Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1892-11-25
Dramatic Incident of the Commune.

UTamdtlC inCiueht VI tht OVHHe"o'
A spectator Of street-fghting during
the Paris Commune Qs7D, Archibald
Forbes, the celebrated correspondent, re.
lates the following dramatic incident:
"For another hour or more my neigh
bors the Communists, who had been re.
inforced, gave pause to the Versa'llist
effort to descend the Boulevard Hauss-
mann, and were holding their own
against the Versaillst fire from the
Church OF the Trinity and the barricaie
on the rise OF the Rue Lafayette. The
house at the right-hand corner OF the
Rue de la Chaussee d'Antin and the Rue
Lafayette-the house whose projecting
gable was my shelter-had caught fire,
to my disquietude and discomfort; but
before the fire should seriously trouble
me the impending crisis would probably
be over. Furious and more furious
waxed the firing all around. About the
Opera House it was especially fierce. l
had glimpses of fighting at close quarters
in the open space before its rear front,
and could discern men shutting along
behind the low parapet Of its roof. They
carried packs. but l could not see their
breeches, and was not therefore wholly
certain that they were Versailists. A
woman had joined me in my position
behind the gable-a woman who seemed
to have a charmed lie. Over and over
again she walked out into the fire, looked
deliberately about her, aud came back
to recount to me with excited volubility
the particulars Of what she had seen.
She was convinced the soldiers On the
roof were Yersaillists; yet, as l pointed
out to her, the drapeau rouge still waved
above the statue on the summit OF the
lofty building. The people Of the hotel
in oar rear clearly shared her belief.
Gathered timidly in the porte cocHere,
they were crying Bravo" and clapping
their hands, because they hoped and
believed the VeEsaiIists were winning.
"The woman was right; they were
Versaillist linesmen whom we saw on the
parapet of the Opera House. There was
a cheer; the people of the hotel ran out
into the fire, waving handkerchiefs aud
clapping their hands. The tricolor was
waving above the hither pOr.ico. The
red flag waved still on the farther cleva-
tion. A LADDER ladder to reach IL!
was the excited cry from the group be-
hind me; but for the moment no ladder
was procurable. As we waited, there
darted down the boulevard to the corner
Of the Rue Halevy little grig OF a
fellow in red breeches one of the old
French linesmen breed. He was all
alone, and appeared to enjoy the loneli'
ness as he took up his post behind
tree, and fred his first shot at Com
muuard dodging about the intersection
of the Rue Taitbout. When is French
man not dramaticl lie fired with an
air; he reloaded with an air; he fired
again with a flourish, and was greeted
with cheering aud handclapping from
the gallery behind me, to which the
little fellow was playing. Then he
becko1ed us back dramatically, for his
next shot was to be spell up the Rue
Lafayette, at little knot of Com
munists who, from fragment Of shelter
at the intersection of the Rue La6ste,
werc taking him for their target. Then
he faced about and waved his comrades
on with exaggerated gestures which re-
called those one sees in a blood and.
thunder melodrama, the Communist
bullets all the while cutting the bark
and branches OF the tree which was his
cover. Ahl he was down. Well, he
had enjoyed his flash of recklessness.
The woman by my side aud | darted
across and carried him in. We might
have spared ourselves the trouble anl
risk; he was dead, with bullet through
his head"