AVERTISSEMENT

Les lettres de Bourlamaque à Levis qui forment la première partie de ce volume, ont une importance historique qui n’écliappera à personne. Grâce à l’oblipeance de M. Parkman, de Boston, j’ai pu y ajouter un ■complément qui leur donne une bien plus grande valeur ; je veux dire la correspondance de Montcalm avec Bourlamaque. La notice suivante, écrite par M. Parkman, fera connaître comment le savant historien a obtenu la copie de cette correspondance.

“ Many years ago I was told that an important collection ■of autograpli letters of tlie Marquis de Montcalm was in the hands of some person in Paris ; but I was unable to gain tlie slightest due to the name or address of the fortunate liossessor. At length I heard that the collection was sold to a foreigner, who, my informant had been told, was an Englishman. I inquired of the rejiresentatives of the Montcalm family, but they could give no information, thougli they had heard of the existence of the letters. As the greatest collector ■of manuscripts in England was the late Sir Thomas Philipps, I thought it likely that he might hâve been the purchaser, and examined the printed catalogue ofhis vast collection, without finding what I sought.

“ It was about fifteen years since I had heard of the letters, and ail my attempts to trace them had failed, when a gentleman connected witli the British Muséum kindly oflered to