But, at bottom, it all started with Major du Paty de Clam, who led them on, hypnotized them, for, as an adept of spiritualism and the occult, he could converse with spirits. Oh, yes, there was of course the Minister of War, General Mercier, a man of apparently mediocre intellect and there were also the Chief of Staff, General de Boisdeffre, who appears to have yielded to his own religious bigotry, and the Deputy Chief of Staff, General Gonse, whose conscience allowed for many accommodations. He boasted that he would confound him and make him confess all. From that moment on, he was the one who “invented” Dreyfus the traitor, the one who orchestrated the whole affair and made it his own. And, although I have no desire to dwell on a story that is only partly known, Major du Patyde Clam entered on the scene at the first whiff of suspicion of Dreyfus. Handwriting samples were compared, as if this were some family affair, a traitor to be sniffed out and expelled from within the War Office. This interpretation, wrong on both counts, shows how superficially the bordereau was analyzed, for a logical examination shows that it could only have come from an infantry officer. Information was leaked, papers were disappearing, then as they continue to do to this day and, as the search for the author of the bordereau progressed, little by little, an a priori assumption developed that it could only have come from an officer of the General Staff, and furthermore, an artillery officer. The bordereau had already been for some time in the hands of Colonel Sandherr,Head of the Intelligence Office, who has since died of a paralytic stroke. I am stating simply that Major duPaty de Clam, as the officer of justice charged with the preliminary investigation of the Dreyfus case, is the first and the most grievous offender in the ghastly miscarriage of justice that has been committed. I need say no more: let us seek and we shall find. And he was the one that Major Forzinetti caught carrying a shuttered lantern that he planned to throw open on the accused man while he slept, hoping that, jolted awake by the sudden flash of light, Dreyfus would blurt out his guilt. He appears to be the shadiest and most complex of creatures, spinning outlandish intrigues, stooping to the deceits of dime novels, complete with stolen documents, anonymous letters, meetings in deserted spots, mysterious women scurrying around at night, peddling damning evidence.He was the one who came up with the scheme of dictating the text of the bordereau to Dreyfus he was the one who had the idea of observing him in a mirror-lined room. He is the entire Dreyfus case, and it can only be understood through an honest and thorough examination that reveals his actions and responsibilities. Colonel du Paty de Clam, who was at the time a mere Major. The truth, first of all, about the trial and conviction of Dreyfus.Īt the root of it all is one evil man, Lt. But to whom if not to you, the first magistrate of the country, shall I reveal the vile baseness of those who truly are guilty? Knowing your integrity, I am convinced that you do not know the truth. President, that I shall proclaim this truth, with all the revulsion that an honest man can summon. My nights would otherwise be haunted by the specter of an innocent man, far away, suffering the most horrible of tortures for a crime he did not commit.Īnd it is to you, Mr. My duty is to speak out, not to become an accomplice in this travesty. Dare to tell the truth, as I have pledged to tell it, in full, since the normal channels of justice have failed to do so. And now the image of France is sullied by this filth, and History shall record that it was under your presidency that this crime against society was committed.Īs they have dared, so shall I dare. A court martial, under orders, has just dared to acquit that character, Esterhazy, the supreme insult to all truth and all justice. But what filth this wretched Dreyfus affair has cast on your name, or, might I say, your reign. You are radiant in the patriotic glory of our country’s alliance with Russia, you are about to preside over the solemn triumph of our World Fair, the jewel that crowns this great century of Labor, Truth, and Liberty. Unscathed by the vilest slander, you have won over the hearts of all. Would you allow me, grateful as I am for the kind reception you once extended to me, to show my concern about maintaining your well-deserved prestige and to point out that your star which, until now, has shone so brightly, risks being dimmed by the most shameful and indelible of stains.
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