CHAPTER XXIII. JENA AND AUERSTAeDT.
"He has forgotten me!" said I, half aloud, as I watched the retiringfigures of the Emperor and his staff till they were concealed by themist; "he has forgotten me! Now to find out my brigade. A great battleis before us, and there may still be a way to refresh his memory." Withsuch thoughts I set forward in the direction of the picket-fires, fullsure that I should meet some skirmishers of our cavalry there.
As I went, the drums were beating towards the distant left, andgradually the sounds crept nearer and nearer, as the infantry battalionsbegan to form and collect their stragglers. A dense fog seemed to shutout the dawn, and with a thin and misty rain, the heavy vapor settleddown upon the earth, wrapping all things in a darkness deep as nightitself. From none could I learn any intelligence of the cavalry quarter,nor had any of those I questioned seen horsemen pass near them.
"The voltigeurs in the valley yonder may perhaps tell you something,"said an officer to me, pointing to some fires in a deep glen beneath us.And thither I now bent my steps.
The dull rolling of the drums gradually swelled into one continued roar,through which the clank of steel and the tremulous tramp of marchingcolumns could be heard. Spirit-stirring echoes were they, theseawakening sounds of coming conflict! and how they nerved my heart, andset it bounding again with a soldier's ardor! As I descended the hill,the noise became gradually fainter, till at length I found myself in anarrow ravine, still and silent as the grave itself. The transition wasso sudden and unexpected, that for a moment I felt a sense of lonelinessand depression; and the thought struck me, "What if I have pushed on toofar? Can it be that I have passed our lines? But the officer spoke ofthe voltigeurs in front; I had seen the fires myself; there could be nodoubt about it." I now increased my speed, and in less than half an hourgained a spot where the ground became more open and extended in front,and not more than a few hundred paces in advance were the watchfires;and as I looked I heard the swell of a number of voices singing inchorus on different sides of me. The effect was most singular, for thesounds came from various quarters at the same instant, and, as theyall chanted the same air, the refrain rang out and filled the valley;beating time with their feet, they stepped to the tune, and formedthemselves to the melody, as though it were the band of the regiment. Ihad often heard that this was a voltigeur habit, but never was witnessto it before. The air was one well known in that suburb of Paris whencethe wildest and most reckless of our soldiers came, and which they alljoined in celebrating in this rude verse:--
"Picardy first, and then Champagne,-- France to the battle! on boys, on! Anjou, Brittany, and Maine,-- Hurrah for the Faubourg of St. Antoine I
"How pleasant the life of a voltigeur! In the van of the fight he must ever be; Of roughing and rations he 's always sure,-- With a comrade's share he may well make free.
"Picardy first, and then Champagne,-- France to the battle I on boys, on! Anjou, Brittany, and Maine,-- Hurrah for the Faubourg of St. Antoine!
"The great guns thunder on yonder hill,-- Closer than that they durst not go; But the voltigeur comes nearer still,-- With his bayonet fixed he meets the foe.
"The hussar's coat is slashed with gold; He rides an Arab courser fleet: But is the voltigeur less bold Who meets his enemy on his feet?
"The cuirassier is clad in steel; His massive sword is straight and strong: But the voltigeur can charge and wheel With a step,--his bayonet is just as long.
"The artillery-driver must halt his team If the current be fast or the water deep: But the voltigeur can swim the stream, And climb the bank, be it e'er so steep.
"The voltigeur needs no trumpet sound,-- No bugle has he to cheer him on: Where the fire is hottest, that 's his ground,-- Hurrah for the Faubourg of St. Antoine!"
As they came to the conclusion of this song, they kept up the airwithout words, imitating by their voices the roll of the drum inmarching time. Joining the first party I came up with, I asked theofficer in what direction of the field I should find the cuirassierbrigade.
"That I can't tell you, Comrade," said he. "No cavalry have appeared inour neighborhood, nor are they likely; for all the ground is cut up andintersected so much they could not act. But our maitre d'armes is thefellow to tell you. Halloo, Francois! come up here for a moment."
Before I could ask whether this was not my old antagonist at Elchingen,the individual himself appeared.
"Eh, what?" cried he, as he lifted a piece of firewood from the ground,and stared me in the face by its light. "Not my friend Burke, eh? ByJove! so it is."
