The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-01-02
AMERICAN SHIPPERS
 WIN TEST CASE Wheat Seized Found Prop erty of Shippers SHIPPED BEFORE WAR Judgment of English Prize Court Means Big Sum for Wheat
 Merchant-Appeal Is
 Not Likely
SHIPPED BEFORE WAR

Washington, January 1.-The decision of the British prize court In London In the case of the British steamship Miramchi, loaded with wheat and shipped from America to German consignees prior to the war was announced here tonight by the British embassy. The court held that the wheat was still the property of the American claimants and ordered that they be paid for it. The embassy issued the following statement:
 "The case of the British steamship Miramichi has recently come before the prize court at London. The vessel was , one of large number which had shipped cargoes of wheat in the United States before the outbreak of war consigned 10 German firms in Germany. Generally the documents had not been taken up by the German buyers and money had been advanced on the cargoes by neutral be nkers. The case was therefore sub mitted to the prize court as test case in order that the point of law might be determined whether the goods were at the time of seizure the property of the American shippers or of the German con- signees.
 Judgment Delivered
 Judgment was delivered by the prize cour, on November 23 to the effect that the cargo of wheat on the Miramichi re- meined the property Of the American claimants and was not therefore subject to seizure. Payment was accordingly ordered out of the proceeds of the goods in court to 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 beer made on behalf of the American shippers to treat these representations with every consideration. The case hav- ing been made a test one. other ship ments are being released in like manner provided that they were made before the outbreak of war and without contempla- tion of war.
 From information now received from private source in the United States it appears that practically all cargoes of wheat so seized were sold to German firms before the war at prices about 20 cents a bushel or 10 shillings qua rter. rate which is considerably lower than the present actual market price of the wheat. The effect. it is pointed out, amounts to making the exporters a pres ent of large sums of money, probably averaging $50,000 to S75OO0 on each c1rgo, according to the number of bushels in the cargoes.
 Differences in Value
 These differences in value between the low prices of sale to the German buy CTS and the prices realized in the United Kingdom may not improbably lead to suit being brought in the United States l courts by the German buyers to recover these differences from the American ex- 1 porters with the result that sums of money paid to the latter by the British government may find their way into l enemy hands.
 Moreover. it is pointed out that the | banking transactions in connection with | the original sale render it difficult to | determine on any particular date whether drafts on the German buyers may not l have been accepted even paid in this | way cargoes, the property of German | owners, may have escaped condemna ton | by the British prize court and may in fact have been paid for second times and at an increased valuation to the ex- porters."