Orangeburg news and times. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1875-1877, 1875-07-31

W IhS "oui' A'ul I'LL NY IclIioiSIrinCcS
and applications for its suppression
were trpitlcss. | must now turn back
and relate n circumstance which oc-
Cured five years before this revival Of
n custom that threw dishonor on a
civilized land. I was then student
OF law, and attending the lectures at
the Sorbonnc. One day, on issuing
with n number of my companions from
the scene of our studies, q young girl
met me on the stairs of the Sorbonnc,
threw her arms around my neck and
called me her brother 1t was Fran
coisc, my foster sister. Her mother,
my good nurse, Lad died, and Fran
coisc had come all the way from Mon
tclcan to Paris, ajourncy oftwenty
lcngucs, and across The SHOW, to see
inc and to claim my love. She did not
ask in vain; [ became indeed broth
er to her, established her in my house
and gave her m education which
fostcred into strength all her naturally
noble qualities. This occurred, have
said, some years before the revival Of
the torture. That torture, as have
also said, [ struggled in vain to sup
press, believing it, and, also seeing it,
to be the scourge Of innocence, and
attended ever with crnelty and III
justice. But my voice and my in
flucncc were cxcrted to no purpose.
at this epoch ] was robbed. car
ried my complaint before the public
prosecutor-who was my friend and
fellow official. The article stolen was
a snuff-box, set with diamonds and Of
great value, both because Of its rich
ness and because it had been my
fathers. The public prosecutor first
searched my own house, and it Was not
necessary to go further, for there the
HaA was conccr1ed in---ttfte tte.irpqpqls: irpp)s IF aG
Franceisc, my foster sister, At thi.
part OF the presidents recital there
wns II general movement ofsurprisc
nHfong Mime. dc HacqueviIlc's guests.
The president himsclfappcarcd much
affected by rccollcctions called IN
i'll his mind. Hc continued "Fran
colsc, my foster sister, she who had come
over tho snow from Montercali, was
dragged before thcjudges, my collca.
gucs, who relying, they said, upon my
impartiality, caused nc TO preside
over them as usual. Francoise at first
denied all, declaring her ignorance Of
the robbery and anything connected
with it, and calling upon me to rccol-
lect her mother, Mon,ercau, tile snow
she had travcrscd to embrace nc on
the steps of the Sorbonnc, and our
having fed OH the same breast. In
prosecution of my duty l ordered The
torture to be applied. The arm OF
Francoise was hured and the terrible
Instrument was applied to her hand.
Francoisc shrickcd at the contest; and
oh, those cries! md that look fixed
upon me! a sword has passed through
me, but that look pierced me more
kcenly. AS the torture proceeded
Francoise cried less and less. Tie oilici.
ais crushed, according to custom, finger
aflcr finger, untiltho whole hand was
bruised. Friends" said the president
at this part Of his story, "Francoisc
was innocent. / kncwit. 1t was |
who had placed the box in tic trunk
OF the minded girl. in order to
make her be tried and condemned |"
Horror pcrvaelcd the minds of,ludame
&c liacqucvillc's party on hearing this
shocking confession, but the president,
after passing his hands over his eyes,
continued in Lrok en voice: "Frau-
coisc at length avowcd herself tho
author Of tho theft, and faintcd, CRYING
that | was her foster brother, md that
she had come across the snow to en-
brace nc upon the stairs of the Sor-
bonne. Friends" continued the prcsi-
dent, "thc suflcrings to which that iu-
nocent girl was subjected, through my
instrumentality, had the object in
view OF freeing the land from dread
ful evil, and sacrifice had the effect
which WnS ftn ON IAl,,tnI NALL IL