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THE FAIR HEIRS ARE VICTORIOUS judge Hebbard Says j They Are Entitled to the Lots. Court Finds That the State Legally Disposed of the Property. Harbor Commissioners and the Pacific Gas Improvement Company Also Lose. INJUNCTIONS TO BE ISSUED All the Claimants to the Land Will Now Have to Cease From Interfering. Tho State has lost its suit aer-alnst Charles A. Warren and Edward Malley, James S. Angus, executor of the last will of James G. Fair; Charles G Fair, Theresa A. Oelrichs and Virginia Fair, which was instigated some fcim* ago tc re-cover possession of a number of so calk-Ll "water lots" at North Beach. Judge J. C. B. Hebbard yesterday rendered a decision in the case, and, besidts declaring the claim ol the State illegal, decided against the State Board of Harbor Commissioners and the Pa cific Gas Improvement Company, and ordered that a permanent injunction be issued restraining the claimants from Interfering with the rightful owners of the property In litrgation. In part. Judge Hebbard's decision is as follows: The State of California sues 'to quiet title, claimed by it by virtue of its sovereignty under the act of admission into the American Union to certain prop erty, being about 100 acres of land lying I under water at a depth varying from one i to twenty-three feet, and comprising an j inlet of the Bay of San Francisco lying north of the city between the Govern- ' ment reservations, the Presidio on the j west and Fort Mason on the oast, and to prevent by injunction certain alleged trespass thereon. The defendants, Warren & Malley. are contractors, who have been engaged in reclaiming iho property, under contract with the representatives of Fair and with ! permission of the Hoard of Supervisors. The ottv its. the representa tives of James G. Fair, deceased and his heirs at law, admit the acts which con stitute the alleged trespass: admit that the State originally had title, but claim that the State conveyed the lands in con troversy to the predecessors in interest! of Fair, and that he acquired title there- j to in his lifetime and held the same at the time of his death, and that, as own ers of the property and having permits | from the Board of Supervisors, they have ' the right to proceed with the work of re- I claiming and improving the blocks and streets thereon. The case involves the two main ques tions: First— Did the State have power to con voy these lands? Second— Did the State convey these lands to fair's grantors? The court on these points decides — the decision being based on numerous M: recedents— that the State had the ":' ower to convey the lands in question, and by a preponderance of evidence it ■was proved that James G. Fair during his life did acquire the title to the lands through a legal transfer on the part of the State. "Such being the facts of the case," the court continues: The only remaining: question is as to .the dedication of the streets involved. This the board did, and all of such streets appear upon the map adopted by the board under the act. A further dedication of these streets is shown by the sale of blocks and lots ac cording to the map, delineating theblocks as being bounded by streets laid down thereon and being uniform with the streets running through the uplands ter minating at the inlet. It is therefore the opinion of the court, after carefully considering the rights of the people of the State of California, as •well as the rights of the State's grantees of this property, that the State, as sover eign, has .1 right to convey into private ownership parcels of its submerged land, ■where the same can be done without det riment to commerce, and that the Legis lature, in the absence of fraud, has the right to determine as to that fact. The State issued its patent to a portion of the land; subsequently a water-line front of the city was established, and thereafter the State, through its officers, authorized thereto and under acts of the Legislature passed for the purpose, exe cuted deeds to the property lying within the water-line front, conveying that por tion thereof not called for in the patent, and confirming the title to the portion contained v.