and England, these
two lakes became the scene of partisan conflicts, in
which the red men took part with the white, some as
allies of the English, and some as allies of the French.
When at length the final contest took place for the pos-
session of the continent, the rival nations fiercely dis-
puted tlu) nuistery of this great wilderness thoroughfare,
and the borders of Lake George became the scene of
noteworthv confiicts. The first of these was in 1755,
the year of Braddoclc's defeat, wlien Shirley, governor of
Massachusetts, set on foot an expedition for the capture
of Crown Point, a fort whicli the French had built on
Lake C^iamplain more than twenty years before.

In January, Shirley had proposed an attack on it to
the Ministry ; and in February, without waiting their
reply, he laid the plan before his Assembly. They ac-
cepted it, and voted money for the pay and maintenance
of twelve hundred men, provided the adjacent colonies

*!!

of Jogiiea,
?roat i-oute
1 Colonies.
the Mo-
, in 1690,
^i' ; wliile,
me course
^ AVhen-
and, these
nflicts, in
, sonic as
c French.
r the pos-
!i'celj dis-
ouglifure,
scene of
in 1755,
vernor of
e caj)ture
built on

on it to
ng their
They ac-
itenance

colonies

THE REGION OF

tiiini Mirvi'vs iiihUp ii

i7(;2

ii iUH I

K(iit\Villmmll.-n

■n fv ^

i •

■I I

li I

Si r

9 t

I *;

ll..'!

i II

BATTLE OF LAKE GEORGE.

v.-«)iilcl contribute in due j)r(){>ortlon. Maj^sacliusetts
showed a military activity worthy of the reputation, she
luid won. Forty-live hundred of her men, or one in eiglit
of lier adult males, volunteered to light the French, and
eidisted i'or the various expeditions, some in the pay of
the province, and some in that of the King-. Jt remained
to name ii commander for the Crown I'oint enterprise.
Nobody had power to do so, for 13raddock, the eom-
niandcr-in-chief, was not yat come ; but that time might
not bo h)st, Shirley, at the recpiest of his Assembly,
took the responsibility on himself. If he had named a
Massacluisetts oflicer, it would have roused the jealousy
of the other New England colonies ; and he therefore
appointed William Johnson, of New York, thus gratifying
that important province and pleasing the Five Nations,
wlio at this time h)oked on Johnson with even more
than usual favor. Hereupon, in re])ly to his request,
Connecticut voted twelve hundred men, New Hampshire
five hundrc'l, and Rhode ishmd four hundred, all
at their own charge ; while New York, a little later,
promised eight hundred more. When, in April, Brad-
dock and the Council at Alexandria approved the plan
and the connnander, Shirley gave Johnson the com-
mission of major-general of the levies of Massachusetts ;
and the governors of the other provinces contributing to
the expedition gave him similar commissions for their
respective contingents. Never did general take the
held with authority so heterogeneous.

He bad never seen service, and knew nothing of war.
By birth he was Irish, of good family, being nejihew of
Admiral Sir Peter Warren, who, owning extensive wild
lands on th.c Mohawk, had placed the young man in
charge of them nearly twenty years before. Johnson
was born to prosper. He had ambition, energy, an active

I''

;il

LAKE GKOIIOE AND LAKE CIlAMPr.AIN.

mind, a tall, stroiit,^ j)orson, a rou^li, jovial tunijMi', ami a
quick adiiptalioii to his siirroundiii'^s. Jlu could drink
flip with Dutch boors, or Madeira with njyal govui-nor.s.
lie liked th(! society oi' the great, would intrigue and flat-
ter when he had an end to gain, and foil a rival without
looking too closely at the means ; but compiired with
the Indian traders who infested thi; bordei-, he was a
model of uprightness. lie lived by the Mohawk in a
fortified house? which was a stronghold ag-.inst foes and
a scene of hosi)itality to friends, both white iind red.
Here — for his tastes were not fastidious — presided for
many years a Dutch or tJerman wench Avhom he finally
married ; and after her death a young ^fohawk squaw
took lu.'r jdace. Over his neighbors, the Indians of the
Five Nations, and all othei's of their race with whom he
had to deal, he acepiircd a remarkai)le induenco. lie
liked them, adojited their ways, and treated them kindly
or sternly as the case required, but always with a justice
and honesty in strong contrast with the rascalities of
the commission of Albany traders who had lately man-
aged their affairs, and whom they so detested that one
of their chiefs called them " not men, but devils."
Ilenee, when Johnson Avas made Indian superintendent
there was joy throngh all the Jroijuois confederacy.
When, in addition, he was made a general, lie assembled
the warriors in council to engage them to aid the
expedition.

This meeting took ])lacc at his own lioiise, known as
Fort Johnson ; and as more than eleven hundred Ind-
ians ap])earcd at his call, his larder was sorely taxed
to entertain them. The speeches were interminable.
Johnson, a master of Indian rhetoric, knew his audience
too well not to contest with them the palm of insuffer-
able prolixity. The climax was reached on the fourth

^ I

BATTLE OF LAKE GEORGE.

duy, and he tlirew down llic wiir-bclt. An Oneida chief
took it up; Stevens, the iiitcriu'eter, hcj^jin tlie wjir-
danec, and the assembled warriors liowh'd in eliorus.
Then a tub of puncli was brouirlit in, and tlu-y ail drank
the King's health. They showed less ahierity, however,
to fiLdit his batlles, and scarc;'ly three hundred ol" tliein
Avoidd take the war-path. Too ninny of their friends
and rehitives were enlisted for tiio Freneh.

Wliilc the British colonists were? prepnrin<j^ to attack
Crown Point, tlie French of Canada wei'e j)repai'iu,t!: to
(h'fend it. I)u((ucsnc, recalled from Ins post, liad re-
siixucfl the irovernment to tlu; Marc^uis do Vaudrcuil. who
had at his disposal the battalions of rejruhirs tliat had
sailed in the sprinj^ from Brest under Jiaron IMeskau.
His first thought was to use thcin b)r the capture of
Oswego; but letters of Braddock, found on the baltle-
field of the jMonongahela, warned him of llie design
against Crown Point; while a reconnoitring party which
had gone as far as the Hudson brought Inick news that
Johnson's forces were alreadv in the held. Therefore
the })la.n was changed, and Dieskau was ordered to lead
the main body of his troops, not to Lake Ontario, but
to Lake Champlain. He passed up the Richelieu, and
embarked in boats and canoes for Crown Point. The-
veteran knew that the foes with whom lie had to deal
were but a mob of countrymen. He dou])ted not of ])ut-
tiug them to rout, and meant never to hold his hand till
he had chased them back to Albany. "Make all haste,"
Vaudreuil wrote to him; ''for when you return we shall
send you to Oswego to execute our first design."

Johnson on his part was preparing to advance. In
July about three thousand provincials were encamped
near Albany, some on the "Flats" above the town, and
some on the meadows below. Hither, too, came a swarm

fir

LAKE GEOIIGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIN.

i 1

of Jolinsoii's Muliawkw, — warriors, H(iuawH, and chiltlron.
They adorned tliu CJcncrars I'ucu witli \var-|iaiiit, and liu
danced the war-dance; tlieu with liis sword he ent the
first slice from Hie ox tliat had been roasted wiiole
for Iheir ent(!rtainment. "1 shall be glad," wrote the
Bur^^eon of ki New I'Jnj-land regiment, " if they light as
eagei-ly as they ate their ox and drank their wine."

Above all things the ox|)edition needed promptness;
yet every! hi iig moved slowly. Five po^mlar legislatures
controlled the troops and the supplies, ('ouneeticut had
refused to send her men till Shirley promised that her
commanding officer should rank next to Johnson. The
whole movement was for some time at a deadlock because
the five governments could not agree al)out their cou-
tril)utions of artillery and stores. The New ITampshire
regiment had taken a short cut for Crown Point across
the wilderness of Vermont; but had been recalled in time
to save them from probable destruction. They were now
with (he rest in the camp at Albany, in snch distress
for ])rovisions that a private subscription was proposed
for their relief.

.lolmson's army, crude as it was, had in it good mate-
rial. Here was Phineas Lyman, of Connecticut, second
in command, once a tutor at Yale College, and more
recently a hiwycr, — a raw soldier, bnt a vigorous and
brave one ; Colonel Moses Titcomb, of Massachusetts,
who had fought with credit at Lonisbourg; and Ephraim
Williams, also colonel of a Massachusetts regiment, a
tall and portly mnn, vvho had been a ca])tain in the last
war, member of the General Court, and deputy-sheriff.
He made his will in the camp at Albany, and left a
legacy to found the school which has since become Wil-
liams College. His relative, Stephen Williams, was
chaplain of his regiment, and his brother Thomas was

chiUU'oii.
b, ami lii5
; cut tlio
ed whole
,viotc tho
y liglit as

uc."

)m[)tucss ;
oislaturcrt
cticiit luul
I that her
son. The
ck because
Iheh" con-
ITampslnre
oint across
Hod in time
y were now
icli distress
is proposed

rrood matc-
icnt, second
I, and more
io-orons and
issachnsctts,
md Ephraim

regiment, a
n in the last
cputy-slieriff.
r, and left a

become Wil-
riUiams, was

Thomas was

IJATTLE OF LAKE GEOUGE.

its surg(M)n. Seth Pomeroy, gunsmith at Northampfon,
who, like Titeouib, had seen service at Luuisbourg, was
its lieuteuant-culunel. lie had lelt a wile at home, an
excellent matron, to whom he was conliuuuUy writing
al'leetionute letters, mingling household cares with news
oi' the cam]), and chai'ging her to see lliat their ekk!st
boy, Seth, then in college at New Haven, did not run oiT
to the armv. IVmerov had with him his brother Daniel ;
and this he thought was enough. Here, too, was a man
wliose name is still a household word in New Eniiland,
— the stiu'dy Israel Putnam, private in a Connecticut
regiment; and nnothor as bold as he, John Stark, lieu-
tenant in the New Hampshire levies, and the luturc
victor of Hennington.

The soldiers were no soldiers, but farmers and farmers'
sons who had volunteered for the summer eanipaign.
One of the corps liad a blue uniform faced with red.
The rest wore their daily clothing. Blankets had been
served out to ihem by tlie several provinces, but the
greater part brought Iheir own guns; some under the
penalty of a fine if they came without tliem, and some
under the inducement of a reward. They liad no bay-
onets, but carried hatchets in their belts as a sort of
sul)stitnte. At their sides were slung powder-horns, on
which, in the leisure of the camp, they carved quaint
devices with the points of their jack-knives. They came
chiefly from plain New England homesteads, — rustic
abodes, unpaintcd and dingy, with long well-sweeps,
capacious barns, rough fields of punijikins and corn,
and vast kitchen chimneys, above which in winter hung
squashes to keep them from frost, and guns to keep
them from rust.

As to the manners and morals of the army there is
conflict of evidence. In some respects nothing could

1!
lil

111

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIN.

be more exemplary. " Not a cliickeii lias been stolen,"
8a} s William Smith, of New York ; while, on the other
hand, Colonel Ephraim Williams writes to Colonel
Israel Williams, then commanding on the Massachusetts
frontier: " We are a wicked, ])rofane army, especially the
New York* and Rhode Island troojjs. Nothing to be
heard among a great ])art of them but the language of
Hell. If Crown Point is taken, it will not be for our
sakes, but for those good people left behind." There
was edifying regularity in respect to form. Sermons
twice a week, daily prayers, and frequent jisalm-
sinning alternated with the much-needed military drill.
" Prayers among us night and morning," writes Private
Jonathan Caswell, of Mtissachusctts, to his father.
*' Here we lie, knowing not when we shall march for
Crown Point ; but I hope not long to tarry. Desiring
your prayers to God for me as 1 am agoing to war, 1
am Your Ever Dutiful Son."

To Pomeroy and some of his brothers in arms it
seemed that they \rere engaged in a kind of crusade
against the mvrmidons of Rome. "As V(^.i have at
heart the Protestant cause," he wrote to his friend
Israel Williams, "so I ask an interest in your pra}ers
that the Lord of Hosts would go forth with us and give
us victory over our nnrcasonabl<% encroaching", barbarous,
niurdei-ing <'nemies."

Both Williams the surgeon and Williams the colonel
chafed at the incessant delays. "The expedition goes
on very nuich as a snail runs," writes the former to his
wife ; " it seems we may ])ossibly sec Crown Point this
time twelve months." The ('olonel was vexed because
everything was out of joint in the dei)artment of trans-
portation : wagoners mutinous for want of pay ; ordnance
stores, camp-kettles, and provisions left behind. "As to

VTN.

en stolen,"
I the other
to Colonel
bsacliusetts
pecially the
hing to bo
anguago of
be for our
1." There
, Sermons
ent ]isalm-
litary drill,
tcs Private
his father,
march for
. Desiring
g to war, 1

in arms it
ol' crusade
^.1 have at
Ills friend
our praters
lis and give
:, barbarous,

the colonel
edition goes
i-mcr to his
L Point this
^cd because
ut of trans-
; ; ordnance
nd. ''As to

BATTLE OF LAKE GEORGE.

rum," he complains, " it won't hold out nine weeks.
Things appear most melauclioly to me." E\en as he
was writing, a report came of the defeat of Braddock ;
and, shocked at the blow, his pen traced the words: '' The
Lord have mercy on {)Oor New England ! "

Johnson had sent four Mohawk scouts to Canada.
Tlu'V returned on the twenty-lirst of August with the
report that the French were all astir with preparation,
and that eight thousand men were coming to defend
Crown Point. On this a council of war was called ; and
it was resolved to send to the several colonies for
reinforcements. Meanwhile the main body had moved
up the river to the spot called the Great Carrying Place,
where Lyman had begun a fortified storehouse, which
his men called Fort Lvnian, but which was afterwards
named Fort Edward. Two Indian trails led from this
point to the waters of Lake Champlain, one by way of
Lake (Jeortjje, and the other bv way of Wood Creek.
There was doubt which course tlu; army should take.
A road was begun to Wood Creek ; then it was counter-
manded, and a party was sent to exphnv the path to
Lake (leorge. '• With submission to the general of-
ticers," Surgeon Williams again writes, '' 1 think it a
very grand mistake that the business of reconnoitring
was nut done months agone." It was resolved at last
to march for Lake Ceorge ; gangs of axemen were sent
to hew out the way; and on the twenty-sixth two thou-
sand men were ordered to the lake, while Colonel
Blanchard, of New Hampshire, remained with five hun-
dred to finish and defend Fort Lyman.

The train of Dutch wagons, guarded by the homely
soldiery, jolted slowly over the stumps and roots of the
newly made road, and the reiriments followed at their
leisure. The hardshii)s of the way were not without

-I <
II:

'Mi

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

their consolations. The jovial Irishman who held the
chief command made himscli' verv a<>,recaljle to the New
England ollicers. " We went on about four or five miles,"
says Pomeroy in his Journal, " tlien stopped, ate pieces of
broken bread and cheese, and dran]<; some fresh lemon-
j)unch and the best of wine witii General Johnson and
some of the field-orticers." It was the same on the next
day. " Stoi»ped about noon and dined with Ccneral
Johnson by a small bi'ook under a tree ; ate a jiood
dinner of cold boiled and roast venison ; drank good
fresh lemon-punch and wine."

That afternoon they reached their destination, four-
teen miles from Fort Lyman. The most beautiful lake
in America lay before them ; then more beautiful than
now, in tlie wild charm of untrodden mountains and
virgin forests. " I liavc given it the name of Lake
George," wrote Johnson to the Lords of Trade, " not
only in honor of His Majesty, but to ascertain his un-
doubted dominion here." llis men made their camp
on a piece of rough ground by the edge of the water,
pitching thi'ir tents among the stumps of the newly
felled trees. In tlieir front was a fon^st of })itcli-pine ;
on their right, a marsh, choked with alders and swamp-
maples ; on their left, the low hill where Fort George
was afterwards built; and at their rear, the lake. Little
was done to (dear the forest in front, though it would
give cxc(dlent cover to an enemy. Nor did Johnson
take much ])ains to learn the movements of the French
in the direction of Crown Point, thougii he sent scouts
towards South Bay and Wood Creek. Every day stores
and bateaux, or flat boats, came on wagons from Fort
Lyman ; and preparation moved on with the leisui'o tliat
had marked it from the (irst. About throe hundred
Mohawks came to the camp, and were regarded by the

BATTLE OF LAKE GEORGE.

icld the

the New

) miles,"

)icccs of

1 lemon-

sou and

the next

General

a jrood

Ilk good

»n, four-

fnl lake

fill than

lins and

[)f Lake |

Ic, "not j

his un-

ir camp

e water, |

newly ^

eh-i)ine ;

swam})- 1

George |

. Little 1

it would f

Johnson |

3 French |

t scouts 1

iy stores j

om Fort i

uii'c that 1

hundred 1

d hy the |

New England men as nuisances. On Sunday the gray-
haired Stephen Williams preached to these savage allies
a long Cal\ inistic sermon, which must have sorely per-
plexed the interpreter whose husiness it was to turn
it into Mohawk ; and in the afternoon young Glia])lain
Newell, of Rhode Ishind, expounded to the New l"]ngland
men the somewhat untimelv text, " Love vour enemies,"
On the next Sunday, Se))temher seventh, AVilliams
preached again, this time to the whites from a text
in Isaiah. It was a peaceful day, fair and warm, with
a few light showers ; yet not wholly a day of rest, for
two hundred wagons came up from Fort Lyman, loaded
Avith hatcaux. After the sermon there was an alarm.
An Indian scout came in ahout sunset, and reported
that he had found the trail of a hody of men moving
from South Lav towards Fort Lvman. Johnson called
for a volunteer to cari-y a letter of warning to Colonel
Llanchard, the comnuuider. A wagoner named Adams
offered himself for the perilous servif-e, mounted, and
galloped along the road with the letter. Sentries were
})0sted, and the camp fell asleep.

While Johnson lay at Lake (ieoi-ge, Dieskau prepared
a suri)rise for him. The (Jerman IJaron had reached
Crown Point at the head of three thousand live hundred
and seventy-thi-ee men, regidars, Canadians, and Indians.
fle had no thought of waiting there to l»e attacked, 'i'he
troops were told to hold themselves ready to move at
a moment's notice. Oflicers — so ran the order — will
take nothing with them hut one spare shirt, one spare
pair of shoes, a hlanket. a hearskin, and |>rovisions for
twelve days; Indians are not to anuise themsilves by
taking scalps till the enemy is entirely defeated, since
they can kill ten men in the time required to seal}) one.
Then Dieskau moved on, with nearly all his force, to

.!|

fill!!}

ill

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CUAMPLAIN.

Carillon, or Ticoiidcroga, a promontory commanding
both the routes by wliicli alone Johnson could advance,
that of Wood Creek and that of Lake Ccorgo.

The Indian allies were commanded by Legardeur de
Saint-Pierre. These unmanageable warriors were a con-
stant annoyance to Dieskau, being a species of humanity
(luite new to him. "They drive us crazy," he says,
"from morning till night. There is no end to their
demands. They have already eaten five oxen and as
many hogs, without counting the kegs of brandy they
have drunk. In short, one needs tlie patience of an
angel to get on with these devils ; and yet one must
always force himself to seem pleased with them."

They would scarcely even go out as scouts. At last,
however, on the fourth of Se])tcmb(M-, a reconnoitring
party came in with a seal]) and an English ])risoner
caught near Fort Lyman. He was questioned under the
threat of being given to the Indians for torture if lie did
not tell the truth; but, nothing daunted, he invented a
])atriotic falsehood ; and thinking to lure his captors
into a traj), told them that the English army had fallen
back to Albany, leaving five hundred men at Fort
Lyman, which he represented as indefensible. Dieskau
resolved on a rapid movement to seize the place. At
noon of the same day, leaving a part of his force at
Ticonderoga, lie embarked the rest in canoes and ad-
vanced along the narrow prolongation of Lak(! Chaui-
plain that stretched southward through the wilderness
to where the town of Whitehall now stands. He soon
came to a point whore the lake dwindled to a more canal,
while two mighty rocks, capped with stunted forests,
faCv'd each other from the opposing l)anks. ITerc he
loft an officer named Roquomaure with a dotaclimont
of troojts, and again advanced along a belt of quiet water

III

BATTLE OF LAKE GEOnOE.

Handing
idvunce,

•

•deur de
ro a cun-
umanity
ho says,
to their

and as
idy tlicy
id of an
nc must
!m."
At last,
moitring
])nsoner
ndcr the
f he did

cntod a

captors
,d fallen
at Fort
Dieskaii
ice. At
force at

and ad-
0, Cham-
Idorncss
Te soon
ro canal,

forests,
ITcre he
ficlimont
et water

traced through the midst of a deep marsh, green at
that season with sedge and water-weeds, and known
to the English as the Drowned Lands. JJeyond, on
either hand, ci'ags feathered with bircii and fir, or liills
mantled with woods, looked down on tlie long procession
of canoes. As they nearcd the site of Whitehall, a pas-
sage opened on the right, the entrance to a slieet of
lonely water slumbering in the shadow of woody moun-
tains, and forming the lake then, as now, called South
Day. They advanced to its head, landed where a small
stream enters it, left the canoes under a guard, and
began llicir march through the forest. Tiiey counted
in all two hundred and sixteen regulars of the battalions
of Languedoc and La Reinc, six hundred and eighty-
four Canadians, and about six hundred Indians. Every
olliccr and man carried provisions for eight dnys in his
knapsack. They encamped at night by ii brook, nud in
the morning, after hearing ^lass. marched again. The
evening of the next day brought them near the road that
led to Lake George. Fort Lyman was but three miles
distant. A man on horseback galloi)ed by ; it was
Adams, Johnson's unfortunate messenger. The Indians
shot him, and found the letter in his ))ocket. Soon
after, ten or twelve wngons a])j)eared in charge of mu-
tinous drivers, who had left the English can))) without
ordiM's. Several of them were shot, two were taken, and
the rest ran off. The two captives declared that, con-
trary to the assertion of the prisoner at Ticonderoga, a
large force lay encamped at the lake. Tlu> Indians now
held a coimcil, and presently gave out that they would
not attack the fort, wliich they thouulit well su])plied
with cannon, but that they were willing to attack the
camp at Lake George. Remonstrance was lost upon
them. Dieskau was not young, but he was daring to

28 LAKE GEOUCiE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

rashness, and inflamed to emulation by the victory over
Braddock. The enemy were reported greatly to outnum-
ber him ; but his Canadian advisers had assured him
that the English colony militia were the worst troojjs
on the lace of the earth. '' The more there are," he
said to the Canadians and Indians, " the more we shall
kill ;" and in the morning the order was given to march
for the lake.

They moved rapidly on through the waste of pines,
and soon entered the rugged valley that led to Johnson's
camp. On their right was a gorge where, shadowed in
bushes, gurgled a gloomy brook; and beyond rose the
cliiTs that buttressed the rocky heights of French Moun-
tain, seen by glimpses between the boughs. On their
left rose gradujj^v the lower slopes of West Mountain.
All was red:, ;;i;cket, and forest; there Avas no open
space but the road along which the regulars marched,
while the Cai, -^ia), ■ and Indians pushed their way
through the woods in such order as the broken ground
would permit.

They were three miles from the lake, when their
scouts brought in a prisoner who told them that a col-
umn of English troops was approaching. Dieskau's
preparations were quickly made. While the regulars
lialted on the road, the Canadians and Indians moved
to the front, whei-e most of them hid in the forest along
the slo])es of West Mountain, and the rest lay close
among the thickets on the other side. Thus, when the
English advanced to attack the regulars in front, they
would find themselves caught in a double ambush. No
sight or sound betrayed the snare ; but behind every
bush crouched a Canadian or a savage, with gun cocked
and ears intent, listening for the tramp of the approach-
ing column.

BATTLE OF LAKE GEORGE.

The wagoners who escaped the cvoiiiiig before had
reached tlic camp about midnight, and re})orted that
there was a war-party on the road near Fort L\nian.
Johnson had at this time twenty-two hundred efi'ectivo
men, besides his three hundred Indians, lla called a
council of war in the morning, and a resolution was
taken Avhich can only be explained by a complete mis-
conception as to the force of the French. It was de-
termined to send out two detachments of five humlred
men each, one towards Fort Lyman, and the other
towards South Bay, the object l)cing, according to John-
son, " to catch the enemy in their retreat." Ilendrick,
chief of the Mohaw-ks, a brave and sagacious warrior,
expressed his dissent after a fashion of his own. lie
picked up a stick and broke it ; then he i)ickcd up
several sticks, and showed that together they could not
be broken. The hint was taken, and the two detach-
ments were joined in one. Still the old savage shook
his head. "If they arc to be killed," he said, "they
are too many ; if they arc to fight, they arc too few."
Nevertheless, he resolved to share their fortunes; and
mounting on a gun-carriage, he harangued his warriors
with a voice so animated, and gestures so expressive,
that the New England ofTicera listened in admiration,
though they understood not a Avord. One difTiculty
remained. He was too old and fat to go afoot; but
Johnson lent him a horse, which he bestrode, and trotted
to the liead of the column, followed by two hundred of
his warriors as fast as they could grease, paint, and
be feather themselves.

Captain Elisha Hawley was in his tent, finishing a
letter which he had just written to his brother Joseph ;
and these were the last words: "I am this minute ago-
ing out in company with five hundred men to see if we

}
i

LAKE r.EOIiCJE AND LAKE CIIAMPI.AIX.

can intercept 'em in their retreat, or lind their canoes
in the Drowned Lands; und therefore must eonehide
this letter." lie elosed and directed it ; and in un hour
received his deatii-wound.

Jt Avas soon after eight (/clock when Ejthraini "Wil-
liams left the canij) with his regiment, marched a little
distance, and tlien waiti'd for the rest of the detachment
under Lieutenant-Colonel Whitinu;. Thus Dieskau had
full time to lay his amltush. Wlien Whiting came up,
the wliole moved on together, so little conscious of dan-
ger that no scouts were thrown out in front ov ilank ;
and, in full security, they entered Ihe fatal snare. J)e-
forc they were comi)letely involved in it, the sharp eye
of old Ilendrick detected some sign of an enemy. At
that instant, whether by accident or design, a gun was
fired from the bushes. It is said that Picskau's Jroquois,
seeing Afohawks, their relatives, in the van, wished to
warn them of danger. If so, tlu^ warning came too late.
The thickets on the left Idazed out a deadly lire, and
the men fell by scores. In the words of Dieskau, the
head of the coliinm "was doul)led up like a pack of
cards." Hendriek's horse was shot down, and tlie chief
was killed with a bayonet as he tried to rise. "Williams,
seeing a rising ground on his rigid, made for it, calling
on his men to follow ; but as ho climbed the slope, guns
flashed from the bushes, and a shot through the brain
laid him dead. The men in the rear pressed forward
to support their comrades, when a hot fire was suddenly
opened on them from the forest along their right flank.
Then there was a panic : some fled outright, and the
whole column recoiled. The van now became the rear,
and all the force of the enemy rushed upon it, shouting
and screeching. There was a moment of total confusion ;
but a part of Williams's regiment rallied under command

BATTLE OF LAKE GEORGE.

of WliitiiiLsnnd covered the rolreat, li^ditin«v bi'liind trees
like Indians, and firing and falling buck by tnrns, bnivclv
aided bv some of the Mohawks and by* a detaehmen't
whieh Johnson sent to their aid. ^^ And a very hand-
some retreat they made," writes Tomerov ; '-and so
eontinued till they came within about three (niarters of
a mile of our camp. This was the last fire our men gave
our enemies, which killed great nund)era of them; Uiey
were seen to drop as i)igcons." So emied the fray long
known in New England fireside story as the "bloody
morning scout." Dieskan now ordered a lialt, and
sounded his trumpets to collect his scattered men. J I is
Indians, however, were sullen and unmamigeable, and
the Canadians also showed signs of wavering. The
veteran who commanded them all, Legardeur de Saint-
Pierre, had been killed. At length they were jjersuaded
to move again, the regulars leading the way.

About nn hour after Williams and his men had begun
their march, a distant rattle of musketry was heard at
the cnniji; and as it grew nearer and louder, the lis-
teners knew that their comrades were on the retreat.
Then, at the eleventh hour, preparations were begun for
defence. A sort of bnrricadc was made along the fi'ont
f>f the cnmp, jiartly of wagons, and i)nrtly of inverted
bateaux, liut chiefly of the trunks of trees hastily hewn
down in the neighboring forest and laid end to end in
a single row. The line extended from the southern
slopes of the hill on the left across a tract of rough
ground to the marshes on the right. The forest, choked
with bushes and clumps of rank ferns, was within a few
yards of the barricade, and there was scarcely time to
hack away the intervening thickets. Three cannon were
planted to sweep the road that descended through the
pines, and another was dragged up to the ridge of the

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CILVMFLAIN.

[> W

\>. (

: 'I

hill. The (.Icfoatct] party began to come in; first, scared
fii,L?itives botli wiiite and red; then, gangs of men bring-
ing the wounded ; and at last, an hour and a half alter
the first lire was heard, the main detaehnu'ut was seen
marching in compact bodies down the road.

Five hundred men were detailed to guard the flanks
of the camp. The rest stood behind the wagons or lay
Hat behind the logs and inverted bateaux, the Massachu-
setts men on the right, and the Connecticut men on the
left. Besides Indians, this actual fighting force was
between sixteen and seventeen hundred rustics, very few
of whom had been under fire before that morning. They
were hardly at their posts when they saw ranks of white-
coated soldiers moving down the road, and bayonets
that to them seemed innumerable glittering between the
boughs. At tlic same time a terrific burst of war-whoops
rose along the front ; and, in the words of Poincroy,
"* the Canadians and Indians, helter-skelter, the woods
full of them, came running with undaunted courage riirht
down the hill upon ns, expecting to mike us flee."
Some of the men grew uneasy; while the chief officers,
sword in hand, threatened inst:int death to any who
should stir fi'om their posts. If Dieskan hnd made nn
assault at that instant, there could be little doubt of the
result.

This he well kncw^ ; but he was powerless. He had
Ids small force of regnlars well in hand ; but the rest,
red and white, were beyond control, scattering through
the woods and swamps, shouting, yelling, and firing from
behind trees. The regulars advanced with intrepidity to-
wards the camp where the trees were thin, deployed, and
fired by platoons, till Captain Eyre, who commanded the
artillery, opened on them with grape, broke their ranks,
and compelled them to take to cover. The fusillade

BATTLK OF LAKE GEOUOE.

was now general on both sidca, and soon grew fmions.
" Purliuius," Sclli PonuToy wrote to his wile, two dayn
after, " the hailstones from heaven were never niueh
thicker than llieir bullets came ; but, blessed bo (Jod !
that did not in the least dannt or disturb us." Johnson
received a flesh-wound in the thigh, and spent the rest
of the day in his tent. Lynnin took einnniand ; and it
is a marvel that he escaped alive, f<jr lie was four liours
in the heat of the lire, directing and animating tlie uien.
'■' It was the most awful day my eyes ever beheld," wrote
Surgeon Williams to his wife ; '* tiiere seemed to bo
nothing but thunder and lightning aud perj)etual pillai's
of smoke." To him, his c(*lleague Doctor Pynchon, one
assistant, and a young student called " Billy," fell the
charge of the wounded of his regiment. ''The bullets
Hew about our ears all the time of dressing them; so
we thought best to leave our tent aud retire a few rods
behind the shelter of a log-house." On the adjacent hill
stood oue Dlodget, who seems to liave been a sutler,
Avatching, as well as bushes, trees, and smoke would let
him, the progress of the fight, of which he soon after
made aud published a curious bird's-eye view. As the
wounded men were carried to the rear, the wagoners
about the cnmp took their guns and powder-horns, and
joiuod in tlie fray. A Moluiwk, seeing one of these men
still nnarmed, leaped over the barricade, tomahawked
the nearest Canadian, smitched his gun, and darted back
uuhurt. The brave savage found no imitators among
his tril)csmcn, most of whom did nothing l)ut utter a few
■war-whoaps, saying that they had come to see their
English brothers fight. Some of the French Ir'i;i.is
opened a distant flank fire from the high ground beyond
the swamp on the right, but were driven off by a few
shells dropped among them.

LAKE GKOIKJK AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIX.

Dioskiiu liiid (lii'cctc'J hi.s first uituck a<rainst the loft
nnd cciitrc of Joliiison's posit ion. Making no ini|)r(;ssion
hciv, lie liicd to forc(! llu; rijilit, wlicn; lay the re;iinicnts
of Titconil), Rniij^ios, and Williams. Tlio fire was hot
lor about an hour. 'J'itconib was shot dead, u n^d in
front of lln' harricade, liring from hcliind a treo like a
coinnion soldier. At length Dieskau, o.\j)osing hinis(df
within short range of the English line, was hit in the
leg. IJis adjutant, Montreuil, himself wounded, came
his aid, and was washing tlu; injun^d limb with brandy,
when the unfortunate commander was again hit in the
knee and thigh, lie seated himself behind a tree, while
the Adjutant called two ('anadians to carry him to the
rear. One of them was instantly shot down. ^Montreuil
took his ])laco ; hut Dieskau refused to be moved, bitterly
denounced the Canadians and Indians, and onlered the
Adjutant to leave him and lead the regulars in a last
effort against the camp.

It was too late. Johnson's men, singly or in small
squads, were already crossing their row of logs; and
a few moments the whole dashed forward with a sIk
falling upon the eiuMiiy with hatchets and the butts of
their guns. The French and their allies lied. The
wounded Oencral still sat helpless by the tree, when he
saw a soldier aiming at him. lie signed to the man not
to fire ; but he pulled trigixor, shot him across the hij)s,
lea})cd upon him, and ordered him in French to surren-
der. "I said," writes Dieskau, '"You rascal, why did
you fire ? You sec a man Iving in his blood on the
ground, and yon shoot him! ' lie answered : ' How did
1 know that you had not got a pistol ? I had rather kill
the devil than have the devil kill me.' ' You are a
Frenchman?' I asked. ' Yes,' he replied ; ' it is more
than ten years since I left Canada ; ' whereupon several

BATTf^E OF LAKH CEOltGK.

others icll on mc and stripped nic. I lold them to cairy
inc to their ^^oncnil, whieli tlicv did. On l<'arninii' who I
was, lio sent for Hiiri^oons, and. thouuh woimdcil hinisoif,
refused all assistances till my wounds were dressed."

It was near i\\i) o'clock when the final rout took placo.
Sonu! time hefoi-e, several hundred of tln^ Canadians and
Indians had left the field and returned to the seen(s of
tho mornini:^ liirht, to pliuider and scalp the dead. Tlioy
were resting theuiselvcs near a |iool in tho forest, closo
heside tho road, when thoir re|)ose was interru|>ted hy
a voll(>v of hidlets. It was fired hv a scoiitinu' pai'ty
fi'om Port Lyman, chiefly haidvwoodsnien, under Captains
Folsoni and McCinnis. The assailants wore irrcatly
outnumhered ; but after a hard fi^'ht the Canadians
and Indians broke and lleil. Mc(Jiunis was mortally
wounded. lie continued to u'ive orders till the firinjij
was over; tlien fainted, and was carried, dyini^, to the
cain[). The bodies of the slain, accordini^ to tradition,
were thrown into the pool, which bears to this day the
name of Bloody Pond.

