L.Champlain

151 Fest

Fort Frederick.

frontiers of New England and N. York. "In the secret chambers of this very fort," says Dr. Dwight, "dug, as became such designs, beneath the ground, copies of the vaults of abbeys and castles, in their native country; caverns, to which treachery and murder slunk from the eye of day; those plots were contrived, which were to terminate in the destruction of families, and villages, through

out New York and New England. Here the price was fixed, which was to be paid for the scalps of these unoffending people. Here the scout was formed; the path of murder marked out; the future butchery realized in anticipation; and the captive tortured in prescience, before the day of his actual doom. Here, worst of all, were displayed long rows of scalps; white in one place with the venerable locks of age, and glistening in another with the ringlets of childhood and of youth; received and surveyed with smiles of self-gratulation, and rewarded with the promised and ungrudged boon."

Fort William Henry.-Plan of Fort William Henry.

References.-A, Store-house. B, Barracks. C, Guard-house. D, Store-house. E, Dungeon. F, Magazine. G, Bridges. H, The Gate. I, Magazine. The Fort was built of timber and earth, 29 feet high, 25 thick and part of it 32; it mounted 14 cannon, 33 and 18 pounders.

Capture of Fort William Henry.-During the absence of the principal part of the British forces, the Marquis de Montcalm ad

vanced from Canada and laid siege to Fort William Henry, at the south point of Lake George, August 3d, 1756.

"Having drawn together all his forces from Crown Point, Ticonderoga, and the adjacent posts, with a greater number of Indians than the French had ever employed on any other occasion, he passed the lake and regularly invested the fort. The whole army consisted of nearly eight thousand men. The garrison consisted of about three thousand, and the fortifications were said to be good. At fort Edward, scarcely fourteen miles distant, lay General Webb, with four thousand troops. The regular troops at the two posts, were probably more than equal to the regular force of the enemy. A considerable proportion of their army consisted of Canadians and Indians. Yet, in about six days, was this important post delivered up into the hands of the enemy. All the vessels, boats, and batteaux, which, at so much expense and labor, had been for two years preparing, fell into the power of the enemy. Though General Webb had timely notice of the approach of the enemy, yet he never sent to alarm the country, and bring on the militia. He never reinforced the garrison, nor made a single motion for its relief. So far was he from this, that he sent a letter to Colonel Monroe, who commanded the fort, advising him to give it up to the enemy. Montcalm intercepted the letter, and sent it into the fort to the colonel. He had acted the part of a soldier and made a brave defence; but having burst a number of his cannon, expended a considerable part of his ammunition, and perceiving that he was to have no relief from General Webb, he capitulated on terms honorable for himself and the garrison. It was, to march out with arms, baggage, and one piece of cannon, in nonor to Colonel Monroe, for the brave defence he had made. The troops were not to serve against the most christian king under eighteen months, unless exchanged for an equal number of French prisoners. The French and Indians paid no regard to the articles of capitulation, but falling on the English, stripped them of their baggage and few remaining effects; and the Indians, in the English service, were dragged from the ranks, tomahawked and scalped. Men and women had their throats cut, their bodies ripped open, and their bowels, with insult, thrown in their faces. Infants and children were barbarously taken by the heels, and their brains dashed out against stones and trees. The Indians pursued the English nearly half the way to fort Edward, where the greatest number of them arrived in a most forlorn condition. It seems astonishing, that between two and three thousand troops, with arms in their hands, should, contrary to the most express stipulations, suffer these intolerable insults. When it was too late, General Webb alarmed the country, and put the colonies to great expense in sending on large detachments of the militia for

the defence of the northern frontier. The sudden capture of the fort, the massacre made by the enemy's Indians, and suspicions of General Webb's treachery, and an apprehension that Gen. Montcalm would force his way to Albany, put the country into a state of great alarm and consternation."

Abercrombie's Defeat before Ticonderoga.-" As the reduction of Ticonderoga and Crown Point, was a favorite object with the northern colonies, they made early and great exertions for carrying it into effectual execution. Besides the assistance which they gave to the reduction of Louisburg, they furnished about ten thousand troops for the northern expedition. These, in conjunction with between six and seven thousand regular troops, had by the beginning of July, got into lake George more than a thousand boats and batteaux, a fine train of artillery, provisions, and every thing necessary for an attack on the fortresses of the enemy.

On the 5th of July, the army, consisting of fifteen thousand three hundred and ninety effective men, embarked in nine hundred batteaux, and one hundred and thirty five whale boats, for Ticonderoga. Besides, there were a number of rafts, on which cannon were mounted, to cover the landing of the troops. Early the next morning, they landed at the north end of lake George, without opposition. The army formed in four columns, and began their march for Ticonderoga. But as the woods were thick, and the guides unskillful, the troops were bewildered, and the columns falling in one upon another, were entirely broken. In this confusion, Lord Howe, advancing at the head of the right centre column, fell in with the advanced guard of the enemy, consisting of a battalion of regulars and a few Indians, who had deserted their advanced camp near the lake, and were precipitately fleeing from our troops; but had lost their way, and were bewildered in the same manner as they were. The enemy discharged, and killed Lord Howe the first fire. The suddenness of the attack, the terribleness of the Indian yell, and the fall of Lord Howe, threw the regulars, who composed the centre columns, into a general panic and confusion; but the provincials, who flanked them, and were more acquainted with their mode of fighting, stood their ground and soon defeated them. The loss of the enemy, was about three hundred killed, and one hundred and forty-eight taken. The loss of the English was inconsiderable as to numbers, but in worth and consequences, it was great. The loss of that gallant officer, Lord Howe, was irreparable. From the day of his arrival in America, he had conformed himself, and made his regiment to conform, to that kind of service which the country required. He was the first to endure hunger and fatigue, to encounter danger, and to sacrifice all personal considerations to the public service. While he was rigid in discipline, by his affability, condescending and