-ithin the patent. The State has parted with its title to these premises; that title passed to the predecessors in interest of James G. Fair: Fair bought it and was possessed of It when he died, and Fair's heirs and rep resentatives are therefore entitled to a decree herein quieting their title as against the State, and dissolving the tem porary injunction issued herein at the in stance of the State, and to the effect that the other defendants herein, the contrac r tors, may proceed with the work of re- Claiming- the property from the waters of the inlet, under their lawful authority so to do. It is likewise the opinion of the court, In the case of Angus et al., executors of the last will of James G. Fair, deceased, against Colnon et al., constituting the Board of State Harbor Commissioners and the Pacific Ga* Improvement Com pany, submitted to the court for decision with this case, that the preliminary in junction issued, restraining defendants from interfering with plaintiffs in the possession of this property, or from in terfering with Warren & Malley, their c-.ntractors. be mad« perpetual, and that &ny other injunctions, issued in either of these cases, at variance or inconsistent with the conclusions above stated, be dissolved. It is the prevailing opinion among lawyers who read the decision that Judge Hebbard's interpretation of the law involved in the case is the correct one, and that the decision will stand In the higher courts. Poolrooms Raided. The police have introduced a new charge against the keepers of poolrooms and yesterday a warrant was sworn out for the arrest of ex-Senator William Dunn for permitting a room at 204 Stevenson Btreet to be used for making bets on horse races. The warrant was served and Dunn gave ball for his appearance in court. The police also colleced evidence In the rooms to prove their case. Dalton Will Contest. Kate Dalton, J. W. Dalton and Mary Mahan have filed a contest to the will of John Patrick Dalton. It is alleged by the contestants that the widow of the tes tator, Katherine Dalton, exercised . an <*v? 1 influence over her husband and ■■ Ai-hari # e ? in e<3 possession of a larger fS re of lhe estate than she was enti- Sanborn. Vail & Co. have the only large stock of screens, parlor lamps, onyx *ames, framed pictures and easels In the thin^ nK ' dr^te prices. Their low-priced monel ??*, so good that v is a waste of lines! y extrava cant things in these BIG FIRE IN THE PHELAN BLOGK. & Two Hours' Fig ht Which Saved the Buildiog pron) Destructior). Crossed electric wires In the top story of the Phelan building, at the corner of O'Farrell and Market streets, were the cause of a fire at 2 o"clock yesterday afternoon, which totally destroyed Marceau's photograph gallery, and did serious damage to the west end of the building from top to bottom. For al most two hours dense smoke rose In clouds from the top of the building, de spite every effort of the firemen to sup press it. From dozens of nozzles wa ter poured into the upper stories and ran down in torrents to the lower floors, ruining hundreds of dollars' worth of furniture in the offices, seemingly with out avail, and was not until great holes had been cut through the roof and into the burning rooms that the spread of the fire could be checked. For a time it looked as if the estire building was doomed, but the work of the firemen confined the blaze to the western section of the upper story, and while it was a difficult fire to overcome the damage was comparatively slight, the total reaching but $23,000, which was fully covered by insurance. The salvage corps did good work in pro tecting the goods in the lower rooms, but the extent of material to be cov ered necessitated sending twice for more rubber covers. The streets were filled with thousands of sight-seers, who completely blocked the sidewalks, while the paraphernalia of the fire de partment closed the street to all traffic. The cars of the Market-street line were blocked for mnro than an hour, while those on adjacent streets were held back and compelled to run at a snail's pace through the immense throng of people. A large squad of po lice was kept constantly busy guarding the fire lines, and several arrests were mad- of obstreperous individuals, who insisted on passing through. The firemen were heavily handicapped by the dense smoke which completely filled the upper part of the building, and from its acrid nature was so stilling that it prevented all work. Captain Comstock and Assistant Chief Dough erty directed the work in the gallery, while Assistant Chief Shaughnessy was in charge on the roof. The two stand pipes were of much service, as it was Impossible to direct streams from the ground or from adjacent buildings to any ad vantage. After the fire Marshal Towe called Mayor Phelan's attention to the fact that more stand pipes might be the means of saving the building in fu ture fires, and they will probably be erected at once. It was at first supposed that the fire originated from chemicals used in the photograph gallery, but Mr. Marceau assured Mayor Phelan that he had no dangerous chemicals. Owing tcf im proved methods of photography the in surance companies do not look upon photograph galleries as extra hazard ous risks. Notwithstanding the fact that smoke was pouring fr<>m the roof