Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-09-10
Exceptions sustained.
Trustees discharged.
Penobscot County.

PenobscOt County.
Harold D. Littlefield, VS.. Roman
Catholic Bishop of Portland
Rescrlpt, (No opinion) Cornish. j.
This is an action of tort to recover
damages for personal injuries sus-
tanned by the plaintiff through the
alleged negligence of the defendent, a
corporation sole. The defendant
seeks to have verdict for the plain
tiff in the sum of $3475, set aside by
this court on the ground that it is
against the evidence. The accident in
question happened during the con-
structlon of the Catholic Church in
OldtoWn, which was built under the
direction of Father Trudel. the parish
priest, the title being in the defendant.
a written contract for the erection of
the steel ceilings was made between
Father Trudel, acting for the de-
PENDANT, and the Berger Co. of Canton
ohio, in the fall of 1906, and the Berger
Company sublet the work to the
plaintiff. On the 18th of January 1907,
palpably defective crosspiece in the
staging upon which the plaintiff was at
work, broke and precipitated him into
lance of about thirty feet causing
severe injuries. This suit is the result
No disputed questions of law arise
in this case. There are two con-
troverted issues of fact First, was the
defendant legally liable for the condi-
ton of the staging. The jury have
found that he was and their finding IS
warranted by the evidence. Whether
under the written contract. which had
been lost, it was the duty of the Berger
and Company or of the defendant to
furnish the StagingS or scaffoldings,
necessary for the ceiling work, was in
controversy, the agent of the Company
who drafted the contract testifying
that the defendant was to furnish ali
stagings, Father Trudel testifying thai
the Berger Company was to furnish
them, while the supervising architect
claimed that the defendant was 20
leave for the use of the ceiling workers
all stagings already constructed for
other purposes, but any new ones re-
qured should be built by the Berger
Company, or by this plaintiff who
succeeded to the rights and duties of
the Berger Company.
But whatever We're the terms of the
original contract it appeared that this
staging on which the plaintiff was in
jured was in fact erected by employees
of the defendant under the direction OF
his foreman and wholly at his expense.
after some controversy between the
plaintiff and the architect as to whose
duty it was to build it, and apparently
as concession on the part of Father
Trudel in order to avoid delay. The
plaintiff had nothing to do with its
erection and no responsibility con-
nected Herewith. So far it was a
modification of the written contract
if the written contract provided other
wise, so that the jury were fully
justified in finding that the staging
was furnished by the defendant for tho
use of the plaintiff in performing his
contract, either by virtue of the
original written contract or by subsc-
quent oral modification thereof This
fact being established the defendants
liability is conceded provided the
second point is also found in the
PLAINTIFFS favor.
Second. Was the staging planked
over and ready for use at the time of
the injury, as claimed by the plaintiff
or was it a mere skeleton with only
one board upon it and incomplete, as
claimed by the defendant. The stag
ing in question was built over 4
circular stairway and was about ten
feet square. 1t consisted of uprights
or standards, with ledger boards at
tached horizontally, and on these We're
placed the crosspieces of two by thre"
jOist. two or two and one half feet
apart, and on top of these the floor of
boards or planks was or was to be
placed. The plaintiffs contention is !
that he was working in another part
of the building and waiting for this
staging to be constructed that he went
to it once and found it unfinished ami
resumed his work; that about an hour
later one of the carpenters who had
been at work upon it notified him that
the staginb was ready and thereupon
he with a fellow workman went to TIL"
staging and began to use it in their