December 1, 1888

CODE OF COMMERCE

BOOK II Special Commercial Contracts

TITLE VII Commercial Contracts for Transportation Overland

ARTICLE 360. The shipper may, without changing the place where the delivery is to be made, change the consignment of the goods delivered to the carrier, and the latter shall comply with his orders, provided that at the time of making the change of the consignee the bill of lading subscribed by the carrier be returned to him, if one were issued, exchanging it for another containing the novation of the contract.

The expenses arising from the change of consignment shall be defrayed by the shipper.

ARTICLE 361. Merchandise shall be transported at the risk and venture of the shipper, if the contrary was not expressly stipulated.

Therefore, all damages and impairment suffered by the goods during the transportation, by reason of accident, force majeure, or by virtue of the nature or defect of the articles, shall be for the account and risk of the shipper.

The proof of these accidents is incumbent on the carrier.

ARTICLE 362. The carrier, however, shall be liable for the losses and damages arising from the causes mentioned in the foregoing article if it is proved that they occurred on account of his negligence or because he did not take the precautions usually adopted by careful persons, unless the shipper committed fraud in the bill of lading, making him believe that the goods were of a class or quality different from what they really were.

If, notwithstanding the precaution referred to in this article, the goods transported run the risk of being lost on account of the nature or by reason of an unavoidable accident, without there being time for the owners of the same to dispose thereof, the carrier shall proceed to their sale, placing them for this purpose at the disposal, of the judicial authority or the officials determined by special provisions.

ARTICLE 363. With the exception of the cases prescribed in the second paragraph of Article 361, the carrier shall be obliged to deliver the goods transported in the same condition in which, according to the bill of lading, they were at the time of their receipt, without any detriment or impairment, and should he not do so, he shall be obliged to pay the value of the goods not delivered at the point where they should have been and at the time the delivery should have taken place.

If part of the goods transported should be delivered the consignee may refuse to receive them, when he proves that he can not make use thereof without the others.

ARTICLE 364. If the effect of the damage referred to in Article 361 should be only a reduction in the value of the goods, the obligation of the carrier shall be reduced to the payment of the amount of said reduction in value, after appraisal by experts.

ARTICLE 365. If, on account of the damage, the goods are rendered useless for purposes of sale or consumption in the use for which they are properly destined the consignee shall not be bound to receive them, and may leave them on the hands of the carrier, demanding payment therefor at current market prices.

If among the goods damaged there should be some in good condition and without any defect whatsoever, the foregoing provision shall be applicable with regard to the damaged ones, and the consignee shall receive those which are sound, this separation being made by distinct and separate articles, no object being divided for the purpose, unless the consignee proves the impossibility of conveniently making use thereof in this form.

The same provision shall be applied to merchandise in bales or packages, with distinction of the packages which appear sound.

ARTICLE 366. Within the twenty-four hours following the receipt of the merchandise a claim may be brought against the carrier on account of damage or average found therein on opening the packages, provided that the indications of the damage or average giving rise to the claim can not be ascertained from the exterior of said packages, in which case said claim would only be admitted on the receipt of the packages.

After the periods mentioned have elapsed, or after the transportation charges have been paid, no claim whatsoever shall be admitted against the carrier with regard to the condition in which the goods transported were delivered.

ARTICLE 367. If there should occur doubts and disputes between the consignee and the carrier with regard to the condition of goods transported at the time of their delivery to the former, the said goods shall be examined by experts appointed by the parties, and a third one, in case of disagreement, appointed by the judicial authority, the result of the examination being reduced to writing; and if the persons interested should not agree to the report of the experts and could not settle their disputes, said judicial authority shall order the deposits of the merchandise in a safe warehouse, and the parties interested shall make use of their rights in the proper manner.

ARTICLE 368. The carrier must deliver to the consignee without any delay or difficulty the merchandise received by him, by reason of the mere fact of being designated in the bill of lading to receive it; and should said carrier not do so he shall be liable for the damages which may arise therefrom.

ARTICLE 369. Should the consignee be not found at the domicile indicated in the bill of lading, or should refuse to pay the transportation charges and expenses, or to receive the goods, the deposit of said goods shall be ordered by the municipal judge, where there is no judge of first instance, to be placed at the disposal of the shipper or sender, without prejudice to a person having a better right, this deposit having all the effects of a delivery.

ARTICLE 370. If a period has been fixed for the delivery of the goods, it must be made within the same, and otherwise the carrier shall pay the indemnity agreed upon in the bill of lading, neither the shipper nor consignee being entitled to anything else.

Should no indemnity have been agreed upon and the delay exceeds the time fixed in the bill of lading, the carrier shall be liable for the damages which may have been caused by the delay.

ARTICLE 371. In cases of delay on account of the fault of the carrier, referred to in the foregoing articles, the consignee may leave the goods transported on the hands of the carrier, informing him thereof in writing before the arrival of the same at the point of destination.

When this abandonment occurs, the carrier shall satisfy the total value of the goods, as if they had been lost or mislaid.

Should the abandonment not occur the indemnity for loss and damages on account of the delays can not exceed the current price of the goods transported on the day and at the place where the delivery was to have been made. The same provision shall be observed in all cases where this indemnity is due.

ARTICLE 372. The appraisement of the goods which the carrier must pay in case of their being lost or mislaid shall be fixed in accordance with what is stated in the bill of lading, no proofs being allowed on the part of the shipper that there were among the goods declared therein articles of greater value, and money.

Horses, vehicles, vessels, equipment, and all the other principal and accessory means of transportation, shall be especially obligated in favor of the shipper, although with relation to railroads said obligation shall be subordinated to the provisions of the laws of concession with regard to property and to those of this Code with regard to the manner and form of making attachments and retentions against the said companies.

ARTICLE 373. A carrier who delivers merchandise to a consignee by virtue of agreements or combined services with other carriers shall assume the obligations of the carriers who preceded him, reserving his right to proceed against the latter if he should not be directly responsible for the fault which gives rise to the claim of the shipper or of the consignee.

The carrier making the delivery shall also assume all the actions and rights of those who may have preceded him in the transportation.

The sender and the consignee shall have an immediate right of action against the carrier who executed the transportation contract, or against the other carriers who received the goods transported without reserve.

The reservations made by the latter shall not exempt them, however, from the liabilities they may have incurred by reason of their own acts.

ARTICLE 374. The consignees to whom the remittance may have been made can not defer the payment of the expenses and transportation charges on the goods that they received after twenty-four hours have elapsed from the time of the delivery; and in case of delay in making this payment, the carrier may request the judicial sale of the goods he transported to a sufficient amount to cover the transportation charges and the expenses incurred.

ARTICLE 375. The goods transported shall be specifically obligated to answer for the transportation charges and for the expenses and fees caused by the same during their transportations, or until the time of their delivery.

This special right shall be limited to eight days after the delivery has been made, and after said prescription the carrier shall have no further right of action than that corresponding to an ordinary creditor.

ARTICLE 376. The preference of the carrier to the payment of what is due him for the transportation and expenses of the goods delivered to the consignee shall not be affected by the bankruptcy of the latter, provided the action is brought within the eight days mentioned in the foregoing article.

ARTICLE 377. The carrier shall be liable for all the consequences arising from noncompliance on his part with the formalities prescribed by the laws and regulations of the public administration during the entire course of the trip and on the arrival at the point of destination, except when his omission arises from his having been induced into error by false statements of the shipper in the declaration of the merchandise.

If the carrier has acted in accordance with a formal order received from the shipper or consignee of the merchandise both shall incur liability.

ARTICLE 378. Transportation agents shall be obliged to keep a special registry, with the formalities required by Article 36, in which there shall be entered, in progressive order of numbers and dates, all the goods the transportation of which is undertaken, stating the circumstances required by Articles 350 et seq. for the responsive bills of lading.

ARTICLE 379. The provisions contained in Articles 349 et seq. shall also be understood as relating to persons who, although they do not personally effect the transportation of commercial goods, contract to do so through others, either as contractors for a special and fixed transaction or as freight and transportation agents.

In either case they shall be subrogated to the place of the carriers with regard to the obligations and liability of the latter, as well as with regard to their right.

BOOK III Maritime Commerce

TITLE I Vessels

ARTICLE 573. Merchant vessels constitute property which may be acquired and transferred by any of the means recognized by law. The acquisition of a vessel must be included in a written instrument, which shall not produce any effect with regard to third persons if not recorded in the mercantile registry.

The ownership of a vessel shall also be acquired by the possession thereof in good faith for three years, with a good title duly recorded.

In the absence of any of these requisites, uninterrupted possession for ten years shall be necessary in order to acquire ownership.

A captain can not acquire by prescription the ship of which he is in command.

ARTICLE 574. The builders of vessels may employ the material and with regard to their construction and rigging may follow the system which is most convenient to their interests. Ship agents and seamen shall be subject to the provisions of the laws and regulations of the public administration on navigation, customs, health, safety of the vessels, and other similar provisions.

ARTICLE 575. Part owners of vessels shall enjoy the right of option of purchase and withdrawal in the sales made to strangers; but they can only exercise it within the nine days following the record of the sale in the registry and by delivering the price at once.

ARTICLE 576. The rigging, tackle, stores, and engine of a vessel, if it is a steamer, shall always be understood as included in the sale thereof if they are owned by the vendor at the time of the sale.

The arms, munitions of war, provisions, and fuel shall not be considered as included in the sale.

The vendor shall be under the obligation to deliver to the purchaser a certificate of the record of the vessel in the registry up to the date of the sale.

ARTICLE 577. If the alienation of the vessel should take place while said vessel is on a voyage, the purchaser shall receive all the freights it earns from the time it received its last cargo, and the payment of the crew and other persons which go to make up its complement shall be paid by the purchaser for the said voyage.

If the sale takes place after the arrival of the vessel at the port of its destination, the freights shall belong to the vendors and he shall pay the crew and other persons which go to make up its complement, unless there is an agreement to the contrary in either case.

ARTICLE 578. If, the steamer being on a voyage or in a foreign port, her owner or owners should voluntarily alienate her either to Spaniards * or to foreigners domiciled in the capital or in a port of another country, the bill of sale shall be executed before the consul of Spain * of the port where she terminates her voyage, and said instrument shall have no effect with regard to third persons if it is not recorded in the registry of the consulate. The consul shall immediately forward a true copy of the bill of purchase of the vessel to the [commercial registry] of the port where said vessel is recorded and registered.

In every case the alienation of the vessel must be stated, indicating whether the vendor receives the full price or part thereof, or whether he retains any interest in said vessel in full or in part. In case the sale is made to a Spaniard, * this fact shall be stated in the certificate of navigation.

When, the ship being on a voyage, it should be rendered useless for navigation, the captain shall apply to the judge or court of competent jurisdiction of the port of arrival, should it be a foreign port, to the consul of Spain, * should there be one or to the judge, or court, or local authority in the absence of the former; and the consul, or the judge, or court, or in their absence, the local authority, shall order an examination of the vessel to be made.

If the consignee or the underwriter should reside at said port, or should have representatives there, they must be cited in order to take part in the proceedings for the account of whom it may concern.

ARTICLE 579. After the damage to the vessel has been proven as well as the impossibility of her being repaired, to continue the voyage, her sale at public auction shall be ordered, subject to the following rules:

1. The hull of the vessel, her rigging, engines, stores, and other articles shall be appraised by means of an inventory, said proceedings being brought to the notice of the persons who may wish to take part in the auction.

2. The order or decree ordering the public auction shall be posted in the usual places, and shall be advertised in the newspapers of the port where the auction is to be held, should there be any, and in the other newspapers which the court may determine.

The period which may be fixed for the auction can not be less than twenty days.

3. These advertisements shall be repeated every ten days, and their publication shall be stated in the proceedings.

4. The auction shall be held on the day fixed, with the formalities prescribed in the common law for judicial sales.

5. If the sale should take place when the vessel is in a foreign country, the special provisions governing such cases shall be observed.

ARTICLE 580. In all judicial sales of vessels for the payment of creditors, the said creditors shall have preference in the order stated:

1. The credits in favor of the public treasury proven by means of an official certificate of the competent authority.

2. The judicial costs of the proceedings, according to an appraisement approved by the judge or court.

3. The pilotage charges, tonnage dues, and the other sea or port charges, proven by means of proper certificates of the officers intrusted with the collection.

4. The salaries of the caretakers and watchmen of the vessel and any other expense connected with the preservation of said vessel, from the time of arrival until her sale, which appear to have been paid or are due by virtue of a true account approved by the judge or court.

5. The rent of the warehouse where the rigging and stores of the vessel have been taken care of, according to contract.

6. The salaries due the captain and crew during their last voyage, which shall be verified by virtue of the liquidation made from the rolls of the crew and account books of the vessel, approved by the chief of the Bureau of Merchant Marine where there is one, and in his absence by the consul, or judge, or court.

7. The reimbursement for the parts of the freight the captain may have sold in order to repair the vessel, provided the sale has been ordered by a judicial instrument executed with the formalities required in such cases, and recorded in the certificate of the registry of the vessel.

8. The part of the price which has not been paid the last vendor, the credits pending for the payment of material and work in the construction of the vessel, when it has not navigated, and those arising from the repair and equipment of the vessel and its provisioning with victuals and fuel during its last voyage.

In order that the credits provided for in this subdivision may enjoy the preference they must appear by contracts recorded in the commercial registry, or if they were contracted for the vessel while on a voyage and said vessel has not returned to the port of her registry, they must be made under the authority required for such cases and entered in the certificate of registry of the said vessel.

9. The amounts borrowed on bottomry bonds before the departure of the vessel, proven by means of the contracts executed according to law and recorded in the commercial registry; the amounts borrowed during the voyage with the authority mentioned in the foregoing subdivision, filling the same requisites, and the insurance premium, proven by the policy of the contract or certificate taken from the books of the broker.

10. The indemnity due the shippers for the value of the goods shipped, which were not delivered to the consignees, or for averages suffered for which the vessel is liable, provided either appear in a judicial or arbitration decision.

