18 



The Florists^ Review 



FEBiiUAur 27. 1919. 



is'lotion ^nd 



LIABILITY FOR GAS 



ecision 



Courts Hold for Growers. 



Tlic Kansas Sui)rcino court has sus 

 tallied a judjjmcnt for $98.'3 and costs 

 .ifTainst the Emporia Gas Co. and in 

 favor of one Hoffor on account of de- 

 struction of twelve shade trees, owned 

 by Mr. HoCfcr on residential property 

 in Emporia. (175 Pacific Reporter, 393.) 

 The principal point of controversy in 

 the suit related to proof of the fact 

 that the damaj^e was caused by escap- 

 ing gas, as distinguislied from insects 

 and poor soil, which the gas company 

 insisted was the cause of the trees dying. 

 The company also controverted the point 

 as to just what money damage was sus- 

 tained by plaintifl". On both questions, 

 the Suprcinp court holds that the verdict 

 in plaintiff's favor was abundantly sup- 

 ported by proof. 



The rules of law governing this case 

 apply, of course, with full force to the 

 rights of the ownnr of a greenhouse, 

 where his stock has been injured or de- 

 stroyed by escaping gas. 



The Kansas suit was grounded on 

 negligence of the gns company in per- 

 mitting its pipe's to get and remain out 

 of repair; and it is interesting to note 

 that the company apparentU' made no 

 denial of the legal i)roposition that such 

 negligence was actionable, if supported 

 by proof of actual damage in direct con- 

 sequence. 



That tlicre is no room for denying the 

 liability of a gas companj' in cases of 

 this kind is established by several ap- 

 pellate court decisions. 



A New Hampshire Decision. 



In tlie case (rf Dow vs. Winnepesaukee 

 Gas & Electric Co., 41 Atlantic Reporter, 

 288, the plaintiff, a greenhouse owner, 

 was awarded/ judgment on account of 

 injury done to his plants because of 

 leakage of gas from defendant 's nearby 

 mains. The gas company sought to 

 evade responsibility on the ground that 

 it. had purchased the gas jdant from 

 another company and did not know of 

 the leak. But the New Hampshire 

 court disposed of this contention by 

 saying: 



"Nor can the defendants protect 

 theniselv(\s from liability for injury to 

 the plaintiff's ])lants until after notice 

 merely on the ground that they did not 

 know in fact that the pipe was defec- 

 tive or that gas was escaping from it 

 into his greenhouses. They were bound 

 to guard against both of these things 

 by exercising the proper care required 

 under the circumstances, and, unless 

 they did exercise such care, they are re- 

 sponsible for any injury resulting, ir- 

 respective of notice." 



However, the court in this case re- 

 stricted plaintiff's right to recover to 

 such damages as were shown to have 

 accrued after the company should have 

 known of the defective condition of its 

 mains. The deitision not only denied 

 recovery of damages accruing before 

 that point, but also refused to allow 



nages on account of injury to plain- 

 tiff's business reputation arising from 

 his sale of plants which he supposed 

 to be uninjured, but which afterwards 

 developed latent defects due to their 

 having been poisoned by leaking gas. 

 This last item was denied, however, on 

 the ground that there was no proof that 

 the gas company had been grossly negli- 

 gent or wanton in its relation to the 

 matter. There seems to be no room for 

 doubting that where a gas company is 

 shBwn to have been guilty of gross 

 negligence or wanton disregard of a 

 florist's rights, exemplary damages may 

 be recovered in addition to all actual 

 <lamages, naturally resulting from the 

 wrong committed. 



New York Florist Wins. 



In the case of Armbruster vs. Auburn 

 Gaslight Co., 46 New York Supplement, 

 ITjS, the Appellate Division of the New 

 York Supreme court upheld an award 

 of $1,500 in favor of plaintiff, a florist, 

 whose stock was damaged by escaping 

 gas. In that case, an expert testified: 

 ' * The effects of carbon monoxide [which 

 he found to be contained in the gas] 

 upon plant life are exceedingly injuri- 

 ous to the plant. * * • The ordinary 

 food of plants, or the atmospheric food, 

 is carbon dioxide. Carbon monoxide is 

 •an entirely different gas, and the plant 

 takes it. up instead of its ordinary food, 

 and the effect of this is to alter the 

 l»roducts formed by the plant, and 

 therefore to hurt its growth. The other 



■I 111*— — ^^■^■■^^■^i^i^l^—i ^H^^^ 



effect is still worse; it directly destroys 

 the assimilating powers of the plant. 

