Wilbur v. Southwest Missouri Electric Railway Co.

85 S.W. 671, 110 Mo. App. 689, 1905 Mo. App. LEXIS 91
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedFebruary 27, 1905
StatusPublished
Cited by24 cases

This text of 85 S.W. 671 (Wilbur v. Southwest Missouri Electric Railway Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Wilbur v. Southwest Missouri Electric Railway Co., 85 S.W. 671, 110 Mo. App. 689, 1905 Mo. App. LEXIS 91 (Mo. Ct. App. 1905).

Opinion

JOHNSON, J.

— This is a suit for damages resulting from personal injuries. The verdict and judgment were for plaintiff. Defendant appealed. On August 12, 1903, plaintiff was a passenger upon a car propelled by electricity which defendant was running for the carriage of passengers upon its line of railroad in Jasper county. The car collided with another. Plaintiff testified that as a result thereof he was thrown violently from the car against an adjacent fence from which he rebounded to the ground.

[693]*693Over the objections of defendant the plaintiff was permitted to introduce evidence of various bodily injuries, chiefly internal, sustained from his violent projection and fall. The ground of the objections was the absence from the petition of allegations of the existence of the particular injuries which the evidence admitted at the trial tended to prove. The averment is that plaintiff “was greatly injured in body and mind and suffered great permanent injury. ” It is true, as urged by defendant, that all of the facts constitutive of the cause of action must be pleaded in the petition. [Sidway v. Mo. Land, etc., Co., 163 Mo. 375; Lanitz v. King, 93 Mo. 513; Pier v. Heinrichoffen, 52 Mo. 336; Leete v. Bank, 141 Mo. 581.] But defendant in making application of this rule assumes an incorrect premise. It is the fact of injury that is elemental, not the nature nor character of the particular wounds and hurts which necessarily and naturally result from the negligent act. They serve to create the substantive fact and are included within its bounds. Evidence of particular bodily injuries received by plaintiff in the wreck resulting from defendant’s negligence was admissible under a general averment of injury to the body. [Brown v. Railroad, 99 Mo. 318; Seckinger v. Mfg. Co., 129 Mo. 590; Coontz v. Railroad, 115 Mo. 674; State ex rel. v. Bacon, 24 Mo. App. 405; Pinney v. Berry, 61 Mo. 359; Barrett v. Telegraph Co., 42 Mo. App. 542.]

It is not to be inferred defendant would not have been entitled to a more definite statement had he by proper motion sought to be informed of the nature of the injuries* claimed. Without filing such motion defendant answered putting in issue the fact of any injury. In this condition of the record the objections, made for the first at the trial, came too late. [Seckinger v. Mfg. Co., supra; Grove v. Kansas City, 75 Mo. 672; Spurlock v. Railroad, 93 Mo. 530; Bowie v. Kansas City, 51 Mo. 454.]

But one instruction was asked and given on plain[694]*694tiff’s behalf. Its scope was confined to two issues — the injury and measure of damage. Defendant insists the duty devolved upon plaintiff to cover with appropriate instructions all of the issues involved. This criticism is without merit. The answer admitted the existence of the relation of common carrier and passenger and the fact of the collision of the car upon which plaintiff was riding with another of defendant’s cars. It omitted in any manner to put in issue the averment of negligence. In thus admitting the collision, negligence was conceded. In cases of this kind — injury resulting from collision — the burden primarily rests upon plaintiff to plead and prove negligence. The burden of proof shifts to the defendant when the fact of the collision is shown. [3 Thompson on Neg., sec. 2754; Allen v. Transit Co., 183 Mo. 411, 81 S. W. 1147.] Under the admissions the issues were narrowed to the injury and damage and these were fully covered by the instruction.

