er rode forward and began a harangue to the
Canadians in French. "Brave Canadians," said he, "give yourselves
over; we do not wish to do you any harm!"[32] De Salaberry, seeing
that his moment was come, sprang upon a stump,[33] discharged his
musket as a signal to begin, and brought the American officer off his
horse by the shot. The enemy at the time were exposed to being taken
on both front and side. The bugles blared, the front companies
immediately opened fire, and the battle was begun. Izard's force were
in the open plain, while their foes were hidden in a thick wood. The
squadrons of cavalry and four cannon which they had brought thus far
were found to be useless there. They, however, commenced a
spirited[34] fire in battalion volley; but, from the position of the
line, it was almost totally thrown to the right of the Canadians, and
of no effect whatever. They soon faced to the right, and filing up
with speed, changed their front parallel with the lines of
breastworks, when the engagement became general, and their fire
compelled the retreat, behind the front edge of the breastwork[35] of
a few skirmishers near the left, who had been rather advanced in the
centre of the line. This retreat being mistaken by the enemy for a
flight, a universal shout ensued, which was re-echoed, to their
surprise, by the Canadians and the Glengarry men in reserve under
Lieut.-Colonel McDonell. Now was the supreme moment of the battle. De
Salaberry ordered his bugleman to sound the advance. "This was heard
by Lieut-Colonel McDonell, who, thinking the Colonel was in want of
support, caused his own bugles to answer, and immediately advanced
with two of his companies from the third and fourth lines to the first
and second."[36] "All these movements were executed with great
rapidity." De Salaberry, at the same time, as a _ruse de guerre_,
ordered "ten or twelve buglemen into the adjoining woods with orders
to separate and blow with all their might."[37] The enemy, as De
Salaberry calculated, suspected that the Canadians were advancing in
great numbers to circumvent them. The Colonel, while giving these
orders, is said to have done so facing his men, with his back against
a tree.[38] The noise of the engagement towards its end brought on
Colonel Purdy's division on the opposite side of the river, which,
having driven in the picquet of sixty Beauharnois Sedentary Militia
under Captain Bruyere, were pressing on for the ford, whereupon De
Sala