The Sun.
London, England, 1871-02-04 00:00:00

THE SUN LONDON, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 41 1871.

departments was reserved until a further understand-
ing. On Wednesday Count Bismarck offered to M.
Jules Favre a cessation of hostilities and the esta-
blishment of the line of demarcation to the Swiss
frontier in consideration of the surrender of Belfort,
with the free departure of the garrison, but up to
this moment this offer has not been accepted."

Canton. The captain of the brig called the crew on deck,
and advised them, as he thought their vessel was sinking,
to get on board the Canton. The men did not do so, but
tried to get the vessels clear. The captain walked aft, and
nothing was seen of him until his body was found on the
beach, It is supposed that while attempting to get on
board the barque he fell into the water. The jury returned
a verdict to that effect.

ST. DENIS AFTER TIIE BOMBARDMENT.
From St. Denis, February 1, the special correspondent
of the Daily News at the Saxon Headquarters writes :
The history of the siege of St. Denis is the history of the
siege of Paris in miniature. According to the lights
which we have at present regarding the latter great
event before its commencement the garrison of each fort
consisted of three artillerymen, a commandant, and
a few military tailors and shoemakers. When
the siege began, St. Denis did not share
greatly in the tremors of her big sister ;
she was girt by het forts; and she believed in
them. Adm iral La Ronciere Was appointed to the
command, and sailors and artillerymen came and manned
the forts. In the early months of the seige St. Denis was
tolerably quiet. ' Food gradually got dearer. The people
came to horseflesh about two months ago, and to bread
rations ten days ago. The world is familiar with
the death-throes of Paris—those of St. Denis have been
similar, but more intense, because of the prevalent poverty
of the inhabitants. The bombardment came on the
town like a thunder-clap. The corporation were fiercely
abused for not having given warning, which it was alleged
it was in their power to do. Whether this was the case I
do not know, and as far as the corporation goes it mattered
very little, for its Mernhers ail ran away when the bom-
bardment commented. Nobody had any respon-
sibility ; with a few noble exceptions; nobody
troubled himself except about the wholeness of his
own skin. The Admiral Commandant concerned himself
with his forts—the people might go hang for him. The
members of the International Ambulance accepted the
situation ; took their lives in their hands, and went out
to do what good they might. They dragged the maimed
and shattered out of the ruined houses ; they collected
the corpses from the streets and the ruins, and
buried them with some semblance of decency. They
went round the town urging on the people that the women
and children should go forth from the doomed town, and
retire into Paris. The women and children were
huddled into the semi-security of the cellars. The shells
were crashing into the streets, and avalanches of stone
and brick were ever crashing upon the side walks. The
women peeping forth shudderingly declared that they
would rather die where they were than incur
a more certain and fearful death by sallying
forth into that iron tempest. So they turned into the
dark caverns to hunger and cold, and cuddling their child-
ren to their bosoms, utterly refused to budge. The Pasteur
Sa,glier Went so the Commandant, and begged that he
would allow him to go out as a parleinentaire to the Ger-
mans, to ask for two hours' cessation of the bombard-
ment, to give the women and children a chance to get
away without being struck down as they went. The
Admiral refused, and the ruthless devilry went on. Then
the Pasteur sent an appeal to the Paris journals, begging
all who possessed means of conveyance to send them into
St. Denis to remove the perishing women and children.
The response was but weak, and there appeared not a
solitary representative of those ambulances whose mem-
bers took delight in flags, and gave themselves to the
vanities— of buttons and uniforms. About half-a-
dozen private vehicles turned up ; and with the help
of these bile sick and wounded were got out of the hospi-
tals in the town, and located in two large factories on the
plain between St. Denis and Paris. Then children fol-
lowed, and women great with child such as cared to go,
till the plain-houses became like caravanserais. Mean-
while the few vehicles belonging to this ambulance
were toiling assiduously in conveying to the rear
the wounded struck down at guns ; a few men,
and a few only, as far as I can learn, toiling with a zeal
and energy that merited better support. As for the bold
National Guards, their location was the wine-shop.
Therein they imbibed the courage that prevented them
from creeping into the cellars ; and when their cups had
made them reckless, they sallied out into the streets, only
to give the ambulance more trouble with their worthless
carcases. Not a few were killed as they staggered
about ; others were brought to the ambulance wounded,
indeed, but as drunk as lords. The more I have seen of
the forts of St Denis, the more am I convinced that the
Germans might have taken them easily by assault, with-
out the troublesome preliminary of a bombardment.
The people profess their blank wonderment that we
did not storm. For days at time the forts were
totally denuded of troops, save a few artillery. There
could then have been no infantry fighting, and the range
of the guns once passed, the defences of the entrances to
the forts were utterly contemptible. Perhaps Admiral
La Ronciere, taking everything into consideration, was jus-
tified in notifying that he could not face the enemy, with
guns and men, two days longer. In the hurry of evacua-
tion there was left in a casemate a quantity of biscuit and
cognac, which the German troops at once discovered.
Further explorations convince me that the town
has suffered even more severely than I at first supposed

