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get. [ can mention more than one brave
officer who did not fear to own that he
shrank from the sight of what had become
a mere massacre. Those who were safely
out of the way as prisoners, whether offi
cers or men, needed no pity. When, after
a time, it became clear that there was no
sign cf Bazaine, the hopes of the French
again departed. A sullen sort ot fight
sti;l went on. The guns of the town an
swered the Prussians. An aid-de-camp of
the Emperor went by on foot, and I heard
him ask the officers near by to help him in
{nitrirg r n end to the fire. Such being the
Cujperor’s wish, at leng'h
THE WHITE FLAG
was hoisted on rhe citadel. The cannon
ade cea?ed suddenly about 4L Eager as we
were to know the cause, we cannot, leave
the b( use, for the street is impassable, and
we have to be content with learning the
mere fact of the surrender. As night
drew on, the crowd a little diminished, and
ty some effort it was possible to make
one’way about the town. The spectacle
if off red was more horrible than war.
Dead were lying everywhere; civilians and
soldiers mingled in the slaughter. In one
suburb I counted more than 50 bodies of
peasants and bourgeois—a few women
among them, and one child. The ground
was s’rewn with splinters of shells. Starv
ing a', iciiors were
CUTTING UP DEAD HORSES
to cork and eat, for provisions had again
failee ns as everything has failed since this
campaign began. I was glad to get away
from the sight of our disasters and lose
their remembrance in a few hours of sleep.
NAPOLEON A Pr.ISONER.
The next day we were told that the
Emperor lmd gone to the King’s headquar
ters to treat for a surrender. At 11 hie
household and carriages left the town and
we knew that lie was a prisoner and the
Empire no more. About the same hour
there was posted in the streets a proclama
tion from Gen. De Wimpffen '.saying that
notwithstanding prodigies of courage, the
army having no more ammunition found
itself unable to respond to the summons of
its chiefs and force its way to Montmedy.
That being surrounded ho had made the
best conditions he could; conditions such
as would inllict no humiliation on the ar
my
These conditions prove to he the sur
render of the whole army, not less than
100,000 men, as prisoners of war, with all
their arms, baggage, horses, standards and
guns. The officers who sign an engage
ment not to serve against Prussia during
the war may return to their homes, the
remainder to be sent to German towns in
Germany. Many officers refuse to sign,
preferring to share the captivity of their
men.
BAD FAITH OF THE FRENCH.
On Saturday the whole force laid down
their arms. Not a lew soldiers in their
rage broke lather than give up their arms,
and the streets were littered with frag
ments of all kinds of weapons broken:
swords, rifles, pistol*, lancers’ helmets,
cuirasses, even mitrailleuses covered the
ground ; and in one place where the Meuse
runs through the town the heaps of such
fragments choked the stream and rose
above the surface. The mud of the streets
was black with gunpowder. The horses
had been tied to the houses and gun-car
riaces, but nobody remembered to feed or
water them, aod in the frenzy of hunger
and thirst they broke loose and ran wild
through the town. Whoever liked might
have a horse —even officers’ horses which
were private property—for the trouble of
catching them.
EMPTYING THE MONEY CIIEST.
When the Prussians came into the town
they were very sore and angry at the sight
of all this des*ruction and waste. What
must have pleased them still less, was the
state io which they found the military
chest. A' soon as the surrender was re
solved on, the French officers were told to
make out the befit accounts they could,
present them, and receive payment.
Naturally, the statements thus brought in
soon proved sufficient to empty the trea
sury. 1 know of officers who demanded
and received payment for horses that were
not killed, and baggage which had not
been lost. Demoralization showed itself
in every way. Even the stanuards were
burned or buried, an act of bad faith not
to be palliated even by the grief and rage
of a beaten army.
GEN. DE FAILLY.
Their rage is greater against no one
than Gen. De Faillv. He had a room in
the hotel where I was staying. On Fri
day, a great multitude of soldiers gathered
before ttie house, the doors of which were
closed, demanding <lei. De Failly with
such shouts and menaces that the land
lord thought it prudent to hurry him out
ot a back window. The soldiers,! could
they have reached him. would have torn
him to pieces. Smce then, I have heard
the report that he was shot by one of his
own men ; but no such event had hap
pened on iSatuiday, and could not well
happen later.
