It had been his custom on field days, and Hamilton holidays, to follow the call of _skirmishers retire_, with _form square_; _prepare to receive cavalry_. My old note-books written when looking on, bear that record, so do the memories of his men. Perhaps, in this hour of his mental prostration he reverted to the old rotation of movements learned from a book, and gave the order to the bugler _form square_. Charity would rather believe that he made that mistake in forgetfulness, than that his vision of cavalry, crossing a variety of fences, five and six feet high, in pursuit of the retiring skirmishers, whom he had called in, led to the formation of a square. An hour and a half earlier, the action about to begin, but no shots fired, he mistook a farmer “running off his cows” for a Fenian force of two hundred men, some of them mounted. In his narrative to the court of inquiry, concocted after the events, and in contradiction to animadversions on his conduct published two or three days after the 2nd of June, he said: “I observed loose horses moving about in the woods to our left, but saw no men.” Officers of the 13th who were then beside him, would make affidavit were it required, that he said to them his field glass enabled him to see, distinctly two hundred men, some of them mounted. But these are gentlemen of honor. They have passed their word to this statement, their word is sufficient. Thus we have it that Lt.-Col. Booker, entered on the field seeing cavalry where none were. It was shortly after this, at 7.30 a. m. that Mr. Stovin of the Welland railway delivered the telegram from Col. Peacocke, to Lt.-Col. Booker who expressed, in words of vehemence, anxiety for a messenger to go to Col. Peacocke. Detective Armstrong was at hand and offered to go. “Tell him,” said Col. Booker, “how I am situated,” “you must write it,” rejoined Mr. Armstrong. “I have no paper!” Booker fumbled about his person and finding no paper said: “tell him that”—Armstrong repeated that he must have a written message. “Well then, don’t go at all,” Mr. Lawson of Port Colborne who was present offered paper. Mr. Armstrong gave paper and pencil. Lt.-Col. Booker enquired the time and was told by Lawson, by Stovin, by Armstrong and others 7.30. He wrote 7.30 the only portion of his despatch which was legible. Mr. Armstrong says it was written on paper given by him. Booker says to the court of inquiry that now 9.30; “I turned to Detective Armstrong and wrote on the telegram which I had received that the enemy had attacked us at 7.30.” Mr. Stovin says: “It seemed a strange thing to me that he sent away the telegram he had received; and still more so that after Armstrong was gone, he inquired of me where that telegram came from. He had not read Chippewa.” Squire Learn said of Booker, then: “If they have not got a fool for a commander, he is something worse.”