Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1909-11-14
The Man of Many
Deaths
anus spoke the old captain:
By HENRI DE FORCE

Thus spoke the old captain:
Yes. gentlemen - before God !
swear ton the twenty eighth of Feb
ruary. 1871. OF Saturday. the last
day OF the siege OF Paris. stood for
the fourth and last time. face to face
with a Prussian oficer whom | had
thrice seen die. under entirely diner
ent conditions.
We made NO EFFORT to concea! our
doubt OF this story.
Here you have the story. We were
in camp at Fort Mont Valerien: Gen.
Noel was In command, and no day
passed without skirmish- with the
ter at Bourget, while reconnoitering
toward Longboyaa. we heard In the
woods the tramping OF horse. and the
rhythmic sound of cavalry on the
march. At sign to my men. we
dropped fiat in the shrubbery on the
Buell. road. and waited.
Presently. the enemy emerged from
the wood. moving quietly. two abreast.
AT the side rode an officer. a tall,
well.grown fellow with a blonde mus
tache, and a handsome. proud face.
was considered a good shot in the
regiment. and my men whispered:
Now Is your chance. sergeant
Il closed my eyes involuntarily and
fired. When dared 10 look. l saw
men and horses rising and falling in
.o,fu.so, ond rnapv eoldiarc crashing
through the woods at gallop. The
officer lay on the ground at full length.
How immensely tall a dead man looks.
| gazed at him long and attentively.
not without a>shudder, and ] felt that
never In all my life could ! forget
that face.
"A few days later I was on furlough
In Paris, and l used the opportunity
to ask after one OF my friends, Lieut..
Legras, who had been wounded at
Bondy. and who was in the hospital at
Val-de Grace. During our chat, | no
ticed at a cot near us the vague whis-
pering and meaning glances which tell
of expected death. The doctor came.
bent for a moment over the occupant
OF thereof, and signed to the two Sis.
tiers of Charity In attendance. who
dropped on their knees In prayer.
"Legras whispered in my ear: A
Prussian officer who is going TO hand
over his sword; he has been two days
dying | looked toward the bed; at
the same instant the sufferer raised
,t1xr in Of
breath, and as he fell back dead.
began to tremble like a leaf, and the
ashen pallor OF my face startled Lee
gras.
1T was the corn-blond German hero
whom | had shot down on the Buell.
road, who lay dead in the hospital cot.
The answer to my inquiry was to
the effect that the dead man was e
Prussian captain who had been picked
up gravely wounded on the field near
Bondy. two days Observation-Disclosures
it could not be the same offcer who
week before had fallen. pierced by my
bullet
Day and night my excited brain
sought in vain an explanation OF this
mystery, till the battle of Montretout
turned my thoughts into a new chan
mel.
We we're pushing toward the Cha
teau Of Buzanval when l picked out
with my field-glass a group of Prus-
sian staf-officers among which two
figures stood out boldly. probably the
leaders of the sortie Suddenly on our
left flank was revealed three squad
rons of the enemy dashing pele-mele
upon US in a mad gallop. At the head
of the enemy's attack was the indy
ing dead officer of Longboyau and
Val-de-Grace. Straight as a dart he
bore down upon me, swinging aloft his
cleaning saber | fired upon him. and
the next moment found myself rolling
under my sssaiiant's riderless horse.
As soon as could regain my feef,
sprang upon the body OF the fallen
Prussian which lay near me, and Il
confess freely what was perhaps an
act of fiendish revenge). plunged my
bayonet deeply three times in the life
less breast of the man who had be-
come hideous nightmare.
He was surely dead now. was he
not?
Then came the days for the sign
ing OF our truce.
Il was on the outworks when the
parliamentary signal was blown. A
Prussian officer approached me. fol-
lowed by corporal. As the tall state
ly figure drew nearer. II seemed as
II every drop Of blood in my body was
turning TO ice. The blue CLEAN Of the
eye. the gold-blond color Of the long
mustache, the whole expression Of the
face. at once fosceful and dreamy.
He it was again, my haunting vision,
my three-times fallen Germsnic hero
the same whom only eight days be-
fore. my bsyonet had pierced through