firs 3'." ' —-—- ___ IDARIEN’SELEOTRIG. Da'rien-gets the trolley. In a decision handed'down Tuesday Judge George W. Wheeler finds that public conven- ience and necessity require the exten- sion of the Norwalk Tramway com- pany’s line from Roton Point to Darien and Noroton. Judge Wheeler’s very interesting de- cision is as follows: This application is brought by the plaintiff to this court under authority contained in public acts of 1893, to se- cure from the court a finding that pub- lic convenience and necessity require the extension of its lines from the ter- minationof its present line at Five Mile River iii the town of Norwalk, through the town of Darien to the Stamford line at Newton river. This act forbids the paralleling of any other street railroad or steam railroad to be built or extend- ed from one town to another in the pub- lic highways until the superior court or a judge thereof shall have upon a hear- ing found that the public necessity and convenience require the construction of such a street railway. In determining whether public con- venience or necessity required the ex- tension of the lines of the applicant, it must be remembered that it is impos- sible to give any exact and accurate definition of these terms so that the definition may govern each case of the character of this application. Nor on the other handvcan a decision already had upon'one'application of this char- acter, unless the condition, situation, and circumstances be substantially identical. Such similarity will seldom or ever be found. The tryer then must determine the questitn as one of fact upon the evidence before him and gen- erally without reference to other adju- dications of a similar character. The purpose of the act under Which this application Was brought seems to be primarily to prevent paralleling an ex. isting street or steam railroad and secondarily, protecting highways by prohibiting the construction or exten- sion of a street railroad over highWays unless the superior court or a judge thereof shail find that the public con- venience and necessity, require such Construction or e xtension. The oourtthen relates the conditions of the preposed extension, together with the relative distances from the various towns and of the, highways in which the proposed road will run. Continuing he says: The population from which this ex- tension must draw its greatest traffic is located adjacent to its line, in the vil legs of Rowayton, about 600; in the v11- lage of Darien about 700 and 1n the vil- lage of Noroton about 700. There is to-day practically no traffic along the line of the extension between Five Mile River and Darien. There is consider- able communication at present between thesevillages, of a business and Social character. The trolly road will knit these villages together by giving their people constant means of communica- tion with each other. It will be a con- venience to many engaged in the oyster business at Rowayton and Ncroton. Roton Point is an exceedingly popular summer resort, the trolley road carried to and from NorWalk last year nearly 300,000 passengers to this point. The people of the town of Darien largely patronize thzs resort; indeed, I many people along the distant 15 miles from the shore between Ncrwatk and Stam- ford patronize this resort. It is con- ceded that the eXtension will be a great convenience to all people in this local- ity desiring to go to Rotun Point. It will add much to their pleasure. Healthy recreation is a necessary part of life. The sentiment of the people of Darieu and the village of Rowayton seems to be practically a unit for this extension. '1 hey believe it to be a piib- lic convenience and a necessity. Where the conditions and situation do not de- stroy the value of such a public jll( g. ment, but as in the case before the court, corroborate and sustain, t, judgment of the trier ought to be in harmony With the judgment of the peo- pie. The legitimate position of the New York, New Haven & Hartford railroad in this application seems to me to be confined almost entii ely to the question Whether thev are at present furnishing, or will furnish in the future, adequate facilities for the transportation between the points covered by this (xtension. If they do, or Will furnish such facilitiei, then it follows that the public conu- nience and necessity do not It quire the extension. For the put poses of local travel along