The Sun.
London, England, 1870-10-05 00:00:00

THE WAR.

THE SIEGE OF PARIS.

MORE NEWS BY, BALLOON.
The following letter from a French correspondent,
dated September 29, and brought from Paris. by.postal
balloon and special courier, is taken from. the .Telegraph
—" I expect that this letter will .reach, you in
a few days, as the postal services by balloons
tolerably regular. You have.,; _doubtless heard a
good deal about the . events around_ Paris; but
you have received your information from Prus-
sian sources. Let me give you a truthful account of the
situation. The Prussians have made some isolated attacks,
and have been repulsed with serious losses. All their
batteries when approaching completeness were dismounted
by the cannon in our forts. In a word, they have not,
up to this day, been able to occupy any position
from which they can attack us. For some days we
have heard nothing from them. It is therefore to be pre-
sumed that they are preparing for a great effort. All is
ready to receive them. The arming of all the effective
population of Paris is proceeding with incredible activity.
There are now more than 400,000 National Guards,
since there are 240 battalions of them, each con-
taining 1,800 or 1,900 men. Every day new re-
giments are being formed. We have besides
'200,000 Gardes Mobiles ; so that now the defenders of Paris
amount to 600,000 men. These figures are not exagge-
rated. Bismarck's conversation with Jules Favre clearly
shows that he calculated on there being a revoltition in
Paris. The conduct of all is, on the contrary,
calm and dignified. We will hold out ; and, if the
provinces comes to our assistance, woe to the Prus-
sians 1 Military duty here is not very severe. You
have to go on the ramparts for about three days in every
nine or ten. I was on duty at three o'clock in the morn-
ing before Fort Bicetre, while the action at Villejuif was
going on. We could only, however, see and hear the
combat from afar. The conflict lasted for nine or ten
hours. When I say I beheld the combat, I only mean
that I caught sight of the shot and shell that were fired
from the fort. At present we are tolerably well
acquainted with platoon and target exercises. Everyone
knows his weapon and how to use it. If the men who
are now being drilled do their duty, Paris will prove im-
pregnable. We have a supply of provisions sufficient
for a considerable period. The Government,
however, are none the less economical ; they allow only
600 oxen and 4,000 sheep to be killed daily. Meat and
bread are sold at the usual prices ; but things which are
ranked as luxuries are dear. Butter is six francs a pound,
eggs five sous apiece. In return, however, you can buy
a horse for such a bagatelle as fifty centimes. On
Sunday last I went to see some relatives of mine, who are
encamped at St. Ouen in a park on the banks of the
Seine. Some of the Gardes Mobiles had bought horses at
prices varying from 4 francs to 15 sous. The poor beasts,
after a considerable repast in the park, had to make use
of their limbs in the following manner. On Monday
a race was organised, and 29 francs were to reward the
winner. A steed which had been bought for nineteen
sous was the winner. In fine, when I was going
from the race-course, there remained a lot, con-
sisting of six Gladiateurs,' to be sold for three francs.
All ' used--;.;?' horses will undergo the same fate,
and many are abandoned on the roads. As to forage,
that is now beyond buying. We are assured that tie
Prussians are in Versailles to the number of 190,000, and
that they are raising strong entrenchments and fortifi-
cations there. The news we have received from London
is cheering. At a meeting in Hyde Park the
people have cried, Vive la Rdpublique r and ' Down
with Prussia 1' Those out of Paris probably hear enough
of what goes on inside, but we are ignorant of what is
taking place in the outer world. None of the balloons
which have departed from here have returned. Six
couriers in disguise attempted to get through the lines ;
of these three were taken and shot."
A merchant writes to the Independanee Beige :—" Paris
is an army. There are no more bourgeois nor workmen,
but 390,000 National Guards and 150,000 Mobiles. The
National Guards conduct themselves better than soldiers.
One night in every three they are on the fortifications in
the open air. There are no tents, but no one complains.
Warlike exercises are gone through in all places, in the
courtyards and on the pavements. Each one
addresses another in these words, " Conquer or
die." It is a fine sight, every one has
become French again. Trochu is distinguished for his
good sense, and a word from him is an order, there is no
defaulter, there are no more ruffians : they have guns,
and are become docile. Some Imperialists remain, but
not many; and they are the only ones who lack enthu-
siasm. It would take too long to tell you all that passes
here, but every one is gay. We passed the outposts of
