The weekly tribune and the Cape County herald. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1914-1918, 1915-09-03
After Three Hours Delibera-
ton Nine Men Return Yer.
dict For Lumber Co.
THREE FAVORED MAN
IN $4,000 90 SUIT
Head of Company Sued Thanks
JurOrs-New Trial Is
Asked.

|
against the Campbell Lumber Com
pany by jury which returned its YER
dict in Judge Ranney's Court last
night.
The jurors deliberated for about
three hours before they were able to
arrive at verdict and when the YER
dict was returned, it was signed only
by nine members of the jury. In a
civil suit, it requires only nine of the
jurymen of the twelve to arrive at a
verdict.
Settlemoir, two years ago, was a
conductor on a logging train of the st.
Louis, Kennett & Southeastern Rail
way Co., a small road run for the con-
venience of the Campbell Lumber Co.,
in the extreme southeastern part of
the State.
While shipping car load of logs on
a flat car from small loading station
Of the lumber concerns to a stave mill
which is an adjunct Of the same firm,
Settlemoir was crushed by one of the
logs which rolled from car and
knocked him to the ground.
His suit against the lumber COM
pany and railroad jointly, was thrown
out of court at Poplar Bluff last win
ter, so that the case when refiled, one
suit against the lumber concern for
$4,000 and one against the railroad
for a similar amount, was brought be-
fore Judge Ranney on a change of
venue.
The trial of the case, the examina-
ton of witnesses and the arguments of
the attorneys required four days. The
case was given to the jury by Judge
Ranney at few minutes past o'clock
yesterday afternoon and shortly be-
fore p. m., the foreman of the jury
indicated that a verdict had been
found.
Settlemoir and his wife and two chill
dren were not present in the court
room when the jury filed back into
their box. The family had been taken
back to the Riverview Hotel, where
they have stayed during the trial of
the case.
The attorneys for both sides gather
ed about closely as Clerk d. A. Nichols
received the foreman's written verdict
and at the Judges order read the ver-
dict aloud.
1--WE, the jury in this case, have
found a verdict for the defendant"
tSigned) Foreman.
Beneath that sentence the verdict
was signed by the following members
of the jury: Henry Whitening, Samuel
Young, Albert G. Hink, L. J. Randol,
Henry Habeck, Al Kempe, August
Peetz, F. E. Mcdonald and William c.
Birkmann.
The jurymen who showed their dis
approval of the verdict by refusing to
sign the paper were: A. H. Mueller,
foreman, w. J. Sutton and Ollie
Crump.
w. D. Lasswell, president of the
lumber company and capitalist heavily
interested in the railroad, sprang to
his feet as the clerk read the verdict
and after Judge Ranney had dismissed
the jurors, he profusely shook hands
with each member, thanking them at
the same time individually and col
lectively.
Senator Thomas F. Lane, one of the
leading attorneys for Settlemoir, i'm
filed a motion for new
trial of the case.
This motion will be argued before
the Court at the next term of cour..
The plaintiff now has suit for $780, |
900 pending against the railroad CON-
pany which has been set over till the
next term of court.
After the verdict had been an
nounced, the foreman of the jury in
an interview with a reporter for The
Tribune declared that the jurors in re-
fusing to grant the plaintiff cent OF
damages, did so because they believed
the railroad and not the lumber COM
pany was at fault for Settlemoir's in
juries.
1--WE got at it by simply discussing
the case and rehashing it all We couic.
We had lot of instructions to go by
and we don't know much about the law
IF the whole thing, but we thought
hat when the lumber company 1eliv-
cred the car load of logs to the rai'-
road, the lumber company's respon-
'ibility ended.
an the long run, that's what the
whole thing amounted !to-finding ou.