The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1903-01-24

gomery had no skilled engineer, nor
any preaching artillery. He had con-
templated storming the fertilization
from the first, for, writing from Mon
real, he says:
eff my force be small, Carleton's is
not great. The eXtensiveness of his
works, which, in case of investment,
would favor him, will, in the other case,
favor us. Masters Of our secret, we
may select particular time and place
to attack, and to repel this the garri-
son must be prepared at all times and
.places-a circumstance which will i'm
pose upon it incessant watching and
labor by day and by night; which, in
its undisciplined state, must breed dis
contents that may compel Carleton to
capitulate, or perhaps make an attempt
to drive us off. In this last idet there
is a glimmering Of hopes. Wolfe's
success was lucky hit, or rather
series of lucky hits. All sober and
scientific calculation was against him,
until Montcalm, permitting his cour-
age to get the better of his discretion,
gave up the advantages of his fortress
and came out to try his strength on
the plain. Carleton, who was Wolfe's
quartermaster general, understands
this well, and, it is to be feared, will
not follow the Frenchman's example,"
Preliminary, however, to coup de
main, it was necessary to know the
character and extent of the enemy's
works, his means of Introducing sup
plies, the strength and composition of
the garrison, Of the city and vicinity.
These precautions consumed precious
days Of mid-winter Of a boreal cline,
which was now upon our benumbed
handful of besiegers, among whom
mutiny and smallpox prevailed, and
whose enlistment would in short time
expire. Montgomery, almost in des-
pair, summoned the city to surrender,
but received no response; lie palIded
his troops before the place, but Garlic
ton was not to be drawn from behind
his defences.
Resorting next to more active meas
ures, Montgomery threw every night
from thirty to forty shells from his
five small mortars into the city; but
these doing little damage, he erected,
at seven hundred yards in front Of st.
Johns Gate, battery for his five light
guns and one howitZer, the platforms
being cakes of ice, and the epaulment
made with gabions filled with COM
pacted snow CONCEALED into a solid
mass. This, too, owing to the distance
and small caliber of his guns, failed
Of success, the battery being soon de-
molished by the enemy's superior ar
tillery, which kept up an effective fire
upon every point where troops were to
be seen. On one occasion, as Mont
gomery was accommodating near the
city, the horse which drew his cariole
was killed by u cannon ball.
Weeks had now been spent in UNI
availing efforts to capture the city, bit
ing cold and drifting SHOWS paralyzcd
almost every movement, sickness and
privations were producing mutiny, and
perils on every hand were gathering
around the undaunted leader in that
terrible campaign; but his noble soul
rose superior to every misfortune and
sustained him with the same moral
grandeur which inspired Marshal Ney
till the last of the rear-guard Of Ma
pOleon's army had escaped the pursu-
ing foe and the dcadlier rigor Of a Rus
sian winter.
In q council of war, held December
1G, it was resolved as the only re-
naming, though desperate, alternative
to carry the place by storm. AS the
time for assault drew near, three COM
panics of Arnold's detachment mutini-
ed; but Aontgomcrys iirmness and add
dress soon brought them back to pro-
per sense of their duty. Finally, at =
o'clock on the morning of the last day
of the year, the whole command was
paraded, in three columns, for the last
dread trial.
The plan, essentially different from
that first adopted and abandoned when
disclosed by Il deserter, was for the
first and second divisions to assault
the Lower Town, then to meet and
unitedly force their way into the city
through the picketed passages at the
foot Of Mountain street, since 1907
known as Prescott Gate; while the
third, under Livingston and Brown,
was from the Plains Of Abraham, to
alarm and distract the attention Of the
garrison by feigned attacks upon the
Upper Town, in the neighborhood of
st. Johns and st. Louis Gate and
Cape Diamond bastion.
The morning was dark and gloomy
q violent pelting storm Of cutting hail
almost blinded the men and the drift
ing SHOWS obliterated all traces OF
highways. 10 recognize each other
the soldiers Wore hemlock sprigs OF
pieces of white paper in their caps OF
which some of them wrote: Liberty
or Death" "A more daring attack thar
that which they were about to under
take is, perhaps, not on record upon