The Sun.
London, England, 1870-08-25 00:00:00

THE PRUSSIAN VICTORY.

The whole face of the campaign is changed. The
French have sustained a defeat so overwhelming that we
very much question whether it will be possible for the
Emperor and his Generals to retrieve it. Napoleon, in-
stead of occupying an offensive position, has now all his
work to do to_defend Paris. He acknowledges in a de-
spatch to his Ministers that his communications with
Marshal MacMahon have been interrupted—a fact which
in itself reveals the magnitude of the disaster which
has overtaken the French forces. The despatch from
our special correspondent throws additional light
on the great event now made known to us. When
we read the general despatches, the first question that
arises in the minds is, what has become of the French
forces which were pushed into Saarbrucken from St. Avoid
and Forbach ? A clean sweep seems to us to have been
made of them all. "I am going to place myself in the
centre of the position," Napoleon telegraphs to Paris.
The truth is he can scorcely be said to have a centre to
boast.of. The entire army is driven back to Metz. The
position at Saarbrucken is lost—on that line, indeed,
everything is lost. The Prussians caught MacMahon in
one place, and Frossard in another, and utterly crushed
them both. The loss must be tremendous. Four thou-
sand prisoners were taken by the Prussians, thirty guns, six
mitrailleuse, and two standards. France has never received
such a blow since Waterloo. All Europe must be con-
vulsed by such an event. The Prussian headquarters are
now at Kaiser-lautern, a point from which a grand advance
on Metz from one side, and on Strasbourg from the other,
may easily be made. Marshal MacMahon is at Saverne,
between Haguenau and. Saarburg. He will, perhaps,
attempt to defend Strasbourg, which is at present in great
jeopardy, or he may endeavor to get back to the main
army. The French front may now be traced in a line from
Metz to Nancy. This brief description will enable the
reader to trace the various forces on the map—but it
conveys no idea of the magnitude of the victory won
by the Prussian forces. It is evident that two actions
were fought on the 6th. A division of the Prussian Army,
under General von Goeben, advanced upon Saarbrucken,
and encountered the French under General Frossard.
The engagement appears to have lasted four hours, and
to have ended in a complete route of the French. General
Frossard himself is said, in one despatch, to be in Paris—
in which case he must have run hard. The second battle
took place on the same day at or near Haguenau, the
Prussians being under the Crown Prince. The French
were commanded by General MacMahon. There, also, a
disastrous defeat befell the Imperial forces. MacMahon's
Corps was all but annihilated, and no despatches have been
received from him. The loss of men must have been terrific,
for both sides evidently fought gallantly. The plan of the
Prussian attack appears to have been absolutely irresis-
tible. How it was that this concerted movement of the
Prussian Army could have caught the French at such a
disadvantage has yet to be explained. The whole cam-
paign has evidently been a gigantic blunder on Napoleon's
part. If he can save his capital it will be as much as lies
within his power. Paris is in a tumult of apprehension
and excitement. The Ministers frankly tell the people
that they are in danger. They talk no more of advancing
to Berlin. Their cry now is : " Help us to save the
country." Paris is declared to be in a state of siege, and
hurried attempts are being made to secure it against the
approach of the enemy. "A serious effort is necessary,"
proclaim the agitated Ministers. The. reverse must have
fallen like a thunderbolt on the French people, and it is
probably only the beginning of vast misfortunes in store
for them. At any rate the Prussians have a position
which menaces the safety of the Empire, and the troops,
flushed with victory, would obey with eagerness the order
to march on Paris. The moment has come for the friends
of France in Europe, if she has any, to declare themselves.
Without allies it is as clear as the sun at noonday that
France must be finally, hopelessly defeated. Napoleon
wished to beat Prussia single-handed." -He can-
not do it. Unless the troops of other Powers comes to
his assistance, he cannot save France. Accordingly, the
intelligence transmitted to us from our own correspondent
at Paris is of the highest moment. It states that Italy
has despatched an army to the relief of Napoleon, and
that Austria will follow the example. It is
quite quite possible that Napoleon had an under-
standing before the campaign with Italy and
Austria, but wished to do without their assist-
ance if possible. We stated on the authority of our cor-
respondent at Peris, some time ago, that Austriahad made
a treaty with France. Now is the time for hex-interfer-
ence, France is in a dire extremity, andnothing but help
from outside can bring her through it. The series of
battles fought on Friday and Saturday will henceforth
rank among the most memorable in the annals of history.
—New York Times of August the Bth.

THE COMING STATE LABOUR
CONVENTION.
•
The coloured men of this State, up to the present time
debarred from taking part in many, nearly all, of the
various occupations, mechanical and scientific, are
now called upon to unite in the coming State
Labour Convention, which will be held on the
24th inst., at Saratoga. The invitation is not confined
to coloured men exclusively, but is extended to all
classes of working men irrespective of colour. However,
the convention is intended to appeal directly to the
newly enfranchised. The importance of this movement is
evident, and no doubt it will be largely attended. As yet
the differenr labour organisations have taken no steps
towards a recognition of the rights of the coloured man
to a participation in the mechanical arts. Whether
the present occasion will be taken advantage of to
send representatives to the Convention remains to be
seen. Among the many matters which will come up
before the Convention possibly the Chinese labour
question will find a place. It will be interesting to
know how the coloured men will feel on this subject—
one that is destined at no distant period to exercise
an influence -on many classes of labour throughout the
country. From the prominence which the Chinese ques-
tion has already obtained there may be a disposition on
the part of the white working men to act in harmony with
their coloured fellow-citizens. The time is not far distant
and a few days will tell the tale.—New York Herald.