The Franc-tireurs des Écoles had marched out beyond the walls when the
order came that the affair was postponed, and that they would not be
required till the following day, when they were to parade at daybreak.
There was much indignation at the change and all sorts of causes were
suggested for it. One rumor was to the effect that the pontoon bridges
for crossing the river were of insufficient length. Others said that the
train of provisions that was to accompany the force after it had cut its
way through the Prussians was not ready. One rumor was to the effect
that the Prussians had been apprised by spies of Trochu's intentions and
had massed heavy bodies of men at the threatened point. The most
generally received opinion was that Trochu's object had been only to
make a demonstration on this side of Paris, with the object of deceiving
the Prussians and inducing them to weaken their lines at other points,
and that the real attack would be made in another direction altogether.
"It is a nuisance whichever way it is," Cuthbert said, as, after the
corps was dismissed, he walked back with a group of his friends, "it is
a mistake too. We had all got ourselves up to boiling heat, and had made
up our minds to go through with it, and this delay is like a dash of
cold water. Of course it is the same with the rest of the force. One
hates being humbugged, and it makes one doubt whether our generals know
their business. Well, there is one thing, the delay won't be a long
one; it is eight o'clock now, and as we must be up by six, I shall turn
in at once and get a good sleep. Be sure and don't forget your flasks in
the morning. The weather gets colder and colder."
The next morning, however, the men were again dismissed after parade,
and told they were to fall in again at daybreak next day. There was a
feeling of restlessness and disquiet throughout Paris. The town was
placarded with proclamations of Trochu and Ducrot. The latter was a sort
of valedictory letter to Paris, saying that he was going out to conquer
or to die, and that if defeated, he would never return to Paris alive.
It was evident by their tone that at the time the proclamations were
penned it was intended that the battle should take place on that day,
and that the delay was consequent upon a breakdown in the arrangements
and was not the result of any fixed plan.
Paris for once was serious. Special services were held in all the
churches and these were thronged by citizens and soldiers. Cuthbert went
to the building where a few of the English residents attended service
throughout the siege. Mary Brander was not present, but as she had said
the day before that she would be on duty for twenty-four hours, he had
not expected to see her.
In the afternoon he went to a restaurant and dined fairly well,
indulging himself in all the luxuries obtainable, and then returned and
spent the evening with René and Pierre. The next morning, when he
dressed himself for parade, he took the precaution of putting on as many
articles of underclothing as he could button his tunic over. This time
there was no mistake in the orders, as not a few of those who fell in
had hoped in their hearts might be the case. As soon as the corps was
formed up and their arms and ammunition-pouches examined, the word was
given and they marched away towards the gate of Charenton and issued
out. Many bodies of troops were converging upon it and the other gates
on that side of the city, with trains of ammunition and supply wagons,
and there was a delay of an hour before they could pass out. The greater
part of the force had left the city on the two previous days, and a
hundred thousand men under Ducrot were massed in the Bois de Vincennes
and between that point and the neck of the loop formed by the Marne.
The Franc-tireurs were halted near Charenton, and learning that the
attack would not take place till night, the colonel took possession of
an empty barn near the village. The men piled their arms outside and
made themselves as comfortable as they could. Now that there was no
longer any doubt that an engagement would take place in a few hours the
natural light-heartedness of the students revived. All had brought with
them a good store of provisions in their haversacks, and each man
carried a thick blanket besides his military cloak. Many of them had, in
addition to their flasks, slipped a bottle of wine into their
haversacks, and a meal was joyously partaken of, after which pipes were
lighted, and with their blankets wrapt round their legs, all were
inclined to agree that campaigning even in winter had its pleasures.
"We are a deal better off than most of the troops," Cuthbert said to
Arnold Dampierre, "it must be bitter in the snow out in the woods, and
it will be worse when it gets dark."
"It is better for all than it was for our fellows in the South,"
Dampierre said. "We have warm clothes and plenty to eat. They were in
rags and often well-nigh starving."
"Yes, that must have been a very rough business. It is a great advantage
that we are Franc-tireurs and therefore free, to a great extent, to
follow our own devices. I heard the colonel say that when he had applied
for orders he was told that none would be given to detached corps like
his, but that now, as at other times, they must make themselves useful
when they saw an opportunity. The line are to cross first, then the
mobile, and then the active battalions of the National Guards. If I
judge the colonel rightly he will manage to put us somewhere in front.
