"German, bon; très bien. I will soon show you that my French education was not neglected," and forthwith she began in the purest French to tell him she was quite ready to pay him anything he asked for the rooms and beds, but that if he was obstinate and refused to admit her on these terms, she would very soon have him and his French household turned out; and to prove she was not speaking without authority, she showed him the French side of her pass. This had a magic effect, the Frenchman at once pulled in his horns, and soon she was in possession of two nice, airy rooms and comfortable beds. It is true he asked an enormous sum for them, but he was somewhat taken aback when Madame Lucca, without any hesitation, paid for them at once in bright friedrichs d'or. The removal of the patient, as well as the settling of Madame Lucca herself, not to forget the precious hamper, was happily effected before night. For ten days Madame Lucca nursed her husband indefatigably, and notwithstanding all the disagreeables attendant on wounds, never left his bedside. Her maid every day cooked and prepared a portion of the compressed vegetables and soups, which the patient could only take in spoonfuls at a time; but thanks to good nursing, his health improved rapidly. Madame Lucca had once asked her husband to tell her how he had got wounded, but as speaking was still very difficult to him, he told her to ask Sergeant Walter, who had been beside him at the battle of Metz, and who could give her fuller details than himself. The man was afterwards wounded in the leg, and was now in the hospital that Von Rhaden had left. So one day when her husband was sleeping quietly, Madame Lucca sent for the sergeant, as he was now able to get about with the help of a stick. We will give the account of the battle in the worthy man's own words, "It was on the 15th of August," so he began, "that the French left Metz, to try and force a passage to Verdun, the emperor and his son in their midst. But surrounded on all sides by the Germans, they could make no head, and the emperor on the morning of the 16th, by a circuitous route, made the best of his way to Châlons. It was well he did, for on the afternoon of that day we overtook Bazaine's army at Mars-la-Tour. The enemy had possession of two villages, a fort, and the surrounding heights. "Send those fellows down from the heights!' cried General von Stülpnagel, and this we succeeded in doing, after heavy fighting. The French were driven down, and dislodged from the villages Vionville and Flamigny, which we took possession of. At one o'clock, however, they occupied the wood of Saint-Arnould, and from thence fired such deadly volleys on the Brandenburgers that they fell like gnats round a candle. At half past three, Prince Frederic Charles came on the field and rode down our lines, shells and chassepot bullets flying so closely around him that several of his staff were hit. The prince now took command, and until four o'clock the artillery had it all their own way. Then came the order: 'Bayonets to attack! March.' We had only waited for this. "Hurrah!' shouted thousand of voices, and with lowered bayonets we rushed on to the impudent red trousers. Ah, Madame! that was a cutting, shooting, and bayoneting! Lieutenant von Rhaden, his sword swung high in the air, and not heeding the perfect storm of shot and shell that fell around us, was in the front, leading us on and shouting, 'Don't give way, my brave lads, we must have that wood before dark.' Suddenly I saw his sword-arm sink he stood as if transfixed! Quickly running up to him, I saw blood streaming down his face. "Herr Lieutenant,' I cried, touching his arm, 'you have been hit.' He never heard me, he was completely stunned, gazing fixedly upwards, and still grasping his sword, as if about to give a blow. took hold of him gently, expecting every moment he would fall, and shouted loud enough this time to rival the cannon, "Herr Lieutenant, you are hit!' At this he turned slowly towards me. Ah, Gnädige Frau, how those few seconds had distorted his face! and trying to collect himself, he said almost inarticulately, for the shot had lamed his tongue, 66.6 Sergeant Walter, I think I have had about enough of it.' "I think so too, Herr Lieutenant; you are badly wounded is there anything I can do for you?' "Take my watch and this diamond ring to my wife and tell her - that my last thought "Here he became insensible, and it was all I could do to hold him up. I shouted to two of my comrades, and with their help carried him to a spot where at least he would be out of the way of cannonwheels and horses' hoofs. "I placed my knapsack under his head, I am not the least bit afraid, and whenever covered him with my cloak, and then I think of my poor wounded husband, I rushed off to vent my rage on those mis- feel quite blood-thirsty. I would give erable French, whom you may believe I anything to see the enemy closer. Can did not treat to many sugar-plums ! you tell me where I could get permission to go?" "By nightfall the battlefield and the victory were both ours, and as soon as I could, I hurried back to the place where we had left our wounded officer, but just as I was stooping over him to see if life was extinct, bang went a spent chassepot bullet into my leg, and down I fell senseless beside him. "When I recovered consciousness I found myself here in the hospital, and heard, to my delight, that