FRENCH ANNOYANCES AND \ PRUSSIAN
COURTESY.
It was a relief on Saturday when the
Prussians came in and occupied the town,
and restored order. I am sorry to have
to acknowledge that all through the cam
paign the French have acted much more
like a conquerir g army io a hostile country
ihan the Prussians. All the anrryance 1
have experienced personally came from my
own countrymen ; from the peasants who,
shove all, aw a spy in every stranger.
Vv’hen I fell into the hands of the Prus
sians I-fund them courtesy itself. On
leaving Sedan and thence to the frontier,
in passing through the Prussian posts, I
was stopped often, I had but to say,. *‘l
am the correspondent cf an American
journal,” and I was at once sent kindly
forward. On the back of my French
military pass the Prussian Staff bad in
dorsed a Prussian Often I
wa3 not obliged even to show my papers,
my word was taken; and once out of Sedan
I was speedily through.
When I left Sedan on Sunday morning
things were rapidly getting in order* The
streets were cleared of dead horses and
men. The indescribable filth of the town
was swept into the river. The shops were
opening again. Discipline had taken the
place of disorder. I saw enough of Prus
sian organization and energy to change, if
the grievous defeat of a noble army had
not already changed, the opinion I have so
often expressed that ultimate victory for
France was sure.
WHY THE FRENCH WERE SO OFTEN SUR
PRISED.
I have followed MacMabon from the
day when I found him reorganizing his
army at Chalons to the fatal day al Sedan,
when be the last organized
force in France, save the remnant of that
which is shut up in Metz. Certainly,
when I was at the camp of Chalons, and
then at Rhcims, I had observed that the
number ot stragglers was enormous, and
I continually met soldiers who did not
know where their regiments were. I had
seen men and officers disabled by wounds
which French soldiers of ether days would
have despised: I had remarked how un
tidy and careless the men were allowed to
be about their dress and equipments.
These things, slight, but significant to a
military eye, had caused me, no doubt,
some misgivings as to the rapidity of the
success we bad a right to expect. I saw
also how prone French officers were to
avoid the iatigues of long marches and the
discomfort of bivouacs. I remember how
often I have traversed the French lines
at dead ot night and at early dawn, and
never heard a challenge, never came
across a French vedette, never have
fallen in with a party ot scouts. On the
other hand, I have seen officers spend
the time that ought to have been given to
their men, in cases or in poor village inns.
Often even officers of the staff seemed to
neglect their duties for paltry amusements,
showing themselves ignorant sometimes
even of the name of the Department in
which they were ; so that I have known
a French General obliged to ask his way
from peasants at the meeting of two roads.
I struggled long against all this kind of 1
evidence, but the end is only too clear.
Painful it is to me, but I am bound to de
clare my belief that any further effort
France may make can only cause useless
bloodshed; aud that a means of escape
from her peril must now be sought other
wise than by force of arms.
EXERCISES OF THE SOUL
TO PREPARE ONE FOR THE SA
CRAMENT OF PENANCE AND
THE HOLY EUCHARIST.
‘ TRANSLATED FOR THE BANNER,
BY MISS MARY MOON.
SHORT EXPLANATION OF THE APOSTLES*
CREED.
IV.
Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was
crucified, dead and buried; He descended
into Hell.
In order to consummate the great work
of our redemption, this amiable Saviour
was willing to suffer the most humiliating
indignities, the most unheard-of cruelties.
Arrested by the Jews, enchained as a
malefactor, be was presented to Pilate,
Governor of Judea, for the Romans; ac
cused before the judge, as He did not
wish to save His life, He would make no
reply to His accusers. What did He
not suffer at this Tribune from the bands
of blood-thirsty men, who appeared to
have divested themselves, in his case
alone, of every sentiment of humanity !
Affronts, mockeries, poignant insults,
these were only the preludes of His tor
ments. A bloody scourging, a crowning
with thorns; this again is only to prepare
Him so to speak, for the punishment of
the Cross, to which they condemn Him.
He is innocent, however, and of what
could He be guilty ! He is the author
of all justice. But we are all criminals,
and it is for us that this Lamb without
spot is willing to suffer. He did suffer,
in fact all that we have merited. He
was, then, fastened to the Cross, He died,
thereon ; yes, 1 believe that the Author
of life truly died, that is to say, that His
soul was really separated from His
body.