'JMi(> various bauds of fuiritives rejoined each other
towards niuht, and encamped in the forest ; then ma<lo
their way round the southern shoulder of French ^[oun-
tain, till, in the next eveniuir, they reached their canoes.
Their pliu'ht was (leploral)le ; for they had left tluur
knapsacks behind, and were spent with fatiLiuc and
famine.

Meanwhile their c.iptive preneral was not yet out of
danirer. The ^fohawks wer(^ furious at their losses in
the ambush of tin; morninu', and above all at the death
of Ilendrick. Scarcely were Dieskau's wounds dressed,
when several of them came into the tent. There was a
louL!- and ansxrv dispute in their own htnu'uaire between
them and Johnson, after which tliey went out very

h:
'U

■'i

\ §

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

f iiiil

;

sullenly. Dicskau asked what tlioy wanted. " What do
they want ? " returned Johnson. " To burn you, by
God, eat you, and smoke you in their jjijjes, in revenge
for three or four of their chiefs that were killed. But
never fear ; you shall be safe with me, or else they shall
kill us both." The Mohawks soon came back, atid another
talk ensued, excited at first, and then more calm ; till
at length the visitors, seemingly api»eased, smiled, gave
Dicsivau their hands in sign of friendshi}), and quietly
went out again. Johnson warned him that he was not
yot safe ; and when the prisoner, fearing that his pres-
ence might incommode his host, asked to be removed to
another tent, a captain and fifty men were ordered to
guard him. In the morning an Indian, alone and appar-
ently unarmed, loitered al)out the entrance, and the
stujiid sentinel let him pass in. lie immediately drew
a sword from under a sort of cloak which he wore, and
tried to stab Dicskau ; but was prevented by the colonel
to whom the tent belonged, who seized upon him, took
away his sword, and pushed him out. As soon as his
wounds would permit, Dicskau Avas carried on a litter,
strongly escorted, to Fort Lyman, whence he was sent
to Albany, and afterwards to New York. lie is profuse
in expressions of gratitude for the kindness shown him
by the colonial ofllcers, and especially by Johnson. Of
the provincial soldiers he remarked soon after the battle
that in the morning they fought like good boys, about
noon like men, and in tlie afternoon like devils. In the
spring of 1757 he sailed for England, and was for a
time at Falmouth ; whence Colonel Matthew Sewell,
feariufi: that he mi<2:ht e and learn too much, wrote to
the Earl of Iloldern e : " Tbe Baron has great pene-
tration and quickness of a])prehension. His long service
under Marshal Saxc renders bim a man of real conse-

BATTLE OF LAKE GEORGE.

(luonco, to be cautiously observed. His circumstances
deserve compassion, for indeed they are very melancholy,
and I much doubt of his being ever perfectly cured,"
lie was afterwards a lont^ time at Bath, for the benefit
of the waters. In 1700 the famous Diderot met him at
Paris, cheerful and full of anecdote, though wretchedly
shattered by his wounds. Pic died a few years later.

On the night after the battle the veomcn warriors felt
the truth of the saying that, next to defeat, the saddest
thing is victory. Comrades and friends by scores lay
scattered througli the forest. As soon as he could snatch
a moment's leisure, the overworked surgeon sent the
dismal tidings to his wife : " My dear brother Ephraira
was killed by a ball through his head ; poor brother
Josiah's wound I fear will prove mortal ; ])()or Captain
Ilawley is yet alive, though I did not think he would
live two hours aftev bringing him in." Daniel Pomeroy
was shot dead ; and his brother Seth wrote the news
to his wife Rachel, who was just delivered of a child :
" Dear Sister, this brings heavy tidings ; but let not
your heart sink at the news, though it be your loss of a
dear husband. Monday the eighth instant was a mem-
orable day ; and truly you may say, had not the Lord
been on our side, we must all have been swallowed up.
My brother, being one that went out in the first engage-
ment, received a fatal shot through the middle of the
head." Seth Pomei'oy found a moment to write also to
his own wife, whom he tells that another attack is ex-
pected ; adding, in quaintly pious phrase : " But as Cod
hath begun to show mercy, I hope he will go on to be
gracious." Pomeroy was employed during the next few
days with four hundred men in what he cnlls '"- the
melancholy piece of business" of burying the dead. A
letter-writer of the time does not approve what was done

38 LAKE GEOllGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIN.

on this occasion. " Our i)Coplo," lie says, " not only
buried the French dead, but buried as many of them as
mip;ht be witliout tlie knowledge ol' our Indians, to j)re-
vent their being scalped. This 1 call an excess of civil-
ity ; " his reason being that Uraddock's dead soldiers
had been left to the wolves.

The I'^nglish loss in killed, wounded, and missing was
two hundred and sixty-two ; and that of the French, by
their own account, two hundred and twenty-eight, — a
somewhat modest result of live hours' lighting. The
English loss was chieily in the aml)ush of the morning,
where the killed greatly outnumbered the W(jun<' ',
because those who fell and could not be carried a. .ay
were tomahawked by Dieskau's Indians. In the fight
at the camp, both Indians and (Canadians kept them-
selves so well under cover that it was very dilTicult for
the New England men to pick them off, while they on
their part lay close l)ehind their row of logs. On the
French side, the regular olVicers and troo})S bore the
brunt of the battle and suffered the chief loss, nearly all
of the former and nearly half of the latter being killed
or wounded.

Jolmson did not follow up his success. He says that
his men were tired. Yet five hundred of them had
stood still all day, and boats enough for their transpor-
tation Avero lying on the beach. Ten miles down the
lake, a path led over a gorge of the mountains to Soutli
Bay, where Dieskau had left his canoes and provisions.
It needcnl but a few hours to reach and destroy them ;
but no such attempt was made. Nor, till a week after,
did Johnson send out scouts to learn the strength of the
enemy at Ticonderoga. Lyman strongly urged him to
make an efTort to seize that important ])ass ; but Johnson
tijought only of holding his own position. " I think,"

BATTLE OF LAKE GEOKGE.

-39

he wrote, " we may expect very shortly a more foriui-
dable attack." He made a solid breastwork to deleiid
his camp; and as reinforcements arrived, set them at
building a fort, which he named Fort William Henry,
on a rising ground by the hike. It is true that just after
the battle he was delicient iu stores, and liad not bateaux
enough to move his whole force. It is true, also, that
he was wounded, and that he was too jealous of Lvman
to delegate the command to him ; and so the days j)assed
till, within a fortnight, his nimble enemy were intrenched
at Ticonderoga in force enough to defy him.

The Crown Point expedition was a failure disguised
midcr an incidental success.

A WINTER RAID.

I il

'ITT'IIILE Johnson was building Fort "William Henry
^^ at one end of Lake George, the French bc.i-an
Fort Ticonderoga at the other, though they did not
finish it till the next year. In the winter of 1757,
hearing that the English were making great i)rei)ara-
tions at Fort William Henry to attack them, they
resolved to anticipate the blow and seize that })ost by
surprise. To this end, Vaudreuil, Governor of Canada,
sent a large detachment from Montreal, while the small
body of troops and provincials who occupied the English
fort remained wholly ignorant of the movement.

On St. Patrick's Day, the seventeenth of March, the
Irish soldiers wiio formed a part of the garrison of Fort
William Henry were paying homage to their patron
saint in libations of heretic rum, the i)roduct of New
England stills ; and it is said that John Stark's rangers
forgot theological differences in their zeal to share the
festivity. The story adds that they were restrained
by their commander, and that their enforced sobriety
proved the saving of the fort. This may be doubted ;
for without counting the English soldiers of the garrison
who had no sj)ecial call to be drunk that day, the fort
was in no danger till twenty-four hours after, when the
revellers had had time to rally from their pious carouse.
Whether rangers or British soldiers, it is certain that
watchmen were on the alert during the night between

t : i

f .'J

A WINTER KAII).

tlio cighteciitli and nineteenth, and that towards one in
the morninijr thev heard a sonnd of axes far down tlic
hdve, followed by the faint ghnv of a distant iire. The
inferenee was phiin, that an enemy was there, and that
the necessity of Avarming lumself had overcome his can-
tion. Tiicn all was still for some two honrs, when,
listening in the pitchy darlaiess, the watchers heard the
footsteps of a great body of men approaching on the ice,
which at the time was bare of snow. The garrison were
at their posts, and all the cannon on the side towards
the lake vomited grape and round-shot in the direction
of the sound, which thereafter was heard no more.

Those who made it were the detachmeni, called by
Vaudreuil an army, sent by him to seize the English
fort. Shirley had planned a similar stroke against
Ticonderoga a year before ; but the provincial levies had
come in so slowly, and the ice had broken n|) so soon,
that the scheme was abandoned. Vaudreuil was more
fortunate. The whole force, regulars, Canadians, and
Indians, was ready to his hand. No pains were s]»ared
in ccpiipping them. Overcoats, blankets, bearskins to
slee}) on, tarpaulins to sleep under, sjjarc moccasons,
spare mittens, kettles, axes, needles, awls, flint and
steel, and many miscellaneous articles were i)rovided, to
be dragged bv the men on light Indian sledues, along
with jirovisions for twelve days. The cost of the ex-
pedition is set at a million francs, answering to more
than as many dollars of the present time;. To the dis-
gust of the oflicers from France, the (lovernor named
his brother Rigaud for the chief command; and before
the end of February the whole party was on its march
along the ice of Lake Cbaniplain. They rested nearly
a week at Ticonderoga, where no less than three hun-
dred short scaling-ladders, so constructed that two or

i
if

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIX.

more could be joined in one, luid been made for them ;
and here, too, they reecived a reinlorcument, which
raised their number to sixteen liundi'ecl. Then, march-
ing three days along Lake George, they neared tlie fort
on the evening of the eighteenth, and prepared for a
general assault before daybreak.

'J'hc garrison, including rangers, consistent of three
hundred and fortv-six eficctive men. The fort was not
strong, and a resolute assault by numbers so suj)erior
must, it seems, have overpowered the defenders ; but
the Canadians and Indians who composed most of the
attacking force were not suited for such work ; and,
disa])pointed in his ho])e of a surprise, Kigaud withdrew
them at davbreak, after ti'ving in vain to burn the
buildings outside. A few hours after, the whole body
rea})peared, filing off to surround the fort, on which they
kei)t \\\) a brisk but harndess lire of musketry. \\\ tlie
night they wqyq heard again on the ice, approaching as
if for an assault ; and the cannon, firing towards the
somid, airain drove them back. There was silence for
a while, till tongues of flame lighted u}) the gloom, and
two sloops, ice-bound in the lake, and a large number of
bateaux on the shore were seen to be on fire. A party
sallied to save them ; but it was too late. In the
morning they were all consumed, and the enemy had
vanished.

It was Sunday, the twentieth. Everything was quiet
till noon, when the French filed out of the woods and
marched across the ice in procession, ostentatiously
carrying their scaling-ladders, and showing themselves
to the best effect. They stop))ed at a safe distance,
fronting towards the fort, and several of them advanced,
waving a red flag. An olllcer with a few men went to
meet them, and returned bringing Le Mercier, chief of

li-

A WINTER RAID.

the Canadian artillery, who, being led blindfuld into the
fort, annonnced himself us bearer of a message from
Rigaud. lie was condueted to the room of Major Eyre,
wiiere all the British ollieers were assembled; and, after
nintnal eomi)liments, he invited them to give u\) the
j)lacc pcaeeably, promising the most favorable terms,
and threatening a general assanlt and massaere in ease
of refusal. Eyre said that he should d(>fend himself to
the last ; and the envoy, again blindfolded, was led back
to whence he came.

The whole French force now advanced as if to storm
the works, and the garrison prepared to receive them.
Nothing came of it but a fusillade, to which the British
made no reply. At night the French were heard ad-
vancing again, and each man nerved himself for the
crisis. The real attack, however, was not against the
fort, but against the buildings outside, which consisted
of several storehouses, a lios})ital, a saw-mill, and the
huts of the rangers, besides a sloop on the stocks and
piles of planks and cord-wood. Covered by the niglit,
the assailants crept up with fagots of resinous sticks,
j)laced them against the farther side of the buildings,
kindled them, and escaped before the flame rose ; while
the garrison, straining their ears in the thick darkness,
fired wherever they heard a sound. Before morning all
around them was in a blaze, and they had much ado to
save the fort barracks from the shower of burning
cinders. At ten o'clock th(^ fires had subsided, and a
thick fall of snow began, filling the air with a restless
chaos of large moist flakes. This lasted all day and all
the next night, till the ground and the ice were covered
to a depth of three feet and more. The French lay
close in their camps till a little before dawn on Tuesday
morning, when twenty volunteers from the regulars

ill

AM.

LAKE GEOIIGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIN.

■11

made a bold attempt to burn the sloop (Jii the stocks,
with several storehouses and other structures, and
several hundred scows and whalebouts which had thus
far escsiped. They were only in part successful ; but
they fired the bloop and some buildings near it, and
stood far out on the ice watching the flaming vessel, a
superb bonfire amid the wilderness of snow. The
sf>ectacle cost the volunteers a fourth of their number
killed and wounded.

On Wednesday morning the sun rose bright on a
scene of wintry splendor, alid the frozen lake was dotted
with Rigaud's retreating followers toiling towards Can-
ada on snow-shoes. Before they reached it many of
them were blinded for a while by the insufferable glare,
and their comrades led them homewards by the hand.

SIEGE AND MAS.^ACRE OF FORT WILLIAM

HENRY.

TTAVIN(J ftiiloa to take Fort William Henry by siir-
-*■ -*• prise, the Freueli resolved to attack it with all the
force they eould bring against it, and in the snnmier of
17o7 the Man|iiis de Montcalm and the Chevalier de
Levis advanced against it with about eight thousand re<>-
ulars, Canadians, and Indians. The whole assembled at
Ticonderoga, where several weeks were sjjcnt in i)re])a-
ration. Provisions, camp equipage, ammunition, cannon,
and bateaux were dragged by gangs of men up the road
to the head of the rapids. The work went on through
heat and rain, by day and night, till, at the end of July,
all was done.

Tlic bateaux lay ready by the shore, but could not
carry the whole force; and Ldvis received orders to
march by the side of the lake with twenty-five hundred
men, Canadians, regulars, and Iro(iuois. lie set out at
daybreak of the thirtieth of July, his men carrying noth-
ing but their knapsacks, blankets, and weapons. Guided
by the unerring Indians, they climbed the steep gorge
at the side of Rogers Rock, gained the valley beyond,
and marched southward along a Mohawk trail which
threaded the forest in a course parallel to the lake. The
way was of the roughest; many straggled from the line,
and two officers completely broke down. The first des-
tination of the party was the mouth of Ganouskic Bay,

LAKi: v.Konc.]: and lake ciiamplaix.

now called Ncjrlliwcst Hay, Avlicrc^ Ihcy wci-c tu wait for
Aloiilcalin, and kindlt; lliroo liro.s as a .si<;iial that tlicv
had reached the rendezvous.

Montcalm left ii detachment to hohl Ticoudero^a ;
and then, on the first of Angiist, at two in the afternoon,
he embarked at tlie Btirned Camp with all liis remaining
force. Inclndin.ir those with Levis, tlie expedition eonnted
about seven thousand six hundred men, of wliom more
than sixteen liuudred were Indians. At five; in the
afternoon they reached tlie place where the Indians, ^vho
had gone on before the rest, were smokint; their jtipes
and waiting for the army. The red warriors endjarked,
and joined tlu; FrcMich flotilla; and now, as evening drew
near, "was seen one of those ^vild pageantries of -war
Avhlch l^ake (leorgc has often witnessed. A restless
multitude of birch canoes, filled with ])ainted savages,
glided by shores and islands, like ti'oojjs of swinnning
water-fowl. Two hundred and fifty bateanx came next,
moved by sail and oar, some bcai'ing the Canadian
militia, and some the battalions of Old France in trim
and gay attire: first, La Heine and Languedoc ; then
tlic colony regtdars; then La Sarrc and Cuienne; then
the Canadian brigade of Courtemanchc ; th<>n the can-
non and mortars, each on a i)latform snstainc^d by two
bateanx lashed side by side, and rowed by the militia of
Snint-Ours ; then the battalions of Beam and Royal
Ronssillon ; then the Canadians of Gaspe, with the pro-
vision-bateaux and the field-hospital ; and, lastly, a rear
guard of regulars closed the line. So, nnder the flush
of sunset, they held their course along the romantic
lake, to jtlay their part in the historic drama that lends
a stern enchantment to its fascinating scenery. They
passed the Narrows in mist and darkness ; and whe::, a
little before dawn, they rounded the high promontory of

SIKGE OK FOKT WILLIAM llENUY. 47

Toiijrtio i\rt)un(ain, tlioy saw, far on tlie rij^lit, thrct' fiery
sparks shining tlirough the gloom. 'riii'sc were the-
signal-fn'cs of Luvis, to tuU them that he had I'eaehed
tlie appointed spot.

Levis had arrived the evening before, after his hard
march through tlie sultrv midsummer forest. His men
had now rested for a niglit, and at ten in the morning
ho marched again. iMontealm followed at noon, and
coasted the western shore, till, towards evening, he found
L6vis waiting for him hy the margin of a small hay not
far from the English fort, though hidden fi'om it hy a
projecting j)oint of land. Canoes and bateaux were
drawn uj) on the beach, and the united forces made
their bivouac together.

The earthen mounds of Fort William Henry still
stand by the brink of Lake George; and seated at the
sunset of an August day under the ])ines that cover
them, one gazes on a scene of soft and soothing beauty,
where dreamy waters reflect the glories of the moun-
tains and the skv. As it is to-dav, so it was then ; all
breathed repose and peace. The splash of some leaping
trout, or the dipping wing of a j)assing swallow, alone
disturbed the summer calm of that unruffled miri'or.

About ten o'clock at night two boats set out from the
fort to reconnoitre. They were passing a j)oint of land
on their left, two miles or more down the lake, when
the men on board descried through the gloom a strange
object against the bank; and they rowed towards it to
learn what it might be. It was an awning over the ba-
teau that carried Roubaud and his brother missionaries.
As the rash oarsmen drew near, the bleating of a sheej)
in one of the French provision-boats warned them of
danger; and turning, they pulled for their lives towai'ds
the eastern shore. Instantlv more than a thousand

19 ■

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CILVMPLAIN.

If''

iiuliiins threw tlicmsclvcH Into their ciinocs und dashed
in hot pursuit, niakin;^ the lake and tiie mountains rinii:
with tlio diu of (heir war-whoops. The I'uiiitives had
nearly reached hind when their pursuers oj»ened (ire.
Tlu'y repUed ; shot oiu; Indian dead, and wounded
another; tlien snatched their oars again, and gained the
beach. Hut tlie whole savage crew was upon them.
Several were killed, three were taken, and the rest es-
cai)ed in the dark woods. The prisoners were brought
before Montcalm, and gave him valuable information of
the strength and ))osition of the English.^

The Indian who was killed was a noted chief of tho
Xijiissings ; and his tribesmen howled in grief for their
bereavement. They painted his face with vermilion, tied
feathers in his hair, hung jiendants in his cars and nose,
clad him in a resplendent war-dress, put silver bracelets
on his arms, hung a gorget on his breast with a ilamo-
colored ribbon, and seated him in state on the top of a
hillock, with his lance in his hand, his gun in the hollow
of his arm, his tomahawk in his belt, and his kettle by
his side. Then thev all crouched about him in luuubri-
ous silence. A funeral harangue followed ; and next a
song and solemn dance to the thumping of the Indian
drum. In the gray of the morning they buried him as
he sat, and i)laced food in the grave for his journey to
the land of souls.

As the sun rose above the eastern mountains tho
French camp was all astir. The column of Ldvis, with
Indians to lead the way, moved through the forest
towards the fort, and Montcalm followed with the main

1 The remains of Fort William Henry are now crowded bef^'-
hotel and the wliarf and station ol a railway. A scheme lias .t

on foot to level the whole for c flier railway structures. Wiiei. first
knew the place the ground was in much the same state as hi the tunc of
Montcalm.

I? i 1

111

iiJ

I' i

'f ' I-.. I

i li n

SIEGE OF FORT WII LIAM IIENUY.

body ; then the artillery boats rounded the point that
had hid them from the sight of the English, saluting
them as thev did so with niuskctrv and cannon; while
a host of savages put out ui»ou the lake, ranged their
canoes abreast in a line from shore to shore, and ad-
vanced slowly, with measured paddle-strokes and yells
of defiance.

The position of the enemy was full in sight beft^i-e
them. At the head of tlic lake, towards the right, stood
the fort, close to the edge of the water. On its left was
a marsli ; then the rough piece of gi-ound where Johnson
had encamped two years before ; then a low, Hat, rocky
hill, crowned with an intrenched camp; and, lastly, on
the extreme left, another marsh. Far around the fort
and i\\) the slopes of the western mountain the forest had
been cut down and bmned, and the ground was cumbered
with blackened stumps and charred carcasses and liml)s
of fallen trees, strewn in savage disorder one upon
another. Distant shouts and war-cries, the clatter of
musketry, white ])ul'fs of smoke in the dismal clearing
and along the scorched edge of the bordering forest, told
that Levis' Indians were skirmishing with parties of the
English, who had gone out to save the cattle roiiming in
the neiirhborhood, and burn some out-bulldinus that
would have favored the ()esiegers. Others were taking
down the tents that stood on a plateau near the foot of
the mountain on the right, and nutving them to the
intrenehment on tlu^ hill. The garrison sallied from
the fort to support their comrades, and for a time the
firing was hot.

Fort William Henry was an irregular hastioned square,
formed by embankments of gravel surmounted by a
ram|tr:-t of heavy logs, laid in tiers crossed one upon
another, the interstices filled with earth. The lake pro-

iij

li; ■

LAKE GEOIIGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIN.

tcctcd it on tlio north, tlic marsh on the cast, and ditches
with rhevaux-dc-frlse on the south and wc^st. Seventeen
cannon, great and small, besides several mortars and
swivels, were mounted ujion it ; and a brave Scotch
veteran, Lieutenant-Colonel Monro, of the thirty-fifth
regiment, was in command.

General Weld) lay fourteen miles distant at Fort Ed-
ward, with twenty-six hundred men, chielty provincials.
On the tw(Mitv-lii"th of Julv he had made a visit to Fort
William Henry, examined the place, given some orders,
and returned on the twenty-ninth. He then wrote to
the Goveinor of Xew York, telling him that the French
were certainly coming, begging him to send up the
militia, and saying: " 1 am determined to march to Fort
William Henry with the whole army under my command
as s<M)n as I shall hoar of the farther aj)proach of the
enemy." Instead of doing so he waited three days, and
then sent up a detachment of two hundred regulars
under Lieutenant-Colonel Young, and eight hundred
Massachus(>tts men under Colonel Fryc. This raised
the force at the lake to two thousand an i two hundred,
iiududing sailors and mechanics, and reduced that of
Webb to sixteen hundred, besides half as many more
distributed at Albany and the intervening forts. Tf,
according to his spirited intention, he should go to the
rescue of Monro, he must leave some of his troops behind
him to ])rotect the lower posts from a possible French
inroad by way of South Bay. Thus his power of aiding
Monro was slight, so rashly had Loudon, intent on
Louisbourg, left this frontier open to attack. The defect,
however, was as nnich in Webb himself as in his re-
sources. His conduct in the past year had raised doubts
of his personal courage ; and this was the moment for
answering them. Great as was the disparity of numbers,

(\
(1

ct,

Irc-

SIEGE OF FORT Vv'ILLIAM HENRY.

r»l

the emerjrcncy woiiltl liavc justified an att(Mnpt to save
Monro at any risk. That oflicor sent liini a liasty note,
written at nine o'elock on the mornint^ of the tliird,
telling liini that the French were in sight on the lake;
and, in the next niglit, three rangers came to Fort
Edward, bringing another short note, dated at six in tlie
evening, announcing that the llring had begun, and clos-
ing with the words : " I believe you will think it |)roj)er
to send a reinforcenient as soon as possible/' Now, if
ever, was the time to move, before the fort was invested
and access cut off. IJut Webb lay (juiet, sending ex-
presses to New England for lielp which could not possibly
arrive in time. On the next night another note came
from Monro to say that the French were upon him in
great numbers, well sui)plied with artillery, but that the
garrison were all in good spirits. " I make no doul»t,"
wrote the hard-pressed olhcer, " that you will soon scFid
us a reinforcement ; " and again on the same day : " Wo
are very certain that a part of the enemy have got be-
tween you and us upon the high road, aud would there-
fore be glad (if it meets with your approbation) the
whole army was marched.'" But AVc^bb gave no sign.

When the skirmishing around the fort was over. La
Corne, with a body of Indians, occupied the road that
led to Fort Edward, and Ldvis encamj)ed hard by to
support him. while ^fontcalm proceedinl to examine the
ground and settle his [)lan of . ttack. ITe made his way
to the rear of the intrenched cam[> and reconnoitred it,
hoping to carry it by assault ; but it had a breastwork
of stones and logs, and he thought the attempt too haz-
ardous. The ground where he stood was that where
Dieskau had been defeated ; and as the fate of his pre-
decessor was not of flattering augury, he resolved to
besiege the fort in form.

•t

.J.

LAKE (JIKOUGE AND LAKE CJLVMPLAIX.

I \

He I'liose for the sito of his optM-al ions the ground
now fovorod bv Ihc villii<j;(; of Culdwcll. A litth' to the;
nortli of it w;is u iMvinc, beyond whieii h(^ I'ornied liis
niiiin (Mnip, while Ldvis oceii|>ied a trnet of dry {rround
Ix'side the marsh, whence lie eonld easily move lo inler-
cept snceors fi'oni Foit lulward on the one hand, or repel
a sortie from Fort William Henry on the oilier. A brook
ran down the ravine and entered the \i\kv at a small
cove protected from tlu^ lire of tlie fort by a jioinl of
hind; and at this place, still calbnl Artillery Cove,
Monti'alm j)repared to debark liis cannon and mortars.

Ilavin,;;- made his jtri'parations, lie sent Fontbrune, one
of his aides-de-camp, with a lett(M- to Monro. " I owe it
to hiimauitv," lu' wrote, "to summon vou to surrender.
At present 1 can restiM' i the savaires, Jind make them
observe the terms of a capitidation, as 1 miu'ht not hav(^
power to do under other circmnstances ; and an obstinate
defence on your part could only relai'd the caj)tui'e of tlu;
place a few days, and endae rer an unfortunate pin-ison
which cannot be relieved, in conse(pience of the dis|iosi-
tions I have made. 1 demand a ilecisive answer within
an hour." Monro replied that he and his soldiers would
dtM'end themselves to the last. Whih' the lla.u's of truci>,
were tlyinu', the Indians swarmed over the fields before
tlie fort; and when they learned the result, an Abenaki
chief shouted in broken French : '* Vou won't surrender,
eh I Fire away then, and tiirht your best ; for if 1 catch
vou, vou shall u:et no (inarter."' ^donro emphasized his
refusal by a j:"eneral discharijt^ of his cannon.

The treiu'hes were oju'iied on the niulit of the fourth,
— a task of extreme diniculty,as the jiround was covered
by a profusion of half-burned stumps, roots, branches,
and fallen trunks. Eight hundred men toiled till day-
light with pick, spade, and axe, while the cannon from

SIEGE OF FORT WfLLIAM IIEXIIY.

'^i

the fort lliisli(!(i tliroiij^li tlu; darkiiuss, and fj^rapn and
round-shot whistled and screamed over the'ir licads.
Sonio of the Kn^lish halls reached (he camp heyoiid the
ravine, and distiirhed <he slumhers of the ollicers off
duty, as they lay vvnipped in their hhmkets and hear-
skins. Before dayhreak the (irst parallel was made; a
hattery was nearly finished on the left, and another was
he<ijun on the rii^ht. The men now workiid umhn- cover,
safe in their hnrrows ; one ^ang relieved another, and
the work went on all diiy.

Th(^ Indians were far from doing what was expected
of them. lnst(^ad of scouting in the direction of Fort
Kdward to learn the movements of tlie enemy and pre-
vent sur[>rise, they loitered ahout the; camp and in the
trenchi's, or amused themselves hy firing at the fort
from hehind stumps and logs. Some, in imitation of
the French, thig little trenches for themselves, in whi(;h
they wormed tiieir way towards the rami)ai't, and now
and then picked off an artillery-man, not without loss on
their own side. On the afternoon of the fifth, Montcalm
invited them to a council, gave them helts of wampum,
and mildlv remonstrated with tlnnn. " Whv exijose
yourselves without necessity ? T grieve hittei'ly over the
losses that you have met, for the least amonir you is
precious i6 nic. No douht it is a good thintr to annoy
the English ; hut that is not the main |>oint. You ought
to inform me of everything the enemy is doing, and
always ke(>p ])Jirties on the load hetween the two forts."
An«l he gently hinted that theii- place was not in his
camp, hut in that of Levis, where missionaries w«M'e
provided for such of them as were Christians, and food
and ammunition for them all. They promised, with
excellent docility, to do everything he wished, hut
added that there was something on their hearts. Being

f:t

■l ht-^

LAKK GKOUGE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

ciU'onra<j:<Ml to relievo tlu'ins(;lves of tho bunion, thcv
coMiplaiiuMl tliat tlioy luul not boon consultod as to tho
niana^oni(!iit, of tbo sioj^o, but woro oxpoctod to oboy
orders like slaves. " Wo know more about ligliting in
the woods than you," said their orator; " ask our advice,
and you will bo the better for it."

Montoalin assured them that if they had been nog-
looted, it was oidy through the hurry and confusion of
the time; expressed hiiih ap|)reoiation of their talents
for bush-lijihtint^, prouiisod them ani])io satisfaction, and
ended by toUinu; them tiiat in the niorniniL>: they shouhl
hoar tho big guns. This greatly pleased them, for they
were extremely imj)ationt for the artillery to begin.
About smiriso the battery of the loft opened with (Mght
lumvy cannon and a mortar, joined, on the next morn-
ing, by the battery of the right, with eleven pieces
more. The fort replied with sj)irit. The cannon thun-
dered all day, and from a hundred jxniks and cruus tho
astoiiishod wild(M-n(>ss roared back tho sound. The Ind-
ians were delighted. They wanted to point tho guns ;
and to humor them, thev wore now and then allowed
to do so. Others lay behind logs and fallen trees, and
yelled their satisfaction when they saw tho splinters
lly from tho wood«'n rampart.

Day aft(>r day th(> woiiry roar of the distant cannonade
fell on the oars of Webb in his camp at Fort Edward.
" 1 have not yet received tho least reinforcement," ho
writes to Loiulon ; ^ this is tho disagreeable situation wo
are at present in. The fort, by the heavy fii-ing we hear
from the lake, is still in our ))ossession ; but I fear it
cannot long hold out against so warm a cannonading
if I am not reinforced by a sutVicient number of militia
to march to their relief." Tho militia were coming;
but it was impossible that many could reach him in less

SIEGE OF FOIiT WILLIAM HENRY.

than a week. Those; from New York alonu vvcro within
call, and two tlioiisand of thcni arrived soon after ho
sent London the above letter. Then, by 8tiij)|>ing all
the forts below, he could brini^ toj^ether forty-live hun-
dred men; while several French des(3rters assured him
that Montcalm had nearly twelve thousand. To iidvance
to the relief of Monro with a force so inferior, throu.<,di
a deliloof rocks, forests, and mountains, mad(; by naturt;
for ambuscades, — and this loo with troojts who had
neither the steadiness of rey-ulars nor the bush-li<rhtin<r
skill of Indians, — was an enterprise for firmer nerve
than his.

He had already warned Monro to exjM'ct no helj) from
him. At midni.irht of tlie fourth, (.'iiptain IJartman, his
aide-de-cani]), wrote: ''The (Jeneral has ordered me to
ac(juaint you he does not thiidv it |)rudent to attem|»t a
junction or to assist you till reinforced by the militia
of the colonies, for the immediate march of which re-
peated exjtresses have; been sent." The letter then
declared that the French were in comj)lete possession
of the road l>etween the two foi'ts, that a prisoner just
broufiht in reported their force in men and camion to
be very ^reat, and that, unless tin; militia came soon,
Monro had better make what teiins he could with the
enemy.

The chance was small that this letter would reach its
destination ; and in fact the bearer was killeil l)y La
Corne's Indians, who, in strippini^ the body, found the
hidden paper, an<l carried it to the (Jeneral. Montcalm
kept it several days, till the Fnulish rampart was half
battered down; and then, after saluting his enemy with
a volley from all his cannon, he sent it with a graceful
compliment to Monro. It was IJougainville who carried
it, preceded by a drummer and a Hag. lie was met at

^"f

.■■ i*

LAKE GEOIKJE AND I^VKE CIIAMPLAIN.

b a \

the foot of the ^hicis, hliudloUk'd, ami led tlin)ii;^h tlio
fort and ulonj^ tlio cdjii' of the lake to the iuticniohrd
cuinp, whcie Monro was at the time. " llo returned
many thanks," writes the emissary in his Diary, "for
th(! courtesy of our nation, ami protested his joy at
liavinjjj to do witii so generous an enemy. This was
liis answer to tiie Marquis de Montealm. Then they h'd
me hack, alwa\s with eves biinch^d ; and our battcn'ies
began to fire again ah soon as we thought tliat the l<]ng-
Usli gronadi«Ms wIjo escorted me had had time to re-enter
tlie fort. 1 liopc (Jeneral Webb's letter may induce tiie
English to surrender tlu; sooner."

By this time the sappei-s had worked their way to the
angle of the lake, where they were stoi»petl l)y a marshy
hollow, bevond which was a tract of higii around, reach-
ing to the fort and serving as the garden of tiie garrison.^
Logs and fascines in large (piantities were thrown into
the hollow, {ind hurdles were laid over them to form a
causeway for the cannon. Then the sop was continued
n[) tiie acclivity beyond, a trench was oj)ened in the
garden, and a battery begun, not two liundred and fifty
yards from the fort. The Indians, in great number,
crawled forward among the beans, maize, and cabbages,
and lav there ensconced. On the niuht of the seventh,
two men came out of the fort, a]>parently to reconnoitre,
with a view to a sortie, when they were greeted by a
general volley ami a burst of yells which echoed amcmg
the mountains; followed by responsive whoops j)ealing
through the darkness from the various camps and lurk-
ing-places of the savage warriors far and ncjar.

The position of the besieged was now deplorable.
More than three hundred of them had lieen killed and

' Now the site of Fort William Ilonry Hotel, with its grounds. The
hollow is partly filled by the main road of Caldwell.

■•;-

sie(;k of fort william henry.

woiimlod ; siunll-pox was riiL^iiiLT in tin; fort; the place
was a t'uc'us of iiil'cctioii, and llic casemates were crowded
with tlu! sick. A sortie i'roiii the intrenched camp and
another from tiie fort had hcen repulsed with loss. All
their larjxe cannon and mortars had hcen hnrst, or dis-
ahled hy shot ; only seven small pieces were left lit for
service; and the whole of Montcalm's thirty-on(» cannon
and fifteen mortars and howitzers would soon open lii'o,
while the walls were already hreached, an<l an assault
was imminent. Throuj^h the nijzht of the; eiuhth they
fired hriskly from all their remaininir pi(>ces. In the
morniiiir the ollicers held a couin il, and all ajrreed to
surrender if hoiiorahh; terms could he had. A white
tlasi: was raised, a drum was heat, and Ijieutenant-(/olonel
YounL^ mountetl on horsehaek, — for a shot in tin; foot
liad disai)led him fiMun walkinir, — went, followed hy a
few soldiers, to the tent of Montcalm.