Lieutenant von Rhaden was not only alive, but here, though several papers had reported his death. For eight hours he lay on the battlefield, amidst the dead and dying, and I still think it was a miracle they ever brought him back with any life in him." "The only person who can give you leave to visit the outposts is the Etappen Commandant, Captain H- of the Uhlans." "Where are his quarters?" "In that house on the hill yonder." "I very much fear"- began the doc "Oh, I will manage him! Au revoir! Do not say anything to my husband if he should wake ere I return, in case he may get anxious. I shall be back in time for coffee, to which I invite you to join us. Addio, Signor Dottore!" This ended Sergeant Walter's story, to which Frau Lucca had listened with breathless attention. His lifelike descriptions had roused fresh fears for her As she hurried off to the captain's husband's recovery, but the doctor, who quarters, the doctor looked after her, just then came in, assured her there was shaking his head and smiling to himself: no fear for his life, and if once at home," A very child's nature, light-hearted, but with her careful nursing, would soon re- self-willed too." cover his strength. After the sergeant had gone, Madame Lucca asked the doctor if her husband was awake. "No," he replied, "he is still in a sound sleep, and I have told my assistant, who is with him, to let no one disturb him, as perfect quiet will do more for him than anything. Even you, dear madame, I must beg not to come near him during the next three or four hours, and to leave him entirely to me." "I will do whatever you think best," she replied, "but, my dear doctor, I can. not sit here doing nothing. Is there anything fresh going on?" "There has been another cavalry skirmish," answered the doctor, "only a mile from here, in which the French, as usual, have been defeated." "Was that where you went to this morning with the soldiers?" she asked. The captain was just reading the pa trol's report, according to which a battle was expected near Sedan. An aide-decamp had brought him orders to strengthen the outposts on the heights of Pont-àMousson, and to do his utmost to prevent the French troops, scattered round there, from re-forming. An orderly came in and announced: "A lady from Berlin wishes to speak to you." "A lady!" exclaimed the captain, surprised. "Did she give her name ?” "Frau von Rhaden, also known, she says, by the simpler name of 'Pauline.' "Die Lucca!" cried the captain, jump. ing up and himself going to open the door. "Madame," he said, "I am both sur prised and delighted to welcome you to my quarters. I heard some days ago that you had started from Berlin with the out-praiseworthy intention of taking your wounded husband home, but have not had time to wait upon you," and with these words he placed a chair for her. "Yes, I went with the foremost posts to the heights. Everything there showed the fury of the fight that had taken place. Now our outposts are only about eight hundred paces from the French, so that with a good field-glass one can plainly distinguish their képis." "I have brought my glass with me," quickly said Madame Lucca. "Could I not go and see this French outpost? I "If the mountain won't come to me, I must go to the mountain - so you see I have had to turn Turk for the nonce," she answered, seating herself. "Before anything else, how is your husband?" "Thanks for your kind inquiry-he is Frau Lucca, her sunshade in her right getting better every day, but not strong hand and glasses in her left, walked enough yet to undertake the journey bravely on, humming that air out of "Fihome, though the doctor gives me hopes garo: of being able to move him in the course of a few days." "And now, what is the Berlin world doing?" "They drink coffee, dine and almost sleep at Litfasz's, so as not to lose a second in seeing the latest telegrams that are put up there. But not to waste your time, Herr Rittmeister, I inform you at once that I have come here with a petition." May I ask what it is? If in my power, it shall be granted." "I just want to visit the outposts and have a look at the French." The captain thought he could not have heard rightly. "You wish to visit the outposts? Surely you cannot be in earnest! The theatre of war is very different to that of the opera!" "Oh I know that! on the battlefield the chassepot bullets take the soprano, the mitrailleuses the baritone, and the shells the bass parts! But I should like, just for once, to hear such a concert." Dort vergisze leises flehen, süsses Wimmern, Da wo Lanzen und Schwerter schimmern— the Uhlans following behind. After half an hour's rough walking through hedges and across ditches, they reached the first line of outposts, where the sentries, like moles, had thrown up the earth, to protect them from the enemy's fire. The first they came to were Saxons, and one of these, looking in perfect amazement at the lady, exclaimed: "Jesses Strambach! If the Prussian women are so courageous, no wonder the Frenchmen run when they see these Amazons' husbands!" To which Madame Lucca replied in the broadest Viennese: "You are not quite right, my friend! I am Austrian born, a Prussian by inclination but, above all, a real and true German." Even on their way thither, single bullets had come across from "over the way," but fortunately had passed harmlessly over their heads. Now, however, when the party halted, thus giving