The Sun.
London, England, 1871-01-20 00:00:00

THE LATE SORTIES.

The correspondent of the Times with the Crown Prince
of Saxony's Army furnishes pretty full details of the last
sorties from Paris. In a letter dated the 14th, he says :
The Guards are at Blanc Mesnil, Le Bourget, and Pont
Iblon—all dangerous posts—and they had to bear the
brunt of the attack last night and this morning. On
laoking to the map, the reader will find that Blanc M esnil
lies about a mile to the north-west of Aulnay, and Pont
Iblon about half a mile to the north-west of Blanc
Mesnil, and close to the Imperial road from Lille to Paris.
Last night, at half-past ten, the Forts of St. Denis, the
Fort of Aubervilliers, Fort Romainville, and Fort Noisy
all opened a very strong fire on the three posts I have just
named, and immediately afterwards the Guards at Le
Bourget observed an advance of French from the direction
•of Drancy. In the darkness they could not judge of the
number of the coming foe, but as field artillery formed a
portion of the attacking force they judged it to be con-
siderable. While the main body advanced on Le
Bourget, wings were stretched out in the direction
of Aulnay and Pont Iblon. The field batteries of the
Guards at once began firing, and the three siege
batteries on the line between Aulnay and Dugny also
poured forth projectiles on the enemy. A body of French
infantry made directly for Le Bourget, and the infantry
of the Guards, of which I believe there were eight com-
panies, prepared to encounter them at the entrance of the
village. ,At this time the wings of the attacking party
each of which had field artillery, directed shells
and a chassepot fusilade on Aulnay, Pont Ihlon,
and Blanc Mesnil, evidently with the object of pre-
venting the troops at these posts from going to the assist-
ance of the Guards at Le Bourget. Several shells fell at
Aulnay, but the powerful 24-pounder battery between that
village and Blanc Mesnil kept the enemy hack, and a
large body of Saxon troops only awaited the order to pro-
ceed to Le Bourget. The siege battery between Pcnt
Iblon and Dugny rendered the advance of the French on
the latter post impossible ; indeed, it is believed that there
• was no serious intention on the part of the latter to break
the line at either Aulnay or Pont Iblon. Their operations
in this respect were only a demonstration with the
object of keeping the Guards at Le Bourget from
being reinforced. On the near approach of the
enemy to Le Bourget they were met with such a

determined rifle fire from the Guards that, after
wavering once or twice, they were obliged to retreat to a
considerable distance. It being now past 11 o'clook, the
Guards thought that the attempt to burst through the
line of investment had been relinquished, though the fire
of the Forts and of the French field batteries was still kept
up. But no. Shortly before 12 the French infantry
again advanced, and again endeavoured to force their
way into the village, and again the Guards
received them with a deadly fusillade. Num-
bers of them fell dead and wounded, and after
a struggle of some 20 minutes' duration the attacking
party retired for the second time. For the next half-hour
there was another artillery combat, during which the
wing which had been spread out in the direction of Pont
Iblon closed in towards the French centre. After mid-
night a third attempt was made to take Le Bourget. The
French infantry approached in greater numbers than on
the two former occasions, and Prussian reserves were
summoned from Pont Iblon. They approached Le
Bourget with a band playing at their head ; and when
their music and tramp were heard there the French made
a precipitate retreat ; and thus the first of the night
sorties was brought to a close. The artillery on both sides
kept firing for some time longer.

January 15, 2 a.m.

A terrific fire has just broken out from the French
Forts and the intrenchment s between the forts and the
batteries at Drancy. There is a sharp fusillade in the
direction of Bondy, and round to our right and left. It
is clear that the line of the Prussian Guards and that of
the Saxons have been attacked simultaneously. All our
batteries are firing, and the houses in the village are
shaking to their foundations. The m9rning is frosty, but
not very dark for this time of year. We hear the shells
in all directions, and sheets of flame are illuminating the
whole line of the Soissons Railway.

3 A. M.

The telegraph and mounted troopers from the outposts
inform us that there is another sortie on Le Bourget from
Drancy, that the French, coming from Groslay farm and
Bondy, are advancing on Nonneville at the outskirts of
the forest, and from Rosny on Villemouble, and towards
Gagny by way of the base of Avron. They have brought
out field batteries in all those directions. They have
two guns on Avron. The siege cannon from Aulnay to
Dugny are opposing their approach in that
direction ; there is an infantry fight at Le Bourget ; the
batteries at Rainey are firing on Bondy, while those on
Montfermeil are shelling the artillery and infantry
on Avron. It is believed that reinforcements will
not be necessary; but everthing is in readiness for
the march of a whole army to the assistance of the
outposts.

3.30 a.m.

