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THE MARINE RECORD. B MARITIME LAW. Ins. Co., Limited, v. New York & C. Mail S. S. Co., et al. New York & C Mail S. S. Co. et al. v. Reliance Marine Marine Ins. Co., Limited. Circuit Court of Appeals, Second Circuit. ex6Q0.) . - General Average—Efforts to Distinguish Fire. Increased damage by smoke, caused by attempts to ex- inguish the fire by turning steam into the hold, is no ndation for a general average claim, where there is no tans of determining what part of the damage was due to he ordinary action of smoke, and what to the operation i the steam and smoke. 70 Fed. 262, affirmed. Same—Separation of Interests—Scuttling. Where, just before scuttling to extinguish fire, part of he cargo is discharged into lighters, and forwarded by nother vessel, the separation may be considered to have yeen, not merely for the safety of the cargo discharged, ut also for the benefit of the ship and the remainder of le cargo, and the cargo so forwarded is chargeable for fs proportionate share of the expense of salving the ship d the remainder of the cargo. 70 Fed. 262, affirmed. Appeal from the District Court of the United States for the Southern District of New York. The Seneca, an iron vessel 279 feet in length, and be- longing to the New York & Cuba Mail Steamship Co., led from Havana for New York, on Saturday evening, December 23, 1893, with a cargo consisting mainly of hemp, tobacco, and hides. The vessel has a lower hold, a lower between-decks, and an upper between-decks. A passageway or bunker on each side of the engine room in the upper between-decks extends beyond the engine room, fore and aft, to wooden bulkheads, each of them being about 12 feet from the engine room. They are not watertight. A door in each swings on hinges from above. Upon this voyage, these passageways were closely stowed - with hemp in bales, some of which were compressed, and - some were not compressed. Above this hemp were two ventilators, opening upon the deck, each 14 inches in diameter. 1,658 bales of tobacco were stowed in the after upper between-decks. Of these bales, 221, belonging to Mr. Fortier, of Montreal, were stowed against the wooden bulkheads. About 1 o’clock, a, m., on December 24th, fire was discovered in the hemp in the lower between-decks. Streams of water were turned from the upper between- decks upon the fire for two or three hours, until the men who were at work near the fire were driven back by the heat and smoke. The hatches upon the upper deck were then battened down, and at 3:20 a. m., the vessel started for Havana, when steam was turned into the lower be- tween-decks through perforated pipes two inches in diam- eter, at a boiler pressure of 100 pounds to the square inch, for the purpose of deadening the fire, and was continually discharged upon it until aboupt 10:30 a. m., when the ship reached Havana, and the furnace fires were drawn. The efforts of steam fire engines to extinguish the fire by water proved unavailing, and at 50’clock p. m. the captain opened the after hatches, discharged as much cargo as possible into lighters, and then scuttled the ship. For- tier’s tobacco, with that of other shippers, was sent to New York in other vessels of the steamship company. The Seneca was raised, and went, with the cargo remaining on board, to New York. Upon the arrival of these sev- eral portions of the cargo general average bonds were ex- —ecuted, and thereafter an adjustment of general average was made. The adjusters were of the opinion that the amount to be made good to Fortier for loss on his tobac- co was the sum of $2,987.55, such being the amount of damage by water to 64 bales, the adjusters being satisfied that this water damage was received on the lighters as a necessary consequence of the exposure incident to removal preliminary to scuttling. He was also required to con- tribute upon the value of his whole shipment, which left him owing $934.57 upon the final statement. The tobacco was sold at auction, and realized, over and above expenses, the sum of $4,393.60, making a net loss of $12,766.64. Upon his policy of insurance he received $8,000, and assigned the insurers his claim against the other interests in gen- eral average. He insisted that the net loss above $2,987.55 was attributable to injury caused to the tobacco by the steam before the ship reached Havana, and that this part Mf his loss should be allowed in general average. The ad- ustment also compelled Fortier’s tobacco to contribute towards the expenses of raising the submerged ship and cargo. The libel of the insurance company was brought © obtain the difference which would result from a proper adjustment of general average. The libel of the steamship ¢ompany was brought to compel the payment of the liance Marine December 8, amount found to be due from Fortier by the adjustment as made. The District Court dismissed the libel of the in- surance company, and decreed in favor of the steamship company. 70 Fed. 262. or oo CAPT. GEORGE R. HOWES. Capt. George R. Howes was born of English parents and came with them to this country when about four years old. His parents dying when he was about sixteen years old, he was taken care of by a neighbor, where he remained until he was ten years old, when he struck out for him- self to learn the cooper trade in a small town called Mau- mee, where he remained until he married his present wife, who survives him. Leaving Maumee, he went to Detroit and entered the employ of J. C. Clark, as wheels- man, remaining there until he worked himself up to the postition of master and sailed the steamer “Riverside,” plying between Detroit and Amherstburg. Leaving that employ he engaged with S. H. Davis & Co. to sail the fish tug Grayling and in her at Alpena. After fishing for about two years he entered the employ of the Thunder Bay River Boom Co. and sailed the boom tug for about two years, when he was engaged by Alger, Smith & Co. (THE LATE) CAPT. GEORGE R. HOWES. to sail their rafting tug, J. W. Westcott, where he remain- ed fourteen years. About a year ago, having saved some money, he gave up sailing and