The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1898-09-02
WAS HENRY A MARTYR?
His Crime May Have Resulted From
Misguided Patriotism.
OnNNIvANOE IN HENRY's SUICIDE
The Bolief IL General That High Of
flclals Indirectly. Aided the Accused
Oflcer In Taking His Own IiEe. and
Perhaps Persuaded Him to Do So.

Perhaps Persuaded Him to DO So.
Paris. Sept. 1.-The Dreyfus case pre-
Sents no new feature, but there Is a
plentiful supply Of rumors. The first
OF these is that Dreyfus Is dead, no
letter having been received from him
for some weeks. Another report is that
General De Boisdeffre. who has just
resigned the post of chief of the gcn-
ersl staff. has committed suicide. Both
foundation.
Colonel Patty de Clam is on vacation
trip In Switzerland, and there Is no
confirmation Of the statement of La
Patrie that he had been arrested for
completely in the Henry forgery.
General Gonse. assistant chief Of the
general staff, who rendered his reslg
nation on Wednesday to M. Cavaignac,
minister for war, has been persuaded
to withdraw 1t, as his retirement un-
der the age limit will occur next month.
The lull In news, however, has in no
way limited the popular excitement.
The latest cartoon Of M. Forain hap
ply hits of the situation. 1t repre-
1ther sitting on a bench and reading a
newspaper. What are you readlng?"
asks the former. about the czars
letter?" mo. SIR" he replies. "about
the Henry affair"
Speculation Is keenest over the mo-
tives for Lieutenant Colonel Henry's
suicide. Looking TO the view the whole
nation has adopted regarding the guilt
pf Dreyfus, 1t is argued that Henry
may have supposed he was acting in
the country's interests even In forging
the letter, which would satisfy the ma
tiOn Of the Justice of the sentence with
out production of the real evidence.
which would be undesirable on the
highest political grounds. In that case
Henry might have posed as martyr
to misguided patriotism.
The traditions of the intelligence de-
Dartment. which, at the time of the
condemnation of Dreyfus, was under n
conspicuous anti-semte, Colonel Sand
herr. would probably have led blunt
mind like Lieutenant Colonel Henry's
10 construe the slightest hint from
above Of the desirability of killing off
the -Dreyfus agitation to an order
To 90 so by any means.
Colonel Sandherr, who was then suf-
1ering from inclpient paralysis. seems
to have been the head of general con-
apfracy to hunt Jewish officers out of
the French army. Dreyfus. a man of
naughty demeanor, of vast strategic
knowledge, would naturally be selected
as victim of these Vaccinations.
1t Is asserted that Colonel Sandherr's
last days We're haunted by fear,
amounting to terror, lest the Illegal and
fippant nature of the evidence upon
which Captain Dreyfus was condemned
SHOULD be revealed and weaken the
prestige of the intelligence department,
eRd that he enjoined upon Henry, his
subordinate, to guard the departments
traditions at all costs.
The carelessness of the authorities in
allowing Henry to have a razor and in
anD watching him Is generally interpret
- as connivance and perhaps as per-
ouasion, since officers under arrest and
aikely to be condemned should, accord
ang to military regulations, be con-
atsntly watched, while Lieutenant Coll
Auel Henry was left for hours alone
and allowed to lock the door on the in
side.
II there were persuasion, It is not
1lkely to have been difficult. Had Henry
been expelled from the army, both him
self and wife would have lost all pen-
sion rights. AS II is, the widow becomes
entitled to a handsome pension. This
seems a more likely motive than the
nvrrIo hn oil In
coherent letter he left behind, that he
had lost his reason.
Colonel Henry left letters addressed
10 the minister for war and to General
BGfsdeffre in which he protested that
he had not realized the gravity of the
net which he committed 'soley for the
good of the cause"
Having died uncondemned his re-
mains are entitled to military honors,
but his brother will take the body to
Pougy, near Chalons. where 1t will be
buried tomorrow with the strictest
privacy.
Several officers Of the general staff,
It is said tonight, have asked to be sent
back to their regiments. General Re-
nonar, the new chief of staff, is UNDER
2tOOu " nave u llee Hduu duu 10 De dI
liberty to replace all the staff officers
II he thinks fit. 1t is expected that he
VIII resort to process Of publication.
The governments position is most
unhappy. Notice Of interpretations in
the chamber Of deputies multiply. Pres
1dent Faure is censured for leaving
Paris at such critical moment. Great
efrorts are being made to get the sig
natures of majority Of the deputies,
which Is necessary preliminary to a
of the chamber.
The movoment in favor Of a revision
IN the Dreyfus case Is growing by leaps
Ind bounds. Considering recent events
Major Count Walsin Esterhazy retains
IN amazingly cool attitude. In the
course of an Interview yesterday he ex-
pressed astonlshment that Lieutenant
Colonel Henry was allowed to have
razor. Ienry's death, he said, was re-
Bretable, because, doubtless, he had
Rther revelations to make" Count Es-
terhazy intends to appeal against his
enforced retirement from active SER
vice in the army.
Canton's Welcome to Mckinley.
Capion q Sent "A grand dpmnn.