The Duluth rip-saw. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1917-19??, 1920-01-10

A few short months ago, 500 Line
LAWYERS fought all one day in the
marble-lined courthouse, before Judge
Cant, to secure transfer Of q lot Of
damage cases, growing out of the for
est fires in October, 1918, from Carl
ton county to Duluth.
The burning desire for a change was
based on an allegation, or even belief,
that so many had been burned out in
Carlton county and SO many contem-
plated damage suits, that it was hu-
manly unreasonable to expect fair
trial before Carlton county jurors.
Judge Cant granted the motion for a
transfer of a considerable number Of
forest fire damage cases, as prayed by
the defendant 500 Line.
The first of those Carlton county
fire cases to be tried was that of Jacob
Anderson, a farmer, living on the 500
Line in Carlton county, near Moose
Lake, who was burned out October IL,
1918. He sued for a recovery of 3d.
1928.
Anderson was represented by Clinton
J. Dodge of Moose Lake and Hugh J..
McClearn of Duluth. The 500 Line
was represented by Herschel B. Fry.
berger, one of the 16-inch guns Of the
St. Louis county bar. The battery
of 500 Line lawyers, assisting Mr.. Fry
berger, embraced John L. Erdall, ST.,
and John L. Erdall, Jr., Of Minnea-
polls, together with Messrs. Eaton,
Martinson and Stephenson, all connect
ed with the Minneapolis legal staff Of
the 500 Line.
The director general Of railroads for
the government was made a party to
the suit and he was represented by Mr..
Hayes of Milwaukee.
The trial opened Nov. 10 and ended
Dec. 81, when the case went to the
jury. The trial lasted six weeks and
broke the record of st. Louis county
for length Of jury trial.
The jury retired at 4:55 p. m, Sat
urday, Dec. 81 and deliberated %
hours, bringing in sealed verdict
which, when opened Monday morning,
Dec. 90, was found to be in favor OF
the plaintiff, in full of the sum for
which he sued.
The outcome was brilliant victory
for Messrs. Dodge and McClearn., The
defendant 500 Line has applied for a
new trial and, if that is not granted,
an appeal to the Supreme court may
be expected.
This was the first verdict for q
plaintiff in several damage suits tried
in the local district court. Messrs.
Arnold & Arnold have tried several
st. Louis county cases, getting adverse
verdicts in some Of them and mistrials
in few others.
The jury embraced the following,
viz:
Martin J. solberg, clothier, West Du-
luth.
A. M. Sole, treasurer Union Match
Co., 719 E. Sixth st.
Raymond Fadden, tester, 80 s. Fifth
Ave. w.
Robert L. Hughes, storekeeper for
the Duluth st. Railway Co., BIS N.
Fifty-sixth Ave. w.
B. T. LaTour, farmer, Lakewood.
Rev. jeremiah Kimball, apiarist,
Pike Lake Road.
Clement Gill, painter, 16 Highland
Ave.
Geo. H. Tanning, salesman for Stan
dard Salt & Cement Co., st. Louis
hotel.
H. W. Brigham.
Thomas J. Trevillion, grocer, 366
Lake Ave. 8.
j. Allyn Scott, Jr., real estate, 5so7
Olney st.
Frank G. Scribner, lumberman, 424s
Minnesota Ave.
The complete story of the trial would
make a very large and even very
interesting book. The jury was Sc
cured without undue difficulty or lapse
of time and then the firing began by
the plaintiff.
Testimony was given by plaintiff to
the effect that fires had been set sew
eral months previous to the big fire,
by 500 Line engines, and that they
smouldered in boys and muskeags. On
the final, fatal days, fires were famed
into flames and carried across the
county from Northwest to Southeast.
One feature was the deposition of
Mrs. Anderson, wife of the plaintiff,
taken two months before by Messrs.
Dodge & McClearn, the woman dying
before the case came to trial.
After the personal evidence Of
plaintiff Anderson was given, his at
torneys tried to show the presence Of
many other fires along the 500 Line.
Objections being made by the de-
Z tense to that line of evidence, Judge
Dancer ruled that the other fires had
no bearing on that particular case,
therefore the testimony was not ad-
missable. That cut out ten or a dozen
witnesses.
Later in the case, owing to the policy
and strategy of the defendants law.
yers, Judge Cant reversed that ruling
and opened the doors much more wide
~ to the plaintiff.
A small army Of witnesses was sum-
moned by the defense from that sec
ton Of Minnesota. Over 100 were