ARCHIBALD FORBES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVIII, Issue 6099, 4 June 1881, Page 7

ARCHIBALD FORBES.

[ntOM THE "AUCiKLASD WEEKLY ">!EWS.;"I The following .sketeh; of -the", career of Mr. ' * Archibald Forbes, the world-renowned war correspondent of , the Daily News,-was prepared, and the accompanying portrait engraved, in anticipation of his proposed visit to the Australasian Colonies, r But his health ■ having failed on his reaching San Francisco, his medical advisers forbade his proceeding, and it is probable he will therefore return to England. We, however, present them: to our'readers, ■ feeling assured that , they , will • prove interesting, the sketch being w'ellwrittcn, arid treating of-matters of recent occurrence, and the portrait life-like and characteristic. • • 'VVe have much pleasure in presenting our readers with a, portrait of one of the most notable " war correspondents" of the day. Indeed, it is doubtful if any gentleman could be named who has .been more devoted to: his calling, who has shared in more momentous z events, who has travelled further in the cause ' of the Press to all-parts of the fjlobe, arid risked his life more on: the'battlefield in; his desire to furnisli 'the earliest information of - stirring passing events than' Mr. Archibald . ■ Forbes.- ! ' 1 ' • U-■>■■■' - : c:-j . While at the University - of Aberdeen, where he was placed to eompletehis education, his; father,-a: Presbyterian Doctor of Divinity, dropped dead iii his piilpit.'■ There ■ being nine children arid but little fortune, Archibald, who already panted for a more exciting life, threw aside his books, deserted v.. the University, and after a wild-goose trip to Canada, whence he returned penniless) he sold a fine, field.-glass, and with' the money went to London, enlisted with.the fuoyal Dragoons, became a " rough" rider". ari4 bon- ; commissioned officer,;and after-five years obtained his discharge. • '• • • - : > : Daring thesVfive" years Mr. Forbes showed considerable literary abilities,jlevoting all his leisure ••time - 'to, writing"lor 'the , -Magazine and St. 1 Paul's Magazirie arid'other ~ periodicals. Finding his articles so -well re < ■ ceived ilythe London editors, 1 and as rem'une-: ■ ration began'-to.increase ! 'he;threw.-aaidej the -sword for-the-pen,-":obfeiiied-his;-discharge; •jnai-ked '" _ jujd v 't3ien" launched'on Sie . sea of journalism,;-,,: After,striving hard for a little time on -various works, 'he' started^a ;, paper-caned'the : London Scotsman,; . intended, like every other newspaper, tj) fill, an aching*void."' "It "failing he accepted the post of i war correspondent o£the Morning t.i Advertiser dunng-'-the-early period o£ .the. Franco-Germnn-nroT- j Having studied Uerman ractics,- ucqimeiji ~ ■ slight; kn6wledgetbf;thß German,language and feeling'Vure thatthe Geririari'eagle woulc win, the ex-soldier-editor went aireijt, Saarbrilck, and! witnessed the •" Baptism ; o: fire," on' August 2, 1870. It is straiigej thai he should have,t)eheld the defeat at Sedaii| seen Louis Napoleon dead at Chislehursif, and his son dead in Africa. Present at the battles of Courcelles, -Vionville, and Forbes,advanced; with the Germans to Paris'. Forbes was undetfire theientire day, and'the next morning witnessed-Napoleon'ssurrender to Bismarck."™— j .Forbes,was thpfirst non-combatant' to ride roimd Paris city "wad J eitireiy invested,- tingatMeaux progress 6F the environment,' lie'receweil' qrdera to return ; ho'me} '•>' Fbr&s reached LondonViri : three?, days,nsole;<ipossessorii,of/nnfornktion - concerniiig;Freiich plans,;ahd- determined,■'if possible, 1 to' 0 sell': 'nis ; 'knowledge. As the Times turned a "deaf ear to. his application, tossed|"Bdd r man out'.',toVwhiclijof ihe'threo pagers—3saily ; - - lTelegraplfc*he _go with his copy: .The Daily News won_ the toss. 