The Placer herald., 1857-07-04
AUBURN, PLACER COUNTY, CALIFORNIA, JULY A. 1857

fixtures. The fire had made clean sweep
He had policy of insurance for some two
or three thousand dollars, and he claimed to
recover the whole amount. Kraut and once
more took the old seats-ths time with very
friendly greetings. He looked upon me as
twice his couqueror-once by straagem and
once by blockade-and his salutation was
very delerential. felt ut could afford to
be civil, and that might make him useful
ally, in case of dead lock in the jury on the
impending trial. The case proceeded, and
the plaintiff disclosed very plain state OF
facts. There had been fire, and he had
lost everything, and proved his loss to a
penny. His principal witness was his mo-
ther, who Lad been the woman-of all-works
in the concern, and who was as indetatigabIe
at swearing as she could ever have been at
scrubbing or sweeping. The company made
a vain attempt to prove some fraud in the
matter, but their counsel made small progress,
and gained no sympathy with the court or
jury.
just as the testimony was closing the plain
ti's lawyer recalled the mother to the wit
ncss-stand for the purpose of clinching some
ed explanation, and was Just quitting the
stand, when krau, who had been moving
uneasiy in his chair, suddenly darted a side
look at the woman from underneath his
brsting eyebrows, and, without preliminary,
jerked out the question:
"Ven you and your son set fire to de store
didn't you put der goods into baskets and
put dem in de cellar, before you set fire to
der store?'
WITNESS highly ercited) "When we set
fire to the store. We didn't set fire to the
store"
KHAur (oery ddiJerately) Didn't you
put der goods into baskets and put dem
into de cellar, ven you set fire to de store3"
WITNESS "No."
But in the wave of sound on which that
monosyIlable of denial tloated to the ears
of Court, counsel. and jury, there was trem-
u'ous under current which woke susp-
con--iust throb of conscience in the tone
Of the voice which startled inquiry and was
the key note of detection; and when Kraut
doggelly followed up his attack with third
question, run in the same mould, "Nen YOU
and your son set fire to de store" etc, the
woman fairly broke up" and the companys
counsel, taking instant advantage of the
breach, pressed in with a whole platoon of
ere questions, until the real fraud, as fore
shadowed in Krauts interrogatories, was full
" exposed and the plaintiff driven out Of
court, at the point of Il verdict against him
rendered by the jury without leaving their
seats.
kraut was the hero of the day. The pres
idenl of the company-the lawyers, whom
he had Helped to an unexpected success
even the Judge, usually Indifferent to all
the fortunes Of legal warfare-compiment-
ed and thanked him. | really began to
think had done him some injustice my
self, and as the crowd in the courtroom
was dispensing, | said to him.
We'll Mr.. Kraut, you have done the
state some service to day" Kraut grinned
acquiesccnce. "By-theway," | continued,
edo tell me, as we are about to part, how
you happened to ask that question:"
Kraut was intoxicated with success; and
III success, as in wine iudiscretion is the ally
of truth He could not keep his secret.
lie took me Ly the bottom hole, and draw
ing me into a corner Of the room, behind the
clerks desk,
"Vy, mein freund, you see dat is the very
way that Brom and got our insurance
vrom der Venix"
"From the VeniM'
yes from der Venix Company"
ooh" said !, "you cheated the Phoenix
Company, ard succeeded precisely as these
people tried to cheat the Jefferson, and fail
edr
'Sheat' said Kraut, "der was no cheat
ing, for they never found it out, and
| suppose there was something in the ex
preston of my face which Kraut rightly in
terpreted as "notice to quit" for he never
finished his sentence, but made precipitate
exit from the courtroom, and was lost, in
less than a minute, in the departing crowd.
stroed over to the Office Of the Com
missioner Of Jurors and had the satisfaction
Of seeing Krauts name very summarily ex
plunged from his lists: and am quite sure
that, in whatever other capacity my hero
may have since been called upon to serve
his country, he has never figured second
time as "Genteman Of the Jury"
Great sensation has been created among
the" faithful in Constantinople, by the sud
den disappearance of numerous relics Of Ma
hammoed and his successors Among the
a! tices stole is the Saud schalli Scherrif, or
Sacred Banner-the vertable mantle of the
Prophet 1t is conjectured that the theft
was committed for political purposes at the
instigation of a portion of the clergy. The
matter was investigated by the Ministry
and several Imauns were arrested Oh suspic-
ion.
BRAslpAs, the famous Lacedemonian
General, caught a mouse it bit him, and by
that means made its escape. "Oh JUPITER"
said he, "what creature SO contemplate, but
may have its liberty if it will contend for it,"