stopped by the frost, was no answer to an action for damages for the detention of the vessel. In this case it was stipulated in the charter-party, that the vessel should be loaded with "usual despatch," which it was ruled, meant the usual despatch of persons who have a cargo in readiness for the purpose of loading. accidents. By a charter-party, the owner of the ship agreed Unavoidable that she should proceed direct to Ichaboe, and there load a full and complete cargo of guano, by the ship's boats and tackle, and by the labour of the crew, and being so loaded, should proceed therewith to Cork or Falmouth, &c., and deliver the same on being paid freight, at 47. 15s. per ton, "restraint of princes and rulers, the act of God and the Queen's enemies, fire and perils of navigation, always excepted." Twenty-one working days to be allowed to the charterers, if the ship were not sooner discharged, at the port of unloading. The charterers to ship bags and other materials requisite for loading the ship, and to supply the stores for the vessel, at cash prices, for the voyage, and to deduct the amount from the balance of freight; but in the event of the vessel being lost or any other unforeseen causes preventing the completion of the charter-party, the owner agreed to pay the charterers the amount of their disbursements for such stores.2 To a declaration on this charter-party, alleging as a breach of it, that the defendant, the shipowner, did 1 Kearon v. Pearson, 31 L. J. Ex. 1. 2 Hills v. Sughrue, 15 M. & W. 253. not load a full and complete cargo of guano on board the ship at Ichaboe, it was pleaded by the defendant, that he was prevented from doing so by an unforeseen cause, namely, that on arrival of the ship at Ichaboe, and within a reasonable time afterwards, no guano was to be found there; and that he had paid to the plaintiffs the amount of their disbursements for stores for the vessel:-Held, that this plea was bad in substance, for that the fact of no guano being found was not such an "unforeseen cause preventing the completion of the charter-party," as entitled the defendant to pay the amount of the disbursements, and treat the charter-party as at an end, but that he was, nevertheless, bound by his positive contract to load a full cargo. Where the defendant agreed by charter-party to load the plaintiff's ship with coal, in regular and customary turn, "except in cases of riots, strikes, or any other accidents beyond his control, which might prevent or delay her loading." To an action for breach of the above covenant in the charter-party, the defendant pleaded that he was prevented loading the vessel by a snow-storm, which rendered it impossible to bring the cargo to the agreed place of shipment: It was held, on demurrer, that a snowstorm was not an "accident" within the meaning of the exception, and that the plea was bad.' Willes, J., observing :-"Was the snow-storm 'an accident beyond the control' of the defendant.? No doubt it was beyond his control, but was it an accident? Fenwick v. Schmalz, L. R. 3 C. P. 313. I think not, because an accident is not the same as an occurrence, but is something that happens out of the ordinary course of things. A fall of snow is one of the ordinary operations of nature, and is an incident rather than an accident; and therefore, without going into the rule, that general words are to be restricted to the same genus, as the specific words which precede them, I think this natural occurrence did not come within the terms of the exception in the charter-party." machinery, breakage of shafts, &c. This exception will not cover a loss arising from Accidents to the breaking of the chain used to discharge cargo, as such a chain does not come under the term machinery, which applies only to the machinery by which the vessel is propelled.1 If salvage services become necessary from the breaking down of any portion of the machinery, and are rendered to the ship, whereby the cargo is saved, the owners of the salving vessel, though also owners of the vessel salved, will be entitled to recover from the owners of the cargo for the services rendered: the accident coming within the excepted perils mentioned in the bill of lading as "accidents of machinery.": The warranty of seaworthiness is an absolute warranty that the ship shall be in fact fit for the voyage, and not merely that the shipowner shall take all reasonable care to make her so fit; and hence a latent defect in the screw-shaft existing prior to the commencement of the voyage, and resulting in the The Galley of Lorne, Mit. Mar. Reg., Feb. 11th, 1876. breaking of the shaft, is a breach of the shipowner's warranty of seaworthiness, although the shipowner may have taken all reasonable precaution in the selection of the shaft. The excepted perils have no application to the case of a ship sailing in an unseaworthy condition; and hence there is no defence to an action brought for loss or damage to the charterer's goods occasioned by such unseaworthiness.1 The warranty that the ship is seaworthy at the commencement of the voyage, not that the owner will use his best endeavours to make her so, but that she is in fact seaworthy, may be limited by the exceptions in the charter-party; thus, where the "L," having been disabled in her machinery owing to a latent defect in the welding of her fly-wheel shaft, existing at the commencement of the voyage, but not discoverable by the exercise of reasonable care, was towed by the "A," a vessel belonging to the same owners, into a port of safety. The cargo on board the "L," was shipped under three different bills of lading. The first of these contained the clause, "warranted seaworthy only so far as ordinary care can provide;" the second, "warranted seaworthy only so far as due care in the appointment or selection of agents, superintendents, pilots, masters, officers, engineers, and crew can ensure it;" and the third, "owners not to be liable for loss, detention, or damage, if arising directly or indirectly from latent defects in boilers, machinery, or any part of the vessel in which steam is used, even existing The Glenfruin, L. R. 10 P. D. 103. at the time of shipment, provided all reasonable means have been taken to secure efficiency." In a salvage action brought by the owners, master and crew of the "A." against the owners of cargo on board the "L.":-It was held, that the exceptions in the bills of lading limited the implied warranty of seaworthiness, and that such limited warranty having been satisfied, there had been no breach by the owners of the "L." of their contract of carriage.1 In a policy of marine insurance upon a steamship and her machinery, the perils insured against were "of the seas and all other perils, losses or misfortunes that had or should come to the hurt, detriment or damage of the aforesaid subject matter of insurance or any part thereof." In pumping up the mainboilers of the steamship for the purpose of the voyage by means of a donkey-pump and engine, in consequence of the check-valve in the pipe, leading from the donkey-pump to the main boilers, being closed or salted up instead of open, the water-chamber and air-chamber of the donkey-pump became overcharged with water and the air-chamber split:Held by the House of Lords, that the injury to the donkey-pump, whether it occurred accidentally or through negligence, was not a peril ejusdem generis with those specially enumerated in the policy and that the underwriters were not liable.2 1 Cargo ex Laertes, L. R. 12 P. D. 187; 56 L. J. Ad. 108. 2 The Thames & Mersey Marine Insurance Co. Ld. v. Hamilton, L. R, 12 App. Cas. 484; 56 L. J. Q. B. 626. |