The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1871-02-14 00:00:00

SIR 11. 0. WOLFF ON A VISIT TO TEIE
SEAT OF WAR.

On Tuesday evening Sir Henry Drummond Wolff,
K.C.M.G., delivered • lecture oaths war in the Church
Schoolroom, Pukesdown, on beh elf of the Mechanics'
Institute. The rsm was well filled. The it,,. T.
Anacreon occupied the chair.
Sir IinABY DIWYMIUMD WOLF, said he was with his
family, at Spa, Belgium, wings the war broke out.
On the 2nd of September, he and a friend went to
Bouillon. The town was in the greatest excitmont,
for they had just got uews of the Emperor's capitulation.
Next morning they started for Sedan. The village of
Ls Chapelle was filled with Prussians. Here in every
house and in the churches the wounded of both nations
were lying side by side. Going out of La Chapelle, we
saw lying across the road a dead horse, and noir that
• ZJUIIVO lying in the diteli, also dead; and from that
moment until we came close to Sedan we saw nothing
bat deed horses, deal men, and waggons overturned in
directiou, and farther on we came to • place
whieh had borne the brunt of the battle—a small hill
on the right hand side. The ditches on each side were
filled with deed, lying as if they bad taken refuge
there to die, being tired of life. Most of thorn were
lying on their side, with their heads on their arms, as
if they had endeavoured to take 110010 rest, and on the
hills ale we isAVI men also lying dead, some alone, others
in 111455014 Th. Germans had been buried, and there
were some French peasants and s•X011 soldier, eogagel
in burying the French, k more gba•itly ai.Mt is is
impomible to conceive. We sew half men, men who.°
faces had been partially blown away, with their eyes
still open, looking its though they had not been in pain,
the whole of the lower part of their (meg gone, their
shouldere smashed—in feet, any sight more owful it is
impossible to imagine. Any true who has seen • field
of battle can do nothing but deprecate war, feeling the
enormous misery it icvolves: We also saw other signs
of the people who had been destroyed. We found
lying about in heaps little books thet are given to
every French soldier on entering the service, in which
he keeps • sort of record of his life ; the bass part of
the two tunes of a pima of music played in the military
bands, a sword bayonet, • chsasepot rifle, a heap of
bullets of different kinds. I have some of them relics
here before me, and there were many more which we
might have taken, but we did 004 wish to have the
appearance of plundering the dead—swords, knapsacks
cartouche, boxes, cooking utensils, and letters lying
about which the unhappy soldiers had carried mu their
knapsacks. We read one or two of these letters, whioh
were most touching, some being from mothers to their
sons others from wives to their husbands. All slung
the ;road were Prussian troops marching on, prepared,
as they told us, "to go to Paris.". We entered Sedan.
The streets were one MIAs of French soldiery in • state
of utter disorganisation. They had been starving for
three days; wherever there was • hone they killed it,
and we could see them cutting out pieces of the flesh
so as to get something to eat; they were almost all
drunk. The sides of the streets were covered with the
arms of the soldieea. We saw them take up their
swords and guns and smash them against the sides of
the houses and the trees, howling at each other, the
'farms, half savage, half drunk, joining in this diabolicial
hubbub. We drove out of the place and by Le Cuapelle,
and then saw the whole cortege of the Emperor—a large
train of carriages and saddle horses, vans of lumelle.
and his own carriage in front, leading the way. Driv.
ing a little farther, we came to the Mil ef the cortege,
and arrived at Bouillon. The Emperor got down' and
went into the inn where we had been the night before.
We saw the Emperor at the window saluting the
crowd, who were much in his favour. We then pro.
ceeded to Libramont. About an hour afterwards the
Emperor came with his whole suite, and stopped at
the house of the principal officer of the place. Hu had
breakfast, and some time afterwards drove up to the
station to get to the train which WAS to take hist into
Germany. 1 was close to him, and sew him go into
the train and start off. I mention this, as • very curious
thing happened to me which probably has occurred to
no other person in England. In 1819 I was at Paris
with a friend; we were both young men, and went
there to 11101110 ourselves. The Emperor W4l then
Prince President; he had jast been elected President
