ACHIEVEMENTS OF FIELD ARTILLERY. 
661 
infantry ceased firing, and darkness put an end to the battle. 
The losses sustained by the German batteries were heavier during 
this day's fighting than the whole of those hitherto sustained by them ; 
according to the official account Yon Dresky's Corps Artillery lost 10 
officers, 119 men, and 219 horses. The two Horse Artillery batteries 
which formed part of it alone lost 139 horses, or 70 per battery. 
Hoffbauer tells us that at this extremity of the line of battle the 
hostile infantry endeavoured repeatedly to advance over the hill to the 
north of Rezonville, but were always driven back by the accurate and 
destructive fire of these guns, while the French batteries were shelled 
with such effect that they were frequently unable to come into action. 
But these observations, it will be objected, being those of gunners, 
may be coloured by prejudice springing from esprit cle corps and con¬ 
fidence in their arm. Let ns add to them these, the utterances of Yon 
Moltke, made with critical exactness in his history of the great war. 1 
This is what he says —“ Later in the evening, when the German attack 
emerging from the wood of St. Arnould on the heights opposite was 
repulsed, and the French assumed the offensive, it was the well directed 
fire of the Prussian artillery which forced them to retrace their steps." 
Hitherto we have dealt chiefly with the deeds of the German artillery 
on the centre and right of the German position. No less effective, 
however, was the support afforded by their batteries on the left, where 
the French were utilising their numerical superiority to make a menac¬ 
ing advance, and where the ground was favourable to a counter-stroke. 
The German batteries near Yionville were exposed to an enfilade fire 
from the French guns on the high ground south of Bruville, and two 
batteries had to throw back their left to engage them. Then strong 
bodies of French infantry begun to emerge from the Tronville copse, 
and the situation of the Germans became very critical, for the hostile 
rushes grew in force and frequency, and ammunition began to fail so 
greatly that all the guns were obliged to fire slowly, and some had 
altogether to be silent. 
The arrival of the 10th Corps and the 20th Infantry Division, how¬ 
ever, now began to make itself felt, and the four batteries of the 20th 
Division and Corps Artillery, under Yon der Goltz, were soon hastening 
to the assistance of the troops already engaged. Yon der Goltz led his 
two light batteries forward into action at a trot, dispensing with the 
services of an escort, and the fire of these guns, directed on the 
southernmost portions of the copse, repulsed a French attack, which was 
supported by three or four of their batteries. Yon der Goltz moved up 
to the high road to get a shorter range, and drove off the French 
batteries, distant 1500 to 1800 paces. His losses, however, were very 
heavy—one officer was killed, two guns were rendered temporarily use¬ 
less from want of gunners, and three lost so many horses that they 
could not be moved. 
The pressure was, however, relieved, the heavy batteries and the 
infantry were beginning to appear, and the guns got into position 
along the road between Mars-la-Tour and Yionville. 
At 4.30 o'clock the Germans were able vigorously to renew the contest 
1 “ The Franco-German War,” by Von Moltke. 
88 