ARTICLE 581. If the proceeds of the sale are not sufficient to pay all the creditors included in one number or grade, the amount shall be divided among them pro rata.

ARTICLE 582. After the bill of the judicial sale at auction has been executed and recorded in the commercial registry, all the other liabilities of the vessel in favor of the creditors shall be considered canceled.

But if the sale should have been voluntary, and took place while the vessel was on a voyage, the creditors shall retain their rights against the vessel until her return to the port of her registry, and three months after the record of sale in the commercial registry, or after her arrival.

ARTICLE 583. If the ship being on a voyage the captain should find it necessary to contract one or more of the obligations mentioned in Nos. 8 and 9 of Article 580, he shall apply to the judge or court if he is in Spanish * territory, and otherwise to the consul of Spain, * should there be one, and, in his absence to the judge or court or to the proper local authority, presenting the certificate of the registry of the vessel treated of in Article 612, and the instruments proving the obligation contracted.

The judge or court, the consul or the local authority as the case may be, in view of the result of the proceedings instituted, shall make a temporary memorandum in the certificate of their result, in order that it may be recorded in the registry when the vessel returns to the port of her registry, or so that it can be admitted as a legal and preferred obligation in case of sale before the return, by reason of the sale of the vessel by virtue of a declaration of unseaworthiness.

The lack of this formality shall make the captain personally liable to the creditors who may be prejudiced through his fault.

ARTICLE 584. The vessels subject to the liability for the credits mentioned in Article 580 may be attached and judicially sold in the manner prescribed in Article 579, in the port in which they are, at the instance of any of the creditors; but if they should be freighted and ready to sail the attachment can not take place except for debts contracted for the preparation and provisioning of the vessel for the same voyage, and even then the attachment shall be dissolved if any person interested in her sailing should give bond for the return of the vessel within the period fixed in the certificate of navigation, and binding himself to pay the debt in so far as it may be legal, should the vessel be delayed in her return even if it were caused by some fortuitous event.

For debts of any other kind whatsoever not included in the said Article 580, the vessel can only be attached in the port of her registry.

ARTICLE 585. For all purposes of law not modified or restricted by the provisions of this Code, vessels shall continue to be considered as personal property.

TITLE II Persons Who May Take Part in Maritime Commerce

SECTION I Owners of Vessels and Ship Agents

ARTICLE 586. The owner of a vessel and the agent shall be civilly liable for the acts of the captain and for the obligations contracted by the latter to repair, equip, and provision the vessel, provided the creditor proves that the amount claimed was invested therein.

By agent is understood the person intrusted with the provisioning of a vessel, or who represents her in the port in which she happens to be.

ARTICLE 587. The agent shall also be civilly liable for the indemnities in favor of third persons which arise from the conduct of the captain in the care of the goods which the vessel carried; but he may exempt himself therefrom by abandoning the vessel with all her equipments and the freight he may have earned during the voyage.

ARTICLE 588. Neither the owner of the vessel nor the agent shall be liable for the obligations contracted by the captain if the latter exceeds his powers and privileges which are his by reason of his position or have been conferred upon him by the former.

However, if the amounts claimed were made use of for the benefit of the vessel, the owner or agent shall be liable.

ARTICLE 589. If two or more persons should be part owners of a merchant vessel, an association shall be presumed as established by the part owners.

This association shall be governed by the resolutions of a majority of the members.

A majority shall be the relative majority of the voting members.

If there should be only two part owners, in case of disagreement the vote of the member having the largest interest shall be decisive. If the interests are equal, it shall be decided by lot.

The representation of the smallest part in the ownership shall have one vote; and proportionately the other part owners as many votes as they have parts equal to the smallest one.

A vessel can not be detained, attached or levied upon execution in her entirety for the private debts of a part owner, but the proceedings shall be limited to the interest the debtor may have in the vessel, without interfering with her navigation.

ARTICLE 590. The owners of a vessel shall be civilly liable in the proportion of their contribution to the common fund, for the results of the acts of the captain, referred to in Article 587.

Each part owner may exempt himself from this liability by the abandonment before a notary of the part of the vessel belonging to him.

ARTICLE 591. All the part owners shall be liable, in proportion to their respective ownership, for the expenses of repairs to the vessel, and for other expenses which are incurred by virtue of a resolution of the majority.

They shall likewise be liable in the same proportion for the expenses of maintenance, equipment, and provisioning of the vessel, necessary for navigation.

ARTICLE 592. The resolutions of the majority with regard to the repair, equipment, and provisioning of the vessel in the port of departure shall bind the majority unless the partners in the minority renounce their participation therein, which must be acquired by the other part owners after a judicial appraisement of the value of the portion or portions assigned.

The resolutions of the majority relating to the dissolution of the association and sale of the vessel shall also be binding on the minority.

The sale of the vessel must take place at a public auction, subject to the provisions of the law of civil procedure unless the part owners unanimously agree otherwise, the right of option to purchase and to withdraw mentioned in Article 575 being always reserved in favor of said part owners.

ARTICLE 593. The owners of a vessel shall have preference in her charter to other persons, offering equal conditions and price. If two or more of the former should claim said right the one having greater interest shall be preferred, and should they have an equal interest it shall be decided by lot.

ARTICLE 594. The part owners shall elect the manager who is to represent them in the capacity of agent.

The appointment of director or agent shall be revocable at the will of the members.

ARTICLE 595. The agent, be he at the same time an owner of a vessel or a manager for an owner or for an association of co-owners, must be qualified to trade and must be recorded in the merchant's registry of the province.

The agent shall represent the ownership of the vessel, and may in his own name and in such capacity take judicial and extrajudicial steps in all that relates to commerce.

ARTICLE 596. The agent may discharge the duties of captain of the vessel, subject, in every case, to the provisions contained in Article 609.

If two or more co-owners request the position of captain, the disagreement shall be decided by a vote of the members; and if the vote should result in a tie, the position shall be given to the part owner having the larger interest in the vessel.

If the interest of the petitioners should be the same, and there should be a tie, the matter shall be decided by lot.

ARTICLE 597. The agent shall select and come to an agreement with the captain, and shall contract in the name of the owners, who shall be bound in all that refers to repairs, details of equipment, armament, provisions, fuel, and freight of the vessel, and, in general, in all that relates to the requirements of navigation.

ARTICLE 598. The agent can not order a new voyage, nor make contracts for a new charter, nor insure the vessel, without the authority of her owner or by virtue of a resolution of the majority of the co-owners, unless these privileges were granted him in the certificate of his appointment.

If he should insure the vessel without authority therefor he shall be secondarily liable for the solvency of the underwriter.

ARTICLE 599. The managing agent of an association, shall give his co-owners an account of the results of each voyage of the vessel, without prejudice to always having the books and correspondence relating to the vessel and to its voyages at the disposal of the same.

ARTICLE 600. After the account of the managing agent has been approved by a relative majority, the co-owners shall satisfy the expenses in proportion to their interest, without prejudice to the civil or criminal actions which the minority may deem fit to institute afterwards.

In order to enforce the payment, the managing agent shall have a right of action to secure execution, which shall be instituted by virtue of a resolution of the majority, and without further proceedings than the acknowledgment of the signatures of the persons who voted the resolution.

ARTICLE 601. Should there be any profits, the co-owners may demand of the managing agent the amount due them, by means of an executory action without further requisites than the acknowledgment of the signatures of the instrument approving the account.

ARTICLE 602. The agent shall indemnify the captain for all the expenses he may have incurred from his own funds or from those of other persons, for the benefit of the vessel.

ARTICLE 603. Before a vessel goes out to sea the agent shall have at his discretion, a right to discharge the captain and members of the crew whose contract did not state a definite period nor a definite voyage, paying them the salaries earned according to their contracts, and without any indemnity whatsoever, unless there is a special and specific agreement in respect thereto.

ARTICLE 604. If the captain or any other member of the crew should be discharged during the voyage, they shall receive their salary until the return to the place where the contract was made, unless there are good reasons for the discharge, all in accordance with Articles 636 et seq. of this Code.

ARTICLE 605. If the contracts of the captain and members of the crew with the agent should be for a definite period or voyage, they can not be discharged until the fulfillment of their contracts, except for reasons of insubordination in serious matters, robbery, theft, habitual drunkenness, and damage caused to the vessel or to its cargo by malice or manifest or proven negligence.

ARTICLE 606. If the captain should be a part owner in the vessel, he can not be discharged without the agent returning him the amount of his interest therein, which, in the absence of an agreement between the parties, shall be appraised by experts appointed in the manner established in the law of civil procedure.

ARTICLE 607. If the captain who is a part owner should have obtained the command of the vessel by virtue of a special agreement contained in the articles of co-partnership, he can not be deprived thereof except for the reasons mentioned in Article 605.

ARTICLE 608. In case of the voluntary sale of the vessel, all contracts between the agent and captain shall terminate, the right to proper indemnity being reserved in favor of the captain, according to the agreements made with the agent.

They vessel sold shall remain subject to the security of the payment of said indemnity if, after the action against the vendor has been instituted, the latter should be insolvent.

SECTION II Captains and Masters of Vessels

ARTICLE 609. Captains and masters of vessels must be Spaniards * having legal capacity to bind themselves in accordance with this Code, and must prove that they have the skill, capacity, and qualifications required to command and direct the vessel, as established by marine laws, ordinances, or regulations, or by those of navigation, and that they are not disqualified according to the same for the discharge of the duties of that position. t

If the owner of a vessel desires to be the captain thereof and does not have the legal qualifications therefor, he shall limit himself to the financial administration of the vessel, and shall intrust her navigation to a person possessing the qualifications required by said ordinances and regulations.

ARTICLE 610. The following powers are inherent in the position of captain or master of a vessel:

1. To appoint or make contracts with the crew in the absence of the agent and propose said crew, should said agent be present; but the agent shall not be permitted to employ any member against the captain's express refusal.

2. To command the crew and direct the vessel to the port of its destination, in accordance with the instructions he may have received from the agent.

3. To impose, in accordance with the agreements and the laws and regulations of the merchants marine, on board the vessel, correctional punishment upon those who do not comply with his orders or who conduct themselves against discipline, holding a preliminary investigation on the crimes committed on board the vessel on the high seas, which shall be turned over to the authorities, who are to take cognizance thereof, at the first port touched.

4. To make contracts for the charter of the vessel in the absence of the agent or of her consignee, acting in accordance with the instructions received and protecting the interests of the owner most carefully.

5. To adopt all the measures which may be necessary to keep the vessel well supplied and equipped, purchasing for the purpose all that may be necessary, provided there is no time to request instructions of the agent.

6. To make, in similar urgent cases and on a voyage, the repairs to the hull and engines of the vessel and to her rigging and equipment which are absolutely necessary in order for her to be able to continue and conclude her voyage; but if she should arrive at a point where there is a consignee of the vessel, he shall act in concurrence with the latter.

ARTICLE 611. In order to comply with the obligations mentioned in the foregoing article, the captain, when he has no funds and does not expect to receive any from the agent, shall procure the same in the successive order stated below:

1. By requesting said funds of the consignees or correspondents of a vessel.

2. By applying to the consignees of the cargo or to the persons interested therein.

3. By drawing on the agent.

4. By borrowing the amount required by means of a bottomry bond.

5. By selling a sufficient amount of the cargo to cover the amount absolutely necessary to repair the vessel, and to equip her to pursue the voyage.

In the two latter cases he must apply to the judicial authority of the port, if in Spain * and to the Spanish * consul, if in a foreign country; and where there should be none, to the local authority, proceeding in accordance with the prescriptions of Article 583, and with the provisions of the law of civil procedure.

ARTICLE 612. The following obligations are inherent in the office of captain:

1. To have on board before starting on a voyage a detailed inventory of the hull, engines, rigging, tackle, stores, and other equipments of the vessel; the navigation certificate; the roll of the persons who make up the crew of the vessel, and the contracts entered into with the crew; the list of passengers; the health certificate; the certificate of the registry proving the ownership of the vessel, and all the obligations which encumber the same up to that date; the charters or authenticated copies thereof; the invoices or manifest of the cargo, and the instrument of the expert visit or inspection, should it have been made at the port of departure.

2. To have a copy of this Code on board.

3. To have three folioed and stamped books, placing at the beginning of each one a note of the number of folios it contains, signed by the maritime official, and in his absence by the competent authority.

In the first book, which shall be called "log book," he shall enter every day the condition of the atmosphere, the prevailing winds, the course sailed, the rigging carried, the horsepower of the engines, the distance covered, the maneuvers executed, and other incidents of navigation. He shall also enter the damage suffered by the vessel in her hull, engines, rigging, and tackle, no matter what is its cause, as well as the imperfections and averages of the cargo, and the effects and consequence of the jettison, should there be any; and in cases of grave resolutions which require the advice or a meeting of the officers of the vessel, or even of the passengers and crew, he shall record the decision adopted. For the informations indicated he shall make use of the binnacle book, and of the steam or engine book kept by the engineer.

In the second book, called the "accounting book," he shall enter all the amounts collected and paid for the account of the vessel, entering specifically article by article, the sources of the collection, and the amounts invested in provisions, repairs, acquisition of rigging or goods, fuel, outfits, wages, and all other expenses. He shall furthermore enter therein a list of all the members of the crew, stating their domiciles, their wages and salaries, and the amounts they may have received on account, either directly or by delivery to their families.

In the third book, called "freight book," he shall record the entry and exit of all the goods, stating their marks and packages, names of the shippers and of the consignees, ports of loading and unloading, and the freight earned. In the same book he shall record the names and places of sailing of the passengers and the number of packages of which their baggage consists, and the price of the passage.

4. To make, before receiving the freight, with the officers of the crew, and the two experts, if required by the shippers and passengers, an examination of the vessel, in order to ascertain whether she is watertight, and whether the rigging and engines are in good condition; and if she has the equipment required for good navigation, preserving a certificate of the memorandum of this inspection, signed by all the persons who may have taken part therein, under their liability.

The experts shall be appointed one by the captain of the vessel and the other one by the persons who request the examination, and in case of disagreement a third shall be appointed by the marine authority of the port.

