Colfax Mountain Fruit Co. v. Southern Pacific Co.

BRITT, C. At the trial of this case the parties agreed on the facts by written stipulation which was adopted by the court as its findings. It thus appears that on October 24, 1890, defendant was a common carrier operating a line of railroad between Colfax, in Placer county, and Ogden, Utah, the latter point being the terminus of its route in the direction of the city of New York. On that day defendant received from plaintiff at Colfax a carload of fruit for transportation according to the terms of a written contract called a “shipping order” signed by plaintiff, describing the goods to be carried, stating that the same were to be forwarded to Ogden station and there delivered, and containing also the following matter: “Consignee, marks, and destination: Sgobel & Day, New York.....Care C. & N. W., via Erie Dispatch, New York. Passenger train service, U. P. 32009. Agent Southern Pacific Company will please forward subject to conditions and agreements indorsed hereon.” One of such conditions was that: “The company agrees to forward the property to the place of destination named, but its responsibility as a common carrier is to cease at the station where the freight leaves this road, when the property is to be delivered to connecting roads or carriers.” It seems that the characters “U. P. 32009” meant “Union Pacific car No. 32,009.” Concurrently with the execution by plaintiff of such shipping order, the defendant gave to .plaintiff a “shipping receipt,” which differed from the order mainly, for present purposes, in that it contained the words “passenger service through,” instead of “passenger train ser[529]vice,” as in the order. At this time there was a traffic agreement in force between defendant and several other carriers, whose routes, by successively connecting, formed a through line, viz., the Union Pacific Railway Company, the Chicago and Northwestern Railway Company, and the Brie Dispatch Company, and pursuant to such traffic agreement said car of fruit was carried to New York. There the Brie Dispatch Company delivered it to the consignees, and collected of them the whole amount of freight charges for the haul from Colfax, which amount was divided in gross among the several connecting carriers for the carriage by them respectively furnished to the goods in accordance with their said arrangement. Defendant transported the car in question, by passenger train, over its road to Ogden, and there delivered it to the Union Pacific Railway Company, the next connecting carrier, with request that the last-named company ‘‘and its connection between Ogden and New York City should, until the arrival of said car at final destination, accord to it passenger train service.” After such delivery to the Union Pacific Company—but on what line does not appear—delay occurred in the transmission of the car, so that it was three days overdue on arrival at New York, and in consequence the fruit suffered decay, and was sold at a loss to plaintiff. For the amount of such loss the court below held defendant liable, and rendered judgment in plaintiff’s favor.