The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1900-08-11
THE LAW ABOUT SALVAGE
WHEN IT CAN BE CLAIMED AND
HOW MUCH.
The Dsater to the Dunreggan and the
Libel Filed Against Her Brings the
Subject Up.

The disaster to the Dunreggan and
the care her master took to have an
understanding about salvage before any
assistance was accepted has caused
great deal of talk about the law of sal
wage. While Captain Dixon's bargain
ing seemed funny and almost ludicrous
at the time, his ship being actually on
the rocks, it was the act of a careful
man, careful of the interests of others,
and showed that he understood the
law of salvage.
Generally speaking, salvage is a re-
ward to which persons are entitled
when they render assistance in saving
property from destruction by PIRATES,
enemies or the elements. In these days,
however, salvage has become almost
peculiarly. associated with the saving
of ships, which cases, occurring on the
water, are under the jurisdiction of the
United States admiralty courts.
These courts determine the amount Of
salvage to be paid. In the nature of
things this is frequently most difficult
question to decide, so many things haV-
ing to be taken into consideration.
walker on Admiralty" an authority
on matters marine, says:
Right to salvage depends on the
saving of the property; but the rate and
amount of salvage depend upon the
amount of the peril to the property, the
value of the service to the owner of
the property and the personal toll, loss
of time, daring and danger of the sal
YER The high order of merit, in a
pecuniary estimate is the safe bringing
in of property entirely abandoned and
lost of the owner-derelict For such
service, courts have sometimes award
ed seVen-eighths for salvage, and it is
usual to give half
Thus, the first thing the judge has to
consider is in how great danger the
lNNa
for the rescuing party to eXaggerate the
peril through which he went, and the
Judge must be shrewd enough to sep
arte fiction from fact.
Again, the judge must consider what
the capacity of the rescuer for helping
actually is, and of what actual
assistance the rescuer was. Then,
in the last place, the final con-
dition of the rescued vessel as a whole
must be taken into account and the
division of salvage made on the basis
of services rendered
The awarding of salvage is, of course,
not based on any regular rate of per-
centage. 1t hardly ever rises above
one-half of the final value of the res
cued property, and then almost eXclus-
lively in cases where the property has
been abandoned. There have been eX
ceptional cases, of a rescuer receiving
something above 30 per cent of the val
ne OF property not abandoned, as Wnen
mail steamer running on schedule
time, turns out of her course to help a
laundering vessel; but in these cases
the excessive rate is compensation for
losses incurred.
When vessels meet extremity in a
harbor, as did the North German Lloyd
liners recently, it becomes an easy thing
for tugboats to rush to their assistance
and claim salvage afterward. 1t costs
nothing, or very little, to ask for sal
wage money, and any little boat that
has a garden hose can fiirt drop or
two of water on a great liner afire and
claim S., 900 reward when the fire is out.
These claims have already been filed,
the ships being libeled, to use the tech
meal term of the underwriters. AS
usual, the tugs asked several times the
amount they expect to get. The great
majority of the libels are against the
Kaiser Wilhelm der Crosse. Most of
the tugs went to her assistance because
she was the most valuable ship and was
in the least danger of having her value
destroyed.
Where a ship is insured, the salvage
is paid by the underwriters.