'He.foiiml favour at last} aridlwa!s r tbld • to ,TOfoteL-six columns add arranged for'anotb'erparticle to, appear tHe day siEter;'" but wfien^he'' presented- his s'econd : . r-. manuscript the'manager. said,J.',ldon'tjtlunkivo want ; it.?, 3 , Jhe',ton&greatly irritated' the .- already politdy requested Mr. Robinson " to go to- the devil, 1 ': and then;pro9M<lecV'to"g?r 'himself. - Chasing:the i manager finally overtook and calmell Him by the magic announcement, " I want you lo go, to<Metz td-riight for us;" Clt>vasfour i'clbekin the*afternoons rForbes-left; three! hours later. l.fe.-.'W sn'/r . jf ; ■At yvMetz/ -Forbes to tionize vra.r correspondence' by living oh fore- :' posts, witnessing every fight,- and mibstltutingfor curt telegrams.qf :bare < r ac£s, long descriptive letters telegraphed in : full. It whs the ■ "wettest autumn on record,"arid fyphoiijl /ever and his constant companions.During a Forbes received a flesh .wound • in the leg/vvhicH.eontinued open for months, but which.'did'not force him to leave the front. For these'six "vf eeksr he did not 'sleep'! , in a bed'except on occasional visits to the telegraphic .'base' at: Saarbrttck.' Before the capitulatioii' ; wa3*effected,"he "was the first to • enter Mete, ,-and,;i informally - joining the , sanitary 2vbiunte'era,' he devoted himself to • the. removal bfsickand : wounded,2ooo of j As the most infectious'disordersri-elgned, includiiig the ' rare ' type "of -fibuiy, styphus, .whichjhad to be By constant, never removing,':his - . his_mouth a |sponge saturated with vinegar, hemanag^*ijo keep bnhisleg3,"but"was fiiially ordere'd to-Eng--land, lest, by, .stay in"sb* foul an atmosjphere, amputation'should become neces---aaiy;- Onjreaching London,,-Forbes showed his disabled "legato -Mr;;,-Robinson/ who 1 rfemarked with a shudder,As a I say you ought to'"lay up for six months. As 'r a' newspaper mana£(erj »I' wish/.you f would - stairt for the sieg;e of Paris to,-night." jForbes v started immediately,, and.his.leg got well. Daring the siege Forbes wrote letters in full,which ;,were :sent to an agent ;on the ■ frontier,who;telegraphed;them-to London.r . ... This feat.excitecf*gfbat .stiiprise'.among the -S : ,Geimahs; ; Forbes 'had permission from the CrowniPririce & : 'ielegraph only; : short-messages; :fraiO ithe officesjjvith his ; army'."-One Say-a'Forbes'telegram appeared ; - ■. dated;'at- a s .place 'where-there no tele- '''; graph ' office. ' i!: it'' wa3 :'rep6rted:;to | Prince George of :SaxQny!s, »tafT by a'jealous cdrre'si--pondent. That same night, Forbes dined ' ' with this staff;; and/was asked to' explain thia ''.I incpmprehen^ble';'.!; , .he j replied,., f "jestingly, f.'l iave niy bw'private wire, and shall telegraph from' here directly." j Jiriowi orates'" Haft ; 'beMi;gyett'';at' Prince George's . office, to receive no telegram 'that :; •: night- from him, -Forbes quietly wrote a letter directed to'his frontier agent, and put it in. . ;■ V -thejosti'. -' The'riext day .it .was f telegraphed to London, copies of 'tHe Daily News . were sent to Prince George with Mr. Forbes's . compliments. l i r '. i ! Pending th 6" capitulation of Paris, in , Febntaty, _:IS7I, some fifty journalists f.. waited hungrily" to enter on, the ■ side of i-; Versailles. Forbes arranged to enter by the jfp' i north, through' St; Denis,- and"accomplished : his purpose on' horseback; dressed as a Prussian, and- was, .in Vcbrisequeiice; very "' .nearly killed by :a drunken National Guard.' ]... After walking about dark® streets ail night, . Forbes, who .had stabled, his. torse ,Svithout *' leave,:rode :to' yiheennes, where,he 'passed ': ll& the Prussian lines| '■ -He then galloped fifteen, rjlv ' miles to' L'agny,, the the jGermari -• railroad systemjiwhich'hp.reaclie'diri time to .. . catch tlie trainifor:Germany,:.but killed his i-^So«ir£orse'in,,lfi T ellefibrt."Oiv ! went ,tlie. war - • libiirs; without' . Stopping. .'