The times., 1899-04-05
MORE DREYFus TESTIMONY.
Statements of NJ. PO.ncarc, Former
Minister of FINANCE

hihister OF Finance.
Paris, April THE Figaro publishes
in its issue of today tine testimony given BY
NJ Poincare, Judge Develle, and General
Roget before the Court Of Cessation. NJ.
Poincare, who was Minister of Finance at
the time of the Dreyfus courtmartiai. tss
titled that when he learned that Dreyfus
mad been arrested he requested Premier
Dupuy and General Mercier. Minister of
War, to explain the affair At the next
meeting OF the Cabinet General Mercier
produced the bordereau and expressed his
belief that it was in Dreyfus' handwriting
and that it was Dreyfus who had trans
mitted the documents scheduled therein to
foreigners. General Mercer told the Cab
met the result OF his dictation test, but
nothing else was shown, nor was any other
proof of Dreyfus' guilt given. General Mer-
eier certainly did not state that there were
any secret documents which would be COM
municated to the courtmartial. Had he done
so he tPOincare) would have protested.
NJ. Poincare said he knew that conversa-
tion on the subject of secret documents
arose between NJ. Dupuy and General Mer-
cier at the time of the Zola trial. General
Mercier at that time told the witness that
the War Office was in possession Of new
proofs OF Dreyfus' guilt. NJ. Poincare said
that he knew that Captain Labrun- -Renaud
Dreyfus' reported confession ana to receive
from the Premier an order not to communi-
cate the confession to the press. for fear OF
foreign complications. The captain, how
ever, did not mention the confession to NJ.
Dupuy.
Mr. Poincare said that he once asked NJ.
Cavaignac, then Minister of War, in the
presence of his colleagues. il the secret
dossier was prior or subsequent to the con-
nj
no reply. At a dinner given by Nine. Car
not General Billot said: Il am convinced
that Dreyfus is guilty and think that Es-
terhaZy is likewise. 1 also think that a
third person is guilty" This conversation
occurred prior to the EsterhaZy courtmar-
tial. '''~
Recently NJ. Dupuy told me-" the wit
ness added, az think that we were the VIC
tins of big hoax In 1884,
NJ. Poincare said that the only document
in the case that he knew of was the bor-
dereau
M. Develle said that as he was not con-
nected with the Dupuy or Meline Cabinets
he was consequently ignorant of the Drey-
fus affair. When he was Foreign Minis
ter, in 1893, he said, he sent a document
written by person known as B to person
known as A, ending with a phrase men
tioning ID. to the War Office, which did
not then connect Dreyfus with the initial
Furthermore, the letter did not mention
military matters. NJ. Develle said he felt
compelled to state the foregoing to the
court as evidence that d was mentioned
elsewhere in the correspondence OF a and
B, and did not necessarily refer to Drey-
fus. Respecting BIS denial of relations
with Dreyfus, confrmatory evidence was
found in cipher dispatch in diplomatic
dossier in 1897.
Thinking that the document might be
the secret one disclosed to the courtmar-
tial, witness went in 1898 to see General
Billot, Minister of War, who was not ac-
quainted with the document. General Billot
said that Dreyfus' guilt was established by
letters which had passed between A and B,
arranging for an interview between the
two for the purpose of studying documents
supplied by d, who was evidently Drey-
fus, as his name was written in full in
other pieces of evidence. General Billot,
the witness said, did not doubt Dreyfus'
guilt. 1T took a month to classify the
documents" said General Billot, but two
hours will suffice to satisfy my successor
that Dreyfus is guilty. / think also that
Esterhazy is guilty"
Replying TO a question by the court, NJ.
Develle declared that it was the opinion of
the Foreign and Home Offices that the
French Department Of Intelligence was the
worst organized department in the admin
fStration.