The San Francisco call., 1897-10-17
The Threatened War Will Now
Result in Big Lawyers
Battle.
RIVAL FORCES LAY DOWN THEIR ARMS,
The Harbor Board Will Convene To-
Morrow Afternoon to Devise a
Plan of Action.

The Fair estate is now the aggressor in
the fight that is pending between it and
the Harbor Commissioners over the tide
land streets at North Beach. Instead of
awaiting the onslaught of Colonel Chad
bourne and his warriors from the water
front, the representatives OF the bonanza
interests slipped quietly into court last
evening, ana before the Commi ssioners
knew what had happened they were con-
fronted by an in Injunction preventing them
from carrying out the threatened cam
paign of physical force. The battle will
thus be fought out by the lawyers, while
the waterfront sweepers and Warren &
Malley's piIe-drivers may lay down their
arms and fraternize over the foaming
steam.
While the Harbor Commissioner were
busy yesterday afternoon discussing all
sorts of strategles to capture the fortress
at North Beach the attorneys for the
executors of the Fair estate were busy
drawing up lengthy recital of protests
against the threatened invasion of the
submerged flats at the foot of Devisadero
street. Shortly after 5 O'Clock Garret
MCEnerney appeared in Judge SIack's
court with a petition for an injunction
against the Harbor Commissioners aud
the officers of the Pacific Gas Improve
NJ ent Com pany, restraining them from
removing any of the piles or material
from the North Beach mud1ats.
Il was a plain, civil action in its nature,
and by way of filling in a gap at the end
the Fair people asked for $40 900 damages
from the other side. Judge Slack at once
issued an injunction, and the bonanza
lawyers saw 10 it that no time was lost in
serving copies of it upon the enemy
Colonel Chad bourne was found at dim er
in the grill-room, but the service of the
order seemed to in no way disturb his
meal. Major Harney was discovered
at midnight and after that the Fair people
went TO bed happy, while Warren &
Maliey hauled out the fires in the tugs
and piledrivers at North Beach. Thus
was the threatened war converted into a
court squabble.
The com plant filed by the Fair lawyers
is mainly recital of their claims to title
to all the tide fats in the inlet extending
from Octavia to Baker street. By way of
beginning 1t is stated that In all the early
maps of the city, including the Van Ness,
Engineers and Humphreys maps, the i'll
let appears as subdIyIdeI into streets in
accordance with an act of the Legislature
in 1855 authorizing the city TO dedicate
these streets to the pu bic.
Although the lands within the inlet
have been oveTfowei by the waters of the
bay, the complaint declares that the
waters are not navigabe for practical
purposes, but constitute a submerged
plat similar to that part of the city east
and south OF Webster without the line OF
original bigh-water mark and within the
line of the present seawalI and water
front line. The depth of the water on the
territory on dispute is given as ranging
from one to seven feet.
The waters are declared to have never
been used for navigable purposes exec ut
for barges OF very light draft. Accord
ing to the complaint the inlet as a SUBJ
merged fat, IS a detriment to commerce
and dangerous to vessels, whereas, if it
was filled in according to the plans de-
vised by the bonanza king, there would be
provided water front of over one mile in
length which VIII be accessible to deep
water vessels.
Warren IL Malley began the work of
filing in 1885, and the Fair estate has al
ready expended $l50,000 according to the
complaint.
Then follows a recital of various resolu.
tlons adopted by the Supervisors grant.
ing permission to the Fair people to grade
different portions of the streets in the
tract.
In conclusion the plant reads:
That by reason OF the threats of the defen dants
1t has been nece ssary for these plaintiffs main-
tain force for the protection of this property and
that tney VIII be obliged te continue maintain
force OF men capable OF resisting the threatened
unlaA ful usurpation and exercise of power by the
Defendant officials, aid and abetted by the indi-
Fidual and corporate defendants.
The defendants are accused of having
stories pu blished in the newspapers that
tend to cast cloud upon the Fair title TO
property worth 81, 500, coo. The omplaint
also declares that the bonanza interests
have already been damaged to the extent
of $40, 600.
Then follows the petition for the re-
stralnlng order, which is directed against
the three Harbor Commiss loners, Presi-
dent Albert Miller of The gas company
and several John Does and Richard Roes
Ihe twenty-four hours notice which the
Iom mmlssoners ordered served upon the
various represen ntatiyes of the Fair estate
ls stllI TO some exCtnt a dormant docu-
ment. The work OF serving it upon the
various representatives of the bonanza
Interests was intrusted by the board to
Chief Wharhnger Root, and that Official
has found that the work of Deputy
Sheriff is something of a game of Logging.
Some OF the parties who should receive
copy of the summons seemed to have
scattered like flock of frightened quail.
w. S. Goodfellow and R. e. Carothers.
two OF the executors of the Fair estate.
were not discovered. Carothers has been
IN New York for two weeks and Goodfel-
low had business out of town. Root was
on the chase all day yesterday, but as far
as actually accomplishing anything he
might as well have remained on the water
front. OF course the actual service of the
order is mere technicalitv.
The HarbOr Commissioners will hold
special meeting tomorrow afternoon to
consider the new turn affairs have taken
and at the same time gest the opinions of
the Attorney General anG TREY L. Ford,
the legal advi er of the boari, which were
filed with Secretary Keegan yesterday.
In some respects these opinions diverge
from that OF Fred S. Stratton, and the
Commissioners are now somewhat at ssa
as to how they may proceed.