Chapter 4: Hostilities.
"Alas! alas!" wailed the townsfolk, when the news of the fiasco ofthe fire ships was made known, "those dogs of English are too muchfor us upon the water; but let them attempt to meet us on land, andwe will show them what we can do!"
"Do they think French soldiers are the only ones who can fight?"asked Arthur, with a note of wondering scorn in his voice, as thesense of these words came to him. "Well, they will have their wishfast enough, I doubt not! Wolfe is here; and if he cannot fight,write me down an ass! They have seen what the sailors can do; nowwe will show them what our soldiers are good for!"
"Don't boast, Arthur," quoth Peter, the eldest of the trio; "we cando without great swelling words. The French boast themselves intothe belief that they hold this whole vast continent in possession.We must not be like them, and seek to boast ourselves into Quebec!We will wait till our flag is flying from yon battlement, and thenit will be time enough to talk."
"All right," answered Arthur gaily; "I'll wager it will not be longbefore we see it there!"
"Only don't let our townsfolk hear you saying that," said Corinne,laughing, "else they may be disposed to set you hanging thereinstead!"
And at that retort a laugh was raised against Arthur, who was alittle disposed to gasconade, and to an unmerited scorn of thevalour of their French rivals.
"Nor will Quebec be taken in a day, nor a week, nor a month," addedCorinne, "if all we hear be true. Monsieur de Montcalm has nointention, it is said, of meeting your Wolfe in battle. He means tolie behind these strong walls, and yonder formidable earthworkswhich protect his camp, and wear out the patience of the foe tillthe autumn storms force them to leave these coasts for a saferharbourage. There will be no fighting in the open, they say; allwill be done by the guns cannonading us, and by ours returning thefire. It may be grand and terrible to watch, but it will not bringthings quickly to an issue."
"Yet Wolfe will contrive something to keep the foe busy, or I ammuch mistaken," cried Peter. "Doubtless a pitched battle is what hewould most desire; but if that is not to be, he will find a way ofharassing his foes. Never fear, Corinne; you will see enough of warbefore long--trust my word for that!"
"Enough, and too much, perchance," said the girl, with a little,quick sigh; "my aunt tells me that war is a fearful game to behold.Sometimes my heart sinks within me at what is about to befall. Andyet I am glad to be here; I would not be elsewhere. I long to seethis great struggle and watch it through. All say that Quebec isthe key of Canada. Whichever nation holds Quebec will be master ofthe whole vast province."
"Ay, and Wolfe knows that as well as the French themselves. His cryhas always been, 'To Quebec!'
"And yonder he is, within a few miles of his goal! Now we shall seewhat he can do."
In truth they were very soon to see and feel for themselves in thecity what Wolfe could and would do.
A day or two later sounds of excitement and alarm in the streetproclaimed that something fresh was afoot, and Colin with hiscomrades darted out to learn the news. The citizens were gatheringtogether and running for places which commanded a view over the river,and those who had telescopes or spyglasses were adjusting them withtrembling hands, pointing them all in one direction--namely, towardsthe heights of Point Levi opposite, where the river narrowed itselftill it was less than a mile wide.
"What is it?" cried Colin to a man with a glass at his eye.
"The English soldiers are there!" he answered; "I can see their redcoats swarming up the heights. Holy Virgin protect us! They aremaking fascines and gabions. They are going to bring up their guns.They will be able to lay the houses of the Lower Town in ruins,even if they cannot touch the fortifications. Why did not theGovernor leave a stronger force over yonder to protect us?"
That question was being passed from mouth to mouth by the anxiousand frightened townspeople. They had been full of confidence andcourage up till now; but the news that Wolfe had taken Point Levi,and was bringing up guns and intrenching himself upon the heights,filled them with apprehension.
"What are our guns doing that they do not open fire and dislodgethem?" cried one voice after the other. "Where is the Marquis ofMontcalm? Why does he not take steps for our defence?"