5. To remain constantly on board the vessel with the crew during the time the freight is taken on board and carefully watch the stowage thereof; not to consent to any merchandise or goods of a dangerous character to be taken on, such as inflammable or explosive substances, without the precautions which are recommended for their packing, management and isolation; not to permit that any freight be carried on deck which by reason of its disposition, volume, or weight makes the work of the sailors difficult, and which might endanger the safety of the vessel; and if, on account of the nature of the merchandise, the special character of the shipment, and principally the favorable season it takes place, he allows merchandise to be carried on deck, he must hear the opinion of the officers of the vessel, and have the consent of the shippers and of the agent.

6. To demand a pilot at the expense of the vessel whenever required by navigation, and principally when a port, canal, or river, or a roadstead or anchoring place is to be entered with which neither he, the officers nor the crew are acquainted.

7. To be on deck at the time of sighting land and to take command on entering and leaving ports, canals, roadsteads, and rivers, unless there is a pilot on board discharging his duties. He shall not spend the night away from the vessel except for serious causes or by reason of official business.

8. To present himself, when making a port in distress, to the maritime authority if in Spain * and to the Spanish * consul if in a foreign country, before twenty-four hours have elapsed, and make a statement of the name, registry, and port of departure of the vessel, of its cargo, and reason of arrival, which declaration shall be vised by the authority or by the consul if after examining the same it is found to be acceptable, giving the captain the proper certificate in order to show his arrival under stress and the reasons therefor. In the absence of marine officials or of the consul, the declaration must be made before the local authority.

9. To take the steps necessary before the competent authority in order to enter in the certificate of the Commercial Registry of the vessel the obligations which he may contract in accordance with Article 583.

10. To put in a safe place and keep all the papers and belongings of any members of the crew who might die on the vessel, drawing up a detailed inventory, in the presence of passengers as witnesses, and, in their absence, of members of the crew.

11. To conduct himself according to the rules and precepts contained in the instructions of the agent, being liable for all that he may do in violation thereof.

12. To give an account to the agent from the port where the vessel arrives, of the reason thereof, taking advantage of the semaphore, telegraph, mail, etc., according to the cases; notify him the freight he may have received, stating the name and domicile of the shippers, freight earned, and amounts borrowed on bottomry bond, advise him of his departure, and give him any information and data which may be of interest.

13. To observe the rules on the situation of lights and evolutions to prevent collisions.

14. To remain on board in case of danger to the vessel, until all hope to save her is lost, and before abandoning her to hear the officers of the crew, abiding by the decision of the majority; and if he should have to take a boat he shall take with him, before anything else, the books and papers, and then the articles of most value, being obliged to prove in case of the loss of the books and papers that he did all he could to save them.

15. In case of wreck he shall make the proper protest in due form at the first port reached, before the competent authority or the Spanish * consul, within twenty-four hours, stating therein all the incidents of the wreck, in accordance with case 8 of this article.

16. To comply with the obligations imposed by the laws and rules of navigation, customs, health, and others.

ARTICLE 613. A captain who navigates for freight in common or on shares can not make any transaction for his exclusive account, and should he do so the profit shall belong to the other persons in interest, and the losses shall be for his own exclusive account.

ARTICLE 614. A captain who, having made an agreement to make a voyage, should not fulfill his obligation, without being prevented by an accident case or by force majeure, shall pay for all the losses his action may cause, without prejudice to criminal penalties which may be proper.

ARTICLE 615. Without the consent of the agent, the captain can not have himself substituted by another person; and should he do so, besides being liable for all the acts of the substitute and bound to the indemnities mentioned in the foregoing article, the substitute as well as the captain may be discharged by the agent.

ARTICLE 616. If the provisions and fuel of the vessel are consumed before arriving at the port of destination, the captain shall decide, with the consent of the officers of the same, to make the nearest port to get a supply of either; but if there are persons on board who have provisions of their own he may force them to turn said provisions over for the common consumption of all persons on board, paying the price thereof immediately, or at the latest, at the first port reached.

ARTICLE 617. The captain can not contract loans on respondentia, and should he do so the contracts shall be void.

Neither can he borrow money on bottomry for his own transactions, except on the portion of the vessel he owns, provided no money has been previously borrowed on the whole vessel, and provided there does not exist any other kind of lien or obligation thereon. When he is permitted to do so, he must necessarily state what interest he has in the vessel.

In case of violation of this article the principal, interest, and costs shall be charged to the private account of the captain, and the agent may furthermore have the right to discharge him.

ARTICLE 618. The captain shall be civilly liable to the agent, and the latter to the third persons who may have made contracts with the former —

1. For all the damages suffered by the vessel and his cargo by reason of want of skill or negligence on his part. If a misdemeanor or crime has been committed he shall be liable in accordance with the Penal Code.

2. For all the thefts committed by the crew, reserving his right of action against the guilty parties.

3. For the losses, fines, and confiscations imposed an account of violation of the laws and regulations of customs, police, health, and navigation.

4. For the losses and damages caused by mutinies on board the vessel, or by reason of faults committed by the crew in the service and defense of the same, if he does not prove that he made full use of his authority to prevent or avoid them.

5. For those arising by reason of an undue use of powers and non-fulfillment of the obligations which are his in accordance with Articles 610 and 612.

6. For those arising by reason of his going out of his course or taking a course which he should not have taken without sufficient cause, in the opinion of the officers of the vessel, at a meeting with the shippers or supercargoes who may be on board.

No exception whatsoever shall exempt him from this obligation.

7. For those arising by reason of his voluntarily entering a port other than his destination, with the exception of the cases or without the formalities referred to in Article 612.

8. For those arising by reason of the non-observance of the provisions contained in the regulations for lights and evolutions for the purpose of preventing collisions.

ARTICLE 619. The captain shall be liable for the cargo from the time it is turned over to him at the dock, or afloat alongside the ship, at the port of loading until he delivers it on the shores or on the discharging wharf, of the port of unloading unless the contrary has been expressly agreed upon.

ARTICLE 620. The captain shall not be liable for the damages caused to the vessel or to the cargo by reason of force majeure; but he shall always be so — no agreement to the contrary being valid — for those arising through his own fault.

Neither shall he be personally liable for the obligations he may have contracted for the repair, equipment, and provisioning of the vessel, which shall be incurred by the agent, unless the former has expressly bound himself personally or signed a draft or promissory note in his name.

ARTICLE 621. A captain who borrows money on bottomry, or who pledges or sells merchandise or provisions in other cases and without the formalities prescribed in this Code, shall be liable for the principle, interest, and costs, and shall indemnify for the damages he may cause.

The captain who commits fraud in his accounts shall reimburse the amount defrauded, and shall be subject to the provisions contained in the Penal Code.

ARTICLE 622. If when on a voyage the captain should receive news of the appearance of privateers or men of war against his flag, he shall be obliged to make the nearest neutral port, inform his agent or shippers, and await an occasion to sail under convoy or until the danger is over or to receive final orders from the agent or shippers.

ARTICLE 623. If he should find himself being attacked by a privateer and after having done all that was possible to avoid the encounter and have resisted the delivery of the equipment of the vessel or of its cargo, they should be forcibly taken away from him, or he should be obliged to deliver them, he shall make an entry in his freight book and shall prove the fact before the competent authority at the first port he touches.

After the force majeure has been proven, he shall be exempted from liability.

ARTICLE 624. A captain whose vessel has gone through a hurricane or who believes that the cargo has suffered damages or averages, shall make a protest thereon before the competent authority at the first port he touches within the twenty-four hours following his arrival, and shall ratify it within the same period when he arrives at the place of his destination, immediately preceding with the proof of the facts, it not being permitted to open the hatches until this has been done.

The captain shall proceed in the same manner if, the vessel having been wrecked, he is saved alone or with part of his crew, in which case he shall appear before the nearest authority, and make a sworn statement of the facts.

The authority or the consul abroad shall verify the said facts, receiving a sworn statement of the members of the crew and passengers who may have been saved, and taking the other steps which may assist in arriving at the facts, drafting a certificate of the result of the proceedings in the log book and in that of the sailing mate, and shall deliver the original records of the proceedings to the captain, stamped and folioed, with a memorandum of the folios, which he must rubricate, for their presentation to the judge or court of the port of destination.

The statement of the captain shall be believed if it is in accordance with those of the crew and passengers; if they disagree, the latter shall be accepted, unless there is proof to the contrary.

ARTICLE 625. The captain, under his personal liability, as soon as he arrives at the port of destination, obtains the necessary permission from the health and customs officers and fulfills the other formalities required by the regulations of the administration, shall turn over the cargo, without any defalcation, to the consignees, and, in a proper case, the vessel, rigging, and freights to the agent.

If, by reason of the absence of the consignee or on account of the nonappearance of a legal holder of the invoices, the captain does not know to whom he is to make the legal delivery of the cargo, he shall place it at the disposal of the proper judge or court or authority, in order that he may decide with regard to its deposit, preservation, and custody.

SECTION III Officers and Crews of Vessels

ARTICLE 626. In order to be a sailing mate it shall be necessary:

1. To have the conditions required by the marine or navigation laws or regulations.

2. Not to be disqualified in accordance therewith for the discharge of the position.

ARTICLE 627. The sailing mate, as the second chief of the vessel and unless the agent orders otherwise, shall take the place of the captain in cases of absence, sickness, or death, and shall then assume all his powers, obligations, and responsibilities.

ARTICLE 628. The sailing mate must supply himself with charts of the waters which are to be navigated, with the maps and quadrants or sextants which are in use and which are necessary for the discharge of his duties, being liable for the accidents which may arise by reason of his fault in this matter.

ARTICLE 629. The sailing mate shall personally and specially keep a book folioed and stamped on all its pages, called the "binnacle book", with a memorandum at the beginning stating the number of folios it contains, signed by the competent authority, and shall enter therein daily the distance and course travelled, the variations of the needle, the leeway, the direction and force of the wind, the condition of the atmosphere and of the sea, the rigging set, the latitude and longitude observed, the number of furnaces fired, the steam pressure, the number of revolutions, and under the name of "incidents" the revolutions made, the meetings with other vessels, and all the particulars and accidents which may occur during the voyage.

ARTICLE 630. In order to change the course and to take the one most convenient for a good voyage of the vessel, the sailing mate shall come to an agreement with the captain. If the latter should object, the sailing mate shall make the remarks he may consider necessary in the presence of the other officers of the vessel. If the captain should still insist on his objection, the sailing mate shall make the proper protest, signed by him and by another one of the officers in the log book, and shall obey the captain, who shall be the only one liable for the consequences of his order.

ARTICLE 631. The sailing mate shall be liable for all the damages suffered by the vessel and cargo by reason of his negligence or want of skill, without prejudice to the criminal liability which may arise, if a felony or misdemeanor were committed.

ARTICLE 632. It shall be the duty of the second mate:

1. To watch over the preservation of the hull, and rigging of the vessel, and to take charge of the tackle and equipment which make up her outfit, suggesting to the captain the repairs necessary and the replacement of the goods and implements which are rendered useless and lost.

2. To take care that the cargo is well arranged, keeping the vessel always ready for evolutions.

3. To preserve order, discipline, and good service among the crew, requesting the necessary orders and instructions of the captain, and quickly informing him of any occurrence in which the intervention of his authority may be necessary.

4. To assign to each sailor the work he is to do on board, in accordance with the instructions received, and see that it is exactly and carefully carried out.

5. To take charge by inventory of the rigging and all the equipments of the vessel, if it should be laid up, unless the agent has ordered otherwise.

With regard to engineers the following rules shall govern:

1. In order to be taken on board as a marine engineer forming part of the complement of a merchant vessel it shall be necessary to possess the qualifications which the laws and regulations require, and not to be disqualified in accordance therewith to hold said position. Engineers shall be considered as officers of the vessel, but they shall exercise no command nor intervention except that which refers to the motive power.

2. When there are two or more engineers on one vessel, one of them shall be the chief, and the other engineers and all the personnel of the engines shall be under his orders; he shall furthermore have the motive power under his charge, as well as the spare pieces, instruments, and implements belonging thereto, the fuel, the lubricating material and, finally, all which comes under the jurisdiction of an engineer on board a vessel.

3. He shall keep the engines and boilers in good condition and in state of cleanliness, and shall order what may be proper in order that they may always be ready for regular use, being liable for the accidents or damages which may arise by reason of his want of skill or negligence to the motive apparatus, or to the vessel and cargo, without prejudice to the criminal liability which may be proper if a felony or misdemeanor is proven.

4. He shall make no change in the motive apparatus, nor shall he repair the averages he may have noticed in the same, nor change the normal speed of its movement without the prior authority of the captain, to whom, if he should object to their being made, he shall state the reasons he may deem proper in the presence of the other engineers or officers; and if, notwithstanding this, the captain should insist on his objection, the chief engineer shall make the proper protest, entering the same in the engine book, and shall obey the captain, who shall be the only one liable for the consequences of his order.

5. He shall inform the captain of any average which may occur to the motive apparatus, and shall inform him when it may be necessary to stop the engines for some time, or when any other incident occurs in his department of which the captain should be immediately informed, frequently advising him furthermore of the consumption of fuel and lubricating material.

6. He shall keep a book or registry called the "Engine Book," in which there shall be entered all the data that refer to the work of the engines, such as, for example, the number of furnaces fired, the steam pressure in the boilers and cylinders, the vacuum in the condenser, the temperatures, the degree of saturation of the water, the consumption of fuel and lubricating material, and under the heading of "Noteworthy occurrences" the average and imperfections which occur in the engines and boilers, the causes therefor, and the means employed to repair the same. There shall also be stated, taking the information from the binnacle book, and direction of the wind, the rigging set, and the speed of the vessel.

ARTICLE 633. The second mate shall take command of the vessel in case of the impossibility or disability of the captain and sailing mate, assuming in such case their powers and liability.

