SENSATIONAL ANNOUNCEMENT IN COURT.

Auckland Star, Volume XXX, Issue 160, 8 July 1899, Page 2 (Supplement)

SENSATIONAL ANNOUNCEMENT IN COURT.

On Tuesday M. Ballot-Beaupre, in concluding his address, averred that the deliberations of the Court should, in his opinion, turn, exclusively on the handwriting and paper of the famous or infamous bordereau. The crucial question was who wrote the bordereau, .Dreyfus or Esterhazy? "Gentlemen," declared the Reporter in sonorous and impressive tones, "after a most carefid examination I have, for my own part, become convinced that the bordereau was written by Esterhazy." . -..',. '

This statement, which was, as ifc were, the climax, of the;legal-'argu-ment, which the learhed Reporter had so laboriously built up, created a profound and prolbrtged Sensation in court, and was received with cries of "Oh! Oh!" , The news soon spread to the lobbies, and everywhere created intense excitement. Lively altercations followed between the partisans of revision and. its opponents, the latter making no attempt to conceal their disappointment.

Meanwhile M. BallQt-Reaupi'e. Continued to address the CoU-V, saying that his opinion was shared by M; M. Paul Meyer, Buy, and Molihier pf.,the Scole dcs OharteS, the equivalent of the British Record Office. , Ito^qpld be objected, continued "the Reporter, that all this was. a mere expression of opinion, but behind it was a, hew material fact. This was the dispcVery of two letters on paper ident-cai with that of the bordereau, ..'■ letters -, of which Esterhazy Was t^e admitted author. ' ' ~ ■" *

M. Ballot-Beaupre went; on to give an account of experiments made by chemists and paper manufacttiiPers, which proved the paper to be of a kind that, had ceased to be/ generally used in commerce for some, twelve years past. The bordereau ahd : the two letters were on paper of exactly the same kind Now Esterhazy had admitted before the Criminal"-Division that he nearly always had, papet,"of this kind for his own use, thptigh when before Major Rayary, he had affirmed, the contrary*, The Repbfrter dwelt strongly upon this. ,cbntra.)iietion, and said the. importance, of the discovery of the two letters.qf. Esterhazy had not escaped tfc- Sto.tice of General Roget, who had asked himself whether they might, hot have been written afterwards by chance. There are.remarked; M. "Ballot-Bfeau-pre, such extraordinary compilations in this affair that there i_ fbo__iTfor the most improbable suppositions. (Laughter.) I am of opinion* however, that General Rbgett's.idifeft. is quite inadmissible. . .... :_ "There still exists," continued ,the Reporter, "a letter from fi~terhas.y to his tailor, v/ritten on the.satoe ; Hino of paper (papier Rehire). This Is ih possession, of the Huissier Call*- Yet m ISO - it was the mere fact of this piper being employed that gave the; idea, that the bordereau might be? 1 iorged. No! The supposition oi! General Roget is quite untenable. TM Shape and quality of the ruled pape* Which was used for the bordereAil f«re too significant." ■ .' .. M. Ballot-Beaupre proceeded to examine the handwriting fend the shape of the letters. _•'"..._ "The army," said the Reporter*, is not on trial before us, and its honor does not require the detention -oP an innocent man in the He dv DiftbleIn conclusion M. Ballot-Beaupre said, "I do not ask you to declare the mnocence of Dreyfus, but"-at Jh's point the Reporter displayed keen emotion-"it is with firhi eowWton and with a deep appreciation *>f my duty and of my #CffihSJ says there is ground for P»gS in favour of the revision of 1594 and of sending B"^*S3 another court-martial, **<%£s£ knowledge of. the tacts u_ i» M. Ballot-Beaupre then; resumed h>s seat amid some cries of "Bravo. ™; subdued murmurs of approval -rem the back of the court. ' .