Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-03-23
HOW JOHN BULL LOST LONDON.
A Pamphlet Published I'm London
ia the Manner Of the "Battle of
DOrkfng."

A Pamphlet Published In London
ia the Manner Of the "Battle of
DOrkfng.ss
A little brochure, significantly bound
in tricolor cover, has just been pub
lished in London. 1t is called "How
John Bull Lost London; or, The Cap
ture of the Channel Tunnel" After
some introduction, it says:
On the evening of bright day in May
their arrived by the channel tunnel at
Dover large number of French holiday
makers. The allied Brothers of the
Amity Lodges of the Free Masons," so
the newspapers of Paris stated, had
determined to hold a fete in England,
and three special trains had brought the
holiday makers through. They had
engaged beds everywhere; the Lord
Warden and all the other hotels
were crowded to excess, but nobody
thought anything of that. for there
had been several such fetes, on some
what smaller scale it is true, but still
fetes of similar kind, before. 1t was
known, though not specially noted at the
time, however, that just at that precise
date couple of French army corps were
carrying out a series of peace man9uvres
in the neighborhood of Amens. No
body troubled about what the French
did; they were England's firm allies. It's
true there had been a little misunder-
standing about the right of France to
menace the Egyptians with an armed
force should they not hasten to confer
certain concessions upon various great
French financial companies, and true,
moreover, that Tripoli, having some
time since been annexed to Tunis, had
been matter of some contention be-
tween the governments of London and
Paris; but these were small matters
which diplomacy would certainly smooth
over; nobody gave them more than
passing thought. When, then, on that
fine May evening the tourists arrived,
nobody thought anything of their visit,
nor was it considered at all suspicious;
nor when, later on, by an hour or two,
two French steamers, which might have
been loaded with apples or arms, drew
up near the Admiralty pier, and sent
word ashore that they would be exam
ined by the customs officer in the morn
ing. 1t was all so natural. Dover that
night slept TRANQUILITY. 1t had not large
garrison, for troubles in Ireland and
reduced army system had not left many
men in the lines above town. But it
knew it was secure-none but the good
and friendly French were near, and they
were only tourists. Only touristsl
THE SEIZURE.
The clock had only just struck mid
night when all on a sudden these tourists
might have been seen hurrying toward
the tunnel station, while coming from
the French steamers were many men
bearing in their arms bundles of rifles.
There was a sound as of a scuffle and
shot or two fired, but it only drew the
attention of very few. The tourists
had all disappeared But an alarm had
been given. and the police had been sent
to the tunnel mouth and then, the alarm
continuing, party of soldiers had been
sent. What could it all mean2 Only
this, that the tourists were rapidly en-
sconcing themselves behind the railway
material and the mouth of the tunnel,
were throwing up earthworks and cut
ting trenches and quickly converting the
position they had taken up into mill
tary entrenchment. Alarm came. What
| troops there were in Dover were sent I'D
good earnest now to attack the
strangers, for it was clear that
they had got the tunnel in their
hands and that if they could hold 1t for
six hours no one would be able after
ward to dislodge them. But the attack
was not by any means the easy job it
had looked. 1t was night time and the
men, hidden behind earth and railway
trucks, could not be seen. In vain the
musketry ratified in the direction of the
tunnel, the defenders of the frontier
were safely under shelter and in an i'm
brought up and the tunnel DESTROYED,
that was clear; the order was given. But
the artillery was Ineffective, and it was
now found that the electric wire pro-
vided for blowing up the tunnel and the
apparatus for sluicing it had all been
seized and cut; the tunnel mouth must
be taken by hand to hand fighting. Tele-
grams were forthwith dispatched to
London, and the Dover garrison led up
to the fight. 1t numbered, however,
not many more than the invaders, and
these had the immense advantage of be-
ing under cover. There was many an
English soldier who bit the dust that
night.
IN LONDON.
Let it not be supposed that in London
the government, on getting the informa
| ton of what was transporting at Dover,
was supine; on the contrary, it acted
with praiseworthy energy. The Secre.
tary of War was at a reception Of the
wife of the Foreign Minister when the
startling news arrived, and his first i'm
pulse was to rush up to his colleague to
demand what it all meant. II am
wholly at a loss to know, was the reply,
Except that this evening the French
| Ambassador did certainly say to me that
his government viewed our pro
test with regard to Egypt more seriously
than he wished, and that he trusted the
situation might not become strained.
But took him to be joking" "Joking2"
roared the War Minister: do you know
that the French have come through the
tunnel and taken Dover since midnight,
three hours ago 2" To say that both the
Ministers were thunderstruck hardly
describes their condition. But they
acted-the one leaving the company i'm
mediately, and driving round to seek for
! explanation from the French Ambassa-
dor, whom he, curiously enough, did
not find at home the other to the War
Office, whittier he summoned everybody
attached to the staff y
News from Dover announced that the
French force there had increased to an
army corps and was being augmented
every hour While it was certain that
| if the various detachments coming from
different parts of the country essayed TO
attack Dover they would be cut off in
detail, there must be an order given for
a concentration upon various points.
Dover had gone and could not be re-
taken for the present, and the whole
| nun ila hla arrnu rrnllst he concentrated On