Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1899-09-01


tones. NJ Jauros, member of the
chamber of deputies and strong Drey-
fusard. openly showed his impatience,
but was not rebuked for so doing.
NJ. Bertillon, at one point, advanced
alleged fresh proofs against the prison
er, namely, in the Dreyfus papers
seized at the war office in which the
specialist said he found two words had
been traced. AS he proceeded the wit
ness became imbedded in parapher-
MALTA. His lecture, delivered in funereal
tones, began to pail on the judges, who
finally only paid the most cursory at
tention to the examples submitted.
One of NJ. Bertillon's demonstrations
was handed to Dreyfus, who closely
scrutinized it and returned the paper
with disdainful shrug of his shoulders
and without uttering word. In sum-
ming up the results of his test, M. Ber-
tillon said: Fully understanding the
responsibility of so positive state
ment on my soul and conscience de-
clare to-day, as l did in 1894, on my
oath, that the bordereau is the work of
the prisoner here"
Dreyfus UnmOved.
Dreyfus heard this assertion un-
moved. The witness was asked by the
court how he explained the similarity
of the handwriting of the bordereau
and that of Esterhazy, to which he re-
piled that since 1894 Esterhazy may
have practiced initiating writing of the
bordereau in order to render possible
the substitution of himself for the pris-
oner. In support of this theory NJ. Ber-
tillon produced fresh array of plates,
which he alleged proved his hypothesis
in regard to Esterhazy. There were
murmurs of assent and dissent. The
witness pointed out that in Esterhazy's
writing there were certain caligraphic
blunders which, he asserted, did not
exist in the original bordereau, but
were found in reproductions of the
document in consequence of imperfec-
tons in the methods employed to re-
produce them. This, he continued,
tended to prove that Esterhazy had APP
propriated the writing of these repro
auctions.
"Esterhazy," exclaimed NJ. Bertillon,
is man of straw and a scoundrel. l
have said this ever since the commence
ment of the lola trial.
There was sensation in court at this
remark, which was turned to laughter
as the witness, in his excitement,
knocked his portfolios to the ground.
NJ. Demange asked NJ. Bertillon if he
had submitted Esterhazy's handwrit-
ing to the same tests as the bordereau.
The witness replied in the affirmative,
explaining, however, that the tests were
less complete than in the case of the
prisoner.
Counsel reminded the witness that
he said in 1894 that he found in bor-
dereau cryptographic signature, "Al-
fred Dreyfus."
NJ. Bertillon replied that he was not
now positive on this point. to which he
added he attached mo importance
whatever"
Referring to NJ. Bertillon's state
ments that he found in the bordereau
words Dreyfus was in the habit of u.s.
ing in documents of the war Office, NJ.
Demange asked how the witness ac-
counted for this and the specialist ex-
was necessary counterpart of the
precautions taken by the prisoner when
he wrote the bordereau, @ip order to
make out that he was the victim of a
plot"
Asked his opinion of the letter from
Matthew Dreyfus, called the "blotting
pad letter. from which the specialist
alleged the prisoner took the key word
for his work on the bordereau, M. Ber-
tillon replied that he had no opinion on
the subject, but he maintained the let
ter had been written by the same sys-
tenn as the bordereau. "That is my
hypothesis" said the witness, "many
similar ones can be found" (Murmurs
of disapproval)
M. Labor asked how NJ. Bertillon rec
onciled the result of the present expert
ments, namely, that the bordereau was
written by Dreyfus tracing Esterhazy's
handwriting, with his opinion in 1894
that the bordereau was written by
Dreyfus, unless it had been most care
fully forged. To this NJ. Bertillon re-
piled that it was only hypothesis,
whereupon M. Labori remarked that
the forgery was then of such nature
as to constitute proof in favor of Drey
fus, yet to-day it is made proof against
him."
Continuing, counsel said: "Since the
witness admits Esterhazy has written
by the same mathematical methods as
Drcyfus, why has he attributed the bor-
dereau to Dreyfus rather than to Es-
terhazy?"
NJ. Bertillon-It was on Dreyfus' pad
that the key-word Interest" was found,
and Esterhazy might have had access
to this word.
NJ. Labori-Does NJ. Bertillon admit
that Esterhazy in traitor?
Col. Jouaust refused to put the ques-
ton to the witness.
NJ. Labori, continuing his questions,
asked NJ. Bertillon's opinion as to what
system of defense might have been en-
ployed by the writer of the bordereau
| if the document had been found on him
The witness, in a confused and in
| audible tone, declared that the prisoner
would have then maintained the docu-
ment was forgery and would have adj
duced it as proof of plot.
NJ. Labori--ln that case the prisoner
must have foreseen the appearance on
the scene of man so eminent as M.
Bertillon, capable of amagining sys-
| tenn so ingenious as the one he has ex-
posed to-day. (Laughter.)
M. Bertillon retorted that in his opin-