Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1898-08-28
on WATERLOO FIELD.
This European Battle-Ground NO"
Looks Like IL WeIl-Kept Garden

RCAAN'NfN
publican)
No, LONG ooo I found myself on the bat
tledeld of waterloo. where Napoleon
etar Of destiny set and where the Duke
~ Wellington won a great victory as
much "a his own establishment as thal Oh
the world. The cars run over the t"elNe
,,ilee that separate Brussels from water
loo in what seems no time. All inc
country about seemed TO smile under the
goddess Of peace. and looked IKE Il wen
ordered garden, with the forest oil SolsnoS
rising up as a bit of background. II was
hard to realize that in the carry udSS Va
the nineteenth century Mars heiu ~ M
bloody sway here. and that the niue
brick villages nestled among the scatter
ed Inns and poplars were then the head
quarters of Europe's greatest armies.
At the station we took a little trap over
IN the field" The good Beige who
drove US kept up a running historical com
,,ontarv that was highly amusing. His
knowIedge. he told us with great pride
"Was none of your book sort but had
come direct from his grandfather VINO
had been i'm the contest. Evidently th's
old soul I'm fighting his battles DER hdu
ornballisbed the original facts until he
himself had become as important as
either the Duke or Napoleon After
nIeosant drive over an undulating country
we were at last standing on Waterloo
fold Many and strange were the thoughts
that crowded upon me on TINS lateiul
sDOt but my reVeTie was soon broken III
unon by the old guide who now did the
bonors of the field" Strange how Water
loo holds its interest in the minds OF men,
after the flight Of so many years. But il
was an epoch-maling event in European
history that all people felt. The Duke oil
Wellington SAID: 1T was possibly the most
important event in modern history
There is little alteration on the battle
field. To-day. long stretches Of well-cul-
tivated. undulating ground meet the eye.
The Belgian peasants sowing grain or
reaping, sing a lusty song. never giving a
thought to the 10000 warriors who minele
in the soil beneath their feet Peace
and plenty are the rewards OF honest toll,
and they have done their best TO wipe out
the old claims of blood and carnage.
There are few farm-houses about and
one or two monuments, That mark the
spot where some son Of England sleeps
the sleep that knows no waking" We
climbed up the 90 steps by which one
scales the artificial elevation, and from
that pyramid. beneath the Belgian lion,
swept the battlefield. Our all-wise guide
then began to place the men in their
proper places-the English there. the
French here. Butcher and the Prussians
marching up In the distance. the famous
"Old Guard" who had never been beaten
charging and meeting death. / could al
most smell the smoke and hear the din OF
battle So much for imagination TO III
up a scene from the past. 1t seemed as
If the Dukes clear command rang out
up Guards, and at them Here at Wa
terloo Napoleon's "Old Guard" died with
his empire. Their reply 10 the foe shows
what mettle they were made Of THE
old Guard dies, but never surrenders.'
and surely such a glorious death was pre-
ferable TO slow death on Elba and ST.
Helena, where the very waves sound IKE
the heart-sobs of a disappointed man.
After a closer acquaintance with the
"lion." we crawled down the steep steps
gripping tight the rope that answers as a
rail or guard. but is as unsteady as the
wind. owing 10 its rckety supports. and
began our stroll about Chateau Hougou-
mont. where the fight ragged fierce and fu-
rious. Behind this old wall Wellington
had his GOO picked men stationed. The
old chateau, which was over 200 years old,
has gone, for Napoleon shelled it: but the
wall is standing, and some Of the old trees,
and here and there the headstone OF a
soldiers grave tops up above the tall
grass. Here that fierce struggle began
early on Sunday morning, the 18th OF
June. 1875 which lasted all day. The news
of WellingtOns victory was not known i'm
London until the I'D of June, which gives
one an idea of how speedily news travel
ed in those days. The ROthschilds got
the news from Brussels by carrier-pig-
cons. and made a rich harvest thereby.
Napoleons headquarters were at La
Reue Alliance near where there is a little
cafe to-day. In the Waterloo Museum are
collected shot and shell. coats and boots,
swords and drums, the harvest Of that
awful day We came out on the green
grass took one lingering look over
the scene. sent afar into the spirit land
one thought 10 the proud spirit that went
hence 10 be Gagged on that desolate rock
of the sea; and we remember that he left
behind a dynasty that fell in our own
time. and listened to the little lark CAROL |
ling its song OF JOY and watched the wind
as IL kissed the golden grain and set II IN
rhythmic motion.