The Sun.
London, England, 1870-08-03 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY E ENING, AUGUST 3, 1870.

to the rising flood of popular feeling here, which, if
controlled, would have borne him to a bitter war between
the two countries. I ask the soldiers —(I met two elderly
officers yesterday, both marked with scars)—whether they
believe we are likely to aim at the medals bearing the
image of our Queen on the breasts of their soldiers. I
shook hands with several of these brave fellows
the other day, when - they broke their lines for
repose on the Boulevard Haussman on the way to the
station. I felt that a very insignificant man like myself
can do good on certain occasions, and you would have
been struck with the pleasure these men evinced and
expressed to their companions in arms at what I said to
them. The regiment was the " Voltigeurs de la Garde."
I need not tell you that the very best feeling existed
between the soldiers of the English and French armies in
the Crimea and China. If it did not extend amongst the
officers to quite an equal degree, this can be understood.
Those who attempt to create. or foster a bad feeling
between England and France are in my eyes the most
deadly foes to humanity at large.

to the hotel of the prefecture, in wliiich not very palatial
edifice, on the thither side of the Msselle, and facing the
cathedral, the Imperial Majesty of France is now-lodged.
Metz was illuminated at night, and the thoroughfares
were wellnig,h impassable for the dense crown; of soldiers
of every arm of the service, and of civilians and country
people, The cafés were all crammed to suffocation,
and the usual patriotic chants were discordantly audible
until nearly daybreak. There was the usual plethora
of tricoloured flags, but these ensigns have ceased
to wave. They flap or bob up and down, or hang out of
windows rigidly : for the supply of tri-coloured bunting
owing to the unprecedented- demand, has become ex-
hausted, and the banner of the three hues is now painted
on a thin sheet of tin. The wilderness of flags was,
however, as thick as ever; and I thought of poor dear
old Venice. and of her store colorate, about which General
Alemann made such a fuss, until, Venetian independence
being acknowledged by Aussria, the people took the flags
out of the cellars and colours in which they had hidden
them, and hung them out exultingly in the Tedeschi's
faces.—Correspondent of Telegraph._ . _

.. - -
" vroLAnoN„ —lhe correspondent of the Tdeprapte
at Luxemburg, was met by alarming news :—" The only
rumour that, has reached me bearing any possible signiti-
Jance is one that comes from Berlin' through the
Independance Beige, that the violation of the soil
of Luxembourg by the 'French continues and
increases. A hundred French soldiers crossed the frontier,
xnd sang 'La Marseillaise " in a neutral village of- the
Grand Duchy. This, of course, might at any moment
be made a cams belli, and we should be waiting no longer."
But in a later letter the thing is explained :
" Alas! that one should have to pass so quickly
from the sublime to the ridiculous ! The ' violation of
neutral soil' alluded to above by Gallic heroes singing
their national anthem in a Luxembourg village, turns out
to have been nothing more than an irregular visit on the
part of some French soldiers to —buy baccy I"

TRE GENOA SOLDIER.—Under the phlegmatic
exterior of the German soldier is concealed a stratum of
sound sense and share of intellect above the average.
He can read and write. How many of his French
opponents can do likewise ? He knows something
..)f the greateSt men of his country. To him Goethe
and Schiller are not mere abstractions, but names asso-
ciated with writings of which he knows something. Both
the education he receives when a boy, and that which he
rains from experience of life, tend to render him a patriot
of the first water. The songs in which he takes delight,
Ind the sayings which are his household words, inculcate
:everence for the land of which he is a native, -and lead
aim to regard it as the chosen home of honest and, free-
aorn men. He has been taught that all the ills of Ger-
nany, have had their source in victories won by the
French. Hence, he 'is accustomed to consider
,he French in the light of natural and implacable
inemies. So long as the Rhine runs through.
3rerman territory he believes that a barrier is fixed be-
ween him and the French. Thus the inviolability of the
Rhenish Provinces is held by him to be an object to be
naintained at all hazards. Wherever the German pea-
sant lives his heart leaps up at the utterance of the words
)f the German poet—
" Sie sollen ihn nicht haben,
Den freien deutschen Rhein,"
' They ne'er shall get possession of the free German
Rhine." When the French sing about tyrants, blood, and
onquest, and declaim about carrying victories round the
world, the Germans grow enthusiastic over their resolve
a) resist the attacks of a foreign foe, and shout, not for
the subjugation of &neighbouring people, but for the pre-
servation of their Fatherland.

