The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-01-15 00:00:00

[JANUARY 15, 1856.

the Receiver to embody such a gratuitous notion in his letir
referred to above.
We think we have answered the points to which your 1or•d
ship specially directed notice.
We are advised, and submit to the consideration of
lordship, that this was not a case for the interference of Y,`,",
Receiver of Droits within the meaning of the 17th and
Vic. There was no dispute with the boatmen, or doubt tine
the identity of the property; and we feel confident, with tat;
additional facts and explanations, your lordship will ordell
£1 10s. to be refunded, and which we are advised has
improperly. received.
The 30s. is not worth the letters we have written and—Atilet
trouble we have imposed upon your lordship, but a Pie
principle is involved. And it is necessary to checkc er's
avaricious and grasping manner in which the Recel,' ertt
duties are discharged and made subservient to the Pg'
of fees without reference to the public good.
nkingyour lordis.hißpkAPixeLhEayv.emtohoeßhEo,nanonr:i to
or
&c., Againswthanking
(Signed)
To the Right Hon. Lord Stanley, of Alderley,
President of the Board of Trade, London.

Liverpool, December 17,11.00
GENTLEMEN,—I shall feel obliged by your returniet,..
form of claim filled up by the Master of the " Pied-nez' f°,!„ep
anchor and six fathoms of chain, reported by some boa'''.
and claimed by him.
fr I have doubts as to the articles being what he supposed, , l
circumstances which have since come to my knowledgend•
am inclined to think that he would never have agreed,t°,s
any salvors £l6 to procure property worth only, accorneri
his statement, £2O ; he was under the impressionhe
was from 30 to 40 fathoms of chain, and wanted to reduce
agreement he had made.
Now, the chain at si x fathoms must have gone about
windlass ; if so, the broken link and size of the chain
enable him to identify the property. elf
If he had any doubts, he should have satisfied himuot•
thoroughly on the point, instead of which he gave the
men an order to pay them £l6 out of the deposit. , th/
It was impossible, for the boatmen to know or idenvalv
property, and while searching they might have got hold log
anchor and supposed it to belong to the Pied-nez, and so'ort
as they got it claimed and received £l6, they would net
whether or not the right owner had claimed it.
It is not at all an unusual occurrence for boatmen to . 0$1•
fictitious claimants, in order that they may get paid thelfrj,
vage, which, when no agreement is made, is usually ouei'cr
When, however, a specific agreement is entered into,
not interfere.
The Marco Polo's anchor and chain, valued at £116;:1,
recovered for Ela, but it was buoyed, and never left sir',"
The "Pied-nez's " was not buoyed, therefore it •was all gut
work on the part of the boatmen.—l remain, gentle
your obedient servant,
HENRI' C. CHAPMAN, Receiver of W
Messrs. J. Bramley-Moore and Co.

