The record-union., 1898-09-04
THE DREYFUS CASE.

The suicide of Captain Henry, folloW-
ing his confession that his perjury
blasted the reputation of Captain AL
fred Dreyfus and caused him to be sem
fenced to life imprisonment on Devils
Island, brings to light state Of af-
fairs that is almost inconceivable to
Americans.
No one can view the Dreyfus case
with calm judgment without concluding
that the trial was one of the most Sc
cret, prejudiced and unfair conceivable.
It is strange that the French bour-
geoise, who have poured out their blood
and overturned four thrones, will sub
nit to such a tyrannical system as ex-
lists in the trial procedure of the courts
Of France.
Aside from the fact of the guilt or
innocence Of Dreyfus, is it not strange
that a few hundred magistrates in
France, answerable TO no one but them
selves, have the power to handle the
life, liberty and honor Of their fellow
citizens? At one word from these mag
istrates (as in the Dreyfus case) one is
cut off from society and made prisoner
in a dungeon. This is during the pre-
liminary hearing. The examination is
secret. and the accused is not allowed
to obtain lawyer until the trial. Mrs.
Dreyfus knew of her husbands arrest,
but she was forbidden to mention the
fact to her nearest relatives. This si-
teen days. as is always the case in
such examinations.
During this preliminary examination
there were no witnesses, and there was
no notification to the prisoner regarding
the charge made against him. He and
his wife were examined and harassed
by all sorts of questions by ignorant po-
lice officers, whose reports were so palp-
ably false that the public prosecutor
rejected them.
In short, Captain Dreyfus was ar
rested, accused, judged, condemned and
sent to Isle du Diable, where he is con-
fined in a hut that sets inside an iron
cage, without an opportunity of con-
fronting witnesses against him. Seven
officers of a military tribunal con-
demned him, largely on the evidence OF
a man who has now committed suicide,
after confessing that he lied all through
the trial But had it been true, such
worthless in England or America.
Captain Henry, the suicide, is the
man who charged Dreyfus with fur
nishing military information to the
German Embassy. He said he got the
information from "a reliable person"
but that persons name has never been
made public. One man with a craze
for graphology on. BertillonD swore
that he thought Dreyfus wrote the in
eliminating letter. Though other ex-
perts testified that the letter was not
written by the prisoner, he was con-
victed. In this connection, it is strange
to relate that much weight was given
to the evidence of Captain Patty du
Clam, who swore that Dreyfus, as it
seemed to him, appeared to act like
a guilty man when he was arrested"
Patty du Clam was regarded as an ex-
pert in psychology, therefore, his evil
dence was taken as very important.
But back of all this prosecution one
must weigh the fact that the anti
Semitic craze in France was a potent
factor. There was violent, lying
rabid press that demanded Dreyfus
bitter campaign was waged against
Dreyfus and sall Jews by La Libre Pa
role" and like newspapers. AS soon as
the Captain was arrested these papers
branded him as ''Dreyfus, the Jew trail
tor" in spite of the fact that his life
had been honorable, that he was
wealthy and, cultured, and that his SER
vices since he was eighteen years of
age had been distinguished and patri-
otic.
All the great jurists of the world who
nounce the procedure an abomination
of iniquity From the very outset there
was no presumption. as under the Eng
lish comm on law, of the innocence of
the prisoner. The French system treats
its prisoners as wild beasts from the
moment of their arrest, transfers their
liberty and their honor to the keeping
OF a magistrate, whose processes are
secret and whose tyranny cannot be
exaggerated, and hides from all that
are dear to them the knowledge that
they have been arrested What should
we think ofSsuch system In this coun-
try?
France issstill narrow and antiquated