The Shasta courier., 1861-09-28
Panic-stricken Soldiers.

The question is often asked, will troops
that have fled from battlefield in panic
ever get over the demoralizing effect We
have in reply only to say that panics are not
uncommon things in war, and are not con-
hrmed by any means to new levies, such as
composed our army at Bull Run. Napoleon
l, with an army composed of his best veter,
ans, suffered from two panics, among the
most disgraceful recorded in military annals,
yet the same troops few days afterwards
achieved brilliantly
In the month of July, 1S4S, the italian
army, under Charles Albert, was marching
toward Mantua, for the purpose of beseiging
that important fortress the Piedmontese
Secretary of War, General Rava, command
ed the advance, eleven thousand strong. All
went well with the Italian army, and victory
seemed within its grasp. The enemy, under
the Austrian Marshal Redetzka, was fortified
in Verona, and an Austrian Governor was
there. One fine morning. (so General Bays
relates in his report to the Parliament at Tu.
rim, as the advance troops marched along, a
shot was suddenly fred .. out of solitary
house; mill seat. The tiraileur raised the
cry, The Austrians the Austrians ~ and
precipitately retreated The cry was repeat
ed by whole battalion, which at the same
time wheeled about and marched back at
double quick time. The movement soon de-
generated into wild run. The fright CON-
municated itself to the other troops, and in
short time the whole advance corps of eleven
thousand men were dissolved into an igno-
minious route, and, in spite of their COM
manding general, fled for more than ten
miles, until their course was arrested by the
approach of reinforcements. General Bava
resumed his march the next day, and it was
ascertained that the shot was purely acciden-
tai on the part of the people in the mill. -
There was no Austrians within miles.
But the most remarkable case of panic is
of such recent occurrence that it must be fa-
miliar with most intelligent people. At the
battlelof Solferino, French corps of fifteen
thousand picked troops ran some fifteen miles
back to Brescia, because five struggling
Austrian huzzars suddenly appeared on the
road, their object being to surrender them
selves as prisoners to the French, A graph
ic description of this most disgraceful affair
was published at the time, from the pen off,
H. Raymond, of the New York Times, who
saw the panic.
The battle of Rosbach, which was fought
November 5th, 1857, bears a strong resem,
blance, in many particulars, to Bull Run
On the occasion referred to, Fredrick the
Great, with twenty live thousand men, at.
tackled the combined army of the French and
Imperialists, ffty-four thousand strong, un'
der the command of the French Duke de Sou
bise. Two French regiments fought for
half hour, and then the whole army be-
gan to waver, and finally the entire force
broke, abandoning arms, artillery, and camp
equipage. The route was continued for more
than forty miles from the battlefield.
Panics have even seized men in fortified
camps and cities. After the battle of jena,
October, 1906, Murat came with three caval-
ry regiments before the fortress Steitten, and
asked an unconditional surrender. He had,
strange as it may seem, no infantry or artll-
lery, still the Prussians at the moment were
so panic.stricken that they surrendered the
stong fortress to weak cavalry force. REM
burg, the commander, had six thousand men,
one hundred and fifty cannon, and plenty of
provisions. Napoleon was SO astonished at
the result that he wrote Murat, jestingly,
"that he would melt his guns, as Prussian
fortresses were best taken by cavalry"
1t must be observed that these strange
panics, every one of which took place among
veteran regular troops, we're without cause.
They did not, as at Bull Run, follow a se-
verely fought battle, where the enemy was
reinforced, but from the effect of pure hal
lucination of the mind. Besides these men
toned instances of panics, our disaster at
Bull Run properly takes its place as a re-
pulse of reconnaissance in force. 1t was
nothing more, and would never have assum-
ed other Importance if twenty four hours had
elapsed before any report had been made to
the public, We repeat that in every instance
the panic-stricken Europen soldiers subse-
quently fought with superior yalor. In the
case of our own troops, Bull Run will serve
as stimulus TO new deeds Of heroic action.