LOADING.

THE charter party generally provides that the ship shall be tight, staunch, and strong, and furnished with all proper necessaries, and a sufficient crew, but this is also required by the law, even if there is no charter party. If the ship is in a leaky state, and the cargo be damaged, or the merchant be otherwise injured thereby, the shipowner will be liable to pay damages.

When no time is mentioned within which the ship is to arrive at the place of loading, she must arrive there within a reasonable time, and the shipowner is bound to send her there without any unnecessary delay; and the ship must not make any intermediate voyage, or deviate from the direct course to the place of loading (except in case of necessity) without the consent of the charterer.

If any delay occur it will not justify the charterer in refusing to load the ship (unless the charter contains a warranty that she is to be at her place of loading before a certain specified day), but the shipowner will be liable to pay damages for any injury sustained by the merchant in consequence of the delay or deviation.

Should any accident occur, causing delay without the shipowner's fault, while the vessel is on her way to the port of loading, or even if repairs have to be done in consequence of some accident, the merchant still continues bound to load her as soon as she is ready, provided that the charter contains the usual clause exempting the shipowner from liability in respect of accidents.

If a ship be chartered to load at a certain number of ports, the charterer has no right to require the ship to go to any more ports than the number agreed for; if he does so he is bound to pay all extra expenses caused thereby.

The charterer is bound to load the vessel within such a time as would be considered a reasonable time under ordinary circumstances, after the vessel is ready to receive her cargo, unless some definite time for loading has been named in the charter party. The question of what is a reasonable time will depend on the custom of the port,

the nature of the cargo, and other circumstances. The ship will not be considered ready if she is in an unseaworthy state.

BALLAST.

As it is the duty of the shipowner to make the ship fit to undertake the voyage, he is bound to provide ballast when necessary, unless the charter contains any positive agreement to the contrary. In the case of Irving v. Clegg, the charter stipulated that the charterer had to furnish a full and complete cargo, and that 100 tons of rice or sugar should be shipped, previous to any other part of the loading, to ballast the vessel; the Court held that this did not compel the merchant to load sufficient rice or sugar to ballast the ship, but if any more ballast was necessary beyond the 100 tons, it was to be shipped by the shipowner.

As the duty of supplying ballast is thrown on the shipowner by the law, his liability to supply it cannot be controlled or avoided by any alleged custom to the contrary, for no mere custom can be set up to override the law.

If it is necessary to put ballast in the ship as well as cargo, the captain has the right to put in heavy merchandise instead of ballast, provided that it occupies no more space than ballast would have done, is not injurious to the cargo, and leaves to the charterer the full space of the vessel for the cargo.

DUNNAGE.

The shipowner is bound to supply the depth of dunnage which is customary at the port, for the cargo he is about to take on board (unless the charter says the dunnage is to be provided by the merchant), and the captain should be very particular that proper and firm dunnage is provided, for the shipowner will be liable for all damage which the cargo may sustain by the want of it.

The captain has the right, however, to use merchandise as dunnage, provided that it does not occupy more space than ordinary dunnage, and is equally effective.

STOWAGE OF THE CARGO.

It is the duty of the captain to stow the cargo so that no damage is done to any part of it, either by the motion or leakage of the ship, or otherwise. In the case of Gillespie v. Thompson, the cargo consisted of turpentine and flour, and both were properly stowed and dunnaged, but when the cargo was discharged, the flour was found to have been tainted by the turpentine. The shipowner had not been guilty of any negligence (except so far as it may be considered improper to put flour and turpentine in the same vessel), and care was taken to separate the goods from each other. The damage was not caused by turpentine having been in actual contact with the flour, but the fumes from it had tainted the flour, as is often the case. The plaintiff (the charterer) contended that it was improper stowage to put turpentine in the same vessel with flour, and Lord Campbell delivered judgment in his favour. He said, "The shipowner took the goods in good order, and undertook to deliver them in good order, perils of the sea excepted; they were delivered in bad order, resulting, we think, from improper stowage. There is no doubt the owner of the ship is liable."

The shipowner, however, is only bound to do the best he can; so that if the cargo be damaged accidentally he will not be liable. If the stevedore was appointed by the charterer, and not by the captain, the shipowner will not be liable for any damage, unless the stevedore acted under the control of the captain.

Sometimes, by special custom or agreement, the stowing of the cargo has to be done by the merchant, and sometimes the charter says the charterer's stevedore is to be employed by the ship, which has been held to mean that if the charterer appoints a stevedore, such stevedore must be employed, but if he does not appoint one, then the master is to get the ship properly loaded.

