f it had been
a party of our scouts, they would have come on here, and not halted an
hour's tramp away.

"You had best get the troops under arms, captain. Who would have
thought they would have been such fools as to light their fires within
sight of the fort!"

James at once went to Major Eyre's quarters, and aroused him, and in a
few minutes the garrison were all under arms. Their strength, including
James Walsham's corps, and some scouts of the company of John Stark,
numbered three hundred and forty-six men, besides which there were a
hundred and twenty-eight invalids in hospital.

Two hours passed, and then a confused sound, as of a great body of men
moving on the ice, was heard. The ice was bare of snow, and nothing
could be seen, but the cannon on the side facing the lake at once
opened fire, with grape and round shot, in the direction of the sound.

After firing for a few minutes, they were silent. The sound on the ice
could no longer be heard.

"They have taken to the woods," Nat, who had taken up his station next
to James Walsham, said. "It ain't likely they would stop on the ice
with the balls pounding it up."

"Do you think they will attack before morning?" James asked.

"It ain't likely," Nat replied. "They won't know the positions, and,
such a dark night as this, they wouldn't be able to make out anything
about them. If they could have come straight along the ice to the head
of the lake here, they would have made a dash, no doubt; but now they
find we ain't to be caught asleep, I expect they will wait till
morning."

Again the sound of axes was heard in the wood, and the glare of light
appeared above the trees.

"There must be a tidy lot of 'em," Nat said.

"Do you think it will be any use to go out and try to surprise them?"

"Not a bit, captain. They are sure to have a lot of redskins with them,
and they will be lurking in the woods, in hopes that we may try such a
move. No; we have got a strong position here, and can lick them three
to one; but in the woods, except Stark's men, and perhaps yours, none
of the others wouldn't be no good at all."

Mayor Eyre, shortly afterwards, sent for James, who gave him the
opinion of the scout, and the major then ordered the troops to get
under shelter again, leaving Stark's men to act as sentries, for the
night was bitterly cold.

It was not until ten o'clock next day that the French appeared, and,
surrounding the fort on all sides, except on that of t