LABORER. A sbrvant in husbandry or manufacture not living intra mania. Whart.
He who performs with his own hands the contract he made with his employer. Ap peal of Seiders, 46 Pa. 57.
One who labors in a toilsome occupation ; a man who does work that requires little skill as distinguished from an artisan. Webst. In this sense the word is held to be used in an act giving a lien to laborers; Deno v. R. Co., 27 Ark. 567 ; and in an act exempting the wages of laborers from gar nishment; Epps v. Epps, 17 Ill. App. 196. In an act giving preference to employes of an insolvent corporation, it is construed to be equivalent to employe; Lehigh Coal & Nay. Co. v. R. co., 29 N. J. Eq. and the term has been held not to embrace any officer for whom an annual salary is specifi cally named and appropriated; State v. Mar tindale, 47 Kan. 147, 27 Pac. 852.
Under a mechanic's lien law which ex tends to those who perform labor, an archi tect has been held to be included; Stryker v. Cassidy, 76 N. Y. 50, 32 Am. Rep. contra, Raeder v. Bensberg, 6 Mo. App. 445 ; a house painter ; Martine v. Nelson, 422; a teamster ; Mann v. Burt, 35 Kan. 10 Pac. 95; a drayman ; Watson v. Mfg. Co., 30 N. J. Eq. 588; Hill v. Newman, 38 Pa. 151, 80 Am. Dec. 473; a carriage-maker and a blacksmith ; Conlee Lumber Co. v. Mfg. Co., 66 Wis. 481, 29 N. W. 285 ; an overseer and foreman of a body of miners who performs manual labor upon the mine ; Flagstaff Sil verMin. Co. v. Cullins, 104 U. S. 176, 26 L. Ed. 704; Capron v. Strout, 11 Nev. 304; Con lee Lumber Co. v. Lumber & Mfg. Co., 66 Wis. 481, 29 N. W. 285 ; an overseer and as sistant superintendent in the repair of a mill; Willamette Falls Transp. & Mill. Co. v. Remick, 1 Or. 169; a master mechanic or machinist; Sleeper v. Goodwin, 67 Wis. 590, 31 N. W. 335 ; a plasterer ; v. Bell, 7 Gray (Mass.) 429; contra, Fox v. Rucker, 30 Ga. 525 ; the manager of a company ; Con lee Lumber Co. v. Mfg. Co., 66 Wis. 481, 29 N. W. 285 ; and the superintendent in charge of laborers employed by a railway contrac tor; Warner v. R. Co., 5 How. Pr. (N. Y.) 454. Those who have been held not to be laborers entitled to a lien are an engineer; State v. Rusk, 55 Wis. 465, 13 N. W. 452; an assistant chief engineer; Brockway v. Innes, 39 Mich. 47, 33 Am. Rep. 348; a con sulting engineer; Ericsson v. Brown, 38 Barb. (N. y.) 390; a civil engineer; Penn sylvania & D. R. Co. v. Leuffer, 84 Pa. 168,
24 Am. Rep. 189; a contractor ; Henderson v. Nott, 36 Neb. 154, 54 N. W. 87, 38 Am. St. Rep. 720 ; Vane v. Newcombe, 132 U. S. 220, 10 Sup. Ct. 60, Ed. 310 ; foremen, clerks, and timekeepers- in the employ of a contractor ; Missouri, K. & T. R. Co. v. Bak er, 14 Kan. 563; the superintendent of a min ing company ; Dean v. De Wolf, 16 Hun (N. Y.) 186; a farm overseer; Whitaker v. Smith, 81 N. C. 340, 31 Am. Rep. 503; an architect's draughtsman.; Leinau v. Albright, 10 Pa.. Co. Ct. Rep. 171; a cook ; Appeal of Sullivan, 77 Pa. 107; McCormick v. Water Co., 40 Cal. 185; a farmer ; 12 W. R. 375 ; an agent employed at a monthly salary to superintend the erection of buildings ; Small house v. Min. Co., 2 Mont. 443. One who furnishes labor and material is held not a laborer ; Drew v. Mason, 81 Ill. 498, 25 Am. Rep. 288; and labor of oxen cannot be in cluded in a lien for labor ; McCrillis v. Wil son, 34 Me. 286, 56 Am. Dec. 655 ; contra, Chicago & N. E. R. Co. v. Sturgis, 44 Mich. 538, 7 N. W. 213 ; Watson v. Mfg. Co., 30 N. J. Eq. 588; nor can one who is employed to pay off laborers; Edgar v. Salisbury, 17 Mo. 271.
Under statutes giving a preference to laborers, servants, and employes against in solvent corporations, the word laborer is defined to include all persons doing labor or service of whatever character for or as employes in the regular employ of such cor poration; N. J. Rev. Stat. 188, § 63. A su perintendent of a natural gas company is a laborer under an act preferring claims of laborers; Pendergast v. Yandes, 124 Ind. 159, 24 N. E. 724, 8 L. R. A. 849; an assistant bookkeeper ; Brown v. Fence Co., 52. Hun 151, 5 N. Y. Supp. 95; a head miller; In re Geo. T. Smith Middlings Purifier Co., 83 Mich. 513, 47 N. W. 342; a drayman and the services of his horses; Watson v. Mfg. Co., 30 N. J. Eq. 588 ; an attorney ; Gurney v. Ry. Co., 58 N. Y. 367 ; contra, People v. Reming ton, 109 N. Y. 631, 16 N. E. 680. A book keeper of a corporation, who, though occu pying a position as one of the directors thereof, and for -that purpose having been made a nominal holder of stock, yet has no pecuniary interest in the corporation, has been held to be a laborer and entitled to a lien for services; Consolidated Coal Co. v. Chemical Co., 54 N. J. Eq. 309, 35 Atl. 157.