The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-07-18
German !, students. D,sc,s.
Inresdan Letter to tho Chicago Tribune.

their American felows--for the Americans
ut the universities here are apt 10 be noted
as lighters An old friend of mine at the
Sheffields school, who is now at Freiberg,
SCALED one Of the best duellists there. There
is only polytechnic school here. but 1t has
some three hundred and sixty students, fifty
of whom belong to the different corps, or
verbindungs," and are forever slashing
each other. When a man is elected to q
Verbindupg, an older student takes him in
charge and teaches him how to light
He is his Instructors Heibesfuchs -
I" Body Fox and the "Grandson =
Of his teachers teacher. II he doesn't
insult somebody or get insulted within a
year be is warned to do so and 10 hight
the consequent duel. The warning Is Of
rare.occurrence, however, for these learned
geese regard scars as ornaments, and after
receiving them drink huge quantities of beer
for couple of months, and 50 make the
sears red forever. The soldier-son of our
landlady was trained as duelIist by hero
who had slit sixteen noses without getting
scratch! He has been successful himself,
and his Heibesfucbs" has reflected credit
on the family. The son was to take me to
see match Of five fights between his corps,
I" Thalia," and another, Titonia," but could
not get leave Of absence; 80 he introduced
his $ Body Fox !" to me, and | started of
under his protection last Tuesday morning.
We bad hard walk, through wind and
rain, tor half (German) mile (seven English
niles, TO village in the outskirts of Dres-
den. The place was chosen because the
police have recently been active in catching
duellists, and the penalty is years reStric-
ton and six months in prison. After pass
ing three or four sentinels, and giving satis-
factory statements as to the why and where
fore OF my coming, we were admitted into
ballroom, the windows of which COM
manded the road over which the police
would come, If they came at all, which they
didn't. In the room were about forty stu
dents-rather fatter than Yale crowd, but
otherwise much the same, except for the
parti-colored caps and sashes which the ma
jority wore. Even this might find parallel
in New Haven just before the Freshmen
supper. Chairs and tables were ranged
around the sides, and the waiter was con-
tinually bringing up coffee, soda-water, and
beer from the inn below. a part Of the
floor some twenty feet long by fifteen wide,
was sprinkled with saw.dust Through
this, two lines of chalk were drawn to show
where the combatants must stand. At
either end of the Saw-dust were two chairs.
Just as we entered, two bareheaded men
came forward from opposite sides struggling
under the weight Of their accoutremcnts.
Each had heavily. wadded cloth-coverip@
from neck to knees, and over the left arm to
the elbow. This arm was held behind him
by one Of the many straps that kept this
uncoutb gear tight. Around his neck was
heavy band, above which his head moved
with difficulty. His right hand was pro-
tected by thick buckskin glove and by the
baSket-hilr of the sword, and the wrist was
gay with many -colored ribbons. The right
arm was mass Of cloth, leather. and chain
wrappinss-so thoroughly protected, in fact
that il was used as guard, and the sword
blows fell on it harmlcSsly. The two men sat
down, and each rested his clumsy right arm
Oh the shoulder of one of his Verbindupg,"
who sat by him. The doctor-the same one is
always engaged-came forward and creased
their eyebrows, so that blood should not
flow down into the eyes. Iron spectacle
cases, without glasses, were bound on;
basket-hilted swords, some four feet long,
with the two edges sharpened for eighteen
inches, and the whole last eight inches
shining like Il razor, were put in their hands;
and the umpire, Il Freberg student, who
wore the ribbons OF both corps, rose and
read from little book the information that
Herr So.and.so, of '.Thalia," and Herr So
and. other, Of Titonia," were to " fight out /"
question of honor during the next fifteen
minutes. The fighters tottcred towards
each other. their friends still upholding their
arms; and the two regular seconds, who
were the same for all the dues, and who
mud short aprons, with the society emblems
thereon, and ornamented swords, also ad.
Vanced.
The four swords crossed each other one
of the seconds said two or three words !; the
arm-holders darted back; the seconds STEP
ped to the left OF their principals, holding
their swords so as to parry any unfair attack
there was IL moments silence; then cling
cinS-clash for a minute Oh two, while the
swords cut, and thrust, and slashed then a
cry of "halt!" from one or the other Sc
cOnds, aud the two principal fools were led
bach 10 their seats. Then, while they were
resting, and their swords were being bent
straight again, their opponents seconds eX-
unlntu their heads with care, to see whether |
they had not received thereon wounds which |
they were trying to conceal. When the Sc
cnnds had poked enough, and had then scan-
ned their fingers in the hope of finding |
thereon traces of blood, u wound, however
severe, does not .'count" unless it |
blccd-), one Of them gave the signal, and the |
fight rebegan. The first duel progressed
with little BARN to either party until the last
minute, when the Titonian, with a terrific
arm-Sweep, sent his sword under the Tha-
lMn's guard, and cut bis left cheek through
to the teeth, and from mouth to ear. It was
a terrible" and unprecedented wound,
So every body said and the Titonians clapped
and shouted, and danced in joy thereover.
The poor fellow-a Saxon. Maynard by name,
who had come out of two duels without n
scratch-had his face sewnup without finch
ing, and stayed in the room thereafter bun
die Of bandngcs. Soon after the fight saw
him chatting easily with his opponent, for
the close OF duel is always the signal tor a
shake-hands, and occasionally for kiss.
The four other duels were repetitionS of
this, except that there were no serious
wounds. In one of them one Of the com
baants, Il Brazilian, lost control of his head,
aud slashed SO violently in every direction
that he put his opponent, the doctor, and
both seconds to flight, and bad 10 be forcibly
constrained to fight according to rule. This
combat was draw. The remaining four
were gained two and two, so that honors
were easy, and every body walked home con-
tentedly.
Besides this sort of fight, there are two
others, with cavalry sabres and with pistols,
and in both cases without bandages. The
student with whom / went is to fight an
American ut Freiberg next week with
sabres; and such dueis are not very uncom
mon, although they are rarely attended With
serious results. When a gross insult brings
pistols into play, death is. OF course. Il very
possible issue. j read 10 this mornings
paper of the killing of one Strasbourg stu
dent by another in a pistol duel.
by friend says that some men fight thirty
times a year, although this is always an ey-