purchased a farm near Carlton in Michigan, where he met his death. He was a members of the Masters’ Association, the A. O. U. W., and K. O. T. M. He was highly respected and leaves a host of friends who deplore his untimely death. ——— AMERICAN HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION. AGREEMENT OF 1817—REDUCTION OF NAVAL FORCES UPON THE AMERICAN LAKES. By J. M. Callahan, of Johns Hopkins University. c (Continued. ) Mutual surrender of the frontier forts was not made at once after the war. There were supicions on both sides of insincerity. Dallas wrote Monroe on May 28 that “we must be on our guard.” Hostility of the Indians had not ceased. Some of the British officers had persisted in influencing them. It was found, however, that they showed a disposition for peace as fast as the British gave up the posts. By the commercial convention of 1815, in the interest of peace, the United States refused to allow the British to trade with the Indians in United States ter- ritory, though it cost her the use of the St. Lawrence River. Troubles were also arising concerning jurisdiction. The Americans complained of the conduct of the British ‘offi- cers in pursuing deserters into American territory, and in otherwise violating international usage. On the other hand, the British complained of the attempts of a United States officer on the frontier to seduce soldiers from the British service. The authorities at Washington saw a greater probable source of future trouble in the evident intention of the British to increase their naval force upon the lakes. They had built several new vessels just before the peace, and the London newspapers in August, 1815, had announced that the British cabinet had determined not only to main- tain, but also to augment, the armed naval force on the lakes. The fact that an American merchant vessel upon Lake Erie, where the Americans had been dismantling their vessels, had been fired upon by a British armed ves- sel, will show that there was reason for fearing the re- sults of further augmentation. wo On July 22, when taking measures to prevent a United’ State officer from inuencing soldiers to desert from the British service, Mr. Monroe, in a letter to Mr. Baker (who was temporarily representing the British Government at. Washington), seems to intimate the necessity of a recipro- cal stipulation in regard to naval forces. At a later date, probably in November, Mr. Monroe had a conversation with Mr. Baker concerning the subject. On December 6, after reporting to Mr. Baker an inquiry into the case of Lieut. Vidal, who had been fined for riot while pursuing offenders into American territory, Mr. Monroe wrote: “This Government is sincerely desirous, as I had the honor to intimate to you in a late interview, to make such arrangements relating to the force to be kept on the lakes, and to the intercourse between the United States and the British provinces in that quarter, as will effectual- ly prevent these evils.” John Quincy Adams was at this time minister of the : United States to London. The information which he had ee sent on August 29 as to the intentions of the British Goy- ~ ernment to increase its force on the lakes was confirmed by later news from that quarter, which showed that prelimin- ary measures had been taken. This arming appeared fool- ish, for it is hardly likely that England could have com- peted with the United States on the lakes if a poli¢y was adopted of having rival fleets to parade those waters in ce time of peace. But the United States, anxious for the preservation of peace, was disposed to disarm there. Sec- retary Monroe wrote to Mr. Adams November 16: “It is evident, if each party augments its force there with a view to obtain the ascendency over the other, that vast expense will be incurred and the danger of collisions augmented in like degree. The President is sincerely de- sirous to prevent an evil which it is presumed is equally to be deprecated by both Governments. He therefore. authorizes you to propose to the British Government such an arrangement respecting the naval force to be kept on the lakes by both Governments as will demonstrate their. pacific policy and secure their peace. He is willing to confine it, on each side; to a certain moderate number of armed vessels, and the smaller the number the more agree- able to him; or to abstain altogether from an armed force beyond that used for revenue. You will bring this sub- ject under the consideration of the British Government immediately after the receipt of this letter.’ Sak In accordance. with these instructions, Mr. Adams brought the matter to the attention of Lord Castlereagh on anuary 25, 1816. He called his attention to the fact that Canada had been the source of disagreement in the past, and that it might be a source of “great and frequent animosities hereafter, unless guarded against by the two Governments.” The proposal of Adams to disarm on the lakes was well received by Lord Castlereagh. He said that everything beyond what was necessary to prevent smuggling was “calculated only to produce mischief;” but he was cautious, and was inclined to look further than to the pacific disposition which was manifested. As at Ghent, he still thought that the lakes should belong to one party,thereby rendering armamentsunnecessary. Look- ing with suspicion to the advantage of the Americans in being near to the lakes, he still thought that England, as the weaker party, should have controlled them, and that in order to preserve peace they should have been made a ¢ “large and wide natural separation between the two terri- tories.” He feared that an engagement for mutual dis- armament would give the United States too much advan- tage in case of war. To this Adams replied that the en- gagement would be in favor of Great Britain; that the United States would have her hands tied until the moment of actual war; and that it was impossible for war to arisé suddenly without a condition of things which would give Great Britain sufficient time to get ready to build areaconctit on the lakes at the same time with the United tates. (To be continued.)