It was an amazing era in Europe and well may Fraser have feared for the young Lieutenant’s safety.  While the boy was writing, Napoleon Bonaparte, with the lustre fresh upon him of a recent gorgeous coronation at Paris as Emperor of the French, was gathering at Boulogne a great army and hundreds of small boats with which this army might, he hoped, be thrown across into England within twenty-four hours.  That country was very nervous but, for some reason, Tom’s regiment, instead of being kept at home to meet the invader, was sent to Gibraltar.  Here he remained inactive while world-shaking events were happening, while Trafalgar and Austerlitz and Jena were fought, and Pitt stricken with “the noblest of all sorrows,” grief for the seeming ruin of his country, told those about him to “roll up the map of Europe,” and died heartbroken.  Not unnaturally at such a time Gibraltar seemed dull; a miserable place, Tom thought, a prison on a large scale.  His friends wrote him letters containing an abundance of good advice, all of which he took with becoming modesty.  A letter from Fraser of this character is still excellent reading; his counsels to the young soldier have added weight when we remember that the author was with Wolfe at Louisbourg and Quebec and now, nearly fifty years later, was still active in the militia forces of Canada.

     Malcolm Fraser to Lieut.  Thomas Nairne

     From Murray Bay, 7th October, 1805.

     My Dear Godson,—­

I had the very great pleasure of receiving yours of the 5th April last at this place on the 15th September and as your sister Miss Christine has wrote you I must refer you to her for the news of Murray Bay.  She left this for Quebec a few days ago and every thing continues to go well here and I hope will do so.  Your mother improves your estate daily and if she lives ten years I am convinced that she will make it worth double what it was ten years ago and if after a peace, when I hope you will have a company, you can get exchanged into a Regiment serving in this Country without losing rank, you will by that means have an opportunity of examining your own affairs here and it will give the greatest pleasure to your mother and other relations and friends within your native country, and particularly to me, should I happen to live so long.  Christine has I suppose wrote that you are now an uncle, your sister Madie having been delivered of a fine boy about two months ago, and I have the pleasure to tell you that she and her husband seem to be very happy and, tho’ I did not at first approve of the match, that I am now quite reconciled to it as are all her friends here, as well as those in Scotland as far as I can learn.

Now as to yourself:  tho’ I had some objections to your going into the army so very young, yet now that you have become a soldier, I hope you will continue to follow the military life with ardour and Emulation as far