The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-08-13 00:00:00

Ebt cstouttribge 04serutr.

SATURLAY, AUGUST 13, 1870.

THE GREAT PRUSSIAN VICTORIES.

The news we elsewhere give of the leading
incidents of the present ois,stroue war must be
admitted to be of vast importance. It is
scarcely too much perhaps to say that the first
great events of the was nate turned out contrary
to general expectation; certainly they have been
contrary to a very generally entertained feeling
immediately after the declaration of the war.
It was admitted on all hands that the French
were as rapid within first movements as was the
Emperor in declaring rear; we heard a good dein
of tire rapidity of their equipment, transit, and
marching; and we heard a good deal too of
French dan. Putting tuese facts together with
the weii-known reputation for what we cal,
" dasU," it was naturally expeeLett that tee
Frenen would iminediateiy act on the offensive
and gain at least the first great battle. but un-
accountable delay and inaction imaracterised
the French forces, and the aliair at Saarinuck,
in whicu they gained a fruitless victory, has
been followed by two disastrous defeats.
. .

On t'se atm o-f
the present mouth the forces
tinder the Crown Prince ot Prussia stormed
Weissennurg and lteisburg, repuleiti„., and d.s-
'writing toe Fiench muter ueuersi Mao ...anon.
General A .m Jimmy was limed, and a neve 800
prisoners s•eve captured by tue victorious Prus-
sians. Wei,seubur, is us fortified town, only it
dozen miles from the Reins, and was an import-
'
tit position. The attack on it ...ppears to have
been ueexpected by the French, and certainly
they were unprepared for it. At daybreak the
Prussimis suddenly opened a cannonade on the
town. ticheral D,uumy ordered an immediate ad-
vance. A Fcench correapondent of the Courtier
du limo linin says ; The soldiers immediately
moved forwsrd, leaving Manna them their knap-
sacks, ami oil thea impediments. The French
troops aid only three vies. The enetmt.'s artil-
lery was formidable, and poured tt. perfect shower
of shot and she i..to our railks ; our soldiers
took shelter ;behind the fariultauses near Weis-
senburg, bit tite en. ..I)'s art" Try ;on itisaniged
them. They were crushed bennath the number
of the Greiimme. which hourly w.tat on increas-
ing, and amounted to 8..0,000 or 100,000 men."
There is evidentiy exaggeration here as to the
numbers of the Prussians, but there can be no
exaggeration in the account which the SAII:t'
writer gives of the sufferings of the French, and
of the harmless and helidesa inhabitants of the
neighbouring Magee. The defeat of the
French was nu:toubted, end their losses must
have ken severe. Incidentally, this is shown
by the strange effort of the F. eilei/ authorities
to Mirka the news ; it was purposely kept back
for ati tr.. ant %A `1:11 I:1-t the truth became
known there Via 4 stimuli I, rible excitement in
Park that the French Ministry soon determined
that the Parisiana aboual have the news, good
or bad, as soon as it arrived. Aim the next nows
that canto was indeed au had that sizeult .ncously
with its (AMA proclamation, earls was declared
in a state of siege. On the 6ta lost the forces
nailer toe Crown Prince ..f Prussia encountered
those under Marshal Mae %Wien, ...en had been
reinforcA by corps under Du illy and Castro-
her', 11Cdr at the foot of tile thin of
the Voager mountain-i. It ni thought that her.