United States v. Union Stock Yards Co. of Omaha

Decision Date21 February 1908
Citation161 F. 919
PartiesUNITED STATES v. UNION STOCK YARDS CO. OF OMAHA.
CourtU.S. District Court — District of Nebraska

Syllabus by the Court

The defendant, the Union Stock Yards Company of Omaha, in connection with the business of furnishing facilities for stock yards, operates 35 miles of railroad, over which are hauled all the cars offered for shipment by any industry located on the line of said railroad, and all cars consigned to any such industry, and also cars from one railroad to another in course of shipment from one state to another, for which an arbitrary switching charge is made. Held, that defendant, in operating such railroad, is a common carrier engaged in interstate commerce within the safety appliance acts. Act March 2, 1893, c. 196, 27 Stat. 531 (U.S. Comp. St. 1901, p. 3174), amended April 1, 1896, c. 87, 29 Stat. 85 and March 2, 1903, c. 976, 32 Stat. 943 (U.S. Comp. St. Supp. 1907, p. 885).

Charles A. Goss, U.S. Atty., A. W. Lane, Asst. U.S. Atty., and Luther M. Walter, Special Asst. U.S. Atty.

Frank B. Ranson, for defendant.

T. C. MUNGER, District Judge.

This is an action wherein the United States seeks to recover from the defendant penalties for two alleged violations of the acts of Congress, known as the safety appliance acts. The first count of the petition charges that the defendant at a certain date used on its line of railroad its own locomotive engine in moving a car containing interstate traffic, consigned from a point in Iowa, to South Omaha, Neb., and that the engine was out of repair and inoperative on account of the uncoupling levers being missing from the ends of the locomotive. The second count charges that the defendant hauled on its line a certain railroad car used in moving interstate traffic, consigned from a point in Iowa to South Omaha, Neb., while the coupling apparatus was inoperative and out of repair.

The question presented by the answer and arising under the evidence is whether or not the defendant is a common carrier, or was engaged in interstate commerce by railroad. The case has been submitted under an agreed statement of facts. It appears therefrom that the defendant is a corporation organized under the laws of the state of Nebraska, and among its chartered powers are the right 'to construct, maintain, and operate a railroad with tracks of other railroad companies, which shall be operated for the purposes of its business as set forth, as well as also of carrying passengers and freight for the general public. ' The defendant was organized for the further purpose of conducting stock yards and certain business in connection therewith. The defendant owns a large tract of land at South Omaha, Neb., on which it has constructed buildings and sheds and pens of the general nature of stock yards. Adjoining defendant's grounds and located on the margin thereof are five large slaughtering and packing houses wherein stock is slaughtered and the product packed and prepared for shipment to market. The defendant for many years has had railroad tracks leading over its premises from a transfer track connecting with the other railroads which enter South Omaha, and which lead to the buildings and sheds and pens on its premises, and to the slaughtering and packing plants mentioned, and to certain other industries located along the defendant's railway tracks in South Omaha. The defendant has locomotive engines of its own which it operates upon these tracks, and has three flat cars and one box car. The flat cars are used for the purpose of picking up and hauling refuse and cinders over its tracks, and the box car is used as a tool storage car. None of these cars are carried beyond the defendant's premises. The defendant receives on this transfer track cars that are loaded with live stock and other freight, whether shipped from points within the state or from points in other states, and attaches its own locomotive to such cars and moves them as follows: Cars that are loaded with live stock are hauled by the defendant's locomotive to the packing houses or other place of ultimate destination in South Omaha along the defendant's tracks.