THE VALUE OP io curious to sae
a full private of the Line driving about in his carriage, or
two or three troopers chartering a drosky to take them for
an airing in the park ; but these men may be of good
family and rich enough to have bought themselves com-
missions were such a thing possible. But here, as far as
military service goes, all are alike ; from prince to
peasant, all must serve. It is a grand sight thus to see a
nation arming, not for money, for the pay is barely
enough to find fl man in aigarS, but on the principle that
the individual belongs to the State, and that, in retur.
for the advantages it bestows the State has a right tgcal
apon every man to maintain its integrity and protect tht
soil. The berrefits derived from such a system are many
and` obvious. The economy is evident when we refiect
what Prussia has conducted t*o European eampaiff,ns at
about the same expense that England incurred in the
expedition to Abyssinia. The possibility of being able in
a few days to bring an army of about a million of
men into the field naturally does away with the
necessity of maintaining a large standing army At a vast
expense. The salutary effect of drill and of the strict
liscipline and necessity for implicit obedience
of a soldier's life on the physical and moral
natures of men is well known. The British
soldier is frequently recruited from the very dregs
of our population, and cannot be said to be remarkable
for docility or urbanity of manners ; yet in a short time
he becomes civil in his bearing, amenable to authority,
and faithful to order and the State. This civilising effect
of discipline is not, as among us, confined to a small num-
ber of the populace ; but pervades and leavens every part
grade, and class of society.— Telegraph Correspondent at
Berlin.

IHE QUALITY OF THE Two ARMIES.— Th 8
French active army, consisting of 400.000 men, is *com-
posed of the contingents of 1865 to 1869' inclusive, each
numbering about 60,000 men, and 100,000 re-engaged men
—that is, old soldiers who have chosen the army for their
profession. With them will be er.rolled .the contingents
of 1864, recently dismissed to their homes, The men,
therefore, which France will bring into the field will be
all— withthe exception of the contingent of 1869, who
have only had one year's service—men of from two to
six years' service, or old soldiers. The army that France
places in her first battle field may be said to be composed
of the best possible materials. Nov let us consider what
the first five hundred thousand men whom the Prussians
would put in the field to oppose this army of France
will consist of. And here it must not be understood that
France will place the whole of her half million of
men in the field. Garrison duty, Algeria, Rome, &c.,
will all deduct a certain proportion. It may be that only
300,000 men will actually face the foe. It is not the quan-
tity which lam considering, but the quality. The regular
Prussian army is only 200,000 strong, composed of men of
one, two, and three years' service. The first reserve con-
sists of the last four years' contingents, who, after their
year's service, returned to their homes. These, exclu-
sive. of the Landwehr, who have been absent from their
standards more than four years, raise the army to
510,000 men. Let us suppose, as is probable, that the
first battle will be fought by a portion of this
510,000 men against a portion of the 500,000 of
France which has been described. It will be seen
that while none of the Prxssians will have served in the
army for more than three years, only 180;000 of the
French have served for so short a time as three years,
the remainder being either men of four or five
years' service or men of continuous service. Again,
only a very small portion of the Prussian troops have
been in actual service for the last two years, the reserves
having been one, two, three, and four years respectively
away from their regiments. Now, although a man under
such circumstances may speedily regain his drill, it is
evident that he has to a great extent lost the lightness
and smartness of the soldier. A man who after three
years' service as a soldier goes for four years to farm
labour may be an armed citizen, and as such may fight
gallantly, but he will hardly be considered by
a military man in the light of a soldier. His
shoulders have become rounded, he has lost his
elasticity of step, his movements have become
slow, certainly as a soldier he has deteriorated. By the
above comparison of the component parts of the two
armies, taken from official sources, it will be seen that
from a military point of view the troops of this first army
of France are decidedly superior as drilled and disciplined
soldiers to the first army of Prussia.—Standard Corre-
spondent at Frankfort.
- - -

