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EMPEROR FRANCIS JOSEPH I.
DIAMOND JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS AT
HONGKONG.
The Austro-Hungarian community on Dec. 2 loyally celebrated the Diamond Jubilee of the reign of H. M. Francis Joseph I. Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary. The consulate was closed for the day, the Consul and Mrs. Von Wiser holding an At Home at their residence The Firs." Magazine Gap Road, in honour of the occasion. Despite rather in- clement weather there was large attendang of the leading residents of the community
tender to
their folielt fins including
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His Excellency the ter Captain Simsou, A.D.C., and Mr. Brackenbury (Private Secretary), H. E. General Broadwood, the Officer Commanding the Forces. II. E. Vice Admiral Sir Hedworth Lambton and his A.D.C., Flag Lieutenant H. B. Mullenes. Commodore Mrs. and Miss Lyon. Bishop Pozzoni, the Consuls representing the various nations of the world, Hon. Mr. F. H. and Mrs. May, Hon. Mr. W. and Mrs. Chatham, Hon. Mr. E. A. Howett, Sir Francis Piggot, Capt Blanchflower, Capt. G. C. Heatheate. Liontin ant Colonel Bayard, Commanding Officer of the, Buffs, Major Percy J. Probyn of the Royal Army Medical Corps, "he Offers Moss of the Royal Garris a Artillery. The Officer. 3% ef the Buffs, The Commanding officers of the German cruisers and gunboat Arema and Tsingtao, with their Officers Messes, The Right, Reverend Pater Augustin Placzek, The Rev. Pastor and Mrs. Joqui e
Customs
Harris of the Imperial Chin Kowloon, The Austro-Hungariah Colony and many civilians.
Flags adorned the grounds of the residency and in the hall was a larg portrait of His Majesty wreathed with evergreens. The Band of The Buffs discoursed an excellent programme of music which included the following numbers:-
March Under the Double Negle.” Over ure" Tannhau er
Vals: “Blue Danub
Reminiscences
Polonaise
Selection".
Faust"
Wagner
Verdi. A'fon
Chapin.
Goon .
Entr'acte, fron 3 d Act Lohengrin.
March och Habsburg" Kaps. The Austro-Hungarian National Anthem brought the proceedings to a cluse.
The Consul subsequently conveyed the con- gratulations of H. E. the Governor to Vienna by telegram.
The Austro-Hungarian community later dined with Mr. Kitzmantl, who is president of the Austro-Hungarian Benevolent Society in the Colony.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
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SUPREME COURT.
Wednesday, 2nd December.
IN SUMMARY JURISDICTION.
BEFORE MR. H. H. J. GOMPERTZ (ACTING PUISNE JUDGE).
CLAIM AGAINST A SHIPPING COMPANY,
Indo-China Steam
{
[December 7, 1908
INTERESTING SHIPPING CASE AT SHANGHAI,
In the Supreme Court of Shanghai on the 25th ult. Mr. Justice Bourne delivered the following judgment in "The British Ameri- can Tobacco Co v the Canadian Pacific Railway Co" :-
This case was tried by me with a Jury on October, 29th and 30th, 1908. The undisputed facts are that the "Empress of China" sank at her moorings at Vencouver on October 23rd, 1907 between 5.30 and 6 p.m. in consequence of the condenser discharge-pipe being negli- gently left open. The plaintiffs claim against the shipowners on an implied warranty of seaworthiness, i.e. that the ship 'should be fit to receive the plaintiffs' cargo of cigarettes.
I accept the report attached to Mr. Sayer's affidavit of November 10, 1908 as a correct
Yan Wan, the lawful husband of Yun Yau Shi deceased, and Yun Ah Mai, the infant daughter of both, brought an action against the Navigation Company, Limitel to remor $1000 damages for loss sav sitt hy die deithe «said Yan Yan Shi¦ fansed by negligence of the defendants servants navigating the s.s. Loong Sang in the harbour of Hongkong on 19th June, 1908, whereby a Collision took place between the Loong Sang and record of my summing up and the findings the licensed junk No. 2566 on which the said may be summarized as follows: Yun Yau Shi was a passenger. The deceased That the ship was seaworthy at about 11 had been in receipt of from $12 to $15 per month a.m. at about which time the shipping of the as wages and had contributed up to the time of cigarettes was commenced, her death towards the household expenses of the plaintiff and had paid solely for the maintenance Mr Otto Kong and education of Yun Ah Mui. Sing appeared for the plaintiff and Mr. Hastings appeared for the defendants.
Mr. Otto Kour Sing state; th... Dis clerk who Lad taken the statements was ill ani ho was unable to proceed with the case. He therefore asked for an adjournment.
This was acceded to.
Friday, 4th December.
IN BANKRUPTCY JURISDICTION.
Bey en cas CiIEF JUSTICE (SIR F.
PRIGOTT.)
RUCTIVESG ORDER RESCINDED. He the Chong Wing Bank. Mr. E. J. Grist made application for an order rsscinding the receiving order. A report was made by the
imminent danger at 3.30 p.m. when the shipping 2-That the ship was unseaworthy and in
of the cigarettes was about finished, but the Jury cannot say that the last case of cigarettes was
on board.
3. Ina, tacy cana sy whether the ship became unseaworthy before the completion of the shipping of the cigarettes: they do not understand enough about ships to say the moment when she became unseaworthy.
