The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-06-28 00:00:00

LOCA.t. LAW CASE.

RAILWAY ACCIDEN r AT DUDLEY.

In the Queen's Bench Division on Thursday. be-
fore Mr. Baron Po lock and a :zpecial jury. an action
was brought by George and Jane Chadwick, of
Bret ell Lure, St ,ffordshife, attains,. tLe Great
West-i 1 ltailway Company to recover damages for
personal injuries sustained by Mrs. Chadwick in an
accident en the defendants' line at loud ey.
Mr. MAthews, Q.C., and Mr. Iluprc Keqle ap—
peared for the plaintiffs; and Mr. E Clarke, Q.C.,
and the Hon. A. Lyttelton for defendants.
Mr. Matthows, in opening the case, said the
plaintiff, George Chadwick, was a paving contractor,
and was well-tu-do and in a comfortable position.
The action was brought to recover compensation
for injuries suffered by his wife, Jane Chadwick.
on the occasion of a journey on the clef ulants'
line. he thought there would be no question ex-
cept that of damages for the jnry to try. On the
24:h of September last Mrs. Chadwick was return-
ing home from Birmingham to Brett-di Lane by the
Great Western Railway. At Dudley the Great
Western ILilway line crossed the London and
North-Western line. The train, therefore, crossed
the line, and was thn backed en to a siC.in4 into
the station. In the operation of shunting the
driver of the eu:line carelessly over-shunted, and
the train was brought violently into contact with a
stop-block which was put to prevent trains going
off the line altogether, Mrs. Chadwick's heal in
the first instance was struck by the carriage, then
she was thrown forward against the opposite side

of the carriage and back again, and the lower part
of her back was struck. The result was that she
lost all power in her limbs, although she was not
uncons&ous. She was taken into the station-
master's room, ad a surgeon was called to her aid.
She was unable to walk, and was taken home in a
cab and put to bed, Mr. Turner, surgeon, of
Brettell Lane, was called in, and said he had at-
tended Mrs. Chadwick ever since. It was found
that her injuries lv,,re extremtly s,,rious; the lower
extremities of both legs were powerless, and she
had no power of sensation in them. The case was
considered so serious that Dr. Saundby and Dr.
Russell, of Birmingham, were called in. She re
mained in bed seven weeks. She then went to a
place for change of air, and afterwards to Birming-
ham, bat the journey so distres-ed her that she
had an attack of paralysis in the right arm. From
the medical evidence he should call they would see
that there had been concussion sf the spine and a
le,ioa of 'he btain. tier age was 45 years, and
aFe was previously a woman of vigorous constitu-
tion, being tee mother of sixteen or seventeen
children. 'rhe right ie.,: was wasted and mea,ured
1-,ss than the left, and there was no question the,'
she had been injured in te spine or the braia,ai d
this reniered her liable to an attack of paralysn3
at any moment. It would therefore bo for tie
jury to decide as to what damages she was entitled
under the circumstances. Plaintiffs did not elaiu
dam4ge for loss in hu-iness, but they were £ll3
out t f pocket in consequence of the illness, and.
asked for this and 5u..11 substantial damages for in-
jury as the jury thought they wete entitled to.
After hearing the evidence, the jury gave a verdict
for the plaintiffs for ,241.3 183 4.1.