The Portland daily press., 1899-07-14


mind" he writes "cannos extrieate 10
self for an instant from the horrible
drama Of which am the victim, trses.
dy which has struck blow not only al
my life--that Is the least Of evils, and
truly II would have been better had the
wretch who committed the crime killed
me instead Of wounding me as he has
hnt ut my honor, the honor of my children
The honor of you ALL" And again. In O
letter dated June y. 1895. he writes. "You
remember those lines OF Ehakespe- re 10
'0theilo.' found them again not Ions
since among my English books. l send
them to you translated;
"who steals my purse stsals trash; 'til
somsthing, nothing;
Twas mine. tits his, and has been slaves
to thousands;
But he that blches from-sne my good
name,
Robs me Of that which not onriuhes him,
And makes me poor indeed
''Ah. yesl he has rendered me svraimeni
pauvre,' the wretch who has stolen my
honcri He has made rs more miserable
than the meanest Of human creatures.
But to zach one his hour. Courage then,
dear Luoie; preserve the unconqnerable
will that you have shown until now
And bis own view OF the tragedy In
which he was the silent hero: "You see,
darling. man OF honor cannot live with
out bis honor; It doss no COED to tell him,
self that be Is innocent; hs eats his heart
out in solitude, ths hours ars long, and
my mind cannot comprehend oil that has
come upon me. Never oouid romancer,
however rich ais Imagination, have rit-
ten story more tragic Some day when
my storJ is told it win be incredible.
But what We must tell ourselves now Ii
that l must be vindicatsd. My name
must shine anew. with all the lustre II
should neysr have lost. should rather
see NY children dead than to think that
the name which they bear 10 dishonored
one. :" This thought ;s repeated again and
again. 1t Is the firm resolve that his
honor must be saved that prevents him
taking bis life. 1hroughout he expresses
the so,icltude OF loving husband and
fathsr. He ninss live to save his honor
and for the saks of his wife and children.
And now, from present indications, this
whole pitiful tale will have a happy end
Ing. for it is practically certain that the
decision viii BIS reversed, and that Cap
tain Alfred Dreyfus viii realize the dream
which he has expressed SO beautifully In
the foliowing letter;
The body may give way under such a
burden Of grief, but the soul should re-
main firm and valiant, to protest against
lot that we have not deserved. When
my honor is given back to me, then only,
my good darling, we shall have the right
to Withdraw from the field. We will live
for each other, far from the noise Of the
world; we will take refuge in our mutual
affection, In our love. grown still strong
er In these trsgical events. We will sus-
tain each other, that we may bind u, the
wounds OF our hearts; we will live In our
children, to whom we will consecrate the
remainder of our days. We will try to
'raks them good, simI le beings. strong in
body and mind. We will elevate their
sous so that they may always find In
them a refuge from the realities of life.
MAY this day coIae soon, for we have
all paid our tribute Of sufIeriugs upon
This ezrthi Courage. then, my darling;
be strong aud valiant; carry on your
work without weakness, with dignity,
bnt with the conviction Of your rights. /
am going to lie down. to close my eyes
and think of you. Good night and a
thousand kisses,