The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-03-16
A BEAUTIFUL DECEPTION.
A WHOLE TOWN JOINING WITH A DE-
VOTED DAUGHTEa TO nUMsUG
AN OLD MAN INTO SANITY.
IN. Y. World.1

Pr6Vllle, Inc eminent Il Eeucu dcUoI, hdflHs
lost his fortune and indeed his livelihood by
the Revolution which swept away the Com
edle-Francaise, having lost his wife, to whom
he was tenderly attached, broken In health
| and finally bind, went to end his days at the
residence of his daughter, Nine. Guesdon,
whose husband was receiver-general at Beau
vais. His mind gave way. and, except at
brief intervals the old man.was insane, harm
lessly but completely insane. The sights
which he had witnessed at Paris during the
Reign of Terror had always deeply affected
him, and even while he retained his mental
yigor their recollection haunted and op-
pressed him. When his reason was clouded
he invariably fancied himself In one of the
prisons of the Republic under a myste-
rious charge OF treason. He no longer
knew himself to be blind, but complimented
the ladies of quality, fellow-prisoners In his
imaginary dungeon. OF their freshness OF
face, or rallied the great gentlemen injured
with him on their fantasies and peculiarities
Of dress. With them the held long converse
tions, sparkling with wit and replete witt
anecdote; indeed, during the forty-eight
hours that the attack always lasted he was
not silent fort moment; over his skilled and
expressive features swept all the varying
emotions Of Joy, sorrow and intense interest:
the veins Of his forehead grew like cords,
and his face red as fire, and the end of the fit
was q lux of unintelligible words, at first
spoken energetically, but finally dying into
silence and stupor. Preville would then sleep
heavily from fifteen to eighteen hours, and
awake sane, but for the halluelnati0n that he
was confined in prison. He recognized his
family and friends and thanked them for
visiting him; he pointed out the jailers and
police commissaries and his fellow-prisoners.
In vain did his daughter lead him through
the spaci us gardens or drive out with him
through the streets OF the town. wherever he
went he carried his prison with him..
He was falling ~perceptibly, SO wildly had
his imagination wrought upon him, when one
day a new phase of his malady alarmed his
family. He was noticed to steal noiselessly
from the ROOM, turning his head to look be-
hind him as IL he feared that he might be OBJ
served and pursued; he trembled and shud-
dered violently, and on his c~ountenance,
which was Of a deathly palior, great drops OF
sweat stood out. Hearing his daughters
voice, he fled TOWARD her and threw himself
gasped; don't let them find me. L hear
their footsteps" There Is no one coming,
my father" said Mime. Guesdon, soothingly.
II tell you they will" he answered; "is the
pihCt odlt! Sdu buof nuu INC utltI IL WAS
thus Loiserolles was saved2" Then sinking
into a chair he continued: II was ON the fatal
cart. not alone, for her mother and son were
with me. They spare neither age nor limo
oenee, the buthersl Every Jolt OF the cart
agony of sitting there, tied. where every turn
OF the wheels brings you nearer to your
death. 1t is worse than death" But you
are safe, father" said his daughter. "Safe?
yes, but for o long2 All at once the tum-
bril- stopped. l could not loo at the
guillotine, but cast my eyes down
and thought of you all. One OF the prisoners
steps down; he mounts the ladder; there Is a
thud, and a howl from the crowd. Another,
another; it Is my turn. 1 made my way. more
dead than alive, to the ladder, and had set my
foot on the first step, when suddenly some
one thrust a bare, brawny arm before me-,
stopping the way. 1t was the executioner.
Here Prevflie gave with wonderful dramatic
force and changes of voice his dialogue with
the headsman: "Where are you going TOT"
"Going-why, you know. 1t Is cruel to pro-
long this torture" Don't waste time talk
ing. Where are you going, citizen, | sayY'
40 rejoin my companions In misfortune and
pray In heaven for the welfare Of my family"
''That is all very nice, but you can't pass
here" "What? / can't passi' and the old
mans face began to express a feeble hope.
beq." :o'T n yo nn@ eae,r pass =Y WITHOUT Soa4 your |nm np%.
Who In the world sent you here? Do you
think we guillotine people that way7 Let me
see your number" II beg your pardon, sir,
but | was not aware Of the formally. l have
canI with my hands tied?'" You look" Its
none Of my business-get out Of here. and
don't come back till you've found your num-
ber." You can imagine said the Door
old man, chat didn't wait to be told twice"
A few days later the hallucination returned;
he had been recaptured and placed in his cell,
and the old agony of apprehension possessed
him and preyed upon him. His daughter, a
woman as clever as devoted, having exhausted
all the resources of medical science without
effecting a cure, hit upon the fortunate Idea Of
entering into his hallucination and SO guiding
it as to direct it to q natural and happy end
Ing. She, therefore, ceased attempting to
convince him that he was at liberty and In
safety, and confessed that they had tried to
argue him out OF the idea OF his captivity
solely from a loving desire to relieve him OF
Its horrors. Deception, If it had been longer
possible, she added, was no longer necessary,
for they had received an intimatiOn that the
day for his trial had been set and was draw
Ing near, and he must prepare to face the
judges with all the resources OF his mind.
Tn old mar was delighted that she had at
last abandoned the deception which had pre-
vented her from receiving his confidence,
and poured out to her his story, his hopes
and fears. Next day she brought him news
that he was to nave counsel with
whom he might communicate freely. a privi-
lege that had been refused to the other prls-
oners. This was a good omen, and the old
mans heart was perceptibly lighter than it
had been for years. Next day the advocate
and another lawyer visited the prisoner, the
former parsonage being represented by the
clerk of the Criminal Court OF Senonais, a
young lawyer Of wit and learning, and an In
innate friend OF the Questions, aud the latter
by q young law-student. They were intro
duced by the names Of distinguished members
of the Partisan bar, with whose fame Preville
was acquainted, though he mad never met
them. To this counsel he told his story at
length. They took different views of his case,
which they discussed with warmth and many
citations from the Code. At last they arrived
at an understanding and a plan for the de-
Tense, and both agreed that even II their
client were found guilty, capital punishment
could not be inflicted upon him. Meanwhile
they would draw up and scatter broadcast a
pamphlet telling his story, and thus work
upon the public mind in his favor. That
night, for the first time for many months, the
old man slept calmly, the fear OF the scaffold.
which had SO long haunted him, having been
lifted from his mind.
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