Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1911-06-30
COUNTY COURT.
Adjourns After Session Lasting
Three Weeks.

The case of Howard Haseltine VS.
Alfred Phelps, appellant, was engaging
the attention of the court when our re-
port was closed last week. In this
case the plaintiff, who is Bristol man,
sued for damages in an unnamed amount
from the defendant for alleged false
representations in the sale of horse,
which the plaintiff bought last October
from the defendant for $3.50 and which
the defendant guaranteed to be a
steady animal, good driver and a
good work horse, but which, according
to the plaintiffs testimony, proved to
be unsteady and unreliable, with ten
dency towards baking.
The testimony for Mr.. Hasseltine
was completed Wednesday forenoon
and the testimony for the defense,
with little rebuttal evidence, was got
in before the recess for the night on
Wednesday and the arguments to the
jury were all completed Thursday fore
noon, the court going in half an hour
earlier than usual. Attorney Murray
Bourne of Bristol led off for the plain
tiff and Jasper G. Page of the same
town made the opening plea for De-
fendant Phelps. He was followed on
the same side by Frank L. Fish of
Nergennes and then came M. G. Leary
of Burlington with the closing argu
ment for Plaintiff Hasseltine. The
pleas were all brief but strong and able
efforts and received close attention
from large audience. Judge Water
man gave the case to the jury in
charge of 20 minutes length at II
0 clock, and at three O'Clock in the
afternoon the jury came in with a
verdict for the plaintiff, which was
that he recover $25 damages and his
costs. Gideon w. Norton of Addison
was appointed by the court foreman of
this jury. 1t is not likely that there
will be any appeal in this case.
All the jurymen not engaged on the
horse case panel were excused at noon
Thursday until nine O'Clock Tuesday
morning, as were also the members of
the panel Immediately after their ver
dict had been announced.
A divorce case having some peculiar
features was heard Thursday aftel
noon, the case being that of John A.
Bliss VS. Catherine M. Bliss. These
parties were married at Lake Placid,
N. Y, January l, 1903. They lived
together at Lake Placid for about
year and then without assigning any
reason, Mrs. Bliss abandoned her hus
band and with her infant child returned
to the home of her parents. Although
repeatedly importuned she steadily re-
fused to return to live with her hus-
band, and after while Bliss strayed
over into Vermont and has worked at
various times in Ferrisburgh Bristol,
and New Haven and is now employed on
a farm in Bridport. The petitioner was
the only person to give oral evidence in
the case, but several dispositions from
residents of Lake Placid were introduced,
as were certified records from the office
Of the city clerk of Burlington which
showed that in November, 1908, the
petitioner, under her maiden name of
Catherine Murray, was married in that
city by Minister Brown to one Alfred
Hathaway, without waiting for death
/ or divorce to sever the existing bonds
of matrmony. The court did not hes
itate to decide the case and Immediately
gave the husband a divorce upon the
double ground of desertion and adultery.
The child, now seven years old, is in
the custody of the mother and no
orders were made in regard to it, as
the woman is without the jurisdiction of
the court. AS the irony of fate would
have it, the husband of the second