Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-11-12
ITS WORK FINISHED.
The Supreme Court Winds Up Its
Work in Pittsburg.
SEVERAL IMPORTANT DECISIONS.
The Famous Penn Bank Case Consumes the
Clsing Hours.
AFFAIRS OF INTEREST IN THE COURTS

The Supreme Court concluded its session
here for the Western District yesterday.
The Penn Bank case was argued and seven
decisions were handed down at adjournment
of the last days work. The session lasted
five and a half weeks and large number of
cases were disposed Of The Allegheny
county list was unusually large. Prothonot-
ary Newmeyer and his assistant, j. b.
Sweitzer, were crowded with work, but they
kept up with the business. One Of the
busiest men in the Court House during the
session was Law Librarian Digby. He
handled on an average 900 books a day.
Among the cases in which decisions were
handed down was that of Edward McMil-
Ian, appealed from the Oyer and Terminer
Court of Luzerne county. Mcmillan was a
miner and last February murdered his wife
during a quarrel. He was convicted of
murder in the first degree and sentenced to
be hanged. The case was argued before the
Supreme Court few days ago. The decis-
ion yesterday affirmed the Judgment of the
lower court and ordered the record to be re-
mitted for execution.
Did Not All Agree.
Justice Sterrett handed down an opinion
in the case of d. w. Zeller ct al VS. Susanna
and Reuben Light, appealed from the Com
mon Pleas of Lebanon county. The suit
was an action in ejectment. Justice Ster-
rett affirmed the lower court, in favor of the
defendants Chief Justice Psxson and JUS
tices Green ard Mitchell dissented from this
decision.
ba ofbar oocoS danidad ware.
Appeal of c. HI. Lucas ct al in the matter
of the estate of Henry Kisler, from Orphans
Court, Philadelphia county; reargument re-
fused.
Appeal from Quarter Sessions, Montgom-
cry county, in the matter of a road in
Moreland township; motion to quash re-
fused
Appeal of ]. S. Miller from Orphans
Court of Somerset county; decree reversed
at cost of appellees.
The only case argued yesterday was the
Penn Bank case. The matter really COM
prises several cases which have been in
litigation ever since the bank failure in 1884.
The plaintiffs, E. w. Swentzel ct al, and E.
j. Cnger ct al, against the Penn Bank, its
directors, President Riddle and Cashier
Reiber. The cases are appealed BY Henry
Warner, assignee of the bank, from Common
Pleas No. 2 The argument before the
Supreme Court was on the masters report
and the decision of the lower court in sus-
tanning and overruling various exceptions.
In the lower court a decree was made
holding Riddle liable for 81, ,200, 900; Reiber
for S500000, Thomas Hare S3,716 % and
Samuel Severance 1854 81 The directors
and other defendants were ordered to paw
the costs, including the masters fee of
900.
Directors Not Held Liable.
The directors were not held liable for the
shortage. From this decree the appeal was
taken. H. A. Mllle- and ID. f. Patterson
opened the argument in behalf of Henry
Warner, assignee of the bank. They spoke
for the depositors and held that the direc
tors were liable for the deficiency on account
of their negligence. Ordinary care would
have discovered the fictitious accounts.
ID. I. Martin, Esq, argued in behalf of
the directors. He reviewed the whole case,
and maintained that the directors had suf-
fered enough. They had suffered more
than the depositors. There had been
spirit of revenge, he said, through the
whole litigation.
Attorneys Lazear and Orr concluded the |
argument by speaking in behalf of Thomas
Hare.