Narrative of the Fenian invasion of CanadaSomerville, Alexander
History
Narrative of the Fenian invasion of Canada
Somerville, Alexander
Canada -- History -- Fenian Invasions, 1866-1870
The Rifles of Toronto known as the “Queen’s Own,” were despatched
from that city on 1st of June, with a speech from General Napier
to the effect that they might be engaged with the enemy within
twelve hours, yet all save one company went without ammunition, and
without the equipments enumerated on another page as wanting by the
Thirteenth from Hamilton. The Tenth Royals from Toronto, were in like
manner deficient. Observe the result in the military fortunes of next
day. Referring to his bivouac at Chippewa, night and morning of 1st
and 2nd June, Colonel Peacocke, commanding on Niagara frontier, in
his official despatch, when relating the events of the 2nd, and 3rd
says, “_The Volunteers being unprovided with the means of carrying
provisions and of cooking them had not been able to comply with
an order I had sent the previous evening that they were to bring
provisions in their haversacks. I saw that the absolute necessity of
furnishing them with some would cause delay and I telegraphed to Port
Colborne that I should be one hour later in starting. We marched at
7, o’clock._” In the previous sentence he had named the Toronto “10th
Royals under Major Boxall,” 415 in numerical strength, and no doubt
referred to them, but the remark of having no haversacks to carry
provisions, no cooking apparatus, no provisions to be cooked, applied
to other volunteers besides the 10th Royals. That delay was more than
an hour. Had there been haversacks and provisions, the Queens Own,
Thirteenth, York and Caledonia men need not have been confronted
with the Fenians at Limestone Ridge alone. So small a matter as a
haversack to a volunteer, and a single atom of common sense to an
“Authority,” might have changed the history of that day.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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