ARTICLE 634. The captain may make up his crew with the number he may consider advisable, and in the absence of Spanish * sailors he may ship foreigners residing in the country, the number thereof not to exceed one-fifth of the total crew. If in foreign ports the captain should not find a sufficient number of Spanish *sailors, he may make up the crew with foreigners, with the consent of the consul or marine authorities.

The agreements which the captain may make with the members of the crew and others who go to make up the complement of the vessels, to which reference is made in Article 612, must be reduced to writing in the account book without the intervention of a notary public or clerk, signed by the parties thereto, and vised by the marine authority if they are executed in Spanish * territory, or by the consuls or consular agents of Spain * if executed abroad, stating therein all the obligations which each one contracts and all the rights they acquire, said authorities taking care that these obligations and rights are recorded in a concise and clear manner, which will not give rise to doubts or claims.

The captain shall take care to read to them the articles of this Code, which concern them, stating that they were read in the said document.

If the book includes the requisites prescribed in Article 612, and there should not appear any signs of alterations in its clauses, it shall be admitted as evidence in questions which may arise between the captain and the crew with regard to the agreements contained therein and the amounts paid on account of the same.

Every member of the crew may request a copy of the captain, signed by the latter, of the agreement and of the liquidation of his wages, as they appear in the book.

ARTICLE 635. A sailor who has been contracted to serve on a vessel can not rescind his contract nor fail to comply therewith except by reason of a legitimate impediment which may have occurred.

Neither can he pass from the service of one vessel to another without obtaining the written consent of the vessel on which he may be.

If, without obtaining said permission, the sailor who has signed for one vessel should sign for another one, the second contract shall be void, and the captain may choose between forcing him to fulfill the service to which he first bound himself or look for a person to substitute him at his expense.

Said sailor shall furthermore lose the wages earned on his first contract to the benefit of the vessel for which he may have signed.

A captain who, knowing that a sailor is in the service of another vessel, should have made a new agreement with him, without having requested the permission referred to in the foregoing paragraphs, shall be personally liable to the captain of the vessel to which the sailor first belonged for that part of the indemnity, referred to in the third paragraph of this article, which the sailor could not pay.

ARTICLE 636. Should a fixed period for which a sailor has signed not be stated, he can not be discharged until the end of the return voyage to the port where he enrolled.

ARTICLE 637. Neither can the captain discharge a sailor during the time of his contract except for sufficient cause, the following being considered as such:

1. The perpetration of a crime which disturbs order on the vessel.

2. Repeated offenses of insubordination, against discipline, or against the fulfillment of the service.

3. Repeated incapacity or negligence in the fulfillment of the service to be rendered.

4. Habitual drunkenness.

5. Any occurrence which incapacitates the sailor to carry out the work under his charge, with the exception of the provisions contained in Article 644.

6. Desertion.

The captain may, however, before setting out on a voyage and without giving any reason whatsoever, refuse to permit a sailor he may have engaged from going on board and may leave him on land, in which case he will be obliged to pay him his wages as if he had rendered services.

This indemnity shall be paid from the funds of the vessel if the captain should have acted for reasons of prudence and in the interest of the safety and good service of the former. Should this not be the case, it shall be paid by the captain personally.

After the vessel has sailed, and during the voyage and until the conclusion thereof, the captain can not abandon any member of his crew on land or on the sea, unless, by reason of being guilty of some crime, his imprisonment and delivery to the competent authority is proper in the first port touched, which will be obligatory on the captain.

ARTICLE 638. If, the crew having been engaged, the voyage is revoked by the will of the agent or of the charterers before or after the vessel has put to sea or if the vessel is in the same manner given a different destination than that fixed in the agreement with the crew, the latter shall be indemnified because of the rescission of the contract according to the case, viz:

1. If the revocation of the voyage should be decided before the departure of the vessel from the port, each sailor engaged shall be given one month's salary, besides what may be due him in accordance with his contract, for the services rendered to the vessel up to the date of the revocation.

2. If the agreement should have been for a fixed amount for the whole voyage, there shall be graduated what may be due for said month and days, calculating the same in proportion to the estimated duration of the voyage, in the judgment of experts, in the manner established in the law of civil procedure; and if the proposed voyage should be of such short duration that it is calculated at one month more or less, the indemnity shall be fixed for fifteen days, discounting in all cases the sums advanced.

3. If the revocation should take place after the vessel has put to sea, the sailors engaged for a fixed amount for the voyage shall receive the salary which may have been offered them in full as if the voyage had terminated, and those engaged by the month shall receive the amount corresponding to the time they might have been on board and to the time they may require to arrive at the port of destination, the captain being obliged, furthermore, to pay said sailors the passage to the said port or to the port of sailing of the vessel, as may be convenient for them.

4. If the agent or the charterers of the vessel should give said vessel a destination other than that fixed in the agreement, and the members of the crew should not agree thereto, they shall be given by way of indemnity half the amount fixed in case No. 1, besides what may be owed them for the part of the monthly wages corresponding to the days which have elapsed from the date of their agreements.

If they accept the change, and the voyage, on account of the greater distance or for other reasons, should give rise to an increase of wages, the latter shall be privately regulated, or through amicable arbitrators in case of disagreement. Even though the voyage may be to a nearer point, this shall not give rise to a reduction in the wages agreed upon.

If the revocation or change of the voyage should originate from the shippers or charterers, the agent shall have a right to demand of them the indemnity which is justly due.

ARTICLE 639. If the revocation of the voyage should arise from a just cause independent of the will of the agent or charterers, and the vessel should not have left the port, the members of the crew shall not have any other right than to receive the wages earned up to the day on which the revocation took place.

ARTICLE 640. The following shall be just causes for the revocation of the voyage:

1. A declaration of war or interdiction of commerce with the power to whose territory the vessel was bound.

2. The blockade of the port of destination or the breaking out of an epidemic after the agreement.

3. The prohibition to receive in said port the goods which make up the cargo of the vessel.

4. The detention or embargo of the same by order of the Government, or for any other reason independent of the will of the agent.

5. The inability of the vessel to navigate.

ARTICLE 641. If, after a voyage has been begun, any of the first three causes mentioned in the foregoing article should occur, the sailors shall be paid at the port the captain may deem it advisable to make for the benefit of the vessel and cargo, according to the time they may have served thereon; but if the vessel is to continue the voyage, the captain and the crew may mutually demand the enforcement of the contract.

In case of the occurrence of the fourth cause, the crew shall continue to be paid half wages, if the agreement is by month but if the detention should exceed three months, the engagement shall be rescinded and the crew shall be paid what they should have earned, according to the contract, if the voyage had been made. And if the agreement had been made for a fixed sum for the voyage, the contract must be complied within the terms agreed upon.

In the fifth case, the crew shall not have any other right than be entitled to recover the wages earned; but if the disability of the vessel should have been caused by the negligence or lack of skill of the captain, engineer, or sailing mate, they shall indemnify the crew for the loss suffered, always reserving the criminal liability which may be proper.

ARTICLE 642. If the crew has been engaged to work on shares they shall not be entitled, by reason of the revocation, delay, or greater extension of the voyage, to anything but the proportionate part of the indemnity paid into the common funds of the vessel by the persons liable for said occurrences.

ARTICLE 643. If the vessel and her freight should be totally lost, by reason of capture or wreck, all rights of the crew to demand any wages whatsoever shall be extinguished, as well as that of the agent for the recovery of the advances made.

If a portion of the vessel or freight should be saved, or part of either, the crew engaged on wages, including the captain, shall retain their rights on the salvage, so far as they go, on the remainder of the vessel as well as value of the freightage or the cargo saved; but sailors who are engaged on shares shall not have any right whatsoever to the salvage of the hull, but only on the portion of the freightage saved. If they should have worked to collect the remainder of the ship-wrecked vessel, they shall be given an award in proportion to the efforts made and to the risks encountered in order to accomplish the salvage.

ARTICLE 644. A sailor who falls sick shall not lose his right to wages during the voyage, unless the sickness is the result of his own fault. At any rate, the costs of the attendance and cure shall be defrayed from the common funds, in the form of a loan.

If the sickness should be caused by an injury received in the service or defense of the vessel the sailor shall be attended and cured from the common funds, there being deducted before anything else from the proceeds of the freight, the cost of the attendance and cure.

ARTICLE 645. If a sailor should die during the voyage his heir shall be given the wages earned and not received, according to his engagement and the reason for his death, namely —

If he should have died a natural death and should have been engaged on wages there shall be paid what may have been earned up to the date of his death.

If the engagement had been made for a fixed sum for the whole voyage there shall be paid half the amount earned if the sailor died on the voyage out, and the whole amount if he died on the return voyage.

And if the engagement had been made on shares and the death should have occurred after the voyage was begun, the heirs shall be paid the entire portion due the sailor; but should the latter have died before the departure of the vessel from the port, the heirs shall not be entitled to claim anything.

If the death should have occurred in the defense of the vessel, the sailor shall be considered as living, and his heirs shall be paid, at the end of the voyage, the full amount of wages or the full part of the profits due him as to the others of his grade.

The sailor shall likewise be considered as present in the event of his capture when defending the vessel, in order to enjoy the same benefits as the rest; but should he have been captured on account of carelessness or other accident not related to the service, he shall only receive the wages due up to the day of his capture.

ARTICLE 646. The vessel with her engines, rigging, equipment, and freights shall be liable for the wages earned by the crew engaged per month or for the trip, the liquidation and payment ought to take place between one voyage and the other.

After a new voyage has been undertaken, credits such as the former shall lose their right of preference.

ARTICLE 647. The officers and the crew of the vessel shall be exempted from all obligations contracted, if they deem it proper, in the following cases:

1. If, before the beginning of the voyage, the captain attempts to change it, or there occurs a naval war with the power to which the vessel was destined.

2. If a disease should break out and be officially declared epidemic in the port of destination.

3. If the vessel should change owner or captain.

ARTICLE 648. By the complement of a vessel shall be understood all the persons embarked, from the captain to the cabin boy, necessary for the management, evolutions, and service, and there shall, therefore, be understood as included in the complement the crew, sailing mates, engineers, stokers, and other persons not having a specific name; but there shall not be included the passengers nor the persons the vessel is only transporting.

SECTION IV Supercargoes

ARTICLE 649. Supercargoes shall discharge on board the vessel the administrative duties which the agent or shippers may have assigned them; they shall keep an account and record of their transactions in a book which shall have the same conditions and requisites as required for the accounting book of the captain, and shall respect the latter in his duties as chief of the vessel.

The powers and liabilities of the captain shall cease, when there is a supercargo, with regard to that part of the administration legitimately conferred upon the latter, but shall continue in force for all acts which are inseparable from his authority and office.

ARTICLE 650. All the provisions contained in the second section of Title III, Book II, with regard to qualifications, manner of making contracts, and liabilities of factors shall be applicable to supercargoes.

ARTICLE 651. Supercargoes can not, without special authorization or agreement, make any transaction for their own account during the voyage, with the exception of the ventures which, in accordance with the custom of the port of destination, they are permitted to do.

Neither shall they be permitted to invest in the return trip more than the profits from the ventures, unless there is a special authorization thereto from the principals.

TITLE III Special Contracts of Maritime Commerce

SECTION I Charter Parties

1. Forms and Effects of Charter Parties

ARTICLE 652. A charter party must be drawn in duplicate and signed by the contracting parties, and when either does not know how or can not do so, by two witnesses at their request.

The charter party shall include, besides the conditions unrestrictedly stipulated, the following statements:

1. The kind, name, and tonnage of the vessel.

2. Her flag and port of registry.

3. The name, surname, and domicile of the captain.

4. The name, surname, and domicile of the agent, if the latter should make the charter party.

5. The name, surname, and domicile of the charterer, and if he states that he is acting by commission, that of the person for whose account he makes the contract.

6. The port of loading and unloading.

7. The capacity, number of tons or weight, or measure which they respectively bind themselves to load and transport, or whether it is the total cargo.

8. The freightage to be paid, stating whether it is to be a fixed amount for the voyage or so much per month, or for the space to be occupied, or for the weight or measure of the goods of which the cargo consists, or in any other manner whatsoever agreed upon.

9. The amount of primage to be paid to the captain.

10. The days agreed upon for loading and unloading.

11. The lay days and extra lay days to be allowed and the rate of demurrage.

ARTICLE 653. If the freight should be received without the charter party having been signed, the contract shall be understood as executed in accordance with what appears in the bill of lading, which shall be the only instrument with regard to the freight to determine the rights and obligations of the owner, of the captain, and of the charterer. t

ARTICLE 654. The charter parties executed with the intervention of a broker, who certifies to the authenticity of the signatures of the contracting parties made in his presence, shall be full evidence in court; and if said signatures should not agree the ones identical with the signatures the broker must keep in his registry, if kept in accordance to law, shall be final.

The contracts shall also be admitted as evidence, even though a broker has not taken part therein, if the contracting parties acknowledge the signatures to be the same as their own.

Should no broker have taken part in the charter party and should the signatures not have been acknowledged, doubts shall be decided by what is provided for in the bill of lading, and in the absence thereof by the proofs submitted by the parties.

ARTICLE 655. Charter parties executed by the captain in the absence of the agent shall be valid and efficient, even though in executing them he should have acted in violation of the orders and instructions of the agent or shipowner; but the latter shall have a right of action against the captain to recover damages.

ARTICLE 656. If in the charter party the time in which the loading and unloading is to take place is not stated, the customs of the port where these acts take place shall be observed. After the period stipulated or the customary one has passed, and should there not be in the freight contract an express clause fixing the indemnification for the delay, the captain shall be entitled to demand demurrage for the usual and extra lay days which may have elapsed in loading and unloading.

ARTICLE 657. If during the voyage the vessel should be rendered unseaworthy the captain shall be obliged to charter another one at his expense, in good condition, to take the cargo to its destination, for which purpose he shall be obliged to look for a vessel not only at the port of arrival but in the other ports within a distance of 150 kilometers.

If the captain should not furnish a vessel to take the cargo to its destination, either through indolence or malice, the freighters, after a demand of the captain to charter a vessel within an unextendible period, may charter one and apply to the judicial authority requesting that the charter party which may have been made be immediately approved.

