Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1884-06-25
Hired Men and the Law.

Few farmers have correct idea of
the extent of their liability for acts of
hired help. Judge Parish, in late ad-
dress before the Grand Rapids (Michi-
gam Farmers Club, explained the
rules of the common law Ill relation to
the torts and negligence of farm en-
plovees. The essential portions of his
remarks we condense for the readers of
The Prairie Farmer. The farmer,
according to this authority, "is respon-
sble in damages to third persons for
wrong acts or negligences of hired
help occasioning injury, whether the
act be one of omission or commission;
whether in conformity to his orders or
even in disobedience to them, by negli-
gence fraud, deceit, or even wilful mis-
conduct, so long as::it was in the course
of the employment. For instance, the
farmer has horse affected with CLAN
ders or heaves, and he ofders his hired
man to take it oAt on the road and sell
it or trade it off. He is told not to
warrant or recommend the horse, or to
resort to any jockey tricks in order to
make sale. The FIRST person met is
stumped for trade. The hired man
is asked if the horse is sound, and he
answers, perfectly so; not blemish or
fault about him; and that he would
not be afraid to warrant him" The
trade is made, and the employer is lia-
BILE for the deceit, because the swindle
was in the course Of employment.
A hired man in driving a neighbor's
COW out of his employers cornfield,
killed it with stone. The court held
the employer liable for the value OF the
COW.
A hired man taking by mistake a
bag of barley instead of oats, fed some
of the grain to the horses, put clevis
in the bag and left it in the old place,
saying nothing about the matter The
matter. The farmer filled the bag with
ears of corn and took it to the mill; in
grinding the clevis injured the cracker.
The farmer was held for the damage
A farmer is liable for trespass of his
hired man, done honestly in the course
of his employment-as cutting timber
on lands Of an adjacent proprietor
1t being the duty of the employee to
unload certain load Of wood, and by
throwing it overheard he accidentally
or purposely wounds by-stander, the
employer is liable. But if the unload
ing was no part Of his duty at the time,
there would be no liability. The test
of responsibility is not whether the act
was done according to instructions, but
whether done in the prosecution Of the
work he was doing for his employer.
| If the hired man, in performing a par
ticular act in particular manner, de-
parts from instructions to infict wan
ton injury on third person, the EN-.
ployer is not liable.
We give the above as both import
ant and interesting information, and to
impress upon farmers the necessity OF
extreme caution in choosing help
There are other grave reasons why
care should be exercised in this matter
but this is sufficient for the present
Negligent, careless help can inhct ser
ious loss upon their principal, even
when he thinks himself least liable
Prairie Farmer.
There is a woman in Newport who
moves so often that sometimes hel
husband doesn't know where she lives
A farmer cured horse of baking
in this way: He went to the wood fol
q small load of wood, but his horse
would not pull pound He die
not beat him, as most men would
but tied him to a tree and left hin
there. At sundown he went to The
lot, and asked the horse to draw, but
he would not straighten tug
SO he put q blanket on him anC
left him there for the night in the
morning he still refused to draw; bu
at noon, being hungry and lonesome
he started at once, and drew the Loaf
to the house. The farmer returned
and got another load before feedin:
him, and then gave him good dinner
He has not been troubled since tina
time. If the horse is disposed to balk
he has only to start on ahead, and the
horse will follow at once.