RUSTED WIRE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 238, 8 October 1936, Page 11

RUSTED WIRE.

CLAIM FOR DAMAGES. SHIPPING COMPANY'S APPEAL. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Wednesday. In March last year the steamer Canadian Highlander brought from Halifax to Wellington a shipment of about 100 tons of bright nail wire, but when it was landed here the wire was all more or less rusted, and for this reason a very large quantity was unusable. The Auto Machine Company brought a Supreme Court action for £G6l against the Canadian Government Merchant Marine, as owners of the ship, to recoup them for the damage to the wire. The Chief Justice, Sir Michael Myers, held that the rust or corrosion was one of the matters for which by the bill of lading the shipping company was excused from liability, unless it were shown that there was negligence on their part which really caused the damage. He considered, however, that proper care had not been exercised in the stowage of the wire and that the Auto Machine Company was entitled to recover damages, the exact amount of which was to be assessed later. From this judgment the Canadian Government Merchant Marine is appealing. After the hearing of legal argument the case wae adjourned.