Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1916-11-24
cHANoERY HEARINGS ENDED.
Verdict for Lumber Company Stands
Foreclosure Case Involves Property
in West Brattleboro.

Judge Leighton P. Slack of the
superior court, who presided at the
September term of the Windham coun.
ty court, came here Monday after
noon to open session of the chancery
court in the Office of the county clerk,
F. d. e. Stowe. Before taking up his
chancery cases he heard with Assistant
Judges F. B. Pier and +. l.. Hastings
arguments for and against motion to
set aside the verdict for the defendant
in the case of Richard b. Reed against
the Ilium Lumber Co.
In this case, which was tried at the
September term of the court, the plain
tiff sued for $3.50 alleged to have been
due on verbal agreement with one of
the officers of the lumber company. The
plaintiff claimed that he was first en-
ployed by an Independent contractor
for the company on a lumber job and
that when he could not obtain what was
due him from the contractor he stopped
work. He claimed that on verbal
agreement with an officer Of the com
pany, to the effect that the company
would pay him if he would continue
work, he continued but had not been
paid for his labor. The jury was out
five hours and returned n verdict for
the defendant company.
The motion to set aside the verdict
was based on the fact that one of the
Jurors who heard the case. B. f. Morse.
was brother-in-law of A. E. Cudworth,
one of the counsel for the defendant
company. The motion was argued by
F. E. Barber for the plaintiff and By
F.. G. Archibald of Manchester for the
defendant company. The court, after
a consultation, declined to set aside the
verdict and denied the motion.
Judge Slack took up that afternoon
the chancery case of Earl and Nellie Simp-
son of Windham against Peter Penor of
the same town and the counter suit
brought by Mr.. Penor, who is the grand
father of Mrs. Simpson. o. b. Hughes
appeared for Mr. and Mrs. Simpson and
II. B. Chase of Chase G. Chase for Mr.
Penor.
The suits have grown out of dispute
over possession of farm. The Simpsons
claim they were asked by Mr.. Penor in
1911 to move to his farm and care for
him in his old age and that he promised
to deed the farm to them in return for
their care of him and his farm. They
claim that matters moved along smoothly
until he left the farm and brought suit for
ejectment in the municipal court. They
brought in turn a suit in equity seeking
to have the ejectment proceedings stopped
and to compel Mr.. Penor to give them the
deed to the farm as they allege the agree
ment called for He filed a cross bill in
which he denies that he ever agreed to
give them deed of the farm, but alleges
that they came there and compelled him
to leave. He asks an accounting of the
profits of the farm during the years the
Simpsons have been on it,
The case taken up Wednesday was
that of the Sugar River Savings bank
of Newport, n. H., against Lura s.
Fisher and Roscoe Fisher of West Brat
tleboro.e This is a foreclosure proceed
ing in which the bank claims that the
foreclosure of mortgage on property
in New Hampshire did not pay within
5000 the amount of the mortgage, and
it started foreclosure proceedings on
property of the defendants in Brattle-
boro. The defendants in their answer
have set forth that there is no mort
gage on their property here.
Attorney A. F. Schwenk appeared for
the bank and Attorneys F. d. +. Stowe
and W. r. Daley for the defendants.
The session ended Wednesday after
noon. Judge Slack has not announced
any decisions.