The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-12-03
THE ACCUSED JEWOF POlNA
THE HOST RECENT CHARGE or RI1-
UAL MURDER hGAiNST THE JEHx

Latest of n Long Lire beginning With VIII
liam of Norwich $50 Years AEo-Tho Acc
eusntion Dlsprovcd In Every Cns- and
Denounced by Popcs md Christian Doc
tors The story of This Latest Case.
The belief that the Jews use the blood OF
Christian children In the making OF their Easter
cakes stands upon the plane with the belief In
the power OF witches II simply weighed In
the balance the amount OF evidence. or rather
so-called evidence. that this was and IL GUS
tom OF the Jews IL simply overwhelming. For
the last 700 years tho charge has been made
and remade. aud complete lists NJ these
charges ore to be found in many OF the Euro
pean Anti-somltlc publications. In one OF
thom the number reaches sixty. The Osser-
cdtore Romano states one hundred and Rfty-
four cases. while a pamphlet published In
Leipzig In 1892 states as many as two hundred
md nifty But those who make these
charges md count UP these cases forget
always to look and SEQ who wero they who gave
tho evidence. what kind Of evidence II was. and
what was the final verdict in the cnscs. For.
had they done 80. they would have found ut
each time that tho dcnunciators we're either
rabld enemies Of the Jews. or npo-;atcs who
wished. by making these frightful charges, to
curry favor with their now friends and inf ct
blow upon their former co-rellgionis's In not
one OF the many cases which IRE stated Ia tho
evidence nbc to bear up against close scru-
tiny. and even where the murder may be proven
TO have been committed 10y Jew. IL has been
absolutely int ossiblc to connect such murder
with any Religious ceremony or with any relig-
ious idea TO be found among tho Jews rs q
whole. or In any isolated community or sect.
The subject ia brought so painfully he
fore our minds to-day by the awful state In
which tho Jews In the Aus rian Empire have
bpen plnCnl bv n n thia charge In
this very year Of grace. 1899. II seems that
the century ia not 10 die without placing It's
mark again upon the unhappy jews. and thus
| undoinG the work which so many gears Of hard
effort and Of noble cndcavor have wrought. In
the littlo town OF Polna. In Bohemia on We'd
nesday. the 10Th OF March. the body ~ Chris
tian girl ~ the name OF agnes Hruza was
found murdered and mutat"d in wood. Il
WAS tho last day the Jewish Passover Festival.
, AMI the doctors gave IL a. their opinion that
the body had heep murdered at least four days
previously ARood.'or-nothincJ Jew by the name
Of Leopold Huelsner. n shoemaker by trade. was
arrested on suspicion OF being the murderer
| The fact that the supposed murderer was n
jew was sufficient to cause CONSERVATION
among all Jews residing In tho dual Empire.
! for tho ant-Semltic campaign. which has been
| raging there with such rirulencs for the last
| four or Ave years WINS cause enough for the
jews TO fear that this fact would be used
! TO its fullest extent by their nemics.
| Their fear was well grounded vet they never
thought that the result this arrest would have
such q tragic importance for them and all their
fellow Jews. No action. however. was taken by
! them. notwithstanding tho repeated hints In
the Anti-Semtic papers, and Notwithstanding
| the yelled and open threats which ware male.
/ They had no'hing TO 10 with the case "a such.
! and relied upon the court. finding who realy
! was the guilty person, and seeing that tina.
7 person he punished
| The trial OF Huslsner took place during Sop
tcmhcr in a small town named Kuttenbrrg. and
! though only a few weeks after n j1urneyman
! furrsr named Landi "a Christian hal con-
| fesscd that II was he who hal com IN itted he
crime. Huelsner was condemned to death US
! an accessory to the deed. There seems little
| doubt that this conviction was obtained by tho
| hints thrown out In the speech NJ DR. BeNa.
| IN anti-Semitlc Deputy and agitator. who
| represented tho murdered girls mother He
! did not, OF course. dare to make the charge OF
| a ritual murder orcnly and above board. for
that would have allowed tho matter TO come up
! and the charge to be answered 10 the Court
! itself, but II was sufficiently significant that
| he used tho following worls In finish
In his speech for the prosecution; THANK
| God that the trial has brought to
| light the motive for the murder. It
| was Gods will that for this purpose
| the body should have been discovered imme-
dia,cly. That there are r"ople Of an other race.
| pcople who behave Ike animals who murder q
virtuous Christian girl in order to obtain her
/ blood. hos been clearly proven. To what pur-
! pose this sect should turn this blood no proof
has been adiuced. It Ia the duty Of society.
| particularly thu lcnders. to reveal this secret.
10 that society among whom this race live
! ahOuit tnka pn ~ This nj
charge. only half-voilcd as Il was. was allowed
TO pass by the President Of the Court without
one word OF remembrance AMI was received by
the audience present at the trial with loud and
continued cheers.
The result OF this charge has. OF course.
been great victory for nti:scmites. 1t
success n a, similar case in TisSa Esq.
lar in 1889, when their charge Of ritual murder
Sn eo sS to- the
semites in Austria. for IN It's wake there have
followed rS rohsSTy Destruction s. md all other
Moravia. IN "verytown and village where rvs
reside. windows have been broken. shops have
town Of 1000 inhattants, of whom loo DOR are
Jews Ind 10 cnve the place, Fully f'ty towns
carefully prepared beiorShanI. the Signal
d Is given When thcy are TO commence.
and tho peasants are told that the
properly and the lives OF tho Jews are
practically at their disposal. II cannot he said
that he government OPENLY connives At these
disorders. but lts lnck ~ initiative and ITS want
Of preparation. plainly show how fnr It itself
lies In fear OF the nnti.Senitic leaders. The
/ hatred caused hv the hood-accusatiOn-i lie 40
indnstrously 1issem mated by anti-s,mltic m.
pcra and nntl-S"mitic rreachc's In the length
and breath Of the Austrian Empro. has already
done its work and there Is no telling when
that work will stop.
Curiously enough. tho first case OF this blood
accusation occurred in England, The myth
Sros. n conncction with a boy. William Of
ns being cruc fed by n number of Jews. who
make an incision IN his body and receive the
blood which flows from II In n bowl. The
charge aGnnst the jews OF Norwich was made
by an apostate, who, after his conversion. re-
ceivcd the name OF Theohad He asserted
Tint the death OF this William had hcen deter
mined uron by n council OF Jews at Narhonrp
France, William was canonizrd. as was little ST.
Hugh. who WINS said to hav. been muir erred for
the sans purpose by tho Jews OF Lincoln, ol
, whom Chnuccr sings at the end OF his "pror-
ess' Tale" Since that time. whenever a
Christian boy or girl was missing the Jews
were hxed uron IA the murdorers and tho
, ritual charge was brought forward Another