THE BRIDGE OF ST. LAWRENCE.
Anthony Wallner and his men marched all day and all night through
the Puster valley, along the road to the Muhlbach pass. His daughter
Eliza, and young John Panzl, his friend and sympathizer, walked by
his side; and behind him marched the brave Tyrolese, whose force
gained strength at every step as it advanced, and who, amidst the
most enthusiastic acclamations, appointed Anthony Wallner commander-
in-chief of the men of the Puster Valley, and John Panzl his
lieutenant and assistant.
"I accept the position, my friends," said Wallner, taking off his
hat and kindly greeting the men; "yes, I accept the position, and
will be your commander, and will always lead you faithfully and
honestly against the enemy. But will you always follow me? Will you
not be afraid of the enemy's fire, and take to your heels before his
artillery?"
"No, we will not," shouted the brave men; "we will stand by you
faithfully, and fight with you for the fatherland and the emperor!"
"That is right, men," cried John Panzl, making a leap which drew
loud exclamations of admiration from the Tyrolese. "I tell you it is
right in you to think so, and therefore I will likewise joyfully
accept the honor which you have offered to me; I will be your second
commander, will always obey the orders of our brave commander-in-
chief, and assist him and you in driving the enemy from our country,
for the glory of God and our emperor. Ah, my dear Tyrolese, I would
we could catch the French and the Boafoks at length, take them by
the neck, and hurl them out of the country. I tell you, after we
have done it, I shall dance so merrily with Eliza Wallner, my dear
cousin, that the snowy heads of the Gross-Glockner and Venediger
will become warm and melt with delight. Lizzie, we two, the most
celebrated dancers of the whole Puster valley, will perform a dance
in honor of our victory, will we not?"
"We will, Cousin Panzl," said Eliza, smiling. "But before dancing,
we must march on and never run back."
"No, never run back," shouted the merry and courageous Tyrolese.
"Forward, then, forward!" commanded Anthony Wallner, and the whole
force set out again and marched rapidly across the mountains and
through the valleys; it was received everywhere with deafening
cheers, and gained at every step fresh accessions of men, who rushed
enthusiastically out of their buts, armed with their rifles, or
other weapons, even though they had only wooden clubs, and bravely
joined the defenders of the country.
Already they approached their destination; in the expansive valley
below, yonder, lay the town of Brunecken, surmounted by Castle
Bruneck and other ancient and decaying feudal castles; and behind
it, on the way down toward Brixen, in the narrower gorge, bordered
on both sides by precipitous mountains, through which the Rienz
hurls its foaming waters, they beheld already the small town of St.
Lawrence. After reaching St. Lawrence they had only an hour's march
to the Muhlbach pass, which, in accordance with Andreas Hofer's
orders, the brave men of the Puster valley were to occupy and defend
against the enemy moving up from Botzen.
But all at once, right in the midst of the march, Anthony Wallner
stood still, and, turning to Panzl, who was walking by the side of
the column, gave him a sign to halt. The whole column stopped and
listened.
Yes, there was no doubt about it, that was the rattle of musketry at
a distance! And now they heard also the loud booming of artillery,
and the ringing of the tocsin at Brunecken and St. Lawrence.
"Now forward, Tyrolese, forward!" shouted Anthony Wallner. "At the
double-quick down to Brunecken!"
"Forward!" shouted the men; and their exclamations were echoed
joyously by the women who had courageously accompanied their
husbands, and who were ready, like them, to fight for their country
and their emperor.
They marched with great speed down the Brunecken. The whole town was
in the utmost commotion. Young and old men, women, children--all
were hurrying toward the gate leading to St. Lawrence.
"What is the matter?" shouted Anthony Wallner, grasping the arm of
an old man, who, armed with a pitchfork, was speeding along at a
furious rate.
"What is the matter?" echoed the old man, endeavoring to disengage
his arm from Wallner's powerful grasp. "The matter is, that the
insurrection has broken out at length. The Bavarians are bent on
destroying the bridge of St. Lawrence, in order to prevent the
Austrians from crossing it. The whole military detachment left our
place some time ago for the bridge, and sappers and miners, who are
to blow it up, have arrived this morning from Brixen. But we will
not allow them to do it. They must shoot us all before we permit
them to destroy the bridge."
"No, we will not!" cried Anthony Wallner. "Forward, men of the
Puster valley, forward to the bridge of St. Lawrence!"
They continued their march through the valley at the double-quick.
They heard the rattle of musketry and the booming of artillery more
and more distinctly, and now, at a bend in the valley, the most
wonderful and striking spectacle presented itself to their eyes.
Yonder at a distance lay the well-known bridge, composed of a single
arch, between tremendous rocks; by its side stood two battalions of
Bavarian infantry in serried ranks, and on a knoll, close to the
bank of the river Rienz, had been planted three cannon pointed
menacingly both against the bridge and the people who were moving up
to it in denser and denser masses. Captains and other officers were
galloping up and down in front of the Bavarians, and encouraging
their men to attack these insurgents who were coming up behind, in
front, and on both sides of them. The courageous sons of the Tyrol
rushed down from all the heights, the tocsin of Brunecken and St.
