“You have had an extraordinary career,” I ventured.
“Yes,” he replied, “it has been a life of action and I may say of suffering. Permit me to show you the certificate of my general that what I have told you is accurate.”
And De Nevers unfolded from his pocket a document, bearing a seal of the French Ministry of War, which read as follows:
REPUBLIQUE FRANCAISE
MINISTERE DE LA GUERRE
CABINET DU MINISTERE
No. 195
PARIS, October 24, 1901.
To Whom It May Concern:
I, George Andre, General of Division of Engineers, Minister of War of the French Republic, certify that the Lieutenant Colonel Charles Jules Comte Francois de Nevers, is connected with the French Army, since the 10th day of September, 1877, and that the following is a true copy of his record:
Born in Paris the 10th of June, 1859.
Graduated, Bachelor of Sciences
and of Letters, from the Lycee,
Louis le Grand, the 5th of
August, 1877.
Received first as Chief of
Promotion of the National Polytechnic
School of France, the 10th
of September, 1877.
Graduated with the greatest
distinction from the above school the
1st of September, 1879.
Entered at the Application
School of Military Engineers at
Fontainebleau as Second Lieutenant,
Chief of Promotion the 15th of
September, 1879.
Graduated as Lieutenant of
Engineers with great distinction, the 1st
of August, 1881, and sent
to the First Regiment of Engineers at
Versailles.
Sent to Tonkin the 1st day of August, 1881.
Wounded at Yung Chuang (Tonkin) the 7th of November, 1881.
Inscribed on the Golden Book
of the French Army the 10th of
November, 1881.
Made Knight of the Legion of Honor the 10th of November, 1881.
Wounded at Suai Sing the 4th of January, 1882.
Sent to Switzerland in Mission
where he was graduated at the Zurich
Polytechnic University as
Mechanical Engineer, 1884.
Sent the 2nd of January, 1885, to Soudan.
Wounded there twice.
Made Captain of Engineers the 3rd of June, 1885.
Called back to France the
6th of September, 1885, sent in Mission in
Belgium, where he was graduated
as Electrical Engineer from the
Montefiore University at Liege.
Made officer of Academy.
Sent in Gabon, the 2nd of
May, 1887. Wounded twice. Constructed
there the Military Railroad.
Sent to Senegal as Commander
the 6th of July, 1888, to organize
administration. Wounded
once.
Called back and sent to Germany the 7th of December, 1889.
Called back from Germany and
assigned to the Creusot as Assistant
Chief Engineer.