The union Democrat., 1871-03-18

90 ne specisi correspondent of the London
I'n'es, VINO has followed the Army of the
Lore, tens good story ia his letter from
Tours OF January Goth, of the straterem bv
which the inhabitants Of French town a..
capped the destructive visitation az the Ger
man armies. He says:
At EcJomoy, bright, clean.,ookinv little
town, with gingerbread modern Coth;c
church. and great many cafes round the
Hotel de Vile. we stopped to try end re, 4
deieuner, anticipating the usual reply that the
Pfussians had eaten everything. Bur hpre
we we're agreeably surprised. The Prussians
had been here. but, explained the cheerful
hostess of the Hotel de Commerce. they had
not stayed long and they had paid for every.
thing.
"One Of the no.ahilities of the town in the
meantime gave some interesting information
about the terrible plague Of smallpox which
bad prevailed there ever since 1900 French
| soldiers had been quartered on the town a
| month ago. A CONSPICUOUS placard on the
| Hotel lie Vile announced to French as we'll
as other troops that smallpox 'reigned' in the
place. and that the mayor and council had
thought it their dnty to impress this on Mes
sieurs les changers ct les tronpes Frdacaises
| asked the notability TO give me an idea Of
that tho town contained 800 Inhabitants,
that 800 of these were laid mp with the dis
| ease, that 200 more had already died, and
that the mortality was still at the rate of
fourteen a day; this, however, was surpassed
as a calamity by the rinderpess, which had
broken out among the cattle Of the place.
Horror-struck with this frightful condition Of
things, we made hasty breakfast. wonder
ing whether the breakfast presented 80 as
was not, perhaps, derived from one Of the
animals so mysteriously stricken in this
place, and apprehensire that even this short
stay in such doomed abode Of pestilence
might have laid the germs Of something IN
pleasant to our own constitutions. We were
not little relieved, therefore, when our
driver, who was the host Of the Hotel de
Commerce. and consequently himself nota-
hility, informed us that the placard on the
Hotel de Vile was most successful device
to keep all intrusive strangers. why,
Monsieur, he said with chuckle. when the
Prussians came here and read that placard
they turned pale none of the soldiers were
allowed to go into any of the houses and
they slept tout bonnement with their horses in
the stables, and the town thus escaped billet
ing You don't mean to say | exclaimed
with amazement, that there has been no
smallpox at all in the town. Yes. there
have been Is or 20 cases, but am not aware
that any of them died. why NY good
friend, replied, you must be mistaken.
for we distinctly heard the tolling of a funer-
al bell when we were at breakfast All
he said, precisely so the gamins saw you
we're strangers. and Immediately began toll
ing the bell. Why, when the Prussians were
here the bell was going all day long, and c:s
Nessiewes, assure you, felt so uncomforta-
BILE that they couldn't get out of the town
quick enough But what about the rinder-
pest2 rejoined I hope the beefsteaks We
had for breakfast-'No danger, sir the cat
tie disesse hes not affected our herds vet, at
least outwardly. but it's treacherous thing,
and we know it's hanging about in the air,
so we can safely tell strangers that the
scourge is in the place: and in this way |
was shown how the elders of little country
borough had outwitted the armies of the
great Frederick Charles.
4 49,