in dense volumes, there was little blaze seen, and this was quickly quenched, and the thousands of spectators were treat ed to nothing more thrilling than a view of a smoke-crowned building and several unexpected shower baths. When the cornice crumbled under the fire and from the pressure of the heavy streams of water there was a sudden scattering of the people below, who were thoroughly drenched by the flood. WHAT THE FIRE LOOKED LIKE FROM THE SURROUNDING ROOFS. The fire was in such position that the firemen could reach it with the great est difficulty, and it was necessary to pour tons of water into the building before the flames could be suppressed. This vast quantity of water damaged the lower portion of the building and the contents of the rooms more than the fire. During the delay in getting water on the fire the flames ran down the ele vator shaft and burst out in the cigar store of Sam Dannebaum, completely TO BE DEPORTED. Cheong Ah Bing Told a Lie, Then the Truth, Tien a Lie, and Must Go Back to China. The hearing of the case of Cheong Ah Bing. who was refused a landing by the Collector of the Port, was had yester day on habeas corpus by United States Commissioner Heacock. Bing claimed to be a native of San Francisco, but he told Inspector Lynch of the Chinese Bureau that he was born in a certain province in China. When asked on the hearing yes terday why he had made such a state ment he replied that he had done so be cause he was young, only 23 years old, THE SAS" FRANCISCO CALL, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 1898. destroying the stock with the excep- I tion of a few boxes of cigars which I were carried away by the salvage corps. The most serious loss was in the photograph gallery, where 120,000 ; negatives were destroyed. These neg- ! atives cannot be replaced and their ; value is impossible of calculation, as many of them date back as far as 1850, j when Mr. Morse was in the business. As soon as the gravity of the situa tion became apparent a second alarm was sent in, but while ten engines, a chemical engine, three hook and ladder trucks, one water tower and a battery were on the grounds, but seven engines were in use. The fire extended sixty feet toward O'Farrell street and forty feet to the east under the roof, but did not get below the mansard floor except down the western elevator shaft. THE BLAZE AS SEEN FROM MARKET STREET. Edward Broze, an employe of Mar ceau's gallery, was the first to discover the fire, and he immediately notified the girls working below to get out. and then fought the fire with hand grren- i ades until the department arrived. The books and other valuable matters in | the gallery were carried to a place of safety, and the fire patrol stripped the rooms of pictures and furnishing and covered the counters to protect them from the deluge of water, but the neg atives were in such a "position that the and that it was a mistake. The Com tnissioner thought that 'IMng was old enough not to tell lies by wholesale, and will recommend his deportation. Will Lay the Cornerstone. The cornerstone of Park Congregational Church, on Hayes street, between Lyon and Central avenue, will be laid at 2:30 i o'clock to-morrow afternoon with befit ting ceremonies. There will be addresses by Rev. George C. Adams, D.D.. and Rev. William Rader. The cornerstone will be laid under the auspices of the bflildlng committee, of which Frederick A. Hatch is the chairman. The greet ings will be made by Rev. F. R. Farrand and Rev. S. S. Cryor, D.D. The Lord's water destroyed them all. From the stand pipes on O'Farrell and Market streets heavy streams were thrown through the windows, yet with a constant flood of water pouring into the smoking mass the fire was not under control until half-past 3, having burned for an hour aud a half without bursting through the roof. After the fire was subdued it was found that tons of water flooded the upper floor, and in order to remove this holes were punched through the ceiling of the reception room and the water poured down in torrents and was swept into the elevator shaft. This water destroyed the stock of frames, mounts, envelopes and every thing used in photography which was stored above the blind floor over the gallery. Mayor Phelan estimates the damage to the building at $6000, which is fully insured. Captain Comstock of the un derwriters' places the lmses to the tenants as follows: Marceau photo graph gallery, $6000; Lucke, shoe store, $500; Sam Dannebaum, cigars, $500; Goldstein & Cohen. $6000; Will & Finck, $1000; Muller, optician, $500; Offices flooded with water, $2500. A total of $17,000, fully insured. The value of the negatives cannot be com puted. prayer will be read by Rev. F. B. Cher rington, D.D. , and the