The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-10-21
TRIAL OF ANTOINE MAURER.

| strange and Strong CircumstantInl Testi-
Tony-The Prisoners Defence-Counter
Evidence Against the Charge OF Murder.
Tne trial OF Antoine Maurer for the murder Of
| Joachim Fuerter IN March last was resumed
| yesterday morning at the Court House, New
| City. RocNand county. Judge Tappan and
| three associate judges presiding. There was
| q crowded attendance as on the previous
day, and increased interest exhibited in the pro-
ceedlngs, as the defence was presumed to have evi
! dence which would entirely Overturn the circum-
| stantla case or the prosecution. The prisoner
| when brought In showed no change from the calm
| demeanor and complacent expression that marked
| his department the day previous. He sat
| at the end OF the table occupied by
| counsel sand seemed to take o lively
| though not an anxious interest in the proceedings
| The clothes supposed to belong to the murdered
man Fuerter, the hat presumed to be the properly
Of Maurer, and the barrel stave with which the
| prosecution held that the murder was committed
| were placed In heap on the floor. Mr.. Hoffman
opened the for the defence by examining Jacob
straut, butcher living In Spring Valley, who
stated that on Friday, the 18th OF March, as well as
! he could remember, o man got of the train from
| New York at Spring Valley and inquired Of him
the way to the house Of a person named
pedlers' lodging place in The village. brother
OF the witness, VINO was standing by ut
the time the stranger made mis- inquiry, pointed
posed pedier wenaed his way, bearing Gnaer his arm
small box. Sunday morning following dead
| body was discovered IN ield about two hundred
yards from Krauss' saloon, and this body the
brotherf straus believed to the best Of their judy
| ment, was that Of the man who casually accosted
them on Friday afternoon. Subsequently the body
was Identified as that OF Joachim Fuerter, tailor
not pedler-who worked In Brooklyn and New
York, and had friend IN the latter place named
Antoine Maurer. None Of the evidence for the
prosecution disclosed that Maurer was seen in the
mir nf Wall fha hpnfh
Straut saw the stranger arrive, nor on The day
the dead body was iound-lnat Is, from March
Maurer invited Fuerter, week previous, to come
up 10 Spring Valley and meet him at Krauss house,
wnere he said he would discharge q debt OF eight
dollars he owed the tailor. 1t was also proved that
Maurer left friends place III Delaney street. where
he mad been boarding Tor three days, on the morning
OF the 9th OF March, with fifty cents in his pocket
which he borrowed; said he was going In the c0un
try ana would bring back to his friend present OF
gold watch, PAIR OF pants ana pair OF CATERS.
Fuerter when found had no pants on neither had he
a gold watch he was known to have worn.
The hat found covering the face Of the deceased
was sworn to by dozen as being the one
they saw Maurer wear. Here the testimony grows
highly interesting, as showing the force and con.
cluslveness which clrcumstantlal evidence may
In cases. while at this same time 1t leaves
Wide room for evasion and Tor possibilities OF an
opposite character
Maurer the prisoner, was next sworn and asked
10 explain the evidence against him. Az he sat in
the witness chair facing the audience there was no
quailing Of the eye no hestancy OF response TO
the questions Of either counsel. He certainly
appeared less uneasy and decidedly more lucid
tlan many OF the witnesses who testified against him.
Whose clothes are these2 he was asked, when
shown the garments which the prosecution con-
tended were taken by the prisoner Off The dead body
OF Fuerter They are mine, he replied and lie pro-
ceeded to tell how he bought them In pawn shop
and afterwards disposed oil them at an institution OF
the same sort when IT was necessary for him to
raise money TO keep himself from starving. Then,
about the hat, on which 30 much depended. or that
he dl5claimed the ownership, ana explained that he
had owned a hat somewhat Ike 1t, which he traded
OH in the Boyery Tor another, mentioning the num-
Der OF the store. The murder is supposed to have
taken place on the night Of Saturday, the 18th OF
March. Where was lie nom the yth VI March, when
he told his friend he was going IN the
country TO the 14tn, when Fuerlers body was ois-
coyered2 The 9th, 10th and nth he renamed In
| New ork getting drunk the evening OF the
mentioned date and starting on the 12ih for Pier
| mont, where he obtained work a shoemaker from
MIR. Leitner, who testified to the fact, and OF his
naming there for some weeks AFTER Here comes In
character, II the human memory could always be
rehed on IN the matter OF time and dates. On the
| l2tn Aaurer asked Letner II he heard OF murder
having been committed In Spring Valley and the
| body being found half naked. Letner replied
only found two days after. why did he ask the
question: Because, said he, the same was asked
mat morning y man a he ne sI a. NO
to friend schas, which he expected to get in the
country He said an freshman at pier No. New
YORK had watch which he offered Tor low price,
ana by going in the country be expected to raise
| enough money to purchase IL. How did he get the
clothes ID which he appeared shortly after leaving
| New York March Q, when 1t was proved he had 70
borrow ufty TO take MIN as ne stated, In the
| country By exchanging, he explained, twenty
| franc gold piece he had brought with him from
France and preserved unbr0ken up to that time.
Mr.. Shupe in his cross-examination for the prose-
cutOn failed to shake the integrity OF the prisoners
testimony, which, taken as IT was and unsupported
by the evidence OF any other person, left after ALL
/ several points not satisfactorily answered.
| After recess for dinner Mr.. Hoffman addressed
the Jury for the defence in speech Of nearly three
| hours, in which, with much skill and attractive.
ness OF argument, he took up the long chain OF
evidence against the accused, and 70 all appearances
| left no link unbroken. lie especially dwelt on
! the fact that neither the coat nor pants sup
posed to be the property OF Fuerter had solitary
mark OF blood and yet the shirt was covered with
blood stains. lie might bave gone further and said
in truth there were no stains on the vest and in fact
on nothing but The shirt, which would go to prove
that Fuerter must have been murdered while In bed
i and then carried out by two men and left In the
/ neds. Was Maurer one Of these TWO. and did the
murder take place In Krauss' house-a disreputable
/ concern by the wayf
Mr.. shupe spoke, for the prosecution, avery strong
| address against the prisoners.
| Judge Happen made o calm, unbiased summing
mp anu al ten O'CLOCK the jury reufed end mad not
| been heard from past midnight.