Seitsinger v. Iowa City Electric Railway Co.

181 Iowa 739
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedNovember 17, 1917
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 181 Iowa 739 (Seitsinger v. Iowa City Electric Railway Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Seitsinger v. Iowa City Electric Railway Co., 181 Iowa 739 (iowa 1917).

Opinion

Stevens, J.

1. Negligence j aeis constituting negligence : street car collision: evidence. I. Dubuque Street in Iowa City, on which one of defendant’s cars was proceeding northward at the time of the accident in question, intersects Fair-child Street, on which plaintiff was driving eastward, at the time of the collision, with a team hitched to a milk wagon. From Davenport Street, which lies south of Fairchild, the grade of the street car tracks on Dubuque Street rises to the alley 14 inches, from alley to Fairchild Street 22 inches, and from center of Fair-child Street to Church Street 35 inches to each 100 feet. The exact location of Church Street is not shown. Dubuque Street is paved with bitulithic, and Fairchild with brick, paving. The street railway track of defendant is located in the center of the street. The distance from the sidewalk [741]*741on the west side of Dubuque Street to the center of its intersection with Fairchild is 32 feet.

It is claimed by plaintiff that the team he was driving was traveling at a slow trot; that, about the time he reached the west line of Dubuque Street, he observed a street car, about three quarters of a block distant, coming north on Dubuque; that he continued eastward across the track until the rear wheel of his wagon was struck by the street car, overturning the wagon and throwing him out upon the paving; that, when he first observed the car, he thought it was traveling at the usual speed of 8 or 9 miles per hour, and that he could easily pass over the track before the street car would reach that point; but that, when he was passing over the track, he observed that the car was coming toward him at a very rapid rate; that he sought to increase the speed of the team, but was unable to clear the track, with the result that he was struck by the car, as above stated. Plaintiff, upon cross-examination, testified as follows:.

“Q. Where did you say you were when you first saw the car? A. I was, as near as I can recollect, where the brick and paving on Dubuque Street join. Q. Fairchild is paved with brick? A. Yes. Q. And Dubuque with bitulithic? A. Yes. Q. Now, by that do you mean the horses’ heads were there or the place you occupied in the buggy? A. About where I was. Q. Do you know how far west of the west rail that is of the street car track ? A. I never measured it. I should judge it is 30 feet west,— that might be a little more or a little less, — I couldn’t say. Q. Was your team on the walk or trot? A. Oh, they was in the habit of going on a very slow trot as a rule, about average of 4 or 5 miles an hour, sometimes might have been going a little faster, sometimes a little slower, but I wasn’t hurrying them at all. Q. You continued on down toward the track without changing your gait? A. [742]*742Why, yes. Q. You seen the car — you didn’t hold your horses up or urge them on either? A. Not until I seen the car coming at me, and I then gave the lines one or two slaps, and one of the team was 3 year old, — she was the one that jerked and got me over, or I wouldn’t got over as far as I did. Q. Where was the car when you slapped your horses to hurry them up ? A. It was coming-right at me, not very far off. Q. Where was it in regard to the south sidewalk crossing on Dubuque Street? A. I couldn’t tell the number of feet, because I was trying to get out of the way. Q. Was.it south of the sidewalk? A. I couldn’t say as to that; my intention was to get there if I could. Q. Whereabouts were you at that time? A. In the wagon. Q. I mean in reference to the track, where was the wagon in reference to the track? A. Why, I was almost onto the track most between me and the horses— horses might have been a little over the track or near about on the track when I tried to hurry them up. I knew that wás my only salvation to get over. Q. The car was in plain .sight all the time, nothing to prevent you from seeing it? A. I had to watch my team; I didn’t watch the car all the time. I noticed when I started over where they was, and I supposed that the gait they claim to go, was going — I didn’t know the gait they were traveling — but as street, railways and various other cars go, I would have ample time to get across, no distance across the block, which I was pretty well acquainted with. Lived in town quite a while. Q. Your team wasn’t frightened at the car, were they, when you slapped them to hurry them up? A. No, they was frightened at me. They were a very quiet team, wasn’t cross or anything of that sort, because I had them to town every day. Q. I believe you said you thought the car was going 8 to 10 miles an hour? A. I couldn’t tell, but that is what they was going, because they claim they go — they can’t run any faster than 8 or 10 miles, or [743]*743didn’t operate them — that is their claim. Q. Whereabouts was the hind wheel of the buggy when,,the car struck the buggy, in reference to the track? A. Must have been on the track, or else they wouldn’t hit it. Q. Was it near the west rail or over toward the east rail? A. I couldn’t tell you that; where they got they hit it. Q. You were looking out of the door of your wagon at the car to see where it was? A. I had to have my eyes on the team at that time, after I saw it approaching me as fast as it was. Q. You paid attention to the team and not the car from that on ? A. When I saw the car coming as close as it was, my eye had to be, on the team to get it over. Q. Then from the time you seen the car and slapped the horses, you didn’t look at the car after that? A. Hadn’t time to, man can only do one thing at a time and do it right.”

Two witnesses, the motorman in charge of the street car and a passenger thereon, were called by the defendant. The version of the accident as given by the motorman is as follows:

“Q. And at the time you first saw Mr. Seitsinger, he was long round the sidewalk line or the gutter there at the intersection? A. No, I seen him sooner; I seen him catacornered across a porch .there. There is a house there. I could see him through the porch. I seen him coming. Q. Where was the last stop you made that day before the accident occurred ? A. I couldn’t tell you. Q. You don’t know where the last stop was you had? A. In town before we started out, as near as I know. Q. How fast was your car going at the time you reached Bloomington Street ? A. Oh, I should judge perhaps 12 miles or so. Q. You mean to say, at the time your car reached Bloomington Street that your car was only going at the rate of 12 miles an hour? A. 12 or 15 miles, as near as I could tell. * * * Q. Now, then, you said on your direct examination that when you saw Mr. Seitsinger you checked your car? [744]*744Yes, sir. Q. And you checked your' car now because you thought noAv he was going to drive across the street, didn’t you? A. Yes, sir. Q. After you checked your car, you tkeh released the brake? A. After I seen or thought I had the right of way. Q. You thought in going up that street you had the right of Avay? Yes, sir. Q. And so, because you thought you had the right of way, then, you released your brake on your car? A. Yes, sir. Q. Now then, hotv far from the intersection, nowy — the south side of that intersection, — were you when you first applied your brake? A. Well, I Avas somewhere — I couldn’t sav — 80 or 100 feet from the intersection. Q. So you didn’t apply the brake when you first saw Mr. Seitsinger? A. No, I just throwed off the current. Q. Noav you say he was coming down there at a pretty good clip? A. Yes, he was trotting right along. Q. -The team was stepping right along? A. It wasn’t going fast, but it was trotting right along. Q.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
181 Iowa 739, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/seitsinger-v-iowa-city-electric-railway-co-iowa-1917.