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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume VI, Issue 34, 9 February 1871, Page 4

A Prussian correspondent writes us : — As regards the general character of the wounds it may be said that those inflicted by the French balls are vastly more dangerous than those of our own. The ball of the needle gun, being long and conical shaped, tends to separate the tissues, and the wound, in consequence, shows a better tendency to heal. The chassepot bullets, being round shaped, tear the tissues, and, driven by" a great mass of powder, they break and crack the bonea in their path.

Tbe same is the effect of $pc mitrailleuse and au enormous amount of serious ; wounds is caused by the Freuch tnctics of • greeting an enemy with a hailstorm g of lead. The spots of ground from which i the French fired are at once known by ' their being covered with cartridges. Our army, composed of Hessian, Saxon, and Prussian regiments, lost on the 18th Aui gust 20,000 killed and wouuded, and the French are said to have lost 10,000 men, so that this murderous battle involved a loss of 30,000 men. The scene on the battle-field on the following day was most terrible — heaps of dead covering the ground. The corps charged with performing the office of grave-diggers had hard work for three days. Our disposal tion of medical and sanitary arrangements proved to be very g<#d, for no wou&ded men remained for any length of time upon the ground without aid. — Lancet.