As I was passing into the car, I saw a crowd gathered round the ticket-office, and an unfortunate man—quite respectably habited—struggling in the clutches of a policeman. I made inquiries as to the cause of the arrest and was told that the prisoner had been buying a ticket at the office, and in giving change the clerk handed him two sous, a French piece; the man, whose name was Allen, objected and demanded a British penny in its place, and as the clerk would not take back the sous, Allen determined to help himself. The bowl of the till containing copper coins appearing to be within easy reach he put in his hand to get the money. Upon this the agent raised the hue and cry, summoned the conservator of the peace on duty and gave A. into custody on the charge of attempting to rob the till. It seemed rather a hard case, as the poor fellow was only trying to help himself to his change. (Being dubious as to what would be the upshot of the affair I bore the matter in mind, and after the usual time required for issuing a writ, bringing a case to trial, moving in term and giving judgment, I discovered that in the action brought by A. against the company for false imprisonment it was held, that as the arrest, after the attempt had ceased, could not be necessary for the protection of the company’s property, but was merely to vindicate justice, the clerk had no implied authority to arrest the man; his authority only extended to the doing of such acts as were necessary for the fulfillment of the duties entrusted to him, and that the company was, therefore, not liable for the act of the clerk, nor for that of the policeman who took A. into custody. Blackburn, J., was inclined to think that if a man in charge of a till were to find that a person was attempting to rob it, and he could only prevent his stealing by taking him into custody, he might have an implied authority to arrest the offender; or, if the clerk had reason to believe that the money had been actually stolen and he could get it back by taking the thief into custody, and he took him up for that purpose, it might be that that also would be within the authority of the clerk.[461])
A man standing by me asked how it was that the policeman had not on the same style of garments as those of his fellows who perambulate in blissful ease and quiet serenity the city streets. I told him that railway companies had power to appoint constables to act on their lines for the preservation of peace, and securing persons and property against felonies and other unlawful acts on such railways and their works, and in all places not more than a quarter of a mile distant therefrom, and to take before a justice of the peace any person guilty of an offence punishable by summary convictions under any act or by-law.[462]
This time I had my impedimenta checked, and thus was relieved of the trouble of carrying them in and out of the car. All the world knows that the possession of a check is evidence against the company of the receipt of the baggage. The piece of metal has been compared to a bill of lading, in fact said to be identical therewith.[463] It is always the source of great wonderment to me that the British public do not insist upon the British railways introducing the system on their lines; the continental plan of registering, though far in advance of the English, is still much more troublesome than the simple process of checking, and very expensive. How convenient is our enlightened plan, when one has to change cars en route: no trouble looking after baggage; one simply has to walk out of one train into the other, ticket for the whole journey and checks in your pocket, and if your traps are lost, you can sue either or any of the companies.[464]
The car being rather crowded, the atmosphere soon became rather close and stifling. A gentleman, after a considerable amount of coaxing, pushing, shoving, and pulling, persuaded one of the windows to allow itself to be lifted up to admit the sharp, clear, exhilarating winter’s air. The person who opened the window got out and another got in and took his seat beside it, and carelessly allowed his left hand to rest on the ledge. As the train approached a station, the breaks were suddenly put on, and the vibration caused the window to fall athwart the man’s fingers, inflicting a serious injury thereon. Aroused and attracted by the grunting and groaning, adjurations and exclamations of the injured one, some officious people came round him, advising and urging the poor fellow to sue the company, for that they were bound to provide windows with good fastenings for the comfort and protection of passengers. I merely said, that without positive proof of the defective construction of the window, the mere falling would not make a primâ facie case of negligence against the company, as a Mr. Murray found when he sued a London railway company for exactly a similar injury.[465]
Some people seem to be possessed of limbs which do not appear to belong to them of right, and with which they never seem to know exactly what to do; and such uncomfortably constituted mortals are very apt to stretch their heads, or legs, or arms, out of the windows of railway carriages, having no other improper place to put them when travelling by rail; to such eccentric genii I would remark, that if they are injured while in this position, they will not be able to recover damages against the company, for the negligence is their own, and the company is not bound to put bars across its carriage windows as careful matrons do over their nursery panes.[466] It was once held that a company, in order to save the upper extremities of their passengers, was bound to provide wire gauzes, bars, slats, or other barricades for the windows,[467] but this fatherly decision has been overruled.[468] Mrs. Holbrook found this to her cost when she had her arm broken (it was projecting from the window) by something coming against it as they were passing other cars on another track.[469] In the State where the principles of brotherly love prevail, or are supposed to, it was held that when passengers are liable to have their arms, if lying outside the windows, caught in passing bridges, the conductors should give them notice to put them effectually upon their guard, or the company will be liable for injuries, and printed notices are not sufficient.[470]
Talking about squeezing fingers—a decidedly unpleasant thing to the squeezee, when not done by the human hand divine—railway officials are not allowed, as a rule, to apply extempore thumb-screws and pinch a man’s digits in the door. This has been solemnly decided by the Court of Common Pleas, at Westminster Hall. One Fordham was in the act of getting into a railway carriage, of the usual English make with doors at the sides opening outwards; having a parcel in his right hand, he very naturally placed his left on the open door to aid him on entering. The guard, without giving any previous warning, flung to the door with a slam. F. having just at that moment his fingers where the door should meet the door-plate, and they possessing that quality of matter, compressibility, he had them badly crushed. The Court of Common Pleas and the Exchequer Chamber, thought that the guard had been guilty of carelessness, and that Fordham had done nothing to contribute thereto, and so gave the latter damages against the railway company.[471] Mr. Jackson made £50 out of his ride from Moorgate Street to Westbourne Park by the underground railroad. The compartment in which he was seated was full, but at Gower Street two more got in despite our friend’s remonstrances. At the next station others tried to enter (the door having been opened), but were prevented by those in possession. The door remained unshut as the train passed along the platform, but just as it entered the tunnel the porter slammed it to, and jammed Jackson’s hand in the hinge. The court considered that all these facts showed such a careless and improper mode of conducting business that Jackson was entitled to keep the little sum mentioned.[472]
In another case, however, where a porter after he had called out, “Take your seats—take your seats!” squeezed a man’s thumb in shutting the door, the same court considered that the official had closed the door in the ordinary and proper exercise of his duty, and that Mr. Richardson had only to thank himself for his want of caution in leaving his member where it might be so easily crushed.[473]
To return from this digression, which my readers will probably have found as dull and heavy as most wanderings of that nature. Before many hours had passed, thick heavy clouds began to send across the sky; the wind sighed and moaned mournfully around the car; Boreas came raging from the icy regions of the North, and the snowflakes whirled wildly in ever-thickening clouds—as a Longfellow would have said had he been on board that express train:—
Ever thicker, thicker, thicker,
Froze the ice on lake and river:
Ever deeper, deeper, deeper,
Fell the snow o’er all the landscape,
Fell the covering snow and drifted
Through the forest, round the carriage.
Slowly and more slowly did the laboring engine, laden with its long line of cars, make its way against the obstructing showers of feathery ice-morsels, and fears arose in the hearts of the passengers that our progress would soon be entirely stopped and we would be left to spend the long cold night imbedded in the rapidly rising banks of snow.