Philadelphia & Reading Railroad v. Spearen
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
Error to the Common' Pleas of Schuylkill county. This was an action of trespass on the case for Julia Spearen, by her next friend Thomas Spearen, against The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company, to recover damages for an injury done to her by the careless use of one of the defendants’ locomotives upon their railroad, when the plaintiff was attempting to cross it. There was a verdict and judgment for plaintiffs.
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Error to the Common' Pleas of Schuylkill county. This was an action of trespass on the case for Julia Spearen, by her next friend Thomas Spearen, against The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company, to recover damages for an injury done to her by the careless use of one of the defendants’ locomotives upon their railroad, when the plaintiff was attempting to cross it. There was a verdict and judgment for plaintiffs. The main errors assigned were, the permitting Mr. Bannan, who was of counsel in the cause, to read in evidence his notes of the testimony of James Geary, taken before the…
1Opinion of the Court
The opinion of the court was delivered, by
Agnew, J.
Julia Spearen, a little girl about five years of age at the time of the injury, was returning from school. Instead of going to the proper crossing of the railroad, she went down the track about twenty-five yards below it, and was standing with a little sister beside her uncle, the watchman of the crossing, placed there to guard it.
A coal-train was coming down the track of the railroad, and whistled before it came to the crossing. While passing the place where Julia was, she stood beside her uncle near to the track. Immediately behind the coal…
2Cases cited1 opinion
- Birge v. GardinerSupreme Court of Connecticut · 1849
3Cited by22 opinions
- Cuthbert v. PhiladelphiaSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1965
- Anstine v. Pennsylvania RailroadSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1941
- Christian Moerlein Brewing Co. v. RuschSupreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1922
- Cover v. Hershey Transit Co.Supreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1927
- Piepke v. Philadelphia & Reading Railway Co.Supreme Court of Pennsylvania · 1913
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