The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1884-08-14
Cost Of Selling State Secrets Ii
Germany.

The remarkable trial which has been
in progress for several days at Leipsic
before the Supreme Court of the Ger
man Empire had ended in the manner
ut which our Berlin correspondent
limited. Both of the prisoners have
been found guilty. Captain Hentsch,
as the chief criminal, has been sentenced
to nine years. penal s%ervitude; Krasz-
ewski, as second in guilt. is to be con-
fined for three years and q half in a
fortress. The trial is worth the while
studying, if only for the side light which
it throws upon the relations between
Germany and some of her neighbors.
The offense for which Hentsch and
Kraszewski are to suffer is that they
sold to foreign governments military
secrets which, in the interest OF
the German Empire, ought not to have
been disclosed. Perhaps every COM
plete criminal code ought to provide for
this ~offense; but it is, in all probability,
unknown to our law. Were a clerk
from our war Office to divulge military
secrets he would escape severe punish
ment; his offense would entail at most
expulsion, unless he were foolish
enough to purloin some document and
lay himself open to the charge of theft.
but in legislating for a military State,
such as Germany, a different course
has been taken. The German criminal
code contains minute and stringent pro-
visions as to the offense of giving in
time of war information relating to
fortresses, movements of troops or
plans of campaigns. 1t also makes
it an ofense to communicate,
even in time of peace, matters which
it is for the interest of the en-
pire should not be divulgedto a foreign
power. This prohibition is elastic and
comprehensive. 1t enabled Prince Bis
marck to ruin Count Arnim on the
ground hat in his pamphlet, ..Pro Nj
hily," he published secrets officially in
trusted to him; and it has been brought
to bear with equal success against Cap
tain Hentsch and Kraszewski. That
they had infringed this provision of the
criminal code admitted Of little doubt.
The former had exceptional opportuni-
ties for prying into the secrets of the
grand general staff. Once an officer in
the Prussian army, and afterwards en-
ployed in the telegraph office at Berlin,
he was well acquainted with officers Of
high rank in the army, and he pos
sessed considerable reputation as a
writer Oh military subjects. Kras-
zewski, the other prisoner, is a man of
mark. He would be remarkable in the
history of literature if only because he
had written some 800 volumes, includ-
ing about 200 novels. A fertile and
successful novelist, poet, historian and
critic, he had endeared himself to all
Poles by his long continued services to
their national literature; and they will
learn with deep regret that he is cen
victed of playing a part in the intrigue
which has been the subject of investi-
cation before the supreme court. The
counsel for the prosecution did not dis
tinctly explain what motives had led a
man of letters. advanced in years, whose
interest in politics had been chiefly plo-
tonic, to engage in the hazardous game
of the eonspirators; but the evidence
was clear as to his guilt London Times.
Paul Mayo. of Lausanne, Switzer-
land, has discovered that the wings of
the common fly vibrate at the a t Of
$50 strokes per eecond. while the mus
quito makes his wings go at the rate Of
1000 strokes per second.
"A San Francisco paper saws there
are about 25e lepers in that CITY, and
the number is increasing. 1t also de-
clares that San Francisco has become
the dumping ground for Asiatic cities