The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1879-01-26
FOUND GUILTY OF ARSON,
NO OTHER SENTENCE CAN BE IMPOSED
THAN IMPRISONMEN1 ron LIRE.

Tenement Put In Danger-Isaac PeristeIn
COnvIctcd-Mr. KoIinss Imaginary Chorus.
When tho trial OF Isaac Perlstoin, who is
charged with setting fire to tho tenement Mt II
Ludlow street on the 10th Of November lust.
was resumed. yesterday, In the General bcs-
sions the court room was packed. An of1icor
OF tho court looked nj tho intent spectators. and
said: " 1t would DO a good idea TO dramatizo
this case. and star through the country. II
would draw crowded houses"
AT IL O'Clock. when the trial should have been
begun. Mr.. Rollins shifted uneasily in his chair.
He looked frequently at tho vacant clerks desk.
and then at the door. The spectators caught
tho infection OF uneasiness. and 1t extended to
Perlstein. He appeared to fancy that some new
feature of the prosecution was waited for His
uneasy Dyes followed Mr.. Rollins's every move
ment. When the unexplained waiting had Boz
como irksome. Mr.. Rollins rose. He was owl
IDENTITY vexed.
Your Honor" he snid. the clerk who was
on duty here yesterday has not presented him
self this morning. and it Is supposed that he
has the Indictment upon which Perlstein Ia
being tried In his pocket We will probably
have to wait until the clerk chooses to appear
Then MIR. Rollins sat down and tossed about
the papers ON his table in n vain search for the
missing indictment. The clerk to whom Mr..
fashionable young Official 1t was rumorod
that Mr. Stewart attended german in Fifth
avenue on Friday evening. and overtaxed his
strength in the dance. Therefore no had
slept late. But the rumor was not sub
stantiatcd. Chief Clerk Sparks entered. few
minutes later. and searched every drawer and
pigconhole Of the clerks desk for the needed
Indictment. but u WIS not found. Then Mr..
Rollins stood up in his place again and said:
known
your Honor. and therefore have no doubt that
II Is I'm the posscssion OF the absent clerk. do
not believe that the actual production Of the in
dictment In court, nj this stage OF the case. is In
dispensahlc. and think that we may proceed.
] desire TO inform Mr. Brooke that / wish to
withdraw from the consideration OF tho Court
and the jury two OF the three counts in the in
diciment believe that the count That desire
the charge against Perlstcin down 10 the single
issue that he set fire TO the tenement ut ii Lmd-
low street when II WIS occupied 10y Isaac ko-
ning-herg Il does not alter the character Of the
Isaac Konigsberg and his family occupy the
rooms adjoining those that Joseph Levy and
his family occupied. IL was essential. in the
drawing Of the Indictment 60 show that the ten
cmcnt was tenanted. and Kongsbcrg was sin
gled out Of the twenty three hoads Of families
In the house. just ~ the nntiquated Mr.. John
MIR. Brooke objected. The Court" be said.
declined 10 Put Mr.. Rollins to his election Qi
tho count upon which he proposed 20 try Pcrl-
stein. at the ginning OF the trial. before the
evidence had been put in. Hence J. doubt
whether tho Court ought 70 permit Mr.. Rollins
10 make this election now"
Judge Cowing overruled Mr.. Brooke's objec-
ton, Then Mr.. Brooke began 10 sum up for
tho defence.
Mr. Rollins. in his summing up for tho prose.
cution. said that II Is matter OF notoriety that
there were many incendiary ilres in the lower
part OF the east side. more thickly populated
than some OF the States Of the Union. before tho
18th OF November. when porlstein was arrested.
N2 o9 Es5 suc 5s has IN b te
to prove that ia Pcrlstcin's memorandum book,
found IN one Of his pockets when he was ar
rested. there are memoranda relating TO many
Of those fires. He had proposed TO connect
perstein distinctly with several ~ them. but
Mr.. Rollins was at the opera on Friday even
ing. he said. As he listened 10 the chorus il o.
