Peterson v. United Railways Co.

192 S.W. 938, 270 Mo. 67, 1917 Mo. LEXIS 9
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedFebruary 20, 1917
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 192 S.W. 938 (Peterson v. United Railways Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Peterson v. United Railways Co., 192 S.W. 938, 270 Mo. 67, 1917 Mo. LEXIS 9 (Mo. 1917).

Opinion

GRAVES, J.

— This case reaches us from the . St. •Louis Court of Appeals upon due certification to the effect that the majority opinion therein conflicts- with the cases of this court, and other appellate decisions. The case is therefore here for full review. The petition is thus summarized in the abstract of record:

“Plaintiff’s petition alleged, in substance, that defendant is and was on May 15, 1910, a' corporation engaged in the business of operating a street railway system in the city of St. Louis; that on said date plaintiff was a passenger in an automobile which became stalled on defendant’s southwestward-bound tract on Gravois Avenue in said city; that while said automobile was so stalled upon said track, one of defendant’s cars, operated upon said track and in charge of a motorman and conductor, collided with said automobile, thereby inflicting certain injuries upon plaintiff, for which he prayed judgment in the sum of $25,000. ”

The assignments of negligence set forth in the petition are as follows:

“First: The employees and servants of defendant in charge of said car carelessly and negligently failed and omitted to observe and comply with the provisions of said section 1865, in that they caused and permitted [70]*70said car, immediately prior and down to the time of such collision, to be propelled along and upon said street railway track on said Gravois Avenue, within said outer district, for a distance of more than three hundred feet and to the point of such collision, at a speed greater than the rate of fifteen miles per hour and at a higher and dangerous rate of speed, to-wit, twenty-five miles per hour, whereby plaintiff, being a passenger in said automobile vehicle so upon said street and track, was placed in a situation of great and extreme danger and was prevented'from removing therefrom in time to avoid such injury and damage by any act on Ms part.
“Second: Said employees and servants of defendant, at such time and place and while said ear was approaching the point of such collision, carelessly and negligenty failed and omitted to observe and comply with the provisions of said section 1864, in that they failed to keep a vigilant watch for vehicles and persons on foot on or moving towards said track, said vehicle in which plaintiff was so a passenger being then and there upon said track and in plain view of said employees and servants of defendant, and by the keeping of such vigilant watch could and would have been observed by such employees and servants in time to have enabled them to prevent and avoid such collision.
“Third: Said employees and servants of defendant at such time and when said car was within about sixty feet of said automobile vehicle discovered' the same upon said track and in danger of being struck by said car, and said employees and servants then and there carelessly and negligently failed and omitted to observe and comply with the provisions.of said section 1864, in that upon first so discovering the appearance, of such danger to said vehicle and plaintiff as a passenger therein they failed and omitted to stop said car in the shortest time and space possible, whereas said car could then and there have been stopped or greatly reduced in speed before striking said vehicle and such danger could thus have been obviated or greatly reduced.
[71]*71“Fourth: Said employees and servants of defendant immediately prior to and down to the time of such collision carelessly and negligently caused and permitted said car to be propelled upon said street railway track and along said Gravois Avenue for a distance of more than three hundred feet and to such point of such collision at a high and dangerous rate of speed, to-wit, twenty-five miles per hour, and carelessly and negligently failed and omitted to ring the bell or gong with which said car was provided or to give an other audible notice or warning of the approach or passage of said car, whereas the ringing of such bell or gong or giving of such other audible notice or warning while said ear was traversing such distance would have enabled plaintiff to obviate or greatly lessen the danger to himself from such approach and passage of said car at such high and dangerous rate of speed.”

Answer was a general denial and a plea of contributory negligence. Reply, a general denial. Judgment nisi was for plaintiff in sum of $6000, and from such judgment this appeal was taken.

In the Court of Appeals (and the case is here upon the same briefs and record) the battle raged as to the propriety of instruction number one given for plaintiff. This instruction had best be set out, although only two clauses therein are challenged. It reads:

“If you believe and find from the evidence that on May 15, 1910, defendant was and since has been a corporation operating as a common carrier of passengers a certain line of street railways in this city, having tracks extended along and over Gravois Avenue at and near its intersection with Blow Street, said street and avenue being public highways and said point of intersection being within the outer district specified in section 1865 of ordinance 22902 of the city of St. Louis read in evidence; that on said day, about five o’clock in the afternoon, plaintff was a passenger in an automobile proceeding northeastwardly along said Gravois Avenue; that at such time the engine of said automobile ceased to work and said automobile came to stand upon the southwest[72]*72ward-bound track of said street railway at or near such point of intersection and in said outer district; that then and there a certain car of defendant, used and operated by defendant upon said street railway, through its motorman and conductor in charge thereof, came southwestwardly along said track and ran against and upon said automobile with such force and violence and plaintiff was then and there thrown from said automobile and received injuries to his person and damages to his property as referred to in the evidence:
“And if you further believe and find from the evidence that such collision and injury and damage was caused by and directly due to carelessness and negligence and want of care and caution on the. part of defendant (as defined in the other instructions herein), through its servants, agents or employees in charge of said car, in either of' the following particulars :
“First: In failing and omitting to observe and comply with section 1865 of said ordinance 22902, read in evidence, by causing and permitting said car, immediately prior and down to the time of such collision, to be propelled along, and upon, said southwestward-bound track, within said outer district, for a distance approximating three hundred feet and to the point of such collision, at a speed greater than the rate of fifteen miles per hour and at a high and dangerous rate of speed;
“Second: In failing and omitting to observe and comply with section 1864 of said ordinance 22902, read in evidence, by failing and omitting to keep a vigilant watch for vehicles and persons on foot on or moving towards said track while said car was approaching the point of such collision;

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Consumer Contact Co. v. State Department of Revenue
592 S.W.2d 782 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1980)
Van Brunt v. Meyer
422 S.W.2d 364 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1967)
Wolfe v. Harms
413 S.W.2d 204 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1967)
Harris v. Lane
379 S.W.2d 635 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1964)
City of Rolla v. Riden
349 S.W.2d 255 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1961)
Owen v. Kurn
148 S.W.2d 519 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1941)
Dempsey v. Horton
84 S.W.2d 621 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1935)
Pentecost v. Terminal Railroad Co.
66 S.W.2d 533 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1933)
Pentecost v. St. Louis Merchants Bridge Terminal Railroad
66 S.W.2d 533 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1933)
State Ex Rel. St. Louis Public Service Co. v. Becker
66 S.W.2d 141 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1933)
Messing v. Judge & Dolph Drug Co.
18 S.W.2d 408 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1929)
Malone v. St. Louis-San-Francisco Railway Co.
285 S.W. 123 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1926)
Graupner Casper v. Wells
260 S.W. 521 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1924)
Alexander v. Springfield Traction Co.
249 S.W. 971 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1923)
Schulte v. Johnson
106 Ohio St. (N.S.) 359 (Ohio Supreme Court, 1922)
American Automobile Insurance v. United Railways Co. of St. Louis
206 S.W. 257 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1918)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
192 S.W. 938, 270 Mo. 67, 1917 Mo. LEXIS 9, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/peterson-v-united-railways-co-mo-1917.