In order to attest His death, His body
was buried, was kept in a tomb; the tomb
was sealed with the public seal, guards
were placed around. And why so many
precautions ? Ah ! it was, according to
the designs of God, to serve as authentic
proofs of the great miracles which was
to consummate the demonstratiau of onr
faith in Jesus Christ. In the meantime
His soul descended into hell; that is to
say, into the place where the just were
awaiting His coining, in order to be put
in possession of the celestial glory into
MBIII ©S BBSS B©Bm.
which He should first enter, and the en
trance to which He w r as to open to the
human race. O ! What was the joy of
, the holy souls, when they had at length
the happiness of seeing Him whom they
had desired, after whom they had sighed
so long, whom they awaited. What
consolation did they not taste during these
three days that He passed with them
from His death until his resurrection !
V.
The third day He rose again from the
dead; He ascended into Heaven, sitteth
at the right hand of God, the Father Al
mighty.
Ok ! what joy for me to felicitate you
now upon your triumph, O my amiable,
my adorable Redeemer ! How consoling
it is for Christians to see your holy
humanity thus avenged, thus recompensed
for all the sorrows that it has suffered
for us !
Yes, I believe ; my mind is perfectly
convinced, but how does my heart, es
pecially, delight in this truth ! I believe
that from the first dawn of morning of
the third day after your death, you rose
again, O my God, my Saviour, by your
own virtue.
Ah ! what doubt could I be able to
entertain about this incontestable truth,
in which originated the confusion and
the despair of your enemies, and the con
solation of your faithful Disciples? You
were crucified; you died, they buried
you ; your tomb, sealed by public au
thority, was carefully guarded by soldiers.
O incredulous Jew, tell us, then, in short,
what has become of this crucified, buried
body, if thou dost persist in not believing
those who testify that they have seen it
rise again ! These Apostles, so weak,
so timid, who did not dare to follow Him
to Calvary, nor even to avow themselves
His Disciples, have carried it away!
You say so. But also tell—what, then,
did this guard that the Governor had
permitted you to put at His tomb ? Into
what profound sleep, or, rather, into
what lethargy were your soldiers then
plunged ? They neither heard break
the public seal that you took care to
place upon the tomb, nor heard they the
enormous stone roll away, nor the body
being carried away. The noise, trie
lights; (for it was, you say, during the
night), nothing aroused any of them. If
this be so, it is a miracle almost as great
as that, that you refuse to believe. The
guards slept, you say. Ah ! How did
they know, then, whether the body was
carried away, or whether it rose again ?
To what were they able to testify ? And
of what weight is the testimony of peo
ple who testify to what passed while they
slept? As for me, my God, I believe.
Ah ! would that I were able, by the vi
vacity of my faith, to indemnify you, in
some sort, for the outrage that so many
obstinate unbelievers do you! I believe
especially in the testimony of your Apos
tles, of more than five hundred Disciples,
to whom you showed yourself after the
resurrection, with whom you did not dis
dain to drink, to eat, to converse as be
fore your death.
For I believe what holy books teach
me, that after your resurrection you re
mained yet forty days on earth. I be
lieve that during this time you finished
instructively your Apostles, by prescrib
ing to them yourself, emphatically, all
that they have transmitted to their suc
cessors, although it may not be written
in the history of your life, that is to say,
in the four Apostles.
I believe that afterwards, by the same
virtue that you resurrected yourself, you
ascended into heaven; that is to say, that
your holy humanity was carried into the
heavens, when your Father, the Eternal
Father, has placed it at Ilis right hand.
But in so much as Man, you reign there
sovereignly over all creatures, you reign
especially and particularly over your
Church, that you do not cease, and will
not cease, until the consummation of the
ages to govern, eternal Pontiff, only Me
diator, only and sovereign Judge.
\ iew Mont, Albemarle county, Va.,
July 26, 1870.
(to BE CONTINUE*.)