easy manners, he conciliated affection, and commanded universal esteem. Indeed, he was considered very much as the idol and life of the army. The loss of such a man, at such a time, cannot be estimated. To this, the provincials attributed the defeat and unhappy consequences which followed.

As the troops for two nights had slept little, were greatly fatigued, and needed refreshinent, the General ordered them to return to the landing place, where they arrived at eight in the morning. Colonel Bradstreet was soon after detached with a strong corps, to take possession of the saw mill, about two miles from Ticonderoga, which the enemy had abandoned. Towards the close of the day, the whole army marched to the mill. The Gen. having received information, that the garrison at Ticonderoga consisted of about six thousand men, and that a reinforcement of three thousand more was daily expected, determined to lose no time in attacking their lines. He ordered his engineer to reconnoitre the ground and intrenchments of the enemy. It seems that he had not so approached and examined them as to obtain any proper idea of them. He made a favorable report of their weakness, and of the facility of forcing them without cannon. On this groundless report, a rash and fatal resolution was taken, to attack the lines without bringing up the artillery.

The army advanced to the charge with the greatest intrepidity, and for more than four hours with incredible obstinacy maintained the attack. But the works where the principal attack was made were eight or nine feet high, and impregnable even by field pieces; and for nearly an hundred yards from the breast work, trees were felled so thick, and so wrought together with their limbs pointing outward, that it rendered the approach of the troops in a great measure impossible. In this dreadful situation, under the fire of about three thousand of the enemy, these gallant troops were kept, without the least prospect of success, until nearly two thousand were killed and wounded.* They were then called off. To this rash and precipitate attack succeeded a retreat equally unadvised and precipitate. By the evening of the next day the army had retreated to their former encampment at the south end of lake George.

Nothing could have been more contrary to the opinions, or more mortifying to the feelings of the provincials, than this whole affair. They viewed the attack upon the lines without the artillery as the height of madness. Besides, it was made under every disadvantage to the assailants. The enemy's lines were of great extent, nearly three quarters

* Of the regulars were killed 464; of the provincials 87: in the whole 548. Of the regulars were wounded 1117; of the provincials 239: in the whole 1356. There were missing 29 regulars and 8 provincials. The whole loss in killed, wounded and missing was 1941. General Abercrombie's return.

of a mile. On the right of the common path towards south bay, and especially on the north, they were weak and of little consideration. In both these quarters they might have been approached under the cover of a thick wood. The army was sufficiently numerous to have attacked the lines in their whole extent once, or at least in a very great part of them, and to have drawn their attention to various parts of their lines. But, unhappily, the attack was made upon a small part of them where they were far the strongest, and most inaccessible. As no attacks or feints were made on other parts, the enemy were left to pour their whole fire on a small spot, while the whole army could not approach it. Besides, the general never approached the field, where his presence was indispensably necessary; but remained at the mill, where he could see nothing of the action, nor know any thing only by information at a distance of two miles. By reason of this, the troops for hours after they should have been called off, were pushed on to inevitable slaughter.”—Dr. Trumbull.

Capture of Quebec.-The year 1759 was distinguished by the success of the British arms; the fortifications of Ticonderoga, Crown Point and Niagara were taken in quick succession from the French.

While these operations were carried on in the vicinity of Upper Canada, Gen. Wolfe was prosecuting the grand enterprise for the reduction of Quebec. Having embarked about eight thousand men at Louisbourg, under convoy of admirals Saunders and Holmes, he safely landed them toward the end of June, a few leagues below the city of Quebec, on the Isle of Orleans, lying in the St. Lawrence. From this position he had a distinct view of the difficulties and dangers of the projected enterprise. Quebec is chiefly built on a steep rock on the northern bank of the St. Lawrence; and, beside its natural strength, is defended by the river St. Charles, which, passing by it on the east, empties into the St. Lawrence immediately below the town, and places it in a kind of peninsula. In the St. Charles, whose channel is rough, and whose borders are intersected with ravines, there were several armed vessels and floating batteries; and a strong boom was drawn across its mouth. On its eastern bank a formidable French army, strongly entrenched, extended its encampment to the river Montmorency, having its rear covered by an almost impenetrable wood; and at the head of this army was the intrepid Montcalm. To attempt a siege of the town, in such circumstances, seemed repugnant to all the maxims of war; but, resolved to do whatever was practicable for the reduction of the place, Wolfe took possession of Point Levi, on the southern bank of the St. Lawrence, and there erected batteries against it. These batteries, though they destroyed many houses, made but little impression on the works, which were too strong, and too remote, to be essentially affected;