Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1872-04-04


about fortnight before that time as |
was going down st. Paul street he fol
lowed along after me and said in a play
ful banter. that he wanted to keep sight
of me. for he had an interest in watch
ing the doctors.
Gross-eramined. 4 felt his pulse and
examined him. He seemed to be labor
ing under great deal of excitement at
the time.
Henry BaUard.-Mr. Taft handed me
SS5 and went to Rutland, and made a
tender of the money to Reyes 81 Cush-
man and demanded Mr.. Green's life
policy. 1t was in August, 1869, and be-
fore this suit was commenced. They
refused to accept the money or return
the policy. ! had conversation with
Castle the 18th day of August, 1869. Mr..
Castle told me that when he took up
the policy and paid her the money, Mrs.
Green told him, that as she understood
1t the policy was void, and that he told
her it was so, and she gave it up.
Cross examined. i think II was MIR.
Cushman that talked with. told him
that the policy was obtained by mis-
representation, and | offered the money
and demanded the policy. He said he
was informed by the local agent in Bur
lington that it was obtained fairly. lie
refused to surrender the policy or take
the money, but nothing was said, as l
remember, about his want of authority
to restore the policy.
II. s. Taft.-Have had a correspond
ence with the officers of the Hahnemann
Life Insurance Company. | wrote the
general agents at Rutland for blank
proofs of death and received reply (the
letter of reply of Keyes & Cushman read
saying they had no authority in the mat
ter, and referring to the home OffiCe.)
then wrote to the Company at Cleave-
land, Ohio, and received in reply letter
from II. NJ Chapln, President of the
Company, under date of August l9,
1869. (Letter read to the jury, saying
that having no insurance on the life OF
Jacob Green, we decline to send the
blanks.) | afterwards procured some
blanks Of another company and made
the formal proofs and forwarded them
70 the Company. Afterwards sometime
in the winter of 1S69-70 / saw the Presi-
dent Of the Hahnemann Life Insurance
Company at my office, for about an
hour Had talk with him about this
loss. He said they should contest the
claim, but that if we recovered they
should pay. Mrs. Green handed me the
money @S5 she claimed to have received
of Mr. Castle, and have kept it ever
siuCo, excepting that | handed it to Mr..
Ballard to tender back to general agents
tie handed 1t back to me on his return
from Rutland. This is the same money.
Green was not embarrassed pecuniarily
at the time Of his death | was his ad-
ministratOr. He was owing some debts
hut had property enough to pay. Jacob
Green's father died i'll 1851. During a
part of the time he was quite insane.
Cr0as-Examtned.-T distance from
Green's shop TO the place where he was
drowned about half mile
Plaintiff rests.
The first witness introduced in behalf
IF the defence was
q. II. Le,cis-I reside in Burlington.
Knew Jacob Green by sight On the
morning he was drowned | was at work
Tor the Central Railroad Co. | wa,
town Mt the dock on the north side, anC
NV hat and coat lying there. | thought
thrre was something wrong about it,
Looked at coat and saw there was sweat
.oi the inside of the sleeve under the arm
}n.ut into freight office and spoke tc
.,ln,- Of the men there about it. Went
.,4, AGAIN, took a long pole, drove mai
g., one end and fishpd for the body
D!dn'tgc hold of it. Peter Lander took
rur pole and ti5hcd for him, and crap
p!rd hold of him and drew him up.
-tail there till the coroner came
and then left. II was before o'clock
There was some lumber piled up on the
dock. No person was in sight when
list saw the hat and coat. No steam
hoat due at that time of day. One was
dl" about half-paSt ten. The trains LETT
for Rutland about 8 O'clock. The body
when drawn up had no hat or coat ON.
lid not recognize the body when drawn
mp.
The defendants counsel here introduc.
81 a plan showing the place where the
Ooly was found, and the relative posi-
lions Of the steamboat dock, the build
ing., the piles of lumber, and other sur
rounding objects, and explained the same
10 the court and jury as illustrating the
+pclusion Of the place selected by the de-
ceased to consunmate the act of self
destruction.
H. H. Prize i was present when the
body Of Green was hauled up. Some
one said there was a hat and coat lying
upon the dock | went out and found
them lying at the south corner of the old
depot. | brought them in and hung
them up think they could have been
spen from east corner of the old depot.
There were no people at the dock at that
hour. They grappled for him. l re-
rognized him as he was drawn up to
surface Of water He had no hat or
coat on. His body was taken from the
west end of the pier, about 10 feet north
Don't know what was found on the
body, nor what became of the body.
Cross examined. No, a person could
not have gone off the dock by mistake,
without being very careless.
At this point the court took a recess
until tomorrow morning at 10 o'clock.
March 90, 1872. AT 10 O'Clock a. IN.
the court was opened, the jury called,
and the evidence for the defense re-
sumed.
Al6ert Pierce. Was acquainted with
Jacob Green. My store was nearly OPP
pOsite his shop. ! was accustomed tC
acc him from three to twenty-five times
a day. Saw him the morning he drowned
himself, He came into my store to buy
something and took it and paid for it and
went away. observed nothing unusual
in his manner. He did his business per
fectly rational and did his business as
usual In about an hour | heard of his
death.
EdOGrd Walton. Knew Jacob Green.
mad known him 10 years. l kept a har-
ness shop next building to his. On Mon
day, the day before his death, he came
to my shop with harness to get it re-
paired It was between l and p. m.
lie wanted ! should be sure to have it
ready by night as he wanted to send his
boy 10 Underhill early the next morning.
He came about dark and got the harness.
[ observed nothing unusual in his appear
ance on either occasion when he was
there. was in habit of seeing him often
before that time and well acquainted
with him.
lgevnolir !SheId0u.-I remember the
occasion of Green drowning himself.