Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-12-23
Novelties Of the Law.

Novelties OF the Law.
From the N Y. SUM-
Chicago boy only four years old. whose
father had gone to his days work. and whose
mother was sick abed. slipped out of the house
and wandered along the street. where he fell in
company with older boys. who coaxed him TO
lrollc with them on the ''swing bridge over
the south branch of the Chicago river swing
bridge answers the purpose of a drawbridge but
Turns on a pivot instead OF being hOisted. The
men in Charge Of this one had just let a vessel
through and were swinging the bridge back
into place. when the children began jumpine
back and forth and the little our-year-old fell
over the narrow space between the bridge and
the abutment. and his right arm. which hunu
down, was crushed. The city was sued for
damages. The judges said that they did not con-
slider the family to blame for the child's bein.r
at play In the street, working people cannot
Always keep goyernesses. But neither was the
CITY TO blame. A city must keepa swing bridge
IN reasonably safe condition. and if a person
crossing it properly is hurt by a defect of the
bridge. he can recover. But persons who Use
swing bridges must be careful The city is not
oound 10 Keep gate OF Waterman for pre-.
venting persons from stepping upon the bridge at
anmpropeF time. Bridges are not Fairgrounds
for children, and if children wander from home
unattended and are hurt while PLAYING about
bridge, this must be called pure accident.
Maryland girl wrote to the president of ILL.,
noIs Female College applying for a situation az
teacher, and was at length engaged at a salary
OF $3UO. besides "home and Washing The
president letters stated that each teacher would
nave Wen furnished sleeping room, but did not
say On which floor it would be- The teacher
wrote. asking if she might have a room on the
second floor. and the president answered at first
that it would be on the second floor. S,bse-
4uehtiy ne wrote again. saying that he found
that he would have to ASSIGN her a room on the
third floor. She declined this, because her
people were very much opposed to her roomiDo
on the third floor Then the president en~a,red
another teacher in her place, and lastly she sued
MN ior ner damages in losing the years employ
ment. me decision was against her: the court
said that as the letters forming the original CON
tract dld not express or stipulate for a second
floor room, the president was only bound to
award comfortable room. And he had the
rlSht, neediul, TO move teacher from one
room TO another; because he assigned her a
second-fl0or room at first. it did not follow that
she was entitled to keep it the whole year.
The constitution Of Illinois authorizes free
schools in which all children .'mav receive q
good common school education: and the leg
islature has directed that the instruction shall
be In reading English, in English grammar. and
SUCH other branches as the directors shall nre-
scrloe. The board of education of one school
ulstfict introduced German. to which some eco
nomcally disposed taxpayers objected SAVING
tnat this was spending public money outside of
a common school education.n The conrt said
that instruction in the common schools mnst no
gwen IN Engiish, but it is lawful to introduce
the study OF modern language if English teyt
books and English speaking teachers are en-
poyed.
A street car passenger asked the driver to Lot
him off at the Palmer House. which the driver
promised to do; and when the car drew near the
spot the driver beckOAed to him and said:
Here is your place, and slowed I'D the car. as
II TO stop. The passenger went to the rear plat
form, and. when the car was moving very slowly.
stepped on; out at that instant the driver. who
apparently thought the passenger had already
alighted, whipped his horse, the car gave jerk.
and the passenger, who had not vet let 90 the
iron rail, was thrown violently to the ground.
GRIPPING him for life. He recovered $1,000
damages from the company and the court said
this was not too much. As general rule. the
driver is bound to stop the car entirely. and if
passengers jump Off Willie the car is moving.
they take the risk of being hurt; but this does
not apply where the driver slows the car enou1b
TO render stepping Off apparently SAFE and in
vites the passenger to do So but starts the car
forward without giving him time.
me arrangements of railroad terminus in
AUSTIN, Tex. are such that the train makes a
short stop in freight depot first and then runs
onward to the passenger depot. One passen-
ger not understanding this popularity, sighted
nom the cars while they were in the freight
ucpot, surprising Giiat TO DC the proper place for
MIN to get of. There were no lamps in or about
the freight depot-none probably needed for
the work done there-and the passenger grop-
ing ms way along the platform as well as he
could, had fall of about six feet sustaining
serious dlslocations and bruises. The companv
said he was not entitled to damages for rail-
road Is not bound to light up its freight depOt.
nor is IL Under any obligations to take care of a
passenger after he has left the train at his Mace
OF destination. But the court said that II 10
bound to provide safe. convenient accommoda-
tons for passengers to get fairly Off from the
platform and grounds CT the station and that
therefore the suit would hold
man in st. Louis sat watching stone
masons laying cellar WALL when he suddenly
arose, approached one of them. aimed a nistol
~ nlln. ana shot him dead. Pointing his pistol
~ Tue Otn l workman, he said: .sIf you do not
s.anu SUI Will shoot you, too" He then |
walked ieisurely away and, was arrested few |
docks distant The defence was insanity. There |
was no proof OF hereditary insanity, nor much |
OF previous mental disease, bnt the lawyer for |
the accused argued that the lack of any motive |
for the shooting the defiant publicity Of the |
act, and the total heedtesSneSs of consequences I
shown, also the fact that the accused gave vari-
Gus contradictory and absurd accounts Of his /
reasons for the deed. showed insanity. But the I
court held that these are not sufficient grounds
The law presumes every person to be sane; If |
any one Is not SO, this must be proved. It can
not be inferred from the extraordinary maiice.j
wtckedness, recklessneSs or uselessness of the |
act, nor fror abnormal insensibiilty to conse-