. Reaching' Carlsruhe at two o'clock the mornirigj'-'he-iriade his way to the ...telegraph-office, where the two girls m charge refusctl to take a. Ibug telegram until day set ■■■;. , ln *. ..Coaxing ana bribery, however, accom- ■ plished his purpose. At eight o'clock . the' ,: - despatch wasr-finished- which-gave! the first details of :th^ c ,interior of Paris that bad . reached Eng':an<T_for. a .week Taking the next train, to Paris, Forbes entered the Hotel' Chatham on L'the''niorning of the third day igggfter his departurei'Und was roundly .chaffed. 0 .delay ,by t-vro journalists who had *-/ auc their' feelings ,: °n reading hsthe" Jto^'^WVS.''"After witnessing the Forbes • on' t vfrS® the German troops "if J^3^ >3 >^s®rag r cordon and th toVvn still in French j ; by c the mob as a Ger- ' ' Vi?? a r, s Py* l Veiistiec],'' in whicli Forbes's ;r shouted the rooV-who'threw him on the- : :HiP°und and proceeded to -drag himiovbr 'thc : Guard 1 y ;- was taken to a 1 r#rPolic6:station, -and brought before! a maris- 1 .M t ,trate whoso sister spoke English,? and who' 'i iii :te3tified her bblief in Forbes's representations i j. a-Oa started | for Eng- i aud_wote'bis accouit'of .the'entrance .< n;;; into'.Paris beforeihei had was'tie'd' the blood-. : stains from-his-head and hands. | . ; On retnrmng ' 1 .: Ijiist as the 1 1 Commune ,was, coUapiirigj entered gate, '"and the same rebelled Dombrowski in Chateau ;; ; j^La- .Mnetto.While: dining,- tlie - report SjWcame that-the Versaillists:.had fprced the Porte, do la Muette. .'Desperate fighting during wliich Dombrowski, ,who Sf:-ladmounted .<a wall, was'.-wouiided, arid v ' nto Forbes's arms. The* next morning. ?i-. ;-rPrbe3 was "requisitioned" by the Com {"J ®onists to aid in erecting a barricade across 1

■ Rue Rivoli, and again, later in the clay, to defend an indefensible position, the defenders Ol which, promptly disappeared. Some hours after, Forbes stood behind shelter in Rue La Fayette, and watched the Vcrsaillists take the Grand Opera House. Unable to communicate with England, Forbes got out! of Paris with great difficulty, and bore to London the news that Paris was in flames. He returned to the distracted city in time' to witness the final downfall of the Communards in the slums of Bellevue and in Pdre la Chaise. After this Forbes visited Spain, was four months bush-whacking with the Carlists; afterwards Bengal in 1874, where he received a sunstroke, from which he lay insensible for two days. In 1875 he went with the Prince of Wales through India. There life was made up pf pageants that unrolled themselves like gorgeous panoramas. April, 1876, found Forbes again in England, but the breaking out of the Servian war caused him to join the Russian General who undertook to organise the Servian militia, and accomplished wonders. More tban one narrow escape from capture and death served to keep Forbes on the alert,- while .life in camp was' curious enough. Forbes brought to Belgrade the tidings of the Servian collapse, having on this occasion seen a,battle that lasted nine hours', travelled "by post 150 miles, and telegraphed four columns to;the Daily-News m'thirty-four hours. In .the spring of 1877 Forbes joined the Russian army in the campaign against the Turks. Sole English correspondent present ! at the murderous and disastrous Russian assault on Plevna, in July, 1877, Forbes was decorated' with the order of Stanislaus for intrepidity in rescuing the Russian wounded. By desperately riding his horse to death, Forbes' rwched:Bucharest—a 'dis'tatice of 100: miles—the day after the-battle, and telegraphed eight columns of description, which- appeared in : the 'Daily News of the following morning. Foi\ 'si:;ty ; hours he underwent: continuous physicjr-1 and mental •exertion,;almost• without foM; and. entirely without sleep. 