220 [August, 1902.] 
IMPERIAL INSTITUTE JOURNAL 
Vol. VIII. No. 92. 
COMMERCIAL LAW INTELLIGENCE. 
Copyright in Busts of the King and Queen. — Messrs. 
W. Britain & Sons, manufacturers of toys and artistic models, 
applied to Mr. Justice Walton for an injunction restraining 
Mr. David Mudie, toy manufacturer, from manufacturing and 
selling small metal busts of the King and Queen, and asked for 
damages. Mr. W. Britain, jun., designed and modelled small 
busts of the King and Queen, which the plaintiffs manufactured 
and-sold. During the first six months of the year the plaintiffs 
had sold upwards of 600 000 of these busts. Last month the 
plaintiffs found that the defendant vvas manufacturing and selling 
busts which were copies of their models. By 54 George III. he 
contended that plaintiffs were entitled to the copyright for a term 
of fourteen years, provided the article bore the name of the 
maker and the date of production. Evidence was given to the 
effect that the plaintiffs’ busts had artistic merit. The defendant 
said he did not know he had done any harm, lie had only 
manufactured two gross of the busts, and sold one. He was 
willing to undertake not to manufacture any more of them. 
Mr. Justice Walton gave judgment for the plaintiffs for a 
perpetual injunction, nominal damages and costs. The defendant 
would have to give up all models and busts in his possession. 
Great Indian Peninsula Railway Purchase. — Income 
Tax. — Sir Andrew Richard Scoble and others, who are 
the Annuity Trustees under the Great Indian Peninsula Railway 
Purchase Act of 1900, sued the Secretary of State, before 
Mr. Justice Philliinorc, to obtain the return of ^8, 12a, paid by 
way of income tax for the half-year ending January 1, 1901, 
and £ 9,6ti for the half-year ending July 1, 1901. They also 
claimed a declaration that they were not liable to pay similar 
amounts in future. In August, 1899, the Secretary of State 
gave notice of his intention to purchase the railway, and the 
Purchase Act of 1900 was passed. The purchase price was fixed 
at ^34,859,217. The Secretary of State also gave notice of his 
intention to pay by way of annuity in half-yearly instalments. 
The plaintiffs' case was that the Secretary of State claimed, in 
making the payments, to deduct income tax, not only on the 
amount which was paid for interest, blit on the amount paid in 
respect of the capital sum paid for the purchase of the under- 
taking. Their action was brought to recover the income tax 
deducted off the capital sum. It was said to be the first time 
the point had arisen. At the conclusion of the arguments his 
Lordship gave judgment for the defendant. 
Shipping Necessaries.' — In the Admiralty Division, Mr. 
Charges II. Ford, of West Hartlepool, sued the owners of 
the German steamer Wellgunde for £183, 10s. nd. paid by him 
in respect of necessaries supplied to the vessel and her master 
at West Hartlepool. Early in 1901 the vessel was chartered to 
Mr. Bernard Karschay, of Stettin, who, by the terms of the 
charter-party, undertook to provide the vessel with coal and 
other necessaries, pay dues, etc. , the owners to pay the 
master and crew, etc. On the 16th April, 1901, Karschay 
sub-chartered the vessel to carry a cargo of timber from 
Riga to Alexandria. In the course of that voyage the Well- 
er unde. put into West Hartlepool for bunker coal consigned 
to plaintiff by arrangement between him and Karschay, and 
while in port incurred expenses for the coal supplied, and for 
port dues, pilotage, and other ship's disbursements. Plaintiff 
defrayed these expenses, and sent the bill to Karschay. 