 The plant assimilates by means of cer- 

 tain little granules in the leaf. If you 

 destroy the granules, you destroy abso- 

 lutely the power the plant has to absorb 

 its food from the earth. Carbon mo- 

 noxide does distinctly do this. Carbon 

 dioxide is essential to plant growth. 

 This carbon monoxide takes the place 

 of it when it is exposed to it, and that 

 is fatal to the plant." 



Similar Case in Mimiesota. 



The question in the Minnesota case 

 of Hansen vs. St. Paul Gaslight Co., 84 

 Xorthwestern Reporter, 727, related to 

 the measure of damages where stock in 

 a florist's greenhouses was partly de- 

 stroyed. The Minnesota Supreme court 

 said in this case: 



"Taking the complaint as a whole, it 

 appears that the system of greenhousee 

 constituted one entire plant and busi- 

 ness; that the business was peculiar, in 

 this: That its success did not depend 

 upon the raising and selling of individ- 

 ual flowers and plants, each having its 

 own peculiar market value as such, but 

 the business consisted in growing a vast 

 collection of flowers and plants, con- 

 sisting of all varieties and colors, and 

 that a demand was created for such a 

 collection, and the business built upon 

 such a demand — in effect, that people do 

 not go to greenhouses to buy one kind 

 of plant or flower; that it requires all 

 kinds and varieties to gratify the public 

 taste and sustain such a trade. If it is 

 true that plaintiff had built up such a 

 line of plants and flowers to meet such 

 demand, and the gas killed a part, and 

 those remaining constituted a broken 

 and imperfect stock, unsalable and 

 worthless alone and without the aid of 

 those which were actually killed, why 

 does it not follow that the gas was the 

 proximate cause of the loss of the latter 

 as well as the former?" S. 



Mitchell, S. D.— The Gurney Green- 

 house Co. intends to build a larct', mod- 

 ern greenhouse. This concern ^joyed 

 excellent business during 1918. 



Belding, Mich. — The Board of Com- 

 merce, which has as its slogan, "Beld- 

 ing, Bigger and Better," feels that the 

 city should have a greenhouse. Secre- 

 tary B. F. Brown has started out to find 

 the man who is looking for a good loca- 

 tion. 



South Bend, Ind. -}{. ^Villiams. of 

 Williams ic Co., who uj) to January 1 

 was manager and half -owner of this 

 concern, has bought out the other par- 

 ties interested and will continue to 

 operate the business in the name of 

 Williams & Co. for the jtrescnt. 



Saratoga, N. Y. — Two retailers of 

 Saratoga Sjirings, X. Y., realizing the 

 value of i)rinters' ink, inserted large 

 advertisements in a local newsj)aper just 

 before St. Valentine's day. John 

 Ralph's Greenhouses printed a display 

 advertisement four columns wide and 

 half a page in length. Henry Sclir:ide 

 u->('(] a sniailcr displ.'iy. 



Des Moines, la. — Roy W. Thomas 

 grows gladioli and pansies for the whole- 

 sale and retail trade. He recently pur- 

 • liased some land on the north edge of 

 the city which he intends to convert into 

 :i flower farm. He plans to add hardy 

 outdoor perennials later. 



Meadville, Pa. — Professor S. C. Bren- 

 del, of the .\merican School of Floral 

 Designing, had the decorations for the 

 KrickbauiM-Diamond wedding February 

 10, which were developed in southern 

 ^milax, ferns and crotons, white roses, 

 lilacs and snapdragons, with pink tulle 

 ilrapery and jiink favors. 



Cedar Rapids, la. — M. J. Spohrman 

 has purchased the flower store of A. J. 

 Diserens & Co., and for the present will 

 ojierate it under this name. Mr. Spohr- 

 man has with him F. R. Hoffman, former 

 superintendent of the range of the Dis- 

 erens Co., who is an expert florist, hav 

 iiig raised the carnation Mr.s. Lillian 

 Hoffman. This concern has featured 

 some striking window displays of late. 

 Last week a miniature airplane was the 

 .attraction. Next week during the auto 

 show, .1 tiny model of an automobile 

 will h(- on displav. 



