battle-field, is to sacrilice them in vain. It 
Would take months before they coulcl be 
made soldiers. 
The Effect of ilie French Cliasnepotfi. 
A Tribune correspondent writes from a 
field of battle:—What has been said about 
to replace the first, which had not been com¬ 
plied with. 1 have respected the faults in 
spelling, and everything must be respected 
in the case Of a victorious enemy. Please to 
read it, and remember that tiavernu only 
possesses 5,331 inhabitants, the best oil’ of 
which was not, and that the Generals were 
afraid of taking, for fear the neighboring 
forests might be full of enemies, 1 asked why 
we did not burn those natural intrenchments. 
I was almost treated as a vandal. Why burn 
forests that would be ours to-morrow! This 
epurtment 
THE FRANCO-PRUSSIAN WAR, 
[Wk continue to extract from the correspondence 
of our own and foreign papers, such parsjrraphs as 
best give pictures of the state of things in Europe.] 
The French Mob of lilotiNCe. 
A correspondent at Chalons, who had 
been repeatedly arrested by a mob of French 
peasants who believed him a Prussian spy, 
writes:—“ You cannot form an idea of the 
smallness of mind of the lower classes in 
the provinces of this country, for It shows 
itself to advantage only in crises like the 
present. The episode I have related is only 
one of many which occurcd to us during 
the hours we were at Chalons; and the only 
precedent I can find to compare the state 
things are in at present in France is the time 
of the Terror. I do not, mean to say that it 
is so bad now, but the principle is the same. 
The mob arc in the ascendancy, they have 
it all their own way, they shout, sing, drink, 
smoke, and swagger about, and 1 am think¬ 
ing of wearing a blouse and cap myself, and 
dirtying my hands. That is the best cos¬ 
tume to get on in at present, and to he most 
courted in. Just one specimen to give you 
an idea:—Yesterday at the hotel at Chalons, 
Oil our asking to have our bools cleaned, 
the servant, answered, “I’ll clean them if 
you like, but people don’t have their boots 
cleaned now—we’ve given it up.’ ” 
A French Viva mil fife. 
“ Recently, as a regiment of the line was 
marching through the Faubourg SI. Antoine, 
the crowd espied the vivandu ro bringing up 
the rear of l he battalion, in a vehicle remark¬ 
ably like a washerwoman’s earl, hailiug, let 
us say, from North End, Fulham, S. W.— 
the chubby horse attached to which she was 
driving with her own fair hands, which were 
as brown as berries. The cart was as full as 
a. steward’s cabin on board a steam packet, 
v iih good things, from Lyons sausages to 
brandy; from sardines to Uirscliwasser. 
There are not many florists’ shops in the 
Faubourg St. Antoine ; bill in the twinkling 
of an eye the crowd began to pelt the little 
woman in the cart with bouquets, and great 
hulking fellows, in blouses, eutno pressing to 
the shafts to pat the horse and shake the ci- 
mndiere's hand. She took off her little glazed 
hat—a man-of-war-man’s hat—with a broad 
brim and a low crown, decked witli tri-col¬ 
ored ribbons, and beneath which, 1 grieve, 
for the sake of the picturesque, to say that 
she wore a mob cap—and cried out, ' Vive 
VEmpermr! Vine la France. !' in a voice so 
gruff that it would have done honor to a 
drum-major. 
“ A kindly-hearted little woman this, for 
in the front of the earl, were at least seventy 
knapsacks, which she was carrying for the 
rank and file—probably her regimental pets. 
A gallant little woman, assuredly, and with 
a stirring history of her own. Perhaps her 
grandmother marched into Grand Cairo, and 
when the battle day was done, administered 
comfort from her brandy keg to those who 
lay fainting in the shadow of the Pyramid. 
Her mother marched into Madrid, into Rome, 
into Vienna, into Berlin. She kindled her 
short pipe from the smoking embers of the 
Kremlin, and was bayoneted by u Prussian 
in the bloody flight from Waterloo; and the 
vtinudierc herself lias been at the MalukofF, 
at Magenta, at Bolforiuo, at, Puebla. I fancy 
that I saw her there, with her brown face 
and twinkling black eyes, driving her little 
wain as cheerily as now. Why not 'i Who 
does not remember Bernnger’s stirring re¬ 
frain : ‘ Rataplan, plan, plan 1 Sol data viola 
Gatin.’ And Gatin, the mntinkr, Is the 
only woman, I take it, who is not out of 
place on a bat t le field.” 
