The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1937-04-22
No Cause For Action
Continued from page one,

and undertaken rolled up his
trouser legs while his physician,
DR.. H. c. Doms of Slayton, show
ed that his knees were puffy and
apparently contained fluid.
Doms testified that Shields has
been coming to him for treatment
He said that symptoms are that
he has fluid in his knee joints,
condition probably caused by the
severe blow received in the acct
dent He also said that x-rays,
which he produced and which
were admitted as evidence, show
that there is a slight elevation of
the periosteum,. or skin covering
the bone on one knee. ..,...
He was followed by DR.. T. E.
Finn who said that he also be-
Geved Shields has an arthritis
condition, probably caused by his
injuries in the accident. He
said under cross examination
by A. R. English, attorney for
Spencer, that arthritis is also
caused by infections such as ton
silitis and bad teeth.
The plaintiffs attorney then
rested his case and the first in an
array of Redwood Falls witness
for Spencer was called.
Miss Evelyn Storts testified to
hearing the crash and seeing the
wrecked cars from the window of
her home shortly after the acct
dent occurred. --.
81 should say the johnson car
was going about so miles an
hour" Mrs. Carrie Smithers, the
second witness stated. She said
she was coming out of a house
near the crest of the bridge hill
when the johnson car passed her.
In a few minutes she heard the
crash, although the crest of the
hill hid the actual accident from
her view.
F. H. Anthony, city engineer,
testified that he had surveyed the
paving near the scene and found
that it was 1O8 feet from the top
of the hill to the point of the col
lision. A map showing elevations
of the highway which he had pre-
pared was introduced as evidence.
The testimony of DR.. w. A.
Brand, next witness, was perhaps
the most damaging to the plain
tiff's case. He said he could see
nothing wrong with the knee from
x-rays which he had taken and
that there was no roughening in
the bone there to indicate an ar
thrituS condition. He stated that
the periosteum does not cover the
knee bone there, that the material
over it is cartilage. He also said
that a person who had suffered
from varicose veins, as Shields
admitted he had, was very apt to
suffer some with his knee joints
and that in such a case it was a
common thing the one leg should
be smaller around than the other,
as is the case with Shields.
The defendant then took the
stand. He testified that there was
no car coming from the east in
sight when he began making his
left turn. He admitted he had
failed to put out his hand to sig
nal and set the speed of his au-
tomobile at about Is miles per
hour.
Harold Farlee and Douglas
Whittet, two of the first to arrive
at the scene were called and then
Mrs. Spencer testified she had
looked back and forward as MIR.
Spencer started to turn and had
seen no cars coming. She first
saw the Johnson car just before
the crash, she said.
T. F. Reed Jr., Oscar Randgaard
and Mr.. Rogne of the state high
way department were then called
to refute Shields testimony s,on
seeing 80 miles an hour speed
signs.
Rayburn Burris, last witness
for the defense, then took the
stand to relate the results of tests
he had made that morning using
a 1886 Oldsmobile similar to the
Johnson car. He said that travel
ing at 80 miles an hour the car
travelled So feet after the brakes
were applied before coming to
stop. At 40 miles an hour the dis
lance was 66 feet and at so it was
90 feet.
'.He was driving faster in the
residential district than he had
any right to drive" English said
in his closing statement to the
jury. eff speed was the sole
cause of the mishap, Spencer was
not in any way to blame"
II ask you to put your fingers
on anything Spencer did or didn't
do that contributed to this acci-
dent" he stated, adding that
Spencer had a right to assume
that any car not visible to him be-