, 1878-05-03
A Section of Victor Hugo's History
of q Crime.

ness, anu lOTuleu SiiS'0 "o0"' "S ~
The circle was composed as follows;
THE Bavarians, right wing, at Bayellles,
an the Meuse; near the Bavarians the
Soxons, at La Moncelle and at Daigny;
onnosite GivOnnc, the Royal Guard; the
Fifth Corps at Saint Menges apd Don
cherry, the Wurtembergers; Count Stol-
hero and his cavalry at Donchery; in
front toward Sedan, the second Bavarian
Ali this was achieved in spectral fash
i'm. in order, without breath, without a
mise. ,hroug gh the forests, the ravines,
and the valleys. A sinnous and sinister
march. A dragging along of reptiles.
Scarcely was murmur audible be-
meath the thick foliage. The silent battle
swarmed in the darkness while awaiting
daybreak.
The French army slept.
Suddenly it awoke.
II WAS captive.
The sun rose, splendid as it shone to-
ward God, terrible toward man.
Let us define the situation.
The Germans have numerical strength
IN their side; they are three to one-iour
n.rhaps; they confess to having 10000
mon but it is certain that their line OF
attack was thirty kilometres in length; {;
thew hold the positions, crown the heights,
fll the forests, they are covered by all
the sleeps, they are masked by all the
shadows, they have matchlcss artillery.
The French army is in hollow, almost
without artillery and ammunition, naked
under their grape shot. The Germans
have ambush on their side, the French
have on theirs nothing but heroism. 1t
is a fine thing to die, but good thing to
surprise.
This achievement at arms is sur
I, it fair war; Yes, but if this be fair
war, what is foul warI
Thus much said, the battle of Sedan is
recounted.
We would stop here. But we cannot.
Great though the horror of the historian
be, history is a duty, and duty must be
fulfilled. There is no more imperous
slope than this; to tell the truth, whoever
ventures upon it rolls to the bottom. 1t
must be so. The Judge is doomed to
Justice.
The battle of Sedan is more than bat
lie which is fought; it is a syllogism
which finishes itself; dread premedita-
ton of destiny. Fate never hurres, but
always attains its goal. Its hour strikes
and It is there. 1t lets years 90 by, then,
when least thought of, it appears. Sedan
Is the fatal unexpected From time to
time, in history, divine logic makes sor-
ties. Sedan is one of these sorties.
So, on the first Of September, ut five
o'clock in the morning, the world awoke
under the sun and the French army under
the thunderbolt,
Bayeilles takes fire, Givonue takes fire
Floring takes fire; the thing begins by d
furnace. The whole horizon is atlame
The French camp is in this crater, stupe'
fed, scared, startled in a funeral swarm
A ring of thunderbolts encircles the
army. determination hens it in.
The immense murder is carried on or
all sides at once. The French resist, anc
they are terrible, for they have nothing
left them but despair. Our guns, almos
all old. fashioned and carrying badly, are
Immediately dismounted by the terrible
and precise aim of the Prussans. The
density of the rain of shells upon th,
valley is such that "the earth is ruled,
says witness, las by a rake" How
many guns9 Eleven hundred, at least
Twelve German batteries on the Moncellt
only; the third and fourth a6thetlung,
frightful artillery, on the crest of Gi
Vonne, with the Second Horse Battery il
areserve; opposite Daigny, ten Saxon anC
two Wurtemberg batteries the curtain o
trees in the wood north of Villers Carna,
conceas the abtheILung with the Thirc
Heavy Artillery as reserve, and from
this gloomy thicket is poured form
daole fire; the twenty-four pieces of heavy
artillery form battery in the clearing
near the road from La Moncele TO Ii
Caapelle; the battery of the Royal Guarc
sets fire to the wood de la Garrenne; th,
bombs and the bullets riddle Suchy
Ffancheval, Faura Saint Rerny, and thu
valley between Helbes and Givonne; anC
the triple and quadruple row of guns ex
lends, without break, to the cavalry o
A!y, the most remote point of the horizon
Inc German soldiers, seated or recum
Dent before the batteries, look upon thu
@HI!ery doing its work The French
soldiers fall and die. Among the corpses
which cover the plain is one, that of ar
vnCer, upon which they will find, aftel
@s battle, sealed paper containing thi
@uer, signed by Napoleon: "7'his Sep
""Uer ".w rest for The tohoLe army" The
s;.lant M.lant Ihirty-tifth Regiment of the Lint
disappears almost entirely under the
Iussing mass of shells; the brave ma
oI" ines mold the Saxons and Bavarians in
sn sueck Tor an instant, but being over.
aSS "Sweu on all sides, fall back; the whole
vi"ian i%iiraDie cavalry of Marguerrite's di
~ Ou hurled against the German infan.
N5S"ps and breaks down when half way
viaa az us road, exterminated, says the Prus.
g." au report, "by we'll directed and quiet
,Sno. ihls field of carnage has three
InO all OF which are closed; the Bouil.
vnaU 'Oau BY the Prussian Guard, the Car.
Ma. H.nI road, by the Bayarians, and the
Tbs TbStes S road, by the Wurtem bergers.
hcsa;r french have not thought of bar.
neaing the viaduct of the railroad three