Their route now led up French Creek to Fort Le
Boeuf, on the head-waters of that stream. This they reached
on the 12th, after a wearisome experience of frontier
travel. Forty-one days had passed since Washington left
Williamsburg.
The commandant here was M. de St. Pierre, an elderly man, of
courteous manners, a knight of the order of St. Louis. He
received Washington cordially, treated him with every
hospitality while in the fort, did everything except to
comply with Governor Dinwiddie's order to leave the works.
Washington's instruction were conveyed in a letter from the
governor of Virginia, which asserted that the lands of the
Ohio and its tributaries belonged to England, declared that
the French movements were encroachments, asked by whose
authority an armed force had crossed the lakes, and demanded
their speedy departure from English territory.
St. Pierre's reply was given in a sealed letter. It declared
that he was a soldier, his duty being to obey orders, not to
discuss treaties. He was there under instructions from the
governor of Canada, here he meant to stay. Such was the
purport of the communication. The tone was courteous, but in
it was no shadow of turning.
While the Frenchman was using the pen, Washington was using
his eyes. He went away with an accurate mental picture of
the fort, its form, size, construction, location, and the
details of its armament.
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