The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, November 20, 1898, Page 20

20 THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, NOV VISITED THE ISLAND WHERE DREYFUS IS CONFINED. Story of a Venturesome French Journalist Who Was Dispatched to Devils Island to Learn @Il He Could About the Life and Surroundings of the Famous Prisonsr of P44+ PP 4444444494444 4 444 appe the the Ile from v behi un- til we to our anch of ppear and we another the ch the more confined and on the mind of the con- exterior a ct of h look so peacefui, e luxuriant veg tion, where green has put its uch, the th sea and sky “On the ex Diable, \e point of the Ile du nd a score of there during tw the prison se Dreyfus stood, but when the ter ¥ ¢ new phase the situ- on was considered too much exposed the view of an attempt at vessels and for ape they de- of location. His on the summit of 1angs the shore. panying drawing shows far as could i seen a distance of 550 ched on paper. © meters covered e. It stands rectangu T surrounds it. 3 palisade of about 40 feet long and & wide is ¢ of thick posts of wapa, closely joined between et high, view of interior. the 1 up- foundation, laid dry, E rise to the ss at all hou ) hich oc- Within the prisor S place inci a veritable « erved for e guard red man alw nicates with the a door with a double f the watch has the »cks, and the other * hands of a superintendent or inspector. Neither of these men can open the door without the concurrence of tie iron ony, with a combination ade and just stands the A large building feet on the side, with or doors on each side, six guards. surmounted by a tower ight, a lookout from which a watchman constantly scans the ho m, while near by is a revolv- Ing Hotchi rifle cannon whose voice has been heard more than once, and It *“The house thirty feet in h tration, on the 8th of Sept: the Dreyfus case. This was to send e course in the great controversy, r.the work. The greatest secrecy was of the venture have been most satis- to the o - UL e — A - A = e R g £ 2 g 0 o o Gl 6 B £ B 1 2 PO o g s T e o g O 2 S r last iable (or as near to it as he could ion and make pictures of the cele- and and was to get information g to the jus- the i in any way refer ed the Figaro had at one time con- en it up “pour raison.” d on the packet steamer La ench Guiana, where he be- e, and at times came wery ho would most surely have who have been Here is what the O R e TR + At b dh dh dh dh oh b b g ch g b g b b R R R TR SR S S S ¢ The malil sacks ..re taken 1 we are again en route and sther side of the islands. of the ‘Ile St. Jo- the ‘Ile Royale,” we some minutes the prison the guardhouse and the look- wo hours more and we are at the interval being employed \pleting the sketch made earlfer. “We got ashore at 4 p. m. and con- sumed th hours in search of a lodg- ing. By 7 o'clock, being assured of not having to go back to the vessel to sleep, we began without loss of time our ge of discovery by a tour of the caf sit to the ‘Circle.,’ In these places are gathered at the early evening hour every one who takes any part in non-official Cayennaise life, and it.is in these crowds that we can best glean new e people who are con- ned with Dr at Cayenne are categori —The officials, from whom it difficult to obtain any informa- 2 correspondents of the fami prisoner. “Third—The people who furnish his supplie “We must be very discreet in ap- proaching and sounding these persons, more or less informed, more or less careful and sincere, and compare | the statements of one with those of other: has Dreyfus lived since the first v of h eclusion? What does he What is the state of his health nd how are his spirits? To all these questions we have had very precise answe condemned/ man rises at 5 o'clock in the morning, at which hour the door which leads from the prison house into the yard is opened. After aving taken his first breakfast, which he prepares himself, as he does all his meals, he goes out and smokes for a while, pacing rapidly about the inclos- rom which he can see nothing but From 10 to 11 o'clock the door is closed, and it will be opened again from 11 to 5 o’clock in the afterncon. “During the day Dreyfus write; a at deal, but is large occupied in g architectural designs and in figures. Alway very careful of his person, he dresses generally in white linen and has for a long time worn hed shirts. His guards must never speak to him, and, as to himself, he has never ad- dressed & word to any .one save the doctor when It was ne ary to cof- sult him. His confinement is on the solitary cell system in a special cell and in the open air. As he has to do all of his own cooking he lfves principally on canned goods to save trouble. % his orders far provisions rent things were distributed eral dealers of Cayenne. however, one house furnishes ing, and the proprietors will be as 1ch astcnished as the penitentiary officials to see in public print a dupli- cate of his order for the month of Oc- tober. Fere it is in entirety: 1 liter of alcohol for fuel. 2 flasks of orange flower water. 