One of them recognized him,
saw the streaming blood, and shrieked, "_O mon Dieu! mon Dieu! le
Marquis est tue!_" "It's nothing, it's nothing," replied the
death-stricken man; "don't be troubled for me, my good friends." _("Ce
n'est rien, ce n'est rien; ne vous affligez pas pour moi, mes bonnes
amies.")_
NOTE: There are several contemporary versions of the dying words of
Wolfe. The report of Knox, given above, is by far the best attested.
Knox says that he took particular pains at the time to learn them
accurately from those who were with Wolfe when they were uttered.
The anecdote of Montcalm is due to the late Hon. Malcolm Fraser, of
Quebec. He often heard it in his youth from an old woman, who, when a
girl, was one of the group who saw the wounded general led by, and to
whom the words were addressed.
_Force of the English and French at the Battle of Quebec._--The tabular
return given by Knox shows the number of officers and men in each corps
engaged. According to this, the battalions as they stood on the Plains
of Abraham before the battle varied in strength from 322 (Monckton's) to
683 (Webb's), making a total of 4,828, including officers. But another
return, less specific, signed _George Townshend, Brigadier,_ makes the
entire number only 4,441. Townshend succeeded Wolfe in the command; and
this return, which is preserved in the Public Record Office, was sent to
London a few days after the battle.
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