Thomas v. Southern Pacific Co.

MURPHEY, J., pro tem.

In this action respondent seeks to recover damages against appellant for personal injuries sustained by him while employed by appellant in interstate commerce as a switch-tender, which position he had occupied in the Los Angeles yards for approximately three years before the accident. During the course of a night’s work, his duty required him to throw about thirty switches. In throwing a switch, the operator stands on an iron plate approximately twenty inches wide and forty feet long. The switches are thrown by a lever set into and level with the plate or platform on…