it not unavoidable, poffibly have been chofen on the following account,- That had the general preffed the enemy in their retreat before him, he would, in a fort, have compelled them to go to the capital city, to add great numbers and ftrength to the great army already there; and hereby, perhaps, have given an opportunity, and enabled them, to defeat and overthrow the little British army befieging it; before it would have been poffible for him to join it, which would have fruftrated the grand design. For it would;on account of the narrows, or land-carriage in the way, have been feemingly impoffible for this western army to get to the -capital, till fome weeks after the flying enemy. But all this is only conjecture.

1

AND I am now, almost before I was aware of it, tho' perhaps after too long a delay, got to the chief scene of action; where our most fignal fuccefs has been; and where you will allow me to tarry a little longer than at either of the former places. I am even ftill almoft" as one that dreameth," when I think of the furrender of the capital of Canada, which is in effect the reduction of the whole country. For it is morally, if not naturally impoffible, that the enemy, having loft this city, which is now in our poffeffion, fhould hold out half another campaign, against a force much inferior to that, which his Majefty has already in North America, Yea, it is almoft certain, that after taking the capital, laying wafte the country, burning fo many of the houfes, taking or deftroying fo great a part of the ftock, ftores and magazines; it is almoft certain, I fay, after this, that a great part of the enemy, who pretend ftill to ftand out, muft either come in, and fubmit to the generous terms offered them, or elfe, before another fpring, perish by hunger and cold, with their unhappy wives and

children; which God forbid But not to anticipate those observations and reflections, for which we shall find a fitter place hereafter; let us now take a nearer, and more attentive view of this truly great and memorable thing, which God has fo lately done for us, in delivering the capital city of Canada into our hands }; with fome of the moft material circumftances relative thereto.

GOD has remarkably fmil'd upon this great enterprize from the very first, till we fee it brought to this happy conclufion: From the very firft, I fay; unless we should make an exception as to the enemy's getting up the river with a confiderable fleet of provision and store ships, under convoy, while a squadron of British men of war, deftin'd to prevent any fuch relief and fuccours getting in, lay in port; fome fay,from neceffity. But however that might be, it is not improbable, that if this fleet had actually been intercepted, the reduction of Quebec might have been effected much eafier and fooner than it was; and the whole country, before this time, brought to a fubmiffion. But not to dwell upon any circumftance which was lefs in our favour than we could have wifhed; let us proceed to fome others, which were more fo than we could have reafonably expected.

THE navigation of St. Lawrence's river has always, ever fince Sir Hovenden Walker's fruitless attempt, wherein several ships were loft, been reprefented to us by friends and enemies, as being extreamly difficult and hazardous. However, thro' the favout of Him, whom winds and feas obey, our very great fleet of men of war, of provifion, tranfport and ftore-fhips, arrived fafe at Orleans, a little below Quebec, meeting with little or no difafter in the whole voyage. This

is

is very remarkable; a thing almost unexampled in fo long a voyage, and with fo large a fleet, even where the navigation is, on all hands, allowed to be far lefs difficult and dangerous, than that of this river.

It was another favourable circumftance, that in the very heart of the enemy's country, our little army fhould land, with all their provifions, artillery and ftores, and take poffeffion of the ground, almoft without the lofs of a man; efpecially confidering the lurking, infidious and guileful genius of the enemies they had to deal with,and who were perfectly acquainted with all the country, fo that it might have been expected they would have made fome confiderable advantages hereof.

A THIRD circumftance not unworthy of notice here, is, that after our fleet then at anchor, had been put into fome diforder by a ftorm, and, if my memory does not fail me, before the ftorm was quite over, the enemy attentive to every incident in their favour, chofe this opportunity to fend down with a rapid tide, and full gale, a number of large fireships, and rafts on fire; hoping, not without fome probability, by this means to destroy a confiderable part of the British feet.

But under the favour of providence, by the wife precaution of the British admiral, and the address, the fingular alertness and dexterity of the British feamen, this threatning mischief was intirely warded off; and foon became only the fubject of their merriment.

It is further to be thankfully acknowledged, that our great fleet, and little army, have all along been favour'd with remarkable health; but a very smallproportion of them having died by fick nefs, or even been fick at all. Whereas had fickness prevailed among our troops, even in a degree not uncommon in

camps,

camps, it would have reduced that fmail army to fuch an handful of men, as muft in all probability have occafioned the breaking up of the fiege.

AND here I cannot but mention another thing, which, tho' it may feem at first view quite remote from the point in hand, has yet a close connection with it. There was probably never known: among us fo fruitful a feafon as that last past. God has caused the earth to yield her increafe in very great abun dance; whereby our feet and army have had a conftant fupply of fresh provifions, vegetables, &c. To which it is in part doubtlefs owing, thro' the bleffing of God, that our fleet and army have enjoyed fo much health.

BUT to proceed to fome other things. Our parties that were fent out from time to time to harrafs the enemy, and lay wafte the country, after the terms offered by the general were rejected, had fo much fuc cefs therein; and the city ittelf had been fo far ruined by a long, conftant and fevere bombardment, that neither of them could, in many years, have retrieved thefe damages and loffes, even tho' the fiege had been raised before the actual reduction of the city,

I HAVE more than once called this a fiege, tho by the way, what was done hardly amounted to fo much as is ufually understood by a blockade. But call it what you pleafe, it is a wonder that it was not broken up, without effecting the main point: The enemy having encamped, and ftrongly entrenched themselves, in thrice the number of our fmall army s and in fo advantageous a place, that it would probably have required even thrice their own great num bers to force their lines. And after one unfuccefsful attempt

attempt to this end; when fo much of the feafon was gone; the feeming impracticability of approaching the enemy where they were, and, the improbability that they would ever give up this advantage, or be brought to hazard a general battle on equal ground, notwithstanding their fuperior numbers; after all this, I fay, 'tis probable, there are but few generals, who would not have utterly defpair'd of fucceeding, given up the point, and left the enemy to retrieve, as well as they could, the great damages they had already fuftained.

BUT it seems the British general was one of those rare military geniufes, which, like the Phoenix, appear but once an age, except perhaps in Great-Britain. He was one of thofe, whofe courage nothing could abate; whofe ardor, regulated by prudence, nothing could damp; whose resolution no difficulties, however great, could shake or alter, fo lng as a poffibility remained of carrying his defign into execution; and in fine, one of thofe, whole wildom and addrefs at a critical juncture, were not inferior to his other great military accomplishments. Thefe great qualities, with whichk heaven had endow'd him, and to which heaven feldom fails of giving fuccefs, were now all called forth, and difplayed at once, in drawing the numerous enemy from their inacceffible entrenchments, to a general battle, which he had long defired.

BEHOLD him there, with his little body of British troops, himself the head to direct, and the foul to animate the whole, if fuch troops needed animation; the force of Canada moving towards him with flow and folemn steps, under a try'd, experienced and ap prov'd commander !-Unhappy Montcalm! courageous at least, if not prudent at this time! What is it

that