1 kilogram of chocolate. 2 boxes of Camembert cheese. 6 bottles soda water, 2 bottles Hunyadi-Jenos. € pairs colored socks. 1% ki Stohl tobacco. 1 Wooden pipe. o0 eclgars. 2 packets of matches. 2 quires of white paper. 2 packets of wax tapers. 1 flask of granulated kola. 5 klll;s of soap. 2 pairs of pantaloons t 6 white linflln h:xmlkorcmo;:}“ e S0 The whole sums up 139 25 franc. “It is an average of the monthly ex- among Latel everyt 2 DEVLS i it pense indulged fn by the prisoner. He has never passed the figure of $30. Of the money which hi as de- posited with the peniten tration for him remains < 0. “More than anyth of this bill confirm ex ¥ the informa- tion given us to the state of his health and his mind. The granulated kola and the chocolate for strengthen- ing and the orange flower water to al- lay excitement and nervousness. He s evidently desirous «f keeping him- self in good health. Save some trouble with his liver, hov er, soon after his arrival and a somewhat prolonged dys- A Street Tollision Between Factions. . entery in 1896 the state of Dreyfus’ health has been excellent. “He i a little bent, and his beard is long and almost white. He has grown stouter. He is not has never been downhearted or de- sed. Does Dreyfus know of the stir his name is making in France? It is doubt- but not impossible. There ar some strange speci ed brokers who trade es for their gold. Actuated by a desire for gain one of these men put himself in communication with the prisoner, as he told me, when the house was at the lower end of the island. From the Isle Royale, to which he had access, he drew the attention of Drey- fus, who finally recognized the effort. “I saw this broker, who though very close at first, said to me afterward: ‘One can communicate with any prison- er, no matter whom, when he knows how to manage. A mnote is easily slip- ped in a starched fold of a shirt. As to making him know that the revision of his case is about to follow, the means would be ‘still more simple. On the packets of tobacco and cigars which they furni him one only has to ef- face the Rs with a redhot iron or the head of a match. ‘R’ effaced. Revision is coming—about to come. i “‘Have you done it?’ I asked. “He laughed but made no reply. Was this a tacit avowal as to wishing to es- cape? Dreyfus has never thought of it. They tell quietly here of a person who made a journey to Paris to offer his services to the family, but who returned downcast and nonplused. “But théy say many things in Guiana that are not all to be believed. The only ones who believe in the possibility of an escape are the persons who have the responsibility of hig guardianship— and first among these '~ the command- ant of the ‘lles du Salut. “The last director of the penitentiary went so far as to imitate an attempt at surprise by boat, taking part himself, and landing on the Isle du Diable he came near being killed by the fire which the night guards rained on the party. “It is entirely certain that if needed for the purposes of the revision, Drey- fus will be found on his island and in good health, whatever may be thought on this subject, when one learns that all the material and apparatus for em- balming a body were lately sent to the ‘Isle du Diable.” It:was only as a pre- caution, but up to the present a use- less precauuon‘. pre: A . M. Abenicar returned to Paris on Oc- tober 24 and L'Illustration gave the re- sults of his expedition in the follow- ing issue, unmindful of the probable Alsapproval of the authorities. o e Fe i Special to The Sunday Call. PARIS, Nov. 18.—The announcement that two advocates will be sent to Cay- enne, capital ~* French Guia a, to as- sist Dreyfus in the preparation of his defense, gives rise to the belief that he will not, after all, be brought back. It ISLARND (FRoM A-PHOTSRRAPR] OF SAFETY THE ISLANDS is believed he has alres rnment’'s message announcing the SCENES IN PARIS Durin THE AGITATION. 1y received the of trouble. 247" To-day you m will be more strikers. secret counsels of the leaders eep up the fires of ins r_pending the delay of the re- irrection and ARIS, Nov. 7.