45 F. 673 | U.S. Circuit Court for the Southern District of Iowa | 1891
(charging jury orally.) In this case the plaintiff, John Grant, seeks to recover damages in the sum of $25,000 against the defendant, the Union Pacific Railway Company, for injuries which he avers he received while in the employ of that company, in November, 1887. Before passing to the discussion of the principal questions which it will be necessary for you to consider and determine in this particular case, it will be well for me to instruct you upon the general rules that apply, in law. to parties who occupy the relation to each other of master and servant, and also some other general principles which should have weight and bearing in a case of this character. It is arecognized principle of the law that persons who enter upon any given employment assume the risks, hazards, and dangers that pertain to that particular business, when the saméis carried on in a proper and careful manner. Your common experience has taught you that there are some of the businesses and avocations of life that are more dangerous in their nature than the ordinary avocations; and your common experience has shown you, gentlemen, that this business of railroading is particularly a business in the conduct of which there is risk, hazard, and danger. This grows out of the fact that in the management of railroads and trains, on account of the great weight of the locomotives and cars, and the speed at which they are run, — from the facts which inhere in the very nature of the business' itself, — a person who assumes the position of an employe of that character, whose duties call him about trains or locomotives when they are being moved, is of necessity subjected to a greater risk and hazard than pertain to the ordinary avocations of life. Therefore it is true that a person who enters upon this business of railroading assumes himself all these risks and hazards, no matter how great they may be; that is to say, the risks and hazards that grow out of the business, and are inherent in it when properly carried on. He does not, of course, assume any risk or danger caused by the negligence of the railroad company. The duty and obligation is placed upon the railroad company, as the master, to use ordinary care in furnishing for its employes a safe place and safe appliances with which to perform the work expected of them. Now, what is meant by “ordinary care” is that degree of care which a prudent man would exercise in view of the circumstances that surround him ata given time. It is a recognized principle of the law that when human life and human limbs are at stake or in danger, the exercise of “ordinary care” requires greater caution, foresight, and prudence than are re
Now, negligence consists in the failure to exercise that degree of care which the law expects of a party under given circumstances. In a case of this character it is not sufficient, to enable the plaintiff to recover, that it be simply shown to you that he entered the employ of the railroad company, and while in that employ the accident happened, thereby causing the injury and damage to him; that is not sufficient. Before the plaintiff can recover it must be shown, by a fair preponderance of the evidence, that the accident causing the injury resulted from some negligence upon the part of the railway company, or from negligence for which the railway company is in law held responsible. It is a further principle of the law that, if it appears that plaintiff himself', by negligence upon his own part, caused the accident, or contributed to the cause of the accident, he cannot recover. Of course, if the defendant company was not negligent, and the accident was caused wholly by the negligence of plaintiff, he would have no cause of complaint against the company, and could not recover. Furthermore, if the evidence shows that the negligence of both parties contributed to the cause of the accident, that defeats flic right of recovery upon the part of the person injured. This is the doctrine which is known in law under the term “contributory negligence,” and it is based upon the principle that the law does not attempt to separate the consequences of an act which has been brought about by the combined negligence of the two parties. When the negligence of both parties, master and servant, or plaintiff and defendant, has combined together to cause the accident, then the law grants neither party the right to recover against the other. It leaves the parties just where their owu acts have placed them. Therefore, in cases of this kind, it is necessary, if it should appear that a given accident was due to the negligence upon the part of the defendant, that it he shown that the negligence was the proximate or immediate cause of the accident which caused the injury. And, furthermore, if it appears from the evidence that the plaintiff himself, by negligence upon his part, contributed to the accident, that would then defeat the right of recovery which he would otherwise have.
