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THE MARINE RECORD. MARL.NE LAW In the District Court 0/the United Statei for the Northern District of Ohio. ' William J. Miller \ No. 1,816 1 Schooner Fran/Sclgcl. f Adm" •**■ Lucy A. Russell, claimant. [Miller] about tho customrfof commissions] ,.*....,*„.........„......., 'W.nlli only Itbltl him that * *\* If I AWhbwTomes Earl Bl'lVthe commission'^ (t-by dl,y" workB ' ghou,d P»y"U* nu-n er to whom this cause was by the court ro furred and herewith submits lily report of his finding* and opinion as tn the sevoral natters In (he pleadings In the cause set forth. The undesigned hits been attended, by the parties and by their seveial proctors; also by tho witnesses'of the sevuial parties, whose testimony has been reduced loniltlngnndls herewith returned. After having given careful attention to the testimony, and hearing thd arguments of counsel^tho undersigned finds as follows: That sometime In the spring of 1881 said schooner Finnz Sclgel stood In neid of ear- i tain repairs, that olalmant Lucy A. Russell herownor, by her btodmnd C. L. Russell, who acted as her agent In the business, employed the libelant a well known ship¬ wright^ Cleveland, for that purpose; that libelant proceeded to dotluiwork by himself and by such other workmen as he employed for that purpose; ilint he purchased a large portion of the lumber necessarily used In inking biicIi repairs, that on account of the u ages of the men and the price of the lumber so emplojed and purchasd libelant culled for and received from Russell, agent, as afore¬ said, sundiy sums of money which weredls- buised b} libelant In payment of said wages and material; that stioh advances were mainly required of and made by claimant's agent through Captain Roberts, the master of the Vessel, on Saturday ot each week while the work was in progress; that the master was present during the execution of the work, and supervised it in n general way, though libelant had sole charge of the mechanical ixccullon; that the work was completed on the 25th of June, 1881, and that as to the manner of Its exi cutlou no dis¬ satisfaction LY cduipluint hm> been shown or claimed \ The only controversy between the parties arises from the fact that llbo ant claims and has Included In his bill, annexed to the libel, a commission ot thirty cents per daj op the wages of tho workmen by hlniemploied to do the work, at d of seven to eight dollars per thousand feet of the lumber by hliu pur¬ chased or fin nlshed. it is agreed that othei - N* Iso the charges for labor and niatei lal, and the credits on account of puj nients therefor are correct, with the single exception that agent RusbcII Gays the wages ol libelant should be $4.00 Instead of $3.00 per day as chaiged. It Is also agreed that the amount of said commissions Is the same claimed in the libel, viz, $208.01. Libelant bates his claim for said com- missions upon a special arrangement, or com li act, by and between him and said C. L. RuSBell, acting on behnll of claimant, his wile, whereby the repairs wore to, be done py "days work," us distinguished from an undertaking to do them for a tlxcd sum ; and that it was also stipulated Unit instead ot the CUBtomary commission of fifty cents per day on workmen's wages, aud ten dollars per thousand feet on lumber, tho amounts charged and claimed w us to be substituted. The hitter is strenuously denied bj the de¬ fense. For the detei minuting ol this, the only muterlal question in issue, the under- Blgncd Is couipollclf to relj upon the testl- . mony ot libelant and said agent Russell, they being the only parlies picbent at the making of the so called contract, and thcli testimony is Bharpiy conlllcilng on this point. The arruiigtiieut, oi contrnetifor the le- palrs of tlie&eigel »as the outcome of Boverul conversations, between -fliu above named parties, held at dlflercul tliiies and places. According to the testimony ol the libelant, during the lust out. It was ngiecd thaftho work was to be dotiu by the day and the modified commission were to be allowed. Oil I he Other hand Kusaell ttstltlcs [sue test ' No. 2 pnge7] that during ono of the "talks" on the suldtcr, prior to the last, the subject ot comniMims wns mentioned, audi he ex- ■pressly lufoimed libelant thut be "did not superintend the work and furnish tools and that'this offer was accepted by libelant. On cross examination [seo samo test page 26] he swears" I did nor say anything to hlrn^ \srbrkwlll be decided undor this ruling." TlUlllnwl kIiaii. »lm Aii.lMm.ritr.nniml..li.R.. *- ■ • •■ f tnysolfand buy tho lumber ami, materials and have a man to superintend It." '• Question—"You talked to him about com¬ mission or percentage on the men?" Answer-^'-Nothmg more that might be Implied In tint." Question—"You did not use