Thomas, Roberts, Stevenson Co. v. Thomas, Roberts, Stevenson Co.

Citations

• 256 Pa. 549
• 100 A. 998
• 1917 Pa. LEXIS 656

Syllabus

<p>Negligence — Railroads—Locomotives—Fires—Evidence — Other engines — Bparh arrester — Comparison — Exhibiting specimens of cinders.</p> <p>1. In. an action to recover damages for the destruction of plaintiffs’ premises by fire, alleged to have originated from sparks emitted from defendant’s locomotives, where the witnesses for plaintiffs, testifying as to the size of the sparks which they had seen emitted from defendant’s engines, stated a comparison with some other well known object such as a grain of corn or a hazelnut, and estimated the diameter of the sparks, it was not reversible error to refuse to permit specimens of pea coal to be submitted to the jury or to refuse to permit certain witnesses for plaintiff to compare the size of the sparks which they saw with cinders exhibited at the trial.</p> <p>2. In such ease it was not reversible error to refuse to permit a witness to answer a question as to what he knew of his ,own knowledge about the throwing of cinders by other engines within a week or two before or after the fire in question occurred, where the witness identified a certain engine which threw out live sparks at the time of the fire, and where at that stage of the trial no ground had been laid to justify the admission of testimony concerning the operations of other engines.</p> <p>3. In such ease it was not reversible error after certain of plaintiff’s witnesses had testified that under no circumstances could a spark larger than the mesh of an arrester escape therefrom to permit a witness for defendant to testify that when bituminous coal was used sparks cquld be emitted from an arrester in good condition, which after leaving the smoke stack expanded in size to such an extent that when picked up they were considerably larger than the mesh of the arrester, especially where it appeared that a considerable quantity of bituminous coal had been used in defendant’s locomotive at or about the time and place of the fire and where another witness testified, w