Hallawell

Plaintiffs bring the action as heirs at law of Charles Hallawell, deceased, who, it is alleged, lost his life on December 9, 1913, at Oleum, Contra Costa County, through the alleged negligence of defendant. The cause was tried before a jury and plaintiffs had the verdict. Judgment was entered thereon, from which and from the order denying its motion for a new trial defendant appeals.

We have prepared the following rough diagram taken from data furnished by two exhibits found in the record:

This seemed necessary to a fair comprehension of the evidence in the case. The main object of defendant’s plant was to produce commercial asphaltum from crude petroleum and incidentally to preserve such oils as might be condensed from gases in the process.

The battery of asphaltum-stills consisted of ten separate stills, to each of which was attached a condenser. A furnace commencing at still number 10 at the north end of the battery ran under all the stills to still number 1. Still 10 was connected with still 9 and still 9 with still 8, and so on to still 1. East of the stills some distance was the gas-receiver, noted on the diagram, into which gases that did not condense were carried from…