The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1901-06-20

E{A} |
giles wings and swOOp like an eagles
seizure, the Arabs whirled down upon
them, met a few yards in advance by
the answering charge Of the light cav
airy.
There was a crash as if rock were
hurled upon rock as the chasseurs,
scarce seated in the saddle, rushed for
ward to save the pickets, to encounter
the first blind force Of the attack and
to give the infantry, farther in, more
time for harness and defense. Out of
the caverns Of the night an armed null
titude seemed to have suddenly poured.
A moment ago they had slept in secu-
rity; now thousands on thousands,
whom they could not number, whom
they could but dimly even perceive,
were thrown on them in unreasonable
hosts, which the encircling cloud of
dust served but to render vaster, ghast-
lier and more majestic. The Arab line
stretched out with wings that seemed
to extend on and on without end. The
line Of the chasseurs was not one-half
it's length; they were but single
squadron flung in their stirrups, scarce
~ clothed, knowing only that the foe
was upon them, caring c1ly that their
sword hands We're hard on their weap-
ons. With all the elan Of France they
launched themselves forward to break
the rush of the desert horses. They
met with terrible sound, like falling
trees, like clashing metal.
The hoofs of the rearing chargers
struck each others breasts, and these
bit and tore at each others names
while their riders reeled down dead.
Frank and Arab were blended in one
inextricable mass as the charging
squadrons encountered. The outer
shock and swept on to meet the bayo-
nets of zouaves and Turcos. The cav
airy was enveloped in the oyerwhelm-
ing numbers Of the center, and the
tanks seemed to cover the zouaves and
tirailleurs as some great settling mist
may cover the cattle who move be-
meath it.
1t was not battle; it was fright
full tangling Of men and brutes; no
contest Of modern warfare, such as
commences and conquers by duel of
artillery and sometimes gives the vic
tory to whatsoever has the superiority
Of ordnance, but a conflict, hand to
hand, breast to breast, life for life, a
Homeric combat of spear and of sword
even while the first volleys of the an
swering musketry pealed over the
plain.
For once the desert avenged in like
that terrible inexhaustibility Of supply,
wherewith the. empire so long had
crushed it beneath the overwhelming
difference Of numbers. 1t was the
day of Mazagran once more as the
light Of the morning broke, gray, sill
vered, beautiful, in the far, dim dis
lance beyond the taWny seas Of reeds.
Smoke and sand soon densely rose
above the struggle, white, hot, blind
ing, but out from it the lean, dark Bed
ouin faces, the snowy haicks, the red
burnoose, the CLEAN of the Tunisian
muskets, the flash of silver hilted yat-
aghans, were seen fused in a mass
with the brawny naked necks Of the
Zouaves, with the shine Of the French
bayonets, with the tossing names and
glowing nostrils Of the chasseurs'
horses, with the torn, stained silk Of
the raised tricolor, through which the
storm of balls flew thick and fast as
hail, yet whose folds were never suf-
fered to fall, though again and again
the hand that held it's staff was cut
away or was unloosened in death, yet
ever found another to take it's charge
before the flag could once have trem-
bled in the enemy's sight.
The chasseurs could not charge.
They were hemmed in, packed between
bodies of horsemen that pressed them
together as between iron plates. Now
and then they could cut their way
through clear enough to reach their
comrades of the infantry, but as often
as they did so SO often the overwhelm-
ing numbers Of the Arabs surged in on
them afresh like flood and closed
upon them and drove them back.
Every soldier in the squadron that
lived kept his life by sheer GREATNESS,
ceaseless, hand to hand sword play,
hewing right and left, front and rear:
without pause, as in the great tangled
forests Of the west men hew side