Lawrence had not called them in vain. They came down the mountains
and up the valley; they came, men and women, old men and children;
and all were armed: he who did not possess a gun had a flail, a
pitchfork, or a club. Like a broad, motley river, the crowd was
surging up from all sides, and at the head and in the midst of the
war-like groups were to be seen priests in holy vestments, holding
aloft the crucifix, blessing the defenders of the country with
fervent, pious words, and uttering scathing imprecations against the
enemy.
And amidst this commotion thundered the field-pieces, whose balls
crashed again and again against the bridge; the bells were tolled in
the church-steeples, and the musketry of the Bavarians rattled
incessantly. But few of their bullets hit their aim. The Tyrolese
were too remote from them, and only occasionally a loud scream
indicated that a half-spent bullet had found its way into the breast
of a Tyrolese.
More fatal and unerring were the bullets of the Tyrolese
sharpshooters, who bad concealed themselves on the heights on both
sides of the valley, and fired from their hiding-places at the
Bavarians, never missing their aim and picking off a soldier by
every shot they discharged.
Anthony Wallner comprehended the whole situation at a glance.
"Boys!" he shouted, in a ringing voice, "we must take the cannon. We
must not permit the enemy to destroy the bridge which the Austrians
are to cross. Let us attack the Bavarians! We must take the cannon!"
"Yes!" shouted the men, "we must take the cannon!"
And the shouts reached another troop of armed peasants, who repeated
it with tumultuous enthusiasm, and soon the men on the heights and
in the valley cried, "We must take the cannon!"
Anthony Wallner gave the signal to his sharpshooters, and moved with
them into a small forest extending up the mountain near the cannon.
The courageous men disappeared soon in the thicket, and, as if in
accordance with a general agreement, the other Tyrolese likewise
entered the forest. Below, in the valley, knelt the women and
children, and before them stood the priests with their crucifixes,
protecting them therewith, as it were, from the enemy who was posted
on the other side of the valley, and whose ranks were thinned more
and more by the bullets of the Tyrolese.
All at once, on the height above the cannon, where there was a
clearing, and where the rocks were moss-grown and bare, the Tyrolese
were seen rushing in dense masses from the forest. They were headed
by Anthony Wallner and John Panzl. Each of them jumped on a
projection of the rocks and raised his rifle. They fired, and two
gunners fell mortally wounded near the cannon.
The Tyrolese greeted this exploit of their leaders with loud cheers;
but up from the Bavarians resounded the commands of the officers; a
whole volley crashed, the bullets whistled round the ears of Wallner
and Panzl, but none hit them; and hen the smoke cleared away, John
Panzl was seen to make a triumphant leap in the air, which he
accompanied with a shout of victory, while Anthony Wallner calmly
raised his rifle again. He fired, and the gunner at the third field-
piece fell dead.
"Now, boys, at them; we must take the cannon!" shouted Wallner,
jumping forward, and the Tyrolese followed him down the slope with
furious shouts.
"Forward, forward!" shouted the Lieutenant-Colonel in the valley to
his Bavarians; "forward! the cannon must not fall into the hands of
the peasants; we must defend them to the last man. Therefore,
forward at the double-quick!"
And the Bavarians rushed forward up the slope.
But the Tyrolese had already succeeded in shooting or knocking down
all the gunners, and taken possession of the cannon. While Anthony
Wallner, at the head of a furious detachment of his men, hastened to
meet the approaching Bavarians, and hurled death and destruction
into their ranks, John Panzl remained with the others to defend the
guns.
A furious hand-to-hand fight now arose; the Bavarians were repulsed
again and again by the Tyrolese, and the sharp-shooters, posted
behind the trees and rocks, assisted their fighting brethren with
their rifles, which, aimed steadily, never missed their man. But the
Bavarians. who were drawn up farther down in the valley, likewise
endeavored to assist their struggling comrades: but the bullets
which they fired up the hill frequently struck into the ranks of
their countrymen, and not into those of the Tyrolese. Often, on the
other hand, these bullets did not miss their aim, but carried wounds
and death into the midst of the insurgents. Whenever this occurred a
young woman was seen to rush amidst the deadliest shower of bullets
into the ranks of the fighting men, lift up the fallen brave, and
carry him in her strong arms out of the thickest of the fight to the
quiet spot on the edge of the forest, which a protruding rock
protected from the bullets of the enemy.
This young woman was Eliza Wallner. Behind the rock she had
established a sort of field hospital; a few women and girls had
assembled around her there, and taken upon themselves the sacred
care for the wounded, while two priests had joined them to
administer extreme unction to the dying. But Eliza Wallner had
reserved the most difficult and dangerous part of this work of love
for herself. She alone was courageous enough to plunge into the
thickest of the fight to remove the fallen brethren; she alone was
strong enough to carry them to the quiet asylum, and it was only the
joyous enthusiasm inspired by the consciousness of doing good that
imparted this strength to her. Her eyes were radiant, her cheeks
were flushed, and the face of the young girl, formerly so rosy and
serene, exhibited now the transparent paleness, and grave, proud
calmness which only great resolves and sublime moments impart to the
human countenance.
