Palestine daily herald. [volume] (Palestine, Tex.) 1902-1949, 1904-06-04
DAMAGE SUIT INDUSTRY.

/ sion o. question tn2t Is OF interest 10
the entire state:
Few Texans, even of these who read
the papers daily and are thoroughly
conversant with the current affairs OF
| the State. have a conception Of the
magnitude to which the damage suit
I industry has attained. Comparatively
a few years ago the amount Of money
| paid out yearly by the railroads OF
Texas was not large and did not excite
the alarm of either the owners or the
managers of the properties.
Then, as now, those in control of the
various railway lines Of the state knew
that some just claims for damages on
account of personal injuries would be
presented, and reasonable amount
of their revenues was counted upon as
certain to go to appease the feelings
of those who had been injured. or who
thought they had been injured because
of the negligence of the railroad com
paDies.
But nobody either in or out of the
railroad service expected damage suits
growing out Of alleged personal in
juries to become so numerous or to
bring such rich rewards to those who
instituted them Step by step, in ever
increasing progression, the list of suits
and the amounts Of damages became
bigger and longer. Railroad managers
and their attorneys saw the danger
ten years ago and early began the use
of every legitimate effort to check its
progress.
A mistaken public sentiment. that
permitted if it did not justify this
practice, became prevalent in several
communities of the state. Damage
suits against railroads seemed to be-
come fad. There were lawyers who
pleaded for cases of this kind and
there were juries that appeared to be
willing TO grant heavy damages
against a railroad Just because it was
such. and on the fiimsiest OF pretexts
at that
AS stated before, the suits rapidly
increased in number and the total
amount of damages the railroads were
forced to pay grew TO startling proper
tons and became serious menace to
every railroad property in the state.
With large proportion of its revenues
going out in personal injury claims
and attorneys fees, there was not
railroad company doing business in
Texas that felt free to extend its lines
into any territory, no matter how de
sirable it might be; and there was not
one that was at liberty to better its
equipment as its managers desired. 1t
is true that the states railway mileage
has been largely increased and
service of every line bettered sir
damage suits became regular BUSH ,
ness. But the fear that the claims re
ferred to might stand as a barrier
against improvement and act as a
check to progress of any kind has been
in the thoughts OF all the railroad men
of Texas for a decade. That fear still
prevails. 1t will be present in domi-
mating force till the public sentiment
of Texas justifes only just claims
against railroads and till the prcfes-
sional damage suit attorney is forced
into another and more legitimate line
OF work
Fortunately for the truth, one need
not deal in generalities as to the losses
because of damage suit claims the
Texas railroads. have suffered during
the past thirteen years. 1t is record
of hardship on the companies that
have had these enormous amounts to
pay. and Is at once unfriendly to the
states material advancement and not
creditable to those communities where
the damage suit industry" has bios
somed and thrived.
The records of the railroad commits
sion at Austin show the amount of
damages the roads have had to pay
Facts like these should command the
attention Of every taxpayer and every
thinking man in the state, and the fig
ures that follow tell the story OF
series of happenings that have bene-
flied few at the expense Of the gen
eral public as well as of the railroads
III 1871 lcNdS pdlQ OuI Oi
account of real and alleged personal
injuries what now seems to have been
the modest sum, of 1923 1882. A year
later this personal injury fund was
swollen 20 s2S4.726.56. and the figures
below prove how it swelled to its pres
ent gigantic proportions: In 1898, $685.
O42.66; in 1894, 1888 1886; in 1895.
s464,76s.92: in 1896. s4S7. 402.sS; in
1897. SAT-. 1895; in 1895. 1855. 6i5.SS; in
1899. 655. As: in 1900. s1,01s.637.s0;
in 1901, s1,457, 97303; in 1902. s1.765-
653.11. And last year railroad losses
OF the kind indicated reached the stu
pendous figure of s1.940,551.41 These
statistics for 1908 are obtained from
advance sheets of the railroad commits
sion's report and are compiled from
sworn statements.
Two million dollars is big item in
the expense account of the Texas rail-
roads. The total of the general ex-
pelses OF the Texas lines for 1903 is
Just slightly in excess of what the dam
age suit business cost them. Two mil