The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1908-05-18
BIG VICTORY FOR
ATPYS CRUMPACKER
Verdict Is a Provisional One Until
Interrogatories On an Appeal to
Supreme Court of State Are Heard
and Court Renders It's Final De-
cision.

The Hammond law firm of Crum-
packer & Crumpackers secured a re-
markable verdict in the case of the
case of the Lake Shore railroad against
the Lake Shore Sand company in the
Laporte Circuit court, when the jury
awarded the defendant damages in the
aum of $4,000 for 4S.41 acres of sand
land I'm the corporate limits of Miller,
where the company is locating its large
railroad yards.
The ease was one OF the hardest ever
fought in the courts of this section and
has been ON trial continuously for FIVE
weeks. The plaintiff company was rep
resented by Gilbert r.. Call of the firm
of Knapp, Haynie & Campbell, the
United States Steel company's lawyers,
John b. Peterson OF Crown Point and
Ellsworth Weir of Lnporte.
/ Hold Out For 100000.
In the Introduction of the evidence,
witnesses from all over the region
Testified and day and half was re-
lquired by Peter Crumpacker in his re-
buttaa1. Ten of the jurors held out FOR
500, 900 and one man on the jury held
out for a smaller sum until the amount
of the award was placed at s73, O00
The verdict is a provisional one and
is held until the interogatories on an
appeal to the Supreme court Of the
state on the question of the right Of
the court to. order the condemnation Of
the property are heard and this court
renders it's decision.
The case arose over the attempt Of
the Lake Shore railroad to condemn
a strip of land along the north side
of section six for railroad purposes.
tFxo
owner of the southwest quarter section
of sand land in section six.
1t is also the owner of a quarter sec
tion of land north of the Lake Shore
road in section &c. and still farther
the lake.
1t used the Baltimore & Ohio railroad
for the purpose of shipping it's product
to market because 1t claimed the Lake
Shore railroad, which owns the In
diana Harbor railroad Disseminated
Iagainst all sand shippers In favor of
the Knickerbocker Ice company
Proof of Discrimination
In proof Of this discrimination the
fact was pointed out that the directors
of the Indiana Harbor Belt railway and
the Knickerbocker Ice company were
the same and incidentally, on complaint
of John s. Putney, secretary and treas
urer of the Lake Shore Sand company
to District Attorney Simms, the gov
ernment has begun an investigation to
determine whether the provisions of
the interstate commerce law are being
violated through this discrimination.
The position the sand company was
Iplaced in was peculiar 1t showed sand
land on both sides of the proposed Lake
Shore yards. From its connection with
it's shipping facilities, the Baltimore &
Ohio railroad, it had built and had in
operation a stub line of railroad north
ward across the Lake Shore tracks to
. the northeast quarter of section SO and
proposed to extend this line to its other
sand properties farther north.
AS soon as the Lake Shore Sand com
pany discovered that the Lake Shore
. railroad intended to build yards in the
vicinity of Miller and brought condem-
nation proceedings to purchase the striI
of 4S.41 acres of land along its right OF
! way, its officials saw that its private
, sand road would be cut in two and thai
all of it's holdings north of the yards
would be damaged because of the in
ability of the company to get it's prod.
: uct to market on the same terms as the
Knickerbocker Ice company, com.
, petitor which controlled acres of sane
land in the vicinity.
Case Being Squeezed Out.
1t was case of being squeezed out
e and the attorneys for the sand company
I determined that their clients deserved
not only fair price for the 4S.41 acre.
: condemned but also were entitled Il
: damages for the depreciation in valu,
D of its holdings to the north which
would be inaccessible should the yard.
be built.
1t was along these lines that tn,
famous case was fought for five Ions
weeks. The railroad had offered s35
ian acres for the land. the Laporte Cir
S cult court had permitted the condem
: nation of the land and appraisers ha,
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