Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1868-10-07


ON popular prejudices, he succeeded in
obtaining an order to have further litiga-
tion transferred to AK.
Meanwhile. M. de Caille, the father, on
the 1st of January, 100, sent his power
of attorney to the Procureur of Parliament
of Province, with full instructions to prose-
cute the impostor, who, if guilty, would be
liable to capital punishment To these he
added full judicial report, drawn up at
Lausanne and Nevay, respecting the life.
the illness and the death of his son. The
certificate of death, legalized by the French
Ambassador in Switzerland, was not ad-
mitted as proof by the Toulon Judge, the
only proof received in France being an ex-
tract from the register of burials. Now,
at that time, it was not usual to keep reg
listers of burials in Switzerland This alb
surb and penantic refusal had afterward
its influence.
The Marine gained his point in being
permitted to work upon popular passion
and credulity. He was taken to Monos-
que, to Caille, and to Rougon his journey
was one long triumph. He made his entry
into those places between ranks Of enthnsi-
astic gossips who had made up their minds
to receive him as the young De Caille. He
himself recognized several Of the people
present, addressing them by name, and re-
calling circumstances of their childhood.
He gazed at the houses attentively, inquir-
ing the reason of alterations that had been
made during his absence. Evidently he
had prepared his ground His secret visit
to Manosque should not be forgotten, nor
his correct knowledge of the outside of bull
dings, together with his complete ignorance
Of their interior.
Throughout the long, long, legal contro-
versy which followed, attempts were re-
peatedly made to gain over public opinion
by exciting It's fanaticism. For instance,
in circular letter sent to the clergy, we
find * You are entreated to have prayers
in your church in behalf of NJ de Calle, a
gentleman of Provence, disavowed by his
father for having embraced the Catholic
religion. This is an affair of
religion, and the cause of God himself
At last on the 18th of July, 1906, six
years after its first hearing of the case, and
after fifty audiences dispersed over those
six years, the Court of AK pronounced the
following strange judgment
1t dismissed the demands Of LIE Gouehe,
Tardivi and Consorts; it declared the said
Entrevergues to be the yeritable Isaac lie
Brun de Castellane, the son of Scipion lie
Brun de Castellane, Sieur de Caille and de
Rougon, and of Judith lie Gouche. his
father and mother. 1t adjudged him all
their goods and heritages, with restitution
Of the fruits thereof from the 10th of De-
cember, 1902, with damages, to be assess
ed by experts. 1t allowed proceedings to
be taken against the Sieur ROLAND (Advo-
cate-G eneral to the Parlement Of Grenoble)
and Consorts, for subornation of witnesses,
calumny, and corruption of domestics and
it condemned the said lie Gouche, Tardivi
and Consorts to all the costs.
The motives which led the Judges of AK
to this decision seemed to be first, that it
was useless to waste their time over the
proofs Of the death of man whom they
had alive and well before their eyes Sec
ondly, that they ought to give the b2eqss6ftt
already in possession of the disputed indi-
thirdly, that two witnesses in
he affirmative ought to be preferred to a
thousand witnesses in the negative. What
specimen of sophism and of begging the
question to exhibit at the close of the /
Faunted age Of Louis XIV
The AK judgment had not yet gone
orth to the world, and NJ de Boyer /
l'Aguille, WHO was charged with its execu-
ion, had rot yet received his formal
when the coarse impostor for
whom the Parliament,of Provence had Just |
its honor, hastened to put his .
Judges to shame by multiplied proofs both |
If his folly and his infamy. At the very
BEGINNING of August, AK was surprised /
With the news that the new Isaac de Caille .
vas to marry Mile. Serry, of Toulon. Now
'erry, the young lady's mother, was cousin
german to Nj. de Nilleneuve, one of the
AK judges, and nearly related to the above
FAMED NJ. de Boyer d'Aguille the reporter
# the case. This circumstance explained
he whole proceeding. If the insolvent,
Pierre Mege, had been able to meet the
eavy expenses Of the lawsuit for nearly
even years, it was because NJ. Serry had
upplied the funds, and his relations in the
'arlement of Provence had guaranteed the
ssue.
The marriage of the person whom we
7ill still call the Marine was celebrated
rith suspicious haste, NJ. Serry having OBJ
aimed dispensation exempting them from
he publication of banns On the day
hen the marriage contract was signed the
Iarine gave MS father-in-law a claim on
is property for the sum of eighteen thou
and livres. Once in possession, the false
)e Caille pillaged, dissipated and sold the
thus wrested from the Hollands I
nd the Tardivis He turned everything (
ITO money, even the contents Of the bee
ives. Nor did he forget to pay the cred
ors of that poor fellow, Pierre Mege, to l
HON he was under such obligations. {
The first effect of this unexpected mar
iage was to call forth the claims of the
larine's old accomplice, La Niolette, the
arpenter At the outset of his career,
My supporters, he had promised the car
enter to marry his sister-in-law, Toulon
daughter, and to provide for
is family The banns had even been pub
shed, but the Marine, while under
oud, had been obliged to defer the pro-
ct, land the favored of the Parliament of
rovence remembered to forget it. y still
raver fault was his conduct at Manosque.
L spite of his fine promises, he lost no
me in expelling from the mansion there
le poor inmates and the Sisters of La
harite. He had also the upstart vanity,
hich must have greatly disgusted his
have his portrait engraved
ith the legend in capitals, " Isaac LIE
run de Castellane, Seigneur De Caille ct
e Rougon, age de 81 ans en- 17O7." 10
lis were appended half dozen lines of
oggerel: