CARRIER. 
afloniflimg than his tranquillity and fang froid, on hearing 
that lie was condemned to die. On the very day of his 
execution, lie gave an early breakfaft to feveral of his 
friends; eating little himfelf, drinking only one glafs of 
wine, and palling the whole time in giving a defcription 
of his journey from the prifon to the fcaffold,. and of the 
manner in which he fliould be received by the fpeftators. 
“ Some,” (aid he, “ will cry out, There goes the villain 
who put fo many innocent people to death in La Vendee ! 
what an ugly, wretch it is ! but others will reply, It was 
not he who did all the mifehief.” He was executed at 
Paris, December 17, 1795. 
CAR'RlER,y. One who carries fomething : 
For winds, when homeward they return, will drive 
The loaded carriers from their evening hive. Dryden. 
One whole profetlion or trade is to carry goods for others. 
—1 have rather made it my choice to tranfcribe all, than 
to venture the lofs of my originals by poll or carrier. Pierce. 
The prefent exifting laws for regulating thebufinefs of a 
carrier, and for fecuring the goods of tlie public, and the 
property of individuals, entrufted to their care, are as fol¬ 
low : All perfons carrying goods for hire, as mailers and 
owners of (hips, lightermen, flage-coachmen, (butnothack- 
ney coachmen in London, Com. Rep. 25. nor the poftmaf- 
ters general, 1 Salk. 17,) and the like, come under the 
denomination of common carriers; and are chargeable on 
the general cuftom of the realm for their faults or mif- 
carriages. Bull. N. P. 70. See the article Bailment. 
In an aftion on the cafe upon the cuftom of the realm 
againft the defendant, mailer of adage-coach, the plain¬ 
tiff fet forth, that he took a place in the coach for fitch a 
town, and that in the journey, the defendant, by negli¬ 
gence, loll the plaintiff’s trunk; upon not guilty plead¬ 
ed, the evidence was, that the plaintiff gave the trunk to 
the man who drove the coach, who promifed to take care 
of it, but loft it j and the queftion was, whether the maf- 
ter was chargeable ; and adjudged that he was not, un- 
lefs the mailer takes a price for the carriage of the goods 
as well as for the carriage of the perfon, and then he is 
within the cuftom as a carrier; that a mailer is not charge¬ 
able for the afts of his fervant, but, when they are done in 
execution of the authority given by the mafter, then the 
aft of the fervant is the aft of the mafter. 1 Salk. 2S2. 
But by the cuftom and ufage of ftages, every paffenger 
pays for the carriage of goods above a certain weight ; 
and there the coachman (hall be charged for the lofs of 
goods beyond fuch weight. 1 Com. Rep. 25. If a common 
carrier lofes goods he is intruded to carry, a fpecial ac¬ 
tion on the cafe lies againft him, on the cuftom of the 
realm ; and fo of a common carrier by boat. 1 Rol. Abr. 6. 
An action-will lie againft a porter, carrier, or bargeman, 
upon his bare receipt of the goods, if they are loft by 
negligence. 1 Sid. 36. Alfo a lighterman fpoiling goods he 
is to carry, by letting water come to them, aftion on the 
cafe lies againft him on the common cuftom. Palm. 52%. 
If one be not a common carrier, and takes hire, he may 
be charged on a fpecial affumpfit; for, where hire is taken, 
a promife is implied. Cro. Jac. 262. So if a man who is 
not a common carrier, and who is not to receive a pre¬ 
mium, undertakes to carry goods fafely, he is anfvverable 
for any damages they may fuftain through his negleft or 
default. This was the exprefs point determined in Coggs 
v. Bernard, 1 Com. Rep. 133. See Bailment, 
Where a carrier, entrufted with goods, opens the pack, 
and takes away and difpofes of pait of them, it is a com 
verfion of the whole. Efp.N.P.e ,Si . This, (hewing an 
intent of dealing them, will alfo make him guilty of fe¬ 
lony. H. P. C. 61. And it is the fame if the carrier re¬ 
ceives goods to carry them to a certain place, and car- 
rieth them to fome other place, and not to the place 
agreed. 3/rt/L.367. That is, if he do it, with intent to 
defraud the owner of them. If a carrier, after he hath 
brought goods to the place appointed, take them away 
privately, he is guilty of felony ; for the poffeffion which 
Vql. HI. No. 164. 
he received from the owner being determined, his fecond 
taking js in all .refpefts the fame as if he were a mere 
ftranger. 1 Hawk. P. C. c. 33.. If a common carrier, who 
is offered his hire, and who has.convenience, refufes to 
carry goods,'lie is liable to an aftion in the fame lffanner as 
an inn-keeper who refufes to entertain a gueft, or a fmith 
who refufes to fhoe a horfe. 2 Show. Rep. 327. But a car¬ 
rier may refule to admit goods into his warehoufe at an uti- 
feafonable time, or before he is ready to take his journey. 
