24 [January, 1902.] 
IMPERIAL INSTITUTE JOURNAL. 
OFFICIAL AND COMMERCIAL CONTRACTS. 
UNITED KINGDOM. 
Blackburn. — The Corporation invite Tender^, until the 
i8th inst. , for the Supply of Machine Tools required at 
their Tramway Depot, Intack. Particulars may be obtained 
from Alfred S. Giles, engineer and general manager, 9, 
Railway-road, Blackburn. 
Kirkcaldy. — The Corporation invite TENDERS, until the 
8tli inst., for the Supply, Delivery, and Erection of steam, 
exhaust, feed and drain pipes, feed pumps, feed heater, feed 
tank, tools, etc. Particulars (£3. 3s,) may be obtained from 
W, L. Macindoe, town-clerk, Kirkcaldy. 
London. — The London County Council invite Tenders, 
until the 28th inst., for the Supply of Track Rails, Slot 
Rails, Conductor Tee Rails, with fish-plates, etc. Par- 
ticulars (£2) may be obtained at County-hall, Spring-gardens, 
London, S.W. — (Barking). — Tenders are invited, until the 
24th inst., for the Supply and Erection of additional 
Generating Plant for the electricity works. Particulars 
(£1. i.s. ) may be obtained from the engineer, Electricity Works, 
East-street, Barking. 
Middlesbrough. -Tenders are invited, until the 21st 
inst., for the Supply and Erection of the following Plant 
for the extension of the electricity works: — (a.) One 300 kwt. 
high-speed Steam Dynamo and Accessories, (d. ) Switch- 
board Panels, (c.) Condensing Apparatus and Pipe-work. 
(d.) Feed-Pump and Economiser. Particulars (^5. 5s.) may be 
obtained from Mr, Robert Hammond, 64, Victoria-street, 
W estminster. 
Newcastle-on-Tyne. — The Tyne Improvement Commis- 
sioners invite Tenders, until the 18th inst., for the Con- 
struction and Delivery at the Tyne of Four Single-screw 
Steel Hopper Barges. Particulars (£3. 3s.) may be obtained 
from R. Urwin, 'Secretary of the Tyne Improvement Commission, 
Berwick-street, Newcastle-on-Tyne. 
Southampton. -The Director-General, Ordnance Survey, 
invites Tenders, until the 13th inst,, for the Supply and 
Erection of Four Hand and Power Lithographic 
Printing Presses, with four cast iron beds. Particulars may 
be obtained from the officer in charge of stores, Ordnance 
Survey Office, Southampton. 
COLONIES. 
Transvaal (Johannesburg). — Tenders are invited, until 
the 31st inst., for the Supply and Delivery of a complete 
Carburetted Water Gas Plant of a capacity of about 
200,000 cubic feet daily. Particulars may be obtained from the 
Crown Agents for the Colonies, Downing-street, London, or 
from the town-clerk, Johannesburg. 
INDIA. 
Calcutta. — Tenders are invited, until February 5, for the 
Supply and Delivery, c.i.f. Calcutta, of 50 6-in. and 12 4-in. 
Waste Water Meters. Particulars were published in the 
Engineer of December 20 last. 
South Indian Kailway.— Tenders are invited, until 
the 14th inst,, for the Supply of Rolling Stock, Bridge- 
Work, Stores and Stationery. Particulars may be obtained at 
the office of Sir George B. Bruce, 3, Victoria-street, West- 
minster. 
FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 
Belgium. — Tenders are invited, until the 28th inst., for 
the work of improving the Ghent canal at Terneuzen, between 
the bridge at Wondelgem and the Canardkre bridge below 
Langerbrugge. The upset price of the work is ,£145,462. 5s. 2d. , 
and a deposit of £7,200 is required. Particulars (2 frs, 60 cts. ), 
may be obtained from the chief engineer, M. de Heem, Directeur 
des Pouts et Chauss^es, rue d’ Abraham No. tr, Gaud ; or from 
the engineer-in-charge, M. Grenier, Quai des Tonneliers No. 6, 
Gand (Ghent). — Tenders are invited, until the 14th inst., by 
the National Company of Local Railways, 14 Rue de la Science, 
Brussels, for the Construction of thesection of the Line from 
Ath to Oeudeghien on the railway from Ath to Fiobecq. The 
upset price is ,£6,688. 6s. id., and a deposit of ,£680 is required. 
