The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-08-27
MAUREL AND MERCER.
Testimony of Witnesses Places Them
in an Odious Light.


Rennes, Aug. Z6.-The temperance
on the stage of the court-martial,
called today, of the properties of M.
Bertillon, the distinguished anthropo-
meter, was the signal this morning of
an outburst of hilarity on the part Of
the audience. As the comedy was pro-
longed, it grew so wearisome that the
audience brought out newspapers and
chatted in low tones. NJ. Juares, a
member of the chamber of deputies,
openly showed his Impotence, and was
not rebuked for so doing.
NJ. Bertillon, at one point, advanced
alleged fresh proofs against the pris-
oner, namely, in the Dreyfus papers
seized at the war office and in which
the specialist said he found two words
had been traced. AS he proceeded, the
witness became Embedded in parapher-
MALTA, His lecture, delivered in a flu
nereal tone, began to pail on the judges
who finally paid only the most cursory
attention to the examples submitted.
One of NJ. Bertillons demonstrations
was handed to Dreyfus, who closely
scrutinized it and returned the paper
with disdainful shrug of the shoul-
ders, and without uttering word. In
summing up the results of his test, NJ.
Bertillon said
Fully understanding the responsible
ity of so positive a statement, on my
soul and conscience l declare today, as
did in 1894, on my oath, that the Dor
dereau is the work Of the prisoner
here" (Sensation.)
Dreyfus heard this assertion un-
moved. The witness was asked by the
court how he explained the similarity of
the handwriting of the bordereau and
that Of EsterhaZy, to which he replied
that, since 1894, Esterhazy may have
practised the writing of the bordereau,
in order to render possible the suhstitu-
ton of himself for the prisoner. In
support of this theory, NJ. Bertillon pro-
duced fresh array of plates, which,
he alleged, proved his hypothesis in re-
gard to Esterhazy. (MurmurS of as
sent and dissent.) He pointed out that
in Esterhazy's writing there were GER
tain caligraphic blunders which, he as
serted, did not exist in the original bor-
dereau, but were found in reproduce
tions Of the document, in consequence
of imperfections in the methods en-
ployed to reproduce them. This, he con-
tinued, tended to prove that Esterhazy
had appropriated the writing of these
reproductions.
lis man of straw and a scoundrel. I
have said this ever since the beginning
of the Zola trial"
There was a sensation in court at
this remark which was turned to laugh
ter as the witness, in his excitement,
knocked his portfolios to the ground
NJ. Demange asked NJ. Bertillon if he
had submitted Esterhazy's handwriting
to the same tests as the bordereau. The
witness replied in the affirmative, ex-
planning that, however the tests were
less complete than in the case of the
prisoner. The counsel reminded the
witness that he said in 1894 that he
found in the bordereau cryptographic
Alfred Dreyfus."
NJ Bertillon replied that he was not
now positive on this point, to which he
added. he attached mo Importance
whatever" Referring to NJ Bertillon's
statements yesterday, that he found in
the bordereau words which Dreyfus was
in the habit of using in documents OF
the war office, NJ. Demange asked how
the witness accounted for this, and the
specialist explained. with some confu-
sion, that it was a necessary counter
part of the precautions, taken by the
prisoner when he wrote the bordereau,
in order to make out that he was the
victim of a plot" [Sensation.1
Asked his opinion of the letter from
Matthew Dreyfus, called ''the blotting
pad letter. from which, the specialist
alleged, the prisoner took the key word
for his work on the bordereau. NJ. Ber-
tillon replied that he had no opinion on
the subject, but he maintained that the
letter had been written by the same
system as the bordereau.
THAT is my hypothesis said the
witness. Many similar ones can be
found" GMurmurs of disapproval.
NJ. Labor asked how NJ. Bertillon re-
conciled the result of the present ex-
periments, namely. that the borderea1l
was written by Dreyfus' tracing Ester
hays handwriting, with his opinion in
1894 that the bordereau was written by
Dreyfus, unless it had been most care
fully forged. To this NJ. Bertillon replied
that it was only a hypothesis. where
upon NJ. Labori remarked that the for
gerry was then of such a nature as to
constitute proof in favor of Dreyfus
yet today it is made proof against
him."
Continuing, the counsel said: "since
the witness admits Esterhazy has writ
ten by the same mathematical methods
as Dreyfus, why has he attributed the
bordereau to Dreyfus, rather than 10
Esterhazy?"
NJ. Bertillon-"It was on Drevfus.
plotting pad that the key word inter
est was found, and Esterhazy Nigh.
have had eccess to this word.'
M. Labori-'Does NJ. Bertillon admi.
that Esterhazy is a traitor?"
Col. Jouaust refused to put the oues-
ton to the witness. CSensation.
M. Labor asked M. Bertillon's opin-
ION as to what system of defence might
have been employed by the writer NJ
the bordereau if the document had been
found on HIM. The witness, in a con-
fused and almost inaudible tone. de-
clared che prisoner would then have
maihtained the document was a forgery
a plot.
NJ. Labori-"In that case. the pris-
oner must have foreseen the appear
ance on the scene of a man so eminent
as nj. Bertillon Qaughter), capable Of
producing a system so ingenious as the
one he has expounded today" IRE
newed laughter)
NJ. Bertillon retorted that in his opin-
ion, man of the ability of the ac-
cused could have a model line in q
quarter OF an hour, every time he had
occasion to write. Replying to further
questions, M. Bertillon admitted he had
discovered in Esterhazys writing ma
culiarities similar to those in the bor-
dereau. The counsel pointed out that
IL was impossible to maintain the hv-
pothesis that Esterhazy was a man of
straw, since in 1897. when he might very
well have admitted writing the bor-
dereau, he had confessed nothing. The
reasoning of NJ. Bertillon, the counsel
asserted, therefore, fell to the ground
After short incidental discussion of
the Weyl forgery. which, it was be-
lieved, was perpetrated by order of the
project of police. Col. Jouaust asked The
prisoner II he had anything to saw in
reply TO the witness, and the attention
of all present was Immediately turned
on Dreyfus who explained how the ex-
clamation, "Oh. the wretch" escaned
his lips yesterday.
IN. Bertillon," the prisoner said
was constantly TURNING 20 ~ ii, =,