Shortly before 7 o’clock the French general rides back towards Sedan in the twilight, accompanied by an officer and a uhlan trumpeter carrying a white flag. The town is now in flames in three places, and the lurid columns of smoke that rise from Bazeilles shows it to be still burning. The tragedy of Sedan is over, and night lets down the curtain. There might be an epilogue on the following day, but for the present every one returned home. The King went back to Vendresse, the Chief, Count Bismarck-Bohlen and I drove to the little town of Donchery, where it was quite dark when we arrived. We put up at the house of a Dr. Jeanjot. The town was full of Würtemberg soldiers, who were camped in the market-place. Our reason for coming here was that an arrangement had been made according to which the Chancellor and Moltke were this evening to meet the French plenipotentiary to try to settle the conditions of the capitulation of the four French army corps now confined in Sedan. I slept here in an alcove near the back room on the first floor, with only the wall between me and the Minister, who had the large front room. Towards 6 o’clock in the morning I was awakened by hasty footsteps, and heard Engel say: “Excellency, Excellency, there is a French general at the door. I cannot understand what he wants.” The Minister would appear to have got up hurriedly and spoken a few words to the French officer, who turned out to be General Reille. The consequence was that he dressed immediately, and without waiting either for breakfast or to have his clothes brushed, mounted his horse and rode rapidly off. I rushed to his window to see in what direction he went. I saw him trot off towards the market-place. In the room everything was lying about in disorder. On the floor lay the “_Täglich Losungen und Lehrtexte der Brüdergemeinde für 1870_” (Daily Watchwords and Texts of the Moravian Brethren for 1870), and on the toilette stand was another manual of devotion, “_Die tägliche Erquickung für gläubige Christen_” (Daily Spiritual Refreshment for Believing Christians), which Engel told me the Chancellor was accustomed to read at night.