hundred men, with a convoy of provisions, was actually on his march to throw himself into the town on the 18th, that very morning on which it was surrendered. The place was not then completely invested, as the enemy had broken the bridge of boats, and posted detachments in very strong works on the other side of the river St. Charles. The capitulation was no sooner ratified, | than the British forces took possession of Quebec on the land side; and guards were posted on different parts of the town, to preserve order and discipline; at the same time Captain Palliser, with a body of seamen, entered the lower town, and took the same precautions. Next day about a thousand prisoners were embarked on board transports, which proceeded to France with the first opportunity. Meanwhile the inhabitants of the country came in great numbers, to deliver up their arms, and take the oath of fidelity to the English government. The death of Montcalm, which was indeed an irreparable loss to France, in all probability overwhelmed the enemy with consternation, and confounded all their counsels; otherwise we cannot account for the tame surrender of Quebec to a handful of troops, even after the victory they had obtained for although the place was not regularly fortified on the land side, and most of the houses were in ruins, their walls and parapets had not yet sustained the least damage; the besiegers were hardly sufficient to complete

the investiture; a fresh army was assembled in the neighbourhood, with which their communication continued open; the season was so far advanced, that the British forces in a little time must have been forced to desist by the severity of the weather, and even retire with their fleet before the approach of winter, which never fails to freeze up the river Saint Lawrence.

Immediately after the action at the Falls of Montmorenci, General Wolfe had despatched an officer to England, with a detail of that disaster, written with such elegance and accuracy, as would not have disgraced the pen of a Cæsar. Though the public acquiesced in his conduct, they were exceedingly mortified at his miscarriage; and this mortification was the greater, as he seemed to despair of being able to strike any other stroke of importance for the accomplishment of their hope, which had aspired at the absolute conquest of Canada. The first transports of their chagrin were not yet subsided, when Colonel Hale arrived in the ship Alcide, with an account of the victory and surrender of Quebec ; which was immediately communicated to the people in an Extraordinary Gazette. The joy which this excited among the populace rose in proportion to the despondence which the former had produced all was rapture and riot; all was triumph and exultation; mingled with the praise of the allaccomplished Wolfe, which they exalted even to a ridiculous degree

BETWEEN seven and eight in the morning, Catherine arrived at St. Petersburg, to reign as the despot of the largest empire in the world, having set out summoned by the mere word of a common soldier, driven by peasants, conducted by her lover, and attended by her waiting-woman and her hairdresser.

It was necessary to cross the whole city to reach the barracks which stand on the east of it, forming on this side a veritable camp. Catherine went straight to these two companies of the regiment of Ismaïloff which had already taken the oath. The soldiers had not yet come out of their rooms, as it was feared that all might be lost by declaring too soon. The empress alighted on the road which runs round the barracks, and while her attendants hastened off to announce her arrival, she crossed, leaning on her waiting-woman, a large space which separates the barracks from the road. She was received by some thirty soldiers, who issued forth in confusion,

buttoning on their coats or in their shirts. This sight astonished her; she grew pale, and was seen to tremble. But in spite of this emotion, which only rendered her more touching, she said to them "that she came to throw herself into their arms; that the emperor had given orders to kill her and her son; that the assassins had already set out to execute this order." All, with one voice, swore to die in her defence. The officers ran up; the crowd increased. She sent for the priest of the regiment, ordering him to bring a crucifix. This priest came, pale and trembling, with his crucifix in his hand, and, scarcely knowing what he was doing, received the oath of the soldiers.

