The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-12-10
is TIE HEN REAL ESTAThf
TUE KN0TTY QUESTION THdT SET
An MAINE 10 GUESSING.

eddy Dropped by the partte. ~ tssue.
EAST BucKspoRT Me. Dec .a-The Hill
Oliver feud which has been raging With moro
OF less Intensity Tor sx yrara causing great
amusement among the neighbors and bringing
the HIN and Oliver families into the police court
two or three times year, has bren settled on, Of
court AMI Did an Oliver. p'ns'oncr Of tho
Civil war. has retired to his camp In the woods
to work on his superliuous enrrgirs snaring reb-
bits and shooting deer As the story II the trouble
occupies many pages Of the county cour, record.
and az the trouble itseif has ve1rd Judges and
lawyers and furnished subject for d, bate since
1894. nearly everybody in eastern Maine had
become q partisan Of one side or the Other. and
had expressed an opinion uron the matter that
would efIrctuay disaualify him from jury ser
vice whenever the caae came up for trial.
The family quarrel bcran away back twelve
or fifteen years ago when Hill. a yourE farm'r
Of the town, married divers daughter Many.
The FIRST quarrel was over a mater Of family
discipline. One day when HIS son and Ohvrs
grandson. Master Henry Oliver HILL had ben
soundly whipped by his father. old man Oliver
intrrferrd. and was chokrd for his trouble. Tho
Judge had no sooner acquitted I'm on the charge
Of assault and battery Than Oliver turn'd his
dog lpos~ among Hilis hens The deg he'd Killed
thru hens and filled the barnynrd with feathers
from other hens that were not dead, when HI
apparel IN thu so-n-> killed the dog and knorkrd
his fath"rin.law over knnh"rsr, furnishing
the old man with vacation Tor two weeks
As soon as oliver was able In get 10 lawyers
Office he hal his .on.in Law arrested Tor assault
and battery. and brought a civil suit against
him for DESTROYING pinp-rty belonging To Oliver.
praised value o $40 Hill paid his iine in the
$3.50 anil casts awarded to Oliver Tor the lnss ~
his dog. Then hc brought sui, against his 'nthcr:
by Jury verdict against Hni was returned or
81 10 with 500 additional In costs or killing
divers and Oliver was asks,i TO nay 81 ~, o.
to,k his case 10 the 'ull bench on excel lions
nli"rinr that one o. the Iurvmcn who heard the
wss, lhcre'or-. rrcjuiicrd he also claimed ,hn,
Oliver was owing another iuryman Tor barrel
OF hard cider n9ught tour years hr IRE. an hnI
| Hil'seSr"niirns were aged and com monrlaco
divers were intricate and novel emo, Oh 10 msle
up the deficiency. There isn cenluty-old dia.
pu,e among the lawyers 81 Maine as to Just w. at
constitutes personal Property lnil lew
dogs no man could assess damages ioi the loss
Of his dog. decision rendered in 1887 declaring
tina, I'll dogs were in the nature Of Wild animals
In which no person could legally claim owner.
shin The act o. 1893 having made PERSONAL
propcrty ~ dogs II was inferred thni ell animals
witch a man had about his pHcc--wi the pos
SINE exception ~ rats and n,ice--wc personal
prprv - sing thci' suit on the act Of 1893.
which says tho, H." own-,s o dogs she'll be ~.
spnnsihlr fnt all damages which they commit
uron sheep and nthrt domestic animals Hin md
hislawyrra believed they had clean reae geirst
Oliver, but when the exceptions were filed. asking
for a new trinl. il was founi ;ha, Oliver and his
! lawyers claimed that hens were mot domestic
animals ,h-re'n,r 'hey wr's not nrnre,y, nsnCe'
| could kill hens without comin- under the han o.
the laws In support ~ their size Of the e.se
| tIyri's LAWYERS cited two decisions from the
| Maine reports which declared thst doves were
vii animals. 'or the slnyinG ~ which no dnmrVrs
NO owner cnuli b~ held rcs,orsib,e I, ihcr-'"rr
sr~m-d to follow thst a dove wns Wild animal
! q hen must b" Included In IN" SAN" lass
while the pu' lic ~ la'gr was talking about hons
! hr1 ,a'es ard N = 'u'rrs wee rct'rCrirr ,teir
decision 10 know how the pcorl- fcl, The subject
| Oliver was k""Di"r up his VA IN liill's hen, nnf
The costs ha' swrll"d IN about ~ nnO m each side
e,a both mon taw f,,rctal ruiz IN the neH' fntu-e
this loud and settled "vrrv'ti-r ",c"r, The lcrnl
! standing OF q hen. Oliver hcinE h of rheumatic
a p-ac'ice NJ killing Hil's t-rs with a 'ho,run,
Ait-r he had killed mo-" y 81 tmr'rc,' I'D Gnt
wife 10 cna1 he, 'n,h-' to hnrk lo win" he STAYED
at home IN hiIe the oil mans run ON his
,r,nrn Olive Scc." his ION IN law ., the rIirr
laugh Then Oliver did ash tt,,s ~"
took down Ms OH rr"rzl" loading Sn-i3rnc,t
-ccn.,-n v-- Jrr lnl -fv.- don't h-irr 10,
gun hack so car shoe, vow, hos IN stop killing
TN"rgh h. wat apnar.ntlv lavish 4, ,~ra, *.
