Tls. 600 Awarded to Russian Against Tram Ca, in Supreme Court Ts. GUE damages were awarded by his Honour Judge Sir Skinner Turner at H. M. Supreme Court on Wednesday to P. fF. Romanof(the Russian subject who brought an action in forma peuperis against the Tramway yo. for Ts. 3,000 for personal injury sustained through an electric shock, and Ts. 100 for medical expenses wrising therefrom.
Counsel in the case were: Mr. Tycho Wing for plaintiff; and Mr. H. Lipson Ward for defendants, His Lordship's reserved judg: ment was as follows:—Plaintilf is a Russian citizen suing in forma pauperi: Ho asks for damages for personal injury sustained by him in a_ tramear owing to negligence of defendant company. He alleges that he has received an electric shock which has affected him up to date and that his clothing was burned. It seems that the wire connecting the car with the trailer broke, came down on to the car near where the plaintiff was standing and there fused. There were two flashes. The lights went out. Plaintiff found that his coat was burned' and he subsequently complained of shock. The defendants do not deny the negligence, but they do put in issue the alleged results to the plaintiff himself. The case is one, therefore, of the amount of damages.
Plaintiff saw Police-Sgt. Mesling at the station that night (May 17) and the manager of the Tramway Company next morning (May 18). To neither did he make any complaint of personal injury. Yet on the afternoon of May 18 he saw Dr. Bary, and detailed certain symptoms to him with the result that the doctor diagnosed traumatic neurosis. He put the plaintiff in the General Hospital for eight or nine days for observation and treatment. On May 20 a claim for damages was made on the company in a letter which very considerably exaggerated the injuries alleged to have been sustained. On June 2 the plaintiff is considered by Dr. Bary to be not really better, save in one material respect; but on June 11 Dr. Lovett Cumming, who examined him on behalf of the company in the presence of Dr. Bary, failed to find the usual objective symptoms of the complaint. Dr. Bary, however, speaks to finding
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