pastor. Rev. James B. Orr, will invoke the divine blessing. An appropriate musical programme will be rendered. Rottanzi's Resolution Indorsed. The Potrero and Mission Improvement Club has sent a communication to the Board of Supervisors indorsing Super visor Rottanzi's resolution that $40,000 be appropriated to building a new City and County Hospital on the Almshouse tract. LandaU6, wagonettes, traps and drags of the latest designs at O'Brien & Sons', Golden Gate avenue and Polk street. • CATTLE KING TO WED AGAIN George "White Told by the Spirits That He Must Marry. On Wednesday He Will Lead Miss Louise Bogan to the Altar. The Eccentric Millionaire Looks for Domestic Comfort in His De clining Years. George E. White, the wealthy cattle king of Round Valley, is to marry again. The cattle king is a believer in spiritualism, and the spirits have told him that he should wed. Soon after the message was delivered to him from the spirit world, he met, wooed and won a pretty young lady. Miss Louise Bogan, who resides in the southern part of the city. The wedding is set for Wednesday next. Madame Young, who Is pre ing the wedding trousseau, was in structed to have the gowns prepared by that day and the friends of the cattle king believe that is the day set for the ceremony. White does not deny that Wednesday is the time set when he will again tempt matrimony, and he smiles when he discusses the subject, though he tries to throw a web of secrecy about the coming affair. The wedding will be private, and after the ceremony the couple will take a short honeymoon trip to the southern part of the State. George E. White is well known in California. He has large land inter ests in Humboldt County, and most of the fertile acres of Round Valley are counted among his possessions. He is an extensive stock raiser, and he is re puted to be worth several hundred thousand dollars. He is extremely ec centric and of late years most of his business dealings have been done at the recommendation of the spirits. He is constantly in communication with sev eral of the "mediums" of the city, and whenever he contemplates a big busi ness deal he asks the advice of the spirits and acts upon it. The spirits, it is claimed, told him to marry, and the wedding will take place in conse quence of their advice. ANOTHER TEST OF CAR-FENDERS Will Take Place This Morning at Mission and Twelfth Streets. This Time It Is Expected That Some Pattern Will Ba Adopted. To-day at 1 o'clock there will be more tests of fenders for the purpose of deciding upon an appliance for the cars of the Market street system. The tests will not be in the nature of a vaudeville show, as some former exhibitions have been. There Is a serious purpose this time. The trials will occur at Mission and Twelfth streets. In the presence of the Supervisors and such citizens as may choose to look on. There Is no doubt but a fender will be recommended to the Supervisors and that they will authorize the adoption of the pattern favored by the company. All this is simple and could as well have been done long ago. That it has not been done and that there should have been so much fuss about It and so many needless casualties are matters of regret. Of course there will be some expense, but only a comparative trifle. The Market street system will be obliged to equip 260 cars, and the cost for each will be about $36, a total of something over $9000. Added to this will be the $4000 required to induce the adoption, making a grand total of less than $14,000, really an inconsiderable item for a concern of its magnitude. In the past there have been trials with out number, but some of them were de signed to do nothing but demonstrate the inutillty of whatever fender was being tried. In instances the dummy used to take the place of the prostrate citizen supposed to be snatched from death or maiming was filled with cobblestones. The result was that the fender -went to smash, as had been expected, and until somebody with the Interest of a fender enough at heart to pay the price of offi cial approval should appear it was a safe proposition that dummies would continue to be Indestructible and the experimental fender to have its nose broken. But despite the fruitless tests which have marked the past and strewn Mission street with debris, it is believed that those of to-day will be final and that the Market street system will cheerfully pay the price. DARING ATTEMPT AT ARSON. An Unknown Man Fails in an Effort to Destroy an Unfinished Building. A daring act of incendiarism was com mitted at 6:35 last night by an unknown man on a building in the course of con struction at 15 Cedar avenue. The man was seen to leave the place hurriedly, and almost immediately flames began to ap pear in the interior. While