Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1886-07-31

MaElin H1eFYG gounG Isl. WHE N48-
rid q his gwee1hcart. Ertrande.
Alter twelve years 81 mutzsl happi-
ness Martin disappeared and nolh-
fnE Was heard q aim Tor eight YzzFz
he W1g last seen with 3 bag ard
stick On tb3 road, and be apDaReu1ly
returned ID the same manner. He
locked i0ss s. before, excepS sloufef
aad sunhurnf and WITH : heaVy beard
Al the Tiliaee recognized him and
80 did bis wife Who received him
ienderiy and without repEoaebes.
To her ~ % them, be showed 3 spon-
tane0us memory Of every detail Of
the past, and the morning afier his
arrival. said 70 her Pisase bring
me nv while breeches trimmed with
white silk; you viii ind them 81 the
bottom Of the large beech chess. IN
der the linen. For three years they
lived ~ man and wife and 3 child
was born 70 them. No suspicion
crossed BegssAnde's mind nor the
minds Of neighb0rs; yet this man
Was not her husband, no. Martin
9neFre. a soldier who had known
the real husband IN the WARS de-
n0unced the false one IS q cheat at
sight Yef, when Intercepted in
court. the imposseF, whose name was
Afnanld Du Tiih. answered IN de-
tail every question IS % Martins
early life, marriage, departure, mo-
lives He even described the wom-
ems dresses &C the wedding and gave
all the names. Including the priest
who had Oiiiciated. Every detail of
Martin and BeTtrande's past history
was given il open court without
hesitation or contradiction. In two
long investigations, more thaa forty
witnesses swore that the accused was
Martin GueFre. and among them his
four sisters and tw0 brotheFsin-law.
Witnesses sw0re 20 certain pecnli-
aFities and marks on the real Gnerre,
which were all found on bis dupli-
cate. Forty-ive other witnesses
swore that the prisoner was not
Guerre. but Arnauld Da Tilh, whom
they knew well. So equal was the
balance that the Judges, not being
able to decide either way, were about
TO give the accused the benefit Of the
doubt, when who should walk
through the village TO his home and
thence into the courtroom but the
real Martin Guerre himself. The
imposter undaRntedly swore that the
man he had peFsonated was an i'm
poster. Stranger still, he was clear.
er IN his memory Of the past than
the dazed newcomer seemed. But
strong dkenesses between persons
when separated become less striking
when they stand side by side. The
four sisters retracted az once, and
fiinging themselves into Martins
arms cried: This is our dear bro
thern The wife also confessed thai
she had been imposed upon with
shame and tears. The only French
report Of the trial says Two eggs
do not resemble each other more
than did these two men" One b
one the witnesses retracted. The
fraud was put to death, making I
confession that some friends OIL
0uerre had accosted him by thai
name. which had suggested The de
ception, and that his knowledge haf
been acquired from Guerre himself
whom he had known as conrad.
10 the army. This ancient trial re
calls one In the early days of SaI
Francisco, in 1851, when there was
temporary committee OF vigilance 4
aid the slow regular police In detect
ing the crimes committed by thl
Sydney Ducks, term often un
fairly used Of respectable settler
from Australia as well IS Of the ex
convicts from that colony. Abou
9 o'clock one spring evening Charlie
Jansen, proprietor of q Wholesal
dry goods establishment on Mont
gomery street, was seated alone II
his counting room, bis clerks havinl
gone TO supper. Two strangers en-
tered, one Of whom felled him will
bar Of iron, while the other rife,
the safe OF many thousands Of dol
lars IN coin and gold dust. Tn
clerks found Mr.. Jansen senseles
and bleeding on the floor. Next da-
be was able to describe his assai.ants
and the supposed criminals were Al
rested a. they stepped aboard ID,
Sacramento boat. The description
OF one Of them agreed exactly witt
James Stuart, the leader Of q gan,
OF thieves and murderers who has
killed the Sheriff Of Yuba COUNTY
and were the terror Of the State
The police were now satisfied tina
they had captured Jim Stuart ant
Joe Mildred, his companion, ant
that they were the perpetrators O
the double crime. ID was feared tha
Jansen would die, and the two mel
were taken to his bedside, where b,
Al once and unhesitatingiy identified
the smaller man, supposed to b,
Stuart. as the man who had strucl
him with the iron bar. About ID,
other he had little doubt, but could
not swear 80 positively. The mer
were tried al once. giving their names
as Thomas Berdue and Joseph vii
dred. They pleaded in vain tina
they were ''chums" from a MINING
camp, just arrived in San Francisco
and knew nothing Of the deeds At
tributed 10 them. Il vas with Rrea
difficulty and by the Intervention 0.
soldiers that they were saved from
| lyuching. Many witnesses sworI
that Berdue was Stuart They wer,
sentenced TO be hanged on the fol
lowing Friday.
| But meanwhile 3 vigilance com
miIiee party scouting the sand hin.
between San Francisco and the Mis-
sion Dolores came upon a man hal
hidden, full length in the sand. he
was the real Stuart, confessed tha
crime, and others, and was hanged
on Friday instead Of the innocent
Berdue. The latter was put beside
his body when he was cut down, and
= reporter who was present, wrote
"Berdue stood In the presence Of III.
dead rival, standing by the table OF
which stnAFt was lying, and gazet
upon the fixed features. II was Tx.