Metropolitan West Side Elevated R. R. v. Goll

100 Ill. App. 323, 1902 Ill. App. LEXIS 716
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedFebruary 21, 1902
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 100 Ill. App. 323 (Metropolitan West Side Elevated R. R. v. Goll) 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
Metropolitan West Side Elevated R. R. v. Goll, 100 Ill. App. 323, 1902 Ill. App. LEXIS 716 (Ill. Ct. App. 1902).

Opinion

Mr. Presiding Justice Freeman

delivered the opinion of the court.

This is an action on the case to recover compensation for private property in the city of Chicago, no part of which has been “ taken,” but which it is alleged has been “ damaged ” for public use within the meaning of the constitutional provision upon that subject, by the construction and operation of appellant’s elevated railroad.

It is stated in appellant’s brief, in substance, that appellee made no attempt to prove and hence has abandoned any claim for injuries alleged to have been caused by shutting off light, darkening the boulevard, obstructing access to the premises, dropping oil and water upon the boulevard or upon persons passing to and from the premises in question; that the only elements of damage for which, under the proofs, recovery is now sought, are such as are alleged to be caused by noise, by dust, by the unsightliness of the elevated structure, by interruption of view from appellee’s premises along Ashland Boulevard, by vibration and by interruption of south breezes. Appellee, however, does not concede this, and specially insists that it appears from the evidence, and was more particularly disclosed by the jury’s view of the premises, not only that the air from the south is interrupted, but that inasmuch as window shades in the parlor and second story have to be kept down to prevent passengers on appellant’s trains from looking in, therefore light, air and sunshine are in fact excluded and the premises in controversy are thereby damaged.

We are told by appellee’s attorneys that this court has not all nor the most important of the evidence before it upon which the verdict of the jury was based; that “ its most important branch and unquestionably controlling feature was the view which the jury took of the property and the effect which the location, construction and operation of appellant’s, road had upon the premises as disclosed by that view.”

This, however, is not a condemnation case in wdiieh such view is specially provided for by statute, and the view of the premises by the jury was not in the nature of evidence. Vane v. City of Evanston, 150 Ill. 616, was a special assessment case in which the jury were permitted to view the premises. It is there held that the only proper purpose of the view was as at common law “ simply to enable the jury to understand the issue and apply the evidence. They were not authorized to consider any fact bearing upon the merits of the controversy derived from such view.” Springer v. City of Chicago, 135 Ill. 552-566, was a suit for damages, caused by construction of a viaduct. It is there held not to be error, in the exercise of a sound legal discretion to permit a view of the premises to enable the jury to obtain a better understanding of the issue presented. So in the present case, the view of the jury was allowable only for the purpose of giving a better understanding. of the case. Such view was not evidence, nor to be treated as in the nature of evidence upon which to base or sustain a verdict. If not supported by the record, we are not authorized to indulge in the presumption that there ivas evidence outside the record upon which it was based.

The case at bar presents questions of importance in their bearing upon rapid transit in cities, and upon the rights of private owners who are more or less affected by the construction and operation of elevated roads. Elaborate briefs and arguments have been presented, and a determination of the questions involved seems to require reference to principles applicable. Generally stated the question is whether the injuries which it is claimed have been inflicted by the construction and operation of appellant’s railroad, are of a nature such that appellee’s property has been thereby “ damaged ” for such public use, so as to entitle her to compensation therefor, as provided by the Constitution.

Appellant contends (a) that injuries to appellee’s property arising out of and unavoidably incident to the operation in a careful and skillful manner of a properly constituted railroad are damnum, absque injuria; (b) that to recover, appellee must affirmatively show that the railroad was not properly constructed and is not operated in a careful and skillful manner; and (c) that the. trial court erred in admitting evidence as to certain elements of damage for which there could be no recovery in any event, such as unsightliness of structure, obstruction of view along the street, interception of breezes, necessary noise, vibration or dust, and it is argued that a railroad company may use its own property in the same manner as a private individual and without other or different liability. There is no claim in this case that appellant’s railroad has not been constructed and is not operated in a careful and skillful manner upon its own right of way, regularly and lawfully acquired.

As has been said by our Supreme Court, the decisions upon the general subject have not in this State been wholly harmonious. The difficulty, however, is not, perhaps, so much in stating the controlling principles, as in their application. In the present case, the appellant is operating an elevated road for the purposes of urban transportation. The purpose of its existence is to convey passengers rapidly and easily from point to point within the city limits. To do this it must run its line through densely populated and thickly built portions of the city. Its trains are operated by electricity, and there are no locomotive engines creating smoke, there is no ringing of bells and no whistling for crossings or stations. Thus, many of the annoyances which have been regarded as necessary incidents to the operation of ordinary surface railroads by steam are done away with. Whatever annojmnces are caused by the new system are somewhat different in degree and kind, arising mainly from the location and elevation of the structure, . the more frequent passing of trains and the noise incident thereto. The running of trains through crowded cities is not a new incident. Surface roads have done that and are still doing it in every city of the land. A railroad track laid by authority of law upon a city street, if properly constructed and operated in a skillful and careful manner was not and is not in law an actionable nuisance, owing to the fact that it is so constructed and operated t)y authority of law. The noise and confusion created by running engines and other incidents of operation, which were regarded as inseparable from the purpose and objects of railroads, formerly, had to “ be borne by all living near them, and without hope of redress.” (C. & E. I. R. R. Co. v. Loeb, 118 Ill. 203-210.) Thus the common law right of action against one maintaining a nuisance was taken away by a statutory permission for the construction and operation of railroads. Damage thereby caused to neighboring property owners was without remedy in this State until by virtue of the constitutional provision made in 1870 that “ private property shall not be taken or damaged for pub-lie use without compensation,” such damages having again become recoverable as at common law. The action for damages in such a case must include the entire damage, past, present and future, if damage there be, and all such damages must be assessed in the one action, as in a condemnation proceeding. C. & E. I. R. R. Co. v. Loeb, supra.

In C., M. & St. P. Ry. Co. v. Darke, 148 Ill. 226-232, Mr. Justice Bailey says :

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Bluebook (online)
100 Ill. App. 323, 1902 Ill. App. LEXIS 716, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/metropolitan-west-side-elevated-r-r-v-goll-illappct-1902.