The Sun.
London, England, 1870-09-20 00:00:00

A VISIT TO THE SUBURBS.

An editor of the Franfaishaving visited the suburb's of
Paris, gives the following account of his excursion --" I
took the train to Enghien at the Northern station. There
were few persons in the carriages. After leaving Paris
the speed of the train was relaxed, and we passed over the
fosse of the fortifications on a stockade which crossed the
rails. The plain of St. Denis, which the train passes
through, is lighted up by the flames of the burning places.
The bridge of Asnibres is broken. The Seine flows on'
without a single bark floating on it. Near Asnibres new
fires are discerned. At Enghien Talight there is no one
at the station. The streets are filled with the iebris of
the burning mass. The houses are shut up, and the
elegant villas deserted, the little boats have been
sunk to the bottom of the lake, and the swans
'glide by in silence. The hot bath establishment is closed,
and one can see into the deserted building of the Casina.
I perceived the flames of another fire, and hastened to the
spot ;it was in the direction of Margency. An immense
stock of wood had been destroyed. Some men offered to
accompany me to the spot where the smoking ruins were
visible. They complained of the summary manner in
which the authorities had destroyed the provisions,which
might not be left for the enemy. One exclaimed while
pointing to the burning wood, "There were 40,000 francs
worth there." One of the men confessed to me
that at first he had supposed I was a spy, and if
I had turned out to be one, he shewed me the fate
that was in store for me, by drawing a
revolver from beneath his blouse. I returned by the
eleven o'clock train to Paris. Between Epernay and
Saint Denis a large manufactory was given up to the
flames, some blackened walls remained, the others had
fallen in. Clouds of smoke floated above the remains. The
workmen stood round, looking at the place where they
had worked for so many years. The moon, which lighted
up these strange proceedings, imparted a fantastic force to
the scene. Further on, in a field, a crowd worked in
silence ; they were some poor people who had obtained
permission to keep what potatoes they dug up. An
immense fire appears behind Gennevilliers, it proceeds
from a wood or from some industrial establishment. The
train having reached Paris, stops, as if to give a pass-word,
the sentinels are on the ramparts, and in the distance guns

are firing.

THE PRUSSIAN INTENTIONS.

The Paris correspondent of the Indepenclance Belge says:
—" According to a letter received from the Prussian
headquarters the enemy's army will not be able to begin
the regular siege before the first days of October, in con-
sequence of the difficulty of advancing to Paris and of
bringing up their artillery, all the bridges being blown up
and the roads blocked. The recent successes have so ex-
cited the Prussian army, from the Royal Generals down
to the lowest foot soldiers, that they have sworn to enter
Paris, no matter_ by what means, or through
what sacrifices. If they obtain this result
or if the conclusion of the campaign should
prove as advantageous to Prussia as it has hitherto been,
there will be a triumphalre-entry of the Prussian army into
Berlin, and it is even said that Napoleon 111. will figure
in it, which doos not agree with the character of legiti-
macy which the King of Prussia is believed to attach
to the regime, so ignominiously terminated at
Sedan. For the rest, Napoleon 111. has, it must
be allowed, more chance of entering Berlin than Paris.
Every night reports resound here. They are
blowing up all the bridges round Paris. Fight-
ing has been going on at Montereau and at Nehu.
A regiment of free lances was decimated. All these
attempts only delay without arresting the march of the
Prussians, but from what I hear on all sides General
Trochu is quite satisfied since the review. He was for-
merly grave and anxious, but has now told the Govern-
ment committee that he can answer for the defence of
Paris. The energetic resistance of Paris has roused the
morale of the departments and Bordeaux has voted the
purchase of 12,000 rifles. News from Algeria is unsatis-
factory, and there is much disturbance among the
southern tribes. At Lyons matters are mending, though
the red flag still floats over the town. It will be the first
duty of the newly-elected municipal council to substitute
the tricolour.

GFNERAL SHERIDAN'S OPINION OF THE

FRENCH ARMY.

The Daily News publishes the following letter from
General Sheridan :

" Head-quarters, at Rheims, France,
September 8, 1870.

" I have not time now to give you a detailed account of
army affairs since I joined it. Suffice it to say that the
French have been beaten in every engagement from
Weissenburg up to the surrender of the Emperor
Napoleon at Sedan, and there seems to be little left except
it be the siege of Paris, and that will not save France.
It is possible that the French troops have not done so well
as I think they might have done on one or two occasions
which I witnessed, from the fact that the poor fellows
found themselves so badly handled by their commanders
that they could see no equivalent to be obtained by the
sacrifice of their lives. All men like to have an equiva-
lent for their labour, and especially is it so with the soldier,
who wants success where many lives have to be sacrificed.
The French generalship put this out of question in every
battle which I have witnessed. Everybody here has been
very kind to me."