some neigh bors gave chase after the man others at tempted to put the flames out. As there was a danger of their not succeeding, an alarm was turned in from box 137. Before the engines arrived, however, the fire was extinguished. An investigation showed that coal oil had been, spilled among the shavings with the evident intent of de stroying the building. The firebug es caped in the darkness. ADVERTISEMENTS. I Gail I jßordenj Brand J Condensed Milk ? % has no equal as # % An Infant food. > C "INFANT HEALfH tf SENT V M FREE on Application. % NEwYbRK Conoensed Milk CartY # VICTIMS OF A SWINDLER Ida Pelton, a Prepossess ing Domestic, Again in Prison. Charged With Stealing Money From Mrs. Butler of Folsom Street. She Has Also Been Victimizing a Large Number of Storekeepers in the City. A young woman who is looked upon by the police as one of the cleverest confidence operators in the city was booked at the City Prison yesterday by Detective Cody on a charge of grand larceny. She has been known as Ida Pelton, Sarah Dlxon and Genevieve Lynhan. Some months ago she was employed in the house of Daniel O'Day, on Four teenth street, between Sanchez and Church, and left suddenly, taking with her $280. O"Day notified the police and Bhe was arrested. She was held to an swer before the Superior Court, but by some means or other the case was dis missed. Since then she has been victimizing a number of storekeepers, who have been complaining to the police. Her mode of operation was to ascertain the names of some of the customers, and then go to the stores and repre sent that she had been sent by one of them to purchase certain articles, which would be handed to her. When the account was sent to the customer the fraud was discovered. Among the stores victimized were the White House, Newman & Levinson and Ros enthal Brothers. The charge on which she has been booked is for stealing $167 50 from the residence of Mrs. Butler, 2568 Folsom street. She went there as a domestic on January 2. Mrs. Butler's nephew, Thomas Lappin, a marine engineer, lives with her. Last Saturday he drew his salary, and, including Mrs. Butler's own money there was $167 50 in the house. Mrs. Butler had occasion to go down town Monday, and when she returned her domestic had disappeared, taking with her the $167 50 and her personal effects. Mrs. Butler and her nephew called at police headquarters Monday night, and reported the case. Detec tive Cody was detailed to find Ida. and he soon ascertained that she was liv ing on Mission street, near Seventh. He arrested her, and on being searched, $93 35 was found in her pocket, tied up in a handkerchief. She acknowledged taking the money, and said she had spent the balance in buying dresses and other articles. Ida is 24 years of age and prepos sessing in appearance. She has stolen money and jewelry from other people besides O'Day and Mrs. Butler in the same way, and the police are deter mined that she shall not escape punish ment this time. The Wesp This Week. Always meritorious, The Wasp this week is extraordinary bright and well writ ten and splendidly illustrated. The Har bor Commission scandal and those of the School Board and Supervisors are the subject of a clever cartoon, as is the star confessors, ex-Reverend Brown and Mur derer Belew. The modern United States Senator is portrayed in colors and Con gressman Maguire is pictured by The Wasp's new process, "Photo Phrenolr tv." There are also a number of good ualf tones of celebrities. The editorials, al ways vigorous, are this week especially good, and the various departments scinail late with bright paragraphs. Thp ad ministration's stand on Hawaiian annex ation is criticized and an able article pives some well-founded objecuons to the ideas of the annexationists. The Zola incident in France is also thoroughly discussed and the hißh class of reading in The Wasp is particularly noticeable. Medical frauds and other imposters are unmercifully flayed in the "X-ray" department. Pro fessor. Lucchesi shows up some musical fakers and the society gossip and finan cial reviews are up-to-date and extreme ly interesting. The Wasn is without ques tion the leader in the weekly newspaper field. The Tunnel Rebuilt. A telegram received at the Santa Fe office in this city this morning gives the news that the tunnel on that line near Williams has been entirely rebuilt, and that commencing to-day trains will run through without any detaching or trans fer. The accident to the tunnel has cost the Santa Fe a great deal of money, but the rebuilding has been of the most sub stantial character, and there is no possi ble danger of any delays in future. PLelan Will Urge Action. Mayor Phelan intends making a re quest to the Board of Supervisors that Hustling and hasty