[1] On our arrival we found several of the ships that had parted company on the voyage; and each day after brought more of them, till the whole were collected.
[2] I have given an exact representation of one of these boats in the view of the town and bay of St. Pierre.
[3] See in the Appendix, page 1.
[4] An idea was started of raising four hundred white men in the island of Barbadoes to augment the army; but there was not time to arm and discipline them; therefore it was dropped. However, a certain number of negroes were provided to attend the army, four hundred of whom were sent from Dominica for that service; some more were brought from St. Vincent's; and the council of Barbadoes made an offer of supplying a large number of them to serve on very liberal terms; but when the matter came to be investigated, the terms were found to be far from equitable, and therefore were rejected.—Mr. Baillie and Mr. Monro, two planters of Grenada, were here introduced to the Commanders in Chief, and were received on board the Boyne as guests, and treated with the greatest hospitality; they proceeded with us on the expedition. Mr. Gibbs, one of the council of Barbadoes, also accompanied us.
[5] During the landing of our troops, Lieutenant Bowen, who was in a gun-boat, perceived a number of the enemy collecting in the woods near the shore, and being scarce noticed by them, was suffered to approach without molestation, and having loaded his gun with langrege, he dealt such destruction among them, that they fled in all directions. A shot from the battery, which stuck in the larboard bow of the Boyne, when cut out, proved to be a thirty-four pounder, and to have been heated, but not sufficiently to do any mischief by fire.
[6] The Generous Friends transport, laden with officers' baggage, &c. dragged her anchor on the night of the 5th, struck against a rock at the entrance of the bay, and was wrecked. Fortunately, however, the hands on board and the baggage were saved.
[7] The French have since said that they fired on the boat because it had a white flag hoisted: this was a most ridiculous objection; for, though with them a mark of aristocracy, it has ever been acknowledged by all nations as a signal of peace and cessation from hostilities. However, we found it necessary afterwards to comply with their wishes; and whenever a boat was sent from either party on a truce, they carried the flag of the opposite party in the bow of the boat, and their own colours abaft.
[8] Vide Appendix, page 14.
[9] Vide Appendix, pages 10, 11, 12.
[10] Vide Appendix, page 16.