Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1899-02-24

of the Government in this respect
these letters never reach their
destination. They 90 TO the Cen
trsl prison and are there filtered.
1t Is only " hat the authorities are
pleased to allow which ultimately
reaches Madame Dreyfus. Even
then the contents ere sad beyond
all expression, and tbOugh the
captain declares his trust in God,
and believes his innocence will
be ultimately established betOFe
tue world, yet he cannot prevent
the ring Of despair at his lot and
the occasional expression Of acute
suffering becoming paramount.
His devoted love tor his wife runs
through every epiStle, and one
cannot but feel the deepest sym
patty for the unfortunate soldier
IN his gloomy exile when he writes
such words as the following How
all nv love for you comes home to
me at this moment 1t is solely the
th ought of you. my poor darling,
that enables me to struggle on. ..,.
To think that l am accused of the
m osu mOnstrOus crime soldier can
commit! Even today it seems to
me that l am the sport Of horn.
ble nightmare; :. but rest assured
that # | am successful in trading
this Calvary to the end it Will be
for your sake. my poor darling; it
will be avoid tor you a fresh sor-
row IN addition to all those you
have already supported ...Your
courage, your devotion, aIe sub
lime;. ...yOu are assuredly One Of
the noblest women of the wOrlG;
my admiration for you is such that
if succeed in drinking my bitter
emp to the dregs it will be in order
to be wOsUhy OF your heroism. l
wrng my hands in grief for you
aud for our cblldren!. All around
me is profound silence, broken only
by the moaning of the sea. Do not
weep, dearest; I Will struggle to
the last minute for your sake and
for that of my children. Embrace
them tenderly for me-"
Words cannot describe the love
of poor Allied Dre,tus for his
children, and they are children to
be prond of. Pierre, his mother
tells me, is The living image Of his
father. He Is tall, well-built, and
thoroughly manly, giving the i'm
preston of a more adv anced age
than the seven years which can ac-
tuallY be credited to him. He has
a high forehead, large, dark eyes
nose OF the Greclap type, and a
firm but sweet-tempered mouth; q
very intelligent, bright boy in every
respect. he still remembers his
father, spite Of the four years which
have separated them, and he evil
deDces the most profound love for
the mother TO whom be is so dear.
Tie little JeODne resembles her
mother very closely IN features,
but, unlike her, has very fair hair
aud hig blue eyes. "Great as is
your trOuble,' said | to Madame
Dreytus, "It would be far greater
were it not for the children" And
the mothers answer was on e of al
most unutterable thankfOlness that
so much comfort was accorded her.
Need l say that it is extremely
painful to Madame Drevfus to e,
Call the past? Her marriage, un
like many in France, was one oi
pure affection, and over the first
few years of welded existence nc
cloud came. The husband was alb
sorbed In his profession and his
home, and the wife IN her husband
and household. Wien not at hi.
duties, Captain Dreyfus was inyari
ably with his wife; in her OWL
words, 1--WE were all III all t0 eacl
other" WHAT it must have beer
to such q couple when they were
suddenly and forcibly tom from
each other no pen eau descriue
! Without sign or a word to varr
them OF the impending catastrophe
Cap alu DTeyfus was arrested a
the instigatiOn OF the secret pnnce
and charged with selling army sc
crets to a foreign government
He d guilty by the army and th'
county before he was tried, secre
cOurt-martial proiessed 10 prov,
him so, and the unhappy nan Wal
sentenced to be degraded from hl
army rank aud to suffer perpetua
imprisonment. II was said at tht
time that the country to whom tn
. secrets were sold was 9ermany
an additional cause for the how
+ of hatred which was directed
against the so called traitor. Bu
e there are now wanting many in TN