Wick v. Tacoma Eastern Railroad

Citations

• 40 Wash. 408
• 82 P. 711
• 1905 Wash. LEXIS 993

Syllabus

<p>Negligence — Fires—Damages From Fire Started by Locomotive— Origin of Fire — Evidence—Sufficiency. In a,n action for damages against a railroad company by reason of a fire, there is sufficient evidence to warrant tbe finding of the jury that the fire originated from the-defendant’s locomotives, where it appears with reasonable certainty that such a fire started some four days before on the west side of the track and was traced to the plaintiff’s property, notwithstanding the evidence tended to show the existence of a number of other fires in the vicinity.</p> <p>Same — Intervening Causes as Defense — Wind—Verdict—Conciusiveness. A railroad company cannot claim exemption, by reason of intervening causes, from liability for a fire originating from its locomotives, where the issue is determined against them by the jury, upon proper instructions.</p> <p>Same — Instructions—Review. In an action against a railroad company for damages for a fire originating from its locomotives, it is not prejudicial error to instruct the jury as to the duty of the company to exercise reasonable care to arrest the spread of fires so originating, “or which have been otherwise set upon its right of way,” Where the jury are further instructed that they could not find for the plaintiff unless the fire originated from the defendant and that the defendant was guilty of negligence which proximately started the fire or permitted it to spread.</p> <p>Same — Title to Property Destroyed — I nstructions — Verdict. In an action against a railroad company to recover for wood destroyed by a fire which originated from the defendant’s locomotives, error cannot be claimed in that the title to a portion of the wood was not in the plaintiff at the time of the fire, when the jury were instructed that the plaintiff could not recover for wood cut by a third person, if the title thereto did not pass to the plaintiff until it had been measured up, unless it had been measured at the time of the fire.</p>