The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-09-10
He HAS SERVED FIVE OF THEM
As They Were Passed in Solitary Confinement Which
Counts as Double Time Under French Law,
This May be Construed to Cover
the Full Sentence.


Even the women who attended the SEES
sions We're deprived of their small sum
shades before being permitted TO pass.
A larger crowd than usual witnessed
the passage of Dreyfus from the prison
to the Lycee, but the crowds were
nowhere large, and, aside from the pres
ence of the military the town was tram
quill as usual.
The morning of the day which was
to decide the fate of Dreyfus broke dull
and cheerless and the court room was
flied with cold, unsynpathetic light,
which lent sadness to the proceedings.
This was enhanced By the grave aspect
of the audience and of the judges.
The last session of the court martial
opened at 1880 a. m.
Madame Labori was among the few
ladies present and in the press seats
there were only about fifty reporters.
The prisoner looked flushed and in
i'll health, apparently suffering great
strain.
Nj. Demange promptly resumed his
speech for the defence, which was in
terrupted yesterday by the adjournment
of the court. The audience listened to
his remarks with the most serious at
tention and he was closely followed by
the judges.
Baron Russell of Killowen, the Lord
Chief Justice of England, was again
present. Among the prominent witness
es, only Senator Trarieux, the former
Minister of Justice. remained seated
in the front row Of the witnesses seats.
In the second rev of the privileged pub
lie, facing the judges, sat Matthieu
Dreyfus, brother Of the prisoner. His
sunken eyes and carewoln face reflect
ed his anxiety and anguish.
Captain Dreyfus sat beside a captain
of gendarmes and as M. Demange refu-
ted the arguments made In the speech
of the Government Commissiary, Major
Carriere, the prisoner cintinu3ily turned
his face towards Matthieu, to watch
the effect it had upon him.
Matthew, Dreyfus, however, did not
display the intense emotion with which
his heart on this critical morning must
have been bursting.
Gendarmes were plentifully distribu-
ted among the audience and posted in the
gangways around the court room.
The silence was only broken by the
occasional rlIstling of a reporters note
book, or the neigh of an artillery horse
picketed in street beside the Lycee
Now and then there was the sound of
the rafting of a rifle or the clanking
Of a. sword of some officer hastily cross
ing the court yard, where the troops
were stationed.
Maitre Demange in his plea for the
defence, began by speaking of the
technical value of the bordereau. The
prosecution by taking separately each
of the notes containing information sup
piled by the writer of the bordereau, de-
duced the opinion that Dreyfus alone
could have communicated information
on the documents. I'VE are" said he,
before court of justice, with which
suggestions have no place. In order to
produce proof / must ask and we must
know what was the information sup
piled. We must have the notes deliver
ed; otherwise we have to deal with a
hypothesis
Counsel then reviewed the well known
facts in the case, showing that Colonel
Schwartzkoppen, the German military
attache at Paris supplied information to
his government, years before, regarding
the "120 short" field gum. He said that
only the internal construction Of the
brake of this gun remained secret; but
Dreyfus knew nothing about it and
never asked for information on the sub
ject from the few officers knowing it.
Therefore, counsel contended, Dreyfus
could not have betrayed this secret.
Regarding the practical tests of the
gun, Dreyfus was similarly ignorant.
Continuing to plead with great warmth
and eloquence, NJ. Demange declared
he did not believe in the completely Of
Henry and Esterhazy, for Henry was
honorable and loyal. If he had been the
accomplice of Esterhazy, Henry would
have destroyed the bordereau. Possibly
Henry had inadvertently diyulged infor-
NATION to Esterhazy, under the impress
sion that he was conversing with an
honorable, straightforward man like
himself and discovering in 1898 that he
had placed his hands in traitors he
committed a crime upon which counsel
declined to enlarge, since the perpetra-
tor had already paid for it with his
life. What other explanation could be
given of the suicide of this man with
whom the whole army sympathlzed,
even after the discovery of the crime.
Henry had spoken of scoundrels. Was
not one of these Esterhazy and the other
Weyl, the latter having unconsciously
betrayed information? General Sausser
had every confidence in Henrys loyalty,
and Esterhazy might have received in