about ten o'clock
We could hear the faint reports of musketry and the dull growl of cannon , but could not tell whence they came . Soon we discovered scattered figures stealing along under the shelter of the hill towards the point of red , and as they drew nearer could distinguish the blue and grey of our Canadians and the head-dresses of Indians . At length spurts of smoke began to leap from the bushes all along the crest of the hill opposite us , extending far beyond the point where the red had been , and , from the sensible increase in the firing , we judged the battle had begun . But about ten o'clock we heard such a general discharge of cannon and musketry , and marked such instantaneous movement along the line of skirmishers , that we knew what we had taken for the battle was but child 's play . Suddenly the confused noise and firing were dominated by one sharp roar like to the clap of a thunder-bolt , followed by a second , and then by a long rolling fire . To this succeeded cheers , different from any we had heard before , above which I caught the shrill skirl of the bagpipes , while a great cloud of smoke slowly rose and drifted to and fro in the heavy air . Out of this , on a sudden , burst a screaming mob of men in mad , death-driven disorder , some sweeping towards the St. John 's Gate , while others plunged down over the side of the hill to gain the bridge of boats .