Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-09-06

thC uOE5u, DcHluu tuc tOWD, Uses I'LL
dotted with cottages and crowded b
wood largarenne, which runs down to tn
valley of which have just spoken. Be
tween this wood and the town are sewers
French camps, their white shelter tent
standing out clear along the dark frui
| trees.
| In these camps one could see through
tout the day huge masses of troops whIcl
were never used. Even during the heigh
of battle they stood as idly as Fitz Johl
Porter at the second battle of Bull Run
We imagined they must have been undis
ciplined Gardes Mobile who the French
Generals dared not bring against their en-
envy. To the Prussian left of thes
French camps, separated from them by
wooded ravine, was q long barren hill
when once its crest was covered will
Prussian artillery, the whole town of Sc
dan was completely at the mercy of the
German guns, as they were not only
above the town, but almost within
musket range of their still furthel
village of Illey, which was set on fire
early in the day by French she'll
south of the railroad bridge, which wa
blown up by the French to protect theil
| right, which was a conspicuous object
Right above the railroad bridge, on tn,
line to Mezieres, was wood-hil crowd
| ed by new and most hides chatau of one
Monsieur Pouer. 1t was here the Cow
Prince and his staff stood during the day,
| having rather more extensive but less cen,
trail view, and therefore less desirable thar
ours, where stood King William, Count
Bismarck, Won Room, Gen. Moltke, an6
Gems. Sheridan and Forsyth, to say moth
ing of your correspondent.
Having thus endeavored to give you 6
faint idea of the scene of what is in all
probability the decisive battle of the war,
will duly give an account of the position
of the different corps at the commence
ment of the action, promising that all the
movements were of the simplest possible
nature, the object of the Prussian Gen
erals being merely to close the crescent of
troops with which they began into circle
by effecting a junction between the Saxon
corps on their right and the Prussian
corps on their left. This junction took
place about noon, near the village of
Hay, on the BOzeille ravine, behind Sedan
Once their terrible circle formed and
was well saldered together 1t grew
steadily smaller, until at last the fOTtifca-
lions of Sedan itself were entered. On
the extreme right were the SaxOns, one
corps darmee, with King Williams
Guard; also corps d'armee in reserve
behind them. The Guards had suffered
terribly at Grayelotte, where they met the
Imperial Guard, and the King would not
allow them to again be cruelty decimated.
Justice cOmpels me to state that the ar
rsngement wss very far, indeed, from
being pleasing to the Guards themselves,
who are ever anxious to be in the front
of the battle.
The Guards and Saxons, then about
75,0 strong, were all day on the right
bank of the Meuse, between Rubecourt
and Lachapelle, at which latter village
Prince Albert of Saxony, who was in
command of the I'd corps, which has
been formed into little extra army by
themselves, passed thenight of Thursday.
The ground from Rubecourt to the Mouse
was occupied by the 1st Bavarian corps.
The I'd Bavarian corps extends their front
from near Bozielle railroad bridge to q
point on the high road from DOuchery to
Sedan, not far from the village of Forey,
and below the hill on which the Crown
Prince is placed.
1t is almost needless to say that the
real cOmmander-in-chief of the Prussians
is Won Maltke, with the Crown Prince
and Prince Albert of Saxony, being next
in command. There were few cannon
shots fired, merely sighting shots, how
ever, as soon as the range was obtained,
but the real battle did not commence till
6 A. NJ. The artillery had each got
within easy range, and shells began TO do
serious mischief At 11:55 musketry fire
in the valley in the rear of Sedan, which
had opened at 1928, became exceedingly
lively, being one continuous rattle, only
broken by the growing of mitraileuses
which played with deadly effect on the
advancing Saxon and Bavarian columns
Gen. Sheridan, by whose side l was
ever to have heard such well-sustained
small arms fire. 1t made itself heard
above the roar of the battery at our feet
At y O'Clock precisely Prussian bat
terry of six guns on the slope above the
broken railroad bridge over the Mouse
and near Lavillette had silenced two
batteries of French guns at the
foot of the bare hills already men,
toned, near the village of Flering. At
ten minutes past twelve O'Clock, the in-
fantry, no longer supported by their artil-
lery, were compelled to retire to Flering;
and soon afterward the junction between
the SaxOns and the Prussians behind Sc
dan was announced to us by Gen. Won
Room as being safely completed. From
this moment the result of the battle could
not longer be doubted, the French being
completely surrounded and brought to
bay. At 1926 we were all astonished to
see the clouds of the retreating French
infantry on the hill between Flering and
Sedan, a Prussian battery making good
practice with precision amongst
the retreating ranks The whole field for
quarter hour was literally covered with
Frenchmen running rapidly. In less than
half an hour after, at 1850, Gen. Won
Room called our attention to another
French column in full retreat to the right
of Sedan, on the road leading from Ba-
zeilles, to LaGovenne wood. They never
halted until they got to small red-roofed
house, in the outskirts of Sedan itself.
Almost at the same moment, Gen.
Sheridan, who was using my opera glass
es, asked me to look at the third French
column moving up the broad grass road
through the LaGavenne woods, immedi-
ately above Sedan, doubtless to support
the troops defending important bastiles on
the ravine to the northeast of town. At
one o'clock the French batteries on the
edge of the road towards Toney, and
above it, opened vigorous fire on the ad-
vancing Prussian column of the third corps
whose intention it was to storm the hill
northwest of LaGavenne. At 1:5
o'clock yet another French battery,
near the wood, opened on the Prussian
column, which were compelled to keep
shifting their ground till ready for their
final rush for the hill, and in order to
avoid offering so good a mark to the
French shells. Shortly afterwards we
saw the 1st Prussian skirmishers on the
crest of La Govenne, hill above Toney.
They did not seem in strength, and Gen.
who was standing behind me,
'EAh, the beggars were too
weak; they can never hold that position