It was a<;reed that the Kniilish trooj»s sliould marcli
out with the honors of war, and he escorted i<> Fort
Edward hy a detachment of French troops; that tliey
should not sei've for eighteen months; and that all
French prisoners captured in America since tin; war
heiran should he uiveu up within three months. The
stores, munitions, and artillery were to he the prize of
the victors, except one field-piece, which tlie u'arrison
were to I'ctain in I'ecoLniition of their hi-ave defence.

l>cfoi'e siu'iiinu" the cajtitulation Montcalm called the
Indian chiefs to council, and asketl them to (Consent to
tlie cididitions, and ])roinise to restrain thrir younjr
warriors from any disorder. They iipproved eveiythinir
and ))romised everythiuir. Th(> ^^arrison then evacuated
the fort, and marched to join their comrades in the
intrenchecl camp, wliich was included in the surren-
der. No sooner were thev <rone than a crowd of Indians

■!f

68 LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE ClIAMPLAIN.

cliimhorcd tliroiiuli the embrasures in search of rinii
and plunder. All the sick men unable to leave tluiir
beds were instantly butchered, "i was witness of this
spectacle," says the niissivjnary Roubaud ; "1 saw one
of these barbarians come out of the casemates with a
human head in his hand, from which the blood ran in
streams, and which he paraded as if Ik; had f^ot the
finest prize in the world." There was little left to
plunder; and the Indians, joined by the more lawless of
the (Canadians, turned their attention to the intrenched
camp, where all the Enu'lish were now collected.

The French uruard stationed there could not or would
not keep out the rabble. By the advice of Montcalm
the r^njrlish stove their rum-barrels; but the Indians
were drunk already with homicidal rage, and the glitter
of their vicious eyes told of the devil within. They
roamed among- the tents, intrusive, insolent, their vis-
ages besmirched with war-[)aint; grinning like fiends as
they handled, in smticipation of the knife, the long hair
of cowering women, of whom, as well as of children,
there were many in the camp, all crazed with fright.
Since the last war the Xew England border population
luul regarded Indians with a mixture of detestation and
horror. Their mysterious warfare of ambush and sur-
prise, their midnight onslaughts, their butcheries, their
burnings, and all their nameless atrocities, had been for
years the theme of fireside story ; and the dread they
excited was deepened by the distrust and dejection of
the time. The confusion in the cam[) lasted through the
afternoon. " The Indians," says Bougainville, " wanted
to plunder the chests of the English ; the hitter resisted;
and there was fear that serious disorder would ensue.
The Marquis de Montcalm ran thither immediately,
and used every means to restore tranquillity : prayers,

SIEGE OF FORT WILLIAM IIENRV.

i ;

throats, eurcssos, intorposition of the olliccra and iutor-
pnjter.s wiio hav*; aonu; inlliiciico over those savages."
" We shall be but too ha[»|)y if we can prevent a nius-
saere. I)etestal)h; j)osition 1 of which iKjliody vvlio has
not been in it can liave any idea, and which makes
vietorv itself a sorrow to the victors. The Maniuis
spared no efforts to jircvent the rapacity of the savages
and, I nnist say it, of certain persons associated witii
them, from resultin<]; in somelhini^ worse than plunder.
At last, at nine o'clock in the eveninj,^ order seemed
restored. The Marcpiis even induced the Indians to
promise that, besides the escort agreed upon in tiie
capitulation, two chiefs for each tribe should accom-
pany the English on their way to Fort Edward." lie
also ordered La Coine and the other Canadian oHicers
attached to the Indians to see that no violence; took
place, lie might well have dcme more. In view of the
disorders of the afternoon, it would not have been too
much if he had orden.'d the whole body of regular troops,
whom alone he could trust for the purpose, to hold
themselves ready to move to the spot in case of out-
break, and shelter their defeated foes behind a hedge of
bayonets.

IJougainvillc was not to see what ensued ; for Montcalm
now sent him to Montreal, as a special messenger to
carry news of the victory, lie embarked at ten o'clock.
Returning daylight found him far down tlu; lake ; and
as he looked on its still bosom flecked with mists, and
its quiet mountains sleeping under the flush of dawn,
there was nothing in the wild tranquillity of tlu; scene
to suggest the tragedy which even then was beginning
on the shore he had left behind.

The English in their camp had passed a troubled
night, agitated by strange rumors. In the morning

'. ),

i 1.

LAKP: GEORGE AND LAKE CHAM PLAIN.

sonictliiiij^^ lilvc a iianic. sri/cd them; for tlioy (liHtru.stLMl
not the Iiidiiius onlv, but the Ciiiiii(li;ins. In tlu'ir
liiisto to In' ^onv they jrot tojjjotlicr at (laybrcak, luv
I'oj'o till' escort of tlirt'(! liiiudrcd rc^^iilarH had arrivccl.
They had their niiisUcts, but ii<» ainiiiunitioii ; and few
(U' none of the iiroviiicials had bayonets. Earlv as it
Wiis, the Indiiins were on the idei't ; iin<l, inder<i, sinee
michiit^lit ^nvat numbers of them had been proulini;
about the sivirts of tlie eanip, showinir, says Colonel
Frye, " more than usual malice in their looks." Seven-
teim woinuh'd men of his rei^imeiit lav in huts, nuidde
to join the march. In tlie precediuijj afternoon Miles
Wliitworlh, the regimental surtreon, had jtassed them
over to the care of a French surgeon, accordinj!' to an
au'reemeiit niiide lit the time of the surrender ; but, the
Frenchman being al)scnt, the other remained with them
attending to their wants. The French surgeon had
caused special sentinels to be posted for their protection.
These wei'c now removed, at the moment when tliev
were needed most ; nj)on whicli, about live o'clock in the
morning, the Indians entered the lints, dragged out the
inmates, and tomahawked and scalped them all, before
the eyes of Whitworth, and in presence of La Corne
and other Canadian oHicers, as well as of a French guard
stationed within forty feet of the spot ; and, declares the
surgeon niKh'r oath, " none, either olHcer or soldier, pro-
t<'cted the said wounded men." The opportune butchery
relieved tliein of a troublesome burden.

A scene of i»lundering now began. The escort had by
this time arrived, and Monro complained to the olheers
that tlie eajiitnlation was broken ; but got no other an-
swer than advice to give np the baggage to the Indians
in order to aj>j»ease them. To this the English at length
agreed; but it onlv increased the excitement of the mob.

^^1

SIEGE OF FOUT WILLIAM IIENKV

Thov (Ic^innndt'd rum: aiul some of tlio soldicrH, afnild to
ivluse, ^'iivc it to tlM'in t'nnu llu'ir Ciiuti-cns, thus uddinu;
tut 1 to the llnnu'. Wlicn, td'trr mucli dilliculty, tlic col-
unin at last ^ot out of the cauipaud hruau to luovc aloiuj:
the road tliat crossed tlu' rou^h p'aiu Itctwui'ii llic iu-
tivui'liiucut aud the forest, tlic ludians crowded upon
tlicni, inijK'dcd tlicir march, snatched caps, coats, aiul
weapons fiom men and otiicei's, tomahawked tliose tliat
resistetl, and sci/.inj^ upon shriekhi^" wonu'U ami children,
dniiTL^ed them off or nuu'dered them on the spot, it irt
said that some of the interpreters secretly fomente(l the
disorder. Suddenly there rose the screeeli of the war-
whoop. At this signal yf butchery, which was ^iven by
Abenaki Christians from the mission of the I'enobscot, a
mob of savages rushed upon the New Hampshire men at
tlio rear of the cohnnn, and killed or drairu'ed awav eiuhtv
of them. A frightful tumult ensued, when Montcalm,
Levis, nourlanuKpie, and many other French oHicers, who
liad hastened from their Vamp on the first news of dis-
turbance, threw themselves among the Indians, and by
promises and threats tried to allay their frenzy. ''Kill
me, but spare the English who are under iny i)rolection,"
exclaimed Montcalm. He took from one (d" them a young
officer whom the savage had seized ; upon which several
other Indians inunediately tomahawked their jiriscmers,
lest they too should be taken from them. One writer
says that a French grenadier was killed and two wounded
in attempting to restore order; but the statement is doubt-
ful. The English seemed paralyzed, and fortunately did
not attempt a resistance, which, without ammunition as
they were, would have ended in a general massacre.
Their broken column struggled forward in wild disorder,
amid the din of whoops and shrieks, till they reached
the French advance-guard, which consisted of Canadians;

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

i 4

and licre tlicv (Icnmiuliul luotcctioii from the oflicors,
who refused to jj^ivc it, telling them that they must
take to the woods and shift for themselves. Frvo was
seized hy a uumlu'i- of Indians, who, hrandishing spears
and tomahawks, threatened him with death and tore off
his clothing, leaving nothing but breeches, shoes, and
shirt. lU'itelled by the oHicers of the guard, he made
for the woods. A Connecticut soldier who was present
says of him that lie leaped u|>on an Indian who stood in
];'■( „ay, disarmed and killetl him, and tiien escajK'd ;
})ut Frye himself does not mention the incident. Cajt-
tain Ihiike, also of the Massachusetts regiment, was
stripped, alter a vi( lent st'-uggle, of all his clotln^s; tiien
broke loose, gaine( vhe woods, spent the night shivering
in the thick grass of a marsh, aiid on the next day
reached Fort Fdward. Jonathan Carver, a provincial
volimteer, declares that, when the tumult was at its
lieiuht, he saw ollicers of the French armv walkinir about
at a little distance and talki\ig with seeming unconcern.
Tlp'ee or four Indians seized him, l)randished their toma-
hawks over his head, and tore ot'f most of his clothes,
while he vainly claieied protection from a sentinel, who
called him an Fug) ish dog, and violently pushed him
back among his toimentors. Two of them were drag-
ging him towards the neighboring swamp, when an
Fnglish oflicer, stripped of evcrvthing but his scarlet
breeches, ran by. One of Carver's captors sprang npon
him, but was thrown to the ground ; whereupon the
other went to the aid of his comrade and drove his
tomahawk into the back of the Englishman. As Carver
turned to run, an English boy, about twelve years old,
dung to him and begged for help. They ran on together
for a moment, when the boy wos seized, dragged from
his protector, and, as Carver judged by his shrieks, was

r '

SIEGE OF FORT WILLIAM HEXKY.

mur(lero<l. He liimsclf cscapod to the forest, and after
three days of famine reached Foit Edward.

The bonds of disei|»line seem for the time to have
been comj)h!tcly broken ; foi' while Montcahn and his
chief ollicers nsed everv effort to restore order, even at
the risk of their lives, manv other ofVieers, chieflv of the
militia, failed atrociously to do their <lnfy. How many
Knglish were killed it is impossible io toll with exact-
ness. Uoubaud savs that he saw fortv or fiftv corpses
scattered about the field. Levis says fifty : which does
not incdude the sick and wounded before murdered in the
camp and i(jrt. It is certain that six or seven hundred
jiersoiis were can-ied olT, strip))e(l, and othei-wise mal-
treated. ^Montcalm succeeded in reeoveiiuj^ more than
four hundred of them in the course of the day; and
many of the French olTiccrs did what they could to re-
lieve their wants bv Imvinu' l);iek from their c:ii»tors the
clothintr that had been torn from them. M;iny of the
fu^ntivcs hiid taken refuse in the fort, whither Monro
liimself had jrone to demand protection for liis fcjlhjwers;
and here lioubaud presently found a crowd of half-
frenzied women, crying in anjiuish for husl)auds an<l
children. All the icfugees and redeemed j)risoners were
afterwards conducted to the intrenched camp, where
food and shelter were pi-ovidcd for them, . ud a stron<^
guard set for their protection until the fifte( aHi, when
they were sent under an escoi-t to Fort Edward. Here
cannon had been fired at intervals to guide those who
liad fled to the woods, wdu_Micc they came dropjdng in
from dav to dav, half dead with fiunine.

On the morning after the massacre the Indians de-
camped in a body and sot out for ^^ontreal, carrying
with them their plunder and some two hundreil j)ris-
oners, who, it is said, could not be got out of their lianda.

LAKE (JKOIIGE AND LAKE Cli.VMlM.AIN.

The soldiiTs \v(M-(' set to tiio work of (Iciuolisliing tlu«
Knulisli loll ; and \\\o task occu|>i(Ml scvcrjil <|jivs. 'J'lio
barrncks were (oi-ii down, ami the Inigc |iin(*-lo.i!:s of
tlir ranipiu-l thrown into a ht'ap. T\\v (had bodies tliat
lilh'd the castMnatcs wcro achh^d to tljc mass, and firo

was set to (he whoh'

rhtv f

all niLnil,

\v nii<riny Inncral pyt

•(' bla/cd

icn. on the sixtccntlj, tlio armv rcimbarkod.

'I'lu' diuof ten tliousand combatants, the ra,u:(\ tho tci-ror,
tlic ajxony, were u'onc : and no livint? thinu.- was left bnt
the wolves (hat gathered from the monntains to feast
upon the ilead.

nmSm

I 'I

l:; I

•

A., 1. 1. L>il.

'•MV.UP i^;... ., . "' "-Ihh.M „o, f,n hack

» ' >illl ,' J ' • ■■- 1 Mil

.11

fll

■ t}io S'.-V ;,:U!

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II

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^im

I*' '

'M% ■ .

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r.n

\»l\ I «• A f \|

Ai.il. j!il

lUTTLB OF TICOXDKROOA.

•""I"' fic^ncral Ai,,.' .If ".'; ''7'' "'' '-'<'^' ''-".Xo

''''!''"Tj.,.i„. i,,iv ,,,,,,;''''■•""•' i.ifi.ii,,,,, ,,,,,,,

Y ''- ^-'aM.^ nn.| ,1,. ,,,,"' " ;/'''';-''l"''Mn- ,1,,. ,s,nv,,,i,|
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'"'■""'"■ ''f »l"-'''i "f t ,' '""'''■; " '■""""' 1 I" 'i-

'"""I of Lake Oeor'e cum . 1, , ''.'■""'""""■--- f"»a'-.l.s flu,

=', came, hack ,„|,„«,e„i,|,„„

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIN.

1^1

11 15

I! i
I

il}

that the English were cinharkod in great foree. Mont-
cahn Kent a eanoe down Lake Clianijilain to hasten Li^'vis
to his aid, and ordeied the battalion of IJerry to begin
a breastwork and abatis on the high ground in front of
the fort. That they were not begun before shows that
he was in doubt as to his plan of defenee ; and that his
whole army was not now set to work at thcni shows that
his doubt was still unsolved.

It was nearly a month sin(M; Abcreromby had begun
his eanij) at the head of Lake George. Here, on the
ground where Johnson had beaten Dicskau, where
Montcalm had planted his batteries, and Monro vainly
defend(>d the wooden ramparts of Fort William Henry,
were now assembled more than fifteen thousand men ;
and the shores, the foot of the mountains, and the broken
plains between them were studded thick with tents. Of
regulars there were six thousiind three hundred and
sixty-seven, ()ni«'er8 and soldicjrs, and of provincials nine
thousand and thirty-four. To the New p]ngland levies,
or at least to their chaplains, the ex])editi(m seemed
a crusade against the abomination of Tlabylon ; and they
discoursed in their sermons of Moses sending forth
Joshua against Aniidck. Abercromby, raised to his
place by political inlhu-nce, was little but the nominal
commander. " A heavv man," said Wolfe in a letter
to his father; "an aged gentleman, infirm in body and
mind," wrote William Parkman, a boy of seventeen,
who carried a musket in a Massachusetts regiment, and
kept in his knapsack a dingy little note-book, in which
he jotted down what passed each day. The age of the
aged gentleman was fifty-two.

Pitt meant that the actual command of the army
should be in the hands of Brigadier Lord Howe, and he
was in fact its real chief ; " the noblest Englishman that

BATTLE OF TICONDEROGA.

has appeared in my time, and the best soldier in 'the
Ui'itish arniy," says Wolfe. And lie elsewhere speaks
of him as " that great man." Abercromby testifies to
the nniversal res[)eet and love with whieh otViecrs and
men repirded him, an<l Pitt ealls him " a character of
ancient times ; a complete model of military virtue."
High as this praise is, it seems to have been deserved.
The young nobleman, who was then in his thirty -fourth
year, had the (jualities of a leader of men. The army
felt him, fi'om general to drummer boy. lie was its
soul ; and while breathing into it his own energy and
ardor, and bracing it by stringent discipline, he broke
through the traditions of the service and gave it new
shap«'s to suit the time and place. During the past year
he had studied the art of forest warftire, and joined
Rogers and his rangers in their scouting-parties, sharing
all their hardshi|is and making himself one of them.
Perhajts the reforms that he introduced were fruits of
this rough self-imposed schooling. He made otlicers
and men throw olT all useless incumbrances, cut their
hair close, wear leggings to [)rotect them from briers,
brown the barrels of their muskets, and carry in their
knapsacks thirty [»ounds of meal, which they cooked for
themselves; so that, according to an admiring French-
man, they could live a month without their supply-trains.
"You would laugh to see the droll figure we all make,"
writes an olVicer. "■ Regulars as well as provincials have
cut their coats so as scarcely to reach their waists. No
oflicer or private is allowed to carry more than one
blanket and a IxNirskin. A small portmanteau is allowed
each oflicer. No women follow the camp to wash our
linen. Lord Howe has already shown an example by
going to the brook and washing his own."

Here, as in all things, he shared the lot of the soldier,

LAKE GJ:0RGE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

W-

aiuf rcquirod IiIh oIIkmm-s to share it. A storv is told of
him tiuit hcforo tlio urmy omharkod he invited some of
th(Mn to diniior in his lent, wliorc they found no seats but
h)^'^s, jind no carpet but bcnrskins. A servant presently
])la('ed on i\w jz:rouud a larue dish of pork and i>eas, on
uhieh his lordship took from his poeket a sheath con-
taiuinjij a knife and fork and befran to cut the meat.
'I'he quests looked on in souk; embarrassment; upon
which ho said: "• Js it j)()ssil)le, ^entlom(^n,1iiat yo»i have
come on this eampaiun without jU'oviding yourselves
with what is necessary ? " And he p^avc each of them
a sheath, with a knife and fork, like liis own.

Yet this riyeurL!:us of the camp, as a contemporary
calls him, is described as a man of social accom|»lish-
nuuits rari; v.von in his raidc. lie made himself jrreatly
beloved by the i)rovineial oflicers, with many of whom
he was on terms of iutimacv, and he did what he could
to break down the barriers between the colonial soldiers
and the Ibitish reiiidirs. When he was at Albany,
shai-inii" with other hi<vh olTicers the kindly hosjiitalities
of Mrs. Schuyler, Ik; so won the heart of that excellent
matron that she loved him like a son ; and, thouuh not
given to such effusion, embi-aced him with tears on the
moruint^ wlien he left her to lead his division to the lake.
In Westminster Abbey may be seen the tablet on which
Massachusetts J)ays grateful trilnite to his virtues, and
commemorates " the affecticm her ofVicers and soldiers
bore to his command."

On the evening of the fourth of .luly, baggage, stores,
and annnunition Avere all on board the boats, and the
whole army embarked on the morning of the lifth. The
arrangements were ])erfect. Each corps marched with-
out confusion to its appointed station on the beach, and
the sun was scarcely above the ridge of French Moun-

i :..

BATTLE OF TICONDEIUXIA.

tain wlioii all wore afloat. A spectator walchlnj; tluin
from the shore says tiiat when the lleet was tiiree miles
on its way, tiie sui'lace of the lake at that distance was
completely hidden from siuht. 'i'iiere were nine hun-
dred bateaux, a hundred and thirty live whaleboats, ami
a large number of heavy Hat boats carrying, the artillery.
The whole advanced in three divisions, the reundars in
the centre, and the provincials on tin; Hanks. Kach
corps had its fla<.;s and its music. The day was fair, and
men and ofllcers were in the higliest spirits.

Ileforc ten o'clock tliev hou;an to enter tlu^ Xarnjws;
and the boats of the three divisions extended tliemsclves
into long files as the mountains closed on either hand
upon the contracted lake. From front to rear the line;
was six miles long. The spectacle was superb : the
brightness of the summer day; tlie romantic beauty of
the scenery; the sheen and sparkle of those crystal
waters; the countless islets, tufted with pine, birch, and
fir; the bordering mountains, with their green summits
and sunny crags; the Hash of oars and glitter of wea})-
ons ; tlie banners, the varied uniforms, and the notes of
bugle, trum|)ct, bagpipe, and drum, answered and pro-
longed by a hundred woodland echoes. " I never beheld
so delightful a ])ros|»ect," wrote a wounded oflicer at
Albany a fortnight after.

Rogers with the rangers, and Oage with the light
infantry, led the way in whaleboats, followed by IJrad-
street with his corps of boatnuMi, armed and drilled as
soldiers. Then canu; the main body. The central
column of regulars was commanded by liOi'd [fowe, his
own regiment, the fifty-fifth, in the van, followed by \\w
Roval Americans, the twenty-severth, fortv-fourth, fortv-
sixth, and eightieth infantry, and the Flighlanders of the
forty-second, with their major, Duncan Campbell of

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23 WEST MAIN STREET

WEBSTER, NY. 14580

(716) 872-4503

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LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

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Iiivcrawe, silent and gloomy amid the general cheer, for
his soul was dark with forcshadowings of death. With
this central colunm came what are described as two
floating castles, which were no doubt batteries to cover
the landing of the troops. On the right hand and the
left were the provincials, uniformed in blue, regiment
after regiment, from Massachusetts, Connecticut, New
York, New Jersey, and Rhode Island. Behind them all
came the bateaux, loaded with stores and baggage, and
the heavy flat boats that carried the artillery, while a
rear-guard of provincials and regulars closed the long
procession.

At five in the afternoon they reached Sabbath-Day
Point, twenty-five miles down the lake, where they
stopped till late in the evening, waiting for the baggage
and artillery, which had lagged beliind ; and here Lord
Howe, lying on a bearskin by the side of the ranger,
John Stark, questioned him as to the position of Ticon-
deroga and its best points of approach. At about eleven
o'clock they set out again, and at daybreak entered what
was then called the Second Nar ws ; that is to say, the
contraction of the lake where it approaches its outlet.
Close on their left, ruddy in the warm sunrise, rose the
vast bare face of Rogers Rock, whence a French advanced
party, under Langy and an officer named Trepezec, was
watching their movements. Lord Howe, with Rogers and
Bradstreet, went in whaleboats to reconnoitre the land-
ing. At the place which the French called the Burned
Camp, where Montcalm had embarked the summer be-
fore, they saw a detachment of the enemy too weak to
oppose them. Their men landed and drove them off.
At noon the whole army was on shore. Rogers, with
party of rangers, was ordered forward to reconnoitre,
and the troops were formed for the march.

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BATTLE OF TICONDEROGA.

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Froin this part of the shore ^ a plain covered with
forest stretched northwestward half a mile or more to
the mountains behind which lay the valley of Trout
Brook. On this plain the army began its march in four
columns, with the intention of passing round the west-
ern bank of the river of the outlet, since the bridge over
it had been destroyed. Rogers, with the provincial
regiments of Fitch and Lyman, led the way, at some
distance before the rest. The forest was extremely
dense and heavy, and so obstructed with undergrowth
that it was impossible to see more than a few yards in
anv di ection, while the firround was encumbered with
fallen trees in every stage of decay. The ranks were
broken, and the men struggled on as they could in
dampness and shade, under a canoi)y of boughs that the
sun could scarcely pierce. The Jitficulty increased
when, after advancing about a mile, they came upon
undulating and broken ground. They were now not far
from the upper rai)ids of the outlet. The guides became
bewildered in the maze of triniks and boughs ; the
marching columns were confused, and fell in one upon
the other. They were in the strange situation of an
army lost in the woods.

The advanced party of French under Langy and
Trepezec, about three hundred and fifty in all, regulars
and Canadians, had tried to retreat; but before they
could do so, \\\Q whole English army had passed them,
landed, and placed itself between tliem and their country-
men. They had no resource but to take to the woods.
They seem to have climbed the steep gorge at the side
of Rogers Rock and followed the Indian path that led
to the valley of Trout Brook, thinking to descend it,
and, by circling along the outskirts of the valley of

1 Between the old and new steamboat-landings, and parts adjacent.

LAK?: GEORGE AND LAKE CnAMPLAIN.

Ticonderoga, reach Montcalm's camp at tlie saw-mill.
Langy was used to bush ranging ; but he too became per-
plexed intlu; blind intricacies of the forest. Towards the
close of the day he and his men had come out from the
valley of Trout Brook, and were ncnir the junction of that
stream with the river of the outlet, in a state of some
anxietv, for thev could see nothing but brown trunks and
green boughs. Could any of them have climbed one of
the great pines that here and there reared their shaggy
spires high above the surrounding forest, they would
have discovered where thev were, but "would have
gained not the faintest knowledge of the enemy. Out
of the woods on the right they would have seen a smoke
rising from the burning huts of the French camp at the
head of the portage, which Bourlamacpie had set on lire
and abandoned. At a mile or more in front, tl-e saw-
mill at the Falls might perhai)S have been descried, and,
by glimjjses between the trees, the tents of the neighbor-
ing camp where Montcalm still lav with his main force.
All the rest seemed lonely as the grave; mountain and
valley lay wrai)i)ed in primeval woods, and none coulci
have dreanuid that, not far distant, an army was groping
its way, buried in foliage; no rumbling of wagons and
artillery trains, for none were there ; all silent but the
cawing of some crow flapping his black wings over the
sea of tree-tops.

Lord Howe, with Major Israel Putnam and two hun-
dred rangers, was at the head of the ])rincii)al column,
which was a little in advance of the three others. Sud-
denly the challenge, Qui vive ! rang sharply from the
thickets in front. Franrais ! was the rc])ly. Langy's
men were not deceived; they fired out of the bushes.
The shots were returned ; a hot skirmish followed ;
and Lord Ilowe dropped dead, shot through the breast.

BATTLE OF TICONDEROGA.

All was confusion. The dull, vicious reports of muS'
kctry in thick Avootls, jit first few and scuttcrin^', then
in fierce and rapid volleys, readied tiie troops beiiind.
They could hear, but see nothing. Already harassed
and perplexed, they became perturbed. For all they
knew, ^lontcalm's Avhole army was upon them. Nothinj^
prevented a ])i\nlc but the steadiness of the rangers, who
maintained (lie fight alone till the rest came back to
their senses. Rogers, with his reconnoitring party, and
the reiriments of Fitch and Lvniiin, were at no great
distance iu front. They all turned on hearing the nuis-
ketrv, and thus the French were caught between two
fires. They fought willi desperation. About fifty of
them at length escai)cd ; a hundred and forty-eight
were cai)tured, and the rc>st killed or drowned in trying
to cross the ra})ids. The loss of tin; English was small
iu numbers, but imin(>asurab'e in the death of Howe.
'^ The fall of this noble and brave ollicer," says Rogers,
" seemed to produce an almost general languor and con-
sternation through the whole army." '• In Lord Howe,"
writes another contemporary, jVIajor Thomas Mante,
"the soul of General Abereromby's army seemed to
cxi)ire. From the unhappy moment the General was
deprived of his advice, neither order nor discipline was
observed, and a strange kind of infatuation usurped the
place of resolution." The death of one man was tluj
ruin of fifteen thousand.

The evil news was despatched to Albany, and in two
or three days the messenger who bore it ])assed the
house of Mrs. Schuvler on tiie meadows above the town.
" In the afternoon," says her biographer, " a man was
seen coming from the north galloping violently witliout
liis hat. Pedrom, as he was familiarly called. Colonel
Schuyler's only surviving brother, was with her, and ran

M''

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

instantly to inquire, well knowing tliat he rode express.
The man galloped on, crying out tliat Lord Howe was
killed. The mind of our good aunt had been so en-
grossed by her anxiety and fears for the event imi)end-
ing, and so impressed with tlu; merit and magiumimity
of her favorite hero, that her wonted firmness sank
under the stroke, and she broke out into bitter lamenta-
tion-i. This had such an effect on her friends and do-
mestics that shrieks and sobs of anguish echoed through
every part of the house."

The effect of the loss was seen at once. The army
was needlessly kept under arms all night in the forest,
and in the morning was ordered back to the landing
whence it came. Towards noon, however, Bradstreet
was sent with a detachment of regulars and provincials
to take possession of the saw-mill at the Falls, which
Montcalm had abandoned the evening before. Brad-
street rebuilt the bridges destroyed by the retiring
enemy, and sent word to his connnander that the way
was open ; on which Al)ercromby again put his army
in motion, reached the Falls late in the afternoon, and
occupied the deserted encami)ment of the French.

Montcalm with his main force had lield this position
at the Falls through most of the preceding day, doulitful,
it seems, to the last whether he should not make his
final stand there. Bourlamaque was for doing so ; but
two old officers, Bernes and Montguy, pointed out the
danger that the English would occupy tlie neighboring
heights ; whereupon Montcalm at length resolved to fall
back. The camp was broken up at five o'clock. Some
of the troops embarked in bateaux, while others marched
a mile and a half along the forest road, passed the
place where the battalion of Berry was still at work on
the breastwork begun in the morning, and made their

BATTLE OF TICONDEROGA.

bivouac a little farther on, upon the cleared ground that
suj'rounded the fort.

Tlie peninsula of Ticonderoga consists of a rocky pla-
teau, with low grounds on each side, bordering Laivc
Champlain on the one hand, and the outlet of Lake
George on the other. The fort stood near the end of
the peninsula, which ])oints towards the southeast.
Thence, as one goes westward, the ground <lecliues a
little, and then slowly rises, till, about half a mile from
the fort, it reaches its greatest elevation, and begins
still more gradually to decline again. Thus a rldgi; is
formed across the plateau between the steep declivities
that sink to the low grounds on right and left. Some
weeks before, a French oflicer nanu'd Ilugues had sug-
gested the defence of this ridge by means ot" an abatis.
Montcalm approved his plan; and now, at the eleventh
hour, he resolved to make his stand here. Tlu; two
engineers, Pcmtleroy and Desandrouin, had already
traced the outline of the works, and the soldiers of
the battalion of Berry had made some progress in con-
structing them. At dawn of the seventh, while Aber-
cromby, fortunately for liis en<>my, was drawing his
troo{)s back to the landing-])lace, the Avhole French
army fell to their task. The regimental colors were
planted along the line, and the oflicers, stripped to the
shirt, took axe in hand and labored with their men.
The trees that covered the ground were hewn down by
thousands, the toj)8 lopj)e(l off, and the truidvs j)iled one
upon another to form a massive breastwork. The lino
followed the top of the ridge, along whicli it zigzagged in
such a manner that the whole front could be swept by
flank fires of musketry and grape. Abercromby describes
the wall of logs as between eight and nine feet high ; in
which case there must have been a rude banquette, or

LAKE GEOllGE AND LAKE CILVMPLAIN.

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pliitlorin to fire from, on tlio inner side. It was cer-
tainly so hijj^h tliat notliini'' could be ween over it but the
crowns of the soldiers' hats. The upper tier was formed
of sinii'le logs, in which notches were cut to sei've as
loopholes ; and in some ])laces sods and bags of sand
were piled along the top, with narrow spaces to lire
through. From the central ))art of the line the ground
sl()p(.'d away like a natural glacis ; while at the sides,
and especially on the left, it was undulating and l)roken.
Over this whole space, to the distance of a musket-
shot from the works, the forest was cut down, and the
trees left lying where they fell among the stumps, with
tops turned outwards, forming one vast abatis, which, as
a Massachusetts oHicer Kays, looked like a forest laid flat
by a hurricane. IJut the most formidable obstruction was
immediately along the front of the breastwork, where the
ground was covered with heavy boughs, overla))ping and
interlaced, with sharpened points bristling into the face
of the assailant like the quills of a porcupine. As these
works Avere all of wood, no vestiue of them remains.
The earthworks now shown to tourists as the lines of
Afontcalm arc of later construction ; and though on the
same ground, arc not on the same })lan.

Here, then, was i, position which, if attacked in front
with musketry alone, might be called impregnable. But
would Abercromby so attack it ? lie had several alter-
natives. He might attemi)t the flank and rear of his
enemy by way of the low grounds on the right and left
of the plateau, a movement which the precautions of
Montcalm had made dithcult, but not impossible. Or,
instead of leaving his artillery idle on the strand of
Lake George, he might brinsr it to the front and batter
the breastwork, which, though impervious to musketry,
was worthless against heavy cannon. Or he might do

i 1

BATTLE OF TICOXDEROGA.

wliat Burcrovne did with success a scoro of voars later,
and plant a ltatt(>ry on tlic lu'i^ihts ol' Ratllcsnaixc Hill,
now called Mount Dcliancc, which couuuaiulcd the posi-
tion of the FrcJi^'J'i ^iii'l whence the inside of their breast-
work could be scoured witii round-shot from end to end.
Or, while threatenin<»; the French front with a part of
his army, he could march the rest a short distance
through the woods or. his left to the road whii-h led
from Ticondcroga to (h-owii Point, and which would
soon have brought him to the jdace called Five-Mih;
Point, where Lake Chaniiilaln narrows to the width of
an easy rifle-shot, and where a battery of lield-i)ieces
would have cut off all Montcalm's supplies and closecl
his oidy way of retreat. As the Fj-ench were jirovis-
ioned for but eight days, their position would thus have
been desiierato. They plainly saw the danger ; and
Doreil declares that hud the movement biM'n made, their
whole army must have surrend(n-ed. Montcalm had
done what Ik^ could ; but the danger of his ])osition was
inevitable and extreme. II is hope lay in Abercroniby ;
and it was a hope well founded. The action of tlu;
English general answered the utmost wishes of his
enemy.

Abercroml>y had been told by his prisoners that
Montcalm had six thousand men, and that three thou-
sand more were expected every hour. Therefoi'c he
was in haste to attack before these succors could arrive.
As was the general, so was the army. '* I believe,"
writes an ofTicer, " we were one and all infatuated by a
notion of carrying every obstacle by a mere cokj) de
mousqueterleP Leadership perished with Lord Howe,
and nothing was left but blind, headlong valor.

Clerk, chief engineer, was sent to reconnoitre the
French works from Mount Defiance ; and came back

LAKK GKOIUJE AND LAKE ClIAMrLAIN.

li I

li :^i

with tlio r('[)ort tlitit, to jiid^t' I'rum wliai he could sco,
tlicy ini<iht be carried l>y asfsault. Tlien, without wait-
ing to i)riiif^ \\[) his canuou, Abercroniby prepared to
storm tlie lines.

The Flench finished their breastwork and abatis on
the eveninj^ of <he seventh, encamped behind them,
slung their ketth's, and rested after their heavy toil.
Ldvis had not yet ai)j)eared ; but at twilight one of his
olliccrs, Ca[)tain Toucliot, arrived with three hundred
regulars, and announced that his commander would
come before morning with a hundred more. The rein-
forcement, though small, was welcome, and Levis was
a host in himself. I'ouchot was told that the army was
half a mile off. Thither he repaired, made his rej)ort
to Montcalm, and looked with amazement at the pro-
digious amount of work accomplished in one day.
Levis himself arrived in the course of the night, and
apj)roved the arrangement of the troops. They lay
behind tlieir lines till daybreak ; then the di'ums beat,
and thcv formed in order of battle. The battalions of
La Sarre and Languedoc were posted on the left, under
Bourlanuuiue, the first battalion of Berry with that of
Royal Roussillon in the centre, nnder Montcalm, and
those of La Reine, Bdarn, and Guienne on the right,
under Ldvis. A detachment of volunteers occupied the
low grounds between the breastwork and the outlet of
Lake George ; while, at the foot of the declivity on the
side towards Lake Champlain, were stationed four hun-
dred and fifty colony regulars and Canadians, behind an
abatis which thev had made for themselves ; and as
they were covered by the cannon of the fort, there was
some hope that they would check any flank movement
which the English might attempt on that side. Their
posts being thus assigned, the men fell to work again to

BATTLE OF TICONDEKOGA.

stri'iigtlu'ii tlicir (li'f«'ncos. Iiu'ludini; tli(xs<' who ciiinc
with Lt'vis, thu total furcu of cri'octivu suhliers was now
thhty-six himdivd.