Particulars (r tr. ) may be obtained at the Company's offices, 
Norway. — Tenders are invited by the Norwegian State 
Railways, until the 20th inst., for the Supply of Water-Pipes 
as follows 200 metres 5-inch cast-iron socket-pipes, turned, 
bored, and dipped ; 100 metres 4-inch cast-iron socket-pipes, 
turned, bored, and dipped ; 1,700 metres 3-inch east-iron socket- 
pipes, turned, bored, and dipped, besides irregular fittings, stop 
valves, taps, etc. Also for plumbers’ work at four stations on 
the Ofoten Railway, to be done next summer. Particulars may 
be had from the head engineer’s Office at Narvik. Besides 
Customs duties, the Norwegian Government give a preference 
of 15 per cent, to native tenders. — Tenders are invited by the 
Norwegian State Railways, until the 8th inst. , for the Supply 
of Railway Points. Particulars may be examined at the 
Commercial Department of the Foreign Office. 
Spain. — Tenders are invited by the Committee of the 
Port Works at Barcelona, until the 9th inst., for the Supply of 
Vehicles for the new commercial dep6t, and until March 10th, 
for the Supply of a powerful Steam Tug. Conditions and 
specifications can be seen at the office of the secretary to the 
Port Committee at Barcelona. — Tenders are invited, until the 
7th February, at the office of the Port Works at Huelva for 
the Supply of Metallic Materials necessary for the execu- 
tion of the works of the northern portion of the shipping wharves 
in the said port, Particulars are on view in the Secretariat of 
the Committee. A provisional deposit of 15,000 pesetas, or 
about ,£443, is required to qualify any tender. The contract 
may be estimated to be worth about ,£8,850, 

COMMERCIAL LAW INTELLIGENCE. 
Collision, — Loss of Mails. — Judgment was given in the 
Court of Appeal in the important appeal of the Winkfield— the 
Se afield Shipping Co., Ltd., v. Union Steamship Co., 
Ltd. (limitation of liability). The Master of the Rolls, in 
giving judgment, said this appeal was from an order of Sir F. 
jeune dismissing a motion made on behalf of H.M. Postmaster- 
General in the case of the ss. Winkfield. The question arose 
out of a collision which occurred on April 5, 1900, between the 
ss. Mexican and the ss. Winkfield, which resulted in the loss 
of the former and a portion of her mails. The owners of the 
Winkfield, under a decree limiting their liability, paid a lump 
sum into court, and the claim in question was one by the Post- 
master-General on behalf of himself and the Postmaster-Generals 
of Cape Colony and Natal to recover out of that sum the value • 
of letters and parcels that had been registered and belonged to 
them in their capacity as bailees, and from first to last the case 
was argued on that footing. It was said in defence to the claim 
that a bailee could not support an action unless he himself was 
liable to make good to the bailor the loss which had been 
occasioned by the wrongful act of the third party, and that as 
the Postmaster-General could not be sued, so neither could he 
sue in respect of these letters and parcels. But that was a 
wrong decision. I11 an action against a stranger for loss of 
goods occasioned by his negligence the bailee in possession could 
recover the value of the goods. The Postmaster-General was 
entitled to claim in the participation of the fund. The Lords 
Justices concurred, and the appeal was accordingly allowed, 
with costs. 
