1 Ga. App. 678 | Ga. Ct. App. | 1907
The two views, sometimes separately expressed, in regard to purprestures or obstructions placed in highways by adjacent propertjr owners in the exigencies of their business, — the one, that "the primary purpose of a street is for passage and travel, and any unauthorized and illegal obstruction to its free use comes within the legal notion of a nuisance, and any such nuisance as would leave the street or way in an unsafe and dangerous condition, or impair its úse in an unreasonable manner, or for- an unreasonable time, would make the city [and the person maintaining the obstruction] liable for any damages resulting therefrom;” the other, that "it is not every obstruction, irrespective of its character or purpose, that is illegal, and that the carriage and delivery of fuel, grain, or goods are legitimate uses of a street, though it may result in the temporary obstruction of. the right of public transit,” — are not incompatible. Both, subject to limitations, are recognized by law; and it is by reason of such limi
The plaintiff himself, who was sworn as a witness, was not able to give a very accurate statement of the causes of the injury. He testified, that he was walking along on the sidewalk, and suddenly, without warning, his feet slipped and he was hurled to the sidewalk, breaking his arm. In his stunned condition he looked for the cause and saw nothing save the hay and the smooth slick stone under it. Other witnesses, however, supplemented his 'testimony; and it was shown that from the grating to the curb the sidewalk was laid with large slabs of smooth stone, slanting with considerable declivity toward the curb, — one witness says a declension of 20 to 25 degrees, though, from the other descriptions given, these figures seem to be somewhat too large; 'for several years the Mor
Under the law and facts stated above, we must hold this disposition of the ease to be erroneous. The contention of the defendant in error is that the allegata and probata do not correspond; that there was no proof that more litter, etc., was occasioned than was necessary in the conduct of the business of the Morgan Grain Company. The allegation that the amount of hay, etc., dropped was unreasonable and unnecessary, in our judgment, should be construed, in the light of the law, to mean only that the amount was greater than would reasonably be consistent with the paramount right of the public. Although it might have been necessary, as they viewed it, for the grain company to absolutely obstruct the street in order to carry on their business with least expense and inconvenience to themselves, yet in the law’s concept of the situatiofi such a use is not reasonable or necessary. However, this was not the plaintiff’s sole allegation of wrong; but the fur-' ther charge is made, that, having littered the sidewalk so as to render it unsafe, the grain company neglected, for an unreasonable time, to clean it off. We are clear that this allegation was sustained. At the time of the injury business hours were over; trucking had ended for the day; the active moving of men and goods, which of itself would have been some protection to passers by, in that it would have put them on the lookout, had ceased; no reason appears why the sidewalk was not cleaned; but it was left there, according to the proof, slick and slanting, its smooth, greasy surface, hidden under a coating of straw, itself a slippery sub