icing their lives so nobly,
wept with us, but remained as firm as rocks in their resolve. We had,
at last, realized the fact that the threatening ruin was frowning upon
us, and that it had struck at our very hearts.

"On the day of their departure, the noble young men received the holy
communion, kneeling before the altar, and they listened to the
encouraging words of the old curate, while every one wept and sobbed
in the little church. After having told them to serve the king
faithfully and to love God above all else, he gave them his blessing,
while big tears rolled down his cheeks. Alas! how could he look upon
them without emotion and grief? He had christened them when they were
mere babes; he had watched them grow to manhood; he knew them as I
know you, and they were leaving their homes and those that they loved,
never, perhaps to return.

"They departed from St. Gabriel, sad but resolute, and as far as they
could be seen, marching off, they waved their handkerchiefs as a last
farewell. It was a cruel day to us, and from that moment, everything
grew from bad to worse in Acadia."

Chapter Four

Threatening Clouds Overcast the
Acadian Sky

_The Elders of the Colony Meet in Council
to Discuss the Situation_

"Six months passed away without our receiving the least intelligence
of what had become of our brave young men. This contributed, not a
little, to increase our uneasiness, and to sadden our thoughts, for
we felt in our hearts that they would never return. Our forebodings
proved too well founded," said my grandmother, with faltering voice,
"we have never ascertained their fate. We knew, however, that the war
was still progressing, and that the French were losing ground every
day. The English directed all their efforts against Canada, and seemed
to have lost sight of Acadia in the turmoil and fury of battle. In
spite of our anxiety and apprehensions, the peace and quiet of the
colony remained unruffled. Alas! we had been lulled to security by
deceitful hopes, and the storm that had swept along Canada, was
about to burst upon us with unchecked fury. Our day of trial had
dawned, and, doomed victims of a cruel fate, we were about to undergo
sufferings beyond human endurance, and to experience unparalleled
outrages and cruelties."

Our grandmother, at this point, was overcome by her emotion and hung
her head down. Awed into admiration, mingled with reverence, for her
noble sentiments and for the ar