Karschay debited the owners with £-20 cash supplied and 
£1. 19s. 6d, for water at West Hartlepool, both paid by plaintiff , 
but he did not pay plaintiff. Plaintiff now sought to make 
defendants, the owners, responsible. Defendants denied that, 
having regard to the terms of the charter-party, the necessaries 
were supplied to their credit, as neither the master, who knew 
of the existence of the charter, nor any other person, had 
authority to pledge their credit. While denying liability they 
paid £22. 4s. 6d. into Court as sufficient to satisfy plaintiff’s 
claim. His Lordship (Mr. Justice Barnes), in giving judgment, 
said that plaintiff did not supply the goods on the orders of 
anyone having the express or implied authority of the owners, 
or held out to have such authority. It was, he said, clear that 
what was done in this case was done by the plaintiff 011 the 
credit of Mr. Karschay, and that the owners did not authorise 
Karschay to act 011 their behalf, nor hold him out, nor did they 
hold out the captain as authorised by them. Plaintiff dealt with 
Karschay and nobody else. The master had to get money from 
the charterers’ agents for the use of the ship, and the money 
was advanced by plaintiff on the credit of Karschay, and 
Karschay had debited the owners with those items. As these 
items were advanced 011 the credit of Karschay by Ford, 
practically as his agent, he did not think they could be recovered 
from the owners. He gave judgment for defendants. 
Responsibilities of a Tourist Agency.— An action of a 
somewhat remarkable character, as it was stated that one of a 
similar nature had never been brought before, was tried by 
Mr. Justice Darling and a special jury. The plaintiffs were 
Mr. Charles Robert Edward Bell and his wife, and they 
sued Messrs. Thomas Cook and Sons, the well-known 
tourist agents, to recover damages for personal injuries. It 
appeared that in July, 1901, Mr. Bell took three tickets, for 
himself, his wife, and his daughter, for oue of the defendants’ 
“personally conducted” tours in Scotland. He paid £15 for 
the tickets, and in consideration his case was that the defend- 
ants expressly or impliedly undertook to supply horses, carriages, 
drivers, and conductors fit and adequate to convey the plaintiffs 
safely upon the driving excursions. One of the excursions was 
from Forres by the banks of the river Findhorn, the road along 
which was a narrow one, with a bank or hill on one side, and a 
declivity on the other. It vvas said that in consequence of the 
restiveness of the horses or the incompetence or neglect of the 
driver, the horses went over the declivity, dragging with them 
the carriage, which struck against the trunk of a tree on the 
incline and overturned. As a consequence plaintiff and his wife 
sustained severe injuries. The defendants contended that then- 
only contract was that horses and carriages supplied by a com- 
petent jobmaster should be in waiting at Forres. Mr. Justice 
Darling left the following questions of fact to the jury:— (1) 
Did the defendants exercise reasonable care to secure that 
proper carriages, horses, and driver should be in readiness to 
drive the plaintiffs ? (2) Was the driver competent in the dis- 
charge of his duties? (3) Did the accident happen by reason of 
the driver's negligence ? {4) Were the horses reasonably fit 
for the drive? The jury answered the first two questions in the 
affirmative, but they were unable to agree as to the remaining 
ones. His lordship said that their findings amounted to a 
verdict for the defendants, for whom he entt red judgment, with 
costs. 
Commandeered Gold.— The Court of Appeal has given 
judgment dismissing the appeal of the plaintiffs in the action of 
the Robinson Gold Mining Company, Limited, and others 
v. the Alliance Marine and General Assurance Com- 
pany, Limited, against the judgment of Mr. Justice Phillimore 
that the loss of £223,750 in gold coin which was “com- 
mandeered ” by the late Transvaal Government at Vereeniging 
on Oct. 2, 1899, was not covered by the insurance policy 
issued by the defendants, which excepted, inter alia , “capture, 
seizure, and detention.” 
BRITISH CONSULAR REPORTS. 
China (Niu-chwang). — Trade in 1901. — In a recent 
report H.M. Consul gives an account of the trade of the 
Manchurian port of Niu-chwang during the year 1901. After 
noting that the trade of Niu-chwang for the year attained 
dimensions only ,£1,002,358 short of that of the record year, 
1899 (£ 7 . 2 5 3,643), the Consul points out that it was largely 
inflated by an overflow from the trade of 1900, which was 
completely congested by the disturbances in Manchuria and the 
general dislocation of commerce and finance resulting from 
them. The returns of 1901 would, however, have been still 
greater than they are had not the disbandment of the native 
soldiery by the Russian military authorities in 1900 let loose 
great numbers of armed men, who speedily terrorized the entire 
country as brigands and blackmailers. The discovery cf 
bubonic plague in the port in August also hampered trade 
severely, owing to the very stringent measures taken by the 
Russian administration to prevent the spread of the disease. 
