The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-09-03 00:00:00

THE PRUSSIAN UHLAN.

A cyrrepondert of the Dailti Tdegraoh gives the
followirg Lraphic sketch of the Pruesian Uhlaui

The French appetite for picturesque character Is, however,
happy imatiab!e, and the arti-tic 'might of the spectators of
the .ar has not failed to pick out a personage whose in-
dividuality is a very msrked one indeed, partaking as it
does of • halforelodraniatic and hall-humorous type. This
la the Prussian Union. Ile is a horse solo ier—a lancer; and
the warrtorsof ht. name eith whom we have hitherto been
most familiar were the Austrian Utslans, in their scanty
white Mutes, their tight blue pstitaloons, and lace-up hoots.
The Prussian Utilan Of 1870 seems destined to fill in French
legend.sry chronicle the place which, dullr g the invasions of
was occupied by toe Cossack. It is not generally
known that when the lietman of the nom honks of the
Don and the Ukraine, old Platoff. visited England in the
train of the Allied Sovereigns, he was accompanied by I%
small ..pulk" of picked Cuwacks, who, monuted on tht ir
small weedy screws. and bearing their interminable lancee,
mounted guard day and Melt at the doe of the West-end
hotel shore their chief had his roil ?mice. Bat in France,
especially In Champagne, the C.,ssacks literally swarmed
diming the evil days which Ile •,tied and follow.ht
the flirt the end Napdetin. The Pr-clans likewise became
dimgreeably familiar with the ari, ct of these went,ur
can diem, and are Cosaque has teased into a populist Me-
wonl stguify tng a variety et things in the way of outrage
Maid pllege. It would appear, however, from strictly silted
evideime, that the Cossack of 1814 have Men IP elled, and
were not half so had as the Prussians : and indeed, apart
from the ferocity of their septet, the Hahne, of their
ywrsone, their imperfect ideas of the &Clarence between
owns and /nuns, and their &smelling Ludlum's for lamp oil
at d tallow candles, the followers of the Unman and Platoff
stem to h .se been decent fellows enough—and not nn-
frequently endowed with the heart that can feel for another.
One of the finest haPade of PE anger is "The Cossack's
Address to bit Horse ; " but the candlenatii g cavalier
must now pule his ineffec•ual fires before the Prus-
sian Unlan. Ifs is • great traveller. Nancy, Bar-
e-Due. Contruerey, Rheims, Chalons, SI Dialer, Chan;
mat, have all heard of hum. The Unlan makes
himself quite at horns, attl drops In, entirely in
• friendly way, on Mayors and corporations, aakieg
not only himself to dinner, but an indefinite numher
of additional Chian., who, he nye, may be esp c'ed hourly.
rhe Chian wears a blue unit° m tamed up eon yellow, aid
to the end of his lance is affixed a streamer Intimately re-
tem bling ant ry dirty white pocket handkerchief Sometimes
he hunts lit coup', a, sometimes he goes in threes, and some-
times In Oven. Wheu he lights upon a village i.e holds it to
rat arm; %lieu he corn, • upon IL city he captures it, maging
Ii IPeral'y the prisoner of his how and his spear. A writer
kaclittooa's Magazine I.llCe drove the people of Lai c &shire
to nisderas ny decmring, that in the Rebellion of 1745 Man-
chester "sat taken by a Soots sergeant and • we: ca ; but
Ills a imtoriens feet t het Nancy sehmitted without &murmur
to five Chian*, sod that hr to Pile wee occupied hy two.
When the Phlan arrives ii, a congerred city he visits tt e
mayor, nit ro•kes Ids usual inordowte teinands for meat,
drink, ai d cigars, if his demands are ,ceetied to, he
accept. ay rything with • grin If he is refused,
he reininks, likewise with a grin, that he will come
amain to morrow wi It three thousand light hum. men, PIA
hm gallops away ; hut in many cases he den cot retern The
secret of the fellow's, snorers lies mainly in hie unblushing
Iniperlence, hi• easy mendamty, lied that intuit, kilo *lidos
of every highway and byway of the country 11111:14 thank, to
the mrilnry organisation or the Pi ussian army he has sc.
quire(' In the regimental school. fie gi Vett himself rmt to ha
tne precursor clan. Int mineetly advaoclug army, eh n, after
eit, bets "lily a Mildly ad venter.. fr,m lance, who has rtd lea
thirty miles amen .ountry the chsnce of picking ups' me-
thing in the way of Wont di, nor victuals. Obly ot.e m• e
touch is needed to complete the portrait •t the Chian it,.
veritable name would seem robe Mans Breltmai.n, and his
vocation that of • hummer ; ' cud Hreitmann, we learn from
preface to Mr. Lelsn ha a nderful hailed, had • props-
type in a regimeht of Pi tin iylvanno vie& y by the name of
Jo. t, whore pi ofielency In ° intnintitig." other% ise • loot intr.'
in swearing, tighttrig, and driiikthe Lager , er, raised him to
a pitch of glory on the If- dare] side wh.ch excited at 01,C0
the envy arid the admti ation if the boldmt timhwhaeliersalid
the gauntest guerillas in the Confederate host.