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TARE Marine REVIEW : 17 ARTICLE III. In the case provided for in Article II. and to provide for the case where the owner elects so far as concerns the ship, for the payment of its value at the end of the voyage, the valuation may at every time after the end of the voyage be judicially fixed by proceedings taken after due notice to the other side at the demand of the party who is the most diligent. ARTICLE LV. The owner has the right to substitute for the modes of obtaining freedom from liability provided in Article I., pay- ment of an indemnity limited for each voyage to 8/. per ton of the gross tonnage of his ship. ARTICLE V. If there exists a priority of lien upon the ship or upon the freight in favor of creditors in respect of whom limitation of liability is not admitted, the owner of the ship will be personally bound to make up in specie to the extent of the sums first collected by such creditors, the amount forming the limit of his liability. ARTICLE VI. The limitation of liability determined according to the preceding articles will be applicable to contracts concluded even by the owner of the ship so far as their execution lies within the legal duties of the master without his having cause to distinguish if the breach of these contracts is due to a member of the crew or not, the case of personal fault of the owner alone excepted. It applies also to damage caused to dykes, quays, and other fixed objects, as well as to the removal of wrecks. It is not admitted for the wages of mas- ter and crew. ArtIcLe VII. When, according to the laws applicable, the limitation of liability for damage to property is different from that for per- sonal injury, the present treaty shall only have effect so far as concerns damage to property. In the discussion which took place extending over two days the following amendments were moved and carried: To Article I.; "Where any damage or loss (1) is caused to any goods, merchandise, or any other things whatsoever on board of the ship, or (2) is caused by reason of the improper navigation of such ship to any other vessel or to any goods, merchandise, or other things whatsoever on board any other vessel, or (3) is caused to dykes, quays, or other fixed objects, the liability of the owner for these acts is for each voyage limited." 'The effect of this alteration will be to bring into the limitation of liability all damages which might be done by a ship either to her own cargo or to other ships and their cargoes, or to works on land, and to exclude from the limitation of liability debts incurred by the master in connection with contracts entered into for supply of provisions and stores, coals or other "matters depending upon contract. To add to Article IIL: "Providing when a vessel has been arrested in consequence of such damage, and was allowed to complete her voyage, at the end of that voyage her value should be taken as it was on the day of her arrest.' To amend Article VI.: "that the limitation of liability is not. applicable to cases of personal fault of the owner, and it is not admitted to the wages of the masters and crews." It was then proposed and unanimously agreed to "that the draft as now amended and subject to revision in accordance with the preceding resolutions be approved as an International Treaty, placing the shipowners and merchants of all coun- tries in the same position in regard to the extent of the ship- owners' liability." The latter part of the conference meeting was devoted toa discussion on "mortgages and liens on ships," the draft code relating to the matter being ultimately referred to a sub- committee, at the Saturday morning sitting. The business of the conference was subsequently brought to a close with expressions of thanks to all who had in any way assisted in making the assembly a success. * SIR WILLIAM WHITE ON SUBMARINE NAVIGATION Sir William White, late chief constructor to the British Admiralty lecturing in London on "Submarine Navigation" referred at length to the accident on the submarine A 8. He remarked that: "So far as can be seen at present, it appears as if the gaso- line engine, which in the case of the A 5 was the cause of the trouble, may have originated the accident which has proved so terribly destructive. -- "But I think the lesson to be learnt is simply this: The Navy never fails to meet all risks. The officers and men of the Navy did not draw back from serving in vessels of this type because of what happened in A 5. I do not think there would be any difficulty in finding officers and men to serve in the other vessels of that class. "Let us remember that it is impossible in warfare to gain any advantage, such as is to be gained by the use of sub- marines, without taking the risks; and let us remember that the men who take those risks willingly deserve the fairest con- sideration." With a cigar-shaped model before him of one of the latest British submarines, and the aid of lantern views, Sir Wil- liam was able to treat in an exceedingly interesting way of the problem of under-water navigation. He pointed out the ad- vantage which the British Navy held in having acquired the inventive skill of Mr. Holland, and he declared unhesitatingly that our latest submarines would bear comparison with any fleet. as For five years a continuous policy had been followed in the development of British submarines, all of which have been constructed at Barrow-in-Furness. Incidentally, Sir William complained that while information of an official and author- itative character relating to submarines was freely published in France and the United States, the British government adopted in this matter a policy of secrecy that was most unreasonable and unnecessary. "I cannot for the life of me understand," he declared, "what advantage there can be in keeping back from the public, who pay the bill, the dimen- sions and the cost of those vessels. Yet it has for years been the rule to give in the Navy estimates such information re- garding all other classes of warships." Sir William drew attention to the small reserve of buoy- ancy which a submarine possessed when in the diving condi- tion, amounting to only 300 lb. (equivalent to thirty gallons of water) in a vessel of 120 tons total weight. This was. ob- viously a narrow margin of safety, and necessitated careful and skilful management on the part of those in charge. A small change in the density of the water would speedily ob- literate the reserve of buoyancy and cause the vessel to sink if water were not expelled from the tanks. These reflections led Sir William to relate an adventure which he had on one occasion when experimenting with a sub- marine in Tilbury Docks. By some means the reserve of buoyancy suddenly disappeared. "In less than two seconds," he said, "we were at the bottom of the docks, with forty feet of water above us. We had gone down and plunged right into the bottom, one portion of the vessel being buried deep in the clay." At this the audience laughed right heartily. "It sounds very funny," commented Sir William, "but it was not an agreeable thing. We spent three quarters of an hour below, and it looked as if we were never coming up again."