A Drawing-room Duel.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 332, 9 January 1889, Page 6

A Drawing-room Duel.

A curious shoofcing'affray hab boon bi ought to the knowledge of the Paris police. M. Hackelberger, a well-known iinuncici , i& in custody on a charge of attempting to murder Georgette Duvernet, with whom he had formed a liaison. He i^ 30 yeais of age, and according to the ' Times ' conetipondent, had held a lucrative appointment in the banking-house of Rothschild. He resolved to break oH his as:?ociation with Duvernet, but it was ai ranged that friendly relations .should be kept up. On Wednesday Hackelborger invited his former mistress to dine with him, but lecei\ed no reply. This appeals to ha\c disconcerted him. At two o'clock in tho morning of Thursday he repaiied to the house ot Duvernet, taking ith him a«w ord cane and a revolver. The ser \an t who had at onetime been in htspervrcoopenedthedoorto him. He found Duverncb with ]M. Van Beers, a pointer, of whom he h-id been jealous. Duvernet went to the drawingroom, and' was followed by Hackelberger, who was veiy violent, drawing his swoid and bieakingthe blade o\er the furniture. Ho then drew his revolver, which he filed t\v ice. In the meantime Van Beers had entered the drawing-room, ako armed uith a revolver. Hackelberger pointed Im revolver at Duvernet, and afterwards fired three tinier. Then Van I'eers, according to his account, thinking; that he had to do with a madman, filed his revolver fi\o times at Hackelberger, who replied with two shots irom his weapon. HackJcborgcr was slightly wounded. A ball xja*sed through the collar of his overcoat, and caused a slight cut, another injured his right arm rather severely, a third grazed his ley:. He left the house, and proceeded to the 1 ailway station, where ho took the fust train to Rouen. Ho remained there during the day. and afterwards returned by train to Paris, and on his arrival at six o'clock he was taken into custody. He'a&serted, on examination , that he fired the firf-t shots of his revolver in the air to intimidate Duvornet, and that lio did not take an aim until fired at by Van Beerrf. The latter declared on the contrary that he did not interiere until he saw Hackelberger directing his weapon at Duvernofc, with the evident ihtenbion'o* killirfg her.