The same authority shall judicially compel the captain to confirm the charter made by the shippers for his account and under his responsibility.

If the captain, notwithstanding his efforts, should not find a vessel to charter, he shall deposit the cargo at the disposal of the freighters, to whom he shall communicate the facts on the first opportunity presenting itself, the charter being regulated in such cases by the distance covered by the vessel, there being no right to any indemnification whatsoever.

ARTICLE 658. The freight shall be paid according to the conditions stipulated in the contract, and should they not be specific, or should they be ambiguous, the following rules shall be observed:

1. If the vessel has been chartered by months or by days, the freight shall begin to run from the day the loading of the vessel is begun.

2. In charters made for a fixed period, the freight shall begin from that very day.

3. If the freight is charged according to weight, the payment shall be made according to gross weight, including the containers, such as barrels or any other objects containing the cargo.

ARTICLE 659. The merchandise sold by the captain to pay for the necessary repairs to the hull, machinery or equipment, or for unavoidable and urgent requirements, shall pay freight. t

The price of this merchandise shall be fixed according to the success of the voyage, namely:

1. If the vessel should arrive safely at the port of destination, the captain shall pay the price which the sale of merchandise of the same kind brings at that port.

2. If the vessel should be lost, the captain shall pay the price said merchandise would have brought in the sale.

The same rule shall be observed in the payment of the freight which shall be in full if the vessel arrives at her destination, and in proportion to the distance covered if she should be lost beforehand.

ARTICLE 660. Merchandise jettisoned for the common safety shall not pay freight; but its value shall be considered as general average, and shall be computed in proportion to the distance covered when it was jettisoned.

ARTICLE 661. Neither shall merchandise which was lost by reason of shipwreck or stranding pay freight, nor that seized by pirates or enemies.

If the freight should have been paid in advance, it shall be returned, unless there was an agreement to the contrary.

ARTICLE 662. If the vessel or the merchandise should be recovered, or should the goods of the shipwreck be picked up, the freight corresponding to the distance covered by the vessel transporting the cargo shall be paid; and should the vessel be repaired and transport said merchandise to the port of destination, the full freight shall be paid, without prejudice to what may be due by reason of the average.

ARTICLE 663. Merchandise which is damaged or reduced on account of its own defects or bad quality and condition of the packing, or by reason of an accidental case, shall pay full freight, and as was stipulated in the charter party.

ARTICLE 664. The natural increase in weight or size of the merchandise loaded on the vessel shall accrue to the benefit of the owner, and shall pay the proper freight fixed in the contract for the same.

ARTICLE 665. The cargo shall be specially liable for the payment of the freight expenses, and duties arising therefrom, which must be reimbursed by the shippers, as well as for the part of the general average which may be due, but it shall not be legal for the captain to delay unloading on account of delay in complying with this obligation.

Should there be reasons for distrust, the judge or court, at the instance of the captain, may order the deposit of the merchandise until he has been paid in full.

ARTICLE 666. The captain may request the sale of the cargo to the amount necessary to pay the freight, expenses, and averages due him, reserving the right to demand the balance due him therefor if the proceeds of the sale should not have sufficed to cover his credit.

ARTICLE 667. The goods loaded shall be liable in the first place for their freight and expenses during twenty days, to be counted from the date of their delivery or deposit. During this period, the sale of the same may be requested, even though there be other creditors and the case of bankruptcy of the freighter or consignee should occur.

This right can not be made use of, however, on the goods which after being delivered, were turned over to a third person without malice on the part of the latter and for a valuable consideration.

ARTICLE 668. If the consignee should not be found or should refuse to receive the cargo, the judge or court, at the instance of the captain, shall order its deposit and the sale of the merchandise in so far as necessary to pay the freight and other expenses on the same.

The sale shall likewise take place when the goods deposited run the risk of deteriorating or by reason of their condition or for other reasons the expenses of preservation and custody should be disproportionate to the value thereof.

2. Rights and Obligations of Owners

ARTICLE 669. The owners or the captain shall observe in charter parties the capacity of the vessel or that expressly designated in the registry of the same, a difference greater than 2 per cent between that stated and her true capacity not being permissible.

If the owners or the captain should contract to carry a greater amount of cargo than the vessel can hold, in view of her tonnage, they shall indemnify the freighters whose contracts they do not fulfill for the losses they may have caused them by reason of their default, according to the cases, viz:

If the vessel has been chartered by one freighter only, and there should appear to be an error or fraud in her capacity, and the charterer should not wish to rescind the contract, when he has a right to do so, the charter should be reduced in proportion to the cargo the vessel can not receive, the person from whom the vessel is chartered being furthermore obliged to indemnify the charterer for the losses he may have caused.

If, on the contrary, there should be several charter parties, and by reason of the want of space all the cargo contracted for can not be received, and none of the charterers desires to rescind the contract, preference shall be given to the person who has already loaded and arranged the freight in the vessel, and the rest shall take the place corresponding to them in the order of the dates of their contracts.

Should there be no priority, the charterers may load, if they wish, pro rata of the amounts of weight or space they may have engaged, and the person from whom the vessel was chartered shall be obliged to indemnify them for the loss and damage.

ARTICLE 670. If the person from whom the vessel is chartered, after receiving a part of the freight, should not find sufficient to make up at least three-fifths of the amount which the vessel can hold, at the price he may have fixed, he may substitute for the transportation another vessel inspected and declared suitable for the same voyage, the expenses of transfer being defrayed by him, as well as the increase, should there be any, in the price of the charter. Should he not be able to make this change, the voyage shall be undertaken at the time agreed upon; and should no time have been fixed, within fifteen days from the time of beginning to load, should nothing to the contrary have been stipulated.

If the owner of the part of the freight already loaded should procure some more at the same price and under similar or proportionate conditions to those accepted for the freight received, the person from whom the vessel is chartered or the captain can not refuse to accept the rest of the cargo; and should he do so, the freighter shall have a right to demand that the vessel put to sea with the cargo she may have on board.

ARTICLE 671. After three-fifths of the vessel is loaded, the person from whom she is chartered can not, without the consent of the charterers or freighters substitute the vessel designated in the charter party by another one, under the penalty of making himself thereby liable for all the losses and damages occurring during the voyage to the cargo of the person who did not consent to the change.

ARTICLE 672. If the vessel has been chartered in whole, the captain can not, without the consent of the person chartering her, accept freight from any other person; and should he do so, said charterer may oblige him to unload it and require him to indemnify him for the losses suffered thereby.

ARTICLE 673. The person from whom the vessel is chartered shall be liable for all the losses caused the charterer by reason of the voluntary delay of the captain in putting to sea, according to the rules prescribed, provided he has been requested to put to sea at the proper time through a notary or judicially.

ARTICLE 674. If the charterer should carry to the vessel more freight than that contracted for, the excess may be admitted in accordance with the price stipulated in the contract, if it can be well stowed without injuring the other freighters, but if in order to stow said freight it should be necessary to stow it in such manner as to throw the vessel out of trim the captain must refuse it or unload it at the expense of its owner.

The captain may likewise, before leaving the port, unload the merchandise placed on board clandestinely, or transport it, if he can do so and keep the vessel in trim, demanding by way of freightage the highest price which may have been stipulated for said voyage.

ARTICLE 675. If the vessel has been chartered to receive the cargo in another port, the captain shall appear before the consignee designated in the charter party, and, should the latter not deliver the cargo to him, he shall inform the charterer and await his instructions, and in the meantime the lay days agreed upon shall begin to run, or those allowed by custom in the port, unless there is a special agreement to the contrary.

Should the captain not receive an answer within the time necessary therefor, he shall make efforts to find freight; and should he not find any after the lay days and extra lay days have elapsed, he shall make a protest and return to the port where the charter was made.

The charterer shall pay the freightage in full, discounting that which may have been earned on the merchandise which may have been carried on the voyage out or on the return trip, if carried for the account of third persons.

The same shall be done if a vessel, having been chartered for the round trip, should not be given any cargo for her return.

ARTICLE 676. The captain shall lose the freightage and shall indemnify the charterers if the latter should prove, even against the certificate of inspection, should one have taken place at the port of departure, that the vessel was not in a condition to navigate at the time of receiving the cargo.

ARTICLE 677. The charter party shall be enforced if the captain should not have any instructions from the charterer, and a declaration of war or a blockade should take place during the voyage.

In such case the captain shall be obliged to make the nearest safe and neutral port, and request and await orders from the freighter; and the expenses incurred and salaries earned during the detention shall be paid as general average.

If, by orders of the freighter, the cargo should be discharged at the port of arrival, the freight for the voyage out shall be paid in full.

ARTICLE 678. If the time necessary, in the opinion of the judge or court, in which to receive orders from the freighters should have elapsed without the captain having received any instructions, the cargo shall be deposited, and it shall be liable for the payment of the freight and expenses incurred by reason of the delay which shall be paid from the proceeds of the part first sold.

3. Obligations of Charterers

ARTICLE 679. The charterer of an entire vessel may subcharter the whole or part thereof for the amounts he may consider most convenient, without the captain being allowed to refuse to receive on board the freight delivered by the second charterers, provided the conditions of the first charter are not changed, and that the person from whom the vessel is chartered be paid the full price agreed upon even though the full cargo is not embarked, with the limitation established in the next article.

ARTICLE 680. A charterer who does not make up the full cargo he bound himself to ship shall pay the freightage of the amount he fails to ship, if the captain did not take other freight to make up the cargo of the vessel, in which case he shall pay the first charterer the difference should there be any.

ARTICLE 681. If the charterer should ship goods different from those indicated at the time of executing the charter party, without the knowledge of the person from whom the vessel was chartered or of the captain, and should thereby give rise to losses, by reason of confiscation, embargo, detention, or other causes, to the person from whom the vessel was chartered or to the shippers, the person giving rise thereto shall be liable with the value of his shipment and furthermore with his property, for the full indemnity to all those injured through his fault.

ARTICLE 682. If the merchandise shipped should have been for the purpose of illicit commerce, and was taken on board with the knowledge of the person from whom the vessel was chartered or of the captain, the latter, jointly with the owner of the same, shall be liable for all the losses which may be caused the other shippers, and even though it may have been agreed, they can not demand any indemnity whatsoever of the charterer for the damage caused the vessel.

ARTICLE 683. In case of making a port to repair the hull, machinery, or equipment of the vessel, the freighters must wait until the vessel is repaired, being permitted to unload her at their own expense should they deem it advisable.

If, for the benefit of the cargo subject to deterioration, the freighters or the court, or the consul, or the competent authority in a foreign land should order the merchandise to be unloaded, the expenses of loading and unloading shall be for the account of the former.

ARTICLE 684. If the charterer, without the occurrence of any of the cases of force majeure mentioned in the foregoing article, should wish to unload his merchandise before arriving at the port of destination, he shall pay the full freight, the expenses of the stop made at his request, and the losses and damages caused the other freighters, should there be any.

ARTICLE 685. In charters for transportation of general freight any of the freighters may unload the merchandise before the beginning of the voyage, by paying one-half the freight, the expense of stowing and restowing the cargo, and any other damage which may be caused the other shippers.

ARTICLE 686. After the vessel has been unloaded and the cargo placed at the disposal of the consignee, the latter must immediately pay the captain the freight due and the other expenses to which he may be liable for said cargo.

The primage must be paid in the same proportion and at the same time as the freight, all the changes and modifications to which the latter should be subject also governing the former.

ARTICLE 687. The charters and freighters can not abandon merchandise damaged on account of the inherent vice of the goods or by reason of an accidental case, for the payment of the freight and other expenses.

The abandonment shall be proper, however, if the cargo should consist of liquids and should they have leaked out, there not remaining in the containers more than one-quarter of their contents.

4. Total or Partial Rescissions of Charter Parties

ARTICLE 688. A charter party may be annulled at the request of the charterer:

1. If before loading the vessel he should abandon the charter, paying half of the freightage agreed upon.

2. If the capacity of the vessel should not agree with that stated in the certificate of the tonnage, or if there is an error in the statement of the flag under which she sails.

3. If the vessel should not be placed at the disposal of the charterer within the period and in the manner agreed upon.

4. If, after the vessel has put to sea, she should return to the port of departure, on account of risk of pirates, enemies, or bad weather, and the freighters should agree to unload her.

In the second and third cases the person from whom the vessel was chartered shall indemnify the charterer for the losses he may suffer.

In the fourth case the person from whom the vessel was chartered shall have a right to the freightage in full for the voyage out.

If the charter should have been made by the months, the charterers shall pay the full freightage for one month, if the voyage were to a port in the same waters, and two months, if the voyage were to a port in different waters.

From one port to another of the Peninsula and adjacent islands, the freightage for one month only shall be paid.

5. If a vessel should make a port during the voyage in order to make urgent repairs and the freighters should prefer to dispose of the merchandise.

When the delay does not exceed thirty days, the freighters shall pay the full freight for the voyage out.

Should the delay exceed thirty days, they shall only pay the freight in proportion to the distance covered by the vessel.

ARTICLE 689. At the request of the person from whom the vessel is chartered the charter party may be rescinded:

1. If the charterer at the termination of the extra lay days does not place the cargo alongside the vessel.

In such case the charterer must pay half the freight stipulated besides the demurrage for the lay days and extra lay days elapsed.

2. If the person from whom the vessel was chartered should sell her before the charterer has begun to load her and the purchaser should load her for his own account.

In such case the vendor shall indemnify the charterer for the losses he may suffer.

If the new owner of the vessel should not load her for his own account the charter party shall be respected, and the vendor shall indemnify the purchaser if the former did not inform him of the charter pending at the time of making the sale.

ARTICLE 690. The charter party shall be rescinded and all action arising therefrom shall be extinguished if, before the vessel puts to sea from the port of departure, any of the following cases should occur:

1. A declaration of war or interdiction of commerce with the power to whose ports the vessel was going to sail.

2. A condition of blockade of the port of destination of said vessel, or the breaking out of an epidemic after the contract was executed.

