The Idaho world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1864-1918, 1871-05-11
IDAHO CITY, THURSDAY. MAY II, 1871.
VERY LATE JUSTICE.

very coudenseu form O long ana interesting
chain OF facts, are at once illustrative of tn,
occasional fatal results of circumstantial evi
dence, and OF that tardy justice which seeks Il
right matters when the victim is in the tomb
In the year l76l there resided at Toulouse
and old man of "a named Jean Colas, and wht
for some forty years had been respectable
shopkeeper in the town. His family, like him
self, were Protestants, with the exception o
the third son, Lewis, who had been converted
to the Roman Catholic religion through the
zeal of an old female servant, who still lives in
the family. The Oldest son, Marc Antoine, was
of gloomy disposition, yet possessed of great
ability, but he was much disheartened by be.
ing excluded, through the intolerant laws OF
the time, from practicing as barrister (avO.
cat), he being Protestant. Debarred thus
from following his INCLINATION, he was obliged
to fill the post of assistant to his father, whilst
he amused himself in his leisure hours with
cards and billiards. One evening in the year
above mentioned young man named La
Naysse, who had been absent for some time
from his native town, called on the Colas family,
and was pressed by Mare Antione and his
father to remain to supper. The party consisted
alone of the family and this stranger, but
Mare, who had invited him, appeared more
than usually depressed, ate little, and abruptly
quilted the company, entering the kitchen for
u few minutes before he passed out. The old
servant inquired il he WAS coldl ION the con.
trary," he replied, II AIN burning" The sup
per party imagined that he had gone out TO his
usual haunt, the billiard-room. and therefore
gave themselves little concern about him. AT
last the visitor, La Naysse, rose to depart, and
a younger brother, Pierre Colas followed with
II light 10 show him the way TO the door On
arriving there they found the shop.door open,
and an entering TO ascertain the cause were
horrihed at finding Marc Colas suspended from
one of the folding doors which communicated
between the shop aud warehouse behind. A
cry of Consideration brought down stairs the
father aud his wife, but La Vaysse placing
himself between them prevented their ad-
vancing further, and the body was cut down
without their interfering in any way. The lam
of the houshold had meantime
reached the surrounding neighborhood, and a
crowd soon gathered by the news that Mare
Antoine bad persisted in mysterious manner,
for the Colas family, very lmprudently for
had agreed 10 conceal the cause
Of death. owing 10 the feeling of infamy which
then attained 10 n case OF suicide. Two mag.
lstrates speedily arrived 10 examine into the
case. the multitude still increasing round the
house, and expressing their opinions on the
eveut, when a voice was suddenly heard to ex-
Antoine has been murdered by
his father because he intended TO become n
Catholic" BY one OF the impulses which con-
iinues 10 occur in popular connections, the
dea at once took root in the mind of the crowd.
and the magistrates themselves being carried
away with the same feeling an order was
given for the arrest of the whole ofthe Colas fam
ly / n nd ha al la
fant who had some time before the death OF Mare
leased to reside with bis father The body OF
Mare Antoine received, under this belief, the
Ionors due to a martyr and was inferred with
he utmost pomp in the Cathedral of st Ste
lhen, crowd of some twenty thousand persons
the procession, IN which an im.
posing array of priests and monks strove to
with all the impressiveness of the
20mish church. the obsequles of aman who had
ever regarded their faith with abhorrence. In
he meantime, the unhappy Colas family were
reated with great cruelty. The aged Jean
Jolas was repeatedly tortured to extort con.
eSSion, but in vain; aud a similar result at
ended all attempts to terrify the other accused
parties into an admission of guilt. The trial
IT the old man shortly came on before the par
lament of Toulouse, and Notwithstanding the |
Ibsolute imposslbility of man at his time of
lfe strangling young and vigorous man in |
he neighborhood OF public thoroughfare, and
he total absence of any evidence TO support the |
harge, the blind stolidity of the judges and
heir fanaticism, induced them to find him
uilty, and sentence of death was pronounced
gainst him. AT length the cruel sentence was
arried out although, despite all the continued
ttempts to weaken the poor old mans forti.
ude, he continued to maintain his innocence
f the crime imputed to him. He suffered
lingering DEATH by having his bones first broken
With an iron bar and then being stretched on
Wheel. He died. maintaining his innocence
With his last breath, rejecting firmly all the
Who attended him on the scaffod. The other
nembers of the family were afterwards
rought to trial and committed, though Pierre
,olas was banished on the charge of an offense
gainst religion. During the last century,
ews Travelled slowly, and consequently it was
OF till some time after that the news of this
errible execution was brought to Voltaire. ut
'erney. by traveller from Toulouse to Geneva.
he philosopher was horror-struck, and formed
once the resolve to leave no stone unturned
,r the establishment of the innocence of the
olas family Through d'Alember, and other
lends in Paris, he caused representations of
ie case to be made to the king and his minis
,rs. He also supplied the widow with money
convey her to the capital as witness for
he re-establishing of her husbands innocence.
t length his arduous efforts were successful,
lie decision of the Toulouse parliament was
sversed, and on the 9th of March, 1765, ex-
,tly three years from C0las' death, the tribu- !
al which had condemned him, pronounced q .