Soon alter nine o'clock a distant and hannlcss lire of
small-arms began on the slopes of Mount Defiance. It
came from a party of Indians who had just arrived with
Sir William Johnson, and v>ho, after amusin«r themselves
in this manner for a time, remained for the rest of the
day safe si)ectators of the fight. The soldiers worked
undisturbed till noon, when vollevs of musketrv were
heard from the forest in front. It was the Knglish li^ht
troops driving in the French pickets. A cannon wa.-;
tired as a signal to drop tools and form for battle. The
white uniforms lined the breastwork in a triple row,
with the grenadiers behind them as a reserve, and the
second battalion oi j>orry watching the iianks and rear.

Meanwhih* ^hc English army had moved forward from
its canij) by the saw-mill. First came the rangers, the
light infantry, and Bradstreet's armed boatmen, who,
emerging into the open space, began a spattering lire.
Some of the j)rovincial troops followed, extending from
left to right, and opening tire in turn; then the regulars,
who liad formed in columns of attack under cover of the
forest, advanced their solid red masses into the sunlight,,
and passing through the intervals between the jn'ovincial
regiments, pushed forward to the assault. Across the
rough ground, with its maze of fallen trees whose leaves
hung withering in the July sun, they could see the top
of the breastwork, but not the men behind it ; when, in
an instant, all the line was obscured by a gush of smoke,
a crash of exploding firearms tore the air, and grapeshot
and musket-balls swept the whole space like a tempest ;
" a damnable fire," says an otftcer who heard them scream-
ing about his ears. The English had been ordered to

pr"

'^nVPIIIiMH

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

carry the works with the bayonet ; but their ranks were
broken by the obstructions througli which they struggled
in vain to force their wav. and thev ooon began to lire in
turn The storm raged in full fury for an hour. The
assailants pushed close to the breastwork ; but there they
were stopped by (he bristling mass of sharpened branches,
which they could not pass under the murderous cross-
fires that swept them from front and flank. At length
they fell back, exclaimiug that the works were impreg-
nable. Abercromby, Avho was at the saw-mill, a mile
and a half in the rear, sent orders to attack again, and
again they came on as before.

The scene was frightful : masses of infuriated men
who could not go forward and would not go back ;
straining for an enemy they could not reach, and firing
on an enemy they could not see ; caught in the entangle-
ment of fallen trees; tripped by briers, stumlding over
logs, tearing through boughs; shouting, yelling, cursing,
and pelted all the while with bul'ets that killed them
by scores, stretched them on the ground, or hung them
on jagged brandies in strange attitudes of death. The
provincials supi)orted the regulars with s])irit, and some
of them forced theic way to the foot of the wooden wall.

The French fought with the intrepid gayety of their
nation, and shouts of Vive le Rol ! and Vive notre G-r-
ncral! mingled with the din of musketry. Montcalm,
with his coat off, for the day was hot, directed the de-
fence of the centre, and repaired to any part of the line
where the danger for the time seemed greatest. He is
warm \x\ praise of his enemy, and declares that between
one and seven o'clock thev attacked him six successive
times. Early in the action Abercromby tried to turn
the French left by sending twenty bateaux, filled with
troops, down the outlet of Lake George. They were

BATTLE OF TICONDEIIOGA.

mot by the fire of the volunteers stiitionod to defend the
low grounds on that side, and, still advaneinu', eamc;
within range of tiie cannon of the fort, whieli sank two
of theui and dro\e back the rest.

A curious incident hapi)ened during one of the attacks.
De Bassignac, a captain in the battalion of Royal Rous-
sillon, tied his handkerchief to tlie end of a muslvct and
waved it over the breastworlv in defiance. Tlie Englisii
mistook it for a sign of surrender, and came forward
witli all possible s})eed, hoMing their nuisUets crossed
over their heads in both hands, and crying Qnartcr.
The French made the same mistake; and thinking that
their enemies were giving themselves uj) as prisoners,
ceased firing, and mounted on the top of the breastwtn'k
to receive them. Captain Pouchot, astonished, as he says,
to sec them perched there, looked out to learn the cause,
and saw that the enemv meant anything but surrender.
Whereui)on ho shouted with all his might: '•' Tirez !
Tlrcz! Ne voycz-vous pa^i que ces gcui^-la vont vous en-
Icrcr?" The soldiers, still standing on the breastwork,
instantly gave the English a volley, which killed some,ol'
them, and sent back the rest discomIite(l.

This Avas set to the account of Oallic treachery. "An-
other deceit the enemy put u\Hm us," says a militni-y
letter-writer: "theyriiised their hats above the Itreast-
work, which our people fire(l at: they having loophohs
to fire through, and beirig covered by the sods, we di<l
them little damnge, except shooting th(>ir hats to jtieces."
In one of the last assaults a soldier of the Rhode Island
regiment, Willinm Smith, managed to get through all
obstructions and ensconce himself close under the breast-
work, where in the confusion he remained for a time
unnoticed, improving his advantages meanwhile by shoot-
ing several Frenchmen. Being at length observed, a

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

■i'Ji

ri)

^,'t

soldier fired vertically down upon him and wounded him
sevcri'ly, but not enou^'h to prevent his spriu^in*^ up,
striking at one of his enemies over the top of the wall,
and braining him with his hatchet. A British officer
who saw tlie feat, and was struciv by the reckless daring
of the man, ordered two regulars to bring him off ;
which, covered by a brisk fire of musketry, they suc-
ceeded in doing. A letter from the camp two or three
weeks later reports him as in a fair way to recover,
being, says the writer, much braced and invigorated by
his anger against the French, on whom he was swearing
to have his revenge.

Toward i\xG o'clock two English columns joined in a
most determined assault on the extreme right of the
F'rench, defended by the battalions of Guienne and
Bdarn. The danger for a time was imminent. Mont-
calm hastened to the s])ot with the reserves. The
assailants hewed their way to the foot of tlie breastwork ;
and though again and again repidsed, they again and
again renewed the attack. The Highlanders fought with
stubborn and unconquerable fury. " Even those who
were mortally wounded," writes one of their lieutenants,
" cried to their companions not to lose a thought upon
them, but to follow their officers and mind the honor of
their country. Their ardor was such that it was" difli-
cult to bring them off." Their major, Campbell of
luverawe, found his foreboding true. He received a
mortal shot, and his clansmen bore him from the field.
Twentv-five of their officers were killed or wounded, and
half the men fell under the deadly fire that poured from
the looi>holes. Captain John Campbell and a few fol-
lowers tore their way through the abatis, climbed the
breastwork, leaped down among the French, and were
bavoncted there.

•

BATTLE OF TICONDEROGA.

!;f

As tho colony troops and Canadians on the low o-ponnd
worn left undistuH.cd, Lovis sent them an order to make
a sortie and attack tl.c left flank of the charging col-
umns. They accordingly posted themselves amoim tl.c
trees along the declivity, and fired npwards at tlie en-
emy, who presently shifted their position to the ri'-ht
out of the line of shot. The assault still contiuued,"l,ut
111 vain; and at six th(3ro was another effort, ef.ually
fruitless. From this time till half-past seven a linovr-
ing fight was kept np hy the rangers and other provin-
cials, firing from the edge of tho woods and from behind'
the stumps, l)ushes, and fallen trees in front of the lines
Its only oI)jects were to cover their comrades, who were
collectmg and bringing off the woun.hMl, and to protect
the retreat of the regulars, who fell back in disorder to
the Falls. As twilight came on, the last combatant with-
drew, and none were left but the dead. Abercromhy had
lost in killed, wounded, and missing, nineteen hundred
and iorty-four ofTicers and men. The loss of the French
not counting that of Langy's detachment, was three hnn'
dred and seventy-seven. Bourlamaque was danjieronsly
wounded; iJougainville slightly; and the hat of Levis
was twice shot through.

Montcalm, with a mighty load lifted from his soul
passed along the lines, and gave the tired soldiers the'
thanks they nobly deserved. IJeer, wine, and food were
served out to them, and they bivouacke.l for tho nio-ht
on the level ground l)etween the breastwork and tho
lort. Ihe enemy had met a terrible rebuff; vet tne
danger was not over. Abercromhy still ha.l mo^e than
thirteen thousand men, and he might renew the attack
u-ith cannon. But, on the morning of the ninth, a band
ot volunteers who had gone out to watch him brought

LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CIIAMPLAIN.

back the report that he was in full reticat. The saw-
mill at the Falls was on lii'C, and the last English sol-
dier was gone. On the morning of the tenth, Lc'vis,
with a strong detachment, followed the road to the
landing-place;, and found signs that a panic had over-
taken the defeated troops. They had left behind several
hundred barrels of provisions and a large quantity of
baggage ; while in a marsiiy ])lace that they had crossed
was found a considerable number of their shoes, which
had stuck in the mud, and which they had not stopped
to recover. They had embarked on the morning after
the battle, and retreated to the head of the lake in a
disorder and dejection wofully contrasted with the pomp
of their advance. A gallant army was sacrificed by the
blunders of its chief.

Montcalm announced his victory to his wife in a strain
of exaggeration that marks the exaltation of his mind.
" Without Indians, almost without Canadians or colony
troo}>s, — I had only four hundred, — alone with Levis
and Bourlamaque a'd the troops of the line, thirty-one
hundred lighting men, I have beaten an army of twenty-
five thousand. They rei)asscd the lake })recipitately,
with a loss of at least five thousand. This glorious day
does infinite honor to the valor of our battalions. I have
no time to write more. I am well, my dearest, and I
embrace you." And he wrote to his friend Dorcil:
"The army, the too-small army of the King, has beaten
the enemy. What a day for France ! If I had had two
hundred Indians to send out at the head of a thousand
picked men under the Chevalier do Levis, not many
would have escaped. Ah, my dear Doreil, what soldiers
are ours ! I never saw the like. Why were they not
at Louisbourg ? "

■

„

BATTLE OF TICONDEROGA. 86

On the morrow of Ins victory he caiKscd a great cross
to be i.Ianted on tlio battle-field, inscribed with these
lines, composed by the soldier-schohir himself,—

" Quid (lux 1 quid miles ? quid strata ingentia ligna '
" En Signuin ! on victor! Dous hie, Dcus ipse triumphat."
" Soldier and chief and rampart's strcngtli are nougl>t ;
i3ehold the conquering Cross 1 'T is God the triumph wrought."

A LEGEND OF TICONDEROGA.

"IV /TENTION has been made of the death of Major
-^'-*- Duncan Campbell of Inverawe. The following
family tradition relating to it was told me in 1878 by
the late Dean Stanley, to whom 1 am also indebted for
various papers on the subject, including a letter from
James Campbell, Esq., the present laird of Inverawe,
and great-nei)he\v of the hero of the tale. The same
story is told, in an amplified fOi*m and with some vari-
ations, in the Leijendary Tales of the Highlands of Sir
Thomas Dick Lauder. As related by Dean Stanley and
approved by Mr. Campbell, it is this : —

The ancient castle of Inverawe stands by the banks
of the Awe, in the midst of the wild and picturesque
scenery of the western Highlands. Late one evening,
before the middle of the last century, as the laird, Dun-
can Cami)bell, sat alone in the old hall, there was a loud
knocking at the gate; and, opening it, he saw a stranger,
with torn clothing and kilt besmeared with blood, who
in a breathless voice begged for asylum. He went on to
say that he had killed a man in a fray, and that the
pursuers were at his heels. Campbell promised to shel-
ter him. " Swear on your dirk ! " said the stranger ; and
Campbell swore. He then led him to a secret recess in
the depths of the castle. Scarcely was he hidden when
again there was a loud knocking at the gate, and two

A LEGEND OF TICONDEROGA.

armed men appeared. " Your cousin Donald has been
murdered, and we are looking for the murderer ! "
Campbell, remembering his oath, professed to have no
knowledge of the fugitive ; and the men went on their
way. The laird, in great agitation, lay down to rest in a
large dark room, where at length he fell asleep. Wak-
ing suddenly in bewilderment and terror, he saw the
ghost of the murdered Donald standing by his bedside,
and heard a hollow voice pronounce the woids : '' Inver-
aive ! Inverawe ! blood has been shed. Shield not the
murderer!''^ In the moining Campl^ell went to the
hiding-place of the guilty man and told him that he
could hai'bor him no longer. " You have sworn on your
dirk ! " he replied ; and the laird of Inverawe, greatly
perplexed and troubled, made a compromise between
conflicting duties, promised not to betray his guest, led
him to the neighboring mountain, and hid him in a cave.

In the next night, as he lay tossing in feverish sliun-
bers, the same stern voice awoke him, the ghost of his
cousin Donald stood ngain at his bedside, and again he
heard the same ap])alllng words: '■'' Inverawe ! Inverawe!
blood has been shed. /Shield not the m^irderer !^^ At
break of day he hastened, in strange agitation, to the
cave ; but it was empty, the stranger was gone. At
night, as he strove in vain to sleep, the vision aj)pearcd
once more, ghastly ])ale, but less stern of aspect than
before. " Farewell., Inverawe ! " it said ; " Farewell., till
we meet at TICONDEROaA!''

The strange name dwelt in Campbell's memory. He
had joined the Black Watch, or Forty-second Regiment,
then employed in keeping order in the turljulcnt High-
lands. In time he became its major ; and, a year or
two after the war broke out, he went with it to America.
Here, to his horror, he learned that it was ordered to

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LAKE GEORGE AND LAKE CHAMPLAIN.

tlio attack of Ticoiidoroga. His story was well known
among his brotlier oHicors. Tlicy c()nil)incd among them-
selves to disarm his fears ; and when tliey reached the
fatal spot they told him on the eve of the battle, " This
is not Ticonderoga; we are not there yet; this is Fort
George." But in the morning Ik; came to them witli
haggard looks. •' 1 have seen him ! Yon have deceived
me! lie came to my tent last night! This is Ticon-
dei'oga ! I shall die to-day ! " and his prediction was
fulfilled.

Such is the tradition. The indisputable facts are that
Major Duncan Campbell of Inverawe, his ai-m shattered
by a bullet, was carried to Fort Edward, where, after
amputation, he died and was buried. (^Ahercromhy to
Pitt, 19 Ai(</ud, 1758.) The stone that marks his grave
may still be seen, with this inscription : " Here lyes the
Body of Dmiean Campbell of Inverawe, Eacf^., Major to
the old IIi(/hland Reyiment, a(j<'d 55 Years, tcho died the
17'^ Jul//, 1158^ of the Woundti he received in the Attack
of the lletrenchmeni of Ticonderoga or Carrillon, on the
8'^^ July, 1758."

His son, Lieutenant Alexander Campbell, was severely
wounded at the same time, but reachci Scotland alive,
and died in Glasgow.

Mr. Campbell, the present Inverawe, in the letter men-
tioned above, says that forty-five years ago he knew an
old man whose grandfather was foster-brother to the
slain major of the forty-second, and who told him the
following story while carrying a salmon for him to an
inn near Inverawe. The old man's grandfather was
sleeping with his son, then a lad, in the same room, but
in another bed. This son, father of the narrator, " was

A LEGEND OF TICOXDEUOGA.

awakoned," to borrow the words of Mr. Campbell " by
some luiaecu.stomed sound, and beliold there was a bri-dit
light m tlie room, and he saw a ligure, in full IJi-diland
regimentals, cross over the room and stoop down over
his lather's bed and give him a kiss. Hq was too frioht-
ened to speak, but put his head under his coverlet and
went to sleep. Once more he was roused in like manner
and saw the same sigiit. In the morning he spoke to'
his father about it, who told him that it was Macdon-
iiociiie [the Gaelic patronymic of the laird of Inveratrrl
whoni he had seen, and who camo to tell him that he
had been killed in a great battle in America. Sm-e
enough said my informant, it was on the very day that
the battle of 1 iconderoga was fought and the laird was
Killed.

It is also said that two ladies of the family of Inver-
awo saw a l.attic in the clouds, in which the shadowy
forins of I ighlaud warriors were plainly to be descried;
and t ha when the fatal news came from America, it was
ound that the tin.c of the vision answercl .-xactly to
that of the battle in which the head of the family fell

NIAGARA.

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^IKOl^ OF F<.HT NIAGARA.

c
pi

'■"P^ilE liivfT Niag'ai'a svm^ known (o th(.' Joyiiits a.s
•*• farly us IGJO Tlu- Kuils arc iii(iiciit( .! on ''[lam-
plaiiiV iiifjp of .l<!'oii, urri ijj UMs Uic' Josuit }t!iv:T!riicau
i>}>euks ot Ou.'tu a3^ '* oitaract; of frijjfhUnl ii-'igiu/'

li< ItiT'S. the V-AU \v<'f" vi.-^itril bv the Ulnv Lnuis
llinirn'jtiu, who givo,:^an Cixaggenitci) (icscrijtHoii of llieui,
am! illihsl rates it by ' i'itrioii>< j'i<'turi\ 'I'h'- uiinic Xia;^-
fivn is ftf Iri»<)V«*Ms «vn'.i:in. aiui in tho ^Mohawk dialect ib
pr. r'-v';a<:<"^ N ' iV.' •'■^»b-

Ivt th.: )•■■■',)• .i* HftMU ju'n's Vlf'it. tifr followtHS of C:lVO-
lior <'.^ J,? "^^uH-' b»•«■i^.n a torhficii siurrlioni,!- wIkut- Lrwis-

above the i-ab-, Lr- ':.'!=• t'uiii t]p< •• (irilhi,;' <hv; Hr^t
vcsM'i rluit cTor .-a.ii'.-f Of! !!."• F[.)|ii'r Laki s, Ar the
mmo iimt^ ho b»\L''i;u a b:it nt (lie inniiili uf llir* rivor.
La Sallr^'s J'on f'-ll U> ruin, aiul another uns built in
its ]il:K'e a to>v yt';ir^ aifi r. Tliip, loo, was abanrlnnod
to be a;iaiii n*!>ni!t. aii'i ihc post roniaitUMl irt Fi'iicli
haiuU more than half a fr'jit'iry. It vas of iiic 'ircalcst
iirsportaneo, ainco it .'omruati bnl 11m.' chief route ironi
Cannda to the interii'- of tl»e •"oijtiornt. At husxlh, in
ITolh the your of "U'..iO''s funjous vi('f(»iy !i{ Qneboc,
General Pridennx wu.-n .soe.t i'> reihici' it.

Pri<leanx safely reaeh-.d N'lugara, and laid r-iepe to it.
Fort Niatraia was a stronjj: woik, lately rebuilt in
regular form by an excellent ofticor, Captain Fouchot,

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SIEGE OF FORT NIAGARA.

T^IIE River Niagara was known to the Josuits as
-^ early as 1G40. Tiie Falls arc indicated on Cham-
plain's map of 16^2, and in 1G48 the Jesuit Riio-ncncau
speaks of tliera as a " cataract of frightful height."

In 1078, the Falls were visited by the fi-hir Louis
IIennei)in, who gives an exaggerated description of them,
and illustrates it by a curious jiicture. Tiie name Niag-
ara is of Iro(iuois origin, and in the Mohawk dialect Is
pronounced Nyagarah.

In the year of Hennepin's visit, the followers of Cavc-
licr do la Salle began a fortified storehouse where Lewis-
ton now stands, and on Cayuga Creek, a few miles
above the Falls, La Salle built the ''Grilliu," the first
vessel that ever sailed on the tapper Lakes. At the
same time he begnn a fort nt the mouth of the river.
La Salle's fort f(dl to ruin, nnd another was built in
its place a few years after. This, too, was abandoned
to be again reltuilt, and the post remained in French
hands more than half a century. It was of the great(>st
imi)ortance, since it connnauded th<> chief r-oute from
Canada to the interior of the contiueut. At hmgfh, in
IToO, the year of Wolfe's famous victory at Quebec,
General Prideaux was sent to reduce it.

Prideaux safely reached Niagara, and laid siege to it.
Fort Niagara was a strong work, lately rebuilt in
regular form by an excellent ofilccr, Captain Pouchot,

NIAGARA.

of the battalion of Bdarn, who commanded it. It stood
wliere tlie present fort stands, in the angle formed )>y
iha junction of the River Niagara with Lake Ontari(j,
and was held by about six hundred men, well supplied
with provisions and munitions of war. Higher up the
river, a mile and a half above the cataract, there was
another fort, called Little Niagara, built of wood, and
commanded V)y the half-breed ofiicer, Joncairc-Chabert,
wdio with his brother, Joncalre-Clauzonnc, and a numer-
ous clan of Indian relatives, had long thwarted the
efforts of Sir William Johnson to engage the Five
Nations in the English cause. But recent English
successes had had their effect. Joncaire's influence
was waning, and Johnson was now in Pridcaux's camp
with nine hundred Five Nation warriors pledged to fight
the French. Joncaire, finding his fort untenable, burned
it, and came with his garrison and his Lidian friends to
reinforce Niagara.

Poucbot had another resource, on which he con-
fidently relied. In obedience to an order from Vau-
dreuil, the French population of the Illinois, Detroit,
and other distant posts, joined w^ith troops of Westei'n
Indians, had come down the Lakes to restore French
ascendency on the Ohio. These mixed bands of white
men and red, bushrangers and savages, were now gath-
ered, partly at Le Bauf and Venango, but chiefly at
Presquisle, under command of Aubry, Liguoris, Marin,
and other partisan chiefs, the best in Canada. No
sooner did Pouchot learn that the English were coming
to attack him than he sent a messenger to summon
them all to his aid.

The siege was begun in form, though the English
engineers were so incompetent that the trenches, as
first laid out, were scoured by the fire of the place, and

SIEGE OF FORT NIAGARA.

had to be made anew. At last the batteries opened fire.
A shell from a coehorn l)iirst prematurely, just as it
left the mouth of the piece, and a fragment striking
Prideaux on the head, killed him instantly. Johnson
took conunand in his place, and made up in energy what
he lacked in skill. In two or three weeks the fort was
in extremity. The ramj»art was breached, more than
a hundred of the gari-ison were killed or disabled, and
the rest were exhausted with want of sleep. Pouchot
watched anxiously for the promised succors ; and on the
morning of the twenty-fourth of July a distant firing
told him that they were at hand.

Aubry and Ligneris, with their motley following, had
left Presqulslc a few days before, to the number, accord-
ing to Vaudreuil, of eleven hundred French and two
hundred Indians. Among them was a body of colony
troops ; but the Frenchmen of the party were chiefly
traders and bushrangers from the West, connecting
links between civilization and savagery ; some of them
indeed were mere white Indians, imbued with the ideas
and morals of the wigwam, wearing hunting-shirts of
smoked deer-skin embroidered with quills of the Canada
porcupine, painting their faces black and red, tying
eagle feathers in their long hair, or })lastering it on their
temples with a compound of vermilion and glue. They
were excellent woodsmen, skilful hunters, and perhaps
the best bushfightcrs in all Canada.

When Pouchot heard the firing, he went with a
wounded artillery ofTicer to the bastion next the river ;
and as the forest had been cut away for a great distance,
they could see more than a mile and a half along the
shore. There, by glimpses among trees and bushes,
they descried bodies of men, now advancing, and now
retreating ; Indians in rapid movement, and the smoke

NIAGARA.

of guns, the sound of wliich reuchcd their ears in heav}'
volleys, or a sharp and angry rattU'. Meiuiwhilc the
English cannon litid ceased their lire, and the silent
trenches seemed deserted, as if their occupants were
gone to meet the advancing foe. There was a call in
the fort for volunteers to sallv and destroy (he works :
but no sooner did they show tli(nnselves along the
covered wav than the seeming! v abandoned tnMiches
were thronged with men and bayonets, and the attempt
was given up. The distant firing lasted half an hour,
then ceased, and Pouchot remained in suspense; till, at
two in the afternoon, a friendly Ontmdaga, who had
passed mmoticed through the English lines, came to
him with the animuneement that the French and their
{dlies had been routed and cut to pieces. l*ouch(jt would
not believe him.

Nevertheless his tale was true, Johnson, besides his
Indinns, had with him about twenty -thi'ce hundred men,
whom he was forced to divide into three sei)arate bodies,
— onv to guard the bateaux, one to guard the trenches,
and (me to fight Aubry and his band. This last body
consisted of the provincial 'ight infantry and the pickets,
two companies of grr'nidiers, and a hundred and fifty
men of the forty-sixth reji-iment, all under command of
Colonel Massey. They took post Ixdiind an abatis at a
jdace called La Belle Famille, and t\ui Five Nation war-
riors ])laced themselves on their fliU'KS. These savages
had shown signs of disaffection ; and when the enemy
api)roached, they opened a parley with the French
Indians, which, however, soon ended, and l)oth sides
raised the war-whoop. The fight was brisk for a while ;
but at h'^i ' v's men broke away in a panic. The
FrencJ ' .•;^ ■ ' to have made desperate efforts to
retrieve i.v j;^' ''• nearly all of thera were killed or

SIEGE OF FOIIT NIAGARA.

captured ; whilo their follovvora, after Iioavy loss, fled
to their canoes and boats above the cataract, hastened
back to Lake p]rie, l)urned Prcsquisle, Le Banif, and
Venango, and, joined by the garrisons of tliosc forts,
4-etreated to Detroit, leaving the whole region of the
upper Oliio in undisi.uted j.ossession of the Endish.

At four o'clock on the day of the battle, after a fu-
rious cannonade on both sides, a trumpet sounded from
the trenches, and an officer a])proached the fort with a
summons to surrender. lie brought also a j)aper con'-
taiuing the names of the captive French ofiicers, though
some of them were spelled in a way that defied recog-
nition. Pouchot, feigning incredulity, sent an officer
of his own to the English camp, who soon saw unan-
swerable proof of the disaster; for here, under a shelter
of leaves and boughs near the tent of Johnson, sat Li-
gneris, severely wounded, with Aubiy, Villiers, Montigny,
Marin, and their companions in misfortune, — in all,'
sixteen officers, four cadets, and a surg(>on.

Pouchot had now no choice but surrender. By tiie
terms of the capitulation, the garrison were to be sent
prisoners to x\ew York, thougli honors of war were
granted them in acknowledgment of their courageous
conduct. There was a special stipulation that they
should be protected from the Indians, of whom they
stood in the greatest terror, lest the massacre of Fort
Wdham Henry should be avenged upon them. Johnson
restrained his dangerous allies, and, though the fort Was
pillaged, no blood was shed.

The capture of Niagara was an important stroke.
Thenceforth Detroit, Michillimackinac, the Illinois, and
all the other French interior posts were severed from
Canada and left in helpless isolation. The conquest of
the whole interior became only a question of time.

MASSACRE OF THE DEVIL'S HOLE.

\ FTER the conquest of Cainida, tliero was a j^eneral
•*^^ u])rising of the Indian tri])es, led ])y tlie famous
Tontiac, against the British forts and settlements. In
the war that followijd, a remarkable incident tocjk })laee
a little way below Niagara Falls.

The carrying-place of Niagara formed an essential link

n the chain of conmiunication between the province of
New York and the interior country. Men and military
stores were conveyed in boats uj) the river, as far as the
present site of Lewiston. Thence a portage road, several
miles in length, j»assed along the banks of the stream,
and terminated at Fort Schlosser, above the cataract.
This road traversed a region whose sublime features
have gained for it a world-wide renown. The River
Niagara, a short distance below the cataract, assumes an
aspect scarcely less remarkable than that stupendous
scene itself. Its channel is formed by a vast ravine,
whose sides, now bare and weather-stained, now shaggy
with forest-trees, rise in cliffs of appalling height and
steepness. Along this chasm pour all the waters of
the lakes, heaving their furious surges with the power
of an ocean and the rage of a mountain torrent. About
three miles below the cataract, the precipices which form
the eastern wall of the ravine are broken by an abyss of
awful depth and blackness, bearing at the present day
the name of the Devil's Hole. In its shallowest part, the

MASSACRE OF THE DEVIL'S HOLE.

1(1

of
er
lit
m

prccii)iL'C sinks sliocr down to the depth of eighty feet,
where it meets a ehuotie mass of rocks, descending witli
an abrupt declivity to unseen depths below. Within tiie
cold and damj) recesses of the gulf, a host of forest-trees
have rooted themselves; and, standing on the })erilous
brink, one nuiy look down u|)on the mingled folinge of
ash, poplar, and maj)le, while, abovi; them all, the spruce
and fir shoot their sharp and rigid sjtires ujiward into
sunlight. The roar of the convulsed river swells heav-
ily on the ear, and, far below, its hea<llong Avaters may
bo discerned careering in foam past the openings of the
matted foliage.

On the thirteenth of September, 1703, a numerous
train of wagons and pack horses proceeded from the
lower landing to Fort Schlosser, and on the following
mo^'uing set out on their return, guarded by an escort
r wenty-four soldiers. They pursued their slow ]jrog-
.i.j» until they reached a point where the road j)assed
alonu: the brink of the Devil's Hole. The gulf vawned
on their left, while on their right the road was skirted
by low and densely wooded hills. Suddenly they were
greeted by the blaze and clatter of a hundred I'ifles.
Then followed the startled cries of men, and the l)ound-
ing of maddened horses. At the next instant, a host of
Indians broke s(;reeching from the woods, and rifle-but
and tomahawk linished the bloody work. All was over
in a moment. Horses leaped the precipice ; men were
driven shrieking into the al^yss ; teams and wagons went
over, crashing to atoms among the rocks below. Tra-
dition relates that the drummer bov of the detachment
was caught, in his fall, among the branches of a tree,
where he hung suspended by his drum-strap. Being
but slightly injured, he disengaged himself, and, hiding
in the recesses of the gulf, finally escaped. One of the

100

NIAGARA.

toiiinsters also, who was wounded at the first fire, con-
trived to ciiiwl into the woods, where lie lay conei.'uled
till the Indians had left the place. JJesides these two,
the only survivor was Stednian, the conductor of the
citnvoy, who, heinj^ wtdl mounted, and seeing the whole
parly forced helplessly towards the precipice, wheeled
his horse, and resolutely spurred throuuh the crowd of
Indians. One of them, it is said, seized his hridle ; hut
he freed himself hy a dexterous use of his knife, and
plunued into the woods, intouched by the bullets which
whistled about his head. Flvinjj^ at full speed through
the forest, he reacluMl Fort Schlosscr in safety.

The distant sound of the Indian rifles had been heard
by a party of soldiers, who occupied a small fortified
camp near the lower landing. Forming in baste, they
advanced eagerly to the rescue. In anticipation of this
movement, the Indians, who were nearly five hundred in
number, had separated into two parties, one of which
had stationed itself at the Devil's Hole, to waylay the
convoy, while the other formed an ambuscade ui)on the
road a mile nearer the hmding-jdace. The soldiers,
marching precipitately, and huddled in a close body,
were suddenly assailed by a volley of rifles, which
stretched half their numben dead upon the road. Then,
rushing from the forest, the Indians cut down the sur-
vivors with merciless ferocity. A small remnant onlv
escaped the massacre, and fled to Fort Niagara with the
tidings. Major Wilkins, who commanded at this post,
lost no time in marching to the spot, with nearly the
whole strength of his garrison. Not an Indian was to
be found. At the two places of ambuscade, about
seventy dead bodies were counted, naked, scalpless, and
so horribly mangled that many of them could not be
recognized. All the wagons had been broken to pieces,

AIASSACUE OF TIIK DKVIL'S HOLE. 101

and such of (he horsus us wciu not driven over tho
precii.iee Im.l been carried off, luden, doubtU-ss, witli
ilio l»hiiider. Tlie anibuseude of tlie Devil's IJole hus
gained u ti-aditionary immortality, addin-r fearful inter-
est to a scene whose native horrors need no aid from
I lie imagination.

t*^

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MONTREAL.

if *

" i.

THE BIRTH OF MONTREAL.

TIT'E come now to an enterprise as singular in its
cluuacter as it proved important in its results.
At La Fleche, in Anjou, dwelt one Jerome le Rover de
ia Dauversiere, receiver of taxes. liis portrait shows
us a round, bourrfeols face, somewhat heavy perhaps,
decorated with a slight musta«_']ie, and redeemed by
bright and earnest eyes. On his head he wears a black
skull-cap ; and over his ample shoulders spreads a stiff
white collar, oi wide expanse and studious plainness.
Though he belonged to the noblesse, his look is that of
a grave bui-gher, of good renown and sage deportment.
Dauversiere was, liowever, an enthusiastic devotee, of
mystical tendencies, who whipixMl himself with a scou'rgc
of small chains till his shoulders were one wound, wore
a belt with more than twelve hundred sharp jwints, and
invented for himself other torments, which filled his
conl-ssor with admiration. One day, while at his devo-
tions, he heard an inward voice commanding him to
become the founder of a new Order of hospital nuns ;
and he was further ordered to establish, on the island
called Montreal, in Canada, a hospital, or irOtel-Dieu,
to be conducted by tiiese nims. Hut Montreal was a
wilderness, and the hospital would have no patients.
Therefore, in order to supply them, the island must first
be colonized. Dauversiere was greatly jierplexed. On
the one hand, the voice of Heaven must be obeyed ;

I I

106

MONTREAL.

on the other, he had a wife, six children, and a very
moderate fortune.

Again : there was at Paris a young priest, about
twenty-eight years of age, — Jean Jacc^ucs Olier, after-
wards widely known as founder of the Seminary of St.
Sulpice. Judged by his engraved portrait, his counte-
nance, though marked both with energy and intellect,
was anything but prepossessing. Every lineament i)ro-
claims the priest. Yet the Abb^ Olier has high titles
to esteem. He signalized his piety, it is true, by the
most disgusting exploits of self-mortification ; but, at
the same time, he was strenuous in his efforts to reform
the people and the clergy. So zealous was he for good
morals, that he drew upon himself the imputation of a
leaning to the heresy of the Jansenists, — a suspicion
strengthened by his opposition to certain pi'iests, who,
to secure the faithful in their allegiance, justified them
in lives of licentiousness. Yet Oiler's catholicity was
])ast attaintmcnt, and in his horror of Jansenists he
yielded to the Jesuits alone.

He was praying in the ancient church of St. Germain
des Pr(3s, when, like Dauversi^re, he thought he heard
a voice from Heaven, saying that he was destined to be
a light to the Gentiles. It is recorded as a mystic coin-
cidence attending this miracle, that the choir was at
that very time ciumting the words, Lumen ad revela-
tionem Gentium; and it seems to have occurred neither
to Olier nor to his biographer, that, falling on the ear
of the rapt worshipper, they might have unconsciously
suggested the supposed revelation. But there was a
further miracle. An inward voice told Olier that he
was to form a society of priests, and establish them on
the island called Montreal, in Canada, for the j)ropa-
gation of the True Faith ; and writers old and recent

THE BIRTH OF MONTREAL.

107

assert, that, while both he and Dauversiere were totally
ignorant of Canadian geography, they suddenly found
themselves in possession, they knew not how, of the
most exact details concerning Montreal, its size, shape,
situation, soil, climate, and productions.

Tlie annual volumes of the Jesuit Relations, issuing
from the renowned press of Cramoisy, were at this time
spread broadcast throughout France ; and, in the circles
of haiLte devotion. Canada and its missions were evcrv-
where the themes of enthusiastic discussion; while
Champlain, in his published works, had long before
pointed out Montreal as the proper site for a settlement.
But we are entering a region of miracle, and it is super-
fluous to look far for explanations. The illusion, in
these cases, is a part of tiie history.

Dauversiere ])ondered the revelation he had received ;
and the more he pondered, the more was he convinced
that it came from God. He therefore set out for Paris,
to find some means of accomplishing the task assigned
him. Here, as he prayed before an image of the Vii-gin
in the church of Notre-Daine, he fell into an ecstasy,
and beheld a vision. " I should be false to the integrity
of history," writes his biographer, " if I did not relate
it here." And he adds, that the reality of this celestial
favor is past doubting, inasmuch as Dauversiere himself
told it to his daughters. Christ, the Virgin, and St.
Joseph appeared before him. lie saw them distinctly,
Then he heard Christ ask three times of his Virgin
Mother, Where can I find a faithful servant? On which,
the Virgin, taking him (Dauversiere) l)y the hand,
replied, See, Lord, here is that faithful servant! — and
Christ, with a benignant smile, received him into his ser-
vice, promising to bestow on him wisdom and strength to
do his work. From Paris he went to the neighboring

108

MONTREAL.

cliateau of Mcudon, which overlooks the valley of the
Seine, not far from St. Cloud. Enterini^ the gallery
of the old castle, he saw a f)riest approaching him. It
was Olicr. Now we arc told that neither of these men
had ever seen or heard of the other ; and yet, says the
pious historian, " impelled by a kind of inspiration, they
knew each other at once, even to the depths of their
hearts ; saluted each other by name, as we read of St.
Paul, the Hermit, and St. Anthony, and of St. Dominic
and St. Francis ; and ran to embrace each other, like
two friends who had met after a long separation."

"Monsieur," exclaimed Olier, "1 know your design,
and I go to commend it to God at the holy altar."

And he went at once to say mass in the chapel.
Dauversiere received the communion at his hands ; and
then they walked for three hours in the park, discussing
their ])lans. They were of one mind, in respect both to
objects and means ; and when they parted, Olier gave
Dauversiere a hundred louis, saying, " This is to begin
the work of God."

They proposed to found at Montreal three religious
communities, — three being the mystic number, — one
of secular priests to direct the colonists and convert the
Indians, one of nuns to nurse the sick, and one of nuns
to teach the Faith to the children, white and red. To
borrow their own phrases, they would plant the banner
of Christ in an abode of desolation and a haunt of
demons ; and to this end a band of priests and Momen
were to invade the wilderness, and take post between
the fangs of the Iroquois. But first they must make
a colony, and to do so must raise money. Olier had
pious and wealthy penitents ; Dauversiere had a friend,
the Haron de Fancamp, devout as himself and far richer.
Anxious for his soul, and satisfied that the enterprise

;allery
n. It
ic men
ys the ,
1, they
I their
of St.
ominic
:r, like

begin

ligious
— one
ert tlie
' nuns
I. To
)anner
unt of
■women
tween
make
}v had
friend,
richer,
rprise

TnE Burn I of Montreal.

109

was an inspiration of (lod, he was eager to b(^ar part in
it. Olier soon found three others; and the six t<)g(>tlier
formed the germ of the Sjeiety of Notre-Danu! de ^hju-
treal. Among them they raised tlie sum of seventy-fivo
tliousand livres, equivalent to about as many dollars at
the present day.

Now^ to look for a moment at their plan. Their
eulogists say, and uilh perfect truth, that, from a
worldly point of view, it was mere folly. The ])artners
mutually bound themselves to seek no return for the
money ex])ended. Their profit was to be reaped in the
skies : and, indeed, there was none to be reaped on
earth. The feeble settlement at Quebec was at this
time in danger of utter ruin ; for the Iroquois, enraged
at the attacks made on them by Champlain, had begun
a fearful course of retaliation, and the very existence of
the colony trembled in the balance. But if Quebec was
exposed to their ferocious inroads, ^lontreal was in-
comparably more so. A settlement here would be a
perilous outpost, — a hand thrust into the jaws of the
tiger. It Avould provoke attack, and lie almost in the
path of the war-piirties. The Associates could gain noth-
ing bv the fur-trade ; for thev would not be allowed to
share in it. On the other hand, danger apart, the place
was an excellent one for a mission ; for here met two
great rivers : the St. Lawrence, with its countless trib-
utaries, flowed in from the west, while the Ottawa de-
scended from the north ; and Montreal, embraced by
their uniting waters, was the key to a vast inland navi-
gation. Thither the Indians would naturally resort ;
and thence the missionaries could make their way into
the heart of a boundless heathendom. None of the ordi-
nary motives of colonization had part in this design. It
owed its conception and its birth to religious zeal alone.

I I

F !%;

110

MONTREAL.

The island of Montreal belonf^ed to Lauson, former
president of the great company of the Hundred Associ-
ates ; and his son had a monopoly of fishing in the
8t. Lawrence. Dauversiere and Fancamp, after much
diplomacy, succeeded in persuading the elder Lauson to
transfer his title to them ; and, as there was a defect in
it, they also obtained a grant of the island from the
Hundred Associates, its original owners, Avho, however,
I'cservcd to themselves its western extremity as a site
for a fort and storehouses. At the same time, the
younger Lauson granted them a I'iglit of fishery within
two leagues of the shores of the island, for which they
were to make a yearly iicknowledginent of ten pounds
of fish. A confiriiKition </ these grants was obtained
from the King. Damer&iLii; and his com})anions were
now sci'i/iieurs of ^lon^i'cnl. They were em})owered to
appoint a governor, and to ita.>iiNji courts, from which
there was to be an ap})eal to the Supreme Conrt of
Quebec, supposing such to exist. They were excluded
from the fur-trade, and forbidden to build castles or forts
other than such as were necessary for defence against
the Indians.

Their title assured, they matured their plan. First
they would send out forty men to take possession of
Montreal, intrench themselves, and raise croi)s. Then
they Avould build a house for the priests, and two con-
vents for the nuns. Meanwhile, Olier was toiling at
Vaugirard, on the outskirts of Paris, to inaugurate the
seminary of priests, and Dauversiere at La Flechc, to
form the community of hospital nuns. How the school
nuns were provided for we shall see hereafter. The
■colony, it will be observed, was for the convents, not the
convents for the colony.

The Associates needed a soldier-governor to take

former
Associ-
in the
V much
lu.son to
efect ill
•om the
lowever,
s a site
me, the
y- within
eh thev
pounds
obtained
)ns were
vercd to
ni wliich
Dourt of
xchided
or forts
against

First

ssion of

Then

o con-

iling at

ate the

'che, to

school

The

not the

take

THE BIRTH OF MONTREAL.

Ill

charge of their forty men; and. directed as they sup-
])0sed by Providence, they foimd one wholly to their
mind. Tliis was Paul de Ciiomedey, Sieiir de Maison-
neuve, a devout and valiant gentleman, who in long
service among the heretics of Jlolhmd had i^ept his
faith intact, and liad lield himself resolutely aloof from
the license that surrounded him. lie loved his profes-
sion of arms, and wislied to consecrate his sword to the
Church. Past all comparison, he is the manliest figure
that appears in this grouj) of zealots. The piety of the
design, the miracles that inspired it, the adventure and
tlie peril, all combined to charm him ; and he eagerly cm-
braced the enterprise. His father ()[)posed his purpose ;
but he met him with a text of St. Mark, " There is no
man that hath left house or brethren or sisters or father
for my sake, but he shall receive an hundred-fold." On
this the elder ^Maisoiineuve, deceived l)y his own world-
liness, imagined that the plan covered some hidden
speculation, from which enormous profits were ex))eeted,
and therefore withdrew his o])position.

Their scheme was rii)ening fast, when both Oiler and
Dauversiore were assailed by one of those revulsions of
spirit, to Avhich saints of the ecstatic school are natu-
rally liable. Dauversiere, in ])articular, was a prey to
the extremity of dejection, uncertainty, and misgiving.
What hiid he, a family man, to do with ventures beyond
sea? Was it not his first duty to support his wife and
children ? Could he not fulfil all his obligations as a
Christian by reclaiming the wicked and relieving the
poor at La Fleche ? Plainly, he had doubts that his
vocation was genuine. If we could raise the curtain of
liis domestic life, perha{)s avc should find him beset by
wife and daughters, tearful and wrathful, inveighing
against his folly, and imploring him to provide a sup-

112

MONTREAL.

i
i

I !

r t
I i

1 I

\ I :

' I-

port for them before sqiiandijriiig his money to phant a
convent of nuns in u wilderness. How lon<^ his lit of
dejection lasted does not appear; but at leni^th lu; set
himself ai^'ain to his appointed work. Olier, too, enierg-
in<^ from the clouds and darkness, foinid failh once
more, and again j)laced himself at the head of the great
enterprise.

"^rhere was imr)erativo need of more money ; and Dau-
versierc, nnder judicious guidance, Avas active in obtain-
ing it. This miserable victim of illusions had a squat,
uncourtly figure, and was no jiroficient in the gra(;es
either of manners or of speech: lience his success in
commending Ids objects to persons of rank and wealth
is set down as one of the many miracles which attended
the birlh of ]\Iontreal. I>ut zeal and earnestness aic
in themselves a power; and the gi-onnd had been well
marked out and jiloughed for him in advance. That
attractive, though intricate, sul)jcct of study, the female
mind, has always engaged the attention of jiriests, mor(^
especially in countries where as in France, women ex(>rt
a strong social and j)olitlcal influence. The art of kin-
dling the flames of zeal, and the moi-e dilficult art of
directing and controlling them, have been themes of re-
flection the most diligent and profound. Accordingly
we find that a large proportion of the money raised for
this enterprise was contributed l)y devout ladies. Many
of them became members of the Association of Mon-
treal, which was eventually increased to about forty-five
persons, chosen for their devotion and their wealth.

Olier and his associates had resolved, though not from
any collapse of zeal, to postpone the establishment of
the seminary and the college until after a settlement
should be formed. The hospital, however, might, they
thought, be begun at once ; for blood and blows would

THE HinTII OF MONTHKAL.

113

plant a
Ills fit of
tl» lie sot
1), emcrg-
lilli oiico
the j^reat

an<l Dan-
ill obtain-

1 a squat,
ic graces
luecoss in
11(1 wealth

attentle(l
;tiicss are
boon well
30. Tiiat
10 female
sts, more
nen exert
, of kill-
lit art of
los of re-
ordingly
aiscd for
. Many
of Mon-
forty-five
1th*

not from
iment of
ittlemont
ght, they
ws would

bo the assured portion of the first settlers. At least, a
disercot woman ought to embark witii the first colonists
as their nurse and housekeeijor. Searcely was thi; need
recognized when it was supplied.

Madcinoisello Jcanue Maiiee was born of an hoiiDrnblo
family of Nogent-le-l\oi, and in 1(!4() was thirl, -lour
years of age. Those Canadian heroines l)egau their re-
ligious ox[)ciMences early. Of Mai'ie de rincarnatiou W(;
read, that at the age of seven Christ iii)])eared to her
in a vision ; and the biogi'a]»her of Mademoiselle Manee
assures us, with admiring gravity, that, at the siinie ten-
der ago, she bound herself to God by a vow of i»erj)etual
chastity. This singular infant in due time became a
woman, of a delicate constitution, and manners graceful,
vet diunilied. Thouu-h an earnest devotee, she felt no
vocation for the cloister; yet, while still " in the world,"
she led the life of a nun. The Jesuit Jlclatt'onfi, and the
example of Madame de la Peltrie, f)f whom she had
heard, inoculated her with the Canndian enthusiasm,
then so prevalent; and, under the [jretence of visiting
relatives, she made a journey to Paris, to take counsel
of certain priests. Of one thing she was assured : the
Divine will called her to Canada, but to what end she
neither knew nor asked to know ; for she abiindoned
herself as an atom to bo borne to unknown destinies on
the breath of God. At Paris, Father St. Jure, a Jesuit,
assured her that her vocation to Canada was, ])ast
doubt, a call from Heaven; while Father Ra})in, a R6-
collet, spread abroad the fame of her virtues, and intro-
duced her to many ladies of rank, wealth, and zeal.
Then, well supplied with money for any ])ious work to
which she might be summoned, she journeyed to Ro-
chollo, whence ships were to sail for New Franco. Thus
far she had been kept in ignorance of the plan with

I !' '

WOXTUKAL

I I

ivgtard in ^roiitrcal ; hni, now Father La Place, a Jesuit,
revealed i< to Iut. Oil (he diiy alter her arrival at
Uoehelle, as she eiitend the Church of tin; Jesuits, she
met Hauversirre cominij; out. "Then," says lior biogra-
})li('r, •' thescf two persons, who had never seen nor hcai'd
of eacli otluM', were enlightened su|)(U'natui'ally, whereby
th(>ir most hidden thoughts were nuitually made known,
as had hai>pened already with M. Olier and this sanit; M.
d(i hi Pauversiere." A long conversation ensued between
them ; and the delights of this interview were nevci"
effaced from the mind of Mademoisidle Mance. " She
used to speak of it like a seraph," writes one of lier
nuns, "and far better than many a learn(Ml doctor could
have done."

She had f(»und her destiny. The oeean, the wilder-
ness, the solitude, the Iroquois, — uolhing daunted her.
Sh(.' would go to Montreal with Maisouneuvo and his
forty men. Yet, when the vessel was about to sail, a
new and sharp misgiving seized her How cotdd she, a
woman, not yet bereft of youth or charms, live alone
in the forest, among a trooj) of soldiers? Ifer semph^s
were relieved by two uf the men, who, at the hist mo-
ment, refused to embark Avithout their wives, — and by
a young woman, who, impelled by enthusiasm, escaped
from her friends, and took passage, in spito of them, in
one of the vessels.

All was ready; the ships set sail; but Olier, Dauver-
siere, and Fancamp remained at home, as did also the
other Associates, with the exception of Maisonneuvo
and Mademoiselle Mance. In the following February,
an impressive scene took place in the Church of Notre-
Dame, at Paris. The Associates, at this time number-
ing about forty-five, with Olier at their head, assembled
before the altar of the Virgin, and, b}' a solemn cerenio-

THE lilUTlI OF iMONTliKAL.

110

iico, a Jesuit,
n* arrival at
> Jesuits, she
•s her biogra-
^(»n nor hennl
ally, wliorcby
ma(U' known,
ibis sanit; M.
isuod bdwoon
y were never
Glance. " Sbe
L>s on(; of Inn-
d doeior eould

n, the wildor-
f daunted ber.
iieuve and liis
hout b) sad, a
\v eould she, a
jius, live alone
Her seruples
; the last mo-
ves, — and by
iasm, escai)ed
to of tbeni, in

Olier, Dauver-
[s did also tbc
Maisonneuvc
ring February,
lurch of Notre-
timc number-
)ad, assembled
lolemn ceremo-

nial, conseerateil Montre.d to the Holy Family. Ileiiee-
t'orlli it was to be called Villtinaric df Montrctil, — u
sacred town, reared to tbe honor and under the patron-
age! of Clirist, ?^\. Joscj)!!, and tbe \'irgin, to he tspilied
)ty tlircc! jtcrsons on eai'tli, founders respeittiveiy of llie
three destine(l eKnnnuniiies, — Olier, Danversiere, and
a maiden of TroNcs, Marguerite IJourgeovs : tbe semi-
narv to be consecrated to Clirist, the Jlntel-Dien to St.
Josepb, and tlu; college! to tbe Virgi;.)..

IJnt w(; are anticipating a little; for it was sevei'al
yeai's us yet before! Margueirite IJourgeoys tooic an active
part in the work of Montreal. Slie was tbe daughter of
a I'espectable tradesman, and was mnv twentv-two vears
of age. Her jiortrait has come down to us; and her
face is a mirror of loyalty and womanly tenderness.
Her (puilities W(!re those of good sense, conscientious-
ness, and a warm heart. She had known no miracles,
ecstasies, or trances ; and though afterwards, when her
religions susceptibilities bad reached a fuller develo[)-
ment, a few such are recorded of her, yet even the Abbe!:
Fail Ion, with the best intentions, can credit her with i)ut
a meagre allowance of these celestial favors. Though
in tbe midst of visionaries, she distrusted the super-
natural, and avowed lier b'lief, that, in Flis government
of tbe world, (Jod does not often set aside its ordinary
laws Her religion was of the affections, and was mani-
fested in an absorbinu' devotion to dutv. She had felt
no vocation to tbc cloister, but had taken the vow of
chaftity, and was attached, as an externe, to the Sisters
ol the Congregation ot Troves, who were fevered with
eagerness to go to Canada. Marguerite, however, was
content to wait until there was a prospect that she could
do good by going; and it was not till the year 1653, that,
renomicing an inheritance, and giving all she had to the

IIG

MONTIIKAL.

! f !

I '1

! i!

poor, hIio cinharktMl for Uic .siiva<r(^ scone of licp lu))or.s.
To this tlay, in crowded seliool-roonis of Montreal and
Quebec, lit nioninuents of lier unol)trusive virtue, li«-r
«uccess(jrs instruct tlie children of the poor, and embalm
tlie pleasant nieniorv ot Mar«nierite IJonrueovH. In the
martial li'^iire of Maisonneuve, and the fail" form of this
^n'ulle nun, we find the ti'ue heroes of Montreal.

Maisonneuve, with ids forty hkmi and four women,
reached Quebec too late to ascend to Montreal that
season. They encountered distrust, jealousy, and o|>po-
sition. The a<i('nts of the Conijiany (»f the llumh-ed
Associates looked on them askanc(! ; and the (Jovernor
of Quebec, Montmagny, saw a rival governor in Maison-
neuve. Kvery means was used to persuade; the advent-
urers to abandim their ]»roject, and setth* at Quebec.
Moutmau'uy calleil a council of the principal persons of
his colony, who gave it as their ojtinion that the new-
comers had better exchange Montreal for the Island of
Orleans, where they would be in a position to give and
receive succor; while, by persisting in their fust design,
they would expose th(Mnselv(\s to destruction, and he of
use to nobody. Maisonneuve, who was present, ex|)ressed
his surprise that they should assume to direct his affairs.
" I lni\ e not come here," he said, '" to deliberate, but
to act. It is my duty and my honor to found a col-
ony at Montreal ; and 1 would go, if every tree were an
Iroquois I "

At Quel)ec there was little ability and no inclination
to shelter the new colonists for the winter ; and they
would have fared ill, but for the generosity of M. Pui-
scaux, Avho lived not far distant, at a place called St.
Michel. This devout and most hospitable jierson made
room for them all in his rough, but capacious dwelling.
Their neighbors were the hospital nuns, then living at

THE niUTM OK MONTHKAL.

117

f Ikm" labors,
loiitrcal and
,! virtue, Imt
antl c'lubalni
M)y.s. In Ihr
I'oini ol Ibis
real .

four women,
lontrenl ilial
sy, and oppo-
Ibe Ilinidred
tlic (lovci nor
or in Mais(»u-
(• tlie advent-
le at Quebec,
al persons of
tbat tbe new-
tbe Isbmd of
to jiivo and
lirst dcsiirn,
)n, and be of
nt. (expressed
;l bis affairs,
'liberate, but
fttund a col-
lice were an

inclination
or; and tbey
y of M. Pui-
ce called St.
jierson made
)us dwelling,
leii living at

tbe mission of Sillery, in a substantial, l»ut comfortless
bouse of stone ; wliere, amidst destitution, sickness, and
ii'repressii)le ilisiiMist at tbe liltb of tbe sa\a;j,'es wliom
tbev bad in ebarir*-, tbey weri' laboriu^i;' day and ni^'lit
witb devoted assiduity. Amon;^' tlu; minor ills wliieb
beset liiem were tbe eeeentiieities of one of tbeir lay
riisters, crazed witli religious (intbusiasm, wbo bad tbe
care of tbeir poultry and domestic animals, of wbicb
slie was accustomed to inijuii'e, one by one, if tbey loved
C!o(l ; wben, not receiving an immediate answer in tbo
allii'mative, sbe would instantly put tbcm to deatb,
telling tliem tbat tbeir impiety deserved no better
fate.

Early in Afay, Maisonneuve and bis b)llowers (Mu-
barked. Tbey bad .iraini'd an unexjtected recruit diwing
tbe winter, in tbe person of Madame dc la I'eltrie,
foundress of tbe Ursuliues of (Quebec. Tlie l)iety, tbo
ovelty, and tbe romance of tbeir entei'prise, all bad
.neir cbarms for tbe fair entbusiast ; and iin irresisti-
ble impulse — imputed by a slandering bistoi'ian to the
levity of lier sex — urged ber to sliare tbeir fortunes.
Her zeal was more admired by tbe Montrealists wbom
sbe joined tban by tbe Ursulines wbom sbe abandoned.
Sbe carried off all tbe furniture sbe bad lent tbem,
and left tbcm in the utmost destitution. Nor did sbe
remain quiet after rcacbing Montreal, but was j)resently
.seized witli a longing to visit tbe flurons, and preaeb
tbe Faitli in person to tbose benigbted beatben. It
needed all tbe eloquence of a Jesuit, lately returned
from tbat most arduous mission, to convince her tbat
the attempt would be as useless as rash.

It was the ciuhth of Mav when ^faisonneuvo and
Ids followers embarked at St. Michel ; and as the boats,
deep-laden with men, arras, and stores, moved slowly on

118

MONTREAL.

tlieir way, the forest., willi leaves just opening in llio
wiirnitli of spring, liiy on their right hand and on their
h't't, in a fiatleiing seniliiiince of trancpiillity and ])eaec.
But behind woody ish'ts, in tangh'd tiiiekets and (hinip
ravines, and in the shack* and stilhiess of the .eolnmiied
woods, hiri\ed every wlierci a danger and a terror.

On the seventeenth of May, 1G42, Malsonneuve's little
flotilla — a pinnaee, a Mat-bottomed eraft moved by sails,
and two row-boats — apjtroaehed Montreal; and all on
board raised in nnison a hvnni of praise. iMonlniagny
was with them, to deliver the island, in behalf of the
Comjjany of the Hundred Ass(jeiates, to J^hiisonnenve,
representative of the Assoeiates of Montreal. And here,
too, was Father Vimont, superior of the missions; for
the Jesuits had be(>n prudently invited to aeeejtt the
sj)iritual eharge of the young eolony. On the following
day, they glided along tiu* green and solitary shoi'es now
thronged with the life of a busv eitv, and landed on tin*
spot whieh Champlain, thirty-imo years before, liad
ehosen as the lit site of a settlement. It was a tongue
or triangle of land, formed by the junetion of a rivulet
with the St. Lawrenee, and known afterwards as Point
C'alliere. The rivulet was bordered by a meadow, and
beyond rose the forest with its vanguard of scattered
trees. p]arlv sprimr flowers were bloominu' in the voung
grass, and birds of varied plumage flitted among the
boughs.

Maisonneuvc sprang ashore, and fell on his knees.
His followers imitated his exai 'e ; and all joined their
voices in enthusiastic songs thanksgivini!:. Tents,
baggage, arms, and stores were landed. An altar was
raised on a pleasant spot near at hand ; and Mademoi-
selle !Manec, with Madame dc la Peltrie, aided by her
servant, Charlotte Barre, decorated it with a taste which

THE BIUTII OF MONTIJKAL.

119

liiiu^ ill i\w
ind on tlicir
f {ind ])euco.
s and (iiiinp
13 .coliuuiiod
rroi-,

iciivo's liltlti

vcd l)v isails,

and nil on

iMontiuiiij^ny

•hair of (lie

[aisoniuMivo,

And lu'ic,

issioiis ; for

accopt tlio

10 followin<j^

shores now

idfd on tlio

)(.'for(', liad

s a toiiirnc

)f a ri\udet

s as Point

cadow, and

scattered

1 the voniii^

among the

liis knees,
oincd their
••:. Tents,
altar was
^fademoi-
~led by her
aste which

was tlie !i(hni ration of the beholders. Now all the com-
pany gathered l»eh)r(^ the shrine. Ilert; stood V'iinont,
in the ricli vestments of liis oHIcc Hen; were the two
ladies, with their servant; Montma«rny, no vei-y willinir
spectator; and Maisonnenve, ii warlike li<rure, erect and
tall, Ids men clust(!rin<r aronnd him, — soldiers, sailors,
artisans, and laborers, — all alike soldiiM's at nee(l. Tliev
knecded in reverent silenci; as the Host was raised aloft ;
and when the; rite was over, the priest turned ainl
addressed them: —

" Yon are a ^-rain of mustard-seed, that shall rise and
grow till its branches overshadow the earth. Vou are
few, but your work is tlie work of (Jod. Ilis smile is on
you, and your children shall fill the land."

The afternoon waned ; the sun sank behind the west-
ern forest, and twilight came on. Fireflies were twin-
kling over tlie darkened meadow. They caught them,
tied them with thrciads into shining festoons, and hung
them before the altar, where the Host remained exposed.
Then they jtitched their tents, lightcfl their bivouac fires,
stationed their guards, and lay down to rest. Such was
the birth-n'ght of Montreal.

Is this tnie histoj-y, or a r()mance of Christian chivalry ?
It is both.

A few years later there was another emigration to
INIontreal, of a character much like the first. The pious
little colony led a struggling and precarious existence.
Many of its inhabitants were killed by the Inxjuois, and
its escape from destruction was imputed to the interven-
tion of the Holy Virgin. The [»lace change(l as years
went on, and became a great centre of the fur trade,
though still bearing strcmg mai-ks of its pristine charac-
ter. The institutions of religion and charity planted
by its founders remain to this day, and the Seminary

'^r

■4' I

120

MONTREAL.

of St. Sulpice holds vast possessions in and around
the city. During tiie war of 1755-1700, Montreal
was a base of military operations. In the latter year
three English armies advaneed upon it from three
different points, united before its walls, and forced
(Jovcrnor Vaudreuil to surrender all Canada to the
British Crown.

r W^M

and around

•0, Montreal

) latter year

from three

and forced

[lada to the

QUEBEC.

i
il

s !

! «

IXFAXCY OF QUEBEC.

r^IIA:MPLAIX was the founder of tliis old capital of
French Canada, whoso existence hcsxan in 1008.
In tliat year he built a cluster of fortified dwellin-s and
storehouses, which he called " The Habitation of Que-
bec," and which stood on or near the site of the market-
place of the Lower Town.

The settlement made little progress for many years.
A company of merchants held the monopoly of' its fur-
trade, by which alone it lived. It was lialf trading-
factory, half mission. Its i)ermanent inmates did not
exceed fifty or sixty persons, — fnr-trad(>rs, friars, and
two or three wretched families, who had no inducement
and little wish to labor. The fort is facetiously repre-
sented as having two old women for garrison, and a
brace of hens for sentinels. All was discord and dis-
order. Champlain was the nominal commander; but
the actual autliority was with tlie merchants, who held
excepting the friars, nearly Q\Qvy one in their pay.'
Each was jealous of the otlier, but all were united in
a common jealousy of Cliam])lain. From a short-siglited
view of self-interest, they souglit to clieck the coloniza-
tion which they were pledged to i)romote. Tlie few
families wliom they brought over were foi-bidden to
trade with the Indians, and compelled to -,oll tlie fruits
of their labor to the agents of the company at a low,
fixed price, receiving goods in return at an inordinate

124

QUEBEC.

'I i '

i'^

1 I

valuation. Some of the merchants were of Rouen, some
of St. Malo ; some were Catholies, some were Huguenots.
Henec; unceasing bickerings. All exercise of the Re-
formed Religion, on hmd or water, was i)roliibited within
th(! limits of New France; but the Huguenots set the
prohibition at nought, roaring their heretical psalmody
with such vigor from their ships in the river, that the
unhallowed strains polluted the ears of the Indians on
shore. Tlic merchants of Rochelle, who had refused to
join the comi)any, carried on a bold, illicit trallic along
the borders of the St. Lawrence, eluding pursuit, or, if
hard pressed, showing fight ; and this was a source of
perpetual irritation to tiie incensed monopolists.

Chamjjlain, in his singulurly trying position, displayed
a mingled zeal and fortitude. Ho went every year to
France, laboring for the interests of the colony. To
throw open the trade to all comj)etitors was a measure
beyond the wisdom of the times ; and he aimed only so
to bind and regulate the monopoly as to make it sub-
servo the generous j)urpose to which he had given him-
self. He had succeeded in binding tlic company of
merchants with new and more stringent engagements ;
and, in the vain belief that these might not be wholly
broken, he began to conceive fresh hopes for the colony.
In this faith he embarked with his wife for Quebec in
the spring of 1(320; and, as the boat drew near the
landing, the cannon welcomed her to the rock of her
banishment. The buildings were falling to ruin ; rrjn
entered on all sides ; the court-yard, says Champlain,
was as squalid and dilapidated as a grange pillaged by
soldiers. JMadame de Chamj)lain was still very young.
If the Ursuline tradition is to be trusted, the Indians,
amazed at her beauty and touched by her gentleness,
would have worshipped her as a divinity. Her husband

)f Rouen, some
3rc lIii<j;uenots.
isc of the lle-
yhibited within
:nenots set the
tical psiihnody
river, that the
the Indians on
liad refused to
nt tralTic along
; pursuit, or, if ,
ras a source of
[)olists.

ition, disphiyed
) every year to
ic colony. To
was a measure
3 aimed only so

make it sub-
tiad given him-
le company of

engagements ;
not be wholly

1 for the colony,
for Quebec in
Irew near the

lie rock of her
to ruin ; rrjn
[ys Champlain,
ge pillaged by
[11 very young.
I, the Indians,
lier gentleness,
Her husband

INFANCY OF QUEBEC.

125

had married her at the age of twelve; when, to his
horror, he presently discovered that she was infected
with Ihe heresies of lici- father, a disu-uised Ihm'ucnot.
He addressed himself at once to her conversion, and his
pious efforts were somethinu' more than successful. Dur-
ing the four years which she })assed in Canada, her zeal,
it is true, was chiefly exercised in admonishing Indian
squaws and catechising their children; but, on her re-
turn to France, nothing would content her but U) become
a nun. Champlain refused ; but, as she was childless,
he at length consented to a virtual, though not forniiil,
separation. After his death she gained her wish, hv-
canie an Ursuline nun, founded a convent of tluit order
at Meaux, and died with a reputation almost saintly.

A stranger visiting the fort of Quebec would have
been astonished at its air of conventual decorum. Uhiek
Jesuits and scarfed oflicers mingled at Chamj)lain\s
table. Tliere was little conversaticm, but, in its {dace,
histories and the lives of saints were read aloud, as in
a monastic refectorv. Pravers, masses, and confessions
followed each other with an edifying regularity, and the
bell of the adjacent chapel, built by Chami)lain, rang
moiiiing, noon, and night. Godless soldiers caught the
infection, and wliiiijied themselves in penance for their
sins. Dcbauelied artisans outdid each other in the fury
of their contrition. Quebec was become a Mission.
Indians gathered thither as of old, not from the baneful
lure of brandy, for the trafTic in it was no longer tol-
erated, but from the loss pernicious attractions of gifts,
kind words, and politic Idandishments. To the vital
principle of propagandism the commercial and the mili-
tary character were subordinated ; or, to speak more
justly, trade, policy, and' military power leaned on the
missions as their main support, the grand instrument of

THfl

126

QUEBEC.

. mi

J I

A !

1 !

ilielr extension. The missions were to explore tlio
interior; tlie missions were lo win over the savage
hordes at onee to Ifeavcn and to France.

Years ])asscd. Tlie mission of tlie FInrons was es-
tablished, and here the indomitable Jjr(jbeul", with a band
worthy of him, toih'd amid miseries and perils as fearfnl
as ev(!r shook the constancy of man ; while Champhun
at Quebec, in a life uneventful, yet harassing and hibori-
ous, was busied in tiie round of cares which his post
involved. •

Christmas day, 1085, was a dark day in the nnnals of
New France. In a chamber of tlie fort, breathless and
cold, lay the hardy frame which war, the wilderness, and
tlie sea had buffeted so long in vain. After two months
and a half of illness, Champlain, at the age of sixty-eight,
was dead. Ilis last cares were for his colonv and the
succor of its suffering families. Jesuits, ollicers, sol-
diers, traders, and the few settlers of Quebec followed
his remains to the church; Le Jeune })ronounced his
culogv, and the feeble communitv built a tomb to liis
honor.

The colonv could ill spare him. For twcntv-scven
years he had labored hard and ceaselessly for its wcdfare,
sacrificing fortune, repose, and domestic peace to a cause
embraced with enthusiasm and [airsued with intrej)id
persistency. His character belonged partly to the [)ast,
partly to the present. The preux chevalier^ the crusader,
the romance-loving explorer, the curious, knowledge-
seeking traveller, the practical navigator, all claimed
their share in him. His views, though far beyond those
of the mean spirits around him, belonged to his age and
his creed. He was less statesman than soldier. He
leaned to the most direct and boldest policy, and one
of his last acts was to petition Richelieu for men and

INFANCY OF QUEBEC.

127

munitions for roi)R'ssing tlitit standin-i- menace to the
col(Miy, the Irociuois. His dauntless courage was matched
by an unwearied patience, a ])atience proved hy life-long
vexations, and not wholly subdued even by the saintly
follies of his Avife. He is charged with credidity, from
which few of his ago Avere free, and which in all ages
has been the foible of earnest and generous natures, too
ardent to criticise, and too honorable to doubt the hcmor
of others. P<'rhaps in his later years the heretic might
like him more had the Jesuit liked him less. The
adventurous explorer of Lake Ilurcui, the bold invader
of the Iroquois, befits but indifferently the UKmastic
sobrieties of the fort of Quebec and his sombre envii-on-
ment of jjriests. Yet Chami)lain was no formalist, nor
was liis an empty zeal. A soldier from his youth, in an
age of nnbridletl license, his life had answered to his
maxims; and when a generation had jjassi'd after his
visit to the Uurons, their elders remembered with
astonishment the continence of the great French war-
chief.

His b(^oks mark the man, — all for his theme and his
purpose, nothing for himself. Crude in style, full of
the superficial errors of carelessness and liaste, rarely
diffuse, often brief to a fault, they bear on every page
the palpable impress of truth.

,!;i

A MILITARY MISSION.

QUEBEC MiiH without a governor. Wlio should
succeed Cliiinij)laiii ? and wonld liis successor
be found equally zealous for the Faith, and friendly to
the mission ? These doubts, as he himself tells us,
agitated the miud of the Father Superior, Le Jcune:
but they were happily set at rest, Avhen, on a morning
in June, he saw a ship anchoring in the basin below,
and, hastening with his brethren to the landing-place,
was there met l>y Charles Iluault de Mcmtmngny, a
Knight of Malta, followed by a train of officfrs jind
gentlemen. As they all climbed the rock together,
Montmagny saw a crucifix {)lanted by the path. He
instantly fell on his knees before it ; and nobles, soldiers,
sailors, and priests imitated his exam))le. The Jesuits
sang Te Deum at the church, and the cannon roared
from the adjacent foi-t. Here the new governor was
scarcely installed, when a Jesuit came in to ask if ho
would be godfather to an Indian about to be baptized.
" Most gladly," replied the pious Montmagny. He
repaired on the instant to the convert's hut, with a com-
pany of gayly apparelled gentlemen ; and while the in-
mates stared in amazement at the scarlet and eml)roidery,
he bestowed on the dying savage the name of Joseph,
in honor of the spouse of the Virgin and the patron of
New France. Three days after, he was told that a dead
proselyte was to be buried , on which, leaving the lines

A MILITAUY MISSION.

