Sparling v. Peabody Coal Company

Defendant, Peabody Coal Company, appealed from the judgment of the circuit court of St. Clair County entered upon a jury verdict in the amount of $500,000 in favor of plaintiff, Judith Sparling, in her action to recover damages for personal injuries suffered when she fell into a fire burning inside a pile of coal dust or slack. The appellate court reversed the judgment (16 Ill. App. 3d 301) and we allowed plaintiff’s petition for leave to appeal.

On April 2, 1947, the Perry Coal Company sold a 22y2-acre tract of land near Coulterville to Ralph Jones, plaintiff’s father, for $400. The land had…