brilliant and active man, had been a strange
failure that day. Not even the terrible din of the king's battle
had roused him to take any measure to support him, or even to make
a diversion in his favour. In vain Mollendorf, an active and
enterprising general, had implored him to attempt something, if
only to draw off a portion of the Austrian strength from the king.
Saldern, another general, had fruitlessly added his voice to that
of Mollendorf.

A feeling of deep gloom spread through the army, a feeling that the
king had been deserted, and must have been crushed; just as, on the
other side, all felt certain that some serious misfortune must have
happened to Ziethen.

At last, as darkness began to set in, at four o'clock, Ziethen was
persuaded to move. He marched towards the left, to the point where
he should have attacked in the morning, but which he had passed in
his hot pursuit of the small Austrian force; but first sent Saldern
against the village of Siptitz.

Burning with their repressed impatience, Saldern's infantry went at
the enemy with a rush, captured the battery there, and drove the
Austrians out; but the latter fired the bridge so that, for the
present, farther advance was barred to the Prussians.

Fortunately at this moment Mollendorf, more to the west, came upon
the road by which Ziethen should have marched. It was carried
firmly over the marsh ground, and by a bridge over a stream between
two of the ponds. Seizing this pass over the morasses, Mollendorf
sent to Ziethen; who, roused at last, ordered all his force to
hurry there.

The Austrians had now taken the alarm, and hurried to oppose the
passage; but Mollendorf had already many troops across the bridge,
and maintained himself till he was sufficiently reinforced to push
forward.

For an hour and a half a desperate fight raged. The Prussians
gained but little ground, while the Austrians were constantly being
reinforced from Lacy's command, on their left. Hulsen, however,
just as he had got a portion of his infantry and cavalry into some
sort of order, had marked the sudden increase of the cannonade on
the other side of the hill; and, presently seeing the glow of a
great fire, guessed that it must come from the village of Siptitz.
Then came a furious cannonade, and the continuous roar of musketry
that spoke of a battle in earnest. Ziethen, then, was coming at
last, and the old general determined to help him.

His own riding horses had all be