Shanghai, May 5. Before G, F. Sewarp, Esq., Consul-General; and Capts. J. P. Rosgers and Law, an Mr. SE Thorson, Associates.
CHEN-KEE-TUK, master and owner of the Chin-yuen-yuen, of Chinhae, and other Chinese Merchants, and a widow and a mother of two of the crew of the said junk, versus the str. Manchu, and D. R. Spedding, late her master.
Mr. Coorer appeared for the plaintiffs.
Messrs. Eases and Waixewnrenr roprosented the defendants, The Petition of the plaintiffs, a lengthy document, containing nine clauses, gave a full account of the circumstances in connection wi isi which being also given in detail in the evidence that follows, need not be set forth here. he collision was stated to have been caused through gross negligence on the part of the Manchu, andthe 7th and_ 8th paragraphs laid the damages at $14,765 as far as the owners of the junk were concerned, and $550 respect of tite claims of the persons dependant upon the two of the crew of the junk who were drowned, making @ total claim of $15,315.
The Ansicer comprising ton clauses," denied in the 3rd having come into collision with a junk on the 10th December last year, bat admitted that about the time and place mentioned in the Tibel, the Manchu did collide with a small single-masted Chinese boat. The 4th par. voyage on which she was lost she was neatly stated that, on the boat being observed, the three-fourths full of cargo, which consisted Manchu's helm was put a little to port to clear of shark's fins, fish glue, tobacco, tinfoil, the said boat, and that the latter was observed and so forth. When I left Dragon's Hill for to put her helm to starboard to cross the Shanghai, there were 11 hands on board. She Manchw's bow. The engines were at once sailed on the 21st of the 10th moon, or 10th stopped, and reversed, but the stem of the Deo. We passed the Lightship shortly after Manchu came into collision with the middle the first watch, which was on the night of the of the said boat, making a hole in her sail.
22nd, or 11th'Dec. (Thursday). Ib was be-'Tho'eraft was distinctly seen, and was an open tween 10 and 11 o'clock. We reached the boat with one mast as already mentioned. locality of the Kin-toan Beacon about the 3rd The question was asked if assistance was watch. The wind was S. W., and moderately needed, but the persons in the boat answered light. " The weather was ting, the stars were in the negative; and the Answer denied that visible, and the moon about 30 feet high. the said best sank in consequence of such in-When we passed the Light-ship the tide was juries, she being seen to float afterwards under ebb; when we arrived at the Beacon, flood sail a much longer time than it would have tide had commenced. We were then steering taken to run her ashore, Negligence on the part of the Manchu was denied. about N.W., and on the in-shore side. When we were some 10 li below the Beacon, noticed Phe Court suggested that the evidence to be a white light about 5 li ahead, and I therefore offered should be directed to the question ordered the mau at the wheel to exhibit an-whether the steamer was in fault. The ques-other light over our side, There was at the tion in regard to the measure of damages could time a red light on the mizen mast, the one be entered upon if necessary at a later which I ordered to be shown over the side was, common Ningpo lantern. We were not going un sel.
ied. "This was agreed to by the respective very fast. The lowdah was at the wheel.
Mr. Goorer proceeded to open the case, When I shewed the additional light, we yielded remarking upon the clauses of the petition the road, and went in shore, changing our seriatim, and setting forth fully the grounds course from N. W. to due W.; the steamer upon which the case was proceeding. Re-was then 2 or 3U distant. It was just os ferring to the answer, if his Honour would possible for the steamer to have seen us, a8 receive it, he would asi for the admission of a it was for us to see them. There were three letter his Honour had addressed to the Taotai, or four men on deck, when rise light, was firat in answer to one from him applying for redress. The letter, of which he had obtained a seen. We kept our eyes on the steamer all translation, set forth Capt. Spedding's answer.
