Fort Amity Author:Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER HI TICONDEBOGA At the alarm-post next morning the men were in high spirits again. Everyone seemed to be posted in the day's work ahead. The French ... more »had thrown up an outwork on the landward end of the ridge; an engineer had climbed Rattlesnake Mountain at daybreak and conned them through his glass, and had brought down his report two hours ago. The white- coats had been working like niggers, helped by some small reinforcement which had come in overnight —Levis with the Royal Roussillon, the scouts said; but the thing was a rough-and-ready affair of logs, and the troops were to carry it with the bayonet. John asked in what direction it lay, and thumbs were jerked toward the screening forest across the river. The distance (some said) was not two miles. Colonel Beaver, returning from a visit to the saw-mill, confirmed the rumour. The 46th would march in a couple of hours or less. At breakfast, Howe's death seemed to be forgotten, and John found no time for solemn thoughts.Beta were laid that the French would not wait for the assault, but slip away to their boats; even with Levis they could scarcely be four thousand strong. Bradstreet, having finished his bridge, had started back for the landing-stage to haul a dozen of the lighter batteaux across the portage and float them down to Lake Champlain filled with riflemen. Brad- street was a glutton for work—but would he be in time? That old fox Montcalm would never let his earths be stopped so easily, and to pile defences on the ridge was simply to build himself into a trap. A good half of the officers maintained that there would be no fighting. Well, fighting or no, some business was in hand. Here was the battalion in motion; and, to leave the enemy in no doubt of our martial ardour, here were the drums playing away lik...« less