Pound v. Popular Dry Goods Co.

139 S.W.2d 341
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedFebruary 15, 1940
DocketNo. 3901.
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 139 S.W.2d 341 (Pound v. Popular Dry Goods 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
Pound v. Popular Dry Goods Co., 139 S.W.2d 341 (Tex. Ct. App. 1940).

Opinions

WALTHALL, Justice.

Appellant here, plaintiff in the trial court, prosecutes this appeal from an adverse judgment in a suit for personal injuries sustained by his wife in operating a washing machine sold to her by an agent or representative of appellee, a retail dealer in such merchandise.

Appellant’s pleading was to the effect that while appellant’s wife was using the washing machine, her hand was caught between the rollers of the wringer with which the machine was equipped and her arm was thereby drawn into the wringer, inflicting the injuries of which she complains.

Appellant alleged that in making the sale of the machine appellee, by its sales agent, warranted to appellant’s wife that the wringer in controversy was safe for use, in that it could be relied on to release the finger, hand or arm of the operator, should it be caught between the rollers, by merely pressing the safety release with which the machine was equipped. Appellant alleged that the safety release lever and other portions of the wringer intended to release the roller were not as warranted, but were defective, and that by reason of mechanical defects the release lever did not function and that by reason of such defect his wife’s hand was drawn into -the roller and injured. It is alleged that she suffered physical and mental pain and was hampered in the performance of her household duties, to her damages as alleged.

Appellee’s answer contained many exceptions, general and special, not passed upon by the trial court and are waived; general denial; specially denied making any false statements or warranties in selling the machine, and denied any negligence charged; alleged that it did not make the machine or wringer; that same were made by reputable manufacturers; that safety device on the wringer has been in use many years on many models of washing machines, all of which are sold throughout the United States; denied the defective condition of the washing machine or wringer or the safety device, and alleges that it made due and proper inspection, and that no defects were apparent; that when the rollers are in motion the danger to the operator of having fingers or hands caught between the rollers are obvious, open and apparent;, that with due care same can be and is operated with safety; that plaintiff’s wife-was negligent in feeding the clothes to the wringer and that such negligence was the-proximate cause of the injuries.

The case was tried with a jury, and on: the jury’s verdict the court rendered judgment that plaintiff take nothing by the suit.

The court overruled appellant’s motion for a new trial, to which appellant duly excepted, gave notice and prosecutes this, appeal.

Opinion.

Two witnesses for appellee who had been-managers for appellee in the department of the store from which the washing machine was sold, were permitted, over obj ection, to say, in answer to a question, that during their service as salesmen, no person to their knowledge, buying one of those machines from appellee, had ever been hurt in using one of those wringers.

Appellant complains of the admission of that statement in evidence.

Appellant refers to several cases as sustaining his contention, among them, Hill v. Hanan & Son, 62 Tex.Civ.App. 191, 131, S.W. 245 ; Haynes v. Plano Manufacturing-Co., 36 Tex.Civ.App. 567, 82 S.W. 532;. Davidson v. Swanson, Tex.Civ.App., 24 S. W.2d 776; Beckner v. Barrett, Tex.Civ., App., 81 S.W.2d 719; Waul v. Hardie,. 17 Tex. 553; Adams v. Gulf, C. & Santa Fe R. Co., Tex.Civ.App., 105 S.W. 526, and. others. We have carefully reviewed each of them. In each case, while the statement of the witness was similar to that of the-witnesses in this case, the statement of the witness referred to. some controversy other than the one then under investigation, and on trial, though similar in kind. The-holding in each case is to the effect that be- *343 fore the evidence was admitted it should be made to appear that the conditions or circumstances testified to were identical or so similar as that the proposed evidence will reasonably tend to establish the truth of the subject of inquiry. The expressions used in the above cases are to the effect: “That the other machines were identical in construction and material and were operated under identical construction and material”; “that the defendant may have expressed himself well pleased with other work * * did not conduce in any degree to prove that the work done for the defendant was executed in a workmanlike manner”; tlint defendant may have expressed himself well pleased with other work done by the plaintiff, “did not conduce in any degree to prove the work done for the defendant was executed in a like workmanlike manner”; “that work done for other parties was satisfactory or unsatisfactory was not relevant to any issue in the instant case”; “testimony of the witness that no ladder had ever broken with him in a tank car, and that he had never been injured by a ladder in a tank car, was inadmissible,” the injury not being the exact injury complained of. Ordinarily the evidence must pertain to the identical goods involved in the pending suit. 37 Tex.Jur., page 766.

In the instant case the main contention of appellant was that the safety release failed to work on account of its defective mechanical construction. The identical-machine was operated by appellant on the trial in the presence of the jury and offered evidence to sustain his theory. The witness’ statement in question referred to “one of these machines from the Popular,” necessarily referred to or at least embraced the identical machine in question.

In 37 Texas Jurisprudence, page 766, it is said that a seller may show that machines sold to others were satisfactory where the buyer has introduced evidence that his machine (and others) bought from the seller was unsatisfactory, and refers in the notes to McFarlin v. Elliott-Tuck, Inc., Tex.Civ.App., 71 S.W.2d 410; Elmberg Co. v. Dunlap Hardware Co., Tex.Com.App., 267 S.W. 258, affirming, Tex.Civ.App., 252 S.W. 1098; Wilson v. Avery Co., Tex. Civ.App., 182 S.W. 884, writ refused; Bell v. Mulkey, Tex.Civ.App., 248 S.W. 784.

We think the evidence was admissible. We further think this evidence was admissible as negativing the negligence alleged by plaintiff.

On cross examination of plaintiff the trial court permitted appellee to prove, over objection, that plaintiff had originally sued the Borg-Warner Corporation and the Borg-Warner Service Parts Company, the two being, respectively, the manufacturer and the distributor of the machine in question, and that the suit as to the two Borg-Warner Companies had been dismissed without prejudice.

Appellant complains of the admission of that evidence as being irrelevant and immaterial. The law furnishes no test of relevancy. It may be generally said that whatever naturally and logically tends to establish a fact in issue is relevant and that which does not is not relevant. In the practice of the courts and in the utterances of the judges none but facts having rational probative value are admissible.

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