Gulf, C. & Santa Fe R'y Co. v. Levy

Citations

• 59 Tex. 563
• 2 Tex. L. R. 109
• 1883 Tex. LEXIS 227

Syllabus

<p>1. Damages — Negligence.— A father sued a railway company, which owned and operated a telegraph line, for negligence in failing to transmit a message sent to him by his son, informing him of the sudden death of the son’s wife and child. Damage was claimed on account of mental anguish caused by his consequent inability to attend the funeral and minister to his son’s comfort and necessities. Held,</p> <p>(1) The contract between the son and the company cannot be made the basis of a recovery by the father.</p> <p>(2) The action could only be sustained, under the facts, by showing that the plaintiff was injured in his person, property or reputation by the negligence of the company.</p> <p>2. Damages.— One who is not deprived of any absolute right for which damages could be given cannot maintain an action for an injury to his feelings alone, which results solely from a breach of a contract to which he was not privy, made with and for the benefit of another, or which results from a tort committed against another, resulting in injury to such other person, except when the right of action is expressly given by statute.</p> <p>3. Same.— Even in cases of seduction no action can be maintained by the parent, guardian or master on the ground of injury to the feelings, or mental distress, but the loss of services is made the basis of the suit, and if there is no such loss there can be no recovery, however great the mental suffering resulting from the wrong.</p> <p>4. Damages from mental suffering.— The cases in which damages have been allowed for mental suffering resulting from injury to the person are those in which the mental distress is the incident to the bodily injury suffered by the distressed person, or those where there is injury to the reputation or property, in which pecuniary damage is shown, or where the act is such that the law presumes some damage, however slight, from the act complained of.</p> <p>5. Damages.— Unless some actual damage can be shown by a plaintiff