We stand well after that affair at Bourget, so I have no doubt he will
get us across one of the bridges as soon as the line are over."
Soon after four o'clock it began to get dusk.
The colonel, who had been away endeavoring to find out what was the
general plan of operations, returned soon after. The officers gathered
round him.
"Pontoon bridges will be thrown across the river on both sides of the
loop. The pontonners will set to work on them when it is dark. I fancy
the real attack will be through Champigny, and that on the other side
will be more of the nature of a false alarm; so we will go with the main
force. There are some strong batteries erected in the loop which will
prepare the way for us and a big train of field-guns. The troops will
begin to cross at early daylight, so we can't do better than remain
where we are until five o'clock. Then we will go and take our place near
one of the bridges and slip across as soon as we see an opportunity.
With such a mass of troops to move, there are sure to be delays in
bringing the regiments up, and the first that occurs, we will slip in
and get over. The men may as well lie down at once and get a good
night."
It needed somewhat close packing for the men to rest themselves, but the
crowding was more than counter balanced by the warmth, and it was not
long before all were asleep. At one o'clock in the morning, they were
awakened by a tremendous cannonade. All the forts round Paris had
suddenly opened fire upon the German positions. Believing that the enemy
must have obtained a knowledge of the approaching sortie and were
anticipating it by assaulting the forts, the colonel ordered the men to
stand to their arms. In an hour the firing ceased and all was quiet
again. The men, with a little grumbling at being taken out and chilled
in the night air, returned to the barn. At four o'clock they were again
aroused by the fire being resumed.
"We may as well be off, lads," the colonel said, "we have some distance
to march, and it is not worth while to turn in again."
Between the reports of the guns a dull rumbling sound could be heard.
"The artillery and train are on the move," Cuthbert said to René, who
was next to him in the ranks, "so we shall not be too soon if we are to
take our share in the early part of the fighting."
They left the main road and followed the fields, as many of them were
well acquainted with the country, and they had no difficulty in keeping
in the right direction. The men marched at ease, each picking his way as
best he could across the ground, which was broken up into small
enclosures and gardens. They halted outside a village on the banks of
the Marne where one of the pontoon bridges had been thrown across. Here
they piled arms and endeavored to keep themselves warm by stamping their
feet and swinging their arms.
Soon after morning dawned, heavy firing broke out suddenly behind them.
The colonel had learnt at Charenton that General Vinoy, with 15,000 men,
was to advance from between the southern forts to attack Ville Juif and
the heights of Mesly, so as to induce a concentration of the enemy in
that direction, and so to diminish the difficulties of the main advance.
For a time there was a sound of cannon only, then came a crackle of
musketry telling that the advance had begun. The battery on the
commanding position of St. Maur opened in earnest, and was aided by
several batteries of field artillery, the din being now incessant.
Gradually the rattle of musketry became fainter, showing that the French
were driving the enemy back, and a mounted officer riding past told them
that Montmesly was taken. The news raised the spirits of the soldiers to
the highest point, and their impatience was becoming almost
uncontrollable, when the order arrived for them to advance, and the
troops at once began to cross the six pontoon bridges that had been
thrown at different points across the Marne.
"There is no hurry, mes braves," the colonel said, as the Franc-tireurs
stamped with impatience as they saw the columns crossing the river,
while they remained in enforced inactivity. "At first the troops will
carry all before them as Vinoy's men have done. The fighting will only
commence in earnest when the Prussians bring up their supports. We shall
be in time for that, never fear. We ought to have begun at daybreak," he
growled, in a low voice, to the major, "four precious hours have been
wasted. By this time we ought to have gained at least three or four
miles of ground; in that case we might have been through the Prussian
lines before sunset. Every hour in these short days is of importance."
