The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1895-10-25
MRS. WALLGR'S STORY.

WrnnE ana the lniteuttten hten pe0 pom
Her ny French Omcisis And soldiers
viii seek Government Ala
New YORK. Oct ls-Mrs. John l.
Waller. wife Of the former United
States consul to Madagascar. arrived
IN this city yesterday morning on the
Dutch steamship Amsterdam She
was accompanied by her three
daughters and her young son She
was met at the pier IN Ioboken by
her adviser. T.. g. VoOdfori. and
crossed the river on tug. after which
she went at once 10 the Clare udon
hotel.
When seen by a reporter she said
that she could add but little To the re-
pc-;s already made public of her hus-
bands confinement in the prison at
Marseilles
There is one thing | would like to
say. however" Mrs. Waller said. Am
bassador Eustis has been harshly crit
icized for not aiding much as he
might have done. There is no truth
in that report Mr. Eustis did every
thing in his power for Us. He Is even
now treating my husband with the ut
most consideration The whole trouble
lay with Robert Campbell, my hus-
bands predecessor He promised me
TO cable the authorities at Washing
ton asking for their assistance. but in
stead o: doing SO he wrote. thus caus-
ing an unnecessary delay of nearly
three months
Mrs. Waller made detailed state
ucnt To the reporters of the events
leading to the arrest of her husband
and of his trial and conviction. She
said: MIR. Waller was arrested at
Tamatavc. Madagascar. March 5. 1895,
by the French authorities on charge
of having conducted a clandcstine cor
respondence with the enemy (the Ho-
vas).
II appears. according to Mrs. Wal
lers story that on >eptem Der 5. while
at the house OF Ilova acquaintance,
Mr. Waller hal promised TO procure
four or tive revolveTs for the son of his
host. who, as Mr.. Waller was
preparing to take trip to this
country. had requested him to
purchase the weapons for him. At
the trial of Waller these revolvers
played an unfort innate part for him.
as the French authorities insisted that
they were simply samples Of an in
tended shipment Of arms To the liovas
After mis- arrest Mr.. Waller was con-
fined in Chinaman's shop at Tama-
tave. and on the 18th of March he was
tried by court-martial There We're
two counts in the indctment-vio
hating order 81 in sending letters
from Tamatave which was in a state
of siege. without their having been
Scrutinized by the authorities. and. at
tempting to convey informa ton To the
enemy.
Capt. Levisoit and six lieutenants
composed the court Waller had re-
reateily asked for counsel, but was
allowed none until tweptyfour hours
before the trial. when Djeriaud took
his case. but as soon as he had read
the letters Waller had written to Mrs
Waller, the lawyer threw up the case.
The reason for this. Mrs. Waller says,
was that in one of them Waller
had written IN condemnatory terms
of certain acts of Consul Weller. his
successor In his letters 10 his wife
Waller had also told of outrages and
thefts committed by the French. and
had referred 10 two persons By the let
tiers D. and .-P" whom he declared to
be French spies Waller had also sent
letters. inclosed. to George Tessier and
n young Hova named Ratsimandresy,
but these contained nothing but refer.
enccs TO business matters
Previous to the trial Waller was ex-
amined through French interpreter
Ia sr
French. language he did not under
stand. The court martial appointed
clerk named Carrie as counsel for Wal
Ter. but he was allowed 10 make prac-
ticallv no defense The trial and
drawing up Of the sentence occupied
exactly three hours and twenty-five
minutes.
Mrs Waller says that IL Mr. Waller
had not been detained at Tamatave by
Consul Weller. who unwarrantah bly,
questioned some of her husbands Off
cial acts, Waller would not have been
arrested. In fact. She said. public
opinion in Tamatave was to the effect
that Consul Weller was in collision
-ayiih the French officials
After Walters conviction an order
fAltlltflI MS ste tf~pll. raul III pray,
10 Zanzibar. was carried out, he being
forcibiv taken to that placs on the
same steamer which conveyed Waller
20 prison.
An American named Woodford took
Mrs. Waller and her children as far as
Manritius. where she asked assistance
OF Consul Campbell to enable ner to
reach the United States. The con-
sui told her, She says, that the
United states made no provi-
sion for such purposes. Then
she went 70 the governor who
said he would hell her IL Consul Camp
bell would write to him regarding the
tmatter. This the consul refused to
do. saying that IL would humiliate
him. Finally she was sent home.
third-ciass passage and while on the
steamer she aud her children were
grossly insulted by the French SOL
dicrs. From Marseilles. where she and
her children we're treated with the