Montcalm was indeed coming post haste to the city, seeing clearlythe menace in this action of the English General. He bitterlyregretted having left the defence of Point Levi to the Canadiancontingent there; for the Canadians were very uncertain soldiers,and were easily discouraged, though if well led and generalled theycould be of great service in certain kinds of warfare. But it wasknown that the Canadians were already beginning to look upon theEnglish as their possible new rulers; and some of them weredisposed to regard a change of masters almost with indifference, solong as they were not interfered with in their own possessions. Itwas quite likely they had only made a very half-hearted resistanceto the English foe; at least one thing was certain--Wolfe hadgained possession of these heights with singularly littledifficulty.
But Montcalm was not going to let him remain there if he could byany means dislodge him. Hardly had the General entered the fortressbefore Corinne heard, almost for the first time, the strangescreaming noise of a shell hurtling through the air, and the nextmoment there were gushes of smoke from a dozen places along thefortifications, as the great guns were pointed and fired and theballs and bombs went flying across the great river, to fall amongstthe busy toilers on the opposite height, carrying death anddestruction with them.
Eagerly was the result of the fire watched and waited for. Thecitizens cried out to those with glasses to tell them the result.
"They take no notice," cried one man who was commandingly posted;"they toil on without so much as a pause. The fire has not touchedthem yet; the guns are pointed too low. They are bringing up theirown guns now; they have one battery almost complete. In a few hoursthey will be ready to return our fire. Can nothing be done to stopthat? Our houses and churches will be knocked to pieces, and ourtown destroyed! The General says that this will do them nogood--they cannot touch the citadel and fortifications; but are weto have our homes destroyed about our ears? We men of Quebec willnot stand that!"
Fear and indignation were filling all hearts. Why had Point Levibeen so poorly defended? Why had it been left such an easy prey tothe foe? Who was to blame? Governor or General--Vaudreuil orMontcalm? The balance of opinion was in favour of the General,whose known ability and personal charm had rendered him popularwith the citizens, whilst Vaudreuil commanded but little respect orconfidence. Still, whoever was to blame, the fact remained. Thetown was in terrible danger of a ruinous bombardment, and theefforts now made to beat back and dislodge the enemy met with nosort of success.
On and on they toiled. The shot and shell certainly fell amongstthem after a while, but seemed in no whit to disconcert them. TheCanadian soldiers regarded with amaze this cool intrepidity. Theythemselves could be bold in forest warfare, with shelter all aroundthem; but they were never steady in the open under fire, and couldhardly credit how any soldiers could pursue their tasks unmoved bythe leaden rain descending upon and about them.
"The devil and his angels must be protecting them!" cried thewomen, crossing themselves in fear; but the English midshipmenlaughed aloud.
"What do they think soldiers are for, if not to do their duty inthe teeth of danger and difficulty? They are a strange people,these Canadians. Surely the French troops would face peril assteadily if they were put to it?"
"Oh yes," answered Colin; "the French regulars fight exceedinglywell. Has not that been proved a thousand times on European soil?But the plaint of our General is that France sends him so few men,and that the Indians and Canadians are not of the same value, savein certain classes of warfare and in their native forests. TheGovernor is, however, so jealous for the honour of his Canadians,that he seeks in his dispatches to give all the credit of victoryto them. So it is natural that the French minister should be charyof sending out regulars, which are so urgently needed over therefor the wa
r. Monsieur de Montcalm has told my uncle many things onthis very point. He is always urging the Government to send us moremen, but he can only get the half of what he needs. Perhaps, indays to come, France may regret that she did not listen better tohis representations. We shall have need of good men if this city isto be held for her against the English."
When the lads reached their home, they found the Abbe and hissister deep in talk. Corinne had been listening with attention, butnow she turned eagerly to the lads, to ask what news they brought.Their tale was soon told, and all faces were grave.
"It will be a disastrous thing for the city to be bombarded," saidthe Abbe. "It may not bring the capitulation any nearer, but itwill harass and dishearten the citizens. I am truly sorry for them;they will certainly suffer. It should have been better managed thanthat those opposite heights should fall so easy a prey to the foe.Again that is the mismanagement of the Governor."
