An Expensive Watch

A case that lias attracted agreat deal ol attemion beca-use ol tlic prom:i ;ire of t!ie part C, an:l espeeially i:i Aun Arbor bwaiise o f the'.i acquaimt&nce hen was that of Elroy M. Avery, oí Cleveland, O., against Henry C. Spauldlmg, oi Dundee, II cli. Mr. Avwry was eduoated liere in Aun Arbor, n.nd Avas an active .student, of good dhi&racter a ml much push and energy. He left hi8 stad es to enter i!:c army as a aon-oommiBB'onêd qificer in the llth MicJi. cavah-y, and it was whfle down nouth the évent occurred 1liat caused all the trouble. A gold watch obtained by Spaulding- wh Ie on . foraglng near Atlveiis. 'Ga., whi'ii both lic aind Avery Avere members of the famous llth Mich. cavalry, has been the subject of this comtro-rsy lastlng twenty yenrs. Aiery was tben a non-roinmies'ioned offioer and Spaulding a private. Avery, upon the day fol1-owiing Spauldiaig's capture of the watrli, wa ordered by liis superior oifficer to go with the owner of the watch, a Mr. Pond, who was a northerner reeiid ng in the south, and obtain the watch f rom Spauldng. The watch was handed over to the cfcbizen wlio was introduced to Spaulding as the owner. Mr. Pond left tne watch im Avery's hands for safakeep'.nig umt.l the close oí the war. In February, 1891, whein7Avery vras a candidate for the postmastership of C levelaod, ()., Spasulding happened ta be iiii the city. He swore out a warrant lor Avery's areet on the charge oí stealing the watch frora liiim Jn Georgia, but the justice refused to issue it om the ground that he liad no jurisd'ction. A;i()ther warrant was obtained in which the place of the alleged stealLng was lad in an Oliio county. Tliese warra.nts were intended by Spaulding to be used to scare Avery into turning over the watch. Mir. Avery was arrested and searched by a detective and as he was a candidate for postma&ter, the Cleveland papers and also the papers of other cities published articlas iii regard to it. Avery claiined tbat Spauld:ng inspired many of the articles. Tlie soit was never prosecuted, and was finally d'smissed for that reason. A'erj" brouglit suit in the Monroe county clrcn't eourt against Sp;mldiing for mal ciO'US p'i-osecution and personal lilicl. Tlie su t was diseoint::nued by Averjr after the testimony was nearly all in. because h:s attorney, Judge Tillotson, of Cleveland, was a necessary witness, and he refused to testify a.nd act as an attorney at the sanie time. Suit was beguu in the United States circu t court by Ave;y, wherein lie claiined $50,000 damages for maKcious prosecut'on and personal libel. The case lii'nged upon whether or not the porties had pi-evlously entered into an agreraicnt of setilement. Avery claimed that a prel mi;iary or cond:t onal agrecimcnt had been effected at Toledo, 0., Spaulding clajned that the agreement was final. He wai supported by the testimoaiy of hls attorney, S. C. Randall, wlio was prrs"nt when the agreement was made. Avcry's testimo'iiy was corpoborated by that of Judge Tillotson, whii was his attorney and "vlio vas also present when the agreement was made. One of the peculiar c 'remnstances brought out on the trial was that Spnulding beleved that the man introdiiced to hun as Preston B. Pond, the owncr of the watch, when Avery dema-nded it at Athens, Ga., under cnniraaiid of liis superior officer, was a ficttious person. Tliis belief continued, he said on the stand, until last siinimer, when his attorney, ('. A. (olden, and Avery's attorney, Edwin F. Comely, went to Mas.sachusetts and witnessed the tak'ng of Mr. Pond's affidavit. Mr. Pond, Uien nearly 80 years old, made affidavit exoneratiim' Avei y from the charge of ilieft, and also stated that the watch cost h,iim $100 in Liverpool and "something bes'des for getting it over here." e watch was ao opeii-laced one and had Mr. Pomd'S name insci-bed II also h.-is had a vai(d li'story. l)ur!mg one of Mr. Avvry's v;i'-;il ons, while he was ;i suident at the lirerity oí Miöhigaa, he went to his ïiillier's home in Monroe county. Wliile load 'mg sonie hay lie lost the watch. Yi.uoinus search ia l.'d to bffiing it to ligtet. Almost two years aiterward 0 1 Is found it filled Avith rust while plowin.U'. Shortly aiterward the eider Avery died and the watoh conld not be tomad among his elfecte. The jury, Saturday afternoon, after aiiout fotir hour's deliberation, decided the case in favor of Mr. Avery, glving iiini $1,500 damages. -;u StnínDasoJidi &-% 'ncpuGy; -.rj; ey elect of this county. has been lirnmuiently connected witli the suit as an attorney for Mr. Spa uiding, and relates the c'rcumstances as being the most singular of any in his entire experience at the bar.