The Russian occupation of the port, involving the taking over 
of the native Customs and likin offices, made it possible to 
arrive at some approximate estimate of the value and volume 
of the native shipping trade of Niu-chwang. The net value of 
the junk trade in 1901 was 16,263,229 Hai-kwan taels. The net 
total value of the trade by steamernnd junk was 58,501,513 taels. 
The net total value of the imports and exports coming under 
the Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs was 42,262,209 taels. 
The gradual disappearance of British cotton goods, such as 
drills, jeans and sheetings, from the Manchurian market is 
mentioned, and also the rapid increase of imported American 
manufactures, while the trade in British grey shirtings is now 
contested, thought not at present to any large extent, by India 
and Japan. Among the native products, silk is described as a 
very rising industry, Ta-tung-ku, near the mouth of the Ya-lu 
river, forming a great silk centre with regular steamer com- 
munication with Chifu. In foreign shipping, Japanese steamers 
have come rapidly to the front, the tonnage under the Japanese 
flag exceeding that under the British by 6,745 lons ' u 1900. and 
5,431 tons in 1901. The ordinary revenue collected by the 
Imperial Maritime Customs in 1901 vvas 751,621 taels, but the 
likin tax, also collected by the Imperial Maritime Customs 
under the orders of the Russian provisional Government on 
steamer-borne imports and exports at the time of payment of 
duties amounted to 203,575 taels. With regard to the port of 
Dalny, newly created by the Russians, the report observes that, 
while it is certain to be the terminus of a large passenger traffic 
between Asia and Europe, it is doubtful whether, commercially, 
it will develop into anything more than a Manchurian port like 
Niu-chwang. If it is to prove a success, the line some 600 
miles in length from it to Harbin must lie doubled, the railway 
must be properly administered, and the Chinese merchants be 
afforded the same facilities in Dalny as they are in the treaty 
ports of China. 
China (Wu-chau). — Lawlessness in Southern China. 
— The latest British Consular report from Wu-chau, on the 
West river, describes Kwang-si province as suffering from 
chronic disorder of a more or less serious nature. Last year 
witnessed the usual outbreak of disturbances in various parts of 
the province. Predatory raids on small towns and villages and 
the plundering of cargo boats were of frequent occurrence, and 
for a month or two a feeling of uncertainty prevailed which 
much impeded the progress of trade. Large quantities of mer- 
chandise had to be warehoused at Nan-ning, which is the great 
distributing centre for that part of the province and portions of 
the adjacent provinces, till the security of the trade routes was 
to some extent restored. After a time the bandits were tempor- 
arily dispersed, and trade resumed its normal course, but the 
disturbances broke out again in April last in a more acute form. 
The district beyond Nan-ning is overrun by large bands of 
brigands, numbering from a few hundred to 1,000 or more in a 
single band, who rove over the country plundering the people 
and even attacking, sometimes with success, the troops that are 
sent against them. As soon as they find themselves in danger 
they break up and scatter in the hills, where it is difficult for the 
soldiers to pursue them, even if they had the energy and inclina- 
tion to do so. The bandits consist to a considerable extent of 
“braves" formerly belonging to Marshal Su's frontier force, 
who were recently disbanded, and, not receiving the pay due to 
them, marched off with their rifles and ammunition, both of the 
best. They are therefore, more or less trained men and well 
armed. As a consequence of these troubles transit trade beyond 
Nan-ning is, for the time being, almost at a standstill, 
Denmark (Copenhagen.). — H.M. Consul at Copenhagen 
says, in his annual report, that the export of butter from 
Denmark exceeded by no.ooocwt. the export of the previous 
year, and prices ruled high. As usual, nearly the whole of the 
butter exported went to Great Britain — that is, 1,620,000 cwt. 
