Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corp. v. Industrial Accident Commission

Certiorari directed to the Industrial Accident Commission. The return of the respondent commission reveals the following facts:

The proceeding was instituted by an application for benefits under the Workmen’s Compensation Act, (Stats. 1917, p. 831), presented by the guardian ad litem, and trustee of the incompetent wife and minor child of John Caffrey, deceased, whose death was alleged to have been caused by an injury received in the course of his employment and arising out of the employment. It appears that on Friday, July 26, 1918-, Caffrey sustained a contused wound on the great toe of his right foot while engaged in the service of the petitioner. He continued at his work on Saturday and also on the following Monday. On Monday he had the toe dressed by Dr. Marvin at the emergency hospital of the Union Iron Works. On Tuesday, July 30th, the foot was so painful that after starting to work he returned home and undertook to treat the toe himself. He first complained of a swelling of the face on August 1st. On the following day, the symptoms of the face becoming alarming, Caffrey was removed to a hospital, where it was discovered that there was a streptococcic infection of the…

I dissent. Caffrey, while at work for his employer, had an accident which abraded the skin of his toe. From that abrasion natural causes which he could not control brought on an infection in the toe. The infection and consequent diseased condition of the toe were the proximate results of the abrasion and of the accident. But the infection did hot reach his face by the operation of natural causes. The commission so found. It reached the face by being subsequently carried there, either from some other source, or by some agency entirely disconnected with the infected condition of the toe, or by his own act in. carelessly or accidentally touching his face with something which had- been in contact with the infection in the toe. Any one of these causes would be an independent intervening cause and not a cause arising proximately from the injury.

It makes no difference, with respect to this question, whether the act of Caffrey which carried the infection to his face, if it was so carried, was negligent or merely accidental ; in either event it .was a cause independent of the original injury and intervening it and the deposit of the infection on the face. The opinion of the majority…