His Lordship, in giving his decision, said—As these tivo cases practically involve exactly the same questions I propose to take them together. There is always a great difficulty in determining anything where the parties are at direct variance in their evidence, and more especially, there is difficulty when one feels convinced that both of them think they are relating facts exactly as they occurred. I have therefore had considerable difficulty in making up my mind with regard to these cases. There appears to be no doubt, nor is there any dispute, as to the engagement of both Captain Fuhlers and Mr. Mackenzie, and there appears to be no doubt as to the rate at which they were to be paid. The first question that arises is whether, besides the agreement of hiring, there was at any time of the hiring a collateral agreement, as it were, by the plaintiffs in these cases not to sue for, and not to consider themselves entitled to payment of, these wages until a certain dispute between the defendants and the Chinese Government was concluded. think that some such understanding a3 that arose between the plaintiffs and the defendants, at some time between the hiring and the bringing of this suit, but Thave come to the conclusion upon all the probabilities and upon all the evidence that this was not inreality a collateral agree ment between them. There may have been an understanding that these claims should not be pressed, but I do not believe that either Captain Fuhlers or Mr. Mackenzie ever, with their eyes open and. intentionally, entered into an agreement that they not to recover any of their wages until some indefinite time when a dispute, which neither of them could foresee the conclusion of, was settled. I have therefore come to the conclusion that both the plaintifis in these cases are entitled to recover their wages now. For very much the same reasons as have led mo to that conclusion, I am of opinion that Messrs. Bennertz and Ca. never absolutely made a promise to pay them the commissions. I think that just as it is very unlikely that Captain Fuhlors and Mr. Mackenzie agreed to wait for an indefinite time, so it is very unlikely Bennertz & Ca. for no particular reason, agreed to pay at som mn. What they apparently did agree to do was to pay it iT thay recovered it from the Chinese." have worked the matter out, and I believe my figures to be correct, and there will be judgment in the case of Fublers v. Bennertz for his wages, without the commission, and I make that $1,024.50, with costs. In the case of Mackenzie v. Bennertz, I also intend to give judgment for the wages, without the commission, and I work that out to be $424, with costs.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.