meals often play havoc with the traveling man's digestion. An experienced commercial man, who spends most of his time on the road, states that he never allows himself to be without a supply of > RIPANS TABILES f He takes four or five Tabules a week, always one after a hearty or hurried meal, and finds them a mighty nice thing. For all those ails that come from indigestion, dyspepsia and a lazy liver there is no remedy so certain as RIPANS TABULES. action be taken at once to remove the lampless lampposts that are scattered about the city. He has ascertained that posts for the mail boxes which were re cently ordered from Washington have ar rived, and that there is no longer use for the unsightly posts to which some thirty six boxes are now attached. Town Talk This week bears out its reputation for being the brightest and best of the week lies. Among its contents are: Portraits of Rev. Louis Sanford and his bride, with stage and musical favorites; editorials upon late events of national importance; satirical aftermath by Phil Garlic; society and club life, treated from The Saunter er's point of view; original valentines to prominent men; a storiette from real life; musical, book and dramatic criticisms; newsy political chat by The Parson; stor ies and poems. • COMMEMORATION DAY. Observed by the Military Order of Foreign Wars of the United States. A meeting of California Commandery of the Military Order of Foreign Wars of the United States was held last evening in the Occidental Hotel, when the fol lowing named were elected officers for the current term: Robert Y. Hayne. commander; D. Henshaw Ward, vice commander; George Whitney Reed sec retary; Franklin B. Washington, deputy secretary; Charles Samuel Greene treas* urer; Colonel A. S. Hubbard. register, and Brander Wells Lee, judge advocate. It being commemoration day, the com* panions of the commandery and several gentlemen invited to become companions of the order, who were invited as special puests, partook of an excellent dinner at which there was shown much pat riotic spirit in the toasts and the re sponses. ADVERTISEMENTS. TtECTRICiff and medicine as combined and adminis- tered by the Physicians and Surgeons of the State Electro-Medical Institute, cor-, ncr Market. Powell and Eddy streets, has proved a wonderful success, exercising over diseases a curative power never be- fore known to the medical world. The Doctors of this Institute are curing all manner of diseases so quickly that those, who had lost all hone of health are amazed at the wonderful results obtained through this new system of Electricity and Medicine combined. Immediate relief is given and a perfect cure speedily fol- lows. The Educated Physician concedes the fact that Electricity alone falls to cure; also that MEDICINE alone in many ailments exerts but little, if any, curative properties, but our Com- bination of Electricity and Medicine ac- , complishes results which cannot be ob- , tamed by either alone. Is it not evident to your mind, if you are a sufferer, that the Doctors of the Electro-Medical Insti- tute offer you a surer and quicker cure by their COMBINED application of Electricity and Medicine at« the same time, the one acting from with- in and the other from without, thus they ! find the most remote lurking places of i disease and exterminate it from the sys- | tern, effecting positive and permanent CURES. WCRWCO Insomnia, Hysteria, Chronio^ ntnVLOi Headaches, Nervous Twitch- ings, Palpitation of the Heart, Dizziness, Evil Forebodings, Melancholia, WEAK and SINKING SPELLS, NERVOUS DE- BILITY and all its attendine ailments. The awful effects of neglected or improp- , erly treated cases, producing Weakness of body and brain, Dizziness, Failing memory, Lack of energy and confidence. Pains in back loins and kidneys, and other distressing symptoms. Our Elec- tro-Medical Treatment is the only suc- cessful cure for nervous ailments. DUCIIUATKM and all kindred diseases nnCUmM! fom of the joints and mus- cles YIELD AT ONCE to its influences. PATADDU of the Nose, Throat, Lungs UHlHnnn and Stomach. Our special combined Catarrh treatment never fails i to cure. BLOOD AND SKIN SeT tt <SUis!r?l eradicated from the system. mepAOCC of the HEART. STOMACH. UlolAolo liver, kidneys, blad-i DER and URINARY ORGANS treated hy the Electro-Medical System with un- failing success. WRITE if you cann °t call and get th», TinilL Doctors" opinion of your caso and advice free of cost. If Sick and Despondent Call and Get One Treatment FREE OF CHARGE. And be convinced of its wonderful andj immediate benefits. STATE ELEGTRO-MEDfCAL INSTITUTE 1 CORNER MARKET, POWELL AND EODT BTS.. ENTRANCE 3 EDDY ST. Office Hours: 9 a. m. to 12 m., 2p. m. to; 6 p. m., 7 p. m. to 8 p. m.; Sundays, 10 a. m. to 12 m. 5