Great Western Grain Co. v. Chicago, M. & St. P. Ry. Co.
| Decision Date | 05 June 1925 |
| Docket Number | No. 24529.,24529. |
| Citation | 204 N.W. 47,163 Minn. 371 |
| Parties | GREAT WESTERN GRAIN CO. v. CHICAGO, M. & ST. P. RY. CO. |
| Court | Minnesota Supreme Court |
Appeal from Municipal Court, Hennepin County; C. L. Smith, Judge.
Action by the Great Western Grain Company against the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Company. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendant appeals. Affirmed.
F. W. Root, C. O. Newcomb, and A. C. Erdall, all of Minneapolis, for appellant.
Harold G. Simpson, of Minneapolis, for respondent.
On August 18, 1920, at Ashton, S. D., defendant received from plaintiff a carload of wheat for transportation to Minneapolis. It issued a straight bill of lading in the standard form approved by the Interstate Commerce Commission, in which plaintiff was named as both shipper and consignee, and the shipment described as follows:
On August 20th the car arrived at the Bass Lake yards in Minneapolis, where a state sampler went into it and took a probe sample. He found a high load, that is, the grain was at least six feet in depth. He also found a leak through one of the grain doors, which he characterized as a minor one. It appears to be conceded that, if the grain was over six feet in depth, the car must have contained approximately 91,020 pounds. On August 23d the car was unloaded at the Washburn-Crosby Company's mill and the wheat weighed. Its weight was 73,450 pounds, or 17,570 pounds less than the amount stated in the bill of lading. This action was brought to recover for the alleged shortage, and resulted in a judgment in plaintiff's favor, from which defendant appealed.
To maintain its claim, plaintiff offered in evidence the bill of lading, the certificate of the state weighmaster showing the weight of the wheat at the mill, proof of the value in the Minneapolis market of wheat of the grade shipped, and proof that the freight charges on the car were paid on the basis of 73,450 pounds of wheat. When plaintiff rested, defendant moved for a dismissal on the ground that the amount of grain loaded had not been proved, and on the further ground that there was no proof that any grain was lost in transit. The motion was denied, and defendant introduced evidence showing that the car was in good condition when loaded, and when delivered at the point of destination; that it had what is known as "a perfect seal record" from Ashton to Minneapolis, and that no leaks were observed by trainmen or inspectors while the shipment was in transit. The claim is made that there must have been a mistake in weighing the wheat at the mill; that the weighmaster's certificate is based on hearsay and not on personal knowledge; and that the discrepancy in the weights is so great that the car described in the certificate cannot be the one referred to in the bill of lading.
The manner in which the car was unloaded and the weight of the wheat ascertained was gone into at length by the witnesses. The weighing was done by two men, one an employé of the Washburn-Crosby Company, the other a state weigher. To get the right result each must have done his part of the work correctly. The system of weighing seems to have been carefully devised to secure accurate results. If the work of each man had been verified by the other, the possibility of error would have been reduced to a minimum. As we read the evidence, there was a possibility, but not a probability, that an error may have occurred. We find nothing in the evidence, aside from the great difference in the weight of the wheat at Ashton and at Minneapolis, to indicate that there was an error. The statute makes the weighmaster's certificate prima facie evidence of the facts stated therein (section 5046, G. S. 1923), and we think the weight of the certificate as evidence was not destroyed by the proofs.
Upon the authority of National Elevator Co. v. G. N. R. Co., 137 Minn. 217, 163 N. W. 164, it must be held that the introduction in evidence of the bill of lading, and...
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