Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1871-02-06
SKETCH OF THE FRANCO.PRUssIAN WAR.
[Concluded from SATURDAYS paper. ]

While this armistice was pending the
disturbances which have already been re-
iured to finally came to head. They
had been growing more and more serious
since the beginning of the siege; and now
Irochu, being perfectly prepared, deter
mined to end them once for ALL On the
last day of October groups of people as
sembled in the Place de l'Hotel de Vile, in
great state of excitement about the re-
port that had been set ailoat that the pro-
visional government were about to agree
to the armistice on the Prussian terms.
Hotel de Vile and practically captured
the Ministers The gardes nationales,
however, rescued the government from.
this perilous dilemma, and Trochu arrest
ed the leaders for treason against the re-
public. This was the last serious inter-
nal trouble that occasioned any anxiety.
In the beginning of November the Army
OF the Loire, under De Paladines, achieved
a signal victory over General Won der
Tam and forced the Prussians to evacu-
ate Orleans. Later on in the month of
November other French victories were
also obtained in the same department,
and the news of them carried to Paris by
a carrier pigeon, which was wounded by
the Prussians as it entered the city.
Until the end of November the siege
went on but slowly, while the stock of
provisions became palpably smaller, and
the Parisians experienced the most disa-
greeabie consequences OF the investment.
Fresh meat gave out at the beginning Of
the month, and the animals Of the Jardin
des Plants were slain and sold to the peo-
ple-elephants, monkeys, lions, tigers,
yak and rhinoceros included.
Toward the end of November the Army
of the Loire was signally defeated by
Prince Frederick Charles, who after the
surrender of Metz had turned his march
southwark The day after this news was
received at Versailles General Ducrot,
with 100000 men, made grand sortie
from Paris. On the night of the Goth of
November lively fire was maintained
from the forts round Paris, and the fol-
lowing morning the garrison made sorties
at various points on the Seine and Marne
The fighting was very desperate and last
ed until night The result was doubtful ;
but General Ducrot was at first believed
to have been successful in breaking
through the Prussian lines. He took
some of the villages about Brie-sur-Marne,
and practically for twenty-four hours the
circle was broken. On the
day FRIDAY, December y the
Germans, however, by dreadfully hard
fighting succeeded in again establishing
their positions, and Ducrot and his army
were once more prisoned beneath the
walls of Paris. The losses in those days
fighting must have been frightfully heavy,
but the estimates given are Wery various.
The German loss alone in the two days,
according to their own estimates, was
G, 800 men, while the French loss in killed
and wounded was even greater, and in
prisoners 1,S00.
Following this defeat came the final dis
aster to the Army of the Loire, and fur
ther unsuccessful and not very vigorous
attempt again by Ducrot on the 10th of
December to again break through the in
vesting lines. Those disasters, and es-
pecially the first produced very bad effect
upon the defenders of Paris, and affairs
within the doomed capital grew more and
more discouraging..
From this time until almost the close of
the year the record of the siege was not
very interesting In the north, under
General Faidherbe, in the south Il second
Army of the Loire, under Chanzy, and in
the east an Army, under Bourbaki, had
been slowly gathered together Faid-
herbe was soon defeated, and BourkakiS
command was not very promising. The
Army of the Loire again achieved a few
success, which inspired great confidence
in its new leader On the 29th OF Decem-
Der the Germans obtained an advantage
that led to the ultimate capture of the city.
Tho hnp,l1a rIpnnnt the mart pt the
Prussians had been postponed again and
again, until it was believed that they adj
hered to their original intention to starve
the city into submission On the 20th,
however the beginning to the end took
place by the bombardment OF Fort Avron
and its forced evacuation by the French
This position gained it became clear that
the Prussians were able at any time they
chose to begin in serious earnest the work
of shelling The city. Avron once taken,
the Germans directed fire from that po-
sition and silenced Fort Nogent. On the
Sd heavy bombardment ON the forts on
the north, south and east was begun, but
with very little effect.
Meanwhile affairs inside the doomed
city had become more and more desperate.
Meat, even salt or wild of any kind. had
for weeks been out of the market. Two
thirds of the population were living only
upon the insufficient rations of flour
served out by the government. Owing to
these privations and to the severity Of an
unusually cold winter, there were great
many deaths from sickness.
The, bombardment having begun on
the Sd, gradually increased in severity,
and the damage it has done has no doubt
terminated the siege. On the 9th Fort
Vanvres was destroyed, on the Sth instant
the barracks of Fort Montrouge were set
on fire and burned, and few spent shells
fell into the gardens of the Luxembourg
The firing from this time was kept up all
each day, and through the night.
The bombardment constantly grew
more severe. On the 18th Paris was on
fire in several places, and the French
battery at Notre Dame de ClamarS was
captured. This was point nearly mile
in advance of the former Prussian lines,
and guns were Immediately mounted on
the position and directed against Fort