Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-01-16

Important Decisions
tho following notes q oasss -
from the West Publishing Company
st. Paul. Mimi
TELEPHONE CHARGEs.
In State ex rel. MacMahon VI. indie.
pendent Telephone Company, 100 Pa.
cifc Reporter. sss. the Warrington SUI
preme court holds that Z telephone
reasonable rules and regulations Tor the
operation and conduct of its business
when they do not conflict with the eon-
eral law or the franchise. Plaintiff
entered into a contract with the CONF
pany for the installation Of q telephone
at 4 hxed rate Of $3.50 per month. pay
able In advance or s. per month II not
paid in advance. Soon after he moved
and the telephone was changed to his
new residence. Two ysan later he
moved again, and requested that his
telephone be changed. The company
refused to do 90 until he paid his Or.
rears for three months services,
amounting 10 80. He refused to do "a
but later renewed his request ana sent
a check for SO. Tho request was not
accepted. the company claiming IN "a.
ditional - for another months rental
and he sought mandamus to compel tho
company to accept his money and In.
stall a telephone for him, declaring the
extra charge OF 80 cents as unreasou.
able and invalid. being above the maxi.
mum rate S(2.50) provided for In the
company's franchise. The court held
such a rule reasonable and enforcable,
such extra charge not being an addi-
ton to the rate Of the franchise, but
charge for delinquency.
INJURIES TO PERSON.
The case OF Harmon VS.. Jensen. 17e
Federal Reporter, 51s. was an u.<ion
for personal injuries alleged to have
been suffered from the negligence of
the railroad company resulting in
collision while plaintiff was a passen-
ger on its road. The railroad company ,
had proposed to give an excursion to
its employees. and their families, and to
carry them without fare by q special
train. One Brooks an employee Of the
company and a lady friend of his 70
whom he was paying attention. were
visitors of Jensen, farmer. They
proposed to all to go on the excur4ion.
and, arriving at Jensen. nroe~re0 f~>s
fare tickets for himself. his mother,
and a sister Two of these he gave to
Jensen. who took them and thrust
them into his pocket. believing that
they had been paid for In the usuai
way They boarded the train ana the
conductor accepted their tickets. They
had gone only a short distance when
the train came into collision with
freight train running in the opposite
passengers were killed. and many were
wounded, among them Jensen, who
brought action for damages. The
United States circuit court of Appeals
held that he was bound to know the
contents of tickets received under sucn
circumstances: that he was making .
fraudulent use Of them; that no WaS
not a ressenger and had no contractuAa
relations with the defendant: that ie
was not shown that the injury Wes
villf,l or wanton, and therefore the
company could not be held liable.
HAYCOCKS ARE NOT HAYSTACKD.
About o'clock one evening, Ruckef,
q farmer. discovered q portion OF hD
hay on fire. He fastened to the deld
and extinguished 1t. A few hours later
another cock was afire. Armed with
shotgun he concealed himself behind
haycock. A short time thereafter de-
PENDANT appeared in the held; he walk
ed up to a cock Of hay, stopped over at,
and was in the act OF setting 1t on flEe.
when Rucker stepped up TO him anA
placed him under arrest. A California
statute prescribes a punishment BY In
prisonment in the state prison for
burning stacks" Of hay. The Califoe-
MIA court Of appeal in People VI. Doylo,
10 Pacific Reporter. 45s. holds ths& -
defendant burned . cock" Of hay ho
could not be convicted under tho stae.
ute. The court says: "why the lsgi0-
lature did not include the oct oe
naliciously burning 'shocks' or 'cocoo1
Of hay within tho statute - . uettae
which need not be inquired into here.
The defendant could have been prose-
cuted for committing . misdsmeaasr.
and, If it were important TO Ascorta1n
the reason moving the legislature -
omit to denounce the act Of hufning
cocks OF shocks Of hay ~ . 1osony.
It may be found in the fact thai, .
! the Judgment Of the law makers, pun.
ishment az q misdemeanor Wa 5SsSSs=
cient for such IN act"
M1SBRANDED PACXAGNB.
Wheat fake packages, not In ~
original unbroken shipping package IN
which they were shipped by . non.
resident seller to defendant. his agent
in Iowa City. Iowa, wsre delivered 70
the home Of the state food inspoctos.
| who found that while marked sixtoon
ounces they weighed but twelve and
one half ounces. The wheat AalD00
| were, however, in the identical pack.
ages in which the manufacturers, tie
Lake Odessa Cereal Company. had
| shipped them to the nonresident SELL
er. The proposition involved II, 10 de-
fendant against liable under the pure
food laws Of Iowa? The supreme court
| Of Iowa in state VS.. Eckenrode, III
Northwestern Reporter. Sc. holds that,
as the packages were delivered In the
form the nonresident seller received
them from the manufacturers, the
whole transaction constituted inter-
state commerce, and was not subject