3. The prohibition to receive the merchandise of the vessel at the said port.

4. An indefinite detention, by reason of an embargo of the vessel by order of the government or for any other reason independent of the will of the agent.

5. The impossibility of the vessel to navigate, without fault of the captain or agent.

The unloading shall be made for the account of the charterer.

ARTICLE 691. If the vessel can not put to sea on account of the closing of the port of departure, or any other temporary cause, the charter shall be in force without any of the contracting parties having a right to claim damages.

The subsistence and wages of the crew shall be considered as general average.

During the interruption the charterer may, at the proper time and for his own account, unload and load the merchandise, paying demurrage if the reloading should continue after the reason for the detention has ceased.

ARTICLE 692. A charter party shall be partially rescinded, unless there is an agreement to the contrary, and the captain shall only be entitled to the freight for the voyage out, if, by reason of a declaration of war, closing of ports, or interdiction of commercial relations during the voyage, the vessel should make the port designated for such a case in the instructions of the charterer.

5. Passengers on Sea Voyages

ARTICLE 693. Should the passage price not have been agreed upon, the judge or court shall summarily fix it, after a statement of experts.

ARTICLE 694. Should the passenger not arrive on board at the time fixed, or should leave the vessel without permission from the captain, when the latter is ready to leave the port, the captain may continue the voyage and demand the full passage price.

ARTICLE 695. The right to passage, if issued to a specified person, can not be transferred without the consent of the captain or of the consignee.

ARTICLE 696. If before beginning the voyage the passenger should die, his heirs shall only be obliged to pay half of the passage agreed upon.

If there should be understood in the price stipulated the expenses of subsistence, the judge, or court, hearing experts if he considers it necessary, shall fix the amount to be paid the vessel.

Should another passenger be received in the place of the deceased, nothing shall be paid by said heirs.

ARTICLE 697. If before beginning the voyage it should be suspended through the sole fault of the captain or agent, the passengers shall be entitled to have their passage refunded and to recover for losses and damages; but if the suspension was due to an accidental cause, or to force majeure, or to any other cause beyond the control of the captain or agent, the passengers shall only be entitled to the return of the passage money.

ARTICLE 698. In case a voyage already begun should be interrupted the passengers shall be obliged only to pay the passage in proportion to the distance covered, and shall not be entitled to recover for losses and damages if the interruption is due to an accidental cause or to force majeure, but have a right to indemnity if the interruption should have been caused by the captain exclusively. If the interruption should be by reason of the disability of the vessel, and the passenger should agree to await her repair, he can not be required to pay any increased price of passage, but his living expenses during the delay shall be for his own account.

In case the departure of the vessel is delayed the passengers have a right to remain on board and to be furnished with food for the account of the vessel, unless the delay is due to an accidental cause or to force majeure. If the delay should exceed ten days, the passengers who request it shall be entitled to the return of the passage; and if it were due exclusively to the captain or agent they may furthermore demand indemnity for losses and damages.

A vessel which is exclusively destined to the transportation of passengers must take them directly to the port or ports of destination, no matter what the number of passengers may be, making all the stops indicated in her itinerary.

ARTICLE 699. After the contract has been rescinded, before or after the commencement of the voyage, the captain shall have a right to claim payment for what he may have furnished the passengers.

ARTICLE 700. In all that relates to the preservation of order and police on board the vessel the passengers shall conform to the orders given by the captain, without any distinction whatsoever.

ARTICLE 701. The convenience or the interest of the passengers shall not obligate nor empower the captain to stand in shore or enter places which may take the vessel out of her course, nor to remain in the ports he must or is under the necessity of touching for a period longer than that required for the business of the navigation.

ARTICLE 702. In the absence of an agreement to the contrary, it shall be understood that the maintenance of the passengers during the voyage is included in the price of the passage; but should said maintenance be for the account of the latter, the captain shall be under the obligation, in case of necessity, to furnish them the victuals at a reasonable price necessary for their maintenance.

ARTICLE 703. A passenger shall be looked upon as a shipper in so far as the goods he carries on board are concerned, and the captain shall not be liable for what said passenger may preserve under his immediate and special custody unless the damage arises from an act of the captain or of the crew.

ARTICLE 704. The captain, in order to collect the price of the passage and expenses of maintenance, may retain the goods belonging to the passenger, and in case of the sale of the same he shall be given preference over the other creditors, acting in the same way as in the collection of freight.

ARTICLE 705. In case of the death of a passenger during the voyage the captain is authorized, with regard to the body, to take the steps required by the circumstances, and shall carefully take care of the papers and goods there may be on board belonging to the passenger, observing the provisions of Case No. 10 of Article 612 with regard to members of the crew.

6. Bills of Lading

ARTICLE 706. The captain and the freighter of the vessel are obliged to draft the bill of lading, in which there shall be stated:

1. The name, registry, and tonnage of the vessel.

2. The name of the captain and his domicile.

3. The port of loading and that of unloading.

4. The name of the shipper.

5. The name of the consignee, if the bill of lading is issued to order.

6. The quantity, quality, number of packages, and marks of the merchandise.

7. The freight and the primage stipulated.

The bill of lading may be issued to bearer, to order, or in the name of a specific person, and must be signed within twenty-four hours after the cargo has been received on board, the freighter being able to request the unloading thereof at the expense of the captain should he not sign it, and in every case indemnity for the losses and damages suffered thereby.

ARTICLE 707. Four true copies of the original bill of lading shall be made, all of which shall be signed by the captain and by the freighter. Of these copies the freighter shall keep one and send another to the consignee; the captain shall take two, one for himself and another for the agent.

There may, furthermore, be made as many copies of the bill of lading as may be considered necessary by the persons interested; but when they are issued to order or to the bearer there shall be stated in all the copies, be they either of the first four or of the subsequent ones, the destination of each one, stating whether it is for the agent, for the captain, for the freighter, or for the consignee. If the copy sent to the latter should be duplicated there must be stated in said duplicate this fact, and that it is not valid except in case of the loss of the first one.

ARTICLE 708. The bills of lading issued to the bearer sent to the consignee shall be transferable by the actual delivery of the instrument; and by virtue of an indorsement, those issued to order.

In either case, the person to whom the bill of lading is transferred shall acquire all the rights and actions of the assignor or indorser with regard to the merchandise mentioned in the same.

ARTICLE 709. A bill of lading drawn up in accordance with the provisions of this title shall be proof as between all those interested in the cargo and between the latter and the underwriters, proof to the contrary being reserved by the latter.

ARTICLE 710. Should the bills of lading not agree, and there should not be observed any correction or erasure in any of them, those possessed by the freighter or consignee signed by the captain shall be proof against the captain or agent in favor of the consignee or freighter; and those possessed by the captain or agent signed by the freighter shall be proof against the freighter or consignee in favor of the captain or agent.

ARTICLE 711. The legitimate holder of a bill of lading who does not present it to the captain of the vessel before her unloading, obliging the latter thereby to unload it and place it in deposit, shall be liable for the cost of warehousing and other expenses arising therefrom.

ARTICLE 712. The captain can not himself change the destination of merchandise. In admitting this change at the instance of the freighter, he must first take up the bills of lading he may have issued, under the penalty of being liable for the cargo to the legitimate holder of the same.

ARTICLE 713. If before delivering the cargo a new bill of lading should be demanded of the captain, it being alleged that the previous ones are not presented on account of their loss or for any other sufficient cause, he shall be obliged to issue it, provided security for the value of the cargo is given to his satisfaction; but without changing the consignment and stating therein the circumstances prescribed in the last paragraph of Article 707, when the bills of lading referred to therein are in question, under the penalty otherwise to be liable for said cargo if not properly delivered through his fault.

ARTICLE 714. If before the vessel puts to sea the captain should die or should discontinue in his position through any accident, the freighters shall have a right to demand of the new captain the ratification of the first bills of lading, and the latter must do so, provided all the copies previously issued be presented or returned to him, and it should appear from an examination of the cargo that they are correct.

The expenses arising from the examination of the cargo shall be defrayed by the agent, without prejudice to the right of action of the latter against the first captain, if he ceased to be such through his own fault. Should said examination not be made, it shall be understood that the new captain accepts the cargo as it appears from the bills of lading issued.

ARTICLE 715. Bills of lading will give rise to a most summary action or to judicial compulsion, according to the case, for the delivery of the cargo and the payment of the freightage and proper expenses.

ARTICLE 716. If several persons should present bills of lading issued to bearer or to order, indorsed in their favor, demanding the same merchandise, the captain shall prefer in delivering the same, the person presenting the copy first issued, with the exception of the case when the latter one was issued on account of the loss of the first one, and if they are held by different persons.

In such case, as well as when only second or subsequent copies issued without this proof are presented, the captain shall apply to the judge or court, so that he may order the deposit of the merchandise, and that through him it may be delivered to the proper person.

ARTICLE 717. The delivery of the bill of lading shall effect the cancellation of all the provisional receipts of prior date given by the captain or his subalterns for partial deliveries of the cargo which may have been made.

ARTICLE 718. After the cargo has been delivered, the bills of lading which the captain signed shall be returned to him, or at least the copy by reason of which the delivery is made, with the receipt for the merchandise mentioned therein.

The delay on the part of the consignee shall make him liable for the damages which may be caused the captain thereby.

SECTION II Loans on Bottomry and Respondentia

ARTICLE 719. A loan on bottomry or respondentia shall be considered that which the repayment of the sum loaned and the premium stipulated, under any condition whatsoever, depends on the safe arrival in port of the goods on which it is made, or of their value in case of accident.

ARTICLE 720. Loans on bottomry or respondentia may be executed:

1. By means of a public instrument.

2. By means of a bond signed by the contracting parties and the broker who took part therein. t

3. By means of a private instrument.

Under whichever of these forms the contract is executed, it shall be entered in the certificate of the registry of the vessel and shall be recorded in the commercial registry, without which requisites the credits originating from the same shall not have, with regard to other credits, the preference which, according to their nature, they should have, although the obligation shall be valid between the contracting parties.

The contracts made during a voyage shall be governed by the provisions of Articles 583 and 611, and shall be effective with regard to third persons from the date of their execution, if they should be recorded in the commercial registry of the port of registry of the vessel before eight days have elapsed from the date of her arrival. If said eight days should elapse without the record having been made in the commercial registry, the contracts made during the voyage of a vessel shall not have any effect with regard to third persons, except from the day and date of their entry.

In order that the bonds of the contracts celebrated in accordance with No. 2 may have legal force, they must conform to the registry of the broker who took part therein. In those celebrated in accordance with No. 3 the acknowledgment of the signature must precede.

Contracts which are not reduced to writing shall not be the basis for a judicial action.

ARTICLE 721. In a bottomry or respondentia bond there must be stated:

1. The kind, name, and registry of the vessel.

2. The name, surname, and domicile of the captain.

3. The names, surnames, and domicile of the person giving and of the person receiving the loan.

4. The amount of the loan and the premium stipulated.

5. The time for repayment.

6. The goods pledged to secure repayment.

7. The voyage for which the risk is run.

ARTICLE 722. The bonds may be issued to order, in which case they shall be transferable by indorsement, and the assignee shall acquire all the rights and run all the risks corresponding to the indorser.

ARTICLE 723. Loans may be made in goods and in merchandise, their value being fixed in order to determine the amount of the loan.

ARTICLE 724. The loans may be constituted jointly or separately:

1. On the hull of the vessel.

2. On the rigging.

3. On the equipment, provisions, and fuel.

4. On the engine, if the vessel is a steamer.

5. On the cargo.

If the loan is constituted on the hull of the vessel, there shall be understood as also subject to the liability of the loan, the rigging, equipment and other goods, provisions, fuel, steam engines, and the freight earned during the voyage subject to the loan.

If the loan is made on the cargo, all that constitutes the same shall be subject to the repayment; and if on a particular object of the vessel or of the cargo, the object exclusively and specifically mentioned only shall be liable.

ARTICLE 725. No loans can be made on the salaries of the crew, nor on the profits which it is expected to earn.

ARTICLE 726. If the lender should prove that he loaned a larger amount than the value of the article liable for the bottomry loan, by reason of fraudulent measures employed by the borrower the loan shall only be valid for the amount at which said object is appraised by experts.

The surplus principal shall be returned with legal interest for the whole period of the duration of the disbursement.

ARTICLE 727. If the full amount of the loan contracted to load the vessel should not be made use of for the cargo, the surplus shall be returned before clearing.

The same procedure shall be observed with regard to the goods taken as a loan if they could not all have been loaded.

ARTICLE 728. The loan which the captain takes at the point of residence of the owners of the vessel shall only affect that part of the latter which belongs to the captain, if the other owners or their agents should not have given their express authorization thereto or should not have taken part in the transaction.

If one or more of the owners should be requested to furnish the amount necessary to repair or provision the vessel, and should not do so within twenty-four hours, the interest which the parties in default may have in the vessel shall be liable for the loan in the proper proportion.

Outside of the residence of the owners the captain may contract loans in accordance with the provisions of Articles 583 and 611.

ARTICLE 729. Should the goods on which money is taken not be subjected to any risk, the contract shall be considered an ordinary loan, the borrower being under the obligation to return the principal and interest at the legal rate, if the interest stipulated should not have been lower.

ARTICLE 730. Loans made during the voyage shall have preference over those made before the clearing of the vessel, and they shall be graduated by the inverse order to that of their dates.

The loans for the last voyage shall have preference over prior ones.

Should several loans have been made at a port made under stress and for the same purpose, all of them shall be paid pro rata.

ARTICLE 731. The actions which may be brought by the lender shall be extinguished by the absolute loss of the goods on which the loan was made, if said loss arose from an accident of the sea at the time and during the voyage designated in the contract, and should it be proven that the cargo was on board; but this shall not take place if the loss were caused by the inherent defect of the thing or through the fault or malice of the borrower, or through barratry on the part of the captain, or if it were caused by damages suffered by the vessel as a consequence of being engaged in contraband, or if it arose through loading the merchandise on a vessel other than that designated in the contract, unless this change should have been made by reason of force majeure.

