The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-01-30
VIEWS OF M. ERNEST JUDET
THINKS AGITATORs ARE PLAYING
EaTO THE HANDS OF GERMANY,
And that the Latter Would Not Let a
Good Opportunity Pass to Again
Invade the Republic.

A note of warning has even been sounded
by some of the French newspapers which
urge 4 cessation Of the present agitation in
France. pointing out that the country
should not play into the hands of Germany.
The Petit Journal says: The government
may soon be unable to prevent some one
in authority from making a statement
which is likely to occasion a conflict. We
have certain proofs that Germany foresees
the possibility of war and is making ar
rangements accordingly. She means to be
In the right, and accuse us Of creating
trouble
In discussing the situation in France, M.
Jndet, editor of lie Petit Journal, says:
There is no Dreyfus affair. The govern
ment is quite right. seeing that revision of
the matter has never even been asked for
in the way that the law provides There is
nothing simpler in the world than to have
the case reopened. Remember, 1 quite I'M
derstand the anxiety and feelings of the
Dreyfus family in this matter but suppose
the friend or relative of some victim of
judicial error discovers evidence that con-
tradicts the verdict. All he has to do is to
go to the authorities constituted by the law
and empowered to investigate the matter
and he will see his most fervent desires re-
allied, for if the fresh evidence is sufi-
GENTLY well founded to justify the case be-
ing rsopened he may be assured that this
will be DONE In any case, all the clamor
and the campaign that has been made in
the press would only be resorted to as
final resource in order to quicken the activ-
ity of the government.
''Now, you ask me what is the danger in a
public discussion of this matter. To under
stand it's full value you must remember
that it is a case of high. treason and that
the man accused is attached to the secret
service office of the army. This service
calls upon those charged with carrying out
its transactions to deal with many matters
that cannot be spoken of openly. At the
expense of playing with fire every nation
practices a system of spying. Every army
has its spies and it's source of information,
and il there is one service which requires to
be kept secret in all its details it is this
ore.
HOW TREASON is DEALT WITH.
Remember, L am speaking of facts as
they exist. / am neither defending nor adj
yocating them Now while every nation,
as ] said, spies upon its neighbor by a sort
OF mutual convendon-spying is supposed
70 be nonresident fiction due to hypoc-
risy, if you like. but none the less the
~eNs'S ~ ACSNSodAAfs AOliQWS llldI WHell any
member of this secret service department
betrays his trust his trial is either kept Sc
cret, or, as in Germany, the officer is simply
dealt with summariy and nothing more is
heard of him.
The reason is very simple. 1t requires
two nations to make treason. This fact
should be realized. The traitor only be-
trays his country for the benefit of an
other, and il is almost impossible to speak
openly about such a matter without run
ming the risk of two dangers. These are,
nrst, the danger of secrets being divulged
Ihat are especially important to the well
fare of our army. Suppose, for example,
the DreyfuS matter We're openly discussed
and the names of the officers charged with
the service of securing information given
out publicly in an open courtroom All that
information, obtained at great cost and
great risk and probably of especial value
to our army, would be absolutely worthless
The second danger would be that of wound
ing the susceptibilites of the government
IN whose favor the treason has been prac-
ticed, seeing that no government will open
~ admit that 1t spies upon its neighbor,
though for its own security 1t will con-
tiEue to do so.
From this-which is what / may call uni
versal hypocrisy-trials for military treat
most complete reserve. This has been done
in the present case. The government has
been admirable. One is compelled to admit
II. The name OF no single nation has been
pronounced in any official manner. Conse-
quently We have avoided every danger. Our
secret intelligence bureau has been able to
work and its work has retained its value
and the susceptibilitieS of other nations
have been spared. 1t is with the government
alone that any other nation Is called on to
deal In matters of this kind. What the
press says does not have any official weight
zone thing that perhaps does not seem to
be clearly enough understood in France in Il
word is that the state is the COLLECTIVELY of
the entire nation, represented particularly
for foreign and military affairs by. a certain
officials called MI
Now, so long as not one of those officials
has spoken on the matter no other state
can consider itself aggreVed.
This is the case up to the present, but as
/ pointed out in my article yesterday there
is danger in allowing this agitation to go
any farther, which, for the sake of France,
i hope will not happen. This danger is that
some one in an official position might make
a declaration liable TO hinder the working of
our military department intelligence by dis
closing some OF its secret details and thus
damaging the defensive preparations of the
country, or some nation might be accused
and q protest called forth that might bring
about possibly fatal international complica-
tiens.
up TO the present Germany has 8never
been officially spoken of in connection with
this matter but il must not be forgotten
that from its very opening the official Ger
man press displayed great interest and a
certain amount of agitation.
In December, 1890 Berlin correspond
ent said that in talking with one of the
principal German officers he had learned
that the Emperor had realized the impoS-
sibility Of winning France over to his views
and was now devoting more attention than
ever TO the organization of the army. This
was during the heat Of the first Dreyfus
agitation. About the same period the
koelnlsher Zeitung and sthe AllgIneine
Zeitung referred to the matter in terms
that left no doubt in any ones mind that
certain uneasiness reigned lest the Dreyfus
case should lead to the divulgation OF mat
ter that might, If you like TO put il So be
regarded as caSus belli. The Same dan
ger exists now exactly as it did three years
ago.
although there may be no connection
with the matter ii is certain that extraordi-
nary activity reigns in the Krupp works
at Essen. For several months those de-
partments OF the manufactures concerned
with artillery have been working Sundays
for which a special salary is paid. In view
Of this il is our duty to look to the ma
tional defense. No patriot will furnish arms
TO the enemy by provoking a public dis
cussion OF something that is big with the
mense majority OF the French nation is
pacifcally inclined and is TO an even
greater extent the most reasonable of peo-
pie. The nation has been impressed with
the detestable character of the attacks
made upon the army, increased at the same
time by the agitation over the Dreyfus af-
fair. which is OF such intensity that the
clamor itself has become a campaign
against the army The whole of France is
indignant at this criminal movement which
can only result in the diTnnution of her
military power. She has still more sus-