The Chicago v. Dingman

• Decision Date: 30 April 1878
• Citation: 1 Bradw. 162,1 Ill.App. 162
• Parties: THE CHICAGO, ROCK ISLAND AND PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANYv.SARAH L. DINGMAN.
• Court: United States Appellate Court of Illinois

1 Ill.App. 162

1 Bradw. 162

THE CHICAGO, ROCK ISLAND AND PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANY

v.SARAH L. DINGMAN.

Appellate Court of Illinois, First District.

April Term, 1878.

OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE

Appeal from the Circuit Court of Cook county; the Hon. Henry Booth, Judge, presiding.

Mr. Thomas F. Withrow, for appellant, cited The Pennsylvania Railroad Company v. Zebe, 37 Pa. St. 420; Lewis v. London, Chatham & Dover, R'y Co., 22 W. R. L. T. (N. S.) 397.

Mr. A. Garrison and Mr. M. D. Brown, for appellee, insisted that the court will not reverse where substantial justice has been done, and cited Rowle v. Hughes, 40 Ill. 316; Ryan v. Brant, 42 Ill. 78.BAILEY, J.

This was an action on the case, brought by appellee against appellant, to recover damages for injuries which appellee alleges she received while alighting from one of appellant's cars, at Thirty-first street, in the city of Chicago.

It appears that on the evening of the 10th day of December, 1873, appellee entered one of appellant's cars, at the station between Forty-seventh and Forty-eighth streets, paid her fare, and requested the conductor to let her off at Twenty-ninth street. He informed her that the train did not stop there, but stopped at Thirty-first street, where he would let her off. Appellee then asked the conductor to show her off on arriving at Thirty-first street, and he said he would do so.

At the time it was raining, and very dark. When the train reached Thirty-first street, the conductor came with a lantern in his hand to the north or front door of the car in which appellee was sitting, and announced the station, and then stepped down on the easterly side of the car at the front platform, and helped several passengers to alight from the train.

Appellee was sitting near the rear end of the car. She admits that she saw and heard the conductor as he came to the front door with a lantern and announced the station. Instead, however, of going to the front door where the conductor was, and where he was ready to assist her in alighting, she went to the rear door and stepped down on the westerly side of the car, it being so dark at the time as to render it impossible for her to see where she was likely to land, and in so doing, as she testifies, fell into a culvert situated on the westerly side of the track, and received the injuries of which she now complains.

The only reason appellee assigns for getting off at the rear end of the car, is, that she was sitting nearest that end, and feared that if she went to the front door, the cars might start before she got off. The record, however, fails to disclose any ground whatever for such fear. She testifies that the conductor, as soon as he had announced the station, disappeared from her view, but admits her inability to state whether he stepped down with his light and helped passengers off at the front end of the car, as she went out by the rear door and stepped down on the other side. A bystander, however, testifies...