The Washington herald., 1914-10-25

along the Brussels road and take up your
position at ouatre Bras"
The Waterloo Campaign.
The problem OF the campaign on both
sides was brutally simple. Wellington.
still at Brussels was in command of s.
900 British, 5000 Germans. and 5000
| Dutch and BeIgians-an army OF about
l06,0c0 men. Blucher. now marching from
! Namur, had an army Of about 1ITOC0 Prus-
SLAMS. II the two armies should unite
they would have a total Of 222 600 men.
including 1000 infantry and 5000 cav
airy, supported by more than 800 guns
Napoleon, on the other hand, had been
able TO bring up only l25.0i0 men. inClud-
| ing 5000 infantry, 2,OOO cavalry. and 10.
600 artillery, with less than $50 guns.
Plainly, Wellington and Blucher must
be kept apart If the 125.O0O French were
10 have any chance to win.
That night of the 18th while Ney. in
front of Quatre Bras, was held in check
only by some Dutch battalions, yelling
ton and his officers were at the Duchess
Of Richmonds ball. whose sound of rev.
elry in Belgium's capital Byron has sent
echoing down the corridor Of time There
in the midst Of fair women and brave
men, dance orders CoItended with battle
orders until o'clock in the morning Of
the 18th. when the British commander.
becoming once more the Iron Duke, start
ed for the front after gentle fingers had
buckled on his sword.
The first necessity Of the allies was TO
unite their forces. The Prussians already
were hurrying along the road from Ma
muir. when Wellington hastily proceeded
10 concentrate his contingent at Quatrs
Bras on the Charleroi-Brussels highway
For the purpose of COnCerting measures
the Duke and Blucher met late in that
afternoon OF the 18th at a windmill near
Ligny.
As the two allied commanders sat
there on that eminenCe. they lifted their
field glasses and distinctly saw Napoleon
in the midst Of his staff beside another
mill on another hill only a little way
across the wheat fields. Between the
two mills flows a little brook. the Ligne.
and on its banks was a little cluster of
houses the hamlet Of Ligny.
Ligny and auatre Bras.
Even as Wellington gaIloped away to-
French moving down upon Ligny for
the purpose OF stopping the Prussian
westward. But Napoleon. unlike
the thunderbolt he was in other and
earlier days, had hesitated and withheld
the brow until Blucher was enabled to
assemble nearly 5000 men against the
1000 he himself could put in the battle.
All afternoon the French artillery
poured its deadly hail upon the Prussian
masses that held the slope beyond the
village, while the infantry OF the two
wrestled at bayonet length in the mar
row, winding lanes, in the churchyard. |
in the barnyards, and within the very
cottage walls Of Ligny. Then in the wan
ring forces of the air burst into battle. |
Lightning flashes shot across the dark
heavens: salyos OF thunder shook the |
heavy air; the leaden skies opened and |
the floods descended upon the embattled |
armies. Under cover of those bewilder-
ing flashes and crashes OF .Jove's artil- |
lery the Emperor led forth the Old |
Guard. and they leaped the brook and |
sEatched the village.
Blucher's horse was shot from under
him, and he was only saved from capture |
by the timely appearance of a squadron |
of Uhlans. The Old Guard swept on ir- |
resistibly over Ligny and up the slope |
to the windmill, leaving a path through |
the Prussian center and the enemy's |
army broken in pieces. Perhaps 5000 |
Prussians and 100 French lay dead or |
wounded on the field OF Napoleon's last |
victory in battle. For as Toulon was
written at the top OF the red roll of his |
victories so Ligny is inscribed at the |
bottom.
The Emperor went TO sleep that night |
in the chateau of Fleuris, congratulating |
himself that he had opened his cam
paign with a blow as crushing as that |
Of Jena. But there was a fatal differ
ence. While he was winning the battle 1
OF Jena Davout was winning the battle Il
Of Auerstadt, twelve miles away. But /
now, while he had been winning the bat
tie Of Lgny. Nsy had lost the battle OF