The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-10-29 00:00:00

THE WAR.

BERLIN, Oct. 5.
Yesterday Ilataine's negotiations with Pruasia were con-
blued independently of. and in opposition to, the proceed-
ings of the Republicun Government.
Scheleetadt capitulated yesterday, and 0,400 priaoners and
120 guns were taken.

The railway from Orleans to Paris vrW shortly be repsired.
Paris is being explored by Prussian balloons.
Bazaine's first proposition through Boyer win that he and
his field army should be permitted to leave Men on condi-
tion of not fighting easiest Germany for thne months. The
originsi ganison of Metz sea. to retain possession of the
fortress. Thi. proposition was declined, but the negotiations
may not yet be regsrded as at an end.

Mizty irench officers on parole have just reported them-
selves to the Prussian commanders before 51etz, requesting
to be sent to Germany, as the Republicans will 11:101 permit
them to keep their word of honour.
Weans must pay a contribution of 1,500,000 francs.
Etampes pays 40,00 francs for cutting telegraph wires.

SCIIRTRIN. Oct 2.5.
The Emperor of Ruut• has sent the following telegram to
the Grand Luke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin :
" I request thee to accept the Order of St. George, third
claws, which thou haat so well merited. Gott grant that the
wax may soon be ended by • lasting Peace."

THE MISSION OF GENERAL BURNSIDE.

The following official explanation of the mission of
General Brwnside has been published, dated Paris,
October 16 :

"General Burnside, an American officer, whose name is
thrrounded with a legitimate renown, arrived in Parts on
the lid of October. lie had passed through the Prussian
Head Quarters, and was the bearer of a letter from Count
Bismarck to the Minister for Foreign Affairs. This letter ex-
clusively concerned the complaint made by the members of
the Diplomatic Body residing In Paris, and who had de
mended that they should be allowed to send despatches to
their respective Government. once a week. General Burn-
side had no official capacity, and it was his own idea, and
yielding to some generous impulse, for which we are grate-
ful to him, that he endeavoured without any commission to
effect some conciliatory arrangement between the hostile
partiee. Within these limits a conversation arose, and we
may here remark that such conversations, devoid of all ofn.
dal character, coull not without very serious inconvenience
be made known to the public. The Government well under-
stand. that every one must be 11113210111 to learn the facts
which may Influence our situation. It, however, thinks it It,
duty to cover with an indispensable discretion those matters
which are in course of accomplishment, and have not as yet
had any result. This rule of common sense it would be cul-
pable to infringe. It may, however, be added that during
the second visit which General Burnside paid to the
Minister for Foreign Affairs, and at which the Governor of
Paris was present, the nature of the conversation was the
same. General Burnside was not the bearer of any letter
from Si. 13iamarck, nor was he nitrated with any verbal
message. But from the conversation It was clear that the
views of the Chancellor of the North German Confederation
werethe same as they were at Ferrßres, and that if he con-
sidered an armistice as practicable for the convocation of au
Assembly he would grant it for the actual space of 44 hours
only ; that le would refuse to include Mete in it; that he
would prohibit all re-victualling; and that he would ex-
clude from the election, our brave and unfortunate country-
men of Alsace and Lorraine. The journalist, who accused
the Government of having rejected an acceptable armistice
will probably be ashamed of his temerity; we leave te pt blic
opinion to judge with a just severity those who by such cul-
pable mameuvres endeavour, happily in vain, to weaken the
national defence."