the French a mark, the bullets began to fall thick and close, one of the pennants was shot from a lance and the horses began to get restive. “And what if a bullet hit you ?” "Oh, no fear! French bullets are much too polite to do that. Please, please, Herr Rittmeister, give me a pass and a couple of Uhlans! To go away from the seat of war without seeing the enemy would be as bad as to leave Rome without seeing the pope. So please don't refuse" me! You see I have not much time, for I must be back for four o'clock coffee, when my husband will want me.' 66 Really, madame, I am very sorry, but I cannot grant your request. I should never forgive myself if I allowed you to run into such danger." "If you only hesitate on that account, I will absolve you in writing from all responsibility," saying which she took a piece of paper from the table, wrote a few words and handed it back to the Rittmeister. "Here is your warrant," she said, "and if that does not suffice, here also is my pass from the minister, by which you will see that every one is to further my wishes to the utmost." "Of course if you thus insist, I must give in," and without further delay he handed her a pass, told off a sergeant and ten Uhlans as escort, and the whole party were quickly en route to the heights. It was the 30th of August, the sun was streaming down hot and fiercely, and The sergeant rode up, saluted, and said: Frau Baronin, if I remain here a quarter of an hour longer with my Uhlans, I shall not bring back a single man unwounded; for the sight of a Uhlan always makes the French spend a fabulous amount of ammunition." Even as he spoke a bullet grazed his horse's ear, making it bound wildly in the air. "For heaven's sake," cried Madame Lucca, startled, “don't let any one's life be endangered on my account! Pray, gentlemen, turn and ride back as fast as you can, and take my very best thanks to your captain." There was no need to repeat her command. The Uhlans having received instructions to obey the lady in everything, dashed away with lightning speed, and were soon out of sight. Shortly after their departure, the enemy's fire also ceased. Madame Lucca was now able to louk round, and taking advantage of the quiet, went on till she reached one of the fore most sentries. Here she found an old, | piece of that shell to take home in reshot-riddled stump, on which, being rather membrance of this hour." tired, she seated herself, and taking out her glasses was plainly able to see the glistening of the French bayonets at no great distance. The ground between the French and German outposts was literally ploughed up with shot and shell. "A piece of that shell! that you certainly shall have," cried the man, and in a very few minutes he brought back some splinters of the burst shell, which he most politely presented to her, and which Madame Lucca herself triumphantly showed to the writer of this sketch. On her return to Pont-à-Mousson, she heard a soldier remark: "She is bullet The sentry, an old soldier, after gazing for some time in perfect amazement at the unwonted apparition, left his shelter-proof, she must be a witch! ing earthwork, and stepping up to her, In the mean time her husband had said: " Gnädige Frau, what can you want awakened, and was awaiting her with here?" great anxiety. "I have just come to have a nearer view of the battlefield," she answered quite unconcernedly. "Hein! muttered the soldier, “will you please look at the old trunk you are sitting on." "I did that before I sat down." "And what do you suppose has riddled and torn it so?" 66 I suppose the enemy's bullets," she replied composedly. "And, notwithstanding, you sit there?" "Well, if a sofa had been at hand, I should of course have preferred it." This impressed the old man immensely, "Potz! Donnerwetter!" he cried, "if you are so courageous you shall certainly have some plums," saying which he dived into his newly washed bread bag and taking out a small basket of splendid yellow plums, offered them to her. Many thanks, good comrade," she said laughingly, and was about to take one, when the man called out: "A shell stoop." Instead of stooping, however, she only looked curiously round, and asked Where?" At that instant the shell burst within a hundred paces of them. "I should really advise you to with draw now, madame, for the French have evidently seen you," and he hurried her, somewhat unwillingly, behind his earthwork. Here she waited for about a quarter of an hour, but no further shot came. "The Parley-vous seem satisfied," said the soldier, "and I would advise you to make the best of your way back while they are quiet. The bouquets they send us from over there are not composed of carnations and roses." "Yes, I think I have seen enough of war's handiwork," said Madame Lucca, "but before I go I should like to have a "Are you already awake, Männchen?" she cried, entering his room as if only returning from a walk. "But Pauline " - he began in a tone of remonstrance. She quickly interrupted him. "Dear Adolph, you know the doctor said you must not speak much while your tongue is still so swelled. Is it not so, Herr Doctor?" "Yes, yes," he answered laughingly, "but just think, madame, what rejoicing there would have been in Paris, if a telegram such as this had appeared: 'The German barbarians have no longer a Lucca, and the Berlin public have lost their Pauline. We have shot her out of revenge!' "Yes, indeed, Linchen," again