Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-03-21
SUPREME COURT
DECISION
In the Cameron-Kenyon- Con-
nell Suit.
REVERSES LOWER COURT
Text of Findings of Judge Hunt.
Reasonable Care Must be
Exercised by Trustees

The opinion handed down by the su-
preme court yesterday in one OF the
famous powder explosion cases, the glst
of which appeared in the Inter Mountain
yesterday, is being commented on by the
attorneys of Butte. The decision of the
court that Minnie Cameron, wife of the
former fire chief, who lost his life in the
explosion, was entitled to a new trial,
came as a surprise to many people, VINO
had arrived at the conclusion that the
cases never would be resurrected again.
1t will be remembered that Cameron's
widow instituted suit for damages
against the Kenyon-Connell Commercial
company, w. r. Kenyon, j. e. Gaylord,
NJ. J. Connell, c. H. Palmer and w. A.
Clark, directors of the ompany. The
latter asked for a non-suit, which Judge
J. j. Mediation granted.
Mrs. Cameron, through her attorneys,
took an appeal to the supreme court.
The question to be decided by the SUI
preme court on the appeal was one of
great Importance, namely, are the direc-
tors of the defendant corporation liable
in damages for the acts of the corpora
ton in which they took no part and of
which they had no knowledge.
Judge Hunt, for the court, holds that
they are. unless it is shown that they
knew nothing-as in this case-Of the
continuing nuisance Of storing powder
in excess Of the quantity allowed by law
within the city limits, and could not by
exercising ordinary intelligence in con-
troll, have known of it, or unless they have
performed their duty by taking care.
The court devotes it's attention first to
the facts disclosed by the records, which
showed that the defendant corporation
owned a frame, iron rooted warehouse
near a depot and within the corporate
limits of Butte, where it stored, among
other hardware merchandise, a quantity
of Hercules powder, used in mining, and
had been storing it there since 1893; that
Kenyon was often seen about the build
ing; Connell seldom, and the other direc-
tors never; that about the first Of each
month as much as 20 or so boxes of pow
der were sometimes stored in the build
ing; that on the day of the explosion one
witness saw seven boxes of so pounds
each; that the warehouse man, circuit,
swore on the day of the explosion there
were from three to five cases of the ex-
plOsive stored therein; that a mining SUI
perintendent accustomed to handling
powder, swore that at least a ton of the
\ explosive must have exploded on the
night Of the fire; that Connell was presi-
dent OF the company, and Kenyon general
manager; that Kenyon's duties were to
give attention to the corporations bust
ness, looking after the financial part,
ordering goods, etc, but not to n a.
the warehouse or powder magazine,
which was under CIRCUITS direct charge:
trustees, except Kenyon, had anything
to do with the actual affairs of the cor
poration, and, continuing, says:
1t is plain that this corporation, like
many others in the commercial world.
had one head director, to whom all the
other trustees gave the entire practical
management of the concern"
After commenting upon the custom Of
many corporations in leaving the control
or the company's affairs in the hands of
one director who is familiar with and as
sumes the real control, the court saws:
1T IS a general rule that the ordinary
business Of a corporation is managed in
the name and on behalf of the corpora-
ton by particular agents. chosen bv the
stockholders. These agents are the direc-
tors. For their acts, performing within
the apparent scope of their authority, the
corporation is responsible, while G con-
cerse the corporation can act through
these agents alone.
'These principles are generally familiar
to business men as well as to lawyers.
They control the relation Of the artificial
being, the corporation, to the world at
large. They find their foundation in the
law of agency which makes the corpora
ton the principal; still they are extended,
under certain conditions, far enough TO
inculpate the agents or directors of the
corporation Notwithstanding the fact that
the principal may also be liable for a
wrong one.
"Now bearing in mind that this case
presents itself upon a motion for a ION
suit and that we must accordingly con-
slider as true everything which the evil
dence tended to prove on the trial, we
haNvn hpfnrn 1S q nnrpnrnfinn p,1i1fp nP
a nuisance by, having kept in a frame
warehouse within the limits of an incor-
pOrated city, in the vicinity of railroad
depots and other buildings, an amount
of Hercules powder in excess Of the guam
tity-ffty pounds-allowed to be stored
therein by the laws of the state. No or
dinance Of a city could authorize a larger
quantity of powder to be kept by a cor
poration within the city limits than the
state statute allows, unless some special
exception is to be found exempting the
inhabitants of such a city from the opera
ton of the general statute. None such
affecting Butte is known to us, however
so we must regard the ordinance of that
city, pleaded by defendants. which per-
mits $50 pounds of powder to be kept at
one time by a in it's warehouse
within the limits of that city as incon-
sistent with the state law, without force,
and immaterial to the case before us.
1.-The corporation, therefore, by main
tanning this nuisance became the sub
iect of indictment for misdemeanOr, as
we'll as liable in civil action for injury to
person or property caused by the nui-
sance.
These propositions are too plain for
extended comment. They demonstrate a
liability to this plaintiff-assumins always
the evidence is ncontradicted.
After discussing the question of the
liability of the company for its en-
Moves acts, or the master for his SER
,ant,s acts. the court finds that the