July 10, lOia. 



Pertinent Legal Findings ^^pT' 



ijucrics oil iiuc'liunn ariflnff on oiif/ piiintt inrolrlni/ the law an il in applird (o lumberinii ami alllrd (nrfii«(i-ir« iHII lir i/inn inuin i 

 rsprrt nItmlioH Ihrvunli litis ilrparlmcnl it HuhmHteil lo IIakuwuod ItKcuiiii. 'J hire irill be no cliarrir fur micli «rri'(iT, (<iif IUiii>wo<iii 

 UEi'oiui re«err^-H the riijht tu pulilisit ijuentiititji titul aimwera trithuut iletiiijHatiutf namrH ur tui-tiliim at ininnneH »»lenn n/n i-iflrnllit miuintnl 

 not to do ao. 



Rights in Floating Logs 

 The generni rule is t.li:it it is tlio duty of oiio driving or lloating 

 logs on a navig!il>l«> stream to exercise ordinary care to jirevent tlic 

 same from doing damage to the property of riparian owners ; that 

 such duty requires one to take this degree of care to prevent logs 

 put into tlie stream from creating jams and obstructions suflicient to 

 forco the waters out of their natural course, to the injury of riparian 

 property; and that it is not confined to the time of actual driving, 

 but exists at all times while the logs are in the stream. But a ]icr8on 

 using a beatable stream for the floating of logs is not requireil by law 

 to build embankments or other structures along the banks of riparian 

 owners to protect them from wearing or washing away, or against 

 injury from logs. (Vermont supreme court, Boutwell vs. Champlain 

 Realty Company, 94 Atlantic Reporter, 108.) 



Notice of Freight Loss Claim 

 Plaintiff shipped a car load of lumlior to its own order from a 

 point in Arkansas to a point in Washington, with directions to notify 

 a lumber company. The bill of lading contained a clause to the effect 

 that the railway company should not be liable for failure to make 

 delivery unless claim should be made within four months after expira- 

 tion of a reasonable time for making delivery. In delivering the 

 car to a connecting carrier and in rebilling the shipment at Kansas 

 City, a mistake was made whereby the shipment was made direct to 

 the lumber company and delivery was made at the destination to that 

 company. Within four months after receiving actual notice of the 

 misdelivery, plaintiff filed a notice of claim against the railway com- 

 pany which received the shipment, but that was four months and 

 eleven days after the misdelivery. In a suit brought by plaintiff to 

 recover damages on account of the misdelivery, it is held by the 

 Arkansas supreme court that the notice was given in time; the four 

 months' period being properly computed from the time actual knowl- 

 edge as to the misdelivery wa.s received by plaintiff. (Bliss-Cook Oak 

 Company vs. St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern Railway Company, 

 1T6 Southwestern Reporter, 325.) 



Mutual Rights Under Lumber Sales Contracts 

 Several important points of contracts for sale of lumlier were 

 adjudicated in the case of Citizens Bank vs. Adam Schillo Lumber 

 Company, 188 Illinois appellate court reports, 535. Summarized the 

 decision is as follows: 



"In the absence of specification of time for delivery, the law 

 raises a presumption that the parties mutually understood that de- 

 livery would be made within a reasonable time. 



"The true measure of damages for failure to deliver lumber, or 

 any other commodity, in accordance with the terms of a contract, is 

 the difference between the contract time at the time of the breach and 

 the market price, taking into consideration the quantities contracted 

 for." So, a buyer cannot recover substantial damages as for the 

 seller's failure to deliver without showing the market value of the 

 lumber at the time of the breach and the quantity to be delivered. 

 If a seller contracts to deliver lumber on board cars for trans- 

 portation to another point, the buyer is not entitled to deduct freight 

 charges in the absence of e.v]iress agreement therefor. 



