Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Co. v. West

Citations

• 125 Ill. 320
• 17 N.E. 788
• 1888 Ill. LEXIS 1101

Syllabus

<p>1. Master and servant—liability of the master for acts of the servant—generally. Where the relation of master and servant exists between a railway company and the person whose act is the cause of injury to another person, the company will not be liable if the servant causing the injury is not acting within the scope of his employment; hut on the other hand, the master is responsible, when the servant acts within the general scope of his employment, for acts done while engaged in his master’s business, with a view to the furtherance of that business, by which injury is caused to another, whether negligently or wantonly committed.</p> <p>2. SAME—engine-driver permitting persons to ride upon the locomotive. It is the duty of an engineer in charge of an engine, to not permit any unauthorized person to get on or ride upon the same, and if any stranger gets upon the engine, even if by his invitation, it is his duty to put him off, and in doing so he will be acting within the scope of his employment, and if, in the discharge of that duty, he negligently or wantonly inflicts an injury upon such person, the master will he liable. It is the duty of the engineer to observe reasonable care in putting a person off the engine, even when wrongfully there.</p> <p>3. So if the engineer invites a person to ride with him on his engine, this, act will not be within the scope of any duty he owes to his employer, and if any injury happens to such person on account of such act of the engineer himself, whether negligently done or not, the master will not be liable.</p> <p>4. But where the engineer invites a boy of the age of seven years to ride on his engine, without authority, or in violation of his duty, and then directs the boy to get off while the engine is in motion, and the latter is injured in getting off, the company will be liable for the injury. It is negligent conduct in the engineer to direct a child of that age to get off while the engine is in motion, for which the company