out of a total of 1,705,000 cwts. Besides the exports of Danish 
butter, the Danish transit trade with foreign butter is annually 
increasing. Most of the foreign butter comes from Russia and 
Siberia. A large quantity of butter in tins goes to Brazil and 
South Africa. The largest union of farmers in Denmark for 
dairy produce is the Danish Estates Butter Factory, or 
“ Trifolium.” It possesses 6,200 cows, yielding 31,000,000 
|jounds of milk annually. The factory buildings cover 2,000 
odd square yards, and consist of a three-winged building, a 
boiler-house, and an engine-house. The front building, which 
is 147 feet in length, is of one story, having an exterior dis- 
charging platform running the whole length, and all platforms 
on a level with it inside the building. One wing contains three 
departments, namely, a separator halt, a weighing-room, and a 
cheese-room. All the floors are paved with tiles or concrete. 
Large skylights and ventilators, with adjustable blinds, are 
fixed in the ceilings. Close by is a rinsing-house in connection 
with the main building. At the end of the separator-room is 
the receiving-room and magazine for butter. The milk is 
conveyed to the dairy in specially-built wagons, and after being 
unloaded on the exterior platform, is taken through sliding 
doors to the separator hall to the weighing machines, each 
capable of weighing 1,000 pounds of milk at a time. There are 
six separators, each having a skimming power of 4,000 pounds 
an hour. The separators are divided into two series, each of 
which has its own sweet milk heater and cream pasteurising 
apparatus. All waste water is collected in pipes under the floor, 
and conducted to a well, from which it is pumped up to a hot 
water tank. All pails used are placed upon an automatic 
carrier, which takes them to the rinsing-room, where they are 
at once scalded and washed. Under the pail carrier are tin 
gutters, into which the milk still left in the pails may drip while 
they are being conveyed to the washing-room. Captain Boyle 
also describes the cream and cheese departments, showing that 
in these matters, as in the butter export trade, co-operation in 
Denmark has risen to a high standard. Especially is this 
noticeable in the export of pork and eggs. The first Danish 
co-operative dairy was formed in Jutland in 1882, and now the 
dairies number 1,040, producing milk of the annual value of 
^>,112.000.^ " *_ 
H.M. Consul also reports that a great boon to commercial 
travellers in Denmark is the issue of season tickets enabling the 
holder to travel over the whole of the State railways in that 
country as frequently as he wishes. The cost of these tickets is 
as follows : — 
Available for— 
14 Days. 
1 Month. 
2 Months. 
3 Months. 
£ s. d. 
£ s. d. 
£ s. d. 
£ s. d. 
1 16 0 
2 15 6 
433 
5 11 0 
123 
1 13 4 
2 10 0 
368 
Practically all the railways in Denmark belong to the 
State, so the acquisition of such a season ticket conveys the 
holder to and from every town of any importance. H.M. 
Consul again points out that every information as to travellers’ 
licences can be obtained by applying to him. 
Germany (Frankfort). — German Commercial Acade- 
mies. — In a report from the Consul-General at Frankfort, on 
the trade of his district, an interesting account is given of the 
latest phases of education for commercial life in Germany. 
The report states that Germany’s modern development from an 
agricultural into an industrial and commercial country constantly 
demands from the leading merchants greater efficiency ; they 
are often called upon to solve questions of world-wide bearing, 
to negotiate with the Federal or State authorities, to give 
technical evidence before or take part in Parliamentary com- 
missions, so that it lias been deemed desirable that at least a 
part of the younger commercial generation be offered an 
education beyond what is taught at elementary schools, finishing 
schools, or by the routine of daily commercial life. The want 
of such educational establishments until recently has, to a great 
extent, favoured the German lawyers, who were drawn upon to 
fill the leading places in great German establishments and 
institutions ; but even the lawyers, whose claims were based 
upon brilliant examinations rather than upon a practical know- 
ledge of the law, for a lawyer with a large practice cannot easily 
be induced to abandon it, were not found satisfactory judges of 
the needs and opinions of the classes whose interests they were 
called upon to further. Thus a movement was called into 
existence in Germany in favour of founding commercial 
academies. In Germany there are at present four different 
kinds of commercial academies. At Leipzic the academy was 
founded in connection with the university ; at Aix-la-Chapelle 
it was founded in connection with the technical high school at 
Cologne, as a commercial teaching institute pure and simple, 
and altogether apart ; the. one opened at Frankfort-on-Main on 
October 21, 1901, was erected upon “the broad basis of 
political economy.” It was founded by scientific societies 
already existing in the town together with the pecuniary assist- 
ance of prominent citizens ; local patriots hope that in due 
time it may develop into and form part of a new university. 
