Bridgeton pioneer. (Bridgeton, N.J.) 1884-1919, 1914-01-01
The Vineland Electric Plant
Charges Too Little.
now WANTS THE MONEY
Failed 70 Compute Eis ctric Current
Bills When Presented, and Now
Seeks to Recover Balance.
SFrom the Dally Pioneer. psc.Rlst,

Ine supreme Court issue of the
Mayor and Council of the Borough of
Vineland against the Fowler Waste
Manufacturing Company, was taken up
before Circuit Court Judge Carrow
yesterday afternoon, and a jury was
empanelled to try it. All the other
jurors were dismissed for the day.
The lawyers in the case are Henry
s. Alvord for the plaintiffs and Judge
c. V. D. Joline, of Camden, for the
defendant company.
This case has been tried before. IL
was heard at the September term, with
the same lawyers representing the liti-
gants. The amount claimed by the
plaintiffs then was $35S8.27 and the
Judge directed the jury to return
verdict for that amount, which was
done, and he then granted the defend
ants new trial, which is now in pro-
gress.
The suit is to recover from the
Fowler Waste Manufacturing Co. for
electric current used in excess of the
quantity paid for and the claim for
this excess current is $35SS27 and
still unpaid. This unpaid excess, it is
claimed, was the result of negligence
on the part of the Waste Company,
caused by incorrect reading of the
electric neter, and the consequent
submitting of incorrect bills by Vine
lan't Borough, the owner of the cleo
f II I!ans to the Waste company.
1t was agreed that the evidence sub
mitted at the last trial would be here
admitted, without repetition.
The electric meter in use at the
Waste plant was exhibited and put in
evidence, and AL. Coates, an electrician
OF the Vineland electric plant, was
placed on the witness stand to explain
the readings of the meter.
When this examination was com
pleted-which was most searching
one as to his Identification of this
meter-Judge Joline made motion
for non-suit. The motion was de-
MED.
The crux of the suit is that the
meter reads, for instance, 10 dial
equals 10 watt hours, which means
that the reading should be multiplied
by 10 and this was not done, and the
bills were therefore made out for but
one-tenth of the amount they should
have been, for the period between
April, 1910, and June, 1912.
The Borough of Vineland made
mistake in computing the charges
from the reading of the meter at but
one-tenth of the correct amount of
the current sold, and it now seeks to
recover for its own mistake.
Mr.. Fowler, president of the Fowler
Waste Manufacturing Co., was put on
the stand to show what the overhead
charges" consisted of, and how made
up, which he did by showing that such
charges as those in litigation were
used in making up the overhead
charges"
On cross-examination he said his
was capitalized at $4,000,
and that $1,000 of this stock has been
sold. Asked was his salary was, he
said it was $4,000 year. Asked what
the dividends paid amounted TO, he
said it was added to the surplus. Later
he said no inventory of this surplus
had been taken between June, 1910,
to June, 1912, and he could not tell
what it amounted to. He admitted
that his business was placed in the
hands of committee of the creditors
of the concern at the expiration of the
time in question, that is June, 1912.
This proposition was strenuously OPP
posed by counsel for the defendant,
and a motion was made by Judge
Joline to withdraw juror, for he con-
tended that the question leading up TO
such a proposition constituted a mis-
rial. The objection was overruled,
and the motion to withdraw a juror
was denied.
Mr.. Osborne, hosiery manufacture
sr. was called to explain what are
overhead charges. Mr.. Alvcrd object
ID strongly to dissertation on this |
,rh;oof not hono,,ce ho d;d ,,0e oo., q. |