OF THE LATE PROFESSOR ROBIS0N. 499 



ken part, or to gather, from the imperfect recollection of his 

 conversation, the scenes in which he was actually engaged. I 

 have heard him express great admiration at the cool intrepi- 

 dity which he witnessed, when the fire-ships, sent down the 

 stream against the English navy, at anchor in the river, seem- 

 ed to present a wall of fire, extending from one bank to ano- 

 ther, from which nothing that floated on the water could 

 possibly escape. Without the smallest alarm or confusion, 

 the British sailors assailed this flaming battlement in their 

 boats, grappled the ships which composed it, and towed them 

 to the shore, where they burnt down quietly to the water's 

 edge. 



An anecdote which he also used to tell, deserves well to 

 be remembered. He happened to be on duty in the boat 

 in which General Wolfe went to visit some of his posts, the 

 night before the battle, which was expected to be decisive of the 

 fate of the campaign. The evening was fine, and the scene, 

 considering the work they were engaged in, and the morning 

 to which they were looking forward, sufficiently impressive. 

 As they rowed along, the General, with much feeling, repeat- 

 ed nearly the whole of Gray's Elegy, (which had appeared not 

 long before, and was yet but little known,) to an officer who sat 

 with him in the stern of the boat ; adding, as he concluded, 

 that " he would prefer being the author of that poem to the 

 " glory of beating the French to-morrow." 



To-morrow came, and the life of this illustrious soldier was 

 terminated, amid the tears of his friends, and the shouts of his 

 victorious army. Quebec fell of course ; and soon afterwards 

 the fleet under Admiral Saunders, sailed for England. When 

 they arrived on the coast, they were informed that the Brest 

 fleet was at sea, and that Sir Edward Hawke was in search of 

 it. Without waiting for orders, Admiral Saunders sailed to 

 reinforce Hawke, but came too late, the celebrated victory 



over 



