The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-02
PRIZE COURT GIVES
CARGO TO U. S. OWNER
England Valves Appeal in Test
Case and Pays Bic Price
for Wheat.

WAsHlSGTnN. Jan Action by tho
British court ~ London favorable TO the
claims Of American wheat shippers whose
Germany IN the early days Of war and
taken to Great britain was announced AZ
the British EMBASSY tonight ON receipt Of
q statement from the London Go,crnm, ut.
The ease is that Of the British steam
ship Miramchi. which was made a test
cas-" Of number ~ cargocs Tho court
found that the documents IN the sale of
the Miramichi's wheat to German buyers
had not been taken w 10y the latter and
that the wheat was therefore the property
OF the American claimants and not sub
iect to seizure. Payment was thcrcupon
made for the wheat 10y tho British GOV
eminent. and the Government points out
that this resulted in a gift Of from $50. 900
to {15.000 to the American shippers. as
the wheat seized vas contracted for at
much less than the prevailing price IN
England az the tim" Of payment.
-, embassy statement il a. rn'ioNo
"The case Of tho British steamship
MtaMichi has recently come u"Sorc
the p.iZc court at London. The YES
sol vas one Of = large number which
had shipped Cargo"s Of wheat loo Tn.
United States before the outbreak of war
consigned to German firms In Germany.
taken up by the German BUYERS ana
money had been advanced on the caIEoes
by neutral bankers.
The case was therefore submitted 10 the
prize court as a test case In orde thlt the
point Of law might he determined whether
the goods were at the time Of seizure the
property Of tho American shippers or lhc
German cOnSIgnees. judgment was deliN-
cred by tho prize court on November 3 tn
IN" effect that the cargo OF wheat on tho
Miramicni remained the properly of the
American claimants ana was not therefore
subject to seizure. Payment was accord
ingly ordered out of the proceeds of the
goods In court 10 the claimants.
Leave to appeal was granted by the
court. but this was not proceeded with
since it was the desire of the British
Government. to whom representations
had been made on behalf of the American
shippers, to 'reBt these representations
with every consideration, Tho case hay-
Ing been made test one. other shipments
are being released In like ~ inner, pro-
vided that they We're made before the
outbreak Of war and without tho ouutcm-
platiOn of war
From Information now received from
private source In the United states, II
appears that practically al carEocs 81
Whea. so seized were sold To German
firms before the war at prices consider
ably lower than the present actual market
price OF the wheat The effect, II Is poin, ed
out. amounts to making the exporters a
prcseat Of large sums Of money. probably
averaging $4,000 TO $4,000 on each
cargo. according 20 the number OF hush
els I'm the cargOes.
These differences in value between the
low prices of sale to the German buyer,
and the prices realized In the United
Kingdom may not improbably lead to
suit being brought in the United States
courts by the German buyers to recover
these differences from the American tx,
purters with the result that sums OF
money paid to the latter by the British
Government may find their way into en-.
envy hands Moreover, II is pointed out
that the banking transactions In conncc-
ton with the original sale render Il dir
lcult to determine on any particular date
whether drafts on the German buyers
may not have been accepted or even paid
In this way cargoes the property of Ger
man owners may have escaped cOndemna-
ton by the British prize court ana may
I'm iact, have been paid for second time
and at an increased valuation to the cN-
poTters.