Our cordial greetings being over, I asked Maitre Francois if he couldgive me any intelligence of D'Auvergne's division, or put me in the wayto reach them.
"They're some miles off by this time," said he, coolly. "When I wasbelow the Plateau de Jena last night, that brigade you speak ofgot their orders to push forward to Auerstadt, to support Davoust'sinfantry. I mind it well, for they were sorely tired, and had justpicketed their horses, when the orderly came down with the despatch."
"And where does Auerstadt lie?"
"About four leagues to the other side of that tall mountain yonder."
"What, then, shall I do? I am dismounted, to begin with."
"And if you were not, if you had the best horse in the whole brigade,what would it serve you now, except to pass the day riding between twobattle-fields, and see nothing of either? for we shall have hot workhere, depend upon it. No, no; stay with us. Be a voltigeur for to-day,and we 'll show you something you 'll not see from your bearskinsaddle."
"But I shall be in a sad scrape on account of my absence."
"Never mind that; the man that takes his turn with the voltigeurs of theTwenty-second won't be suspected of skulking. And here comes the major;report yourself to him at once."
Without waiting for any reply, Maitre Francois accosted the officer inquestion, and in a very few words explained my position.
"Nothing could come better timed," said the major. "One of ours has beensent with despatches to the rear, and we may not see him for some hours.Again, a light cavalryman must know how to skirmish, and we 'll try yourskill that way. Come along with me."
"To our next meeting, then," cried Francois, as I hurried on after themajor; whilst once more the voltigeur ranks burst forth in full chorus,and the merry sounds filled the valley.
I followed the major down a somewhat steep and rugged path, at the footof which, and concealed by a low copse-wood, was a party consisting oftwo companies of the regiment, who formed the most advanced pickets, andwere destined to exchange the first shots with the enemy.
Before us lay a defile, partly overgrown with trees on either side,which ascended by a gradual slope to the foot of the hill on which thePrussian infantry was stationed, and whose lines were tracked out by along train of watch-fires. A farmhouse and its out-buildings occupiedthe side of the hill about half-way up; and this was garrisoned by theenemy, and defended by two guns in position in the defile. To surprisethe post and hold it until the main columns came up, was the objectof the voltigeur attack; and for this purpose small bodies of men wereassembling secretly and stealthily under cover of the brushwood, toburst forth on the word being given.
There was something which surprised me not a little in the way all thesemovements were effected. Officers and men were mixed up, as it seemed,in perfect confusion; not approaching in regular order, or taking upa position like disciplined troops, they came in twos and threes,crouching and creeping, and suddenly concealing themselves at everyopportunity of cover the ground afforded.
Their noiseless and cautious gestures brought to my mind all that Ihad ever read of Indian warfare; and in their eager faces, and quick,piercing looks, I thought I could recognize the very traits of the redmen. The commands were given by sig
nals; and so rapidly interchangedwere they from party to party, that the different groups seemed to moveforward by one impulse, though the officer who led them was full a miledistant from where we were.
"Can you use a firelock, comrade?" said the major, as he placed in myhand a short musket, such as the voltigeurs carried. "Sling it at yourback; you may find it useful up yonder. And now I must leave you; keepto this party. But what is this? You mustn't wear that shako; you'd soonbe picked off with that tower of black fur on your head. Corporal,have you no spare foraging-cap in your kit? Ah! that's somethingmore becoming a tirailleur; and, by Jove! I think it improves youwonderfully."
The circumstance of becomingness was not exactly uppermost in my mindat the moment; but certainly I felt no small gratification at beingprovided with the equipment both of cap and firearms which placed me onan equality with those about me.
Scarcely had the major left us, when the corporal crept closely tomy side, and with that mingled respect and familiarity a Frenchsous-officier assumes so naturally, said,--
"You wished to see something of a skirmish, Captain, I suppose? Well,you're like enough to be gratified; we're closing up rapidly now."
"What may be the strength of your battalion, Corporal?"
"Twelve hundred men, sir; and they're every one at this instant in thevalley, though I'll wager you don't see a bough move nor a leaf stirringto show where they lie hid. You see that low copse yonder; well, there'sa company of ours beneath its shelter. But there goes the word to moveon."
A motion with his sword, the only command he gave, communicated theorder; and the men, creeping stealthily on, obeyed the mandate, till atanother signal they were halted.
