Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1898-01-16

mony at the new trial thirty new wit
nesses appeared. OF these ten declar-
ed the prisoner to be Martin Guerre,
seven or eight decided in favor OF Ar
maud du Tilh, and the rest We're I'M
certain. Most of the witnesses agreed
in describing Martin Guerre as taller
and darker than the accused, slender
III body and limb, rOund-shouldered
with high, divided chin, pendant
lower lip, and squat nose, having the
trace OF an ulcer on the cheek and
scar on the right eyebrow. Arnaud,
the accused, was short and stout, hay-
ing neither humpy shoulders nor squat
nose. But all these marks referred to
as belonging to Martin Guerre were
present on the face of the accused.
1t was further sworn to that Martin
Guerre was an expert sWordsman and
wrestler. The prisoner was neither.
About forty persons sWore that the
accused was actually Martin Guerre.
Among them was his four sisters, with
the husbands of two of them. A
great number asserted that Guerre had
two teeth in the left lower jaw broken,
drop of extravasated blood in the
left eye, the nail of the left forefin-
left hand, one being on the little fin
ger. All these marks existed in the
accused. 1t was also proved that the
prisoner, arriving at Antiques, recog-
niZed and saluted as old friends all
those who had been intimate with Mar
tin GuerTe, that, in conversation with
the wife, he had recalled to her GER
tain incidents known only to herself
and husband, and it was stated, in il
lustration, that Nine. Guerre, having
mentioned that she had preserved GER
tain chests unopened, he desired her to
fetch from one a pair of white panta-
Looms folded in taffeta. The garments
were found as he had described.
With regard to dissimilarity in
height and stature, it was urged that
there was nothing remarkable in the
boy OF disappearance returning, after
many years, stocky man; that the
matter Of height was something wlL>
nesses might easily be mistaken IN,
and that, of necessity, great changes
had taken place in the appearance Of
Guerre during his long absence. Last
ly the prisoners apparently inexhaust-
ible familiarity with family records
to claim him to be an imposter The
new trial would have undoubtedly re-
suited in an acquittal had not a re-
markable incident taken place.
The veritable Martin Guerre himself
suddenly came into the court room and
demanded to be heard He denounced
the impostor and gave his history.
Then he demanded to be confronted by
h n ic no RI
not appear to be in the least abashed
or frightened, but began arrogantly to
cross-examine the newly arrived claim
ant and put questions to which the
newcomer could not answer with near
ly the readiness Of the prisoner, the
impostor, if such he was. But, exam
ming the newcomer it was ascertained
that he bore also all the marks ascrib-
ed to the genuine Martin Guerre. He
was next questioned alone by the
Judges. To these questions he replied
with absolute accuracy. But the ac-
cused, being brought in, also answered
the same questions as readily and ex-
actly.
The court was dumbfounded. In
despair, it was decided that the only
course was to bring in the relatives Of
uncle and the brothers of Arnaud du
Tilh, and let them decide, once for all,
which was the real man. All did so,
with the exception Of the brothers,
whom the court considerably allowed
freedom of testimony that might affect
the life of a relative. The eldest sis
ter of Guerre entered first, paused
moment as if thunderstruck, and then
fell weeping upon the breast of the
newcomer and acknowledged him to
be her brother. The other witnesses,
one by one, followed suit. Finally the
wife came in, and the instant her eyes
lighted on Guerre she threw herself
down beside him, weeping and tremb
ling, and begged his compassion on
her for the deceit that she had been
led into by artifice. She averred that
no sooner had she discovered her er-
ror than, but for the fear of Gods
wrath, she would have concealed her
dishonor in the grave. In place of
this, she had determined on revenge
and resolved, through the courts, to
pursue the man who had dishOnored
her to his deserved punishment.
The trial ended in a conviction Of