—Sunday after Sun- day there are Dreyfus riots to be seen, while throughout the week No one could have s strikers and the military. knowledge that the general strike only a new move in th to turn the Drey revolution adds immensely to the spicy element dressed, pursued of respectable chased them “Death to the Drey- refuge in a large e in which one three middie-aged men apartment hou e appeared to live, portg-cochere with delightful shivers what to do in doors against which the crowd pressed, / ‘um:mqw T A i R PR PRISON o"]jp‘év hammering with clubs and can n yelling, “Break in the door! Break in the doo: Soon there was the pound- ing of a piece of timber. A dense crowd gathered round, exchanging jokes and asking, “Where are the police?” There were no police in sight. bang! Bang! The doors gave way. The mob rushed howling in—and stood there howling! They lacked a leader to take them up- sta On the Avenue Hoche a gentle- man of 6 5 of age was asked to hurrah, “Vive I'arme He exclaimed, impatientlv. “Vive tout le monde!” (Hurrah for everybody.) “Excepte Picquart!” came the shrill voice of a small boy in the crowad. It was enough tc start them off. - cept Picquart! Except Picquart!” They hemmed him in and threatened him with canes and fists; they yelled at him until their faces glowed a purple red; they clutched at him and pulled and pushed him, always howling that he must except Picquart! But the aged gentleman had sporting blood. He would not except. So much the worse for him. They tore his coat off, made his nose bleed, burnt hi k hat, spat on him and so continued until the police arrived. ¢ Up a side street, toward the Salle was to have been held, there marched a delegation of 500 Dreyfus sympa- thizers. It is true there were many young men among them, many long- haired, “intellectual” looking fellow but the mass was solid-looking and ri spectable. Before they got within a block of the avenue they were stopped. This was one of the real fights. mea were knocked down. Men were beaten on the head with canes. Coats were torn off. Hats were smashed. A few from each side were trampled upon. There was much spitting. But, above all, there was yelling. There was curs- ing—*Reptil “Your dirty throat! Now, it ought to be well understood time that it is the Dreyfus sy pathizers who are accused of w to bring on a revolution. To the c rageous and high minded authority th reflection is all the more bitter because of its partial truth. The Social and anarchists, without being asked, with- out being wanted, being dreaded like the plague, ha\'gt taken their si They are against the army. The dis contented workingmen are made to e that their advantage lies along the line of a continued insurrection and disor- der. So it is that every Dreyfus meet- ing means a riot. So it is that the great strike has extraordinary mean- ing. So it is to-day that Paris is in a real state of siege. Around these 5000 “shanties,” guard- ed by the military, gather all the day “DOWN WITH THE ARMY!" From a cartoon published in a French paper, Wagram, where the Dreyfus meeting great groups of tantalizing workmen- ‘When they cry, “Hurrah for the strike!” they are allowed to cry in peace. When they yell, “Down with the arm the police disperse them. When they will not disperse, the sol- diers make a military movement, get in line—and then there is dispersion. “Down with the army!” It Is the So- cialist cry, the anarchist cry, the cry of the radical revolutionist The Dreyfus agitation is also de- clared to be “against the army It is in the name of protecting the honor of the army that anti-Dreyfus mobs break up the Dreyfus meetings! “You see how Paris is patrolled by soldiers,” say the representatives of the Government to the strikers, “you see how the ‘shanti conflict is feared. Suppose, what is possible, ome one throws a stone at a soldier. Then they will charge you. You will se where the victims will S We are ready to stand it.” “Then let us appeal to other senti- You know how serious the sit- s. You are workingmen; con- sequently Republicans. Do you not see that the republic being attacked?” “It's all th me to us,” replied one of the delegates. No one protested. The far-fetched theories of the peo- ple you meet every day are astonish- ing to Americans. “You see, Paris is a camp,” said a Parisian friend to me last. night, an intellectual revisionist. “Do you suppose the soldiers were brought in, picked troops from many parts of France, because the strike ne- cessitated it? Do not lmagine it brought . them in. to have them against the revision time. The 11 stand out again revision even it is under way. When that time >s, and it will come in a few weeks, beware!” Meanwhile 40,000 extra tdlers hang about the Paris streets. The wine shops overflow. By night and day crowds march through the boulevards and ave- nues to the most contradictory cries: “‘Conspuez les Dreyfusists!” “Hurrah for the Social revolution!* “Down with the Prussians!” “Hurrah for the strike!™ ‘Down with the arm “Vive la F-r-r-r-r-rance “Vice Picquar “Hurrah for the exposition!" “Down with the “A bas les Jui Do these cries mean anything to France? S high schools of Sweden boys and educated in the same classes, all the telegraph, télephonc and. are in the hands of women. have invadled even the steam-