The C. S. Holmes

212 F. 525
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Washington
DecidedFebruary 15, 1914
DocketNo. 2539
StatusPublished

This text of 212 F. 525 (The C. S. Holmes) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
The C. S. Holmes, 212 F. 525 (W.D. Wash. 1914).

Opinion

NETERER, District Judge.

This is an action in rem in which libel-ant seeks recovery of damages for personal injuries, damages for negligence in furnishing medical treatment, expenses of medical treatment, and wages. The matter was heretofore considered by the court upon exceptions to the libel, which were sustained, 209 Fed. 970. An amended libel has been filed, and the matter is 'now before the court on the claimant’s exceptions to the amended libel.

The amended libel, after alleging the employment of libelant as a seaman on board the C. S. Holmes, recites:

“That while on the return voyage and while performing his duty as a seaman, on the 3d of January, 1913, in the afternoon a heavy storm arose, and the ship sought shelter in Neah Bay. A tug was sent out to look at- the con[526]*526dition of the weather, and came back and reported that it was not fit for-any vessel to go out on account of the mountain of sea running at 12 o’clock noon. With the weather conditions unchanged the steamer Goliah gave the said G. S. Holmes a steel cable of five inches thickness, which was taken on board and made fast on the forward end of the said ship by being placed three times around a square bit; and by order of the captain of the said ship C. S. Holmes the steamer Goliah towed her to sea, it taking the steamer seven hours to tow the O. S. Holmes a distance of eight miles.”
“That at about 7 o’clock, and while weather conditions were unchanged, the said steamer blew her whistle to let go the wire; the captain of the Holmes gave general orders for everybody to go forward and take hold of the wire; the crew held back; when they received the orders the second time everybody went forward, but none went to the wire except the libelant, the captain standing about four feet above the libelant, where he could see everything going on; libelant being in a position where he could not see the condition of the wire, libelant inquired of the captain how the wire was on-the bow, and he was told by the captain that the wire was slack, and that everything' was all right and to let go, and libelant let go the lashings and went away as quickly as possible to avoid danger. The wire was tight and sprang back and hit libelant, causing a compound fracture of libelant’s right arm, paralyzing and bruising his side.”

To the cause of action above alleged the claimant excepts as follows:

“Claimant excepts to all such allegations in said amended libel as are allegations of facts purporting to constitute such first purported cause of action, for the reason that such a cause is not an admiralty and maritime cause of action, and is not within the jurisdiction of this honorable court, and for the reason that said-amended libel does not allege facts sufficient to constitute such cause of action.”

By reference to the former opinion, it will be seen that the negligence upon which the libelant there relied was—

“that the captain, with the rest of the crew standing near by, negligently failed to insist upon giving libelant assistance.”

The negligence here relied upon is that:

“Libelant inquired of the captain how the wire was on the bow, and he was-told by the captain that the wire was slack, and that everything was all right and to let go, and libelant let go. * * * The wire was tight and sprang back and hit libelant.”

The former ground of negligence was held insufficient to charge the-owners or the vessel under the rule laid down by the Circuit Court of Appeals of the Ninth Circuit in Olson v. Oregon Coal & Nav. Co., 104 Fed. 574, 44 C. C. A. 51. The question now to be determined is-whether the latter' ground of negligence is sufficient to charge the vessel.

Libelant relies upon Keating v. Pacific Steam Whaling Co., 21 Wash. 415, 58 Pac. 224. The negligence there charged, however, was an unsafe appliance for towing, which might be sufficient to bring the case within the rule laid down in the Olson Case, supra. The defendant nevertheless contended that plaintiff might have been ordered to-do the work in a safe manner, and the failure of the mate to order him to do it in such a manner was negligence of the mate in a detail of navigation, for which the owner would not be liable — citing Quinn, v. New Jersey Lighterage Co. (C. C.) 23 Fed. 363; The Queen (D. C.) 40 Fed. 694. The court meets this contention with the general statement that the mate and captain are not fellow servants of an ordinary seaman, and cites Chicago, etc., Ry. Co. v. Ross, 112 U. S. 377, 5 Sup. [527]*527Ct. 184, 28 L. Ed. 787, and The Transfer No. 4 and The Car Float No. 16, 61 Fed. 364, 9 C. C. A. 521.