Presently the roll of musketry showed that the French skirmishers were
engaged with the German outposts. The Franc-tireurs had by this time
moved down close to the bridge; but it was not until midday that they
were able to cross; then the colonel, taking advantage of a short delay
on the part of one of the regiments to come up to the bridge, pushed the
men across, and leaving the road took them forward at the double. By
this time the roar of battle was unbroken. The batteries along the
heights behind them, the forts, and the field-guns in advance were all
hard at work, the shell flying over the heads of the advancing troops
and bursting in the villages held by the Germans. In front, the rattle
of musketry was deafening. Champigny, they learned from a wounded
soldier who was making his way to the rear, had been carried, and the
troops there had pushed some distance forward, but on the left
Villiers-la-Desert was found to be too strongly fortified to be taken.
The French batteries were, however, raining shell upon it.
As the Franc-tireurs approached Champigny they saw that the place had
not been taken without a severe struggle. The bodies of French soldiers
strewed the ground thickly, and as they passed through the streets, the
Saxon uniforms were mingled with those of their assailants. The corps
pushed forward until they ascended the low hills behind the village.
Here they found the French troops halted. It was evident Ducrot did not
intend to advance further until joined by the whole of his command.
"This is pure madness," the colonel said; "by to-morrow we shall have
fifty thousand Germans in front of us. If Ducrot hasn't got his whole
force, and his train and ambulances up, he might at least carry Villiers
by assault. Of course it could not be done without loss, but what have
we come out for but to fight. We cannot advance as long as they hold
that place, for when their supports come up, as you may be sure they
will do ere long, they can pour out from there and take us in the rear.
However, we may as well go forward to the skirmishing line. We will work
down by the right. If the German supports come up they are likely to
advance that way, and as I hear no firing in that quarter, we may find
some spot unoccupied by the line."
The order was given, and the corps marched off, and presently took up
their position between the river and the French regiment forming the
extreme right flank of the advance. In extended order and taking
advantage of every inequality of the ground, they pushed on, and after
advancing a quarter of a mile, were brought to a standstill by a sudden
outbreak of musketry fire at various points along the crest of a slight
rise some six hundred yards in front of them. Taking cover behind a low
wall running at right angles to the river, they opened a dropping fire
in return. This, however, was at once stopped by the colonel, who
himself went along the line.
"Don't throw away a shot, lads," he said, "you may want every cartridge
before you have done. It will be time enough to begin when they show in
force over that crest."
There was no more for the men to do than there had been when they were
waiting for their turn to cross the bridge, but they were satisfied, now
they were in the front line, and within shot of the enemy. The march had
set their blood in circulation, and while two or three of each company
kept a keen lookout over the top of the wall, the others laughed and
joked, after first employing themselves in knocking holes through the
wall, a few inches above the ground, so that they could lie and fire
through if the enemy advanced. The musketry fire had almost ceased away
to their right, and they hoped that Vinoy had established himself well
out in that direction. Various were the conjectures as to why the
advance had ceased on their own side. Some conjectured that Trochu's
plan consisted only in crossing the river and then marching back again
in order to accustom the troops to stand fire. One suggested that the
general had come out without ink or paper with which to write his
grandiose proclamations to the Parisians, and they were waiting until it
had been fetched from his office.
"What do you think, Henri?" René asked the lieutenant.
"I should say," he said, gravely, "that when our advance came upon the
real Prussian line of defence, they found it too strong to be carried.
They must have known that they could never hold Champigny under the fire
of our guns and forts, and used it only as an outpost. Of course it is
from this side they would think it likely that we should try to break
out, and they would certainly erect batteries to command all the roads.
They have had nothing else to do for the last ten weeks."
"I have no doubt that is partly the reason, Henri," Cuthbert said, "but
I think it may be principally due to the fact that Ducrot can't get his
troops across the river. Even with a well-organized army and a good
staff, and commanding officers who all know their duty, it is a big job
to get a hundred thousand men, with artillery, ambulances, and trains
across a river. Here, with the exception of Ducrot himself and a few of
the line officers, nobody knows anything about the matter. By what we
saw, I should think there are not more than twenty thousand men across
the river, and the confusion on the other side must be frightful. We
ourselves saw that the street of that village was absolutely choked up
with wagons, and I have no doubt all the roads are the same. Of course
they never ought to have moved forward at all till all the troops were
over. If Trochu really meant to break out, the north is the side where
he should have tried. The whole force could have been massed between the
walls and St. Denis and have been marched in regular order against the
Prussians, with the field-batteries at intervals and the trains
following at a proper distance on the various lines of roads.
