Gardner v. One Thousand Four Hundred & Sixty-Seven Bales of Cotton

20 F. 529
CourtUnited States Circuit Court for the Southern District of Florida
DecidedNovember 15, 1883
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 20 F. 529 (Gardner v. One Thousand Four Hundred & Sixty-Seven Bales of Cotton) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Circuit Court for the Southern District of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gardner v. One Thousand Four Hundred & Sixty-Seven Bales of Cotton, 20 F. 529 (circtsdfl 1883).

Opinion

Paedee, J.

This cause came on to be heard on the record and evidence, and was argued, whereupon the court, being advised in the premises, doth find the following facts in the case :

(1) On June 3, 1878, the ship Marie Fredrikke, laden with a cargo of 3,601 bales of cotton, 2,000 barrels of résin, and 8,290 staves, sailed from the city of New Orleans, ostensibly on a voyage to Liverpool.

(2) This vessel in-1876, then known as the Altnora, had put into Key West when- on a voyage from New Orleans towards Liverpool, laden with cotton, and had there been condemned as unseaworthy. At this time she was consigned to John J. Philbrick, of Key West, and she was purchased from Philbrick by Adolphus 0. Diesen, who was then in Key West, ex-bark Cadiz. Diesen had remained for some time in Key West awaiting the arrival of funds with which to purchase this vessel, and his business office at this time was at the office of the said Philbrick.

(3) In 1877 Diesen took the Almora to Pensacola, and there loaded her with a cargo of lumber for Europe. She put into Key West, leaking and in distress, and was there consigned by Diesen to Philbrick. Her cargo of lumber was discharged at Key West, and the vessel was taken by Diesen to New Orleans for repairs, leaving Key West in February, 1878.^

(4) At New Orleans this vessel was put upon the dry-dock and repaired. While on the dry-dock she was libeled by Brady & McClellan, and sold to them for f>2,000. This preceding was taken to avoid the payment of the bills incurred by the vessel at Pensacola, and the sale was made with the understanding that Brady & McClellan were to transfer the vessel back to the captain. This transfer was subsequently made to the mate of the vessel, Ernest Sissenere, a Norwegian, for $12,000, the cost of repairs. While the vessel was at New Orleans her name was changed to Marie Fredrikke.

(5) The repairs made at New Orleans consisted mainly of new assistant keelsons, placed along-side of the main keelson; strengthening braces or arches, two in number, running the whole length of each side of the ship; sheathing and caulking.

(6) The hull of the vessel was hogged before she was placed on the dry-dock. . On the dry-dock this hog was partially removed. When the vessel came off the dry-dock she settled back a number of inches towards her original shape, but was less hogged than before going upon the dock.

(7) When the vessel left New Orleans her pumps, spars, tops, and outfit were as follows:

(a] Her main pumps were two. They were so constructed that they straddled the keelson like an inverted Y. They could not be sounded, nor could they be hoisted out when the vessel was loaded, nor was there any way of reaching the bottom of these pumps. There was no sounding-well. The pump gear was very much worn, and one [531]*531of those main pumps throw very little water on the voyage. It was praetically of no use whatever. The wind-mill pump consisted below deck of a single tube of iron. There was no sounding-well for this pump, and the only way of sounding it was by lifting the port-box and sounding down through the pump-tube itself. This tube ran through the assistant keelson, and the sounding-rod, going down the tube, struck on the top of a timber, which was gouged out about one and one-half inches, to let the water have access to the bottom of the tube. The assistant keelson was laid, not on the skin, but on the timbers, and the skin at the bottom of the wind-mill pump was four inches thick. A depth of eight inches of wet sounding-rod down this pump w'ould indicate that the water was two and one-half inches over the skin or ceiling. The wind-mill pump required a breeze of five knots to work, and its boxes and joints were worn out, and wanted renewing.

(h) Several of the spars of the vessel were rotten, and needed replacement. The vessel carried but one spare spar and a half of another one. On leaving Key West, in February, 1878, she left one of her spars there. The fore and mizzen tops of the vessel were also rotten.

(c) The vessel was insufficiently supplied with provisions for a voyage to Liverpool, and there is no proof that she had sufficient water stowed under her deck for such a voyage.

(d) The steering apparatus worked very stiffly.

(e) The crew was composed of the captain, first mate, second mate, cook, nine men, and three boys, — in all, sixteen, — and was not sufficient for the voyage to Liverpool.

(8) On June 4, 1878, at New Orleans, a bottomry bond for $10,-430.80, with interest at the rate of 20 per cent., making in all the sum of $12,516.96, was executed by Ernest Sissenere, the mate of the vessel, and her nominal owner, which bond was payable on her arrival at Liverpool.

(9) Before the vessel left New Orleans, Diesen drew, as advances on freight, £2,174 4s. 9d., which sum represented about three quarters of the freight he would have earned by the safe arrival of the vessel at Liverpool.

(10) In going out of the mouth of the Mississippi the vessel struck on a mud lump near the end of Eads’ jetties. She grounded at about noon on June 5th, and remained there until June 7th, about 2 o’clock p. si. The vessel grounded because her steering apparatus worked heavily, and those in charge of her wheel could not throw it quickly enough to follow the tow-boat. During the whole of the time the vessel lay upon the lump the weather was fine, and the sea almost calm. The vessel was not in motion, and made no water. Her sails were set all the time, and at night there was only a one-man watch kept on deck. The character of the bottom where the vessel lay was soft mud. It is an ordinary incident of navigation for vessels to stick on the mud lumps near the mouth of the Mississippi without [532]*532suffering other damages than such as result from delay. This vessel received no damage by reason of sticking on the lump save delay, and probable loss of about 30 feet of false shoeing. False shoeing is tim- • her from 6 to 10 inches deep, spiked on the lower edge of the keel, not bolted through, for the purpose of making the vessel hold the wind and not drift. On the afternoon of the 'seventh of June, a breeze springing up, the vessel, with all her sails set, slid off the lump, and for the next two or three hours made about four knots an hour.

(11) On the voyage to Key West the weather was fine. No storm, or even fresh breeze, was experienced. The vessel carried all her sails during all the voyage, with the exception of her maintop-gallant sail for a few hours. Much of the time the vessel was without steerage way. On the voyage the vessel leaked no more than vessels of her age and loading usually leak. The wind-mill pump did not work •on the voyage, and the starboard main pump threw but very little water. The water on the voyage came up no higher than an inch ■or two up on the resin which was used for dunnage, and was controlled by a single pump.

(12) On June 17th the vessel dropped anchor outside the reef at Iley West. Within an hour'or two after this Capt. Diesen, the second mate,.and two of the crew, went to Key West, and landed at-Phil-brick’s wharf. The vessel did not come to Key West until June 24th, remaining during the whole week outside of the reef. On June 24th .she was towed into Philbrick’s wharf. Capt. Diesen and the second mate remained in Key West until the vessel reached the dock. The two of the crew who left the vessel with Diesen on June 17th are said to have returned on June 19th.

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Bluebook (online)
20 F. 529, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gardner-v-one-thousand-four-hundred-sixty-seven-bales-of-cotton-circtsdfl-1883.