Los Angeles herald., 1908-01-04
GERMAN
EDITOR IS
CONVICTED
HARDEN SENTENCED TO JAIL;
Won MOLTKE CLEARED
CHARGES OF IMMORTALITY NOT
PROVED BY ACCUSED
President of Court Declares Noblemen
Have Been indicated and That
No Stigma Attaches to
Either

BY Associated Press.
BERLIN, Jan. 3.--The famous Harden
Won Moltke trial came to an end TINS
evening when the accused editor OIL Dle
Zukunft was sentenced to four months
Imprisonment and to pay the entire costs
of both the present and the former trlal
When the court reassembled at quar-
ter before this evening the scene was
an impressive one The five judges con-
stttuting the penal bench took their seats
with the president of the court IN the
center The only lawyers present were
the attorneys for the state and the at
torneys for the prosecution and the de-
fense Macmillan Harden and Count Won
Moltke sat on opposite sides OF the court
room, which was crowded to Its FULLEST
capacity.
The president of the court at once
delivered his judgment. Deep silence
prevailed and he spoke in a sonorous
voice straight at the accused man.
The president said that in spite of the
prisoners assertion that the insinuatlons
contained in the articles which appeared
In Die Zukunft related merely to the
scientific and artistic doings of Count
Won Moltke and Prince Philip Zu Eulen-
berg, and that they had nothing what
ever to do with immoral or unnatural
practices it was evident that If this was
the meaning it would be intended TO con-
Vey the articles were senselesS ana pur-
poseless.
Accused by Harden
There was no doubt, the president or
the court declared, that Harden had
meant to imply that Count Kuno Won
Moltke was possessed of unnatural in
clinations while his reference to the IN
tercourse between Count Won Motlke and
Prince Zu Gutenberg certainly left the
impression that Illicit relations existed.
The intention of the prisoner was to de-
grade Count Won Moltke and Prince Zu
Gutenberg in the eyes of the public.
The proceedings had proved that all the
charges made by Harden were absolutely
without foundation. Both the count and
the prince were men of artistic tastes,
whose friendship dating from their
youth, had grown stronger with the pass
ing of the years.
Harden had founded his charges
primarily on statements which he as
serted had been made by the late Prince
Won Bismarck who. If he really did say
these things, had done so in moment
of anger against certain men. Then
Harden had received communications
from Mrs Won Elbe, the divorced wife of
Count Won Motke, a hysterical woman,
who was embittered against the man to
whom she had been unhappily married,
while the assertions made by DR.. Schwen-
niger. VINO was at one lliHe plly "
Prince Won Bismarck, were undoubtedly
biased.
Harden, the president went on, had
never attempted to obtain proofs against
men occupying such prominent positions.
Had these proofs been in existence they
could have easily been had. No serious
minded writer should dare, for political
object, to attempt to injure the honor OF
others. All the charges had been ut
terly disproved during the trial, and
Harden could have disproved his charges
himself before publishing his articles.
Nothing Proved, Says Court
Even the notorious incident when Won
Moltke was seen kissing a handkerchief
which belonged to Zu Gutenberg had been
shown to be perfectly harmless and the
allegation that Won Moltke used cos
metics had been effectually disposed of.
Count Won Moltke," said the president
of the court in conclusion, 'leaves this
court with his name and his honor UNI
furnished, and nothing whatever has
been proved against Prince Philip Zu
Gutenberg.
mo fine would sufficiently punish Htr-
den for his offense, and 1 must therefore
sentence him to Imprisonment. But in
consideration of the health of the ac-
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