Watt v. Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railway Co.

Citations

• 82 Kan. 458
• 108 P. 811
• 1910 Kan. LEXIS 280

Syllabus

<p>SYLLABUS BY THE COURT.</p> <p>1. Railroads — Injury to Stock — Shipment under Wmtten Contract or the Common Law — Question of Fact. In an action by a shipper against a railroad company to recover damages for injuries to stock alleged to have been caused by delay in transportation, where the principal question in dispute was whether the shipment was made under a written contract, as the defendant claimed, or under the common law, as the plaintiff claimed, and the evidence was conflicting, it was error for the court to hold as a matter of law that the contract was not binding on the plaintiff.</p> <p>2. Contracts — Execution by Agent — Evidence of Ratification. Upon the evidence in this case it was error to deny a request for an instruction to the effect that if the plaintiff used the contract under which the defendant claimed the stock was shipped in order to secure a return pass from the point of destination, and thereby obtained from the defendant something of value which he would not otherwise have obtained, he must be held to have ratified the execution arid signing of the contract, although he may not have expressly authorized anyone to sign it for him.</p> <p>S. Evidence — Admissions—Abandoned Pleading. While an aban- . doned pleading no longer serves to define the issues, it has some evidentiary force in the nature of an admission on the part of the pleader, and should be received in evidence for what it is worth.</p>