The letters of the Governor and those of the General, it will be seen, contradict each other flatly at several points.  Montcalm is sustained by his friend Bougainville, who says that the Indians had a great liking for him, and that he “knew how to manage them as well as if he had been born in their wigwams."[483] And while Vaudreuil complains that the Canadians are ill-used by Montcalm, Bougainville declares that the regulars are ill-used by Vaudreuil.  “One must be blind not to see that we are treated as the Spartans treated the Helots.”  Then he comments on the jealous reticence of the Governor.  “The Marquis de Montcalm has not the honor of being consulted; and it is generally through public rumor that he first hears of Monsieur de Vaudreuil’s military plans.”  He calls the Governor “a timid man, who can neither make a resolution nor keep one;” and he gives another trait of him, illustrating it, after his usual way, by a parallel from the classics:  “When V. produces an idea he falls in love with it, as Pygmalion did with his statue.  I can forgive Pygmalion, for what he produced was a masterpiece."[484]

[Footnote 483:  Bougainville a Saint-Laurens, 19 Aout, 1757.]

[Footnote 484:  Bougainville, Journal.]

The exceeding touchiness of the Governor was sorely tried by certain indiscretions on the part of the General, who in his rapid and vehement utterances sometimes forgot the rules of prudence.  His anger, though not deep, was extremely impetuous; and it is said that his irritation against Vaudreuil sometimes found escape in the presence of servants and soldiers.[485] There was no lack of reporters, and the Governor was told everything.  The breach widened apace, and Canada divided itself into two camps:  that of Vaudreuil with the colony officers, civil and military, and that of Montcalm with the officers from France.  The principal exception was the Chevalier de Levis.  This brave and able commander had an easy and adaptable nature, which made him a sort of connecting link between the two parties.  “One should be on good terms with everybody,” was a maxim which he sometimes expressed, and on which he shaped his conduct with notable success.  The Intendant Bigot also, an adroit and accomplished person, had the skill to avoid breaking with either side.

[Footnote 485:  Evenements de la Guerre en Canada, 1759, 1760.]

But now the season of action was near, and domestic strife must give place to efforts against the common foe.  “God or devil!” Montcalm wrote to Bourlamaque, “we must do something and risk a fight.  If we succeed, we can, all three of us [you, Levis, and I], ask for promotion.  Burn this letter.”  The prospects, on the whole, were hopeful.  The victory at Oswego had wrought marvels among the Indians, inspired the faithful, confirmed the wavering, and daunted the ill-disposed.  The whole West was astir, ready to pour itself again in blood and fire against the English border; and