Factory and Workshops Act.— In the King’s Bench 
Division, before Mr. Justice Ridley and Mr. Justice Righam, the 
case of the Consolidated Properties Company v. Chilveks 
was an appeal against a conviction obtained at the instance of 
the London County Council, for non-compliance with a notice 
to provide a fire-proof staircase. The London County Council 
required the Consolidated Properties Company, who carry on 
business at it‘2, Queen Victoria Street, to provide a new staircase 
from top to bottom under s. 7 of the Factory Act, 1891. The 
Consolidated Properties Company, Limited, however, could not 
comply with this order, because the ground floor and basement 
were let to other tenants who refused to allow the work to be 
done. The magistrate sitting at the Mansion House convicted 
the Consolidated Properties Company, and said that the 
question whether the order could be complied with ought to 
have been settled by arbitration under the section. The company 
appealed and afterwards went to arbitration, and a report was 
made by the arbitrators with which they were perfectly willing 
to comply. It was objected on the part of the London County 
Council that the conviction took place in March, 1900, and that 
it was not until February, 1901, that the company went to 
arbitration. The Divisional Court quashed the conviction, on 
the ground that it was for not complying with a notice with 
which it was impossible to comply. 
Freight and Shortage. — In the King’s Bench Division, 
the Wilhelmina Steamship Company, Limited, sued 
Messrs. Arthur H. Brandt & Company for ,£99. 13s. lod. 
balance of freight. Defendants admitted' the claim, but counter- 
claimed for that amount of shortage. .According to the bills of 
lading, 52,597 bags of sugar were shipped on the Wilhelmina 
(s.) at Vizagapatam for London, but on arrival in London there 
were, defendants stated, 199 bags short. Plaintiffs contended 
that they had delivered all the cargo that had been shipped. 
His Lordship (Mr. Justice Bigham) held that the bill of lading 
quantity had been received by the vessel so as to make the 
vessel responsible for the goods, and that the number of bags 
actually delivered out of the ship was the number which appeared 
on the return made by the Dock Company. He gave judgment 
for defendants. 
The "Tied House" System. — A case involving an im- 
portant question of law with regard to the tied house system lias 
been disposed of in the House of Lords. The matter' arose on 
an appeal in the action of Noakes and Company v. Rice from 
an order of the Court of Appeal affirming a judgment of Mr. 
justice Cozens- Hardy. The appellants were a brewery com- 
pany at Bermondsey, and were mortgagees of the King’s Arms, 
Camberwell. The respondent, Mr. George Veasey Rice, 
acquired the public-house from them. By an indenture between 
the parties, the house was conveyed to the respondent for the 
residue of their term, the appellants advancing to him a certain 
sum for the purchase, which was secured by mortgage. There 
was a covenant that he should not sell malt liquors except such 
as were purchased from the appellant company. Six months 
afterwards the respondent gave the company notice to pay off 
all the moneys secured by the deed, provided the company were 
willing to release him from this covenant. They refused to 
acquiesce, and the respondent sought a declaration that on pay- 
ment of all the moneys due he was entitled to have a reconvey- 
ance, and a release from the covenant in question and all the 
other covenants. Mr. Justice Cozens-Hardy, in giving judg- 
ment, said the mortgage was a security for the moneys coven- 
anted to be paid, and that on payment the appellant company 
were bound to surrender and reconvey, and such surrender and 
reconveyance was inconsistent with the retention of an in- 
terest in the premises. He accordingly gave judgment for 
the respondent, and the Court of Appeal affirmed his decision. 
The company now appealed, contending that the covenant, 
which made the King's Arms a "tied house," as it is called, 
was valid in law, and precluded the respondent from the 
relief which he sought, and further that in equity he could 
not be relieved from a bargain into which he deliberately 
entered, and on the faith of which he obtained an advance 
from them which' enabled him to purchase the premises. On 
the other hand the respondent said that to hold the covenant in 
force, after the mortgage was paid off, would be in direct 
contradiction to the terms of the proviso for redemption, and 
if regarded apart from the equity of redemption the' covenant 
was unconscionable and oppressive, and therefore void. The 
Lord Chancellor, in giving judgment, said he was unable to 
come to any other conclusion than that the equity of redemp- 
tion here was fettered by a condition which the policy of the 
law did not allow. He therefore moved that the appeal be 
dismissed with costs. The other noble and learned lords con- 
curred. The appeal was accordingly dismissed. 
*■ 
BRITISH CONSULAR REPORTS. 