Maintenance of Logging Railroads 

 Speaking of a lumber company's duty to employees engaged at 

 work about a logging railroad, the Oregon supreme court recently 

 said: 



"Of course, nobody could expect the same elaborate care upon a 

 logging road, which is temporary in its character, as upon a road 

 largely used for commercial purposes; but such precautions as fur- 

 nishing competent engineers, removing obvious dangers from the 

 vicinity of the rails, seeing that the sand, which is so necessary when 

 negotiating heavy grades, is supplied in sufficient quantities, are duties 



—24— 



which cannot be disregarijrd even when the htructure is only tem- 

 porary." (Morgan vs. Grande Hondo I-umlxr Company, 118 Pacific 

 Reporter. 1122.) 



Duty to Warn Logging Employee 

 A lumber company engaged in logging operations owed a legal 

 duty to an employee who was directed to loosen a log which had become 

 caught in a |iile from which it was being ilrawn by a team to warn 

 him against any unexiiecfed movement of the log by the team while 

 he was in a dangerous iiosition, and is liable for injury sustained by 

 him in consequence of failure to give such warning. In warning em- 

 ployees against dangers to which they are subjected more consideration 

 must be paid to a youthful and inexperienced emjiloyee than to an 

 adult and experienced one. (Kentucky court of appeals. Hartley vs. 

 Yellow Poplar Lumber Company, 17 . . Southwestern Reporter, 201.) 



Duty to Maintain Guard Rails 

 A veneer manufacturing company is liable for injury to an employee 

 who fell into a vat of boiling water while handling logs in the course 

 of his employment, if the accident was attributable to failure of the 

 company to maintain a railing around the vat, and if reasonable con- 

 sideration of the safety of employees working in the particular place 

 required a railing to be maintained. (North Carolina supreme court. 

 Lynch vs. Carolina Veneer Company, 85 Southeastern Reporter, 289.) 



Recovery of Excessive Freight Charges 

 When a given freight r.-itr on lumber has been judicially declared 

 to be unreasonably excessive, an aggrieved shipper is entitled to re- 

 cover the excess above a reasonable rate although the rate charged was 

 taken into consideration in fixing the price of lumber shipped. 

 (United States circuit court of appeals, sixth circuit; Darnell-Taenzer 

 Lumber Company vs. Southern Pacific Company; 221 Federal Re- 

 porter, 890.) 



Liens Against Kentucky Manufacturers' Assets 

 The Kentucky law which jirovides that, on distribution of the assets 

 of any owner or operator of a foundry or other manufacturing es- 

 tablishment, persons who have furnished labor or supplies for the 

 carrying on of the business shall have a lien against such assets, is 

 constitutional and applies to all manufacturing establishments. 

 (United States circuit court of appeals, sixth circuit; Central Trust 

 Company of Illinois vs. George Lueders & Company; 321 Federal 

 Reporter, 829.) 



Assumption of Risk by Employee 

 A logging employee who needlessly places himself in peril near a 

 car on which logs are being loaded assumes the risk of being injured 

 through fall of a log from the car. (Arkansas supreme court, Puckett 

 vs. Carnahan-AUport Lumber Company, 176 Southwestern Reyjorter, 

 320.) But a flagman in a skidding crew does not assume the risk 

 of being injured through starting of the skidder without warning 

 to him, where there is a rule in force forbidding the leverman from 

 starting the skidder except on signal from the flagman. (Same 

 court, Mormon vs. Bliss-Cook Oak Company, 176 Southwestern Re- 

 porter, 305.) 



Performance of Logging Contracts 

 When one contracts to deliver logs at a specified place, he is bound 

 to provide all the necessary means for making delivery, including the 

 construction of all necessary roads and roUways, unless a contrary 

 intention is manifested by the agreement. On partial completion 

 of a contract to deliver logs cut from all the timber standing on a 

 certain tract of land, the contractor is entitled to recover compensa- 

 tion for all logs actually delivered in conformity to the contract, less 

 the amount of damage sustained by the other party through failure 

 to complete performance. (Idaho supreme court, Huber vs. Black- 

 weU Lumber Company, 148 Pacific Reporter, 903.) 



