Sistersville daily oil review. [volume] (Sistersville, W. Va.) 1902-1905, 1904-08-05
Suit Against Capt. Kraft

in police court by Mayor Sweeney
Wednesday morning, he went to
the City Clerks office to pay the
fine, but learning that Captain
Carney had sworn out still an
other warrant for the same of
Tense, that of permitting cattle to
remain on the Bessie Smith, to the
annoyance of guests at the Hotel
Windsor, Captain Kraft'is said to
have made the statement that the
fine must be raised to $40 for an
appeal to the criminal court, and
that he had made up his mind to
spend a hundred or two, since
there seemed to be a continuance
of what he deems persecution
of the river interests, and that he
was in position to make the prose
cutting witness meet him half way
in carrying on the suits.
The city ordinance provides
that calves shall be muzzled, or
unloaded Immediately on arrival
at the Wheeling wharf and taken
away. For a violation of this the
offender is liable to a fine of from
81 to $40. The rivermen, it APP
pears, claim they have not been
violating the ordinance, but after
unloading stock they have been
permitted to remain on the wharf
landing until the stockmen come
after them. In such eases they
have been left to fill the air with
bawling melodies for hours before
they were removed from the land
ing. Some one is to blame for
these conditions. that is quite evil
dent, but from the fact that run
ming of boats is so irregular, they
find it impossible to inform stock
men as to just the time they will
arrive at the Wheeling wharf with
cattle. On the other hand, the
stOckmen do not care to hang
around the river at all hours wait
ing for the arrival of stock. and
in some cases they do not know
whether there will be any stock
for them or not, when the boat ar
rives.
Speaking of the matter last ev-
ening Captain Carney said that it
was not because he had won the
first suit that he filed another one
but he deemed the provocation
just as great from the fact that
the Bessie Smith had stock on
board up to 7 or s o'clock yester-
day morning, having. arrived dur
ing the late hours of the night pre-
vious or very early that morning
In referring to what action he in
tended taking in the matter of the
defendant appealing the case, he
said he would fight the case
through to, the Supreme court if
necessary, and that he was deter
mined to break up the nuisance.
He said when he swore out war
rants before for similar offenses,
the cases were appealed just as
this one has been. but nothing
more was ever done in the matter.
This time he asserts he will force
them to carry on the fight, because
he believes they have been violat-
ing the city ordinance. Mr.. Car
ney states that the only object in
view was to enforce the city ordi-
nance, and that he proposes to do.
Mr.. Carney claims, as was shown
in the evidence in police court,
that rivermen have repeatedly
left stock on the boats much
longer than the city ordinances
permitted.
The present litigation will pos
sibly have a tendency to change
the situation. whereby stockmen
will feel it their duty to protect
the steamboatmen by coming to
the wharf on the arrival of stock,
and when the boats arrive they
will be careful to notify the stock
men accordingly.
The natter has stirred up the
rivermen to a white heat. and
there will probably be long legal
80