Tooley v. Railway Pass. Assur. Co.

24 F. Cas. 53, 3 Biss. 399, 4 Chi. Leg. News 311, 2 Ins. L.J. 275, 1873 U.S. App. LEXIS 1785
CourtU.S. Circuit Court for the Southern District of Illnois
DecidedJanuary 29, 1873
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 24 F. Cas. 53 (Tooley v. Railway Pass. Assur. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering U.S. Circuit Court for the Southern District of Illnois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Tooley v. Railway Pass. Assur. Co., 24 F. Cas. 53, 3 Biss. 399, 4 Chi. Leg. News 311, 2 Ins. L.J. 275, 1873 U.S. App. LEXIS 1785 (circtsdil 1873).

Opinion

DRUMMOND, Circuit Judge

(charging jury). John Tooley, on the 24th day of January, 1871, took from the agent of the defendant, at Quincy, Illinois, two policies of insurance, for $3,000 each. That amount was to be paid on each policy in case of the death of Tooley within two days. It was provided that the liability should not exist unless while he was actually traveling in a public conveyance of common carriers, and in compliance with their rules and regulations, and besides he was not to neglect the use of due diligence for self-protection.

Tooley, on the afternoon of the 25th of January, took the Champaign accommodation train at Chicago and proceeded to Kan-kakee. where the train arrived shortly after seven o’clock.

It seems the practice was for the train to stop at the station and then pass on to the coal-bin, provided they took the entire train beyond Kankakee.

Accordingly, on this evening the train stopped at the station, and several persons left the cars, Tooley among others. The train remained at the station several minutes and took in water. The bell was then rung, the conductor signaled with his light, and the train went on to take in coal. There was a platform extending from the station house alongside of the railroad track towards the water-tank and coal-bin. When the train moved on, Tooley, who was standing by a door of the station house, started forward on the platform to overtake the train. When he reached the train, he extended his hands to grasp the car rails, and fell between the two passenger cars, and was run over and instantly killed.

The first question is, what was the measure of responsibility of the defendant under these .policies of insurance? The language of the policies is: “Provided always that this insurance shall only extend to bodily injuries, fatal or nonfatal, as aforesaid, when accidentally received by the insured while actually traveling in a public conveyance provided by common carriers for the transporting of passengers in the United States, or the dominion of Canada, and in com-, pliance with all rules and regulations of such, carriers; and not neglecting to use due diligence for self-protection.”

These aré the only conditions material to be considered in the examination of this case. Tooley must have actually been a traveler in or upon the train; but it cannot be said that the responsibility ceased whenever he stepped out of the car .to alight at a station, and that it never became operative again until his foot entered the car to re-, sume his journey. That would be giving too narrow a-meaning to the clause of the policy. We think that the fair construction of, the liability assumed by the defendant in this respect was, that it included injuries received by Tooley while necessarily getting on or off the train, as a traveler upon it.

Secondly — It is a question of fact to be determined by the jury — was Tooley, at the time the injury was received by him,.a traveler on the train ? And this will depend upon the fact whether his journey terminated at Kankakee. It is claimed on the part of the defense that that was the termination of his journey, and, if so, then he was not a traveler on this train at the time of the accident.

I will call your attention to some of the facts having a bearing on this question.' The. conductor states in his evidence that when he took up the tickets of the passengers, Tooley’s ticket was only for Kankakee. That is a fact proper to be considered by the jury in order to determine whether or not his journey extended beyond Kankakee — not conclusive, of course — because, as a matter of experience, we know that where men commence a journey, they do not always buy their ticket to the termination of the journey; and various circumstances may happen during the progress of a journey, to change the purpose of the traveler.

Mr. Merwin states in his evidence that in a conversation he had with Tooley he said [54]*54tliat he intended or expected to go to Hat-toon, which was south of Champaign, where the train stopped. [The way that arose was this: It was in relation to the seats; he wanted two seats, as he said, so that he could sleep, as he “thought or expected to go to Mattoon.”] 2 Now, as qualifying this, perhaps. and to some extent inconsistent with it, is the testimony of the conductor. He says that just before they arrived at Kankakee he woke up Tooley and told him that the next station was Kankakee, and that Tooley made no remark intimating in any way that he intended to go further than Kankakee, and, therefore, that it was not necessary for him to be disturbed. It is for you to say how much bearing this may have upon the question [whether his journey terminated at Kankakee, and how far it may affect the statement of Merwin.] 2

There is this other fact, that when the train started at Kankakee, Tooley attempted to get on it That is claimed to be conclusive evidence of his purpose to proceed further. [It is for you to say what bearing that may have upon this particular question that we are now considering. Then, again, in relation to whether or not he had any baggage with him. It is said that there was a satchel or valise there, and that it was not found after his death. How far this may have any bearing upon the question is a matter to be determined by the jury. The only light in which it is material this question should be considered is, how far it .may affect the conduct of Tooley on the general question of negligence.] 2 If his journey ceased at Kankakee, then it cannot be claimed. under the undisputed facts of this case, that the defendant would be liable, because, on the assumption that he was going no further than Kankakee, in attempting to get on the train as he did, it was at his own risk. If he were going beyond Kankakee on the train, then there are other considerations which may affect the question of negligence. According to the view which we take of the contract between the parties, if he were a passenger proceeding beyond Kankakee, on the train, he had the right to leave the car at Kankakee and return to it; he was not bound to remain inside the car all the time.

There is, perhaps, one circumstance which I ought to refer to in connection with the question of the determination of the journey at Kankakee, and it is this, that he did not purchase a ticket at Kankakee, and it is in evidence that the train stopped there several minutes; and if you believe the testimony on this point, he certainly had ample time to purchase one. Still that of course is not conclusive. He had the right, I. suppose, under the practice and management of the train, to pay his fare on the cnrs. One of the conditions of these policies is, as has been stated, that Tooley should comply with all the rules and regulations of common carriers. We are not prepared to say that it was incumbent on him, under the circumstances of the case, to make himself acquainted with all the rules which might be contained upon the time card. We must give this clause of the policy a reasonable construction.

A policy is issued, we suppose, to any applicant. It is what is called an accident policy, and we are to infer that the meaning of this clause was that the traveler should only make himself acquainted with those general rules, as to the management of trains, and the conduct of railroads which are presumed to be known to travelers under these circumstances. For' instance, Tooley, as far as we know, was a stranger on this road.

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Bluebook (online)
24 F. Cas. 53, 3 Biss. 399, 4 Chi. Leg. News 311, 2 Ins. L.J. 275, 1873 U.S. App. LEXIS 1785, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tooley-v-railway-pass-assur-co-circtsdil-1873.