The Sun.
London, England, 1870-09-07 00:00:00

THE FIGHTING FORCES OF FRANCE.

' The correspondent of the Daily News thus states his
views of the present " situation " on the Continent :
" An old Republican journalist, whose patriotism is un-
doubted, said to me to-day, while sobbing with sorrow at
the French reverses, ' This proves that Pretorian soldiers
are no match for free men.' My friend is perhaps right
so far, and there is much comfort in the thought. But I
could not without huting his feelings say to him
what I now say to your readers, , that in my
opinion the change in the form of government
from an Empire to a Republic will not enable the Fr —ch
nation, after having lost the flower of its army, to resist
the disciplined and hitherto victorious invaders. I as-
sume, of course, that the invaders will be mDderate, and
only ask such terms of peace as the tribunal of the world
may approve of. Of course, Prussia could not ultimately
conquer this great nation, even if she wished to do so—
conquer it, I mean, in the sense of annexing it to Ger-
many. But I have a very strong persuasion that the
vital forces of France for all reasonable fighting
purposes are well-nigh exhausted. and that her
best citizens should now turn their minds to peace. The
demoralising results of, twenty years of Brummagem
Caesarism cannot be repaired in sufficient time to give
France generals and soldiers fit to cope with the German
nation in arms. This, however, is not the French
opinion, and it would not be safe to express it in any
French society whatever. I am afraid that rivers of
blood must yet flow before the impulsive French
people become alive to this truth. It does not
matter that many of the comparatively disciplined
troops of MacMahon fled like sheep when the balls began
'to whistle about their ears. They have an intense belief in -

I" France rising' in its might," and fancy that the thou-
sands of civilians now walking about the streets with guns
in their hands, will do better than the trained soldiers
who have been beaten under the best Generals
that France could produce. The Emperor did
not fulful his threat of dying gloriously in a
cavalrycharge. He very tamely surrendered himself a prisoner.
The Empress, whose calm declaration that if the
Prussians came to Paris they would find her near dole
her flatterers into rapturous paroxysms, has very sensibly
taken herself out of harm's way. I do not know Pre-
cisely how or when she went, whether before or after
saw the Tuileries flag taken down to-day, but she is
gone, and will never be seen in Paris again. General
Wimpffen, sent for from Africa to supersede General de
made the first use of the command-in-chief
which he received when poor MacMuhou
met with his wound to surrender himself 3
prisoner, with 40,000 men. And yet when these men'
whose trade is war, and who from training and esprit de
corps will run risks of life which are to civilians incom-
prehensible, yield to stern necessity and surrender rather
than die, the deluded citizens of Paris imagine that men
having no military qualities or habits at all will die to the
last man on the Paris fortifications rather than allow
the serried legions of the Red Prince and Prince
Frederick Charles to parade the streets of Paris. 14'
caricature of Gill in the ' Eclipse' precisely represents
the feeling of Paris at this moment. Paris, standing en,
her fortifications, is depicted by a female figure called
Judith. Outside is the King of Prussia in the guise of
Holofernes. Judith beckons to Holofernes, and says
' Come here !' and the obvious moral is that if he listens
to the voice of the charmer it will be all up with him.