St. L., I. M. & S. Ry. v. Biggs

50 Ark. 169
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedNovember 15, 1887
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 50 Ark. 169 (St. L., I. M. & S. Ry. v. Biggs) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
St. L., I. M. & S. Ry. v. Biggs, 50 Ark. 169 (Ark. 1887).

Opinion

Smith, J.

Mrs. Biggs recovered judgment against the railway company for $366.25 for tbe negligent killing and wounding of several bead of live stock at various times. Tbe errors that are complained of here were a ruling of tbe court as to the sufficiency of one paragraph of her complaint, and a direction to the jury respecting tbe measure of damages. Tbe second paragraph reads as follows :

II. That on, to-wit: Tbe said first day of May, 1885, at a place on said road, in Miller county, near said mile post, No. 470, defendant, by its agents and employes, carelessly and negligently ran an engine and a train of cars over and upon one horse, in which plaintiff then and there bad a special ownership, derived as follows: Prior to tbe date of said killing plaintiff bad rented and leased and taken into her possession tbe said horse from one Mrs. Heath for a valuable consideration, and under a promise and agreement, at tbe expiration of said rental, te return said horse in good, sound condition to said Mrs. Heath, and it was during the continuation of said lease and while in plaintiff’s possession that said horse was killed, and thereby plaintiff became liable to and did pay said Mrs. Heath therefor the sum of $80. Said horse was of the value of $80, and by reason of being run over and upon as aforesaid said horse was killed, to plaintiffs damage, in the sum of $80.

To this second paragraph the defendant interposed a demurrer upon the grounds, first, that said count failed to set up facts sufficient to constitute a good cause of action against' the defendant; and, second, that there was a defect of parties in this, that the paragraph disclosed the fact that one Mrs. Heath was the owner of the horse that had been killed, and that she was, therefore, a "necessary party to the action to recover its value.

1. Railroads: Action for killing stock parties plaintiff: Special ownership. As horses are not real estate, we must presume the pleader meant to aver that Mrs. Biggs had hired the animal of Mrs. Heath. The point of the demurrer is that the plaintiff had no right, under the statutes of this to sue for the value of this animal, so killed, with- . out making the general owner a party to the action, so that all parties in interest might be concluded by the judgment and the defendant might not be harassed with a second action. The argument is that a demand founded upon a tort is not assignable, and where the assignment of a thing in action is not authorized by statute the assignor must be a party, as plaintiff or defenant. Mansf. Digest, sec. 4934.

The answer is, that Mrs. Biggs does not sue as as-signee, but in her own right. Section 5540 of Mansfield's Digest, which gives the right of action in such cases, distinctly recognizes the right of any person who has a special ownership in the live stock injured to maintain the action. And this is declaratory of the common law, according to the principles of which the bailee of a chattel, whose term is unexpired, .being answerable over to the absolute owner, may sue for itsfull value, if it is injured or destroyed while in ,his possession, and if he recover, the action of him who has the. reversionary interest is gone. Thus in Armory v. Delamirie, 1 Strange, 504, S. C. Smith’s Leading Cases, Vol. 1, Pt. 1. [374], 8th JEd., a chimney sweep’s boy, who had found a jewel, was permitted to recover its full value, notwithstanding it was manifest that the real property was in a third person.

in Heydon & Smith’s Case, 13 Coke, 489, the rule and the reason for it are thus stated: “He who hath a special property of the goods at a certain time shall have a general action of trespass against him who hath the general property, and upon the evidence damages shall be mitigated ; but, clearly, the bailee, or he who hath a special property, shall have a general action of trespass against a stranger, and shall recover all damages, because that he is chargeable over.”

In Poole v. Symonds, 1 N. H., 239, it was decided that one who has received goods belonging to another from the sheriff, and has given a receipt, promising to redeliver them when required, may recover full damages in trover for their conversion. And the court said: “In many eases either he who has the actual, or he who has the constructive possession, may maintain trespass, trover or replevin; but a judgment in favor of one will be a bar to an action in favor of the other.”.

In the case of Lyle v. Barker, 5 Binney, 457, it was held that a pawnee of goods could- maintain trespass against a stranger, who takes them away, and recover the whole value in damages, though they were pledged for less, upon the ground that he is answerable for the excess to-' the person who has the general property.

In White v. Webb, 15 Conn., 302, the court said : ’“'If the suit is brought by a bailee or special property man against the general' owner; then the plaintiff can' recover the value of his special property only; but if the suit is against a stranger, then he recovers the value of the property and interest thereo.n, according to the general rule, and holds the balance, beyond his own interest, in trust for the general owner.”

In Harker v. Dement, 9 Gill., 7, it was ruled that “in an action of trespass or trover by a termor against his rever-sioner for an unauthorized interruption of his possession during the term, the measure of damages is the actual loss sustained by the lessee. But in such an action against a stranger and wrong-doer, the termor is treated as the absolute owner of the property, and he is entitled to recover its full value. The termor being bound to restore the property to the person from whom he obtained it, or to stand responsible in damages for its full value, has the right to recover its full value from a stranger who has wrongfully deprived him of it.”

We shall conclude these citations with an extract frorn^ the note to Armory v. Delamarie, in Smith’s Leading Gases, vol. l,pt. 1, top pages 701-2. “It is universally admitted, that the special right of property conferred by the delivery of a chattel as a pledge, or its bailment for hire, is sufficient to sustain either trover; Harker v. Dement, 9 Gill., 7; Ingersoll v. Van Bokelin, 9 Cowen, 680; or replevin. Harlan v. Harlan, 15 Penn. st., 507; Bass v. Pierce, 16 Barb., 595. Thus an auctioneer to whom goods have been sent for sale; Tyler v. Freeman 3 Gush., 31; a common carrier to whom they have been delivered for transportation, or a warehouseman who has received them for safe keeping, may recover in trover of replevin against any one by whom they are wrongfully taken or converted ; White v. Bascom, 28 Vermont, 268; Harker v. Dement. And as the rule is the same whether the bailment is naked, or clothed with a consideration, Little v. Fossett, 34 Me., 345, a traveler may maintain trover against a steamboat company for a carpet bag which has been entrusted to his care by a friend; Moran v. The Portland Steam Packet Co., 35 Me., 55; the obligation imposed by the trust being sufficient to entitle him to damages against those who interfere with its fulfilment. Nor is the right thus conferred by a special property in chattels personal, inconsistent with a co-existing right of action for the same cause in the general owner Booth v. Terrell, 16 Ga., 20; Morgan v. Ide, 8 Cush., 420 ; both being entitled to sue, although a recovery, by either will be a bar to a subsequent action by the other; Strong v. Adams, 30 Vt., 221; Ely v. Ehle, 3 Coms., 506; Root v.

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