Raftis

This is an action for damages for personal injuries received by plaintiff, who was eighteen years of age at the time he was injured. The complaint is in the usual form, alleging among other things the employment of plaintiff by defendant corporation, and the negligent conduct of defendants, which conduct was the proximate cause of plaintiff’s injury. O. R. Benning defaulted. The McCloud River Lumber Company filed an answer denying any negligence on its part, and setting up that plaintiff was at the time of his injury in the employ of O. R. Benning, with whom it claims to have stood in the relation of independent contractor.

The essential facts as presented to the jury, who found in favor of defendant, may be epitomized as follows: The defendant corporation is the owner of a mill at McCloud, Siskiyou County, used to convert raw timber into finished lumber for the market. On its premises it had established a sawmill, sash and door factory, box factory and lathmill, and in connection with these a hospital. It owned all the machinery in each building and operated it all from a central power plant. However it carried on its business in other departments, as regards the lathmill it…