The sun., 1898-11-18
soms Hone for prexfus Now.


The course Of events during the last fort
night indicates that the anti-revisionists
won but a barren victory when they over
threw the Brisson Cabinet. The present
Ministry is far stronger than was its prede-
cessor, being composed OF Moderates and
Radicals in nearly equal proportions, and
being thus far supported by a great ma
iority Of the Chamber. With few excep-
tions the whole body Of Republicans seem
resolved that the chiefs OF the army shall
not place themselves above the law and
there is already abundant evidence that the
new Premier, NJ. DUPUY, is, next to NJ.
CoNsrANs, the last man likely to connive
at IN attempt to subordinate the civil to
the military power. He has set his face
against any kind Of interference with the
machinery OF justice, which was irrevoca-
bly, put In motion when the friends OF DREY-
Fus were permitted to appeal from the SEN
tence OF the court-martial to the Court Of
Cessation.
The investigation which the highest civil
tribunal In France is now conducting is. for
all practical purposes, an entirely new trial
Of Capt ALFRED DREYFUs on the charge
OF a treasonable betrayal OF military secrets.
The Court of Cessation Is proceeding pre-
cisely as the original court-martial should
have proceeded; that is to say. after re-
Quiring the production OF every scrap Of
evidence on which the sentence was based,
1t has announced that all such alleged
proofs Of guilt shall be submitted to the
counsel for the accused in order that he
may have an opportunity OF studying such
evidence and refuting it,
This principle, which in France no less
than in England and the United States lies
at the root of criminal Jurisprudence, so far
as the final trial of an accused person is
concerned, is fearlessly asserted by the
Court of Cessation, In spite Of the specious
plea put forward by certain military chiefs
that the disclosure OF the secret documents
in the Dreyfus case, thus far withheld,
would be prejudicial to the nations inter-
est. The inference meant to be conveyed,
and, for time, widely adopted, was that
the divulgation Of the papers would
cause so intense friction between
France and one or another OF the great
powers, that war could not be averted. No
faith is now reposed in this assumption, for
the reason that all Of the great Continental
powers, to wit, Germany, Austria Italy,
and Russia, have Indignantly disavowed
any knowledge Of DREYFUs, and have not
scrupled to permit the expression by semi
official newspapers Of the opinion that the
sentence passed on him should be revised.
The true reason for withholding the papers
will probably be patent enough when they
shall have been laid before tribunal COM
posed Of veteran jurists, and shall have
been subjected to searching scrutiny at
the hands Of the counsel for the accused.
Those who imagined that the Court Of
Cessation could be intimidated by popular
clamor or that pressure would be put on
the tribunal by the new Ministry are by
this time disillusionized. A single incident
has sufficed to show that both expectations
were unfounded. The Court, determining
that its full duty to the accused should be
DONE informed the Minister for the Colo
nies that DREYFUs must be told that revis-
ion proceedings had been begun and that he
should prepare his defence. Thereupon NJ.
CAvAIGNAC, who, when Minister for War,
distinguished himself by bringing forward
as the principal proof of DREYFUs's guilt
the letter afterward acknowledged by Col.
HENRY to be forgery, is said to
have urged the Premier not to allow
the Minister for the Colonies to obey the
order OF the Court. If this astonishing re-
port be true, we can understand why the
anti-revisionists assumed that they would
be able to block the machinery Of justice,
and we can measure the deplorable ex-
tent to which some French public men,
who once had before them bright future.
have lost respect for equity.
One thing seems certain, namely, that
the trial of DREYFUs which is now proceed
ing will be an altogether fair one, and that,
whatever be the Courts decision, it will be
accepted by all, except few rabid anti
Semitics and the real authors of the crime
for which DREYFUs was made scapegoat