The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-04-23
DREYFUs DEVELOPMENTS.

Friends of Dreyfus refuse to believe
the statement contained in the official
report of Governor Daniel of Devils
| island to the effect that the prisoner
contemplates suicide.
They fear it is a preliminary an
nouncement of his death, which, in
| their desperation, army officials may
try to compass. The gradual veering
around of the public to the side of the
condemned man, under the influence of
continued revelations, has made the
anti-revisionists apprehensive. Many
admit that their case is lost, although
they refuse to be convinced of Dreyfus'
innocence. They reluctantly admit, in
the light of overwhelming evidence, as
to its integrity and capacity, that the
general staff, as constituted in 1894,
was, perhaps, faIlible, and they even
suggest that there may have been
other traitors besides the one sent to
Devils island.
A recent cable dispatch from Paris
to the New York Sun contains sig
nificant statement, as follows:
Dreyfus was originally denounced to
the French government by the Russian
ambassador, who declared that he had
been furnishing information to Ger
many. This declaration. which the au-
thorities accepted without corrobora-
ton, was in the secret evidence sub
mitted to the courtmartial. 1t is i'm
possible to disclose this for several rea-
sons. First, it is by no means conclu-
sive or even preSumptive, as the gov
IL.
er's guilt; second, assuming that the
Russian ambassador spoke the truth,
the disclosure of his action would put
Russia in the position of betraying
Germany; third, if the ambassador
falsified then it is clear that he re-
sorted to a despicable trick to prevent
the rapprochement of France and Ger
many, which had begun to be mooted;
fourth, whatever truth there is in the
story, the exposure of such Russian ac-
ton, when no alliance existed with
France, would be humiliation which
the car would never tolerate.
1t was reported long ago that the
royalist pretenders were mixed up in
this affair by an intrigue with repre-
sentatives of the car; and believed by
knowing ones that Russia and several
generals in the French army-Bois-
deffre, MERCER, Saussier, and others
had entered into a conspiracy to re-
store the empire in France under a Ma
poleon. The ears candidate was, of
course, that Napoleonic pretender's
brother, an officer of high rank in the
Russian army, very intelligent and
strong man, more of a Russian than a
Frenchman.
The hitch resulted from the inability
of the French officers to agree Bois-
deffre was inclined to side with the car,
but MERCER and Saussier, realizing the
fact that they had a better chance of
welding power under weaker man
than the Russian Bonaparte, wanted
Prince Victor, the legitimate heir to
Napoleonic pretensions.
They in turn approached other Off
GERS of the general staff, including
Dreyfus, whose refusal to join in the
plot made his removal a matter of ne
cessity to the conspirators, and he was
sent to Devils island under pretext of
high treason.
1t is hard to tell who all are included
in the plot, but there are so many and
they are SO powerful that it is ex-
tremely improbable if Dreyfus ever re-
turns to France alive despite the |
promises held out to him of late.