Delaware gazette and state journal., 1896-01-09

superior court went TO WOrh again
Thursday with full bench. The
jury was drawn in the case of Willian;
Wilckens VS.. the Mayor and Council OF
Wilmington. Wlckens sues the city
for injuries alleged to have been re-
ceived at Pennsylvania avenue and
Broome street. where his horse plunged
into a manhole and he was thrown
from his carriage Wickens il repre-
sented by Levi G. Bird aud Andrew f.
Sanborn. The city's attorneys are City
Solicitor Harman and Horace Greeley
Knowles.
The following men make up the jury;
Thomas Vail, Charles l.. Reed, Will
liam Derrickson, Richard Bonsall,
George Casey, j. q. Armstrong, Syl-
vcster Murray, Samuel Gray, Abram
Palmer, William B. Ford, w. w.
Stroup and John w. Carroll, Jr. The
jury was discharged until 3 30 O'Clock
in the afternoon, and the remainder Of
the special panel was discharged from
any further attendance.
The case of Townsend vs.. the Com
monwealth Beneficial Association,
which was before the court prior to
the holiday recess, was again resumed.
The suit is on an appeal from magis-
trate's decision which was in favor of
the plaintiff who sued the association
for the amount of policy. Charles Il.
Haywood, superintendent of the asso
citation in 1893 and 1891, was on the
stand on Thursday. He testified that
he was authorized by officers of tho
company TO transfer business from any
insurance company IN the state 10 the
Commonwealth, and transferred policy
holders were to receive Snch payments
md benefits as the books of the old
Companies called for Haywood nnti-
He'd his agents of these verbal instrue-
Tions and among the new members OBJ
iained were Townsend and his mother,
Harriet Webb.
A After some further testimony Mr..
kChurchman for the plaintiff, in order
&to preclude motion for non-suit on
Wthe ground of variance, asked leave to
d tbamend his narr, because he had used
tWhitthe wrong application in drawing it up
EtatS.rhe amendment will be allowed. The
impoplaintitf closed.
Olei In opening their case the defendants
Ncounsel, through W. II. Lyman, said
MI no testimony would be submitted.
Dol They asked the court, however, to in
I Ftruct the jury to render a verdict for
of ththe defendant Mr. Lyman gave sew
1epotaeral grounds for this request He said
divsthat no proof of death us provided by
the Rthe bylaws had boen furnished to the
Britisassocation: that the death claims were
tnot made in proper form and at once;
will, sthat the plaintiff had not proved that
of inlhe was the beneficiary; that certain
all pGnswers in the application had been
intertshown by the plaintiff to be untrue,
port tand that under the policy they voided
Bions,the contract.
docub Mr.. Churchman contcndcd that the
by ii matter was not one Of law, hut of fact.
patt He held that it was for the jury TO
tipb pass upon.
dS Pending decision on the motion court
took recess until . 30 o'clock in the
afternoon.
In addition to the Wlckens case
there is only one other special jury case
TO come before the superior court at
this term, and that is the suit of
Wright VS.. the Wilmington City Rail
way Co. The others have been settled.
Al Thursday afternoons session
the court declined to instruct the
jury to bring in a verdict for the de-
fendant in the case of Townsend vs. tho
Commonwealth Beneficial Association
and the casa went to tho Jury without
argument. In 10 or ID minutes the
jury returned with a verdict for the
plaintiff for the full amount, Sl20
with interest, making total of Sl3l 2S
The damage case of William D.
Wickens VS.. the Mayor and Council
of Wilmington was opened about g. 30
o'clock by Andrew +. Sanborn, who is
associated with Levi G. Bird for the
plaintiff. The city was represented by
City Solicitor Robert q. Harman and
y Horace Greeley Knowles Mr.. San-
born, in opening, said the accident oc-
i Cured during the evening of June 10th,
q 1898, when the plaintiff was driving
along Pennsylvania avenue His horse
fell into bule adjoining manhole al
Broome street and he was thrown out
upon his back across the horse. Mr..
Wilckens was seriously injured and has
suffered from tho injury ever since.
The horse was rendered practically
worthless and the carriage was dam
aged.
Mr.. Sanborn stated that they would
show that the hole was caused by the
direct act and negligence of the city.
Some weeks before the time of this ac
tion sewer had been built in thai
vicinity. They would show that thu
manhole had not been properly rammec
and packed and on that account the hoit
had been made.
William b. Carswel, a civil engineer
presented plot of the road-b bed a
Pennsylvania avenue and Broome street
. The plaintiff told the story of thu
accident. He was driving along thu
svenGe and had turned out little 4
let another carriage pass, when hi
horse stumbled and fell and he wa
thrown out on its rump. His little ho,
was thrown under the carriage. Wit
ness carried the boy to neighhor'i
house. He afterwards found that hi
whip had boen ierked from the whil
socket and he went back to hunt it
I1e lOunu u III inc nOle WneTe lus dcti
dent occurred. The hole was abou
two feet deep. There had been raj
that evening.
Upon cross examination by Mr.. Har
man the witness said he saw a re-
light about II feet from the manhoe
The red light was on barrel. Their
was also lamp light on tho corner
He did not notice an embankment nea
the red light. He denied that he ha
said to John Matthews there was
light over the manhole and he did nc
see the hole because the light cast ii
shadow into the hole.
I Upon redirect examination he declal
pd there was no warning. He ha
noticed men at work on sewer u
Broome street, but saw no eXcav1tio
on Pennsylvania avenue.