This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

P sued D for trespass on the case to recover the value of a pair of horses, which were drowned in Lake Champlain. P's son had been driving a sled onto the frozen lake on the day of the accident. In turning the team around the sled slewed and brought the pole against the horses' legs, frightening them. They escaped from the driver and ran rapidly from forty to sixty rods and into the opening in the ice created by D, which was twenty to thirty feet long by forty to sixty feet wide, and but little guarded. A statute imposes a fine upon persons who, in localities where people are accustomed to travel, make openings and do not place suitable guards around them. The jury found the opening was not properly guarded, and that P's servant was in the exercise of due care in respect to the team and the management of it. The issue was whether a properly guarded hole would have stopped the horses. The court submitted such instructions to the jury. D got the verdict and P appealed.

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