Why should we exchange our warm house for your
cold forest?"
Colonel de Courcelles frowned. There was a humorous inflection in
Colden's tone that did not please him, and the young officer's words
also had a strong element of truth.
"It's not a time to talk about houses and forests," he said, somewhat
haughtily. "We have here a formidable force capable of carrying your
fort, and, for that reason, we demand your surrender. Indians are
always inflamed by a long and desperate resistance and while Captain
de Jumonville and I will do our best to restrain them, it's possible
that they may escape from our control in the hour of victory."
Young Colden smiled again. With Willet at his right hand and Robert at
his left, he acquired lightness of spirit.
"A demand and a threat together," he replied. "For the threat we
don't care. We don't believe you'll ever see that hour of victory in
which you can't control your Indians, and there'll be no need for you,
Colonel de Courcelles, to apologize for a massacre committed by your
allies, and which you couldn't help. We're also growing used to
requests of surrender.
"There was your countryman, St. Luc, a very brave and skillful man, who
asked it of us, but we declined, and in the end we defeated him.
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