Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-09-13
TESTIMONY Of BOTH SIDES PRESENTED
IN COUNTER SUIT ESul TING FROM
COLLISION OF AUTOS ON BRUNSWICK ROAD


Testimony In the two cases Of
American Mutual Liability Ins. Co
VS. Witham and Witham VS. Hazard,
Thich were tried together was COM
pleted Friday and following the ar
guments of the lawyers and the
charge to the jury by Judge Fisher
the case will go to the jury this
morning.
These two cases resulted from an
automobile accident June IL. 1923, in
which an Earle touring car owned
and driven by Louis Witham OF
Gardiner and a Rolls-Royce limou-
sine owned by r. p. Hazard OF
Gardiner and driven by his chauffeur,
ccllided on the Brunswick road about
four miles from Gardiner. Mr.. Haz-
card at that time assigned his claim
to the Insurance company SO that in
effect this is a counter suit.
Howard Chase the chauffeur Of the
Rolls Royce was the first to testify.
He stated that he was driving to-
ward Portland at the time Of the ac-
cident and that but a moment before
he had been going about rs miles an
hou-. He saw the Witham car COM
ing towards him several hundred feet
ahead and in the middle of the road.
He expected the other car to turn
out but when he saw that 1t was not
doing SO he kept turning out on his
own side although he had been on
his own right side of the road all the
time. The car which he drives Is q
right hand control car and he was
looking out on that side to see how
close he might come to a telegraph
Earl car, so he did not see it at the
actual mOmenf Of imDacf
Both Cars Damaged
The force of the collision badly
crumpled the mud guards and run
ming board on the Rolls Royce and
smashed the wheel of the other car
which went short distance and
then swerved into a door yard. The
ls-Royce at the time of the acct
dent was well out on the gravel part
of the road and then It swung across
the road.
r. p. Hazard, who was not in the
car at that time, testified that he was
called to the scene by a telephone mes
sage from one Of his daughters, He
asked Witham what he had been doing
over on the left side of the road. and
Witham had told him that he was not
much over the center of the road and
that If he would give him little time
he (Witham) would fix it right. He
testified that tracks which he saw in
the road and thought to be those of
the Witham car after the accident, were
on the Rolls Royce side Of the center
of the road.
Hazards Daughters in Car
Miss Elizabeth Hazard. 10 years old,
who was on the front seat with the
driver, stated that he blew his horn
and then waved his hand in an endeav-
or to get Witham to get over on his
own side of the road. Her testimony
on the rest of the happenings was
substantially as was that given by
Chase.
Miss Katherine Hazard also corrob-
Grated this testimony. Malcolm
| OBrien, who was the State highway
| policeman on that road at the time OF
the accident, testified to the positions
occupied by the two cars when he ar.
rived. and said that the track made
| by the Witham car was about two feet
| over on the Rolls Royce side of the
road. He also saw a track in the gray
| ell where Chase had driven out on his
| own side of the road in an endeavol
| to get cut of Williams way, and sale
that this track passed the telegraph
pole so close that there could not hav,
been over eight or 10 inches between
| the running board of the car and TIL
pole.
Arthur Peters, who was standing
in a yard but a few feet from TIL
road when the accident occure,
stated that he did not see it bu
heard the crash and turned aroun'
quickly enough to see the axle o
the Earl drop to the ground. Whel
he saw it he said the Witham ca
was on its own side of the road. I
then swerved into the yard nea
where he was standing. The Roll
Royce turned in the other direction
and stopped diagonally across tn
road. He declared that the Roll
Royce had gone farther out on it
own right after the accident before
coming back into the road and stop
ping.
Walter Grover in whose yard tn,
Earl stopped testified that thu
tracks of the Witham car were fror
1S to 20 inches on it's left of the cen