The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-08-31
THE GENERALS DIVIDED
TORN BY FEARS OF DREYFUS
ULTIMATE TRIUMPH.
TESTIMONY FAVORED HIM YESTERDAY
To-day's Session Of the Court-Martial to be
Held Behind Closed Doors. VIII be
of the Greatest importance for
or Against Dreyfus.

Rennes, France, Aug. 30.-The air of
Rennes this morning is filled with ru-
mors of conspiracies and predictions of
coups de theatre, but nothing precise
can be ascertained. General Mercier's
attitude during the last few days has
mystified his followers in the case. He
is extremely clever. and the general
feeling is that he is preparing some
thing, the existence of which will be
revealed in a few days.
1t is now accepted as beyond ques
tion that there is a serious division of
opinion on the part of the generals.
While the case was running smoothly
against Captain Dreyfus they all pull
ed together, but since the tide of eyi-
dence began TO turn in his favor, as
was notably the case during the testi-
mony OF Captain Frey-t,etter and Col
onel Cordier, which d much more
damaging to the genera staff than the
latter anticipated, certain dividing lines
have become manifest between the va
Iious cliques. General Roget, Major
Lauth, Captain Cuignet and NJ. Crib
elm, the principal keeper of the ar
chives Of the War Office, form one
coterie: General Mercier and General
Gonse form another, and General Bill
lot and General De Boisdeffre a third.
According to one report, the first two
coteries intend TO throw over General
De B0isdeffre. who they feel to be fal
tefing. and declare that he is responsible
for all the errors and illegalities of
the court martial of 1894. thus making
him the scapegoat. According TO another
report. General Roget who was not
implicated in 1894 and VINO even fought
against DreyfuS because he inherited
from his predecessors the responsibility
for so doing and placed oyer-confdence
in the accounts Of the matter furnish
ed him by the general staff, will cut
himself loose from Generals MERCER,
Gonse and De Boisdeffre.
This is a plausible hypothesis. since
Roget has assumed throughout the role
of the defender of the army, thus max
ing himself popular with the army and
with a large section of the nation. and
he probably would not lose by separat-
ing himself from the wrong~doers of
1894, and declaring that his opinion
has been changed by the evidence given
during the present trial.
Yet, another story is that the gem
erals are going to give way on the au-
thorship Of the bordereau In view of
the strong expert eyidela5a and will
admit that Esterhazy wrote it, alleg-
ing. however. that Dreyfus furnished
the information, not direct to Ester
hazy. but to a third person. who acted
as intermediary without Dreyfus know
ing Esterhazy.
In this connection, it was asserted
this afternoon that Madame Rastian.
who was housekeeper for Colonel
Schwartzkoppen the Germany military
attache in 1894, and who Is understood
to have acted as a French spy. has
been seen in Rennes and will be sum
moned as witness concerning
Schwartzkoppen's espionage system.
All these rumors may be without
foundation. but in any event they are
symptomatic of the feeling in Rennes
that something is going on under the
surface, and the complexion Of
the trial may be altered by some coup
at any moment.
In the matter of evidence today was
quite a Dreyfus day, only the deposition
of the last witness, General Deloye, be-
ing unfayorabe. The testimony of NJ.
Picot. a member of the institute, is
little likely, however, to serve the cause
of the accused materially, if at all, be-
cause his introduction of Colonel
Schneider. the Austrian military attache,
as a champion of Dreyfus, was rather
calculated to arouse resentment and
adversely to influence the judges, espe-
cially as it was followed by General
Roget's tactful protest against Colonel
Sehneider's 11ncomplimentary illusions
TO French officers.
Tomorrow's proceedings, behind closed
doors, will deal with the question wheth-
er Captain Dreyfus was in position TO
diyulge the information regarding the
artillery which was promised in the bor
dereau.
The session will be very important and
is bound TO have a tremendous influence
upon the judges one way or the other.
because they are all artillery officers and
will be able 10 appreciate such evidence
better than the cryptographic intricacies
that have been laid before them by
the handwriting experts.
The Dreyfusards express confidence
that their artillery witnesses. Major
Hartman and Major Ducros, will effec-
lively satisfy the judges that Dreyfus
was ignorant Of the matters mentioned
in the bordefeau, MS an artillery officer.
would not have been guilty of stating the
errors which ii contained.
The court room continues crowded