A FLYING VISIT.—The correspondent of the
Telegraph made a gallant attempt to get to Metz, but
though he got there, he was not allowed to remain. Here
is the story of his interview with the Provost-Marshal :
—"At last I was desired to step upstairs, and
found myself in presence of General St. Sauveur,
and several officers. A bloused individual and a
priest were also before the General, evidently
in trouble,' like myself. I should have been
glad to wait and hear what these gentry had
been doing. They looked, by the way, in a most orthodox
state of funk.' My nationality, however, gave me the
p °
Granville,'reference ; and the production of a passport, bearing the
signature of was not without its effect. - I
am sorry to say General St. Sauveur could not translate
the document, but handed it over to a young officer,
who did it for him. He then asked me my object in
coming to Metz, which I explained to him in = a
very few words ; and he added, 'Let me advise
you to go off by the next train. We cannot allow
you to I replied, ' I thought foreigners
might remain in the town so long as they did not
attempt to follow the army.' For the moment,
no,' he said. ' You must not stop at Thionville, Metz,
Nancy, or Strasbourg. Go back to Luxemburg'—for I
stumped him with my return ticket—' or to Paris, or,
better still, to England. It is not safe to remain here."
BPressed again as to my purpose in wishing to stay in
eta I made a clean breast of it, and told him
frankly I was an Unglish journalist. We do not allow
OUT Own Journalists/ he replied, so we cannot be ex-
pecteA to allow foreign ones.' argued still, There are
journalists, for we see corresp?ndence from Metz, in
the newspapers.' There la,' ho said, only
one journalist in Metz at this moment, an Ame-
rican, who was arrested this morning. His papers were
irregular, and he is now locked up in the fort.' Finally,
the young officer who had translated the pass-
port took an opportunity of airing his Eng-
lish though I will wager my French was
far more 13ritannip ,—. saying, " Really, sir, you
must go. You must not stay' at Metz, Thionville, &c.,
to-day. To-niorrow, perhaps, yes. Good morning." So
off I went, smiling at all. I saw that the French were in
great force at Metz. I saw, moreover, that there was an
evident movement in the direction of Thionville. The 71st
Regiment moved up in the afternoon, and the 57th went
by the same train as that which carried me back to Lux-
emhourg."
THE GI%IPIANS
.INTnIp ADv4NpE.--1 have
heard it stated. on good Apfhority that the King
of Prussia has resolved to make strerMous efforts to parry
the war into the enemy's country, and thus sparing Ger-
many from the infliction of being the theatre of
battle. In the event, then, of a forward movement
the German forces will he divided into three sepa-
rate armies, each engaging on something like
good terms with the enemy in its front ; and all
handled with a view to co-operate and concentrate on any
given point. If these tactics should be pursued the Treat
and and decisive engagement p which every one looks° for-
ward will probably be delayed 'Until the opposing forces
shall have completed their manceuvres and' selected their
positions. It is obvious that if the Germans press for-
ward they will be able to force the French to alter plans
involving an offensive movement towards the Rhine.
Had the French followed up their declaration of war by

an occupation- of the Palatinate, they would have
acquired a superiority of which they coed • with
difficulty have been dispossessed. It is now admitted
that Prussia was not prepared for such a contingency.
It is the subject of congratulation in military circles that
the French paused instead of acting. The speculations in
which some of your contemporaries have indulged are
founded on that view of the case. However absurd it
may now appear, the probability ten days ago, was in
favour of the Prussians retiring from the frontier and
concentrating their forces in the vicinity of the several
fortresses which command and guard the Rhenish pro-
vinces. But at present there is no thought of following
such a course.—Daily News Correspondent at Frankfort.

GLORIOUS WAIL—A very distressing incident has
happened since the arrival of the troops at Mayence. A
poor fellow, who had just been called in to active service
from the reserve, was a small tradesman in C---, with
an invalid wife and. five young children. Y 0
Com-
pelled to close his shop and to leave his family
absolutely without the means of living and totally
forlorn of resources, he was assailed by a deep and abid-
ing melancholy, which waxed gloomier and gloomier for
several clays, although he continued to perform his duties
with the greatest punctuality. On Tuesday, however,
whilst on parade, he broke out into wild ravings, fell
down in a fit, and when he recovered his consciousness
was a prey to frantic and ungovernable madness. Kind
neighbours, benevolent Christians, may possibly help the
sick wife and the innocent children through their imme-
diate troubles, but the husband and father is lost to them
for ever, strickeji by an affliction that is even worse than
death. Had liedied in the field, pro arsi et focis, with his
face to the _foe` these bereaved ones would have received
some small pension in esse, and Government protection
in posse, that would have enabled them, perchance, to
struggle on somehow through life ; but.what are they to do
now ? Madness, induced by sheer grief and despair, is/-
no title hallowed by precedent to a country's gratitude or
a king's favours. The wife will die of poverty, plus a
broken heart ; the children—l dare not prophesy what
may become of them.—Daily Telegraph.