From the little copse of brushwood where we now lay, to the farmhouse,the ground was completely open,--not a shrub nor a bush grew; a slightascent of the road led up to the gate, which could not be more thanthree hundred paces in front of us. We were stationed at some distanceto the right of the road, but the field presented no obstacle orimpediment to our attack; and thither now were our looks turned,--theshort road which would lead to victory or the grave.
From my ambush I could see the two fieldpieces which commanded the road,and beside which the artillerymen stood in patient attention. With whata strange thrill I watched one of the party, as from time to timehe stooped down to blow the fuse beside the gun, and then seemedendeavoring to peer into the valley, where all was still and noiseless!As well as I could judge, our little party was nearest to the front; andalthough a small clump to the left of the road offered a safe shelterstill nearer the enemy, I could not ascertain if it were occupied.
Not a word was now spoken. All save the corporal looked eagerly towardsthe enemy; he was watching for the signal, and knelt down with his drawnsword at his side. The deathlike stillness of the moment, so unlike theprelude to every movement in cavalry combat; the painful expectationwhich made minutes like years themselves; the small number of the party,so dissimilar to the closely crowded squadrons I was used to; but,more than all, the want of a horse,--that most stirring of all theexcitements to heroism and daring,--unnerved me; and if my heart wereto have been interrogated, I sadly fear it would have brought littlecorroboration to the song of the voltigeurs, which attributed so manyfeatures of superiority to their arm of the service above the rest ofthe army.
A thousand and thousand times did I wish to be at the head of a cavalrycharge up that narrow road in face of those guns; ay, though themitraille should sweep the earth, there was that in the onward torrentof the horseman's course that left no room for fear. But this cold andstealthy approach, this weary watching, I could not bear.
"See, see," whispered the corporal, as he pointed with his fingertowards the clump to the left of the road, "how beautifully done! theregoes another."
As he spoke, I could perceive the dark shadow of something moving closeto the ground, and finally concealing itself in the brushwood, beneathwhich now above twenty men lay hid. At the same instant a deep rollingsound like far-off thunder was heard; and then louder still, but lessdeep in volume, the rattling crash of musketry. At first the dischargeswere more prolonged, and succeeded one another more rapidly; butgradually the firing became less regular; then after an interval swelledmore fully again, and once more relaxed.
"Listen!" said the corporal; "can't you hear the cheering? There again;the skirmishers are falling back,--the fire is too heavy for them."
"Which, the Prussians?"
"To be sure, the Prussians. Hark! there was a volley; that was notirailleur discharge; the columns are advancing. Down, men, down!"whispered he, as, excited by the sounds of musketry, some three or fourpopped up their heads to listen. At the same instant a noise in frontdrew our attention to that quarter; and we now saw that a party of horseartillerymen were descending the road with a light eight-pounder gun,which they were proceeding to place in position on a small knoll ofground about eighty yards from the coppice I have mentioned.
"How I could pick off that fellow on the gray horse," whispered asoldier beside me to his comrade.
"And bring the whole fire on us afterwards," said the other.
"What can we be waiting for?" said the corporal, impatiently. "They aremaking that place as strong as a fortress; and there, see if that is nota reinforcement!"
While he spoke, the heavy tramp of men marching announced the approachof fresh troops; and by the bustle and noise within the farmhouse it wasclear the preparations for its defence were making with all the activitythe exigency demanded.
It was past seven o'clock; but as the day broke more out, the heavyfog increased, and soon grew so dense as to shut out from our viewthe Prussian picket and the guns upon the road. Meanwhile the firingcontinued at a distance, but, as it seemed, fainter than before.
"Ha! there it comes now," said the corporal, as a shrill whistle washeard to our left. "Look to your pieces, men! steady." There was apause; every ear was bent to listen, every breath drawn short, whenagain he spoke. "That 's it. _En avant_, lads! _en avant!_"
With the word he sprang forward, but still crouching, he went as if thethick mist were not enough to conceal him. The men followed their leaderwith cautious steps, their carbines in hand and bayonets fixed. For someminutes we ascended the hill, gradually nearing the road, along which alow bank offered a slight protection against fire.
The corporal halted here for a second or two, when another whistle, sofaint as to be scarcely audible, was borne on the air. With a motion ofhis hand forwards he gave the order to advance, and led the way alongthe roadside.
