Holz v. H. J. Heinz Co.
Holz v. H. J. Heinz Co.
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
The plaintiff, a die maker and machinist in the can making department of the defendant company, was injured on June 29, 1909, and subsequently brought this action to recover damages for such injury. He recovered a verdict and judgment in the court below and the defendant company appeals. The only assignments of error refer to the refusal of the court below to give binding instructions in favor of the defendant and the subsequent refusal to enter judgment in favor of the defendant non obstante veredicto.
The can making department of the defendant company employed about 150 people and a variety of machinery was operated therein. This department was in charge of J. M. Henry, who was designated as foreman, and the employees therein were bound to conform to his orders. The plaintiff alleged that his injury was caused by the negligence of said Henry, and that defendant company was liable for the consequences. The defendant does not contend that J. M. Henry was not a vice principal, under the provisions of the Act of June 10, 1907, P. L. 523, if at the time of the accident he was performing duties as a foreman, but claims that the evidence failed to justify a finding that he was executing an “act of superintendence” when plaintiff alleges he negligently did the thing which caused the injury. The evidence would have warranted a finding of the following facts: There was in the department a cap trimming machine which was usually operated by a boy and girl; upon the day in question a number of metal caps became fastened or stuck in this machine and it would have been dangerous for the youthful and unskilled persons who usually operated it to attempt to remove this obstruction; the machine was stopped and the facts were reported to Henry, the foreman, who set about discovering and remedying the defect in the machine. Henry had taken a piece of' iron and pushed out some of the caps which had been crushed in the machine.
The evidence was upon some of the questions material
The judgment is affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.