The Sun.
London, England, 1871-01-12 00:00:00

PARIS UNDER THE SHELLS.

The special correspondent of the Telegraph, inside the
capital sends the following by Balloon Monte from Paris,
January 8 :—"Never were mortal ears saluted by such a
din as has deafened the inhabitants of the southern half
of Paris. Upon our side the forts of Ivry, Bicetre, Mont-
rouge, Vanvres, Issy, and the redoubts of Les 'ratites
Bruyeres, Le Moulin Saquet, and Arceuil joined in the
deep-voiced chorus. On the side of the enemy, Pon-
tenay, Chatillon, Clamart, Meudon, Garches, La Ber-
genie, and Brimborion took part in the dreadful revelry.
About midday the cannon upon our ramparts sent their
projectiles thick and hot against the enemy. The road
inside the enceinte which leads from Auteuil to Point-du-
Jour presented a curious spectacle. Seven or eight
hundred persons were assembled upon it, running
hither and thither, asking questions, emitting cries
of alarm, animosity, and surprise. No sooner was
a whistle heard in the air than it became a
signal for every one to throw himself upon
his belly." Such is the account given in one of this
morning's journals of the scene which, on the left bank of
the Seine, Paris yesterday presented. The day broke
milder than its twenty predecessors, and the wind which
blew softly from the south was a delightful substitute
for the cutting and Arctic blasts of Dorms
and Burns, under which, since the 19th of
December, we have been shivering. But the
spring-like and genial southern breeze brought with it
the sound of loud and unremitted detonations of cannon,
which seemed to bring home to Paris—by which I
mean the Paris of the Champs Elysees and of
the Boulevard des Italiens, with which we are
all so familiar—a very lively sense of the reali-
ties of war. In repeated proclamations, which are
issued morning and night, day after day, and
week after week, General Troche and the Provisional
Government love to tell us that " the attitude of
the population is sublime ; " that, " having shewn her
firmness, self-denial, and tenacity, Paris is now giving
fresh evidence of her glorious courage," and much more
to the same effect. For my own part, I must confess that
having passed most of this day near the Point-du-
Jour—the spot where the Siene cuts its way
through the enceinte continue, and emerges from
the capital—and having closely watched the faces
and bearing of the population inhabiting that
quarter, it strikes me that the shelling to which they
are being subjected seems wonderfully little to their taste.
Great indignation is felt that the bombardment should
have been commenced without the usual notice, but no
one dreams of capitulation. A certain number of shells—
about 60 or 70—have fallen within the walls, with-
out, however, doing any serious damage. The
quarters which have suffered most from these un-
pleasant visitors are Grenelle, Vaugirard, Autueil,
the environs of the Luxembourg, the Pantheon,
the Faubourg St. Germain, and the Boulevard
St. Michel. Two or three persons have been killed, a
few wounded, and sundry shop-fronts damaged and flag-
stones torn up ; but a considerable number of the shells
have fortunately exploded harmlessly. The first victim
of "Prussian barbarity," as the besieged term it, was
a poor woman sleeping with her husband ant

two children in a house near Autueil. The
Panth6on seems to be singled out by the enemy
for their favours ; this is partly explained
by the words of a Prussian officer who ladely died in a n
ambulance in its vicinity. Upon learning what a near
neighbour he was to the Panth6on, he exhibited con-
siderable uneasiness, and, on being questioned as to the
cause, replied that he feared, in the eventuality of a bom-
bardment, he and all in the ambulance would be exposed
to great danger, as the Prussians, believing the Panth6on
to be filled with powder, intended to do their best to blow
it up.