As we followed in single file, I found myself next the corporal, whoseevery motion I watched with an intensity of interest I cannot convey. Atlast he stopped and wheeled round; then, kneeling down, he levelled hispiece upon the low bank,--a movement quickly followed by all the restwho in silence obeyed his signal.
Directly in front of us now, and as it seemed not above a dozen yardsdistant, the yellow glare of the artillery fuse could be dimly discernedthrough the mist; thither every eye was bent and every musket pointed.Thus we knelt with beating hearts, when suddenly several shots rang outfrom the valley and the opposite side of the road; as quickly replied toby the enemy, and a smart but irregular clattering of musketry followed.
"Now," cried the corporal, aloud, "now, and all together!"
And then with one long, stunning report, every gun was discharged, and awild cry of the wounded blended with the sounds as we cleared the fenceand dashed at the guns.
"Down, men, down!" called our leader, as we jumped into the road. Theword was scarce uttered when a bright flash gleamed forth, a loud bangsucceeded, and we heard the grapeshot crushing down the valley andtearing its way through the leaves and branches of the brushwood.
"_En avant_, lads! now's your time!" cried the corporal, as he sprang tohis feet and led towards the gun.
With one vigorous dash we pushed up the height, just as the cannoneerswere preparing to load. The gunners fell back, and a party of infantryas quickly presented
themselves.
The mist happily concealed the smallness of our force, otherwise thePrussians might have crushed us at once. For a second there was a pause;then both sides fired, an irregular volley was discharged, and themuskets were lowered to the charge. What must have been the fate of ourlittle party now there could be no doubt; when suddenly, through theblue smoke which yet lingered near the guns, the bright gleaming ofbayonets was seen to flash, while the loud _vivas_ of our own soldiersrent the air.
So rapid was the rush, and so thronging did they come, it seemed as ifthe very ground had given them up. With a cry of "Forward!" on we went;the enemy retired and fell back behind the cover of the road, where theykept up a tremendous fire upon the gun, to which now all our effortswere directed, to turn against the walls of the farmhouse.
The mist by this was cleared away, and we were exposed to the shatteringfire which was maintained not only along the road, but from every windowand crevice in the walls of the farmhouse. Our men fell fast,--severalbadly wounded; for the distance was less than half musket-range, even tothe farthest.
"The bayonet, men! the bayonet! Leave the gun, and sweep the road ofthose fellows yonder!" said the major, as, vaulting over the fence, heled the way himself.
We were now reinforced, and numbered fully four companies; so that ourattack soon drove in the enemy, who retreated, still firing, within thecourtyard around the farmhouse.
"Bring up the gun, lads, and we 'll soon breach them," said the major.But, unhappily, the party to whom it was committed, being annoyed at theservice which kept them back when their companions were advancing, hadhurled the piece off its carriage, and rolled it down the mountain.
With a muttered _sacre_ on their stupidity, the officer cried out toscale the walls. If honor and rank and wealth had lain on the oppositeside, and not death and agony, they could not have obeyed with morealacrity. Raised on one another's shoulders, the brave fellows mountedthe wall; but it was only to fall back again into their comrades' arms,dead or mortally wounded. Still they pressed on: a reckless defiance ofdanger had shut out every other thought; and their cheers grew wilderand fiercer as the fire told upon them, while the shouts of triumph fromthose within stimulated them to the verge of madness.
"Stand back, men! stand back!" called the major; "down! I say."
As he spoke, a dead silence followed; the men retreated behind the coverof the fence, and lay down flat with their faces to the ground. A low,hissing noise was then heard; and then, with a clap like thunder, thestrong gate was rent into fragments and scattered in blazing piecesabout the field. The crash of the petard was answered by a cheer wild asa war-whoop, and onward the infuriated soldiers poured through thestill burning timbers. And now began a scene of carnage which only ahand-to-hand encounter can ever produce. From every door and window thePrussians maintained a deadly fire: but the onward tide of victory waswith us, and we poured down upon them with the bayonet; and as nonegave, none asked for, quarter, the work of death was speedy. To thewild shouts of battle, the crash, the din, the tumult of the fight, adropping irregular fire succeeded; and then came the low, wailing criesof the wounded, the groans of the dying, and all was over! We were thevictors; but what a victory! The garden was strewn with our dead;the hall, the stairs, every room was covered with bodies of our bravefellows, their rugged faces even sterner than in life.
