Bridgeton pioneer. (Bridgeton, N.J.) 1884-1919, 1905-12-28


For the second time the More Jonas
Glass Company is telling a Cumber.
land county jury the very serious loss
lt suffered from the big fire at it's
plant on the Fourth of last July, and
is endeavoring to prove that the West
Jersey and Seashore railroad COMPANY
is responsible by reason of running a
passenger engine by the works which
had in it defective fire screen, per.
mitting sparks to escape and settle
upon the frame roof of the More. Jonas
buildings.
Ihe More.Jonas company has It's
case in the hands of Hampton & Filth.
ian and Walter H. Bacon, while
Bourgeois & Sooy and William A.
Logue are conducting the defense for
the railroad corporation.
Those who heard the case last term.
and who followed the case Tuesday,
were impressed with the fact that the
testimony thus far produced was more
positive than previously. The import
ant result Tuesday was that the glass
company seemed to fix definitely that
the fire started from the roof and not
from the inside. 1t was also notice.
able that the glass company called one
witness who last September was a
witness for the railroad company.
1t was also apparent that the rail.
road company was to vigorously op.
ose the value Of the stock burned in
the fire, the cross-examination of Mr..
Bourgeois being directed to bring out
that large quantity of the glass de-.
stroyed was not at all valuable
The story of the evidence is told by
witnesses
Tuesday Afternoon.
Francis W. Garrison was the first
witness called to prove the maps, but
as it was admitted by counsel on both
sides that they weEe correct. his evi.
dence was not required.
W. S. Bacon. civil engineer. tssti-
fed to the dimensions of the buildings
and their distance from the car tracks.
Foster 9. Moore was called. He
had been 8 or years superintendent
of the works, and was such at the
time of the fire. He said the fires OF
the glassworks went out on the 18th
y of June. The factory was not in
operation on July 4th last. No ware
was blown at the plant between June
18th and July 4th.
Witness said he was familiar with
the wares stored in the ware sheds at
the time of the fire July 4th, and with
the tools there stored-in the building
on July 4th. He read long list of
the tools and articles which were in
the burned buildings at the time of
the fire. and also proved an inventory
of the active stock stored there, which
inventory had been completed on the
last of June and first two days of July.
Foster @. Moore continued his testi.
mony, in which he showed, from the
inventory. the amount of ware which
was not destroyed by the fire, because
this ware was in the ware shed which
was not burned.
He was given tedious cross. exami.
nation by Mr.. Bourgeois in order to
test his personal knowledge of the
tools and articles which were de-.
stroyed. In an insinuating manner
Mr.. Bourgeois asked if witness knew
how much of the Green's Nervura
order was on hand at the time of the
fire. Witness said he knew nothing
about it.
"Did you not know that g. +. q O.
E. Green had failed for about mil.
lion dollars?' he was asked, "and
the stock that mad been made up for
them was thrown back on the More.
Jonas Co. IS handsT'
He said he knew nothing about it
didn't know that the Greens had
failed. Did not know ii numerous
other large orders had been made up
and thrown back on their hands !;
among these was big order OF
ssnuffs'' which witness admitted had
been in the ware shed over three years.
The same answer was given as to the
liquozone ware-a large amount of
which had been made up and refused
for some cause, and for which suit
had been brought in Illinois by the
More Jonas %. against the Liquozone
90. for 1874, From the trend OF
the cross examination on this line it
was made to appear that all this glass
was in the ware shed at the time Of.
the fire, and was. destroyed in this
fire. " w. Z
The significance of this line of Cross
examination was not apparent, only
by inference that 1t may have de-
cided bearing on the defence. :
Francis Garrison, who was sworn at