The Sun.
London, England, 1866-07-31 00:00:00

an interval of loading, exclaimed, " Schmidt ! how
dare you have your shako on your hearl in a way
contrary to regulation ?" There I leave him and
return to the Austrian Welsh wig with an anathema,
for independently of its original Ein of ugliness is
superadded a frightful feature—a white bandage of
linen round the head and under the turned-up flaps,
which leaves the top of the cap uncovered, so that
the wearer looks as if he were wounded or just out
of hospital.
In spite of this and the grey overcoat the soldiers
looked well, and swarmed in and out of the houses
in which they were billeted in a quiet, contented way,
as if they were satisfied with their quarters. All the
suburbs were filled with them, and at every few
hundred yards small parties of horse and foot es-
corting baggage or waggons, or busied about some
of the duties which keep so many men in an army
for ever employed in war time, came out from or
went towards Vienna. The fields were dotted with
encampments of trains and waggons, and in rather
a low lying spot we recognised the camp of our gal-
lant Hungarian Col. Von Nadosy (he is partial to
swampy ground), who has brought in the Head
Quarters train lately belonging to the North Army
Haupt Quartier staff in a hard march of five days
from Olmutz, after many hairbreadth escapes.
Although I have used the word encampment, the
Austrians carry no tents ; when they are not pro-
vided with shelter in houses they sleep in their coats
in the fields. Staff officers in gold laced cocked hats
with large waving green plumes, green tunics, gold
laced and yellow sashes, passed along towards the
review ground, and we passed a fine group of led
horses belonging to the Emperor and the members
of the Imperial family, with well-appointed grooms,
bound for the same place. Turning aside from the
highway out of Vienna, which runs parallel for a
short way with the railway towards the south, we
passed through the village of Ober Laa and the
hamlet of Unter Laa, and came out on a prairie-like

