The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1876-02-11
THE CASE OF JACQUES LIE BRUN.

When lawyer wishes to impress the
minds of jury with the conviction that
it If extremely dangerous for them to
convict anyone on circumstantial evidence
alone, he rehearses long list of in
stances III which such proof has turned
out to be delusion and snare, and
prominently among these there figures a
garbled account of the trial and convic-
tim OF jacques LIE Brun. This same case
bias often been related by lay writer's,
who, ignorant of the true principles on
which the rules of evidence are based.
insist that direct testimony only is to be
regarded as of any weight. The true
history, however, of the trial of the I'M
fortunate LIE Brun gives support to no
such theory. On the contrary, had his
Judges paid a proper regard to the
weight of circumstantial evidence he
would have been acquitted. Here are
the facts In the case, as set forth by
M - III his great collection of
Causes CeJe6reS. published years ago.
Madame Mazel, residing in Paris, had
passed the meridian Of life, and was
possessed of an ample fortune. She
employed q retinue of servants: two
footmen, coachman, jacques lie Brun,
who had lived with her twenty years,
and was her butler, and three female SER
wants, composed her household. A man
called the Able Poulard lived with her
on footing of intimacy which did no
honor to her reputation. In the course
OF the summer of 1893 she had taken
from LIE Brun master. key, which open
ed all the doors in the house, and gave
1T to the Able Poulard for his accom-
modaton IN coming and going at all
hours. LIE Brun had duplicate KEY,
which he continued to use. On Nov.
~, 1898, being the first Sunday in Ad
vent, Madame Mazel, who was very
punctihous i'll the exercises of religion.
went to vespers. She left her house
attended by lie Brun, on whose arm she
leaned. and the two footmen followed
her. As soon as she was in the chapel
LIE Brun quilted her and went to hear
vespers himself mt the Jacobins, in the
hue st. jacques. Madame Mazel upon
her return, su2ped, according to her
usual custom tete-a-tete with the Able
Poulard. AT ii o'clock she went TO her
chamber. The maid as was her usual
custom, put the key on the chair. after
which They all quilted the room. and LIE
Brun, who went last, drew the door after
him and shut it, He then went into the
kitchen and took the KEY of the street
door to lock it; he took it off the hook
but iindlng himself cold, he laid it down
on the table while he warmed himself:
and being fatigued-possibly, too, hay
ing drank more than he was accustomed
to he lnsensibly fell asleep. When
he awoke he heard the clock strike
one. lie ran up to lock the street
door, which, to his surprise, he found
WIDE open, and, when he had done so.
took the key with him into his room,
SO passed the night away.
Madame Mazei usually rose at 7. and
the servants, when 8 o'clock struck tbe
next morning, expressed to each other
their wonder that she had not rupp her
bell. lie Brun had gone out early in the
morning to see his wife, to whom he
gave seven louis and some other money.
which he babe her lock up. On his re,
turn to the house he asked if Madame
Mazel was yet up. Being told she was
not, he expressed great surprise and I'M
'easlness. The whole household, by this |
time assembled in the kitchen, deter
mined to awaken her they went to the |
door and raped loudly, but all was 81
lent. Some one suggested that she had
an apoplectic fit, another that bleeding
Of the nose, TO which she was subject
had caused her to faint but lie Brnn
remarked that it must be something
worse. Something" said he. "is
wrong. L am very uneasy, because l
found the street door open last night"
The room door was broken down and
the servants entered. Le Brun went
hastily to his mistress bed. She was
assassinated and covered with blood.
M. De Sevcnnieres, her eldest son, at
tins moment arrived, (Madame Mazel
lived apart from her family and at once
sent for the Lieutenant Criminel. In the
name of himself and his two brothers he
aud a formal complaint before that of !
icial. ana surgeons were sent for To ex- l
anime the BODY. About fifty small !
Wounds made with a knife were found {
)n her hands, face, shoulders, and S
,hroat aid these lasH, having occasiohed I
great otiusion OF blood, Ind been the S
,ause of her death, for mono of the j
Wounds were OF themselves mortal. In !
ne bed was found piece of lace neck {
10th, AMI II towel twisted up in the form l
II II night cap, which towel belonged TO v
te house. and was marked with an @
5. The cords of the bells were twist 1
d up above the reach of the hand, and "
led to the ctlrtain-rod in the ashes was p
Ound knife, seven or eight inches S
Dng, the handle of which had been of a
Drtoise shell, but 1t was nearly all n
urned of. The key of the chamber 81
DOR was not found on the seat, where Il
be maid affirmed she had put it. No p
oor was broken, aud the two doors .
Inch opened on the back stairs were I'll
9th shut and locked from the insid. d
he key of the clothes press was found fc
its usual resting place under the Pill. p
wv. On opening the press, the purse IN
which che kept her card money-fcr, CT