The Columbian’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

1 federal appellate · 2 district ·

Most-quoted passages

The sentences later courts lift from this opinion, ranked by how many decisions quote each — the parts of the opinion doing the work. These counts are smaller than the citation total above because most of the 4 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The only fault alleged against the steamer is excessive speed, and the authorities make it clear that nine or ten knots an hour at any time or place is excessive speed in a fog. In saying this, I .have no doubt that the captain of another steamer like the Columbian would have gone ahead quite as fast as Capt. Masters did in this ease. Had the steamer been an ocean liner, instead of a freight steamer, it would probably have been sent through the same fog at from 15 to 20 knots an hour, and its captain would have been blamed by his company, as well as by his passengers, if he had loitered at half speed. Though this almost universal practice may relieve the captain of ⅜, steamer from moral blame, Capt. Masters was none the less a transgressor of the international rules, and I am bound to find the steamer at fault. T have often had occasion to say that the owners and masters of steamboats must either comply with the statute or procure its repeal.’ ””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. The Columbia