The record-union., 1899-07-14

you, to my children, to our dear FAM.
lies all the time I have yet to live.
'tAs have told you. l have passed
through Hwfuf crises. I have had mo-
ments of furious. actual madness at
the thought Of being accused of crime
SO monstr;ous.
''I am ready to appear before the.
soldiers as a soldier who has nothing
for which to reproach himself. They
will see it in my face; they will read
my soul; they will be convinced that I
am innocent: as all will who know.
me-"
The letter written after his trial reads
as follows:
Il suffer much, but I pity you still
more than myself. I know how much
you love me. Your heart must bleed.
On my side, my adored one, my
thought has always been of you night
and day.
To be innocent, to have lived life
without stain, and to see ones self
condemned for the most monstrous
crime that a soldier can commit! What
could be more terrible? 1t seems to
me at times that am the victim OF
an awful nightmare.
L
sisted until to-day; it is for you alone,
my adored one, that have borne my
long agony. Will my strength hold out
to the end? I cannot tell. No one but
you can give me courage. 1t is only
from your love that can draw it.
above all else, no matter what may
become of me, search for the truth;
move earth and heaven to discover it.
in IN hn x,ff<1
fortune, to rehabilitate my name, which
now is dragged through the mud. No
matter what may be the cost, we must
wash out the unmerited stain.''
The following is taken from a letter
in the same strain written a few days
later:
Il do not sleep, and it is to you that
l return. Am 1 then marked by a.
fatal seal, that must drink this cup
of bitterness? At this moment I AIN
calm. My soul is strong, and it rises
in the silence of the night. How happy
we were, my darling! Life smiled on
us; fortune, love, adorable children, a
united famly-everything! Then came
this thunderbolt, fearful, terrible. Buy
pray Of you, playthings for the chill
dren, for their New Years Day: tell
them that their father sends them. 1T
must not be that their poor souls, just
entering upon life, should suffer
through our pain.
"Oh, my darling, had not you how
gladly would I die! Your love holds
me back, it is your love only that makes
me strong to bear the hatred of a pa
ton.
And the people are right to hate me;
they have been told that I am traitor.
All. traitor. the horrible wordi 1t
breaks my heart.
"I-traitor Is it possible that they
could accuse me and condemn me for
a crime SO monstrousi
Cry aloud my innocence; cry it with
all the strength of your lungs; cry it
upon the housetops, till the very walls
fall.
And hunt out the guilty one. It is
he whom we must find.
Il embrace you as love you.
ALFRED"
| After his fate was sealed and he had
| been removed to Devils Island, his
determination that the truth shall be
brought to light is stronger than ever.
From the first of the letters written
| from Devils Island we select the fol-
| lowing, which is in itself evidence of
the bold and undaunted resolution
with which he faced his fate:
Il made for your sake the greatest
sacrifice man can make in resigning
myself to live after my tragic fate
/ was decided. I did this because you
| had inculcated in me the conviction
| that the truth must always come to
| light. In your turn, my darling, do
] all that is humanity possible to dis
| cover the truth. A wife and mother
! yourself, try to move the hearts of
/ wives and mothers, SO that they may
] give up to you the key Of this dread
! full mystery. I must have my honor
| if you want me to live. I must have
/ it for our dear children. Do not rea-
son with your heart; that does no
| good. 1 have been convicted. Moth
] ing can be changed in our tragic sit
uation until the decision shall have
been reversed. Reflect, then, and pur-
sue the solution Of this enigma. That
will be worth more than coming here
to share my horrible life. 1t will be
| the best, the only means, Of saving
/ my life. Say to yourself that it is a
/ question of life or death for me. as
well as for our children
And what could be more touching
than the following letter to his little
boy. written from Devils Island:
Cher Petit Pierre: Papa sends good
big kisses both to you and to little
Jeanne. He thinks very often of you
both. I trust you will show little
Jean how to make big high towers of
blocks, which it is such fun to tum-
| BILE down. Be good children, and pet
your mother when she is sad. Also
be kind to your grandfather and
grandmother, and play no bad tricks
on your aunts When papa returns
| from his journey, you will come to
meet him att the station with little
Jeanne, with mamma, and all the
rest More big, kisses for you and for
Jeanne. YOUR PAPA"
The last letter but one that is In
cluded in thesbook is as follows: -
Il have written very many letters
during these last months To add
anything to these would be super
fuous. have told you concerning all
the appeals which have written since
last November to demand my re-
habilitation, for justice at last to so
many innocent victims. In one of my
last letters I told you that the last
appeal which 1 had just sent to the
Government was stronger and more
determined than ever. I am expect.
| ing every day to hear that my restora-
tion has taken place; that our punish
ment, as terrible as it was unmerited,
is at an end; that the day Of justice
has come for us. I desire to-day only