Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-09-06
FROM ENGLAND.
Graphic Description of the; Seen,
Preceding the Late c-a.s na.,1o.

|
I cal cable dispatch says: The Prussian
right under Prince Albert of Saxony, is
also marching rapidly to close on the
q doomed French army on the right bank
OF the Meuse, which they had crossed at
! kemllly on the Tuesday, 3Oth, In the d.
| rection of Lachapell, small village of
$50 inhabitants on the road from Sedan to
e Bouillon in Belgium, and the last village
before crossing the frontier.
Anything more splendid than the mems
: marching would be impossible to imagine.
saw men lame in both feet hobbling
, along in the ranks, kind comrades less
foot sore carrying their needle guns.
Those who were actually incapable of
putting one foot before the other had
pressed peasants wagons and every avail
able conveyance into service and were
, following in the rear, so as to be ready for
the great battle which all felt sure would
come off on the morrow.
The Bavarians, who it is generally be-
lieved do not march SO well as they fight,
were in the center between US at Chamnay
and Sedan, encamped around the woods
near La Morfle, famous for great battles in
1641, during the war of the league,
where | saw them last night, dash thro'
at pace which cannot really be called
marching in an ordinary sense.
Irode off about quarter past in the
evening for Vendresse, where the Kings
headquarters were, and where hoped TO
find house room for man and beast, espec
tally the latter, as being far most inn
portant on the eve of battle When l got
within about half mile of Vendresse,
going at a steady trot, brought
my horse to a stand-still, know
ing that the Prussian sentinels
could not be trifled with.
AS pulled up twenty yards off l heard
the clicks of their locks as they brought
their weapons in full cock and covered
me. My replies being satisfactory,
logged on into Vendresse, and my mare
and myself had soon forgotten sentinels,
forced marches and coming battles, one
of us on the straw and the other on the
floor. -....
Thrilling Description of the Battle
before Sedan, by the New York
Tribune's Correspondent.
The following dispatch is from the
special correspondent of the Tribune, at
L L
eight miles from Sedan, Thursday night,
the list inst. After their defeats on the
30th and 31st ult., the French retreated en-
masse on Sedan, and encamped aronnd it.
From what learned from French prison
ers, of whom as you may imagine there
was no lack in our quarters, it seems they
fnlly believed the road to Mzeiers always
| open to them, and in case, therefore, of
another defeat before Sedan, their retreat
would be easily accomplished.
On the evening of Wednesday, at $50
and O'Clock, l was at the Crown Princes
headquarters at ChemOry, village some
thirteen miles from Sedan, to south south
west. On the main road, at $50, we
saw there was great movement among
| the troops all around US. We thought at
first the King was riding through the BIZ
vouac, but soon the 37th regiment came
pouring through the village, their band
playing Die Wact am Rhein, as they
marched alongNTilh swinging stride.
[ saw atOnce\by the mems faces that
something extraordinary was going on
1t was soon plain that the troops were in
the lightest possible marching order. All
their knapsacks were left behind, and they
were carrying nothing but cloaks slung
| around their shoulders, except that one or
two bonVivants had retained their camp
kettles; but if the camp-k kettles were left
behind, cartouche cases were hanging
heavily in front of the mems belts, I'M
balanced, as they ought to be, by KNAPP
sacks
soon learned that the whole Prussian |
corps, those sent from Prince Frederick
Charles army and the Crown Princes |
army, were making forced marches to |
the left in the direction of Dochery and |
MeZieres, in order to shut in McMahon's
army on the west, and so drive them
against the Belgian frontier. l learned |
from officers of the Crown Princes staff |
that at the same time, while they were
watching regiment after regiment pass
through Chemory, the Saxons and guards |
were $4,000 strong.
At o'clock, Thursday morning, my
servant came to wake me, saying that the
Kings horses were Harvesting, and His |
Majesty would leave in half an hour for |
the battlefield, and as the cannonading |
had already been heard near Sedan, |
jumped up and seized some crusts of |
bread, wine, cigars, etc, and crammed |
them into my holster, taking my break |
fast on the way. Just as got to my |
horse, King William drove out in an open
carriage with four horses for CheVange,
about three and one-haf miles south of |
Sedan.
Much against my will was compelled
to allow the Kings staff to take prece-
dence on the road to the scene of action, |
To- oil, QD1c
1t was impossible to ride fast, all the roads |
being blockaded with artillery, ammuDi |
ton wagons etc. As rose on the crest |
of the hill, glorious panorama burst on |
my view. As Gen. Forsyth of the Z. S. |
A remarked to me later in the day, cit |
would have been worth coming merely to |
see so splendid a scene, without the bat
ties magnificently stern array in the love
ly valley below"
From the knoll on which l stood with |
the King and staff, we could see not only |
the whole valley of the Meuse, but also |
beyond the great woods Bril- de Loup |
far as the billy forest of Munio. On the |
other side of the frontier, right at our |
feet, lay the little town of Sedan, famous
for its forts by Verdun as the birth place
of TureVane, the great Marshal, and also
known as the place where Sedan chairs
originated. AS we were only p miles
from town, we could easily distinguish its
principal edifice without field glasses. On /
our left was a pretty church, its gothic
spires of sandstone offering
conspicuous target for the Prussian
guns, had Gen. Moltke thought of it to
lombard the town. To the right, on the
southeast side of the church, was large
barracks with the Notifications of the
citadel behind, and beyond this, to the
southeast again, was the old chateau of
Sedan. This building is now an arsenal
Beyond this was the citadel Hortzdan, on
rising hill above the Meuse to the south
east, but was completely commanded by
hills on both sides of the river, which runs
in front of The citadel The French had
flooded the low meadows in the valley
before coming TO the railway bridge at
BOzeille, in order to stop the Germans
from advancing on the town in that, di-