, 1859-04-22
[cODdenscd from DlacEwOod's MagaElne for February
FALSELY ACCUSED.
a crlnlaal Trlal ln Narnb.rr, laoO.

On the 30th Of June, 1890, at five in the morn
ing, the merchant Johann Marcus Sterbeuk was
awakened BY his maidservant, with the unpleas-
ant news that the doors Of the house, and tho
counting-house, stood open, and that from the
latter the iron cash-box had been stolen. As this
cash-box contained two thousand guldcn in silver
(about two hundred pounds reckoning by our
standard, but really much larger sum in those
days) the agitation Of Sterbenk may be conceived.
He hastened to the cOuntiDg-house with his clerks
and servants, found that a pane Of glass had been
removed from the window, which looked from
the counting-house on the staircase, and that the
door was wide open. The maid said that she had
boltcd the house.door over night She bad heard
no sound whatever during the night such as the
opening Of this door would occasion; but on
descending in the morning to take IN the milk
when the milkwoman rang, she was surprised to
find this milkwoman inside tho house--the door
having yielded TO her accidental pressure.
Alarmed, she looked to the counting-house door,
and found that also open. She looked in, and
found the iron cash.bOx missing
. Il was ut once evident that the robbery must
have been committed by some one perfectly ac-
quainted with the localities. This very pane Of
glass which had been removed was the same that,
ten days before, Sterbenk had ordered to be taken
out when one Of the clerks had lost the key Of
ulc COuHUIlk-uOuSC, uuu " was uCCCocNIy OOpCu
the door from within, which could be effected by
man thrusting his arm through this opening,
and thus reaching TO the lock. A messenger,
named Sehonlcben, remarked that this was very
suspicious.
But whom to suspectp At present thtre was
not clue. The whole town rang with tue news
and gOssips Oh the doOr-stcps and in beer-Shops
ireeiy vented their Hypothetical suspicious as is
usual in such cases. A shopkccper swore that
on the night in question, about two o'clock, he
quilted the tavern sHm keiehsadLer, where he
had been in joyiai company, and saw two suspi-
ciOus-loOking fellows in the neighborhOOd Of tue
SiOroenk house, who crossed the HOrse-maIhet; ;
a barber also swore that be saw two men that
night near the house, and had asked them the
time; maid servant declared that she had seen
q young man the day before standing opposite
the house; collsideling il attenuyely. But as
these witnesses could neither identify the persons
they had seen, nor give any other clue, their At
testaliOnS shtd little light over the question.
Suddenly suspicion rysted on Schonlvben, the
messenger, VINO had Iound the history Of the pane
Of glass so suspicious. II grew and grew till It
became very hksco6viction. lie happened 10 say
to one Of the shOpbOys that "if he could only be
certain that the cashbJx had been carried across
the Fish-market, as report said, he would easily
trace out the rest" This remark, surely not very
compromising, seems to have excited attention.
It was remembered that his lie had not been
blameless; AMI the busy irpagnations Of men
instantly built up thousand probabilities to con
wet him. The very day ailcr the robbsEy, his
brother, q peasant living il ne;giJoriag village,
had called at the Stcr6enk house, had spoken
with him In an undeFiono, and thea had quilted
the town with his dung cart-"Uf course carry
ing away the cash.box in this cart, rs quick
imaginatIons readily diyiaed. Il was further re-
mennbercd that rome days before the robbery,
Schonlebin had twic. made his appearance at the
couutinghouse an hour later than usual, for which
he could only give very unsatisfactory excuses !;
and the day after the robLecy he had affected q
forced jocularity, &C., &c. On suek indications
was this man arrested,
II was clear that Schoniebcn could not alone
have accomplished the crime. His accomplice
was soon fixed on. TWAS Beutncr, apoCr spangle-
maker. The indications against him were these
he was poor; he had assisted Schonlcben TO carry
a load Of wood into the Stcrbcnk house, and in
doing so passed up the stairs leading to the count
ing-house; arrived at the top stair, he was said
to have paused there some minutes looking in
tenty into the counting house, fascinated BY the
sound Of the money he heard chinking there.
This was asserted by more than one witness, al
though resolutcly denied by him. Il could only
be from desire to make himself familiar with
the locality previous to his criminal attempt He
also was arrested. rrr-rh
The idea Of arresling, imprisoning, and exam.
ming two men on such evidence as this will
astOund the reader; but he will be still more as
founded on Learning that the possibility Of their
being innocent was never entertained. They
were assumed 10 be criminals; and all that re-
manned was to extOrt, or entrap, confession oi
Their guilt.
While the cumbrous procedure Of those days
was being carried out against these men, . new
clue seemed to have been discovered Of far greater
importance than any yet detected. A barber,
named kirchmeier, upon whom let tho readers
attention be fixed, called on Sterbenk, and, under
the seal Of secrcsy, rs regarded hiulsct declared
that, "unless he was Mistaken" he had, on the
morning Of the 30th June, seen casl'box, very
closely resembling that which was advertised in
tho papers as tho one stolen, in the room Of the
glider Maunert, who lived in the same house with
Schonlebcn. kirchmeier called a day or two after
the 3Oth on Maunert, and the cash-bOx was nc
longer visible. This kirchncier was citizen d
Nurnbcrg, the father Of large family, well-tO-dC
IN the world, bearing the character ol an upright
religious man. His testimony was considered
unimpeachable; q fatal credulity was the result
On the unsupported testimony Of this man, hu'
man beings were not only Imprisoned, but tor
tured and destroyed. taL-1 C.-t
Maunert, the accused, was married, the father
Of two sons aged ten and tifteen, very poor, but
hitherto Of blameless reputation. He was arr ST.
cd and examined. He denied that he bad ever
had any such eash-box, painted or gilded, in his
possession HO knew SchOnleben, knew that
he was Sterbenk's messenger, but he know no
thing OF his private affairs. Maunert's wife and
sons also denied that any such box had been in
their house. Kirehmeier, confronted with thI
accused family, declared that, on the 30th June
1t eight In the morning, as he entered Maunert',
room 70 shave him, be saw under the table, neal