The Savannah morning news., 1900-08-07
SAYS HE NEVER SIGNED 1T.
MRS. WOODBRIDGE PRODUCED RE
CEIPT IN FULL.


Signature Is His, but He Never saw
the Body of the Instrument Be-
.fore-Charges and Counter Charges
the Order of the Day in City Court.
| Counsel WrangIed over Introduce
tion of Evidence-PIaintiR and De-
PENDANT Once Engaged to BE Mar
ried.
With constant clashes between counsel
for plaintir and defendant to the ac-
compartment of pointed questions, pro-
vcking spirited answers from Witnesses
and with succession of charges and i'm
putations Of conduct. improper to say the
least of it, the case of Drought against
Woodbridge was continued on trial in the
City Court yesterday.
The introduction of evidence on behalf
of the plaintiff was begun during the
morning SESSION and was concluded with
out sensational incidents. 1t did not pass,
however, without the clashes between
counsel, Judge H. D. D. Twiggs and Mr..
Francis NJ Oliver. representing the plain
tiff, and Mr.. w. R. Leaken. representing
the defendant. These were many and
frequent and at times bitter.
After listening to the case for two or
three hours, Juror Charles R. Brantley
had to be excused from further service.
In the interim between the commencement
Of the trial, on last Thursday, and it's re-
sumption yesterday morning, Mr. Brantley
was SO unfortunate as to suffer severe
injury to one of his eyes. In opening a
bottle of peroxide of hydrogen a quantity
of this powerful antiseptic escaped and
flew up into his eyes. He has endured
constant agony since and upon his request
for recess until he could have his eye
treated, 1t was agreed between counsel and
the court that he should be excused per-
manently and that the case should pro-
coed with eleven Jurors.
Mrs. Woodbridge was the first witness
placed on the stand in her own behalf and
she made one of the best that
has ever been heard in the Court House.
She testified that all of the notes upon
which suit was brought were renewals
of earlier notes that had been given by
herself TO the plaintiff to enable him to
extricate himself from the financial diff
culties in which he was then plunged.
She had known the plaintiff, Mrs
Woodbridge testified, for a number OF
years, and she then trusted him implicit
ly. She had the fullest confidence in his
honesty and integrity, and she did not
harbor a thought but that he would treat
her with every consideration and with
perfect justice and fairness. Therefore
when he told her that if she would ex-
ecute certain notes il would aid him to
tide over his difficulties. she had CON
scented to do so. He promised her then,
she said. that he would return these notes
TO her in few days, and that she would
in any event be fully protected from all
loss. He had brought these first notes
to her home, and they had been destroy.
ed in her presence, and she had executed
others. These also had been destroyed
ana so the chain had been kept up from
1898 to the present time.
Then came the first sensational incident
of the trial
will you look at this paper, Mrs.
Woodbridge" said Mr. Leaken land tell
me if you recognize it?" Counsel there
upon handed an oblong piece of paper TO
the witness, which she scanned delbera te-
ly through her glasses
Il recognize it," she said 'as a paper
executed in my home at Sanford. in June,
1898. by A E. Drought He had come
there 20 ask me to execute a note for
his accommodation, and l had refused TO
do so until the notes had already given
him, and which I thought still in his
possession had been destroyed. He told
me that he had destroyed them himself.
with the exception of one note that had
been sent by mistake to bank in Tam
pa. and insisted that he give me a GER
tificate TO this effect. After several re-
ceipts for the notes I had given had been
written, which were unsatisfac tory in
form and substance to me. / wrote myself
the paper that l hold in my hand and ne
signed it,"
Here Mrs. Woodbridge read the paper
to the jury. 1t was a rather clumsily
worded receipts for all Indebtedness due
by her to Drought. a statement that notes
she had given him had been destroyed.
and release from any promise 20 paw
money she had ever made him. To say
That il came as a staggering blow to
counsel for the plaintiff would put II mild
~. but they recovered Immediately and
the trial of the case proceeded. The re-
celpt. or whatever ii was, was dated, June
Is, 1898.
Answering questions addressed to her
by Mr.. Leaken, Mrs. Woodbridge stated
that she had never given a note to
Drought for any other purpose than for
his accommodation; that, though she had
often borrowed sums of money from him.
during her long acquaintance with him.
no notes had ever been given to cover or
secure them, and that they had always |
been repaid.
Mr. Oliver conducted the oss-examina-
ton of the witness for the plaintiff. Mr.. |
Oliver brought out the fact that at one |
time plaintiff and defendant were engaged |
to be married and that in consequence |
their relations were most closely intimate |
and personal. On this account. said the
witness, she would have helped and as
sisted the plaintiff in every possible wav
that she could. She had tried to do so |
in many instances.
While the sparring between Mr.. oliver |
ana the witness was still in progress,
counsel for the plaintiff asked that a re- |
cess be taken until the afternoon, and the
request was granted
Mrs Woodbridge was again on the stand |
when the trial was resumed. She denti-
ned number of letters that were shown
her as having been written by herself to
Drought. The reading of these letters
seemed to afford her good deal of amuse-
ment. for she read them through. with
a grim smile on her face. At the conclu-
sion of Mrs. Woodbridge's evidence. the
defendant rested.
The plaintiff was then placed on the
stand in rebuttal, and the receipt that had
been offered in evidence on behalf of the
plaintiff was shown him.
Did you sign that paper?" asked Judge
Twiggs
Well" answered the witness. "the sig
nature looks too much like mine for me
to deny 1t, though IL is not my usual
signature. but never signed this paper