THE GERMANS AND THE FRENCH FORTS.
The special correspondent of the Telegraph sends the
following from Versailles, dated Feb. 1 :—The surrender
of the army of General Bourbaki is here considered as an
additional argument should the French be unwilling
to make peace. If the South, which has not yet
seen anything of the horrors of war, should re-
solve to prosecute the strife, the entire power of the
new Empire in Germany will be exerted to over-
rule and devastate the country. Should the French
people, after the conclusion of the armistice, accept the
German arrangement, one of their Army Corps must be
distributed around the walls and in the forts. The
Emperor William visited Mont Val4rien yesterday, but
he will not remain with the army in person after the con-
clusion of the armistice. Should the French prolong the
contest, it will be pursued rapidly and relentlessly,
without any impediment, excepting the occasional lack of
ammunition. The army will live on requisitions drawn
from the country. Prince Frederick Charles, General
von Manteuffel, and General von Fackenstein are indica-
ted as the commanders to whom will be entrusted the task
of conquering the South. The general plan of the cam-
paign, as usual, will he drawn up by Von Moltke ; but a
large discretion in the execution of that plan will be
made in favour of the commander who has made his
name and prowess so well known in the East. Many
people come out of Paris, but few enter, The report of
yesterday, that 400 National Guards had escaped from
the city, is utterly untrue. Twenty-four persons
only passed the lines, and of these only one was a
man of any note. M. Jules Favre went into Paris
last night, and will return to Versailles to-day.
His first visit to the German Head-quarters is
grandiloquently described in the issue of the Afonzteur
Officiel. It is said that when M. Favre arrived, three

persons were waiting for him—the Emperor, Count
Moltke, and Count Bismarck—and that " Count Bismarck
had-the presumption to ask him to dinner." The article
goes on to say that " M. Favre drew himself to his fullest
height and sternly looked upon his host." The plain
truth is that on the same momentous occasion Count
Bismarck had been invited to dine with the Crown Prince,
but had sent to his Highness begging that he might be
excused, a 3 M. Favre had requested him to stay
with him. I have visited Fort d'lssy. Artil-
lery officers are of opinion that a breach would have
been practicable on the south side. The em-
brasures only were seriously damaged, and the gun in it
was indented, but not dismounted. The interior of the
fort, from the rank of the bombardment, presents an ap-
palling sight—the barracks being not only destroyed, but
absolutely ground to powder. The terre-plaine is strewed
with debris of every description, and the earth-covered
bomb-proofs 'penetrated to a great depth. The Ger-
mans had advanced on the railway, taking ad.
vantage of the configuration of the groTnd, and
covering themselves as they came to open spaces. A very
short distance from the works, signs of musketry fire were
visible on both sides. The external defences of the fort
are not injured seriously, except on the south side.
The stockade and other obstacles on the glacis are not
injured. As a work Fort d'lssy is much stronger than
V4Mrien ;in natural position far weaker. The loss
of life in Issy must have been terrible. Vanves, a work
not sQ strong in position, nor so important to the defence
of Paris, has not suffered so much as Issy. The Versailles
bakers have offered to supply daily 1,000 41b. loaves for
Paris, without diminishing the Versailles supply. Prus-
sian authorities will state to-morrow whether they will
allow this or not. The stock of flour in Paris will only
last till 4th February ; horseflesh till 11th ; consequently
the Prussians. have authorised the bringing in of flour
from Dasblay's mills, at Corbeil and Chantilly; the Em-
peror has also ordered General von Stosch to send
two millions of meat rations to-day into Paris,
evidently on the verge of starvation ; and most ener-
getic efforts must be made to keep the population fed
from day to day. Forts Issy and the Vanves' earthworks,
for the protection of men, are far superior to Valerien;
butu like everything else the French have done, incom-
plete, having evidently only been begun when the neces-
sity arose. The Prussians give evidence of great engineer.
ing powers in the extemporised works in Clamart.
Prince Napoleon's chateau at Meudon was destroyed as
to the roof and interior, the façade still standing. The
destruction at Sevres is not so great as at St. Cloud. The
highway from here to Issy is literally strewed on
both sides with articles of household goods. More
than one fire I saw on my way fed with chairs and
tables.

DUR COTEMPORARIES---This Morning