General de Pellieux.--“Yes.”
M. Labori.--“Did he not sit behind General de Luxer, president of the
council?”
General de Pellieux.--“Yes.”
M. Labori.--“Did he not intervene several times in the course of the
testimony of M. Leblois?”
General de Pellieux.--“I asked the permission of the president, of
the public minister, and of the defence, to put some questions to M.
Leblois. This authorization was granted. I think that I had the right
to do so as a magistrate.”
M. Labori.--“Did not General de Pellieux take the floor spontaneously
to correct an error of fact that had just been committed by General de
Luxer?”
General de Pellieux.--“I never took the floor without asking permission
of the defence, of the public minister, and of the president.”
M. Labori.--“Did he not take the floor to correct an error of fact that
had just been committed by General de Luxer?”
General de Pellieux.--“I do not know to what you refer.”
M. Labori.--“The general must know, and cannot fail to remember,
whether at a certain moment, in the course of the testimony of M.
Leblois, he intervened to correct an error of fact committed by the
president.”
General de Pellieux.--“I confess that I cannot remember.”
M. Labori.--“Did not the witness take the floor spontaneously to ask
of M. Tézenas if he had no opposition to make to the continuation of M.
Leblois’s testimony, and in these words: ‘You suffer him to speak?’”
General de Pellieux.--“Never.”
M. Labori.--“Did not M. Leblois ask a question of such a character as
to necessitate some supplementary information?”
General de Pellieux.--“I will not answer. This was behind closed doors.
You know very well that anything that happens behind closed doors
cannot be revealed.”
The Judge.--“The general says it was behind closed doors.”
M. Labori.--“I ask nothing in general of a secret or confidential
character. Furthermore, closed doors are possible in an assize court
as well as in a council of war, and twelve French citizens can keep
a secret as well as twelve officers. Consequently you are quite at
liberty to make the witness answer. What I am after is to show that
General de Pellieux intervened in the trial before the council of war.
I do not ask him concerning what he intervened; I ask him whether he
intervened. I insist that the question be put.”
The Judge.--“Offer your motion.”
M. Clemenceau.--“It seems to me that the general has been answering my
_confrère_ concerning matters that happened behind closed doors. Never
did the general, so far as I know, intervene before the council of war
as long as the session was public. His intervention, about which he has
been talking for the last fifteen minutes, took place behind closed
doors. I ask the court, then, where the dividing line is to be drawn,
and who shall say whether it is permissible to speak of things that
happened behind closed doors to a certain limit, of which the witness
shall be sole judge, and at which the witness may declare: ‘I will say
no more.’”
The Judge.--“How do you expect the court to know, except by the
witness, that the thing happened behind closed doors? [To the witness.]
Does the question asked you relate to an incident that happened behind
closed doors?”
General de Pellieux.--“I have been asked questions relating to personal
intervention. That does not concern closed doors. Closed doors applies
to things asked of the witnesses, but not to an individual’s attitude
during closed doors.”
M. Labori.--“Permit me, _Monsieur le Président_, to repeat the
question before asking you to put it again. Here are two questions
belonging to the same order of ideas: first, did not M. Leblois
offer an observation of such a nature as to bring out supplementary
information?”
The Judge.--“You hear the first question?”
General de Pellieux.--“I will not answer, for it is a matter of closed
doors.”
M. Labori.--“Second, was not General de Luxer then disposed to lay the
question regularly before the council of war, and had he not already
risen to propose to the judges that they retire to the council-chamber
for deliberation?”
General de Pellieux.--“No.”
M. Labori.--“Did not General de Pellieux intervene spontaneously,
saying that that was useless?”
General de Pellieux.--“No, I had nothing to say to the president.”