179 Ind. 334 | Ind. | 1912
Appellee sued to recover damages for injuries to its telephone system, caused by the falling of appellants’ “feed” wire upon its telephone wires. The court overruled appellants’ separate demurrers to the complaint. Trial by a jury and a verdict in favor of appellee. Appellants’ motion for a'new trial was overruled and judgment rendered on the verdict. Appellants'assign forty-three separate errors which can be generalized as follows: (1) The court erred in overruling appellants’ separate demurrers; and (2) overruling appellants’ motion for a new trial.
This was an action against The Fort Wayne, Van Wert and Lima Traction Company, The Lima and Toledo Traction Company, and the Ohio Electric Railway Company, by The Monroeville Home Telephone Company, to recover damages for injuries to property, alleged to have been occasioned by the negligent construction, maintenance and operation of an electric railroad along and across one of the streets of Monroeville, Indiana, along which same street appellee maintained and operated a line of telephone* wires. The feed and high tension wires of appellants were stretched across, above, higher and over the wires of appellee; that on January 17, 1908, during a sleet storm, the feed wire of appellants, which was improperly insulated and charged with and carried a very high voltage of electricity, by reason of negligent construction and negligent and improper maintenance, fell across and over the wires of appellee with the resulting damage as alleged.
The judgment is reversed with instructions to grant a new trial.
Note.—Reported in 100 N. E. 69. See, also, under (1) 29 Cyc. 566; 33 Cyc. 369; (2) 29 Cyc. 603, 644 ; 38 Cyc. 1748. For a discussion of the burden of proof as to contributory negligence, see 10 Ann. Cas. 4.