Ward Furniture Manufacturing Co. v. Pickle

295 S.W. 727, 174 Ark. 463, 1927 Ark. LEXIS 391
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedJune 20, 1927
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 295 S.W. 727 (Ward Furniture Manufacturing Co. v. Pickle) 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
Ward Furniture Manufacturing Co. v. Pickle, 295 S.W. 727, 174 Ark. 463, 1927 Ark. LEXIS 391 (Ark. 1927).

Opinion

Humphreys, J.

This suit was brought by Ira Pickle, a minor sixteen years of age, through his father and next friend, against appellant, in the circuit court of the Fort Smith District of Sebastian County, to recover damages in the sum of $20,000 for personal injuries received to his left hand while operating a molding machine in the furniture factory of appellant, through the alleged negligence of appellant in failing to warn him of the dangers incident to the operation thereof.

Appellant filed an answer, denying that it employed the hoy, Ira, to operate a molding machine, but stated that it employed him as an off-hearer for molding machines, and interposed the defenses that he was not engaged in the line of his duty when injured, that he assumed the risk, and that the injury was due to his own negligence.

The cause was submitted to a jury upon the pleadings, testimony adduced by the respective parties, and instructions of the court, resulting in a verdict and consequent judgment for $7,500 in favor of appellee, from which is this appeal.

The following facts and disputed testimony are reflected by the record in so far as nécessary to determine the questions involved on this appeal.

At the time of his employment appellee was sixteen years of age, a country boy, inexperienced in'the use and operation of manufacturing machinery. He was first employed as an off-bearer for molding machines by the foreman, Frank Goebel, and placed under the control and supervision of the head molderman, C. F. Hoffman, who had charge. The foreman informed him of his duties as off-bearer, which consisted in taking timber off the table after it came out of the molding machine and placing it on a truck, which he assisted the molder-man in moving to another machine when it was loaded. The foreman testified that he told him not to touch the molding machine while performing the duties of off-bearer, explaining if he did that he would get his hand cut off in the knife heads, which he showed him. On the third day of his employment he was directed by the molderman, C. F. Hoffman, to off-bear from two machines. He performed these duties for about two weeks, or until Friday before lie was injured on Saturday. On Thursday before the injury occurred C. F. Hoffman was succeeded by Joe Adkins, and, not knowing whether appellee had been off-bearing- or feeding- the machine, he directed him to run the molding- machine. The machine he was directed to run had. several knife heading’s. .The last knife heading was 4 inches square and 10 inches high, carrying a blade on the front which operated beneath’ the table. There were four blades- on the head,- which cut three-fourths inch stock. The blades were four .inches long, and were clamped to the head, which was propelled by a belt on the shaft making- about 3,600 revolutions a minute. The machine would clog when a wedg-e-shaped piece of material was run through, and it was the molderman’s duty .to unclog the machine. The -molderman used his discretion in stopping the machine to unclog- it — he used his own judgment. Sometimes the molderman unclogged the machine while: it was running, and . at other times he stopped the machine to unclog it. A. molding machine is stopped by using a shift handle fastened- to the machine. The molderman had a feeder to .each machine and an off-bearer to every two .machines, who. took their orders, from him. Five molding machines were being operated on the floor under the direction of the molderman, -and it was a common thing for the feeders, instead of the- molderman,- to remove the obstructions when -the machines clogged -up, either while the machines were • running • or after they stopped them. -The method of removing-.the obstruction, either after the machines had -been- stopped or while they were running, was to unfasten some screws and to place a file on the wedge-shaped piece of material and drive it out with a hammer or wrench. It required instructions and experience -in order to operate a molding machine. The only knowledge of the-machine apoellee had, prior to operating it, was in observing the other boys operate their respective machines during the two weeks of his employment as off-bearer. Appellee testified that, when Joe Adkins told him, about 3 o ’clock Friday afternoon, to operate tlie molding- machine, he gave him no instructions, but simply said to him “to run the machine,” and walked off; that he did not warn him of the dangers incident to operating the same, and did not tell him whether feeding the machine included the duty of unstopping-it when it clogged up; that, after operating it á few minutes, the machine clogged, and the molderman unclogged it without stopping the same; that, in doing this, he unfastened some screws and used a file and hammer; that the machine ran all right the rest of the afternoon; that, Saturday morning, he was unable to étart the machine, and the molderman started it for him, and, after running awhile, the machine clogged, ahd appellee proceeded to unclog it just as the molderman had-done; that her could not start the machine after he had unclogged it, and asked the molderman to start it for him; that the molderman told him he did not have time to fool with the machine, whereupon appellee assisted other off-bearers and waited for the molderman to- start it; that, after the molderman started the machine, he told appellee not to stop' it any more; that the machine again clogged; and, thinking it his duty to unclog it, he proceeded to - do so just as the molderman had done while running it, during which time the molderman passed by and observed his effort to unclog it, and did not tell him to quit or offer to unclog it for him; that the file slipped, and the weight of the file and the blow of the hammer carried his hand into the knife, which cut and mangled his hand so badly that all of the fingers, except the index finger and thumb, as well as a part of the palm of the hand down to the wrist, had to be amputated.

Joe- Adkins testified that he complied with every request appellee made for him to unclog and start the machine; that he never directed appellee to unclog it, and never told him not to shut it down; that he never saw appellee trying to unclog it.

On account of the injury and amputation the usé of his hand was impaired one-half and the usefulness of the arm to a large extent. A part of the grip of the hand, and his ability to lift heavy articles, was lost. He returned to the farm after the injury, where he was able to do some work, but was unable to hoe and plow as he formerly had. Prior to the injury he had left the farm with the purpose of becoming a mechanic. At the time of the injury he was earning $1.53 per day, and was ambitious to advance and increase his earning capacity. He was in good health, of husky build and good weight. His expectancy was 44.9 years, and during that time he would have earned $21,433.33 if his earning capacity had not increased. '

His pain and suffering after the injury and amputation of his fingers and part of the hand was intense for about three weeks, so intense that he was unable to sleep until about 3 or 4 o’clock in the mornings. At the time of the trial he still suffered from the injury, as if pins were sticking in his hand if he received a little jar or if there was any pressure upon it.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Branscumb v. Whitaker
233 S.W.2d 249 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1950)
Goodin, Adm'x. v. Boyd-Sicard Coal Company
122 S.W.2d 548 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1938)
Standard Oil Company of Louisiana v. Milner
88 S.W.2d 824 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1935)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
295 S.W. 727, 174 Ark. 463, 1927 Ark. LEXIS 391, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ward-furniture-manufacturing-co-v-pickle-ark-1927.