Texas Midland R. Co. v. Frey

• Decision Date: 20 February 1901
• Citation: 61 S.W. 442
• Parties: TEXAS MIDLAND R. CO. v. FREY.
• Court: Texas Court of Appeals

61 S.W. 442

TEXAS MIDLAND R. CO. v. FREY.

Court of Civil Appeals of Texas.

February 20, 1901.

Appeal from district court, Lamar county; E. S. Chambers, Judge.

Action by Samuel Frey against the Texas Midland Railroad Company. From a judgment for plaintiff, defendant appeals. Reversed.

Edgar Wright and H. D. McDonald, for appellant. Wilkins, Vinson & Batsell and Moore, Park & Birmingham, for appellee.

FLY, J.

This is a suit to recover damages arising from personal injuries alleged to have been inflicted upon the wife of appellee through the negligence of appellant. Upon the verdict of a jury, judgment was rendered in favor of appellee for $2,000. It was alleged in the petition that Sarah Frey, the wife of appellee, got on a passenger train, belonging to appellant, at Terrell, Tex., to go to Ennis, Tex.; that when the train reached Ennis no platform had been provided upon which Mrs. Frey could alight, and she was compelled to alight upon the ground; that there was no box or stool to aid her in reaching the ground, and, although she exercised proper care in alighting, she was severely and permanently injured. These were the only grounds of negligence alleged. The uncontroverted evidence established that there was a gravel and cement platform for the accommodation of passengers at Ennis, built on a level with the tracks, and that the platform was not more than 18 inches from the lower step of the passenger coach. A man was employed at the depot to assist passengers on and off all trains, and he was assisted by the conductor. Mrs. Frey, the only witness who swore to the circumstances connected with her injury, testified as follows: "* * * I arrived at Ennis about noontime. It was raining and thundering and lightning when I reached Ennis. It was an awful pour, — lots of rain. Began raining in Terrell before I bought my ticket. When train reached Ennis I got off. A man assisted me to get off the car. He was the conductor, and was standing near the steps. I did not see any one else. He assisted me by taking hold of my left hand. I stepped from the car to the ground. It was an awfully long step to me. I did not notice the long distance from the step to the ground before I made the step. It was raining, and the conductor took hold of my left arm and assisted me off the train steps. I stepped right onto the ground, and did not see any box or stool there to step on. I then went into the depot." It is evident from all the circumstances that what Mrs. Frey called the "ground" was the gravel and cement platform. No effort was made to show that the step was more than 18 inches from the "ground" or platform where Mrs. Frey alighted, but all the evidence of negligence introduced by appellee is quoted above.

It...