DIVINE SERVICE AT VERSAILLES.
" The chapel of Versailles, the last work of Mozart,' says
the Guttie, Is condemned by Saint Simon for Its want of pro-
portion, is very theatrical, very rich, and, to my mind, has •
smack of • heathen tomato about it Paintings by Silvestre,
lionchardon, Jouvenet, and Boliouque at the sides of the
Apostles, Saint Theresa en extase, St. Louis tending the sick,
the vaulted cheoet with &Resurrection by Leto's.), the Descent
of the Holy Ghost by Jouvenet, the olums with Coypel's
' Pere Elerneldand ea gloire,' do not at all contribute to aPer
that impression which is created by the columns and gilding
and bronze work of the interior. There was • chair placed
for Ills Majeety In front of the altar, and another chair
on the left of It for the Crown Prince. Shortly before
ten o'clock his Royal Ilighneas accompanied by his Staff
appeared in his place, and several members of the
Grosserhaupt Quartler of His Majesty the King were
also present, but after • while an announcement
MIA made that the King could not attend Divine service In
the chapel, and the service proceeded according to the
Lutheran form. BM it was not for the first time, I think,
that a heretical service had been performed there, nor was It
for the first time either that stout Protestant hymns rolled
throughthe vaulted roof. The music was very good. There
Is a line organ, which was touched by a master hand. The
association of ideas in such • form Is, however, rather Ms-
tracting. The chaplain's sermon, fervent and eloquent, was
rather of the 'sword of the Lord and Gideon' character, how-
ever. But what can • military chaplain do—above all, if he
preached; before • Crown Prince, leader of hosta, and victor
In many fields/ 'lithe Lord had not been on our Mc's, well
may Israel say,' A:c., can scarcely be applicable to Pruselaand
to her Mlle.. Their armies have always esceeded the forces
of that audacious and lately overweening France, which pro-
voked the contest.“—Correspondent of The Times.

ENOL'GH OF TV!

Yesterday, the hest batch of deeertere came out of Metz.
lies,, you to judge of the effect their presence produced.
was not at all surprised to recognise amongst the twenty-
three miserable wretches my two old friends the Zmaves
who so obstinately refused to be exchanged last month, when
that exchange took than. into Metz. They were assembled
outside his Royal Highness Prince Frederick Charleis quar-
ters, where they underwent a series of interrogatories which
they answered most freely, and apparently without hesita-
tion. The reason why they had deserted, they said, was, first
of all, because the work was too hard, and the food too
scanty. The next—and what seemed to be the principal—
reason was, that liszaine was organising an attack upon our
position in this direction, for widen they bad been told off.
They had fought enough, they Bald, especially when they did
not know exactly for whom they were lighting and they
preferred • Germsn prison to want, starvation, exposure, and
bullets. One of my Zonave friends, whoa he heard that
Prince Frederick Cherie. was standing near them, asked that
he should be pointed out, sod upon this being done, he took
off Ms fez and, waving it In the air, shouted, "yore Is
Prune ' vice to Prince Frederic Charles ! ' The other., how.
ever, did not join In the chorus, but muttered, sotto race,
Viva la France!" From this incident hopes are once more
entertained of • speedy capitulation.—Correapondent of
Dady Telegraph.

PLAYING AT "DOCTORS AND WOUNDED !"

"Some troops were camped in the wood under canes.—
the only Instance in which I have seen tents used during the
campaign. The men, though in a tolerably exposed con-
dition, were cooking their dinners, laughing and chatting as
. merrily sa though out on a pio-nic at home. It is astonishing
how soon and completely men become accustomed to
danger In proportion as the chance of losing your life in-
creases, the value which you attach to it diminishes. Ire-
member a very curious instance of this at Strasburg. A
Mend of mine had occasion to go in with a flag of truce.
Els went out, however, while • heavy fire was going on, up
to the most advanced post upon the road. There, within
about eighty or • hundred yards of the enemy's linee, a small
party of soldiers were ensconced behind some stacks of
wood; and how do you think they were occupying themselves
So pass the time? Why, by playing at ' doctors and
wounded They went through the whole business. One
man suddenly fell down and rolled about In the agony of a
dreadful wonn,i ; two others immediately came up, lifted him
carefully, and carried him off the field—not that they could
in reality go very far, the sine of their theatre being limited
by the dimensions of the stack of wood. A surgeon then ad-
vanced and commenced to probe and examine the wound,
causing the sufferer to give vent to terrible cries of pain, upon
which one of the bystanders said, "hush, you fool,
don't you know that you are shot through the stomach, and
are half dead 7 You are much too bad to scream like that."
—Correspondent of Daily Tekgraph at Versailles.