The proof of the loss is incumbent upon the person who received the loan, as well as the proof of the existence in the vessel of the goods declared to the lender as the object thereof.

ARTICLE 732. Lenders on bottomry or respondentia shall suffer in proportion to their respective interest, the general average which may take place in the goods on which the loan was made.

In particular averages, in the absence of an express agreement between the contracting parties, the lender on bottomry or respondentia shall also contribute in proportion to his respective interest, should it not belong to the kind of risks excepted in the foregoing article.

ARTICLE 733. Should it not have been stated in the contract for what period the lender runs the risk, the said risk shall last with regard to the vessel, engines, rigging, and equipment from the moment said vessel puts to sea until she drops anchor in the port of destination, and with regard to the merchandise, from the time it is loaded on the shore or wharf of the port of shipment until unloaded in the port of consignment.

ARTICLE 734. In case of shipwreck the amount liable for the return of the loan shall be reduced to the proceeds of the goods saved, after the costs of the salvage have been deducted.

If the loan were on the vessel or any of her parts, the freightage earned during the voyage for which said loan was contracted shall also be liable for its payment, as far as it is available.

ARTICLE 735. If the same vessel or cargo should be the object of a loan on bottomry or respondentia and marine insurance, the value of what may be saved shall be divided, in case of shipwreck, between the lender and the underwriter, in proportion to the legitimate interest of each one, taking into consideration, for this purpose only, the principal with relation to the loan, and without prejudice to the right of preference of other creditors in accordance with Article 580.

ARTICLE 736. If there should be delay in the repayment of the principal or premiums of the loan, the former only shall bear legal interest.

TITLE IV Risks, Damages and Accidents of Maritime Commerce

SECTION I Averages

ARTICLE 806. For the purposes of this Code the following shall be considered averages:

1. All extraordinary or accidental expenses which may be incurred during the navigation for the preservation of the vessel or cargo, or both.

2. All damages or deterioration the vessel may suffer from the time she puts to sea from the port of departure until she casts anchor in the port of destination, and those suffered by the merchandise from the time it is loaded in the port of shipment until it is unloaded in the port of consignment.

ARTICLE 807. The petty and ordinary expenses of navigation, such as pilotage of coasts and ports, lighterage and towage, anchorage dues, inspection, health, quarantine, lazaretto, and other so-called port expenses, costs of barges, and unloading, until the merchandise is placed on the wharf, and any other expenses common to navigation shall be considered ordinary expenses to be defrayed by the shipowner, unless there is a special agreement to the contrary.

ARTICLE 808. Averages shall be:

1. Simple or particular.

2. General or gross.

ARTICLE 809. Simple or particular averages shall be, as a general rule, all the expenses and damages caused to the vessel or to her cargo which have not redounded to the benefit and common profit of all the persons interested in the vessel and her cargo, and especially the following:

1. The damages suffered by the cargo from the time of its embarkation until it is unloaded, either on account of the nature of the goods or by reason of an accident at sea or force majeure, and the expenses incurred to avoid and repair the same.

2. The damages suffered by the vessel in her hull, rigging, arms, and equipment, for the same causes and reasons, from the time she puts to sea from the port of departure until she anchored in the port of destination.

3. The damages suffered by the merchandise loaded on deck, except in coastwise navigation, if the marine ordinances allow it.

4. The wages and victuals of the crew when the vessel should be detained or embargoed by a legitimate order or force majeure, if the charter should have been for a fixed sum for the voyage.

5. The necessary expenses on arrival at a port, in order to make repairs or secure provisions.

6. The lowest value of the goods sold by the captain in arrivals under stress for the payment of provisions and in order to save the crew, or to cover any other requirement of the vessel against which the proper amount shall be charged.

7. The victuals and wages of the crew during the time the vessel is in quarantine.

8. The damage suffered by the vessel or cargo by reason of an impact or collision with another, if it were accidental and unavoidable. If the accident should occur through the fault or negligence of the captain, the latter shall be liable for all the damage caused.

9. Any damage suffered by the cargo through the faults, negligence, or barratry of the captain or of the crew, without prejudice to the right of the owner to recover the corresponding indemnity from the captain, the vessel, and the freight.

ARTICLE 810. The owner of the goods which gave rise to the expense or suffered the damage shall bear the simple or particular averages.

ARTICLE 811. General or gross averages shall be, as a general rule, all the damages and expenses which are deliberately caused in order to save the vessel, her cargo, or both at the same time, from a real and known risk, and particularly the following:

1. The goods or cash invested in the redemption of the vessel or cargo captured by enemies, privateers, or pirates, and the provisions, wages, and expenses of the vessel detained during the time the arrangement or redemption is taking place.

2. The goods jettisoned to lighten the vessel, whether they belong to the vessel, to the cargo, or to the crew, and the damage suffered through said act by the goods kept.

3. The cables and masts which are cut or rendered useless, the anchors and the chains which are abandoned in order to save the cargo, the vessel, or both.

4. The expenses of removing or transferring a portion of the cargo in order to lighten the vessel and place her in condition to enter a port or roadstead, and the damage resulting therefrom to the goods removed or transferred.

5. The damage suffered by the goods of the cargo through the opening made in the vessel in order to drain her and prevent her sinking.

6. The expenses caused through floating a vessel intentionally stranded for the purpose of saving her.

7. The damage caused to the vessel which it is necessary to break open, scuttle, or smash in order to save the cargo.

8. The expenses of curing and maintaining the members of the crew who may have been wounded or crippled in defending or saving the vessel.

9. The wages of any member of the crew detained as hostage by enemies, privateers, or pirates, and the necessary expenses which he may incur in his imprisonment, until he is returned to the vessel or to his domicile, should he prefer it.

10. The wages and victuals of the crew of a vessel chartered by the month during the time it should be embargoed or detained by force majeure or by order of the Government, or in order to repair the damage caused for the common good.

11. The loss suffered in the value of the goods sold at arrivals under stress in order to repair the vessel because of gross average.

12. The expenses of the liquidation of the average.

ARTICLE 812. In order to satisfy the amount of the gross or general averages, all the persons having an interest in the vessel and cargo therein at the time of the occurrence of the average shall contribute.

ARTICLE 813. In order to incur the expenses and cause the damages corresponding to gross average, a previous resolution of the captain, adopted after deliberation with the sailing mate and other officers of the vessel, and with a hearing of the persons interested in the cargo who may be present, shall be required.

If the latter shall object, and the captain and officers, or a majority, or the captain, if opposed to the majority, should consider certain measures necessary, they may be executed under his liability, without prejudice to the freighters exercising their rights against the captain before the judge or court of competent jurisdiction, if they can prove that he acted with malice, lack of skill, or negligence.

If the persons interested in the cargo, being on the vessel, should not be heard, they shall not contribute to the gross average, which contribution shall be paid by the captain, unless the urgency of the case should be such that the time necessary for previous deliberation was lacking.

ARTICLE 814. The resolution adopted to cause the damages which constitute a general average must necessarily be entered in the log book, stating the motives and reasons therefor, the votes against it, and the reasons for the disagreement should there be any, and the irresistible and urgent causes which moved the captain if he acted of his own accord.

In the first case the minutes shall be signed by all the persons present who could do so before taking action if possible, and if not at the first opportunity; in the second case by the captain and by the officers of the vessel.

In the minutes and after the resolution there shall be stated in detail all the goods cast away, and mention shall be made of the injuries caused to those kept on board. The captain shall be obliged to deliver one copy of these minutes to the maritime judicial authority of the first port he may make within twenty-four hours after his arrival, and to ratify it immediately by an oath.

ARTICLE 815. The captain shall supervise the jettison, and shall order the goods cast overboard in the following order:

1. Those which are on deck, beginning with those which embarrass the handling of the vessel or damage her, preferring, if possible, the heaviest ones and those of least utility and value.

2. Those in the hold, always beginning with those of the greatest weight and smallest value, to the amount and number absolutely indispensable.

ARTICLE 816. In order that the goods jettisoned may be included in the gross average and the owners thereof be entitled to indemnity, it shall be necessary in so far as the cargo is concerned that their existence on board be proven by means of the bill of lading; and with regard to those belonging to the vessel, by means of the inventory made up before the departure, in accordance with the first paragraph of Article 612.

ARTICLE 817. If in lightening a vessel on account of a storm, in order to facilitate her entry into a port or roadstead, part of her cargo should be transferred to lighters or barges and be lost, the owner of said part shall be entitled to indemnity, as if the loss has originated from a gross average, the amount thereof being distributed between the entire vessel and cargo which caused the same.

If, on the contrary, the merchandise transferred should be saved and the vessel should be lost, no liability can be demanded of the salvage.

ARTICLE 818. If, as a necessary measure to extinguish a fire in a port; roadstead; creek, or bay, it should be decided to sink any vessel, this loss shall be considered gross average, to which the vessels saved shall contribute.

SECTION II Arrivals Under Stress

ARTICLE 819. If the captain during the navigation should believe that the vessel can not continue the voyage to the port of destination on account of the lack of provisions, well founded fear of seizure, privateers or pirates, or by reason of any accident of the sea disabling her to navigate, he shall assemble the officers and shall call the persons interested in the cargo who may be present, and who may attend the meeting without the right to vote; and if, after examining the circumstances of the case, the reasons should be considered well founded, it shall be decided to make the nearest and most convenient port drafting and entering in the log book the proper minutes, which shall be signed by all.

The captain shall have the deciding vote and the persons interested in the cargo may make the objections and protests they may deem proper, which shall be entered in the minutes in order that they may make use thereof in the manner they may consider advisable.

ARTICLE 820. The arrival under stress shall not be considered legal in the following cases:

1. If the lack of provisions should arise from the failure to take the necessary provisions for the voyage, according to usage and custom, or if they should have been rendered useless or lost through bad stowage or negligence in their care.

2. If the risk of enemies, privateers, or pirates should not have been well known, manifest, and based on positive and justifiable facts.

3. If the injury to the vessel should have been caused by reason of her not being repaired, rigged, equipped, and arranged in a convenient manner for the voyage, or by reason of some erroneous order of the captain.

4. Whenever malice, negligence, want of foresight, or lack of skill on the part of the captain is the reason for the act causing the damage.

ARTICLE 821. The expenses caused by the arrival under stress shall always be for the account of the shipowner or agent, but the latter shall not be liable for the damage which may be caused the shippers by reason of the arrival under stress, provided the latter is legitimate.

Otherwise, the shipowner or agent and the captain shall be jointly liable.

ARTICLE 822. If in order to make repairs to the vessel or because there should be danger of the cargo suffering damage it should be necessary to unload, the captain must request authorization of the judge or court of competent jurisdiction to lighten the vessel, and do so with the knowledge of the person interested or representative of the cargo, should there be one.

In a foreign port, it shall be the duty of the Spanish * consul, where there is one, to give the authorization.

In the first case, the expenses shall be defrayed by the ship agent or owner, and in the second, they shall be for the account of the owners of the merchandise, for whose benefit the act took place.

If the unloading should take place for both reasons, the expenses shall be defrayed in proportion to the value of the vessel and that of the cargo.

ARTICLE 823. The care and preservation of the cargo which has been unloaded shall be in charge of the captain, who shall be responsible for the same, except in cases of force majeure.

ARTICLE 824. If the entire cargo or part thereof should appear to be damaged, or there should be imminent danger of its being damaged, the captain may request of the judge or court of competent jurisdiction or the consul, in a proper case, the sale of all or of part of the former, and the person taking cognizance of the matter shall authorize it after an examination and declaration of experts, advertisements, and other formalities required by the case and an entry in the book, in accordance with the provisions of Article 624.

The captain shall, in a proper case, justify the legality of the procedure, under the penalty of answering to the shipper for the price the merchandise would have brought if it should have arrived at the port of its destination in good condition.

ARTICLE 825. The captain shall answer for the damages caused by his delay, if the reason for the arrival under stress having ceased, he should not continue the voyage.

If the reason for said arrival should have been the fear of enemies, privateers, or pirates, before sailing, a discussion and resolution of a meeting of the officers of the vessel and persons interested in the cargo who may be present shall take place, in accordance with the provisions contained in Article 819.

SECTION III Collisions

ARTICLE 826. If a vessel should collide with another through the fault, negligence, or lack of skill of the captain, sailing mate, or any other member of the complement, the owner of the vessel at fault shall indemnify the losses and damages suffered, after an expert appraisal.

ARTICLE 827. If both vessels may be blamed for the collision, each one shall be liable for his own damages, and both shall be jointly responsible for the losses and damages suffered by their cargoes.

ARTICLE 828. The provisions of the foregoing article are applicable to the case in which it can not be decided which of the two vessels was the cause of the collision.

ARTICLE 829. In the cases above mentioned the civil action of the owner against the person liable for the damage is reserved, as well as the criminal liabilities which may be proper.

ARTICLE 830. If a vessel should collide with another by reason of an accident or through force majeure, each vessel and her cargo shall be liable for their own damage.

ARTICLE 831. If a vessel should be forced to collide with another one by a third vessel, the owner of the third vessel shall indemnify for the losses and damages caused, the captain thereof being civilly liable to said owner.

ARTICLE 832. If, by reason of a storm or other cause of force majeure, a vessel which is properly anchored and moored should collide with those in her immediate vicinity, causing them damage, the injury occasioned shall be looked upon as particular average to the vessel run into.

ARTICLE 833. A vessel shall be presumed as lost thru a collision which, upon being run into, sinks immediately, and also any vessel which is obliged to make a port to repair the damages caused by the collision should be lost during the voyage, or should be obliged to be stranded in order to be saved.

ARTICLE 834. If the vessels colliding should have pilots on board discharging their duties at the time of the collision, their presence shall not exempt the captains from the liabilities they incur; but the latter shall have the right to be indemnified by the pilots without prejudice to the criminal liability which the latter may incur.

ARTICLE 835. The action for the recovery of losses and damages arising from collisions can not be admitted if a protest or declaration is not presented within twenty-four hours to the competent authority of the point where the collision took place, or that of the first port of arrival of the vessel, if in Spain, * and to the consul of Spain * if it should have occurred in a foreign country.

