Rockford, Rock Island & St. Louis Railroad v. Lewis

Citations

• 58 Ill. 49

Syllabus

<p>1. Negligence—liability of a raib'oad company for hilling slock. In an action against the Rockford, Rock Island & St. Louis Railroad Company, to recover the value of a cow, belonging to the plaintiff, alleged to have been killed by an engine and train on the defendants’ road, it was held, that although the accident occurred at a place where the company were not bound to fence their track, and defendants were not guilty of any wanton or wilful neglect, yet, if by the exercise of ordinary care and skill upon their part, they could have prevented the injury, they were, nevertheless, liable for the damages sustained.</p> <p>2. Evidence—presumption. And upon objection that the evidence failed to connect the defendants with the injury, the testimony of the engineer, “ that he was on the train, on the 17th day of June, 1869, when the cow was killed; that he had been an engineer about ten years, and had been on the Rockford, Rock Island & St. Louis Railroad, six or seven months,” was regarded as sufficient to support the finding of the jury on that question, against the defendants. Although the evidence was slight, still it was not an unreasonable presumption, that the engineer was in the employment of the defendants at that time, and that the train on which he was the engineer belonged to them, and was on their road.</p>