expanse of rolling fields, on which the corn had been
cut, so that the men could not damage the crops.
Columns of dust, through which flashed barrel and
bayonet, showed that the various regiments were
still marching to their ground, and we came upon
some of the Archduke Albrecht's staff at a little
church outside Unter Laa. Here we mounted our
horses and rode over to the front of the troops to be
reviewed. They consisted of three brigades of the
Fifth Army Corps commanded by Gen. Hartung
and eight batteries of artillery, but their cavalry
had not yet arrived from the South, though close to
Vienna. As each brigade consists of two regiments
and one Jager battalion, the strength of the force
on the field ought to be by regulation of at least
35,000 men, but it was not, I think, more than
24,000 or 25,000 men. The Fifth Army Corps has
just come from Italy, where it took part in the action
of Custozza, and Hartung is considered one of the
best officers in the Austrian army. Nothing could
exceed the steadiness and order of the troops, and
in stature, bearing, and appointments they were
all that could be desired—except one was fanatical
about breech-loaders, and Garibaldi shirts, and
Zouave breeches. The infantry were nearly, if
not all Hungarian regiments, and as the eye
rested on their bronzed faces, the long lines of clean
white tunics and the well-turned limbs in the tight-
fitting light blue pantaloons, he might be pardoned
for taking them to be as good as any infantry in the
world. The nightcaps and great coats were dis-
carded, and in the shako each man wore a sprig of
laurel or a bunch of green leaves. The white lines
were set off by the plumed bonnets and dark tunics
of the Jager battalions, and as the whole force was
drawn up in columns of battalions, in two lines, to
economise space, there was an appearance of solidity
and strength about it which even the shock of battle
might fail to dissipate. The artillery was in good
order, though the Woolwich gunners might criticise
the lightness of the horses if they did not know how
light the guns were also. General Hartung and his
staff, on the right flank of the corps, awaited the
arrival of the Emperor, and a few peasants—men
and women from the farmhouses and hamlets—
came out to enjoy the sight, and were allowed
to come unveied of bullying sentries close to
the troops, but did not venture inside the
line of field officers mounted in front. In the plain
in front a party of gamekeepers were training their
dogs for the opening of the shooting season, and
breaking them to the fat hares which started up on_
all sides and went lolloping away in a deliberate Aus-
trian sort of way, with their huge ears erect in the
stubble. Presently the faint reports of artillery
announced that the Emperor was on his way, and
two carriages containing members of the Imperial
family drove on the ground. About half-past 8
o'clock a pillar of dust, which spread out over the
plain, bore rapidly towards us from Unter Laa, and in
the midst, enveloped in an escort of generals, aides-
de-camp, and staff officers, and splendidly mounted,
rode, erect and well in his seat, the Emperor Fran-
cis Joseph, an Imperial Hapsburg in stature, face,
and bearing. He was dressed in a light-blue tunic,
with gold and white and red sash, a gold-laced
cocked hat, with a large waving green plume, and
cavalry overalls ; and, although those who know him
best say he looks altered and is shockingly thin and
worn, I only saw a man, clear-eyed, a calm face,
with a serious expression—an English-looking face
with a heavy light moustache and light whiskers—
with a tall, slight figure, lithe and active. With
him was his Imperial Highness Archduke Albrecht,
his Imperial Highness (his son) Ludvig, the Crown
Prince of Saxony, the Cro ifn Prince of Hanover,
and the officers in attendance on them, with their
escorts. It might well be called a " brilliant" staff,
and the effect, as they all galloped down the line, the
colours lowered, the troops saluting, the bands play-
ing " God preserve the Emperor," was one of those
things to be seen and not described, which gratify
some secret hankering after the pomp and circum-
stance of glorious war, and render the eye for the time
the master of the mind and of all the emotions. When
the Emperor had ridden down the ranks he came
round to the front of the corps and dismounted from
his horse. Then, advancing close to the men, he, in
loud, clear, and ringing tones, addressed them ; but
his Majesty was so far in front of his staff that only a
few words of what he said reached them. He
thanked them for their courage and for their victories
and for their devotion to Austria, which might be
again tested, and then, ending with the words—
" Once more I thank you," he proceeded on foot to
distribute to a number of non-commissioned officers
and privates decorations for their conduct in the field,
addressing each man by name, and affixing the
medal with his own bands. The officers who were
promoted or; decorated for the Italian campaign
were drawn up apart and acknowledged his Ma-
e marks times
fw with
Imperial their
k sby
not salutingreeei v e threeth
fsjaewsvotoyrud'ars,dtbilirul did
tly on the field. There were probably
300 in all who were selected for the various distinc-
tions of orders and decorations, and one could not
help thinking thatif
spirit
te
which
horaize
beenrewards
ca are
given
l°Pe the
defence of nations it is a more rational
thegi v e
en h
et
ao p d ev e
way to select men from the mass than to give away
bushel loads of medals to all thnse,whatever be their
merits or demerits, their dangers or their sufferings,
engaged in a campaign ; so thatthetshoe mldsiearwehoelwasaps
writing in an orderly-room has
as the man who stood inside the Sandbag Bat

tery at Inkerman, and h
on, and the man who chargedte man who looked
into the Russian
pgausntstaot Bokpallaakeelavaat waesawr
itnhgeinsagmpeacber.an d.
11Tehme
ennmarch
not carry packs, and wore their greatcoats folded
and
and put round the body over the shoulder,
looked in all respects as well as any troops could do
in the world. As soon as they had passed each
regiment marched off, and at the close the Emperor
and his Staff returned towards Vienna, and we dis-
mounted and continued our journey to Presburg.
A drive by a country road brought us to the large
village of Schwechat, famous for its beer; and the
Austrians are resolved to defend the establishments
for making their favourite beverage against the en-
vious and marauding Prussians with vigour, if we
might judge by their preparations and the force in
which they occupied the place. What it costs to be a
great military power ! Above all, what it costs if the
pretension to be so is not sustained, and if a greater
military Power is able to demand of its unsuccessful
rival, knocking loudly at her doors, the money for
maintaining the two establishments ! If all these

strapping, long-legged, bright-eyed, lithe Hunga-
rians had been in Klum on July 3d, about 2 p.m.,
what a change might have been made in the history
of the world ! And now it is said that one Mr.
Deak, a plain Hungarian gentleman—more potent
in his way than any soldier-4as been able to take
a very high tone with the King of Hungary, be-
cause his countrymen in the markets were not on
that little hillock. He is believed here to have told
the Emperor in his interview with his Majesty on
the 19th July that he ought to make peace and to
have adhered tenaciously to his programme of a
Liberal Ministry for Hungary, with the Vice Presi-
dent of the Lower Chamber as President or
Prime Minister. Beyond Schwechat the road
branches, one chaussee running parallel with the
banks of the Danube towards Presburg, the others
striking off to Bruck. Heavy columns of infantry,
cavalry, and guns were visible at intervals march-
ing from Bruck towards Vienna on our right,
which we learnt afterwards belonged to Bene-
dek's army, and several squadrons of horse and
some field batteries passed us with their forces
in the same direction, the men so covered with dust
that their uniforms were scarcely discernible, and
their faces and moustaches were of a pumice-stone
hue and aspect. They belonged to Benedek's army
also. At Fischament, a large village about a third
of the way to Presburg, we halted to feed horse
and man. The little inn was full of soldiers,
and in the court-yard, stretched on the stones,
thinly covered with straw, lay snoring in the
sun the owners of indiscriminate heads, legs,
bodies, and arms, amid stacked firelocks and
lances. The fat landlord uttered a tremendous
grunt of something between indignation and amaze-
ment when we asked him if he had any trout for
dinner. "My God ! trout ! Why there are soldiers
here who devour everything. They would eat the
very sand of the river. Trout, indeed 1" And so we
took to a bread soup, and veal and pig instead. The
soldiers belonged to Ramming's corps, which we had
left behind us at Olmutz, and their stained accoutre-
ments and worn shoes told their tale of long march-
ings through the Waagthal. The valley of the
Danube is close to the road beyond Fischament.
Down below us runs the mighty river, in many chan-
nels, so screened with heavy timber on innumerable
islands that the eye seldom catches a glimpse of the
main stream. The right bank is high and steep, the
escarp of a great plateau. The trees below us, high
as they rise, do not come within a couple of hun-
dred feet of the cliff-like bank, and on the other side
the forest stretches out wide and flat towards
Schonau, Orth, Mansdorf, Croatwagram, and other
places now occupied by the Prussians. On one side,
at every quarter of a mile or so, was perched a
white-coated dragoon, en vedette, watching the oppo-
site bank. Here and there a picket of Jagers kept
guard and looked keenly across at the woods ; and
once, and once only, we saw at the other side of a
wide reach of the river some soldiers of the enemy's
pickets near a little hamlet, but their main bodies
were inside the line of the Reuss which flows into
the Danube above Presburg. The scenery along the
whole of the drive was interesting on the left of the
river, but on the right an expanse of cornfields ex-
tending to the blue ridges of the Leythagebirge did
not offer any attractive features. It was to be ob-
served that there were no preparations visible at
the best positions for putting guns under cover to
sweep the river, but the bank is in itself a formid-
able addition to the obstacles presented by the river
itself to the passage of an enemy. Passing through
Elend and Ragelsbrun, we made another halt at
Petronel to rest the horses. Here there are large
Imperial manufactories of tobacco, and the weed is
largely cultivated along the road. Detachments of
troops marching down towards the river and the
parties they relieved returning from duty gave ani-
mation to the scene, and gave the traveller an oppor-
tunity of becoming acquainted with the appearance
of all the different branches of the Austrian service.
Toward evening we reached Hainburg, and the sun
was setting behind the ruined castle which crests the

