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Acadie to Nova Scotia; but they took no measures for settling it with other inhabitants till the year 1749, when Colonel Cornwallis was appointed its first Governor, and carried from England a number of people who he settled at Chebucto, which he named Halifax, after the noble Earl who was then First Lord for Trade and Plantations. France, seeing the steps taking by England in settling the country, and dreading the influence it would give us with the savages in the neighborhood of Canada, took every measure in their power to retard its progress. To this end they sent an officer with some troops from Quebec, in 1750, to encourage and support the Acadians and savages in impeding the English settlers. In this design they succeeded so well that in 1755 they became hardy enough openly to take part with the French in defending their garrison of Beausejour, which had been built in 1751 on a hill at the bottom of the Bay of Fundy, within three miles of Fort Lawrence, fortified by the English the preceding year. The former was taken the end of May or beginning of June, 1755, by four hundred British and two thousand Provincial troops, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Robert Monckton. The French garrison were allowed to go to Louisburg; the Acadians to their respective homes. But Admiral Boscawen, then commanding a considerable fleet at Halifax, with Colonel Lawrence, the Governor of the Province, soon after determined on sending all the Acadians out of the country, and sent orders to Lieut.-Colonel Monckton to embark them. He, in consequence, issued a proclamation commanding them all to appear at Beausejour (now Fort Cumberland) on a given day when, not suspecting the purpose, they were surrounded by troops and the men shut up in the fort, the women and children suffered to return home, there to remain till further notice should be given them. In the meantime transports were preparing to carry them out of the country. In September I was directed to proceed with a party of Provincials to the Baie Verte, then a considerable and flourishing settlement, there to wait further orders, which I received on the following day, to collect and send to Beausejour, for embarkation, all the women and children to be found in that district, and, on leaving the town, to fire it; this painful task performed, I was afterwards employed in victualling the transports for their reception; the season was now far advanced before the embarkation took place, which caused much hurry, and I fear some families were divided and sent to different parts of the globe, |
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