第 75 节
作者:上访不如上网      更新:2021-02-18 21:08      字数:9322
  umble of cottages and colegarths; on the crown and north slope of the Height; thatched; in part tiled; and built mostly of rough stone blocks; in our time;not of wood; as probably in Friedrich's。 A solid; sluttishly comfortable…looking Village; with pleasant hay…fields; or long narrow hay…stripes (each villager has his stripe); reaching down to the northern levels。 The Church is near the top; Churchyard; and some little space farther; are nearly horizontal ground; till the next Height begins sloping up again towards the woody Hills southward。 The view from this little esplanade atop; still better from the Church belfry; is wide and pretty。 Free on all sides except the south: pleasant Heights and Hollows; of arable; of wood; or pasture; well watered by rushing Brooks; all making northward; direct for Spree (the Berlin Spree); or else into the Lobau Water; which is the first big branch of Spree。
  〃The place is still partly of Wendish speech; the Parson has to preach one half of the Sunday in Wend; the other in German。 Among the Hills to south;〃 well worth noting at present; 〃is one called CZARNABOG; or 'Devil's Hill;' where the Wendish Devil and his Witches (equal to any German on his Blocksberg; or preternatural Bracken of the Harz) hold their annual WITCHES'… SABBATH;a thing not to be contemplated without a shudder by the Wendish mind。 Thereabouts; and close from Hochkirch southward; all is shadowy intricacy of thicket and wild wood。 Northward too from Hochkirch; and all about; I perceive the scene was woodier then than now;and must have looked picturesque enough (had anybody been in quest of that); with the multifarious uniforms; and tented people sprinkled far and wide among the leafy red…and…yellow of October; 1758。〃 'Tourist's Note; September; 1858。'
  In the Village of Wuischke; precisely at the northern base of that shaggy Czarnabog or Devil's Hill; stand Loudon and 3;000 Croats and grenadiers; as the extreme left of Daun's position。 Wuischke is nearly straight south of Hochkirch; so far westward has Loudon pushed forward with his Croats; hidden among the Hills; though Daun's general position lies a good mile to east of Friedrich's:irregularly north and south; both Friedrich and Daun; the former ignorant what Croats and Loudonries; there may be among those Devil's Hills to his right; the latter not ignorant。 Friedrich's right wing; Keith in command of it; stretches to Hochkirch and a little farther: beyond Hochkirch; it has Four flank Battalions in potence form; with proper vedettes and pickets; and above all; with a strong Battery of Twenty Guns; which it maintains on the next Height immediately adjoining Hochkirch; and perceptibly higher than Hochkirch。 This is the finis of Keith on his right; andexcept those vedettes; and pickets of Free…corps people; thrown out a little way ahead into the bushes; on that sideFriedrich's right wing knows nothing of the shaggy elevations horrent with wood; which lie to southward; and merely intends to play its Twenty Cannon upon them; should they give birth to anything。 This is Friedrich's posture on his right or south wing。
  From Hochkirch northward or nearly so; but sprinkled about in all the villages and points of strength; as far up as Drehsa and beyond Drehsa; to near Kotitz; a less important village; Friedrich extends about four miles; centre at Rodewitz; where his own head…quarter is; above two miles north of Hochkirch。 Not far from Rodewitz; but a little to left and ahead; stands his second and best Battery; of Thirty Guns; ready to play upon Lauska; a poor village; and its roadway; should the Austrians try anything there; or from their Stromberg post; which is a good mile behind Lauska。 His strength; in these lines; some count to be only 28;000; or less。 Four or five miles to northeast; in and behind Weissenberg (which we used to know last summer); lies Retzow; with perhaps 10 or 12;000; which will bring him up to 40;000; were they properly joined with him as a left wing。 Daun's force counts 90;000; with Friedrich lying under his nose in this insolent manner。