129

of the new fortificntion lie was Iracinir, lie took in linnd
51 toreh, Dc Lisle, liis lieutenant, took anntlier, Repen-
ti^ny and St. Jean, gentlemen of his suite, with a hand
of soldiers, followed, two ])ricsts hore the eorpse, and
thus all moved together in j)rocession to the place of
hui'ial. The Jesuits were comforted. Champlain hiui-
self had not displayed a zeal so edifying.

A considerable; reinforcement came out with Mont-
magny, and among the rest several men of birth and
substance, with their families and dependiints. "It was
a sight to thank (Jod for," exclaims Fath(>r Lc Jeune,
" to behold these delicate yonng ladies and these tender
infants issuing from their wooden prison, like day from
the shades of night." The Father, it will be remembered,
had for some years })ast seen nothing but stpiaws, with
pappooses swathed like mmnmies and strapped to a
board.

Both Montmagny and De Lisle were half chnrchnien,
for both were Knights of Malta. More and more the
powers spiritual engrossed the colony. As nearly as
might be, the sword itself was in ))riestly hands. The
Jesuits were all in all. Authoritv, absolnte and without
appeal, was vested in a conncll com])osed of the governor,
Le Jeune, and the syndic,. an official snjiposed to repre-
sent the interests of the inhabitants. There was no
tribunal of justice, and the governor pronounced sum-
marily on all complaints. The church adjoined the
fort ; and before it was j)lanted a stake bearing a placard
with a prohibition against blasphemy, drunkenness, or
neglect of mass and other religic;is rites. To the stake
was also attached a chain and iron collar ; and hard by
was a wooden horse, whereon a culprit was now and
then mounted by way of example and warning. In a
community so absolutely priest-governed, overt offences

•■I'l,

■'t'l'

! Mi .

!'■.!

130

QUKliKC.

were, liowi'vcr, rare ; iiiid, cxcciit on the amiual sirrival
of tin; .shi|is from Fnuiec, when the roek swarnieil with
j(o(llesH sailors, Quel)ec was a UKjdel of decorum, and
wore, us its chroniclers lell lis, an aspect unspeakably
edify inj^'.

In the year 1«)40, various new estahlishnients of
reliii'ion and charity might have been seen at Quebec.
There was the bcginninji; of a college and a seminary
for Huron children, an end)ryo L'rsuline convent, an
incipient hospital, and a new Algontiuin mission al a
l)lace called Silleiy, four miles distant. Champlain's
fort had heen enlarged aiul partly rebuilt in stone by
!>[ontmagnv, who had also laid out streets on the site of
th(! future city, though as yet the streets had no lujuses.
Jichind the fort, and very near it, stood the church and
a house for the Jesuits. Both were of pine wood ; and
this year, 1040, both were burned to tlic gnMuid, to be
afterwards rebuilt in stone.

Aside from the fur trade of the Company, the whole
life of the colony was in missions, convents, religious
schools, and hosj)itals. Here on the rock of Quebec
were the api)endages, useful and otherwise, of an old-
established civilization. While as yet there were no
inhabitants, and no immediate hope of any, there were
institutions for the care of children, the sick, and the
decrepit. All these Averc sup})orted by a charity in
most cases precarious. The Jesuits relied chiefly on
the Comj)any, who, by the terms of their patent, were
obliged to maintain religious worship.

Quebec wore an aspect half military, half monastic.
At sunrise and sunset, a squad of soldiers in the pay of
the Company })araded in the fort ; and, as in Champlain's
time, the bells of the church rang morning, noon, and
night. Confessions, masses, and penances were punc-

A MILITAUV MISSION'.

i:;i

tiliously ohsci'vcd ; juitl, iVoiii llio governor to tlir nii'iiu-
cst laborer, tlu' Jesuit wateluMl ami guided all. The
social atinosiihere of New Kugland itself was not more
sulVocating. JJy day and by night, at home, at ehureh,
or at his dailv work, the colonist lived under the evuH
of busy and over-zealous |>riests. At times, the dcMiizena
of (Quebec grew restless. In litlJl), deputies were covertly
sent to beg relief in France, and " to represent the ladl
in which the consciences of the colony were kept by the
imion of the tenii)oral and s[)iritual authority in the
same hands."

The very amusements of this jiious connnunity were
acts of religion. Thus, on the fete-day of St. Josej)h,
the ])atron of New Fi-ance, there was a show of lirewoiks
to do him honor. In the forty vohnnes of the Jesuit
Relations' there is but one ]»ictorial illustration ; and
this re|)resents the pyrotechnic contrivance in (juestion,
together with a figui'c of the (Jovernor in the act of
touching it off. IJut. what is more curious, a Catholic
writer of the present day, the Abbe Faillon, in an elabo-
rate and learned work, dilates at length on the details
of the dis])lay ; and this, too, with a gravity which
evinces his conviction that S(|uil»s, rockets, blue-lights,
and serpents are important instruments for the saving
of souls. On May-Day of the same year, 1087, Mont-
maguy jdanted before the church a ^Iay-|)ole surmounted
b\ .( rriple crown, beneath which were three svmbolical
circles decorated with wreaths, and bearing severally
the imes, lesus, Maria, losrph ; the soldiers drew up
before it, and saluted it with a vollcv of musketrv.

On the anniversary of the Dauphin's birth there was
a dramatic i)ei -rmance, in which an unbeliever, speaking
Algonrpiin for the profit of the Indians present, was
hunted into Hell by fiends. Religious processions were

I' i

'I .(

1!1

132

QUEBEC.

frequent. In one of them, the Governor in a court
dress and a baptized Indian in beaver-skins were joint
supporters of the canopy which covered the Host. In
another, six Lidians led the van, arrayed each in a vel-
vet coat (jf scarlet and gold sent tlicin by the King. Then
came other Indian converts, two and two ; then the
foundress of the Ursuline convent, with Indian children
in French gowns ; then all the Indian girls and women,
dressed after their own way ; then the priests ; then the
Governor ; and finally the whole French population,
male and female, except the artillery-men at the fort,
who saluted with their cannon the cross and banner
borne at the head of the i)roccssion. Wlien all was
over, the Governor and the Jesuits rewarded the Indians
with a feast.

Now let tlie stranger enter the church of Notre-Damo
de la Recouvrance, after vespers. It is full, to the very
porch : olhcers in slouched hats and plumes, nnisketeers,
pikemen, mechanics, and laborers. Here is Montmagny
himself ; Repentigny and Poterie, gentlemen of good
birth ; damsels of nurture ill fitted to the Canadian
woods ; and, mingled with these, the motionless Indians,
wrapj)ed to the throat in embroidered moose-hides. Le
Jeune, not in priestly ves^^ments, but in the common
black dress of his Order, is before the altar; and on
either side is a row of small red-skinned children lis-
tening with exemplary decorum, while, with a cheerful,
smiling face, he teaches them to kneel, clasp tlieir hands,
and sign the cross. All the principal members of this
zealous community are present, at once amused and
edified at the grave deportment, and the proraj c, shrill
replies of the infant catechumens ; while their parents in
the crowd grin delight at the gifts of beads and trinkets
with which Le Jeune rewards his most pioticient pupils.

A MILITARY MISSION.

133

court
joint
. Ill
a vel-
Thcn

I the
il^rcii
omen,
3n the
lation,
3 fort,
)anner

II was
ndians

;-Dame
ic very
etcers,
ma<^ny
f good
inadiau
ndians,
Le
ommon
and on
ren lis-
leerful,
hands,
of this
cd and
, shrill
rents in
trinkets
pupils.

The methods of conversion were simple. The princi-
pal appeal was to fear. " You do good to your friends,"
said Le Jeune to an Algonquin chief, " and you burn
your enemies. God does the same." And he painted
Hell to tlie startled neophyte as a place wiiere, when he
was hungry, ho would get nothing to eat hut frogs and
snakes, and, when thirnty, nothing to drink but flames.
Pictures Avcre found iuA'aluable. " These holy re])resen-
tatioiis," pursues the Fatlicr Suj)crior, " arc half the
instruction that can bo given to the Indians. I wanted
some pictures of Hell and souls in ])erditi<m, and a few
were sent us on paper ; but they are too confused. The
devils and the men are so mixed up, that one can make
out nothing without particular attention. If three, four,
or five devils were ])ainted tormenting a soul with differ-
^"aL punishments, — one a])i)lying fire, another seijients,
another tearing him with jiinceis, and another holding
him last with a chain, — this would have a good effect,
especially if everything were made distinct, and misery,
rage, and des{)eration appeared plainly in his face."

The })reparation of the convert for baptism was often
very slight. A dying Algon<|uiu, who, though meagre
as a skeleton, had thrown himself, with a last effort of
expiring ferocity, on an Iroquois prisoner, and torn off
his ear with his teeth, was baptized aluiost immediately.
In the case of converts in health tliere was far more
preparation; yet these often apostatized. The various
objects of instruction may all be included in one compre-
hensive word, submission, — an abdication of will aud
judgment in favor of the s|»i ritual director, who was the
interpreter and vicegerent of God.

SSSBS

'I'M <

MASSACIIUPETTS ATTACKS QUEBEC.

*ii,^

T IKE jMontrofil, Quebec transformed itself in time
-*~^ lost much of its character of a mission, and be-
came the seat of the C(donial government. In short, it
became secularized, thoutrh not com])letely so; for the
priesthood still held an immense infhience and disputed
the mastery with the civil Jind military powers.

In the be<»:inning of William and Mary's War, Count
Frontenac, governor of Canada, sent repeated wai-par-
ties to harass the New England borders ; and, in 105)0,
the General Court of Massachusetts resolved t^ retort
by a decisive blow. Sir Williiim Phii)S was chosen to
command the intended expedition. Phips is said to
have been one of twentv-six children, all of the same
mother, and was l»orn in IGoO at a rude border settle-
ment, since called Woolwich, on the Kennebec. His
])ai'ents were ignorant and ])oor ; and till eighteen years
of age he was employed in keejting sheep. Such a life
ill suited his active and ambitious nature. To better
Ids condition, he learned the trade <tf sliip-carpenter,
and, in the exercise of it, came to Boston, where he
married a widow witli some property, beyond him in
years, and muclj above him in station. About this time,
he l(»ai'ned to read and write, though not too w(dl, for
his signature is like that of a ])easant. Still as|»iring to
greater things, he promised his wife that he would one
day command a king's sliip and own a " fair brick house

MASSACHUSETTS ATTACKS QUEBEC.

135

in tlic CiMH'ii Liuio of Xortli Boston," a qiuirtcr then
occupied by citizens of the better class. lie kej>t his
word at l)otli points. Fortune was imiuspicious to him
for scvenil years ; till at leni^th, und<'r the ])ressnre of
reverses, he conceived the idea of conciuerinLr fame and
wealth at one stroke, by lishing up the """easure said to
be stored in a Spauish ;i-alle(m wrecked fifty years b<'f(»re
somewhei'c in the West Indian seas. Full of this proj-
ect, he went to England, where, through inlhicnces
which do not plainly ajtpcar, he gained a hearing from
])ers(ms in high places, and induced the Admiralty to
adopt his scheme. A frigate was given him, and he
sailed for the West Indies : whence, after a long search,
he returned unsuccessful, though not without adventures
which ])rovcd his mettle. It was th^ ej)och of the buc-
caneers ; and his crew, tired of a vain and toilsome
search, came to the quarter-deck, armed with cutlass(>s,
and demanded of their ca])tain that he should turn ))irate
with them. Phips, a tall and jmwerful man, instantly
fell upon them with his fists, knoidved down the ring-
leaders, and aw(Ml th«Mn all into submission. Not long
after, there was a more* formidable mutiny ; but, with
great courage and address, he quelled it for a time, and
held his crew to their duty till he had brought the ship
into Jamaica, and exchanged th.M: foi- better men.

Though the leaky condition of the frigate coinpelled
lum to abandon the search, it was not till he had gained
information which he thought would lead to success;
and, on his return, he ins|»ired such coididence that the
Duke of Albemarle, M'ith other nobleuieii aud gentlemen,
gave him a fr(\sh outfit, and u'spatched him again on
his Quixotic errand. Tliis tim* he succeeded, found the
wreck, and took from it gold, silver, and jewels to the
value of three hinulred thousand pounds sterling. The

136

QUEBEC.

crew now leagued together to seize the ship and divide
(lie prize ; and Phi|)s, j)ushed to extremity, was com-
jtelied to jjromis(! that every man of them should have
a share in the treasure, even it he paid it himself, (hi
reaching England, he kept his pledge so well thiit, after
redeeming it, only sixteen thousand ])ounds was left as
his portion, which, however, was an ample fortune in
the New England of that day. He gained, too, what
he valued almost as much, the honor of knighthood.
Tempting offers were made him of employment in the
royal service ; but he had an ardent love for his own
country, and thither he j>reseiitlv returned.

Phips was a rude sailor, hlui., proni{>t, and choleric.
lie never gave proof of intellectual capacity ; and such
of his success in life as he did not owe to good luck was
due probaldy to an energetic and adventurous spirit,
aided by a blunt frankness of address that pleased the
great, and commended him to their favor. Two years
after the expedition against Quebec, the king, under the
new chartei', made him governor of Massachusetts, a
post for which, though totally unlit, he had been recom-
mended by the elder Mather, who, like his son Cotton,
expected to make use of him. He carried his old habits
into his new office, cudgelled Brinton, the collector of
the [)ort, and belabored Captain Short of the royal navy
with his cane. Far from trying to hide the obscurity of
his origin, he leaned to the opposite foible, and was apt
to boast of it, delighting to exhibiv himself as a self-
made man. New England writers describe him as hon-
est in i)rivate dealings ; but, in accordance with his
coarse nature, he seems to have thought that anything
is fair in war. On the other hand, he was warmly pa-
triotic, and was almost as ready to serve New England
as to serve himself.

MASSACHUSETTS ATTACKS QUEBEC.

137

the
a
oin-
;on,
l)it8
of

lllVV

y of

apt
self-
lion-

his

ling
|)a-

aiid

lieturnlntr from nil expedition to Acadia, he found
Boston ahve with martial preparation. Massaelmsctls
of her own motion had resolved to attempt tlie eonciuest
of Quebec. She and her sister colonics had not yet re-
covered from tlie exiuiustion of Pliilip's War, and still
less from the disorders that attended the expulsion of
tho royal governor and his adherents. The public treas-
ury was empty, and the recent ex))editions against the
eastern Indians had been suj (ported by j)rivate sub-
scription. Worse yet, New England had no competiMit
military C(mniiaiider. The Puritan gentlemen of the
oriirinal emiirration, some of whom were as well fitted
for military as for civil leadership, had passed from the
stage ; and, by a tendency which circumstances made
inevitable, they had left none beiiind them ecpially (juali-
lied. The great Indian coiillict of fifteen years before
had, it is true, formed good partisan chiefs, and jtroved
that the New England yeoman, defending his family and
his hearth, was not to Ite surpassed in stubborn lighting;
but, since Andros and his soldiers had been driven out,
there was scarcely a single man in the colony of the
slightest training or experience in regular war. Up to
this moment. New England had never asked lielj) of the
mother country. When thousands of savages burst on
her defenceless settlements, she had con(|iiered safety
and peace with her own blood and her own slender re-
sources ; but now, as the i)roposed capture of Qiu.'bec
would inure to the profit of the liritish crown, fJov(.'rnor
Bradstreet and his council thought it not unfitting to
ask for a supply of arms and ammunition, of which they
were in great need. The reiiuest was refused, and no
aid of any kind came from the English government,
whose resources were engrossed by the Irish war.

While waiting for the rc{)ly, the colonial authorities

138

QUEBEC.

iir^^cd on their preparations, in tlie liope that the plunder
of Quebec would pay the ex])enscs of its conquest.
Humility was not anionpi; the New England virtues, and
it was tliought a sin to doubt that God would give his
ch(jsen peojilc the victory over papists and idolaters ;
yet no pains were spared to insure the divine favor.
A proclamation was issued, calling the people to rejjcnt-
ancc ; a day of fasting was ordaiued ; and, as Matlier
expresses it, " the wheel of prayer was kept in continual
motion." The chief dilhculty was to provide funds.
An attempt was made to collect a part of the money by
j)rivate subscription; but, as this plan fjuled, the provi-
sional government, already in debt, strained its credit yet
farther, and borrowed the needful sums. Thirtv-two
trading and fishing vessels, great and small, were im-
pressed for the service. Tlie largest was a ship called
the " Six P^riends," engaged in the dangerous West
India trade, and carrying forty-four guns. A call was
made for volunteers, and many enrolled themselves ;
but, as more were wanted, a press was ordered to com-
plete the number. So rigorously was it applied that,
what with voluntary and onforcc^d enlistment, one town,
that of Gloucester, was deprived of two thirds of its
fencil)le men. There was not a moment of doubt as to
the choice of a commander, for Phips was imagined to
be the very man for the work. One John Walley, a
respectable citizen of ]}arnstal)le, Avas made second in
command, with the modest rank of major ; and a suffi-
cient number of shijMnasters, merchants, master me-
chanics, and substantial farmers, were commissioned as
subordinate officers. About the middle of July, the
committee charged with the preparations reported that
all was ready. Still there was a long delay. The ves-
sel sent early in spring to ask aid from England had

MASSACHUSETTS ATTACKS QUEBEC.

139

not returned. Plilps waited for her as long as he dared,
and the l)est of the season was over when he resolved
to put to sea. The rustic warriors, duly formed into
companies, were sent on board; and the fleet sailed
from Nantasket on the ninth of August. Including
sailors, it carried twenty-two hundred men, with ]tro-
visions for four months, but insullicient anununition and
no pilot for the St. Lawrence,

The delay at Boston, waiting aid from England that
never came, was not propitious to Phijjs ; nor were the
wind and the waves. The voyage to the St. Lawrence
was a long one; and when he began, wilhout a pilot, to
gr()p(> his way up the unknown river, the weather seemed
in league with his enemies, lie appears, moreover, to
have wasted time. Wiiat was most vital to his success
was I'npidity of movement; yet, whether l)y Ills fault or
his misfortinie, he remained three weeks within three
days' sail of Quebec. Wiiilc aneiiored off Ta<l(»ussac,
with the wind ahead, he i)assed the idle hours in holding
councils of war and framing rules for the government
of his men ; and, when at length the wind veered to
the east, it is doubtful if he made the best use of liis
op|)oi-tunity.

Wlien, alter his protracted voyage, Phij)S sailed into
the liasin of Quebec, (me of the grandest scenes (m the
western continent opened u])on his sight: the wide ex-
panse of waters, the lofty promontory beyoiul, and the
ojtposing heights of Levi; the cataract of Montmorcnci,
the distant range of the Laurentian Mountains, the war-
like rock with its diadem of walls and towers, the roofs
of the Lower Town clustering on the strand beneath,
the Chateau St. Louis i)erched at the brink of the clift',
and over it the white banner, spangled with fieurs-de-Us^
flaunting defiance in the clear autumiud air. Perhaps,

■■■-f " i:.

140

QUEBEC.

1 f

as lie frnzcd, a suspicion seized him that the task he had
undertaiveii was less easy than he had thought ; but he
had coiKjuered once by a siuij)le summons to surrender,
and he lesolved to trv its virtue again.

The fleet anchored a little below Quebec ; and towards
ten o'clock the French saw a boat put out from the ad-
miral's ship, bearing a Hag of truce. Four canoes went
from the Lower Town, and met it midway. It brought
a subaltern oflicer, who announced himself as the bearer
of a letter from Sir William Phips to the French com-
mander, lie was taken into one of the canoes and
paddled to the quay, after being completely blindfolded
by a bandage which covered half his face. An ofhcer
named Prevost, sent by Count Frontenac, received him
as he landed, and ordered two sergeants to take him by
the arms and lead him to the governor. Ilis ])rogress
was neither rapid nor direct. They drew him hither and
thither, delighting to make him clamber in the dark
over every possible obstruction; while a noisy crowd
hustled him, and laughing women called him Colin
Maillard, the name of the chief j>layer in blindman's
buff. Amid a prodigious hubbub, intended to bewilder
him and imjtress him with a sense of immense warlike
preparation, they dragged him over the three barricades
of Alountain Street, and brought him at last into a large
room of the chateau. Here they took the bandage from
his eyes, lie stood for a mouKuit with an air of as-
tonishment and some confusion. The governor stood
before him, haughty and stern, surrounded by French
and Canadian ofTicers, Maricourt, Sainte-IK'lunc, Lon-
gueuil, Yillebon, Valrenne, Bienville, and many more,
bedecked with gold lace and silver lace, perukes and
powder, plumes and ribbons, and all the nlartial foppery
in which they took delight, and regarding the envoy

MASSACHUSETTS ATTACKS QUEIJEC.

141

witli kcon, dcliaiit oycs. Aftor u iuoin(>nt, hv rcoovorcd
his brcjitli aiul his coniposiiro, saluted Froiiteiiac, and,
oxprossiiig' a wish that tlie duty assij^nicd him had hecn
of a more airroeabh} nature, handcMl him tlin hHtor
of JMiips. Frontonae «j;avc it to an intorproter, wlio
read it aloud in Froncli that all might hear. It ran
thus : —

lark
owd
!olin
lan's
ilder
rlikc
ades
llarge
from
(f as-
Istood
•cuch

Lon-
more,
antl
Ippcry

invoy

" Sir William Phips, Knifjhl, Ginrraf and Commnudpr-in-rhiif in and over
their Maji'slli's' Forajs of New Fmjland, hi/ Sea. at.,. Land, to Count
Frontenac, Lientenant-Gcneral and (Jorcrnour for tiir Freneh Kin;/ at
Canada; or, in his <disrnre, to his Deputij, or him or them in chief com-
mand at Quelicrk- :

" The war between the crowns of En^'land and France doth
not only siiffiinently warraTit, hut the destruction made hy the
French and Indiaus, under your command and encoura<:c('ment,
upon the persons and estates of their Majesties' subjects of New
England, without provocation on their part, hath put them
under the necessity of this expedition for their own security and
satisfaction. And although the cruelties and barbarities uscmI
against them by the French and Indians might, upon the present
op[)ortunity, prompt unto a severe revenge, yet, being desirous to
avoid all inlmmane and uncljristian-like actions, and to prevent
shedding of blood as much as may be,

" I, the aforesaid William Pliips, Knight, do hereby, in the
name and in the behalf of their most excellent Majesties, Wil-
liam and Mary, King and Queen of England, Scotland, Franco,
and Ireland, Defenders of the Faith, and by order of th(!ir said
Majesties' government of the Massachuset-colony in New Eng-
land, demand a present surrender of your forts and castles,
undemolished, and the King's and other stores, unim])ezzled,
with a seasonable delivery of all captives ; together with a sur-
render of all your persons and estates to my dispose : upon the
doing wherc't, you may expect mercy from me, as a Christian,
according to what shall be found for their Majesties' service
and the subjects' security. Which, if you refuse forthwith to

142

C^UEBEC.

<lo, T am coino provided, and uiii resolved, ])y the lielp of Tiod,
in wIkjiu 1 trust, by force of anas to revenge all wrongs and
injuries offered, and bring you under subjection to the Crown
of Kngland, and, when too late, make you wish you had ac-
cepted of tlie favour tendered.

"Your answer positive in an hour, r(!turne(l by your own
trumpet, with tlie return of mine, is required upon thi; peril
that will ensue."

Wlion tlu^ r(»adln<? was fmishcd, tlic En|j;lishman
])ulU!d ids watch from his pocdvct, and handed it to the
governor. F'lontenac could not, or pretended that he
could not, sec the hour. The messenger thereupon told
him that it was ten o'clock, and that he must have his
answer before eleven. A general cry of indignation
arose; and Valrennc called out that Phips was noth-
ing but a pirate, and that his man ought to be hanged.
Fnmtenac contained himself for a monu>nt, and then
said to the envov : —

"1 will not kee]> you waiting so long. Tell your
general that 1 do not recognize King William ; and that
the Prince of Orange, who so styles hims(df, is a usurper,
who has violated the most sacred laws of Idood in at-
tempting to dethrone his father-in-hi ■ . I know no king
of England but King James. Your general ought not
to be surprised at the hostilities which he says that the
French have carried on in the colony of Massachusetts ;
for, as the king my master has taken the king of Eng-
land under his protection, and is about to replace him
on his throne by force of arms, he might have expected
that his Majesty would order me to make war on a
people who have rebelled against their lawful prince."
Then, turning with a smile to the officers about him :
" Even if your general offered me conditions a little
more gracious, and if I had a mind to accept them, does

MASSACHUSETTS ATTACKS (QUEBEC.

143

OIU"

that

)cr,

iit-

Eng-

liim

}ctcd

on a

ICC.

|liim :

mttie

docs

he suppose that these hrave ^cnth'incii would <^ivo their
consent, and advise nie to trust a nuiu wiio hroice his
a<j;i'eenient witli tlu; ^i;ovcrnor of Port Uoyal, or a ichel
who has hrded iu liis duty to his kiu^r, aud lortrolteu all
the favors he luid received ironi liini, to follow a prince
who pretends to he the liherator of Mnulaud and the
defender of the hiith, and vet destrovs the laws iind
privileties of the kinploni and overthrows its reTiLdon ':*
The divine justice winch your j^vneral involves in his
lett(>r will not fail to ))unish such acts severely."

The ni(>ssenj!:<'r seemed astonished and startled ; hut
he presently asked if the governor would give him his
answer in writing.

" No," returned Frontenac, " I will answer your gen-
eral only by the mouths of my cannon, that he may learn
that a man like mc is not to he suunnoncd after this
fashion. Let him do his Ijest, and 1 will <lo mine;"
and he dismissed the Englishman abruptly. Jle was
again blindfolded, led over the barricades, and sent back
to the fleet by the boat that brought him.

Phips had often given jtroof of personal courage, but
for the ]iast three weeks his conduct seems that of a
man conscious that he is charged with a work too large
for his capacity. lie had sjient a good part of his time
in holding councils of war; and now, when he heard the
answer of Frontenac, he called another to consider what
should be done. A plan of attack was at length ar-
ranged. The militia were to be landed on the shore of
Beauport, which was just below Quebec, though sepa-
rated from it by the ?^t. Charles. They were then to
cross this river by a ford practicable at low water, climb
the heights of St. Genevieve, and gain the rear of the
town. The small vessels of the fleet were to aid the
movement by ascending the St. Charles as far as

14i

QUEBEC.

.Vil

the ford, lioldiiiLi: tlic cnoiny in chock hy tlicir fire, and
carryinu: provisions, ainmunilion, and intrencliinfi; tools,
for tii(3 nso (»t" the land troojts. When these had crossed
and were ready to attack Qnebcc in the rear, Phips was
to cannonade it in front, and land two hun(h-ed men
nnder ('(►v(>r of his ^inis to elTect a diversion hy storm-
ing the barricades. Some of tlu; French prisoners, from
whom their captors ajjpear to have received a f^reat deal
of correct information, told the admiral that there was a
place a mile or two above the town where th<i heii^hts
mi^ht be scaled and the rear of the fortifications reached
from a direction opposite to that pro|)osed. 'I'liis was
precisely the movement by which WoU'e afterwards
gained his memorable victory ; bnt I'liips chose to abi(hj
by the ori<iinal plan.

While the plan was debated, the oj»portnnity for ac-
complishing it ebbed away. It was still early wlicn the
messenger returned from Quebec ; but, b' fore Phips was
readv to act, the dav was on the wane and the tide was
against liim. He lay quietly at his moorings when, in
the evening, a great shouting, mingled with the roll of
drums and the sound of fifes, was heard from the Upper
Town. The English oflicers asked their prisoner, Gran-
ville, what it meant. " Ma foi. Messieurs," he replied,
" von have lost the game. It is the Governor of Mon-
treal witii the people from the country above. There is
nothing for you now but to pack and go home." In
fact, Calli(^res had arrived with seven or eight hundred
men, many of them regulars. "With these Avcrc bands
of coureurs de hois and other young Canadians, all full
of fight, singing and whooping with martial glee as they
passed the western gate and trooped down St. Louis
Street.

Thenextday was gusty and blustering; and still Phips

MASSACllUbETTS ATTACKS gi KlJKC.

145

I of

)[)cr

Irau-

!kl ou-
tre is
In
Idred
iancls
full
they
iOuis

*hipg

lay quiet, waiiinir ou the winds and the wavi.'s. A small
vessel, with sixty nicii on Itoanl, under Ciiptain Kpiuaini
Sava<re, ran in towards the shore of lleanport ttx'xaniino
the lamlinir, and stuck fast in the nuid. The Canadians

•

plied her with huUets, and hronuht a cannon to hear on
her. They nii,ii:ht have waded out and hoarded her, hut
Savage and his men l<e|»t up so hot a lire that they
forhorc the atti;mpt; and, when the tidt; rose, she lioated

again.

There was another night of tranquillity; hut at ahout
eleven on Wednesday morning the FrcMU'h heard the
lOnglish liles and drnuis in fidl action, while repeated
shouts of "(Jod save King William!" rose from all the
vessels. This lasted an honr or more ; alter which a
great numher of hoats, loaded with nu'ii, pnt out from
the fleet and rowed rapidly towards the shore of Beau-
port. The tide was low, and the hoats grounded heforo
reaching the landing-place. The French on the rock
could sec the troops through telescopes, looking in the
distance like a swarm of hlack ants, as they waded
through mud and water, and formed in eomj>anics along
the strand. They were some thirteen hundred in num-
her, and were commanded l)v Major Wallev. Frontenac
had sent three hundred sharpshooters, under Sainte-
Ilelene, to meet them and hold them in check. A hat-
talion of troops followed : but, long hefore they could
reach the spot, Saiute-lU'lone's men, with a few militia
from the neighboring parishes, aiul a band of Huron
warriors from Lorette, threw themselves into the thick-
ets along the front of the English, and opened a distant
but galling fire upon the compact bodies of the en(Mny,
Walley ordered a charge. The New England men rushed,
in a disorderly manner, but with great impetuosity, up
the rising ground; received two volleys, which failed to

146

QUEBEC.

cliL'ck lliein ; and drove hack tliu assailants in sonio
confusion. They turned, however, and fouj^lit in Indian
fashioji with courage Jind address, leaping and dodging
anutng trees, roeks, and hushes, firing as they retreated,
and MiHicling more harm than (hey received. Towards
evening they disappeared; and Walley, whose men had
been much se itteied in the desidtory light, drew them to-
getlier jk-. - >:i as he could, and advanced towards the St.
C-arles, in order to meet the vessels which were to aid
iiim in )»assing the lord. Here he posted sentinels, and
cncampeil lor the night, lie had lost four killed and
about sixty wounded, and imagined that he had killed
twenty or thirty of the enemy. In fact, however, their
loss was much less, though among the killed was a
valuable oHieer, the (,^hevalier de Clermont, and among
the woundtnl the veteran caj)tain of IJeauport, Juchereau
dc Saint-Denis, more than sixty-four years of age. In
the evening, a deserter came to the English camp, and
brought the unwelcome intelligence that there were three
thousand armed men in Quebec.

Meanwhile, Phips, whose fault hitherto had not ])ecn
an excess of promptitude, grew imi)atient, and made a
premature movement inconsistent with the preconcerted
plan. He left his moorings, anchored his largest ships
befoi'c the town, and prej)nred to caniionade it; but the
fiery veteran who watched him from the Chateau St.
Louis anticipated him, and gave him the first shot. I'hiits
replied furiously, opening fire with every gun that he
could bring to bear ; while the rock paid him hack in
kind, aiid belched flame and smoke from all its batteries.
So fierce and rapid was the firing, that La llr)ntan com-
pares it to volleys of musketry ; and old ofiicers, who had
seen many sieges, declared that they had never known
the like. The din was prodigious, reverberated from the

MASSACHUSETTS ATTACKS QUEIJEC.

]47

siirroundiivj; licidits, and rolled back from llio dislaiit
mouiitaiiis in one continuous roar. On the part of tlio
Knulisli, however, surprisinuiy little was accomplished
besid(^ noise and s)nok(,>. The practice of their liiinners
was so had thai many of their shot struck harmlessly
jiuainst the face of the cliff. Thrir uuns, too, were v«'ry
light, ;ind apjiear to have heen eharued with a vic'w
to the most riu;id economy of ,i>-uiij)()\vdcr ; for the hiilh^
failed to pierce the stone walls of the huildinns. and
did so little damiiire that, as the French boasted, twenty
crowns would have repaired it all. Night came at length,
ami the turmoil ceased.

I'hips la: «iniet till dayhn^ak, when Frontenac scut a
shot to waken him, and th<' cannonade began again.
Sainle-lb'h'ne had returned from I>cau|»ort ; and he,
with his brother Maricourt, took charge of the two bat-
teries of the Lowei" Town, aiming the giius in ptTson,
.and throwing balls of eiLditeen and twcntv-four pounds
with excellent precision against the four largest shipd
of the fleet. One of their shots cut the flagstaff of Hie
admiral, and (he cross of St. (Jeorge fell into the river.
It drifted with the tide towards the north shore ; wherc;-
npon several Canatlians j)addled out in a birch canoe,
secured it, and brought it back in triumph, (m i]\o.
spire of the cathedral in the I'lipcr Town had I, 'cn
Inmg a )>ic(nre <>f the Holy Family, as an invocation of
divine aid. Tlu^ l*uritan gunners wasted (heir ammuni-
tion in vain aMempts (o knock it down. Thai it escaped
(heir malice was ascribed (o miracle, bu( the miracle
Avould have been greater if (hey had hit it.

At length, one o<" the ships, which had suffered most,
luiuled ofl' and abandoned (he light. That of the admiral
had fai'cd little better, and now her condition grew des-
perate. With her rigging torn, her mainmast half ciit

148

QUEBEC.

through, her mizzon-mast splintered, her eahin pierced,
and lier liull riddled with shet, another volley seemed
likely to sink her, when Phips ordered her to be cut
loos(^ from her moorinijs, and she drifted out of fire,
leavinj^ eablo and anchor behind. Tiie remaining ships
soon gave ovei- tlie conflict, and withdrew to stations
where they CDuld neither do harm nor sulTer it.

Phil)s had thrown away nearly all his ammunition in
this futiln and disastrous attack, which should have
been deferred till the moment when VValiey, witii his
land force, had gained the rear of the town. Walley
lay in his camp, his men wet, shivering with cold,
famished, and sickening with the small-pox. Food, ai.'d
all other sujjplies, were to have been brought him by
the small vessels, which should have entered the mouth
of the St. Ciiarles and aided him to cross it. Ihit he
waited for them in vain. Every vessel that carried a
gun had busied itself in cannonading, and the rest did
not move. There ap|)ears to have been insubordinati(m
among the masters of these small craft, some of whom,
iH'ing owners or part-owners of the vessels they com-
maudcd, were probably unwilling to run them into
danger. Walley was no soldier ; but he saw that to
attempt the passage of the river without aid, under the
batteries of the town and in the face of forces twice as
numerous as his own, was not an easy task. Froutenac,
on his ))art, says that he wished him to do so, knowing
that the attem})t would ruin him. The New England
m(Mi wen; eager to push on ; but the night of Thursday,
the day of Phips's repulse, was so cold that ice form(;d
more than an inch in thickness, and the half-starved
militia sufTered intensely. Six field-pioces, with their
ammunition, had been sent ashore ; but they were nearly
useless, as there were no means of moving them. Half

MASSACHUSETTS ATTACKS QUEBEC.

