GOVERNMENT AND LAW. 



69 



in order to make him responsible. He is not 

 liable for what are termed the acts of God, or 

 the public enemy ; nor for property destroyed 

 without his negligence by accidental fire ; and, 

 generally, the innkeeper will be exonerated if 

 the negligence of the guest occasion the loss in 

 such a way that the loss would not have hap- 

 pened if the guest had used the ordinary care 

 that a prudent man may be reasonably ex- 

 pected to have taken under the circumstances. 



The strict liability of an innkeeper has been 

 much modified by statute, particularly in re- 

 gard to money and valuables, and where the 

 innkeeper provides, in the office or some other 

 convenient place in the hotel, an iron safe for 

 the keeping of money, jewels, etc., and notifies 

 his guests of that fact, and the guest neglects to 

 avail himself of the opportunity thus afforded, 

 the innkeeper will not be liable for the losses 

 sustained by the guest by theft or otherwise. 



A Guest, in the restricted and legal sense, is 

 the only person who is entitled to the privilege 

 of protection, and to entitle him to this he must 

 have the character of a traveler, a mere so- 

 journer or temporary lodger, in distinction from 

 one who engages for a fixed period, and at a 

 certain agreed rate ; but if a party be in fact a 

 wayfarer, and his visit is only transient, it mat- 

 ters not how long he remains, provided he re- 

 tains this character. Thus, regular boarders 

 by the week or month are not guests, nor are 

 they entitled to the privileges of guests, and 

 on the other hand, in the absence of an en- 

 acted statute, the landlord is not, as to them, 

 an innkeeper, and as 'such entitled to a lien on 

 their effects for his compensation. 



The Law of the Road. General Princi- 

 ples To prevent collisions, End to secure the 

 safety and convenience of travelers meeting 

 and passing each other upon the highway, a 

 code of rules has been adopted which consti- 

 tutes what is called the la,w of the road. These 

 rules, originally established by custom, have, 

 in many instances, been re-enacted and de- 

 clared by statute, and are of general and 

 uniform observance in all parts of the United 

 States. In general, they apply to private ways, 

 as well as public roads, and, indeed, extend to 

 all places appropriated, either by law or in 

 factj^for the purposes of travel. 



The fundamental rule, applicable alike to 

 all who use a traveled way, is, that every per- 

 son must exercise reasonable care, adapted to 

 the place and circumstances, to prevent col- 

 lision and avoid accidents, and to this all 

 other rules are subsidiary. No one will be 

 entitled to redress for an injury sustained on 

 the highway where his own negligence con- 

 tributed to such injury, nor will the fact that 



use of the road absolve another who is in the 

 right from the duty of exercising ordinary 

 care to avoid injury to himself or to prevent 

 injury to the party who is in the wrong. At 

 the same time, a person lawfully using a public 

 highway has a right to assume that a fellow- 

 traveler will observe the law and exercise 

 ordinary care and prudence, and to govern his 

 own conduct in determining his use of the road 

 accordingly. This assumption he may rely on, 

 not to justify carelessness on his own part, but 

 to warrant him in pursuing his business in a 

 convenient manner. 



Vehicles. It is a primary rule that vehicles 

 meeting on a highway must bear or keep to 

 the right. This, however, applies only to pass- 

 ing vehicles, for a person having before him 

 the entire road free from carriages or other ob- 

 structions, and having no notice of any carriage 

 behind him, is at liberty to travel upon any 

 part of the way as suits his convenience or 

 pleasure, and no blame can be imputed to him. 

 But while a traveler may well occupy any part 

 of the road if no other is using any portion of 

 it, he must, upon all occasions of the meeting 

 of another, reasonably turn to the right ; and 

 in all cases of a crowded condition of a 

 thoroughfare must keep to the right of the 

 center or traveled part of the way. A driver 

 may, indeed, pass on the left side of the road, 

 or across it, for the purpose of stopping at a 

 house, a store, or other object on that side ; 

 but he must not interfere or obstruct another 

 lawfully passing on that side ; and if he does, 

 he acts at his peril, and must answer for the 

 consequences of his violation of duty. In 

 such case he must pass before or wait until the 

 person on that side of the way has passed on. 



When two drivers are moving in the same 

 direction, the one in advance is entitled to the 

 road, provided he does not obstruct it, and is 

 not bound to turn out for the other if there is 

 room for the latter to pass on either side; if, 

 however, there is not sufficient room to pass, 

 the foremost traveler should yield an equal 

 share of the road, on request made, if that is 

 practicable. If it is not practicable, then they 

 must defer passing until they reach more 

 favorable grounds. If the leading traveler 

 then refuses to comply with the request to 

 permit the other to pass him, he will be 

 answerable for such refusal. Ordinarily, when 

 a driver attempts to pass another on a public 

 road, he does so at his peril, and will be held 

 responsible for all damages which he causes to 

 the one whom he attempts to pass, and whose 

 right to the proper use of the road is as great 

 as his, unless the latter is guilty ot such reck- 

 lessness, or even gross carelessness, as would 



a fellow-traveler fails to observe the law in the | bring disaster upon himself. 



