The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1884-06-25
Orange County Court.

entered ana nXb0 NJ ToOU, SUaUe U.s. EuSou
Magoon, larceny, bail fixed at 5000; State Us.
George Smith and Almon Keith, assault and
battery. bail fixed at 800; State Us. David r.
Plat, assault and battery, bail fixed at $500.
A. NJ Carpenter vs.. To,on Of Corinth.-This
was an action on the case for the recovery OF
damages for an injury claimed to have hap
pened upon highway in said town of Corinth.
The injury is alleged to have been received in
November, 1880, just before the passage of the
act repeating the old highway act. The in
sufficiency complained Of by the plaintiff was
the existence Of a deep gully In the middle OF
the road. 1t was claimed by the plaintiff that
his horses stepped upon dry bush or some
thing else in the roadias crockery or glassware,
and that they became frightened. The bush
or crockery in the road was not counted an
insuficiency by the plaintiff and evidence was
introduced upon that point only to account for
the fright Of his horses. 1t was dark night
and the plaintiff could not see what 1t was his
horses stepped on, but whatever 1t was 1t made
q sharp crack, which startled the horses, and at
about the same time they stepped down into
the gully complained OF, which added to their
fright and they started up quite sharply. The
plaintiff had brought them under CONTROL into
walk, or a slow gait, after their first start
from stepping the crockery, but when the
off horse stepped into this gully 1t jumped and
struggled to get out, and finally ran away, and
the plaintiff lost all control of the horses.
They ran as hard as they could and brought up
near Cooks store in Cooksville; they brought
the plaintiff up, or down, for the carriage was
were overturned, and its occupant thrown out
and severely injured, mostly on the left side and
arm. The medical evidence introduced by the
plaintiff was to the effect that the dissblement
of the plaintiff was permanent. that his left
arm was so injured that he never would re-
cover the complete use Of 1t. The defendant
claimed that this first fright Of the horses was
above the gully, whatever gully was there,
which, as the witnesses for the town testified,
was only slight depression. 1t was also
urged that the cause Of the first fright was not
that the horses stepped on anything, but that
at about the point where such was alleged to
have occurred by the plaintiff, the bit Of the
horse was broken by some means or other
catching on the pole or some other, way-and
that the horses were beyond the control Of the
plaintiff from that point clear down to Cooks
vile; that the horses ran through the gully
with safety and that therefore, said gully was
not an insufficiency. The town claimed, in
short, that it was the sudden breaking Of the
bit that first startled the horses and rendered
them unmanageabe, and their running away
from that cause WAS what produced the injury.
On the other hand, the plaintiff answered that
after the first start he had his horses under
control, and that the bit did not break until his
off horse stepped into the gully, when it broke
in his efforts to control the horses after this
added fright caused by stepping down into the
gully, which plaintiffs evidence tended to
show was from twelve to eighteen inches deep.
1u6 uclouudut plduJtu lbS6ll bQuhT6ly Oh OU6
issue, viz, that the road was not out Of repair.
No evidence was introduced to controvert the
claims of the extent of the plaintiffs injuries
either to himself or team. The horses were
brothers and made spenddly matched team.
One Of the horses was 30 injured by the rum
away that it had to be killed the day after the
affair happened. The jury gave the defendant
verdict to recover its costs. Watson, Hebard
and Farnham for plaintiff; j. K. Darling and
r. NJ. Harvey for the town.
The two first cases tried were town cases,
and in each the town has been victorious.
James Doherty vs.. Robert Mudgett The
plaintiff in this action seeks to recover of the
defendant $500, the value OF a certain valise
and its contents, alleged to have been stolen
by some person from the possession of the de-
PENDANT, to whose charge it had been entrusted
by the plaintiff. Doherty had been at work
in Pittsheld, this state, and left that town in
July, 1882. He learned that the defendant wanted
to hire man. and went to see him. The de-
PENDANT lives at Washington, and hired Doherty
at $18 per month. The latter confded in Mrs
Mudgett that he had over $500 in his posses
sion, which he had saved for rainy day. This
amount of money he placed in his valise, with
his other worldly effects. He was rather anx-
Mrs. and Mr.. Mudgett to take charge of the
valise, and he gave Mrs. Mudgett the key upon
her request therefor. He said to them, "Now
You have the charge Of all in my valise, and
want it thoroughly took care Of" Mr.. Mudgett
replied, All right" A few days after this
occurrence the plaintiff, together with Robert
Mudgett, the defendant and Henry and Frank,
his nephew and son, went into the field to
work, the plaintiff going first, and leaving the
two young men at the house. they following
after. In the afternoon plaintiff went to get
some money from his valise, but it was not in
his room. He asked Mrs Mudgett for it, but
1t was not forthcoming The plaintiff never
recovered it, and hence the present action. On
the part of the defense it was urged that even
If the valse and its contents were stolen, yet
there never had been such delivery of it to
the defendant as would make him responsible
for it. Moreover, it was claimed, and the
defendant introduced several witnesses who SO
testified, that Doherty always had his money
on his person, and not in his valse. The de-
PENDANT denied any personal knowledge that
Doherty had any money at all, but in answer
to this the plaintiff introduced witness who
swore that Mudgett had told him upon one oc-
casion that the old man (Doherty) had lots of
money. The jury gave Doherty verdict for
$417.75. Defendants counsel will move to set
the verdict aside on legal question. s. B.
Hebard and Charles II. Heath for plaintiff
White and A. M. Dickey for defendant.
The state 3 attorney, or some other persons,
has instituted a vigorous prosecution against
the traffic in Intoxicating drinks in this county,
and vendors OF lager beer, cider and "apple-
jack" have been brought up without regard to
pleaded guilty to a certain number OF offenses,
and paid the usual fine, as follows: State u.s.
Elijah Magoon, bail fixed at $500; J. II. Watson
for respondent. Estate Us. Richard Kennedy,
respondent pleaded guilty to one offense, fined
$40 and costs. State Us. Sydney Fuller, bail
fixed at 500. State Us. Esther Nation and
Maria Riley, bail fixed in each case at $25; S.
B. Hebard for respondents. State u.s. Betsey
johnson, respondent pleaded guilty to nine
offenses; fined 800 and costs. State U.s. Harlow
Whitney, respondent pleaded guilty to five
offenses, fined State U.s. Carlos Whitney
pleaded guilty Of twenty offenses; fined 5000
and costs. State Us. F. W. Farnum, bail fixed
ut $50. State uS. Larry Griffin and Hippolite
Cazen, larceny; these respondents are in jail
awaiting trial; they are charged with taking
money and goods from store in STAFFORD.
Caleb p. Hartman Vs. AlUah NJ. Carpenter
This was an action of trespass for an alleged
false imprisonment. The town OF Corintt
was the real defendant in this cause, and the
imprisonment was brought about by the de-
PENDANT Carpenter, as constable and collector
Of that town. The following facts were de-
veloped on trial: In 1879 the plaintiff owned
some land in Corinth and was assessed in that
year to pay taxes thereon, and also poll tai
and a tax on certain personal property. The
plaintiff deeming himself unjustly taxed de
clined to pay. He claimed not to live in Cor
NTH at the time, but to be resident and tax
payer in the town of Worcester. The consta
bic and collector of Corinth, Mr.. Carpenter
came and demanded the tax of Hartman, ant
he refused to pay the same, but offered TO turn
ont some of his land in Corinth. This was de
clined, and on the 18th of July, 1882 he wa
lodged in Chelsea JAIL and was incarcerateC
there from that day until the 18th Of the sam,
-. 1n .av.N L..