Star.
London, England, 1829-01-03 00:00:00

BATTLE OF WATERLOO,

We hare extricted floes The United service Journal
the following account, by an eye.witiless, of Waterloo,
before and alter the battle, which ia highly enter-
tuning

Sunday morning was u tiered in by one of the most
heedful tvmpests I ever remember. The crashing of
launder was followed by the roar of cannon, which
as now di,tincey heard from the ramparts, and it is
,ot po.tible to describe the fearful effect of this appal.
cut mockery of heaven. I never before felt so torcibly
the feebleness of man. The r sin twat tremendous—the
k 1 looked lake that of Poussin's picture of the Deluge,
snd a heavy black cloud spread. like the wings of• a
yonstsons vulture, over Brus•els. The wounded con.
in to arrive the whole of Saturday night and Sun-
,' sy morning, in a condition which defies description.
They appeared to have been dragged for miles through
~ceans s f mud ; their clothes were torn, their caps and
fe .tier s cut to pieces, and their shoes and boots troddeft
off. The accounts they brought were vague and dis.
heattetring—in fact, we could only ascertain that the
Duke r.f Wellington had, late on Saturday, taken
up his positi •n at Wa•er:o s, and that these he meant to
wait the attack of the Fiends. That this attack had
commenced, we needed not to be informed, as the soar
of the cannon became every instant more distinct, till
we even fancied that it shook the town. The wounded
represented the field of battle as a perfect quagmire,
and their appearance testified the truth of their asser.
tionc. About two o'clock a fresh alarm was excited
by the horses,
,which bad been put in requisition to
draw the baggage waggons, being suddenly galloped
through the town. We fancied this a proof of defeat;
but the fact was simply thus—the peasants from whom
the horses had been taken, finding the drivers of the
waggons absent from their posts, seized the opporta•
nity to cut the traces, and gallop off with their cattle.
As this explanation, however, was not given till the
following day, we thought that all was over; the few
British adherents who had remained were io despair,
and tai coloured cockades were suspended from every
house. Even I, for the first time, list all courage, arid
my only consolation was the jiry of Annette. I. Eng.
land cannot be much injured by the loss of a single
battle," thought I; " and, as for me. it is of little con-
sequence whether I am a prisoner on parole, or at mere
wanderer at pleasure. I may easily resign myself to
my fate; but this poor girl would break her heart if
she lost her lover, for he is everything to hes." In this
manner I reasoned ; but in spite of toy affected phi's:).
sophy. I could not divest myself cf all natural feeling ;
and when about six o'clock we heard that the French
had given way, and that the Prussians had eluded
Grouche, and were rapidly advancing to the field, I
quite forgot poor Annette, and thanktd Goo aids all
my heart. A: eight o'clock there was n% longer any
doubt r f our -succest, for a battalion of troops marched
into the town, and brought intellionce that the Duke
of Wellington had gained a complete victory, and that
the French were flying, closely pursued by tee Pt ussians.
Sunday night was employed in enthusiastic rejoicing.
Tire tri.canuted cockades hrd all disappeared, and the
British cohorts were hoisted f oas every window. The
great bell of St.Gudule tolled to announce the event to •he
surrounJing neighbourhood ; and sonic f the E•sgi
who had only hidden themselves, v inured to re-aph•ear.
The only alloy to the universal rapture which prevailed
was the number of the victualed ; the houses were in -
suffici.nt to contain half; and the churches and public
buildings were littered down with straw tor their recep.
tion. The body of the Duke of Bronswick, who fell
at Qoatre Bras, was brought in on Saturday, and taken
to the quarters he had occupied near the Chateau de
Luken. I was powerfully affected when I saw t' e
corpse of one whom I had so lately marked as bloom.
ing with youth and health ; but my eyes soon became
accustomed to horrors.

