United States or United States Minor Outlying Islands ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
At a conference late one night at Essex-house, to which Whitlocke and Maynard were invited, the Scottish Chancellor Loudoun moved the business warily in a speech which Whitlocke mischievously tries to report in its native Scotch "You ken vary weele that Lieutenant-general Cromwell is no friend of ours," &c. "You ken vary weele the accord 'twixt the twa kingdoms" &c.
Circumstances had led Washington to think that Lord Loudoun "had received impressions to his prejudice by false representations of facts," and that a wrong idea prevailed at head-quarters respecting the state of military affairs in Virginia.
I am informed by the Assistant Secretary of War that Loudoun County has a large population of Quakers, who are all favorably disposed to the Union. These people may be exempted from arrest. "U. S. GRANT, Lieutenant-General." "MAJOR-GENERAL SHERIDAN, Halltown, Va.: "Telegraphed you that I had good reason for believing that Fitz Lee had been ordered back here.
The British have been long in the habit of treating the Americans contemptuously. It began as long ago as 1757, when Lord Loudoun, General Abercromby, Admiral Holborne, Admiral Boscawen, Lord Colville, Sir Jeffry Amherst, and General Wolfe, came over here to cut the wings and tail of the wild descendants of Englishmen, in order to make of them a kind of sea poy soldiery.
The Countess of Loudoun in her youth chose for her husband Earl Moira, one of the plainest-looking and most gallant officers in the British army. The parting shortly after their marriage, in order that he might rejoin his regiment on active service, was the occasion of the popular Scotch song, by Tannahill, "Bonnie Loudoun's woods and braes."
Such stories were poured into our ears at Vienna, but a couple of days' duty there demonstrated their falsity and we were hurried back to Fairfax Court House and sent off on a day and night march through the Loudoun Valley to Aldie, Middleburg and Ashby's Gap in the Blue Ridge mountains.
The season was now too far advanced for Lord Loudoun to enter upon any great military enterprise; he postponed, therefore, the great northern campaign, so much talked of and debated, until the following year; and having taken measures for the protection of his frontiers, and for more active operations in the spring, returned to New York, hung up his sword, and went into comfortable winter-quarters.
Loudoun and Abercrombie, with an army of thousands of men, which could have taken Canada with ease, thought only of keeping out of Montcalm's way, pleading in excuse that they feared to trust the "provincials" who had thus far done all the fighting that had been done, and won all the successes.
With that intuitive sagacity which he possessed above most men for recognising ability in others for the purpose in view, he chose General Amherst, Admiral Boscawen, and Brigadier-General Wolfe, not because of their aristocratic or political influence, but because of their military capacity, the want of which in Loudoun and Holbourne had brought disaster upon the English arms.
Against him was pitted the acute and discerning Montcalm, in command of the French, who, by the destruction of important forts, and checkmating Loudoun at Louisburg, soon put the latter on the defensive.
Word Of The Day