The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1909-07-19
FARMERS WILL
RENEW BATTLE
ON SHELTERS
Officials of SeIby Company Are
Accused of Violating
Court Injunction
SOIanO AgricuIturists Claim the
Damage From the Deadly
Gases Is Unche cNed

Battle between the farmers of Solano
county and the seay sneE1in g and lead
company. the California unit of the
Gugeenheim "smelter tTustf' involving
contest OF years standirg, has re-
3pened in the courts ,of. Solaslosand Ala
media counties.
Charges that the sme&sr company
and its officials have violatad for a year
the prohibitory injunction of the So
lano county court against continuance
Of operation Of the plant, in so far as
the giving off Of destructive gases and
fumes is concerned. nave been made.
These complaints have ben followed
by a citation directing the Selby COM
pany and its officials TO appear Tues
day before Judge A. J. Buckles at Fair
field to show cause why they should
not be punished for contempt of court.
Collateral proceedings have also been
taken in the superior court of Alameda
county. under which Prof. T. @. Cottrell
Of the chem istry department. of the
University of California has been sub
penaed to give deposition in Oakland
today touching upon tne charges which
have been made in the contempt pro-
ceedings Cottrel as fhe inventor of
an apparatus for controlling the noX-
ioUs fumes and gases, will be called
10 answer questions as 10 the eff
cheney Of the device. and. the extent TO
which il has been used by the smeIter
company
GASES Not CHECa1E
on the farmers side the contention is
made that The smeIeer company has not
applied any apparatus that has been
effective ip eliminating the gases and
fumes. which have Tor years, it is
claimed. destroyed farm products and
animals in z large region OF the bay
district in Solano county.
The contempt order has been directed
against the smelber company and the
following officers and directors: Pres
ideni H. B. Upderhiu: vice president
and general manager. Eugene b. Bra
zen; assistant s,tpes-i ntendent z. y En-
gelhardt; direct0rs-W. H. Chickering's
George u. Whipple
The ac1Ol reopens the contest which
has been waged since 1905 by
Barge nunlsoes Of soiano county farmers
against the snelrer trust. Their fight
was based upou the claim that noxious
fumes and gases from the plant had
virtually ruined their lands for agricul-
tural purposes. had destroyed livestock
and threatened TO force abandonment
If their properties. Originally suit was
brought in the name Of the people of
the state Of California against the
Seiby works to declare the works a
public nuisance and perpetuaIIv enjoin
The operation Of the plant between the
middle Of March and the middle of No
rembsr each year during the preva-
lence of the trade winds. unless The
e ses and fumes were eliminated
The suit was bitterly fought before
Judge Harrier at Fairfield In July.
1907, he rendered an opinion perpetu-
ally enjofning the company from OBJ
Grating the smelter during the specific
months uTUess il eliminated any sui
phErous or other noxious gases and
smoke.
NOT ENFORCED
In law this decision was not effect
IKE until judgment had been rendered
The supervisors of Solano county re-
quess ed Judge 8arrIer to render judg-
ment. which he dhd in July, 1905. The
smelaer company made preparations TO
move for a new trial. but meanwhile
81 was asserted by the farmers that
the injunction was not enforced and
that the nuisance continued.
After waiting year, almost TO
day Charles B. Den1ing, one of So
lsnO cOunty's prominent ranchers and
= prime mover in the fight against the
smeIter company. secured through his
attorney, Thomas B. Sullivan of this
city, the order to show cause in con-
tempt proceedings Deming is backed
BY a large number of the Solano county
farmers who were behind the original
contest.
IT is asserted by the farmers that
Cottrelrs apparatus for control of the
gases is not installed on the FIVE large
-
il is declared. that from I6 to 25 tons
Of sulphurous acid. sulphuric acid and
arsenic fumes and gases are daily
emitted from the smelter and carried
over the complainauts' lands