How ought judgment to be entered on these findings ?
}
Mr. Macleod claimed that judgement ought to be entered for the defendants because they had provided a ship which was fit to receive cargo when the act of shipping the cigarettes began or in the alternatige because the burden of proof was on the plaintiffs and had not been discharged. This case differs from the Carron Park (15 P. D. p. 203) in that here the shipping of the cigarettes went on continuously up to an hour at about which the Cury find the ship to have been unseaworthy, while in the Carron Park the shipping ceased at a time when the
Official Receiver and certain advertisements were inserted in newspapers. Only one creditor filed an objection to the receiving order beingship was seaworthy, the act of negligence objected and he Was represented by Mr. Hastings who now consented.¿
The Official Receiver offered no objection and the application was granted.
S. E. ALLANA'S AFFAIRS, Re S. M. E. Allana. Mr. J. Scott Harston appeared in support of the petition and asked that the Two
receiving orders should be consolidated.
Mr. Hastings, who appeared for the debtor said there was already a reviving order filed against this man, and he submitted his Lord- THE AMERICAN FLEET AT MANILA ship had no power to consolidate the reciving
NO SHORE LEAVE FOR THE MEN.
Admiral Sperry in a letter to the Governor- General of the Philippines last week said he had decided not to give the men of the fleet shore leave. Among other reasons for the decision are the following:-The daily reports of the bureau of health show that there is still cholera in the city: the fact that some of the cases found are dead or in an advanced stage of the disease indicates that there has been conceal ment; the house to house inspection has been abandoned; Commissioner Worcester's report shows that Manila is in an unsanitary condition: the absence of quarantine against the provinces makes it possible for cholera to be reintroduced into the city any day; the fleet's cruise to the United States lies through the tropics and were shore liberty granted here, in addition to the thousands of men in the command, the fleet would face the danger of quarantine at Colombo and other ports of call on the cruise.
The Cablenews comments on this as follows : -- The letter of Admiral Sperry in which he states his definite refusal to allow the crews of the -ships shore liberty is a severo rebuff to the generous hospitality prepared by the citizens of Manila for the men of the Battleship Fleet. His refusal does not seem to us founded on
of The example
the Philippine Squadron seems to disprove the Admiral's contention of danger. We feel so koonly on this subject that we hesitate to write upon it. It is better perhaps to leave unsaid what one
reason.
might say.
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orders. Ons petition was presented by the debtor against himself and the other presented by the petitioning creditor.
Wich
His Lordship thought it was a case where the receiving orders should be consolidated, as the document was not to be attacked.
Eventually it was agreed that the orders should be consolidated.
AHMET RUMJAHN'S INSOLVENCY.
Re Ahmet Rumjahu. Mr. F. P. Hett. appearing for the Hongkong and Manila Yaon Shang Exchange and Trading Company, said they had been in treaty with the debtor hat had not been able to arrive at a settlement. The net of bankruptcy was notice of suspension of payment expressed in letters and also verhdly. The assets were estimated at $300,000 and the liabilities at $285.000. This would indicate that he was solvent. The estate consists of real property in this Colony and the debtor attributes his position simply to depreciation of real property in the Colony. debtor must file an estimate of his assets, but he is clearly insolvent as if the property were sold it would fetch very little.
The adjudication order was granted,
A
Singapore has up to this year had the un- enviable distinction among Scotsmen of being the one place in the East without a St. Andrew's Society, but a very largely attended meeting of Scotsmen there last week decided to form one, and unanimously elected Captain Sir Arthur Young, K.C.M.G., as President.
on
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occurring during the night, after an ascertained quantity of the cargo in question had been shipped. The Judge (Sir James Hannen 1.) said if the act of negligence-did not render the vessel unseaworthy for the reception of this cargo which had already been loaded board the vessel when (she was) in good condition.". I can find no authority for the propositition of defendnuts' counsel that the shipowner's duty is fulfilled when he has provided a ship fit to receive the cargo at the Commencement of the act of loading that cargo Cohur. Davidson (2. Q. B. D. p. 460). regard to the burden of proof the Jury have not answered the material question, what proportion of the cigarettes had already been shipped when the vessel became unseaworthy ?-See end of Lord Selborne's judgement in Steel v. State Line 8.8. Co. 3 A. Cap. 16. For these reasons I think judgement cannot be entered for the
defendants.
In
And judgement could only be entered for the plaintiffs if the jury having found the ship to be seaworthy at 11 a.m., had
further found that at some time before the shipping of the cigarettes was finished the ship had become unseaworthy, and if the law was that such unseaworthiness occurring before a continuous shipment had been completed related back to the commence- ment of the act of shipping and rendered the ship unseaworthy ab initio. But the jury did not so find: nor does that seem to be the law. (Hannen v. Woodınan 3 Taunton p. 301. Mo- Fadden v. Blue Star Line 1905 C, B. D. vol. 1. P. 697),
The law as I gather it from these cases, seems to be that the ship must be seaworthy for the reception of each package as it is carried on board. But the jury say they cannot find the moment when the ship became unseaworthy nor whether the last case of cigarettes was or was not on board at 3.30 p.m. when they do find the ship to have been unseaworthy.
I come to the conclusion then that on these
findings no judgement can be entered either way (Steel v. State Line 8. 8. Co. 3 A. C. p. 72.)
There is no order as to cósts.
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