For some minutes it seemed as though our emotions had unnerved us all,as we stood speechless, gazing on the fearful scene of bloodshed; whenthe low rolling of drums, heard from the mountain side, startled everylistener.
"The Prussians! the Prussians!" called out three or four voicestogether.
"No, no!" shouted Francois; "I was too long a tambour not to know thatbeat; they 're our fellows."
The drums rolled fuller and louder; and soon the head of a columnappeared peering over the ascent of the road. The sun shone brightly ontheir gay uniforms and glancing arms, and the tall and showily-dressedtambour-major stepped in advance with the proud bearing of a conqueror.
"Form, men, and to the front!" said the major of the voltigeurs, whoknew that his place was in the advance, and felt a noble pride that hehad won it bravely.
As the column came up the road, the voltigeurs, scattered along the roadon either side, advanced at a run. But no longer was there any obstacleto their course; no enemy presented themselves in sight, and we mountedthe ascent without a single shot being fired.
As I stopped for time to recover breath, I could not help turning tobehold the valley, which, now filled with armed men, was a grand anda gorgeous sight. In long columns of attack they came, the artilleryfilling the interspaces between them. A brilliant sunlight shone out;and I could distinguish the different brigades, with whose colors I wasnow familiar. Still my eye ranged over the field in search of cavalry,the arm I loved above all others,--that which, more than all the rest,revived the heroic spirit of the chivalrous ages, and made the horsemanfeel the ancient ardor of the belted knight. But none were within sight.Indeed, the very nature of the ground offered an obstacle to theirmovement, and I saw that here, as at Austerlitz, the day was for theinfantry.
Meanwhile we toiled up the height, and at length reached the crest ofthe ridge. And then burst forth a sight such as all the grandeur Ihad ever beheld of war had never presented the equal to. On a vasttableland, slightly undulating on the surface, was drawn up the wholePrussian army in battle array,--a splendid force of nigh thirty thousandinfantry, flanked by ten thousand sabres, the finest cavalry in Europe.By some inconceivable error of tactics, they had offered no otherresistance to the French ascent of the mountain than the skirmishingtroops, which fell back as we came on; and even now they seemed to waitpatiently for the enemy to form before the conflict should begin. As ourcolumns crowned the hill they instantly deployed, to cover the advanceof those who followed: but the precaution seemed needless; for, exceptat the extreme left, where we heard the firing before, the Prussian armynever moved a man, nor showed any disposition to attack.
It was now nine o'clock; the sky clear and cloudless, and a brightautumnal day permitted the eye to range for miles on every side. ThePrussian army, but forty thousand strong, was drawn up in the form ofan arch, presenting the convexity to our front; while our troops, ninetythousand in number, overlapped them on either flank, and extended farbeyond them.
The battle began by the advance of the French columns and the retreatof the enemy,--both movements being accomplished without a shot beingfired, and the whole seeming the manoeuvres of a field-day.
At length, as the Prussians took up the position they intended tohold, their guns were seen moving to the front; squadrons of cavalrydisengaged themselves from behind the infantry masses; and then atremendous tire opened from the whole line. Our troops advanced _entirailleurs_,--that is, whole regiments thrown out in skirmishingorder,--which, when pressed, fell back, and permitted the columns toappear.
The division to which I found myself attached received orders to moveobliquely across the plain, in the direction of some cottages, which Isoon heard was the village of Vierzehn Heiligen, and the centre of thePrussian position. A galling fire of artillery played upon the columnas it went; and before we accomplished half the distance, our loss wasconsiderable. More than once, too, the cry of "cavalry!" was heard; andquick as the warning itself, we were thrown into square, to receive theimpetuous horsemen, who came madly on to the charge. Ney himself stoodin the squares, animating the men by his presence, and cheering them atevery volley they poured in.
"Yonder, men! yonder is the centre of their position," said he, pointingto the village, which now bristled with armed men, several guns upona height beyond it commanding the approach, and a cloud of cavalryhovering near, to pounce down upon those who might be daring enough toassail it. A wild cheer answered his words: both general and soldiersunderstood each other well.
