Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1913-05-21

the men to 20 to it. That they then
went to work and tore out the gate
and the boards at the side of the
ditch and cut off the posts that were
set into the banks on each side.
Mrs Stevenson claims that the
gate was built after the manner of
erecting gates as suggested by State
, Engineer French.
Ben Sherman testified that the gate
! was constructed SO that it did not
work on a hinge, but slid up and down
and could be pulled out at the top
! The gate, it seems, had weights on
| it so that it could be raised or low
cred like the sash of window. The
weights were made of buckets filled
with stones.
Some of the questions and answers
in the testimony of Ben Sherman
were very interesting, and are given
here substantially:
@. What do you do for a living?
A. Most anything ! can get to do.
@. What is your general occupa-
tion?
A. That depends on the job | get.
Q. You have been a negro min.
strel haven't you?
A. Yes.
Q. Well then, that is your gener-
al occupation, isn't it?
A. When ! am a negro minstrel,
my general occupation is a negro
minstrel.
Q. Do you know Miss Clara True?
A. Well, | have a slight acquaint.
ance with her.
Q. How did they go at the gate?
A. Miss True came there with her
gang of Indians, armed with crow
bars, picks, axes, hammers and shov-
els. | protested, and said if Miss
True tore out that gate it would be
at her own risk. She said that she
would take the risk and said Go at
it boys!" They chopped it down and
slid out the gate and threw it on a
pile.
Mr.. Sherman testified that the tim
her from the gate was some OF it
broken, the posts We're cut off and so
forth. On cross examination Mr. |
Crist, attorney for the defense, want /
ed to show that the material for the |
gate was placed in pile on the bank, I
and not injured.
@. You say the timbers were put
on pile,
A. No, They were thrown on a
pile.
Q. What is the difference between
thrown and put
A. Well if you put an egg on the
table, that's one thing; if you throw
it there, that's another Something
happens to the egg
In the cross examination Mr. Crist
andeavored to show that the gate that
Mrs. Stevenson had built might fall
1own and close the ditch. Sherman
to show that the gate
lad weights that held ii up the same
as a window remains up when 1t is
'aiscd.
@. Could not the gate fall down?
A. No.
Q. Well, if person took the
weight off the pulleys could not the
gate go down and back up the water?
A. No. because in addition there
vas a prop under the gate for extra
|
@. Well. if a person removed the
,rop would not the gate come down?
A. OF course, just like a house
would fall down if you took the
,ricks out of the foundation.
Some very amusing testimony was
,iVen by Sherman as to how Miss -,
rue tried to get him to work in the ,,
1ater, at the time that she was re- -.
airing the ditch where the gate had
een torn out, in obedience TO the
rider OF the court. He said he did Y
ot mind her, but sat on the bank q
nd chewed tobacco. He claimed !
hat after she had nagged him he did |
ffer some suggestions as to how :
hey might repair the ditch, but that :
hey did not carry them out and that
Iiss True tried to Ounce" him. Ask +