Atlantic C. L. Ry. Co. v. Enterprise Cotton Co.
Supreme Court of Alabama
Appeal from Coffee Circuit Court. Heard before Hon. A. B.'Foster. Suit by the Enterprise Cotton Oil Company against the Atlantic Coast Line Railway. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendant appeals. Suit by appellee to recover damages for failure to deliver a tank' of crude oil received by the defendant as a common carrier for shipment from Enterprise, Ala., to Portsmouth, Va. The oil was loaded on the cars by the plaintiff. The defendant filed several special pleas.
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Appeal from Coffee Circuit Court. Heard before Hon. A. B.'Foster. Suit by the Enterprise Cotton Oil Company against the Atlantic Coast Line Railway. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendant appeals. Suit by appellee to recover damages for failure to deliver a tank' of crude oil received by the defendant as a common carrier for shipment from Enterprise, Ala., to Portsmouth, Va. The oil was loaded on the cars by the plaintiff. The defendant filed several special pleas. Those numbered 5, 6, 7, and 8, demurrers to which were overruled, set up as defense that the valve on the inside of the oil tank…
1Opinion of the Court
GARDNER, J.(1) There is in the record no indication of any special contract which sought to exempt the shipment of the ■tank of crude oil from the common-law- rule of á common carrier’s liability. This rule therefore prevailed in the consideration of this cause, and it was given application by the court below.(2) Speaking of this rule our court in Steele & Burgess v. Townsend, 37 Ala. 247, 79 Am. Dec. 49, said: “By the common law, the carrier is responsible for all losses, except such as result from the act of God, or the public enemy. Hence his liability is not confined to such losses as are…
2Cases cited18 opinions
- Gulf, West Texas & Pacific Railway Co. v. WittnebertTexas Supreme Court · 1908
- Steele v. TownsendSupreme Court of Alabama · 1861
- McCarthy v. Louisville & Nashville RailroadSupreme Court of Alabama · 1893
- St. Louis & San Francisco R. R. v. BrantleySupreme Court of Alabama · 1910
- Atlantic Coast Line R. R. v. RiceSupreme Court of Alabama · 1910
13 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by11 opinions
- Southern Ry. Co. v. DicksonSupreme Court of Alabama · 1924
- Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railroad Co. v. SizemoreSupreme Court of Alabama · 1952
- J. H. Burton Sons Co. v. MaySupreme Court of Alabama · 1925
- Claude Jones & Son v. LairSupreme Court of Alabama · 1944
- Hamilton v. Cranford Mercantile Co.Supreme Court of Alabama · 1918
6 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.