of the French Republic. My friend was a gentleman
who has lately appeered mush before the public—Mr.
Otway, late Ceder Secretary for Foreign Affairs—and
be and myself were anxious to see the President on his
official entry. We spoke to a tradesman belonging to
the National Gaard,who offered to lend UA maakets, so
thet we might draw up with the National Guard and see
the Emperor arrive. The Guard had very little
uniform, and it was, therefore, not at all extraordinary
to see • man in plain elothes among them. I believe,
therefore, lam the only person in Eogland who saw
both the entry of the Emperor into Paris, and his
departure, as • prisoner, to Germany. Ab rut the 10th
or I.sth September, I started with Mr. Henry James,
member for Taunton, to Luxemburg. Proceeding to
Briey we saw a hospital containing the wounded. Some
were expiring, many were very badly injure I, end there
were coffins, stretchers, and all the apparatus of death.
The Prussians have an ides that no one but • recognised
soldier has a right to make war, and that if they find
• civilian with arms they have • right to shoot hitn
without even the form of a trial P 1 myself think
civilised countries mast protest against that prsatioe—
(cheers). If any foreigner invaded England, I for
one, and I believe all of you, would have • "pot
shot" at him, where we mould, whether from be-
hind a tree or from our own honied, in the endeavour
to resist the invaders of our homes (hear, hear).
Proceeding towards Mete, we entered St. Privet. All
the houses had been destroyed, and the church bad
been entirely demolished, except a part near the 'Hsi*.
The whole of the interior was one umas of kaiaks,
stones, pillars—ruins of every kind. Passing St. Priest
we came to large fields that had been used as cemeteries.
Here were barge MAMAS of knapsacks, cartouithe boxes,
and helmets; we could also see where thousands of
men had been interred, • thin coating of earth having
been thrown over them, not suffilient at times to hide
the heads and arms ; also horses, with only a few
shovels full of earth upon them. The smell was
frightful, and bred i pestiletiose which made great
havoc among the Prussian troops. At St. Marie we
spent the night in • hospital, the wall., of which were
splashed with blood; we had mattresses, ant they
gave me • bundle of woollen stockings for a pillow.
In the prineipal street of the 4DIVII was a space running
along by the side of the homes about ten feet broad,
which was of a dark colour, and this was the place
where 4,000 wounded men had Ida side by side;
and the dark line was mused by their blood. At night,
before going to bed we walked down the streets, and
heard from the windows the most frightful shrieks
and groans possible to conceive, and which no men
could imitate; these were uttered by the sufLrers
from horrible wounds caused by the jagged splinters of
modern 'boils. We then went to Nancy and Strasburg,
and through our gleams mw the whole of the latter city;
we saw the fire to and from she forts, and tee cathe-
dral marked with several cannon shots. Suddenly we
heard • " Whirr-r-r," and a shell came flying over our
heads, and then another came, but flew over the
houses, and we thought it time to retire. Neat day we
went to Wumemburg, and then to Saarbruok. We also
saw the fortress of Samba. About ten days afterwards
I started with Mr. Henry Denby Seymour and Mr.
Alfred Seymour, his brother, to Strasburg. One-third
of the town was a mass of ruins, the citadel was 00111.
pletely raged to the earth, there was not a street in
which some of the housed were not destroyed and not
• house that had not some mark of destruction. The
cathedral itself had escaped to a great extent, though
the outer roof was burnt, and the cross on the top of
the spire WM entirely bent, and some of the orna•
moms thrown down, We also visited Nancy and Tout.
Finally be said a Taint to the seat of war is not a Mae
Bet of curiosity. It teaches us what are the realities of
which we sometimes speak so lightly, In tunes of peace
we scold our children for waiting • cruet of broad, we
respeel the property of our neighbours, punish capitally
the shedder of blood, and look upon death a, an
appalling sight; but in time of war everything is
changed ;--thei rich harvests are laid waste, the villages
and homes of thousands are destroyed, robbery is con-
sidered almost • virtue, and Killing is • cause of

rejoicing.
CIiCIILIWI proposed a sordial vote a thanks to
Sir floury Drammen,' Wolff.
gir H, 1). WoLYI Choir responded and invited those
Kraut to 'aspect the various ratios which he had
brought with him from the seat of 11‘1.