The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-11-10
ON ACCOUNT OF THE TINES.
A Heavy Docket Of Cases in the City
Court.

| The Number of New Suits Filed
! Nearly Three Times as Large for
the November Term as It was Five
Years Ago-Number of Suits Has
Been on the Increase for the Past
Five Years-Argument on a Demur-
rer to a Suit Filed Against an In
surance Company.
The session of the city court yesterday
was devoted to arguments on demurrer to
cases which have been filed for the No
vember Term, but the counsel in only one
case was ready for the argument.
That was the case of the Southern
Home Building and Loan Association VS..
the Home Insurance Company, of New
Orleans. 1t seems that Rosa Tutty. of
court fame had possession of 2-story
house out near the Laurel Grove Gene
terry, which, as will be remembered,
burned down some time ago She had
borrowed the money from the building
and loan association in the case to build
the place, and had mortgaged the prop
erty to them. She had also taken out a
policy for $1,000 on the house with the
Home Insurance Company. The company
had refused to pay the claim on certain
technical grounds, which had beent rams
ferred to the building and loan association
by the Tutty woman.
DEMURRED ON TECHNICAL GROUNDS.
The association brought suit against the
company for the face of the policy and
the suit was demurred to on the ground
that the preliminary proofs of loss, which
were required by the policy to be submit
ted in sixty days, had never been sub
mitted either by Rosa Tutty or by the
building and loan association. The suit
was argued by Messrs. Davis Freeman
and S. B. Adams for the insurance com
pany and by Mr.. G. B. Whatley for the
building and loan associ Judge
MacDOnell reserved his decision, but will
probably render it to-day or tomorrow
The jury in the city court has been
called for this morning at 10 O'Clock, but
there is nothing of Importance to come up.
The court will probably continue to hear
arguments on demurers.
ALARGE INCREASE IN Suns.
The records show that the docket of
the city court is on the increase from
year to year. This years civil docket is
the largest known in the history of the
court, and few comparisons with the
record of previous years will show Just
how that matter stands. There have
been just 172 new cases filed on the docket
for the November term, and others to the
number of at least twelve or fifteen are
almost certain to come in, in cases where
service is acknowledged and time of filing
waived. This is exclusive of the cases
which have come over to the November
term from past terms of the court, some
of which have been kept in court for two
or three years.
In 1884 there We're only "a new cases
n NNvpun har in
in 1886, Al in 1887, 80; in 1888, "a in 1899,
81; in 1890, 81; in 1891, 49, in 1892 1876,
and in 1898, so far, 172, with probability
that there viii be at least fifteen others.
With the exception of one or two years,
it will be seen that the number of civil
cases has been on the increase from year
to year, aad especially is it so within the
last five years. During this period the
increase in the number of civil suits in
this court has been unusually rapid be-
ing this year nearly treble what it was in
1880, just three years ago.
AN INDICATION OF THE TIMES.
There are facts for a philosopher CON
tanned in record like this. When it is
taken into consideration that the vast ma
| iority of these suits-and especially is it SO
this year-are suits on accounts ana notes
which parties have been unable to pay
| and cases on which, in many instances,
JNNsiAi OnAV9 1lC OSiAS UdhSA w ueldulU, inc
record for this year may be considered an
unm1Stakable evidence of hard times
Out of all the suits filed this year not
twenty-five of them are damage suits, and
all the others are suits for personal debts.
notes and accounts. In the majority of
instances of this kind the party sued, as
a general thing, has no issuable defense.
and allows judgment to be taken against
him without any attempt on his part to
prevent it, They may be considered
therefore, as so many debts which these
| parties have found themselves absolutely
unable to pay, but which they do not dis
pute as to their validity. 1t is, without
doubt, a good indication that there have
been pretty hard times, and that good
many people have had to suffer as a con
sequence