the line of the extension the steam road necessarily furnishes small accommodation. The location of Ncroton and‘Rowayton stations are at least half a mile from these villages, so that the steam road never has accommo- dated the people living in these villages, and never 'can. The traffic along this line of extension, except at Darien, it does not accommodate. It has been- urged upon the court that this exten— sion parallels the steam road, which has large vested interests, that it will absorb a considerable part of the passenger traffic between these two points; that while the loss of the road from this ex- tension might, in comparison with its gross earnings, appear inconsiderable, the trier ought to consider the aggre- gate of similar inroads upon the com- pany ’s treasury. This argument should be, and presumably has been‘n, , presented to the legislature; the court is required to pass on the public convenience and necessity, and that alone. Judge Wheeler then considers the conditions surrounding the loss of traf- fic atone station, its gain at another, and also the probable effect on the stockholders of the big railroad. He finds that the trolley road ’will expend $90,000 on the exetnsion and that their intentions to serve the people‘ of that town are sincere and honest. In relation to the suggestion that the purpose of the extension was to compel the steam road to purchase the Tram- way company’s line, Judge Wheeler says that the evidence does not war- rant the slightest suspicion of this and that under the present conditions it is impossible to understand why the steam road should ever gratify the promoters of the «xtension, if they are acting in the expectation of sellingout their line, to the steam road. In conclusion he says: “I therefore determine and find that public conve- nience and necessity require the exten- sion of the line of the applicant in the manner set forth in this application.” WILL CLOSE UP. A meeting of the board of directors of the Nor walk Y. M. C. Association Was held last evening. hose present were President A.. B. Hill, E. L. Boyer, George W. Cram, James E. Hall, Nel- son Benedict, Victor Selleck, Fletcher Van Hoosear, C. A. Tucker and Walter Aiken. The affairs of the association were discussed, after which it seemed to be the vows of all that the only thing to do was to, on April 1st, “cease business,” or in other words, close the rooms up and dispose of the belongings of the association to the best possible advan- tage. It was shown that the Association was something over $700 in debt and had a practically depleted treasury. The following committee was ap- pointed to dispose of the furniture, li- brary and other accessories of the aeso- ciation to the best possible advantage: A. B. Hill, Victor Selleck, Fletcher Van Hocsear, R. G. Hanford and Charles Miller. The parlors are nicely furnished aid include a $450 upright piano and $85 organ. There is a library of perhaps 500 volumes, many of which are valua- ble. The gymnasium is also equipped with paraphernalia that is valuable. As1de from all this there are tables, desks, chairs, tete-a-tetes, etc. It makes a rare opportunity to pur- chase. that ought to be-takeu advantage of. The board of directors will meet again on Wednesday night to hear the report of the committee appointed to secure funds for the liquidation of the Association’s debts, and also the report of the committee having in charge the sale of the furniture, etc. It is altogether a matter of regret that it was found necessary to close the doors of the association, but the com- mittee appreciated the fact that it was not wise to get deeper in debt and their action will no doubt receive the appro- bation of every fair minded person. REQUIRELLAWYER. Wednesday Was the time set for the Darien Selectmen to show cause in the Superior court why thev had not called a SprClHl town meeting for the purpose of electing a tax collector to succeed John H. Whitney who died Jan. 14 last, while holding the office. January 27 the selectmen appointed Joseph Hindley collector for the unex- pired term. This was not satisfactory to some, and mandamus proceedings were brought before Judge George W. Wheeler who granted the order asked for, conditionally. In their showing of cause the selectmen claim that in the appointment of Mr. Hindley they are usustained by law; that he is a responsi- ble person; that he is of the same poli- tical