began Von Rhaden. " "Hush, Adolph," she interrupted him, "you really will get toothache if you speak so much. Here, Editha, bring in the coffee quickly," and the patient made no further attempt at lecturing, knowing of old, as he said, that "what Paulinchen had once determined on, she always carried through, no matter at what cost to herself." A few days after the battle of Sedan, Lieutenant von Rhaden, carefully bandaged and well wrapped up, started for Berlin, accompanied by his wife and her maid. At Neuendorf, near Mannheim, a Berlin banker asked Madame Lucca what had brought her there in this time of danger, to which she replied: "I have just been to fetch my old man from the seat of war, for I think I shall nurse him better at home than the sisters of mercy could do in the hospital." Four months after these events Madame Lucca became the happy mother of la charming little daughter. From Longman's Magazine. and baggage, hundreds of one and tons of the other. I feel I shall have a difficulty to make myself believed; and certainly LEAVES FROM THE NOTEBOOK OF AN EMI- the scene must have been exceptional, for GRANT BETWEEN NEW YORK AND SAN PART I. it was too dangerous for daily repetition. It was a tight jam; there was no fair way through the mingled mass of brute and MONDAY. It was, if I remember living obstruction. Into the upper skirts rightly, five o'clock when we were all sig of the crowd porters, infuriated by hurry nalled to be present at the Ferry Depôt of and overwork, clove their way with the railroad. An emigrant ship had ar- shouts. I may say that we stood like rived at New York on the Saturday night, sheep, and that the porters charged another on the Sunday morning, our own among us like so many maddened sheepon Sunday afternoon, a fourth early on dogs; and I believe these men were no Monday; and as there is no emigrant longer answerable for their acts. It mattrain on Sunday, a great part of the pas-tered not what they were carrying, they sengers from these four ships was concen- drove straight into the press, and when trated on the train by which I was to they could get no farther, blindly distravel. There was a babel of bewildered men, women, and children. The wretched little booking-office, and the baggageroom, which was not much larger, were crowded thick with emigrants, and were heavy and rank with the atmosphere of dripping clothes. Open carts full of bedding stood by the half hour in the rain. The officials loaded each other with recriminations. A bearded, mildewed little man, whom I take to have been an emigrant agent, was all over the place, his month full of brimstone, blustering and interfering. It was plain that the whole system, if system there was, had utterly broken down under the strain of so many passengers. charged their barrowful. With my own hand, for instance, I saved the life of a child as it sat upon its mother's knee, she sitting on a box; and since I heard of no accident, I must suppose that there were many similar interpositions in the course of the evening. It will give some idea of the state of mind to which we were reduced if I tell you that neither the porter nor the mother of the child paid the least attention to my act. It was not till some time after that I understood what I had done myself, for to ward off heavy boxes seemed at the moment a natural incident of human life. Cold, wet, clamor, dead opposition to progress, such as one encounters in an evil dream, had utterly daunted the spirits. We had accepted this purgatory as a child accepts the conditions of the world. For my part, I shivered a little, and my back ached wearily; but I believe I had neither a hope nor a fear, and all the activities of my nature had become tributary to one massive sensation of discomfort. My own ticket was given me at once, and an oldish man, who preserved his head in the midst of this turmoil, got my baggage registered, and counselled me to stay quietly where I was till he should give me the word to move. I had taken along with me a small valise, a knapsack, which I carried on my shoulders, and in the bag of my railway rug the whole At length, and after how long an interof Bancroft's "History of the United val I hesitate to guess, the crowd began States," in six fat volumes. It was as to move, heavily straining through itself. much as I could carry with convenience About the same time some lamps were even for short distances, but it ensured lighted, and threw a sudden flare over the me plenty of clothing, and the valise was shed. We were being filtered out into at that moment, and often after, useful for the river boat for Jersey City. You may a stool. I am sure I sat for an hour in imagine how slowly this filtering prothe baggage-room, and wretched enough ceeded, through the dense, choking crush, it was; yet, when at last the word was every one overladen with packages or passed to me and I picked up my bundles children, and yet under the necessity of and got under way, it was only to ex-fishing out his ticket by the way; but it change discomfort for downright misery and danger. ended at length for me, and I found myself on deck under a flimsy awning and with a trifle of elbow room to stretch and breathe in. This was on the starboard; for the bulk of the emigrants stuck hopelessly on the port side, by which we had In vain the seamen shouted I followed the porters into a long shed LIVING AGE. |