Page:Federal Reporter, 1st Series, Volume 7.djvu/136

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12e FEDERAL REPORTBR. �ing the same to a lien upon the vessel. The Kemp, supra, 488; The Windermere, supra, 728. To the contrary is the case of The Ilex, 2 Woods, 229, in which Mr. Justice Brad- ley, on the circuit, decided, upon the authority of Cox v. Murray, and The 8. O. Owens, supra, that a stevedore bas no lien for his services, because they are not of a maritime na- ture. �The supreme court have never passed upon this question directly, but the plain effect of its decision in The Emily Sou- der, supra, is in favor of the stevedore 's lien; for certainly the stowing and discharge of cargo as nearly concern the fitment and business of the ship, and are as much maritime in their character, as the payment of custom-house dues or consular fees, both of which were held in that case to be necessary supplies, for which the admiralty gave a lien. Neither bas it been decided in this district ; and therefore I feel at liberty to follow what I conceive to be the true rule, as deduced from first principles, and as indicated by the later decisions of the supreme court and the district courts of New York and Massachusetts. �To my mind it is very plain that the services of a steve- dore are maritime in their nature. A voyage cannot be be- gun or ended without the stowing or discharge of cargo. To receive and deliver the cargo are as much a part of the under- taking of the ship as its transportation from one port to another. Indeed, it is an essential part of such transporta- tion. Freight is not due or earned until the cargo is, at least, placed on the wharf at the end of the ship's tackle. To say that the final delivery or discharge of the cargo is not a maritime service, because it is, or may be, performed partly on shore, is simply begging the question, as it is the nature of the service, and not the place where rendered, that deter- mines its character in this respect. �Without the services performed by the libellants the Canada would have been unable to accomplish the object of her voy- age, or to commence another one. The ship was in a foreign port, and the master without funds or credit. Standing in the place of the owner, he was under obligation to deliver the ��� �