The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1915-06-18
UNJUST DECISION IN THE MESSlNA
CASE AGAINST RAILROD.

Between three or four O'Clock on a mid-sum-
mer morning several years ago, one OF the fast
trains on the Illinois Central ran into a washout
near Foltz, Miss, and was derailed.
Seven young men, among them V.P. Messlna,
of jackson, was stealing a ride on the rear sill OF
the tank of the engine,
Messina sustained a compound fracture OF the
right leg and left and some OF his companions on
the sill of the tank of the engine were also hurt,
Of course, as is customary with a great many
of our people, all filed suits against the railroad for
damages.
Now, to many, that may seem strange for t is
not denied the railroad received no compensation
whatever from any of these men.
If a farmer were sending one of his employees
to town with a load of cotton and some one Sc
GREETED himself about the wagon and an accident
occurred, and the intruder injured, the case against
the farmer would be strikingly similar to Messlna's
case against the railroad, the difference being that
no one would be so foolish as to think & of suing the
farmer.
One would naturally think a suit for damages
against a railroad under such conditions would last
about as long in court as would a snow ball in the
lower regions, but that did not prove to be true in
the Messina case.
Messina sued in Holmes county, alleging such
things as that Engineer George Barnett had given
him permission TO ride on the tender and that he
(the engineer whom he claimed had befriended hin
by allowing him to ride) had been warned of the
danger of washouts and that his negligence was SC
-.zxS l. .a.l,~ H. roInoo 1o11, -, ln,,nrra
The question which the jury had to decide was
whether Engineer Barnett had permitted Messina tc
ride on the tender and, if he did, was he Engineer
George Barnett guilty of gross negligence in run,
ming into the washout.
The jury decided against Engineer Barnett and
awarded Messina 100000 of the railroad compa'
ny's money, and the judgment was recently Every
%unjustly, w Think, affirmed by the Supreme Court
of the State.
Locomotive engineers, as a class, have chal
lenged and won the admiration of the world. They
are a stout-hearted and wholesome lot of men, and
we are advised that Engineer George Barnett typi
fies all the good qualities for which locomotive en-
gineers are revered. He is said TO be as brave as
a lion, yet as gentle and as tender as a woman He
has been an engineer for the Illinois Central fol-
nearly thirty years. He is personally known ano
respected by nearly every man, woman and chile
who lives on his run between Canton and Memphis
He has received every honor which his fellow.
engineers could confer upon him. He is respected
by his employers, Once when he had finished test
flying in a case In the Federal Court, he was com
plimented highly by Judge H. C. Niles. In short
Engineer Barnett is a man among men.
Mr.. Barnett swore he did not know Messina OF
any other trespassers were on his engine. He hac
not given Messina or any one else permission tc
ride. That was beyond the scope of his authority
1t was not only against the rules of the company
but was a violation of the U. S. law.
The Supreme Court, in affirming the judgmen'
against the railroad, among other things, said: Il
the evidence for plaintiff in regard to the speed o.
the train is to be taken as true, the negligence OIL
the engineer was so fragrant that the court woulc
have been warranted in instructing the jury per
emptorlly that his conduct was wanton and in reck.
less disregard Of the consequences"
And yet Engineer George Barnett, whose rep
utation is above ~reproach, the head of a large fam
lily dependent upon him for support, with an expe
rlence OF nearly thirty years as a locomotive engi
neer, was himself in a position of equal danger with
that OF the man hiding on the tender. He was, ir
TACT, between that man and danger. From the
extreme unreasonableness and RIGHTEOUSNESS of the
claims OF Messina and the construction placed upor
them BY the Jury and the court, one would infer
that the policy Of ssme Of our citizens and courts is
When you have a chance to soak the railroad, &C
to it'