Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1883-04-20
VERMONT NEWS.

AN IMPORTANT FIRE INSURANCE DEC IsIoN.
The decision in Washington County
Court of the case of the Lycoming Fire In.
surance Company u.s. Medal Wright ~ Son,
of Montpelier is of more than usual interest,
inasmuch as it effects parties in nearly every
county in the state, and is to be a test case.
The company was Pennsylvania corpora
ton, and transacted business on both mutual
and cash plan. II began business In Vermont
in 1870, and continued until October s, 1881.
Then the Attorney General of Pennsylvania
caused it to adjudged insolvent, and had
receiver appointed. The receiver, by Chas.
w. Porter Esq, of Montpelier, his attorney,
brought suits against various parties, the
Messrs. Wright being among them, to collect
assessments alleged to be due on premium
notes. This case was entered at the last Sep.
TENDER term, and the defendants plead the
general issue, with four special pleas in bar.
The first of those special pleas alleged that
the contract of insurance was induced by the
fraud and misrepresentation of the compa-
ny's agents, in representing that the company
was solvent, with large surplus in its treas
ury when in fact it was insovent. The Sec
ond averred that the company had not com
piled with section two Of number one of the
laws of 1874 which required that all foreign
insurance companies transacting business in
this state should be responsible, either by the
laws of the state where the companies are To-
Gated or by provisions in their acts Of incor-
poration or policies for the acts and neglect
of their agents The third and fourth averr-
ed that the company had not filed with the
Secretary OF the state a copy of its by laws, as
required by the same act. The plaintiff filed
general and special demurrers to these pleas,
thus raising the question for the first time in
this state whether a contract of insurance on
tered into by foreign insurance company
90 10 iaI iYN1
ing upon the assured. As the plaintiffs de-
murrers reach the first defect in pleading, the
defendants counsel claimed that receiver
appointed by Court of another state could
not maintain an action in this state that the
declaration was defective, in not alleging that
the company was licensed to do business in
this state and that it did not show that the
claims for losses for which the assessments
were laid had been adjudicated by the Court.
The suit against j. s. Wheelock, of Berlin, in
which the defense was the same, was heard
with that against the Messrs. Wright Har-
Ian W. Kemp, of Montpelier, and John II.
Senter of Warren, appeared for the defend
ants Judge Redfeld gave judgment for the
defendants, everything the plaintiffs demurr-
ers and adiudgng each of the defendants
pleas sufficient. TO this decision the plaintiff
excepted, and the case was passed to the SUI
preme Court.
THE SPRING FREsHETs.
The ice in the rivers in the central and
northern parts of the state broke up last week
Thursday and Friday. The most serious dam
age done was on the Missisquoi and Winooski
rivers portion of the A1isssquoi dam at
Swanton was carried away, and A. Wanzers
sawmill foated of Two miles below Swan
ton the river overlooked its banks and under
! mined nearly 100 rods of the Rouse's Point
branch of the Central Vermont railroad, de-
laying trains for ~ hours. An ice gorge in
| the Winooski river at Montpelier above the
| Coffee House, gave way and came with a
rush against the Taber trestle bridge of the
Montpelier & Wells River railroad destroying
about 100 feet of it; and about $50 feet of the
Sabin trestle bridge was also carried away.
second gorge formed just above the Mont
pelier Il Wells River passenger station large
trees along the highway were snapped asun-
der like pipe-stems and the ice-cakes were
piled high in the air in a way that threatened
to destroy much railroad property along the
banks the water rose rapidly and flooded the
track and adjacent lots Suddenly the ice
gave way and went with roar over the dam,
averting all further damage, About 20 rods
of the Passumpsic railroad was washed Out
near Barnet, and passengers and baggage had
to be carried a mile or two.
"A l5-years. old daughter of the late Judge
Ferre of Monkton became so jealous because
the youth who had accompanied her to par
ty paid marked attention to another girl tba
she started home alone and killed herself will
poison.
The St. Adams Congregationalists are la
boring hard to retain Rev. Charles Van Nor
den who has been with them ten years, ant
is now wanted in Springfield, Mass.
Patrick Brean, who died at Burlington
~, Monday xyaa nna of iha Odpgt in garVic
among the Central Vermont employees havn
served the road faithfully since 1852.
Horace Cotton, a woll-known and respect
ed citizen of Weybridge, was found dead j
his bed Monday morning.
WIN. O'Brien, Central Vermont freigh
conductor, caught his right foot between tn
rail and guard rail while coupling cars at Eli
sex Junction last Friday and his leg wa
drawn under the cars and crushed. He Wa
} taken to the Mary Fletcher hospital at Bul
t lington and the leg amPutated. He will r,
J cover.
The dead body of Scion NJ. Lynch, age
Q 22 was found in the woods near Mddlobur
t last Friday. He HAD been missing since SUI
day from Cornwall, where he had been worl
. ing for a farmer and attending the grade
. school at Nddlebury On the body was four
8 an ounce bottle half full of prussic acid, tW
ounces of arsenic and some blue vitriol an
1 near by an open razor. Death was undoub
4 eddy caused By prussie acid. There wei
Q three cuts on the throat and one on the wris
!, neither necessarily fatal No cause is know
/ for the suicide
}, The Vermont University trustees ha'
adopted resolutions acknowledging Frederic
o Billings's gift of the Marsh library and $7i
l. 600 for library building. 1t will be called Il
$ Billings Library.
8 Oscar Gilmore's only son, aged five Il
head first into q pan of boiling sugar Ia
II week, at Tinmouth, and, although the lit
v fellow exclaimed, mamma, don't cry, L
not burned much, it is not probable he CT
"A live.
n The Woman's Christian Temperance U
g ion has engaged Mrs. M. G. Q. Leavitt of Be
ton as organizer and lecturer,
as The state temperance oampmeeting ass