The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1872-02-25
The Murder Of the Hostages.

The Murder Of the Hostaees
One of the most exciting scenes ever
witnessed in a court of justice occurred On
Monday morning at Versailles, at the OMEN
ing of the last of the protracted sittines of
the court martial appointed to trv the
twenty-three prisoners charged with the
murder Of the hostages. The prosecution
had hitherto insisted that the prisoner
Pigerre, though he did not give the word
Fire" which was given by Captain verig.
already executed, commanded tue firing
party when it marched into the prison
Five of the prisoners in the dock positively
declared that Pigerre was the man. Two
or three witnesses felt every sure" he was,
and one witness, NJ. Chevrillot, whom the
table, because he had offered himself to be-
shot in place of q Jesuit priest, swore that
from window of the prison he saw Pigerre
in command. Pigerre was considered by
the Judge-Advocate as the principal pris-
oner, as the one who more than any other
shocking murder of the Archbishop of
Paris, President Bopjean, and the other
hostages. The inquest upon Pigerre's
beard, showing that mis- cheeks were capa-
BILE of growing whiskers, was considered
conclusive on the matter, and up to Satur-
day night it was taken for granted at YER
sailles that Pigerre told lies when he said
he had never worn whskers. But on Sat-
urday a man named Sicard, who, it was
asserted on that day by the new witness
Jarrault, was the person for whom Pigerre
had been mistaken, was arrested. and on
Monday morning Sicard appeared to give
evidence. He is apparently in dying
state, and was brought into court supported
by two policemen, who placed him in an
arm chair ON the platform, close to and
just in front of the seat of the President.
Sicard admitted having been in the Ro-
nn To ~ <ho rns
form of captain of the staff of the Com
munal army. But he represented that he
had got there by himself, and not in any
sort of command, and that when he heard
the hostages were to be executed he wrote
a letter of remonstrance to Ferre, with
whom he was very intimate, protestingl
against the projected atrocity, and saying
he was too good Republican to wish toll
soil the Republican flag. The President
repeated several times that the Court had
nothing to do with the guilt or innocence
of Sicard. The only object in producing
him was to ascertain whether there had
been q confusion between him and PigerreI
The likeness between Sicard aud PIgerre
was most extraordinary. They had the
same sallow complexion, the same black
hair, the same black and rather ferocieus
eyes, the same angular nose, the same hol-
low cheeks, the same sort of black beard,
the same apparent age,and the same height
and size. Waiter, the prison lamplighter,
who had accused Pigerre, at once said,
when he saw Sicard, that he had been mis-
taken, and that Sicard was the mau. Vat
| tier, a convicted thief, who wonderfully re-
sembles the great thieves advocate, N.
Lachaud, and has precisely his squint,
pointed, with gesture quite worthy of his
prototype, to Sicard as the man he meant
when he had mistakingly accused Pigerre.
The other prisoners did not choose to re-
tract what they had said, and either per-
sistently maintained their former deposit
tons or said they were not quite sure. Byt
the Judge Advocate, Rustant, said that for
his own part, he would not persist in an
accusation against man whom he believed
to be falsely accused and he called upon
the Court to consider the charge against
Pigerre as "effaced." There was not the
slightest indication of any satisfaction in
the lmmovable features of Pigerre when he
heard these words, which must have struck
him as the reversal of the sentence Of
death. The reason, perhaps, is that hs ia
already condemned to transportation 10 .
fortified place, and is shortly to be tried
again for his life on another charge relating
to events of May %, his philosophy having
probably risen to a sphere above visible
emotions. There was very powerful and
persistent element of mercy in this court
martial. Francois, the Governor of La
Roquette Prison. who had given up the
hostages for execution, and whom it was
thought would certainly be shot, has OBJ
tanned extenuating circumstances by ma
jority de faceur, and, therefore, is only SEN
fenced to Imprisonment with hard labor for
life. The merciful members of the Court
considered that he was but a servant of the
Commune, who had obeyed orders which
subordinate might regard as legal. His
second in command, Ramain, is let of with
ten years, and an other gaoler of La Roquette
Plcon, an old soldier wearing the So!terino
medal, with i've years imprisonment. Sew
eIal were enteuced to tram portation. Four
men and two women were acquitted. The
only individual in the whole batch cast for
death is Genton, who brought to the prison
the order for the execution, and even he did
not take part in the actual commission OF
the deed. Among the ''murderers of the
hostages there is not one membe of the
firing party yet discovered.-Abrldged from
The Daily Neps Special Correspondence.
ga New DEPARTURE has of late become
threadbare by it's REPETITION leaving that worn track
Elder, of I24 Camp street. announces to-day new
arrival" of those elegant German Chromos, whose
beauty cheapness ELECTED general admiration and
astonishment their first appearance early this win