Lofty crag over the city of Presburg before we reached
. _ _

the bridge of boats over the Danube—familiar to
every traveller from Vienna to Pesth. The river
rushes swift as the " arrowy Rhone" itself, awl as
broad as the Thames at the tunnel below the bridge,
the planks of which are well-nigh worn through by
passage of cavalry and artillery. The best hotel in
Presburg was full, and we were fain to put up at the
" Gasthof zum Schwan," in the Darrow street lead-

ing to the bridge. Had we lain down in the street
itself we would have had just as much chance, or
better, of sleep. The people of Presburg who swarmed
on the other side of the river, on the " Kavehas"
watching the troops crossing over, had left plenty
of people behind them, and the fair Hungarians—
darkly fair—in pork-pie hats, leaning on the arms
of gentlemen in Hessian boots and steeple hats and
Hussar jackets, thronged the place till the moon
rose high, looking at the columns of all arms, which
kept on marching and clattering over the pavement
without intermission, for Benedek's army was in
full march for the other side. The windows cl t-

,ered, the house shook, doors banged, officers
shouted, horses neighed all through the night, nor
ceased with early morning, and the first rays of the
sun were greeted by the crash of bands, as regi-
ment after regiment filed down towards the bridge.
The river steamers received them as fast as they
arrived, and, backing down the stream, came
slowly round and sidled across to the opposite bank,
where the men were disembarked and proceeded to
find quarters in the woods and villages. As soon as
we had breakfasted and changed our quarters to the
admirable hostelry of the " Gruneu Baum," we
proceeded to visit Blumenau, the scene of the action
of last Sunday. The road running parallel to the
railway strikes in a north-westerly direction through
a defile with high conical hills on either side—the
summits covered with wood, and sides and bases
with vines on stout props 4 or 5 feet high.
About three miles outside the town the first traces
of the recent combat were visible—dead horses in
the fields, and a few graves freshly made. The
straw on which Prussian soldiers had slept lay by
the road side, and among the dead horses and the
graves the peasants were busy stacking and drawing
home the corn. llere the defile opened out on a
plain inclosed by hills on both sides, which receded
to the right and left, and rose in broken irregular
ridges covered with forest. The Prussians had ad-
vanced along these hills on both sides, and their
cavalry had been charged by the Austrian horse in
the plains before us. Blumenau is a poor and in-
significant hamlet, containing about 20 small cabins.
At a miserable cabaret, a group of officers sat at
table in the open air, taking their early dinner, and
when they heard who we were they received us
most kindly, and gave us all the information they
had about the fight. One, an Ober Lieutenant of
Lancers, was on outpost duty the morning of the
action, and was personally engaged with the Prus-
sians. The others had all taken part in it, and de-
scribed their share in the events of the day with
animation and frankness. As they were speaking,
the Colonel in command of the cavalry at Blumenau
came up and asked who we were. " Why," said he,
" you are the two Englishmen about whom my wife
wrote to me when she and you were arrested as spies
receivedany intelligence
the
letter of
in his at Littau." It was a strange rencontre. The Colonel
w
looked grave and sad, for, as he told us, he had not
hilvehifesh
and
told himchildrenndo
since
h ereceived f
her little adventure. While we were talking of the
action, and of various matters—peace and war—an '
orderly arrived with the precious sheets which cor-
respond to our Gazette, and for a few minutes every
one turned over the pages with eagerness, scanning
the lists of promotions and decorations, and it is to
be hoped some of them were gratified with the
distribution of Imperial favours, though no congra-
tulations were exchanged. We took our leave and
returned to Presburg, and my companion returned
in the afternoon and reviewed the position. llere,
was but one sentiment ex-
as everywhere, there
cavalry officers respecting their
pressed by the
mounted opponents. " The Prussians never face us
unless they are in much greater force. They have
sometimes surprised a post and cut in on a party ere
the men could get to their horses, but if we are at
all equal in numbers they always retire firing their
rather than as
needle-guns, and acting as infantry

cavalry." The F. ame story comes from Edelsheim's
cavalry on the left as from the cavalry on the right,

and it contrasts strangely with the accounts from