The Hawaiian gazette., 1870-10-12
After a Chrage.

1
Writing from the MGxwilIer, where the head
quarters of the Crown Prince were located on
Aug. s. Mr.. w. f. Russell says: I'VE. after
time reached the village of Gunstett the environs
Of which were the scene of despernte action be-
tween the French right and the Prussian left,
during the memorable battle of Woerth. Like
several Others Of the villages it was crowded with
wounded, and pale faces looked out of the win
dows of the cottages, with heads bound up but
there we're soon more terrible evidences Of the
struggle The debris Of knapsacks pouches.
muskets, Shoes fragments Of clothing, shakos.
thiekened as we went on dead horses swollen to
an enormous size, with their legs stuck up in the
air, lay about in the fields and now we came on
dead Prussian. who had fallen stiff, ss if in the
act OF charging. and then came Zouaves and Tur-
COS mostly the latter, in oil the fantastic rigidty
OF death in battle the faces in most cases covered
by the descent care of the country people with
little pieces of linen, which the rain had beaten
on the lineaments in relief The burial parties
were busy close at hand and all over the country,
but the harvest was too heavy for the reapers
have seen now many felds-an.i the more l see
of them the less like them-but never had
beheld sight so extraordinary as came on by
the little streamlet. the Sauer which flows by
Gunstett. At an angle of the road by vine
plantation, there had evidently sanguinary cor,-
bat between the infantry; but little beyond it
lay the scene of cavalry charge, the relics OF
which formed the strange spectacle am writing
OF. There were heaps of cuirasses still bright.
and brass helmets with plumes which had been
taken from the dead, wounded and prisoners aud
were piled at Intervals along the road. Between
these lay saddles. swords stuck IN the ground,
horse trappings, valises with "S'' and SO" on
them here and there single cuirasses, dead hor.
ses, helmets, swords. muskets-the ground tram
pied, the vines heated down-pools Of blood-a
foul sour smell every where this literally for two
miles on each side of the road In the village it.
self was pile of thirty or forty curasses and bel
NETS, then another pile Of tie same Further on
mixed up with these Z" trophies of the hapless
Cuirassiers, we came on the sign of disaster to
regiment of Lancers-stayes with red and white
streamers in all directions lancer shakos saddles,
Nhllsee' anu luulCs Dlue Elceu Win Wnlte. One
would think Lancers and Cuirassiers had all fall
len together; but to whatever regiments lance
and cuirass belonged it was plain they had been
routed and destroyed. One remarkable crcum-
stance is this--not suirass was pierced by a
bullet. looked most arrowly-others did the
same. And yet what had been the fate of the
wearers p? That is problem 1 cannot solve, nor
could any one else +; but it was plain that the
Calrassers were annihllated. 1t is said that one
regiment charged battery and got IN among the
guns, but was smitten by the infantry on the
hanks with laden shower that they beat them
to the earth never to rise again unhorsed, or
dead and wounded, the unhurt all taken in few
seconds As | said this sort Of work was visible
for quite two miles along the road The rain
cleared up before noon, and that must have been
some little relief from suffering to the wounded,
who were still met in carts. The were some with
aces upturned, cold and stiff, who cared no more
ior what the elements would do. | shall dwell
10 longer on such scenes There will, fear be |
many more OF them, and worse.