ARTICLE 836. In so far as the damages caused to persons or to the cargo are concerned, the absence of a protest can not prejudice the persons interested who were not on board or were not in a condition to make known their wishes.

ARTICLE 837. The civil liability contracted by the shipowners in the cases prescribed in this section, shall be understood as limited to the value of the vessel with all her appurtenances and all the freight earned during the voyage.

ARTICLE 838. When the value of the vessel and her appurtenances should not be sufficient to cover all the liabilities, the indemnity due by reason of the death or injury of persons shall have preference.

ARTICLE 839. If the collision should occur between Spanish * vessels in foreign waters, or if it should take place in open waters, and the vessels should make a foreign port, the Spanish * consul in said port shall hold a summary investigation of the accident, forwarding the proceedings to the captain-general of the nearest department * for continuation and conclusion.

SECTION IV Shipwrecks

ARTICLE 840. The losses and deteriorations suffered by a vessel and her cargo by reason of shipwreck or stranding shall be individually for the account of the owners, the part of the wreck which may be saved belonging to them in the same proportion.

ARTICLE 841. If the wreck or stranding should arise through the malice, negligence, or lack of skill of the captain, or because the vessel put to sea insufficiently repaired and prepared, the owner or the freighters may demand indemnity of the captain for the damages caused to the vessel or cargo by the accident, in accordance with the provisions contained in Articles 610, 612, 614, and 621.

ARTICLE 842. The goods saved from the wreck shall be specially liable for the payment of the expenses of the respective salvage, and the amount thereof must be paid by the owners of the former before they are delivered to them, and with preference to any other obligation, if the merchandise should be sold.

ARTICLE 843. If several vessels navigate under convoy, and any of them should be wrecked, the cargo saved shall be distributed among the rest in the proportion to the amount each one can receive.

If any captain should refuse, without sufficient cause, to receive what may correspond to him, the captain of the wrecked vessel shall enter a protest against him before two sea officials of the losses and damages resulting therefrom, ratifying the complaint within twenty-four hours after arrival at the first port, and including it in the proceedings he must institute in accordance with the provisions contained in Article 612.

Should it not be possible to transfer to the other vessels the entire cargo of the one wrecked, the goods of the highest value and smallest volume shall be saved first, the designation thereof being made by the captain, in concurrence with the officers of his vessel.

ARTICLE 844. A captain who may have taken on board the goods saved from the wreck shall continue his course to the port of destination, and on arrival shall deposit the same, with judicial intervention, at the disposal of their legitimate owners.

In case of changing his course, should he be able to unload them at the port to which they were consigned, the captain may make said port if the shippers or supercargoes present consent thereto, as well as the officers and passengers of the vessel; but he can not do so, even with said consent, in time of war or when the port is difficult to make and dangerous.

All the expenses of this arrival shall be defrayed by the owners of the cargo, as well as the payment of the freight, which, taking into consideration the circumstances of the case, are fixed by agreement or by a judicial decision.

ARTICLE 845. If there should not be on the vessel any person interested in the cargo to pay the expenses and freight corresponding to the salvage, the judge or court of competent jurisdiction may order the sale of the part necessary to cover the same. This shall also be done when its preservation is dangerous, or when in the period of one year it should not have been possible to ascertain who are its legitimate owners.

In both cases the proceedings regarding publicity and formalities prescribed in Article 579 shall be observed, and the net proceeds of the sale shall be deposited in a safe place, in the judgment of the judge or court, in order to be turned over to the legitimate owners thereof.

TITLE V Proof and Liquidation of Averages

SECTION I Provisions Common to All Kinds of Averages

ARTICLE 846. The persons interested in the proof and liquidation of averages may mutually agree and bind themselves at any time with regard to the liability, liquidation, and payment thereof. t

In the absence of agreements, the following rules shall be observed:

1. The proof of the average shall take place in the port where the repairs are made, should any be necessary, or in the port of unloading.

2. The liquidation shall take place in the port of unloading should it be a Spanish * port.

3. Should the average have occurred outside of the waters under the jurisdiction of the Philippines or the cargo should have been sold in a foreign port by reason of an arrival under stress, the liquidations shall be made in the port of arrival.

4. If the average should have occurred near the port of destination, so that said port can be made, the proceedings treated of in Rules 1 and 2 shall be held there.

ARTICLE 847. In case of making the liquidation of the averages privately by virtue of agreement, as well as when a judicial authority takes part therein at the request of any of the parties interested who do not agree thereto, all of them shall be cited and heard, should they not have renounced this right.

Should they not be present or not have a legitimate representative, the liquidation shall be made by the consul in a foreign port, and where there is none, by the judge or court of competent jurisdiction, according to the laws of the country, and for the account of the proper person.

When the representative is a person well known in the place where the liquidation takes place, his intervention shall be admitted and produce legal effects, even though he be authorized only by a letter of the shipowner, freighter, or underwriter.

ARTICLE 848. Claims for averages shall not be admitted if they do not exceed 5 percent of the interest which the claimant may have in the vessel or cargo if it is gross average, and 1 percent of the goods damaged if particular average, deducting in both cases the expenses of appraisal, unless there is an agreement to the contrary.

ARTICLE 849. The damages, averages, loans on bottomry and respondentia, and their premiums, and any other losses, shall not earn interest by reason of delay until the period of three-days has elapsed, to be counted from the day on which the liquidation may have been concluded and communicated to the persons interested in the vessel, in the cargo, or in both at the same time.

ARTICLE 850. If by reason of one or more accidents of the sea particular and gross averages of the vessel or the cargo, or of both, should take place on the same voyage, the expenses and damages corresponding to each one shall be determined separately in the port where the repairs are made or where the cargo is discharged, or sold, or the merchandise is benefited.

For this purpose the captains shall be obliged to demand of the expert appraisers and of the contractors making the repairs, as well as of those appraising and taking part in the unloading, repair, sale, or the benefiting of the merchandise, that they separate and detail exactly in their appraisements or estimates and accounts all the expenses and damages belonging to each average, and in those of each average those corresponding to the vessel and to the cargo, stating also separately whether there are or not any damages proceeding from the nature of the goods, and not by reason of a sea accident; and in case there should be expenses common to the different averages and to the vessel and her cargo, there must be calculated the amount corresponding to each and stated distinctly.

SECTION II Liquidation of Gross Averages

ARTICLE 851. At the instance of the captain, the adjustment, liquidation, and distribution of gross averages shall be held privately, with the consent of all the parties in interest.

For this purpose, within forty-eight hours following the arrival of the vessel at the port, the captain shall call all the persons interested, in order that they may decide as to whether the adjustment or liquidation of the gross average is to be made by experts and liquidators appointed by themselves, in which case this shall be done should the persons interested agree.

Should an agreement not be possible, the captain shall apply to the judge or court of competent jurisdiction, who shall be the one of the port where these proceedings are to be held in accordance with the provisions of this Code, or to the consul of Spain, * should there be one, and otherwise to the local authority when they are to be held in a foreign port.

ARTICLE 852. If the captain should not comply with the provisions contained in the foregoing article, the shipowner or agent or the freighters shall demand the liquidation, without prejudice to the action they may bring to demand indemnity from him.

ARTICLE 853. After the experts have been appointed by the persons interested, or by the judge or court, before the acceptance, an examination of the vessel and of the repairs required shall be made, as well as an estimate of their cost, separating these losses and damages from those arising from the natural vice of the thing.

The experts shall also declare whether the repairs can be made immediately, or whether it is necessary to unload the vessel to examine and repair her.

With regard to the merchandise, if the average should be visible at a mere glance, the examination thereof must be made before it is delivered. Should it not be visible at the time of unloading, said examination may be held after the delivery provided it is done within forty-eight hours from the unloading and without prejudice to the other proofs which the experts may deem necessary.

ARTICLE 854. The appraisement of the goods which are to contribute to the gross average, and that of those which constitute the average, shall conform to the following rules:

1. The merchandise saved which is to contribute to the payment of the gross average shall be valued at the current price thereof at the port of unloading, deducting the freights, customs duties, and charges for unloading, as may appear from a material inspection of the same, not taking into consideration the bills of lading, unless there is an agreement to the contrary.

2. If the liquidation is to take place in the port of sailing, the value of the merchandise loaded shall be fixed by the purchase price, including the expenses until they are put on board, excluding the insurance premium.

3. If the merchandise should be damaged, it shall be appraised at its true value.

4. If the voyage should be interrupted, the merchandise having been sold in a foreign port and the average can not be estimated, there shall be taken as the contributing capital the value of the merchandise in the port of arrival, or the net proceeds obtained at the sale thereof.

5. Merchandise lost, which should constitute the gross average, shall be appraised at the value merchandise of its kind may have in the port of unloading, provided its kind and quality appears in the bill of lading; and should this not be the case, the invoices of the purchase issued in the port of shipment shall be taken as a basis, adding to its value the expenses and freights subsequently arising.

6. The masts cut down, the sails, cables, and other equipment of the vessel rendered useless for the purpose of saving her, shall be appraised at the current value, deducting one-third by reason of the difference between new and old.

This deduction shall not be made in regard to anchors and chains.

7. The vessel shall be appraised at her real value in her condition at the time.

8. The freights shall represent 50 per cent by way of contributing capital.

ARTICLE 855. The merchandise loaded on the upper deck of the vessel shall contribute to the gross average should it be saved; but there shall be no right to indemnity if it should be lost by reason of being jettisoned for general safety, except when the marine ordinances allow its shipment in this manner in coastwise navigation.

The same shall take place with that which is on board and is not included in the bills of lading or inventories, according to the cases.

In any case the shipowner and the captain shall be liable to freighters for the loss of the jettison, if the storage on the upper deck took place without the consent of the latter.

ARTICLE 856. Provisions and munitions of war which the vessel may have on board shall not contribute to the gross average, nor the clothing used by the captain, officers, and crew.

There shall also be excepted the clothing used by the freighters, supercargoes, and passengers who may be on board at the time of the jettison.

Neither shall the goods jettisoned contribute to the payment of the gross averages which may occur to those saved in a different and subsequent risk.

ARTICLE 857. After the appraisement of the goods saved has been concluded by the experts, as well as that of the goods lost which constitute the gross average, and after the repairs have been made to the vessel, should any have to be made, and in such case after the approval of the accounts of the same by the persons interested or by the judge or court, the entire record shall be turned over to the liquidator appointed, in order that he may proceed with the distribution of the average.

ARTICLE 858. In order to effect the liquidation the liquidator shall examine the sworn statement of the captain, comparing it, if necessary, with the log book and all the contracts which may have been made between the persons interested in the average, the appraisements, expert examinations, and accounts of repairs made. If, as a result of this examination, he should find any defect in this procedure which might injure the rights of the persons interested or affect the liability of the captain, he shall call attention thereto in order that it be corrected, if possible, and otherwise he shall include it in the preliminaries of the liquidation.

Immediately thereafter he shall proceed with the distribution of the amount of the average, for which purpose he shall fix:

1. The contributing capital, which he shall determine by the value of the cargo, in accordance with the rules established in Article 854.

2. That of the vessel in her actual condition, according to a statement of experts.

3. The 50 per cent of the amount of the freight, deducting the remaining 50 per cent for wages and maintenance of the crew.

After the amount of the gross average has been determined in accordance with the provisions of this Code, it shall be distributed pro rata among the goods which are to cover the same.

ARTICLE 859. The underwriters of the vessel, of the freight, and of the cargo shall be obliged to pay for the indemnity of the gross average in so far as is required of each one of these objects respectively.

ARTICLE 860. If, notwithstanding the jettison of the merchandise, breakage of masts, ropes, and equipment, the vessel should be lost running said risk, no contribution whatsoever by reason of gross average shall be proper.

The owners of the goods saved shall not be liable for the indemnity of those jettisoned, lost, or damaged.

ARTICLE 861. If, after the vessel having been saved from the risk which gave rise to the jettison, she should be lost through another accident taking place during the voyage, the goods saved and existing from the first risk shall continue liable to contribution by reason of the gross average according to their value in their condition at the time, deducting the expenses incurred in saving them.

ARTICLE 862. If, notwithstanding the saving of the vessel and of her cargo in consequence of the cutting down of masts or of any other damage deliberately done to the vessel for said purpose, the merchandise should subsequently be lost or stolen, the captain can not demand of the shippers or consignees that they contribute to indemnity for the average unless the loss should occur by an act of the owner or consignee.

ARTICLE 863. If the owner of the jettisoned goods should recover them after having received the indemnity for gross average, he shall be obliged to return to the captain and to other persons interested in the cargo the amount he may have received, deducting the damage caused by the jettison and the expenses incurred in their recovery.

In the latter case, the amount returned shall be distributed between the vessel and the persons interested in the cargo in the same proportion in which they contributed to the payment of the average.

ARTICLE 864. If the owner of the goods jettisoned should recover them without having demanded any indemnity he shall not be obliged to contribute to the payment of the gross average which may have been suffered by the rest of the cargo after the jettison.

ARTICLE 865. The distribution of the gross average shall not be final until it has been agreed to, or in the absence thereof, until it has been approved by the judge or court after an examination of the liquidation and a hearing of the persons interested who may be present, or of their representatives.

ARTICLE 866. After the liquidation has been approved it shall be the duty of the captain to collect the amount of the distribution, and he shall be liable to the owners of the goods averaged for the losses they suffer through his delay or negligence.

ARTICLE 867. If the contributors should not pay the amount of the assessment within the third day after having been requested to do so, the goods saved shall be attached, at the request of the captain, and shall be sold to cover the payment.

ARTICLE 868. If the persons interested in receiving the goods saved should not give security sufficient to answer for the amount corresponding to the gross average, the captain may defer the delivery thereof until payment has been made.

SECTION III Liquidation of Ordinary Averages

ARTICLE 869. The experts which the judge or court or the persons interested may appoint, according to the cases, shall proceed with the appraisement and examination of the averages in the manner prescribed in Article 853 and in Article 854, Rules 2 to 7, in so far as they are applicable.