Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-05-01
A CITY'S WHARFAGERATE
PARKERSBURG CHARGES Up
HELD By SUPREME COURT.

WASHINGTON, April 3O.-A decision
was rendered by the Supreme Court of
the United States to-day, in the case Of
the Parkersburg aud Ohio River Trans
portatiOn Company, appellant against the
. city OF Parkersburg, W. Va, and others.
This case is one of considerable i'm
pOrtance to all cities and towns along
navigable rivers. The city of Parkers-
burg built wharf and established cer-
tain rates Of wharfage which the Parkers-
I burg and OHIO Transportation COMPANY
I complained Of as eXtOrtionate and
as being merely preteXt
for levylng duty Of tonnage. The COM
Pahy thereupon filed bill in the Circuit
/ court OF the United States to restrain
! proceedings in a suit brought in the State
! court Tor the purpose of collecting
/ wharfage, and to have the wharfage Ordi-
nance declared Illegal and void This
court holds: First, that as the ordinance
on Its face imposed charges for
/ wharfage only, though these charges
/ might be unreasonable and eXOrbitant.
the court Will not entertain any averment
/ that they were in reality not intended as
/ wharfage, hut rs duty Of tonnage. An
I inquiry INTO ~ secret intent Of body
| which imposes charges is inadmissible.
! Whether it is one thing or the other must
] ~ NNtNiA Aiilictl ~ Alit ordnance or rHOliI9-
/ tiOn itself.
Second. That wharfage is a charge for
the use OF a wharf made by the owner
/ thereof by way of rent or compensation.
/ Whlle duty of tonnage is tax or duty
/ charged for the privilege of entering or
! trading or lying in the port or harbOr.
and can he imposed only by the gOvan-
ment.
Third. That whether the charge is
wharfage or duty of tonnage is question
/ not OF intent but of fact aud law,
! Fourth. That although whaFyeS are re-
lated to commerce and navigation as aids
and conVeniences, vet, being local i'm their
nature and requiring special regulations
/ Tor particular places. the control of
/ them, in the absence of Congressional
legislation on the subject, belongs to the
/ states in which they are situated
tItth. That suit will not lie in the
! Circuit Court of the United States for re-
lief against eNOrbitant wharfage as
/ case arising under the Constitution or
/ laws of the United States, even though it
| be alleged that the wharfage was intend
I ed as duty of tonnage.
I Ihe decree of the court below in favor
| of the city of Parkersburg is therefore at
| tirmed. The opinion by Justice Bradley,
! Justice Harlan dissenting.
n decision was also rendered to-day in
the admiralty case of w. III. Ellis master,
and others against the Atlantic Mutual
Insurance Company of New York and
others, on appeal from the Circuit Court
of the United States for the district of
Louisiana. This was a suit in admiralty
brought by the master and owners of the
ship Tornado to recover freight money on
cargo which was burned and sunk
in said ship before the latter had started
on her voyage. The court holds that
where vessel, before she breaks ground
| for her voyage, is so injured by fire that
the cost of her repairs would exceed her
value when repaired, and she is rendered
unseawOrthy and incapable of earning
freight, a contract for the TRANSFORMATION
of cotton by her to Il foreign port, evi-
denced by a bill Of lading containing the
usual and customary exceptions, and pro-
viding for the payment Of the freight
money on the delivery of the cotton at
that port is thereby dissolved; so that a
shipper is not liable for any part of the
freight money, nor for any expenses paid
by the vessel for compreSSlng and storing
the cotton. The decree Of the Circuit
Court is affirmed with costs. The opinion
is by Justice Blatchford.
A decision was also rendered bV the
court to-day in another admiralty case,
that of VIM. p. Sinclair ct al. against
Beatrice NJ. Cooper, n widow, ct al. This
case comes here by appeal from the Circuit
Court of the United States for the district |
of Louisiana. The facts of this case and
the decision of the court are as follows:
On the 9th day Of April. 1879 the ship
COnemara was towed by steam tug
down the Mississippi river from New
Orleans on her way to Liverpool. She
came to anchor in the Yening and the tug
was lashed to her side. In the night,
while most OF the ships
officers were drunk, passenger on board
other was awakened by a smell of smoke
arising from fire which had broken out
in her cargo. He gave an alarm to the
officers and crews Of the ship and
of the tug, and he and the
officers, crew and two passengers
of the tug working together, and by means
of a steam pump and hose upon the tug,
and unaided by the officers and crew of
the ship, put out the fire in 20 minutes.
The court holds First that this was sal
wage service, and that the passengers on
board a ship, as well as the owner
officers, crew and passengers
of the tug were entitled to n share in the
salvage money.
Second. That the decree of salvage bv
the Circuit Court in admiralty is not to
be altered by this court for excess in the
amount awarded, unless the excess is
so great that, upon any reasonable view
of the facts found, the award cannot be
justified by the rules of the law applica-
/ BILE to the case. The award below was
$14, 19S, or 6 per cent. of the value of the
ship and cargo. The decree Is affirmed,
with costs. The opinion is by Justice
Gray.
President Arthur has not yet signed the
commission of De b. Randolph Keim as
Chief Examiner under the Civil Service
Commission. 1t is stated at the White
House today, however, that the appoint
ment will not be withdrawn unless the
commission express desire to that effect
1t was made upon their recommendation.
I nd will TAroha hlNr Sfann 1In1aGG fbaxr Gl
that it be withdrawn. This appointment
has ELECTED a great deal of unfavOrable
newspaper comment.
The general impression is that no APP
pOintment of Commissioner of Internal
/ Revenue to succeed Gen. Raum will be
made at present. Deputy Commissioner
Rogers is acting to-day and will continue
in that capacity until an appointment is
made.
During the month of April % new ma
tiOnal banks were authorized to begin
business, the majority in Western and
Northwestern States and the Territories.
1t is estimated that the decrease in the
public debt for the month of April
amounts to about $3,i00,00O. The small
ness of this amount in comparison with
the average monthly reduction for years
past is accounted for by heavy payments
on account of pensions. These payments
amounted to about $10.00O.000.
huN lCtS ICCtlhtu Nv Alit ANdiiOilol DbdiO
of Health Indicate that New Orleans is
| the only part of the United States where
smallpox now prevails to any extent
The disease is reported to be raging in
India, CeylOn, along the coast of Africa,
from Morocco to the Cape of Good Hope,
| and at many ports in South America. 1t
| is also said to have attacked the British
! troops at Gibraltar.
During the last session Congress en-
! acted a law confirming all bona fide home
| stead entries heretofore made upon the
mineral lands in the State of Alabama,
/ known as the Morgan law. The effect of
/ this law is to exempt from the operation
I of the mineral laws of the United States
mineral lands in the State of Alabama.
/ Secretary Teller decides that under this
1 law only those homestead entries which
/ were actually made at the local land
1 offices prior TO the date upon which the
/ act was approved, March 3, 1889, can be
/ patented, and that settlements made upon
| these lands for which entries were not re-
| corded prior to the date of the approval of
| the act, do not come within its provisions.
Weather Indications.
| OFFICE CHIEF SIGNAL OBSERVER,