Smyrna times., 1896-09-23
HISTORIC TRAGEDY.
CONVICTION OF JOSEPH LEsURQUEs
AND THE SAD SEQUEL.

An Unfortunate Resemblance and q Fatal
Combination of circumstances Caused
the Execution OF a Man Whose Inno-
cence Was Afterward Established.
Although Lesurques was executed as
far back as 1896, though his innocence
was established in 1901, though his
property was restored to the family in
1924, the corps legislatif, after the fam
lily had tried for over half a century to
have his memory judicially rebabilitat-
ed, definitely refused i'll 1869 to per-
form this last remaining act of justice
The pedantry of French law forbade the
questioning Of a jury's verdict by any
ono save the person directly interested.
But though the law has failed to re-
move the stigma on the name of an in.
nocent man, literature and the drama
have made him popular hero. 1.-The
Lyons Mail" i'll which his honor is
thoroughly vindicated, has been one of
tho most popular of all French melo-
dramas, and the combined genius Of
Charles Reade and of Henry Irving have
made it one of the great successes Of the
modern English stage.
Poor Lesurques, who, when he perish
ed on tho scaffold, was but 33 years of
age, was Il good husband, q good father
and a good citizen. He married in
1890, Mile Campion, a lady of respect
able family i'll Douai and possessed Of a
handsome dOwry. Their children there.
fore were very young and it was in Or
der to give them the benefit of o supe-
riOr education that he relinquished a
public appointment ct Douai and came
to Paris, thero to live on his own private
fortune, which amounted to about z, 800
francs year. He had but just arrived
in the capital and was experimenting
the furnishing cf his new home when
the thunder belt fell.
On April 27, 1896, the mail coach be-
tween Lyons and Paris was attacked
and plunderod and tho position and
courier were murdered, There were no
witnesses TO the crime, but it was re-
ported that party Of horsemen had
been seen i'll tie vicinity at about the
time it was Cc:nmittad. These hOrsemen
had taken C-.nur ut an inn at Mont
gerOn. One OF LesuTques' friends nam
ed GuenOt WAS arrested OH suspicion and
his private Papers were seized. There
was 10 evidence to hold him On except
| that he answered the description Of one
| of tho supposed murderers, and he was
dismissed. Next day he was told to call
for his papers st the central bureau. He
was accompanied thlther by Lesurques,
an act Of madness on the part Of tho
latter had 10 tCtn guilty.
It happaptl 4 tlat Just 0t that time the
| judge was taxing tho dcpOsitions of wit
nesses who lived III the neighborhood of
| tho scene If the murder Among these
were two nalttsCIVuuts of MOntgerOn,
who uttered slmuli@ncCCs screams at
the appearance OF the two friends They
wer0 put into the witness box and s7vore
| positively that two Of the hovsemen
wero prcs;lt in tho audience. When
confronted with LcSurqrea and Guenot,
they positively Identified them. Both
were arrested and thrown into prison.
At the trial iegr other witnesses cor
federated tier testimony with equal
emphasis as regarded LesurQueS, but
were doubtful about Guenot. The latter
succeeded III establishing satisfactory
alibi and WAS released. The fcrmer's at
tempted alibi seemed to break down
badly when tho daybook Of the jeweler,
! Lagrand--:u whom lie swOre he had sold
a bill Of goods on the very day of the
murdcr--was PRODUCED i'll court and the
date Cf tho Charge was found to have
been filtered. In vain the jeweler pro-
tested that 10 first date was q mistake,
which he had Immediately corrected,
and he AID all the other witnesses for
Lesurques were looked upon as self con-
victed pCrjurCrs. Lesurques was found
guilty and executed, together with one
Of the real mUrdercrs, named CoQrriol,
who, on mounting tho scGffQld, confess
ed his own guilt, but declared the in
nocence Cf LesulGues. Doubts began to
arise as to tie justice Of Losurques' sen.
tence and finally it was discovered that
he had suffered through ala extraordi-
nary resemblance to one Dubose, the real
criminal, who was brought to justice in
1901, convicted and CxCcCtcd.
This dCp!M;ble case Lad most deplor-
able Eequels. The unhappy Mime. Le-
Surqucs went mad ca hearing the news
Of her husbands condemnation. The
children were IS yet too young 10 under
stand their tolble, but us they grew
up one thOurnt ;..cnc possessed them
that Of vind.c..ting their dead father. 1t
Is easy to uHLoisi;.Hd Low LrOoding over
this purpose Lrovc one daughter to the
madhOHso III mich her mother had been
confined
Il IS curious that Gre Cf the witnesses
against Lcsu.C' lie woman Alfroy
also went ii!aLe frCn grief and re-
morse at her error. Still another victim
was another daughter of Lcsurques, who,
worn ont hy the fruitless struggle with
the pedantry CT Tie French laws, drown.
ed herself in tho Seine His son left
France, took service i'll the Russian
army and courted and found death
there. AS regards Lcsurques' fortune,
which had been cpnfscated, his unhap
py family were more successful. II
1924, Just 28 years after their fathers
death, they obtained grant CT 244, 00(
francs, supplemented i'll 1895 by another
grant of 252, COO francs. London Pub
lilo Opinion.
SeasicLhess.
Remedies for seasickness are so nu
merous that che need never to at a los