' In this instruction the jury was directed to consider “the extent if any to which he has been prevented and disabled by reason of said injuries from working.” The petition charged 'that plaintiff ‘ ‘ during all said time has been absolutely unable to perform any labor and is disqualified from performing his ordinary avocations of life. ’ ’ Plaintiff introduced evidence of his occupation-farm labor — and over defendant’s objections was also permitted to introduce evidence of loss of time and earnings. It is the rule that damages of this kind not being such as necessarily and naturally result from injury to the person, must be specially pleaded in the petition. [Mellor v. Railroad, 105 Mo. 462; Slaughter v. Railroad Co., 116 Mo. 274.] The averment, though indefinite, was sufficient to warrant the admission of evidence of loss of time and the value thereof. [Mabrey v. Gravel Road Co., 92 Mo. App. 602; Gerdes v. Iron & Foundry Co., 124 Mo. 360; Mellor v. Railroad, supra; Brake v. Kansas City, 100 Mo. App. 611; Smith v. Railroad, 119 Mo. 253; Gurley v. Railroad, 122 Mo. 151.] [695]*695We consider Gurley v. Railroad, snpra, decisive. In that case the allegation was, “that by reason of said injuries plaintiff had suffered great bodily and mental anguish, has been unable to follow his business or perform my hind of labor.” The right to prove loss of earnings was sustained in the case under consideration. And in Britton v. St Louis, 120 Mo. 437, under the allegation that plaintiff was incapacitated from labor ‘‘besides loss of time” without the direct charge of diminished earnings, it was held proper for plaintiff to prove such loss. These cases are apparently in conflict with Slaughter v. Railroad, and Coontz v. Railroad, supra, and ignore the rule, which until then had been observed, of admitting, under a plea of disability to labor, evidence of that fact as tending to show the extent of the physical injury, but not evidence to establish facts required to be specially pleaded. Following the decision in Gurley v. Railroad, supra, we are constrained to hold the evidence admissible.

.Plaintiff’s instruction also directed the consideration of “his necessary expense for medical attention in endeavoring to be cured. ’ ’ The petition stated that plaintiff “had paid out and expended and become liable for large sums of money for medical attention.” Two doctors called by plaintiff to' treat him for his injuries made charges for their services which they testified were reasonable and for which they rendered bills. Plaintiff was under legal obligation to pay for these services, and this liability gave him the right, notwithstanding non-payment, to include the amount thereof in his recoverable damages. [Mirrielees v. Railroad, 163 Mo. 492; Robertson v. Railroad, 152 Mo. 391; Muth v. Railroad, 87 Mo. App. 432; Murray v. Railroad, 101 Mo. 240.]

Complaint is made that the evidence is insufficient to support damages for permanent injuries. Plaintiff’s instruction requires the jury to consider “whether they are permanent in their character. ’ ’ The verdict was for [696]*696two thousand dollars. Plaintiff is a young man twenty-seven years of age and at the time of injury was in good health. His injuries were to the stomach and liver. According to the evidence introduced by him he suffered great pain and exhibited various symptoms of injury to these organs as the result of a severe blow or contusion. The trial occurred some three months after the injury. The following is plaintiff’s testimony relating to his condition at that time:

“I am still bothered with vomiting. Yesterday I threw up every meal that I ate. For some period of time back I have averaged from one to two meals per day with the exception of a period of about two weeks when I only threw up three or four times, then it commenced again and has been keeping up ever since. It seems that there is only now and then one meal a day which don’t bother me. ... I was able 'to do any kind of work before my injury but since that time can do nothing that requires special strength.

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

Related

State Ex Rel. Kansas City Public Service Co. v. Shain
165 S.W.2d 428 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1942)
Hesse v. Mittleman
27 P.2d 1022 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1933)
Keehn v. D. R. F. Realty & Investment Co.
43 S.W.2d 416 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1931)
Clark v. Mississippi River & Bonne Terre Railway Co.
23 S.W.2d 174 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1929)
Kelley v. Stout Lumber Co.
263 P. 881 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1928)
Gaty v. United Railways Co.
227 S.W. 1041 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1921)
Myers v. Adler
176 S.W. 538 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1915)
Patterson v. Springfield Traction Co.
163 S.W. 955 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1914)
Gabriel v. Metropolitan Street Railway Co.
148 S.W. 168 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1912)
Snickles v. City of St. Joseph
136 S.W. 752 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1911)
Neel v. Ryus
130 S.W. 76 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1910)
Gordon v. Northern Pacific Railway Co.
104 P. 679 (Montana Supreme Court, 1909)
Hitchings v. City of Maryville
115 S.W. 473 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1909)
Fleddermann v. St. Louis Transit Co.
113 S.W. 1143 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1908)
Burley v. Menefee
108 S.W. 120 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1908)
Wilkerson v. Metropolitan Street Railway Co.
105 S.W. 24 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1907)
Goodloe v. Metropolitan Street Railway Co.
120 Mo. App. 194 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1906)
Hamilton v. Metropolitan Street Railway Co.
114 Mo. App. 504 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1905)
Casey v. Wrought Iron Bridge Co.
89 S.W. 330 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1905)
Nelson v. Metropolitan Street Railway Co.
88 S.W. 781 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1905)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
85 S.W. 671, 110 Mo. App. 689, 1905 Mo. App. LEXIS 91, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wilbur-v-southwest-missouri-electric-railway-co-moctapp-1905.