h with 14 guns, stood close in to one of the
redoubts, and opened fire upon it; while the English batteries, from
the heights of the Montmorenci, opened fire across the chasm upon the
French lines.

At eleven o'clock, the troops from Point Levi put off in their boats,
and moved across the river, as if they intended to make a landing
between Beauport and the city. For some hours, Montcalm remained
ignorant as to the point on which the English attack was to be made,
but became presently convinced that it would be delivered near the
Montmorenci, and he massed the whole of his army on that flank of his
position.

At half-past five o'clock the tide was low, and the English boats
dashed forward, and the troops sprang ashore on to the broad tract of
mud, left bare by the tide; while, at the same moment, a column 2000
strong moved down from the height towards the ford at the mouth of the
Montmorenci. The first to land were thirteen companies of Grenadiers,
and a detachment of Royal Americans, who, without waiting for the two
regiments of Monckton's brigade, dashed forward against the redoubt at
the foot of the hill. The French at once abandoned it, but the
Grenadiers had no sooner poured into it, than a storm of bullets rained
down upon them, from the troops who lined the heights above.

Without a moment's hesitation, the Grenadiers and Americans dashed
forward, and strove to climb the steep ascent, swept as it was by a
terrific hail of bullets and buckshot from the French and Canadians.
Numbers rolled, dead or wounded, to the bottom of the hill, but the
others struggled on.

But at this moment, the cloud, which had been threatening all day,
suddenly opened, and the rain poured down in a torrent. The grassy
slopes instantly became so slippery that it was absolutely impossible
to climb them, and the fire from above died away, as the wet rendered
the firelocks unserviceable.

The Grenadiers fell back into the redoubt. Wolfe, who had now arrived
upon the spot, saw that it was absolutely impossible to carry the
heights under the present conditions, and ordered the troops to
retreat. Carrying off many of the wounded with them, they fell back in
good order. Those of the Grenadiers and Americans who survived
recrossed, in their boats, to the island; the 15th Regiment rowed back
to Point Levi; and the 78th Highlanders, who belonged to Monckton's
brigade, joined the column from below the Montmorenci, and slowly
retired along the