The jury are required, in determining cases, to weigh the testimony, and determine the credibility of the witnesses. In determining the credibility of witnesses the jury have a right to take into account the interest
It is claimed in the pleadings, on behalf of the plaintiff, that there was negligence in four particulars. But before I go to that, to make it a little more clear to you, I should say that the plaintiff has introduced evidence tending to show that in the performance of his duty towards the railway company on the night of the 17th of November, 1887, while in its yards at North Platte, he was called upon to turn a given switch, which has been spoken of in the evidence, I believe, as “Switch No. 1,” and that this was done for the purpose of permitting the locomotive, which was in charge of the foreman, Ryan, to pass in upon a given track; and that then plaintiff endeavored to pass from switch No. 1 to another switch, No. 2, distant about 300 feet; that the object, of plaintiff in passing from switch No. 1 to switch No. 2 was to change the switch, plaintiff thinking at the time that switch No. 2 was in such a condition as that, if it was not changed, the locomotive would run in upon another track,
Now, on the part of the plaintiff it is claimed that the defendant company is chargeable with negligence in four particulars: djlrst. That switch No. 2 was not a switch with a light upon it, and therefore it was impossible for plaintiff, in the darkness of the night, to know whether or not the switch was turned: the reason being that if the switch had hada light upon it plaintiff would have seen its position from switch No. 1. By looking at the lights he would have known the position of the switch, and would have seen there was no occasion for passing from switch No. 1 to switch No. 2 for the purpose of attending to it. He would have seen from switch No. 1 that it was turned, and in proper position. It is claimed that there was negligence on the part of the railroad company in not having a switch with a light upon it. Second. The second charge of negligence against the defendant is that the switch was turned by the foreman, Ryan, without communicating that fact to the plaintiff, so that, in the further discharge of the plaintiff’s duty, as he conceived it to be, he endeavored to reach the second switch in order to turn it, supposing that it was in the condition in which he had left it. Plaintiff claims it was negligence upon the part of the foreman, Ryan, for which the defendant company must bo held responsible, in having changed the condition of the switch without letting plaintiff’ know of same. Third. That the engine was run at a high and dangerous rate of speed when the foreman, Ryan, was moving it down upon this track, for the purpose of passing by switch No. 1, and along the track it was then proceeding upon. Fourth. That there were obstructions upon the side of the track, consisting of debris of one nature and another,- — broken pieces of scantling, railroad tics, and lumps of coal, left there in such a condition as to render the way along which plaintiff'was called upon to pass in going from switch No. 1 to switch No. 2 in a dangerous condition. The claim of the plaintiff is that by reason of these different facts and circumstances the accident was caused, and by reason of these several grounds of negligence charged against the de
Now, as to the first allegation of negligence, — that the switch had no light upon it. There is no dispute in the evidence upon that. It is admitted, or we assume from the evidence, that it was a switch which had no light upon it. The question is, was that a ground of negligence? Does the fact that there was no light upon-the switch authorize you in finding that the company was negligent in that particular? Now, as I have already said to you, the duty and obligation is upon the railroad company to exercise ordinary care; to put proper appliances upon its lines and in its yards for its employes when they are engaged in the performance of their duty. Has there been any evidence introduced before you, gentlemen, of parties who have skill and knowledge in that particular, tending to show that the use of switches without lights is negligence upon the part of the railway company? If the company has some switches in use without lights upon them, is that evidence of negligence on the part of the railway company? Is there any evidence in this case, gentlemen, to justify you in finding that the railway company was negligent in not having a light on switch No. 2? Now remember, gentlemen, in deciding a question of this kind, and all these questions in the case, you are- to carry your minds back to the condition which the parties occupied at the time, just before the accident. To use a common phrase, as we all know, “hind sight is better than foresight;” but we cannot apply that rule in deciding a question of this kind. After the accident has happened we can, of course, look back, and say if this thing or the other thing had been done it would not have happened; but that is not se fair way to decide upon a question of negligence charged against the defendant in a case of this kind. We must go back to the condition of the yard before the accident happened on that day. Is there evidence before you that would justify you in finding that at that time the railway company was guilty of negligence in having that switch there without a light upon it? If there had been evidence introduced, gentlemen, that it was the common and uniform practice among railway companies preceding that time always to have switches with lights,— that that was the common practice, and that it was observed, and the employes had a right to expect that would be done, — that would be evidence tending at least to justify you in finding that the railway company was negligent in not having its switch thus equipped. But is there evidence of that kind before you, gentlemen? There is evidence tending to show, as I understand it', that in this particular yard some switches had lights and some had none. Now, before you arejustified in finding that the company was guilty of negligence in this case you must
