The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-10-15 00:00:00

"THE INSTRUMENTS ARE HERE, THE DANCE MAY
BOON BEGIN!"

Herr Wschenhusen, writing on the 27th from Ver-
sailles to the Cologne Gazette, says

"We were occupied It the chateau of !tendon in emptying
some.! Plan-Non's 'Prince Napoleon's; bottles of wine when
the Crown Prince appeared and conversed with each of no In
his lively, winning manlier. ' the instruments are here, the
dance may soon begin,' he recently remarked I may add
that the Bavarians have brought • few mitrailleusee here,
which will be used in the contest. It will be a frightful spectacle
if it comes to • bombardment and • storm; but let it happen
to-day rather than to-morrow, for all are desiring the end....
At my hotel the old ladles are still weeping their bitterest tears,
whenever bootees, allows them a moment's leisure. They
ask monstrous prices for their red wine., bet they are ob-
liged to entertain us for of a day, and console themselves
514th the expectation of better times. . . . The Parisians
must have Immense stores et ammunition, for they shoot
with absurd Tepidity. It is scared, credible that Paris can
hold cut longer than a month, but every contingency mutt
be provided for." Other German correspondents state that
the soldiers amuse themscives with dressing up lifealse
(Wires, which they send out from mock batteries, and at-
tract a warm cannonade from the besieged. . . . The
balloon post ar oars to be no regularly carried on that 1111
officer recently received a letter bearing the Paris po.tmark
which had come by that means. It wa, from an uncle in
Paris. Thus family correspondence le beginning in this
unionist fashion. The balloons, however, are not free from
attack. Whenever oee leave. the city, some of the German
c vratry pursue it far into the territory not occupied by the
troops, In order to catch it when it falls This has in two
LAM been succeuful, official correspondence thus falling
Into the hands of the Germans. . . The chateau of
Prince Napoleon at Menden, on being taken possession
of by the troops, was found to be mined. Three
large barrels of powder were found, whidh were, of
course, immediately removed. A German patrol was
addressed the other day, on the other side of the Seine, In
German, by • French patrol, who bid him tell his brother, •
German Jager, that he had bees for, 01 to enter the French
army. "Can't you," I e added, "fetch us over ? There are
many of us Grimm. here, who are only waiting for you to
come and fetch us." Re is supposed tote • locksmith, who
had been working in Parts, and was pressed into the army, as
Information from prisoners shows that foreigner. have been
so treated.

EVERYTHING NEARLY READY !

The Sfeafsanzeiger remarks thtt the reetoratlon of the
blown-up bridges on the way to Parte, especially between
Ls Free and Nleaux, has remorsd the last hindrance to the
conveyance of parks of siege artillery. Everything has now
left Berlin, and the attack on the outwork. may be Imme-
diately expected. " The siege of a sapital containing two
millions of inhabitants,' it says, "I. an undertaking which
recently would have been pronounced by many an Impotsl-
billty. A view of the fortresses of Eastern Prance now
shows as captured—Strasbnrg, Toul, Martel, Vary, Sedan,
. . . .

Leon, LUtz;lateln, Lichtenah, and Wissenbonrg as be-
leaguered. Phalsburg, Bltche, Scissona ; as watched or in-
vested, Paris, Mete, Tutouviilo, Mtelre., alontmfdy,
Verdun, Longwy, Schelestadt, and New Briiach. Thus nine
strongholds are already in German hands, while twelve are
still untaken." The opinion at Berlin Is that the siege of
parts will only hit a few weeks, and the threatened
resort to explosive snbitanees and street barricades excites
no apprehenalons. Preparations are, however, made for •
winter campaign. The expectation of an early peace Is
shown by the arrangements for the meeting of the Itileherath
n November.

A NUNS PREDICTION IN 1808!

