In the Vermilion County Circuit Court case of Young v. Littler, Lincoln writes the affidavit of his client, Edwin Littler, whom William Young is suing for assault and battery. In the affidavit, Littler explains the "absence of David Hughes who is a material witness for" Littler. Young and Littler fought, in part, over the ownership of a hog. Littler pleaded self-defense and claimed that Young had tried to assault him "with a Gun, and with a Stick." Declaration, May 1850 Term, Young v. Littler, case file, Vermilion County Circuit Court, Vermilion County Courthouse, Danville, IL; Plea, Replication, filed 6 May 1850, Young v. Littler, John Hay Library, Brown University, Providence, RI; Affidavit of Edwin Littler, 21 October 1850, Young v. Littler, Alfred Whital Stern Collection, Library of Congress, Washington, DC.