Inefficiency of French Genernln. 
Edmund Auout wrote after the defeat of 
McMahon :—The offieers of the troops, the 
soldiers, and the citizens who have had any¬ 
thing to do with the army, are unanimous in 
complaining of the ignorance and the in¬ 
fatuation of the chiefs. While the youngest 
ensign in the hostile army is perfectly con¬ 
versant with French topography, our Gen¬ 
erals do not know their own country. The 
small square maps that have been distribu¬ 
ted the last few days are ridiculous hits of 
paper; the staff map, of which only a few 
copies exist, has not been corrected down to 
the present time, and several strategical 
routes, completed more than five years siuce, 
are not even indicated upon it. Yesterday 
one of my friends met a General at. full gallop 
in the valley of Bclirenbaeh, turning his back 
to Pfalsbourg, whither he thought lie was 
going! In Lorraine, as well as in Alsace, 
t he inhabitants placed themselves at the dis¬ 
posal of the military authorities. Some 
offered to give information to the General; 
others proposed themselves as guides in the 
neighboring forests. Their services were 
refused with utter disdain. The French 
army did not. want guides, and should not he 
guided ; it sufficed unto itself. Recent events 
have proved this arrogant pretension to he 
altogether unfounded. In from of Saarbruck, 
which was said to have been taken, but 
THE PTiETsTCIX MAUS1 1 OMTJt 
l) ill iYLAOMvYIirXINr. 
the frightful effect of the chassepot Imllot 
does not, seem to have been exaggerated, for 
many of the wounds on the Prussian bodies 
were horrible to look at. L noticed one man 
whose whole face was one big wound, a ball 
having struck him just under the eye and 
made a hole one could have put one’s list in¬ 
to. There was little contortion in the bodies, 
as was to be expected, most of the wounds 
being gunshot, ones. There was, however, 
some hand-to-hand fighting in the final 
struggle for the top of the hill. The muskets 
and bayonets which covered the ground 
were broken and bent, with blows given and 
received. 
Ciovmnn Activity. 
And so this strange surprise to Europe, 
this invasion of Frunce within three weeks 
of the declaration of war, goes steadily for¬ 
ward with all imaginable precaution. Rail¬ 
way lines are re-opened, telegraph lines are 
laid down, and a swarm of German troops 
pours over the frontier. IIow strong the 
invading force will he in three days’ time it 
is better not to say. But Napoi.bon runs 
great risk of finding himself on a field of 
Leipaic when he makes his final stand. 
There has never been such a concentration 
of troops in the world’s history as this of 
the German armies in 1870. I was in St. 
Petersburg when war was declared, and as 
L traveled westward could see but one great 
mustering of soldiers and laudwehr men 
from Koeuigsberg to the Rhine. In Berlin 
and in Saxony, in Bavaria, Wirtemberg and 
Baden, the country was all alive with armed 
men. The railway officials worked like 
galley slaves, the telegraph was never idle, 
and in a fortnight all was safe. Then the 
chances begun to favor Germany. More 
and more troops wore ready with each suc¬ 
ceeding day. Bavarians were as ready as 
Prussia, South Germany :is ready as the 
Northern Confederation; and France, which 
had sought the contest, was completely out¬ 
stripped. It was almost as though some 
young blood in a public garden should fix a 
quarrel on a quiet-looking professional pug, 
and get a tremendous thrashing for his pains. 
Portrait ol a French Tuveo. 
I saw something this morning which 
made me think. A sal anie looking and hercu¬ 
lean Turn) was sitting close to me while I 
was breakfasting. lie was covered with 
gold chains, rings, and jewels of all sorts, 
and lmd about him several portmonnaies 
crammed with gold, which of course lie was 
spending lavishly. Seeing me observe his 
thoroughly Eastern splendor, and no doubt 
gratified, he informed me that all his wealth 
was the spoils of a Prussian amfirwr or 
whom have takeiwflight to safer quarters. 
Ten thousand loaves, of three pounds each ; 
00 bullocks, of 500 pounds, already killed ; 
10,000 pounds of rice, 2,300 pounds of roasted 
coffee, 1,300 pounds of salt, 1,000 pounds of 
tobacco, or 180,000 cigars for the soldiers; 
73,000 cigars of superior quality for the offi¬ 
cers, 13,000 quarts of wine, to wit: 10,000 
quarts Ibr t he soldiers, 3,000 quarts of supe¬ 
rior red wine for I lie Officers, 2,000 bottles of 
Burgundy, 200 bottles of champagne, 200 
pounds of sugar for the ambulances, 50 
pounds of soup tablets, or extract of meat. 
