Thornton v. Franklin Square House

• Citation: 200 Mass. 465,86 N.E. 909
• Parties: THORNTON v. FRANKLIN SQUARE HOUSE.
• Decision Date: 06 January 1909
• Court: United States State Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts

200 Mass. 465

86 N.E. 909

THORNTON v. FRANKLIN SQUARE HOUSE.

Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, Suffolk.

January 6, 1909

COUNSEL

George

R. Swasey and Edith M. Haynes, for plaintiff.

Peabody & Arnold, for defendant.

OPINION

BRALEY J.

In Franklin Square House v. Boston, 188 Mass. 409, 74 N.E. 675 the defendant was held to be a charitable corporation, and as such exempt from taxation. The plaintiff in the present case puts her right of recovery upon the ground that the evidence now abundantly proves it is not a charitable, but a private corporation, and hence is liable to her in damages for the injury which she received. The defendant was incorporated under the provisions of Pub. St. 1882, c. 115, without either capital or stockholders, for the purpose expressed in its charter 'of providing a home for working girls at moderate cost.' In furtherance of this object the corporation was duly organized by the election of officers who were to serve without pecuniary compensation, and the adoption of by-laws, which defined their powers and duties. The fund to buy the equity of the real estate, the equipment of the hospital department, and the furnishings of the two large and eleven small parlors, were the gifts of friends. The facts as to its humanitarian mission, and founding of the house, its financial resources, and the scope of the defendant's management, were all narrated by the clerk of the corporation, who was called as a witness by the plaintiff, and whose testimony remained uncontroverted. It is established for an indefinite class of the general public who oftentimes by reason of low wages, or limited means, are unable to provide themselves with sufficient sustenance and clothing, and concurrently secure the comforts, with the educational and ethical environment, of a home devoted solely to their welfare. In practical operation, as well as in design, working girls are afforded a homelike place in which to live, at prices for board, washing, and lodging alone, as cheap, or cheaper, than they could be obtained by them under similar surroundings as to respectability and incentives to the proper conduct of life. A matron and resident nurse, whom it pays for their services, are in constant attendance, while free medical attendance is furnished by physicians who serve on the hospital staff without pay. A library, with weekly entertainments, and lectures during the winter months, are also provided. To found, equip, maintain and contribute a home of this description for working girls, where at an outlay within their means they can obtain for the bare cost shelter and maintenance, and also free of expense be provided with large opportunities for mental and moral improvement, and, if sick, with proper medical attendance, constitutes in law a public charity. Mass. Society for the Prevention of...