erests of France. Now the astute
Austrian statesman, Kaunitz, went past the ministers of Louis XV to
Louis himself. This was the heyday of Madame de Pompadour, the King's
mistress. Maria Theresa condescended to intrigue with this woman whom in
her heart she despised. There is still much mystery in the affair. The
King was flattered into thinking that personally he was swaying the
affairs of Europe and took delight in deceiving his ministers and
working behind their backs. While events in America were making war
between France and Britain inevitable, France was being tied to an ally
who could give her little aid. She must spend herself to fight Austria's
battles on the land, while her real interests required that she should
build up her fleet to fight on the sea the great adversary across the
English Channel.

The destiny of North America might, indeed; well have been other than
it is. A France strong on the sea, able to bring across to America great
forces, might have held, at any rate, her place on the St. Lawrence
and occupied the valleys of the Ohio and the Mississippi. We can hardly
doubt that the English colonies, united by a common deadly peril, could
have held against France most of the Atlantic coast. But she might well
have divided with them North America; and today the lands north of the
Ohio and westward beyond the Ohio to the Pacific Ocean might have been
French. The two nations on the brink of war in 1754 were playing for
mighty stakes; and victory was to the power which had control of the
sea. France had a great army, Britain a great fleet. In this contrast
lay wrapped the secret of the future of North America.

As the crisis drew near the vital thought about the future of America
was found, not in America, but in Europe. The English colonies were so
accustomed to distrust each other that, when Virginia grew excited about
French designs on the Ohio, Pennsylvania or North Carolina was as likely
as not to say that it was the French who were in the right and a stupid,
or excitable, or conceited, colonial governor who was in the wrong.
In Paris and London, on the other hand, there were no illusions about
affairs in America. In both capitals it was realized that a grim fight
was on. During the winter of 1754-55 extensive preparations were being
made on both sides. France equipped an army under Baron Dieskau to go to
Canada; Britain equipped one under General Braddock to go to Virginia.
Each nation asked the ot