France (Bordeaux). — Competition between American 
and British Coal at Bordeaux. — In a despatch to the 
Foreign Office, dated the 25th November, H.M. Consul at 
Bordeaux reports that the amount of coal imported into Bordeaux 
in 1900 was 850,000 tons, of which 840,000 came from the United 
Kingdom. Part of the balance of 10,000 tons came from the 
United States, but only as ballast in French steamers working 
regularly between Bordeaux- and New York, which were not 
able to find other cargo to bring home. 
This year, however, in addition to this ballast coal, of which 
1,500 tons were brought in the last steamer, two cargoes have 
been brought over, one of 3,600 tons in a British steamer, and 
one of 5,000 tons in a'Spariish steamer, while another 5,000 tons 
have been bought and are awaiting shipment. 
The Consul also writes as follows : — " I am informed by 
experts, that there is very little to choose for steam purposes 
between the best American' and the best Welsh coal, and that 
the demand for the one or the other will, in the future, when 
American coal has become better known, be a question of cost 
production and freights." 
The cost. of the coal, according to the Consul, is much lower 
in the United States than in the United Kingdom, but it appears 
to be only the excessively low freights at present prevailing on 
the other side of the Atlantic which allow of its being imported 
iuto Bordeaux. To obtain these low freights the coal appears to 
have to wait its chance. 
The two cargoes mentioned above were shipped at 8s. 6d, 
arid 9s. 6d. a ton as against '4s. from Cardiff. 
The Consul further writes : " For the men to restrict output 
in order to keep up prices so that they may draw higher wages 
; on the sliding scale, is to play directly into the hands of the 
Vol. VIII. No. 85. 
American coal trade and to allow it to get a grip of the market, 
which it will be careful not to lose. 
“ I believe, for gas-making purposes, American coals cannot 
at present, at any rate, enter the market against English gas 
coal." 
Switzerland (Zurich).— The Silk Industry.— In a 
report by the British Commercial Agent at Zurich on the silk 
industry of Switzerland, it is stated that the recent publication 
of the proposed revision of the German Customs Tariff, which 
has given a strong impetus to the discussion of tariff questions, 
has induced the Zuricher Post, one of the principal commercial 
journals published in Switzerland, to arrange for a series of 
articles to be written for that journal by experts in the most 
important branches of Swiss exports, as to the probable effect 
the proposed new German Tariff would have upon the Swiss 
export trade. The first of this series of articles, dealing with the 
silk industry, has recently appeared. 
The value of silk exports from Switzerland in the year 1900 
amounted to £8, 959, 000, or more than one-fourth of Switzerland's 
total exports in that year (£33,443,000). The writer of the 
article states : "If the Swiss silk exports were to be divided up 
amongst those countries with which we are compelled to negotiate 
commercial treaties, since the period of protective duties has 
visited the European continent, our position would indeed be a 
critical one. We ought, therefore, to consider ourselves fortunate 
that the chief portion of our products is sent to the only country 
in the whole of Europe — England — which has up to now held 
fast to free trade. 
The 
importance of our silk trade with England is shown 
by the following figures, which give 
the percentage for the 
last five 
years of England’s share 
in our total silk export 
industry : 
— 
1896 
42.^ per cent. 
1897 .... 
44 
1898 .... 
4 2 
1899 .... 
4 2 i .. 
1900 
44 j .. 
“If England were to impose taxes on articles of luxury, 
such as silk, on fiscal grounds, and to cover the costs of the war, 
and if, for example, she were to fix a duty on silk on the same 
scale as the German duty, it would practically mean the closing 
of nearly all our silk factories. The English market is already 
a keen field of competition for our silk exports ; the manu- 
facturers of the whole world are competing against each other 
for the English trade, and it is especially the rapidly-increasing 
Japanese silk industry which makes the struggle so keen. The 
result of a duty being imposed on silk in England would 
inevitably be, that factories would be started in that country by 
home and foreign manufacturers, which would be able to com- 
pete successfully with their continental rivals. At the present 
moment the condition of things does not necessitate such a step. 