Now, as to the second question, which is, as I have already stated, that this switch was turned by the foreman, Ryan, without the knowledge of plaintiff. Assuming that the evidence would justify yon in finding that the switch was turned by Ryan, and that plaintiff did not know it was turned, and Ryan had not informed him of that fact, the question is, then, was it negligence upon the part of the railway company, or Ryan, as the representative of the company, to undertake to take down the locomotive without informing the plaintiff of the fact that the switch had already been turned, so that there was no necessity for him to go down to where switch No. 2 was located. Is there anything, gentlemen, in the evidence in the case that satisfies you that Ryan should have foreseen that plaintiff would make the effort to go from switch No. 1 to switch No. 2? In determining that you will take into account what the evidence shows the facts to be, and the position these parties occupied. Was it the duty of the plaintiff to turn these switches when locomotives were being passed over the tracks in that yard? If you find it was not his duty, and he had nothing to do with the switches, of course Ryan or the company would not be charged with the duty of
The next ground of negligence is that the locomotive was run at too high a rate of speed. The duty and obligation is upon the -railway
The fourth charge is as to obstructions. It is claimed by plaintiff that there were by the side of this track, where he was called upon to go in passing from switch No. 1 to switch No. 2, obstructions in the nature of pieces of scantling, railroad ties, lumps of coal, etc. You have heard the evidence in that particular, and it is a matter of fact for you to determine what the real condition of the track was. The burden is upon the plaintiff to satisfy you by a fair preponderance of the evideuce that there were obstructions upon the side of the track before he can claim anything under this charge. If ho fails to satisfy you that there were obstructions, that ends the inquiry so far as that particular charge of negligence is concerned. On the other hand, if the evidence satisfies you that there were such obstructions there, the next question is, was that the proximate cause of the accident, or did the obstructions aid in causing the accident? This brings us to the consideration of the fact of just hpw this accident did in truth occur. Upon the part of the plaintiff it is claimed that when he started to go from switch No. 1 to switch No. 2 he was required to go at a rapid rate of speed, — that is, to run; and that he found the engine was following him at a rapid rate, — at.
Does the evidence satisfy you that plaintiff received his injuries from stumbling upon any obstructions found there upon the side of the track, and that as a result — that while he Avas endeavoring to pass, in the .performance of his duty, from switch No. 1 to SAvitch No. 2 — he stumbled and was thrown down in such a manner as to injure him? Or does the evidence satisfy you that plaintiff found the locomotive was coming up to him, and made an effort to get upon the locomotive, and in making that effort received the injury of which he complains? As I have said to you, if the evidence satisfies you that the accident happened in the way claimed by defendant, that ends the case. If the evidence satisfies-you that the accident resulted substantially as claimed by plaintiff, viz., that while he was endeavoring to pass from switch No. 1 to switch No. 2 he stumbled and fell and received the injury, you are then to determine whether the accident was due to any negligence upon the part
If, under the instructions I have given you, you find for the .defendant, you will simply so state. If, on the other hand, you find for the plaintiff, you are then required to consider the amount of damages to he awarded him. In this particular case the elements of damage you are entitled to take into account in deciding the compensation to be allowed the plaintiff are the pain and suffering occasioned to him by this accident in the past and which may ho occasioned to him in the future, and also its effect upon his ability to labor. Now, of course, it is apparent to you that parties cannot bring evidence before you showing the exact amount in dollars and cents of damages in a case of this kind. It is not like a case where property is taken or of damage to property which has a market value. In such cases proof can be brought before you as to its market value, and the amount of damages is a matter of mathematical calculation; but thai cannot bo done in a case of this kind. In such cases as this you are entitled to take into account the facts sur-rounding the injured party, his age, possible expectancy of life, and the position he occupied, and the amount of money he earned. When a person is engaged as a laborer, and his wages are so much, of course the money loss to him is not so great as if he occupied a higher position, and had higher ability to earn money. A man who can earn a thousand dollars a year, and is deprived of his ability to do so, does not, of course, suffer as great pecuniary loss as though he were able to earn $2,000. Still, as I have said, all the parties can do is to bring in evidence showing what the facts and circumstances are in each particular case, — the age of the plaintiff, his habits of life, his ability to earn money, his occupation, and the effect upon these of the injury he has received. Evidence has been introduced showing his expectancy of life. Now, it is not understood that you shall take the expectancy of life of a man, and then figure up that he has been deprived of his ability to earn so much money for each one of those years. This would not be a fair way of estimating
Yerdict for defendant.