75 F. 29 | N.D. Cal. | 1895
A lien in the sum of $75.90 for oils and paints furnished by the libelants for the use of the steam
It may be assumed, for the purposes of this case, that the materials were necessary, and the amounts charged therefor reasonable. The real question in issue is whether credit was given to the vessel or to the Davie Ferry & Transportation Company. The company was a corporation organized under the laws of .the state, and had its principal place of business at the port of San Francisco. During the period when the materials were furnished, the company was, to all intents and purposes, the owner pro hac vice of the steamer, and she was* therefore, at her home port. This fact alone would justify the presumption that the material man meant to give credit to the company personally, provided he knew the relation of the ostensible owner to the vessel. The Stroma, 41 Fed. 599, affirmed 3 C. C. A. 530, 53 Fed. 281; Stephenson v. The Francis, 21 Fed. 715; Neill v. The Francis, Id. 921; The Aeronaut, 36 Fed. 497; The Samuel Marshall, 49 Fed. 754, affirmed 4 C. C. A. 385, 54 Fed. 396; Herreshoff Manuf’g Co. v. The Now Then, 50 Fed. 944, affirmed 5 C. C. A. 206, 55 Fed. 523; The Curlew, 54 Fed. 899; The Kong Frode, 6 C. C. A. 313, 57 Fed. 224; The Alvira, 63 Fed. 144, 156. In the last case this language was used:
“Therefore, the general principle that the owner is deemed to consent to the accruing of liens where the entire possession, control, and management of a vessel is intrusted to another is qualified hy this condition: If the supply or material man know of the charter, or the relation in which the ostensible owner holds, or if he be advised of the real status of such relation by the general owner or by the charterer, or is placed in possession of such facts as would put, or ought to put, a reasonably prudent man on inquiry, the presumption arises that the supplies, materials, or repairs were furnished upon the credit of the charterer himself, and there is no lien. And -the onus lies on the supply or material man to remove this presumption. The reason for this is plain. Courts of admiralty do not favor secret liens. Otherwise, owners would often fall an easy prey to liens created by injudicious or unscrupulous charterers. Moreover, the supplies, materials, or repairs are generally furnished exclusively for the benefit of the charterer. At least, it may be said that he is the party primarily benefited thereby; the owner, as a general rule, being only incidentally benefited, if at all.”
The Alvira was a vessel also in the possession and control of the Davie Ferry & Transportation Company as owner pro hac vice. Repairs and materials, amounting to the sum of about $2,000, had been rendered that vessel, in order to fit and equip her for the passenger service in which the company was then engaged. The company went into insolvency after the materials and repairs had been rendered. Liens were claimed under the same section of the state
“The dealings of the libelants were with the charterers in person, at their place of residence, and without any reference to the ship as security for the supplies. They were presumably furnished, therefore, upon the personal credit of the charterers. The latter had no right to charge the ship, and evidently had no intention to do so. There was nothing that authorized the libelants to suppose the ship was intended to be charged, or that they had any right to charge the ship. In fact, they did not charge her. Upon their books, as well as in the bills rendered, Henry Bros. & Co. alone were charged individually. For the first portion of the bill a note was taken, and no claim was made upon the vessel until aftei Henry Bros. & Co. had failed. It is evident that in this case, both in law as well as in fact, the supplies were furnished upon the personal credit of the charterers. * * * The libelants were chargeable with notice of the relations of Henry Bros. & Co. to the ship. They knew that the firm was in business in Baltimore. Any inquiry would have shown that they were charterers. If they made no inquiry, they took the risk of the fact. They could not have supposed the firm to be officers of the ship; and if they did not mean to deal with them as owners, or on their personal credit, it was their duty to inquire what the connection of the firm with the vessel was.”
I do not think that the libelants in this case meant to give credit to the vessel. In the case of The Alvira, it appeared in evidence that the Davie Company became insolvent. It is my opinion that the libelants in this case, in view of the inability of the company to pay, now seek to get payment for their materials by attempting to impress a lien on the vessel itself. But this, clearly, cannot be done. Admiralty liens can only be enforced according to the principles of admiralty law. The Guiding Star, .18 Fed. 263; The Samuel Marshall, supra; Lighters Nos. 27 and 28, 6 C. C. A. 493, 57 Fed. 664; The Alvira, supra. The libel will be dismissed, with costs.