The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1898-11-06
DREY FUS.
The Charges
Against Him.
--------.----------
FOR A REVISION.
Successful Efforts Of Friends
For New Trial.

most famous prisoner in the world. a
summary of the principal events which
have placed him on this undesirable
eninence, so far as they have been
published, follows
! On November 1, 1891, the anti-Semitic
press of Paris announced that the jew
ish staff officer Captain Dreyfus, had
betrayed France and had been confined
in the military prison. With one ac-
cord they poured invective on the al
Legal traitor and on all Jews and de-
manded their wholesale expulsion from
the army.
The minister of war was at that time
General MERCER He had been the OBJ
ject Of violent attacks by Rochefort ana
Drumont, and was anxious to regain
prestige by some startling act. The
chief of staff was General De Boisdei-
FIRE, associated with clerical and royal
list circles. The head of the inteligence
bureau was Colonel Sandherr, who was
compelled to resign in 1896 because of
lnclplent insanity. He was an intense
Jew hater. Chief of other bureaus
We're M. du Patty de Clam who saw
y V.
mad risen from the ranks, brave, but
coarse and capable of carrying zeal to
criminal lengths, and NJ Berth. the
son OF Jewish mother, and perhaps
Tor that reason all the more disposed
TO make show of anti-Semitic feryor
Among the officers then employed on
the general staff was Alfred Dreyfus
the first Jew who ever received an APP
pointment of the kind. He came of a
rich and patriotic Alsatian family had
refused a brilliant business opening in
order to enter the army and had
passed through in turn the Ecole Poly
technique, the Ecole dApplication
d Artillerie and the Ecole de Guerre.
He had married in 1890 Mile. Hada-
mard, daughter OF a wealthy Partisan
merchant A devoted husband ard the
father iof two children, he lived entirely
for his family and his work
In September, 1894, the intelligence
bureau received, with other papers, one
which had been written three or four
months before, enumefating several
documents delivered by an unknown
spy to Maj. Won Schwarzkoppen. the
German military attache. The minis
ter, anxious to enhance his own repu-
tation and hearing that reasonable
acts were being committed, sought the
traitor among the general staff itself.
1t was fruitless search until one dav
the late Marquis de Mores, a fanatical
anti-Semite, having heard of the in
quiries, said to M. Berth that the
traitor could only be "the Jew of the
4 general staff. This remark was re-
peated to M. du Patty de Clam and Col.
Sandherr, who received the sugges-
ton with joy. AS NJ. du Patty de Clam
said that he recognized the handwrit-
ing of Dreyfus in the memorandum. he
was at once intrusted with the judicial
investigation. 4 Experts in handwriting
were summoned, and M. Colbert, the
most eminent French authority, pro
nounced against the supposed Dreyfus
authorship. This so enraged MI 6u
Patty de Clam that M. Colbert was af-
terWard compelled to apologize From
M. Bertillon he received a more favor
able opinion.
Next day Dreyfus was submitted to
an ordeal at the hands of Du Patty de
Clam, which consisted in debating to
| Dreyfus text in which were enunner-
ated the documents of the memoran-
dunn All unconscious as Dreyfus was
as to what was happening in the mid
ole OF the dictation he was arrested on
a warrant dated Oct A. on the ground
that his hand .rembled.
The investigation was conducted with
| the most profound secrecy. Drevfus
was repeatedly subjected to the ordeal
| OF dictation in order to obtain speci-
mems of his handwriting resembling
the memorandum. He was not PER-
mitted to communicate with any one
outside the prison His wife was for
Dldden to reveal where her husband
was and was refused all information as
to the charge against him
AT last on November [, the inforna-
ton was given to the anti-Semitic
press. They at once began a crusade
against General MERCER. whom they
accused of wishing to aid Dreyfus to
escape; against hostile experts in hand
writing, who were said to have sold
themselves to the Jews, and against the
future Judges, who were to be paid for
MS acqulttal. The names of the fam
lily OF Dreyfus and that of his wife,
| previously blameles5, were now drags-
| ed IN the mire without a voice to defend
| them With this tremendous pressure
| brought to bear on General Mercier. he
was inclining more and more toward
! conviction. even though President Cast
! mlr-Perler had pointed out the slender
! foundation of the indictment. and M
| Hantoaux, who had been warned by
/ Count Munster that Dreyfus had nc
| connection with Germany, had begged
| the minister of war to give UP the pro
! ceedings. But he turned deaf ear tc
/ their reasonable requests and sought
! further proof against Dreyfus. Accus-
ed every day by the anti-Semitic press
i of trying to save the traitor, General
| MERCER finally declae u in Interviews
! that he was certain of Dreyfus' guilt
/ Such a declaration from the minister
| Of war made an impartial court martial
/ impossible without its being an affront
! to the minister and to the officers who
I had conducted the preliminary in
| quiry.
I The trial began November 19, 1894
4 1T was conducted behind closed doors
| despite the protests of Dreyfus coun-
! sci, The only fact the only definite
document on which the Indictment was
/ founded, was the memorandum. and
| that two experts out Of five, and the
two who carried most weight, denied &c
be in Dreyfus' handwriting. The rest
/ wasVnade UP Of vague insinuations astc
/ his morals, which the proceedings prov
/ ed to be false.
The minister Of war felt so strongly
/ the weakness of the evidence against
! Dreyfus that he directed Du Patty dc
! Clam to attempt to obtain a confession
| from Dreyfus. Du Patty visited Drefus
and asserted the German spy had de-
nounced him, "tnat tine minister knew
/ him to be innocent, and that if he hao
| furnished documents to Germany they
had been documents of no Importance
and that he had furnished them only
| in order to obtain more important ones
| in return" Dreyfus replied that he
had committed no such imprudence
| He asked in vain to see the minister
and asserted his absolute innocence
Again, on January a. 1895, Count Nun.
ster declared to President Casimir.
Perier that the German embassy haC
! had no relations with Dreyfus.
on January 5 Dreyfus degradation
! took place on the Champ de Mars. He
never wavered but declared to tn,
frenzied crowd shouting for his death
| u am innocent-Viye Ia I'rancel'
While awaiting the ordeal he told