"Several boats have come over from the opposite shore," whisperedCorinne to her brother, "bringing news of what happened there.There has been little enough resistance to the English soldiers. Aparty landed at Beaumont, sending in front a band of Rangers, whohad a little scuffle with some Canadians in the woods, and drovethem off. The soldiers landed, and a placard was posted upon thedoor of the church. It was signed by Wolfe. It told the Canadiansthat if they would stand neutral in the coming struggle, theyshould have full protection both of their persons and property, andundisturbed liberty of religion; but warned them that if theypresumed to take up arms against the English, their houses andgoods should be destroyed and their churches despoiled. Thisplacard the Canadians removed when the soldiers had gone, and havebrought it to Quebec for the Governor to see."
"And what says he?"
"Nay, we know not, but it has caused a great commotion in the town.If the Canadians do not stand by the French in this struggle, theEnglish must needs be victors."
"Ay," spoke the Abbe, whose face was very grave, "and the case isbut an evil one for them, as they begin to see. Already they areweary of the war. They love not the life of the camp or the waitingwhich is now imposed upon them. They are longing already to getback to their homes and their farms, and see after their crops andharvests. Yet if they refuse service under their masters theFrench, they are threatened with Indian raids; and if they fightthe English, they are now threatened with their fury and vengeance.It is small wonder that they are perplexed and half-hearted. Weshall have trouble with them, I fear me, ere the battle has beenfought and won."
Trouble was certainly menacing the town. There was no immediatedanger of its falling into the enemy's hands; but he was puttinghimself in a position from which he could inflict irritating andharassing injury to the town, and was making evident and activepreparations to do so. The military authorities, who looked at thelarger issues of affairs, regarded with perhaps a little too muchcoolness the prospect of the destruction of some churches and alarge number of houses and other buildings, consoling themselveswith the knowledge that the fortifications would not suffergreatly, and that Wolfe would be no nearer taking Quebec after hehad laid in ruins the homes of the citizens. But the exasperationof these individuals was great, and their fear rose with every hourwhich passed. They saw that batteries were being erected,intrenchments thrown up; that their fire was no check to theactivity of the foe; and that before very long the storm of shotand shell would be returned with interest, and would fall upontheir city, making terrible havoc there.
Something must be done! That was the word on all lips. In warlikedays even peaceful citizens are not altogether ignorant of the artsof war, and the burghers in the streets were mustering strongtogether, every man of them armed, their faces stern and full ofdetermination as they moved all together to one of the open squaresin the city, and the place soon presented a most animatedappearance.
Not citizens alone, but pupils from the seminaries, Canadians fromthe other shore, and a sprinkling of soldiers had joined themuster. Every man carried arms, and when they had assembled to thenumber of between one and two thousand, a loud call was made forthe Governor.
When Vaudreuil appeared, looking harassed and anxious, it wasexplained to him that the burghers of the city demanded leave tomake a determined effort to save their houses and property fromdestruction. Would the Governor grant them an experienced officerto lead them? They would then cross the river at night, make acompass round the English camp, and set upon them from behind atdawn, whilst the guns from the town opened fire in front. Caughtthus between two fires, and attacked front and rear, they mustquickly be dislodged and annihilated; and the citizens would makethemselves masters of these hostile batteries, which they wouldtake good care should never fall into English hands again.
Their request was granted. An officer of considerable experience,Dumas by name, was told off to head the expedition, and a good manyregular soldiers, who volunteered for the service, were permittedto accompany them.
Dearly would the three midshipmen have loved to be of the party, tosee all that went on, but they knew they must not make such asuggestion. They were known in the town as prisoners on parole. Itwould appear to all that they meditated escape. But they urged uponColin to try to see it all, and bring word again what had befallen.
Colin was nothing loth. He longed to be in the thick of thestruggle. Moreover, he was well known to the citizens, and wasloved for his own sake as well as for that of his uncle the Abbe,who went daily to and fro amongst the agitated people, seeking tocalm their fears and to inspire them with courage and hope.