"I hope that is his plan still, and that this attack from the South is
only a feint to draw as many of the Germans as possible over to this
side. We have a tremendous advantage in having this short line to march
across. If Trochu were to send the train off at once, while we recrossed
and followed as soon as it was dark, the whole army might be outside the
northern wall before morning. To-morrow we might get into position for
attack, make all the arrangements, and advance far enough to dash
forward at their lines as soon as it is light next day, and with
Ducrot's and Vinoy's force united, we ought to go right through them. We
should have 115,000 men, and I don't suppose they could oppose us with a
third of that number. However strong their positions, we ought to be
able to carry them if we went at them with a rush. Besides, we should
have the guns at the northern forts to help us. At any rate, after this
delay here, I consider the idea of any further advance in this direction
to be out of the question. By to-morrow morning they may have a hundred
thousand men facing us, and if we don't recross to-night, we may find it
very difficult business to do so to-morrow."
"We have got the batteries and forts to cover us," Henri Vaucour said.
"The Germans could never advance against us in force under their fire."
"I hope we are going to cross this evening, if we are going to cross at
all," Pierre Leroux said. "It is cold enough now, but if we are going to
pass the night here, it will be bitter."
"There are those houses by the river, we are a good deal nearer to them
than any other troops," Arnold Dampierre said; "they will hold us if we
pack in pretty closely."
As the afternoon wore on, the colonel sent two officers to inspect the
houses, which were all found to be empty. As soon as he received the
report, he sent twenty men off with orders to cut down hedges and form
fagots, and then to light fires in each room. There was no further
movement. A heavy musketry fire was kept up far away to the left, and
the batteries occasionally fired heavily; but all idea of movement was
evidently abandoned for the day, and the enemy were not in sufficient
force to take the offensive.
As soon as it became dark, therefore, half a company were left on guard
at the wall, and the rest of the corps marched off to the houses.
Roaring fires were blazing in every room, for some fruit trees had been
cut down and split up into logs. The party on guard were to be relieved
every two hours. As soon as the men were bestowed in their quarters, the
major went off to discover, if possible, what had been the result of
the fighting on the other side of the loop. It was two hours before he
returned, and the news he brought was dispiriting.
"I have been up to Creteil," he said, "and have learnt from the people
there who saw the whole affair what has happened. The advance was good.
We swept the Germans at first before us, and for a time our fellows made
a stand on the crest of Montmesly. But the enemy were reinforced and
drove us down the hill again. Then came a disgraceful panic. The
soldiers who had fought fairly at first, became a mob; the mobile, who
had not done as well as had been expected, were worse. There was a
battalion of the National Guard of Belleville, and the scoundrels ran
without firing a shot. At Creteil the men absolutely fought to get
through the street. It was disgraceful. I hear that further to the right
the line did better, and that we still hold Ville Juif and other
villages well in advance of our old position. That is all I could learn.
They say our losses have been pretty heavy; at any rate Creteil is full
of wounded, and the ambulances are taking them into Paris. There is
great confusion on the other side of the river. The roads are all choked
with the wagon-trains. Nobody has got any orders, nobody knows what is
going to be done, no one knows where Ducrot or Trochu are. It is enough
to make one tear one's hair to see such confusion and mismanagement."
The night passed off quietly. The next day, to the surprise of everyone,
things remained unchanged. No effort was made to pass the baggage-train
over the bridges. A portion of the troops had been put under canvas the
first evening, and save for the dead still lying about, the broken arms,
the stains of blood, and the parties engaged in carrying the wounded
across the river to the ambulance wagons, and others burying the dead,
the scene differed little from an ordinary encampment. The troops
laughed and jested round the camp-fires, and occupied themselves with
their cooking; the horses that had been killed were already but
skeletons, the flesh having been cut off for food. The advance parties
had been called in, and a barricade thrown up just beyond Champigny,
where the advance guard occasionally exchanged shots with the Prussians
a few hundred yards away. Strong parties were at work erecting a series
of earthworks on the hill.
