He was accompanied across the Atlantic
by a large reinforcement, consisting of nearly 14,000 regular troops, and
an ample supply of munitions of war. He at once began to set on foot those
active operations against the British in America which were followed
up with such unremitting vigilance throughout the greater part of the
following three years.
The state of affairs in Canada at this period may be briefly summarized
as follows:--The Government was administered by the Marquis de
Vaudreuil-Cavagnal, a man ill-fitted for so onerous a position in such
troublous times. The colony extended from the seaboard to the far west,
through the valley of the Ohio, and had a white population of about 80,000.
Previous to Montcalm's arrival there were 3,000 veteran French troops in
the country, in addition to a well-trained militia. The country, indeed,
was an essentially military settlement, and the people felt that they might
at any time be called upon to defend their frontiers. The countless tribes
and offshoots of the Huron-Algonquin Indians had cast in their lot with the
French, and were to contribute not a little to the success of many of their
warlike operations.
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