, 1870-10-20

Surrender OF Skrn.bourg-Fcc1thE OF
the Neutrality-suspicious. Of DC.
ntrtlc1Ion-Tnc Cathedral.
~.".'o"rg Sept =, ce.zx.to"df"<t ,.t Of the Snr
Thai Strasbourg has been captured could
have taken none Of FOUR readers By surprise
That IT passed into the possession Of tue Ger
must have appeared matter Of c0uIse to all
who hsve carefully followed, and who have
pretitably read, the reports describing tue
progress cf tho siege. What did nos and
rnu,d not well know heretofore Wha the exact
position which Governor Ghsrich held witt, IT.
gard to the city over which he was the
! military HlleT. It was supposed thst
| he had entirely ilisreGarled the feclinga and
| desire Of the inhst itauts, and bad prolonged
| a resistance which thes were dcsirous to tet-
uinatc. On tue authority Of a nember Of the
Council ot Def.nse. to whom the wbole truth
| WAS y ell known, I can nov state. without fear
| OF contradiction, that Governor Chrich was
.lwave in perfect sccord With the inhabitapts,
and that il, in their opinion, ls crrel at all.
it was in captivating premsturelr. Soon
after tie siege began n ea1nsst. he received
deserse Of the city. Opinions were freely and
frarlly iutarchanscd between tho Governor
Cun1nan6ant on the one hsna and thr
council on the other Tbs former admitted
the difficulty OF making successful defense,
l
longing hopeless reristance. The tesult wa ;
that common understanding w1s arrived at.
Il was unanimously resolved beforc council to
strain every nerveto prevent tho city from
falling into tho hands Of tbs be-iescrH. Gen.
eral Uhsief'. on lis part, psedcsa himself to
bor1orr and the consequences OF an assault.
As colder who had determined to do his
| 1utv, General Ul,rich reserved to himself the
-ote right to determine when the critical
| moment had a1tive1. He would neither treat
nor consent to hstep 70 ans pfngTosslon ITs !ls to
sibte to continue the defence. Many peraons
thought the decisive moment had arrived long
before Governor Chlrich had become either
weary or cishrartened. When the fortress VA.
no lonse1 tensile. snd when txo l,re.shss Of !
,, tosmiaatlc kind bad been 1sm made. thu Gose1no
snd IN conformity Herewith Ii,
| While faE, which. at I write. f1ie
! from the topn,oet gallery Of the cathedral
vas hoieted. Strange to ssE. though the in
ducc,i to great es1.its. the resolve OF Cover
i nor Thrich not only took the majority by sur
{ rree, l,ut upset certain schemes Of the ,no-
a rerrebeneible character, to which the u1aso.it
: hoped to give effect before a German eo1dic
i entered Strssbou1E As ; victor The e1plsoa
ton Of this shan g1yss n hereafter: At presen
: outline Of the facts which preceded the IN
!; eorditional capi1ulation Of ssrasbourg, on Ii
u aith Of September
:: IL o'clock On Thnrsds~ morning was o,
: nv xsy toward StrxsboutF. Passing throuc
the severity Of the fire FROM the fortihcationi
Hardly house Was untouched. 4 tstge rra
| her hSd bees, burned to tue ground, and ra.u
IT were converted to piles Of ruins By the erplt
., sion Of sbclls. The direct road to Stzas5on1
G hid eYuesea By the parsllels. aud it Has uece
r. In fnr
y a mile before coming to the rathwa-, alou
~ which scce4s to the city WAS alone poesibl
N The destruction of the !Anstsrlstz 1ailw,
ii staten lying outside tho city VI,
se thorough Soon sfter the siege bcGs
this ssstion WAS captured By the ueaicser
Near this p,sce more than one severe fe1
occurred when the garrison made = sos;;i
As | Tho FIRE from one Of tho mortar b1tteries v;
o. concentrated upon this ssatiop. and ths nun
10 erpus carriages which ouce stood on tbs lii
as 2 had been converted into heaps Of ch1r1,
= wood ard twi@ted iron, On appeoachiug Il
Porte Sayetne. / saw countless marks indies
. inc Tic severity OF the FIRE which the hesie
m era had directed toward this tpot- netwe.
this and The Porte des piares ths walls ha
teen breached in two places
spectacle Of destruction which vitnaes
r. was ore I tha}i not soon forget. On
d. right. a. far "a could rec. the whole qnars
wss 4 pile Of rubbish. There were fsw MAJ
Of fire. Cannon eho:s and shells bad destr,
be | cd house after house. The ruined hous
|sa sere Gtcral1y piles Of rubbish. md, unless
"a e had known that hou*es had once eorared
=, 4 srnt. should mot hare supposed that the r.
a. h,sh had ever taken the foImof shapely dw
r. ,ngs. In front Of nearly eFefy shop wind
r. eere e1oIiug p.anks arranged With view
": ward % The falling slot. III the openiI
+ made to admit air and Light into tho cell
.as we're covered over with mssa ot earth I
L.. .itse. Tho deprivation OF light and air.
lc. lie ptescrrc OF noisou,e smells, which III