We had great
difficulties to remain together.
"After an hour's march all came to a halt; we found ourselves before a
veritable sea of men. The wagons could not be drawn over a hill on account
of the ice, and the road became hopelessly blockaded. Here it was where the
military treasure of 12 million francs was given to the soldiers."
Von Brandt describes his most wonderful adventures on the way to Kowno
which, although most interesting, add nothing to what has already been
described. I gave this foregoing part of von Brandt's narration because it
gives a most vivid picture of the life of the soldiers during the supreme
moments of the retreat from Moscow.
PRISONERS OF WAR
Beaupre was taken prisoner at the passage of the Beresina and remained in
captivity for some time. His lot as a prisoner of war was an exceptionally
good one. He tells us that prisoners when they were out of such parts of
the country as had been ravaged by the armies, received regular rations of
a very good quality, and were lodged by eight, ten, and twelve, with the
peasants. In the provincial capitals, they received furs of sheep skin, fur
bonnets, gloves, and coarse woolen stockings, a sort of dress that appeared
to them grotesque as well as novel, but which was very precious as a
protection against the cold during the winter. When arrived at the places
in which they were to pass the time of their captivity they found their lot
ameliorated, and the reception accorded to them demanded a grateful eulogy
of the hospitality exercised by the Russians.
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