The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1903-09-10

the French retreating to position on
the Sorel at the foot of the lake. The
British commander found the works
so dilapidated that he began the erec-
| tion of a new and extensive fortress,
further from the shore and upon more
| commanding ground. This fortress
was part of Pitts plan to crush
French power in America. 1t was
never completed, but it's partial cree.
ton cost the British government $10,-
600, 900. 1t was within the ruins of
these works, called Fort Amherst and
not at the now quite indistinguishable
site Of Fort St. Frederic, as the
speakers had said, that the banquet
and accompanying exercises were held,
on Friday of last week.
The fort seems never to have served
any great purpose of offense or de-
fepse 1t had an uneventful history.
The neighboring fortress of Ticonder-
oga, further to che south, monopolizes
all there is of historic glory and mar
tial romance among the forts of the
Lakeland there is none more memoir
able in the story of the colonial and
revolutionary wars, Fort Amherst
was not needed to crush the French in
America. French colonial power, al
ready, was tottering to it's fall through
out the world, in the Indias of the
East as we'll as in the wilderness of
North America. On the shores of
Lakes George and Champlain, General
Montcalm had fought in vain to stay
the march of the British. With his
retreat, French power never returned,
and Wolf at Quebec, OH the Plains of
Abraham, graphing with Montcalm,
completed its extinguishment in North
America.
The insignificant place the great
fortress at Crown Point held in the
events following its erection is shown
by the circumstance that when Seth
Warner, two days efter Ethan Allen
had taken Ticonderoga, in May, 1775,
appeared at the fortress, its defending
force was one sergeant and eleven men.
The Americans held the post till Bur
g0yne's fotilla and army, 1777, organ
lied in Canada for gala day expedi-
tion to join General Howe in New
York, was sailing up the lake, when
they retrsated ver-land to Ticonder-
oga. Burgoyne here rendezvoused the
army that met its initiatory defeat at
Bennington, and it's surrender at
Saratoga
TiconderOga S story is, or ought to
be, familiar to every American able
to read or listen. Built in 1856, it
was part of France plan for ascend
ency in America, Abercrom bic, with
an army of $1,000 men assaulted it's
defences in 1853, and was driven back
with great slaughter. The French
abandoned the fortress to Amherst
the following year, an act in the
faltering grasp of France on her
then worldwide possessions The
English, "in the name of the Great
Jehovah and the Continental Con-
gress, surrendered it to Ethan Allen
doned the works to Burgoyne in 1777.
Since the last contest for its posses
sion Ticonderoga has been the most
interesting ruin ON the continent.
On the waters of Champlain the
first naval battle of the Revolution was
tough, October IL, 1776, between an
an Am erican squadron of rudely con-
structed boats, under the command of
Benedict Arnold, and British naval
craft from Canada. The event &C.
CURED off Cumberland Head, below
Plattsburg between the south end of
Valcour island and the main land.
The purpose of the Americans in Oh
ganizing naval movement was 10
forestall an aattempt of the British to
a hot one. 1t was faring hard with
Arnold, but he kept up the battle till
darkness covered his battered galleys
He was bottled up between the main
luilu anu Vic lsluuu, tIl6 DTltisU W6I6
south of him and put in the cork by
stationing their vessels across the
channel, to complete his destruction
when daylight appeared. The night
was dark, there was no moon, the
wind was from the north Taking
advantage of these favoring circum-
stances, Arnold sailed his boats past
the British sentinels, and in the morn
ing when they strained their eyes
northward to discover their antago-
mist, Arnold was well ON his way
south, back to Grown Point.
On the lake. off Plattsburg, and on
the land nearby, the battle of that
name was fought, September II, 1914.
The Americans were signally victori-
Gus, on land and water The Amer
lean loss was $50, the British 1000.
In the extreme North, it was the
counterpart of Jackson's victory at