The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1867-08-13 00:00:00

WEYMOUTH COUNTY COURT.

A sitting of this court was held on Thursday, before
E. Everett, Esq. The number of plaints entered were,
re-isfuee' 21; adjournment*, 1; original plaints, 100;
judginent summons, 5.
I.sngdon o. Millen—Claim for 23 is., balance due for
goods supplied.—Mr. Howard appeared for the de-
fendant. a dealer in green grocery, at Weymouth.
Plaintiff said the goods supplied were apples and
potatoes, and on November 29th they struck a balance,
and there WWI Li Is. due to him.—By Mr. Howard :
Had not received EIS since November. Defendant had
not offered 351.—The defense net up was that since
November there had been further dealings with the
plaintiff up to the 11th January. The defendant baying
paid various sums on serennt, and received farther goods
from plaintiff. the balance wan reduced to 355. This
was altogether denied by the plaintiff (who live. some
dietwee beyond Yeovil), and with the consent of the
r owg ',Artieo went to the railway station, and
there found that on the 9th January eight hampers had
b.e.n conairwort to Weymouth in platutifFs own name,
evidently for the defendant. It appeared that neither
party- could keep an account of their dealings with each
ether, which hi, Honour re...eked open. The offer of
Mr. Howard to give a verdict for 33e. was ultimately
accepted by tha plaintiff, in giving which his Honour
said plaintiff had adopted the wisest course.
The Portland publicans h.ve, without much doubt,
borne in mind the remark. cf his Honour at • Court
come month. ago, that a Bill was before the House,
which,if mule la w, would bar the recovery°, debts for beer
&corm kc. At the Court to-day there were several
sunimonaes for small amounts. In one Gals of Flew
(Victory Inn) r. Samuel Williams, it came out in
evidence that the defendant had denied such to be his
name. In reply to his Honour he said he could not
swear to hie other name—" It arm a hard thing to
swear to one's owe mother !"
. .

Letty r. Hovenll.—Thia, it will be remembered, was
an action brought by the plaintiff, as the neat of kin of
Joseph Ecoott. late a member of Court Plume of
Feathers, No. 3152, Weymouth United District of the
Ancient Order of Forester,, who wes a seaman on board
the barque Flllvio Uloin, suppoeed to have found, red on
her honiewerd voyage from Quebec, which place she left
on the sth September, 1865, against the defendant. as
secretary of the Court, to recover the sum of £l2,
alleged to be due on the death of &eon. At the Juice
Court, after the ease bad been fully gone into (Mr.
Howard being for the defendant) his Honour consented
that the matter should stand adjo rned until tn-day,
In order that the arbitration (mom eof the Court
might arrive eta decision in the matter. Mr Howard
now stated that that committee hut gone into the case,
and after careful consideration had decided that the
plaintiff was not entitled to the money. His Honour
said that having been referred to an arbitration committee
according to the rules of the Court, he should dismiss
the mot .

ilopkins.—The plaintiff is a market-gardener
and the defendant, Mr. John Culliford Hopkins, Is owner
of a dont-quill at Upwey, both parties living in that
plow. The action wu brought to recover £4 6s. 34.,
for "lots, damage, and injury sustained by the plaintiff
to his crop., in ground at Lipsey, by reason de-
fendant having on the 2nd January last, unjustifiably
turned and diverted the water into and upon, and caused
the same to overflow the garden and grounds of the
plaintiff."—Mr. H. C. Weston, of Dorchester, appeared
for the olUntiff, and Mr. R. N. Howard for the de-
Ilend"ut —His Honour asked if there was any preliminary
objection to be made. Mr. Howard raised the question
of right as costing the jurisdiction of the Court. The
right to raise the hatch bad been exercised from 40 to
60 years, and on the day earned the defendant had
exercised this right.—Mr. Weeton did net dispute the
defendant's right to raise the hatch. The complaint
was that when the hatch was raised instead of putting
&bay as heretofore to turn the water into the meadow a
bay had been no placed so an to direct the water into
the plaintiff's garden. On previous occasions a bey had
been placed to proteet the garden.—Hr. Howard ra.
!leered to the case of Lilley • Harvey, decided by Judge
Wightman, bearing on the queetion.—His Honour
referred to the 9th and 10th Vie., c. 95, gee. 56, and the
decision of Lord Cranworth thereon. This was not •
qoaation of title but of right, and when Lcod Cranworth
was .itting as judge in the Court of Exchequer, he
hall that the County Court could try a que.tion of
right but not of title. In this case the defendant's
sight was not dieputed.—At this stage of the case Uses
suggested that the earth.c should settle the matter by
reference, but after some little mortaring it was decided
to pvocrel, Mr. Howard contending that besides the
right of his client to raise the hatch he 000ld prove
there wan no damage.--Mr. Weston. after ensuing the
caw, called the plaintiff, Thomas Wills, who deposed
that he lived at Upwey. The garden in which the
damage was committed was about 102 yards above the
mill. The distance between his garden wall and the
mill stream was three or four yards at the nearest point.
There was • bank between the mill stream and his wall.
There was a ketch near the corner of the garden, and
time to this there was a water carrier. He was in de-
fondant's employ seven or eight years. He had watered
defendant's meadow. The hatch was drawn for the
purpose, nod then a bay was put ammo to prevent the
water going down the channel running by the other side
his garden. On the 2nd January he .aw water over
hi" garden. There was snow on the ground. The hatch
referred to was then up, and he put it down to keep the
water from his garden. There was no bay in either
gutter. The bay was on the other side, the effect of
whhis Iran the water was driven into his garden. lie
Shen went to defendant's home) and was informed the
water was lowered while same repair. were being
executed in defendant's house. Samuel F.nonery,
came and pulled the hatch up again. He had in
August planted some strawberry hefts. 50 of the plants
cost Is. each.. Hie Honour: That ie rather a high
pride ! Examination continued : Other beds hesides the
new one were under water. A sharp frost afterwards
set in, and some of the bode were destroyed, sad others
injured. The bushel. of Potatoes were also spoilt
aalo„ 164 &I, and the la's ef his .ale out strawberries
the following sewn Wal lON, and this he attribeted
to the damage sustained. In. croesuxemination
it appeared that the wall bounding Plaintiff's garden
was built of loose stone; the water would rep ihraugh iL
There was nothingbetween the w.terearete?andblswalL
His Honour: Then this might moor 20 times a year.
Cross-examination continued: On the mill stream side
there is a bank, but on the water 00121110 side there is no
protection. 14 had rented the garden for four years of
Mr. Joeeph Keeping. As to the strawberry Omits he
purchased them of • Mr. Withey, who WOO into lih
garden and told him he had a good sort of strawberry
for sale, and he purchseed 50 roots at Is. a root. He
did not know who Mr. Withey was or where be came
from, he did not leave his address, only that he lived 18
niiles "the other Ude of London." He paid for them
beforehand. lie did not know the name of the strawberry,
nor did the person he had to value the damage, He bad
not told any one that this affair ehonld 0010 Mr.
Hopkins LW. When the Inter overflowed the garden
It did not wash all the snow away; in some it we.
underneeih. The snow we. away only fi'w7o.l Mute