[1] Libelant contends that the holding of the state court should govern. Jurisdiction in admiralty cases being, exclusively vested in the United States District Court by article 3, § 2, of the Constitution, and sections 24 and 256 of the Judicial Code (Act March 3, 1911, c. 231, 36 Stat. 1091, 1160 [U. S. Comp. St. Supp. 1911, pp. 135, 233]), this contention cannot be sustained. It was expressly so held in Workman v. New York City, 179 U. S. 552, 21 Sup. Ct. 212, 45 L. Ed. 314. In the absence of a holding of the Supreme Court of the United States, this court must be governed by the holdings of the Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

[2] Quinn v. New Jersey Lighterage Co., and The Queen, supra, were both considered and approved in the Olson Case. Each state that the rule in Chicago, etc., Railway Co. v. Ross does not operate to charge the owner with negligence of the master in respect to the details of navigation. Not only is this so, but The Transfer, etc., 61 Fed. 364, 9 C. C. A. 521, which the Washington Supreme Court cites in support of its holding, is based expressly upon Chicago, etc., Ry. Co. v. Ross, supra, which was overruled by the Supreme Court in the case of New England Railroad Co. v. Conroy, 175 U. S. 323, 20 Sup. Ct. 85, 44 L. Ed. 181. Referring to this case, Judge Ross, in the Olson Case, supra, 104 Fed., at page 576, 44 C. C. A., at page 53, says;

“In the recent case of Railroad Co. v. Conroy, 175 U. S. 323, 20 Sup. Ct. 85, 44 L. Ed. 181, where the case of Railroad Co. v. Ross, 112 U. S. 377, 5 Sup. Ct. 184, 28 L. Ed. 787, was finally and squarely overruled, the Supreme Court announces the true rule to be, both upon principle and authority, ‘That the employer is not liable for an injury to one employs occasioned by the negligence of another engaged in the same general undertaking; that it is not necessary that the servants should be engaged in the same operation or particular work; that it is enough to bring the case within the general rule of exemption if they are in the employment of the same master, engaged in the same common enterprise, both employed to perform duties ^tending to accomplish the same general purposes, or, in other words, if the services of each in his particular sphere or department are directed to the accomplishment of the same general end.”

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Related

Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Co. v. Ross
112 U.S. 377 (Supreme Court, 1884)
New England Railroad v. Conroy
175 U.S. 323 (Supreme Court, 1899)
Workman v. New York City
179 U.S. 552 (Supreme Court, 1900)
The Osceola
189 U.S. 158 (Supreme Court, 1903)
Straus v. Foxworth
231 U.S. 162 (Supreme Court, 1913)
Keating v. Pacific Steam Whaling Co.
58 P. 224 (Washington Supreme Court, 1899)
The City of Alexandria
17 F. 390 (U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Southern New York, 1883)
Quinn v. New Jersey Lighterage Co.
23 F. 363 (U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Eastern New York, 1885)
Olson v. Oregon Coal & Navigation Co.
104 F. 574 (Ninth Circuit, 1900)
The Bunker Hill
198 F. 587 (S.D. New York, 1912)
The New York
204 F. 764 (Second Circuit, 1913)
The C. S. Holmes
209 F. 970 (W.D. Washington, 1913)
Jackson v. Chicago, M. & St. P. Ry. Co.
210 F. 495 (W.D. Washington, 1914)
The Queen
40 F. 694 (S.D. New York, 1889)
Paulson v. Governor Ames
55 F. 327 (D. Washington, 1891)
McCullough v. New York, N. H. & H. R.
61 F. 364 (Second Circuit, 1894)

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212 F. 525, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/the-c-s-holmes-wawd-1914.