The Red Cloud chief., 1881-02-03
A Recent French Murder Trial.

At Laon, the ancient capitalof France
proper, and even now one of the mos
interesting of old French cities, the eur,
tain fell, a few days ago. on the las,
scene of a tragedy which in some of IFS
main features was peculiar to France
and the French people. We refer to
the trial before the Court of Assizes
of the Aisne of a young girl named
Virginie Dumaire for the murder of DIR.
Picart.
Two or three years back, Picart, then
n medical student attached to the hos
pital of Laon, became assiduous in his
devotions to Virginie Dumaire, the
principal legatee of an old official
named Herbin. in whose employ she
had been at the time OF his death.
Picart was poor, and the girl he pro-
fesSed to love paid his examination fees
out OF her w pocket, and thus ma
bled him to enter upon the practice of
his profession. He promised to marry
Virginie, but had no sooner fairly
started in practice in a village near
Laon, than he broke of all relations
with her, and became engaged to a
Mile. Laloi, the daughter of a wealthy
landowner of the vicinity.
This was too much for the wronged
girl. who moved at once TO the village
near which her rival dwelt, and warned
her faithless lover that misfortune
would come to him if he persisted in
wedding his new sweetheart. Accord
ingly. on the day when the Laloi family
and Picart met to draw up the mar
riage contract. Virginie. halfmad. burst
into the room where the party was as
sembled, and interrupted the notary,
crying out, This marriage will never
take place. Never" Picart remained
impressive.
A few DAYS later, on the morning of
the last day of April, 1880. Picart left
Vendresse, the village where he lived.
for Laon, to buy some wedding pres
ents for Mademoiselle Laloi. who was
to accompany him. Not far from his
home he heard a woman's voice calling
him. 1t was Nirginie, who a after
him and overlook him. Her right hand
was concealed beneath her cloak. She
stopped Picart. and in a suppiicating
tone cried: lis il then true that you
are going to marry her?" Yes"
Then. shall | never more be ANYTHING
to you?' He replied by a gesture of
impotence. lit is we'll" said Viz
ginie, after q moment of silence; kiss
me-" He leaned toward her and en-
braced her, and at the anne moment
the young girl drew a revolver. till then
concealed. and fired. The bullet struck
Picart in the left temple, and he fell
dead. Virginie tainted, and was found
unconscious by the side of the dead
man.
The next act in this dismal drama was
in August last. when Virginie was
brought TO trial for the homicide. The
prosecution, in accordance with the
method of criminal procedure which is
in use in France, sought to prejudice
the jury against the accused BY a great
deal of. indefinite hearsay evidence
bearing on her past life. but not having
ANYTHING whatever TO do with the
specific crime for which she was on
trial. All this evidence. however,
amounted to nothing. and was success
fully controverted by her advocate. the
famous lawyer Lachaud. The conduct
of the defense was not an cas- task, rs
the prisoner did not attempt TO defend
herself. but said in open court: l
should kill Picart again if it was to be
done over. | should rather see him dead
than married" Still. the jury were
impressed in her favor, and she
would then have been acquitted if the