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“Major Holland told me that my father was applied to know whether his body should be preserved to be buried on shore, he replied: ‘Apply your pitch to its proper purpose; keep your

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lead to mend the shot holes, and commit me to the deep .

The initials, J.G.S., John Graves Simcoe, are appended.

This document was presented to me by a (laughter of General Simcoc, and to her this auto— graph memorandum of her father constituted its chief value.

Governor Simcoc, we may observe, uses the expression Major Holland; this probably indicated his rank as an officer of the Royal Engineers. He was, as must necessarily be the case with officers in that department, a lover of science.

While the siege of Louisburg was being prosecuted, Abercrombie and Howe advanced on Ticonderoga. On July 5th they started from the head of Lake George and were in position before the fortress on the following day, when Lord Howe was instantly killed in action. On July 7th an assault was ordered which ended in failure and a retreat with heavy loss. Fort Frontenac was captured by Bradstreet on August 27th, Oswego was again temporarily occupied, and the erection of a new fort commenced at Stanwix. Forbes was also successful at Duquesne, which post he found abandoned on his arrival there on November 25th. With the exception of Ticonderoga the British plans had been success- fully carried out. Holland continued his surveying operations in the vicinity of Louisburg until the close of the season, when he went to Halifax where he was employed in the plotting of his surveys and making of plans.

During the winter of 1759 Holland was employed in supervising the erection of a palisaded fort at the mouth of the River St. John on the Bay of Fundy. In April, 1759, some of the scattered garrisons in Acadia received not fication that they were to proceed to Louisburg and join an expedition against Quebec under Wolfe. The fleet, comprising twenty-two ships of the line, with frigates, sloops-of—war and transports under Admiral Saunders, sailed from England early in April. In May the entire fleet, with the exception of ten vessels deputed to intercept French vessels, was assembled at Louisburg and shortly afterward sailed for Quebec, the last ship sailing on June 6th. The fleet arrived in the Vicinity of Quebec during the last week of the month and part of the army of 9,000 men was landed on the Isle of Orleans. After several engagements, skirmishes and feints, VVolfe’s troops scaled the heights above Quebec and on September 13th was fought on the Plains of Abraham the battle that gave the death blow to New France. Montcalm and Wolfe, the two commanders, lost their lives in this decisive engagement. Holland had accompanied Wolfe from Louisburg and was with him on the battlefield. He wrote about 1784 as follows: “In the battle on the 13th of Sept. your memorialist lost his protector while holding his wounded hand at the time he expired, who for reasons (best known to Mr. \Nest the painter) your memorialist was not admitted amongst the group represented by that artist, as being attendant on the General in glorious exit, but others are exhibited in that painting who never were in battle.”

That Holland was a favourite with Wolfe there can be no doubt. He presented Holland with a brace of duelling pistols, suitably inscribed, which in later years brought tragedy to the recipient. These pistols are now preserved by a descendant of Major Holland at Charlottetown, P.E.I. Wolfe promoted him to a captaincy on August 24th, 1759.

In the Canadian Historical Review of March, 1923, appeared a new account of the death of Wolfe, edited by Dr. A. E. Doughty, Archivist, Ottawa. This