On Monday morning, June 19th, I hastened to the
field of battle; I wts compelled to gb through the f
lest de Soigne:, for the road was so completely choked
up as to be impassable; and I had not proceeded far
before I stumbled over the dead body of a Frenchman.
which was If ing on its face among t the gra.s. l'he
corpse was so frightfully disfigured, and so sweated
ssith mud and• gore, that I felt horror-struck; but
when, on advancing a little father, I saw hundreds,
and in less than an hoer thousands f slain, I !mind my
pity for individuals merge in the geee►al mass, and
that the more I saw the less I felt ; so true it is that
habit reconciles every thing.
The dead requ;red no help; but tliouiands of
wounded, who could not help them elves, mere ir. want
of every thing ; their features swollen I,y the sun and
rain, !oiled livid and bloated. One pnt Whist., had a
ghastly wound +cum his lower lip, which gaped wide,
and showed his teeth and gums, as though a second
and unnatural mouth had opened below the
Another, quite blind him a gash across his eyes. sat
upoi4lit, gasping h.r breath, and morn:u•ing. "
reau! de Nati r The anxiety for water was indeed
most distressing. The German I. Va%ei I YAW r and
the French 4. lie reau de real' !' still seem sounding
in my ears. lam convinced that hundreds must have
perished fom thirst alone, and they bad no hope of.
assistance, for even humane persons were afraid ci ap-
roaching the scene of blood, lest they should be taken
in requisition to bury the dead ; almost every person
who came near being pleased into that most disgusting
and painful service.

This general burying was truly horrible; large square
holes were dug aboist six feet deep, end thirty or lofty
fine young fellows, stripped to their skins, were thrown
into each, pell melt, and then covered over in su slo-
venly a manner, that sometimes a hand or foot peeptd
through the earth. One of these toles, was preparing
as I_ pa,aed,.and the followers of the army were strip-
ping the bodies before throwing them into it, whilst
n)trie Russian Jews were assi.ting in the spoliation cf
the dead, by chisseling out their teeth 1 an operation
which they pee formed with the most brutal indifference.
The clinking hammers of these wretches jarred horrible'•
upon my ears, and, mingled strangely with she occa-
sional repent of pistols, which seemed echoing each other
at stated intervals, from different mum ofthe
1 cculd not divine the meaning `anew shots, till I was
informed that they proceeded from the Belgians, who
were killing the wounded horses. Hundreds of these
fine ereati.ses were. indeed, galloping over the plain,,
kicking and plunging, apparently mad with pain.whilst
the poor wounded mach,' who saw them coming, arid

