A steward--once famous as a caterer--on closing his term of service at the _Château_, with a departing Governor, more than a century back, was the Boniface at the Blue House: Alexandre Menut. A veritable Soyer was _Monsieur_ Menut. During the American invasion, in the autumn of 1775, Monsieur Menut, owing to a _vis major_, was forced to entertain a rather boisterous and wilful class of customers: Richard Montgomery and his warlike Continentals. More than once a well-aimed ball or shell from General Carleton's batteries in the city must have disturbed the good cheer of the New York and New England riflemen lounging about Menut's, a great rebel rendezvous in 1775-6, we are told, visible from afar, [131] "with its white flag flying on the house. Arnold's head-quarters being close to the St. Charles, where Scott's Bridge was since built, the intervening space between the city and the General Hospital was daily swept by Carleton's artillery. The Page Diaries abound with details of the casualties or narrow escapes of the invading host. A few quotations will suffice: "8th December, 1775. Mr. (Brigadier-General) Montgomery visited Menut's to-day; a few minutes after he got out of the cariole, a cannon ball from the city walls killed his horse. "18th December. Some shells were thrown in to-day, and we threw some into St. Roch's: very few of the enemy seen anywhere to-day. A man was shot through the head from St. Roch; would it were destroyed; it serves as a secure cover to the rebels. "26th January, 1776. Eighty loaded sleighs passing towards Menut's. Two field-pieces placed at the door; people passing and repassing between that house and the General Hospital; some of our shots went through Menut's house; we fired a long time at that object; at last we perceived a man coming towards the town in a cariole, carrying the old signal; he passed their guard-house and waved with his handkerchief; we took no notice of him, but fired away at Menut's, he turned about and went back. ... Perhaps, they find Menut's too hot for them.-- (_from Journal of an officer of the Quebec Garrison_, 1775-6, quoted in Smith's History of Canada, Vol. II.) "21st February, 1776. Fired at their guard-house and at Menut's. "23rd February. About four this morning we heard the enemy's drum at Menut's, St. Foix. Sentries saw rockets in the night." Prince Edward street, St. Roch, and "Donnacona" street, near the Ursulines, the latter thus named about 1840 by the late Rev. Messire Maguire, then Almoner of the Ursuline Convent, bring up the memory of two important personages of the past, Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent, an English Prince, and Donnacona, a swarthy chief of primitive Canada, who welcomed Jacques Cartier.