The Celestite/leen., publishee a document of a prophetical
character which just at the present moment possesses • more
than ordinary Interest—a prediction well known In certain
parts of France as "the prophecy of Blois." ft was made
In 1808 by an I'll.lloe nun of that city, and she foretold
that troubles would come upon both Blois and France in
1848 and in 1571. The former part of her prediction has come
true ; and therefore there is • probability that the latter part
of it also may be realized. While foretelling terrible troubles
to France in the present year, the non went on to predict
Zr snureur accord A et la France, and added that he should he
a man whom the country did not expect. According to her
prophecy, the !pan& amateurs were to begin after the middle
of July—it will be remembered that the war dates from just
before that time—and before the vintage. The troubles fore-
told were to affect the capital especially, in which there was
to be a fearful light and very greet massacre. " Both good
and bad will fall in battle, for all the men will be called out
and only the old men left In the place. The time," adds the
nun, "will be abort; for the women will prepare the vintages,
though the men will return to complete the work. Meantime
no news will be obtained, rumpling through private letters.
Presently, three couriers will arrive at Blois, of whom the
first will bring tidings that all is lost, the second will be In
too great • hurry to stop at all, and the tided, who will come
by fire and water "—probably, that is, by reillway—.. will be
the bearer of good news. A 7'e Deans will then be sung, such
as never hae been heard before but this Te thorn will not
be lo honour ot blue who reigned at the Mat, hut for the
esclour granted (accord) to France." The prophecy of Blois
ende by a statement to the effect that "the Prince will not
be there ; they will go and seek him elsewhere; and after the
Prince has ascended the throne, krance will enjoy peace and
prosperity for twenty ream"

A GERMAN EXPLANATION.

The German papers took no notice at the time of the sen-
sational account given by Belgian and French provincial
papers of the passage through Rheims of the body of an un-
known personage of distinction, at first supposed lobe Count
Moltke, and afterwards (teetered to be the Duke of Nassau.
It now appears that they had the best of reasons for their
silence. The Berlin correspondent of the Cologne Gazette
thug disposes of the story —A few days ago the French maw
the coffin of the Duke of Nieman, richly adorned. canted away
from Mead-ciaarten. The Duke, _however, Weems been pi,.

sent with the army, and his offer to takepart in the campaign
only existed in i newspaper paragraph, without any founda-
tion. The truth is that the Duke placed hls chateau at
lildbrlch at the disposal of the wounded, and subscribed •
Collaiderable um to the fund for their relief. Ile hu likewise
kept open the places of those soldiers of his suite who are
taking part in the war till their return."

LIBELLING THE GERMANS !

We ( Times) have received the following letter, dated Ver-
sailles, Head Quarters of the Prince Royal of Pounds, Oct. 3,
em. :—•.t as. shows some two days since a copy of a Lon-
don paper containing a most m1.11431,0un libel on the Ger-
mans awl their conduct during this war. It was evidently
written by a partisan of the French, but nothing more In-
jurious to the French wounded could have been published.
This you will understand when I state that the letter in
question contained two false statements—first, that the burn-
ing of handles was entirely wanton and unprovoked;
secondly, that the treatment of the French wounded
was cruel or inhuman. Now, as the fortune of wag
has from the first been onesided, a consequence has been
to place nine-tenths of the French in German hos-
pitals ; therefore any succours intended for them
must be sent to the German Ambulance Ibmarlment.
But, if credence were given to such statements tithe one In
question, it would result in the withholding the said succours
from the only piece where they could hoof me, Now, lam
able, from personal knowledge, to deny both these state-
ments. A. to the most important, that of the treatment of
the French wounded, nothing could be more kind and Impar-
tial than the treatment .1 all the wounded, French and
German. I have had occasion both to write and read Inuss-
merable le. ten to be a. tit by the French wounded to their
friend., forwarded by the Feld-post, and they were all tilled
with expressions of the warmest gratitude. So. in the in-
terest of the French wounded in the German hospitals, please
give publicity to this statement of mine —Yours truly,
JoliN IsO IIAVILLArIP, Comniamler of St. John of Jerusalem,
serving With the German Ambulance."