THE PJWSSIANS IN THE NORTll.—YestEirday and
to-day troop; have been constantly passing through the
city on their way to the North. I heard it estimated
that a train arrived every half hour, and it has been stated
that within four days there would be 120,000 troops in.
Schleswig. There seems to be some urgent reason for
hot haste in this quarter. To-day I observed that most
of the troops coming in wore the Saxon uniform, and
they were loudly cheered as tlfey marched through the
town. It is hinted that Denmark will be absorbed at the
first sight of any overt act in the French interest. In a
strategic point of view, Hamburg is now a point of great
importance ; and should the contemplated French
movement in this direction be anything more than a
feint, it would not be at all surprising if there should
be a terrible struggle for its possession. A line
of 130 miles in length, drawn in a north-easterly
direction from the ancient city of Bremen to Lubeck,
would intercept Hamburg about half-pay. Previous
to 1866 these three powerful cities enjoyed their
independence, and had distinctive flags. Upon the
annexation of Schleswig-Holstein they all thme
shared the same fate, and were tacked on to Prussig:
During their independence they stood as a neutral
wall, so to speak, stretching across the base of the penin-
sula, and dividing Prussia from Denmark. Since the
latter little kingdom has been shorn of so much 'of
her possessions, she has sunk rapidly in the opinion of her
neighbours : and now even these three cities, two of which
formerly belonged to her crown, are the willing vassals of
her conqueror, and glory in her disgrace. Ido not find
fault with this—it is the.common fate. The train of those
who sympathise with misfortune is something lamentably
small, while success carries a multitude in its march.
_Baltic Correspondent of the Globe.

THE FIGHTING AT SAARBRUCK.—The correspon-
dent of the Pall Mall Gazette, writing on Sunday, says
—" Yesterday morning the French attacked Saarbruck
in force from Forbach, which is about three miles from
Saarbruck. They must have been in greatly superior
force. The fighting doubtless took place on the ridge of
hills which separates Saarbruck from Forbach. The country
is wooded and much broken and well fitted for defence.
as the nature of the ground would prevent the French
taking advantage of their superiority of force. Saar-
briick is only a small town, and there being not a general
but only a major in command, seems to chew that
the Prussians were not in great strength. Having
been in Saarbruck the day before the skirmish, I
should confidently say that the Prussians had merely
outposts there, and not something like a corps d'arm4e as
the French have in and about Forbad]. ; but then I do
not pretend to know what forces the Germans may
have had in the neighbourhood by that time. As
said before, the scene of action is well adapted
for defence. The Saar valley is not unlike that
of the Wye, or a Devonshire stream like the Lynn.
The railway (on the Prussian side of the river) follows
generally the course of the .stream, and will be of the
utmost importance to the Prussians in bringing up
supplies; and already the troops on both sides
are creating a scarcity of food on the frontier.
The attack was probably made on Saarbruck
(or Saarbrucken, there 'being two bridges) from its position
at the junction of the line from Forbach with those to
Troves and Kreusnach, which now serve to feed the
Prussian forces. Could the French get the rail in their
hands, even for a few miles, it would break the communi-
cation between Troves and Kreusnach, where I believe
the Crown Prince now is. •

NAVAL AND MILITARY INTELLIGENCE.
The Duke of Cambridge, attended by several
officers of the Horse Guards staff., arrived at Alder-
shot on Tuesday, and reviewed the tioDps at the camp.
Shortly after eight o'clock the different regiments of
cavalry, artillery, and infantry proceeded to Tweexleclown-
hill, where they were formed up in three divisions,
under the command of Major-Generals White, Casey, and
Lysons. About ten o'clock the troops began to manoeuvre.
The evolutions gone through illustrated a sham fight on a
small scale.
The departure of the 7th Dragoon Guards from Alder-
shot for Brighton has been countermanded.
The determination of the Government to increase the
army by 20,000 men has caused considerable activity
amongst the recruiting sergeants in Westminster. Ser-
geants of the Royal Artillery, 4th Dragoon Guards, sth
Dragoons, sth Lancers. 7th Hussars, 3rd, 4th, sth, 17th,
52nd, and 59th Regiments, succeeded in tempting batches
of young fellows to join their respective corps. In smaller
numbers recruits were obtained for the Rifle Brigade,
the Royal Engineers, and the Royal Marines.
The depots of the Ist battalion of the 10th Regiment and
the Ist and 2nd battalion of the 11th Regiment which
were under orders to proceed from Chatham to Ireland,
have been ordered to be detained at the garrison, and will
not be dispatched to Ireland for the present.
The whole of the non-commissioned officers and men of
the Chatham division of the Royal Marines Light Infan-
try now at haad-quartcp are to be at once put through
a course of instruction with the new Snider breech-load-
ing rifle.
The portion of the Channel squadron) assembling at
Spithead will leave that anchorage on Thursday. next.
The ships already there consist of the Warrior, the Her-
oules, the Captain, and the Minotaur. The repairs to the
Monarch will not be completed by Thursday, so that she
will not sail with the other ironclad; but will follow im-
mediately she is ready. The Minotaur will take out a
detachment-of marines for the Lord Warden.
Ari order has been received at • Portsmouth for the
shipwrights who were a few days back discharged with
gratuities to be retained in the service of the dockyard.
It is understood, however, that a great many of the men
have gone away to a long distance.

