Pennsylvania Co. v. Bray

25 N.E. 439, 125 Ind. 229, 1890 Ind. LEXIS 428
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 7, 1890
DocketNo. 14,477
StatusPublished
Cited by29 cases

This text of 25 N.E. 439 (Pennsylvania Co. v. Bray) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pennsylvania Co. v. Bray, 25 N.E. 439, 125 Ind. 229, 1890 Ind. LEXIS 428 (Ind. 1890).

Opinion

Olds, J.

— This action was brought by the appellee against the appellant for damages for being ejected from appellant’s train of cars run on the Indianapolis and Vincennes Rail-[231]*231I’oad. On the 18th day of May, 1886, about 5 o’clock p. M., appellee took passage on one of appellant’s trains on the Indianapolis and Yineennes Railroad,- at Indianapolis, for Mooresville, near which latter station the appellee resided. He presented to the conductor the going coupon of a round-trip ticket from Mooresville to Indianapolis, which the conductor refused to accept for his passage, and upon his refusal to pay the fare demanded, ejected him from the train at Maywood Station, about ten miles from Mooresville, from whence he walked home, a distance of about thirteen miles.

Appellee contends that he had purchased of appellant’s agent, at Mooresville, some days previous to taking the train, a round-trip ticket for passage from Mooresville to Indianapolis and return; that on the 15th day of May, 1886, he took passage on appellant’s train, at Mooresville, for Indianapolis, and presented the ticket to the conductor, and that the conductor retained the return part of the ticket and gave appellant back the going part that on the 18th day of the same month he took the train to return to Mooresville, and when the conductor called for his ticket he presented to him the end of the ticket he had so purchased, which had been returned to him by the conductor on his trip to Indianapolis, whereupon the conductor informed him that it was the wrong end, that it was the going instead of the returning end, which was the first knowledge the appellee had of the mistake, and he explained to the conductor how the mistake came, that the former conductor had returned to him the wrong end, the conductor refused to accept the ticket and demanded fare which appellee refused to pay, and the conductor ejected him from the train.

It is contended on the part of appellant that no explanation was made by the appellee at the time the ticket was presented.

There was a trial, resulting in a verdict for appellee.

The questions presented arise on the ruling of the court in overruling appellant’s motion for a new trial.

[232]*232The first alleged error discussed by counsel for appellant is the giving by the court, on its own motion, of instruction numbered four, which is as follows :

It is the duty of carriers of passengers to provide agents and servants who can and will properly protect the interests of the passengers, and not by want of skill, lack of knowledge, or want of care, take from passengers rights for which they have contracted and paid. A passenger has a right to act upon the conduct and directions of the agents of the corporation. If the conductor of a train of cars takes from a passenger a coupon of a ticket, which said ticket entitles him to passage from one station on said railroad to another and return, and by mistake or otherwise takes the coupon; which entitled the passenger to return passage, when he should have taken the one entitling the passenger to passage going, this would be neglect of the company, and the passenger would have a right to rely on the act of the conductor-in taking one coupon of his ticket, and he would be entitled to use the other end of his coupon on his return passage.”'

It is contended by counsel for appellant that this instruction is erroneous, for the reason that it states that the passenger is entitled unconditionally to use the other coupon of the ticket on his return passage.

This instruction must be taken in connection with the other instructions given by the court to the jury, and when so considered there was no error, as the court, at the request of the appellant, gave another instruction upon the same subject, which is as follows :

“A passenger ticket or coupon reading, or calling for passage from Mooresville to Indianapolis, would not entitle the holder thereof to transportation from Indianapolis to Mooresville. And a conductor of a train running from Indianapolis to Mooresville, if such coupon or ticket were presented to him by a passenger for transportation from Indianapolis to Mooresville without any explanation thereof or any knowledge by such conductor of the reasons why such coupon or [233]*233ticket is presented for transportation from Indianapolis to Mooresville, would be justified in refusing to accept such coupon or ticket for such transportation, and might lawfully eject such passenger from said train unless he paid or tendered his fare, using no more force than necessary to eject said passenger from said train.”

On the part of the appellee it ivas contended that on presenting the coupon of the ticket to the conductor on his return trip, the conductor told him it was the wrong end, and he explained to the conductor that if it was it was the mistake of the conductor on the train on which he went to Indianapolis ; that he had handed the conductor his ticket, and •the conductor gave him back the one portion, and he had put it in his pocket, and had not looked at it until presenting it to the conductor on his return.

On the part of appellant it was contended that no explanation was made by appellee, and the court gave the two instructions set out bearing upon the question of the right of the appellee to ride on the wrong end of the ticket.

These two instructions, when considered together, as they must be, inform the jury that the appellee had no right to be carried on the wrong end of the ticket without an explanation of the reasons why such wrong coupon was presented for transportation, and we think it may be fairly understood that if the coupon was presented with the explanation which the appellee contended he gave to the conductor on discovering the mistake, it did entitle him to be carried on his return trip.

The law as to the right of a passenger to be carried on the wrong coupon in ease the coupons are detached by the conduct- or on the going trip, and the returning coupon retained by the conductor, and the going coupon returned to the passenger, which the passenger retains without discovering the mistake until presenting it to the conductor on his return trip, and then makes the explanation, is fully considered and decided in the case of Lake Erie, etc., R. W. Co. v. Fix, 88 Ind. 381. [234]*234In that case it is held that under such circumstances the passenger has the right to be carried on his return trip on presenting the going coupon with the explanation, and the decision is well supported by authority. See, also, Godfrey v. Ohio, etc., R. W. Co., 116 Ind. 30.

Instructions must be considered in relation to the particular case in which they are given in determining whether the jury were misled or not by particular instructions. In this case, as we have stated, it was contended on the part of the appellee, and he so testified, that he presented the coupon to the conductor on his return trip, and was informed that it was the wrong coupon, or wrong end of the ticket, and that was the first knowledge he had of the mistake, and he then explained that if it was it was the mistake of the conductor to whom he handed the ticket on his going trip to Indianapolis, and the conductor would not accept his explanation.

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Bluebook (online)
25 N.E. 439, 125 Ind. 229, 1890 Ind. LEXIS 428, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pennsylvania-co-v-bray-ind-1890.