The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1875-05-20
. Extorted Confessions.
Thrilling story of the Abolition OF
Torture in France


you have seen in past times" "Of
what epoch, madame ?" asked the presi-
dent. ''for there are three in my
life the first of my presidentship, the
second of my exile, and the third of my
soldiership."
"Ten us a story of your first era
your presidentship.
AT an early period of life," said he,
"I Twas appointed president of one OF
the highest courts of France. The rank
of my family, it must be admitted, was
the chief cause of my being elevated to
that high situation, though without van
| ity I may say that 1 had distinguished
myself in my studies more than most of
my young contemporaries. Placed near
the summit of society by the Office
which I filed, I strove upon entering on
| it to mitigate the rigor of the laws
which it was my duty to Put in force.
| These laws were at the time barbarouslv
severe and although the execution of
| them was often softened, the edicts still
remained, a disgrace to our national
| code, and judges had it in their power,
if they so willed, to push them to ex-
| tremity. The most cruel of the laws to
which allnde was the edict permitting
/ the question, or torture, to be applied
edict, up to 178-, formed part OF our
national code. This Particular remnant
! of barbariSm was seldom put in prac-
| tice but others, not so openly savage.
| perhaps, were frequently put in force,
and these 1 strove, as I have said. to
mitigate. had colleagues, however,
| who neither concurred with me in opin-
| ion or practice, and who accused me- of
| seeking popularity at the expense of my
duty. AS l would not yield to them,
nor alter my conduct, I acquired their
| deepest dislike, and they endeavored.
| by concerning among themselves. to
thwart me in every possible way.
| They seemed to grow more and
more severe every day and as it was
my. duty to pronounce the DEGREES
| which they formed, whatever these de-
crees were, the unpopularity consequent
upon them fell principally upon me. At
last, as contamination to their sever
| lty, they decreed the revival of the tor
ture in certain branches OF the criminal
law, and 1 was obliged to submit to
their wishes and announce the revival
of the cruel practice from nv seat of
Office. did not sit down tamely and
see this barbarity put in force, which
shocked me to the soul. But all nv
remonstrances and applications for its
| suppression were fruitless. I must
now turn back and relate a circum-
stance which occurred five years before
| this revival of a custom that threw dis
honor on a civilized land. I was then
a student of law, and attending the
| lectures ct the Sorbonne. One day. on
issuing with number of nv com
panlons from the scene ofFour studies.
a young girl met me on the stairs of
the SorbOnne, threw her arms around
my neck and called me 'her brother. ,
IL was FRANCHISE, my foster sister.
Her mother, my good nurse, had died,
and FRANCHISE had come all the way
from Montereau to Paris, a journey Of
twenty leagues, and across the snow. to
see me and to claim my love, She did
not ask in vain I became indeed q
brother to her, established her in nv
house and gave her an education which
iostered into s rength all her naturally
noble qualities. This occurred, I have
said, some years before the revival of
the torture. That rture, as 1 have
also said, struggled in vain to sup
press, believing it, and, alas seeing it.
TO be the scourge of innocence, and at
tended ever with cruelty and Injustice.
Bnt my voice and my influence were
| exerted to no purpose. At this epoch
l was robbed. I carried nv COMPLAINT
before the public prosecutor-who was
my friend and fellow official. The ar
tlcle stolen was snEf-box, set with
diamonds and of great value, both be-
! cause of it's richness and because it had
been my fathers. The public prosecu-
tor first searched my own house, and it
was not necessary to go further, for
| there the box was concealed in the
| trunk of FRANCHISE, my foster sister +"
at this part of the presidents recital
there was a general movement of sur
! prise among Nine. de Hacqueville's
| guests. The president himself appear
ed much affected by the recollections
called up in his mind. He continued ::
" FRANCHISE, my foster sister, she who
had come over the snow from Monte
reau, was dragged before the Judges.
my colleagues, who relying, they said,
upon my impartiality, caused me to
| preside over them as usual. FRANCHISE
at first denied all, declaring her ignor-
ance of the robbery and anything con
nected with it, and calling upon me to
recollecG her mother, Montereau. the
snow she had traversed to embrace me
on the steps of the Sorbonne. and our
having fed on the same breast. In
prosecution of my duty ordered the
| FRANCHISE was barred and the terrible
instrument was applied to her hand
| FRANCHISE shrieked at the contest and
oh, those cries and that looked fixed
upon me A sword has passed through
me, but that look pierced me more
keenly. As the torture proceeded Fran
Solse cried less and less. The officials
rushed, according to custom, finger
| after finger, until the whole hand was
bruised Friends" said the president
at this part of his story, d" FRANCHISE
was innocent. l knew it. 1t was I who
had placed the box in the trunk of the
undetermined girl, in order to make her
be tried and condemned p Horror per.
vaded the minds of Madame de Hacdue-
vlile's party on hearing this shocking
confession, but the president, after
passing his hand over his eyes, contin-
ued IN broken voice '' FRANCHISE at
length avowed herself the author of
the theft, and tainted, crying that was
her foster brother, and that she had
come across the snow to embrace me
upon the stairs of the Sorboune.
Friends" continued the president.
"the sufferings to which that innocent
girl was subjected, through my instru-
mentality, had the object in view of
freeing the land from a dreadful evil,
and sacrifice had the effect which was
contemplated. Would that the victim.
who, on her Liberation afterward, fled
| unknown to me from Paris, and whom I
/ never again saw, knew that her foster
brother was conscious of her innocence Z"
At these words, like a shade coniured
up from the tombs, a figure rose from
/ beside Madame de Hacqueville and
| slowly advanced toward the president,
her eyes swimming in tears, and one
hand engaged in pulling of, evidently
with pain, the glove from the other.
1t was Nine. de Casa Blanca. The
! president, on seeing her movements,
rose from his seat in great agitation,
and extending his arms, while his ewes
gazed tixedly on the approaching lady,
| exclaimed "Can it be FRANCHISE
have met you without knowing it?
| Why did you not reveal yourself ?"
9 But now" said the lady, agitated,
but now I learned your knowledge of
! my innocence !" Let us draw a veil
over the further expressions of recOUni-