The Portland daily press., 1875-04-12
The story ofia Frenchman Hunted by the
Germans.
CHAPTER ",

leailess trees, pines uprooted, rocks thrown
down covering the paths with sand to the
bottom of the valley-just as 1 had seen it for
twenty-five years. And softly also the spring
time returned. The cattle went down again
to the river to drink. Calais began to sing,
and snap his whips, and the cock to beat his
wings on the little wall of the yard in the
midst of his hens, waking all the echoes OF
the valley with his clear voice.
1t was our last spring time at the forest
house. Marie every morning in her short skirt
her handkerchief crossed neatly under the
arms, went into the garden with her basket
and old knife to cut the first vegetables. She
raised up as she went along the borders OF
box from the little paths, and fastened to the
trells the stray branches of the climbing
roses. l saw in the distance Jean Merlin
coming with quick step in the path through
the field past the old willows, I heard him
call,-"Marie Rosep
She rose up and hurried to meet him. They
kissed each other, and came back laughing
arm in arm.-I was happy, I said to myself.
They love each other. They are good
- chiIdrenr' Grandmother Anne, almost al
ways shut up in her own room, watched them
also from her little window covered with ivy,
her eyes halt closed, her old face wrnkled in
satisfaction, and called to me.
Frederic"
''What, grandmother"'
81 am young again, as at the time of my
marriage. 1t was the year of the comet,
when they made such good wine, before the
terrible Russian winter. You have heard
frozen.''
eyes grandmother"
She loved to recall those far off histories,
and we do not think that we must soon do
the same.
All went on thus, until harvest, when the
great drought commenced. 1t lasted until
the end of July.
AS for the plebiscite, these things did not
trouble us much. One beautiful morning we
received orders to go to Petite Pierre, and all
the brigade gathered at my house, and went
, together in uniform to vote yeS, as we had
been ordered. Then going into the tavern
of the Three Pigeons we drank bumper to
the emperor's health, after which we re-
turned to the house, and next day it was
forgotten.
The people of Granftkal, Dossenheim,
Eschbourg &c, complained of only one thing.
that it did not rain. But in the heart of the
valley the weather was beautiful, rain fell,
the grass grew luxuriantly, and all the birds
of Alsace, the black birds, thrushes, ring
doves, bullfinches with their young broods
fluttered around the house as in bird cage
1t was also the best time one could wish
for fishing, for when the water is low the
trout return to the springs under the rocks,
where we can catch them with the hand.
Who could have imagined at this time that
we were 10 go to war with the Germans?
What interest could we have in it? Besides
had not everybody told US that the vote OF
the plebiscite was to maintain peaceP We
had no such thought until one evening in Ju-
ly the little Jew David returning from the
purchase of calf at Dossenhein said to me
in passing:
"Have you heard the great news, Briga-
dier?'
''No, what is it?"
swell, the bulletins from Paris say that
the Emperor will declare war against the
King of Prussia"
could not believe ii; so much the less as
the wood merchant Schatner, returned few
days previously from Sarrbruck, had told me
tnat all the country was alive with troops.
cavalry, infantry, artillery, that the bourgeois
themselves, had each the knapsack, gun, and
equipments complete marked and numbered
in order on shelves in an arsenal where at the
first call of the hauptmdn, these men would
have only to dress, receive their ammunition,
take possession of the railroads to oyerpow-
er us en- ndsse.
We had no means of defence, neither in
our cities, or our villages, so that simple good
sense made me think that the emperor would
not declare war with the Germans before
placing us in a state to defend ourselves.
shrugged my shoulders when the Jew re-
ported to me a thing SO foolish and said to
him:
"Do you take the emperor for fool?"
But he went away pulling his calf by a
string saying.
'Wait, wait, Brigadier; you will see. 1t
will not be long"
Unfortunately eight or ten days after the
thing had become certain certain. They re-
recalled all those on furlough. They said
even that the Babar ans had CIT the tee-
graph wires, that numerous troops had passed
into Saverne and that others were in camp at
Niederbronn.
Suddenly the report came that we had
been beaten at Weissembourg, and the eveD-
ing of the same day the inhabitants of Neu-
iller had fled with their goods in carts to
Lutzelsen, that many of our battaions had
been massacred; that the general of the ar
my of advance had been left on the battle
field; that Weissembourg was burned and
that our troops had withdrawn to Bitche.
The bourgeois were wild with terror; in
stead of continuing their route to Petite
Pierre the idea seized them all at once that
the place was not strong enough, and in
spite of circuit of three leagues which they
had made, the whole band, men and women,
began to climb the Falberg mountain in Or
der to reach Strasbourg
Then desoIaton was in our midst Merlin
ana his mother came 10 Inc HOUSE ~ Idih
over the bad news. Grandmother grcaned.
1 said that we must not lose our courage,
that the Germans would never dare to risk
themselves in our woods, that they did not
know the way, and many other reasons,
which did not hinder me from feeling very
anxious myself; for all that which Captain
Rondeau had told me year before came
back to me; the wood cutters that he had
caused to be arrested at Lutzeistein pas ,ed
before my eyes; and then was Inundated
to learn that soldiers of Baden and Bavaria
had beaten our men in the first encounter.
l reflected that they were ten against
one, but the humiliation was no less great
1t was our first anxious night. could not
sleep, heard Marie Rose in her little chamber
near, get up andiopen the window and look
out.
Every thing outside was as quiet as if moth
ing bad happened. Not twig moved, the
air was so calm. Some grasshoppers hum