But Wolfe was soon to have a task set him quite to his liking.  He came to his quarters one day with eager, shining eyes; and so soon as he saw him, Julian knew that he had news to tell.

“The batteries upon Lighthouse Point are next to be silenced.  We must gain the command of the harbour for our ships.  If we can once do that, the day will be ours.  I am told off to this task, with twelve hundred men.  You and Humphrey are to go with me.  We must march right round the town, under cover of night, taking our guns with us.  By daybreak we will have them planted behind the French battery; by night, if all goes well, we shall have gained possession of it.”

The troops were all drawn up in order for the night march, full of hopeful anticipation.  They had that kind of confidence in Wolfe which the commander inspires who is not made but born.  Humphrey, whose skill in finding his way in the dark, and whose powers as a guide had been tested before now, was sent on in advance with a handful of men, to give warning of any impending peril to be passed or encountered.  He had the untiring energy of a son of the forest, and the instinct which told him of the proximity of the foe before he saw him.

But the march was uneventful in that way.  The French had fallen back upon the town.  Their fears now were for the very fortress itself, that fortress which they had so proudly boasted was impregnable alike by land and sea!  Before the dawn of the morning Humphrey came back to the main body, seeking speech with Wolfe.

“They have abandoned their battery on Lighthouse Point.  It is ours without striking a blow.  They have spiked their guns and gone!  We have only to take possession, mount our guns, and the command of the harbour is ours!”

A shout of triumph went up from the men as this fact became known.  Gaily did they push on over the broken country, doing what they could in passing to level the way for the transport of the cannon in the rear.  By dawn of day, they were full in sight of their destination, and saw indeed that it was deserted, and only awaited their taking possession.  With shouts and cheers they dragged up their guns and set them in position.  They fired a salute to tell their friends that all was well, and sent a few shots flying amongst the French ships in the harbour, to the no small consternation of the town.

But Wolfe could not be idle.  The task set him had been accomplished without his having to strike a blow.

“We must unite our line, and silence some of those batteries that protect the town on the land side,” he said to his men.  “The guns and the gunners, with a sufficient force for their protection, will remain here.  We have sterner work to do elsewhere; and whilst we are pushing our lines nearer and nearer, I would I knew how they are feeling within the walls of the town.”

“Let me be the one to find that out and report,” said Julian eagerly.