[Spanish historian and physician who flourished during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. He was compelled to flee to Turkey, where he wrote his Shebet Yehudah (Rod of Judah), which gives an account of the Jewish persecutions in various countries. This book is valuable for Jewish folk-lore, though not always trustworthy as a historical source.]

A Jew Is Accused of Murdering a Christian, But His Innocence Is Proved^[253]

In the time of the righteous king Alfonso the Elder, some men came before the judges of the country, and related that they had seen a Christian enter the house of a Jew on the eve of Passover, and subsequently heard him exclaim, saying: ‘Save me, O Christians!’ The judges then sent some men, who went to search in the house of the Jew; but they did not find anything. Whereupon the judges said: ‘A similar accusation was made last year, but the falsehood thereof became apparent. Now, ye accusers, why do ye walk after vanity, and why do ye harass these poor people, although there is no violence in their hands?’ The people arose with an uproarious sound, and said: ‘Shall not the judge of all the land do right? We shall go to the king, for he will bring our judgment to light.’

When they came before the king, and related the whole affair to him, the king said: ‘Bring that Jew before me.’ The Jew was immediately brought before him, and when questioned by the king, he replied: ‘Far be it from me! for no Christian entered my house for some time.’ The king then said to the accusers: ‘Ye deserve death. When ye heard the Christian exclaim, saying: “Save me!”, and ye recognized his voice, why did ye not break the doors of the Jew’s house, and enter there to save the oppressed from the hand of the oppressor?’ They replied that they were afraid of the judges, lest they should fine them for breaking another man’s door. Whereupon the Jew remarked: ‘But how is it that ten days ago, when a slave ran away, and entered my house, where he locked himself up, ye broke my doors, which have not been repaired yet?’ So they withdrew in silence, without answering a word. Whereupon the king said to the lords: ‘Have you seen the Jew the Christian-killer? He is very old and decrepit, has not the strength to kill a fly. It is all on account of the wickedness of the hearts of these men who deserve to be punished.’ He then turned his face to them, and said: ‘Ye are falsifiers and liars. Take heed unto yourselves that ye come not again with such a thing before me.’

On the second day they assembled, and came again to the king, saying that there were many witnesses and strong evidence. Whereupon the king said: ‘Since it is so, it is necessary to make an investigation.’ He commanded that the king’s scribe should come. The latter came, and wrote down the name of the Jew and the sign of his house. He also inquired of that Christian’s acquaintances, who claimed to have known him, what his name was. They said it was Pedro Guzman. He asked about his wife, and they said that she was Beatrice the attendant of the bishop and that she lived in such and such a street. The king then asked: ‘What is the description of the Christian?’, and they replied: ‘A young man of short stature, ruddy, with parted beard, and blind of one eye.’ The king sent for the woman, and asked her concerning her husband. She said: ‘He went to the house of a Jew to collect money which the Jew owed him, but has not yet returned to my house.’ After that the king asked for the testimony of the young men, and they said: ‘That Christian, whose descriptions were such and such, was our acquaintance. We met him at the door of the Jew, and he told us that he was waiting for the Jew on account of a debt which the Jew owed him. While we were still talking, the Jew came, and the Christian entered the house with him. A little while later we heard the Christian’s voice, crying: “Save me.” Whereupon we entered the Jew’s house through the window, and searched all over, but did not find the Christian. We, however, found a large quantity of blood upon the ground.’ The king then said: ‘According to this evidence he deserves to be tortured.’ So they beat the Jew, until he confessed that he had killed the Christian and thrown him into the river at night. Whereupon he was condemned to be burned.

During the reading of the sentence the archbishop came before the king. Having listened to the reading of the sentence, the bishop asked: ‘Is this Pedro de Guzman the husband of Beatrice, or another man?’ They replied: ‘The husband of Beatrice.’ The bishop then said: ‘I observe astonishing things here. The sentence says that the Jew killed him on the first of January, but I met him alive last night in a village near the city; he will return to-day or to-morrow.’ Whereupon the king said: ‘In this case, either the Jew was mad, or has just lost his senses, for he has confessed to a crime which he did not commit.’ But the bishop said: ‘No trust, nor reliance is to be placed in torture or in the acts of the lords.’ The Jew said: ‘Our lord the king! I am not mad, nor have I ever been mad; but they made me lose my senses through torture; for mercy has perished from the Christians, and they executed on me such judgments as are not executed on those who rebel against the king’s crown. Seeing that after inflicting many kinds of torture, they kept on devising new ones, I preferred one death to several deaths.’

The king then sent two of his servants to bring the Christian, and he also sent a Jew with them, in order that they should not bribe him and hide him. When the Christian came before the king, the king stood up on his feet, and said: ‘Praised be He who sheds light upon obscure things! Praised be He to whom belongeth justice and judgment! Why did He charge fools like us to sit upon the throne of justice, while we are like the beasts of the field that know not at what they stumble? Moreover, I heard that in ancient times it had been the custom of the Greeks to weep when an infant was born, and to rejoice and laugh when an old man died. Their reason was because it is fitting to weep for the new-born babe, since he is come to the valley of weeping; but when he dies, it is fitting to rejoice, since he has gone to a place of rejoicing and rest. Now the Jews ought to weep when they are born and when they die, as well as during the days that intervene; for it is not enough that they suffer evils inherent in exile, but their enemies seek occasions against them to overthrow them. I grieve very much for them, not because they are Jews, but because they are poor and lowly. We have no other kingdom, but that which the King of the universe gave us; and He said by His prophet: “But on this man will I look, even on him that is poor and of a contrite spirit.”^[254] Now thou, O bishop, deservest my favor, for thou hast kept me back from shedding innocent blood. The Lord sent thee, in order that perverted justice should not go forth from our hand.’

Whereupon the bishop said: ‘There is yet another favor which the King, the Lord of the universe, has shown thee. For thou hast seen with thine own eyes that no trust nor reliance is to be placed in that which a man says while being beaten or tortured; for this poor Jew said that he had killed that Christian who is here standing alive before our lord. Praised be He who gives light to upright and righteous rulers like thee. May He make His face shine upon thee for ever. Amen.’