the word per¬ centage nt nil?" Answer—"I don't think I did.1 Question—"Or oommlislon; did you use that word, or not?" ^ Answer—"I won't be positive whether I did or not." — More testimony of like character tends to the belief that II anything on Xhe subject of 'commissions was said by and between the partlesMn such sense as to form part of the contract It was substantially as aworn to by libelant, whose statement on That subject Is consistent with tho custom shown to prevail at this port, except as to tho amount of com¬ mission usually charged under like circum¬ stances, and Is not otherwise contradicted than by the testimony ot Mr. Russell, which, from Imperfection of memory or some other cause seems to lack vnusislcncr w Itli Itself. The iindeisigned theielore, Jn consideration of the promises and of all the facts and circumstances of the case, finds and pro¬ nounces In favor ol the claim of the libelant, and that he ought to have Ills d.oree for suld. sum of $268 01 with Interest from the 11th daj of August, 1881, that being the dato of the last payment on account of said repulrs. Very Respectlully. Eabl Bill, Commissioner. might properly bo olnssod with that of the vessels named. .The dispatches say itlso that tho eases of tho stenmers Spartnn and Muni- WILL IT PAY? A correspondent asks, "Will It pay to put money In ships?" Ho might as well havo asked, "Will It pay to deal In a staple article of trade?" He suy» lie cannot see that there Is any profit In a business when those who havo managed It for years are fast leaving for somo more lucrative trado. If, heeiivs, thepraclloal m«|i can do nothing with ships, what chaiii'O has the new comer? Thev who think that seme few men only oan pro¬ perly manage a trado shouJd remember the old saw that "times change and mtui chnnge with them." A great ileal ol Stros Is being laid upon the faot that our vessels are being gradually sold to foreigner', who aeem to make money with them, This Is accepted by ninny as proof positive of the capacity of foreigners for Ship management and the in¬ capacity of Americans for a business whlcli In no longer tlio'rs.. These declarations nFe like the fours ol the timid mull who Imagines more dangers than ho sees. It will be no¬ ticed ihat the vossels sold are mostly old or of a class-fast going out of fashion. For¬ eigners mnke money with them forjtlie rea¬ son that they buy them generiilljf'at com¬ paratively low prloes. They are jyet good carriers and, considering their ct>st soon pay well for the Investment. They would, on the basis of the capital at which they were sold, have paid ihelr original owneis equally well, but the capital was tnken out of shipping and Invested, piobably in rail¬ roads. The proposition may be scouted, but It has thomoritot truthfulness. Many ship- owners, if candid, will confess thai these ODDITIES'OF 8AILOH9, Sailors have nnme» of their own" for over, port and harbor In tho navlgablo woVi7 usually dirorlne entirely from thoso on th. geographies. For example they .il"'! apeak ol archipelagoes an "the arches" T officer of the tleolt on board a United 8t»t» man-of-war saw a knot of sailors llsteiin. intently one night to the yarn, 8puneib'_n, grizzled old twjbont hii nilvMtuw. In "going through the arohea." A young™!!* after a while anfd with a puzz ed and •hum 12 air: "Thearohcofwhat?" TTwhM old salt responded with a look of wltherin. oontempt: "The A relies of Pelage, of cour.0 you lubber." t «'u,co«rie, Vlllefranohe In lallort' language Is Vm. rflnky, Clvlta Veoohla li Ohlvlty Vent* tfierbburg la Cherb, and all PortsmourrTi > »w an Portsmouth! The art of rending the liloi Intent) | A pu) uiij thing of that kind," that two or three* dms uflenwud the parties again met and he t'dd Millet ho had con¬ cluded to have the i epulis done "by lboUaj.'> that *lie would pa> him $4 00 pel day to "VTFSKL n>stn!ANCE—JCSTICK 81ANLKY'M_lT TIIEW81 Dictator,. •Captain W. D. RoMnson of Biiflulo re citved a letlei from a law firm In Detroit, informed him of the decision of the case of Wallace and other owners of the schooner John Wesley against the Thames and Mersey and other Insurance companies. The case came up before Justice Btown,of tho United Spates district court, but waB of so much im¬ portance that it culled in Chief Justice Stanley Matthews, of the United States su¬ preme court. '1 he latter has filed an opinion, which l« very long, and deals with the sub¬ ject Is an exhaustive manner. The quenlou decided by Judge Mutluews w as first brought up by the owners of the Wesley, who wele desirous to abandon their \ ossel to the under writers as a total loss. They claimed that tho cost of releasing her from the rocks could be added to the cost of repairs to mako out a constructive total loatftand In this they wote sustained by Judge Matthews. Heretofore