Ridgway Grain Co. v. Pennsylvania Railroad

Citations

• 228 Pa. 641
• 77 A. 1007
• 1910 Pa. LEXIS 540

Syllabus

<p>Carriers — Common carrier — Bill of lading — Contract—Delivery to consignee — Waiver—Claim, for loss.</p> <p>1. In an action by consignors against a railroad company for the value of freight delivered to the consignee without surrender of the bill of lading, it is error to exclude evidence tending to show a similar course of dealing in reference to a large number of shipments made in the same way by plaintiffs, of which they had full knowledge and in which they acquiesced for more than a year, during which time they continued to make numerous deliveries to the same consignee, without protest or notice to defendant company.</p> <p>2. A provision in a shipping contract requiring claims for loss or damage to freight 1o be presented within a certain time is not available to a common carrier in case of a conversion of the goods by the carrier, and misdelivery of goods by the carrier to an unauthorized person is a conversion.</p> <p>Practice, C. P. — Affidavit of defense — Election—Appeals.</p> <p>3. The question of the necessity of an affidavit of defense in an action against a carrier for loss of goods, where plaintiff waives the tort and sues in contract, cannot be raised by the defendant on appeal, where defendant has elected to file an affidavit, and proceeded to trial under the issue raised by the pleadings.</p>