Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1883-07-21

Y "No thanks are needed, my col
I onel. i you have finished supper
e l will make up your bed ~
I Not tonight, Casse Tete. II l am
5 not mistaken, we shall get orders to
saddle up and be on the watch, all
. night"
$50 much the better, my colonel.
You'll ride the Russian tomorrow
of course. He'll carry you all day
and all night. All, if we only meet
} that accursed prince tomorrow !"
. "Yes, if we only do"
, "How we will trounce them, my
colonel! I've long score to pay
those fellows about their Rossbach
and all the rest"
And then Casse Tete went to look
after his horses, while Gabriel wrap
ped in his cloak, sat leaning against
a tree and thinking to himself that
he might yet be happy, if he sur
vived on the next days fight.
Only one thing remained to be
explained, and that was, how Inez
came to be inside the Prussian lines
and under the escort of the Prince
of POtsdam. The Marquise de ST.
Jean was at the bottom of the plot,
he felt sure, but in what manner he
could not yet see, for the life of
him,
So alternately yumlnating over
the future and doing over the fire,
passed the chilly hours of that 18th
of October night, and just as the
first streaks of dawn showed in the
east, came the bugle calls and
drums, closely followed by the roar
of artillery all around them.
The Battle of Jena had begun and
there was no mistaking the temper
in which it was opened. The French
had before them the famed Pru5-
sian infantry, the steadiest in Eu-
rope; and ON the issue hung the tate
of Prussia and whole continent
besides. The Deaths Heads were
up and on the alert at the first gun,
cleaning their horses and cooking
breakfast with the coolne,s of vet
erans who knew that hard days
work is before them; but they were
/ allowed to remain in quiet all the
morning behind the shelter of the
Landgrafenberg heights, while the
cannon thundered on the further
side, and the rolling of volleys new
er ceased.
Gabriel, for the first time during
a battle, was i'm a fever of excite
ment at the inaction to which he
was compelled. He could not leave
his regiment, and he could see moth
| ing of the battle. He had to pace up
and down by the banks of the little
| stream, listening to the cannonade
and think to himself all the time
"They will kill him before get
chance to strike blow"
The fate of a campaign become of
secondary importance to him to the
personal auimosity he felt against
single man in the enemy's army.
AT last, in the middle of theafter-
noon, he saw commotiOn on the
heights of Landgrefenberg, where
he knew the emperor to be station
! ed. 84 -..
A staff officer was seen descending
the hill at a full gallOp.
The young colonel drew his belt
tighter, and said to Casse Tete:
Orders to charge. Get ready"
Presently came mighty cheer
from masses of cavalrymen stand
ing waiting by there horses. and the
cheer spread from regiment to regi-
ment, till every man was roaring
ViUe u Emperor :"
Then came Il Gathering and rat
ting, and Gabriel saw a crowd of
glittering officers cantering toward
him behind the white heron feather
| of Murat, which rose from its for
est of black ostrich plums and shone
| in the rays of the sun like Il star.
The Grand Duke of Berg was COM
| ing, and the battle was about to be
finished by one of those magnifi-
cent charges which no other man
could lead SO fiercely.
The "Beau Sabreur" never look
ed so well as when he was about TO
! head such Il rush. His tall figure
and dark, handsome face, with its
curls and Whiskers the crimson
peliSse the Jewels on his dOlma, the
| fOppery Of his whole costume and
trappings no longer looked ridicu-
| louS or out of place.
1t was the splendOr Of battle; the
very nlagniiicence of force that ra-
! diant from that knightly figure as he
reined in his bay charger and smiled
proudly on the vast cOncour5e of
horsemen around him.
Gabriel saw him coming and for
got his own wrongs and anger in
the fierce excitement Of that mag
netic presence. He felt that the
| time had come to fight.
The glittering marshal cantered
up and halted moment before the
Deaths Heads, to answer Gabrie'5
salute. The dark cuirassiers had
not uttered shout, but were stand
ing in the ranks by their horses
heads, looking like bronze statues.
Murat smiled approvingly, and
spoke so that half the regiment
could hear him:
"Colonel Lenoir," he said, 81 was
looking for good regiment to head
this charge with myself. Mount
your men and follow"
Then he tured to his staff:
"Tell them to mount up at once.
| The Deaths Heads have the van,
| Lenoir's division the advance, the
rest in support. Sound the adj
| vance"
A moment later the Black CUR
assier5, grim and silent, their dark
shocks of hOrse-hair shaking behind
! them as they trotted, were moving
out after the great calvary chief
round the base of the Landgrafen
berg heights, while behind them
swept twelve thousand heavy
hOrsemen, in wave on wave OF steel
Gabriel Lenor, his sword drawn,
rode just behind the marshaps staff, \
and in that order they entered the
| field.
AS they cleared the skirts Of the
heights a blush white pail of smoke
covered everything from sight, and
it was impossible 10 tell what was
going on.
The red flashes of musketI and
rifles lit up the vail incessantly, but
| disclosed nothing except dark
groups Of men, who stood still and
seemed to have nothing to do but
Ere away into the blank smoke.
Above the midst they could see
the summit Of the Landgrafenburg,
crowded with black figures, watch
| ing them, but that was all. Where
they were going, no one seemed to
know but Murat.
On cantered the chief, with his
staff Of glittering officers, till the
smoke had swallowed up all the
glitter and they looked like ghosts
| of horsemen.
On swept the grim Deaths Heads
! Il