“The landlord was not bound to receive the gig if he had not sufficient accommodation for it. The guest did not know whether there was room or not; and as the hostler took the horse, he had a right to assume that there was. If the proprietor had wished to protect himself he should have told the traveler that he had no room in the yard, and that he would have to put the gig in the street, where, however, he would not be liable for it. He did not do so, and had to bear the penalty.[303] And it has been held in this country that an innkeeper would be responsible in the same way where a guest’s servant had placed his master’s property in an open, uninclosed space, by the direction of the hostler, and upon being assured that it would be quite safe there.”[304]
“Mr. Justice Story once said that in the country towns of America it is very common to leave chaises and carriages at inns under open sheds all night, and also to leave stable doors open and unlocked; and that if, under those circumstances, a horse or a chaise should be stolen, it would deserve consideration how far the innkeeper would be liable,”[305] said Mr. De Gex, my companion, who had looked inside a law-book or two.
“I fancy it has been considered,” I replied, “and the innkeeper has met with little consideration, and is held bound to protect the property of those whom he receives as his guests. In one instance, the driver put his loaded sleigh in the wagon-house of the inn, where such things were usually placed; and the doors of the shed having been broken open and property stolen, the landlord was held bound to make good the loss, without loss of time.[306] But Dr. Theophilus Parsons, who knows something of these matters, says that if a horse or carriage is put in an open shed with the owner’s consent or by his direction, the innkeeper will not be liable for their loss, and that where this is usually done and the owner of the horse knows the custom and gives no particular instructions, it may be presumed that he consented and took the risk upon himself.”[307]
“Suppose we inspect the stable and see what accommodation there is for our equine friends.” We entered. “Rather risky place to put two city horses in,” De Gex continued. “Look at the flooring. A nag of any spirit, not accustomed to the place, might kick through it and break its leg.”
“Well,” I said, “the innkeeper is bound to provide safe stabling for the horses of his guest, and if any evil betide the animals from being improperly tied, or the stalls being in bad repair, full compensation may be recovered.[308] He is responsible from the moment he receives the quadrupeds until they leave; even after the owner has paid his bill and his man is harnessing them to go;[309] and, as a rule, the statutory laws limiting the liability of hotel-keepers do not apply to horses or carriages.”
“Your view is the one a lawyer (a man without a heart) might take of it, but a merciful man is merciful to his beast and does not like to run the chance of its being killed.”
“The tavern-keeper’s liability extends even to the death of the animals in his care,”[310] I remarked.
“Still, one should himself exercise reasonable care and caution,” returned De Gex. “I remember a gentleman, who kept his horse at an inn, rode out one evening and on returning himself took it into the stable and tied it up in the stall in which it had usually been kept. The next morning the horse was found dead in the same stall, its head wedged fast in the trough, which was made of a hollow beech log having a bulge in the middle, thus rendering that part wider than the top. The poor beast had evidently killed itself in trying to extricate its head. The owner brought an action against the publican, but had to bear the loss, not only of his horse but also of the suit.”[311]
“Yet I know that where a horse had been choked to death by its halter, and it was proved that it was tied under the superintendence and direction of the owner himself, and in reply the owner proved that the stall in which it had been was in very bad condition, it was held that the innkeeper could not give further evidence.[312] And when another innkeeper agreed with the owner of a horse to entertain the man in charge one day in every week, or oftener if he should chance to stop at the inn with the horse, furnish the latter with provender and allow it to be kept in a particular stall: no one but the man in charge took care of the horse; yet on its being injured in its stall, the innkeeper was held answerable.”[313]
“And look, besides, there are no proper partitions between the stalls,” said my friend, “and some other nag might kick one of ours; and you know that it was decided in the old country that under such circumstances the publican would not be liable for the injuries so inflicted, unless it could be proved that he did not take due and proper care in excluding vicious and kicking horses.”[314]