The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1870-10-27


they wore were mud stained 1he 8 common labor
er's suit All the foulnesses and all che horrors
an ill.kept camp offended the eye and slckened
the estomach at every turn Ine change .IrGm e tne
passed, filed with laughing, soldiers, confident Of
victory, to- these lines, was as the. change from
misery to despair. Happily for themselves, the
French soldiers we're not so conscious OF this con-
trast as I had been, for sae iron storm from the
investing batteries forced, them to keep close
shelter within their Hines. Bnt here and there
some hideous gaps in the earthW0rk showed them.
In spite Of themselves, the ,dreadfnl panorama 81
- 'S TIE SCENE m THE STREETS 49,
was yet more touching. I am writing, mind, OF
period somewhat distant from the date OF my arst
visit. The wslto-do inhabitants had an left and
gone-gone never to return while Strsshourg held
out-but there was still allthe picturesquen eness OF
the resident poor. Ny own quarters were tn'a
cellar. indeed the mass OF the inhabitants were
living in the most wretched condition IN cellars:
Ordinary interG curse as between household and
household there was none. Each imprisoned family
lived in the strictest seclusfon, save in the rare
intervals Of the bombardment, when the wretched
creatures crept forth ghost-like from their living
tombs, and with their eyes acorched by the day
light, exchanged hurried greetings In the open
air. But even this underground life was rot with
out Its more cheerful side. There were cellars
In which kind OF ..2as ~, ,z.y.. n
DEv1LIsH REvELRT
was kept up with the same regularity as the
bombardment by day and by night. In one of
candles In paper lanterns, that threw stckly
yellowish glare on walls and floor, found some
i've and thirty men, their countenances, gestures
and ~
by drink, to the delrlum OF intoxtcation by
despair. Games were gong on furiously, and
there was the greatest diversity OF amusements
and OF occupations, with this 70 give them con-
o{cf hofy q
evidently to create an artificial as
to surrounding circumstances, to overiay and
smother the. sense Of the real situation that lay
heavy at ms heart: But Is time saas Ishouia sho
misery, the wickedness, the herolsm and the des-
pair OF the beleaguered city, to give some account
OF the siege as ] witnessed 1t from the inside OF
the fortress.
TEE GENERAL TONE OF FEELING 80
was not altogether one OF despondency and hope
from time to time to relieve the otherwise insup
portable gloom OF the prospect. On thenight fthe
22d, think, though / am not very sure OF my
date as to q day, the streets once more assumed;
for brief moment, something like their wonted
aspect in spite OF the severity OF the lombard.
ment, which was the most awful we had yet had
to endure The most cheering rumors were In
circulation France had not forgotten us. A
very observant Of the unitles OF time and place
was marching to our relief. They were evidently
not merely idle rumors. we said, fos the Governor
believed In them else why should the troops have
march out in force on the following day. Our,
little army was going to meet this great army,
and to show 1t the way to our deliVerance. What,
was to happen might readily, by the hope-dis.
happened already. We saw ourselves restored to.
our full freedom on tile morrow, or at least on the
following day. ::..t'
THB TRUTH AT LAST.
But In short time the positive confirmation Of
the French reverses at Sedan and elsewhere was
spreading like lightning through the town. The
bad news came, and The expected good news that
might have counteracled its eject never came at
all, for the troops sent out brought back no tdngs
OF the approachipg Army OF reileL Adeep gloom
their miserable cellars haunted by this sense OF
utter Isolation. and could not but notice In their
slouching gait and hare-like timidity Of movement
q new proof II any were wanted OF the converse Of
the proposition that nope and courage are con-
vertible terms. With despair came ply siesl fear.
The older men especially began to ask querulously
what Ulrio-Uric, the loved general OF but the day
BY 1seess Sc assnSs
the most fearful / have ever spent In any be.
leaguered town, and have seen something OF war.
DEAD s1LRNoE RE1aNRD
over the city, save for the booming OF the distant
guns pounding away at the citadel, and TO this
sound we had grown 80 accustomed that we had
clatter Of machines. Not a soul was In the
streets. All Strasbourg crowded In its cellars;
and pledge you my word that In walk, the
whole'lengLh OF the Canal des FAUX Hemparts,
back or the cathedral. met only i've men. But
this onter calm OF Strasbourg was delusiVe. The
cellars and the ratholes were -.
., HAroH1NG TREASON "a, - 5Ieti
for all the quiet Of the streets. The card tables
even in the field dens have described were fast
becoming the centres Of dlsafeotton, and the
better class OF citizens who had hitherto main
tained the privacy Of their own subterranean re-
treals, came forth to Join In the chorus or COM
plaint raised by their poorer and more reckless
nelghbors, and to take tne leaa IN tne moVemene
Of resistance which had already organized Itself.
The strongest representations to the Governor
were suggested and agreed upon, and falling that
It was understood, for no word on the subject was
spoken, that the citizens should take some bolder
and more decisive measures for making good
their right to the disposal 0f their property and
their lives. It was time to drive men TO
supDEN AND DESPERATE RESOLUTIONS.
On che 25th, the awful roar Of the German bat
terles including the new ones, completeo simul.
tapeously with the capture OF the lunettes., was
such that the pluek OF tne s,outest men vas was t.
feeble body, and numbers Of those more nervous
and tIrnorous by nature went raving mad. l
think at least we must have had hlteen continuous
charges per minute ofshot or shei lor al tnat usy
iy HIni1re.n Every house had suffered that pro-
cess already, but there were Sill millions OF tons
Of stone that had once been houses TO pound and
chip into finer fragments and TO scatter IN snow.
ers about the deserted streets The 1ring on the
town had IL is true ceased nonltnaly, but only
40 fnr YOU cannot very well break egg shells
without breaking eggs, end you cannot pound
away nc q citadel that happens 70 be on one Side
of a river Ill without sometimes sending your
missiles over to the town that happens to be on
the other. .,, =, ,,
the German dogs OF war began 10
WON'T FIRE
on us again. They had never begun 50 early 0e-
fore IL WAS evidently that acting under instruc-
tions from headquarters the besiegers mad re-
sofve, to make an end Of our resistance that day.
we could see them hitting aqout IN tner oRt.
eycItement in their gestures than was their wont.
Sneech and hearlug were impossible even to men
niaced close to one another, ald the whole bloody
hnsiness both on our side and on theirs, seemed
TO have resolved itself into kind OF aiabolical
dunb.show Men made certain automaton
thrnst forth again, and then came darting forth
the tongue Of fire and the crashing shot. Our
Are was as nothing; We had but lew guns unln.
inred and OF those few some could not oe worked
nars had been Killed. and others because their
,unodc, ,Way ys,' had sunk at all sorts OF imprac-
ticeble angles into the ploughed and soddened
earth. Our earthworks we're mere shapeless
heaps s.o, ,r ,r,r,o,,-
men who ran neck or nothing to their work with
heads ducked instnctiyely, Ike children running
for wacers In the rain. From time to time,
indeed there came from rs something
that sounded like the promise OF q worthy reply.
NJ Them sopblng The while with rage aud hate,
,-oniJ ,onr IN a sIpas5ionaten fire at some point