The Franc-tireurs fell back from the position they had held the night
before, and established themselves in a few houses, half roofless and
shattered by shell, between Champigny and the river. Most of the houses
in the long straggling street of Champigny bore marks of the conflict
that had raged there before the Saxons had been driven out. Fortunately
large stores of straw were found in the village, and these added much to
the comfort of the troops, and the Franc-tireurs carried off a good many
trusses to their quarters. Considerable amounts of other stores were
also discovered there, and were thoroughly appreciated by the soldiers
after their restricted rations.
They smoked their pipes that evening feeling thankful that as they lay
behind Champigny there was no occasion for them to turn out on outpost
duty.
"They say we shall fight again to-morrow for certain," René said.
"I think it likely we shall, René, but I should be inclined to bet ten
to one, that it is the Prussians who will attack. They will have had
forty-eight hours to mass their forces here, and will be fools if they
don't take advantage of the opportunity we have been good enough to give
them."
Day was just breaking when a sharp rattle of musketry broke out. The
Franc-tireurs sprang to their feet.
"I should have won my bet, René, if you had taken it," Cuthbert
exclaimed, as he slung his cartridge-box over his shoulder. "They are on
us all along the line."
In less than a minute the rattle of musketry swelled into a continuous
roar, above which came the boom of cannon and the explosion of shells in
and around Champigny. Just as the corps was formed up, the heavy guns in
the battery of St. Maur behind them opened fire, their deep roar
sounding loud above the sharp explosion of the Prussian field-guns. As
they advanced at the double towards the village, they could see a mob of
panic-stricken men rushing from the front.
"The cowards, the vile cowards!" broke from the lips of the men, and as
some of the fugitives ran past them, they saluted them with yells and
cries of contempt. Fully five thousand panic-stricken men were in wild
flight, all rushing towards the bridge.
"If I were the commander of St. Maur," René said, "I would turn my guns
upon these cowards. They are greater enemies to France than are the
Prussians."
"Forward, my children," shouted the old colonel, "let us show them that
there are still some Frenchmen ready to fight and die for their
country."
The officer in command of St. Maur, and the general on the spot, were
equal to the situation. Seventy or eighty field-pieces were massed round
the redoubt, and a tremendous fire opened upon the Prussian batteries
out on the plain, while a strong guard was sent down to the end of the
bridge to bar the way to the mob of fugitives. The Germans had already
obtained possession of the other end of the village when the
Franc-tireurs entered it, but a small body of troops were standing firm.
Some barricades thrown up across the street were manned, and from these
and from every house they replied to the fire of the advancing
Prussians. But the latter were still pushing on, wresting house by house
from their hands, while a hail of shell from the German batteries fell
upon the part of the village still held by the French. As the
Franc-tireurs advanced the colonel ordered one company to wheel off on
either hand to occupy the gardens behind the houses, and so prevent the
enemy from taking the defenders in the rear. He himself pressed forward
down the street to aid the soldiers at the barricades.
The sun had by this time risen, and its light, glinting on the Prussian
helmets, showed strong bodies advancing down the slopes into the
village. The woods on either hand were still held by the French, but the
irregular fire showed that they were not in strong force. The din was
terrific, three or four of the French mitrailleuses were adding to the
roar, and sending streams of bullets into the advancing Germans. Nerved
by the desperation of the situation, and fiercely angered at the
cowardice of their countrymen, the young artists of Cuthbert's company
dashed forward, climbing walls, bursting through hedges, burning with
eagerness to meet the foe.
The Prussian shells were bursting all round, bullets sang above and
around them, the rattle of musketry grew louder and fiercer, but there
was not a moment's check until François des Valles shouted to them to
halt behind a low wall. The enemy were but a hundred yards away,
pressing forward through the gardens.
"Steady men, steady," he shouted. "Lie down for a minute to get breath,
then let every other man open fire, but don't throw away a shot. Let the
others try and get some stones out of the wall and make loop-holes."
As yet they had not been seen by the Germans, and these were but fifty
yards away in a thick line of skirmishers, when Des Valles gave the
word, and the Franc-tireurs, rising on one knee and resting their
muskets on the wall, opened a steady fire upon them. Many fell, and
taken by surprise the rest ran back to a wall some thirty yards in rear
and thence opened a heavy fire.
"Lie down, lads," Des Valles shouted, and all set to work to loop-hole
the wall. "Don't show your heads above it, unless they advance again.
All we have got to do is to hold our ground."