1 'Again, having! witnessed the fight at Shipka Pass, arid being Convinced that the Ruasiansxould'hold their position, "Forbes" quitted the'ecene of eombat at six .'o'clock in; the 1 evening, on return' journey to and, riding, all night, reached the imperial head-quartera - the :■ next morning, having outstripped : the' 'Russian couriers; Emperor,-'who.was anxious an&r'cafe-worn,; and very shabbily dressed, Forbes gave- him all the information at his command, and was warmly thanked for his promptitude'; At the conclusion of the fi% r e days' attack on Plevna, Forbes, shattered by exposure, fatigue, and fever, abandoned the field, and nearly died at Bucharest, i ' ' In the summer oft 1878, -Fqrbes -went ;with Sir Garnet Wolseley.".-to take possession - of thut pestiferous iaiaiiel, Cyprus, and,! like : everybody else, fell a victim to fever. Never, 'theless, he contrived .to be at Simla, in the Himalayas, shortly before,the outbreak of the > Afghan war, and at his o\vn~peril carried the first j announcing success. ' The shSrt,telegram sent to the Daily News; bore _of-ten; oVlock:"a.ni.-j"; Ten minutes before ten papers containing his. dispatch were sold in Fleet-street.'. This 'curious fact was due,' Of course, to the five: hours'sifference in time between Asia and'Englandi>.-.-ri j ( (li; Hit^ng , - i 4aten'. ! hiS''-CSi , istmas ;'dinner at Jelallabad; Forbes'departed'for Burniah, in- « tending, to interview Young Thebau,: tlie|noble : lord of the White of the - .&c. ( t &c., who' had! then " just' attained t& thronei .'|.On his'way Jdoivn'the Irrawaddy,, Forbes read the telegram yhich recduhtGd,oe"disaster of Isantlula, and, ■ in 'an hour later received . the curt order, '' Go and'do the Zulu warvf -He had a .vague- - i Motion thaVthe' Zulus : lived in "South J and : a geographieal friend in Rangoon told him: ' that Durban. was. the .Beaport -to make for. So!for-X)urban he across India, ( from Calcutta to-Bahore, from Lahore ;down , the lu'dus to Kurrac'lieeJ from Kurrachce, by, ) tp 'Aden. from' Ade by steam to Zaiizi- ■ bar, and frpm'Zarizihai- again by steami down ( the Bputh-eastern coast to Port Durban. ( Discovering: at Uliindi that Lord' Chelmsford 1 was dispatching-no immediate courier, the • 'started at sundown from.,.j :the / frontier,rrode alone..througU'a'trackless country, swarming-wth^Zuh^, and .reached i the telegraph-wire, a-'distam/erof-110 miles, in j ,15 hours, .whence ie earliest account j oLthe victory to ;well las ito Sir , Garnet;;Wolseley ; and .i Sir i Bartie ; I'rere. i Anxious to give verbal-details to-Sir Garnet,-: . ForbescontinuedJris ridertaPetermaritzburg,' j 170 miles further, on, which he accomplished' in.3o hours—.*Thisfamous ride, during:which' he had only three hours of sleep, caused his ; leg,* which had never entirely healed; to give hinifresh trouble, 1 and-necessitated bis return' to England.: . t '

This is but a meagre outline of .Archibald Forbes' career—a true war correspondent, who'sc'ems to sniff a battle afar off, and who considers a -complicated technical battle the moat supreme, .and—elevated, enjoyment of which" the hiiman inind is "capable.