The National Register.
London, England, 1812-07-05 00:00:00

CHAMBERLAIN r. C AYTON.

This was an action brought by a bricklayer, against the father of
rsliss Gayton, late i,f the Opera ballet, and nJw the wife of the Rev.
Mr. Murray, who, when he to,l the daughter off the stage, placed the
fattier upon it, by establishing him in busine,,s as the proprictor -and
driver of an Edmonton stage-coach, running tour horses. The action
was for negligence, in quitting the coach as it stopped at the Angel Inn,
Edmonton, whereby the horses ran away, and the plaintiff fel from
and off the said coach, and cut Ili., head. &c.

Mr. Parke, for the plaintiff, called an old seaman as a witness, who
was a passenger with the plaintiff at the time the accident occerren,
and whose evidence was as follows:—" I was a passenger upon the
upper deck of the defendant's coach, on the ttlth of /lord last, in com-
pany with the plaintiff and another person ; we gut alma-d together in
Skinner-street, and went toll a head till we made die Angel Inn, at
Edmonton, when the coachman hove-to tir the purpose of landinct a
lady, who was a pas'enger in the cabin; he kit the helm wi!liont
steersman, when the two horses who were a head took fright, mayhap
at the sparks which flew from the pipe of a lu•'hc r who was hloneng
smoke and fire at the door of the Angel. They set of f full Teed ; and
I saw the plaintiff get from the upper deck of the coach upon the box,
,ind reach over to try to catch the steering tackle, whet, he tell-to be-
tween the two stern horses ; I was afraid we should run foul of a piece
of timber which laid on the larboind aid but we got cle..r of it ; the
plaintsff had got hold of the steerinv tackle, and swpt the horses' way a
little, and I jumped safe a-shore. z,oon after the horses hove-to, one
of them, having got a groKnd upon a heap of stones, and the coach-
man coming up, cut some of the rigging, backed the coach a-stern, and
got the horses up. I saw the plaintiff some time after, but he had had
his head dressed by the doctor before I saw hint, it was tied round
with a handkerchief, which was very broody : I would rather base
been a board a ship in a storm than whe; c I was, for we went at the
rate of ten knots an hour, or more."

From other evidence. it appe:ired that the plaintiff, in his endea-
vours to stop the horses, fell under their feet, and was trampled upon ;
and the surgeon, who afterwards attended hint, stated, that he re-
ceived a very deep and severe :vountl ever the tight eve, .+ Inch pre-
vented his attending to hi: business tat upwards of a week, and required
his (the surgeon's) attendance for three wee Ls.
The defence set up was, that the defend:int had been guilty a no
negligence, that he Lad oit!.y quitted the box as lon.; as wa• necessary
for him to set down a lady, who was a p.,sseni;er in the coa It, and to
take out her luggage.
Lord ELLEN conouGH observed, that a person u delal:irg to carry
passengers, was bound to carry them as far as possibL, in safety
thereihre (night, on no ao•oui.t, t., le:!ve his hoses. it WaS impossible
fur him to carry on hi: busfiess witlioLt quinine the b v. h- must hive
•aupe per,ott with him, with whom to leate the horses in cln.rg • thisiog
his absence. _ _

'lie Jury futtuki u verdict for the plaiatiff—Dutulges 2.'. c sii