could not get out of ttalear,'Wrirked in agony, and
tried to shrink beaky° escape from them, but in vain.
Sion after, 14aw an immense horse, one of the Scotch
Greys, dash towards a Coldnel of the Imperial Guard,
who had had his legs shattered; the horse was fright-J
fully wounded. attsf part of a broken lance still rankled
in one of its wounds. It rushed snorting and &tinging,
port the Frenchman, and I shall never forget his piercing
cry as it approached. I flew instantly to the spot. but
ere I reached it the man was dead, for, though I do not
think the horse had touched him, the terror be felt had
been too much for hislizhausted frame.
Sickened with the immense heaps of slain, which
spread in all directions as far as the eye could reach, I
st as preparing to return, when, as I was ste Ain't over
the dead and dying, and meditating on the horrors of
war, my attention was attracted by a young French-
man, who was lying on his back apparently at the last
gasp. There was something in his countenance which
interested me, and I fancied, though I knew not when,
or whew, that I had seen him before. Some open let-
ters were lying around and one was yet grasped in his
band, as though he had been reading it to the last mo-
ment. My eye fell upon the words " Mon tier ids,"
• in a female hand, and I felt interested for the fate of so
affectirmate a son.
When I left home in the morning) I had put a flask
of brandy and some biscuit into my pocket, in the hope
that I might be use ul to the wounded; but when I
Rased on the countless multitude which strewed the
field, I felt discouraged loom a tempting to relieve
them. Chance had now directed my attention to one
individual, and I resolved to try t o save his life. His
thigh was broken, and he was badly wounded on the
left wrist, but the •ital parts were untouched, ind his
exhaustion ►eemed to arise principally horn the Ids. of
I poured a few drops of brandy into his mouth, and
ounibling my biscuit, contrived to make him swallow
a small particle. The effects of the dr ze were soon
visible; his eyes half opened, and a faint tinge of colour
spread over his cheek. 1 administered a little mole,
and it revived him so much that he tried to sit upright.
raised him, and contriving to place him in such a
manner as to support him against the dead body of a
horse, I put the flask and biscuit by his side, and de-
pal ted, in order to procure assistance to remove him.
rec.illected that a short time before I had seen a
smoke issuing from a deep ditch, and that my olfactory
nerves had been saluted by a savoury smell as I passed.
liui ied by there indications I retraced my steps to the
spot, and found some Scotch soldiers sheltered by a
hedge, very agreeably employed in cooking a quantity
of beer steaki, over a wood fire, in a French cuirass! I
as exceedingly diverted at this novel kind of flying-
pan, which served also as a dish; and after begging
permission to dip a biscuit in their gravy for the.beuefit
of my patient, I told my tale, and was gratified by the
eagerness which they manifested to assist me; one ran
to ca ch a horse a ith a soft hussar saddle (there were
hundreds galloping over the field), and the rest went
its, me to the youth, whom ue found surprisingly m-
eow red, though he was still unable to speak. The horse
was brought. ati d as we raised the young Frenchman
to put him upon it, his vest opened, and his livret"
fell out. This is a lit le bunk which every French
whiter is obliged to ca►ry, and which contains an ac-
count of his tram , age, par, accoutrements, and lier
irieei. 1 picked it up, and offered it to my patient—but
the young man murmured the name of a Annette, and
f inte.t.

THE EVEN 1N 6 STA it.

LOA 100 A .

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15

The important intelligence lias been received in
town, that the Marquis of iircotasay, Lord Lieute
sant if Ireland, has been recalled.

FROM THR DUBLIN MORNING REGISTER 01 JAN. 1.
The letter of the Duke of WlLLiscr N has been
•fellimed by a commentary upon the views and s:ot-
timents which ate expressed us it, which is equally
tem., kable. Th.. Lord Lieutenant of iIttLAND stands
f irward as the annotator upon the compositions of the
Prime Minister. Lord ANGLESEY has also addeessed
a late, is Doctor CURTIS. The head of the Roman
Catholic Hierarchy has tf.u. been selected as a medium
of cotomunication with the ritipite by the Chief
Minifv.,, and the representative, f the S ivereigns The
Marquis of A unt.eastr-bas, by this solemn exptession of
his opinions, conferred an obligation upon Leland. The
spirit of poli ical wisdom which pervades what may be
regarded as an in,truc ion to the Government, and an
injurction to the nation, is combined with a generosity
of f cling, and a chivalrous devotion to she interests
of this ci untty, which give him a lasting title to the
affections of the Irish people.

We repeat, that the nerciatipns which are to decide
up, n the course which the English Government are to
take in regard to Portugal, are not yet brought to that
point which natal.' the Minister to calculate with any
certainty as to the result. Speculations are therefore
mere guess work, and ate hazarded without foundation.

Some alai m has been escited by the busy note of
preparation in the Walt Department of the French Go-
vernment, and there were those who foresaw somewhat
more than was avowed in the getting up of large cape•
ditions. Few, we believe, would e ject to a French
army chastising the barbarians of the African coast, but
there were many who fancied they saw something of a
longing for a settlement in New Holland, and for the oc-
cupation of Egypt, and who felt also some misgivings,
as to the opportunity which a series of su:cesses on the
coast of Africa might give, in regard to the latter. The
British Government are fully aware that no French
army most be allowed • footing near the mouth of.