54 Pa. Super. 175 | Pa. Super. Ct. | 1913
Opinion by
The plaintiffs’ son aged about five and one-half years, was drowned in a cistern in a barn owned by the defendant. The accident occurred in the middle of the day while the defendant and William Gilmore who was working for him were in the barn. The top of the cistern was on a level with the barn floor and the defendant had removed the lid a few minutes before. The evidence for
The evidence offered on the subject of damages was all that could have been shown under the circumstances. The age and health of the child, the cost of his maintenance and the occupation and circumstances of the parents were shown. In making an estimate of the value of the life and consequent damage by death much is léft to the sound discretion of the jury: Penna. R. R. Co. v. Zebe et al., 33 Pa. 318; McCleary v. Pittsburg Rys. Co., 47 Pa. Superior Ct. 366. Courts endeavor to define the measure of damages with precision but the application of the rule must be left to the jury. They are as competent to estimate the earning capacity of this child as would any witness be. The verdict is not extravagant and the jury evidently applied the instructions given by the court on that subject with discretion. On a careful consideration of the whole case we are of the opinion that the court was not in error in submitting it to the jury and that the instructions on the question of damage were correct.
The judgment is affirmed.