Cars loaded with freight consigned to other industries than the packing houses are likewise hauled to such industries or such place of destination. As to freight originating at South Omaha at these industries or packing houses, the defendant attaches its engine to such cars and hauls the cars, if they are loaded with packing house products, to the transfer track, and there delivers the same to the railroad designated by the persons operating the packing plant, and it receives from the industries other than packing houses cars that are loaded by them and likewise hauls them to the transfer track, where they are delivered to the railroad company designated by the persons operating the industries. The defendant company also hauls empty cars in the same manner as these loaded cars are hauled. All of the railroad companies whose tracks enter South Omaha, or who reach the transfer track, are common carriers, and are engaged in moving interstate commerce. About 45 per cent. of the live stock so received annually from these other railway companies by the defendant is shipped from states other than the state of Nebraska, and about 87 per cent. of the live stock loaded into the cars at the defendant's yards and delivered to the railroad companies on the transfer track is destined to points in states other than Nebraska. The defendant also receives cars from these railroad companies on its transfer track to be carried to the stock yards of the defendant, where the stock may be emptied into the stock pens, and also receives empty cars to be likewise hauled to the stock yards, where they may be loaded with live stock, and thereupon hauls such cars back to the transfer track to be likewise delivered to the railroad companies. Live stock is loaded and unloaded at the yards by the defendant company; other freight is loaded and unloaded by the persons to whom the cars are consigned. There are about 35 miles of railroad tracks belonging to the defendant, situated on its premises and connecting with the eight or ten railroads mentioned by means of this transfer track. The defendant transfers upon its transfer tracks cars for the different railroad companies from one railway company to another, whenever requested by the said railroad companies connecting with its track so to do, and the defendant is paid a fixed and definite charge for so doing. The road requesting the transfer requests that certain cars designated be transferred upon the defendant's transfer tracks, stating to what tracks or other road they are to be transferred. The defendant handles all cars offered to it by the railroads connected with its tracks, and transfers cars from one industry to the other on request of such industries. These charges are based on a car basis. These charges for handling cars for the railroad companies are collected on the first of each month. It does not issue slips or waybills to the consignor or consignee for any car received or moved by it. When the owner of live stock in the defendant's yards desires to ship the same out of the yards, he makes a written order, and files it with the defendant for a certain number of cars, giving the name of the consignee and the destination, and requesting the delivery of the cars to the railroad designated.

This is called a 'shipping order.' The defendant also receives at the same time what is called a 'billing order,' naming the railroad, the consignor, the consignee, and the...

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4 cases
  • United States v. Union Stockyard & Transit Co. of Chicago
    • United States
    • United States Commerce Court
    • 14 Noviembre 1911
    ... ... switches, so as to connect its yards, then outside of the ... city of Chicago, with the tracks of all railroad lines ... entering ... public market, where all kinds of live stock can be bought ... and sold. As part of this business it receives and cares for ... stock ... common carrier at all ... In ... Union Stockyards Co. of Omaha v. U.S., 169 F. 404, 94 ... C.C.A. 626, the Circuit Court of Appeals, while holding, as ... ...
  • Union Stockyards Co. of Omaha v. United States
    • United States
    • U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit
    • 2 Abril 1909
    ... ... stockyards company which owns and maintains at a large ... shipping point an extensive stockyards which is in effect the ... live stock depot of all the railroad companies doing business ... at that point, and which owns and maintains several miles of ... railroad tracks extending ... live stock as directed by the owners thereof ... On the ... margin of and adjoining its yards are several large packing ... houses wherein live stock is slaughtered and the product is ... prepared for shipment to market. Some other ... ...
  • State, ex rel. Winnett v. Union Stock Yards Company of Omaha
    • United States
    • Nebraska Supreme Court
    • 5 Marzo 1908
    ...as much a common carrier as if the distance were a thousand miles by regular freight or passenger train." See, also, United States v. Union Stock Yards Co., 161 F. 919. bulk of respondent's business comes from the railroads running into South Omaha. These railroad companies are not producer......
  • Consolidated Loops Co. v. Barnum & Bailey
    • United States
    • U.S. District Court — Southern District of New York
    • 5 Junio 1908
    ... ... v. BARNUM & BAILEY, Limited. United States Circuit Court, S.D. New York.June 5, 1908 ... ...

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