Harris v. E. Wis. Ry. & Light Co.

• Decision Date: 11 March 1913
• Citation: 152 Wis. 627,140 N.W. 288
• Parties: HARRIS v. EASTERN WISCONSIN RY. & LIGHT CO.
• Court: Wisconsin Supreme Court

152 Wis. 627

140 N.W. 288

HARRIS

v.EASTERN WISCONSIN RY. & LIGHT CO.

Supreme Court of Wisconsin.

March 11, 1913.

Appeal from Circuit Court, Fond du Lac County; Chester A. Fowler, Judge.

Action by Agnes Harris, as administratrix of H. B. Harris, against the Eastern Wisconsin Railway & Light Company. From judgment for plaintiff, defendant appeals. Affirmed.

This is an action for damages resulting from the death of H. B. Harris, the plaintiff's husband, which death is alleged to have been caused by the negligence of the defendant. The facts are that on the 2d of June, 1911, at about 6:30 p. m., the deceased was standing on the sidewalk on the north side of West Arndt street, in the city of Fond du Lac, talking with two other persons. He was some 12 or 15 feet from an electric light tower owned by the city. The tower was about 150 feet in height, triangular in form, constructed of iron rods and piping, each side of the triangle being about five feet in width at the bottom, and it was used for lighting a section of the city by means of a cluster of electric lights at the top. It was constructed by the city 20 years or more ago, but was still in active use. The defendant company, under a contract with the city, furnished the light used and the lamps, and kept the same lighted and in repair. About 18 feet from the ground there was a platform about 3 feet in width on each side of the triangle with a 3-foot railing on the outside. On one of the corner posts were iron steps a foot apart, extending from the ground to the top. In the center of the space within the triangle was a hexagonal iron basket 2 feet in diameter, 3 feet in depth, and having a wooden floor. This basket was constructed and used for the purpose of enabling the employé who trimmed the electric lights to elevate himself to the top of the tower and lower himself again to the 18-foot platform. It was arranged with two pulleys, two guide ropes, a steel cable, and a counterweight of 250 pounds, so that the employé could stand in the basket and pull himself to the top by means of a rope. At the time of the accident in question, and for a long time previously, three large paving stones were kept loose in the bottom of the basket as ballast. The weight of the basket, the operator, and the stones was about 15 pounds less than that of the counterweight, so that the operator was obliged to exert a lifting strength of about 15 pounds when he used the basket. The basket was also used by the city if at any time it wished to inspect the tower. The evidence shows that it had been so used by the city twice since 1907 up to the time of the accident, the last time being May 27th. The lights on the tower were expected to burn without attention for 90 hours, and an employé of the defendant company was accustomed to ascend in the basket to trim them when this time had elapsed. This necessitated an ascent by the employé two or three times a month. The basket (without a passenger), being lighter than the counterweight, would naturally shoot up to the top of the tower if not fastened down when the employé descended, consequently it was necessary to fasten it in some way at the 18-foot platform when not in use. This had always been done by wrapping a chain some four feet...