Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1899-08-15

chat is what he wanted to say when he
yme to Rennes a week ago and sought
B. Snterview with Coz. Jouaust.
"a 4Gen. MERCER had known, while in
w illness box yesterday, that his
R had been seized he would have
q e of his assurance; he would
ha & wn less positiveness in his
carN repaired accusations.
III 4 act of the government
has p decd a profound impression
here. A week ago agents of the ma
tionalists arrived here and organized
themselves. Some of those well-trained
"perturbators' from Algiers were inn
ported, and professional public agita-
tors from Paris came down under the
personal direction of Secretary Jules
Guerin and NJ. Gerard, the latter of
whom was arrested here yesterday
The young mems royahst clubs and
the religious associations gathered last
evening and tried their hands at dis
| fturbances in the public streets. but
were quickly put to route by the re-
publican workingmen. Today Rennes
is quiet and it is now believed that the
trial will end in victory for the cause
of Dreyfus. especially as resolute men
here are resolved to support the valiant
minority and are determined to see
that at last justice is done.
From all this it will be seen that
saturdays events in Paris are closely
associated with the grand trial in prog
ress in Rennes.
Saturday, az / have said. was day
of defeat for the anti-Semites and ma
| tionalists. who had placed all their re-
| lance on Gen. Mercier's testimony.
| for the last month he has been repre-
sented as the man who would see jus
\ tice done, whose work was to hunt the
| traitor" to the ground, at whose ges-
| ture would shine forth the terrible
light of truth Gen. Mercier came for
ward as redoubtable accuser; he dis
| appeared as pitable accused. Against
| his victim he offered not single
charge not already preferred, not a
charge the inanity OF which was not
long apo demonstrated. Represented
no new accusation; he but sought TO
cover his own tracks with lies and
| falsehoods. At last he admitted having
communicated with the JUDGES of 1894
secret documents, but displayed a
high sense of humor when he threw
| the legal responsibility on Col. Morel,
president of the first court-martial.
| EN-Presi6ent Casimir-Pcrier will re-
ply tomorrow to the assertion of Gen.
MERCER that he did not snow these doc
uments to Capt. Dreyfus and his law
yers for fear of war. This reply really
will be found in NJ. Casimir-P -Perier's tes-
/ iimony yesterday, when he added
that no grave diplomatic incident hap
pened in December, 1894, or January
| 1895.
Bevond this false testimony and that
revealed last Monday, all Gen. Mer.
cier's talk yesterday was empty. He
! tells us nothing now after Gen. Cha
after Gen. Roget and NJ. Cuignet's dis
cussion of the bordereau from the
| technical point of view, the two last
named having ended by taking refuge
behind NJ. Bertillon.
! Gen. Mercier's fall is lamentable and
| irremediable. for he has executed a
grave deception on his friends. The
cold. venomous Mercier in himself
could not lift yesterdays sitting
above the commonplace, but his hypo-
critical cruelty succeeded in drawing
from the martyrs breast the cry Of
reprobaiioa which he awaited, and
sent shiver of anger through every
| breast
So it was that he left the courtroom
amid curses and imprecations. He
straiphtened mp his twisted figure and
worked his mouth into ii disdainful
smile, but all in vain. Inc anxious
look in his eyes reflects his terror OF
approaching retribution.