MARTYRDOM OF ST. IGNATIUS*
There are but few Christians outside
the clerical profession who have much
acquaintance with the history of Christiani
ty in pavst ages; but few are aware of the
sufferings to which the early Christians
were exposed. The following brief ac
count of the martyrdom of Iguatius will
probably be read with interest. At the
commencement of the second century Ig
natius was Bishop of the Church in An
tioch. He had occupied the post for
forty years, and had obtained a very high
reputation for devout character and
Christian zeal. The Emperor Trajan,
passing with his victorious army from
the banks of the Danube, to combat the
barbarians in the East, stopped for a time
'ot Antioch. Ignatius was brought before
him, charged with the crime of being a
Christian. The Emperor sternly inquir
ed of him :
“Why do you disobey our orders, and
influence others to ruin themselves by
doing the same ?”
Ignatius replied : “I must be obedient
to God, whom I bear in my heart.”
“Whois the God,” asked Trajan, “whom
you bear in your heart ?”
“Jesus Christ,” was the reply.
“And do you not believe that we bear
in our hearts those gods who combat with
us against our enemies?” was the response
of Trajan.
The Christian Bishop boldly replied :
“You deceive yourself in calling the
demons of the Geutilvs gods. There is
but one God who has made the heavens,
and the earth, the sea, and all which they
contain; and there is but one Jesus
Christ, the only son of God, to whose
kingdom I aspire.”
Trajan replied : “Do you speak of
Him who was crucified miner Pontius
Pilate ?”
“Yes,” responded Ignatius, “He lias
made atonement for my sins, and has put
all the malice of Satan under the feet of
those who carry Him to their hearts.”
“Do }ou then carry Him who was cruci
fied within you ?”
“I do,” was the response, “for it is
written, ‘I will dwell in them, and walk
with them I’ ”
Trajan was irritated, and angrily re
plied : “Since Ignatius confesses that he
carries within himself Him that was cruci
fied, we command that he be conveyed
in chains, under a guard of soldiers to
Rome, there to be thrown to the beasts,
for the entertainment of the people.”
The venerable Bishop was hurried by
his guard to Seleucia. There he took
ship for Smyrna. In that city ho had
an interview with the illustrious Polycarp,
who was soon to follow him in the path
to martyrdom. From Smyrna Ignatius
was conveyed to Troas, and thence to
Neapolis. Having found a ship in one
of the seaports of the Adriatic, lie sailed
to Ostia, near Rome. Here lie was met
by a large number of Christians who were
overwhelmed with grief. The holy
Bishop, however, who was cheerful and
even happy, as he looked forward to his
approaching martyrdom, consoled them
with touching words of love and affection.
The hour for the sacrifice came. The
Coliseum was crowded with the jeering
multitude, filling* all its vast expanse to
enjoy the spectacle The venerable
Bishop was placed in the centre of the
arena. As the iron doors of the dens
were opened, a large number of ferocious
wild beasts, gaunt with famine, with loud
roarings, and lashing their sides with
rage, rushed into the enclosure. Short
and sharp was the agony which this
benevolent disciple of Jesus was called
to endure. The famished beasts, lions
and tigers, leaped upon him, and scarcely
one moment elapsed ere be was torn limb
from limb and devoured. Nothing re
mained but one. or two of the larger
bones. A hundred thousand pagans rais
ed a shout of applause. But louder was
the acclaim as the clustering angels
gathered arouud the Christian who has
been faithful unto death, welcoming mar
tyrdom as the crown of iife. —New York
Independent. *
[communicated.]
GENERAL HANCOCK AT THE BATTLE
OF GETTYSBURG-
Altoona City, Pa., Sept., 1870.
Dear Banner .*■ —Having found some
where, an old number of your truthful
paper, and seeing therein an account of
the Battle of Gettysburg, I will write a
few lines on the same subject. The nar
rator, (whose account of the battle you
have published,) does not tell what por
tion of the “Army of the Potomac” was
in the centre. I am proud to say that
I was one of the number in that position
who received the fire of the 145 Confede
rate cannon, and met the charges of in
fantry, and I on that day saw tears glis
tening iD the eyes of some of our most
brave and battle-tried soldiers, when they
saw your best blood of the South, move
forward in awful grandeur, upon their
fatal errand, viz.: to break the Federal
lines. I think it was the determination
of every man, (at least every Pennsylva
nian, ) of the Army of the Potomac to do
his best; and had they not done so on that
occasion I am afraid lew other opportu
nities would have been presented. Al
though they were nearly worn out by
marching, the situation was such that
they were compelled to forget fatigue,
and fight as their enemy ot the Sinitli
! bad taught them how—with a bull-dog
tenacity, actuated by patriotism and mili
tary pride. And here I may state, that
the amount ot generalship displayed by
the Federal forces cannot be accredited
to General Meade alone, but to one who
is now villified and insulted by Radicals,
who never gave a dollar toward the
prosecution of their war, nor did anything
else but make anxious inquiries why the
army did not move and annihilate the
enemy, just as if that was a matter ex
pected. The General to whom I allude
is W. S. Hancock, who represented
Meade on the field, and, with other Gene
rals, chose the position of the line which
turned the scale in favor of Yankee arms
and mortally wounded the Confederacy.