party (Republican) as his prede- cessor and is perfectly satisfactory to a majority of the people of the town. To this reply counsel for the other side Jemurreo to it and this raised a question of law. The selectmen had been content to conduct their case them- selves, but Judge Wheeler told them that it would be necessary to employ counsel. He accordingly ordered them to appear Friday prepared to finally answer on all points. a Her 9lst Anniversary. Mrs. Jane 8. Buckley, relict of Wil- liam Buckley, celebrated her 91st birth- day anniversary at the home of her daughter Mrs. Mary E. Wilson on Orchard street yesterday. The old lady received. many calis from both old and young people w1th whom she conversed with the cheerfulness of the youngest of those who offered congratulations. Mrs. Buckley, considering her age, is 'in remarkably good health and retains her mental faculties to a wonderful degree. The New Firm. The new firm that will succeed H. R. Hale at the corner drug store, will be known as H. Glendenning&Co. To- day R. A. McDonald, of R. H. Plait- ted’s', representing Mr. Hale, and” Mr. Brown, of C. G. Bacon & Co., New York,representing Glendenning' & Co., are engaged in taking an inventory. \ ,‘K .. _. HEAVY _D__AMA6ES Wednesday aiternoon Judge Wheeler handed down a decision in the well known suit for $2,000 damages on ac- count of an assault brought by John Barthel against Louis Schweizer both of Norwalk. The case was strongly contested in the superior court for several days two weeks ago. In the decision judgment was given Barthel to recover $1,400 and the costs which will swell the amount to about $1,700. This amount of damages in a civil action of the kind is said to be the heaviest known in the Superior Court at Bridgeport for some years. " Barthel, it was alleged, and the testi- mony seemingly qualified the allega- tion, was attacked by Schweizer some months ago with a club while going into his, Barthel’s, house. He received injuries of a serious nature on the head which were prescribed for by Dr. S. H. Huntington of this city, who was also an impoitant witness in the case. A full report of the assault, appeared at the time in these columns, together with an account tf Schweizer’s arrest and trial before the lower court. Barthel claimed at the time the case was called in the Superior Court, that it was necessary for him to go to a hos- pital and undergo a long an] expensive course of treatment. Schweizer, it will be remembered, hired the police at Cranburv, where the assault oecured and made a bargain whereby the receipts of the farm Were to be divided with Bat thel the owner. After a while there Was trouble be- tween the two which culminated in the above assault. Suits and counter suits have been docketed in the Norwalk eourt so fre- quently that they have became an “111.- known mixture” other than to the princlpals in the case, and were as com- mon‘as the holding of the court. Some of these suits are still on the Superior Couit docket and are awaiting trial. The decision in the present suit makes it a tort case and as the defend- ant has no means with which to satisfy the judgment he may perhaps be “jailed.” To a GAZETTE reporter, Joseph A, Gray, attorney for the defendant, this morning said that the Verdict was a surprise to him, and that he should file a request for a full finding of the facts alter which he would perhaps take an appeal. Mr. Gray is Schweizer’s attorney also as plaintiff against Barthel in cases on which judgmmt has not yet been ren- dered, if indeed they have yet been tried. This d1 cision is, however, in the na- ture of a “black eye” for Schweizer and his attorney, from which, mayhap, they will not fully recover, or at least to the extent of prosecuting the other cases. Norwalk has been surleited with Bar- thel vs. Schweizer and Schweizer vs. Barthel cases, and will gladly welcome a cessation of hostilities between the two. Attorneys Levi Warner of this city, and Attornev "luomes, of Bridgeport, appeared for Barthel and Attorney Gray for SchWeiZer. “<-»——‘ moose Relations of Ours. A British gentleman who has recent- ly died has said that “ii man’s mother is his misfortune, while his wife is his fault." This cynical harshness loses some of its unpleasantness when the writer goes on to. explain that, while one’s friends are his choice, his rela— tives are thrust upon him, and no one is so angelic as not to confess