of Fish oil. 271 



the jury had nothing to do; the only question for them to de- 

 cide was, whether a correct description of the premises had or 

 had not been given. In his opinion, the communication between 

 these buildings was most important: and, if they were of that 

 opinion also, they could have no hesitation in coming to a deci- 

 sion on the vahdity of this policy. With these remarks he should 

 dismiss the first of the questions. He came then to the other 

 two points, which had already occupied so much time. Not- 

 withstanding any impression that might have been made on the 

 minds of the jury by the evidence which they had heard yester- 

 day, he was convinced that the fire was occasioned by the pro- 

 cess of boiling oil ; and the plaintiffs knew it : they knew it well. 

 Did the jury observe with what great caution his learned friend 

 had laid down the doctrine, that parties were not obliged to ac- 

 count for the origin of fires? He had said, that this fire might 

 have arisen from the lighting of a candle, or from various causes 

 of which no chemist ever dreamed. But why should the jury, 

 when called on to give a verdict, he left to their own conjectures, 

 when positive and important evidence, which it was in his learn- 

 ed friend's power to produce, had not been brought forward ? 

 Where was the man who lighted the fire in the morning? Where 

 was the watchman ? His learned friend had first examined Duke, 

 a millwright, who was to give the whole description and history 

 of the general mode of conducting the process ; and it turned 

 out on his (Mr. Scarlett's) cross-examination of him, that he 

 had never attended for five minutes together, and that lie could 

 not tell whether the machine leaked or not. Then the engine- 

 keeper had been called, who at tinee o'clock found the watch- 

 man by whom the fire had been lighted. Now surelv, when a 

 fire like this had occurred, the plaintiffs were bound to give all 

 the information on the subject which their servants could com- 

 municate, and the jury were bound to derive evidence from a 

 witness not called, as well as from those brought forward. The 

 evidence of May, the engine-keeper, was of great importance. 

 He found that the watchman at three o'clock had lighted the 

 fire. He a'>ked Muller whether he was ready, and whether the 

 fire was lighted under the oil ; to which Muller replied, that he 

 was not quite ready. He saw no fire, no light, at a quarter after 

 three o'clock ; but he said there was a lamp lighted in the grind- 

 ing-house, as usual, all the people having to pass through it. In 

 a quarter of an hour afterwards he came back, and Muller said 

 he would l)c ready in a few minutes ; and then there was no token 

 of fire or light in the warehouse. But it did not rest here. At 

 nine o'clock on the jiroceding night he was the last [icrson who 

 left the ])remises without any light ; at three o'clock in the morn- 

 ing there was no light ; at a quarter past three there was no 



light ; 



