Weekly commercial herald. (Vicksburg, Miss.) 1884-18??, 1885-12-25
CHATTER TX J..

The preliminary inquiry had ended; Raoul
was in the house of detention, waiting his
trial before the court Of a~ssizes; and, so far as
[ could learn, there were only two persons in
all Paris who did not believe him guilty
Gabrielle Dumaine and myself.
l cannot telf you how grateful I felt to
Mademoiselle Dunaine for having restored
my. confidence in Raoul before my evidence
was given at the inquiry. But for that 1
should have been forced by the judge Of in
~;truction to become the accuser of my friend.
No sooner had / seen in the journals the ac-
count given by Raoul himself of his connec-
lion with the affair than l recognized its per-
'ect truthfulness. 1 congratulated myself
hat I had not waited for this explanation
before declaring my belief in his innocence.
Had l done SO I felt that l could never have
cooked him in the face again.
After giving my evidence at the inquiry
an experience I should not like again to pass
through went back to our old attic room
in the Rue Dauphine. I wanted to be where
everything would remind me of Raoul. I
fancied that there, better than elsewhere, I
would be able to do the thing that I had set
my whole heart on doing. l avoided the
cafes Of the Latin Quarter in those days; they
we're full Of talk about the crime Of Christmas
lay, such talk as no friend of Raoul's would
ike to hear. Neither did l read tho journals;
they all of them assumed Raouls guilt as a
thing Of course. But before long the excite
ment caused by the murder Of MeisJner died
away; a new ministry, q new drama and a
new domestic crime, occurring ono after the
other, threw the affair of the Passage de
Mazarin into the shade. Popular in
terest in the case was, however, revived
for a time by an announcement made
in The Theatre. This journal stated that the
administration CT the Odeon had decided on
bringing out at an early date Girard's
comedy, called "Gold of Toulouse" The adj
ministration, it was said, saw no reason for
suppressing q play of unusual merit because
the writer of it CHANGED to be lying in prison
On q charge Of murder. Indeed, this latter
TACT, as one Of the theatrical journals pointed
out, would be certain to make the piece at
east a pecuniary success.
Some days after the close Of the inquiry l
obtained permission to visit Raoul at the
house of detention. Tho interview was much
less painful to either Of US than I had feared.
Raoul would not let me speak of the wrong l
had done him-would not let me beg his for
g%iveness.
"What you Thought, p" he said, ''who could
have helped Thinking it' 1t was 1 who was
TO blame; | should have told you the truth at
once; that l did not is the best proof to me
chat l must have been half-crazed at the time.
No, no! 1t is not you who should speak Of
forgiveness; it is !. And youdid not wait till
you had heard my story-it needed only a
word from Gabrielle to make you believe in
me again!
"Ah, if you had but heard her speakI'
81 seem to hear her. You will go to her,
Paul. You will tell her that you have seen
me, that l am well and brave-no longer the
miserable coward that terrible sight made Of
me7 You will tell her thatg'
OF course | promised. Raoul had said no
moro than the truth. He was himself again;
calm, courageous, looking his danger in the
face with a firmness that inspired me.
ut is a dreadful fatality" he said. "If
you had seen how tho judge Wow his net of
evidence about me, you might almost despair
of ever unweaving it. Yet believe it will
be DONE"
ut shall be done" I answered; "you used
to say 1 never thought, Raoul; but, believe
me, of late l have been thinking for you"
my friend!" he said, and pressed my
hand.
"You will allow me to retain our friend
Sapinaud for your defenseG 1 know no bet
ter man"
by all means"
"And you will put your name to this docu-
ment, which l have brought ready for sign
ingp
Raoul read the document; 81, Raoul GirGrd,
hereby authorize Paul Marsal to offer a re-
ward of twenty thousand francs to such per-