The Student Life of Germany Part 42

51. He who in the commencement of a kneip declares that he is unwell, is for the evening declared, but he cannot during that evening take back his declaration.

52. If a declarer appears before the Beer-convention as a complainant, he must bring two witnesses.

53. The declaration is removed:--

(1) Through fore or after drinking of any quant.i.ty, even should the declarer use the proviso, "without prejudice to my declaration."

(2) By making a counter declaration.

(3) By the declarer mixing himself in beer-suits.

54. They mix themselves in beer-suits, who--

(1) Demand or give the cerevis.

(2) Sit in a Beer-convention; witness, call a Beer-convention, or cause it to be called.

(3) Is an umpire, a second in a Beer-scandal, or drinks with him who is to be released from the bann.

(4) Who challenges in beer.

(5) Who engages himself with another _a faire_.

t.i.tULUS VI.

OF THE UMPIRES.

-- 55. A beer-honourable Beer-bursch only can be an umpire.

56. Every one must obey the call to be an umpire, unless he can advance some available excuse. If, without being able to do this, he declares, he must be mulct in a viertel.

57. If a Fox accepts the office of an umpire, he falls under the penalty of a viertel.

58. The umpire may stand with none of the parties in a beer-scandal; but should this be the fact, the case cannot stand over, but another umpire must be called.

59. When an umpire is called forth, he cannot be challenged of any one: the offender in this case is punishable with a viertel.

60. If any one holds the judgment of an umpire to be unjust, he is at liberty to summon him before a Beer-convention; but this must be done before the quant.i.ty which has been made equal by the umpire, is drunken.

61. The umpire can always be called before the Beer-convention, on account of his decisions, except when he p.r.o.nounces the penalty incurred in the act of releasing one from the bann, or upon him who drinks with him; in which case the condemned person cannot appeal to a General Beer-convention.

62. If the decision of the umpire is declared unjust by the Beer-convention, he goes into Beer-banishment; but if that be not the case his accuser is without further procedure condemned to Beer-banishment.

t.i.tULUS VII.

OF THE BEER-CONVENTIONS.

(_a_) OF THE SPECIAL.

-- 63. The Beer-convention is that competent Board which is called by a beer-honourable Beer-bursch, in order to decide upon a fact before it, of a nature to be punished by a beer-penalty, or on other beer-business. It consists of three Beer-honourable beer-burschen.

64. A Fox may not sit in a Beer-convention; if he dares to do that, he is to be be-thundered in a viertel. He falls under the same penalty if he calls a Beer-convention.

65. So soon as a Beer-convention is called, the functionaries and all parties concerned must neither _touche_, _foreswear_, nor fore nor after drink so long as the business lasts. As little may this be done by another person towards them. Whoever violates this rule is regarded as a disturber of the convention.

66. The Beer-convention being called, is conducted as follows. The beer-judge summons the accused; the accuser then lays the case before the court, which he confirms on his cerevis, which the convention demands from him, and makes his pet.i.tion. Hereupon he names his witness, who is questioned on the alleged fact, and his cerevis also taken upon it.

67. The accused is now required to bring forward his defence; whereupon the convention also demands his cerevis, and his witness is heard, also on his cerevis.

68. Accuser and accused, as well as every one of the judges, have the right to demand that the witnesses of both parties state the facts upon which they give their cerevis, fully.

69. When the two parties, with their witnesses, have been heard in this manner, the beer-judge demands whether either party has yet any thing further to advance. If this is not the case, the minutes are closed, and the judge immediately p.r.o.nounces his judgment.

70. The beer-judges give their judgments in the same order of succession in which they were called to be judges by the accuser. The last-voting judge must, on a penalty of a viertel, within five minutes after the closing of the minutes, write on the beer-table the name of the be-thundered, or appellant.

71. The agreeing judgments of two beer-judges const.i.tute a sentence, with the exception of the cases in ---- 81 and 84.

72. No beer-judge is allowed to state publicly the grounds of his judgment, when he gives that judgment.

73. No beer-judge may give his vote before the examination is concluded, and the minutes closed. If he fails in this respect, either of the parties can expel him from the Beer-convent. In this case, the accuser has to call another judge. The same is the case when a beer-judge closes the minutes before the examination is complete. If the case is disputable, the party who has the right to expel, may call an umpire, who shall decide.

74. If the Beer-convention has cited the accused, and he omits to appear and make his defence, he is, on that account, held to be convicted.

75. No one can refuse to be a beer-judge because he would act as witness to the accused; but the accused can object to a judge, in case he takes the office, being received as his witness, but this, at the latest, must be done before the examination of the witness of the accuser had been heard, upon which the accuser must choose another judge.

76. The accuser must put in his pet.i.tion before his witness is heard. A pet.i.tion once put in, cannot be changed. If the accuser puts in a false one, or none at all, the case will be decided in favour of the accused.

77. Every accusation must be confirmed by the witness or the beer-tablet. If this is not the case, the accusation is nullified, and the accuser is nonsuited.

78. If the a.s.sertions of both parties are positive, the judge must decide in favour of the accused.

79. An a.s.sertion is negatived when it totally contradicts the fact of the opponent without supplying another fact, which supersedes the first fact.

80. Every beer-honourable student, be he Fox or Beer-bursch, can appear as witness before a Beer-convention.

81. A witness becomes amenable to punishment by giving false evidence on his cerevis. Whether he has given a false cerevis remains for the Beer-convent to decide, before which he has appeared as witness, which, without further proceeding, can immediately be-thunder him as beer-banned, and mulct in a viertel; but this requires that all the Beer-judges shall be unanimous.

82. Each party may only call three witnesses in succession. If none of these speak out satisfactorily, it is to be held that he has no witness. For the rest, neither party can present more than one sufficient witness in support of its a.s.sertion.

83. Such witnesses as were not present at the fact on which the Beer-convention has to decide, are held as false witnesses.

84. Intruding witnesses; that is, such as without being called by name as witnesses by the parties, offer themselves as witnesses, shall not be accepted, and are to be punished with the beer-bann. The judges must, however, be unanimous on this head.

85. A beer-judge having once given his vote cannot recall it.

86. No beer-judge can, during the proceedings, speak to any of the parties concerned, out of the regular course of inquiry. He who does this is punishable with a viertel.