underwriters believed that they were pio- tucted on thin especial point by the follow¬ ing cluuse, which is embraced In their pol¬ icies "Further, the insured shall not havo the right to abnndon a vej&el In any caso unless the jimount which the Insurers would bo liable to pay under mi adjustment, us ot purtlul loss, shall exceed"-halt of the amount Insured " This section will undoubtedly be striken out of the policies to be used for ne,xt Benson's business, and a new clause, Indemnifying the companies from this risk, will bo sub¬ stituted. Heretofore it has been held that expenses in the nature of general average cou)d not bo added to expenses which would come under particular-average, to make up 60 per cent of the value of tho ves¬ sel. Judge Matthews decided that tho cost of gottlng n vessel oft the beach was not general average, and he held (hat It could be added to the other expenses incident to the disaster. I Mr. Charles K, Kremer, Esq., who does an extensive admiralty business, and has charge of several of the stilts which will be affected by the declBlo'n, said he hud boon expecting the decision all along, and did not seo any remedy lor the Insurance coinpnnlos but to change the claiiso In their policies which Is quoted tn the foregoing. "By this de¬ cision," said Mr. Kieuior, "several spits in¬ volving a good deal of property are prac¬ tically decided. Vl'liere are the oases of the schooners Tjpo and A,G. Moioj, and the case of the schooner II. I), itloore which sninepld ships, about which they complain so bitterly as a dead Investment, have actu¬ ally paid for themselves two or three limes over. Depreciation and interest have bee if charged against them in jeurs past, but the ships are Jield jet to represent t.o'innufi of the original capital upon which they cannot earn fair Interest. We remember an old firm of shipowners who had made the value of their ships two or three times over. Hold¬ ing to tho old plan of charging depreciation and Interest against them, they found tluit tlio earriTngCuTd~not oOver^lheTfeamouiitT and a handsome profit beside, and, therefnie, came to the conclusion that Uiey were losing money on their capital. They sold the ves¬ sels and then tried to •persuade themselves that they had lost money. Habit Is a har.l master and sometimes makes people take peculiar views. The faot that the old vessels are being sold oil iIops not prove anything against shipping Investments. They are at least out of the way as far as Anierlcans,are concerned. These vessels are being re¬ placed by those of an infinitely better class, and with this new class money van be made. We credit investors with shrewdness enough to pi'iceive the proper time when to bu) In¬ to ships. At present the business Is over tlone, but this uannot last, mid the time Is approaching when the carrying trad«wlll he In a healthy condition again. It ls_ evi¬ dent that Investments In this class of prop¬ erty will be niado In a dlfleront way from that which obtained In former years, taking on more the nutureof railroad shares. There may be objeotlons'to this plan, but it has the advantage of attracting the most capital and that will outweigh other considerations Large profits wcr«"fnrmerly expected from shipping, and If these were not obtained dis¬ satisfaction followed. While heavy profits are alwajs welcome, a fair return will, from the very nature of the Investment, be satis¬ factory to the new clnss of holders of ship¬ ping propertj. If, after allowing lor de¬ preciation and Insurance, more than good In¬ terest Is oDtalned on the capital, the busi¬ ness will be considered excellent. There Is plenty of money now Idle that would be In¬ vested lit this rato The Immense amount put Into railroads upon no greater expecta¬ tion is proof ot the willingness to Invest for a fair return. Ships can be mndo to give such a return und for this reason, we hold that, upon Hie return of I rude to its normal condition, It will pay Americans to put money into shlpB again — Maritime Iiegtstei. FAbT VPiSbFJ.S. Since tho custom of sending malls by lake stenmers has been abandoned by the' gov¬ ernment llioie has beon n pad decline in tho industry of blillding fleet steuuiboats. About the only regular mall route iremalnliig on Lako Michigan Is between Milwaukee and Grand Haven, and the fastest Bteamer on tho lakes, the City of Milwaukee, piles ovor this route The Milwaukee has the reputa¬ tion of making twenty miles an hour, and there Is bit*, little doubt that she cau do this undor favorable circumstances, j, The pro- poller II. J. Jewett Is a fuM screw-wlidel boat, and bo is tho piopeller Walter L. Frost, but the poiformances of these craft sink In¬ to Insignificance when they are compared with tho spei d attained by ocean steiiiijsJHps. Thero uro some steel steamers being GuJ.lt at Detroit and Buffalo, which, It Is claimed, will do marvels in tho way of fast running. But those are lone Instances where vessels are built on tho hikes for speed. The ten¬ dency Is rather to build tlitfm to carry big cargoes, and spood cuts but little feature in their construction.