E.
The following extracts are from the letters of a French officer after the siege of Louisburg:
"The eyes of all Europe are fixed on this formidable armament; they have assembled an army of 22,000 men, 1600 brought from Europe, the remainder provincial militia, with a large train of artillery and munitions of war, 22 line of battle-ships and 200 transports. Yet Admiral Holburn, who appeared off Louisburg with 22 sail of men-of-war, took it into his head that our numbers were equal to his own, and has made his way back to Halifax. They will ask him there, why did you run away? Oh! says he, a superior force venit, vedit, fugit. It is vexatious that the first squadron which France has equipped since 1703 should be shackled with orders only to keep a look out. If ever there was a certainty of firing gunpowder to the renown of the white flag, it was on the 19th August, when Holburn appeared off Louisburg."
In some of his subsequent letters he appears to give a very accurate account of the siege, and some facts relative to the war not to be found in any history of that period. In speaking of the landing of Wolfe at the head of the Highlanders and the American Light Troops—
"It is the interest of the conquered not to diminish the glory of the victor, and besides it is our duty to do justice even to our mortal enemy, for which reason I confess that the English on this occasion behaved with such valor as before the event must have appeased temerity. Yet it must be allowed that at the same time the difficulty of the enterprise does them infinite honor, it saves ours; who would have forseen that they would have ventured to have climbed rocks till then rendered inaccessible, under a heavy fire from our batteries, notwithstanding their boats were every moment knocked to pieces in the surf, which drowned great numbers."
In speaking of the capitulation he says:
"Though reduced to the last extremity we demanded far more advantageous terms than we had reason to expect. After a consultation between Admiral Boscawen and General Amherst, an unconditional surrender was demanded. Dracourt, the Governor, extremely exasperated at those terms, resolved to hold out, but was compelled to give in on receiving a most peremptory petition on the part of the inhabitants, presented by M. Prevost. The capitulation was signed on 15th July, 1758, after a bloody siege of two months. On the day following, our troops were drawn up, and the colors and arms surrendered to General Whitmore, who took command of the town. The evening before the English took possession of the town, we suffered our soldiers to plunder the magazines, and the priests spent the whole night in marrying all the girls of the city to the first who would have them. No one here can perceive, at least by any personal inconvenience, that we are in a conquered town. The garrison has embarked with as much tranquility as if it had been going on a voyage of pleasure. Every soldier has taken away whatever belongs to him without suffering the least injustice. M. De Dracourt has received all the honors which a person of his rank deserved; Admiral Boscawen has shown all the respect to Madam De Dracourt as were due to her merits. This lady has performed such exploits during the siege as must entitle her to rank among the most illustrious of her sex, for she fired three cannon every day in order to animate the gunners. After the surrender she interested herself in behalf of all the unfortunates; in this number M. Maillet de Grandville was a striking instance of the instability of fortune. He left France at the age of 17, arrived at Quebec in indifferent circumstances; by his industry and application to business, he accumulated a vast fortune which enabled him to purchase the Lordship of St. Louis, which cost him 80,000 livres; but now, by the taking of Louisburg, he is left quite destitute with a numerous family."
F.
Halifax, July, 1752.