The Wilmingtonian, And Delaware Advertiser

In the Mayor's Court, yesterday, on the trial of Joseph Mendez charged with having stolen 10,000 Cigars and forty silver half dollars, the property of J. Buckner, a piece of evidence, rather singular, and not unworthy of note, was given on the part of the prosecution. Joseph Schaeffer, a journeyman cigar maker, of Mr. Buckner's being under examination, as to the identity of some cigars, produced in court with those stolen from Mr. Buckner, picked a cigar from a very large parcel, which were emptied out of a barrel, and said—

"This is one of my making. This is the last cigar I finished the Saturday night before the store was robbed."

"How do you identify that cigar, so as to warrant you, in swearing, with so much certainty, that it is the last cigar you finished at Mr. Buckner's the Saturday night before the robbery."

"I had just finished smoking a cigar, and was about to light this one, when I observed a hole in it hereabouts, [pointing to nearly the middle of the cigar] and was about to throw it away when I picked up a piece of a Cuba wrapper, and with it covered the hole, and worked it up to the top. This I am sure is the very cigar."

"Have you taken off that Cuba wrapper since you put it on?"

"No, Sir, I have only just now found it, since I threw it out of my hand when it was finished."

Will you take the trouble to unwrap the Cuba wrapper, from that cigar, and shew the hole to cover which you say, you put that wrapper on.

The witness now moistened the cigar, gently unfolded the wrapper, and said—"there, there is the hole."

The cigar was examined by the Counsel, the court and Jury, all of whom saw the hole nearly where the witness had pointed it out, before he took the wrapper off. Trifling as this circumstance may seem, it served to identify the whole lot of Cigars which had been stolen.—Phila. Press.