The Anaconda standard., 1899-09-07
THEY WERE FAIRY TALES
The Witnesses Shatter Charges
Against Dreyfus.
A TILT WITH THE COURT
Labori and Jouaust Exchange Angry
Words-The Counsel Not Per-
mitted to Put Pertinent
Questions.

report of the proceedings in the DreyfuS
trial to-day:
The secret examination of Eugene de
Cernuschi, the Austrian refugee and
witness for the prosecution, occupied
the time of the court martial from the
hour of its convention at $3.50 until $50
o'clock.
The public sitting of the court opened
at s:45 a. m with brief exchange of
unimportant remarks between M. De-
mango and General Roget. Senator
Trarieux, formerly minister of justice,
was then called to the witness stand.
NJ. Labori questioned NJ. Trarieux with
regard to the petit bleu.
NJ. Trarieux replied that he had ex-
amined the petit bieu which had been
the cause of the accusation against
Lieutenant Colonel Picquart. If the wit
ness had not known in the first place
that one genuine document had been
falsified he would not have received
Picquart the day the latter was to be
arrested The witness had not accused
Commandant Lauth any more than
others.
NJ Trarfeux vehemently defended Pic
quart against the charge of tampering
with the petit bleu. the original genu-
ineness of which was proved by the
very use to which Picquart had put it
when he submitted to his superiors the
scheme of decoy letters which he pro-
posed to send to Major Esterhazy. in
which was to be introduced the exact
wording of the petit bleu. Picquart
therefore was man of untarnshed
honor when he was prosecuted for for
gerry.
When the witness investigated the
real motives of the prosecution he
+l,At ,,f
making erasures in the petit bleu. All
the evidence showed that Picquart was
not connected with the erasures, which
thus constituted a new forgery and
new device to squelch Picquart.
Not Far to Seek.
Il cannot believe" added the ex-min-
lister of justice warmly, that the
number of persons who perpetrated
these forgeries was very great. We
have discovered one source from which
emanated other forgeries. l have not
far to seek him."
NJ. TrarieuX's remarks brought Com
mandant Lauth to his feet. The COM
mandant declared that he took no ex-
ception to Picquart's instructions to
look for traces of the tearing of the
petit bleu, but when ne saw the use Pic
quart wished to make of the petit bleu
he opposed the project Lauth proceed
ed to accuse Picquart of the most pro-
found contempt The day of the czar's
entrance into Paris, Lauth added, Pic
quart introduced to the witness as
Madame Henry a woman unfit to be in
their society and whom they had since
discovered to be the wife of magis-
trate.
Lieutenant Colonel Picquart rose to
his feet and vigorously protested
against the monstrous allegation.
General Zurlnden followed. He ex
planned that he deposed both in the ca
pacity of military governor of Paris ana
minister of war. He thought it abso-
lutely necessary that the charge of for
gerry against Picquart should be cleared
up by the court.
M TrarieuX broke in upon the deposi-
tion of General Zurlinden to reproach
the witness with being responsible for
10 months groundless Imprisonment of
Picquart and an unwarranted prosecu-
tion. resulting in the dismissal of the
charges.
After further explanations by General
Zurlinden, NJ. Labor asked permission
TO speak with reference to the erasure
on the petit bleu.
Colonel Jouaust (sharply)-In that
case. no. We are trying the Dreyfus,
not the PiCquart case.
NJ. Labori-Allow me, Mr.. President,
it is the question of document ad-
judged to be a device of Picquart $
against ESIerildZy, uul "HlSA tle Ut
fense maintains constitutes proof or
EsterhazyS treachery.
NJ. Labori requested that the letter
from the minister of justice to General
Zurlinden, alluding to the deposition OF
the latter, be read.
NJ. Labori pointed out that contrary
TO General Zurlinden's intimation the
erasure seemed to them to have assum-
ed considerable Importance in his
mind.
General Zurlinden replied: "It was
myself who discovered the erasure."
General Zurlnden, amid intense eX-
citement, admitted that the TaVernier
inquiry showed that the petit bleu
had not been scratched when it reached
the statistical section of the intelli-
gence department and that consequent
ly the erasure was not the work of
Lieutenant Colonel Picquart. NJ. La
bori asked NJ. Paleologues permission
TO read a document belonging to the
Diplomatic dossier, conClusively prov.
ing, as he claimed, the genuineness OF
the petit bleu.
Nj. Paleologue'-I do not know the
document referred to.
M. Labori-The document relates to {
conversation between Del Casse for
1ner prime minister) and Count Vol
MISUNDERSTANDING German ambassa
dor to Paris), in which the ambassadO
IS represented to have said that Col
onel Schwartzkoppen admitted that h
had sent Major EsterhaZy number o
telegraph forms.
NJ Paleologue-I can only confirm
Laborrs statement. There is in dip
lomatic dossier a document reciting
conversation between NJ. Del Casse an
Count Won MunsteT-Ledenburg, VIII
stated that Colonel Schwartzkoppe
sent Major Esterhazy a number OF peti
bleus (telegrams). AS regards tn
petit bleu in this case Colont
Schwartzkoppen could not say that h
had written it himself because he ha
not seen 1t, but the ambassador sal
he believed it had been sent by hir
Colonel Schwartzkoppen).
They Were Fairy Tales.
Replying to NJ. Labor, Trarieu
dwelt at length upon the charges
which he described as fairy tale
against Picquart, who had been allies
ed to be an agent in the pay of tn
Dreyfus family and whose object a
assert ed was to mt E'sterhaZV. an In