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[ 1.] les Croates, soldiers from Croatia, a part of the Austrian Empire (1793) east of Venice and touching the east coast the Adriatic.
[ 2.] ventre à terre, descriptive of an animal running at full speed.
[ 3.] se repliaient, in its military sense this expression means to fall back in good order.
[ 4.] sur trois rangs, three lines (of soldiers) deep.
[ 5.] encore, implies a comparison between Fritzel's fear and curiosity; his fear was great, but his curiosity was greater still (encore).
[ 6.] le temps de regarder, not grammatically with the rest of the sentence. It is equivalent to a time clause; there was merely time to, etc.
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[ 1.] Forvertz, French spelling of the German word Vorwarts (forward), a cry of encouragement uttered by the Croats.
[ 2.] feux de peloton, volleys fired by the soldiers as a body at command.--feux de file, shots fired by the soldiers without system, each shooting as he pleased.
[ 3.] coup de pointe (point of his sword), thrust of his sword.
[ 4.] pour ainsi dire, so to speak.