The Sun.
London, England, 1870-10-26 00:00:00

THE ASPECT OF SEDAN.

Writing from Sedan on the 18th of October, the corres-
pondent of the Telegraph says: One of the most inter est-
ing points about Sedan is the cottage where Count
Bismarck met the Emperor. It is inhabited by an old
weaver, whose native language is German, and who tells
the visitor how he put out in front of his house two of his
chairs for the accommodation of the great men. One of
these chairs he sold, says he, for 25 francs on the day after
the capitulaltion. He chuckles in a weak fashion over the
bargain, and does not quite believe that he might have got
much more. The sudden importance given to the house
prevents him from following his trade ; so he has stuck
up a placard above his door, announcing that refreshment
is to be had, and, according to some German soldiers who
came in while we were there, he has not lost by his
change of business. Just above the weaver's
house, situated on the road to Donchdry, is
the eminence from which the King of Prussia witnessed
the battle ; and a little nearer to Sedan is the Chateau
Bellevue, where the Emperor passed his last night in
France. It is a prettily-built summer habitation in
the midst of extensive and once beautiful grounds.
The first floor consists of two large rooms of
equal size and shape, approached by outside steps
through small conservatories at either end. If cut
down the middle, one side of the house would exactly
correspond with the other. Up one of the outer stair-
cases entered the Emperor with Count Bismarck, and
after a long delay the King, who had been summoned for
the purpose, met his antagonist from the other side, the
Crown Prince closing the folding doors that separate the
two rooms, and holding watch and ward. The garrulous
concierge, who on the Ist of September was alone with
her husband in the house, said that the Emperor
seemed much depressed, and answered very sulkily
the few questions she asked him. She was delighted to
find that he had brought his own " draps." Poor woman !
it never occurred to her that a man who had just lost an
Imperial crown might not greatly care about the quality
of the sheets on which he has to sleep. On our way
to Bazeilles we met cartloads of saddles and
knapsacks which had just been picked up. The
field of battle spread over such an extensive
area, and the mass of materiel abandoned
was so enormous, that for a long time to come
there will be plenty to reward the patience of those
willing to search. Many Chassepots find their way into
Belgium. At Bouillon, on my remarking some queer-
looking cases, the man in charge of them told me, with
great glee that they contained Chassepots which had been

bought for a song at Sedan, to be sold at high
prices at Liege. It is on this account that
the sentinels at Sedan examine every carriage
that leaves the town, but the duty is lightly
performed, and I have no doubt that many weapons
are smuggled across the frontiers. Outside the gate lead-
ing to Bazeilles, the suburbs of Sedan seem to have suf-
fered most. Almost every houso is pitted with bullet,
grenade, and shell marks, as though with the small-
pox. In the little suburb of Balan the spire and
clock face of the church have both been injured—the
building having probably been chosen as a good target
wherewith to test the accuracy of the Prussian fire. But
all recollection of minor miseries is lost in the ap-
palling catastrophe of Bazeilles. You have heard
the whole story, yet I think you cannot possibly
have realised all its tragic depth. The present
state of the place may be described in one short sentence
—there is absolutely nothing left of the village but the
outside walls of the houses. This is the simplest state-
ment of the case, but it gives no idea whatever of the
desolation of the scene.