that there are occasionally cases where the tyr- anny of kin is most lamentable. The scapegrncc cousin, the tedious aunt, the gruff uncle who delights in humili- ating the family, even the drunken fa- ther or the hoydenish sister are too well known to be denied. Well and Truly Said. Over the triple doorway of the cathe— dral of Milan there are three inscrip- tions spanning the splendid arches. Over one is carved a beautiful wreath of roses, and underneath is the legend: “All that pleases is but for a moment.” Over another is sculptured a. cross and these are the words underneath: “All that troubles is but for a moment.” But underneath the great central en- trance in the main aisle is the-inscrip- tion: “That only is important which is eternal." 1m.— The truth of the old adage that one hour of sleep before midnight' is worth two hours after midnight. is questioned by Dr. E. P. Colby, who states that he made some study of the subject while in naval service during the rebellion. The ship’s company on shipboard—- oflicersand men alike—stand four-hour watches day and might, with the in- terpolation of a dog-watch of two hours to change the time of each set of men on successive days. These men are therefore obliged to get their required sleep very irregu- larly, but in more than two yea-rs’ observation Dr. Colby could never discover that the watch officers and men were not as fully refreshed by their sleep as were the officers of the ship who were required to stand 110 watch at all.—-Philade]phia Item. —In cultivating strawberries under glass of various colors Prof. Zachare- wiez, of Vaucluse, France, has obtained the following results: Ordinary clear glass gave the best and earliest fruit; orange glass increased the vegetation, but injured the quality, size and earli- ness of the fruit; violet glass increased the yield, at the expense of the quality; MUTUAL: LIFE INSURANCE CO. OF NEW YORK. RICHARD A. McCURDY President. emenfn eYeai nding [bolt-1895. $221,213,721 33 194,347,157 58 $26,866,563 757 $48,597,430 51 $23.126,728 45 Assets. ’ . . Liabilities . ' Surplus - Total Income Total Paid Policy-holders in 1895, . Insurance and Annuities in force. $899. 074,453 78 Net gain in 1895 $61,647,645 36 NOTE—Insurance merely no men. |s_ discarded from this Statement as wholl ml actually issued and paid for in cash ls Included. y sleadlng. and only insurance 0 d a o I have carefully examined the foregoing Statement and find the same to be correct. CHARLES A. PRELLER, Auditor. From the Surplus a dividend will be apportioned as usual. Report: of the Eiaminiiig Committee. titted the Mutual L'ile insurance company of New Yuri, February 11, 1896. At a meeting of the Board of Trustees of this Company, held on the 18th day of December last, the undersigned were appointeda C ommittce to examine the annual Statement for the year ending December 31st, 1895, and to verify the same by com- parison With the assets (3f the Company. . The Committee have carefully performed the duty assigned to them, and hereby certify that the Statement is in all particulars correct and that the assets specified therein are in possession of the Company. In making this certificate the Committee bear testimony to the high character of the investments cf the Company and express their approval of the system, order and accuracy with which the accounts and vouchers have been kept, and the business in general transacted. H. 0. Von Post, Charles R. Henderson, James C. Holden, Robert Olyphant, ‘Wm. P. Dixon, Committee J. H. Herrick. ROBERT A. GRANNIS, Vice-President. WALTER R. GILLETTE. General Manager. ’- HENRY E. DUNCAN. Jr., Cor. Secy. °‘ ALBERT KLAMROTH, Asst. Secy. ISAAC F. LLOYD, Second‘Vice-President, WILLIAM J. EASTON, Secretary, FREDERIC CROMWELL, Treasurer. JAMES TIMPSON, 2d Asst. Treas EDWARD P. HOLDEN, Asst. Cashier. IOHN A. FONDA, Assistant Treasurer. WILLIAM P. SANDS, Cashier EMORY MCCLINTOCK LL.D., F. I. A, Actuary. JOHN TATLOCK, J 3., Asst. Actuary. WM. \V. RICHARDS. Comptroller. .3; CHARLES A. PRELLER, Auditor, HENRY S. BROWN, Asst. Comp. I JOHN C. ELLIOTT, Superintendent of Domestic Agencies, ED WARD LYMAN SHORT, Gen. Solicitor. MEDICAL DIRECTORS ELIAS J. MARSH, M. D. GRANVILLE M. WHITE, M. D. WINSTCN, M. D. JQEN W. NI CEQLQ, New Haven, General Agt. for State of Ccnnecticut. ' A. ll. CAMP, Local Agent. red, blue and green glass were hurtful j to all kinds of vegetation.
Norwalk Chronicler