command of the harbour for our ships. If we can once
do that, the day will be ours. I am told off to this task, with
twelve hundred men. You and Humphrey are to go with me. We must
march right round the town, under cover of night, taking our guns
with us. By daybreak we will have them planted behind the French
battery; by night, if all goes well, we shall have gained
possession of it."

The troops were all drawn up in order for the night march, full of
hopeful anticipation. They had that kind of confidence in Wolfe
which the commander inspires who is not made but born. Humphrey,
whose skill in finding his way in the dark, and whose powers as a
guide had been tested before now, was sent on in advance with a
handful of men, to give warning of any impending peril to be passed
or encountered. He had the untiring energy of a son of the forest,
and the instinct which told him of the proximity of the foe before
he saw him.

But the march was uneventful in that way. The French had fallen
back upon the town. Their fears now were for the very fortress
itself, that fortress which they had so proudly boasted was
impregnable alike by land and sea! Before the dawn of the morning
Humphrey came back to the main body, seeking speech with Wolfe.

"They have abandoned their battery on Lighthouse Point. It is ours
without striking a blow. They have spiked their guns and gone! We
have only to take possession, mount our guns, and the command of
the harbour is ours!"

A shout of triumph went up from the men as this fact became known.
Gaily did they push on over the broken country, doing what they
could in passing to level the way for the transport of the cannon
in the rear. By dawn of day, they were full in sight of their
destination, and saw indeed that it was deserted, and only awaited
their taking possession. With shouts and cheers they dragged up
their guns and set them in position. They fired a salute to tell
their friends that all was well, and sent a few shots flying
amongst the French ships in the harbour, to the no small
consternation of the town.

But Wolfe could not be idle. The task set him had been accomplished
without his having to strike a blow.

"We must unite our line, and silence some of those batteries that
protect the town on the land side," he said to his men. "The guns
and the gunners, with a sufficient force for their protection, will
remain here. We have sterner work to do elsewhere; and whilst we
are pushing