The Anaconda standard., 1899-09-08
END OF THE TRIAL At HAND


At the request of NJ. Labori the evil
dence given by witness named Ecolle
before the court of cessation was read.
1t described how Esterhazy employed
Ecolle to execute a sketch of a rifle
which afterwards Esterhazy said he
had sent abroad with an imaginary
plan of mobilization. After further
evidence on this point letter from Es-
terhazy to General Roget was read, in
which the writer complained that no
use was made of his information and
violently attacked NJ. Bertillon who,
according to Esterhazy, ought to be in
an asylum for the insane or in prison.
Esterhazy complained of his miserable
condition, described General Bois-
deffre as a scoundrei and the Echo de
Paris as a dirty Jew sheet" adding
that it was a plan to abandon him
and then prosecute him.
moral Author" of the Bordereau.
After repeating his threats Ester
haZy wrote that while he was the
moral author of the bordereau he could
not have supplied the information it
contained, and expressed surprise that
nothing had been said regarding the
role played by Colonel Picquart. He
then attacked, turn about, all the Of
hcers of the general staff.
At this juncture NJ. Labori said he
thought the court had quite enough of
this edifying letter, and asked that
the rest of 1T be not read. But Major
Carriere objected, remarking that the
letter was most interesting.
NJ. Labori-They are all interesting,
and ] would like to have them all read
Major Carriere-They are all of the
same degree of interest. They are all
rot.
The reading then proceeded. In a
letter containing a long string of bit
terness and insults, particularly in re-
gard to certain members of the court
martial whose impartiality was i'm
pugned. Esterhazy declared:
Il Will say or do nothing to increase
the dangers of the situation. But l,
an old and faithful servant. have been
denounced and have fallen beneath the
blows, after having been basely aban-
doned by the Boisdeffres, Billots and
other generals"
After Major Hartman had briefly re-
futed General Mercier's statement that
the Germans always termed the hy-
dro-pneumatic brake the hydraulic
brake, which Hartman declared to be
absolutely untrue, Colonel Jouaust,
though requested by NJ. Labori to al
low M. de Fonde Lamotte be re-ex-
amined, refused to hear any further
evidence and adjourned the court for
the usual brief interval.
The session was resumed at 1915, a.
M, when Major Carriere began the
speech for the prosecution.
Major Carriere Sums Up.
This was a signal for the military
witnesses to retire. and headed by the
generals they bowed to the judges and
trooped out of court in accordance with
the orders of the minister of war. Gen
eral de Gallifet, to start to rejoin their
regiments within two hours after the
beginning of the summing up of the
prosecution.
Moi ~,
ing the judgment of the court of cas-
sation and the questions referred to the
present court martial The major said:
Colonel and counSellors:-By a
judgment June 3 last the Dreyfus case
was sent before a court martial at
Rennes. | read the budget at the be-
ginning of the trial. 1t quashes and
annuls the judgment of December %,
1894, conVicting Captain Alfred Drey
fus, and sending him before a court
martial at Rennes to be tried on the
following questions:
lis Captain Alfred Dreyfus guilty
of having, in 1894, practiced machina-
tions for the benefit of a foreign power
by delivering the documents mentioned
in the bordereau.
The task of the court martial at
Rennes is the same as that of 1894.
The trial has been published and has
been conducted with all the fullness
justice and public opinion.
1T is my duty to discharge the task
of justice with moderation. l have no
personal opinion to defend. | have
carefully examined the documents,
seeking scrupulously to ascertain the
truth without malice, without passion
and without fear"
Reviewing the Case.
Major Carriere then entered upon a
INf1 EI1I
secret sessions as being necessary,
while they did not injure the diffusion
of light He traced the espionage plot,
recalled the discovery of the bordereau
and the investigation, showing the trail
tor was Dreyfus; reviewed Dreyfus'
prosecution and trial and the judgment
of 1894.
THE proceedings" said Major Car
riere, were concluded according to the
prevailing conditions. / will say moth
ing more in regard to the moral char
acter of the prisoner, the question of
his gambling or consorting with loose
women. 1t has been said that we mill
tary men are not clever and are not
tactful Maybe that is so. But we are
a simple and upright people, who pro-
ceed direct toward our duty. and our
acts are always characterized by good
faith"
Dreyfus, Esterhazy and Picquart.
The major proceeded to examine the
bordereau, saying that apart from the
question of handwriting, upon which
the experts fell out, he thought that the
references to covering the troops and
that artillery formation were very sig
nifcant. Esterhazy, he pointed out.
would have had no difficulty in secur-
ing the firing manual, therefore he
could hardly have written that it was
difficult to get, while Dreyfus would
not easily have obtained it.
Discussing the sentence about going
to maneuvers, which has caused SO
much controversy, Major Carrere de-
clared it would have been impossible
for EsterhaZy to write it. Continuing,
the major referred to the complexity of
the prisoners character and proceeded
to dilate upon the impartiality with
which he had examined the whole case,
upon which, he asserted he had entered
with his opinion wholly uniformed.
Major Carriere added:
II said to myself let us take the bull
by the horns. 1t was Picquart who
brought about the revision. Let us
study Picquart. l found his case per-
ont