The French have been repulsed at all points. Le
Bourget and all the other fortresses attacked an hour
ago are still in the hands of the Germans. A dozen
French prisoners have been taken at Nonneville ; the
German loss is believed to be very small. The reserves
are dismissed to their quarters. The siege batteries are
still firing, but we are used to that now.

AFFAIRS IN THE SOUTH-EAST.
LYONS, Jan. 10.

The Army of the East fights with great spirit. The
news is confirmed that Bourbaki has carried the last of
the fortified positions which intercepted his advance on
Montb6liard, and to-day will take place an encounter
which will decide its fate. The Prussians have
spared no pains to defend it, for once Montbgliard
is taken the approaches to Belfort will be no longer
tenable by the assailants. It is said to be part of
Bourbaki's. plan that Garibaldi's corps should turn
Montbeliard and take the assailants of Belfort
in the rear. The Germans lost heavily in the actions
which followed Villersexel. The peasants say the ground
was strewed with corpses. Twelve hundred prisoners
were captured and sent to Besancon and Dijon. They be-
longed to Zastrow's corps. The Baden troops, who were
decimated in the Cote d'or, took the second line, and fell
back between Montbdliard and Belfort. While Bourbaki
and Cremer attack Montbelietrd in force, Bressolles will
turn the position on the left as Garibaldi will
have doze on the right, so that these two generals will
find themselves together in the rear of the corps which
besieges Belfort. Bourbaki's army is divided into four
corps, those of Bourbaki, Bressolles, Garibaldi, and Cremer.
The mobilised legions of the Rhone are to join Cremer.
The Breton Legion, which is 1,500 strong, and has
several mitraille-uses, has gone to the Vosges, Bourbaki
having asked for them as scouts. Correspondence with
Belfort is carried on -pretty regularly from Porrentruy.
One man has carried between 200 and 300 letters, at two
francs per letter—six profitable journeys. The garrison
musters about 12,000 men, and the besiegers 25,000, partly
Prussians, partly Bavarians and Badois.
The 3rd battalion of the Garde9 Mobiles of the mouth
of the Rhone, which has garrisoned Bonn, in Algeria,
since the beginning of the campaign, is expected here.
With it will arrive a complete battery of artillery,cannon,
cases, and rifled breechloading bronze cannon. This
magnificent battery is a present to the Government
of National Defence from the Maritime Compagnie des
Messageries. Under a Government order, the Prefect of
the Rhone has just made a requisition of coaches in all
the Communes. They are to be sent to Chalon and
Besancon. Walewski, commandant of the Corps des
Vengeurs, who fled into Switzerland with his company's
funds, will be brought to justice.

A correspondent of the Times with the German army
says that Chanzy's forces seem inferior to those with which
he resisted the German advance at Beaugency.
A letter from Pesth, in the Cologne Gazette, states that
General Schweinitz, the North German Ambassador,
dined with the Emperor of Austria on the I2th. The
Emperor made inquiries as to the health of the King
of Prussia, and warmly praised the Prussian army and
its generalship.
A private letter, written from the neighbourhood of
Paris, and dated January 13, says : " Do not expect the
fall of Paris too soon. ' There's many a slip,' says the
proverb, and Trochu may hammer on until February for
aught that I can see. The war is likely to be a longer
and more doubtful affair than our German friends
expected in November. The fall of Paris will
not end a struggle like this, nor is it clear what Ger-
many is to do after her final triumph—if it ever come
—at Bordeaux."

General von Goeben succeeds Manteuffel in the northern
command. He has only three divisions under him, and
will probably remain on the defensive, unless Faidherbe,
in attacking him, meets with a decided defeat, and has to
seek shelter in one of the northern fortresses. In this
case Goeben will probably follow him, and throwing a line
of investment round the French general's refuge, rest con-
tent with holding the Army of the North virtually
prisoners.—Standard Correspondent.

The complaint recently addressed by the French Pro-
visional Government to the Court of Vienna that a large
number of Austrian railway waggons were being employed
by the Germans for the purposes of the war has led to an
inquiry by the Prussian authorities. The result at which
they have arrived is, that Austrian waggons have hardly
ever been used by the German authorities, but that a large
number of such waggons were on French territory at the
outbreak of the war, and on the advance of the invading
army were sent into western and southern France, where
they are still employed for military purposes. It is hoped
that the Austrian Government will demand the return of
this rolling stock.
The correspondent of the Daily News is sorry to saY
that drunkenness is on the increase in the German army
besieging Paris. "In the active campaign preced-
ing the siege you would hardly ever see a man drunk—now
hiccoughing gentlemen, making a staggering exit from the
shop tenanted by a marketender, are far from uncommon•
There is more than cause for this. The men in a siege get
inexpressibly ennuye, and somebody has said that the
climax of ennui is delirium tremens or suicide. Perhaps
even a stronger cause is the want of beer, and the conse-
quent necessity, if a man drinks at all, to take glass after
glass of rotgut rum, schnapps, or arrack."