In the way of forage, L20,000 pounds of oats, 
50,000 pounds of hay, 50,000 pounds of straw. 
The town must place at the disposition of 
the army a warehouse in which the preced¬ 
ing articles are to he deposited. The deliv¬ 
ery is to commence at once; the first half of 
the prescribed quantities must he delivered 
by four o’clock in the afternoon, and the 
second half before six o’clock to-morrow 
morning. The men necessary for the distri¬ 
bution (about twenty,) and four weighing- 
machines provided with weights, must be on 
the spot. At the same time the town must 
take care that a hundred wagons shall he 
placed at the disposal of the troops to carry 
away the articles of food and forage. In 
case the requisition hereby demanded should 
not bo complied with, the value in money, 
plus 25 per cent., will be, imposed as pay¬ 
ment of the rations indicated. In case of 
necessity, military force will he employed to 
enforce the execution of this demand. 
Tim French Country People. 
A. Paris letter says:—I have just seen a 
person who came up from Normandy yester¬ 
day. He tells me the intelligence of Mc¬ 
Mahon’s victory, which set Paris in such a 
blaze of excitement, kindled great enthusi¬ 
asm in tbc country. lie was traveling 
through Normandy by rail the day it came. 
At every station there were crowds cheering 
nine times nine the valor and skill which had 
brought into French hands the Prussian 
Crown Prince, 40,000 prisoners, and fifty 
cannon. The next day brought not only 
news of the German victory, hut decrees call¬ 
ing out every man. The decrees were pub¬ 
lished by sound of drum, whose roll and tap 
seemed funereal as muffled drum, the dirge 
of brave men. Men and women were seen 
sobbing everywhere. The summons was flat 
of absolute ruin to many a well-to-do peas¬ 
ant home. Boon after the drummer, came 
the gendarmes with personal notifications. 
Every villager stood upon his threshold, all 
sobbing, as bolt after bolt fell upon neighbor 
or kindred. These are unnecessary meas¬ 
ures. To send these uneducated men to the 
fine reasoning cost us several thousands of 
men. 
An American’s Interview with liiniiiarck. 
The army correspondent of the World 
writes:—The King silt at his window—it 
was in the post-office lie had his quarters, ad ¬ 
joining the cathedral—and looked upon the 
little company of worshippers with, 1 
thought, a sympathetic expression. While 
1 was looking at the King there passed by 
me and approached the royal headquarters 
a man who seemed to ho himself a kind of 
walking cathedral—a great giant of a man, 
several Inches over six feet in bight, and 
powerfully built. Bo soon ns he turned 1 
knew it was Bismarck. Ho turned just be¬ 
fore entering the door and scanned the 
street. Among all the uniforms were two 
black streaks; they were represented by my¬ 
self and an American journalist in whose 
company I happened to be. Seeing us the 
Chancellor-—lie was in simple dark blue uni¬ 
form trimmed and faced with gold—held 
up his linger to stop us just as, after taking 
a good look at him, we were moving off. 
Wo approached him and lie met us half 
way. “Where are you from?” he asked. 
I said, " We are Americans, and are writing 
for the press in that country.” He then 
said, “ You are welcome. We are very glad 
to have American writers among us, and 
With our army. The only thing that the 
authorities and officers will expect from you 
will he proper papers of legitimation. You 
have these? Very well; then the freedom 
of everything will he accorded to you. The 
only thing wo cannot promise you is trans¬ 
portation forward. You see we are very 
much crowded with a vast army in an ene¬ 
my’s country. You will have, gentlemen, 
to depend upon yourselves for moving for¬ 
ward ; hut for everything else, for all the 
help and protection you require you have 
only to come to us here.” After some con¬ 
versation of a general kind, which I cannot 
repeat here, the Count shook hands with us 
and we departed. The King, also, who hud 
been from the first, leaning from bis window 
and could not have helped hearing, bowed 
to us and waved Ids hand; and General 
KrauskI, of his household, informed the 
“ Amerikancr” that in case they found no 
food on the march they must come to the 
King’s headquarters. 
IIow llio Prussians Live on the Ecnoniy. 
A correspondent of the Times says:—I 
told you that in the first simple visit of eight¬ 
een Prussian horsemen to SavernO they de¬ 
manded either 30,000 three-pound loaves or 
the sum of 100,000 francs in cash. Hero is 
the text of a second requisition, which was 
