The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1899-09-09

Rennes, Sept. 5.-Elation is the only
word that expresses the feelings Of the
D~reyfusards after Saturdays proceed
ings. The tide has turned at least they
say, and Dreyfus cannot be condemned
after the evidence given Saturday
morning.
Maj. Hartman, of the artillery, Occu-
pied half the session with the cOnclus-
ion of his expert testimony to the eff
feet that Dreyfus, as an artillery oth-
Ger. would not have displayed such ig-
norancc regarding guns and brakes as
was shown in the bordereau, while the
other subjects of the bordereau were
matters upon which any officer could
inform himself. The majors testi-
mony practically. stood uncontested, as
neither Gen. Deloye nor Gen. MERCER,
who replied, ,refuted any material
point therein.
NJ. Havel, a member of the institute,
then entered upon the grammatical as
pect of the bordereau and in vigorous
but eloquent language devoted himself
to showing that the construction of the
bordereau bristled with strong, and, in
his opinion, conclusive marks of Ester
Hays handiwork, while the phraseol-
ogy bore no resemblance to Dreyfus'
style.
Then came the leading witness Of the
day, NJ. De Gond-L alnotte, a probation
or contemporaneously with Dreyfus,
who is now civil engineer, and 50 has
no reason to fear the wrath Of the mill
tary clique. The witness opened by
declaring that, despite the fact he had
a brother in the garrison at Renncs. he
came to tell what he knew in favor
of Dreyfus, and he proceeded to make
a statement, which, according to the
Dreyfusards, practically decides the
case. First he recalled the fact that
a circular was sent to the probationers
on May II. 1894, informing them that
they must not go to the maneuvers,
thus showing that the man who wrote
the bordereau in August, and said: II
am going to the maneuvers," could not
be Dreyfus. The witness then pointed
out that none Of the ministers, who, he
believed, acted in good faith. were in
formed of the existence Of this circu-
lar, which, he declared, II consider a
vital point in the case. This circular"
he continued. "shatters the prosecution
because. after May II, Dreyfus could
not say Il am going to the. ~maneuvers,'
for then he knew he would not go,
while prior to May II he could not
have known the five documents COM
prised in the bordereau."
NJ. De Gond-Lamotte then brought
out another strong point. Abiding to
the notifications of the disposition
concerning the troops, he said the
writer used the term New PLAN"
"Now." said the witness, sit has been
impressed upon you that on Oct. 15-a
circular was sent out from the war
ministry containing those very words,
and that. therefore, the writer of the
bordereau must have been an officer Of
me who sent out that circular? 1t
which was Lieut.. Col. Du Patty, de
Clam, who had had the bordereau in
his hands for the previous twenty
days."
NJ. De Gond-Lamotte by this in
tended to show that Du Patty de Clam
purposely used the words new PLAN
in the circular ordered by what the
witness described as "arguing in a
circular to back up his contention that
an officer of the ministry wrote the
bordereau and that that officer was
Dreyfus."
Gen. Roget then rose to reply to NJ.
De Gond-Lamotte, but found he had
caught a tartar. He did not succeed in
shaking the witness testimony, while
NJ. De Gond-Lamotte took the unprece-
dented ourse of actually questioning
Gen. Roget, and getting the better Of
him once or twice. Finally, on Roget
declaring that Dreyfus might have
written Il am going to the maneuyers"
because he could have asked special
permission, which is invariably grant.
ed, NJ. Demange asked him If there
was any proof that Dreyfus did ask
such permission. To this Roget replied,
II don't know; no trace has been found
of his application" This answer
brought a chorus of "Ohs' from the au-
dience, because had Dreyfus asked,
traces would have been forthcoming.
Roget then said that Dreyfus might
have asked verbally, in which case no
trace of his application could be found.
'QIite So" rejoined NJ. Demange, "but
the head of the bureau could be asked
whether any such request was made"
This practically ended the session,
which was one Of the most interesting
and undeniably the most favorable to
.Dreyfus yet held.