WARS and BATTLES
From Ancient Greece - to modern day.

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The duke instantly formed the bold resolution of new himself becoming the assailant and leading his successful though enfeebled army forward, while the disheartening effect of the repulse of the Imperial Guard of the French army was still strong, and before Napoleon and Ney could rally the beaten veterans themselves for another and a fiercer charge. As the close approach of the Prussians now completely protected the duke's left, he had drawn some reserves of horse from that quarter, and he had a brigade of Hussars under Vivian fresh and ready at hand.

Without a moment's hesitation he launched these against the cavalry near La Belle Alliance. The charge was as successful as it was daring; and there was now no hostile cavalry to check the British infantry in a forward movement, the duke gave the long wished-for command for a general advance of the army along the whole line upon the foe.

It was now past eight o'clock, and for nine deadly hours had the British and German regiments stood unflinching under the fire of artillery, the charge of cavalry, and every variety of assault that the compact columns or the scattered trialleurs of the enemy's infantry could inflict.

As they joyously sprang forward against the discomfited masses of the French, the setting sun broke through the clouds which had obscured the sky during the greater part of the day, and glittered on the bayonets of the allies while they in turn poured down the valley and toward the heights that were held by the foe. Almost the whole of the French host was now in irretrievable confusion.

The Prussian army was coming more and more rapidly forward on their right, and the Young Guard, which had held Planchenoit so bravely, was at last compelled to give way. Some regiments of the Old Guard in vain endeavored to form in squares. They were swept away to the rear and then Napoleon himself fled from the last of his many fields, to become in a few weeks a captive and an exile.

The battle was lost by France; past all recovery. The victorious armies of England and Prussia, meeting on the scene of their triumph, continued to press forward and overwhelm every attempt that was made to stem the tide of ruin. The British army, exhausted by its toils and suffering during that dreadful day, did not urge the pursuit beyond the heights which the enemy had occupied.

But the Prussians drove the fugitives before them throughout the night. And of the magnificent host which had that |morning cheered their emperor in confident expectation of victory, I very few were ever assembled again in arms. Their loss, both in the field and in the pursuit, was immense; and the greater number of those who escaped dispersed as soon as they crossed the frontier.

The army under the Duke Wellington lost nearly 15,000 men in killed and wounded on this terrible day of battle. The loss of the Prussian army was nearly 7,000 more. At such a fearful price was the deliverance of Europe purchased.

On closing our survey of this, the last of the Decisive Battles of the World, it is pleasing to contrast the year which it signalized with the one that is now passing over our heads. We have not (and long may we want) the stern excitement of the struggles of war, and we see no captive Standards of our European neighbors brought in triumph to our shrines.

But we witness an infinitely prouder spectacle. We see the banners of every civilized nation waving over the arena of our competition with each other in the arts that minister to our race's support and happiness, and not to its suffering and destruction.

"Peace hath, her victories
No less renowned than war;"

And no battle-field ever witnessed a victory more noble than that which England under her sovereign lady and her royal prince, is now teaching the peoples of the earth to achieve over selfish prejudice and international feuds, in the great cause of the general promotion of industry and welfare of mankind.

Waterloo