The National tribune., 1902-11-06


In a. previous chapter we left the cap
tives in the canoe before Quebec. The
twain could only watch the crowd on the
shore gazing cliriotsly at them as the
dusky oarsmen carried their light craft in
toward the sandy beach. The most con-
spicious figure among the spectators was a
tall, military-looking man, with an iron
gray inustache and black patch over one
eye. He was speaking at that moment to
hfs companions, saying i'll a tone sufficient
" loud for those i'll the canoe to hear:
Aye, sons of valiant sireS, let the Eng
hsR Rpuppies bark; they can never scale the
walls of Quebec. They cannot have forgot
the lesson our fathers taught them, when
the audacious pirate Phips sailed up the
st. Lawrence with his fleet of IA ships
manned by his boastful Bostonians, and did
effect a landing on the meadows of Beau
port. My father was serving under the
gallant Frontenac then, and how many
times have L seen his eye kindle while he
told how our soldiers, the habifaHs and
the HuronS stole down upon them from
the woods, and sent them heels over head
into the river. That must have been a
sight to witness. Our Governor Frontenac
stripped the ship of the English Admiral
of its red flag, which to this day hangs
over the altar of the Church of Notre
Dame des Victories 1t is said in prophecy
JEdl Wien TOChS CTulllDie Slisill TIE Wdls
of Quebec fall, and not till her walls fall
may foeman stand inside her breast
works.
The caustic words of the fiery speaker
expressed very truthfully the spirit of the
majority of his listeners, while summing
up in 4 few sentences the result of an eX-
pedition that had been undertaken with
high hopes of success, as visionary as it
must have seemed to one who really COM
pretended the situation. New England,
finding that Great Britain was not likely
to succor her from the depredations of the
French and Indians, gladly consented to
become an ally of New York in the con-
quest of Canada. The forces of the former
were placed under command of the vain
glorious Sir William Phips, whose great
est claim to the distinction seemed to
have been his boast of having recovered
the treasures of sunken galleon in the
West Indies and to have quelled a mutiny
on the King s ship, for which achievements
he had been knighted.
The first move was made against Port
Royal, which fell an easy prey to the
New Englanders. Then an assault of the
combined forces of the allies was planned
against Canada. New York was to send
an army to Montreal, expecting to be rein
forced by the Iroquois on the way. This
land force had not fairly started be-
fore sickness broke out in the ranks, and
the Iroquois at the last moment refused
to join the expedition, which did not get
any farther than Lake Champlain, If we
except little body of volunteers that did
press forward as far as La Prairie, where
it was routed and driven back.
To act finally in conjunction with this
land force Massachusetts,, notwithstanding
the depleted state of its treasury, fitted out
a fleet of 81 vessels, such as they were,
and 200 men, under the command of Sir
William Phips, set sail for Quebec, the
stronghold of the north. For some rea-
son unknown The doughty commander
was not until the 10Th of October, 1850,
nearly month later than he should have
been. did the fleet move sluggishiy past
Isle of Orleans, and drop anchor within
sight and shot of the town upon the
rock" If the sight awed him he did not
betray the fact but sent herald at once
to demand the surrender of the city.
Meanwhile the alert Frontenac. who
had been planning retaliation for the I'M
successful attack of the soldiers under
Capt. Schuyler, was warned of the ap-
proach of the New Englanders up the st.
Lawrence. Phips's leisureiy approach
gave him ample time in which to get in
readiness to meet his enemy, and the FORM
er's messenger was sent back with the
message that the guns of Quebec would
answer the demand of the New Englander.
Even then Phips might have made his
fight with greater chance of success had
he needed the advice of those who under
stood the situation better than he. This
was to make a land attack upon the town,
it being claimed that this might be sue
eessfully done by scaling the hight by the
same path from the river to the plateau
that Wolfe made famous nearly three
fourths of a century later when Quebec
fell, though her rocks did not crumblei
Se obstinate Phips declined to follow
H.. L \
mand under Maj. Whalley on the Beau
port shore, while the ships opened n bonn
bardment of the city. The woods swarmed
with dusky sharpshooters, and, met by
q battalion Of Canadian veterans, the raw
volunteers from New England. after three
days of bitter skirmishing, nearly starved
and frozen, were obliged to beat retreat
TO the vessels. The bombardment had been
quite as futile, and realizing that he had
undertaken more than he could accomplish,
Phips sullenly withdrew below the green
shores of Orleans Island, where he stopped
long enough to repair some of the dam
age done to his ships. Though his men
had fought desperately, Winter was fast
coming on, and he was fain to acknowl-
edge himself defeated in en- attempt which
he had vain gloriously looked forward to
as play. So, leaving five of his cannOns
sticking in the BEAUFORT mud, and his
enemies holding high carnival over his de-
feat, Sir William Phips went back to Bos-
ton and humiliation. Services Of praise
were held in all of the churches Of Canada.
and chapel was dedicated to "Notre
Dame de la yictorie."
The tall soldier who had expressed him
self so loudly in regard to the affair had
barely finished his boastful remarks be
fore lie said: "Ay, here come the pfizes
my master La Fargo sent me to FETCH"
adding in a low tone. "One OF them at
least is likely maid. Aye. by st. Picot,
If you want any nasty errand done set an
Indian to do it,
By this time some Of the younger mem
bers of the crowd We're rushing intotthe
water knee-deep to assist in the landing.
whose willingness to help was ignored by
the stern chief, who ran his canoe in to-
ward the bank until it seemed proper time
for him to step out, when he helped the
haIf-frightened women upon the land.
"Tbese ara the ones for me, Chief!'
half questioned, half-answered the one
eyed soldier in the rusty uniform.
The Chief simply nodded but said quick
1y, as lie saw the others prepare to take
the captives into carriage waiting near
at hand:
''Merru-Maqua will go with white broth.
err"
'Just as you choose, Chief. though
must say there will be little enough room
for another in the carriage"
"Merru-Maqua will walk"
This reply brought smile from I'M
der the iron-gray mustache of the old sol
dier, who ordered that he be driven with
his charge to the Kings Quay with all
speed possible. This caused a rapid dis