"I will go!" he cried. "Watch you from this side, and mark how thegunners do their work at dawn. If all goes well, our signal forattack will be the sound of the guns opening fire upon yonderbatteries. And yet I shall scarcely wish to see the Englishdislodged. I do not want our town laid in ruins; yet I trulybelieve the English rule would be a benefit to this distractedrealm. Their own colonies, if report speaks truth, are far moreflourishing and strong than any France has ever planted. You havethe knack of it, you Britons. Sometimes I doubt whether we shallever learn it."
"Don't say 'we,'" cried Arthur. "You are more than half anEnglishman already, and we will teach you to be one of us before wehave done. You neither look nor speak nor act like a Frenchie. Ofcourse here in Quebec, amongst your own acquaintances and friends,you will feel to belong in some sort to them; but once we get youinto English ranks, you will soon forget that you ever wereanything but an Englishman at heart."
Colin was almost ready to believe this himself, though he scarcelyliked to put it so broadly, lest it should seem like treachery tohis own family and friends. He was possessed of a very keenadmiration for British pluck and boldness and audacity. The thingshe had heard and seen had fired his enthusiasm, and he was quite ofthe opinion that were the free choice to be one day his, he wouldchoose to throw in his lot with the English invaders of Canadiansoil. To watch how this game of skill and address was to be playedout between the two powers was now his great aim and object, and hewas eager to be a spectator in the next scene of the drama.
His way was made quite easy; for the Abbe himself resolved toaccompany the expedition, and watch from a distance the effect ofthe combined attack upon the English batteries. He would have beenbetter satisfied had Montcalm been consulted; but he was away atBeauport, and if the citizens were to achieve anything, it would bebetter for them to strike whilst the iron was hot. Another day andthe leaden storm might have opened upon the city, and the heartmight be taken out of them.
All was now hurry and confusion--too much confusion for theapproval of the Abbe, who, with the officer in command and theregular troops, sought to allay it, and to infuse more ofdiscipline and organization into the arrangements.
Colin ran back to say farewell to Corinne and Madame Drucour; andthey bid him be careful of himself, and come back amongst the firstto bring them news. After promising this Colin departed, and thenight fell upon the town--a restless night for those within itswalls; for there was scarce a house but had contributed its one
ormore members for the expedition, and all knew that the salvation oftheir homes depended upon the success of the attack.
It was a hot, dark night, and there was little sleep in the city.It would be impossible to hear at that distance, even if somehand-to-hand fighting were to take place on the opposite bank. Thewind set the wrong way, and only if the big guns boomed out wouldthey be likely to know that the English had been aroused. Eagerlywas the dawn waited for, when the city guns would give the expectedsignal; but the dawn came so wrapped in fog, and it was not quiteas early as was expected that the boom and roar from thefortifications told that the gunners could sight the opposingbatteries. The blanket of fog seemed then to roll up and away,leaving the glistening river lying like a sheet of silver at theirfeet.
But what was the meaning of that crowd of boats all making for thecity as fast as oars and sails could bring them? It was hardly sixo'clock in the morning, and the attack could not well have beencommenced before five. What, then, were they doing, hurrying backin their boats like hunted hares?
Those with telescopes, watching from the heights above, declaredthat the English were pursuing their occupations with the mostperfect unconcern, that they were bringing up more guns, and thatthe batteries were now so well planted and defended that the cityguns did no harm. Shell away as they might from Quebec, no effectwas produced upon their solid earthworks; and it was abundantlyevident that very soon they would he in a position to open fireupon the hapless city. Down to the river level rushed the excitedpeople, to meet the returning boats. Such a clamour of inquiry,response, anger, and disappointment arose that at first nothingcould be made out. The midshipmen cleared a path for the Abbe andColin through the gathering crowd; and as soon as they were fairlywithin the walls of their home, they began to tell the dismal tale.
"It was just a fiasco from first to last!" cried Colin. "It was asour uncle said: there was no order or discipline or preparation.One might as well have sent out a pack of children to do the work!"
"What happened?" cried Corinne breathlessly.