Its primary purpose is, of course, the education and perfection of 
new generations of merchants, but it endeavours no less to offer 
to practical men opportunities of supplementing an education 
which, because it was determined by a set purpose; must needs 
have been one-sided. Thus it affords officials and technical 
men the chance of getting an insight into commercial life; 
commercial men to get acquainted with the routine of different 
Government offices, with the machinery of Government ; both 
can learn the wants of the working classes; foremen, if they 
wish to do so, can acquaint themselves with the management of 
trade unions, syndicates, etc., and it is hoped that the very fact 
of so many different social classes mixing and becoming 
acquainted in this institute will further develop the “social’’ 
aim of this new academy. 
Russia (Warsaw),— British Trade. — In a recent report, 
H.M. Consul-General at Warsaw observes, with reference to the 
question of language, that although some British firms have 
been wise enough to understand that it is of no more use sending 
an ordinary British trade circular or price-list to anyone here 
than it would be for a Polish merchant to send one of his to 
the United Kingdom, the general idea appears to be that 
that is all sufficient in opening up business here. The other day 
a firm sent five British postcards, which are not accepted as such 
here, with the request that they should be posted to firms likely 
to employ them as commission agents, on the cards being a few 
words in English to say they were willing to act in that capacity. 
“ One difficulty experienced is that many British firms write to 
ask for the names of 'importers’ or ‘exporters,’ or of 'pur- 
chasers of British goods,’ and when asked to specify, say, ' Oh, 
we deal in everything. 1 That may be, but in a town of 750,000 
inhabitants it is difficult to give all exporters or importers." 
Lodz, with a population of nearly 500,000, Yilno, with over 
160,000, Minsk, 100,000, Kovno, 75,000. Lublin, 50,000, besides 
several others with from 25,000 to 50,000, all have shops which 
sell foreign goods, chiefly German. In all these towns it is 
worth while trying to open up business in many lines, but it can 
only be done by a traveller speaking Polish and Russian, or at 
least German, and offering goods at the same price and on the 
same terms as those who at present supply the market. 
“ I recently asked a prominent British resident of long 
standing and very large commercial experience why British goods 
do not make more way in Poland. This is what he tells me : — 
* British firms are, as a rule, very badly represented either by 
German or Jewish agents who, when they have formed a con- 
nection amongst manufacturers, try to transfer them to some 
foreign firm who offer more favourable conditions. British 
firms would do well to employ good travellers w ho know one of 
the languages current here, either Russian or German, and who 
would quote the prices in Russian currency and Russian weights, 
and also the exact price the given article will cost delivered in 
the works. 
' Should the Russian and German Governments not be able 
to come to an agreement with the new treaty of commerce, there 
would be the prospect of a tariff war which would very much 
injure the export of German manufactures to Russia. British 
manufacturers would then have a good chance of getting hold of 
the Russian market ; they would, however, require to make up 
their minds to make some changes in their way of doing 
business ; besides employing good representatives who 
thoroughly enjoy their confidence, they must be prepared to 
depart from some of their hard and fast rules ; they must be 
prepared to concede longer credits up to six months instead of 
the usual one month, and also to be more considerate of the 
wishes of their customers respecting the dimensions and make 
up of the goods. The Germans have in those respects been 
much wiser and more conciliatory, and have tried harder to suit 
themselves to the purchasers' tastes and wishes than any other 
nationality exporting to Russia.* " 
Referring to the construction of a railway from Siedlce to 
Bologoje, the Consul-General notes the appointment by the 
Minister of Finance of a special commission to enquire what 
articles, till now imported from abroad, can be replaced by 
articles made in Russia. This step, the object of which is to 
protect home industry, was greeted with great satisfaction by 
those interested, and it is believed that it will lead to further 
publications of laws prohibiting in many cases the use of 
foreign-made articles. 
