Martinsburg gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1833-1855, 1852-03-02

! Guard
Grouchy UPON Ii loss 6f The battle fed to
the United States, where he resided for sew
eral years. and was part Of the time the
4 guest Of General Brown, to whom be explain
/ cd at length his entire operations. instruc-
tions and plars, With justification for bis
conduct in not combining lis forces with
those Of Napoleon on the day Of action at
I Waterloo
After mature study or tie man, and care
fully listening to bis explanations. General
Brown came to the conclusion that Groachy
was no traitor, but that he was in the FIRST
place unfortunate, and in the second he was
a first rate general The portrait Of Grouchy
at Versailles confirms in my opinion, this
view In 1S4T this unfrtunate marshall
died, and when bis death was announced 10
the Chamber of Deputies. the announcement
was received 10 perfect silence
AS stood in the hollow before the farm Of
La Belle Alliance, where Napoleon descended
ana formed his old guard for their last charge,
and considered the high and formidable char
acter of the British front. crested with men
and guns | felt both surprised and sorry that
he ever should have ventmed 50 much On
single throw The undertaking seemed to
me the very climax Of reeklessness, ard it
was commenced at the very moment when
Blucher's artillery was blazing away on the
right | expressed my establishment to
military friend, who answered that Bonapaste
had done the same thing before ia battle
with success. and that. in this instance he
ventured, with his usual confidence, to re-
peat the experiment
As he pointed the eminence Of attack, he
told his guards that yonder was the-road to
honor they advanced, but persisted in the
way. The Old Guard died at Waterloo !;
Napoleon at st. Helena
The field Of Waterloo may Be truly called
an Aceldama. In walking over it By moon
light | thought of the vision Of ''Dcath on
the Pale horse" Never before did war ap-
pear to me SO full Of horrors. From the sad
and melancholy impressions incident to the
place. | was glad for inomert to seek relief
by rejecting on the blessings Of universal
peace: and in connection remembered with
pleasure the language of Bancroft, the liisto-
rian, delivered il Englanda Few years ago, at
the banquet Of the Royal Agricultural Asso.
citation "Gentleucn," said he, Il rejoice
that we live in an age, when Of all the trees
that are planted in the ground. the husband
| man Of all lands invoke the choicest blessings
Of Providence on the trees ofPcace, (cheers)
praying that its roots may strike to the very
centre CT the earth and that it may be SC
f firmly rooted that its bouphs may rustic il
the breeze 81 the stormiast revolutions. =
2 Loud and reiterated cheess
| British historians dwell With much stress
on the fact that the flower of the army O
/ Wellington was engaged in the expedition t.
n Orleans and contributed nothing to the
glory Of the day. And the Duke himself. il
} his extremity. is reported to have said "Of
; that had those men here ? could do any
j thing with that army"
|, If these troops had been as unfortunate
at Waterloo as New Orleans, they might a:
y well have been anywhere else.
0 Besides other grants and honors, the Gov.
crnment of Belgium ccded to wellington /
c part of the forrest of soignes. Some of biz
4 countrymen have expressed the opinion tina
Q it would have been much better If that Gov
F; eminent had given him title deed to th,
. battle Geld itself
The general aspect of tie field has no
y undergone any very material change sine,
: the date Of the great action fought uron it
: The area is very extensive and entirely unen
: closed. but nevertheless under excellent ant
: productive cultivation.
Q In looking at the ploughmcn as they turn
g ed up the rich soil, with its Wondering bones
felt the force oe the beautiful passage il
Q the latter part Of the first book of the Geor
: gics Virgil:
SELECT ct tcmpus veniet, cum fnibus Ills
: Agricola, ncurvo terrain molitus aratro,
It Excsa inveniet scabra rubigine pila;
4 Aut gravibus rastris galeas pusabt inanes,
Grandiaque effosss. mirabitur osso sepulchris
: For also shall the time come, when, il
It those boundaries, the farmer tiling the eartl
: with the crooked plough, shall find darts cor
d roded by consuming rust. or shall STRIKE
) empty helmets with heavy harrows and shall
b admire the large bones from the excayatet
o tombs
c The principle monument upon the grount
u is high pyramid If EARTH with Beleic lior
= upon its summit. carved in stone with hi
0 right paw playing with cannon ball. Til:
: mound is 40 feet in height, and including
b the lion aud the pedestal 200 The circum-
r Ference at the base Is 1861 feet and It's IN
4 elination is "A degrees. A fight of steps
: lead up to the top, where tho observer may
stand and survey the whole prospect to great
: advantage This monument was reared tt
D mark the spot where the Prince of Orange
] received wouod. 1t is covered with ver-
| dure, and viewed from the tower of Brussel:
1 presents very bold and commanding appear
, ance. There are several other monuments
upon the field Of considerable interest The
most prominent is that erected to the men,
9 ory Of the fallen soldiers of the army of PIus-
! STA: it is composed Of cast iron. The next
is the stone memorial in honor of the dead Of
the German Legion and the last is marble
5 column to Colonel Gordon, a young English
officer OF high promise, In
1t was my intention to pass a week upon
this vast field III study and meditation; but
} after having tarried one day and a night, ]
) felt myself too much oppressed to remain ans
longer My sympathics were entirely with
the cause Of Napoleon. and in his defeat felt
rs IF / had Inst the battle myself. my enthu-