Missouri Pacific Railroad v. Rio Bravo Cattle Co.

405 S.W.2d 151, 1966 Tex. App. LEXIS 2302
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJune 22, 1966
DocketNo. 14494
StatusPublished

This text of 405 S.W.2d 151 (Missouri Pacific Railroad v. Rio Bravo Cattle Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Missouri Pacific Railroad v. Rio Bravo Cattle Co., 405 S.W.2d 151, 1966 Tex. App. LEXIS 2302 (Tex. Ct. App. 1966).

Opinion

MURRAY, Chief Justice.

This suit was instituted by Rio Bravo Cattle Company, a Texas corporation, in the District Court, 49th Judicial District, Webb County, Texas, against Missouri Pacific Railroad Company, a Missouri corporation authorized to do business in Texas, seeking to recover for damages to 1,153 head of cattle allegedly caused by the failure of the Railroad Company to timely furnish railroad cars on February 24, 1963, for shipment of the cattle from the Mexican stock yard pens in Nuevo Laredo to the Union Stock Yards in Laredo, Texas.

The trial was to a jury and, based upon the verdict of the jury, judgment was rendered in plaintiff’s favor in the sum of $5,052.33, after a remittitur by plaintiff of $697.67; from which judgment Missouri Pacific Railroad Company has prosecuted this appeal.

Appellant’s first seven points are briefed together and present the contention that the trial court erred in submitting to the jury Special Issue No. 2, because it was duplicitous, multifarious, a comment on the weight of the evidence, and otherwise objectionable.

Appellee, Rio Bravo Cattle Company, contends that it entered into an oral contract with appellant, Missouri Pacific Railroad Company, to furnish it nineteen clean and sealed railway cattle cars, suitable for transporting 1,153 head of cattle from ap-pellee’s pens in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, to Union Stock Yards in Laredo, Texas, a distance of some five miles.

The court’s Special Issue No. 1, reads as follows:

“Do you find from a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant railroad company agreed to furnish suitable stock cars for the transportation of plaintiff’s cattle from Nuevo Laredo, Mexico to Laredo, Texas?” The jury answered “Yes”.

The court then instructed the jury, “If you have answered Special Issue Number One ‘Yes’ and in that event only, you will answer Special Issue Number Two.”

Special Issue No. 2 reads as follows:

“Do you find from a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant railroad company failed to furnish railway stock cars at the agreed loading point in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, at the agreed time for furnishing same, which were suitable for transportation of the plaintiff’s cattle from Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, to Laredo, Texas?” (Emphasis ours.)

It will be noticed that Issue No. 1 only inquired as to whether appellant agreed to furnish stock cars for the transportation of appellee’s cattle from Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, to Laredo, Texas, while Issue No. 2 asks whether appellant failed to, furnish the cars at the agreed loading point in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, at the agreed time for furnishing same. The appellant had raised an issue of fact as to whether there was any agreed time and place for furnishing the cars, however, in Issue No. 2 the court assumes that there was an agreement as to time and place, and asks only whether appellant failed to furnish cars at the time and place agreed on; or asks the two questions of whether or not (1) there was an agreement as to the time and place, and (2) if there was a failure to so furnish the cars. Mr. Hastings, general manager for “Miss Jovita Perez, Customhouse Broker,” who handled appellee’s cattle, testified that he was the one who made the arrangements for the cars. He said that on Saturday, February 23, 1963, he called the yard office of appellant and had the following conversation with whoever it was that answered the phone at the office:

“Q Now, would you tell the Jury, Mr. Hastings, just what transpired in your own words here, insofar as your negotiations with the defend[153]*153ant, Missouri Pacific Railroad, on this occasion, are concerned?
A On the day before that Sunday, I believe it was February 25, I called the Missouri Pacific Railroad, the yard office — I don’t recall who the person I talked to was at the time— and requested nineteen empty, clean, sealed railroad cars, for first crossing to go to the Mexican side of the border, and also requested that several more cars be placed to assure that should any car be found to be mechanically not suitable, that there would be enough suitable cars for loading these cattle which we proposed to export from Mexico and import the following day.
Q Had you handled similar matters on other occasions for Rio Bravo Cattle Company or other clients?
A We have, sir.
Q In your estimate, would you say it was many times or just a few times, or how many occasions ?
A Many, many times.
Q You mentioned ‘first crossing’ of cattle, did you order these cars to be on the Mexican side or at the Mexican stockyards for first crossing in the morning?
A First crossing means to cross the American cars from the American side of the border to the Mexican side of the border at the first available moment, as early as possible the following morning, between 5:00, 6:00, 7:00 o’clock in the morning.
Q To the best of your ability to recall, did the agent or employee of Missouri Pacific Railroad agree to furnish such cars?
A They did, sir, or he did.
Q Mr. Hastings, were those cars available at first crossing the next morning?
A I don’t know the exact time they crossed, but they got to the Mexican stockyards the first time around noon — no, yes, sir, about 3:00 o’clock as I recall. We wanted them there by noon, but they got there at 3:00 o'clock the first time.”

This is all that appellee contends was said or done as to a contract with appellant to furnish cattle cars to it at the stock pens in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, on February 24, 1963.

The evidence is insufficient to show that anyone authorized to make a contract on behalf of appellant agreed to furnish stock cars at the Mexican stock yard. Hastings does not say where the cars were to be furnished. It is not shown that the person to whom he talked was an agent authorized to- make the contract appellee now claims to have had with appellant. Certainly, this evidence does not establish as a matter of law, the contract now claimed by appellee; at most it was only evidence of such contract and therefore only raised a question of fact to be decided by the trier of facts, in this case the jury.

It is true that in answer to the first issue the jury had found that appellant did agree to furnish suitable stock cars for the transportation of appellee’s cattle from Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, to Laredo, Texas, but nothing more. When the court came to the submission of Issue No. 2, it asked about an entirely different contract than that described in Issue No. 1, that is, one to furnish such stock cars at the agreed loading point in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, at the agreed time for furnishing same. Appellant contends there was no evidence to show that there was any agreed place to deliver the cars. This issue either assumes the fact that there was an agreement to furnish the stock cars at the Mexican stock yards at an agreed time, and inquires only as to whether there was a failure to so furnish such cars, or the issue asks two questions, one if there was an agreement to furnish the cars at the Mexican stock yards at a certain [154]*154time, and another, if there was a failure to so furnish the same. In either event, Issue No.

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Bluebook (online)
405 S.W.2d 151, 1966 Tex. App. LEXIS 2302, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/missouri-pacific-railroad-v-rio-bravo-cattle-co-texapp-1966.