Hoar v. Maine Cent. R. Co.

• Decision Date: 07 June 1879
• Citation: 70 Me. 65
• Parties: CATHARINE HOAR, administratrix, v. MAINE CENTRAL RAILROAD COMPANY.
• Court: Maine Supreme Court

70 Me. 65

CATHARINE HOAR, administratrix, v. MAINE CENTRAL RAILROAD COMPANY.

Supreme Judicial Court of Maine.

June 7, 1879

ON REPORT.

CASE. The declaration is as follows:

" In a plea of the case, for that on the eleventh day of December, A. D. 1875, the defendants were the owners and operated a railroad known as the Maine Central Railroad passing through the towns of Waterville and West Waterville in the county of Kennebec, and were common carriers of passengers and persons between said Waterville and West Waterville, and were then and there bound and required by law to carry and transport all passengers and other persons lawfully in and upon its said railroad carefully and safely, and with due regard for the preservation of their lives and limbs; and were required to employ careful, faithful and suitable persons for servants and employees, to run and manage their trains, locomotive engines and cars, and were bound to run and manage the same carefully and with due regard to the limbs of those legally in their cars.

Yet the defendants, well knowing their duty and obligations, did, on said day last named, at said Waterville, through and by their foreman of a section, their agent and servant, Silas H Potter, then and there employed in their business, and then and there entrusted by defendants with the care and control of one of its hand-cars, which was run on said day from said Waterville to West Waterville, upon and over said railroad by said Potter and others, invite, request and authorize said deceased, John Hoar, then and there alive and in good health (and until a short time previous thereto having been for many years employed by defendants as section man), to ride with him, the said Potter, upon said hand-car from said Waterville to West Waterville, over and upon said railroad of defendants, which invitation and request said deceased then and there accepted, and in pursuance thereof got upon said hand-car with said Potter and one Jere Murphy, and then and there proceeded to ride from said Waterville to West Waterville over said railroad, all which was then and there well known to said defendants and to their servants, officers and agents.

And the plaintiff avers that the defendants did then and there negligently, carelessly, wantonly, and in total disregard of law and of the safety of said Hoar and of their passengers and others lawfully traveling in and upon its cars, over and upon its road, at said Waterville, and of their lives and limbs, by other of defendants' servants and agents then and there entrusted by defendants with the control and management of a locomotive engine of the defendants, then and there propelled by steam, and attached to and drawing a paymaster's car, and those having control of said locomotive engine and paymaster's car, then and there being employed by defendants in their business upon said railway, without any notice to said Hoar or to any person on said hand-car, and without the actual knowledge of said Hoar, dispatch and send with great violence and velocity on said railway, and over the same track upon which said hand-car was then and there lawfully passing, with the said Hoar and others then and there lawfully thereon, said locomotive engine being then and there attached to said paymaster's car, against and upon said hand-car upon which said Hoar was lawfully riding, and without warning or notice to said Hoar, then and there instantly (to wit: at about the hour of seven o'clock and twenty minutes A. M., on the 11th day of December, A. D. 1875,) fracturing the skull of said Hoar, and then and there inflicting upon him mortal and fatal wounds and injuries, whereof said Hoar thereafterwards, to wit: on the same day at about the hour of one o'clock P. M., after suffering great pain and torture and agony during said period of time, died.

And the plaintiff avers that the said defendants did not employ careful, faithful and suitable persons for servants and employees to run and manage their locomotive engine, car and train, but put the same in charge of negligent, careless and heedless persons and employees, and said deceased was then and there in the exercise of due care and diligence, said injury, suffering and loss of life being the direct result of the negligence, carelessness and recklessness of defendants, and without the fault of said Hoar or of any other persons on said hand-car.

Also for that the defendant corporation, before and at the time of committing the grievances hereinafter named, to wit: on the eleventh day of December, A. D. 1875, were the owners and operated a railroad running from Bangor to Portland, Maine, through the towns of Waterville and West Waterville, in the county of Kennebec; that the said John Hoar, then in full life, at the special instance, request and invitation of said defendants, got upon a hand-car of said defendants to ride from said Waterville to West Waterville, over and upon the defendants' said road, and the defendants then and there so received the said Hoar, to carry him from said Waterville to West Waterville, and then and there it became the duty of the defendants to provide safe and sufficient transportation to said Hoar, between said Waterville and West Waterville, and to employ safe, careful and suitable employees to manage their locomotive engine, car and train with care, and with due regard for the life and limb of said Hoar and others lawfully on defendants' cars and railway, and to run their locomotive engines, cars and trains in a careful and safe manner. Yet the said defendant corporation, not regarding their duty in that behalf, did not provide safe and sufficient transportation from said Waterville to West Waterville for said Hoar, and did not employ safe, careful and suitable employees to manage their locomotive engines, cars and trains with care, and with due regard for the life and limb of said Hoar and others lawfully on defendants' cars and railway, and did not then and there run their locomotive engine, car and train in a careful manner, but on the contrary, the said defendant corporation employed such careless and heedless employees and servants to manage their said locomotive engine, car and train, and did manage and control them with such recklessness and negligence, that said locomotive engine, car and train were drawn with great speed and violence upon and against the car upon which the said Hoar was lawfully riding, as aforesaid, on said eleventh day of December, A. D. 1875, at a few minutes past seven o'clock in the forenoon, and without any notice to said Hoar, then and there wounding, bruising and crushing the said Hoar, by reason of which injuries the said Hoar thereafterwards, at about one o'clock of the same day, died, during which time the said Hoar underwent great pain of body and mind; and the plaintiff avers that the injuries so received by said Hoar were in consequence of the great negligence and carelessness of the defendant corporation as aforesaid, and without the fault of the said Hoar.

Also for that the said defendants, on the eleventh day of December, A. D. 1875, were the owners and operators of a railroad extending from Bangor to Portland, in the state of Maine, and running through the towns of Waterville and West Waterville; and were...