Kelly v. Cable Co.
Kelly v. Cable Co.
Opinion of the Court
As to instruction 21, it is to be observed that the testimony on this trial differed in some respects from that on the trial which resulted in the appeal reported in 7 Mont. 70. The record in this court on that appeal showed that Savery, the superintendent, testified that he instructed Showers, the foreman, “that as an extra precaution I wanted him at every blast, if possible, to be present to direct the men, and after the explosion to see that every hole had exploded.” This court on the first appeal took the view, apparently, that the superintendent instructed the foreman, and that it was the foreman’s duty to be personally present at every blast, and to personally oversee it. It was with this view, doubtless, that this court said on that appeal: “The instructions asked by the plaintiff virtually exclude the defense of the negligence of a fellow-servant from the consideration of the jury, and this view of the matter at issue seems to be borne out by the evidence.” As we understand that opinion, the court considered that the defense of the negligence of fellow-servants was out of the case, for the reason that the evidence was that it was the foreman’s duty to be personally present at every blast. Now, on the third trial, which resulted in this present appeal, Savery, the superintendent, testified.: “I never gave Showers any such absurd instructions as to be present, if possible, at the discharge ■of every blast, and I never testified before to any such thing. I cannot recollect that I testified before that I had given Harvey Showers instructions, as an extra precaution, to be present at every blast.” In this testimony Savery was contradicted by the stenographer who took the testimony on ihe first trial. The stenographer testified that Savery’s evidence •on the first trial, as to this point, was as above noted. This
The appellant complains of instruction No. 3, that it is a direct statement by the court that the men engaged in blasting were fellow-servants of the plaintiff, and that for their negligence the defendant is not liable. This construction of the court’s language might be correct if those two or three lines upon that subject were taken out of the instruction and stood alone; but, with the whole instruction before us, it is clear that the court simply stated to the jury what the defendant claimed.
As to instruction No. 1, appellant contends that this “ misstates plaintiff’s position, in that it tells the jury that the plaintiff did not claim ‘ that the foreman, or any of the agents or employees of defendant, were incompetent’; whereas the evidence affirmatively shows that they were incompetent in the matter of examining for and discovering missed charges, and also that their manner of discharging blasts was incompetent, in that it tended to make it impossible, or very difficult, to discover missed charges.” (Quoted from appellant’s brief.)
In examining the complaint we do not find that there was any charge made that the foreman, agents, or employees were incompetent. It is charged that they were negligent and careless. Those terms are not convertible. The same observation is true of evidence. The effort of plaintiff was not to prove that the defendant’s agents were incompetent, but rather that they were careless and negligent. If persons were careless and negligent, that is not proof that they Avere incompetent. A competent person may be careless; an incompetent person may, as far as his knowledge or skill goes, be careful. We are therefore of the opinion that there Avas no error in this instruction.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- KELLY v. CABLE COMPANY
- Status
- Published