The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1922-10-13
Railroad Company to Take
Case to Supreme
Court
TO BE TRIED AGAIN
COUNSEL DECLARE
Power Co. Offer to Town
of Brattleboro Is
Withdrawn

In the suit of the Vermont Valley Rail-
road Co. which is leased to the Boston
& Maine railroad, against the Connectl-
cut River Power Co, in which damages
of $4,000 were asked for damage to the
railroad property by high water and ice
in March, 1920, the proceedings in Wind
ham county court at Newfane came to
an abrupt termination yesterday after
noon when Judge Harrie b. Chase di-
rected a verdict for the defendant. The
verdict was directed on motion OF coun-
sci for the defense, on the ground, among
others, that no liability had been shown
to the Vermont Valley Railroad conn
pany.
The Vermont Valley Railroad Co.
wears ago entered :Dtc IN operating con-
tract with the Connecticut River Rail-
road Co, whereby the latter company
operated the Vermont Valley road. Later
a lease of the Connecticut River road
and lines which it was operating was
taken by the Boston < Maine railroad.
Under the courts Interpretation of the
contract and lease the damage falls on
the Boston & Maine railroad instead OF
the plaintiff in this case, which in effect
was that the Vermont Valley railroad
WIS HOT lIe BiODtI- pidAiiAiAl III tht -NSoC@
The ruling of the court that no liability
was shown as to the Vermont Valley
road was not ruling that the Power Go.
was not liable to anybody. So the case
SINNERS down to a question of whether
the Vermont Valley or the Boston Il
Maine should have brought the suit, and
this question viii be decided by the su-
preme court.
Counsel for the Vermont Valley rail-
road claim that the loss falls on the Yer
mont Valley road and not on the Boston
& Maine, notwithstanding that the Bos-
ton & Maine paid the bills, and that the
developments of yesterday and the
courts ruling do not affect the merits of
the case; in other words that if the SUI
preme court rules that the Vermont Val
ley Is the proper plaintiff the suit viii
ke tried over again. and if it rules that
;he Vermont Valley is not the proper
plaintiff suit will be brought with the
Boston & Maine as the plaintiff.
The plaintiff then took exceptions on
which to take the case to the supreme
court. The case had been on trial since
the first of last week, but no witnesses
had been called by the Power Co. Nearly
60 witnesses were called by the plaintiff
and Were examined and cross-examined.
An interesting fact in connection with
the case is that when it was seen how
things were headed yesterday the offer
of Henry l. Hartman of Boston, preSi-
dent of the Power Co, to pay the town
of Brattleboro 100000 of its claim of
$4,000 for the loss of the Connecticut
river bridge and damage to the highways
by the same freshet that damaged the
railroad property was withdrawn.
In his letter to the selectmen with
drawing the Power Co.'S offer President
Henry l. Hartman said he did not wish
to have any outstanding offers, but ex-
pressed a willingness TO confer with the
town officials regarding a settlement.
Selectman W. e. Stellman said this
morning that he was confident that a
settlement could be arrived at, but both
Mr.. Stellman and counsel for the town
asserted that the developments in the
Continued on Page Eight.)