The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1899-09-08
FEAR RULES FRANCE
Troops Ordered to Be Ready
Near Rennes.
THE VERDICT AWAITED ANXIOUSLY.
Hitherto Unknown Witness Ac-
cuses Dreyfus of Treason In Sell
ing Secrets to Several Embas-
sies-GeneraI Roget Weakens.


ing Secrets to Several Embas-
sies-GeneraI Roget Weakens.
RENNES, Sept. 5.-As the end of the
Dreyfus court martial trial comes within
sight the French government is begin.
ming to display fear that the verdict
may give rise to troubles and orders
have just been received by two regiments
of infantry and one cavalry regiment, al
ready within hail of Rennes, to hold
themselves in readiness to march on the
town at the first sign of disorder, to
occupy all strategical points and to re-
press manifestations in their inception.
At yesterdays session of the Deyfus
court martial came the sudden delivery
of the final coup against Dreyfus. The
blow was not only desperate, but coward
ly and quite in keeping with the history
of all the maneuvers against the prison
er. 1t came from a hitherto unknown
foreign witness, who undertook to de-
clare Dreyfus guilty of systematic trea-
son in selling secrets to several en-
baSsies.
The secret session of the court for the
completion of Major Hartmann's exam
nation occupied the first half hour. Ma
jor Carriere, the government prosecutor,
read one or two unimpOrtant war office
records on disputed points.
M. Greffier-Coapois, the advocate of
the court, read Witness Breyere's letter
of resignation from the army. General
Roget, in a clustering fashion, the other
day attempted to discredit Lieutenant
Bruyere by declaring that he had written
a disgraceful letter in which he said that
it was a dishonor to serve in the French
army.
Then was called a witness hitherto I'M
known in the proceedings of this case
Eugene Cernuschi. Apparently he did
not speak French fuently, for he sub
mitted a written statement.
Cernuschi's testimony, which was in
the form of a letter to the president of
the court martial, Colonel Jouaust, was
most unequivocal. He claimed that on
three distinct occasions, twice in France
and once at Geneva, he was told by a
high placed foreign officer that Dreyfus
had communicated reasonable docu
ments to foreign power.
In the third instance, Cernuschi said, the
officer showed him documents emanating
from Dreyfus and that this officer left
France hurriedly two days prior to the
arrest of Captain Dreyfus. The allusion
was evidently to Colonel SchwartzkOp-
pen, the military attache of the German
embassy in Paris in 1894, whose move
ments were coincident with those de-
Scribed as the movements of the officer
of Cernuschi's deposition.
Now, this evidence is of transcendental
Importance to the prosecution, and it is
incredible, unless Cernuschi is proved to
be a humbug, that the government COM
missary, Major Carriere, should have adj
mitted that he had received a letter from
him offering important testimony and
thrown it aside on the ground of its COM
ing from a political refugee. The deposit
ton evoked expressions of incredulity.
One suspicious feature was the fact that,
although the witness said he could not
speak French fluently, his letter to Colo
mel Jouaust asking an opportunity to tes-
tify was drawn up in perfect French.
He explained that he had been assisted
by his wife in writing the letter.
This introduction of a foreigner as a
witness for the prosecution gave Maitre
Labor an opportunity to submit the most
important request he has made through
out the trial, a request which if granted
by Colonel Jouaust, though this is eX-
lTeUlely uOuDllul, NOuiu nave
consequences. Maitre Labor
announced his intention, in view of the
step taken by the prosecution in calling
foreign evidence, TO ask that inquiry
should be made through the regular dip
lomatic channels as to whether the dOcu-
ments mentioned in the bordereau were
actually communicated and if so by
whom. This involves an application to
tie German government, which the court
martial is scarcely likely to approve. In
any case the application means the
of the trial for several
weeks.
The introduction of CeTnuschi and the
other foreign developments of the day, it
is generally predicted, imply another
sitting at the least.
NJ. Painleve, the distinguished mathe-
cOrnered General Gonse on the
latter's falsified version of NJ. Hada-
mard's remarks concerning Captain Drey
fus, and the manner in which Gonse
squirmed and his wOebegone appearance
almost aroused pity for him.
General Roget also appeared to begin
to feel at last the cruel strokes the etat
major have been receiving of late. He
showed naught of his cruel, brazen front
On the contrary, his face
was quite livid when he left the stage
after very poor display, and he quilted
the courtroom as soon as the proceedings
were over, excusing himself to his broth
er generals, MERCER and others of a high
er grade on the ground of feeling unwell.
The session ended with an exposure by
NJ. Hennion, chief of the Paris detect
ives. of the disgraceful tactics of the etat
major in suppressing his report in favor
of Captain Dreyfus and inserting a docu-
ment more or less unfavOrable to him.
Boy Accidentally shot.
LII