Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1895-07-29
EX-CONSUL WALLER.

I am charged with having violated the
penal code by corresponding with the
enemy and giving him information as to
the movements of French troops in this
place. This charge, l am sure, cannot be
sustained, nor believed by the honorable
court when your honors have made a care
full and impartial examination of the let
tiers to my wife, Mr.. Tesse and the young
Hova. l call the attention of the court to
the fact that that in none of those letters
are none of the movements of the French
army in Madagascar or elsewhere men
toned nor referred to in any way
1t seems to me that this fact cannot be
ignored or overlooked, which fact alone
should warrant an acquittal of the &c
cuscd, because it follows in order to VIC
late the article of the code under which
am charged it must be clearly proven that
the accused has corrcspondcd with the en-
envy TO the extent of laying before him the
military movements and operations of the
army of the republic. l maintain that the
letters now before your honors will admit
of no such construction when placed
under an impartial and fair analysis,
which | am quite sure you will do in this
case.
Wrongs Referred To.
Sccond-lt will be found that I refer In
the letters to my wife to certain wrongs
done by certain soldiers whom l did not
name because unable to do 50; but the
mention of these has nothing to do with
the military operations of the army In
deed should feel sorry to see an army op-
Grating in that way. | am sure your hon
ors would not hesitate to condemn to your
wives and friends in the strongest terms
all such deeds Every gazette in France
would condemn such deeds, and believe
that nine out of 10 French soldiers in your
army would deuounce and condemn them.
Why, then, should l be sent to prison for
20 years for the mention Of these wrongs
to my wife and friends2
The honorable judges will notice that
l refer in the letter to my wife to two
assaults made upon me by certain soldiers.
whose names l am unable to give As to
the first of these attacks, informed the
French authorities through the United
States consul acting. Subsequently the
chief of the French police called at my
house in Madagascar, without the clear
establishment Of which charge / contend
that | should not be imprisoned even for n
day
| should not fail to call the attention of
the honorable judges to the fact that in all
criminal matters where one is on trial
charged with grave offcnse, all the cir
cumstanccs of the case must be taken into
consideration and the accused given the
benefit of every reasonable doubt
The court will see all the extenuatinr
circumstances surrounding the case.
Again | maintain that the court should
even ascertain so far as possible, the future
intentions of the accused under charge
of this kind to find If possible whether it
is the intention of the accused to remain
here, and whether he has actual arrange
ments with the enemy to assist them
against the army of the republic
The Letters and the Evidence
will show the contrary, which is circum-
stance that should be placed in my favor
in coming to judgment in this case. The
time of my departure from the capital
Sept. 10 or IA, 1894, must not be lost sight
of
have explained the Draper and Purtly
matter with me and how they have robbed
and then made Il laugh about it, and that
they have been paid money by me on a
contract which they have never even at
tempted to perform, which failure has re-
suited in a loss to me of more than $1,000
1t is these men who | actually meant in
my letter, and who l designated d. and p
having before warned my wife against
them as d. and p. in a postscript TO the
letter
While it is clear to me that l was in
discreet to make such mention of them
yet l cannot believe that this honorable
court WILL after careful and impartial
examination of all the circumstances and
facts of this case, decide that l have vio-
lated any article of the penal code