Western Union Telegraph Co. v. Barbour
Supreme Court of Alabama
Appeal from Circuit Court, Tuscaloosa County; Henry B. Foster, Judge. Action by S. D. Barbour, alias Kate, against the Western Union Telegraph Company for -damages for failure promptly to deliver a death message. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendant appeals. Transferred from Court of Appeals under Acts 1911, p. 449, § 6. The action is stated in four counts, but only the first and third counts were submitted to the jury.
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Appeal from Circuit Court, Tuscaloosa County; Henry B. Foster, Judge. Action by S. D. Barbour, alias Kate, against the Western Union Telegraph Company for -damages for failure promptly to deliver a death message. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendant appeals. Transferred from Court of Appeals under Acts 1911, p. 449, § 6. The action is stated in four counts, but only the first and third counts were submitted to the jury. The first count shows that the defendant telegraph company received from the plaintiff at Tuscaloosa the following message, addressed to his daughter, Mrs. Minnie Morgan, at…
1Opinion of the CourtSomerville, J.
[1] When a telegraph company accepts a message for transmission and delivery' to the sendee, it impliedly undertakes to transmit the message promptly, and to deliver it promptly to the sendee after its transmission to the terminal office. The word “promptly” in this connection means expeditiously, and without undue delay, i. e., as quickly as is practicable under the circumstances.
Our cases have expressed this duty in somewhat variant phraseology. In Daughtery v. Am. Un. Tel. Co., 75 Ala. 168, 178, 51 Am. Rep. 435, it was said that—
“Messages must be sent in the order of their handing in,…
2Cases cited19 opinions
- Western Union Telegraph Co. v. SpeightSupreme Court of the United States · 1920
- Western Union Telegraph Co. v. HendersonSupreme Court of Alabama · 1889
- Daughtery v. American Union Telegraph Co.Supreme Court of Alabama · 1883
- Hendricks v. W. U. Telegraph Co.Supreme Court of North Carolina · 1900
- Watt's Ex'rs. v. SheppardSupreme Court of Alabama · 1841
14 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by14 opinions
- Lambert v. JeffersonSupreme Court of Alabama · 1948
- Regional Agricultural Credit Corp. v. HendleySupreme Court of Alabama · 1948
- Russell v. International Union, United Automobile, Aircraft & Agricultural Implement WorkersSupreme Court of Alabama · 1953
- Western Union Telegraph Co. v. Bashinsky, Case & Co.Supreme Court of Alabama · 1928
- Curtis Funeral Home, Inc. v. Smith Lumber Co.Supreme Court of Vermont · 1945
9 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.