The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1885-09-23
Washington County Court.

Stevens Us. Dudley.-The trial of this case
was begun as stated in last weeks report,
and occupied all of last week. The evidence
closed late Friday night, and the arguments
of the counsel and the charge of the court
took all of Monday afternoon and part of
Tuesday. This was an action for trespass
on the case, and was brought returnable to
the September term of court, 1873. The
facts upon which the plaintiff seeks to re-
cover have been so frequently reported that
an extended resume of the case is not given,
but only few of the salient points. AT
the fair of the Washington County Agrcul-
tural Society, held at East Montpelier in
September, 1874, the plaintiff was severely
injured and disabled for life by being run
into by a team which had been turned off
the trotting-course by the defendant, as the
plaintiff claims, in a careless manner. The
driver of the team that caused the accident
William stevens, attempted to drive OIL the
ground by the way of the trotting-course
and was stopped several times by the police
men and marshals of the fair, but still per-
sisted, when the attention of the defendant,
who had orders to keep the track clear for
trotting, was called to the matter and he
ordered the driver to leave the track. Soon
after he found that the driver had not
obeyed his orders, and he rode up beside the
team and turned il OIL the track. 1t Is
claimed by the plaintiff that the defendant
struck the horses several blows with his
riding-whip, but this is denied by the
defendant. The place where the team was
turned off was where, in grading the track,
! it had been graded down, leaving bank of
about twelve inches. Up over this bank the
team was turned, the carriage capsized,
| the horses running away, colliding with the
team of the plaintiff, who was sitting in his
! carriage, some distance from the place where
| the team was turned of the track. There has
| been much conflicting testimony as to just
| what was TRANSPORTING upon the track at the
| time the team was turned off-what il any,
| horses were on the track, whether the race
had been called, whether there was any
| impending danger of collision, and if the
defendant was justified in supposing that
there would be a collision if he did not turn
the team off as he did, and so forth The
| plaintiff put thrty~four witnesses upon tn,
stand and the defendant forty-four. Tn,
case was very ably argued for the plaintiff
by Hon. w. p. Dillingham; and JOSEPH
I-amson, Esq, and for the defendant by
Hon. Charles IL. Heath and Stephen &
Shurtleff, Esq. After an able and yer.
impair tial charge to the jury by the presid
ing Judge, Hon. H. Henry Powers, the cast
was given to the jury at four p. NJ. OIL
Tuesday.
The new entry docket was called Satur
day morning, and after that there was a ba
meeting to take measures for "A meeting
in memory of Colonel f. V. Randall and w
f. Baker of Mortified. The meeting vii
be held at the courthouse on Thursda,
evening at seven p. NJ, when historical AM
biographical sketches of the deceased mem
beers will be read by Charles III. Heath AM
Frank Plumley, and addresses by othe
members of the bar. Judge Powers wi
preside. The meeting is public and all ar
invited to be present.
Sarah A. e. Walton as. Town of Randolp
was the next case, and is now on trial.