The captain is to supply sufficient ropes, &c., for taking the cargo on board, and the master and owners are responsible for any injury that may occur to the cargo in letting it down into the hold (unless it is stowed by the merchant's stevedore), for as soon as the cargo is

received by the master, and it comes under his control, he and his owners are responsible for its safety.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE STOWAGE OF MIXED CARGOES.

The following instructions to masters and mates of ships, for the stowage of mixed cargoes, have been approved and recommended by the Committee for managing the affairs at Lloyd's:

1. Owners, commanders, and mates of ships are considered in law in the same situation as common carriers; it is therefore necessary that all due precautions be taken to receive and stow cargoes in good order and deliver the same in like good order. The law holds the shipowner liable for the safe custody of the goods when properly and legally received on board in good order, and for the "delivery " to parties producing the bill of lading. The captain's blank bill of lading should be receipted by the warehousekeeper or person authorised to receive the contents. Goods are not unfrequently sent alongside in a damaged state, and letters of indemnity given to the captain by the shippers for signing in good order and condition; this is nothing more or less than conniving at fraud; fine goods are also often damaged in the ship's hold by lumpers, if permitted to use cotton hooks in handling bales. All goods must be received on board according to the custom of the port where the cargo is to be taken in, and the same custom will regulate the commencement of the responsibility of the master and

owners.

2. Hemp, flax, wool, and cotton, should be dunnaged 9 inches on the floors and to the upper part of the bilge, the wing bales of the second tier kept 6 inches off the side at the lower corner, and 2 inches at the sides. Sand or damp gravel ballast to be covered with boards. Pumps to be frequently sounded and attended to. Sharp-bottomed ships one-third less dunnage in floor and bilges. Avoid horn-shavings as dunnage from Calcutta.

3. All corn, wheat, rice, peas, beans, &c., when in bulk to be stowed on a good platform, or dunnage wood, of not less than 10 inches, and in the bilges 14 inches dunnage; the pumps and masts cased, to have strong bulkheads, good shifting boards, with feeders and ventilators, and to have no admixture of other goods. Flat-floored, wall-sided ships should be fitted with bilge pumps. On no consideration must the stanchions under the beams be removed.

4. Oil, wine, spirits, beer, molasses, tar, &c., to be stowed bung up, to have good cross beds at the quarters (and not to trust to hanging beds), to be well chocked with wood, and allowed to stow three heights of pipes or butts, four heights of puncheons, and six heights of hogsheads or half-puncheons. All moist goods and liquids, such as salted hides, bales of bacon, butter, lard, grease, castor oil, &c., should not be stowed too near "dry goods," whose nature is to absorb moisture. Shipowners have often to pay heavy damages for leakage in casks of molasses, arising from stowing too many heights without an intervening platform or 'twixt decks. From Bengal, goods are frequently damaged by castor oil.

5. Tea, and flour in barrels; flax, clover, and linseed, or rice, in tierces; coffee and cocoa, in bags; should always have 9 inches, at least, good dunnage in the bottom, and 14 to the upper part of the bilges, with 2 inches at the sides; allowed to stow six heights of tierces, and eight heights of barrels. All ships above 600 tons should have 'twixt decks or platforms laid for these cargoes to ease the pressure-caulked 'twixt decks should have scuppers in the sides, and 2 inches of dunnage laid athwartship, and not fore and aft-ways, when in bags or sacks; and when in boxes or casks not less than one inch. Rice from Calcutta is not unfrequently damaged by indigo, for want of care in stowing.

6. Entire cargoes of sugar, saltpetre, and guano, in bags, must have the dunnage carefully attended to, as laid down for other goods. Brown sugar to be kept separate from white sugar, and both kept from direct contact with saltpetre. Timber ships are better without 'twixt decks, if loading all timber or deals.

7. Pot and pearl ashes, tobacco, bark, indigo, madder, gum, &c., whether in casks, cases, or bales, to be dunnaged in the bottom, and to the upper part of the bilges, at least 9 inches, and 2 inches at the sides.

8. Miscellaneous goods, such as boxes of cheese, kegs and tubs of lard, or other small or slightly-made packages, not intended for broken stowage, should be stowed by themselves, and dunnaged as other goods.

9. Barrels of provisions and casks of tallow allowed to stow six heights. All metals should be stowed under, and separated from goods liable to be damaged by contact.