Maison-Alford, and heard the next day that we had been at
the distance of 300 metres from the Prussians. Not a
soul was to be seen there—all was abandoned. Every
day some batallions proceed to deposit crowns of flowers
on the statue of Strasburg. It has long since been
hidden by its numerous trophies. The more one is sur-
rounded the more one becomes anxious to know what is
going on outside, and what is the impression produced
upon strangers by the siege of Paris. You must have
heard of the small mitrailleuses Cail which strike down
3,000 men a minute, and at the distance of 2,000 metres.
It is a pretty little toy, and let the Prussians mind the
torpedoes if they pass the forts.
GERMAN DIFFICULTIES.
The Prussian inundation of troops seems to have
reached its level, and a calm seems for the moment to be
established in this ocean of men. The positions are taken
up, and the enemy is fortifying himself and securing his
lines of retreat, especially those to Choisi le Roi. Infor-
mation, the correctness of which is guaranteed, confirms
the belief that the bulk of the Prussian army occupies
all the heights from Chatillon, on the south-west, to
Bezons in the north-west. Five army corps and an im-
portant siege artillery are collected upon this line. We
are assured that in the north-east and south-east of Paris
the enemy is established at a great distance ; a consider-
able number of batteries supported by infantry, and con-
nected with each other by squadrons of cavalry (unceas-
ingly in movement) are also collected. Thus the enemy
is endeavouring to surround the capital by a sort of cir-
cumvallation which it is said it would be impossible for
the French to cut without encountering the enemy.
But however numerous the Prussians may be; this
manner of investing Paris might have for them a very serious
termination. A blockade embracing a circumference of 40
miles could only be effective so long as it is our will that
it should be so, that is to say until the moment when
we believe it is time to operate by making sorties or until
corps are organised in the departments to engage the
Prussian lines. According to information we have re-
ceived, says the Sikle, the east is threatened in a direct
line, and we could not too much prepare the population
of the eastern region of Paris for the t,•emen-
dons cannonade which may at any moment break forth
from that sick It appears even that the enemy
is at this moment affecting not to shell us because he flat-
ters himself he shall strike the capital with terror by bom-
barding it with the most formidably artillery which has ever
shaken the human ear. The Parisians will prove to him
that they have no fear of his thundering. They will not
lose their presence of mind for one instant. And when
once their ear has accustomed itself to this infernal
uproar they will have no other care than to revenge the
outrage which the barbarians of the north cause their dear
city to suffer. Quiet, fearless, capable of all devotedness,
the heroic population of Paris will return M. de Bismarck
the blow which he has dealt them. —Beuter's Express,
Sept. 28.
The Manchester Examiner's German correspondent,
writing from Ferrieres, says :—" From all I see in the
camp, our generals will think 'twice before making, up
their minds to besiege the place. A siege would cost
numbers of lives, and would only have the advantage of
gaining time, for Paris is as certainly ours already as, is
we were encamped in its streets. The most humane way
of conquering Paris is to starve it out. Not many
Parisians will really starve, and if hunger is the best
sauce, it is also the best cure for obstinacy."

STRASBU.RG AFTER THE SURRENDER.
The correspondent of the Daily News thus describes the
appearance of Strasburg after its surrender "At 6
o'clock on Thursday morning I was on my way towards
Strasburg. Passing through Schiltigheim, I saw tokens
in every quarter of the severity of the lire from the
fortifications. Hardly a house was untouched. A large
number had been burned to the ground, and many were
converted into piles of ruins by the explosion of shells.
The direct road to Strasburg was crossed by the parallels,
and it was necessary to walk along the first
parallel for nearly a mile before coming to the
pathway along which access to the city was alone possible.
The destruction of the Austerlitz railway station lying
outside the city was thorough. Shortly after the siege
began this station was captured by the besiegers. Near
this place more than one severe fight occurred when the
garrison made a sortie. The fire from one of the mortar
batteries was concentrated upon this station, and the
numerous carriages which once stood on the line had been
converted into heaps of charred wood and twisted iron.
On approaching the Porte Saverne, I saw countless
marks indicating the severity of the fire which I
the besiegers had directed towards this spot.
Between this and the Portes des Pierres the walls have