New-York tribune., 1896-06-03
THE PEOPLES CASE OK ENED.
TRIAL. OF JACOB KLEIN FOR ALLEGED
ARSON BEGUN.
LOUIS RoTHMAN, WHO HAS BEEN IN SING slNo
PRISON FOR SOME TINE. AND MAX GLCcK-
MAN. AWAITING TRIAL FOR ARSON
IN THE TONES AMONG THE
: prrN IN SING SIN0
WITNESSES


The principal witnesses on behalf OF the prose-
cution were examined yesterday In the county
Court before Judge Hurd and jury on the trial
NJ Iacoh Klein for arson in the first degree. II
was nearly noon when the jury-box was filled ana
Assistant District-Attorney Miles opened the case
for the people He said that the DEFENDANT was
indicted jointly with Adolph Hrschkopf. VINO IS
now in the Tombs on q charge OF mansaughter ia
connection with another arson case. Ihe charge
AGAINST Klein and Hirschkopf was that they set
fire to Klein's house. at No "a Johnson-ave". ON
June 30 1894. in order to get the insurance on
Klein's property there. Hirschkopf and Klein
had conspired together TO get the insurance
through an incendary fire. Hirschkopf had told
Klein that II he would get his property insured
for $500 they could ha fire in the place. the
details OF which would be managed by Hirsch-
kopf The defendant would get 500 and the rest
would go TO his confederate Klein had demurred
at first but had finally consented, and the nre
was set as agreed. 1t was not until some time
afterward that it discovered that the nre nao
been Of incendiary origin.
The first witness called after recess was Richard
| NJ Lee. Of No 1860 Bedford-ave, an insurance
| agent who testified that he had secured the pol
| lev for Klein. James Hodges. the cashier OF the
Hartford Insurance Company which issued tne
noI,cv testified that he had sent check for $500
were called to put out the fire told OF Its charac-
| fer and then the first important witness was
| called IN the person Of Louis Rothman. whose
nresent residence is Sing Sing Prison, where ne IS
| serving a term of fifteen years on his plea OF
! guilty 70 an indictment for arson. Rothman SAID
! that he knew HirschkCpf WELL and that ne saw
| Klein three times before the fire. Two interviews
were 1T Klein's house and the other was az
Hirschkoprs house. at No. 61 Mofett-st New
| York On the night OF the fire the witness nao
gone to Hrschkopfs house at the latters invita-
ton and had been told TO cross the Graho-st'
| ferry and walt on the Brooklyn side until ne was
met by men named Gluckman and Rosenbaum.
When ne said he was afraid. Hirschkopf had re-
piled to him: You're green and you have no
money You need not be afraid. Everybody. In
cluding the fire marshal. knows all about It,"
Rothman said that bottle had been given 70
him with the orders TO pour its contents ABOUT
the floor OF Kein's rooms When he got 10
Klen's house. according to his story ne sa"
| woman there but he didn't speak 10 her. he haa
poured the contents OF the bottle on the hoor anu
then gone away. woman who went 10 the mouse
with him had remained afterward and set the hre'
1t vas afterward developed that the womahs
name 1, Silbermeister, and that she Is now IN the
Auburn Prison for arson.
Cross-exan,ned by Mr. Elder. counsel for the
| defendant, -
Sing Sing since January %. 1893. and that no
would be glad to get Communication Oh seh'enes'
Max Gluckman was the second witness he
| eaid that on June 26 he will have been IN the
| Tonrbs for a year awaiting trial on a charge OK
arson Hirschkopf had brought nm from uei
| MANY and he was almost Immediately arrested
| and put in jail The witness SAID that ne naw
| Klein on the Friday night before the fire IhaS
| night he and Hirschkopt had gone to Klein mousse
| and got him up Hirschkopf had said that every
| Ai1alsl IN 81 A
| day He had asked where the muslin was: wnlch
| he had told the defendant TO prepare, ana Ken
| had showed him pile In closet He nad toic
| Klein TO go TO New-York in the morning as
usual, and when defendant had asked wnetner
the fire marshal had been seen, he hao repneo
that Everybody had been seen that morning:
Judge Hurd asked what the muslin was TO Do
used for and tn. witness replied that II was
there TO show that Klein had lost something and
also TO make the fire burn more fiercely. Gluck-
man said that Klein had set OF furniture IN
his place which he had seen two weeks pre-
yiously In the possession Of Hirschkopr.
The next night he was in Hirschkopfs house
in New-York when Rothman and Mrs. Silber-
mester had returned. Rothman naa said tnas
the fire had gone smoothly. Then Klein. who
was also there had wanted to go back 10 MS
house but he had been told TO walt while.
Simon Rosenbaum. who was responsible ror
most Of the information concerning the aneseo
conspiracy. the next witness he said tnat
he lives at No. 300 Suffok-st.. New-York. He
had seen Klein in Hirschkopfs house many
times and had been told OF the plot to burn
Klens house. Later he had told the oihciais o.
the conspiracy. and for that H!rschkopf had
thrown acid at him one night and burned him
on the face and hands Under cros-examina-
ton by Mr.. Elder, the witness al hrst denleo
that ne had ever been arrested before, Dut atter-
ward he remembered that about two years ago
he was charged with arson. and Mr. Miles was
his counsel. He was acquitted.
The trial will be continued this morning.