Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1885-09-10
TIE RED PRINCE.
The Effect of Ills Advent Upon the
Field of Battle.

/
The first time that ever saw Prince
Frederick Charles, says n writer in the
London Aeus, was on the afternoon of
the battle of Mars In Tour. About
noon on that bloody day Bazaine out
there in front of the auberge of Graves
lotte had hidden adieu to his master,
the emperor. and had ridden forward
on to the great plain on whose face lie
the villages or Fiavigny, vionyille,
Mars Ia -FOUR and sRezonyille, Ito find
that the Prussians were standing
athwart the plateau blocking the on
ward march of his army toward YER
dun; that indeed hours before Alvcns-
leben had hidden Reinbaben commence
the offensive with his Brankenburgcr
horsemen. For five hours a desperate
battle had been raging furiously AL
veusleben had been indeed true to his
duty. With his single army corps dur
ing those dreadful hours OF fighting
and slaughter, he had been barring the
progress of the whole French army.
Five and twenty thousand Germans,
out there mostly on the bare plain, had
given pause to q hundred thousand
trcnchmen. Bpt at what cost! AL
vensleben's two divisions, StulpnagePs
and Buddenbrock' S had lost one-third
of their strength. The infantry had
been so pressed that he had been fore
ed to adopt the terrible expedient of
hurting cavalry at the muzzles OF the
chassepots. From Bredow's gallant
horsemen he had not asked too much;
they had achieved their mission; they
had pierced line after line of French
infantry, and had sabered the gunners
of The batteries behind; but they had
ridden back into their positions short
by one-half of the strength with which
they had commenced their heroic
charge. The village of Flavigny was
q shamble, its cutters running in blood.
The plain around it was strewn thick
with dead and wounded. Well might
Alyensleben with anxious eye scan the
verge OF the plateau for reinforcements;
for he was engaged up to the hilt--not
man stood in reserve. He was hold
ing on grimly, but it was with the grip
almost of despair.
AT the head OF the rayine up which
the road winds from Gore down in
the yalley.on to Flavigny up there on
the plateau, ! lay among the brush
wood watching the lurid scene. Sud-
denly behind me on the steep ascent
OF the road | heard the clatter of many
troops. A cavalcade was approaching
at hand gallop. Out to the front
alone rode square-shouldered chief
in red tune, sitting the big bay with
firm, easy seat His strong lined
face was intent, yet calm; he spoke
over his shoulder TO the man riding on
his flank. 1t was Prince Frederick
Charles, at the head of his staff, who
had ridden up from Mont-a-M ousson,
following his own maxim of moving
direct upon the cannon thunder. Out
on to the bare plateau he rode, among
the whistling bullets and bursting
shells, and as if by instinct galloped
straight for the knoll behind Flavigny,
where AlvenSleben stood in the fire
surrounded by what remained of his
staff.
II was strange, but as if by tie adj
vent of this one man the face of the
battle magically changed. Broken
troops fell into order and began to
push forward. The batteries massed
and concentrated their fire on points
where it told. Reinforcements he had
ordered as he had ridden forward
came hurrying on to the plateau, and
Joined in the fight, cheering as they
deployed and opened fire. Lo Beuf
had been pressing down from the
northward and threatening Alvens-
leben's flank, but now Kraatz-Kosch-
lan's battaions were available to con-
front him, and when they had been
too severely punished to maintain their
position q headlong cavalry charge
crumpled up the head of lie Beuf's at
tack. The sun went down on a field
retrieved for the Germans by the cool,
skillful generalship of Prince Frederick
Charles. IN the twilight he swept his
front clear by the charge Of a cavalry
division in line, and then the wearied
soldiers were able to take up their biv-
ouacs