The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1901-02-01
{The DQINeOi PeIe-IQ-CD0be
) A STORY OF THB
> PARIS COMMUNE.
BY AlphOnse Daudet.

A battle here? But there never was
any battle. It's an Invention Of the
newspapers.
Here's all that actually did happen
On the evening of the 22d, which was
Sunday, we saw some 80 federal ar
tillerymen come up with battery Of
Founders and a miitrailleuse of the
new kind.
They took position right above the
cemetery, and as that part was in my
beat it was who had to meet them.
Their mitrailleuse was there at thai
corner of the path near my box, thei1
guns little lower on the level.
AS soon as they came they made me
open several chapels. l thought they
were going to smash and plumber ev.
erything down there, but the officer
kept good order and, putting himself
right in the middle, made them little
speech: 1.-THE first hog that touches
anything. I'll smash his jaw for him
Break ranks"
He was an old man, all gray, with
the Crlmean and Italian medals, and
didn't have an easy going way about
him. The men took 1t as settled, ana
1 will do them the Justice to say that
they did not take a thing from the
monuments, not even the Duke Of Nor
ny's crucifix, which they say is worth
1000 francs by itself.
For all that, they were lot Of ras'
Gals, these gunners of the commune
Second rate artillerymen, they did not
dream of anything except to swallow
down their big pay, three francs fifty.
You ought to have seen the life they
led here in the cemetery. They Slept
in heaps In the vaults In Morny's. in
Favronne's, that beautiful tomb OF
Favronne, where the emperor's nurse
Is buried.
They put their wine to cool down IL
the Champeaux vault, where there is
q spring. Then they had their women
come The whole night they drank
and boozed. All, you'd have thought
the dead people would have heard their
jokes!
All the same, in spite Of their clumsi'
ness, these robbers did Paris a great
deal of damage Their position was Sc
fine. From time to time would come
an order: "Fire at the Louvre! Fire al
the Palais Royalr Then the old sol
der would aim the guns, and the petro
leum shells would fail into the city al
every discharge.
What was going on down below no,
body knew exactly. We heard the fir
ing coming nearer, little by little, but
the communists did not disturb them
selves about that. 1t did not seem pos
sible that the Versailles troops could
advance under the cross fires from
Chaumont, Montmartre and Perela,
Chaise. What brought them to their
senses was the first shell the sailors
sent us when they reached the Mont.
martre hill. They expected 1t so little
AS for me, l was right in the middle
Of them all, leaning against the Morny
monument, busy smoking my pipe
When I heard the shells coming, I Just
had time to throw myself fat on the
ground At first our artillerymen be
ieved that 1t was a mistake in aim OF
some comrade on spree.
But that was just the beginning! Al
the end Of five minutes there was
Montmartre blazing out again and an
us just as straight as the first. This
time my DULLES let their guns and mi
trailleuse lie where they were and
stretched their legs to save themselves
The cemetery wasn't big enough for
them. They kept crying out: 1--WE are
betrayed We are hcraycdm
The old fellow, left there alone under
the shells, stood like a brave devil IN
the middle of his battery and cried
with rage TO see his gunners had de
serted him.
All the same, toward evening, at pay,
time, some Of them came back to him
Hold on, sir; look at my proofs. There
are still the names Of those who came
to draw their pay that evening. The
old man called out their names and
wrote them down as they came along
"Sidaine, present; Chomleyras, pres
ent; Billot, Vollon."
As you see, they were not more thar
four or five, but they brought their wo
men with them. All, | shall never for
get that pay night! Down there Paris
was blazing, the Hotel de Vile, the ar
senal, the warehouses, full of goods.
In Pere-le-ChaiSe you could see as IL
broad daylight. The Federals tried tc
settle down to their guns again, but
they were not enough, and then Mont
martre made them afraid. Then they
went down into vault and set &c
drinking and singing with their wench
es. The old man had seated himself
between these two big stone figures a
the door of the Favronne tomb anC
was staring at burning Paris with s
terrible look. You might have Sait
that he suspected it was his last night.
From this time on l do not know
very we'll what happened. l had gone
to our place-that little hut you see
down there hid in the branches. | wa:
very tired. l lay down. all dressed, or
my bed. keeping my lamp lighted as II
1t were a stormy night. All Of sud
lden there WAS II rough knocking at the
door. My wife, all in tremble, wen
to open 1t. We believed we were going
to see more Federals. 1t was the navy
"a captain, ensigns, surgeon. They
said to me: "Get up! Make US some
Coffee"
| got up. l made the coffee for them
| You could hear in the cemetery muir
muir, a confused movement, as if al
| the dead DeoDle were rGuSing them
selves for the last judgment. The off
GERS drank very quickly, standing up
then they took me outside with them.
The place was full Of soldiers ant
sailors. Then they put me at the heat
Of a squad, and they set us to searcl