The butcher ran to the judge and said, “It must be a Jew! A Jew must have murdered my son and taken his blood to make Sabbath cakes.” The judge summoned the rabbi to stand trial, and since there was no evidence, he declared, “We’ll settle this case the simple way. On one slip of paper, I’ll write the word guilty, and the other I’ll leave blank. If the rabbi draws the guilty paper, he shall burn at the stake. If he draws the blank paper, he and his people will go free.” The judge wrote guilty on both slips before placing them in a hat. But the rabbi was wise. When he drew one of the papers, he immediately popped it into his mouth and swallowed it. “How dare you!” screamed the judge. “Now how are we to tell which paper you drew?” “Just check the one left in the hat,” answered the rabbi. He withdrew the remaining paper and showed the judge that it said guilty. “Here!” the rabbi said. “Since this one says guilty, I must have swallowed the blank one.” And so the judge was forced by his own decree to free the rabbi.
