The Sun.
London, England, 1870-12-22 00:00:00

scene

Another letter of a later date says that a violent
took place at the Grand Cafe du Theatre. An English-
man picked a quarrel with the president of the Commis-
sion of Armaments. The cause of the dispute was said
to have been that the president had refused the proposals
made to him by his assailant for providing arms
and munitions. The numerous members of the
Corps Legislatif at Bordeaux who are in favour of
the electoral movement have met with much opposition
from various quarters, and the prefect has issued a procla-
mation to say that they have chosen a most inopportune
time for their proceedings. Bordeaux has become a•
city of refuge for Western France, and the large town
is too small to contain the numbers of daily increasing-
'emigrants who crowd in to seek for shelter. In the
midst of serious events in which the fate of France has
to be decided, the first thought in the mind of everyone
seems to be where they can place themselves. The re-
moval of the Government from Tours to Bordmax hats
created quite apanic in the centre of France.

A. DOUBT ON GERMAN ACUTENESS.
" Azamat Batuk" relates a comical story which he
thinks throws some discredit upon the high opinion of
German sharpness generally entertained. Serving as a.
correspondent with the French army, he was left behind
in Orleans during the night, and, unable to get away
before the Germans took possession of the place. This
was a serious misfortune. " Azamat Batuk" is well known
to be no friend to the Germans, and he had written some
letters in the Pall Mall Gazette which had given great displea-
sure, so much so that the fate reserved for him if everhe fel
into German hands was trial by court-martial, followed
by speedy execution. " Azamat Batuk" wished to avoid
this fate, and resolved to escape if possible. He met
with a French lady and a Scotch correspondent, who were
equally anxious to get away. The lady first went and
asked for a pass, which the German commandant readily
granted—delighted to oblige so charming a person. The
Scotch correspondent went next, and being carefnl not to
say anything about newspapers, he, too, obtained a pass.
The story is thus continued by " Azamat Batuk " himself
" It is now your turn," said he to me, shewing his " Pas-
sirschein " with the blue stamp of the " Koniglich preus-
sische Commandatur " on it ; " should you not come
back from the commandant you may at all events be sure
that we start this afternoon, and that I shall call at any
friend of yours you will name, and relate to
him the circumstances which have befallen you.
Come, I will shew you the office ; " and in a few
minutes I was in the presence of a very clean-
looking superior officer with several crosses on his breast,
with a considerable quantity of grey hair on his head, but
with a young face, which had a severe expression only so
long as I did not begin to explain to him the reason of my
appearance before him, and did not tell him the story I
had prepared for his conversion into a most sentimental
friend a story for which I hope to ,be for-
given as such ruses are tolerable I believe, when
a man's life is threatened. " I am a Russian
nobleman," said I to him in German with all the
harshness I could find in my voice, to shew that I was a.
Russian badly speaking German ; " I have some consider-
able property locked up in Paris, and came to Orleans on
receiving the news that Ducrot had broken your lines,
and in the hope that I could get to Paris within a few
days. But now I see that all this was a shameful lie,
and that I shall probably not be able to get into Paris for
months and months, unless you begin to bombard
the town and destroy my property, in which
case I shall have no need of going there.
Therefore I wish now to go home to Russia
to spend my Christmas with my family, and I
do not know how to get out of Orleans. Will you
kindly help me in this critical position?" The comman-
dant was at once thrown a thousand miles off the idea.
that I could be an English correspondant, and became
L quite radiant. He said he perfectly understood the
grounds of my desire, and was willing to do every possi-
ble thing for a countryman of the great Empire
which is the most friendly and powerful ally of
Prussia. He had not yet finished his assurances of the
love which every German must have for Russia, when
the " Passirschein," with the words " Kann nach Russ-
land passiren," was already in my pocket. The comman-
dant went so far that he began to give me all.
sorts of advice as to the means of getting most
comfortably out of Orleans. and proposed to me
to wait twenty-four hours more in the town, with the
view to take advantage of the first train which started the
next day for Versailles. These twenty-four hours the
commandant promised me that I should spend in the
society of many Russian officers, who were attached to
the staff, the telegraph and other branches of the
Prussian service, and to all of whom he promised me he
would introduce me as soon as his office hours
were over. But I need scarcely say that before that
time I was out of Orleans, driving on the desolate road
of Pithiviers, with my two friends, with lots of all sorts
of boxes, chiefly belonging to the lady, and with the firm
resolution of rather killing our wretched white horse and
breaking our waggonette to pieces, than go less quickly
than the joint efforts of the passengers, the vehicle, and
the horse could accomplish."

The Committee of Inquiry upon General D'Aurelles
de Paladines is likely to come to nothing.
_ _

There is now quite as military a movement in Bordeaux
as there formerly was in Tours.

Some French papers report the death of General von
Werder as a positive fact, maintrining that he was struck
by a freeshooter's ball at Dijon, and went to Kehl, where
he died.

As French officers living in Germany on parole are
daily deserting, ten officers will henceforth be sent to
prison for each runaway.
The Cologne Gazette states that gun-cotton is now largely
used in the fortsroundParis, which accounts for the extra-
ordinary quietness which prevails. The shot strikes
without any detonation being heard.
The French papers still publish apocryphal news. The
Crown Prince of Saxony dined the other evening with
Prince George and his staff at the Prussian Headquarters.
His Royal Highness brought with him a newspaper
containing an account of his own capture by the French

troops.
The correspondent of the Daily News at Bordeaux says
that great uneasiness prevailed in Government circles,
and the most enthusiastic friends of the Republic felt
that if General Chanzy, the best French commander
the war had produced, could merely boast of defending
his positions, the prospect of the Army of the Loire
relieving Paris was a very forlorn hope indeed.
The Echo du Luxemburg says that the Belgian Govern-
ment has given the strictest orders, and adopted severe
measures to put a stop to the incursions of the French
Free-shooters 'on the Belgian territory. It has been
resolved that they will fire on them if necessary to enforce
respect for their frontiers.
Up to the 18th of November the inhabitants of the
Mauritius knew only of the capitulation of Sedan, and
this bad news they would not credit until it had been con-
firmed by letters from France—notably by one which a
merchant at Port Louis received from his brother, a
French General, who was wounded in the last battle
fought by M`Mahon.
A few days ago, Captain Hozier the British Commis-
sioner with the army 15f Prince Frederick Charles,
Bra.ckenburg, one of the correspondents of the Times,
Captain Keith Fraser, of the Life Guards, and several
other newspaper correspondents were taken prisoners by
the Germans as spies at Toury, and were most insolently
treated by one Prussian major.
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BIRTHS.
On the 18th inst., at Carlton Villa, Eltham-road, Lee,
the wife of George Selby, Esq., of a daughter.
On the 18th inst., at Tudor Cottage, Duppa's-hill, Croy-
don, the wife of Thomas Kitehin, Esq., of a son.
MARRIAGES.'

On the 19th inst., at Holy Trinity, Twickenham, Robert
John Burnside Esci., of Lambrook, Winkfield, and
formerly of Hampstead, to Florence Rose, the only
daughter of the late Arthur Manners, Esq., of Rutland-
gate, Hyde-park.
On the 20th inst., Mr. Thomas DunckleY, of Clapham,
to Kate, youngest daughter of the late Selwyn Schofield
Sugden, Esq., Gibraltar.