Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-12-12
THE PEI4TZERS.
Opening Scenes in the Extraordinary
Trial at Brussels.

Trial at Brussels.
The London Standards Brussels cor
| respondent describes the opening of the
/ great PeltZer trial, which is now proceed
! ing at the Brebant Court of AssiZes: The
court was crowded, as was also the open
! space outside the Palais de Justice, and
/ the first incident in the case-the entry of
| President Demeure, accompanied almost
simultaneously by that of the two pris-
! Oners-was watched with the keenest in
I terest. Their appearance in the dock was
the signal for certain number of hisses
/ and l heard good many whispers to the
effect that the PeltZer who by his own
admission fired the shot which caused
| BernayS' death had a bad head, a
VlllanOus cOuntenance, a hangdOg look,
and so on. Nothing of the kind. He has
large projecting ears; but apart from this
popularity, which does not of necessity
indicate murderOus disposition, l can
see nothing in his appearance to object to.
He is of slight build, of medium height,
has light brown hair and beard of the
same color, and in answer to the Presi-
dents first question replied that he is
| thlrty-hve years of age, that he was born
at Neryiers and that he has no profession.
/ He was dressed with scrupulous neatness
entirely in black, wore his black gloves in
court, and had the air of being got up for
the occasion.
Armand Peltzer, who is thirty-nine
years Of age, is not the superior of Leon in
| years alone. Leon has a certain look of
/ teebleness, which under better circum-
stances might pass for fineness and deli
! cacy, Armand seems to possess force of
character, and his general appearance,
without being absolutely distinguished, is
dignified and impressive. He has black
! hair and black beard, in which few
! 10 ic
dressed in dark clothes, but not in black,
and he wears no gloves. He answered the
few questions put to him by the Judge
/ firmly, calmly and in the tone of a man
accustomed to good society.
The demeanOr of Leon at the outset of
the proceedings was almost careless, but
as the Registrar of the Court read aloud
the act of accusation he became serious.
Armand, on the other hand, who at first
was perfectly composed, gave signs of
emotion, or at least of nervousness, as the
story of his relations with Bernays-and
above all of Nine. Bernays-was recited
to the court. On the three shelves of an
etdgere, Immediately in front of the Presi-
dents desk, were arranged a variety Of
objects intimately connected with the
case under trial, On the upper shelf
were nine revolvers and other pistols,
! tlcketed and numbered, of which three
have each distinct history of their own.
One is the light single barreled pistol
bought of Baker, in Fleet street, and war
ranted to possess great penetrating power
While requiring only a small charge of
powder, with which Leon Peltzer, whether
by accident or in self-defense. or as the
result of premeditatiOn, killed Guillaume
Bernays at Brussels. The second is an
arm of different make, with which, on a
certain occasion not many days before the
date of Bernays' violent end, Armand
lnNN To
house at Antwerp, sort of trial Shot, of
which the effect was to disturb the whole
household, and (accOrding to the
prOsecutiOn) to demonstrate the
necessity of employing for the
assassination of Bernays pistol
wSch made less noise. The third of the
weapons which | select from among the
nine as especially worthy of notice is a
somewhat unserViceable one, with which
Armand Peltzer declared that he fred
the shot which so alarmed his family. The
other SIX are of various patterns. They
were found on the table in the room whore
Bernays was killed, and it will be shown
in evidence that they We're purchased NV
Leon PeltZer, calling himself Henry
Vaughan, at Liege, Paris, Rome or Lon
don.
Side by side with the nine pistols are
boxes OF bullets and plugs Of various
Importance is attached to some bullets.
fired by charge of Illuminating powder.
which NeIe discovered after they had
been cast away in the house occupied by
Armand PeltZer. 1t has been shown bv a
committee of military experts that the
bullet hole left by Armand Peltzer's trial
shot in the wall of his dining room could
not nave been made by the revolver
which he pretends to have used. and
that it must have been made bv the
revolver with the Illuminating charge.
Armand PeltZer's explanation of his
strange but significant conduct in firing
off a pistol in his dining room is that he
wished to let some wOrkmen in the neigh
borhood understand that he had firearms
In the house; hut the prosecution points
out that IN that case he would have left
the windows open, instead of which he
had carefully closed them and drawn
thick curtains in front Of them.
On the second shelf of the etaqere are
exposed the skull of the victim, some por-
tlons of flesh from the nape of his neck
preserved in spirits, portion of the Wis
cera, also preserved in spirits, the basin
in which Leon PeltZer washed his hands |
after shooting Bernays and lifting the |
body from the ground into an arm chair. n |
bottle of ammonia which Leon PeItzer
brought with him as if to re-
store Bernays after mortallv |
wounding him, and which he left !
behind; and, finally, a few mans. 0stensi- |
bly, in connection with the imaginary |
Murray enterprise, conspicuous among |
the properties with which the room where |
the murder was committed had been fur |
nlshed, together with a number of suits !
of clothes worn by L. Heltzer. alias !
Vaughan, ia his various DISCUSSES.
Another Cashier Gone Wrong.