I dare not say that General Hancock's
military ability won the fight, but I will
say he had no superior on that field; but
since he has shown himself a Democrat,
a soldier, aDd a gentleman, the Radicals,
both high and low, ignore his services,
and steal from him the honor due him
and confer it upon such men as Howard,
Butler, and Banks.
I only write this to you to show that
all of the Federal soldiers were not Yan
kees, and that Yankee Generals, taken as
a class, were a fraud upon the Nation ;
and 1 think history will show that the
Yankees of New England did tar less
than their share of the fighting, notwith
standing their boasting to the contrary—
but as to stealing and destroying private
property, they usually did the largest
portion of that. And there ore many
farmers in Cumberland Valley, Pa., who
will say that one Company of Federal
militia did more thieving and destroying
than a Regiment of Confederate troops.
I know that to tell of fighting against
patriots is not seeking honor, but it has
been so and can not now be remedied. I
think there is not a man in the North
but feels proud of bis enemy, and as they
fought for their homes so bravely, we
are bound by conscience to respect them;
and I know there are hundreds in the
North who would rally to the call of any
Southern State should any trouble arise
from any outside party. The Confedera
cy was badly wounded at Gettysburg,
but its dying spasms in the Wilderness
will never be forgotten by the living
generation. If the battles in Virginia
in 1864 were not as evenly contested as
was the battle of Gettysburg, there was
much more stratagem and military skill
required by both parties to guard against
fatal blunders. 1 have met many ex-
Confederate soldiers since the close of
the war, and very seldom did we disa
gree in opinion after each had laid aside
his military prejudices; but no soldier of
the U. S. A., nor of the G. S., A. can
charge his old foe with lack of pluck;
Where the soldier of the North was bet
ter clothed, fed, and armed, than those
of the feouth, tlie latter had the advan
tage of fighting behind works, had the
inside track in most flank movements,
and knowledge of the field. A true
Northern soldier can not do else than
honor his Southern brother for his bravery,
patience, hardihood, and patriotism. Let
the cause of secession be just or not,
a rebel was a patriot, and we honor him
as such now, but, during the war, we
gave him all that was in the stuff!
I lease excuse me for intruding upon
your time and patience with this long
letter, for I began it only with the in
tention of letting you know who held the
Federal centre. I cannot tell you what
other troops were there, as several
changes were made during the fight, but
know that Hancock’s Second Army
Cos ps was there, and, as I have already
said, that much of the Generalship dis
played on that occasion was due to him.
Very Respectfully, &c.,
Trefoil.
The Promise to the Dead. —To the
Into member tor Mayo, the late George
Henry Moore, the Prime Minister 'of
England gave a solemn promise, before
the British Commons, that when peace
was restored in Ireland the political
prisoners would be liberated.
Peace has been restored.
The prisoners are in fetters still.
Peace has been restored. We have
the testimony of English Ministers to that
elTect, excusing their conduct in impos
ing on Ireland the Algerine Coercion
Act by its success, and arguing that
the end they aimed at justified the
means.
If there is not peace, then their Coer
cion conduct is divested even of this
paltry plea of justification. If there be
peace, then their conduct in not releas
ing the prisoners is a shameless breach
of faith towards the Irish People.
M e submit to them this dilemma for
their edification. Their Viceroy has
spoken in plausible terras of the pacific
state of the country—his speech is a
condemnation of his Government, which
promised to grant an amnesty when,
peace was obtained, and which—having
got all its coercive acts passed—refuses
to perform its promise, and retains its
prisoners.
If this is to be the conduct of English
Ministers, the worst days of Russell 0 and
Palmerston were no more discreditable.
... WSli _ Tke Irishman.
5