al
Office of Committee of Privy Council for '
Marine Department, Jan. 12,
GENTLEMEN With reference to the question whichttla
arisen between yourselves and Mr. Chapman concernieg,oi
anchor of the " Pied-nez," I am directed by the Lords off
Committee of Privy Council for Trade to inform you, t:/;l
after considering the report of Commander Robertsoa,
it
the evidence taken by him, my Lords have determined
the' fees paid by you to Mr. Chapman ought not to have 'to
charged, and they have accordingly directed him tete
them.—l am, gentlemen, your obedient servant, 110
Messrs. Brandey-Moore and C 0.,. T. IL Fa°
Liverpool.
Liverpool), January 14th, I,26„e're
eipLonn,— ordWe have the honour tb acknowledge
ct of your lship's letter of the I.2th• instant, iniervvpi
ror
us that,..in- the dispute between the receiver of droits ana
selves, my lords of the Committee of Privy Council for no
had determined that the fees levied by the receiver of
ought not to•have been charged ; and that their lordshiPs
accordingl directed him to return them.
We beg to-thank your lordship for the' attention Pald 4
04
this case, and, to assure you that the decisien- is in barl,o
with the universal feeling of all shipowners and merelr
amongst whom it has been freely canvassed and disc-a-000'd,,
The conduct of this office has long required the p-r°l3;
fork of reform striking into it, and, on the eenservative pu
ciple of removing all: proved abuses, we hope this may lellpt•
a further and more searching investigation of itimanage;!;.tes
Instead of theTeeeiver being the dignified judiCial at'
between parties,the office is almost reduced to aancre que
of fees.
cler
It is matter of .notoriety, that a systematic platrof pill!
ing ships is carried, on in the Mersey which this, Ate le
to put down and swppreser. it was the intention of- the 'to
chant Shipping Aet to-prated the shipowner alike- from, rto
exactions of boatmen-or tbe- receiver of droits, best; am°
nately, their interestre•reu in the same channel.
It is no uncommo:.Poecurrence for the buoys of anelloo
be cut away, and ti anchors afterwards picked ;and '„gil
passed through the sweating process of boatmen's saliage.-
reee;eer's fees. bot
We will now stateaease-iuwhieh we had some interee'_,'
which only came to euv knowledge on Saturday last,.otbe"Dip
we should have brought it under the notice of your-love'
sooner.
fro,
The master of the Raritan,. on his outward voyage mob
LiVerpool to Quebec,iivAugust last, picked up a boat ortlie
ho found floating on the high seas. The master reporteublit
eiremnstance on his arrival at Quebec, and advertised lierLt,
no one interfered, and lib,returned to Liverpool with thee
The master and the mate were not on good terms, 0,44
mate, by way, as lie supposed,, of getting the master Zit,
trouble, reported the circumstance of the flotsam to 'le,
Chapman, who immediately summoned the master aikhoff
mantled the boat. The-master- refused to deliver up thene
unless freight were paiet-to and: from Quebec, and, as the:id
mand for freight exceeds 4 the value of the boat, the Re 06,41
". Well, never mind-, keep the- boat, pay the feesr;o4
there's an end of it." Thirty-five shillings fees were paid'
here- the matter dropped,-
This is the statement ci the-master of the "Raritan" 00
tb us-this day.
If' we may venture to suggest a beneficial reform i° 001,1
department which would, be universally approved, it vi,tp
be- terelieve the present Receiver of Droits from his dutiev:j
transfer them to some independent person in the Custointrie
the fees no longer to go hr,private benefit, but into the P.
&matt seamen's fund.
The proneness of the publiis-to find, fault with the
spited
governments compels us, industioe to my Lords of the 1*;"
Ciumeil for Trade, and for-the satisfaction of the meraw
community, to publish thiecorrespondence.
Wehave the honour to lia;.-my Lord,
Your Lordship's mostobedient and humble serventi/
J-BnoatLET-Moonn and
Telthe Right Honourable the-Lord Stanley, of Alderlef'"
President of the Board of Trade, &c., &c., &c.

Ins reference to the above case, the Times say
"A. dispute is pending in. Liverpool, of some ill' 01
ante to the shipping' interest. The lawful exercise p_d
powers. of Redeivers of they Droits, of the Admiralty ,itis
many occasions been doubtodsland a question has arise!' y
that flinctionary at Livevpool„ under the following circes:l
stanees, the point to be solved. being the perplexing on et
what is a wreck within the meaning of the 17th and 11'
,tlle
Victoria in the Merchant Marine. Act vessel naniee'
Piesh.nea was dropping hen-anchor,, to wait the tide ford
_.nrt'
ing, when the chain parted._ Boatmen from shore were ';0
ins, at the time on board, and the master contracted 01,
therm to lift and restore- the. chain and anchor
Upon their being raised and brought alongside, the oe—ria
of Droits prohibited their delisery except upon an fee
signed. by him, and a eoppsit of £l6, with £1 10s-
The. deposit and fees were. paid, and the chain and `,lti
restored, but no order„ it is said, was ever signe"a
the. receiver. The ownership wua never disputed, Pi!. t.°
questions contested are;7—iicss this a wreck, and iv":',ls
receiver entitled to any fa..? Ma. M'Culloch says a %%le Dee
usually understood to wain; any ship or goods driven 3s ,
or found floating .6 sea in: an unmanageable condition
that, according to the legal:sense of the word in En'lrios'
is. assumed a wreck' mustliave come to land,. since,viii;oo,l
sca it is distinguished by.the barbarous appellations of
jetsam, and lagan In the.-present case it is insisted
these terms are applicable, as the cable parted in the eg!
and. not at sea or in a roadstead, and may be said never:",
moment to have been out of cognizance. The Board 00 501
hare considered the matter of sufficient consequent-o'l-'oc*
down an officer to incistire specially into the circumstLoo
and the decision is locked.for with interest both by merPTri, o,e
and underwriters. Many complaints are made of the.k-0,
Act, in consequence cf the vexatious exactions for wyieh
used as a pretext. The government, however, are advnobi
to have shown every- disposition to investigate aid:
these evils.