Scharfenstein v. Forest City Knitting Co.

253 Ill. App. 190, 1929 Ill. App. LEXIS 17
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedMarch 4, 1929
DocketGen. No. 7,948
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 253 Ill. App. 190 (Scharfenstein v. Forest City Knitting Co.) 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
Scharfenstein v. Forest City Knitting Co., 253 Ill. App. 190, 1929 Ill. App. LEXIS 17 (Ill. Ct. App. 1929).

Opinion

Mr. Justice Boggs

delivered the opinion of the court.

An action on the case was instituted by appellee against appellants in the circuit court of Winnebago county, to recover for the death of appellee’s intestate, alleged to have been caused through the negligence of appellants.

The original declaration was filed April 2, 1927. On March 11, 1928, an amended declaration was filed to which appellants filed separate demurrers. Said demurrers being overruled, appellants severally filed pleas of the general issue, of the statute of limitations, of partial payment, pleas that if there was any right of action, it was in favor of the Illinois Central Railroad Company under the doctrine of subrogation, and pleas of release of the Illinois Central Railroad as a joint tort-feasor. Demurrers filed to the special pleas were sustained. A trial was had, resulting in a verdict and judgment in favor of appellee for $8,000. To reverse said judgment, this appeal is prosecuted.

Two switch tracks or leads run in a southwesterly direction from the west line of Francis Street in the City of Rockford. The southerly one serves appellant, Forest City Knitting Company’s plant, lying south of it; the northerly track serves the Rockford Drilling Machine Company, whose building lies north of it.

Appellant Security Building Company was constructing a building and garage for the Forest City Knitting Company, and had employed'Putney Brothers to make the excavation therefor. In making said excavation, certain of the dirt was placed between said switch tracks.

On the afternoon of December 16, 1925, a switch engine, the crew of which included appellee’s intestate, was backing in a southwesterly direction, pulling two cars, on the track of the Rockford Drilling Machine Company. Appellee’s intestate had thrown the switch which caused the engine to enter the track leading to the Rockford Drilling Machine Company’s plant, and had given the signal to back up.

The engineer heard some one “hollow,” and stopped the engine. When appellee’s intestate was next seen, he was under the footboard of the engine. The foot-board was bent back against the brake beam, which was across Scharfenstein’s leg, but did not touch it. Howard Janes, the foreman of the appellant building company and Holding Anderson, secretary and treasurer of said company, went to the place where the engine had stopped and tried to raise the footboard from Scharfenstein’s body, breaking a piece of 2x6 timber in the attempt. The engine was then moved some 5 or 6 feet in order to extricate appellee’s intestate. He was fatally injured, and died a few hours thereafter.

It is first contended by appellants that the original declaration did not state a cause of action, in that it attempted to recover under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act, Cahill’s St. ch. 114, ¶ 321 et seq., and that no recovery could be had against appellants under that act, as they were not common carriers; that the amended declaration, being filed more than one year after said injury, would be barred under the State statute of limitations, and that the court erred in sustaining demurrers to said pleas.

While the declaration set forth that appellee’s intestate was engaged in interstate commerce, and alleged damages of $25,000, this would not render said declaration bad as against appellants under the State statute, if the facts averred set forth a cause of action-even though stated defectively. The allegation as to the amount of damages is one of form, and, if 'not objected to on the trial, cannot be taken advantage of on appeal. Grand Lodge A. O. U. W. of Illinois v. Bagley, 164 Ill. 340-342. It may be amended after verdict. Tomlinson v. Earnshaw, 112 Ill. 311-313. See also Beidler v. Sanitary Dist. of Chicago, 211 Ill. 628-640.

The original declaration charged in substance that on December ■ 16, 1925, while appellee’s intestate, a switchman for the Illinois Central Railroad Company, was switching certain cars to be used in interstate commerce, and while he was in the exercise of due care for his own safety, the engine upon which he was. riding struck certain dirt or refuse belonging to appellant knitting company, placed there by appellant building company without the knowledge of appellee’s intestate, “and with the knowledge of the Forest City Knitting Company and under their direction, and that said dirt had become frozen and impact and covered with snow so as to be hidden from view by the said Whitney C. Seharfenstein, deceased,” and that appellee’s intestate was thrown under the locomotive, etc. and sustained the injuries in question.

It is further urged that said original declaration does not allege a duty on the part of appellants to appellee’s intestate, a neglect thereof with resulting injury, etc. It is only necessary that the pleader state facts from which the law will raise a duty, and its omission and resulting injury. When that is done, an allegation that the act was negligent is unnecessary. Taylor v. Felsing, 63 Ill. App. 624-628, affirmed in Taylor v. Felsing, 164 Ill. 331-335; Miller v. S. S. Kresge Co., 306 Ill. 104-106. Appellants owed to appellee’s intestate the duty not to place obstructions along the switch tracks of his employer so as to endanger his life while in the exercise of his duties as such switchman.

In suits for wrongful death, the “cause of action” is the wrongful act, neglect or default causing death, and not merely the death itself. Mooney v. City of Chicago, 239 Ill. 414-423; Crane v. Chicago & W. I. R. Co., 233 Ill. 259-262. When a defendant has had notice from the beginning that the plaintiff sets up and is trying to enforce a claim against it because of specified conduct, the cause of action is the thing done or omitted to be done, which confers the right upon the other to sue. Greene v. L. Fish Furniture Co., 272 Ill. 148-156; Mooney v. City of Chicago, supra. The original declaration stated a cause of action against appellants, although defectively.

The amended declaration, after alleging the placing of said dirt, etc., averred that appellee’s intestate “was riding on the footboard of the engine which was backing; that the running board struck the refuse and dirt which appellants had negligently and carelessly dumped along and adjacent to said switch track, so that it was broken and bent . . . and said deceased was thrown from said running board or foot-board upon said engine, down to and upon the ground,” etc.

The cause of action, both in the original and amended declarations, was the alleged wrongful depositing of said dirt, along said tracks, with the resultant injury to appellee’s intestate. The amended declaration did not state a new cause of action. See Swift Co. v. Gaylord, 229 Ill. 330-334. The statute of limitations does not apply to matters of mere pleading, and it should not be given that effect indirectly by holding that an imperfect statement of a cause of action is no statement of it. North Chicago St. R. Co. v. Aufmann, 221 Ill. 614-620.

It is next insisted that there can be no recovery against appellants, for the reason that said dirt was placed on said tracks by employees of Putney Brothers, who were claimed to be independent contractors.

While the men who did the work were employed and paid by Putney Brothers, all or certain of said dirt was placed by the express direction of appellants.

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Bluebook (online)
253 Ill. App. 190, 1929 Ill. App. LEXIS 17, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/scharfenstein-v-forest-city-knitting-co-illappct-1929.