The Grange advance. [volume] (Red Wing, Minn.) 1873-1877, 1876-02-23

ing everything into consideration. it
seemed exceedingly probable that he had
murdered the girlfor her money, to make
good his losses at play. .~-.<,.n: .... a
j Captain St. Clair was brought to trial
before court.martial, composed of off.
GERS Of the First Division, Adjt. Comm'r
Bigex presiding, and, in spite Of the able
endeavors of his attorney, NJ. Bracelet
Ferriere, was found guilty Of premeditat-
ed homicide. 1t is believed the court was
.prejudiced very seriously by some minor
facts, such as the captains treatment Of
his mother, whom he had neglected for a
long time. 49,
"A bad son. said the President of the
Court very gravely, ''is likely to become
an assassin if he ever has a profitable op.
,portunity thereof 49,.
The execution of sentence upon the
man was delayed. His poor old mother
went to the king to intercede for her son,
but his majesty pronounced the motive
and association of the crime so ignoble as
to be beyond his c!emency.
Upon the plea of informalities and ir.
Irregularities in the prosecution Of the case,
the defendants council did succeed in
having new trial ordered, and the coun.
Gil therefore assembled on February II.
1925, under the Presidency of Field
Marshal Batoille.
But, Just at this time, Napoleon made
his brief and brilliant return to France,
and the case Of Captain Saint Clair was,
perforce, laid aside for season: In May,
however, it was reopened. It was now
shown that the beautiful Holland girl
had been in the habit of enticing men 10
places where they were robbed by her
sturdy accomplices. This lent some ele.
ment of probability to the captains story
of the plot to which he became avictim.
But on the other hand, all the old evil
dence was revived, and with it the further
damaging fact, of which he was arrested
the back of his shirt was sprinkled with
blood-as it would have been had he
stood leaning over his victim while her
blood spouted up against the mirror and
spattered over the bed. It was also dis
covered now that the GIRL when she died,
clutched in her stiffening fingers frag.
ment torn from Saint Clair's shirt sleeve.
This trial excited great deal Of public
interest, was very long, aud prosecuted
with careful scrutiny. When his judges
were about retiring to consult upon their
verdict, Saint Clair sprang up and ad-
dressed to them touching appeal. He
said: "Gentlemen your decision can re-.
store me to honor, but ever could it
give me back peace Of mind and self:re.
spect, if such horrible crime as this had
banished them from me. But am limo.
cent. Iswear before Heaven that it was
not who shed the blood of that unhappy
girl.''
After careful deliberation, the court
found the accused "guilty," and sen.
fenced him to be degraded from his mill.
tary rank, stricken from the Legion Of
Honor, and condemned to Imprisonment
for life.
When this terrible sentence was pro-
nounced against him, the young man
stood up again before his judges and cried
out in tones of despair:
"You condemn me to dishonor when
am innocent. will not survive'the degre.
dation you put upon ME. l will die a
wretched man, but as God sees me, an
innocent one.'
With these words, he snatched from its
concealment a long and keen poinard,
which he had hidden upon his person. and
again and again stabbed himself in the
breast. Great excitement prevailed in
the court. The President Of the Coun-
Gil imagined that the prisoner was about
to use his knife to take vengence upon
his judges, and cried loudly for ''help.''
All for few moments stood aghast be.
fore this desperate action, and, before
any one could summon presence of mind
to stay the hand Of the suicide, he was
tottering falling, dying. They laid, him
upon the floor, and in a few minutes he
was dead, but with his last words he
avowed his innocence of the awful2crime
imputed to him.
10 this day the mystery overshadow.
ing the assassination of Cornelie
Karsmaker, the beautiful Holland girl.
has never been cleared up, and it is but
just to the memory of Captain Saint Clair
to say that, after his tragic death, there
were very few people who continued to
believe in his guilt.
AN ARSENIC-EATLNG GIRL,
Says The Troy(N. w. Times: A thir.
teen'year.old daughter of MIR. Fiagg, re.
siding near Whitehall, is exciting the at.
tention of physicians and scientific men in
that vicinity. Some time ago Mr.. Flagg put
some arsenic on some bread and placed
it in portion of the house frequented by
rats. The bread suddenly disappeared,
and again and again other pieces were
placedlin the same locality, with the|same
result. He finally determined to watch