St. Louis Southwestern Ry. Co. of Texas v. Coleman
St. Louis Southwestern Ry. Co. of Texas v. Coleman
Opinion of the Court
(after stating the facts as above). [1] As we understand the testimony, it did not warrant the finding that appellant’s employés were guilty of negligence in attempting to get the mule off of the bridge in the way they did. Appellee’s contention is that the jury had a right to conclude from the testimony that an ordinarily prudent person, under the circumstances of the case, instead of attempting to lift the , mule out of the openings in the bridge, and have him walk off of same on the ties as appellant's employes did, would have rolled him off of the bridge, letting him fall to the ground seven or eight feet below, or, if he lifted the mule, would have so placed boards on the ties as to enable the mule to walk thereon safely, and in that way get off of the bridge. Whether the mule would have escaped injury as serious as that he suffered if one of the ways suggested by appellee had been pursued by appellant’s employés' we think is too conjectural and'uncertain to justify the finding in question. No one could possibly know what would have been the consequence to the mule had he been rolled off the bridge, nor, if appellant’s employes had floored the bridge, that they could have gotten the mule thereon, or, if they did, that he would not have jumped off of same.
The judgment is reversed, and the cause is remanded to the court below for a new trial
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Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.