in 1785, he was handed an important-looking document. It was a parchment
with the King's seal attached, his commission of ensign in the 8th
Regiment. Isaac at once joined the regimental depot in England. It was
evident that his lack of learning would prove a barrier to promotion. He
found that much of the leisure hitherto devoted to athletic sports must
be given to study. Behind "sported oak," while dust accumulated on
boxing-glove and foil--neither the banter of his brother officers nor
his love for athletics inducing him to break the resolution--he bent to
his work with a fixity of purpose that augured well for his future.

In every man's life there are milestones. Isaac Brock's life may fairly
be divided into five periods. When he crossed the threshold of his
Guernsey home and donned the uniform of the King he passed his _first_
milestone.




CHAPTER III.

FROM ENSIGN TO COLONEL.


In every young man's career comes a time of probation. During this
critical period that youth is wise who enters into a truce with his
feelings. This is the period when influences for good or bad assert
themselves--the parting of the ways. The sign-posts are painted in
capitals.

When Brock buttoned his scarlet tunic and strapped his sword on his hip,