Добавил:
ivanov666
Опубликованный материал нарушает ваши авторские права? Сообщите нам.
Вуз:
Предмет:
Файл:Satanstoe; or, The Littlepage Manuscripts
.pdf
SATANSTOE; OR, THE LITTLEPAGE MANUSCRIPTS
conversation of our distinguished leader, who had seen much
warm service in Germany, in the wars of his reputed grandfather and uncle, young as he was. On the contrary, My Lord
Howe, that day, was grave and thoughtful, as became a man
who held the lives of others in his keeping, though he was
neither depressed nor doubting. There were moments, indeed,
when he spoke cheerfully to those who were near him; though,
as a whole, his deportment was, as I have just said, grave and
thoughtful. Once I caught his eye fastened on me, with a saddened expression; and, I suppose that a question he soon after
put me, was connected with the subject of his thoughts.
«How would our excellent and respectable friend, Madam
Schuyler, feel, did she know our precise position at this moment, Mr. Littlepage? I do believe that excellent woman feels
more concern for those in whom she takes an interest, than
they often feel for themselves».
«I think, my lord, that, in such a case, we should certainly
receive the benefi t of her prayers».
«You are an only child, I think she told me, Littlepage?»
«I am, my lord; and thankful am I that my mother cannot
foresee this scene».
«I, too, have those that love me, though they are accustomed to think of me as a soldier, and liable to a soldier’s
risks. Happy is the military man who can possess his mind, in
the moment of trial, free from the embarrassing, though pleasing, and otherwise so grateful ties of affection. But, we are nearing the shore, and must attend to duty».
This is the last conversation I held with that brave soldier;
and these were the last words, of a private nature, I ever heard
461
JAMES FENIMORE COOPER
him utter. From that moment, his whole soul seemed occupied
with the discharge of his duty, the success of our arms, and
the defeat of the enemy.
I am not soldier enough to describe what followed in a very
military or intelligible manner. As the brigade drew near
the foot of the lake, where there was a wide extent of low land,
principally in forest, however, some batteaux were brought to
the front, on which were mounted a number of pieces of heavy
artillery. The French had a party of considerable force to oppose
our landing; but, as it appeared they had not made a suffi cient
provision of guns, on their part, to contend with success; and
our grape scouring the woods, we met with but little real resistance. Nor did we assail them precisely at the point where we
were expected but proceeded rather to the right of their position. At the signal, the advanced brigade pushed for the shore,
led by our gallant commander, and we were all soon on terra
fi rma, without sustaining any loss worth naming. We four, that
is, Guert, Dirck, myself and Jaap, kept as near as was proper to
the noble brigadier, who instantly ordered an advance, to press
the retreating foe. The skirmishing was not sharp, however,
and we gained ground fast, the enemy retiring in the direction of Ticonderoga, and we pressing on their rear, quite as fast
as prudence and our preparations would allow. I could see that
a cloud of Indians was in our front, and will own, that I felt
afraid of an ambush; for the artful warfare practised by those
beings of the wood, could not but be familiar, by tradition at
least, to one born and educated in the colonies. We had landed in a cove, not literally at the foot of the lake, but rather on
its western side; and room was no sooner obtained, than Gen.
462
SATANSTOE; OR, THE LITTLEPAGE MANUSCRIPTS
Abercrombie got most of his force on shore, and formed it, as
speedily as possible, in columns. Of these columns we had four,
the two in the centre being composed entirely of King’s troops,
six regiments in all, numbering more than as many thousand
men; while fi ve thousand provincials were on the fl anks, leaving quite four thousand of the latter with the boats, of which
this vast fl otilla actually contained the large number of one
thousand and twenty fi ve! All our boats, however, had not yet
reached the point of debarkation; those with the stores, artillery, &c., &c., being still some distance in the rear.
Our party was now placed with the right centre column, at
the head of which marched our noble acquaintance. The enemy had posted a single battalion in a log encampment, near
the ordinary landing; but fi nding the character of the force
with which he was about to be assailed, its commandant set
fi re to his huts and retreated. The skirmishing was now even of
less moment than it had been on landing, and we all moved
forward in high spirits, though the want of guides, the density of the woods, and the diffi culties of the ground, soon produced a certain degree of confusion in our march. The columns got entangled with each other, and no one seemed to
possess the means of promptly extricating them from this
awkward embarrassment. Want of guides was the great evil
under which we laboured; but it was an evil that it was now
too late to remedy.
Our column, notwithstanding, or its head rather, continued to advance, with its gallant leader keeping even pace with
its foremost platoon. We four volunteers acted as look-outs,
a little on its fl ank; and I trust there will be no boasting, if I say,
463
JAMES FENIMORE COOPER
we kept rather in advance of the leading fi les, than otherwise.
In this state of things, French uniforms were seen in front, and
a pretty strong party of the enemy was encountered, wandering, like ourselves, a little uncertain of the route they ought to
take, in order to reach their entrenchments in the shortest
time. As a matter of course, this party could not pass the head of
our column, without bringing on a collision, though it were
one that was only momentary. Which party gave the fi rst fi re,
I cannot say, though I thought it was the French. The discharge
was not heavy, however, and was almost immediately mutual.