CURED 10 him that the wearisome monotony
and sameness OF the testimony OF the witnesses
who tried 70 establish au abb for Perlstein
might have been avoided by ranging the wit
nesses in u line on the witness stand and in
yiting them to sing their answers IN chorus
MIR. Brooke, in his fine BARITONE voice. might
have put the questions in a solo:
SolO-Nhere were YOU on the 10th
ChOrus-In Isaac Perlstein's house.
Solo-At what time were you theroi
s9o-Where was Isaac PcrlstelnH
Chorus-He was there.
SolO-NhAt were you dong2
DEMONSTRATING dOminoes. Iaughter1
Then. Mr.. Rollins continued. he would have
oAimed "A with his delicate tenor:
kQlo-Nere you all thercf
Chorus-Me were.
Solo-On the 10th Of what month was that3
Chorus-Ne don't know.
Solo-Are you sure that you were all there7
ChoruS-Dtad sure. lGreat laughterl
Judge COwlng urged tho Jury ~ agree upon
verdict
Tho jury were gu, for nearly two hours. Al
G o'clock the Hebrew Sabbath expired, and
some OF tho Hebrews who were awaiting the
verdict thon entered tho empty Grand Jury
room 70 pray. When the jury led in 1t was
seen that the face ot the bOylsh foreman was
pale and fixed. Perstein looked ut the Jury
with eyes That seemed 10 De straining them
selves from their sockets: His heavy beard hid
A. - ion nn IL IN. sI..r 49,
the jury. whether they had agreed upon a YER
DICT and tho foreman, rising. said: We have.
We nnd Isaac Perlstein guilty of arsOnl"
Perlstcn did not stir, but his eyes were
turned 10 the floor and he did not raise them
again. He @ppcared 70, be ,dazed. Mr. BROOKE
asked that the sentence be deferred and Judge
Cowing granted tho request. Under the YER
dicl, no other sentence than Imprisonment for
After the adjournment the foreman said that
NE WY stood eleven TO one after ihe first bal;
he then firmly believed PerlstSin was innoc ant
But he yielded 10 arguments and quotations OF
:" Incendlarism" Secretary washburn OF the
Home Fire Insurance Company said Yesterday,
is an alarming feature of our business. a.
he am RRrsR"s gSh 10 say ssi 1t is
lon, should say that there is no more OF ii at
the present than in former times, in spite OF the
hard times that one would suppose might
tempt men in some instances even to commit
arson to raise money No doubt many fires
whose origin We can never learn are the work
Of ncendarics Unless Are ia extIpgulShed
before 1t gets under Roadway there Is very little
chance o. getting evidence OF the incendiarys
work. With all the recent chemical discoveries
at his command, q man may set fire TO his store
IN New York and be half way to New Orleans
before the flames burst out. Arson is an OK
eeedlnRly difficult crime to prove where it is
done with skill. In the experience OF our COM
pany we have had to deal with few cases of H.
stocks OF goods are more frequently fired by
lncendlarles than dwellings or other kinds OF
properly. AS rule they do not imperil the
lives OF inmiliea, The setting fire to crowded
tenoments. Tor which those men are now being
tried, Is now phase OF tho crime. Tho insur,
hhrc IN that case Is petty. and do not believe
mat there viii be many such cases"
what precautions do the insurance cOmpa-
sible lncendaries Z"
Each company works In It's own way Soma
OF them make very careful Inquiries Regarding
the nnture OF the risk and the standing OF tho
person that applies for it. Others are less eau.
tious. There is no general rule followed nv all
inc companies. The united companies keepup
an Insurance patrol, and the olllce OF Fire Mar
shal was created through theireflorts but those
institutions are rather intended 10 protect
against loss. or TO investigate the causes OF fires
alter they have occurred. They do not aid the
companies in discriminating against persons
VINO may intend to become incendiarirs"
, Ihen tho companies nre SUPPOSED TO em-
ploY the safeguards against loss that persons
hdopt IN ordinary MISUNDERSTANDING into tho
business Standing of the customer and take the
chances OF being defrauled 10y him p