Ld.Raym. 632. A common carrier may have aftion of 
trover or trefpafs for goods taken out of his poffefiion by 
a ftranger; he having a fpecial property in the goods, and 
being liable to make fatisfaftion for them to the owner: 
and, where goods are ftolen from a carrier, he may bring 
an indiftment againft the felon as for his Own goods, 
though he has only the poffeffory, and not the abfolute, 
property; and the owner may likewife prefer an indift¬ 
ment againft the felon. Kel. 39. 
By flat. 3 Car. I. c. 1, carriers are not to travel on the 
Lord’s day. By flat. 3. W. and M. c. 12, the juftices are 
annually to affefs the price of land-carriage of goods to be 
brought into any place within their jurifdiftion, by any 
common carrier, who is not to take more, under the pe¬ 
nalty of 5I. And by the flat. 21 Geo. II. c. 28. a carrier 
is not to take more, for carrying goods from any place 
to London, than is fettled by the juftices for the carry¬ 
ing goods from London to fuch a place, under the fame 
penalty. By flat. 24 Geo. II. c. 8. commiftioners for regu¬ 
lating the navigation of the river Thames are to rate the 
price of water-carriage. By flat. 30 Geo. II. c. 22. juf¬ 
tices of the city of London are to affefs the rates of carry¬ 
ing goods between London and Weftminfter. Carriers 
and waggoners are to write or paint on their waggons or 
carts their names and places of abode. 
At common law a carrier is liable by the cuftom of tlie 
realm to make good all Ioffes of goods entrufted to him to 
carry, except fuch Ioffes as arife, 1. from the aft of God, 
or inevitable accident ;. or 2. from the aft of the king’s 
enemies, i. e. public enemies, not felons or traitors ; 
to which may be added, 3. the default of the party fend¬ 
ing them. 1 Inf. 89. Coggs v. Bernard. 2 Ld. llaym. 909. 
Efp. N. P. 6. 9. Where the defendant’s hoy, in coming 
through London bridge, was by a hidden guft of wind 
driven againft the arch and funk, the owner of the hoy 
was held not to be liable, the damage having been oc- 
cafioned by the aft of God, which no care of the de¬ 
fendant could provide againft or forefee. But in this cafe 
it was held that if the hoy-man had gone out voluntarily 
in bad weather, fo that there was a probability of his be¬ 
ing loft, he would have been liable. Amies v. Stephens, 
1 Stra. 128. Upon this ground of its being the aft of 
God, if a bargeman in a tempeft, for the fafety of the 
lives of his paffengers, throws over-board any trunks or 
packages of value, he is not liable for the lofs. 1 Rol. 
Rep. 79. Bulft. 280, 1 Vent. 190. 1 IVif. 281. It mu ft fully 
appear that the lofs was occafioned by the aft of God : 
that it might fo have happened is not fufticient. For, 
where the defendant having lodged his waggon in an inn, 
an accidental fire broke out and confumed it ; he was ad¬ 
judged liable,. though it was contended, that it did not 
appear how tire fire broke out, fo that it might be by 
lightning, and fo be the aft of God. It was further held, 
that negligence does-not enter into the grounds of this ac¬ 
tion, for, though the carrier ufes all proper care, yet in 
cafe of a lofs he is liable. Forward v. Pittard, j Term 
Rep. 27. But where a common carrier, between two 
places (Stourport and Manchefter), employed to carry 
goods from one place to the other, to be forwarded from, 
thence to a third place (Stockport),, carried them to 
Stourport, tltcre put them in his warehoufe, in which 
they were deftroyed by an accidental fire, before he had 
an opportunity of forwarding them ; in this cafe the car¬ 
rier was held not to be liable, the keeping them in the 
warehoufe in this cafe being not for the convenience of 
the carrier, but of the owner. 
so B 
XT, 
