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FEDERAL REPORTER.
THE CLARION.
(District (Jourt, E. D. Michigan. January 23, 1886.) 1. COLLISION-NEGLIGENT NAVIGATION-STEAMER STARBOARDING AND AT'l'EMPT-
Bows OF ANOTHER STEAMER. A steamer which starboards. and attempts to cross the bows of another steamer which has the right of way, does so at her peril, and will be held answerable for the consequences. ING TO CROSS
2.
SAME-MuTUAl, FAULT-DIVISION OF DAMAGES.
Where one vessel is clearly shown to have been in fault, there should also be clear evidence of a contributing fault on the part of the other vessel to justify a division of damages.
This was a libel for a collision between the railway transfer steamer Lansdowne and the propeller Clarion, which occurred early in the morning of July 15, 1885, in the Detroit river, opposite the premises of the Michigan Central Railroad Company, in the city of Detroit. The libel averred that the Lansdowne left her slip on the American aide of the river about half-past 1 in the morning, laden with a train of passenger cars, and took her course diagonally across the river for her slip upon tbe Canada side, nearly two miles above her point of departure. When about the middle of the river, and somewhat on the Canadian side, and a little below the Canada Southern Railway slip, IIIhe made the Clarion coming down the river exhibiting her white and red lights. The LanRdowne blew one blast of her whistle, and ported. The Clarion did not reply at once, but kept on showing her red light until within a short distance of the Lansdowne, wben she blew two blasts of her whistle, and suddenly changed her course, exhibiting her green light, heading apparently for the bow of the Lansdowne. It was then too late for the Lansdowne to change her course, but she immediately blew another .signal whistle, and reversed her engines. The Clarion came on, however, showing both colored lights, and struck the Lansdowne upon her port wheel-bouse, doing' damage to a large amount. The case of the Clarion was that after passing Belle isle, above the city on the Canada side, she ported, and drew over to the American side of the river, within five or six hundred feet of the docks along the front of the city, for the purpose of calling the attention of her Detroit agents to tbe fact that she was passing the city, as was the usual custom with that line of boats; that having given her signal of four long and four short whistles opposite the office of the company, she starboarded for the purpose of clearing the "middle ground" opposite the Michigan Central Railroad freight-house and resuming her course down the river on the Canadian side; that about this time she heard a single whistle from the Lansdowne, which was coming up the river on her starboard bow, showing both her colored lights, the Clarion tben showing her white and green lights to the Lansdowne; that deeming it impossible to port and pass the Lansdowne on the port side on account of the proximity of the middle
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ground, the Clarion immediately replied with two blasts, when the Lansd0wne again sounded a single blast, and the Clarion thereupon at once stopped and backed; that up to the time the Lansdowne sounded her second signal she was approaching on the starboard bow of the Clarion, but soon thereafter she ported, and shot across the bows of the Clarion, and so brought about the collision. The court was assisted upon the argument by Commander Cook, of the navy, and Capt. Warner, of the revenue marine, sitting as nautical assessors. H. A. Harmon and H. H. Swan, for libelant. Moore et Canfield, for claimant. BROWN, J. We have found but little difficulty in reaching a conclusion in this case. Indeed, there is no such dispute with regard to the facts as would affect materially the result. We think the Lansdowne left her slip about the time the Clarion passed the dock of Mr. Chesebrough, the agent of the line, and that her failure to hear the eight signals of the Clarion was owing to the fact that the attention of her master and crew was diverted, or rather was not fixed upon the approaching vessel, until she had left the slip, and that very soon after that she sounded her signal of one whistle. So far as the locality of the collision is concerned, I am advised by the nautical assessors that in their opinion it took place between the Michigan Central Railway elevator A and the Canada Southern slip, on the opposite side of the river, and at a point somewhat upon the American side, with room, however, quite sufficient for the Clarion to have passed down between the Lansdowne and the middle ground, which lies immediately off the freight depot of the Michigan Central Railroad. I am quite satisfied with their conclusion upon this point. '1.'here is one fact developed by the testimony which we regard as the pivotal fact in the case, and one of much more importance than the mere question of locality; and that is that at the time the Lansdowne blew her first whistle she was showing both her colored lights to the Clarion, and we also think that the Clarion was probably showing both her colored lights to the Lansdowne, although it is claimed by the Clarion that the Lansdowne was then upbn her starboard bow, in which case the Clarion would only exhibit her green light. The two steamers then were approaching either end on, or nearly end on, within the eighteenth rule, or were upon crossing courses within the nineteenth rule, the Clarion having the Lansdowne upon her starboard side. In either case, it was the duty of the Clarion to port, or at least to keep out of the way. So, too, upon either theory, the Lansdowne was perfectly justified in blowing a single whistle and porting. Assuming that she was keeping somewhat on the American side, we do not find that there is any rule or custom that would forbid her taking that course, provided she left sufficient room to permit the Clarion to pass down upon the port side. Even if we were to v.27F.no.1-9