79 Mo. 207 | Mo. | 1883
Plaintiff commenced this action before a justice of the jieace and obtained judgment in the circuit court where it had been taken by the appeal of defendant, and it is now before us on the appeal of defendant. After charging that defendant was a corporation operating its road through Shoal township in Clinton county, it is averred in the statement as the cause of action that “ such corporation, the defendant, on or about the 30th day of June, 1878, in said township of Shoal, by and through its officers, agents and servants, negligently and carelessly ran its railroad cars and engine against, over and upon, and injured and killed a certain dark-red steer, of the value of $30, the property of plaintiff, to his damage in the sum of $30, for which sum plaintiff prays judgment.”
On the part of defendant the jury were told that if plaintiff’s steer got on the track at the public crossing when the engine was approaching, and so near as to be impossible to stop it before striking, they should find for defendant; they were also told that negligence was a question of fact, and consists in doing what a prudent person would not do, or in failing to do what a prudent person would do under the circumstances, and some commission or omission as above defined on the part of defendant’s servants or agents must be proved before they could find for plaintiff, and that the burden of proving negligence was on the plaintiff.
Judgment affirmed.