The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1914-12-04
CLEVER STRATEGY
PONT.A-MOUSS0N
Veteran of War of 1870 Held by In.
yaders Who Took Quiet Old
Town.

tillery, fanked on either side by
Bavarian soldier With fixed bayonet,
Monsieur Bertrand, round-shoulder-
ed white-haired veteran of the war O.
1870, and deputy mayor Of Pont-a-
Mousson, was carried from the city as
c3ief 1ostage of the Germans, in the
procession whict, marked the end Of
the occupation Of three Bavarian reg
lments.
Pont-a-Musson is a quiet town Of
y thousand inhabitants, the posses
sion of which was valuable to the
Germans only because Of its bridge,
which furnishes a convenient crossing
of the Moselle on the road from Metz
to Toul. 1t was attacked early IN the
war, partly for this reason and partly
as the result of the defective vision OF
captive balloon observers, VINO mis-
took for fortifcations the antique
ruins Of castle at the village OF
Mousson on hill to the east Of the
bridge.
The first bombardment Of the town
early in August was not followed up
until the first days of September, when
a captive balloon appeared in t1e air
across the river and German aero
planes commenced manoeuverlng over
the town. They dropped 200 bombs,
killing six and wounding a great num-
ber of civilians, but it was not until
the 5th that tie ringing Of the tocsln
announced to the citizens toat the
Germans had appeared on the other
side OF the river in force. The solemn
tones of the bell were still heard when
a terrific dull explosion shook the Win
dows Of every house; the bridge from
which the town derives its name was
no more, and Immediately after blow
ing it up the French troops, in tco
small number to cope with the enc
my, quit the town.
Clever Strategy.
The captive balloon was seen again
to rise in the distance and soon af-
ter the German heavy artillery began
to play on the dilapidated antique
castle on the hill. During thirty-slx
hours they showered great projectlles
on that spot, literally pulverizlng what
remained of the walls, occasionally dl-
verting a shell to the town, after
wnich they crossed the Moselle on an
improvised bridge and rushed up to
the assault of the supposed fortress,
which they found as quiet as the
grave. No French soldiers had ever
occupied it, and what the Germans
took for guns from their captive bal
ldon we're simply cleverly disposed
tree trunks, and the fire which replied
occasionally to their guns to COM
plese the illusion came from behind
the hill.
The story of the occupation OF this
town is quite the same as has been
so oten told of other towns; hostages,
proclamations and acquisitions, but 1t
did rot last long. The morning Of the
9Th the impressive music of the
French S-inch guns was heard in tie
town; at the same time French aero
plane was seen to dart through the
sky in the direction of the captive
balloon, which hastened to descend.
These We're the preliminaries of the
battle of Dieulouard, to which no dis
patches have referred by name, but
which was one of the bloodiest in the
action of Gen. Castelnau's army de-
Tending Nancy.
A continual procession of improvis-
ed ambulances passed through the
town toward the bridge that night,
and other wagons with more grew
some mission turned to the railroad
station, where inhabitants, retired to
their houses by order, saw loaded into
all kinds of fat cars, horse cars, cat
tie cars, tie bodies Of those that fell
that day at Dieulouard. They were
piled figh as they could be pack
ed and in the early morning these
wheeled charnel houses were hauled
across the frontier toward Metz.
As for the 67th Bayarian infantry,
not one OF this regiment was ever seen
again in the streets Of Pont-a-Mous-
son, and three days later the otner
troops of occupation left the town.
September % the Germans made
their last attempt to recapture Pont-
Aa-Mousson, ending in a charge on the
Hill of Saint Genevieve. The French
position at the summit had been bonn
2rded during the morning, and by 9
,'o1,o1- $40 f.-o &c tho Erpnch seemed