Arnold v. the Ill. Cent. R.R. Co..

• Decision Date: 30 September 1876
• Citation: 1876 WL 10334,83 Ill. 273,25 Am.Rep. 386
• Parties: MARTIN L. ARNOLDv.THE ILLINOIS CENTRAL RAILROAD COMPANY.
• Court: Illinois Supreme Court

83 Ill. 273

1876 WL 10334 (Ill.)

25 Am.Rep. 386

MARTIN L. ARNOLD

v.THE ILLINOIS CENTRAL RAILROAD COMPANY.

Supreme Court of Illinois.

September Term, 1876.

OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE

APPEAL from the Circuit Court of Lee county; the Hon. WILLIAM W. HEATON, Judge, presiding.

This was an action on the case, by appellant, against appellee, for negligence in running its freight train on which appellant was being carried as a passenger, whereby appellant was injured.

Appellee pleaded not guilty, and four special pleas. To the latter, appellant demurred. The court sustained the demurrer to the first and second special pleas, and overruled it as to the third and fourth. Appellant abiding by his demurrer to the third and fourth pleas, and refusing to plead over, the court gave judgment for appellee. Appellant took proper exception to the rulings of the court in regard to these pleas, and brings the case here by appeal.

The third plea is as follows:

“And for a further plea in this behalf, said defendant says actio non, because it says that, at the time of the commission of said supposed grievances in said declaration alleged, and for a long space of time prior thereto, to-wit: at said county, the said defendant was operating its said railroad from said city of Dixon to said city of Amboy, and carrying and conveying in and upon its cars on said railroad, from said city of Dixon to said city of Amboy, all persons desiring to be so carried and conveyed, and offering themselves to the defendant for that purpose; and, also, for carrying and conveying in and upon its said cars on said railroad, from said city of Dixon to said city of Amboy, all freights and personal property offered to said defendant to be so carried and conveyed; and that said defendant, during all the time last aforesaid, for the purpose of so carrying and conveying the persons aforesaid in a safe and convenient manner, and with the least liability of injury to said persons while being so carried and conveyed, furnished, provided, run and operated upon its said railroad, from said city of Dixon to said city of Amboy, a sufficient number of trains of cars--usually known as passenger trains--each day, to accommodate, carry and convey as aforesaid, with convenience and dispatch, all persons desiring to be carried and conveyed by said defendant as aforesaid, and offering themselves to the said defendant for that purpose; said passenger trains being then and there composed of cars specially constructed and adapted to secure the safety and convenience of all persons being so carried and conveyed thereon; and said passenger trains being then and there operated, run and managed by the said defendant, its agents and employees, with special reference to the transportation of passengers thereon, and with great care, caution, skill and circumspection, so as to prevent accidents and injuries to the persons riding and being carried and conveyed thereon.

And the said defendant further avers that, during all the time last aforesaid, the cars in said passenger trains were so constructed, and said passenger trains were so operated, run and managed by the defendant and its agents and employees, as to occasion very slight risk of accident or injury to the persons of passengers riding and being carried and conveyed thereon as aforesaid.

And the said defendant further avers that, during all the time last aforesaid, to-wit: at said county, the said defendant was ready and willing to carry and convey, from said city of Dixon to said city of Amboy, upon its said passenger trains, all persons being desirous of being so carried and conveyed by said defendant, and offering themselves to said defendant for that purpose, for a certain fare or reward, to-wit: the sum of sixty-five cents, to be paid to said defendant by each passenger being so carried and conveyed.

And the said defendant further avers that, during all the time last aforesaid, to-wit: at said county, the said defendant, for the purpose of carrying and conveying, from said city of Dixon to said city of Amboy, and to other places on its said railroad, all such freights and personal property as should be offered to the said defendant to be so carried and conveyed, furnished, provided, run and operated upon its said railroad, from said city of Dixon to said city of Amboy, and to said other places on its said railroad, certain other trains of cars commonly known as freight trains; said freight trains being then and there composed of cars specially built and adapted to the carriage and conveyance of said freights and personal property; said freight trains and the cars composing the same being then and there necessarily less convenient and safe than the said passenger trains for persons to ride and be carried and conveyed thereon; and said freight trains being then and there operated, run and managed by the agents and employees of said defendant with express reference to the carriage of freights and personal property thereon, and with less care, caution, skill and circumspection in preventing accidents and injuries to persons riding and being carried and conveyed thereon than the passenger trains aforesaid, and the carriage of said freights and personal property on said freight trains being then and there, in its nature, necessarily very hazardous to the safety of persons riding and being carried and conveyed on said freight trains.

And the said defendant further avers that, during all the time last aforesaid, the cars of said freight trains were so constructed, and the said freight trains were so operated, run and managed by the agents and employees of the said defendant, and the carrying and conveying of said freight and personal property on said freight trains was in itself necessarily so hazardous to the safety of persons being carried and conveyed on said freight trains, that all persons riding and being carried and conveyed on said freight trains were thereby necessarily exposed to and incurred much greater hazard, peril and danger of accidents and injuries to their persons, while so riding and being carried and conveyed by said defendant on said freight trains, than persons then and there riding and being carried and conveyed by said defendant upon said passenger trains would then and there be exposed to and incur.

And the defendant further avers that the defendant, prior to the commission of the said supposed grievances in said declaration alleged, to-wit: on the first day of January, A. D. 1869, to-wit: at said county, in consideration of the premises, through its proper officers, made, ordained and established a certain rule and regulation respecting the conveyance of passengers upon...