The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-01-10
A BIG VERDICT AGAINST ROAD Memphis & Illinois Cen tral Hard Hit. s APPEAL TO SUPREME COURT Question is as to Classification of
 Clay and Rock. 
 Contracting Firm Alleges That Road Has Not Compiled With Com tract--Enormeu. Amount of
 Evidence Taken.
 
APPEAL TO SUPREME COURT

Russellviile, Jan, s--tspeciaD-The iong legal battle between the Tally Bates Construction Company of Mem phis and the Illinois Central Railway Company, ended here last night, at least so far as this court is concerned, with verdict for the plaintiff (con- tractors) against the railroad for S250.- GOO. The amount sued for was $36l,- 900.
 The Tally Bates Construction Com pany of Memphis, in filing the suit alleged that they contracted to grade a road bed for the defendant company. from Red Bay on the Mississippi-Ala- bama line to ynear Haleyville, dis tance of nearly thirty miles. For this they were to be paid at the rate Of twenty-eight and one half cents for earth and $1.00 per cubic foot for solid rock excavation. that they moved a total of 1,162,oO yards of material of which about 350.000 was classified and paid for as solid rock, the balance as earth. They claimed that a very large portion was enormously classi- fled, hence the suit was practically for different classification. After set ting the pieadings, which required about five days. 1t was-apparent that the contest hinged on how hard clays and sands should be classified. whether as solid rock or earth. "all other excavation" as the company's specifi- cations defined. Quite a number of ex- perts, embracing the chief engineers of half dozen big systems, were carried over the work and brought here to testify.
 As to classification. quite an array of witnesses was brought in by each side. many of them being held here for a considerable portion of the month, which was consumed by the trial
 The jury evidently adopted the plain tiff's view of the ease and decided that hard clay and sand should be classed as rock. The cost has been something enormous to both sides. as each had a host of witnesses on hand many brought from a distance. The jurors on this one case drew something over $500 from the county for their services. The Circuit Clerks cost for tram script for the Supreme Court. 1t is said, will exceed $1,50O. It Is said the case will go to the Supreme Court on the plea set up by the defendant and overruied by the lower court here, that the Tully-Bates Construction Company. a foreign corporation, had not complied with the Alabama laws in entering the State, as they had failed to file a cer- tificate of incorporation with the Sec- retary of State or procure a license to do buHinoss,fn the State. This plea was overEiled by the Circuit Judge here, or rather counter plea was set up that the outlawed corporation had transacted no business in Alabama, all being done by independent sub contractors, whose contracts were made in Memphis and who were .n no sense prohibited from transacting such business In Alabama. Evidence was introduced contesting' this claim, which will finally be passed Ons by the Supreme Court.
 SiXtV-thrQa faaohara Wara here yesterday, Professor McRight holding the examination.