The Grenada sentinel., 1899-08-19

Il
not even allowed to communicate with
his wife or legal Glvisor. His wife
and two children were appraised OF
his arrest by Du Patty de Clam, who
came and searched the house, and who
forbade Nine. Dreyfus to speak of the
matter to anybody. During all this
time Dreyfus only knew that he was
charged with ''high treason" but o.
what sort OF high treason he had no
idea.
For II successive days Du Patty de
Clam visited Nine. Dreyfus' house,
ransacking it illegally and yet in vain
for incriminating letters and docu-
ments. All the time he refused to tell
her of what crime her husband was
accused or where he was. He also for
babe her to try to communicate with
him or discover where he was.
Du Patty de Clam threatened her
with the worst penalties II she in,
formed her relatives of her husbands
arrest. He told the wife that Capt.
Dreyfus had been leading double
life Of seeming honesty and virtue
with her, and of treachery and de-
bauchery out OF her sight.
AT the same time the prisoner was
subjected daily to more interroga-
tories and writing tests. Not one of
these written sheets, by. the way, ever
has been made public, though the ar
rest was made on the strenth of the
first one.
At last it became necessary that the
arrest should be announced. The Libre
Parole was inspired to ask, on October
20, whether an important arrest for
high treason had not been made. The
next day the Eclair replied that it was
So. On November l the Libre Parole
published an article headed ARREST of
Jewish Officer"
On December IA, 1894, the court-mar-
tial began. More than three years Ia
ter the ''acte d'accusation," drawn up
BY an officer named D'Qrmeschville,
was published in the Steele, SO the
public now has fair idea of the
grounds on which Dreyfus was con-
demned. "
The trial was secret ,andwhen Maitre
Demange, the prisoners counsel, asked
to plead the point for an open trial
he was peremptorily silenced with tn"
remark that 'other interests were at
stake" Fear of war with Germany
was the pretext of the secrecy. The
court consisted of Col. Maurel, presi-
dent; Lieut.-Col. Echeman, Conn
mandants Florentin, Patron and Gal
let, and Captains Roche and Freystot-
ter. Commandant Brisset conducted
the prosecution.
The seven military judges had NJ.
Bertillon's testimony that the border
eau was in Dreyfus' handwriting, but
this and the assertions of the ''acte
d'accusation" seem to have been insult
Sfcient to convince them. Then Min
lister Brisson came forth with the fa-
nous ''canalle de D." document, and
to the judges alone in their private
council room he read the extract to
them, inserting the name of Dreyfus
for the blank. a-.r., .w g
He also falsely stated that the letter
was in cipher, and refused to let the
judges see the paper. The "canaillc
de D." letter and the bordcrenu to-
gether, backed by this virtual order
OF the minister of war to find the
prisoner guilty, decided the wavering
judges, and Dreyfus was condemned
to be degraded and expatriated.
This ''canaille de D." letter was
supposed to have been written by the
attache of foreign embassy, and read
like this: This canaille de D. is
becoming too extortionate." This was
supposed to refer to Dreyfus' claims
for money in payment for the secrets
he sold.
On January 5, 1895, Dreyfus' degra-
dstion took place on the Champ de
Mars. His sword was broken, and the
gallons and buttons were torn from
his uniform, but he never wavered.
Il am innocent. swear that ! am
innocent. Vive la France!" were his
only words; and in reply to this pa
thetic declaration came the cry:
Death to the traitor!" from the vast
throng which witnessed the degrada-
ton.
On February the French chamber
adopted Premier Dupuy's law by vir-
tue of which the unfortunate captain
was deported to DEVILS island. off the
fever-stricken coast of Guiana. There
he remained in solitary confinement,
always under the watchful eyes of
guards, until he was brought back to
France for reopening of his case
only few weeks ago. t
In 1895 Col. Picquart succeeded Col.
Sandherr as head of the information
department. He was an honest man,
with a taste for justice. BY accident
he learned that Dreyfus was appar-
emily innocent, and that Commandant
Esterhazy was the traitor and author
OF the bordereau. One day in May,
1886, the fragments of local pneu-
matte tube card, or petit bleu," fel,
into his hands. The card was ad-
dressed to Esterhazy, and it's contents
seemed to SAVIOR of suspicious mys-
tery. He took the trouble to get sam
pies of Esterhazy's handwriting in or
der to be Drepared for f,rthar dovDl.