Boering v. Chesapeake Beach Ry. Co., 193 U.S. 442 (1904)

Boering v. Chesapeake Beach Railway Company

No. 174

Argued March 4, 1904
Decided March 21, 1904
193 U.S. 442

ERROR TO THE COURT OF APPEALS

OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Syllabus

Where, in an action for personal injuries, the trial court submits to the jury the question whether a person riding on a pass is or is not a free passenger, and there is a general verdict for the defendant, that question of fact is settled in favor of the defendant.

A person may not, through the intermediary of an agent, obtain a privilege -- a mere license -- and then plead ignorance of the conditions upon which it was granted.

The duty of ascertaining the conditions on which a free pass is given and accepted, when the same are plainly printed on the pass, rests upon the person accepting and availing of the pass, and the carrier is not bound at its peril to see that the conditions are made known.

The facts in this case involved the right of the plaintiffs who were husband and wife to recover for injuries sustained by the wife while riding upon a pass which contained a stipulation relieving the carrier from responsibility for injuries whether caused by negligence of company’s agents or otherwise, and are stated at length in the opinion of the court.