Mr. Washburne to Mr. Fish
Sir: The past week has been one of great interest. The government issued its order for the rationing of bread on the 18th instant, which is an evidence of the “beginning of the end.” The amount issued is three-fifths of a pound to all, except children under five years of age, who receive one-half of that quantity. This allowance is small, and the quality of the bread issued is very poor indeed. It has only about thirty-one hundredths of flour. The balance is made up of oatmeal and rice, and some say peas and beans form part of this admixture. It is a sad sight to see the long queues at all the bake-shops. One sees posted at all the cafés the notice to their customers that they must bring their bread with them. The mairies are rationing very small quantities of horse-meat, a little rice, beans, peas, and occasionally herring and codfish. The quantity of coffee, sugar, and wine is sufficient for the siege, and can be had at enhanced prices.
The third grand sortie was made on Thursday morning last beyond Mont Valérien, and in the direction of Versailles. The movement was under the direction of General Trochu himself, his third army corps being commanded respectively by Vinoy, Ducrot, and Bellemon. The French appear to have had some, success in the morning, and to have, captured some of the advanced positions of the enemy, but after a bloody fight, continuing nearly all day, they were finally driven from the positions they had captured under the protection of the guns of Mont Valérien. There has been no official statement of the French killed and wounded, and the number of men placed hors du combat.
The number of killed and wounded is variously estimated at from four to eight thousand. I, of course, have no means of judging as to the correctness of any of these estimates.
The attack was not renewed on Friday morning, but on the other hand the troops began coming into the city. The national guard participated largely in this sortie, and it is said that they fought very creditably. The complete failure of the movement, with so great a loss of men, produced a very profound impression in the city on Friday. The feeling became very much intensified toward evening, when the government published a pigeon dispatch stating that Chauzy had been defeated, and had lost two thousand prisoners and twelve guns. The agitation in the evening became intense, particularly in the revolutionary parts of the city, and the clubs were crowded with an exasperated and excited population.
On Saturday the excitement was still greater, and the most violent and revolutionary movements were set on foot in Belleville, La Villette, and Montmartre. Measures having been concocted, on Saturday night the prison of Mazas was attacked and many of the insurrectionists of the 31st October, who were there imprisoned, were set at liberty, and among them Flourens, who was the leader of the émeute of that date. It would seem extraordinary that in a city where there are five hundred thousand soldiers a prison like that of Mazas should have been left to be captured by an insignificant body of men. It is said, however, that the prison was not actually forced, but was opened by the treachery of the director.
On Sunday (yesterday) the Journal Officiel announced that the [Page 289] commandant-in-chief of the army of Paris would henceforth be separated from the presidency of the government; that General Vinoy was made commander-in-chief of the army of Paris; that the title and functions of the government of Paris were suppressed; that General Trochu would be continued as the president of the government. This was considered a half-way measure, and did not seem to give general satisfaction. It was claimed that Trochu had completely lost the public confidence, and that he ought no longer to occupy any position whatever in the government.
During all the day of Saturday, and on Saturday night, arrangements were being made by certain turbulent spirits, and by some battalions of the national guard from Belleville, in addition to attacking Mazas, to make an attack on the government.
Hence, after they had delivered the prisoners from Mazas, they attempted to seize the mairie of the twentieth arrondissement, (which includes Belleville,) and to install themselves there as the headquarters of the insurrection. They remained there long enough to steal all the bread which had been laid aside for the poor. Notices of the invasion, of the mairies having been conveyed to the military commander in that section of the city, he proceeded hither with a few companies of the national guard, and very soon summarily expelled the insurgents.
About 1 o’clock in the afternoon of yesterday crowds of people, including men, women, and children, particularly from Belleville, began flowing toward the Hôtel de Ville, crying “Donnez-nous du pain,” “Nous mourrons de faim” “Vive la Commune!” “A bas Trochu!” After remaining in the great square in front of the Hôtel de Ville for an hour or two the crowd began slowly to disperse. About 3 o’clock. however, a troop of about five hundred men arrived in front of the Hôtel. They marched in order with shouldered arms, and with drums heating the charge. They massed on the sidewalk in front of the hotel, crying “A has Trochu!” “Vive la Commune!” After some parleying shots were fired from the ranks of the mob, and an officer of the garde mobile received three balls and fell seriously wounded upon the sidewalk. Then an indiscriminate firing took place between the mobiles guarding the Hôtel de Ville and the rioters. Some of the insurgents had posted themselves in houses opposite the Hôtel de Ville and directed a fire against the windows of the first story of the building. They also threw out a certain number, of bombs and explosive balls. And now the rappel commenced to beat in the quarters near to the Hôtel de Ville, and soon afterward in other localities. The national guards everywhere rallied with great alacrity to sustain public order, and in a few minutes the insurgents were put ingloriously to flight. The Journal Officiel of this morning says that in this “combat” there have been five persons killed and eighteen wounded. There has since been no further trouble. It was quiet all last night, and the most perfect tranquillity reigns to-day.
Vinoy is fully installed as the commander of the army of Paris, and has issued a soldierly order of the day. His position is one of the most difficult that was ever undertaken by a soldier, and of course it is idle for me to speculate as to the line of action which he will adopt.
The government published yesterday morning a dispatch from Chauzy, dated the 16th of January, which showed that his army was in a very bad position. This news has added still further to the discouragement of the people of Paris, but no whisper of surrender is yet heard. In all of these terrible, circumstances no man talks either of surrender or of peace. The bombardment has so far utterly failed of accomplishing what was its apparent object. This is the nineteenth day, and its effects [Page 290] now are not as great as they have been. The number of killed and wounded cannot exceed three hundred, and the material damage is not very great. No fort has either been or is likely to be taken; and I hold to my opinion that the city will only be taken by famine. It may, however, fall suddenly, and the siege, now extended over four long months, be ended before this dispatch shall reach you. The government seems to have suddenly waked up to an unusual degree of energy. The Journal Officiel of this morning publishes one decree suppressing all the clubs; another decree to facilitate the rapid administration of military justice, and yet another suppressing the red republican journals, Le Réveil and Le Combat.
The number of deaths in the city per week is still increasing. Last week the number reached four thousand four hundred and sixty-five, (4,465,) not counting the deaths in the hospitals, which are estimated for the last week at one thousand.
The weather has moderated very much, and the suffering by cold has been greatly alleviated.
I have, &c.,