The Winning of Canada: a Chronicle of WolfeWood, William
History
The Winning of Canada: a Chronicle of Wolfe
Wood, William
United States -- History -- French and Indian War, 1754-1763; Wolfe, James, 1727-1759
Many gallant deeds were done that afternoon; but none more gallant
than those of Captain Ochterloney and Lieutenant Peyton, both grenadier
officers in the Royal Americans. Ochterloney had just been wounded in
a duel; but he said his country's honour came before his own, and, sick
and wounded as he was, he spent those panting hours in the boats without
a murmur and did all he could to form his men up under fire. In the
second charge he fell, shot through the lungs, with Peyton beside him,
shot through the leg. When Wolfe called the grenadiers back a rescue
party wanted to carry off both officers, to save them from the
scalping-knife. But Ochterloney said he would never leave the field
after such a defeat; and Peyton said he would never leave his captain.
Presently a Canadian regular came up with two Indians, grabbed
Ochterloney's watch, sword and money, and left the Indians to finish
him. One of these savages clubbed him with a musket, while the other
shot him in the chest and dashed in with a scalping-knife. In the
meantime, Peyton crawled on his hands and knees to a double-barrelled
musket and shot one Indian dead, but missed the other. This savage now
left Ochterloney, picked up a bayonet and rushed at Peyton, who drew his
dagger. A terrible life-and-death fight followed; but Peyton at last got
a good point well driven home, straight through the Indian's heart. A
whole scalping party now appeared. Ochterloney was apparently dead, and
Peyton was too exhausted to fight any more. But, at this very moment,
another British party came back for the rest of the wounded and carried
Peyton off to the boats.
Then the Indians came back to scalp Ochterloney. By this time, however,
some French regulars had come down, and one of them, finding Ochterloney
still alive, drove off the Indians at the point of the bayonet, secured
help, and carried him up the hill. Montcalm had him carefully taken into
the General Hospital, where he was tenderly nursed by the nuns. Two days
after he had been rescued, a French officer came out for his clothes and
other effects. Wolfe then sent in twenty guineas for his rescuer, with
a promise that, in return for the kindness shown to Ochterloney, the
General Hospital would be specially protected if the British took
Quebec. Towards the end of August Ochterloney died; and both sides
ceased firing while a French captain came out to report his death and
return his effects.
This was by no means the only time the two enemies treated each other
like friends. A party of French ladies were among the prisoners brought
in to Wolfe one day; and they certainly had no cause to complain of
him. He gave them a dinner, at which he charmed them all by telling them
about his visit to Paris. The next morning he sent them into Quebec with
his aide-de-camp under a flag of truce. Another time the French officers
sent him a kind of wine which was not to be had in the British camp, and
he sent them some not to be had in their own.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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