Hope v. Philadelphia & Western Railroad

Citations

• 211 Pa. 401
• 60 A. 996
• 1905 Pa. LEXIS 471

Syllabus

<p>Railroad—Eminent domain—Land damages—Competency of witnesses— Evidence.</p> <p>In railroad condemnation proceedings witnesses are competent to testify on the question of land damages who state that they know the land in question, the character of the soil and of the improvements, and also that they know of sales and prices of real estate in the vicinity of the property.</p> <p>The sum which the owner is entitled to recover by reason of the construction of a railroad through its land, is the difference in the market value of the property immediately before and after the construction of the road, and if a witness has a knowledge of the requisite facts to enable him to give the total amount of the difference, his inability to give the elements of damages does not render him incompetent. It simply affects the credit of the witness'and the weight of his testimony. It may partly or wholly discredit his testimony with the jury, but his opinion of total or aggregate loss or value is permitted to go to the jury as some evidence of the value of the property and the damages sustained.</p> <p>The question of the competency of a witness in cases of this character is a preliminary question and the trial court should see that the witness discloses his competency by a proper examination before he is permitted to testify generally.</p>