In two columns of attack the division was formed; and then the word"Forward!" was given. "Orderly time, men!" said General Dorsenne, whocommanded that with wh
ich I was; and, obedient to the order, the ranksmoved as if on parade.
And now let me mention a circumstance, which, though trivial initself, presents a feature of the peculiar character of courage whichdistinguished the French officer in battle. As the line advanced, thefire of the Prussian battery, which by this had found out our range mostaccurately, opened severely on us, but more particularly on the left;and as the men fell fast, and the grapeshot tore through the ranks, awavering of the line took place, and in several places a broken frontwas presented. Dorsenne saw it at once, and placing himself in front ofthe advance, with his back towards the enemy, he called out, as if onparade, "Close order--close order! Move up there--left, right--left,right!" And so did he retire step by step, marking the time withhis sword, while the shot flew past and about him, and the earth wasscattered by the torrent of the grapeshot. Courage like this would seemto give a charmed life, for while death was dealing fast around him, henever received a wound.
The village was attacked at the bayonet point, and at the charge theenemy received us. So long as their artillery could continue its fire,our loss was fearful; but once within shelter of the walls and close inwith the Prussian ranks, the firing ceased, and the struggle was hand tohand. Twice did we win our way up the ascent; twice were we beaten back.Strong reinforcements were coming up to the enemy's aid; when aloud rolling of the drums and a hoarse cheer from behind revived ourspirits,--it was Lannes's division advancing at a run. They opened topermit our retiring masses to re-form behind them, and then rushed on. Acrash of musketry rang out, and through the smoke the glancing bayonetsflashed and the red flame danced wildly.
"En avant! en avant!" burst from every man, as, maddened withexcitement, we plunged into the fray. Like a vast torrent tumblingfrom some mountain gorge, the column poured on, overwhelming all beforeit,--now struggling for a moment, as some obstacle delayed, but couldnot arrest, its march; now rushing headlong, it swept along. The villagewas won; the Prussians fell back. Their guns opened fiercely on us, andcavalry tore past, sabring all who sought not shelter within the walls:but the post was ours, the key of their position was in our hands; andNey sent three messengers one after the other to the Emperor to let himknow the result, and enable him to push forward and attack the Prussiancentre.
Suddenly a wild cry was heard from the little street of the village: thehouses were in flames. The Prussians had thrown in heated shells, andthe wooden roofs of the cottages caught up the fire. For an instant allbecame, as it were, panic-struck, and a confused movement of retreat wasbegun: but the next moment order was restored; the sappers scaled thewalls of the burning houses, and with their axes severed the timbers,and suffered the blazing mass to fall within the buildings.
But by this time the Prussians had re-formed their columns, and oncemore advanced to the attack. The moment was in their favor: the disorderof our ranks, and the sudden fear inspired by an unlooked-for dangerstill continued, when they came on. Then, indeed, began a scene ofbloodshed the most horrible to witness: through the narrow streets,within the gardens, the houses themselves, the combatants fought handto hand; neither would give way; neither knew on which side lay theirsupporting columns. It was the terrible carnage of deadly animosity onboth sides.
Meanwhile the flames burst forth anew, and amid the crackling of theburning timbers and the dense smoke of the lighted thatch, the fightwent on.
"Vandamme! Vandamme!" cried several voices, in ecstasy; "here come thegrenadiers!" And, true enough, the tall shakos peered through the bluecloud.
"Hurrah for the Faubourg!" shouted a wild voltigeur, as he waved his capand sprang forward. "Let us not lose the glory now, boys!"
The appeal was not made in vain. From every window and doorway the menleaped down into the street, and rushed at the Prussian column, whichwas advancing at the charge. Suddenly the column opened, a rushingsound was heard, and down with the speed of lightning rode a squadronof cuirassiers. Over us they tore, sabring as they went, nor halted tillthe head of Vandamme's column poured in a volley. Then wheeling, theygalloped back, trampling on our wounded, and dealing death with theirbroadswords.
As for me, a sabre-cut in the head had stunned me; and while I leanedfor support against the wall of a house, a horseman tore past, and withone vigorous cut he cleft open my shoulder. I staggered back and fell,covered with bloody upon the door-sill. I saw our column pass on,cheering, and heard the wild cry, "En avant I en avant!" swelling froma thousand voices; and then, faint and exhausted, my senses reeled, andthe rest was like an indistinct dream.