The Fairfield herald. [volume] (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1849-1876, 1876-05-24
sCUDDBR'S DOG CASE,
A NleB legal @uestiop Settled.

a man came into the Office of
Judge X, the we'll l-known Pliilhdcl
ph'a lawyer, the other day, and when
the Judge had time to listen to hin,
/ llo said
"JudRe. my name is Sculdcr. I
called to see you about Il dog case
that kinder bcwilders me, and !
thought maybe you might throw
some light on hini--inisht just give
mo the law points sos Id know
, whether it was worth while suing or
not. You see me and man named
Potts went into partnership on II
dog. We bought him. He was II
setter, AMI me and Potts went
shares on him sos to take him out
IL hunting 1t was never definitely
settled which half Of linn 1 owned,
aud which half belonged to Potts,
but somehow I kinder formed an
idea in my own mind that the hind
end was Scudders, and the front
end Potts. Consequence WAS that
when the dog barkcd I always said,
'Therc goes Potts half exercising
itself, and when the dogs t,il
wagged, | always considered that
my end was being agit tied And. of
course, when one of my hind legs
scratched one of Potts ears or
shoulders, I was perfectly sltisfol I;
first, because that sort of thing WIS
good for the whole dog anI, second,
because the thing would get oven
When Potts hoad would re.oh
around and bite Il flea off my hin |
legs or snap ut II fly. Well, things
went along smooth enough for II
While, until one day that dog began
to get into the habit of running
around after his tail. He wis the
foolishest dog that ever seed. Used
to cl nse his tail round until he'd get
SO giddy he couldn't bark. And you
know l was skeered lest it mi sht
hurt the dog q health, and as Potts
didn't seem to be willing to keep his
end from circulating in pursuit of
nay end, / made up my mind to chop
the dogs tail off, sos to make him
reform und behave. So last Satur-
day caused tho dog to back up
ngn log, and thon suddenly
dropped the axe on his tail pretty
c.ose up, and the next minute he
was booming around that yard,
h>wling like a boat.load of wild cat.
just then Potts came up, and he let
on to be mad because Id cut off that
tail. One word brought on another,
and pretty soon Potts sicked that
dog on me-my own hale, too,
mind you-and that dog bit me in
the leg, bit piece out See that;
look at that leg About half pound
gone: eat up by that dog. Now
what 1 want to see youabou /, Ju lgr,
is this : Can't [ lecover damages
for assault and battery from Potts
What I chopped off belonged to mo,
I owned an undivided half of that
setter pup, from the tip of his tail
clear up to his third RIB. and I had II
right to cut away as much of it rs
Id Il mind to while Potts, being
sole owner of the dogs he III, lis re-
sponsible' when he bites anybody.
don't know" replied the Judge,
musingly. "Thcre haven't been any
decisions on cases exactly like this.
But what does MIR. Potts sly upon
the subject?'
"Why, Potts view is that I divi,lol l
the dog the wrong way. When lie
wants to map OUT lis half, he draws
line from the middle of his nose,
wight alop3 the Spite, and clear to
'tha gfid of the tail: That gives me
one hind leg and one fore leg, and
makes him joint proprietor i'll the
tail. And he says that if w.ntted
to cut off my half cf the tail I might
have don" it, nfld he wouldn't have
cared but what made him mad was
, that I wasted his property With
ont consulting him, Hdt That
theory seems to mic n little
strained. and if its legal why I'm
going to close out my half of that
dog Mt n sacrifice, sooner that bold
any interest in him on those prin-
ciples. Now what do you think
of it y
"Wcll," said the Judge, II can
hardly decide SO important ques-
ton otfhand but at tho first glnncc
my opinion is that you own the
whole dog. and that Potts owns tho
whole dog. SO when he bites you II
suit won't lie against Potts, and the
only thing you can do to obtain
justice is to make the dog bite Potts
also. AS for the tail, when it is
separated from tho dog it is no
longer the dogs t.il, and it is not
worth fighting al out"
Cant sue Potts, you say ?"
81 think not"
"Can't get damages for the meat
that's been bit otiE Of ,ns =
81 hardly think you cam,
well; we'll, and yet they talk
about American civilization, and
temples OF rtstre, md such things !!
All right. Let itgo / kin stand it;
but don't anybody ever undertake
to tell mo that the law protects hui
man be'rygs i'm their rights. Good
morning. Judge
"Waita moment, Mr.. Scudder,"
smid the Judge; 'ryouve forgotten