Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1885-04-08

= ~ AFfoRNEY 70 4. sAssAMAx,
yVDos o. M1s COUAr
n16o ~ the nssAs Cennsy Bench 10
1nsts ~ uish Prsrssasavs n II n Dss-
poo - Enssr ne Lasss win
A. Angry Counsellor,

rnyroGns court has Just reversed judg-
1Gt q ~ common pleas court of Berks
1n1ys ~ Tie novel reason that the lower
~ Wo5 h 100 much Of hurry. Suit was
Gx11tby (he administrator OF William Van
H. Hroe, bond which was more than
H10k yonrs old. In order to overcome the
6{n01ion Of payment which attaches to an
111on & such age, petition Of co-exccu-
~ NGe q1od at the same time, sverring that
@Gxtl4 ~ been paid at various times. BY l
@R q d6C1nse an affidavit was put in, simply |
l1lnG r6yment, without giving particulars
0oof{ okought that this wa4too vague, e,and
n1G 0E6red to file supplemental affida-
VA T1eoourt granted permission TO do this, |
&1 o1ld that any time before the entry Of /
1rp1nt would do for the filing ofthe paper. |
"a court then adjourned for five days, but
4 G1orod judement on the second day, before |
&9 ozndavit had been filed. Justice Paxson |
ko1do t6nt IA this case the judicial discretion,
;4htcA ~ supreme court will not ordinarily
Ir11flbro With, was not prudently exercised,
md thok The result was not in the interest OF
itlrt1co. He holds that the judge should have
n11oWod reasonable time Tor the. preparation
n ne supplemental AFFIDAVIT, and according
~ rovefo0d the Judgment
nxCHMoND L. JONES SEVERE STRUCTURES.
Ano1her feature of the case is the style in
Wh36n Richmond L. Jones, esq, leading
m1mber Of the Reading bar and counsel for
~ plaintid IN error in the case, bastes Judge
sl1aaSaman, who decided against his client in
sthe court below. In his history of the case
IN ~ paper book, Mr.. Jones said
s WThomas vanderslice died,in January 1854,
and among his papers were found two bonds
sof 1naAc n Lash for 81 600 each, both bonds
being nearly thirty years past due I; also bill
s,sgie ior SeoO fourteen years past % ta due; Un
cf interest, from time to time, up to lsS2, all
IN The handwriting of Thomas Vanderslice,
The decodent, Suits were brought by the
ndministrator of Vanderslice and copies OF
were fled setting forth that all these obliga
and rules were taken for Judgment. The
\ rules were all argued together on Monday
April 4, 1884, and counsel for the defend
mt called the attention of the court to the fact
that more than twenty years having elapsed
1ince The maturity Of the bonds, the
leGl presumption Of payment had arisen
Witch ahifted the burden to the plaintiff and
4 rendered affidavits of defense Unnecessary,
4 md utated that they were only filed as a eau
msSsute e RreSsas 4 .l9agme6nt n if6 1s
( 80 His honor, Judge Ssssaman, said, how
Cd; that, In his opinion, the endorsements
Of payments Of interest," although in the
y handwriting of the obligee, rebutted the
presumption OF payment and that the
af1idavits were too general in terms. Counsel
= for defendant then stated that although, as
he understood the law, the credits are not
part of the instrument and will not take the
case out of the statute or rebut the presump-
ton Of payment, unless proved and that he
had drawn up the affidAvits of defense
In that conviction -stilb as his client had
actually paid all these obligations, he did not
desire to imperil his rights and property upon
any view Of the law, and that with the per-
misston Of the court, he would file suppla
mental efhuc-sts setting forth specihcally the
ttme, plfce, maniier and circumstances OF the
payment Of all three ofthese obligations His
honor thea said, If you hand me the supple
mental a6Eidavits at any time before dispose
of these cases, will consider them along with
the original affdavits, and then adjourned the
court to the following Saturday, April 18th.
4 client TO come in and make the supplemental
AGidavitA, and on the 18th of April, i've days
thereaf1er, they were duly filed, and then
Z cOSs,SeI diScOUered to his utter amusement,
that THE honorable Judge in breach Of faith
With counsel, had IN the meantime quietly
) filed IN the protaonotafy's office, opinions
making the rules absolute and entering judg-
nsest q all the cases for Want Of Sufficient
counsel, recting the express permission OF
the oOurt to file supplemental afiidavits and
asking that the judgments be stricken off,
rules were granted, which the judges subse-
quently discharged for the reason that the
Judgments having been entered the burden
II now entirely upon the defendant, and he
being incompetent as witness by reason oi
the death of Vanderslice can make no defence
~ NIL
In his argument Jones, severely criticises
the conduct OF Judge Sassaman for breach OF
faith in entering the judgments in the man.
mar he did. In one part OF the argument he
says that, "through the particulars OF the de-
fense we're stated to judge at the argument,
and he granted leave to file supplemental
RfYidayit he sought to depriue the defendant
g of Its benefit by O breach of faith Wtth counsel
50 discreditable TO the court and to The pro
JyessS0n as 10 compel me TO characterize II as
1 deserves. "
At another point he raped the learned
Judge over the knuckles in this wise /: " The
usual time allowed for filing supplemental
Af1davits Is ten days, and no time having
been specified in the order in this case, rea-
sonable time-which would mean the usua
tim0-was clearly implied. The extension o
time to the presumptive disposal of the case'
the record of the court shows that his honol
usually disposes of such cases in from thre'
months 70 three years, and that in a recen
cnao his tardy action had to be quickened by
= writ Of mandamus from the supreme court
after delay Of about eighteen months"
such matters he said :'"A Judge has no powe
: under the law to pronounce Judgment excep
In open court and as the judgments in thest
Cases were handed into the prothonotary'i
O4lice on April 10, 1884, when the court wa,
not In session, they are irregular and void
and should be stricken off,"
The supreme court adopted this view o
the case decided that the judgments were
improperly and imprudently entered and re
versed the lower court, before which the cast
will now have to be triod on its merits.
Four Funerals at the same Cemetery.
The funeral of the late Harry A. Shult1
took place from his residence, on North Duke
nfra0t. at g O'clock this atternOOn and wa,