Gulf Coast breeze. [volume] (Crawfordville, Fla.) 1897-19??, 1898-09-09
STORY OF prerfus Caae.

Albert Dreyfus Is an Alsatian jew.
He was captain In the. Fourteenth
regiment Of artillery in the French
army. He was detailed for service at
the information bureau OF the minis
ter OF war. He was arrested on Octo-
Der 10, 1894, on the charge Of having
sold military secrets to foreign
power. Here is the letter which was
said to have been found at the German
embassy by French detective, writ
ten, II was claimed, in tile hand OF
Dreyfus:
Having no news from you do not know
what to do. send you In che meantime
the condition ofthe forts. also hand you
the principal Instructions as to firing. II
you desire the rest I shall have them copied.
The documentjs precious. Theinstructions
have been given only to officers OF the gen
cral stan. leave for the manoevres."
Some time before the arrest of Drey-
fus, who was charged with being the
author OF this letter. M. Drumont, ed
itor Of the Libre Parole, had been raw
ing about the Jews in general. he
declared Dreyfus guilty, but affirmed
that there was danger Of his being ac-
quilted, through the Juverie, ''the
cosmopolitan syndicate which exploits
France"
Public opinion in Paris was thus
poisoned against Dreyfus. He was
under these circumstances brought to
trial before secret court martial, de-
clarsd guilty, degraded from his mill
tary rank and imprisoned for life on
DEVILS Island of the coast of French
Guiana. The sentence was executed
with Abe greatest severity. II is
stated that Dreyfus is living in mis-
cradle hut shut In by an iron cage on
the island. He is allowed to send aud
receive letters only which have been
transcribed by one Of his guardians.
He and his family have always stoutly
asserted his innocence.
II appeared from the indictment
OF Dreyfus that he was convicted on
an unsigned memorandum indicating
that its author had sold military
secrets to q foreign government. IT
appeared also that OF the five experts
IN handwriting who testified Mt the
trial only three had affirmed that
Dreyfus had written the memorandum.
Matthew Dreyfus, brother OF the
captain, declared that Major sterhazy
was the guilty man.
Esterha2y was arrested, his lodgings
and papers ransacked and two letters
were found in which he expressed
wish that the Germans would conquer
France. He was tried, as Dreyfus
had been, before military court and
behind closed doors. So far as can be
judged by the meagre accounts made
public, the evidence that Esterhazy
wrote the memorandum was quite as
strong as that'which had already con-
victed Dreyfus Of that act.
Esterhazy was not only acquitted,
but also publicly congratulated and
complimented by the president of the
court.
Then II was that Emile lola, the
novelist, took hand in the affair. He
addressed an open letter to the presi-
dent Of the republic entitled ''I ac-
cuse," which was published in the
'L'Aurora. " He charged that the
officers OF the courtmartial freed Es- :
terhazy upon the order Of their chiefs
in the ministry Of war, in their ankle
ty to show that French military just
ice could not possibly make an error.
Thereupon lola was indicted, as was
also the responsible representative Of
'the paper ''L'Aurora." They were
adiudged guilty Of the libel against
French officers.
BY the assize court Of Versailles
lola was sentenced to pay a fine Of
5000 francs and serve a year in
prison.
1t was in the lola trial that Colonel