The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-11-20

! tuition providing that the General
! Assembly shall levy q capitation tax
on every male inhabtant of the State
| over 81 and under so years of age,
which shall be equal on each to the
| tax on property valued at $500 in
| cash." applies solely to State and
| county taxation.
A town charter authorizing the levy
| Of an ad valorem tax on real and
/ personal property not exceeding one
| dollar on every one hundred dollars
worth of property and a per capita
! tax not exceeding so cents, is not in
violation of any constitutional provis-
| ion.
Howell V. Parker, appellant. From
Stanly. Error.
Where a purchaser Of land entered
after paying purchase money but
took no deed and deed was made to
his heirs at law after his death, the
purchaser acquired an equitable title
! which subjected the land to valuation
| i'm the dover allotment of the widow S
! Allotment of dover must be made
! in the county where 1.-The husband last
usually resided" and must be one
third the value Of all the land of which
he died seized and possessed, and in
clude his dwelling house.
An allotment of dover must be
made in one proceeding and by one
| allotment llOuSI Tie realty may De
! in more than one county.
Dover cannot be allotted in parti
ton proceedings but if actually allot-
ted before PARTITION its value may be
! assessed upon subsequent partition,
| and partition before allotment of dow
er is subject to the possibility of
subsequent allotment.
The provision in Section 2103 of
! The Code that allotment of dover
shall include the dwelling house in
which the husband usually resided"
! is mandatory and cannot be waived by
| the widow
] liz re Boyettc. From Lenoir. Remand
! ed to the judge.
The State has power, in providing
! for the care and treatment of insane
persons to restrain them of their lib
! erty; and an insane person may, for
! his own protection and the protection
! of the public, be temporarily confined
| for the purpose Of effecting cure,
/ without formal adjudication off his
{ insanity.
/ one who has been acquitted of
crime on the ground of insanity and
confined in the Hospital for the Dan
! gerous Insane, should be released
when his mind has been reStOred.
1t is not within the power of the
Legislature to limit or restrict in any
manner the right to the writ of
habeas corpus.
Chapter /, Public Laws of 1899,
providing for commitment Eof the
criminal insane at the discretion of
the trial court, and their discharge
only by special act of assembly, is
unconstitutional, as unjustly restrain
ing ones liberty without cue process
of law.
Notwithstanding the validity of q
statute under which an insane person
is committed to the Hospital for the
Dangerous Insane, he should not be
released until his mind is restored.
Willie III. Green, appellant V. w. L.
Telegraph Company. From Hall
fax. Reversed
Mental anguish. as an element of
compensatory damages in actions
against telegraph companies for fail
ure to deliver messages. or for negli-
eence in their delivery or transmits
sion, is not limited to cases in which
the telegram relates to sickness or
death
The failure of telegraph company
to promptly and correctly transmit
and deliver a message is a breach OF
public duty.
Where it is shown that message is
received by a telegraph company for
transmission and not delivered unit.
the next day, the plaintiff makes cut
a prima facie case, and it then de-
wolves on the company to show excuse
for such failure Sherrll's case, 116
\. G. approved.
Where d telegram is addressed to
Mrs. JnO. b. Lee. 2U10 Main street.
and in transmission the name of the
addressee was changed to Mrs.
Knoblee, 2010 Main Street" aside
from the negligence in thus changing
the name, the failure of the company
to make such inquiry at the street
lz.n,. l.
ascertain for whom the message was
intended, is evidence of negligence.
Where, as the result of a failure to
promptly deliver q message. a girl IL
years old was not met at the station
in populous city on arrival of the
train at II o'clock at night, and was
forced to ride through the streets in
an open hack with a strange negro
driven in search of the residence at
which it was intended she should
spend the night; Held that she is en-
titled to damages from the company
for mental suffering resulting there
frcm.
L. T.. Green, appellant V. w. U. Tele-
graph Company. From Halifax.
Reversed.
A telegraph company, in an action
by the sender of a message, cannot
take advantage of the fact that the
suffering complained of was due part
ly to the information contained in the
message to the sendee, which the law
required the company to send him adj
vising him of the non-delivery of a
former message, when the message
containing ouch Information is not
sent until the next day, and the OPP
portunity to avoid or mitigate the eff
feet of the company's failure to de-
liver the first message is gone.
Even if the message, advising the
sender of the non-deliVery of his for
mer message, had been sent promptly,
it would not effect the original negli-
gence of the company, but would only
go in mitigation of damages.
Where a father, the sender of a
message, is advised on the following
day that a message requesting some
one to meet his daughter, a girl of
16, upon her arrival at II o'clock at
night at a railroad station in a popu-
louS city, has not been delivered, he is
entitled to recover damages from the
company for the mental suffering
caused by the negligent failure to de-
liver his message.
Nothing warns up the congregation
like cold facts from the pulpit.