The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1879-10-09
The Law Of the Depot.

The station-master's duty is coming
to be regarded as more and more i'm
portant. A great deal depends on the
careful and thorough supervision of all
matters connected with the manage
ment of a depot. The courts will cast
the company in damages whenever a
passenger complains of an injury sus-
tanned through defective condition or
careless regulation of matters at q sta
ton; provided, of course, the passenger
was not himself careless. And that is
matter which agents of the company
cannot reckon upon. The station-mas-
ter, starter and gateman, even work
men employed about a station, have
need to take very great care that every
thing is kept in safe condition and all
duties are promptly and skillfully per-
formed. 1t is not enough to take ordi-
nary care, such as is expected in other
kinds of business. Very high care, ex-
treme care, is due in the performance
of all duties involving the safety of pas
sengers. Some judges have said that
the management must take the highest
possible care; but this is rather strong
language. Yet, as railroading is some-
what dangerous business, especially to
Inexperienced, infirm or ignorant pas
sengers, a care is required proportioned
to the complexity of the service and the
hazard.
And this doctrine applies even to per-
sons coming to the station to take the
cars, and before they have bought their
tickets. If the company assumes to
run an omnibus to bring passengers to
its trains, and places it under the gen.
eral charge of the station-master, he
might let the company in for a lawsuit
by neglecting proper supervision, if
traveller was hurt in consequence, while
on the way to the station. So, if a per-
son is injured when entering the depot
to buy tickets, through the bad condi-
ton of things there, it is no answer to
his lawsuit to say that he had not yet
paid his fare. If he were coming %
pay it, that is enough.
Whoever is in charge of keeping the
grounds around the station and the ap-
proaches to it in order must see that
they are kept in safe condition. There
was a fiag-station on the Chicago, Rock
Island & Pacific Road where trains
often stopped to take on corn. In
handling it some often spilled on the
ground and the spot became favorite
loafing place for the stray cows of the
vicinity, who would come to lick up
the loose kernels. Once or twice a COW
lettering on the track for this purpose
was run over, and at length a train
which ran over one was wrecked and a
passenger was injured. The court said
that the company was liable. The
management ought to have had the
loose corn swept up, or else to have
had the cows driven away.
The companies have the legal right
to appoint a particular gate or door for
passengers to enter by, and forbid their
coming in by the gates set apart for
employees; also to forbid their going in
to the trains without showing tickets,
and to forbid men travelling alone from
taking seats in the ladies' car. These
rules must be enforced by the gateman
standing at the door, and ne must keep
at his post and attend to his duty. 1t
will not answer for him to leave the
door unguarded, and, after passenger
has passed in to drag him back. This,
at least, was decided in New York
City Court. The story of the case was
that a traveller on the Harlem Railroad
having a Communication ticket, and
therefore not needing to visit the ticket
office, assumed to 60 into the train at a
gateway on Forty-second street, which
stood open and was handler for him
than to 60 though the passengers
waiting room, but was for the en-
ployes only. Nothing but a placard
opposed his entrance, and he had fair
ly reached the steps of the car when
the watchman collared him and pulled
him back. He produced his ticket, but
this was not deemed satisfactory. He
was elected with some violence and
made to 60 around and enter through
the passenger-room. He recovered
5000 damages. The court said that a
company may prevent, by force, trav-
elers from entering by a gateway that
Is forbidden to them, but that passsn-