I know that all four of us let off our rifl es, and that we halted,
under a cover, to reload. I had just driven the ball down, when
my eye caught the signs of some confusion in the head of
the column, and I saw the body of an offi cer borne to the rear.
It was that of Lord Howe! He had fallen at the fi rst serious
discharge made by the enemy in that campaign! The fall of its
leader, so immediately in its presence, seemed to rouse the column into a sense of the necessity of doing something effective,
and it assaulted the party in its front with the rage of so many
tigers, dispersing the enemy like chaff; making a considerable
number of prisoners, besides killing and wounding not a few.
I never saw a man more thoroughly aroused than was
Guert Ten Eyck, in this little affair. He had been much noticed by Lord Howe, during the residence of that unfortunate nobleman at Albany; and the loss of the last appeared to
awaken all that there was of the ferocious in the nature of
my usually kind-hearted Albany friend. He acted as our immediate commander; and he led us forward on the heels of
the retreating French, until we actually came in sight of their
464
SATANSTOE; OR, THE LITTLEPAGE MANUSCRIPTS
entrenchments. Then, indeed, we all saw it was necessary to
retreat in our turn; and Guert consented to fall back, though
it was done surlily, and like a lion at bay. A party of Indians
pressed us hard, in this retreat, and we ran an imminent
risk of our scalps; all of which, I have ever believed, would
have been lost, were it not for the resolution and Herculean
strength of Jaap. It happened, as we were dodging from tree to
tree, that all four of our rifl es were discharged at the same
time; a circumstance of which our assailants availed themselves to make a rush at us. Luckily the weight of the onset
fell on Jaap, who clubbed his rifl e, and literally knocked
down in succession the three Indians that fi rst reached him.
This intrepidity and success gave us time to reload; and Dirck,
ever a cool and capital shot, laid the fourth Huron on his face,
with a ball through his heart. Guert then held his fi re, and
called on Jaap to retreat. Fie was obeyed; and under cover of
our two rifl es, the whole party got off; the red-skins being too
thoroughly rebuked to press us very closely, after the specimen they had just received of the stuff of which we were made.
We owed our escape, however, as much to another circumstance, as to this resolution of Jaap, and the expedient of
Guert. Among the provincials was a partisan of great repute, of
the name of Rogers. This offi cer led a party of rifl emen on our
left fl ank, and he drove in the enemy’s skirmishers, along his
own front, with rapidity, causing them to suffer a considerable loss. By this means, the Indians before us were held in
check; as there was the danger that Major Rogers’s party
might fall in upon their rear, should they attempt to pursue
us, and thus cut them off from their allies. It was well it was
465
JAMES FENIMORE COOPER
so; inasmuch as we had to fall back more than a mile, ere we
reached the spot where Abercrombie brought his columns to
a halt, and encamped far the night. This position was distant
about two miles from the works before Ticonderoga; and consequently at no great distance from the outlet of Lake George.
Here the army was brought into good order, and took up its
station for some little time.
It was necessary to await the arrival of the stores, ammunition and artillery. As the bringing up these materials, through
a country that was little else than a virgin forest, was no easy
task, it occupied us quite two days. Melancholy days they were,
too; the death of Lord Howe acting on the whole army much
as if it had been a defeat. He was the idol of the King’s troops,
and he had rendered himself as popular with us Americans, as
with his own countrymen. A sort of ominous sadness prevailed
among us each common man appearing to feel his loss as he
might have felt that of a brother.
We looked up the –th, and joined Bulstrode, as soon as
we reached the ground chosen for the new encampment. Our
reception was friendly, and even kind; and it became warmer
still, as soon as it was understood that we composed the little
party that had skirmished so freely on the fl ank of the right
centre column, and which was known to have gone farther in
advance than any one else, in that part of the fi eld. Thus we
joined our corps with some éclat, at the very outset, everybody
welcoming us cordially, and with seeming sincerity.
Nevertheless, the general sadness existed in the –th, as
well as in all the other corps. Lord Howe was as much beloved in that regiment, as in any other; and our meeting and
466
SATANSTOE; OR, THE LITTLEPAGE MANUSCRIPTS
subsequent intercourse could not be called joyful. Bulstrode
had an extensive and important command, for his rank and
years, and he certainly was proud of his position; but I could
see that even his elastic and usually gay temperament was
much affected by what had occurred. That night we walked
together, apart from our companions, when he spoke on
the subject of our loss.
«It may appear strange to you, Corny», he said, «to fi nd so
much depression in camp, after a debarkation that has certainly been successful, and a little affair that has given us, as they
assure me, a couple of hundred prisoners. I tell you, however,
my friend, it were better for this army to have seen its best
corps annihilated, than to have lost the man it has. Howe was
literally the soul of this entire force. He was a soldier by nature, and made all around him soldiers. As for the Commander-In-Chief, he does not understand you Americans, and will
not use you as he ought; then he does not understand the nature of the warfare of this continent, and will be very likely to
make a blunder. I’ll tell you how it is, Corny; Howe had as
much infl uence with Abercrombie, as he had with every one
else; and an attempt will be made to introduce his mode of
fi ghting; but such a man as Lord Howe requires another Lord
Howe to carry out his own conceptions. That is the point on
which, I fear, we shall fail».
