Illinois Central R. R. v. Treat

75 Ill. App. 327, 1898 Ill. App. LEXIS 874
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedApril 18, 1898
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 75 Ill. App. 327 (Illinois Central R. R. v. Treat) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Illinois Central R. R. v. Treat, 75 Ill. App. 327, 1898 Ill. App. LEXIS 874 (Ill. Ct. App. 1898).

Opinion

Mr. Presiding Justice Adams

delivered the opinion of the Court.

This is an appeal from a judgment rendered in favor of appellee and against appellant for the sum of $10,000, in an action on the case for damages alleged to have been occasioned by appellant’s negligence. The original declaration contains four counts. The first count avers that appellant negligently constructed and maintained its passenger platform at its Van Burén street depot in the city of Chicago, in such manner as to leave a space of, to wit, ten inches, between said platform and its passenger train, and that appellee, who had purchased a passenger ticket for the purpose of riding on one of appellant’s trains from said depot, while approaching appellant’s train with due care, etc., on said platform, fell through said open space and was injured etc.

The second count is substantially the same as the first, except that it avers as negligence that said open space was left unguarded and unprotected.

The third count is substantially as follows:

That defendant operated a railroad as stated in the former counts; that on the day aforesaid and six months prior thereto the defendant, by means of divers and numerous bills and posters displayed by the defendant in divers, numerous and public places in the city of Chicago and elsewhere, and divers numerous advertisements published in the city of Chicago and circulated among the people generally throughout the State and elsewhere, had been soliciting unusually large numbers of persons to travel upon and over the defendant’s said railroad as passengers. Avers that on the 22d day of October, 1893, she procured from the defendant a ticket commonly called a passenger ticket, and the plaintiff paid the defendant for the same, which entitled plaintiff to safe access to one of defendant’s said passenger trains, and carriage thereon as a passenger, from the defendant’s Van Burén street passenger depot to the defendant’s 00th street passenger depot; that the defendant was in possession of and using a platform in connection with and as a part of the defendant’s said Van Burén street depot and railroad and passenger trains, for use by persons desiring to become passengers on defendant’s said passenger trains.

Avers that on said day after having purchased said ticket from the defendant, she proceeded with all due care and diligence upon her part to and upon said passenger platform for the purpose of becoming a passenger for carriage thereon by the defendant as a common carrier. “ That by reason of the defendant’s said bills, posters, notices, advertisements and solicitations aforesaid, there had congregated at the defendant’s said depot and passenger platform on the day last aforesaid, when the plaintiff was on said platform for the purpose aforesaid, an unusually and extraordinarily large number of persons, to wit, 10,000 persons, for the purpose of being carried as passengers by the defendant,” on defendant’s trains from said platform. Avers that it was the duty, of the defendant to place at said Van Burén street depot a sufficient number of defendant’s officers, agents, employes, servants and police, to protect, control and direct the movements of said large number of persons and to furnish plaintiff an opportunity to safely gain access to the passenger trains of the defendant; but the defendant did not regard its duty or use due care in that behalf, but on the contrary thereof the defendant “ carelessly and negligently failed to place at said Van Burén street passenger depot and on said platform a sufficient number of defendant’s officers, agents, employes, servants and police or other persons to properly control and direct the movements of said large number of persons, and to furnish plaintiff an opportunity of safely gaining access to and becoming a passenger upon said defendant’s said passenger trains; and when the plaintiff, with all d'ue care and caution on her part, was then and there about to pass: from said passenger platform to said passenger train to be carried as a passenger by the defendant as aforesaid, the defendant carelessly and negligently permitted said large number of persons to suddenly rush, surge, crowd, push and move toward the defendant’s said passenger train with great force and violence; and plaintiff avers that thereby and by reason thereof the plaintiff was then and there thrown, pushed and crowded with great force and violence to, upon and against said passenger platform and said passenger train there, by means whereof” her head, neck, back, spine, hips, legs, etc., were then and there bruised, broken, mashed, etc., and thereby by reason thereof the plaintiff, suffered, etc., and laid out a large sum of money, to wit, $1,000.

The fourth count contains substantially the same averments- as the third, and, in addition thereto, contains averments that it was the duty of appellant to so construct, locate and maintain the platform, and so move, place and operate its trains with reference to the platform, as to protect appellee and furnish her with a safe access to the train, but that appellant so negligently constructed and maintained the platform and operated its train as to leave an open space of the width of, to wit, ten inches, unprotected and unguarded between the platform and trains; that appellee did not know of said unguarded space, and was pushed by the crowd (as in third count alleged) with great force and violence to and upon the platform and against the train, and into and through said open space, etc.

After verdict and before judgment, appellee, by leave of court, filed the following amendments to her declaration, appellant’s original plea to stand as a plea to the declaration as amended:

“How comes Emma A. Treat, the plaintiff, by Ashcraft, Gordon & Oóx, her attorneys, and by leave of court first had and obtained in the premises, amends her declaration herein and each count thereof as follows :■
“1st. By inserting in the first count of said declaration immediately after the words ‘From the defendant’s said Van Burén street passenger depot to, to wit, the defendant’s 60th, street passenger depot, in. said city of. Chicago, county and State aforesaid, for a certain reward then and there paid by,’ the words, ‘Leonora Starritt for.’
“ 2d. By inserting in the second count of said declaration immediately after the words, ‘ And the plaintiff at, to wit, the defendant’s said Van Burén street passenger depot, on the day last aforesaid, purchased from the defendant for a valuable consideration then and there paid by,’ the words, ‘ Leonora Starritt for.’
“ 3d. By inserting in the third count of said declaration after the words, ‘And plaintiff avers that on said 23d day of October, 1893, she procured from the defendant a ticket commonly called a passenger ticket, for a reward then and there paid by,’ the words, ‘Leonora Starritt for.’
“ 4th. By inserting in the fourth count of said declaration immediately after the words, ‘ And plaintiff avers that on the 23d day of October, 1893, she procured from the defendant a ticket, commonly called a passenger ticket, for a valuable consideration then and there paid by,’ the words,
‘ Leonora Starritt for.’ ”

■ The date of the accident was October 23, 1893, while the World’s Fair was in progress.

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Bluebook (online)
75 Ill. App. 327, 1898 Ill. App. LEXIS 874, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/illinois-central-r-r-v-treat-illappct-1898.