Southwestern States Portland Cement Co. v. Riser

• Decision Date: 06 May 1911
• Citation: 137 S.W. 1188
• Parties: SOUTHWESTERN STATES PORTLAND CEMENT CO. v. RISER.
• Court: Texas Court of Appeals

137 S.W. 1188

SOUTHWESTERN STATES PORTLAND CEMENT CO. v. RISER.

Court of Civil Appeals of Texas. Dallas.

May 6, 1911.

Rehearing Denied May 27, 1911.

Appeal from District Court, Dallas County; E. B. Muse, Judge.

Action by R. J. Riser against Southwestern States Portland Cement Company. From the judgment for plaintiff, defendant appeals. Affirmed.

Appellee was in the employment of appellant as a laborer in the construction of a rock storage plant. On the 13th day of May, he, together with a fellow servant, was engaged in riveting sheeting to the side of the structure. In the course of the work the men used two scaffolds, each consisting of a piece of board suspended on the opposite sides of a wall of the structure by ropes fastened to projections from the top of the wall. Appellant did not furnish said scaffolds in a completed state to said workmen, but furnished the boards and the ropes, and the same were constructed by them according to their own judgment. Appellee stood on a scaffold on one side of the wall, and a fellow servant by the name of Dulaney stood upon the scaffold on the other side. Separated by the wall they were out of sight of each other, but together were engaged in the common work of "bucking rivets" and fastening sheeting to the side of the structure. They had finished a particular portion of the work and it then became necessary to take down the scaffolds. Dulaney first started to take his down, and in order to let the same to the ground, began untying the ropes by which his board was suspended, causing one end of the scaffold upon which Riser was standing, to fall, precipitating him to the ground and injuring him. The scaffolds were erected by one Harrell, who superintended the putting on of the sheet iron. Suit was filed by R. J. Riser to recover damages for injuries alleged to have been sustained by said fall. Plaintiff in his petition alleged that his injuries were the direct and proximate result of the negligence of the defendant, in that the said defendant and its officers agents and servants, failed to furnish and provide and failed to exercise ordinary care to furnish and provide proper and necessary material and equipment to support, maintain, and erect said swinging scaffold or plank—that is, so that it might be securely fastened independent of the other scaffold —and without having the same rope extend from it to the other of said scaffolds, and in that they failed to exercise ordinary care to securely fasten at the top the rope supporting the said swinging scaffold or plank, and failed to exercise ordinary care to fasten the same to a part of the building by a rope or other support which did not extend to said other scaffold, and failed to exercise ordinary care to have the same so fastened that they would remain securely fastened until plaintiff had performed his duties as aforesaid, and failed to exercise ordinary care to warn, and failed to warn plaintiff and the said other workmen doing similar work as to the manner in which said plank was fastened and supported. A trial resulted in a verdict and judgment for the plaintiff, Riser, in the sum of $1,999.99, and defendant duly perfected an appeal.

Conclusions of Fact.

In May, 1909, R. J. Riser was in the employ of the Southwestern States Portland Cement Company and engaged in assisting in putting sheeting or siding on a certain building located at the plant of said company near Eagleford, in Dallas county, Tex. He was on a swinging scaffold on the outside of said building about 35 or 40 feet from the ground. This scaffold was composed of a plank 2×12 inches and 20 feet long, which was suspended and supported by ropes extending above and from over a piece of truss work made of steel, from which extended a 6×10 piece of scantling, on which the roof was to be nailed. This piece of scantling extended about one foot over the edge of the steel truss, the rope being fastened on the inside to the scantling and extending over the truss on the outside, and there being fastened to the board on which Riser was standing when he fell. There were two scaffolds on which to stand, one being on the inside of the building and one on the outside hung in such a manner as to form a loop through which the tackle was hung, and the scaffold on which the men worked was raised or lowered by pulling on the ropes extending through and fastened in the pulley, which was fastened to said loop. These scaffolds had been constructed by Harrell, assisted by another employé called Jim. Harrell testified that, "about the time they had finished putting on this tier of siding I told both Dulaney and Riser that we would move both scaffolds to the next place where we were to work. Riser was standing at the far end of the scaffold when it fell. Dulaney was on the scaffold on the inside. I told Riser to go out to the other end, and I would let one end of the scaffold down and he could let his end down. This he did, and when he was at the other end and unfastening the tackle so it could be let down, the scaffold fell with him; that is, he had just unfastened the end and given me enough line to hold to, and had started to the other end of the scaffold when it fell. I had just told him that he had enough slack, and to go to the other end of the scaffold and unloosen it, when it fell, and I had no conversation with him. When they finished work Riser was on the end of the scaffold near the outside of the building. After the siding had been put on I instructed Dulaney to let the scaffold down on the inside. When I gave him my instructions, he was standing in my view on the truss, and as soon as he was instructed to let his scaffold down, he disappeared from my sight." He also testified: "I had authority over Riser and Dulaney in their work and they were compelled to obey my orders. I had ordered them to do the sheeting which was...