New-York tribune., 1870-11-08
OPERATIONS ON THE LOIRE
THE MOVEMENTS AGAINST ORLEANS.

THE MOVEMENTS AGAINST ORLEANS.
OPERATIONS ON THE LoIRE-THE MiTKAILEos5 t an1.ci,
IN THE GERMAN ARMY-BLUNDERsI IN FRENCH
sTRATEGY-DTvIDED FORCES AND No ne
soURCEs-THE CONTEST AT ARTENAI AND
oRLEANs-BRAERY OF TIE fRENCHLph-
sTRUCrIoN OF THE ZoUAVEs-IhE 'iii oN
THE NIGHT OF THE BATTLE
lFRoM OUR SPECIAL CoRRBsPosDhNI'I
HpApoUARTERs OF GENERAL VoN DER IASN,
ORLEAss Oct. 17-Here are the Germans on the bsnks
OF the Loire firmly established In the heart oi INC vi
leanas, and pushing down their reconnoisahces Vo"u
Touraine and Berry. use the old pro'incia naine p
cause we have all OF learned 10 attach more meaning
to them than to "Loret" or to "lndre et LORE But
whether speak Of provinces or Of departments mere
are the Germans bag and baggage horse foot and art
lery They have even got mitraleuses OF pattern OF
their own There is no doubt about 1t. the horror
of Frenchmen all through the was mas a'
length been realized, and their invaders aro
provided with these formidable weapons Count Dur
hems mtraeuse battery played part in the battle OF
Artenay on October TO- The French declare that cost
them some loss and IL certainly encouraged the BaVa
rians who were much interested In the employ ment o
the battery for the first time There was no neeu Vi "
inventions at Artenay TO secure Victory 10 Won p'r
Tann He had enough TO have LETT hau the IN
fantry as well as the mtraeuses behind him. The iaetS
that the French committed the same error when mas
already them dear in this war They were Deaen
in detail by giving battle October 10th, win part
Of their army, and by fighting again next day WIN ho
remainder The twelve or fifteen thousand frehehueh a'
Artenay were hd in check by nfaror force OF Bava
rians while moe troops came up ON either hahh'
Then the onade grew warm ana oeaoi!'
the cavalry mo, ed round 10 cut of their retreat
and the Frent fell back in disorder along the
road to Orleans, sing three guns and l2oo prisoners
Had il not been FOR the very effective help OF the
railway trains, lich bore away the French infantry
faster than the German cavalry could pursue then'
there might have been twice a. many prisoners cap
tured. The stcsdness Of the railway employees was
admirable and the proximity OF the Orleans Line 70 the
main chassee enabled them thus 20 assist the retreat
the losses either side 1t would seem that about
$50 Bavarians were killed and wounded The freneh
loss was heavy proportion. amounting to i've or SIX
hundred besides the prisoners.
Won der Tam followed up his victory at Artenay by
advancing against Orleans itself The French were
strongly posted in the villages Of ormes and Des Aydes
near city, and in the suburb OF BANNER They had
considerable force, equal perhaps to that OF the Ter
mans certainly not much inferior in point of numbers
But part Of their army had been disorganized In the
previous affair." and though the Tucos, the Papal Zou-
ayes and the Legion Erangire fought CALAMITY IL was
impossible to repel the German onslaught. well
directed cannonade shook the seadness Of the French
recruits whose muskery fire grew less and less enec
i've The vineyards on the crest OF the slope above Or
leans occupied by the invaders, the position OF
Ormes turned and several houses in BANNER began
blaze. at the smells tDe VI
the city, and the French retreaed under cover OF the
gathering darkness, leaving behind them 2co wounded
men and 1000 unwounded men. Orleans was aban-
doned between and O'Clock In the evening,
and by hapast had been quietly taken possession OF,
the terrified inhabitants remained in their house listen
ing the tramp OF armed men and TO the stray shots OF
the advancing srmishers That evening Of October II
was a time which they viii forget-a time OF red
light from the burning suburb which lit up the Old
cathedral towers and Of agansed groans om the hoes
and where the wounded lay Great was the need
of hospitals and ambuances for the morrow Besides the
1900 French wounded, there were IL or II hundred
Germans killed and wounded, ef whom but small
proportion were killed outright The battle had left
Orleans with some 5000 sufferers to be cared for and
was fortunate that the seadnes OF the yctors and the
timely retreat Of the vanquished had spared the city the
horrors OF sack Toe fight came soonear that 1t was
critical moment. With very little more provocaton an
invader would have been justified in adding this last to
his rights under martial law.
For those who wished to study the working OF the
German hospital system better place could be found
than Orleans in the midpe Of October 1nspectorGen.
Innes was to go there from Versailles with his
assistant Dr. Beecher They we're to have an escort OF
two mounted orderes, and TO travel with all convenient
speed. offered TO accompany them.
We started at early hour on the 18th inst, and
reached our destination by about noon yesterday he
lG having spent the night at Etampes. II was raw,
misty morning, like the middle OF November than
avenue and clsttered the stones OF the Rue des
Chantiers. 1t grew mister proceeded, until the
wagonran upon the road loomed huge and vague, and
the fields to the right and left in hidden
from sight
At Longeumeau struck into the main read from
Paris to Orleans. The little town full Of Bavaran
troops Some houses still occupied by the
others had abandoned. The population was made
I'D OF about six soldiers TO civilian and the Bava-
rians peeped out Of windows lounged at doors
though they quite at home, and settled there for
e We ratified the paved street. and found enough
pavement stretched out before us TO supply streets
for a moderately large city. In truth, 1t stretched
away for scores Of miles We had got upon Of the
regular French chauss6es-a Roman road adapted TO
postchaises-which were 20 common in the ant-macad
amizng period The paved center and the soft ground
at the side for horsemen and the lines OF trees either
hand ran with wearisome regularity. But the
try through which passed was pleasant and fertile.
Now there was view Of a wooded slope, with villages
shining white upon IT, Now ruined castle could be
seen at the top Of h with cluster OF modern
at the foot We observed peasants working in the fields
as II no war had been heard Of for time past will
swear to fifty Of them at least between Arpaon and
Etrechy We up with wagon trains creeping slowly
along and with parties Of soldiers the march to join
their regiments. The road much Travelled that
sipRe-handed " "bushwhacker" T" would have immense
risk. Yet there spots at which he might have
edged himself III and had il all his way for five or
ten minutes.
We left Etrechy behind us after little delay about
the escort and passed down Of trees with the
most beautiful autumnal tDts. The carriage horses
relaxed their quick steady trot but finding that
the pace began TO tell drew rain at the end OF the
nue. and came on TO Etampes at walk. There were
childrens voices ringing in the air. and childish figures
clambering about the railway embankment Not only
up the embankment but over the line itself
ventrred these daring intruders. Demoralized by