And the women followed her example with joyous zeal; they washed the
wounds of the brave Tyrolese with water fetched from the neighboring
spring, tore their handkerchiefs and dresses to make the necessary
bandages of them, and closed, with tears of devout compassion, the
eyes of those who gave up the ghost amid the blessings of the
priests.
From these pious works of charity the women were suddenly aroused by
the loud cheers of the Tyrolese. Eliza sprang forth from behind the
rock to see what was the matter. Renewed and still louder cheers
resounded, for the victory was gained. Anthony Wallner and his men
had attained their object. They had succeeded in hurling the three
field-pieces from the height into the Rienz, which was rolling along
far below in its rocky bed. The earth was shaking yet from the
terrific crash, and echo was resounding still with the thundering
noise with which the field-pieces had fallen into the Rienz, whose
waters had hurled their foaming spray into the air, and were rolling
now with an angry roar over the sunken cannon.
This exploit, which excited the transports of the Tyrolese, exerted
a contrary effect upon the Bavarians. They had lost their artillery,
and with it the means of blowing up the bridge; and now they stood
before the enemy uncovered and almost defenceless. In obedience to a
loud command uttered by Anthony Wallner, the Tyrolese returned
quickly into the forest, and, hidden behind trees and rocks, hit a
Bavarian with every bullet, while the Bavarians vainly fired at the
well-concealed enemy.
The commander of the Bavarians, Lieutenant-Colonel Wreden,
perceiving the danger and uselessness of a continuance of the
struggle, ordered his troops to retreat; and no sooner had the
Bavarians received this longed-for order, than they fell back at the
double-quick from the bridge and took the road to Sterzing.
This retreat of the enemy was greeted by the renewed cheers which
Eliza Wallner had heard; and, both laughing and weeping for joy, she
hastened to fold her father to her heart, and thank God that no
bullet had hit him.
Wallner embraced her tenderly, and imprinted a kiss on her forehead.
"You have behaved very bravely, Lizzie," he said; "I saw how you
carried our poor brethren out of the thickest of the fight. My heart
was proud of you, and I should not have wept to-day even though you
had fallen in the sacred service of the fatherland. But I thank God
that nothing has happened to you, and I beseech you, dearest Lizzie,
do not accompany us any farther. I now believe again in you, and I
know that you are a true daughter of the Tyrol, although you
unfortunately love a Bavarian. Therefore go home; for it is no
woman's work that is in store for us; we have a hard struggle before
us, and a great deal of blood will be shed before we have driven the
mean Bavarians and the accursed French from our beloved country."
"No, father, I shall stay with you," exclaimed Eliza, with eager
determination. "I am not able to sit at home and spin and pray when
my father is fighting for the country. Mother can attend alone to
our household affairs, and Schroepfel will assist her; but you
cannot attend alone to the hard work here, and I will help you,
dearest father. I will be the doctor and surgeon of your men until
you have found a better and more skilful physician. You must not
reject me, dearest father, for you would commit wrong against the
poor wounded who have no other assistance than what they receive at
my hands and at those of the women whom I beg and persuade to help
me."
"You are right, Lizzie; it would be wrong in me to send you home and
not permit you to assist and nurse the wounded," said her father,
gravely. "May God and the Holy Virgin help and protect you! I devote
you to the fatherland to which I devote myself."
He kissed her once more, and then turned to the Tyrolese, who,
encamped in groups on the edge of the forest, and reposing from the
struggle, were partaking of the bread and meat which they had
brought along in their haversacks.
"Brethren," exclaimed Anthony Wallner, in a powerful voice, "now let
us be up and doing! We must cut off the enemy's retreat to Sterzing.
We must also occupy the Muhlbach pass, as Andreas Hofer ordered us
to do in the Archduke John's name. The enemy has set out thither,
and if he gets before us through the gap of Brixen and reaches the
bridge of Laditch, we shall be unable to prevent him from passing
through the Muhlbach pass and marching to Sterzing. Hence, we are
not at liberty to repose now, but must advance rapidly. One
detachment of our men, commanded by my Lieutenant Panzl, will push
on quickly on the mountain-road to the Muhlbach pass. The rest of us
will follow you, but we must previously detain the enemy at the gap
of Brixen; and while we are doing duty, another detachment of our
men will go farther down to the bridge of Laditch and destroy it in
order to prevent the enemy from crossing the Eisach. Forward, my
friends! Forward to the gap of Brixen! We must roll down trees,
detach large fragments from the rocks, and hurl them down on the
enemy; we must fire at them from the heights with deadly certainty,
and every bullet must hit its man. Forward! forward! To the bridge
of Laditch!"
"Yes, yes!" exclaimed the Tyrolese, with enthusiastic courage.
"Forward to the bridge of Laditch!"