The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1877-12-28
FRENCH JUSTICE.


lCor. Boston Advertiser.l
| On the 10Th OF June, 1872, the police
of the town of Montauban, in France
arrested as vagrant young man Of
good address, respectfully attired, and
who, although bearing none of the ex
ternal characteristics of scamp, de.
clined to afford anyinformation as to his
antecedents. The unknown prisoner
would give nothing but his name, which
he declared to be Louis Thomas, but
persistently refused to give the police
any clew as to who or what his family
was, where he came from, or what had
been his previous life.
1t happened, curiously enough, just
then, that, in turning over the leaves OF
the official Identification lists, which are
periodically sent to the different depart
ments of France by the Minister of the
Interior, the public prosecutor of the
town of Montauban discovered that the
presence of Louis Thomas, of whom
no further description was given, was
much desired before the military tribun-
ais to answer sundry charges of being
prominently concerned with the doings
of the Commune. Our vagrant, who
had given this name, was thereupon in
continently forwarded to Paris to be
turned over to a court-martial, before
which he was arraigned in the latter
part Of July, 1872
"Do you answer to the name of Louis
Thomas?" asked the Colonel presiding
CT do"
"You decline to give the court any
further information as to your past life,
your family, or your residence ?"
81 do"
"But you acknowledge that you
served under the Commune, and to have
signed your name to sundry requisi-
tions for supplies as an employe of one
of the departments established by the
Central Committee of the insurgents 2"
81 do! And l take upon myself the
entire responsibility of my acts as such. {"
Louis Thomas was thereupon con-
victed and sentenced to be transported
for life to the penal colony in New Gale
donia, whittier he embarked on the 14th
of June, 1878, in q Government trans
port. Two years afterward, in the
month of May, 1875, the Governor of the
penal colony aforesaid received from
one of the convicts, one Edward Bizore,
a well-written but voluminous docu-
ment which contained some very inter-
esting and curious disclosures.
am the man, The said in substance,
"who, under the name of Louis Thomas,
was condemned by court-martial No. 10
to transportation for having been con-
cerned in the Commune. Louis Thomas
is not my name. 1t never was my name,
nor did ever know any one of that
name. During the events of the Com
mune / was 500 leagues away from
Paris. The reason why assumed the
responsibility of acts done by another,
and suffered myself to be convicted I'M
der name which did not belong to me,
I will now proceed to disclose
Z" was at one time in the Pontifical
Zouaves, from which I was honorably
discharged. 1 belong to a thoroughly
respectable family in the South of
France, and my mother, if still living,
ought to be a person of independent
means, residing IN a small house in the
neighborhood of Cahors. During the
war with Germany served In the Eighth
battalion of rifles, which was attached
to the Army of the Loire, under the COM
mand of Gen. d'Aurelles de Paladines.
I was in the battles of Coulmiers and
Patay, and was taken prisoner in a
skirmish near Vendome, on the 18th
of December, 1870. 1 was carried to
Prussia and confined in prison at Erfurth,
where remained five months. It was
not till the end of May, 1871, that I
finally regained my own country and
reached my mothers house.
Being the only son of a widow was
exempt from further service, and, not
wishing to be burden to my mother, I
came to Paris in search of employment,
which soon found. But, to my aston
ishment and dismay, one fine day two
policemen came to my house and ar
rested me, because, as they said, had
omitted to comply with the regulations
in regard to change of domicile. was
conducted back to my own town in dis
grace, under the escort of two gen.
darmes, but, feeling myself to have been
dishonored by these proceedings, man.
aged to evade the vigilance of my guar
dams and left the place. Three days
afterward / was again arrested in Mon
tauban as q vagrant, without papers,
without money, and with no visible
means of support.
"You are already aware how suffered
myself to be tried and condemned by a
court-martial,as Communist rather than
bring disgrace on my family by reveal
ing my true name. The reason why
keep silent no longer is that the life 1
have been leading for the past two years
has become simply uncomfortable.
On receipt of this strange letter an in
quiry was set on foot, which resulted in
fully corroborating its statements. The
unfortunate man was at once brought
back to France, and on the 7th OF No
vember. 1877, appeared before military
tribunal No. 3, which, after hearing the
evidence, ordered the late papal zouave
to be set at liberty. But, notwithstand-
ing judicial proof of this poor fellows
innocence of the charges brought against
him, he now finds himself, 10y curious
provision in the laws of France, in very
awkward position. He has been found
not guilty, but his conviction must re-
main against him until the real Louis
Thomas has been arrested and convicted