Civil action to recover damages for personal
injuries allegedly resulting from actionable negligence of
defendant.
Plaintiff
alleges in her complaint these facts, briefly stated: (1)
That on 7 November, 1945, plaintiff purchased a ticket from
defendant, a common carrier of passengers for hire, for safe
transportation on one of its buses from Laurinburg to
Wilmington, in the State of North Carolina, and became a
passenger thereon.
(2)That
the bus was in negligent, careless and defective condition in
that there protruded from the floor or step of said bus and
near the door thereof, a piece of metal or loose fastening
which was not discernible and could not be observed by
passengers, including the plaintiff, while leaving said
bus.
(3)That
on said date as plaintiff under-took to alight from the said
bus, under the instructions and directions of defendant's
servant, agent and employee, the heel of her shoe became
engaged and entangled
with the aforesaid loose piece of metal
protruding and partially fastened to the floor or step of the
bus, so that and thereby plaintiff was violently thrown
against the side of said bus, down the steps thereof, by
reason of which she was injured in manner and to extent
specified, to her great damage.
(4)And
that said injuries received by plaintiff proximately resulted
from negligence of defendant in respect to the loose piece of
metal in manner specified in detail.
Defendant
answering the complaint, denied the allegations of
negligence, and pleaded the contributory negligence of
plaintiff.
These
facts appear from the record to be uncontroverted: On 7
November, 1945, plaintiff purchased a ticket from defendant
a common carrier of passengers for hire, for transportation
on one of its buses from Laurinburg to Wilmington in the
State of North Carolina, and became a passenger on a through
bus which had a fifteen or twenty minutes stop at Lumberton.
The bus, with a seating capacity of thirty three, had aboard
around 37 or 38 passengers, of whom four or five were
standing when the bus reached Lumberton. When the bus stopped
there, the driver told the passengers the length of time the
bus would remain. Plaintiff, who was sitting on the front
seat on the right hand side of the bus on the outside of two
seats, put her right hand on the guard rail, right in front
of where she was sitting, and, preceded by three or four
other passengers and the driver, started to get off the bus
and fell, sustaining injury--of which she complains.
Plaintiff, as witness for herself, testified in the
trial court: 'When we reached Lumberton, the driver of
the bus announced to the passengers that we had a
twenty-minute stop, and I decided to get off to get some
magazines * * * and when I started * * * I had my hand on the
handrail, and I had shoes with heels lower than these I have
on, I don't wear high heel shoes, and the next thing I
remember I was lying crumpled on the platform of the bus and
the weight going on my left arm, and when I roused up the
driver was helping me to get up, and he said, 'I am very
sorry that it happened,' and he picked me up and put me
in the seat back of the driver's seat and I was losing
much blood of the left hand * * * I wondered why I fell, and
the driver was standing there, he was trying to stop the
blood, and I looked over and said that was exactly what
tripped me, and there was my heel still in the raised piece
of steel and my shoe heel was caught in this piece of steel
and it was still there. The heel was torn completely from the
shoe * * * it was a very old bus * * * I did look where I was
going * * * on this occasion because I caught the handrail as
I started to get off the bus * * * I wondered why I feel and
while I was sitting in the seat where the bus driver helped
me to the seat, I looked and there was my heel caught in this
raised piece of steel in the bus, and that is exactly where I
fell and there was my shoe heel and it was right where it was
pulled off my shoe, and I wear good substantial
shoes.'
Then
on cross examination, plaintiff continued: 'On this day I
got on the bus over in Laurinburg--I went up these same steps
which I started down when I got to Lumberton. I couldn't
see anything wrong with them at that time. I didn't see
any piece of metal sticking up. I looked when I went up these
steps, sure. I don't remember any piece of metal sticking
up at that time--I didn't see any * * * in Lumberton * *
* I got off but I looked where I was going. I was looking
down, the steps were down. I looked where I was putting my
foot. I did not see metal sticking up.'
On
the other hand, the driver of defendant's bus, as witness
for defendant, testified: '* * * I got off the bus * * I
was standing by the door * * * I saw her when she started out
the door * * * she had her right hand on the guard rail and
started down, first step * * * left foot hit the floor of the
bus at this angle, her toe went over this way (indicating)
and knocked the heel off of her shoe. She had her hand on the
guard rail and she fell over and her left hand hit the hinge
of the door * * * I jumped up on the step and helped her up.
The lady sitting behind me got up and let her sit there. I
got my first aid kit, wrapped her hand and put first aid
bandage on it. Her
hand was cut * * * and * * * bleeding.
There was not a piece of metal sticking up on the step of
that bus. The well of the bus steps is constructed all in one
piece, that type of bus. There was no metal
strip sticking up on that step. The heel of her shoe came
off. I found the heel of the shoe laying on the floor of the
bus and picked it up. The best I recall it was two tacks that
was holding the heel * * * That heel was was a medium heel *
* * That heel was not caught in any part of the step. I
picked the heel up. She did not show me the heel at
all.'
Then
on cross examination the driver continued: 'I got off
then the passengers were lined up behind me coming out * *
They came out at the door. The bus was facing east--I was
facing west. The passengers * * * walked east and turned
south. They come down down the passageway and turned * * *
The floor of the bus comes clean up to the windshield, level
all the way up; no step there at all. The only step is after
they turn and come south, two steps there. The guard rails
are on the right hand side as you start down the steps and on
the left hand side of the steps. A passenger sitting on the
right side--the rail would be immediately in front. There is
a partition between the passenger sitting in front and the
step * * * Mrs. Humphries * * * I helped her up off of...
