St. Louis & San Francisco Railroad v. Ruff

Mississippi Supreme Court
St. Louis & San Francisco Railroad v. Ruff, 95 Miss. 165 (Miss. 1909)
48 So. 184
Whitfield

St. Louis & San Francisco Railroad v. Ruff

Opinion of the Court

Whitfield, O. J.,

delivered the opinion of the court.

On the testimony in this record we think it is clear that a peremptory instruction should have been given for the defend*168ant railroad company. The result of the testimony makes it plain that the unfortunate plaintiff did not look out for the train, but that be simply looked up when be saw the light from the headlight on the track. He was walking on the end of the cross-ties and had nothing on earth to do except step off and be safe. Two men had, just above where he was injured, stepped off in safety. The track was straight for eight miles. The train had whistled for Plantersville; and two or three times afterwards. The case is plainly one of contributory negligence, producing the injury as its proximate cause. It is just one of those rare cases of negligence which a court ought to take from the jury.

Reversed and remanded.

Reference

Full Case Name
St. Louis & San Francisco Railroad Company v. James Ruff
Status
Published
Syllabus
Railroads. Injury to person on track. Contributory negligence. Code 1906, § 4043. Unlawful speed of train. A pedestrain on a straight railroad track meeting a train, signals of its approach having been sounded three times within the range of his hearing, who failed to look ahead until the headlight of the engine was seen by him reflected on the track and . who thereafter needlessly remained on the ends of the cross-ties until he was struck by the locomotive, was guilty of contributory negligence as a matter of law, and cannot recover of the railroad company for his injuries, although the train was being run at an unlawful speed within the limits of a municipality and failed to slacken its speed as it approached the pedestrian.