Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1908-06-10
Mai. Alfred Dreyfus.

down. The major was wounded in
the hand, and his assailant is a pris-
oner.
The crowds around the Pantheon
were driven back, and all the streets
leading to the temple were barred.
Twenty arrests have been made.
A total of 23O arrests was ll1ade by
the authorities up to Thursday night
in connection with the attempt upon
the life of Maj. Alfred Dreyfus.
Wrote Famous ~ Accuse" Letter.
Emile lola, who died in September,
1902, was ten years ago twice con-
demned to a years Imprisonment for
addressing Felix Faure, then presi.
dent of France, the famous letter, Il
accuse" in which he laid bare the con-
spiracy in the general army staff
against Maj. Dreyfus. Thursday his
dust was inferred with national honors
In the Pantheon, the French temple
of fame, with impressive ceremonies.
The proposal to give lola glorious
burial, made first in 1906, aroused in
France all the dormant animosities
that came out during the Dreyfus
trials, and the transfer of his ashes,
although duly voted by the chamber
of the senate, had to be twice post
poned because of the state of public
opinion. Disorders and rioting were
expected Thursday, and the authori.
ties found it expedient to take meas.
ures for the preservation of peace.
Passions Of Many Aroused.
The opposition to removing the
body of lola to the Pantheon arises
from the fact that he is thus honored
because of his famous letter, not be-
cause of his literary fame He was
the first successful leader in the
Dreyfus war; he vanquished the gen.
eral staff of the army and to give him
glorious burial in the national Pan
theon at the side of Barthelot and
President Carnot, Victor Hugo, Vol
taire and Rousseau, to an accompani-
ment of martial music, while long
lines of soldiers defiled before his
tomb, aroused the passions of a large
number of the French people.
The attempt upon the life of Maj.
Dreyfus was made by Louis Antoine
Gregori, a member of the staff of La
France Militaire, journal devoted
to military progress and the military
future of the republic. Maj. Drey.
fus was present at the ceremonies to
do final homage to the great leader
of his cause.
Act inspired by Press Campaign.
Gregori's act undoubtedly was in.
spired by the campaign which the re-
dictionary press has been conducting
against lola as IAN insulter of the
army" and "a traducer of his coun-
try" furthermore, the Catholic Faith,
paper to which Gregori was at
tached, was supporter of Gen. Bou-
LANCER and violently opposed to Drey-
fus. The special edition of La Libre
Parole, published Wednesday after
noon, was direct Indictment to vio-
lence.
The government and parliament,
when it decided to inter lola in the
national Pantheon, realized fully that
1t was arousing the smoldering embers
OF Dreyfus hatred, but Premier Cle-
menceau and the present government,
including War Minister Picquart, who
attained his present position as a re.
suit of the successful outcome of the
long Dreyfus struggle, did not shrink
from this final act of justice to the
man, who, according to Anatole
France in his funeral grafton at
Zola's burial six years ago, "repre.
scented the human conscience"