Raymond-Hadley Corp. v. Boston & Maine Railroad

186 A.D. 341, 174 N.Y.S. 342, 1919 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 5838

Opinion

Laughlin, J.:

The plaintiff was engaged in buying flour in carload lots at the mills and shipping it to the seaboard and it shipped 109 carloads of flour from western points in the United States and Canada over the defendant’s line on local bills of lading consigned to Mystic Wharf, Boston, Mass., with a notation thereon “ for export under terms of the Order in Council No. 1950-B, September 20, 1915.” The cars all arrived at the port of Boston between December 17, 1915, and February 9, 1916, and were subsequently unloaded at Mystic Wharf and loaded into steamships for transportation across the sea. The defendant assessed against and collected of plaintiff $4,965.31 for storage charges on the flour. The plaintiff paid the charges under protest and brought this action to recover the same on the ground that they were not authorized by the tariff schedules of the defendant in force at the times in question. The bills of lading contained a provision for a reasonable charge for storage ” in the cars or at a warehouse after the expiration of two days’ notice of arrival, exclusive of legal holidays. This was all interstate commerce, however, and by virtue of the provisions of section 1 and section 6, paragraphs 1 and 7, of the Interstate Commerce Act of February 4, 1887, as amended, the carrier was prohibited from making any storage charge, or charge for any service connected with the transportation and delivery of freight other than those authorized by the tariff schedule filed. (See 24 U. S. Stat. at Large, 379, § 1, as amd. by 36 id. 544-546, § 7; 24 id. 380, § 6, as amd. by 34 id. 586, 587, § 2; Pennsylvania R. R. Co. v. Titus, 216 N. Y. 17; Texas & Pacific Railway v. Mugg, 202 U. S. 242.) Since the carrier prepared the tariff schedules it is not entitled to [343]*343have them liberally construed in its favor and the rule of fair and reasonable construction applies. (Wilson v. L. I. R. R. Co., 178 App. Div. 799; Staten Island R. T. R. Co. v. Marshall, 136 id. 571. See, also, Swift & Co. v. Hocking Valley R. Co., 243 U. S. 281.) By the tariff schedule of the defendant in force at the times in question, for part of the period free storage for thirty days was allowed on export freight on Mystic Wharf, and later this period was reduced to fifteen days, and after the lapse of the free period a storage charge on tonnage basis was prescribed. Forty-two of the cars were unloaded at Mystic Wharf on arrival. It was [stipulated to be the duty of the carrier to unload the cars and place the contents thereof at vessel’s side and that it was the duty of the plaintiff to procure ships. It was also stipulated that Mystic Wharf was a pier for the reception of freight of every character, and was not exclusively used for flour and that owing to the requisitioning of ships by our government and by the Allies there was a shortage of bottoms for ocean traffic and abnormal conditions existed resulting in the congestion of freight of various kinds and for various shippers on Mystic Wharf and it was impossible for the plaintiff to place contracts for the shipment of the flour at the time of its arrival and it was unable to obtain ships for transportation of any of the flour until on or about April 4, 1916. After the forty-two carloads of flour had been on the wharf until after the expiration of the periods for free storage, the defendant demanded that plaintiff furnish a vessel for the shipment thereof, and it being unable so to do, the defendant in order to enable it to conduct its business with other shippers and having no warehouse of its own at Boston, removed the freight to a public warehouse and brought it back to the wharf in time for shipment by the first vessel that the plaintiff was able to secure.. The storage charges on the forty-two carloads of flour in accordance with the tariff schedules up to the time the flour was so removed to the warehouse were $535.29. That charge the plaintiff concedes to be correct. The defendant, however, made further charges aggregating $3,142.16, consisting of charges for the removal to and return from the warehouse, the charge of the warehouse for storage and for reloading the flour for the [344]*344return shipment. If the flour had not thus been removed from the wharf the further storage charges on the wharf pursuant to the tariff schedules would have amounted to $599.44. The trial court held that the defendant was neither entitled to charge the plaintiff the amount it did charge for the removal of the flour and storage in a warehouse and return thereof nor for any amount for that period, on the ground that no charge was authorized under the tariff schedule. The tariff schedule contains no provision limiting the period during which the storage charges at the rates therein specified shall continue to run or within which it shall be the duty of the consignee to remove the goods. While, therefore, the convenience of the carrier in transacting its general business warranted it in removing the goods from the wharf on the plaintiff’s failure to provide for the shipment thereof, it is quite clear, I think, that by its tariff schedule it failed to make provision for such an emergency, and that it, therefore, was not entitled to charge the plaintiff with the expenses of removing and storing the goods elsewhere; but it seems to me that it should be entitled to charge storage for that period in accordance with its tariff schedules as if the goods had remained on the wharf. It was stipulated, however, that both the bill of lading and the tariff schedule contained provisions for the right of inspection of the flour before shipment and it was further stipulated that this was necessary and that such inspection is customarily made while the flour is on the wharf. It is, however, further expressly stipulated that the plaintiff makes no claim that it was precluded from making a proper inspection of the flour. It is to be inferred that such inspection was made either before the goods were removed to the warehouse or subsequent to their return and before shipment. In the circumstances, therefore, I am of opinion that it was immaterial to the plaintiff where the flour was stored since the liability of the defendant as a warehouseman continued. The defendant was entitled in my opinion to charge storage for this period precisely the same as if the flour had remained on the wharf.

It was stipulated that the other sixty-seven cars were held by the defendant on holding tracks in the port of Boston but not on Mystic Wharf until March twenty-second, and [345]*345that between that date and April 4, 1916, the plaintiff having obtained shipment, they were taken to the wharf and unloaded and on the fourth of April placed on board steamship for transportation. None of this flour was on the wharf more than fifteen days and, therefore, no storage accrued after the cars were unloaded.

The court found that Boston, Hoosac Wharves and Mystic Wharf are three separate and distinct points of destination and that Mystic Wharf was the point of destination of all of this flour, and no exception was taken thereto and no complaint thereof is made. It was stipulated that prompt notice of the arrival of all of the cars was given by the defendant to the plaintiff. One of the notices was introduced in evidence and it bears date “ Boston, Dec.

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Raymond-Hadley Corp. v. Boston & Maine Railroad, 186 A.D. 341, 174 N.Y.S. 342, 1919 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 5838 (N.Y. Ct. App. 1919).

186 A.D. 341 (Raymond-Hadley Corp. v. Boston & Maine Railroad) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Texas & Pacific Railway Co. v. Mugg
202 U.S. 242 (Supreme Court, 1906)
Swift & Co. v. Hocking Valley Railway Co.
243 U.S. 281 (Supreme Court, 1917)
Pennsylvania R.R. Co. v. . Titus
109 N.E. 857 (New York Court of Appeals, 1915)
Wilson v. Long Island Railroad
178 A.D. 799 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1917)