Btraight upon us, we all shouted out, and the time. When we saw she was comin
He didadwit being at Woosung on the avenin yielded more and more. 'There was plenty of in question, and of a boat having brush time for the have gone either side against the' steamer, that in quence the of us, The jib-boom of the steamer first engines were stopped, but that no accident was Bruck the mainani; then the steamer, passed, found to have occurred, and if anything of along and struck the after part of the junk, the sort had taken place, it was in connection carrying away the mizen-mast, and making with some other steamer. In his opinion a hole in the side about 10 feet from the there were two important facts on the face of stern, and about 6 or 7 fect in length. We this letter,—first, that it was not alleged the Girectly called out to the steamer to save our accident occurred through any alteration of the lives. "I understood them to direct us to boat's course; and second, that the engines run her in shore. We lowered our sampan, were not stopped until after the accident and 9 of the crew had got into her, when the occurred. motion in the water caused by the steamer's Mr. Watsewntanrr objected to the admission propeller caused us to drift away from the of a statement made by a third party. jank, leaving the other two men on board, The The Court.—Mr. Cooper is now remarking Steamer was proceeding on her course. The upon his case; when he shall propose to put in this letter," the Court will decide whet after part of the junk filled with water, and she began to sink, We heard the two men it may be admitted. ery out to us to save them. We saw her go Mr. Coren held that, although his Honour down very soon after we drifted away. Wo had written or directed the writing of the remained in the sampan about one hour, letter, it was virtually the statement of Capt. before we were picked up by a Chinese Spedding, and while admitting the right oat." We were lanted at Woosuag. "We could of the Court to put an estimate on its value, two of the masts of the junk standing out he considered it important evidence on the of the water after she sunk. (We knew the points he had referred to. Mr. Cooper went steamer running into us was the Manchu, on to say that it was his desire to sug-One of the crew called out to us that they were gest to the Court that the trae cause of the going to Nagasaki. We saw no other steamer Collision was the absence of any look-out, and pass down that night, Mine was a three-ross carelessness on the part of the Aaichw. masted junk, and we wore under full sail. There were two principles of law which he have never heard of a fisherman's boat being proposed to sot up in this case, viz. (1)—In scraped, or brushed, by a steamer that night. the case of a collision between a steamer It is not true when we got close up to the and a sailing vessel, the master of the latter, steamer that we altered our helm s0 as to being under alarm, contributed to the colli cross her bows. I am positive two lights sion. The Court said: it was not his fault, were exhibited by us. Jo la customary for but the fault of the steamer to place him in steamers to keep in mid-channel, and the such a position. The steamer hal power to all boats to go in-shore, where the water pass ata greater distance, and the error of is shoal. T don't know that I could pavo the master of the sailing vessel was not his done anything further than what was done, to fault. (2id.) In the case of the Oregon v. have avoided the collision. ona, reported in 18 Howard's Reports, the The Court then adjourned. On resuming, steamer was held answerable, for going' into dangerous proximity to another Yesso), and the witness was cross-examined by Mr. Eames. He said:—I was super-cargo on for any damages'arising therefrom, the fault not being attributable to the other. After board; I always sailed on board in that capacity. E have frequently sailed from Dragon'a some further remarks relative to the claims Hill to Shavghai, and have often brought made on behalf of the friends of the drowned this kind of cargo. A counterfoil of the cor-men, Mr. Cooper proceeded to call evidence. tificate of the junk is kept at the port where CiENG-KEE-TOx, cautioned, said.—I pelon; it was registered. to Chinhae. Twas the owner of a junk calle the Chen-yen-yuen. I built her myself, at a deen made for it, but it had not been received. Bs. Coors explained that application had cost of $2,000, which included everything.
Wirsess—The light was put up by Wong-She was built five years ago at a place about ah-foo. *{A Chinese compass was here 70 W from Chinhae. 1 bought the material produced, the witness's account as to the and hired men to build her. have had pos-changing' of the course of the junk, as the session of her ever since she was built, and steamer come close to her, not being deemed had her registered, which has been renewed sufficiently clear. The expedient, however, every year. She was last registered at Shang-proved unsuccessful, witness eventually conhai, ini the year before last, 11th moon. The fessing his entire ignorance of the instrument, certificate was in the boat when she went saying the lowdah fully understood it, that down. Her registered uumberwas G44. Her being his business.] The steamer struck us size-Was—61 feet in length, 11 feet in width, at an angle of 45° on the starboard side. We and S$ feet in depth, Chinese measurement. asked where the steamer was bound to; the 800 piculs. {have always traded at Shang-Her carrying capacity was 80,000 catties—reply given was Nagasaki. The sampan broke adrift from the Junk through the to: hai, and other neighbouring ports. On the tion in the water caused by the steamer,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.