208 Mass. 296 | Mass. | 1911
The plaintiff’s intestate, while employed by the defendant, received severe injuries causing his death after a considerable period of conscious suffering. Of the five counts of the declaration, the first at common law was waived, the third, fourth and fifth are immaterial to the exceptions because of the rulings in the defendant’s favor, and the case went to the jury upon the second and third counts charging under the statute negligence, Tn the performance of his duties, of some person entrusted by the defendant with superintendence. R. L. c. 106, §§ 71, 72, as amended by St. of 1906, c. 370, now by codification St. of 1909, c. 514, §§ 127, 128. Bartley v. Boston Northern Street Railway, 198 Mass. 163, 168.
The defendant concedes, that there was evidence for the jury as to the due care of the intestate, and that one Bell, the foreman of the forge room, was an acting superintendent, but contends that there was no evidence which warranted a finding that he was negligent. Murphy v. New York, New Haven, & Hartford Railroad, 187 Mass. 18. We are unable to adopt this view. The intestate with other workmen was engaged at the time of the accident in melting and breaking large brass castings. In the performance of the work when a casting had been heated to a temperature sufficient to make it brittle it was withdrawn and placed upon the die or anvil of a steam hammer and crushed. A casting having been heated to the necessary degree, the foreman ordered its removal to the hammer. The men thereupon inserted into an open space in the casting the end of a porter bar suspended by a chain from a movable crane. By interposing
Exceptions overruled.