pen ''u-e oiiv-r was o. swing disrosrinn
fv- o. six y"s;, ,e,o-. whom IN hsd !. com. 10
don-vard Ov"- bad loni"d HE nrnv 'in~ with
a slur Ard two hrctsho, r'"rdirc. 10 stoo, u"
the pcn he hcI NJ, the -iHc hack m he books
reTa-kinV: Y c"n' drcv Ne chn.ro and ~
ding and viii MT Il awnv md k~~r it .cy.n
y.ars. von'l ND !, COM. IN very handy So III
! M soo,-- bad Olive ln~v--s r-ernrcd 'f-i,
cns- cl-n-lv than Hi'l's law-".s cav. 'o-wn-t
With a decision ,rndc,rd In 1853 which emrNn!.
lie =, a. q n \ FCr SIC erir ii
and that 4 n,nr who owr"' \ r Inse was mo-nllv
and l"~,,lv hour' to cn-e Tor the same and sec
II, thu II committed no '"c'rsss
/ The ilu-rnHnn ~ icN the l"ra' ssn-chli~h's
ha1 cast rpor tie subject was sr-end ell ovr- ~
-ooi reason tNnt rooee which warAcred from
acld 10 rasrr-- s,d from hook ~ po-' having
no.',"1'icr 70 line t"-cr' VS. dc-'",ic r'i-,'l;
OF a hen which never v-r' 'ar from hore and
which p-oA"r"d lag" au'n'ih-s o. rev laid ..rr.
the CONTROVERSY a-r-r"t win eounl lo~lc And 81.
r"-or 'n-c~ that dov"s md h"rs hsd "ir'i's- tnhs
TN~r made rh"ir tor-e In ro-ior ~ tho farm
buildings. and never vc,rr's.ilv ?, it'rd their
place NJ residence. During ~" dhv'irr- ho,h
wandered swaT "a, .nonrh , to nn'.ln sue such ,ood
Al riph''sll In o-de' 10 k""r i~r. ard doves
from Starving nwnv 'hev mus ~ cor"-"d hv h--;
procured and p-opnoa,ed to- his own rl"nsu-- or
profit So was a hen Th-r"fo'", law which
snn ~. .on W "a" nv .T. to A. Sr oS., aefo.s
tn. law all hon. should be equal 10 all doves and
all doves IN all hens
Rr'o-e the mi, h~nch could ret ABOUND ~ act
upor the sno~al~d chs~s The question entered irtc
local politics md Srl~ctrr-r in a do-"r or moe
towns were elected nr defeated according 10 how
ama'o-tv ~ the voto-s fel' nm N. suhIect ~ con
sidrrinR hens "a do,"s'c nrmnie Thou~h
most of the farmars believed hons 10 Ne na-sonnl
property because th~v could hc houVht and sold
the SANE ~ shrap the Olive- hrNrch NJ the f~,i1
suy-ested that the same a-~u,ncnt wouli hnnly
e1r>llv wnll n dov~S and hiut~i that n II we-,
ONCE legally established that hens were pron~-,v
the Snte would nrocrrd to tax them Ash Main,
farmer fears m rSt-a Iay moe 'ha, a,-thin~ hu,
death most NJ The Sel"c'men "l"ct"' we've nardsa
Of Oliver and. thrv proceeded IN MI the INV hoxes
with names NJ Oliver svrrsthi,"rs so " thc case,
ev-r came m TO- now trial Htll and his follower.
z would have no chance ~ winning
While The nP"l nile was aervine ont irs tim,
until there should come ur~ for what |, h,'
Inside. the vcnm NJ The room in which II W.,
HANGING had h-"n adding new LAYERS ~ rust u
the barrel cnr'ine the ou'si 'e with uniform r-r
ard corrodn~ The inside un'il the rinr w"r
full As lIl turned ~ run for safety DIV"
/ r,ia~d the gun. took hnstv Elm and pullrd n,
trigger, after which hr didn't remcrh-T snv'hins
for three weeks On coming IN himself he SOW
The room WIS spn'err' md sca red In m-n'
pisces, while broken I rh's ~ glass In The win
! dows wrrr rrndrd with rnprr and old garments
when he 'riei move he found his right arm
nud shoulder we've held fss' In A plaster ems, mn
his face md neck wer- kept In natural Rhap