Alpena argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1893-1909, 1894-02-28
Saved by a Juror.
So he is dead!

looked again at tne newspaper
which l held in my hand and read:
Jethro.--Died, near Mobile, March
18, 1893, Emanuel Jethro, aged
tifty-seven years.
He is dead after all these years,
and at last am free to reveal a ter
rible secret of jury room which
has been a burden to myself and
ten other men unless they, like
Jethro, have passed over the river.
In August, 1875, there was a
murder trial in Mobile, which per-
haps the older citizens of that city
still remember.
l was the third juror chosen.
After Juror No. 6 was told to pass
into the jury box the court clerk
called the name of Emanuel
Jethro."
l believe every one in the court
room was struck with the mans
appearance. He walked briskly and
in a peculiar nervous manner which
could not fail to attract attention.
He answered the solicitors question
eagerly. In fact, one time his an
swer came before the question was
concluded.
The solicitor said: prisoner,
look on the juror. Juror, look on
the prisoner" and he probably ex-
pected the defense to strike, but the
defense did not.
Juror No. 7 was told to take his
seat in the box. His residence was
given in the jury list as Bayou La
Batre, and he evidently came from
very secluded place on the coast.
The next morning the examina.
tion of witnesses began. The evil
dence was short and it was conclu-
sive.
Karl Beiderman, a German youth
employed ON truck garden near
the city, was charged with murder
ing his employer by splitting open
his head with an ak.
He and the gardener had lived
alone. One morning the boy came
into the city and while drinking
freely had shown large sum of
money. A day later the gardener
was found lying dead upon the
floor of a room in his house, with
the bloody Ak, which had done the
work, lying near him.
The German youth was arrested,
with some of the money still in his
possession. There was proof that
the boy and the gardener had been
heard quarrelling about an increase
of wages, which the boy had asked
for and did not get.
To Offset this circumstantial evi-
dence there was nothing but the
prisoners statement, very badly
told by an interpreter. He denied
knowing anything of the killing
and said the money he had was
given him by man the night be-
fore as bribe to leave his employer,
that he knew nothing of the killing
or who did it.
When we reached the jury room,
there seemed but two things to do
elect a foreman and bring in a
verdict of guilty.
The first we did with little
trouble.
Then we took a ballot, merely as
matter of form. counted the
vote, and it stood: For guilty, IL ;
for acquittal, /.
"Who is the twelfth gentleman
who does not know murder when
he sees itp" one of the jurors asked
sarcastically.
II am" came the reply, calmly
spoken by juror No. Emmanuel
Jethro.
Then we began to argue the case
with him. He looked out of the
window most of the time and made
no reply to any of our telling argu-
ments. Finally he was asked if he
had any reason to advance for vot-
ing as he did.
"None at all" he replied quietly
except that 1 don't wish to see an
innocent man hanged.
Il
There were some moro convicting
arguments by the eleven, and we
took another vote: For murder
IL; for acquittal, 1.
And that was the way the vote
stood next morning after breakfast
We grew desperate. Finally the
whole manner of Jethro changed
and he exclaimed excitedly:
IF each Of you will take solemn
oath before the God that made you
not to reveal what l tell you until
/ am dead, I will give you the
reason why | do not agree to ver-
dict of guilty"
After some consultation and
| zl.~... 81 tbo c1ocb which ehowed