Emig v. Northern Central Railway Co.

Citations

• 43 Pa. Super. 432
• 1910 Pa. Super. LEXIS 67

Syllabus

<p>Railroads — Negligence—Sparks—Evidence—Case for jury.</p> <p>1. In an action against a railroad company to recover damages for the destruction of a building by fire alleged to have been started by sparks, the case is for the jury, and a verdict and judgment for plaintiff will be sustained, where the evidence tends to show that the building stood within four feet of the defendants’ track; that the fire was not started from the inside of the building; that after a particular engine had passed, smoke and fire were observed among the shingles; that although this engine was properly equipped with a spark arrester, it gave out sparks of an unusual size which were thrown to a considerable distance and at the time the fire was first observed the wheels of the engine slipped and swung around; and that the same engine had at other times not long past thrown out volumes of sparks and hot cinders.</p> <p>2. Fire from sparks may be shown by circumstantial evidence, and it is not imperatively necessary for the owner of the building burned to produce a witness who actually saw the inception of the fire.</p>