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Ash v. Childs Dining Hall Co.

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
231 Mass. 86, 120 N.E. 396 (1918)

Written by Sharon Feldman, JD

Facts

Flora Ash (plaintiff) ordered a piece of blueberry pie in a restaurant owned by Childs Dining Hall Company (Childs) (defendant). When Ash ate the pie, a tiny black tack in the pie injured her throat. Ash sued Childs for negligence and did not plead a cause of action in contract. The testimony at trial showed that Childs made the pie on its premises and its waitress served a piece to Ash. The restaurant manager testified that the blueberries came in wood baskets in which there were tiny flat-headed tacks and that he had been in the business for 18 years and had never before seen a tack in blueberries. There was other testimony that Childs used a high degree of care in preparing the blueberries for the pies. The jury returned a verdict for Ash. Childs filed exceptions.

Rule of Law

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Issue

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Holding and Reasoning (Rugg, C.J.)

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