149

lOU

om,
oni-
iiito
it to
tho
a«

MilC,

\vin<j;
l:»nd
^<lay,
•nu'cl

tvofl
llieir
ri\rly

llaif

a barrel of nuiskct j)ow(l('r, and one l)isciiit for each
man, were also landed ; and with this niea.ure aid Walley
was left to capture Quebec, lie might, had he dared,
have made a dash across the fold on the morning of
Thursday, and assaulted the town in the rear while
Phips was cannonading it in front ; but his courage was
not ecpial to so desperate a venture. The firing ceased,
and the jxtssible op]»ortunity was lost. The citizen
soldier despaired of success ; and, on tin; morning of
Friday, he went on board the admiral's ship to explain
liis situation. While he was gone, his men |»ut them-
selves in motion, and advanced iilong the borders of the
St. CliMi'les towards the ford. Fronteuiic, with three bat-
talion.s i)i i-eguhir troops, went to rcecivt^ them at the
crossing; while Sainte-IIeUiie, with his brother Lon-
gueuil, passed the ford with a body 'f (^uiiulians, and
ope!ie<i lire on them from the neighboring thickets,
Theii i;<lvance [larties were di-iven in, and thei'e was a
hot skirmish, the chief loss falling on the New Kugland
men. wlio were fully exjiosed. On the side of the Ficnch,
Sainte-IIeb'iie was mortally wound(>d, and his bi-otber
was hurt by a spent ball. Towards evening, the Cana-
dians withdrew, and the Fill irlish encamped for the night.
Their eommander presently rejoined them. The admiral
had given him leave to withdraw them to the lieet, and
boats were acconlingly sent to bring them off; but, as
these did not arrive till about daybreak, it was necessary
to dell r the embarkation till the next night.

At dawn, Quebec was all astir with the beating of
drums and tlu* ringing of bells. The N\'W Mugland
drum« H'plied ; and Walley drew up b's men uinler
arms, expecting an attack, for the town was so near
that tbe hubbub of voices from within could plainly be
heard, Tlu- noise gradually died away ; antl, except a

:: r

150

QUEBEC.

fuw shots from the i'anij>iirt.s, the invaders were left
undisturbed. Walley sent two or three eompanies to
beat up the neighboring^ thickets, where he suspected
that the enemy was huking. On the way, they had the
good hick to find and kill a number of catth^, wliich
they cooked and ate on the spot ; whereu|)on, being
greatly refreshed and invigorated, they dashed forward
in complete disorder, and were soon met by the lire of
the ambushed Canadians. Several more companies were
sent to their sup|M)rt, and the skirmishing became lively.
Three detachments froiu Quebec had crossed the river ;
and the militia ol" Beauport and I>eau])re had hastened
to join them. They fought like Indians, hiding behind
trees or throwing themselves Hat among llu; bushes,
and laying repeated ambuscades as they slowly fell
back. At length, they all made a stand on a hill behind
the buildings and fences of a farm ; and here they held
their ground till night, while the New Kngland men
taunted them as cowards who would never light except
under cover.

Walley, who wilh his main body had stood in arms all
day, now called in the skirmishers, and fell back to the
landing-place, where, as soon as it grew dark, the boiits
arrived from the fleet. The siek men, of whom there
were manv, wen^ s(>nt on board, and (hen, juuid Hoods
of rain, the whole foi'ce embarked in noisy confusion,
leaving behind them in the nnid live of their cannon.
Hasty as was theii- parting, th(>ir conduct on the whole
had been credituble; and f^a Iloutan, who was in (Quebec
at the time, says of them, '"They fought vigorously,
though as ill-disciplined ns m(>n gatb retl together at
random could be; for they did not .aek courage, and,
if they failed, it was by reason of their entir(» ignorance
of discipline, and because they were exhausted by the

MASSACHUSETTS ATTACKS QUEBEC.

lol

)(lrt
on,
ion.
lolo

sly,

n-l,

nco

tlic

fatigues of the voyjiiic." Of Phips ho sjjoaks with
contempt, and says that he could not have serveil tho
French better if they liad bribed liiin to stand all tho
while with his arms f(jlded. Some allowance should,
nevertheless, be made him for tlu? unmanai^eaiile tihar-
acter of the force under his command, the constitution
of which was fatal to military subordination.

On Sunday, the morning aft(,'r th(^ re-embarkation,
Phi|»s called a council of olTicers, and it was i-esolveJ
that the men should rest for a dav or two, that there
should be a meeting- for i)rayer, and that, if annnunitioii
enough could be found, aiutther landing should be at-
tempted; but the rough weather |)revented the prayer-
meeting, and the plan of a new attack was fortunat(dy
aliandoni'd.

(.Quebec remaine(l in agitation and alarm till Tuesday,
when Phips weighed anchor and disappeared, with all
his licet, behind the Island of Orleans, lie did not go
far, as indeed he could not, but stopped foiu' leagues
below to mend rigging, bu'tily wounded masts, ami stop
shot-holes, .^ubercase had gone with a detaclnnent to
watch the retiring enemy; ami l'hi|>s w is repeatedly
seen among his men, on a scaffold iit the side of his
ship, exi'rcising his old trade id' cai'peiter. This delay
was turned to good use by an exehanue of |>ris»»ners.
Chief among those in the hands of the French was
Captain Davis, late connnandei- at C'seo IJay ; and tliero
were also two young daughters of Lieutenant Clark, who
had been killed at the same pl.ae<\ Frontenae himself
had humanely ransomed tlii'se children from the Indians;
and Madame de Champigny. wile of the intendant, had,
with e(puil kindness, bought fi'om them a little girl
named ."^arah (Jerrish, and |)laeed jier in i-haru'c '.>f
the nuns at the liotel-Dieu, who ha«l beconu' greatly

152

QUEBEC.

\l -i

attaclicd to lior, wliilo .slio, on her part, left them with
rehictauce. Tlic French liad the hotter in these ex-
changes, receiving able-bodied men, and returning, with
the exception oi' Davis, only women and children.

The heretics were gone, and Quebec breathed freely
again. Her escape had been a narrow one ; not that
three thousand men, in part regular troops, defending
one of the strongest positions on the continent, and
commanded by Frontenac, could not defy the attacks of
two thousand raw lishermen and farmers, led bv an
ignorant civilian, but the numbers which were a source
of stiength were at the same time a source of weakness.
Nearly all the adult nudes of Canada were gathered at
Quebec, and there was imminent danger of starvation.
Cattle from the neighboring parishes had been hastily
driven into the town ; but there was little other pro-
vision, and before Phips retreated the pinch of famine
had begun. Ihul In; come a week earlier or stayed a
week later, the French themselves believed that Quebec
would have fallen, in the one case for want of men, and
in the other for want of food.

Fhips returned crestfallen to Boston late in Novem-
ber; and one by one the rest of the (leet came strag-
gling after him, battered and weather-beaten. Some
did not api)ear till February, and three or four never
came at all. The autumn aiul early winter were un-
usually stormy. Captain Uainsfoi'd, with sixty men,
was wrecked on the Island of Anticosti, where more
than half their luunber died of cidd and misery. In the
other vessels, sonu^ were drowned, some frost-bitten, and
above two hundred killed by small-pox and fever.

At Boston, all was dismay and gloom. TIu? Puritan
bowed l)efore"this awful frown of (Jod," and searched
his conscience for the sin that had brought upon him so

MASSACHUSETTS ATTACKS QUEBEC. 153

fitern a cliustisoment. Massachusetts, already impover-
ished, found herself in extremity. The war, inst(>ad of
paymg for itself, had burdened her with an additional
debt of fifty thousand po.nids. The sailors and soldiers
were clamorous for their pay; and, to satisfy them, the
colony was forced for the first time in i(s history to issue
a paper cui-rency. It was nuule receivable at a invmium
for all public debts, and was also fortified by a provision
for Its early redemption by taxation ; a provision which
was carried into effect in spite of i)overty and distress.

Massachusetts had made her usual mistake. She hiid
confidently believed that ignorance and inexi)erienco
could match the skill of a tiled veteran, and that the
rude courage of her fishermen and farmers could tri-
uniph without discipline or leadership. The conditions
of her material prosperity were adverse to elliciencv in
war. A trading republic, without trained ofTicers, may
win victories; but it wins them either by accident or by
an extravagant outlay in money and life.

'1 i

'' !

ill

THE HEIGHTS OF ABRAHAM.

i'l

'T^HE early part of the Seven Y(>ars' War was disas-
-*• trous to England, The tide turned with the ac-
'icssion to power of the great war minister, William Pitt.
In 1750, he sent (Jeneral James Wolfe with a combined
military and naval force to capture Quebec. The British
troops numbered somewhat less than nine thousand,
while Montcalm and Vaudreuil were posted to receive
them, on positions almost impregnable, with an army
of regulars, Canadians, and Indians, amounting in all
to about sixteen thousand. The great height of the
shores made the British ships of little or no use for
purj)oses of attack.

Wolfe took possession of Point Levi, from which he
bombarded Quebec. He also seized the high grounds
just below the Montmorenci, and vainly tried to cross
that stream above the cataract and gain the rear of
Montcalm's army, which lay encamped along the shore
from the Montmorenci to the citv. Failing in this and
every other attempt to force the enemy to a battle, he
rashly resolved to attack them in front, up the steep
declivities at the top of which they were intrenched.
The grenadiers dashed forward prematurely and without
orders, struggling desperately to scale the heights under
a deadly fire. The I'esult was a complete repulse, with
heavy loss.

The capture of Quebec now seemed hopidess. Wolfe
was almost in despair. His body was as frail as his

disas-
he ac-
n Pitt,
nbiucd
Diiti^h
lusaiul,
receive
I army
ill all
of the
use for

lich he
rounds

cross
car of

shore
us and
ttlc, he
' steep
iichcd.
•vithoiit

under
c, with

Wolfe
as his

■ 's

THE HEIGHTS OF ADRAIIAM.

155

spirit was anient and daring. Sineo the siege began
ho had passed with ctjaseiess <'n<!rgy from eanip to
camp, animating the troops, ohs(»rving everytiiing,
and directing everything; but now th«! pale lace and
tall lean ft)rm were seen no more, and the inmor spiead
that tiie (General wjis dangerously ill. He had in tact
been seized by an access ot" the disease that had tortured
him for some time; j»ast; and fijver had followed. His
(juarters were at a French farmhouse in the cump at,
Montmorenci ; and here, as he lay in an upper chamber,
helpless in bed, his singular and most unmilitary tea-
tures liaggard with disease and drawn with pain, no
man could less have looked the hero. IJut as the needle,
though (luivering, points always to the pole, so, through
torment and languor and the heats of fever, the mind of
Wolfe dwelt on the capture of Quebec. His illness,
which begnn before the twentieth of August, had so
far subsided on the tweuty-hlth that Captain Knox
wrote in his Diarv of that day: "His Exccllencv Gen-
eral Wolfe is on the recovery, to the inconceivable joy
of the whole arm v." On the twentv-ninth he was able
to write or dictate a letter to the three brigadiers,
Monckton, Townshcnd, and Murray: "That the public
service may not suffer by the Generars indisposition,
he begs the brigadiers will meet and consult together
for the ])ublic utility and advantage, and consider of tho
best method to attack tlu^ enemy." The letter then
j)roi)Oses three plans, all bold to audacity. The first
was to send a part of the army to ford the ^fontmorenci
eight or nine miles above its mouth, march through tho
forest, ai.d fall on t'nc rear of the French at l>cauport,
while the rest landed and attacked them in front. Tho
second was to cross the ford at the mouth of the IMont-
morcnci and march along the strand, under the French

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23 WEST AAAIN STREET

WEBSTER, NY. HS80

(716) 872-4503

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156

QUEBEC.

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iiitrciK'limciits, till a place could be found where the
troo[)S ini^ht climb tlie heights. The third was to make
a general attack from boats at the IJeauport flats. Wolfe
had before entertained two otlier plans, one of which was
to scale the heights at St. Michel, about a league above
Quel)ec ; but this he had abandoned on learning that the
French were there in force to receive him. The other
was to storm the Lower Town ; but this iilso he had
ahandoned, because the U})per Town, which commanded
it, would still remain inaccessible.

The brigadiers met in consultation, rejected the three
plans [)roposed in the letter, and advised that an attempt
should be made to gain a h)oting on the north shore
above the town, place the army between Montcalm and
his base of suj>ply, and so force him to tight or surren-
der. Tlie scheme was similar to that of the heights of
St. Michel. It seemed desperate, but so did all the
rest; and if by chance it should succeed, the gain was
far gi'eater than could follow any success below the
town. Wolfe embrjL'cd at once.

Not that he saw much hope in it. He knew that
every chance was against him. Disappointment in the
past and gloom in the future, the pain and exhaustion
of disease, toils, and anxieties " too great," in the words
of Burke, "to be supi)orted by a delicate constitution,
and a body unequal to the vigorous and enterprising soul
that it lodged," threw him at times into deep dejection.
By those intimate with him he was heard to say that he
would not go back defeated, "to be exposed to the cen-
sure and reproach of an ignorant po})ulace." In other
moods he felt that he ought not to sacrifice what wps
left of his diminished army in vain conflict with hoi)e-
less obstacles. But his final resolve once taken, he
would not swerve from it. Ills fear was that he might

THE HEIGHTS OF ABRAHAM.

157

that
the
stion

urds

iitioii,

soul

ction.

alt he
e ccu-

othcr
it ^vl's

hoi)e-
311, ho

miiiht

not be ahlc to load his trooj)S in person. " I kno\r per-
fectly well you cannot cure me," he said to his physician ;
"hut })ray make me up so that I may be without pain
for a few days, and able to do my duty : that is all I
want."

On the last of August, he was able for the first time to
leave the house. It was on this same day that he wrote
his last letter to his mother: "My >v'iitin!j;' to you will
convince yon that no ])ersonal evils worse than defeats
and disappointments have fallen uj)on me. The enemy
puts nothing to risk, and I can't in conscience |)ut the
whole armv to risk. Mv antagonist has wisclv shut
himself u}) in inaccessible intrenchments, so that I can't
get at him without spilling a torrent of blood, and that
perhaps to little purpose. The Marquis de Montcalm is
at the head of a great number of bad soldiers, and 1
am at the head of a small number of good ones, that
wish for nothing so much as to fight him; but the wary
old fellow avoids an action, doubtful of the behavior
of his army. People must bo of the professicm to un-
derstand the disadvantages and difhculties we labor
under, arising from the uncommon natural strength of
the countrv."

On the second of September a vessel was sent to Eng-
land with his last despatch to Pitt. It begins thus :
" The obstacles we have met with in the operations of
the campaign are much greater than we had reason to
expect or could foresee ; not so much from the nund)er
of tlic enemy (though superior to ua) as from the natu-
ral strength of the country, which the ^fanpiis of Mont-
calm seems wisely to depend upon. When I learned
that succors of all kinds had been thrown into Quebec ;
that (ivQ battalions of regular troops, completed from the
best inhabitants of the country, some of the troops of

158

QUEDEC.

i ;

the colony, and every Canadian that was able to bear
arms, besides several nations of savages, had taken the
field in a very advantageous situation, — I could not
flatter myself that 1 should be able to reduce the place.
I sought, however, an occasion to attack their army,
knowing well that witli these troops I was able to light,
,and hoping that a victory might disperse them." Then,
after recounting the events of the campaign with ad-
mirable clearness, he continues : " 1 found myself so ill,
and am still so weak, that 1 begged the general ofiicei's
to consult together for the general utility. They are all
of opinion that, as more ships and provisions are now
got above the town, they should try, by conveying up
a corps of four or five thousand men (which is nearly
the whole strength of the army after the Points of Levi
and Orleans arc left in a proper state of defence), to
draw the enemy from their present situation and bring
them to an action. I have acquiesced in the proposal,
and we are preparing to put it into execution." The let-
ter ends thus : " By the list of disabled olfieers, many
of whom are of rank, you may j)erceive that the army is
mucli weakened. By the nature of the river, the most
formidable part of this armament is deprived of the
power of acting ; yet we have almost the Avhole force of
Canada to oppose. In this situation there is such a
choice of dilhculties that I own myself at a loss how to
determine. The affairs of Great Britain, I know, require
the most vigorous measures ; but the courage of a hand-
ful of brave troops should be exerted only when there
is some hope of a favorable event ; however, you may
be assured that the small part of the campaign which
remains shall be employed, as far as 1 am able, for the
honor of His Majesty and the interest of the nation, in
which I am sure of being well seconded by the Admiral

THE IIEIGnrS op ABIiAIIAJT.

159

iind In- (lio generals; liannv if our eir„rf . i
tnl,ute to (l,e snoee., of I .'fjlaie v's ' "" ''"""

parts of America." ^ ^ ' """' '" ""-^- """■■'■

lVrl,ai« ho ,vns as near .lespair as l,is ,„uh„nt,.,l
"n ure was capable of bein,. J„ ,,,3 presen t
l.Kly n,jd nund he >vas a hero wi.hont tl,,. i, 1 '
'=."cer oi heroism, lie (hittered himself Ju . '
-.ns, hut .sa. the wor,,t amMacea ia ; ' a^^^^^^^^^^^^
to liavc been entirely uithont ex.Mt.Mnent Ti,l In

Audacious a.s it wa.s, his plan cannot be called rash
It we n>ay accept the statement of t»o well i 1,' , ,
Jtcr., on the French side. The, sa, tl^t , ,'

of S..pten,ber the Engli.sh naval comn,au,lers he,
conned on board the tlagship, i„ which it was re 1 ed
hat the lateness of the season re,i„ircd the (leet to I ■ •
Quebec without delay. They say further that W fe
en went to the Adn.iral, told hin, that he had fo 1 a
place where the heights could be scaled, that he old
send up a hundred and hfty picked „>e„ o fc he '
and tha ,f they gained a lodgment at the top, , ^r'
troops should follow; if, on the other hand, ho F,"c,
were here m force to oppose then,, ho would „o a
fice the army in a hopeless atten.pt, but en.ba," h 'n
for homo consoled by the thought that all had bee"
done that man could do. On this, concludes the so,- "

rL,t "" ''^ """"''' ^'"-"'^<1 '« -i^ "he

As Wolfe had informed Pitt, his army w-as greaflv

weakened. Since the end of June his loss in^'kill'd

iJfl

160

QUEBEC.

ill !

^ ^'1!

i I m

and woimdod was more tliaii eight hundred and fifty,
including two colonols, two majors, nineteen captains,
and thirty-four snliallerns; and to these were to be
added a greater number disabled by disease.

The s(|uadron of Admiral Holmes above Quebec had
now inci'eased to twenty-two vessels, great and small.
One of the last that went up was a diminutive schooner,
armed with a few swivels, and jocosely named the
" Terror of France." She sailed by the town in broad
daylight, the French, incensed at her impudence, blazing
at her from all their batteries ; but she passed unharmed,
anchored ])y the Admiral's ship, and saluted him tri-
umphantly with her swivels.

Wolfe's first move towards executing his plan was the
critical one of evacuating the camp at Montmorenci.
This was accomplished on the third of September.
Montcalm sent a strong force to fall on the real* of the
retiring English. Monckton saw the movement from
Point Levi, emliarived two battalions in the boats of the
fleet, and made a feint of landing at Beauport. Mont-
calm recalled his troops to repulse the tlireatened attack ;
and the English withdrew from Montmorenci unmolested,
some to the Point of Orleans, others to Point Levi. On
the night of the fourth a fieet of flat boats passed above
the town with the baggage and stores. On the fifth,
Murray, with four battalions, marched up to the River
Etechemin, and forded it under a hot fire from the
Frencli batteries at Sillery. Monckton and Townshend
followed with three more battalions, and the united
force, of about thirty-six hundred men, was em))arked
on board the ships of Holmes, where Wolfe joined them
oil the same evening.

These movements of the English filled the French
commanders with mingled perplexity, anxiety, and hope.

THE IIEIOIITS OF AURAIIAM.

IGl

Uvcr
the
^bend
Initcd
rkcd
I them

ircnch
hope.

A dosortcr told tht-m that Achniral Saiindors was im-
[)ationt to bo gone. Vaudreuil grew coiifideiit. '' Tlie
ln'oaking up of the eaiuj) at Montmoreiici," lie says,
" and the ahaiidonmeut of the intrenchments there, tin;
iv-cmbaikation on board the vessels above Qiu'l)ec of the
troops who had cneamp(,'d on the .south bank, the move-
ments of these vessels, the removal of the heaviest picees
of artillery from the batteries of Point Levi, — these and
the lateness of the season all combined to announce the
s[)eecly departure of the fleet, several vessels of which
had ev.n sailed down the river already. The ])risoners
and the deserters who daily came in told us that this
was the common report in their army." He wrote
to Bourlamaque on the first of Sejitember : " livery-
thing proves that the grand design of the English has
failed."

Yet he was ceaselessly watchful. So was Montcalm ;
and he, too, on the night of the second, snatched a
moment to write to liourlamaque from his headcjuarters
in the stone house, by the river of Beauj)ort : '"• I'he
night is dark ; it rains ; orr troops are in their tents,
with clothes on, ready for an alarm ; I in my boots ;
my horses saddled. In fact, this is my usual way. I
wish you were here ; for I cannot be everywhere, though
I multii»ly myself, and have not taken ofT my clothes
since the twentv-third of June." On the eleventh of
September he wrote his last letter to Bourlamaque, and
])robably the last that his jten ever traced. " I am
overwhelmed with work, and should often lose temper,
like you, if I did not remember that I am paid by Europe
for not losing it. Nothing new since my last. I give
the enemy another m(mtii, or something less, to stay
here." The more sanguine Vaudreuil would hardly give
them a week.

102

QUEBEC.

Mciinwliilc, IK) iti'crnulion wns spared. Tlio f')rcc
iiiidcr Ijoiitraiiivillc; al)i)V(' (,Jii(!lj('C was raised to tlircc
tlionsiind iiK.Mi. .II(^ was ordered to watch tlic slioro as
far as .JacMiucs-Cartier, and follow with his main body
every movement of iroimcs's scpiadron. There was
little fear for the liciLdits m'ar the town; they were
thonulit inacoessihic. I'lvcn Montcalm believed them
safe, and had expressed himself to that effect some time
bcd'ore. " W(! need not sn|)i)ose," he wrote to Vniidrenil,
"that the enemy have win<^s;'' and atrain, speaking of
the very place where Wolfe afterwjirds hinded, "I swear
to you that a hundred nuui posted there would stop their
whole army." lie was right. A hundred watchful and
determined men could have held the position long
enough ftu* reinforcements to come up.

The hundred men were tliere. Captnin dc Vergor,
of the colony troops, commanded them, and reinforce-
ments were within his call ; for the battalion of (Juienne
iiad been ordered to encam|) close at liand on the Plains
of Abraham. Yergor's i)ost, called Ansc du Foulon,
was a mile and a half from Quebec. A little beyond it,
by the brink of the cliffs, was another post, called Samos,
lield by seventy men with four cannon ; and, beyond
this again, the heights of Sillcry Averc guarded l)y a linn-
dred and thirty men, also with cannon. These were
outposts of Bougainville, whose headquarters were at
Cap-Rouge, six miles above Sillery, and whose troops
were in continual movement along the intervening shore.
Thus all was vigilance; for while the French were
strong in the hope of speedy delivery, they felt that
there was no safety till the tents of the invader had
vanished from their shores and his ships from their
river. "What we knew," says one of them, "of the
character of M. Wolfe, that impetuous, bold, and

THE IIEUaiTS OF ABRAHAM.

k;:]

intr(']»i(l warrior, proparcl iis for a last attack before he
left us."

Wolfe had Ix^eii verv ill on the eveiiintr of tin; fourth,
'{'he ti'oo|)s kiunv it, and their .spirits sank : hut, after a
nit^ht of torment, he jjrrew hettci', and was soon ainonu;
them auain, rekindling their ardor, and lm|>ai'tini:' a
eheer that lu; eonid not share. For himself he had no
l»ity ; hut when lie heard of the illness of two oHiccrs in
one of the ships, he sent them a niessacre of warm sym-

ith

d offered

patliy, advised them to return to Point Levi, and ollered
them his own barge and an escort. They thanke(l him,
but rejjlied that, come what might, they woidd see the
enterprise to an end. Another ollicer remarked in his
licaring that (me of the inval'ds had a very delicate (mui-
stitution. '• Don't tell mo of constitution," said Wolh; ;
" he has good si)irit, and good spirit will carry a man
through (>verything." An inunenso moral force bore up
his own frail body and forced it to its work.

Major Robert .Stobo, who, five years before, had been
given as a hostage to th(! French at the ca])ture of
Fort Necessity, ai-rived about this time in a vessel from
Halifax. IFe had long l)een a prisoner at Quebec, not
always in close custody, and had usimI his o|»portunities
to acfpiaint himself with the neighborhood. In the
spi'ing of this year h(> and an oflicer of rangers named
Stevens had made thi.'ir esca])e with extraordinary skill
and daring ; and he now returned to giv(» his country-
men the benefit of his local knowledge. His biogra))her
says that it was he who directed Wolfe in the choice
of a hinding-pkcc. Be this as it may, Wolfe in person
examined the river and the shores as far as l*ointe-aux-
Trembles ; till at length, landing on the south side a
little above Quebec, and looking across the water with
a telescope, he descried a path that ran with a long

QUKIIKO.

fl'-l

hi I

^ A i

slope ii|> IImi l'iU'(> of llit> woody |)r(>('i|)ic(\ iiiid S!i\v at lli(">
lop a I'liislci' of Iciils. 'I'lit'i wi'iH! lliosc of \'«'r<2;or's
|i;u:n'(l ni \\\v. Ansc dii I^'omIom, now called Wolfe's Cove,
As lie vo\\\^\ see Itiii ten oi- lwelv(! of (lieiii, lie llioiii;lit
that the ^iiard eoidd not be niinieroiis, and nii^hl he
overpowered. His hojn; would luive heeii sti'onu'er if he
had known IJiat Vergor liad oiiee heen tried for niis-
eondiic't and cowardice in the surrender of IJeaiis<^j(Hir,
and saved from merited (lis^':raee hv the frieiidshij) of
the intendant l)iii;ot and tlu> protection of \'aiidreiiil.

The morning oi the seventh was fail- and warm, and
the vessels of Holmes, tlieir crowcUMJ decks gay with
scarh.'t uniforms, sailed up the river to Cap-Rouge. A
lively scene awaited them ; for here Avere the head-
quarters of JJougainville, and here lay his principal
fi)rce, while the rest watched the baid<s ahove and
below. The cove into whit'h the little river runs was
guarded by floating batteries; the surrounding shore
was defended by breastworks; and a lai'gc body of
regulars, militia, and mounted Canadians in blue uni-
forms moved to and fro, with restless activity, on the
hills behind. When the vessels came to anchor, the
horsemen dismounted and formed in line with the in-
fant rv ; lien, with loud shouts, the whole rushed down
the heights to man their works at the shore. That
true Briton, Captain Knox, looked on with a critical
eye from the gangway of his shij), and wrote that night
in his Diary that they had made a ridiculous noise.
" How different ! " he exclaims, " how noblv awful and
expressive of true valor is the customary silence of
the British troops ! "

In the afternoon the ships opened fire, while the
troops entered the boats and rowed up and down as
if looking for a landing-place. It was but a feint of

TIIK IIKICIirs OF AllKAFIAM.

)t)

AVoIfc to ,l('Coiv(« l>(Hiu:;iinvilI(' ;is to his rcnl dcsij,

rn.

A h

icjivv cMslcilv I'liiii set III 1)11 llic ii('\( ln()|•Mm'^ iiiK

niul

was
■ihore
ly of

iiui-

\ the

tlic

le iu-

(lowii

That,

Itical
I night
Inoiso.
Ill and

tee of

le the

rn as

lint of

lasted two (hiys wilhoiit^ r('s|»il('. All opcratioiis \\('r(!
siispcmlcd, and tlu; men siilTered iii-eally in the crowded
transports. Hall' of I hem were therefore lan<le(| on the
south shore, where they made their (|iiarlers in the
villa«i,(! of St. Nicolas, refreshed themsehcs, and dried
their wet (dothiiiLi', knajtsacks, and hlankets.

For several snce'ssivc^ days the stjiiadion of Ilolnuj.s
was allowed to drift up the river with the Hood tid(! and
down witli th(! chl), thus |iassin,u" and repassinu' inces-
santly hetw<'en the neiuhhorhood of Quehec on one
hand, and a point hiuli ahovo ('ap-Koiit!;(! on tla; other;
whih^ Ijoiiiiainville, |»ei'ple.\ed, and always expecting" an
Jittaek, follow(>d the ships to and fro alomi; \\u\ shore,
by day and by niirht, till his men were exhausted with
e"aseless foreed marciies.

At last tlu! time hu- a(;tion came. On We(luesday,
the twidfth, the troo|)S at St.. Nicolas were embai'ked
aiiiiin, and all were; told to hold themselves in readiness.
Wolfe, from the liau'ship " Sutherland," issuc^d his last
general orders. " The enemy's force is now divided,
great seareity of j>rovisions in their cam|>, and nnivei'sal
diseontent among tlie Canadians. Our ti-ooj)s below are
in readiness to join us ; all tli(! light ai-tillery and tools
are embarked at the Point of Levi ; and the troops will
land where the French seem least to I'Xjteet it. The
first body that gets on shore is to march directly to the
enemy and drive them from any litth; j)ost they may
occupy ; the othcers must be careful that the succeeding
bodies do not by any mistake lire on those who go
before them. The battalions must foi-m on tin; upper
gi'ouud with exjU'dition, and be ready to charge wh;it-
ever presents itself. When the artillery and troops are

10)0

gUKHKC.

Iimdcd, a (Mtrps will Ix; Iclt to sccuit tlic laiuliiiii-iilih'o,
while the itsI miirch on and (MKlcavor to biiiiu- ihv
Canadians and Fruucli to a halllc 'I'lu; oHiccrs and
men will renicniljcr wlial tlhir conntiy (•x[)(H;tH from
(licin, and what a dL'tcrniincd hody ol" soldici's inured
lo Will' is cajjahlo ol" <loin,<i' au'ainst five weak French
battalions minjjled with a, disordei'Iy ]>easanti'y."

The sjjirit of the army answered to that of its chief.
The troops loved and admired their fi-eneral, trusted
their oi'lieers, and were ready for any attemi)t. "• Nay,
liow eonld it be otherwise," (]uaintly asks honest Ser^'eant
John Johnson, of the tifty-eii2,litli retiiment, " being at
the heels of tientlemen whose whole thirst, CMjnal with
their n'eneral, was for u'lorv ? We liad seen them tried,
and alwa\s found tlu'ni sterlimi;. We knew that they
would stand bv us to tlu.' last extremity."

Wolfe had thirty-six ]unidi'(>d men and ofrK3ers with
him on board the vessels of ITobnes ; and h(^ now sent
orders to (^donel I'urton at Point Levi to brinui: to his
aid all wlio could be si)ared from that ])lace and the
Point of Orleans. They were to march alonu: the south
bank, after ni<rhtl'all, and wait fnrtlwM' orders at a desiji;-
nated sj)ot convenient for embarkation. Their number
was about twelve hundred, so that the entire force
destined for the enter])rise was at the utmost forty-
eight hundred. With these, Wolfe meant to climb the
heights of Abraham in the teeth of an enemy who,
though much reduced, were still twice as numerons as
their assailants.

Admiral Saunders lay Avith the main fleet in the Basin
of Quebec. This excellent oflficcr, whatever may have
been his views as to the necessity of a speedy dei)arturo,
aided Wolfe to the last with unfailing energy and zeal.
It was agreed between them that while the General

TIIK lIKKillTS OF AlJU.VirAM.

107

iBasin
liavc
|rturo,
zeal,
nicral

iiiiHlt' llie I'Oiil attack, tlx' Admiral hIiouM cnti'ajro Mmit-
calm's attf'iition by a preteiitU'tl one. As ui^'lit ap-
pruaclicd, the (leot ran^'<M| itself alonu' tlic; HeaujMiil
shore; tlie boats were bjwered and Idled with saib>rs,
marines, and the few troops ihat had been left brhind ;
while slilp si^nialled to ship, eannon Hashed and thun-
dered, and shot jdon^died tlie beaeh, as if to (dcjir a
way for assailants to land. In the uloom of the evi'ninu'
the effect was iniposinLf. Monteahn. who thonjihl that
the movements of the Kn^Lilish above the town were only
a I'eint, that their main force was still below it, and tliat
their real attack wonld be made there, was couipi'-tely
deceived, and massed his troops in front of Ileaupoit to
rejtel the expected landinti'. IJnt while in tli licet of
Saunders all was uproar and ostentatious m« uace, tbo
danger was t"]( mil(>s away, where tla? s(|ua'lioi. of
Holmes hiy tran(|ull and silent at its anchorage off
Cap-Rouge.

It was less tran(|uil than it seemed. AH o!i l)oard
knew that a blow would l)e struck that niuht, thouuh
only a few high oilleors knew where. Coloufd IFowi ,, of
the light infantry, called for volunteers to lead the un-
known and des])erate venture, promising, in the woi'ds
of one of them, " that if any of us survived we might
depend on being recommended to the (hMieral." As
many as were wanted — twenty -four in all — soon came
forward. Thirty large bateaux and some boats belong-
ing to the squadnm lay moored alongside the vessels.;
and late in the evening the troops wei'e ordered into
them, the twenty-four volunteers taking their place in
the foremost. Thev held in all about seventeen hundri'd
men. The rest remained on ])oard.

Bougainville could discern the movement, and mis-
judged it, thinking that he himself was to be attacked.

ssssBomass^

168

QUEBEC.

I ii

The tide was still flowing; ,md, the better to deceive
him, the vessels and boats were allowed to drift up-
ward with it for a little distance, as if to land above
Cap-Rouge.

The day had been fortunate for Wolfe. Two desert-
ers came from the camp of Bougainville with intelli-
gence that, at ebb tide on the next night, he was to
send down a convoy of i)rovisi()ns to Montcalm. The
necessities of the camp at neau])ort, and the difficul-
ties of transportation by land, had before comi)elled the
French to resort to this i)erilous means of convevinu;
supplies ; and their boats, drifting in dr.rkness under
the shadows of the northern sliorc, had connnonly })assed
in safety. Wolfe saw at once that, if his own boats went
down in advance of the convoy, he could turn the in-
telligence of the deserters to good account.

He was still on board the " Sutherland." Every
preparation was made, and every order given ; it only
remained to wait the turning of the tide. Seated with
him in the cabin was the comuuinder of the sloop-of-war
" Porcupine," his former school-fellow John Jervis, af-
terwards Earl St. Vincent. Wolfe told him that he
expected to die in the battle of the next day ; and
taking from his bosom a miniature of Miss Lowther,
his betrothed, he gave it to him with a request that he
would return it to her if the presentiment should prove
true.