  Daun's head…quarter; as we said; is Kittlitz; a Village some two miles short of Lobau; in the direction southeast of Friedrich; perhaps five miles to southeast of Rodewitz; Friedrich's lodging。 It is close upon the Bautzen…Zittau Highway; Zittau some twenty miles to south of it; Herrnhuth and the pacific Brethren about half…way thither。 Kittlitz lies more to south than Hochkirch itself; and Daun's outposts; as we saw; circle quite round among those Devil's Hills; and envelop Friedrich's right flank。 But Daun's main force lies chiefly northward; and well to west; of Kittlitz; parallel to Friedrich; and eastward of him; with elaborate intrenchments; every village; brook; bridge; height and bit of good ground; Stromberg to end with; punctually secured。 Obliquely over the Stromberg; holding the Stromberg and certain Villages to southeast and to northwest of it; lies D'Ahremberg; as right wing: about 20;000 he; put into oblique potence; looking into Kotitz; which is Friedrich's extreme left; and in a good measure dividing Friedrich from the Retzow 10;000。 And lastly; as reserve; in front of Reichenbach; eight or nine miles to east of all that; lies the Prince of Baden…Durlach; 25;000 or so; barring Retzow on that side; and all attempts on the Silesian Road there。 Daun's lines; not counting in the southern outposts or Devil's…Hill parties; are considerably longer than Friedrich's; and also considerably deeper。 The two head…quarters are about five miles apart: but the two frontsdivided by a brook and good hollow running here (one of many such; making all for Lobau Water)are not half a mile apart。 Towards Hochkirch and the top of this brook; the opposing posts are quite crammed close on one another; divided only by their hollow。 Many brooks; each with a definite hollow; run tinkling about here; swift but straitened to get out; especially Lobau Water; which receives them all; has to take a quite meandering circling course (through Daun's quarters and beyond them) before it can disembogue in Spree; and decidedly set out for Berlin under that new name。 The Landscapeseen from Hochkirch Village; still better from the Church…steeple which lifts you high above it; and commands all round except to the south; where Friedrich's battery…height quite shuts you in; and hides even those Devil's Hills beyondis cheerful and pretty。 Village belfries; steeples and towers; airy green ridges of heights; and intricate greener valleys: now rather barer than you like。 The Tourist tells me; in Friedrich's time there must have been a great deal more of wood than now。
  WHAT ACTUALLY BEFELL AT HOCHKIRCH (Saturday; 14th October; 1758)。
  Friedrich; for some time;probably ever since Wednesday morning; when he found the Stromberg was not to be his;had decided to be out of this bad post。 In which; clearly enough; nothing was to be done; unless Daun would attempt something else than more and more intrenching and palisading himself。 Friedrich on the second day (Thursday; 12th) rode across to Weissenberg; to give Retzow his directions; and take view of the ground: 〃Saturday night; Herr Retzow; sooner it cannot be 'Friedrich had aimed at Friday night; but finds the Provision…convoy cannot possibly be up'; Saturday night; in all silence; we sweep round out of this;we and you;hurl Baden…Durlach about his business; and are at Schops and Reichenbach; and the Silesian Highway open; next morning; to us!〃 'Tempelhof; ii。 320。' Quietly everything is speeding on towards this consummation; on Friedrich's part。 But on Daun's part there isstarted; I should guess; on the very same Thursdayanother consummation getting ready; which is to fall out on Saturday MORNING; fifteen hours before that other; and entirely supersede that other!
  Keith's opinion; that the Austrians deserve to be hanged if they don't attack us here; is also Loudon's opinion and Lacy's; and indeed everybody's;and at length Daun's own; who determines to try something here; if never before or after。 This plan; all judges admit; was elaborate and good; and was well executed too;Daun himself presiding over the most critical part of the execution。 A plan to have ruined almost any Army; except this Prussian one and the Captain it chanced to have。 A universal camisado; or surprisal of Friedrich in his Camp; before daylight: everybody knows that it took effect (Hochkirch; Saturday; 14th October; 1758; 5 A。M。 of a misty morning); nobody expects of an unassisted fellow…creature much light on so doubly dark a thing。 But the truth is; there are ample accounts; exact; though very chaotic; and the thing; steadily examined; till its essential features extricate themselves from the unessential; proves to be not quite so unintelligible; and nothing like so destructive; overwhelming and ruinous as was supposed。
  Daun's plan is very elaborate; and includes a great many combinations; all his 90;000 to come into it; simultaneously or in succession。 But the first and grandly vital part; mainspring and father to all the rest; is this: That Daun; in person; after nightfall of Friday; shall; with the pick of his force; say 30;000 horse and foot; with all their artilleries and tools; silently quit his now position in front of Hoc