DR EVA ACER ONE TELLE
M' Fraquet, Engineer Brigadier général, was sent to Louisbourg in 1750 directeur général! of the fortifications. He passed several years there raising plans, forming projects, concluding nothing and consequently nothing executing.
He lived in good friendship and harmony with Prevost the Intendant, enjoying a very great salary, and undoublediy sharing together the spoils and at length he fixed himself upon a work for Titans, the removing of mountains, to levell the eminences of the Potence and Cap Noir wich in appearence was concerted with Prevost to serve them as a milk cow for many years, little imagining the l'roximity of the war that was ready to break out.
* The arrival of two regiments from Europe, Artois and Bourgogne, the french fleet who brought them being attaked near Newfoundland by the English fleet who took the man of war commanded by Monsieur Hocquart, the french admiral, were sure pronosticks of an immediate rupture with the English, and at lenght roused Franquet from his lethargry.
But it was now impossible to make solid fortification which might have been done during these five years idley and senselessly squandered away.
The English fleet having closely persued the French Ships one of their men of war came to the entry of the Harbour, upon which they fired a cannon at it from the battery upon the island, and it was then that they perecived the dismall situation of Louisbourg ; the carriage and the Platform flew in a thousand pieces and if the English had knowed our position their fleet might have come into the Harbour without any risk from our batteries, not having a single cannon fit to be fired.
They might have burnt all the vessels in it and battered the town from the harbour which must have immediatly surrendered. But luckily for us they had no knowledge of our iufirmities. Note B.
His alarm had a very good effect. Franquet be came stupid, not know-
ing wrhere to begin the reparations as all was equally in a pytyfull condition.
Nevertheless the Pallissades, platforms and all the cannon carriages where immediately renewed ; the fosses were cleared of the rubbish ; a
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double covert way was made at the west gate, Porte Dauphine ; the Glacis were repaired, and a half moon between the Porte de la Reine and Cape Noir was beguu and carryed on briskly by the soldiers of the garrison.
Fifteen English men of war planted themselves before the harbour of Louisbourg and remained there like sentries all the summer 0f1755 taking all the french vessels from Europe loaded with provisions for us.
Two english sixty guns ships, with two tenders of about twenty four guns, stationed themselves early in the year 1756 before Louisbourg and took all the french vessels in our sight.
À large merchant ship with eight pieces of canon loaded with flower, wine, salt, provisions and such other necessaries was chased by them, escaped, and got into the Harbour of Menadou (sic).
Upon this news I was detached with the Chevalier de Chamboir for the defence of the ship, having with us fifty soldiers and twenty cannoncers, The Chevalier was an extremely good natured man, very brave, but an excessively ignorant officer and he commanded the detachment. The favorable position of the small creck in the Bay of Menadou was so apparent that in a moment I formed a plan for our defence.
I proposed to bring the ship within the two points AA which are about forty feet high and about an hundred fathoms distant from each other, instead of having it without them B. Leave four of the cannons to garnish one side of the vessel moored across and place the other four two in battery upon each of the two points or capes, which so planked the vessel that it would have served as a curtain ; and by their height overlooking the English tenders from our two batteries upon them, our mousquetry and cannon would have successed their decks ; arriving at the sailors at the distance of a very small musket shot and killing them as partridges so soon as any of them appeared for the working of the ship. |
We had a vedette upon the Cape opposite to the Island KScatary, with frequent patrols all along the cost to the Bay of Miré, and we were in safety behind us by the thick woods to well assure [that the thick woods] that the English would not be so foolish to expose themselves to be cut to pieces shamefully in attempting rashly to cross through them.
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