Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1870-10-19

bank OF the MOselle under cover Of the
houses OF Max, and sent them forward
TO cut through the Prussinn environ
ment where il was weakest close to the
river. The moment was a critical one.
Inc Landwehr had all been sent for
ward against the villages with the ex-
ceptlon Of n brigade in reserve. but the
Tenth army corps had been crossing the
pontoon bridge and massing between the
rlVer and Amelange. There General Won
Noight was in commander operations in
the rear and gave the order for several
regiments TO advance. II was n sight
never 70 be forgotten. First came the
fusileers extending and covering the
whole plain with their long thin lines,
then the dense columns of the compa-
mics Of h ~grenadiers, the bands playing
and colors unfurled an unwonted sight.
But all the work Wa not left for the
Infantry 70 do The artillery entered the
village alOnea and concentrated their fire
IN the French columns advancing along
the Moselle. Bazaine is singularly weak
in field artillery, and the only reply
came from the sullen sides Of Mount st.
Julien or from the ramparts of Fort
Steloy /; but the mitrailleuses venem-
ously sounded their angry whir, COM
polling the skirmishers TO recol as they
crossed the line Of fire and tearing the
C~hasseurs i'm the front OF THE solid column
Of which they were the fOrerunners.-
The artillery and skirmishers were
enough for tho French the dense col
umns staggered and then broke.
Through my glass could see a cOn-
tinuOus SdltUe que pent into the village Of
Make, but when they had once got stone
and lime between them and the Prussians
the fellows were obstinate and would go
no further. In vain the Prussian artil-
lery fired on the village advancing closer
and closer in alternate order of batteries,
with a precision and rapidity that could
not have been exceeded on parade
That obstinate battery in front Of the
grand slopes would not shut up, and the
French tirailleures still lined the Chausee
in its front. By this time it was nearly
four o'clock. \ staff officer gnlloped
along the front with orders for the gen.
eral to advance and take the village by
storm. The advance, he told me, was to
consist OF four brigades Of the landwehr,
with two brigades Of the Tenth army
corps supporting. In 3 few minutes
more the command came sounding along
the line, and the men sprang from their
cover and went forward with that steady,
quick step 50 characteristic OF the Prus-
sian marching. The shells from the bat
terry in frOntOf GrandelOpes tore through
the line, the mitraiLleuse and ChassepOt
bullets poured against it their leaden
hail, but still the landwehr, silent and
stern, went steadily TO the front. 1 new
er knew a more furious fire than that to
which this line was exposed. General
vOn Branderstein, commanding the
third brigade OF lRndwebr, was shot
down and several of sstaf wounded
At length the entertainments We're reach
ed behind which were lying the shatter-
ed remains Of the Fifty-ninth and Fifty
eighth landwehr. The determination
consisted in the cry Hurray Preusseu,
and then Vorwarts INNER, VOrwarts,
and the line threw itself to b front in a
run. The gunnerg from the battery
drove on, and they had barely time to
run round the corner before the land
wehr were upon them. The guns they
left p~erforce. In the villages the French
made a last stand. The landwehr, with
less of the conventional warrior than
the line, are not so much inclined to give
quarters as the professional soldiers
With many a Frenchman this afternoon
the first shock consisted OF bayOnet
thrust. They fought like devils in the
narrow ways Of the villages and used
the m~itrailleOuses with fair judgement
and effect, but then there came the
steady, memorable stride forward OF the
Landwehr with bayOnet, and the villa
ges were cleared Of all save the victOrs,
the dead and wounded, and the Prussian
artillery was still firing in the moon
light from the heights above. Olgy and
st. Julien were still sluggishly throwing
projectiles IN the table land, seemingly
to shut up their fire.
All the ground in the rear Of ChRrly
and toward Yauy was piled with shells
that had fallen during the day. A brisk
musketry fire was still going on in front
OF ChicOulles and Darme. When I rode
through them in the morning the French
were pouring down out Of the bOis de
grimon made q feigned attack in cOnsid-
cradle force up this valley. All I could
hear was that in front there were many
dead and wounded, and l met a large
ambulance train coming forward into
the fire from out Of the village Of Sire
may and were filed with men who had
been killed during the day, but all was
now quiet there. A little further on I
came to the rear OF Perigny and Noisse-
vile, where I met my friends Of the
Fourth, who returned singing and tri-
umphant. The French from Metz and
the slope in front Of St. Julien had
thrown some batallions into Molly, and
attempted to storm the works in front Of
N~oisseville, but they were repulsed
with considerable loss, the Prussians
driving them out Of Molly into the
woods.