feet from the wail, lie recollected when the flood
came down the garden was " • swamped." He
remembered five years ago the garden was a swamp
when he took it. Re-examined : When the hatch is in
no water can come down the coarse, and when the hatch
is up, the bay would prevent the water running into it.
No water ought to run down the therm His Honour:
But you have not shown this, Mr. Weston. Fiveyearsago
by his owe statement he took a swamp. Mr. Weston
said the defendant had been in the habit for • long Hine
of putting the bay across the water thane. Mr. Howard:
The fact of • bay been plated there when there was no
garden, showed that it must have been to wider the
meadow, and not to protect the garden. Mr. Weston,
In reply to his honour, maid ha could not carry the case
further than to show that it had bleu customary forth.
defendant to place • bay to protect the garden. His
Honour t Bet this you have only shown for five years. If
the hatch was drawn I, water defendant'. meadow, the
water course was there for taking off • portion of the
I water, othervrise the meadow might be flooded. You
must show that defendant has no right to draw the
hatch. Mr. Weston said ho could not do that. His
fiarincir4 witness would show that on the 2nd January •
y was put to prevent the water going into defendant's
meadow. His Honour: Then if they drew the hatch
and did not want to water the meadow, they placed •
bay to divert it into the watercourse. hr. Weston was
In hope. Kr. Hopkins would have been plated in the
witness box. when Le should have been enabled to have
elicited the eustom as to drawing the hatch. His
Bather remarked that no doubt Mr. Weston would
ateitln live minutes what be wanted, bat he mast not
consider Mr. Hopkins as his witness. Mr. Hopkins
(without being sworn), in reply to Mr. Welliol3, said be
had drawn the batch scores of times without putting up
• bay, and without inking or being interfered with by
any one. Mr. Weston said he could not carry the
case any further. His Honour haring made some brief
remarks on the subject, Mr. Weston congested to •
consult, which was entered accordingly.

BOROUGH PETTY SESSIONS.

TOIIEDAY. —Before the Mayor (J. 'Mord &0., and
J. Ayling. Sara
Imo. Mania (67) was summonel for infringing the
Bye lAwn by plying as a ooal center within the
borongla P.O McMahon had cautioned defendant
'antral
_times. . . _

Charles Pitman war cummonad for & similar offense
and in both cases the Benohinflieted a line of si. each,
intimating.that thin° parties who took out nannies
moat be protected.
Th. mil °Ohs? matters batom Itho Meal were the
treader of licences and SU hearing of summonses for
rater unpaid and in arrest.
WYK E

Mtl.lolooll ACC—On Friday night a most dutardly
act was perpetrated by persons at present unknown.
In the dead of the night three villains cut and injured
a ample of nines OD the beach. In one the bag had a
large cut in the shape of tow sides of a triangle, and the
other urine was ant and jagged all over, the ropes being
cut in small pieces. Some " ohape" were seen on the
beach at two o'clook in the morning, and in the event
of a reward being offered it is probable they might be
brought to justice. In injurying and robbing the
widow and the fatherless in this malicious manner it is
to be hoped that the guilty parties will be sought after
with diligence, and when found, meet with their due
reward.