—Inter Ocean. are Porclinjoutln. nddressea on snllora' letter* It difficult! Phonetlo spelling, combined with --.linn' nomenclature, makes them frequcntlt In scrutable. 8allors don't believe In using mv mure letters thnn are absolutely necessary In spelling a word. An oflloer on a man-of-war In the harbor nt Norfolk, Vn„ standing on, deck, saw a beautiful yacht approaching. He called to the quartermaster to get a glass and read tho name of the advancing vessel, The quartermaster screwed his eye to the gian looked pretonlHiurally wise, and spelled out gravely: "P-s y-c-h-e—the Fish, sir." A tug nttuclied to the Gosport navy-yard was known as the Gnat. All thequurtermiisters and those of the sailors who could read tie- i ided tliut O-n-a t spelled Gannet. and by tliat name she was commonly known amoni them. ,* The sailors on board w nr-shlps are aii hi- terestlng class. The habits of neatness and order which they are lorced to maintain Im proves their manners and appearance, and their discipline works wonderfully well with them. They aro genei ally n contented lot, aud in no class of life is the general Improve¬ ment in the matter of temperance more noticeable than In these men-of-nars men, They are well supplied with rending matter, especially relating to the countries they visit, and squads of blue jackets are met with In every gallery In Europe wlililu reach of s port where a war vessel Is stationed. Their knowledge of art is not profound, however. A deputation of-snllors once waited irpomlie— commanding officer of an American llugshlp ut Naples to volunteer their services as scrubbers In a certain gallery there which cnntalneil many specimens of the old mas- teis These the sailors thought needed to he holystoned and swabbed off, and they « anted perml'slon to go ashore and offer to doit The sailors 6)e lor beauty la well knoWr., and his comments are freely expressed. When entertainments are giv^h-on board shlpeveiy loophole Is eagerly contended for, anil (lie comments of the forecastle on the guests of the wurd loom nre acute as n ell as racy. Some time ago the officers ot an American man of-wur stationed In South Anlcilcun waters gave a party, Now, tlio dressing of some of the South American women Is phenomenal, and as the various extraordinary costumes nppBared.Ujvjui_as/^ much its the officers could dMo ,kecp tlielr faces straight. Finally thoHmmax was reached by an old lady who clambered over the side. She hud no bonnet on, but u thin black net cup. Every hair had been combed away from the nape of her neck up to the forehead. Where It was massed In curls, puffs, and ringlets. The effect was most comical. A sailor, who was watching affairs at a little distance, hitched up his trousers and remarked solemnly to his companion, amid a dead silence. "I say, Jack, tho old'un makes the afterguard do topuien's duty'"—New Yotk Suu Subscribe for the Maiiink Recohd, IW'LLluU UUMUM'. Supervising liiBpeotorGonernl Diimont.of the steamboat service, met a number of tug owners rcoo-lly in the olllce of the local In¬ spectors of Bteainboats, tor the purport, nt discussing questions whlili aro constantly causing trouble bore mid elsewhere. Cap¬ tain J. S Higgle, George I'. Oilman, Cap- rain John A, Crawford. William Harmon, taptnln Alec. Learned, Ed. V-in Dalaon and Mr. blugor, of tho Singer & Talcott Stono Company, woro present nt the gatlnr- lug. General Dumojit lea tall,distinguished looking man, and Is In Jicarty sympa¬ thy with Hie steamboatmeu against tho petty laws, which are both dlsugieeubloand un¬ necessary. "Draw up your chairs a little closer, and look sociable," was his Introductory remark. "Wo will talk together us If we wore in the pilot bouse off walch " This was Bald so kindly that the tug owners found no dl"!' culty tn opening their case. Captain Craw¬ ford, as ail old.shipmate of General Dnmoiit, aoteJ as spokesman. He explained that very recently the tug, Union had been reported to Collector Spuuldlng for carrying n orow of snllors up the ilvor ton vessel, and w»« fluod $500 for doing so. It lias boon n custom I/i Chicago for years fof tugs to transport veSsolB' orews from one point to another, and vessel owners expect to HaVo It done whenever they request It; but at long as the law exists In Its present form the tugs wilt always be liable to flue for doing so. uen- oral Dtimont said he considered this bmi- ness one of tho necessities of commerce, iinfl ho believed tlrat the law could be stretcheu n point to covor it. Ho would take the ease