ughtily rejected the advice of the "provincial colonel," as he called
Washington. The army moved on, recrossed the river to the north side, and
continued the march to Duquesne. The news of the British advance had been
carried to the fort by Indian scouts. The French at first thought of
abandoning the post, but they decided to attack the British with the aid
of Indian allies. De Beaujeu led the French and Indians. The British were
proceeding in fancied security when the forest rang with Indian yells,
and a volley of bullets and flying arrows dealt death in their ranks. The
regular troops were thrown into confusion, and Braddock tried
courageously to rally them. Washington showed the admirable qualities
which afterward made him victor in the Revolution. Cool and fearless amid
the frantic shouts of the foe and the panic of the British soldiery, he
gave Braddock invaluable assistance in endeavoring to retrieve the
fortunes of the day. The provincials fought frontier fashion, nearly all
losing their lives, but not without picking off many of their enemies.
Beaujeu, the French commander, was killed in the opening of the
engagement. Of eighty-six English officers sixty-three were killed or
wounded; and about one-half the private soldiers fell, while a number
were made prisoners. For two hours the battle raged, until Braddock,
having had five horses shot under him, went down himself, mortally
wounded. Then the regulars that remained took to flight, and Washington,
left in command; ordered a retreat, carrying with him his dying general.
Braddock died three days after the battle, expressing regret that he had
not followed the counsel of Washington. The British prisoners were taken
to Duquesne, and that evening the Indians lighted fires on the banks of
the Allegheny River, near the fort, and tortured the captives to death.
An English boy who was a prisoner at Duquesne, having been previously
captured, and who afterward related his experience in a narrative, a copy
of which the writer has examined, says that the cries of the victims
could be heard in the fort. The boy himself was subjected to closer
confinement than usual, apparently for fear that the savages might demand
that he be given up to them.

CHAPTER XIV.

Expulsion of the Acadians--A Cruel Deportation--The Marquis De Montcalm
--The Fort William Henry Massacre--Defeat of Abercrombie--William
Pitt Prosecutes the War Vigorously--Fort Duquesne Reduced--Louisburg
Again