, 1872-11-08
RUINED BY WAR.
A Picture of Deso1ation and Dcser.fon

E1cture ct Desolat10n and Deser-ion
Correspondence OF the Se,o FORK HerVd.
The City OF Metz in its brightest da5s mus
nave been an unlucky town emothered owe.
with forts and bitches an' all the elaborate
mechanism of engineering art. Taa great
Ea1ban accomplished thee results in Louis
AlV.'s days, when that Khg Was doing little
royal stealing on his own account and Fas anx-
lous to protect his acquisition. With few
miles of its gatea the great battle Of Grave
lotte was fought where7russi burst the Trench
zaine, into Metz, to Starvation and sur1.nder !:
the other fragment, 1nder MacMahon, % into
Sedan, to surrender with it's Emperor it the
head. Gravelotte noEs very calm aad fruitful
this autumn morning., and shows no trace II the
gigantic strife Of t"o years ago: The fels are
giving forth cora and hops and vines, anl the
merry laugh OF the harvesters is heard where
the cannon sounded upon that draadful dav,
as your correspondent passed down the road
along which the King Of Prussia advanced. ook-
ing out oyer tae rolling, hlly plain, thifkinr
his own thoughts, there c.c1e 8 group YbicR
would have been made into fne picture b. the
pencil of Teniers. 4 donkey; with q ribbon or
two around his neck by way Of encouragement,
was doggedly pulling small, rude cart. This
was heaped with baskets of r:pe grapes, In 2ne
corner, cunningly protected from seIf-lestuuc-
flon By an ingenious arrangement Of baskets,
vas q Tlde-eyed infant, just old enough to
meant, and its eyes firmly fixed on lis mother,
who came plodding behind, clappingher binds
and chanting nursery rhymes: An oldman, With
f1svo h1s STAT, marahal1ed a1;3 the gpup with
der things than grapes and wins. Then
came q struggling procession Of boys and
girls-the boys from twelve to fiye-Tith ruddy-
dirty faces, e1neared with grape juce They
evaena pest Ntb 4ge5 hgrn home
young men had gone. The head of he family
bad gone. The vintage could only be gathered
by women and children. The old me- and the
children only remained. This was fist glimpse
of the new aspect Of affairs in Alzac and Ior-
raine, and it seemed odd that this trophy Of
German rule should make itself MANIFEST on tha |
victorious field Of The Grave1otte Nor and then |
We net group OF sageE, striding youths march |
ng towards the fronties or to some nilway sta
women in the train with children in heir arms.
1n8lous for France, and we though of what !
Byron wrote of those wanderers OF sraeI when |
tneS were driven out Of the Holy La,d:-
And We must wander, witherin<y,
In other lands to die
And Where our iathers' ashes
Ou-nrl can never lie
AS hase sad, Metz could never II best have
shabbness and despair. In other laws il lived
On IT'S garrison. It had military sd1ool and a
large, II not . pleasing, variety of pedlcrs. and
sutleFS ana tradesmen Of many na1ons. MANY
wars HeofeWs, who we're the tirsr to eo for |
the exodus began shortly after the Gernas, n,s oc-
cupation. The Germans pai7oniztd their own
pe9p1e, ana oad no occasion for Trench suffers | !
sa Eng Peale5s from the Orient. Wien the -peried
I9au ne LOT oecls1on between France and Pruesit.
metz gave way in q panic, and thousands swar1,3
ed out OF rte gates. At least tyso-thirds Of the
lnnapltants nave gone, and Metz looks as if ! !
shllen With pestlle0ce-a sort OF city laid out
p slate tor funeral, and Prussizn army as t
guard OF honor over the remains. In addition tn {
ne ordinary passenger trains running to Nancy
lnI1ng the last few days of September five extra
1a1ca lett the city daily with emieratng inhabi-
ants. :; It The scenes in the railway depot showed
= = me eroNdlng, and anxiety, and disturbance !
uly fireworks in City Hall Park. railway OFF, I
er ~ Informed our correspondent that on one dsy 8
,ouo left from his depot alone. They have | +
%eps s owe over The country to Nancy, Luneville,
ay, to find work in the champagne harvest-f
'any to Paris In cities vhero the prussians i
ere In occupation they would not permit The =
xlss e., to remain, especially the young men fit
la ler hncs With these they were always severe.
" me young men. upon accepting the option =
r Germany, would ta compelled to enter the | -
Icsesan army. So tley left for France. In e1
,e commune "hero there were eeyenteen Young b
en- only two remained; of these two one waS =:
, the other had no means of leaving. hnJ ~
ON ON every quarter, without any exception-eT- e1
pt, perhaps, few conmunes near Tia Rhina h;
W. W. correspondents bring corroboratng re- vi
~" ftc"1 thirty alone they estimate tha | ~,
,mber vino have departed as $1,000 sonis 1oo ~ ~
When Eou are informed that Metz is ss1;tar,11v =;
se11ed M It is difficult to male you feel how ax ~
~ t.uo the phrase Is. The Rue des Jarlne ch ~,
t!nstanee, which boosted forty stores. has fpa -
y open It is estimated tlat two stores 1--WE 1--WE ~
. 'nree IN the whole town are closed. Most of ha
open stores sell tobacco and Bremen cirars ~ ~
oia cafes are German beer saloons. Soma IN IN
open ,[t stores Inform you that they are 19e
ook 7ou see houses for salo or to let. And a. a.