Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1859-07-28
The two villages on the line of hills held

| The two villages on the line OF hllls held
by the Austrians offered the greatest resis-
tance to the advance of the French. One
of these (solferino) was taken and retaken
three times by Canrobert's division, and
it is said that at this point the dead bodies
actually concealed the ground from view.
Another village nearer to Castiglione, in
which, strange to say, both the men and the
women of the town fired upon the French,
was totally burnt down by Marshal Canro-
bert's orders, who was naturally indignant
at such conduct.
The Austrians were gradually driven back
{. over the plain, and from their strong position
on the hill-sides, till at 4 o'clock they made
their last obstinate stand at the town of VOL
ia, six miles east of Castiglione. nhour's
work dislodged them from this place, and
then, at 5 o'clock, violent rain.storm COM
ing up, attended with lightning and thun-
der, the retreat of the Austrians commen-
ced.
During this storm, which lasted nearly
an hour, we took refuge in one of the divis-
ion headquarters of the town, and there as
sisted in dressing the wounded as they were
brought in. The storm which was but
burst, and which seemed to have been sent
expressly to cool the hot air and to lay the
dust, had no sooner ceased than the thunder
of the artillery was again heard, but this time
around and to the north of the point of hills
in the direction of Peschiera. The battle
had been renewed or, perhaps, to us at the
village, only drowned by the storm We
hastened to high hill half a mile east Of
the town, to point near where the Austrian
right rested at daylight in the morning, and
at the very place on which Napoleon had
stood during the first hours Of the battle, and
from this point we could see distinctly what
was going on. Away to the northeast, to-
wards Preschiera, which was clearly in view,
and, apparently, near the borders of the lake
of Garda, the battle was raging with renewed
fury.
The Piedmontese, fifty thousand strong,
commanded by the King, who had stopped
the night of the 22d in advance of Sonato
and who had come to the field of action in
the rear of the Austrians in the flank as they
retreated We could see each discharge of
the cannon as they vomited forth, in rapid
succession, their death-dealing missiles, and
when we shaded our ears behind the crown
of the hill on which we stood, could hear
distinctly not only only the discharges ofthe
common, but the sharp, rapid cracking Of the
rifed muskets of the infantry. The scene
at this moment was one long to be remem-
bcrcd. Ten miles north of us, and on the
eastern and western shores of the lake, the
Alps reared their snow-covered tops above
the clouds. The storm had cleared away,
and the sunset was never more beautiful in
this country of lovely skies. Nearer to us,
on the south side of the lake, where the
shore is nearly level, the battle was raging,
and the movements of the batteries from
point to point could be perceived. The rays
of the sun Illuminating the snow.clad tops
of the mountains, rendered their sides dark
and sombre, and threw shade upon the wa
ter beyond the contending armies which
brought these into strong relief. The Aus
trians could be seen steadily rececing; the
batteries of the artillery on both sides were
constantly shifting from one little hillock to
another, and as soon as placed in position a
regular rolling discharge could be heard and
a line of fire seen like conaagration.-
The scene was alike picturesque and terri
BILE.
The correspondent ADDS that he feels war
ranted in saying that the French must have
had $4,000 men hors de combat he says
he saw $1,000 wounded men come from the
field on carts, wagons, mules, and litters.-
He further adds:
If did not already know the result of
the battle, I would be ready to suppose, from
the enormous number of wounded soldiers
at this moment passing my window, that the
French army had been literally destroyed.
I am quite sure, no matter what the French
official report may say, that my preceding
estimation of the wounded is small.
THE PRISONERS.
We saw about three thousand Austrian
prisoners brought in. How many were ta-
ken during the day could not be ascertained.
1 saw one crowd of 600, another Of 45O,
and many smaller squads. The Austrian
wounded were piled into the carts sometimes
indiscriminately with the French.
The most horrible wounds to look at were
those of the face. Two Zouaves of the
first regiment had the whole under jaw
carried away, and yet these brave fellows
walked behind the carts of their comrades
more dangerously wounded than themselves.
Some had their eyes closed from blows with
the butts of the muskets; others had their
cheeks or mouths hangingin lam'beaur from
sword cuts; others the cheeks swollen to
enormous dimensions from balls that had
pierced their faces throug h and through
The women who had remained in the town
of Castigliono shed tears apparentlyat the ut
ter hopelessness of rendering assistance to
such number of brave and suffering men.
Yet every house was thrown open. and every
hand was ready to aid in alleviating their
pains.
For the most part they asked but for wine
or water, for the loss of blood creates thirst,
and the fatigues of the day must have been
| root fron, tho lanoth of the battle and the