Towards two o'clock the tide began to ebb, and a
fresh wind blew down the river. Two lanterns were
raised into the mahitop shrouds of the " Sutherland."
It was the appointed signal ; the boats cast off and
fell down with the current, those of the light infantry
leading the wav. The vessels with the rest of the
troops had orders to follow a little later.

THE HEIGHTS OF ABRAHAM.

169

lie
and
icr,

ho
rove

To look for a moment at the cluiuces on which this
bold adventiire hung. First, the deserters told Wolto
that provision-boats were ordered to go down to Quebec
tiiat night ; secondly, Bougainville countermanded them ;
thirdly, the sentries posted ak ng the heights were told
of the order, but not of the countermand ; fourthly,
Vergor at the Ansc du Foulon had permitted most of
his men, chiefly Canadians from Lorettc, to go home for
a time and work at their harvesting, on condition, it is
said, that they should afterwards work in a neighl)oring
field of his own ; fifthly, he kept careless watch, and
went quietly to bed; sixthly, the battalion of Guienne,
ordered to take post on the Plains of Abraham, had,
for reasons unexplained, i-emained eiiL'ani})ed by the ^St.
Charles; and lastly, when Bougainville saw Holmes's
vessels drift down the stream, he did not tax his weary
troops to follow them, thinking that they would return
as usual with the flood tide. But for these conspiring
circumstances New France might have lived a little
longer, and the fruitless heroism of Wolfe Avould have
passed, with countless other heroisms, into oblivion.

For full two hours the j)rocession of boats, borne on
the current, steered silently down the St. Lawrence.
The stars were visible, but the night was moonless
and sufliciently dark. The (leneral was in one of
the foremost boats, and near him was a young- mid-
shipman, John Kobison, afterwards professor of natural
philosophy in the University of Edinburgh. lie used to
tell in his later life how Wolfe, with a low voice,
repeated Cray's Elcf/i/ in a dniatrij Church i/ani to the
officers about him. Probably it was to relii^ve the in-
tense strain of his thoughts. Among the rest was the
verse which his own fnte was soon to illustrate, — ■

" The paths of glory lead but to the grave."

170

QUEBEC.

" Gentlemen," he said, as his recital ended, " I would
rather have written those lines than take Quebec."
None were there to tell him that the hero is greater
than the poet.

As thev neared their destination, the tide bore them
in towards the shore, and the mighty wall of rock and
forest towered in darkness on their left. The dead
stillness was suddenly broken by the sharp Qui vine ! of
a French sentry, invisible in the thick gloom. France!
answered a Highland officer of Fraser's regiment from
one of the boats of the light infantry. He had served
in Holland, and s[)ol\:e French tluently.

A quel regiment '"?

Be la Rcine, replied the Higldander. Ho knew that
a part of that corps was with Bougainville. The sentry,
expecting the convoy of provisions, was satisfied, and
did not ask for the password.

Soon after, the foremost boats were passing tlie heights
of Sanios, when another sentry challenged them, and
the}^ could see him through the darkness running down
to the edge of the water, within range of a pistol-shot.
In answer to his questions, the same ollicer replied, in
French : " Provision-boats. Don't make a noise ; the
English will hear us." In fact, the sloo})-of-war
"Hunter" was anchored in the stream not far off.
This -time, again, the sentry let them pass. In a few
moments they rounded the headland above the Anse du
Foulon. Thei'c Avas no sentry there. The strong cur-
rent swe])t the boats of the light infantry a little below
the intended landing-place. They disembarked on a
narrow strand at the foot of heights as steep as a hill
cov(>red with trees can be. The twenty-four volunteers
led the way, climbing with what silence they might,
closely followed by a much larger body. When they

THE HEIGHTS of Abraham.

171

off.

f(.'NV

k du
cur-

lelow

>ii a

hill

Itccrs

[iti-lit,
1 they

roticlicd the top they saw in the dim light a cluster of
tents at a short distance, and immediately made a dash
at them. A'ergor leaped from bed and tried to run off,
but was shot in the heel and captured. Ilis men, taivi^i
))y surprise, made little resistance. One or two wore
caught, and the resi tied.

The main body of troops waited in tlieir boats by the
edge of the strand. The heiglits near by were cleft ])y
a great ravine choked with forest trees; and in its
deptlis ran a little bi'ook ceiled Ruisseau .St.-J)enis,
which, swollen by the late rains, fell plashing in tlio
stillness over a rock. Other tlian this no sound could
reach the strained ear of Wolfe hut tiie gurgle of the
tide and the cautious climbing of iiis advance-parties us
they mounted the steeps at some little distance from
where he sat listening. At length from the toj) camc^
a sound of musket-shots, followed by loud huzzas, and
he knew that his men were masters of the posit ii)n.
Tiie woi'd was given ; the troo])S leaped from the boats
and scaled the heiglits, some here, some there, clutching
at trees and bushes, their nuiskets slung at their backs.
Tradition still points out the i)lace, near the mouth of
the ravine, where tlic forinnost reached the top. Wolfe
said to an officer near him : " You can try it, but 1 don't
think you'll get up." He himself, however, found
strength to drag himself up with the rest. The nai-row
slanting path on the face of the I; 'ights had been made
impassable by trenches and abatis; but all obstruciions
were soon cleared away, and then the ascent was easy.
In the gray of the morning the long fdc of red-coated
soldiers moved (piickly upward, and formed in order
on the })lateau above.

Before many of them had reac'hed the top, cannon
were heard close on the left. It was the battery at

172

QUEBEC.

Pamos firing on flic boats in the rear and liic vessels
descciuliug from Cap-Rouge. A party was sent to
silence it ; this was soon effected, and the more distant
battery at Sillery was next attacked and taken. As fast
as the boats were emptied they returned for the troops
left on board the vessels and for those waiting on the
southern shore under Colonel Burton.

The day broke in clouds and threatening rain.
Wolfe's battalions were drawn u\) along the crest of the
heights. No enemy was in sight, thougii a body of
Canadians had sallied from the town and moved along
the strand towards the landing-place, whence they were
quickly driven back, lie had achieved the most critical
part of his enterprise ; yet the success that he coveted
l)laced him in imminent danger. On one side was the
garrison of Quebec and the army of Beau port, and
Bougainville was on the other. Wolfe's alteri: tive
was victory or ruin ; for if he should be overwhelmed
by a coml'ned attack, retreat would be hopeless.
Ilis feelings no man can know; but it would be
safe to say that hesitation or doubt had no part in
them.

He went to reconnoitre the ground, and soon came
to the Plains of Abraham, so called from Abraham
Martin, a pilot known as Maitre Abraham, who had
owned a piece of land here in the early times of the
colony. The Plains were a tract of grass, tolerably
level in most parts, patched hero and there with corn-
fields, studded with clumps of bushes, and forming a
part of the high plateau at the eastern end t)f which
Quebec stood. On the south it was bounded by the
declivities along the St. Lawrence ; on the north, by
those along the St. Charles, or rather along the mead-
ows through which that lazy stream crawled like a

THE HEIGHTS OF ABRAHAM.

173

imc

jni-

g a

lich

the

ad-

c a

writhing snake. At the phice that Wolfe chose for
his battle-licld the phitcaii was less than a mile
wide.

Thither the troops advanced, marched by files till
they reached the ground, nnd then wheeled to form their
line of battle, which stretched across the plateau and
faced the city. It consisted of six l)attalions and the
detached grenadiers from Louisbourg, all drawn up in
ranks three deep. Its right wing was near the brink
of the heights along the St. Lawrence ; but the left
could not reach those along the St. Charles. On this
side a wide space was perforce left open, and there was
danger of being outflanked. To prevent this, Brigadier
Townshend was stationed here with two battalions,
drawn up at right angles with the rest, and fronting tlie
St. Charles. The battalion of Wel)b's regiment, under
Colonel Burton, formed the reserve ; the third battalion
of Royal Americans was left to guard the landing ; and
Howe's light infantry occu})ied a wood far in the rear.
Wolfe, with Monckton and Murray, commanded the
front line, on which the heavy fighting was to fall, and
which, when all the troops had arrived, numbered less
than thirty-five hundred men.

Quebec was not a mile distant, but they could not
see it ; for a ridge of broken ground intervened, called
Buttes4-Neveu, about six hundred paces off. The first
division of troops had scarcely come up when, about six
o'clock, this ridge was suddenly thronged with white
uniforms. It was the battalion of Guienne, arrived at
the eleventh hour from its camp by the St. Charles.
Some time after there was hot firing in the rear. It
came from a detachment of Bougainville's command
attacking a house where some of the light infantry were
posted. The assailants were repulsed, and the firing

■1

I It

174

QUEBEC.

ceased. Li<rlit showers fell at intervals, besprinkling
the troojis as tliey stood patiently waiting the event.

Montcalm had passed a troubUnl night. Tlirough all
the evening the cnnnjn bellowed from the ships of
Haunders, and the boats of the fleet hovered in the dusk
off the Beauport shore, threatening every moment to
land. Troops lined tlie intreuehmeiits till day, while
the General walked the field that adjoined his head-
(piarters till one in the morning, aecomi)anied by the
Chevalier Johnstone and Colonel Pouhirlez. Johnstone
says that he was in great agitation, and took no rest
all night. At daybreak he heard the sound of cannon
above the town. It was tliC battery at Samos firing on
the p]nglish shii)S. He had sent an oCficer to the quarters
of A^audreuil, which were much nearer Quebec, with
orders to bring liim word at once should anything
unusual ha})i)en. But no word came, and about six
o'clock he mounted and rode thither with Johnstone.
As they advanced, the country behind the town opened
more and more upon their sight; till at length, when
0])posito Vaudreuirs house, they saw across the St.
Charles, some two miles away, the red ranks of British
soldiers on the heights beyond.

"This is a serious business," ^fontcalm said ; and
sent off Johnstone at full gallop to bring uj) the troops
from the centre and left of the camp. Those of the
right were in motion already, doubtless by the (jlovernor's
order. Vaudreuil came out of the house. Montcalm
stopped for a few words with him ; then set spurs to
his horse, and rode over the bridge of the St. Charles to
the scene of danger. He rode with a fixed look, uttering
not a word.

The army followed in such order as it miglit, crossed
the bridge in hot haste, passed under the northern ram-

THE HEIGHTS OF ABRAHAM.

or's
aim
to
Is to

I'lng

5SC(1

fam-

part of Quoboc, entered at the Pnlaee flute, and pressed
on in headlong march ah.)ng the quaint narrow streets
of th(; u'arllke town : troops of Intlians in sealploeks and
war-paint, a savage glitter in their deejwset eyes ; l)ands

of Canadians whose all was at stak

aith, country

and h.oniG ; the colony regulars; the l)attalions of Old
France, a torrent of white nnifornis and glenniing bayo-
nets, La Sarre, Langucdoc, Roussillon, IJuarn, — victors
of Oswe<j;o, William llenrv, aud Ticonderoga. So thev

by the gate

swejit on. poured out npon the piam, some uy me
of St. Louis, and some by that of St John, and hurried,
breathhjss, to where the banners of (luiennc still lluttei'cd
on the ridge.

Montcalm was amazed at what he saw. lie had
expected a detachment, and he found an army. Full in
sight before him stretched the lines of Wolfe : the close
ranks of the English infantry, a silent wall of red, and
the wild array of the Highlanders, with their waving
tartans, and bagpipes screaming defiance. Vaudreuil
had not come ; but not the less was felt the evil of a
divided authority and the jealousy of the rival chiefs.
Montcalm waited long for the forces he had ordered to
join him from the left wing of the army. He Maited in
vain. It is said that the Governor had detained them,
lest the English should attack the Beauport shore. Even
if they did so, and succeeded, the French might defy
them, could they but put Wolfe to rout on the Plains of
Abraham. Neither did the garrison of Quebec come to
the aid of Montcalm. He sent to Ramesay, its com-
mander, for twenty-five field-pieces which were on the
Palace battery. Ramesay would give him only three, say-
ing that he wanted them for his own defence. There
were orders and counter-orders ; misunderstanding, haste,
delay, perplexity.

176

QUEBEC.

Montcjilm and his cliiff oflllcers held a council of war.
It is said tliat he and they alike were for immediate
attack. Ilis enemies declare that he was afraid lest
A^andrcuil should arrive and take command ; hut the
Govei'iior was not a man to assume resixmsibility at
such?!", crisis. Others say that his impetuosity over-
came his better judgment ; and of this charge it is hard
to ac([uit him. IJougainville was but a few miles dis-
tant, and some of his troo])S were nnich nearer ; a mes-
senger sent by way of Old Lorette could have reacluMi
him in an hour and a half at most, and a combined
attack in front and rear might have ])cen concoi-ted with
him. If, moreover, jVrontcalm could have come to an
understanding with Vaudreuil, his own force might
luivc been strengthened by two or three thousand addi-
tional men from the town and the camp of Bcauport ;
but he felt that there was no time to lose, for he imag-
ined that Wolfe would soon be reinforced, which was
impossible, and he believed that the English were forti-
fying themselves, which was no less an error. lie has
been blamed not onlv for fiirhting too soon, but for
fighting at all. In this he could not choose. Fight he
must, for Wolfe was now in a jiosition to cut off all his
supplies. His men were full of ardor, and he resolved
to attack before their ardor cooled. He spoke a few
words to them in his keen, vehement way. " I remem-
ber very well hoAV he looked," one of the Canadians,
then a boy of eighteen, used to say in his old age ; '* he
rode a black or dark bay horse along the front of our
lines, brandishing his sword, as if to excite us to do our
duty. He wore a coat with wide sleeves, which fell
back as he raised his arm, and showed the white linen
of the wristband."

The English waited the result with a composure which,

THE nEIGIITS OF ABRAHAM.

177

if not quite real, was at least well feigned. The three
field-pieces sent by Ramcsay plied them with canister-
shot, and fifteen hundred Canadians and Indians fusil-
laded them in front and flank. Over all the plain, from
behind bushes and knolls and the edge of cornfields, jiuffs
of smoke sprang incessantly from the guns of these hid-
den marksmen. Skirmishers were thrown out before
the lines to hold them in check, and the soldiers were
ordered to lie on tlic grass to avoid the shot. The firing
was liveliest on the English left, where bands of sharp-
shooters got under the edge of the declivity, among
thickets, and behind scattered houses, whence they
killed and wounded a considerable number of Towns-
hend's men. The light infantry were called up from
the rear. The houses were taken and retaken, and one
or more of them was burned.

"Wolfe w^as everywhere. How cool he was, and why
his followers loved him, is shown by an incident that
happened in the course of the morning. One of his
captains was shot through the lungs; and on recovering
consciousness he saw the General standing at his side.
Wolfe pressed his hand, told him not to despair, praised
his services, promised him early promotion, and sent an
aide-de-camp to Monckton to beg that officer to keep the
promise if he himself should fall.

It was towards ten o'clock when, from the high
ground on the right of the line, Wolfe saw that the
crisis was near. The French on the ridge had formed
themselves into three bodies, regulars in the centre,
regulars and Canadians on right and loft. Two field-
pieces, whicli had been dragged up the heights at Anse
du Foulon, fired on them with grape-shot, and the troops,
rising from the ground, prepared to receive them. In

a few moments more they were in motion. They came

! i-

178

QUEBEC.

on raj)idly, uttering loud shouts, and firing as soon as
they were within range. Their ranks, ill ordered at the
best, were I'urtlier confused by a number of Canadians
wlio had been mixed among the reguhirs, and who, after
hastily firing, throw themselves on the ground to reload.
The British advaneed a few rods ; then halted and stood
still. When the French were within forty paces the
w^ord of command rang out, and a crash of musketry
answered all along the line. The volley was delivered
with remarkable precision. In the battalions of the
centre, which had suffered least from the enemy's bul-
lets, the simultaneous explosion was afterwards said by
French ofliccrs to have sounded like a cannon-shot.
Another volley followed, and tlion a furious clattering
fire that lasted but a minute or two. When the smoke
rose, a miserable sight was revealed : the ground cum-
bered with dead and wounded, the advancing masses
8toj)ped short and turned into a frantic mob, sliouting,
cursing, gesticulating. The order was given to charge.
Then over the field rose the British cheer, mixed with
the fierce yell of the Highland slogan. Some of the
corps i)ushed forward with the bayonet ; some advanced
fii'ing. The clansmen drew their broadswords and
dashed on, keen and swift as bloodhounds. At the
English right, though the attacking column was broken
to i)icces, a fire was still kept up, chiefly, it seems, by
shari)shooters from the bushes and cornfields, where
they had lain for an hour or more. Here Wolfe him-
self led the charge, at the head of the Louisbourg gren-
adiers. A shot shattered his wrist. He wrapped his
handkerchief about it and kept on. Another shot struck
him, and he still advanced, when a third lodged in his
breast. lie staggered, and sat on the ground. Lieu-
tenant Brown, of the grenadiers, one Henderson, a vol-

THE HEIGHTS OF ABRAHAM.

179

with

tlic
meed

and

the

•okcii

lis, by

Ivhero

him-
Igreii-
his
Itriick
In his
I Lieu-
vol-

unteer in the same company, and a private Hoklier, aided
\>y an ollicer of artillery who ran to join them, carried
him in their arms to the rear. He begged them to lay
liim down. They did so, and asked it he woukl have a
surgeon. "There's no need," he answered; "■it's all
over with me." A moment after, one of tliem cried
out : " They run ; see how they run ! " " Who run '{ "
Wolfe denuinded, like a man roused fiom sleep. "The
enemy, sir. Kgad, they give way ever; where ! " '* Go,
one of you, to Colonel Burton," returiied tiie dying man ;
" tell him to march Weljb's regiment down to Charles
River, to cut off tlielr retreat from the l)ridge." Then,
turning on his side, he murmured, " Now, God be praised,
1 will die in peace!" and in a few moments his gallant
soul had fled.

Montcahn, still on horseback, was borne with the tide
of fugitives towards the town. As he approaclied the
walls a shot passed through his body. He kei)t his seat ;
two soldiers supported him, one on each side, and led
his horse through the St. Louis Gate. On the open
space within, among the excited crowd, were several
women, drawn, no doubt, by eagerness to know the
result of the fight. One of them recognized him,
saw the streaming blood, and shrieked, " mon Bieit!
mon Dieu! Ic 3Iarquis est tue!'^ "It's nothing, it's
nothing," replied the death-stricken mnn ; " don't bo
troubled for me, my good friends." (" Ce rCest ricn^ ce
7i'est rien ; ne vous ajjfif/cz |5as pour moiy mes bonnes
amies"^

Some of the fugitives took refuge in the city and
others escaped across the St. Charles. In the next
night the French army abandoned Quebec to its fate
and fled up the St. Lawrence. The city soon surrcn-

180

QUEBEC.

dcrcd to Wolfe's successor, Brigadier Townshend, and
the English held it during the winter. In April, the
French under the Chevalier do Levis made a bold but
unsuccessful attempt to retake it. In the following
summer, Cioneral Amherst advanced on Montreal, till
in September all Canada was forced to surrender, and
the power of France was extinguished on the North
American continent.

I'' !

University Press: John Wilson & Son, Cambridge

FEANCIS PAKKMANS NEW WOEK.

MONTCALM AND WOLFE.

Illustrated with Two Popfpalts and Nine Maps.

Two«„l.. Sv.- Cloth, »li.001 l,.lfc«r,»o.oo.

rnUIS new and nnportant work by Francis Parkman is
-L I art .Sovenf. of the scries of liistorical narratives,
I' ranee and h„. .„,! in North A.neriea." The period
covered l,y tl,e narrative is 17-18 to 1703

,.reraol'°''''r'V" ""^ ""'""""''" ^'''^'^ "■" -"«""• ■•■> hi«
preface, " stand as representative of the two nations whose

flna. con^st for the eoatro, of Xorth America is the sn„j
of tie hook. Averyla,-ge amount of ,n,pnl,lished mafrial

pait of docnments copied from the archives a.,d libraries
or France an,l K„g|a„d. . . . Great numbers of nu to" ^1 1
k ters, d,ar,es, and other writings of persons engage hth
war, have also been examined on this side of the A a i"

I ..rkmau has had access to all the letters written by G™era
Montcalm wheu in America to members of his fam h in
France, also correspondence with one of his chief I^r
Bourlamaque with whom he was on terms of intimac, wWch
f»m says the author, "an interesting complemen t^
ofteml correspondence of the writer, and tLw the mo,I

Mr 1 a kman has also examined a great deal of printed
mtter m the form of books, pamphlets, and other p!,bUca
tions rel.at.ng to the American part of the Seven Yearn War.

(I)

TPTll

*' The whole of this published and unpublished mass of evi-
dence," he states, '' has been read and collated with extreme
care, and more than common pains have been taken to secure
accuracy of statement. The study of books and papers,
however, could not alone answer the purpose. The plan of
the work was formed in early youth; and though various
causes have long delayed its execution, it has always been
kept in view. Meanwhile I have visited and examined every
spot where events of any importance in connection with the
contest took place, and have observed with attention such
scenes and persons as might help to illustrate those I meant
to describe. In short, the subject has been studied as much
from life and in the open air as at the librar}' table."

London Athenaeum.

" The reflections with which Mr. Parkman closes his narrative
are as striking as the narrative itself. We have not space to quote
them at length, and they do not admit of condensation. It is
sufficient to note their value, and to expres". the hope that the
readers of these volumes will pay due heed to them.

*' We need not add anything in commendation of the work as a
whole, having already indicated our opinion with perfect clearness.
It not only confirms tlie view we have previously expr '-sed, that
Mr. Parkman ranks amongst the best historical writers of his
country, but justifies the addition that his place is alongside of the
greatest historians whose works are English classics."

Kew Tork Nation.

" We have left ourselves no room to speak of the principal subject
of the book, the capture of Quebec by Wolfe; but it is enough to
say that it is narrated with that brilliancy and picturesqueness of
style of which Mr. Parkman is master. In short, we have here a
book which will take its place as a masterpiece in military history,
— the best account of the most important war in our colonial
period."

London Spectator.

" Incomparably the best-written and most trustworthy account
of the American period with which it deals. . . . The romance of
war which culminated on the Plains of Abraham has been told
a hundred times, but it has never been told so well as by Mr.

(2)

ject

;hto

tss of

lere a

tory,

nial

punt
Ice of

told
Mr.

Parkman. Greater praise than this it would hardly be possible,
less it would certainly be unfair, to give. ... It is with reluc-
tance that we refrain from giving some of Mr. Parkman's battle-
pieces. We must content ourselves with saying that his accounts
of the battle on the Plains of Abraham, the storming of Ticon-
deroga, and the rout of Braddock, are at least equal to any writing
of the kind that has appeared of late years."

Boston Daily Advertiser.

" As a master of picturesque description, he easily stands at the
head of oui historians."

London Saturday Reviei^,

" Mr. Parkman's last book will add to the high reputation he has
already earned. . . . Full of interest, both as regards, their details
and their issues, the events of the final struggle of France and
England for the control of North America could not have found
an historian more fitted for his task."

Christian Advocate.

'•Francis Parkman is easily the first of living American histo-
rians. A master of picturesque narration, he is as careful of
truth as the most dry and exact chronicler. There is a quality
of poetical fascination which adds to the vigor and pointedness
of his description. . . . The result is a masterpiece. . . . More
interesting pages we have never read. . . . We can only com-
mend it as indispensable to the library of the scholar, and as
certain to command the interest and excite the admiration of all
who read it"

Macmillan's Magazine.

" It is only now that we find ourselves in possession of an
authentic, full, sustained, and worthy narrative of those momen-
tous events and extraordinary men. It has been reserved for an
American writer to raise to them a historic memorial in a spirit
and on a scale that befits their greatness."

Literary World.

" It is to studies from life, actual visits to the scenes of those
important events, long tramps along the routes taken by rangers
and scouts, to the exercise of vigilant powers of observation, sup-
plementing the most careful research and investigation, that we
owe the possibility of such historical writing as these two volumes
contain."

(3)

Professor Ooldwin Smith, in Toronto Week.

*' All must allow that it unites in the highest degree skill in
narration and brilliancy of description with the fruits of consci-
entious research."

The Critic.

♦' Parkman's studies of North American history have already
given him a first place among living historians. His books are
intensely interesting, and they are marked by a true historic
judgment."

The Scotsman.

" His narrative style is clear and vivacious, and he shows unmis-
takable power of description and characterization. His portrait-
ures of the prominent personages in the drama he narrates have
all the sharpness, defiuiteness, and minuteuess of photography."

Nevr Tork Tribune.

•'He has presented a wealth of new information with startling
freshness and realism."

Boston Transcript

" He has so distinguished himself in the unique interest of his
theme and the combination of extraordinary individual talents
and genius in dealing with it, as to lift and isolate him out of
any class of such writers, and to give him a solitary place and

eminence.'

New Tork Sun.

*' In ' Montcalm and Wolfe ' the author has discerned his oppor-
tunity ; and all the admirable qualities, the industry and the
learning, the literary training and expertness, which give charm
and value to his earlier narratives, have been concentrated with
augmented energy and rare felicity."

The London World.

Were its failings far greater and its merits far less than they
are, every right-minded reader would still take it to his heart, if
not to his shelves. For it is a hook; and to meet with such a
phenomenon among the mass of printed phantoms that usurp that
honorable name to-day is a pleasure indeed."

(4)

PARKMAN'S WORKS.

THE WORKS OF FRANCIS PARKMAN.

Octavo Edition. 10 Vols., isclcdino:-

THE CONSPIRACT OP PONTIAC. 2 vols.
THE OREOON TRAIL. 1 vol.

PRANCE AND ENGLAND IN NORTH AMERICA.

7 vols., VIZ. : —

PIONEERS OF FRAXCE IN THE NEW WORLD

THE JESUITS IN NORTH AMERICA.

LA SALLE AND THE DISCOVERY OF THE GREAT WFST

THE OLD Rl^GIME IN CANADA.

COUNT FRONTENAC AND NEW FRANCE

MONTCALM AND WOLFE. 2 vols.

l>Hee ^erset ^f ^o^, e^ot,., ^.,.00 ; Ualf calf, ^,,00 ;
full polished eaff^ 975.00.

Blackwood's Magazine.

"Mr. Parkman, who, if Mv. Bancroft will forgive us fnr «o,-

so, ,s the most eminent American historian now aHvo, ! ''"''

Magazine of American History.

JtJ^r '' "'^ ^'"'"''" ^'"^''' ^'^'"ff ^h^se works are Jooked for

numbe'ltthose f m7p"/''' ^'"^^^ '^'^ ^"^^^^^ ^

the incidents he describes with an interest which never flag! »

(5)

International Review^.

** Indeed, this quality of poetical fascination always appears in
Mr. Parkman's writings, and invests them with a charm which
belongs to fictions of the imagination, but this does not at all
impair his volumes as truthful and sober historical narratives.
His style is perfect for its purpose."

THE PIONEEBS OF FRANCE IN THE NEW WOBLD.

d. Huguenots in Florida, n. Samuel de Champlain.)
8vo. Cloth, $2.50; haP calf, $4.60.

New York Tribune.

" In vigor and pointedness of description, Mr. Parkman may be
counted superior to Irving."

" " ■ ■ *

New York "World.

" It is a narrative which has all the animation, variety, and
interest of a romance, and to most readers it will be as fresh
and novel as a pure creation of the imaginative faculty."

Boston Transcript.

"In interest this work exceeds any novel which has been pub-
lished during the year. Every page bears unmistakable impress of
power, — power of patient investigation, power of dramatic concep-
tion, power of philosophic thought, power of pictorial diction."

Providence (R. I.) Press.

" One of the very finest contributions to the historical literature
of this country."

THE JESUITS IN NOBTH AMERICA IN THE SEVENTEENTH

CENTUEY.

8vo. Cloth, $2.50; half calf, $4.50.

Atlantic Monthly.

" We feel that he is for us a faithful and competent interpreter
and commentator of Indian life, manners, superstitions, and for-
tunes. He has a marvellous skill in observing and describing the
phenomena of nature, — the features and scenes of the wilderness
amid which they roved. We know of no writer whose pages are
so real and vivid in qualities harmonizing with his theme as are
his."

(6)

reter

for-

the

I'liesa
are
are

Boston Pilot.

" Parkman's work is as Lascinating as the best of Scott's novels.
Once commenced, you cannot lay the book down: you will read
every line of it."

LA SALLE AND THE DISCOVEBT OF THE GREAT WEST.
8vo. Cloth, $2.50 ; half calf , $4.50.

This volume embodies the exploits and adventures of the first
European explorers of the valley of the Mississippi; the efforts of
the French to secure the whole interior of the continent; the
attempt of La Salle to find a westward passage to India; his
colony on the Illinois; his scheme of invading Mexico; his contest
with the Jesuits, and his assassination by his own followers. The
narrative is founded entirely on contemporary documents, includ-
ing many unpublished letters and journals of the chief exi)lorers,
which, for the first time, place in a clear light one of the most
interesting and striking portions of American history. This
edition is revised throughout, and in part rewritten with large
additions. A map of the country traversed by the explorers is
also added. The name of La Salle is placed upon the titlepage,
as seems to be demanded by his increased prominence in the
narrative of which he is the central figure.

George W. Curtis.

" A subject which Mr. Parkman has made as much his own as
Motley the Dutch Republic, or Macaulay the English Revolution.
He is thorough master of his material, which is much scattered,
and exists largely in manuscript; and his imagination, his pictur-
esque narrative style, and his admirable perception of the true
point of interest, give to his historical works a wonderful charm
and symmetry. It is to the pages of Mr. Parkman that we must
go for the American Indian. Cooper so bewitches our young
fancies with Uncas and the red heroes that it is very difficult to
divest our estimate of the Indian of a false and foolish glamour.
Mr. Parkman, however, knows him by personal experience and
long and thoughtful study."

Nation.

" The woi'k has been thoroughly revised, with the conscientious-
ness of a stylist as well as of an historian. So far as regards its
hero, this admirable work of Mr. Parkman's seems likely to be
undisturbed by future revelations."

(7)

New York Tribune.

" The present volume, which has attained the rank of a classic
in the library of American history, will be eagerly welcomed by a
large class of general readers."

Mr.

Toronto Daily Olobe.

Parkman has long since won a high reputation for the

vigor and incisive brilliancy of his style, and nowhere is he seen to
better advantage than in the glowing pages of the volume before
us. With such a work in the market, at a moderate price, no
reader has any excuse if he remain ignorant of the facts relating
to one of the most fascinating periods in American history."

THE OLD REGIME IN CANADA UNDEB LOUIS XIV.
8vo. Cloth, $2.50; half calf, $4.50.

The Literary "World.

•'The author here presents the results of his researches into
the early history of Canada under French rule, including in his
view the century bounded by 1G53 and 1753. He has had access
to a mass of State papers in the archives of France which have
never before been drawn upon, and with the material thus derived
has wrought an historical fabric at once substantial and fascinat-
ing. The influences which controlled the colony in its beginning,
and during its first century of life, — the Roman Catholic mission
spirit, and the mon'^rchical ambition of Louis XIV., — are delin-
eated in character and operation with remarkable skill; and the
extracts from the voluminous official correspondence maintained
between France and Canada lend a singular and delightful
piquancy to the narrative.

"In this volume Mr. Parkman details intelligently and in a
symmetrical and impressive nar- ative the efforts of French Mon-
archy and the Church of Rome to grasp the Continent of North
America. lie has chosen a peculiar but very effective method to
this end. Instead of discoursing at length of state-craft and
church-craft, and overwhelming the reader with dry documents
and historical lore, he invites him to look upon a series of scenes
v, ;, viy lifo of Canada, in which that life is set forth with

-» fhv « vividness and realism. But in him the historian
,,. -<,.• . v.r.y;s the painter; and, amid the fascination of these

(8)

pictures, he never loses sight of the two forces the history of
whose operation is the history of Canada, -the spirit o In
archy, and the spirit of Roman Catholic missions.-

COUNT FBONTENAC AND NEW FEANCE UNDEB lOUIS XIV.

8vo. Cloth, $2.50; half ealf, $4.50.

New York Evening Post

" If we value romance, it is here in greater abundance than in
any work of imagination; if we seek for stories of adventure and
deeds of darmg, W3 have them here on an heroic scale; if we
indu ge the modern taste for the analysis of character and motive
this rue story furnishes richer materials for such study than anv
novelist can possibly command."

Providence Press.

-What magic hides itself in the brain and pen of Mr. Parkman
that he makes this rugged and ragged growth of the French occu-
pancy of Canada so pregnant with life and interest to the reader v
It reads hke romance, but romance of a high order. You do not
wish to lay the book aside even temporarily until you have read
every word of it." • ^ icau

MONTCALM AND WOLFE. (Eecently Published.)
Two vols. 8vo. Cloth, $5.00; half calf, $9.00.

THE CONSPIRACY OF PONHAC, AND THE INDIAN WAE AFTER
THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. ™^

Two vols. 8vo. Cloth, $6.00; half calf, $9.00.

Westminster Review.

"An admirable production. Combining thoroughness of re-
earch with a picturesque beauty of expression, it presents a

The Nation.

col^r f'.'^;"^^^'^ 'Conspiracy of Pontiac' takes rank, among
competen judges, as the most satisfactory historical monograph
that our literature has produced."

(9)

Professor John Fiske, in Harper's Magazine.

" One of the most brilliant and fascinating books that has ever
been written by any historian since the days of Herodotus."

THE OBEOON TBAIL. - SKETCHES OF PBAIBIE AND BOCKT

MOUNTAIN LIFE.

8vo. Cloth, $2.60 ; half calf, $4.50.

Atlantic Monthly.

" The sketches of which this volume is made up were originally
published in 1847. They comprise a record of the summer adven-
tures of two young men just out of college, and preserve the
features of a .state of nature and society which has vanished
forever. No more graphic pictures of life on the frontier and
in the wilderness thirty years ago have ever been drawn.

" For tiie present, we must only praise this delightful book for
its absolute good qualities, for the unfailing interest of the narra-
tive, for the vivid pictures of such Indian life as rarely reveals
itself to white men, for all its stories of the hunt and march and
camp, for the calm observation brought to all these wide scenes
and primitive personalities."

(10)

A NEW POPULAE EDITION

PARKMAN'S WORKS.

Eight vols. l2mo. In a very attractive style of

calf, $24.00.

cloth, $12.00 ; half

2 vols.

THE CONSPIRACY OF PONTIAC

THE OREGON TRAIL.

PIONEERS OF FRANCE IN THE NEW WORLD

THE JESUITS IN NORTH AMERICA

THe'oid\ZJ"' '''''''^'''^ ""' "^^ <^^^^AT WEST.
IHL OLD REGIME IN CANAD\

COUNT FRONTENAC AND NEW FRANCE.

The Nation.

library. Thel is Tot' H.'r^^ v„, I'T ^'f' " ""'"■^'' '°'- ""^
novel, and everyone of thl I i t , ''°''' '"" ''^'^ """^ »

the subject o£ whlh it trel." ™' " "" '''^''^'' '"'">°"'^ »»

Toronto Mail.

01)

ashamed to place on his table or in his book-case, or need fear will
hurt his eyes in perusal, while it will hurt his pocket little in
acquisition, and form a capital Christmas present."

Chicago Bookseller.

" No writer on American history in general, or on any of its
periods, has achieved so wide a success as lias Mr. Parkman, in his
narrative of ' France and England in America.' He has proved
himself the Macaulay of the New World."

Literary World.

'* One of the most fascinating courses of historical reading in
the English language."

PUBLISHED BY

LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY,

BOSTON, MASS.

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