All this sounded very sensible to me, though it sounded
discouragingly; I found, however, that Bulstrode did not entertain these feelings alone, but that most around me were of
the same way of thinking. In the mean time, the preparations
proceeded; and it was understood that the 8th was to be the day
467
JAMES FENIMORE COOPER
that was to decide the fate of Ticonderoga; The fort proper, at
this celebrated station, stands on a peninsula, and can only be
assailed on one side. The outworks were very extensive on that
side, and the garrison was known to be formidable. As these
outworks, however, consisted principally of a log breastwork,
and it could be approached through open woods, which of itself afforded some cover, it was determined to carry it by storm,
and, if possible, enter the main work with the retreating enemy. Had we waited for our artillery, and established batteries,
our success would have been certain; but the engineer reported favourably of the other project; and perhaps it better suited
the temper and impatience of the whole army, to push on,
rather than proceed by the slow movements of a regular siege.
On the morning of the 8th, therefore, the troops were paraded for the assault, our party falling in on the fl ank of the –
th, as volunteers. The ground did not admit of the use of many
horses, and Bulstrode marched with us on foot; I can relate
but little of the general movements of that memorable day,
the woods concealing so much of what was done, on both sides.
I know this, however; that the fl ower of our army were brought
into the line, and were foremost in the assault; including both
regulars and provincials. The 42d, a Highland corps, that had
awakened much interest in America, both by the appearance
and character of its men, was placed at a point where it was
thought the heaviest service was to be performed. The 55th,
another corps on which much reliance was placed, was also
put at the head of another column. A swamp extending for
some distance along the only exposed front of the peninsula,
these two corps were designated to carry the log breastwork,
468
SATANSTOE; OR, THE LITTLEPAGE MANUSCRIPTS
that commenced at the point where the swamp ceases; much
the most arduous portion of the expected service, since this
was the only accessible approach to the fortress itself. To render their position more secure, the French had placed several
pieces of artillery in battery, along the line of this breastwork;
while we had not yet a gun in front to cover our advance.
It was said, that Abercrombie did not take counsel of any of
the American offi cers with him, before he decided on the attack of the 8th of July. He had directed his principal engineer to
reconnoitre; and that gentleman having reported that the defences offered no serious scientifi c obstacles, the assault was
decided on. This report was accurate, doubtless, agreeably to
the principles and facts of European warfare; but it was not
suited to those of the confl icts of this continent. It was to be regretted, however, that the experience of 1755, and the fate of
Braddock, had not inculcated a more extensive lesson of discretion among the royal commanders, than was manifested by
the incidents of this day.
The –th was placed in column directly in the rear of
the Highlanders, who were led, on this occasion, by Col. Gordon Graham; a veteran offi cer of great experience, and of
36
an undaunted courage.
Of course, I saw this offi cer and this
regiment, being as they were directly in my front, but I saw
36
Holmes’s Annals say, that Lord John Murray commanded the
42d, on this occasion. I presume, as Mr. Littlepage was there, and was
posted so near the corps in question, he cannot well be mistaken.
Mrs. Grant, of Laggan, who was at Albany at the time, and whose
father was in the battle, agrees with Mr. Littlepage, in saying that
Gordon Graham led the 42d. – EDITOR.
469
JAMES FENIMORE COOPER
little else; more especially after the smoke of the fi rst discharge
was added to the other obstacles to vision.
A considerable time was consumed in making the preparations; but, when everything was supposed to be ready,
the columns were set in motion. It was generally understood
that the troops were to receive the enemy’s fi re, then rush forward to the breastwork, cross the latter at the bayonet’s point,
if it should be necessary, and deliver their own fi re at close
quarters; or on their retreating foes. Permission was given to us
volunteers, and to divers light parties of irregulars, to open on
any of the French of whom we might get glimpses, as little was
expected from us in the charge.
Nearly an hour was consumed in approaching the point of
attack, owing to the diffi culties of the ground, and the necessity of making frequent halts, in order to dress. At length the important moment arrived when the head of the column was
ready to unmask itself, and consequently to come under fi re.
A short halt suffi ced for the arrangements here, when the bagpipes commenced their exciting music, and we broke out of
cover, shouting and cheering each other on. We must have
been within two hundred yards of the breastwork at the time,
and the fi rst gun discharged was Jaap’s, who, by working
his way into the cover of the swamp, had got some distance
ahead of us, and who actually shot down a French offi cer who
had got upon the logs of his defences, in order to reconnoitre.
That assault, however, was fearfully avenged! The Highlanders were moving on like a whirlwind, grave, silent and steady,
cheered only by their music, when a sheet of fl ame glanced
along the enemy’s line, and the iron and leaden messengers of
470
Соседние файлы в предмете [НЕСОРТИРОВАННОЕ]