Bridgeton pioneer., 1896-05-14
TWEN7Y-NINE BILLS.
That Was the Result Of the Grand
Jury's Work.
ED. G0LDSBORO GETS $4,000.
All the Liquor Dealers Plead Not Guilty.
Charles Filler, the Notorious Burglar,
is the First of Prisoners to be
Tried Before Jury.

Charles Filler, the Notorious Burglar,
is the First of Prisoners to be
Tried Before a Jury.
Wednesday Afternoon.
Court news is now interesting. In the
afternoon the first verdict for the May
term was received, and if the verdict
stands Edward Goldsboro, the injured
negro, gets $500 from the Central Rail
road, the jury returning that decision af-
ter being out but very short time.
Then came the celebrated oyster case,
Col. Potter alone representing that side
in which RIPARIAN men are interested,
while ex-Judge Pancoast, of Camden,
and Walter H. Bacon, of this city, de-
Tended the cause which means so much
to the Delaware Bay and Maurice River
Cove Oyster Association.
Oyster Case Proceedings.
Said Judge Ludlow ''the case of Re-
becca r. Bateman, Executor, and others
against Zebulon Palhamus, in tort"
Instantly there was some excitement in
the court room. The great oyster case
was on. The queations of law which
have been exercising the people of
! Cumberland, were to be passad upon in
court. Oyster wars, family fueds,
neighbors' chickering's, subject! of end
less and unsuccessful legislation, were
all to be opened, and probably will be
| carried to courts Of last resort in this
State before they are thoroughly and
| finally decided.
For several terms the case has been
upon the list. Last October the case was
put off because Judge Ludlow could not
| attend to it. In January all the witness
es were present, and Col. Potter was
taken seriously i'll, and the case was put
off again.
Then this beautiful May day came, and
| with it the case for trial.
The Lay Judges.
That surprises are looked for through
out this great trial goes without saying
but surprise No. l came very early in the
proceedings. Sheriff Shinn drew from
the box the first name and called as 9
juror Robert Carman. Walter III. Bacon
for the defendant, Immediately arose and
stated to the Court that the defense desir-
ed to challange the whole array of jurors.
The young lawyer then read the chal-
lange. 1t excepted to the legality of the
entire panel of jurors because it was not
drawn in the presence of the Court OF
Common Pleas, but in fact, in the pre-
| sence of but one Judge, the Honorable
James R. Hoagland, he having, by
reason of a recent act of the Legislature,
excluded the two Lay Judges from the
Bench. Mr.. Bacon proposed to file the
| challange and prove the facts.
Col. Potter said he desired to put in a
demurrer. Then ensued an interesting
dialogue, in which the Court and all the
lawyers in the case took part.
The Court said he was one of those who
might, politically, be opposed to the
| removal of these Lay Judges. He
thought, however, that the act of remov-
ing these Judges was perfectly constitu.
tional. The Court further said that
this case involved important ques-
| tions and he wanted these questions set
tied, so that the rights of these men might
be determined. He did not want delays
He wanted these men to know theil
| rights.
Mr.. Pancoast said "Tm against the
whole lay element" whereupon Judge
Ludlow said 'Pnl in favor of them. /
think they are good part of the
Court"
Here was strange coincident. Judge
Pancoast was challenging because Lay
Judges, in whom he did not believe, did
not act in the Court, while Judge Lud-
low, who believed in the lay element,
was upholding the removal of these
Judges.
The matter was finally decided by the
Court overruling the challenge, and the
jury Tor the case was drawn.
The jury to decide this important mat
ter was finally sworn by Clerk Trenchard
as follows:
Robt. Carman, J. Brainerd Snyder, G.
o. Newcomb, r. M. Butler, Ira P. Sharp,
Wilbert l.. Hummell, Edward Bartlett,
BENZ. Heritage, Anthony Lorricks,
Abram Myers, David Hustled, Charles
Lore.
This jury was not gotten together with
out considerable trouble, great pains be-
ing taken by both sides to get men on the
panel entirely unprejudiced.
Itwas just twenty-five minutes of four
o'clock when Col. Potter began his open
ing OF the now celebrated case. He stated
that the case was originally brought by
Luther Bateman, Sr. and Luther Bate
man, Jr., of Newport, against the defend
ant Zebulon Polhamus, Since the suit
was brought, the elder Bateman has died,
and his wife, Rebecca, as executor, had
been substituted as one of the plaintiffs.
With an experience of fifty years,
Henry G. Lore, of Newport, appeared
upon the witness stand, and added testi-
mony planting oysters upon these