“ There is eveiy ground for confidence that, as soon as the 
war in South Africa is at an end, and provided that the British 
Chancellor of the Exchequer does not lay his heavy hand upon 
silk imports, the deficit of silk imports in the year 1900 will 
soon be made up. Our exporters are building great hopes upon 
this period, as well as upon the change in the commercial policy 
of America, which has frequently been prophesied of late. An 
industry, 95 per cent, of the production of which is exported, 
and of which nearly one-half of the total exports go to one 
single market (Great Britain), a market which is year by year 
becoming more flooded, and which is so sensitive to every 
change in the fashions, cannot but look with anxiety into the 
future . . , .” 
The writer of the article then deals with the silk exports to 
Germany, and gives the percentages for the last five } r cars, 
namely : — 
1896 
« 
. 8 - 6 per cent. 
1897 
« 
8'2 
1898 
* 
8 ‘2 
* u " M 
1899 
• 
7 ’ 2 
1900 
„ 6-r ,, 
"The duty hitherto imposed on Swiss silk goods is 600 
marks or 15 per cent, of the average value, which is sufficiently 
high to protect the German silk industry. In the new tariff 
proposals the duty (on piece silk goods) has been increased to 
900 marks, or 22 £ pef cent, of the average value, but it is not 
thought that this increased rate will be adopted, as the Crefeld 
factories have during the last few years been fully occupied, 
and there is therefore no fear of the Swiss exports injuring the 
German industry .... 
"There are altogether 23 Swiss silk factories established 
in foreign countries, the mechanical weaving looms being 
distributed as follows: Germany, 3,652 ; France, 1,445; Italy, 
1,408; America, 2,058. This ' emigration ’ may be regarded 
as a corrective against over-production in our own country ; it 
is not without value for our country if Swiss firms go abroad in 
order to wage a battle with foreign competition, particularly as 
most of the Swiss establishments in other countries are only 
branches of the home factories, and not independent establish- 
ments. If it were necessary it would be possible to use these 
branches for the purpose of giving employment to Swiss 
workmen in the event of a crisis taking place at any time at 
home . , . 

FOREIGN CONSULAR REPORTS. 
Furs of the Upper Yukon. — Dawson is the central market 
for a vast fur-bearing country, stretching from the Mackenzie 
Basin to the coast range, and from the Porcupine to the 
Hootalinqua. In this area, perhaps, 1,000 men are engaged in 
hunting and trapping, exclusive of the Indians; and from 
Dawson fully 40,000 peltries are annually exported to the great 
fur markets of London and New York. The industry yields a 
revenue every year of nearly $350,000. In the local markets 
London quotations govern. These are fixed twice a year — in 
March and August — by a board of principal dealers in that city, 
and prices are gauged according to that scale in all parts of the 
world except Russia The present rates, compared with prices 
a year ago, show an increase on bear, beaver, otter and mink, 
and a decrease on silver-grey fox, marten, wolf and wolverine. 
On most other peltries quotations are the same. A wide 
difference is often noted between the maximum and the minimum 
figures; this is due to variations in the shade and quality of 
the fur, and to the time of the year in which the animal was 
caught. Local dealers say the pelts in the vicinity of Dawson 
City are of better quality and obtain higher prices than those 
taken along the Lower Yukon and on the Alaskan coast. The 
hair is softer and more glossy in appearance. In varieties, 
marten are the most numerous and black fox the scarcest. The 
latter is the most valuable of all, a good pelt readily bringing 
$300 ; and muskrat is the least costly, being worth only 4 cents. 
The favourite rivers among the trappers are the Pelly, White, 
Stewart, and Porcupine, while game hunters prefer the Klon- 
dike and Forty Mile, because of their accessibility to a ready 
market. The Big and Little Salmon, Hootalinqua, Chandelar, 
and Selwyn rivers, are also frequented by many trappers, while 
a goodly band is scattered along the Yukon itself. The Peel 
and other streams flowing into the Mackenzie Basin are also 
considered choice trapping grounds. The annual production 
