Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Under date of May 19, 1909, counsel for G. Urrutia and Company
filed a written complaint against The Pasig Steamer and Lighter Co.,
wherein it was alleged that the plaintiff company was the owner of the
steamer à
, inscribed in the marine registry of
the port of Manila; that the said vessels was provided with the proper
license to navigate and trade in the waters of the Philippines, was
worth P80,000 in cash, and, on the dates mentioned in the complaint,
was carrying a cargo valued at P45,000; that the defendant company
was the owner of the steamer , inscribed in the marine
registry of the port of Manila; that on or about December 6, 1908,
while a storm was raging, the steamer à
,
belonging to the plaintiff, was navigating in the direction of the port of
Legaspi and, after twenty hours and thirty minutes, descried, toward
Mal-Abrigo, a steamship which had signal flags hoisted, wherefore
the à
directed its course towards the said
vessel, which proved to be the displaying the signals M Y
and L D, which mean: "Am unable to navigate. Will you tow me to a
safe anchorage?" that on that occasion, the steamer à
, with great risk to itself, rendered salvage service to the
by taking it to a safe port, and that, had it not been for the
opportune, prompt and efficacious aid lent by the à
, the and its cargo would certainly have been totally
lost; that the salved steamer, together with its cargo, was worth on
the dates of the salvage and the complaint P100,000, at a true cash
valuation; that the just and adequate remuneration for the salvage
service rendered by the à
to the
amounted to the sum of P40,000; and that; notwithstanding that the
plaintiff company had demanded of the defendant concern the
payment of the said sum for the salvage service referred to, and
since the 15th of January, the defendant, without objecting to the
amount of the plaintiff's claim, had not paid the same and had been
delaying the payment thereof under futile pretexts: wherefore, the
plaintiff prayed that judgment be rendered in its behalf, to enable it to
collect from the defendant the sum of P40,000, with legal interest
thereon from January 15, and the costs.
Yssue: Whether or not there is salvage?
Held: YES
The principle has been established by the courts of the United States
that when a vessel has been disabled by the breaking of its shaft at
sea and the hoist signals asking for aid, and another vessel goes to
its relief and takes it in tow, such service rendered is one of salvage,
and not merely of towage.
The towage of a vessel which has the lost use of its engine by
accident, though it is complete in its hull and masts, is a service of
salvage, and it is not necessary that the said loss be inevitable since,
in view of the peril, the vessel could not be salved in any other way;
for it is sufficient that at the moment the service was rendered there
was a probable, threatening danger and reasonable fear that it might
strike.
Facts:
the sailing vessel Alta was wrecked and stranded upon the coast of
Cavite Province. The certain of the ship removed the cargo and after
working ten or twelve days in attempts to float the ship made a
contract, in writing, with the plaintiffs, which is as follows:
DEAR SYR: Referring to your offer of 31st ultimo, the raising of the
ship ² viz, to put her into Cavite and in such condition that it will
admit of her being sailed to Hongkong or other port, subject to being
passed by Lloyds' surveyor ² for the sum of fifteen thousand pesos
(P15,000), Philippine currency, Y accept the same and shall esteem it
a favor if you will commence the work with the least possible delay.
Should you not be successful, it is distinctly understood that no
money whatever is to be paid for any work done or appliances used.
The plaintiffs went to work immediately upon the vessel, raised it, and
towed it to Cavite on the 10th day of December, 1905. Yt was at once
decided to put her into the dry dock or slip there for the purpose of
examining her hull and ascertaining the extent of the damages
The plaintiffs, on the 30th day of December, 1905, were paid by the
defendants the sum of 3,000 pesos on account of the contract. They
brought this action against the ship and her master on the 27th day of
February, 1906, claiming to recover the reasonable worth and value
of the services performed by them, which they fixed at 15,000 pesos.
Held: NO,
The contract in this case, being contingent upon success, their claim
is that they are not bound by it.
The first and most ancient class comprises cases of pure salvage.
