Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1870-10-20

Miseellanu.
BAZAINE'S SORTIE AT METZ.

SLAMS have thrown their Delt OF men, guns,
and earthworks around the fortress. lie
had 10000 men engaged. The Prusslans
were considerably more numerous. The
morning was dull and misty. At o'clock
| was sitting at lunch with two staff otii-
GERS, in the arbor in Gen. krummers gar
den, when the guns of the Prussian bat
teries by Lemecourt began to give tongue.
The roar of the guns grew louder and
louder, and then came first one great boom
and then another from the big guns lying
behind at Frenecourt. TO explain the tac-
tics of BaZane and the manner in which
they were foied. give n brief descrip-
ton OF the ground.
From Metz to MeZieres there is II long
trough with flat bottom, the alluvial mar
Gin of the Moselle. This tract is about
four English miles wide on the west. 1t
is bounded by the heights and nearer Metz
by Norway and Saulny. On the east it is
bounded by IA lower series OF bluffs, on
which stood the villages of Olgy and NAL
voy, but between them runs the Moselle,
infringing considerably on the flat ex
panse just opposite Olgy, across the bot
tom at the narrowest point. Thus formed
lies series of villages. There were
Prussian troops in all these places. The
dispositions detailed by the staff officers
had been substantially maintained. Ba-
zaine had laid his scheme with great art,
under cover of dense fog. He had
made his disposition, with such advantages
that when he lifted Little Post, at O'Clock,
they were already complete.
In the first instance he directed strong
assault ON Lodonchamps. The landwehr
outposts held the place as if they were one
hundred thousand, instead of one hundred
men, and the French sent their infantry
swarming into it, while spurts of smoke
were visible all round the valley. On the
right front the batteries at Lemecourt were
hard at work, and also others nearer the
town, while the great guns in Frenecourt
We're sending shells at low range right
over Sodonchamps in among the advanc-
ing French. Then, on our left, the AM
leauge, two other batteries werd main
tanning a semi-cross fire, and from the
bluff, on the other side of the Moselle, be-
tween Olgy and Malroy, the Prussian field
artillery were roaring.
The attack ON Lodonchamps was a di-
version. Suddenly the villages of Grande
and Petites Tapes, of Streney and Make,
were overwhelmed by a cataract of French
men, The 59th landwehr would not fall
back as it should have done in common
prudence. but stood up there in the street
until the French played upon it with their
artillery and rained chassepot and mitrail-
leur bullets, and finally pushed backward
the shattered remnants by dint of sheer
numbers. The fusilier battalion of the 5Sth
occupied Grande Etepes now, but the oc-
cupation consists of dead and wounded.
The battalion would not give ground, and
may be said to have been overwhelmed as
it stood, the men being with their backs
| to the wall and their faces to the foe.
| Other battalions of the same regiment
suffered horribly, So far, BaZaine had
succeeded He had occupied the chain of
villages in Athwort valley, and had got a
few batteries of artillery out on their front
to reply to the Prussians force. but in
statu quo he neither wished nor could re-
main. The Prussian artillery throwing
| their rprojecties from three sides OF paral-
| telegram interfered with the comfortable
realization Of the latters conception. As
| regarded the former, it seemed clear that
| Bazaine would not have done what he had
| if it did not contemplate something more.
That something, | have not the remotest
! doubt, was a sortie to establish connec-
| ton with Thonville His tactics were well
conceived. From Stremy and the Two
| Tapes he kept the Prussian line engaged
with musketry and artillery. He sent for
ward from Grand Tapes great swarms OF
tirailleures, who Jared extremely i'll mt the
hands of the landwehr men but. besides
this, he massed a great body of men, near
| ly thirty thousand in all, on the banks OF
the Moselle, under cover of the houses at
Make, and sent them forward to get
through the Prussian environment where
| it was weakest, close to ROuen.
| The movement was Il critical one. The
| landwehr had all been sent forward against
the villages, with the exception of one
brigade that was on the reserve; but the
| 10th army corps had been crossing a pom
toon bridge, and massing between the
river and Amleauge. There General Vor
Noight was in command of operations il
the rear, and gave the order for severa
regiments to advance--a sight never to bt
forgotten. First came the fusilecrs, eX
tending at 4 rapid run into skirmishing or
der, and covering the whole plain witt
their long thin lines, their dense columns
accompanies of grenadiers. bands playing
and colors unfurled but all the work was
not left for the infantry The artillery en-
tered the village alone, and concentrated
their fire on the French columns advancing
along the Moselle.
Bazaine is singularly weak in field ar
tillery, and the only reply came from the
sullen sides of Mount st. Julien or from
the ramparts of Fort St. Eloy; but mira
illeuses venomously sounded their angry
whiz, compelling the skirmishers to recoi
as they crossed the line of fire, and tearing
the chasseurs, in front of solid masses o
which they were the fore-runners. Artil
lery and skirmishers were enough for the
French; dense masses staggered ant
broke. but when they had got stone ant
lime between them and the Prussians, the
French would go no further.
The Prussian artillery fired on the vii
lage, advancing closer and closer in alter
nate order of batteries, with the precision
and rapidity that could not have been ex
ceeded in a dress parade. That obstinat,
battery in front OF Grand Tapes would no
shut up, and the French trailleurs still
| En al, Al.