CHAPTER III.
Herald, save thy labor; Come thou no more for ransom, gentle herald; SHAKSPEARE.
The arrival of some fishermen on the following morning confirmed the intelligence of father Gilbert--the name by which the priest, who succeeded Father Ambrose, had announced himself at the fort.

They had eluded the enemy by night, and reported that several vessels lay becalmed in the Bay of Fundy; and, though they had not been near enough to ascertain with certainty, no doubt was entertained, that it was the little fleet of M.la Tour, returning with the expected supplies.
The holy character and mission of father Gilbert was his passport in every place; and, as his duty often called him to remote parts of the settlement, and among every description of people, it was natural that he should obtain information of passing events, before it reached the ears of the garrison.

The mysterious manner in which he had communicated his intelligence on the preceding evening, occasioned some surprise; but Mad.

la Tour, in listening to the relation of her page, made due allowance for the exaggerations of excited fancy; and she was also aware, that the Catholic missionaries were fond of assuming an ambiguous air, which inspired the lower people with reverence, and doubtless increased their influence over them.

Till within a day or two, father Gilbert had never entered the fort; but he was well known to the poor inhabitants without, by repeated acts of charity and kindness, though he sedulously shunned all social intercourse, and was remarked for the austere discipline, and rigid self-denial to which he subjected himself.
The spirits of the garrison revived with the expectation of relief, which was no longer considered a matter of uncertainty.