Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1871-01-05
The Fighting Outside Paris-HOrriblt
Appearance Of the Battlp.fie


The dreadful aspect of the battle
field outside Paris, after the great sor-
tie, is thus described by correspon-
dent of the London Times:
'There is park just at the extreme
end of the village Villiers, on the Paris
side. Before and all around it ragged
the battle on both days-the 30th of
November and the Cd of December. The
chateau is officers quarters. How it
suffered There is scarcely window
sash left in one side of it, and to APP
proach it there is no necessity to make
use of the entrance gate. The wall is
smashed in dozen places from top to
bottom. [ entered near the gate and
the first sight saw was ten dead Sax
ons in a row. Their faces were covered,
and three of their comrades watched
over them. Passing through the
park in the direction of Paris,
l walked out through an embra-
sure in the wall and came upon rising
ground. 1t was one of the hottest
parts of the battle field, and almost the
center of the scene of fighting. Heavens,
what sight To see the men advanc-
ing under fire of the forts, and falling
at every step; to see the French and
the Saxons amid that horrid din of ar
tillery shooting one another down with
Chassepot and needle-gun; to hear the
'hurrahs' followed by volley, and as
the smoke cleared away to find the lines
thinned and living men advancing over
the PROSTATE bodies of dead and dying
was horrible, but nothing like so. hor-
rible as the sight of this battlefield,
with hundreds of dead lying there in
the cold air, the sun shining on their
CHASTITY features and stiff forms, while
the cannon ON Ayron and Nogent were
laundering with sounds which shook
the earth for miles around.
''One of the first great groups I
came upon was composed of SO French
soldiers A few Saxons and Wurtem-
bergers lay around them; but the Ger
mans had already removed and laid in
their last sleeping place most of their
dead The centre Of the group was
formed of close line of 49, You
could not have placed body between
any two They fell shoulder to shout
der, just as they had stood to fire. By
far the greater number Of them we're
or their backs, with their feet to Paris
and their head to Villiers. Alas, it
was painfully evident that many of
them, and of others whom saw subse-
auently, had not died instantaneously,
but had lived probably many hours
without hand to lend them slccor,
and in piercing snow and frost One
poor fellow lay on his face. He had
two rifle wounds in his back
He had partly stripped himself,
and he died with hand on
each bullet-hole. Several had taken
off their knapsacks and placed them un-
der their heads, and so pillowed had
breathed their last breath Others
clenched their water bottles in one
hand, but had been unable TO remove
the cork, and died without being able
to wet their lips in their last agony -
Some, in their sutferings, had burrow-
ed their faces in the thick clay on which
they lay, and turned their bloody and
earth stained faces upward before they
expired. Two I saw who had their
arms fixed and their fists clenched, as
if, while dying, they were engaged in
a puglllstic encounter Only very few
were Oh their sides These had their
knapsacks under their heads There
were men on whose faces beamed
the smile OF an infant, and
whose countenance were like hand
some wax-work. The expression
OF others was that OF terrible agony.
Every feature was contorted their
legs haf been convrusiyely ierked up
until their knees stuck into their stom-
achs, and their finger and thumb mills
had been squeezed until they became
riveted into the palms OF their hands
Behind, before, and at the corners Of
this line or as dead men were others,
Saxon and French One had o fright