Tracy-Waldron Fruit Co. v. Southern Pacific Co.

The plaintiff, a shipper of perishable fruits and vegetables, brought this action against defendant carrier to recover for damage to fifteen separate shipments, each shipment being a carload of grapes or vegetables and the damage to each carload constituting a separate cause of action.

The shipments originated between October 1 and December 1, 1922, on the railroad line of defendant in California, and each was billed and transported to a point upon some connecting carrier in another state. The defendant with its connecting carriers maintained schedules for the transportation to its destination of freight such as that contained in said shipments, these being reasonable for the time required therefor under ordinary conditions. The shipments were delivered to the defendant in good condition, and for each was issued to the plaintiff a bill of lading. These the plaintiff held until surrendered to the defendant with its written claims for the damage caused by delays in transit beyond the schedule time and due to which the plaintiff received from the sale of the freight shipped less than it would had the shipments been moved according to schedule. Each bill of lading contained the…