"Why, nothing but a series of gross blunders. We got across allsafe, and landed unopposed. The Seminary scholars were over first,and marched off up the hill before the rest came. We got separatedin that way, and almost at once one felt that a sort of panic hadgot hold of the people. The burghers who were so anxious to comenow got frightened, and were most difficult to get into order.Dumas and the regulars did their utmost; but it was plain that thepeople were scared out of their lives lest the English shouldsuddenly appear and attack them. After a long time we got into asort of order, and began the march, when all of a sudden there werea crash and a blaze, and everything was thrown into confusion. Theyyelled out that the English were upon them, and headed for theboats."
"O Colin--the men who were so keen to fight!" cried Corinne; whilstthe midshipmen doubled themselves up with laughter, exclaimingbeneath their breath:
"O gallant burghers of Quebec!"
"It was disgraceful!" cried Colin hotly; "and more disgracefulstill was it that the fire came from our own side--from theSeminary scholars, who had gone in advance; a thing they had nobusiness to do. But this was not the worst--at least it was not theend of the bungling; for if you will believe me, the same thinghappened three distinct times. Twice more after we had got the menformed up again, and were leading them up the hill behind theEnglish guns, did those wretched Seminary scholars mistake them forthe enemy and fire into their ranks. The last time they killed ascore or more, and wounded quite a large number of others. That wastoo much. The men turned tail and fled helter-skelter back to theboats, and there was no getting them back after that. The scholars,too, when they heard what they had done, were seized with panic,and joined the rout.
"I never saw such a scene in my life as the opposite shorepresented just as the dawn was breaking and the first gun boomedout, and we knew that we ought to have been marching in compactorder along the crest of the hill to fall upon the gunners frombehind. Well, if this is how Quebec manages her affairs, shedeserves to have her houses battered in. We shall soon have theanswer from the English batteries, and we shall deserve it, too!"
Colin was right. The iron storm began all too soon, and proved tothe full as destructive as had been feared. Churches and houseswere laid in ruins, and disastrous fires broke out, consumingothers. The unhappy occupants of the Lower Town fled from thesmoking ruins, some to take refuge with friends in the Upper Town,which was considerably less exposed; others to fly into the opencountry beyond, where they trusted to be safe from the Englishinvader. As the military authorities had proclaimed, thisdestruction did not materially affect the position of thebelligerents--the English could not get much nearer their object byshelling the town--but it did much to dishearten the citizens, andproduced a strong moral effect of depression, and murmurs evenarose in isolated quarters that it would be better to surrenderthan to be destroyed.
Moreover, disquieting reports came from other places. The camp ofMontcalm extended, as has been said, from the river St. Charles tothe Falls of Montmorency. That great gorge was consideredprotection enough, and it was believed that no enemy would be rashenough to try to cross the river higher up; indeed, it waspopularly supposed that there was no ford. Nevertheless it soonbecame known that Wolfe had effected a landing upon the farthershore of the Montmorency; that he was fortifying a camp there, andhad found and was now holding a ford in the river above, whence, ifhe chose, he could cross and fall upon the camp at Beauport.
There had been some argument at first as to the advisability ofdislodging him before he had made himself strong enough to resistattack. The Intendant had given his voice in favour of the attack;but for once the Governor and the General had been of one mind, andhad decided against it.
"Let him stay where he is," said Montcalm, after he had surveyedthe position; "he can do us little harm there. If we dislodge him,he may find a footing elsewhere, and prove much more dangerous andtroublesome. If he tries to get across to us, we shall have awelcome ready!"
So, though parties of Canadians and Indians harassed the English intheir camp, and were met and routed by the gallant Rangers, whoalways accompanied the English forces, the soldiers remained intheir intrenchments, and took little notice of the rival camp.Sometimes under flags of truce messages passed between the hostilecamps.
"You will no doubt batter and demolish a great part of the town,"wrote Montcalm on one occasion, "but you will never get inside it!"
"I will have Quebec," wrote back Wolfe, "if I stay here till thewinter. I have come from England to win it. I do not go back tillmy task is done."
Some smiled at that message; but Madame Drucour received it with alittle shivering sigh.
"Ah," she exclaimed, "I have seen Monsieur Wolfe; I can hear himspeak the words! Somehow it seems to me that he is a man who willnever go back from his resolve. If he has made up his mind to takeQuebec, Quebec will be taken!"