oss
the road, and would not let us pass. Here all three corps were obliged
to halt. Major von Benkendorf, together with the Lieutenant-Colonel,
rode up to the Lieutenant who was commanding there; and the Major asked
him what he meant by not letting us pass, and whether this was not a
public road? The Lieutenant answered: 'Yes! it was a high road, but he
had orders not to let us pass. Major Benkendorf might say what he
liked, the Lieutenant would not listen to him.' The Major then took a
letter out of his pocket which he wished to show him; but neither would
he take that. Whereupon the Major said to the Lieutenant: if he would
not let him pass with his people he would force his way.

"The Lieutenant answered shortly, that we might do so, as he had not
sufficient force to prevent him. The Major rode immediately to the
guards, drew his sword, and approached the Lieutenant to see whether he
would consent to treat; but he would not stir from the spot. The Major
asked him once more, whether he would yield up the ground? But he
remained firm. Thereupon the Major gave his orders to the guard: March!
March! and broke through.

"While they were passing, it happened that one of the horses pushed
against the Meiningen Lieutenant and threw him down. But he soon
recovered himself, seized his weapon, and shot the serjeant-major of
the guards, Starke, and then took to flight. A horseman however, whose
name was Staehm, pursued him forthwith, and would have cut his head in
two, but the Lieutenant held his weapon obliquely over his head, so
that the horseman Staehm cut in half the powder sack on the barrel. But
my good old Lieutenant thought he would run further, and sprang over a
ditch, where the horseman might not be able to follow him, and thought
he was now safe. But the grenadier Hellbich fired and shot my old
Lieutenant Zimmermann behind the right ear as he ran, so that he fell
suddenly to the ground, and not a muscle quivered. The militia still
standing there looked on at the game; but the grenadiers fired some
grenades among them, and they then took to their heels and ran away.

"Meanwhile all the streets of the village had been barricaded with
carts and wagons; but the Mayor and the peasants seeing their old
Lieutenant lying dead, whom they had at all times considered as their
bulwark, and observing that some grenades had fallen into their
gardens, were in great terror, and began to ring the alarm bells that
all the peasants m