Toledo & Ohio Central Ry. Co. v. Janeski

12 Ohio C.C. 685
CourtOhio Circuit Courts
DecidedSeptember 15, 1894
StatusPublished

This text of 12 Ohio C.C. 685 (Toledo & Ohio Central Ry. Co. v. Janeski) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Circuit Courts primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Toledo & Ohio Central Ry. Co. v. Janeski, 12 Ohio C.C. 685 (Ohio Super. Ct. 1894).

Opinion

Haynes, J.

This is a case in which a petition in error was filed for the purpose of reversing the judgment of the court of common pleas for certain errors alleged to have occurred at the time and during the'trial. The amended petition on which the case was tried, shows that the plaintiff claims that he was in the employ of the Toledo & Ohio Central Railway CompanjT; that'he was at work at Toledo, arid in the regular course of his business was employed in shoveling coal at the docks owned, operated, controlled and managed by the railroad company at the terminus on said railroad; that while he was so employed,and without fault or negligence on his part, and after he had filled a bucket of said defendant with about one ton of coal, and was standing upon its car from which he had filled said bucket, (it will be observed that he is speaking cf the bucket that he himself filled), and when it was raised by the derrick and engine of said defendant, and when about ten feet above and over him, a spring which held the bale of said bucket in its proper place, by reason of the imperfect, defective and worn-out condition thereof, gave way and dumped the contents of said bucket upon the head and body of plaintiff, injuring his head, spine and brain and crushing and burying him thereunder, breaking one of his ribs and otherwise severely and permanently injuring him, and all caused by and through the gross carelessness and negligence of said defendant in using said coal bucket with its defective, rotten, worn-out and imperfect spring, all of which said defendant had due and'legal notice.

[686]*686There are two allegations here in regard to negligence; one is quite a general one, that is,“by reason of the carelessness and negligence of said defendant in using and operating said bucket.” And the second is, that when the bucket was raised by the derrick ten feet above and over him, the plaintiff below, that by reason of the imperfect, defective and worn-out condition of a certain spring, the contents were dumped upon the plaintiff below, and he was injured.

The answer admits that the plaintiff below was in the employ of the defendant below, but denies all other allegationsof the petition. It further sets up and avers that the buckets used at that time were such as were generally used in handling coal under the same circumstances, by various companies; that they were safe and good, as safe as those that were in general use by railway companies, and in substance that they were of the best make and character that the market afforded; and that they were not out of repair, but were in good repair, and kept so at the time of the alleged injury.. The answer closes with the statement that if there was any injury, it was caused by the carelessness of the plaintiff himself, which is denied by the reply .of the plaintiff.

Now, there are three questions argued here before us, and one point is in regard to the admission of certain testimony or evidence that the catch itself was worn; the second was that the court erred in stating as to the manner of handling the bucket; and the third was that the court erred jp its charge to the jury and in certain charges that were submitted to the jury by the court, which, it is claimed by the plaintiff in error, were not issues that were made by the pleadings filed in the case.

As to that question, the defendant in error placed upon the stand its general foreman of the road who had charge not only of the equipment of that particular yard, but perhaps along the whole line, and he has testified in regard to the use of these buckets. The counsel for the plaintiff asks this question of the witness: “What do you call a machine?” Answer, “A derrick.” Question, “How many buckets and how many men?” Answer, “Six buckets and about ten or twelve shovelers. Of course, there are other men connected with this — hookers and trimmers. ” Mr. Hamilton: “I am trying to get at how many times this catch was going into this notch, and this latch into this notch; can you give us some idea about it by which we can figure?” Answer “Yes, [687]*687sir.” Question, “I suppose, as a matter of course, these edges get worn out a little, don’t they?” Answer"Oh, yes, sir.” Question, “I was going to ask you, Mr. Cook, if the constant use of this latch, here, sliding over this catch, didn’t have a tendency to wear off the square edge of these corners and round them off a little?” Objected to on the ground that there is no allegation in the petition as to’ the wearing. Mr. Hamilton: “We are entitled to know all about this matter to see whether they furnished springs that, under all the circumstances of their use, would hold the latch certainly in its place.” Court to Mr. Hamilton: “Do you allege in your petition that the office for the spring was to keep the bucket upright?” Mr. Farquharscn: “Tokeep the bale in its place?” Mr. Smith: “It is, there was a defective, worn-out spring. ” The court to Mr. Smith: “I think if you had intended to require a more minute specification as to what the defect was, you should have required it by motion.” Mr. Smith: “I couldn’t make it more specific.” Mr. Hamilton: “We want to know how it operated. ” The court: “I think we shall have to hear the testimony. In the narrower sense, the spring could only be that mechanism which changes the motion; but in the broader sense, we think it would be the operation performed by the spring, including the place in which it w'ent and how it was there secured, as well as the fitness of the location into which this spring went.” Mr. Smith: “I wish to note an exception to the interpretation of the petition as given by .the court in the presence of the jury.”

.-Now, it will be seen from the allegations of the amended -petition which I read, that the only allegation in regard to the spring is, that the spring itself was defective, weak, and the word “rotten” was used in regard to the iron. There was no specific allegation in regard to the edges of the catch. It may be proper here, in order to show the connection of this testimony, to state that the testimony shows that the coal is thrown or shoveled into an iron bucket holding about a ton; that attached to this bucket is a bail, and that the bail is attached to the bucket at a point below the center of gravity, nearer the bottom of the bucket than the top.; that in using the bucket, which is hooked onto by a certain apparatus connected with the derrick, it is swung from the position where it is filled, around to the boat and there dumped; that in using the derrick, it is made in this form for the purpose of having the bucket empty itself when the occasion comes and the proper steps are taken to have it. In [688]*688holding the bucket in an upright position while it is being swung aroand in place, there is attached to the inside of the bail what is called a latch, a piece of iron some twelve inches long and two and one-half inches wide and with a considerable thickness, and this is riveted to the bail. Back of that, between the latch and the bail itself, is a steel spring about eleven or twelve inches long, which is also attached to the bail, the purpose-of which is to throw the latch forward and to keep it forward in position. On the rim of the bucket at the top are placed two pieces of iron, one about twelve inches long or a little longer, and opening until it comes to a certain point, and the other of the same kind opening until it comes to this notch, the effect of which is to make a catch at that point.

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Bluebook (online)
12 Ohio C.C. 685, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/toledo-ohio-central-ry-co-v-janeski-ohiocirct-1894.