Baltimore & Ohio Railroad v. Leapley

Stone, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. Mrs. Leapley, the plaintiff, was a passenger on the road of the defendant, from Washington City to a place in Frederick County, called Tuscarora in February, 1884. She was a large woman, weighing from 175 to 200 pounds, and in a state of pregnancy for about five months, she had with her two children, aged respectively two and five years, and several bundles. She had duly paid her fare to Tuscarora, which was a regular stopping place for the train of defendant, and where there was the ordinary platform for the entrance and exit of passengers on the defendant’s road.

The plaintiff gave evidence tending to show that the train on which she was a passenger, did not stop at the platform at Tuscarora, but only slacked, and did stop ⁵⁷⁶ ■about 300 feet from the platform. That the conductor used profane language, but not to her, and got off the car and told the plaintiff in a rough manner to “get off,” and upon her asking him how, replied, “jump,” and that •thereupon she did jump with the youngest child in her arms. That the car step from which she jumped, was about three feet from the top of the rail, and that the ground was fifteen inches below the rail, so that according to her evidence the distance she jumped, was about four feet, three inches. She also gave evidence tending to show the injuries she received from the jump.

The defendant gave evidence, tending to show that the train did stop at Tuscarora, but not long enough for plaintiff to get off, but that the engineer mistaking a salutation made" by the conductor to a friend for a signal to start, started off before plaintiff could get off the train. That the train was stopped as soon as it could be at the distance of about ninety feet from the platform, that Mrs. Leapley appeared upon the platform of the car with her children, and seemed very anxious to get off, and that she was assisted and lifted down with all possible care and gentleness, and that no profane language was used or anything said to wrong her. That the distance from the lowest step of the car to the ground was not more than about two and a half feet, and that plaintiff made no objection to getting off where she did — this is the defendant’s evidence. That the carriers of passengers are required to observe the utmost care is a question now so well settled, th.at it is not necessary to quote authorities.

If the carrier is a •corporation, their agents are required to use the same ■care. They (the agents) are presumed and required to have the ordinary senses, especially in so responsible a position as the conductor of a railroad train. They certainly are presumed and required to have the ordinary ■eye-sight so that they can distinguish between a man in the vigor of life, and a woman in a state of pregnancy, ⁵⁷⁷ and accompanied by young children. They are expected to have, and must have, in order to discharge their duty properly, judgment enough to know that what would be safe for the one would not be safe for the other.

Whether this care which the law requires, was observed, is the question in this case. There is really no very important conflict of testimony.The woman bought a ticket from Washington to Tuscarora, a known station with the ordinary platform for the passengers to get on and off the cars by. This ticket gave her the right to be put off on that platform; whether the cars slowed up, but did not actually stop, or whether they did stop, but not long enough for the plaintiff to get off, is immaterial; the result is precisely