Major Chapeloff, who had been counted upon, did not come, and the first order given by the empress was that some one should go to say she had no need of him, and that he should be put under arrest. The subaltern officers everywhere went to their companies, and made them take up arms. It is remarkable that of the large number of officers who had given their word, a single one, Pouskine, had the misfortune or the weakness to fail to keep it. The empress went round this sort of camp formed by the barracks, and passed by each of the three regiments of foot-guards, a guard so formidable to its sovereigns; which, formerly composed of foreigners by Peter the First, was his surety against the factions of his own subjects, but which now, augmented in number and wholly made up of Russians, had already thrice disposed of the regency or of the crown. As she advanced from the barracks of Ismaïloff to those of Simonoski, at the head of the former regiment, the soldiers, whom she only excited the more in touching upon her peril, cried out that marching at their head she was not safe, and formed themselves into a hollow square around her.

Throughout the cantonments, only two officers of the regiment of the Ascension, Préobajinski, opposed their men, and were made prisoners. Passing before the prison of this regiment, where the

the empress sent to release him. And this man, who was preparing himself to suffer every torture without making any disclosure, had the shrewdness to distrust the message, fearing that it was only a snare to extract from him in his surprise some avowal of the conspiracy, and refused to come out.

The three regiments being assembled, the soldiers shouted houra! thought the whole enterprise was achieved, and demanded to be allowed to kiss the hand of

the empress. She quieted this foolish enthusiasm by pointing out to them graciously that at this moment they had other things to do.

Orloff had hastened to the artillery regiment, a numerous and very formidable body, of which almost all the soldiers bore some honourable decoration for having been present at the bloody battles against the King of Prussia. He presumed sufficiently on the influence which his office as treasurer would give him among the soldiers, to hope to be able to make them take up arms; but they refused to obey him, and asked what their general said. This was Villebois, a French refugee, a great master of artillery and engineering, a man of signal valour and of rare probity. Once loved by Catherine, he believed himself to be so still. It was through him that, even in the time of her disgrace, she had procured for Orloff the post of treasurer, so useful to her designs. But Orloff, wishing, no doubt, to

break the connection of this man with the empress, had excluded him from the conspiracy. He was at this moment at work with some engineers. One of the conspirators came to tell him that the empress, his sovereign, commanded him to come to her at the guards' barracks. Villebois, astonished at such an order, asked, "Is the emperor dead?" The emissary, without answering, repeated the same words; and Villebois, turning to the engineers, said to them, Every man is mortal," and followed the aide-de-camp.

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Villebois, who till now had flattered himself that he was loved by Catherine, arriving at the barracks and seeing her surrounded by this crowd, felt deep vexation to find that such a great project had been formed without his being even taken into confidence. He adored his sovereign, and seeking to convey some kind of reproach, under the excuse of the feigned or real difficulties which he would find in aiding this enterprise through the misfortune of not having been in the secret, "You ought to have forewarned me, Madame," he said-she hastened to interrupt him, and replied with the most chilling pride: "I have not sent for you to be told of what I should have forewarned you, but to ask you what you are going to do." He fell on his knees, saying, "To obey you, Madame," and went off to make the artillery take up arms, and to put the empress in possession of all the arsenals.

Of all those whose attachment to the emperor was known, only Prince George of Holstein, his uncle, was in the city. An aidede-camp went to inform him that there was a rising at the barracks; he was dressing in haste when he was arrested along with his family.

The empress, now surrounded by ten thousand men, got into the same carriage, and, knowing the character of her people, led them to the principal church of the city, where she alighted to perform her devotions. Thence she repaired to a vast palace which on one side borders the river bank, and on the other looks out upon an immense open place. This palace was surrounded on all sides by soldiers. At the opening of every street were placed cannon with matches burning. The crossways and other posts were occupied by bodies of the guards; and to prevent the emperor being acquainted with what was going on, a detachment was sent to close a bridge which leads out of St. Petersburg to that part of the country where the prince resided; but it was too late. In such a large city, one man only, a foreigner, had thought of warning the emperor; he was called Bressan, born in the principality of Monaco, of a family belonging to that country, but naturalised in France; in Russia he had made use of the name of Frenchman to secure for himself a better reception and protection there; an intelligent and honest man whom the emperor had taken