FATAL FIRE. AND LOSS OF LIFE IN
SHEFFIELD.

On Tuesday, as already briefly announced, a fire broke
out in a thickly-populated part of Sheffield. It originated in
a shop rented by Mr. D. Whitehead, hosier, Deepear.
The flames were seen issuing from the shop about
two o'clock: Mr. Whitehea 1 and his two children
were roused and made their escape. The flames
continued to spread. Mr, F. Law, tobacconist, occu-
pied the shop next door, and on the alarm being given he
and his family got hurriedly out of bed and tried to save
what property they could. In a short time the fire got hold
of the shop of Mr. Prith, butter merchant, and the bed-rooms
were speedily in a blaze. The fire brigade, under Captain
Pound, were by this time at work. The rooms of Mr. Frith's
house were deluged, and in a short time the fire was got
under. Much uncertainty prevailed as to the fate of Mrs,
Whitehead, but on the firemen penetrating to the kitchen
they discovered the charred remains, of what they sup-
posed to have been the body of the unfortunate woman,
When Mr. Whitehead reached the back window of his house
in escaping from the smoke and flame which spread around
him as head rushed from his bed he cried, " God save
my poor wife ; she is inside" Immediately some brave
man, whose name was unknown, dashed into the window,
from which Mr. Whitehead fell exhausted. Although
the smoke was already almost overpowering to those who
stood near the courageous fellow plunged forward through
the burning Amu., and, in the confusion of the moment
those who awaited his reappearance were unable
to discern what became of him. Unhappily the fate
of the gallant man is still involved in mystery ;
and some of those who witnessed the whole
occurrence froni a short distance of the house are of
opinion that in all •Ilrobability he too has fallen a victim to
his bravery. The body that was found in the kitchen was
hgulleastand the „legs also appeared to have been literally
burnt off, so that in fact the mere trunk only remained.
Whether it was the body of a man or woman
it, was of course impossible to tell. It was found buried
in the debris, ana the Dolice are still continuing their
tesearches.

The Council p 1 the Macclesfield Chamber of Com-
merce on Monday adopted a memorial to Earl Granville
prayin that every effort might be made by her
M o•
ajest'y's Government for the strict observance of neu-
trality by this country in the differences between Prussia
and France.
LpNpoN Could ov COMMON COT,JNOIL.
special meeting of the London Court of. Common Council
was held yesterday afternwn to consider a, resolution pro-
posed by Mr. Moss Defries to the effect that the court
contribute the sum of X5OO in aid of the recent deplorable
fire at Constantinople. After a short discussion the reso-
lution was adopted by a large majority. In reply to Mr.
Pedlar, Mr. T. E. Saunders, a- member of the Metr3-
politau J3oard of Works, stated that the entire
main drainage system of the metropolis would be entirely
completed in two or three months, and by providing
storm outlets at Blackfriar's Bridge, the inhabitants of
Farringdon-street would be no more subjected to inunda-
tions. Mr. J. F Bedford stated that the recent inunda-
tions in that locality had not only caused damage to the
amount of .£2O, 000 or £30,000, but had left behind a deposit
which was most ruinous, and prejudicial to health.

THE GOLD EXCITEMENT IN WALL-
STREET.

The Gold Room was recently the scene of an excite-
ment only surpassed in the days of our late war and dur-
ing the culmination of the famous gold corner of last Sep-
tember.. The apartment was wedged tight with the
brokers, who, in the midst of the sweltering
heat, frantically bid gold up to 123 on the re-
port which carne second-handed from London,
that Russia had joined Prussia in hostility to France.
The iinm diate cause of the advance was the fear that this
alliance would stimulate a further decline of our securities
in the foreign market. While there is no doubt that in
the derangement of European finances which will
follow the war our bonds will be the best invest-
ment for foreign capital, and that a reaction will
certainly ensue in their favour, the market is rendered
extremely sensitive by some of the speculative
foreign bankers, who bought gold and sold our bonds at
the first sign of war. They purposely exaggerate
the situation abroad as against our securities, in hopes of
buying back large quantities of bonds which they
sold on speculation and also to enhance their
profit on the gold which they bought so pro-
fusely on the outbreak of hostilities. War in Europe
means a profitable market for everything we can ship
there. When we have overcome the first and very
natural depression in our securities abroad, arising out of
the shifting of capital in such a crisis, we shall be the
Creditor country with Europe, and require settlement of
the balance of • trade by shipments of gold this way.
ITetv York Herald.