The second is the most common upon the Great Lakes. The third
includes the one under consideration. Obviously where the stipulated
compensation is dependent upon success, and particularly of
success within a limited time, it may be very much larger than a mere
Yndeed, such contracts will not be set aside unless
corruptly entered into, or made under fraudulent representations, a
clear mistake or suppression of important facts, in immediate danger
to the ship, or under other circumstances amounting to compulsion,
or when their enforcement would be contrary to equity and good
conscience.
YSSUE: (1) Ys the plaintiff entitled to recover from the owner of the
Seward, in this action, remuneration for saving the cargo as well as
for saving the ship? (2) What is the reasonable compensation which
should be allowed in this action?
Facts:
There is little dispute about the important facts of the case. Yt appears
that on the 4th day of August, 1913, the schooner
was lost off
the coast of Mindoro, having been blown on her side by heavy winds.
She was floating at the mercy of the elements of three or four days.
On or about 7th of August, the report of her loss reached the
Collector of Customs of the Philippine Yslands who immediately
issued a circular letter to the masters of all steamers and vessels
plying in Philippine waters, declaring the
a derelict and a
danger to navigation. As soon as the circular letter was received by
defendants Miguel Pujalte and Miguel Ossorio they chartered the
coast guard cutter
and proceeded to search for the lost
schooner. On the 8th day of August they left the port of Manila
carrying on board Captain Jose Muñoz and some men, who were to
take charge of, and direct, the salvage operations. Two days later the
was located, floating abandoned on her side, with all her sails
unfurled and under water. Ymmediately a boat, with Captain Jose
Muñoz and his men, was lowered from the coast guard cutter and, in
the midst of a heavy sea and strong wind, they succeeded in making
fast a rope to the stern of the
. They towed her into the port of
Pola, reaching that port a day or two later, they being obliged to
proceed very slowly not only on account of the heavy sea but also by
reason of the fact that the
was full of water. Once in Pola Bay
men were left in charge of the vessel while Captain Jose Muñoz went
back to Manila on the Mindoro, and reported to his employers. They
immediately chartered the steamer
to carry workmen and
to tow a lighter called the Paquita with salvage materials and
implements to Pola Bay. They also dispatched the steamer
. to assist in the salvage work.
Yn case you ask more than we regard as reasonable we will pay you
the amount decided upon by a board of arbitration to be selected by
the officers of the Maritime Association; and if this is not agreeable to
you we will pay you whatever a court of justice will adjudge.
Yf you require it we will give a bond to carry the above offer into effect.
The defendants contend that all the arrangements for the salvage of
the
has been made before the receipt of the letter written by
plaintiff's agent and that the larger part of the expenses for the
salvage of the
had already been incurred at that time; that
they therefore proceeded with the salvage and were about to finish
their work successfully when the complaint was filed in this case and
the possession of the schooner
Yssue: WON there is a valid salvage? And does the salvors entitled to
compensation?
HELD: YES
Whatever might be said with regard to the effect of this letter on the
relations between the parties if it stood alone in the record it is
unnecessary to say. Yt is not a
for the possession of the
in the sense in which that word is generally used. Yt is merely
an to do certain things. We do not care to determine the precise
effect of this offer from a legal point of view since it appears that the
circumstances
Yt appears from all the facts and circumstances of the case that the
defendants acted in good faith; that they kept the expenses within
reasonable bound; that they acted with dispatch and performed their
work, generally speaking, in a workmanlike manner.
As to the amount of compensation we cannot say that it is excessive.
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HELD:
(a) we are persuaded that most of the charges for expenses made by
the plaintiffs are really exorbitant. Considering all of the facts and
circumstances of this case, and specially the inflated war prices of
materials at the time the salvage in question was performed, we are
of the opinion that the sum of P50,000 would be a very reasonable
allowance to the plaintiffs for their cash outlay and the rental value of
their equipment.
2. YES, we cannot agree with him that "such removal did not operate
in any way to benefit the cargo, nor save it from any risk or damage.'
Had the vessel completely sunk and listed, extreme difficulty would
no doubt have been encountered in removing the coal in question
from her hold, thus occasioning considerable expense and loss to this
defendant. Yt is also undeniable that part of the plaintiffs expenses
which we have allowed against defendants-appellants were incurred
in carrying such coal to the shore. Yt is but just, then, that defendant-
appellee should share a proportionate amount of the award.