Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1870-09-14
THE DEFENSE OF SEDAN.

hN NlNtldl NOiItNIOnOGLll OF ne IFtg1ft{F
at McMahon's headquarters, Il French Off
Ger, who witnessed the battle of Sedan
from the French side, and was shut up i'm
J Sedan with the French army, having been
released, sends an account, dated Sedan.
! September 3, from which we make the
| following extracts
The Emperor, who had arrived during
the night, had Issued Il proclamation which
| was posted on the walls saving that he had
confided the command of the armies TO the
generals whom public opinion had seemed
to select as most capable of leading them.
and that he himself intended to fight as an
officer, forgetting for while his position
! as a sovereign.
| After describing the general results of
tle battle as we have given them, he says:
THE FRENCH ROUTED.
To one entering the town as ] did, there
was no longer any battle to describe 1t
was first a retreat and too soon rout.
thought myself lucky to get away from the
field as | did; for an hour afterward the
rout of those forces that had been near hv
me was complete. Already soldiers we
crushing against each other in the strug-
gle to get inside the town. Dismounted
cavalry were trying to make their way,
some ven by the ramparts, leaping down
1rom the counterscarp others forcing
their Niay in by the postern gates. From
nook of the ramparts, where | rested n
moment, | saw also cuirassiers jumping
horses and all-into the moat, the horses
breaking their legs and ribs. Men were
scrambllng over each other. There were
officers of all ranks-Colonels, and even
Generals, in uniforms which il was i'm
possible to mistake, mixed in this shame
tul melee. Behind all came gums with
their heavy carriage and powerful horses.
forcing their way into the throng, manning
and crushing the fugitives on foot.
TERRIBLE SCENES IN SEDAN.
TO add to the confusion ana horror the
Prussian batteries had by this time ad-
Nanced within range. and the pru~sian
shells began falling among the struggling
masses of men. On the ramparts were the
National Guards, manning Il guns oil The
town, and replying with more or less eff
lect to the nearest Prussian batteries It
was n scene horrible enough to have suited
the fancy of Gustaye Dore himself. ]
could form but one idea of our unhappy
army: that it was at the bottom of Il sceth-
ing caldron.
| hurried back as best could to nv ho-
tel, following the narrow streets where the
shells were least likely 10 reach the ground
Wherever there was Il square or open place
| came upon the bodies of horses and men
dead, or still quivering, mown to pieces by
bursting sheils. Reaching my hotel, I
found the street in which IL stood choked
a
men. Most luckily, mt this moment the
Prussian fire did not enfilade this street,
for a train OF caissons filled with powder
blocked the whole way, itself unable to
move backward or forward. There was
every chance that these caissons would ex-
plode, the town being then on fire in two
places, and began to think Sedan was a
place more uncomfortable than even the
battlefield over which a victorious enemy
was swiftly ADVANCING
AS night drew on, the crowd a little di-
mlnished, and by some effort it was pOs-
sible TO make ones way about the town.
The spectacle it offered was more horrible
than war. Dead were lying everywhere
civilians and soldiers mingled in the
slaughter. In one suburb | counted more
than 90 bodies Of peasants and bourgeoi-e-
few women among them, and one child
The grown was strewn with spinters Of
shells. Starving soldiers were
CUTTING UP THE DEAD HORSES
to cook and eat for provision had again
failed us rs everything has failed since this
campaign began. ] was glad to get away
from the sight of our disasters and lose
their remembrance in few hours Of sleep
The next day we We're told that the Em-
peror had gone to the Kings headquarters
TO treat for a surrender. AT II his house
hold and carriages left the town and we
knew that he was Il prisoner and the En-
pre- no more.
BAD FAITH or THE FRENCH
On Saturday the whole French force laid
down their arms. Not few soldiers in
their rage broke rather than give up their
arms, and the streets We're Uttered with
fragments of all kinds of weapons lancers'
helmets, cuirasses, and even mitraileuses
covered the ground; and in one place
where the Meuse runs through the town
the heaps of such fragments choked the
stream and rose above the surface. The
mud of the streets was black with gum
powder. The horses had been tied to the
houses and gun-carriages, but nobody re-
membered to feed or water them, and in
the frenzy of hunger and thirst they broke
loose and ran wild through the town.
Whoever liked might have horse-even
officers horses which were private proper
ty-for the trouble of catching them.
EMPTYING THE MONEY CHEST.
When the Prussians came into the town
they were very sore and angry at the sight
of all this destruction and waste What
must have pleased them less, was the state
in which they found the military chest !
As soon rs the surrender was resolved on, !
the French officers were told To make out
the best accounts they could, present them, |
and receive payment. Naturally, the
statements thus brought i'm soon proved
sufficient to empty the treasury / know
of officers who demanded and received
payment for horses that We're not Killed |
and baggage which had not been lost !
Decentralization showed itself in every
WAY. Even the standards were btrrpad an