Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 38, Number 17, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 October 1905 — HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLAR SUIT SETTLED. [ARTICLE]

HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLAR SUIT SETTLED.

What was probably the biggest low suit, in point of damages demanded, that ever went to trial in the Jasper Circuit Court came to an J abrupt end about 2.30 p. m. Wednesday. The case was one where Leroy Templeton, now of Indianapolis, but owner of 5,000 or 6,000 acres of land in northern Newton county, sued Alexander B. Tolin and five or six other of his brother land magnates, for SIOO,OOO damages. He claimed that the defendants had constructed a‘ big ditch and had stopped just at the right point to flood several thousand qcres of the plaintiff’s corn land, in the old Beaver Lake bottoms. The suit w r as begun in Newton

county and brought here on change of venue. All day Tuesday was spent in making up the issues, and Wednesday morning the case went to trial before Judge Hanley and a jury. Clay Harris was the first witness, out of a whole regiment that had beensubpoeaned, and they were not near through w ith him, at 2.30 p. m. At that hour it seemed like the parties were just getting well warm ed up to their work, and ready to battle to the end.

Just then the Judge quietly announced that a few minutes recess would be taken, and at the end of a few minutes he called the court to gether and announced that the case h id been settled by the agreement of the parties, and was dismissed. The announcement was the signal fjr quite a jubilee and general hand shaking among the parties. By the terms of the agreement as it appears on the record, the defendants pay the plaintiff one dollar and each side paid their own c >sts. It is generally understood however that the plaintiff was paid about"sl,2oo by the defendants.