Daily Yellowstone journal., 1888-12-14

10 Keep hun informed OF the move
ments of the armies, TO write out mill
tary bulletins for him. 1t was indeed
pitiful to see the beautiful girl bend
ing night and day over a map of Ger
many in her efforts to plan a glorious
campaign. Bazaine was at Berlin,
Frossard in Bavaria, MacMahon at the
Baltic. In all this she asked my coun-
sci, and | gave her such advice as /
could; but it was her grandfather,
above all, who aided us most in max
ing this imaginary invasion. He had
taken part in so many conquests in
Germany under the First Empirel He
knew all the routes. That he would
say, is the way they will 60; there is
where they will fight His predictions
were always fulfilled. Thus nothing
"a left undone that might help to
keep up his spirits.
unfortunately, we had to capture
cities and wage battles. We were
never expeditions enough for him. He
was Unsuitable. Each day, on arriving
at the house, / heard news from the
seat of war.
doctor, we have taken Metz the
young girl would say, as she received
me with a sad smile, and, opening the
door of her grandfather's room, l
would hear a joyous voice crying:
1--WE are advancingl Still advanc-
ingl In eight days We shall enter
Berlin
"At that time the Prussians were
only eight 4 IS march from Paris.
"We CONSIDERED whether it would
not be better TO take him into the coun-
try, but, on going abroad, the true
condition of France would be made
known to him, and | saw that he was
altogether too feeble to endure the suf-
which a knowledge of the truth
would entail. II was decided, there
fore, that he should remain where he
was.
"Ah! | remember well how, on the
first day of the siege, | assembled the
stairs leading to Col. Jouve's apart
ment. | felt that anguish Of heart
which we all experienced when the
gates Of Paris were closed, when the
war was brought under our very walls
and the outskirts of the city were made
our frontiers. / found the old man
jubilant.
"'Well,' he said to me, the siege
has been begunl
Il looked at him in stupefaction,
and at last said:
"How, colonel, you know
His granddaughter turned quickly
toward me.
"'Why, yes, doctor; that is the
great news. The siege of Berlin has
been begun
She said this in a quiet n as
she piled her needle.
How could the colonel doubt this
newsl He could not hear the reports
Of the cannon at the forts. He could
not see the gloomy and agitated city.
all of it that met his eye, on the bed
on which he lay, was a bit of the Arc
de Triomphe. In his chamber the brio
a-brac, which had come down from the
First Empire, helped to maintain his
illusions. There were portraits of the
marshals, engravings Of battles, the
king of Rome-he had his baby dress;
and then there were The large stiff
consoles, covered with imperial relics,
medallions, bronzes, a rock from
81. Helena, under a glass globe; a
representing a lady, with
curling hair, in a ball dress,
and another representing the same
lame in a yellow robe, with leg Of
sleeves, a high girdle and all
the infleXible stiffness which was grace
in 1906. ALI. gallant coloncll 1t was
this atmosphere Of victory and con
quest far more than what we were able
10 tell him which made him believe so
naively in the siege of Berlin
From this time our military opera
tons were more simple. To take Ber-
lin required patience. From time TO
when the old man became too
uneasy, a letter from his son would be
read to him. an imaginary letter, of
course, as none entered Paris at that
inc, and rs, since the battle of Sedan,
lis son had been a prisoner in Il Ger
nan fortress. You can imagine the
of thgt poor girl, without news
her fisher, whom she knew 10
De - prison'r. suffering from priva-
ions, i'll perhaps, and yet she was
obliged to make him write joyously in
hose letters. which. however, were a
little short. rs would naturally be the
ease with those Of a soldier making a
campaign and always advancing into
enemy's country. Sometimes the
power 10 write deserted her. and weeks
would 90 by without news. But the
old man would at last become restless
and cease TO sleep Then would come
another letter from Germany. She
would take it gayly to her grandfather.
restraining her tears, and read il TO
him as she SIT by his bed. The col
.nel would listen carefully. smile
with a knowing air, approve, criticise
and explain to us any doubtful pas
'But what made him happiest Of all
was answering hissou'S letters. Never
that you are a Erenchman. he
say. BE generous TO the poor
people; do naught 10 make the inva-
ion Seem too hard for thcu 10 bear
And his letter always ended with a
little sermon on tlo rFopri-
10 b. observed, the pDlilgucs5 due
o all ladies, and the true code of milf
arv honor which should be followed
" the conqucrors, With all be min
elcd some general reflections on poll