The herald., 1897-10-24
"MONSIEUR DE PARIS
The Most Hated Man in France--Ex-
ecutioner Deibler

Down in little wine shop near La
Roquette 1 met Deibler, Francois"
Monsieur de Paris'-take any name
you like, but always Francois in pr
vate life. A chance meeting with one
of the police agents had led to the GER
tainty of seeing the famous executioner
and the possibility Of having an inter-
view. The latter hope failed at the very
onset. He came quietly into the bar,
looking sad and, wearied out, for, six
hours before, he 1sd cut off the head
of some poor devil Down in the provinc-
es. He shook hands cordially with my
acquaintance, and, on his Introduction,
treated me with just as friendly a grip
l saiuted him as Monsieur Fragcois for
20 mention the rnme of Deibler would be
to reveal his identity in a quarter of
Paris where the inhabitants would maui
him in the twinkling of an eye. AS
said, the interview failed, Deiber saw
that I was an Englishmac, ard r spite
of the men6acious assurances of my
companion that l had nothing to do
with journalism, he drank up his glass
of light wine and excused himself on the
ground of an appointment.
My companion continued: "You have
only failed. where everyone else has
failed. You could not get an interview
with that man. In his heart fa loathes
his occupation, but it would be impos-
sible for him to change it. Although he
has dosle nothing but carry out the or
ders of judge and jury. he is eXecrateilas
though he bore the whole responsibility
of the death" Here l interrupted, for
the face of Monsieur de Paris had fas-
cinated me. Without the slightest in-
dcation of any force of character. anG,
with eyes that seemeG full of kindness,
it had struck me as being extraordinary
that the realty dressed man with a
frock coat buttor,sd up to the chin, anG
the carefully brushes whiskers, could
without a shiver see that awful foun-
tain of blood that follows the fall of
the knife. 1 put this to my companion.
you are wrong, and yet right" he
said. 'Deibler suffers terribly when he
enters the prison in the morning, and
l have been present at one of these
scenes. The governor reads over to him
the particulars of the crime which the
condemned man is called upon to ex-
plate. Deibler is as white as a ghost
and every muscle in his face is twtcl-
ing! Then a Remarkable change comes
over the man. He becomes furiousiy
red, and you might imagine that he was
anxious and even glad TO play his part
in avenging the crime He himself
takes no part in the strapping up of
the condemned mar arrs leaves that to
his sors. He only looks on. When the
criminal is tilted up, he simply regards
the llKife. ana the instant that it is fall
ing he turns away and disappears mys-
teriously. The executions always takes
place at the first approach of dawn, and
he is far away long before the sun is
up. There are not a score even in the
quarter of La Roquette who know him"
1 asked what was Deibler's life in
Paris, and, was assured that it was
one of the suburbs under an assumed
r1ame, but his identity leaked out. The
whole of the Ihabitants in the street
threatened to leave unless he changed
his address He subsequently found j
home for himself in quiet hotel, but
again he was identified an0 his belong
ings were put down in the hall by the
proprietor. To appear in the st. An
toine quarter in Paris would be simply
to play for death, and the quiet, kindly
looking man, whose only idea is to kill
without any hitch, is little more than an
Ishmael He drissks only the lightest
wines, smokes only the mildest tobacco,
and, in the company of his friends, be-
comes the brightest Of conversational
iStS,-TOGay.