ses and riders rolled upon the earth.
Masterless steeds dashed wildly in every direction, revolvers snapped,
sword-blades clashed, the horses uttered short, harsh screams, the
Frenchmen fought amid oaths and exclamations, the Germans, with
clinched teeth, dealt blows around them, swords were buried in the
bodies of enemies, without their owners clearly seeing what they were
doing, single pairs of foes, hacking furiously at each other, were
suddenly separated by a movement of their horses and brought in front
of new antagonists, only to find themselves the next moment again in a
dense throng, thigh pressing against thigh, arms firmly pinioned,
panting into each other's faces, while the rearing horses tried to bite
one another. This frenzied medley lasted perhaps two, perhaps three,
minutes. In spite of the irregular swaying to and fro of the mass, the
dragoons had constantly advanced, and now the cuirassiers suddenly
wheeled their horses and, bending low in their saddles, dashed off in a
stretching gallop. An exultant "Hurrah!" burst like a peal of thunder
from the breasts of the terribly excited dragoons, and their steeds,
with the blood dripping from their torn flanks, their chests covered
with flakes of foam, continued their victorious race, while on the
field behind lay hundreds of French and Germans, dead and wounded.

Signals, shouts, and the waving of sabres gradually slackened the
onward rush of the conquerors and brought them to a halt on the brink
of a narrow stream. It seemed to Prince Louis like waking from a
dream, as he patted the neck of his gallant horse and, panting for
breath, gazed around him. On the opposite side batteries were seen
moving rapidly away, the remnants of the cuirassier regiment were
following the artillery, and in the distance, on both sides, columns of
infantry were hurrying back, not without pouring upon the dragoons,
during the retreat, an irregular and ineffective fire.

"Strange," said a very young lieutenant beside the prince, showing him
his sword, "half the blade is covered with blood, and cannot have
received the stain except in a Frenchman's body. Yet I cannot recall
how it happened."

Prince Louis was about to answer, when he suddenly received a
tremendous thrust in the breast, as if dealt by the hand of an
invisible giant or the tip of a bull's horn, and, with a low cry, he
pressed his hand upon the painful spot. He withdrew it stained with
blood, and could just gr