of the May term of the Circuit Court 1841

, , Joseph Smith Jr and By their atto[r]ney Complain of Benjamen Holladay and William Halladay [Holladay] in Custody &c of a plea of . For that to wit <​on the​> 10th day of August 1840 at to wit the and aforesaid Said Defendants represented themselves to <​be​> Skillful and competent pilots with understanding the the Steam Boat channel of the and plaintiffs confiding in defendants representations aforesaid were then and there induced to ingage and hire Said defendants for Pilots to pilot and navigate Steam Boat Nauvoo on Said of Steam Boat plaintiffs were then and there the owners and that Said Defendants under Said hiring & took possession of Said Steam boat Nauvoo as pilats as aforesaid and Said defendants not regarding the premises but intending to injure the plaintiff in that behalf willfully and with intent to distroy Said boat run the Same upon rocks and Sand bars <​out of the usual Steam boat channel of Said ​> and thereby greatly ingured the hull and rigging of Said <​boat​> to wit to the Sum of $2000. and hindered and dilayed Said boat and that the time Said boat was so hindered and dilayed <​ditained​> was worth a large Sum of money to wit the Sum $1000.

And for that afterwards to wit day and year last aforesaid at to wit the and aforesaid Said defendants represented themselves to the plaintiffs to be Skillfull <​[illegible] [vigalent?]​> and competent pilats to navigate and pilat Steam Boats on the upper and that plaintiffs confiding in Said last mentioned representations were enduced to engage and hire Said defendants to navigate <​as pilats​> a certain other Steam boat Called Nauvoo <​on Said up[p]er ​> of which the plaintiffs [p. [1]]