United States v. Northern Pac. Ry. Co.

This action was brought by the government to recover from the defendant railway company the prescribed penalties for three alleged violations of the act of Congress entitled “An act to promote the safety of cmployés and travelers upon railroads by limiting the hours of service of employés thereon,” approved Match 4, 1907 (34 St. Lg. p. 1415); the complaint containing three counts, the first of which relates to the employment by the company of one of its conductors for certain specified periods of time without allowing him to have “at least eight consecutive hours off duty,” as required by section 2 of the act mentioned, and the second and third counts relating, respectively, to the two brakemen employed by the company under like conditions as the conductor. .

That portion of section 2 of the act of March 4, 1907, applicable to the case, is as follows:

Section 3 of the act, which provides for prosecutions of its violations and prescribes the penalties therefor, contains two provisos, the first of which is in these words:

The defense interposed to the action by the railway company, which was sustained by the action of. the court below in directing the jury to return a verdict for…