NUM31 Another Talmudic passage discusses the topic of gossip and innuendo and how we should react to it. The first part of the passage says, "where there is smoke there must be fire"-i.e., that every accusation has some truth to it, be it only the intent to commit the sin the person is accused of. The next part of the passage shows that Moses himself was accused of adultery, and then explains that Moses had an enemies (Mo'ed Katan 18b). Thus, anytime a person has enemies in the community, accusations (without specific proof) can be disregarded as the attempt of enemies trying to destroy a person. Finally, it says that the usual cycle for rumors, and accusations last a day and a half. If the same rumors persist long after that and the person has no known enemies, they can be taken seriously. One Talmudic commentary states this specifically: when a rumor persists in the community regarding sins of a sexual nature, and when the sins continue for a long period, it is permitted to flog this person as punishment, provided he has no enemies (Yam Shel Shlomo on Yevamot 10:20). Regarding the husband who suspects his wife of adultery in the Torah (the topic of Sotah), one commentary explains why the husband is not considered a sinner, even if it turns out that the wife was not an adulteress. He explains that after the husband warned his wife not to be seen with the other man, she simply disregarded the warning, and her suspicious behavior alone made her worthy of the accusation by the husband (Seforno commentary on this verse). Thus, all the circumstances surrounding an accusation must be taken in account before acting or not acting upon it. Sefer Yerai'im states that while we may not believe Lashon Harah (evil or slanderous speech) as truth, a person may nevertheless treat the person spoken about with suspicion. (Sefer Yerai'im 192). And if other factors substantiate the rumor, then one may indeed act upon the "slanderous speech." This is the law according to one authority (Sefer Mitzvot HaGadol, Lo Ta'ase 10).