But this reign of peculation and oppression was fast drawing to a close. The successful action at Sillery was "Fortune's parting smile" upon the French in Canada. On the 3d of May, General, now Sir Jeffery Amherst, the commander-in-chief, embarked at New York and proceeded to Schenectady; from thence, with part of his army, he pursued his route to Oswego, where he encamped on the 9th of July. General Gage and the rest of the force was ordered to follow with all diligence: accordingly, they also reached Oswego on the 22d, and Sir William Johnson, with his Indians, arrived the following day. In the mean time, Captain Loring, of the navy, with two armed vessels, had cleared the Lake Ontario of the French cruisers, and driven them for refuge to the beautiful labyrinth of the "Thousand Isles." Amherst's army, now assembled on the shores of Lake Ontario, consisted of a detachment of the Royal Artillery, six complete battalions and thirteen companies of regular troops, a corps of Grenadiers, and another of Light Infantry, with some Rangers, and eight battalions of Provincials, in all 10,142 men of all ranks; Johnson's Indians numbered 706. The plan of the campaign was again founded on combined movements. The general-in-chief, warned by the untoward delays which he had experienced in the preceding year, himself chose to descend upon the enemy's capital by Lake Ontario and the Upper St. Lawrence, leaving the route of Lake Champlain to Colonel Haviland, with a force of some artillery, 1500 regular troops, 1800 Provincials, and a few Indians, which were assembled at Crown Point. At the same time, Murray, with the disposable portion of the gallant garrison of Quebec, aided by Lord Rollo and two battalions from Louisburg, was to push up the St. Lawrence, and, if possible, meet the other two corps under the general-in-chief and Haviland on the island of Montreal. Their movements were as follows: Amherst embarked the grenadiers and light troops, with a battalion of Highlanders, on the 7th of August, and dispatched them, under Colonel Haldimand, to take post at that end of Lake Ontario from whence issues the River St. Lawrence. On the 10th, he himself, with the artillery, the remainder of the regular troops, and the Indians, followed in whale-boats. The Provincials, under Gage, joined the flotilla on the 12th, and the following day the whole army reached La Galette, on the banks of the Great River. They then dropped down the stream to Isle Royale without any occurrence worth record, except the gallant capture of an armed vessel by Colonel Williamson with a detachment of troops in row-boats.