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"Majesty's Ships are supplied, and which in some degree decomposes water in open air for the admission of pure, and "consequently the repulsion of foul air, will render the water "perfectly pure, pleasant, and wholesome." This is signed by the three Captains who signed the first; and I think it is every thing we could wish.

James Peacock, Esq. Margate.

I am your faithful servant,

To be left at the Post Office till called for.

WM. MOUNTAGUE.

As many persons have entertained an idea that this machine will do much more than its inventor proposes, it is necessary to state that it will only cleanse the fluid, and that it will not render salt water fresh, neither will it divest any fluid of its colour: this has been evinced by passing both porter and wine through a coarser medium than that necessary for water (when in their proper states to receive fineings), and it has rendered them perfectly clear and bright, but has in no wise impaired their colour, or injured their good qualities. Water stained with new oak, or tinged by the dried leaves of trees or other vegetables which abound in autumn, will become perfectly clear, but the colour will remain till the cause thereof declines.

SIR,

TO THE EDITOR OF THE NAVAL CHRONICLE.

OBSERVING your desire of communication from professional

men, beg leave to inform you, you have been mistaken in stating that the Zealous, Captain Hood, led in the action of the Nile : the Goliath, Captain Foley, led, and engaged the second ship; the Zealous followed, and Captain Foley pushed on to the next ship to make more room for those that should come inside after him. There is no doubt of the fact; I am told, Mr. Editor, that Lord Hood himself mentioned it in the House of Lords; you will also see it mentioned in Lord Minto's speech.-Captain Hood is a man of such distinguished merit, that you need not give him what belongs to another.

VERAX.

T

High Court of Admiralty.

BEFORE SIR WILLIAM SCOTT, JUDGE.

AUGUST I.

(Continued from Page 219.)

SALVAGE.

MINERVA EAST-INDIAMAN.

HE following Cause, whieh involves a subject of the utmost im portance to the Commercial Part of the Country, was this day argued :

On the 30th of January last, the MINERVA East-Indiaman, bound from Bengal to London, was at her moorings in the Downs. A violent storm, or rather hurricane, came on, by which she was driven from her moorings. She lost her best bower anchor, a small anchor, and had only her sheet anchor left, which was insufficient to secure her in that anchorage. Thus situated, she drifted right before the wind, the wind blowing violently from the S. S. W. till she was within the length of half a cable of His Majesty's Ship the Diomed. The crew of the Diomed were sensible of the imminent danger both ships were in and were preparing, as the only means of avoiding the Minerva, to cut their own cable; but the Minerva suddenly veering from the course she was in, rendered this unnecessary. While the Minerva was drifting towards the Diomed, and, as well as several other ships in the Downs, was firing signals of distress, she was hail. ed by the Sparrow, an open Lug boat belonging to Deal, of eleven tons and six men, at that time expressly on the look-out to assist ships in distress. They went on board, by the desire of Captain Blaney, of the Minerva, and the first thing directed, in order to avoid the immediate danger of running foul of the Diomed, was to cut the stay-cable, lower the topsail, and loose the foresail. It had the desired effect, and the Minerva, it was clearly proved, owed her safety to this skilful operation. Captain Blaney enquired of the Boat's Crew whether they had a Pilot among them who could carry his ship to the North Sea, to Yarmouth, or Margate Roads, where the anchorage was such that he could use his remaining anchor? But they observed they were not Pilots, and declined offering him any assistance, unless he would allow them to convey him to Ramsgate Harbour, to which he immediately consented. On their first coming on board, they had doubted whether even this was practicable; and had proposed, as the only mode of saving the ship and cargo, to cut way her main-mast, and run her ashore in Pegwell Bay; but in the Mol. II.

mean time another lugger, the Pitt, came up, and it was then determined that she might be carried into Ramsgate Harbour. Some ob. jection was at first made by the Crew of the Sparrow, to receiving the assistance of the Pitt; but it was afterwards agreed they should all equally share in any advantage that might be gained for having saved the Minerva. They accordingly carried her safe into the harbour of Ramsgate, and afterwards made a claim of 7000l. as salvage, for hav ing saved the ship. This demand was resisted, as considerably too exorbitant, and the sum of 700l. was offered as a reasonable and adequate compensation, but was rejected, and the present suit was instituted, in order to obtain the opinion of the Court of Admiralty upon the subject. It appeared the ship and cargo were worth 40,000l. It was also deposed in evidence by several Naval Officers who were on board their ships in the Downs at the time the circumstance took place, that the Minerva was in the greatest possible danger; that infinite merit was due to the Crew of the Luggers, particularly of the Sparrow, and that they were entitled to a very ample and liberal reward.

Sir John Nicholls and Dr. Arnold contended, that this was not a case of Salvage, but of Pilotage; that the Captain of the Minerva had never given up the command of his ship; that the manoeuvre by which she was prevented running foul of the Diomed, was a common operation of navigation, executed by the crew of the Minerva; and, from any thing that appeared in evidence, might have been the result of the Captain's own orders; that the only assistance the Captain wanted, was to be piloted to the North Sea, that the carrying the Ship into Ramsgate Harbour was an act which the Lugger's crew had preferred, from their local knowledge of the place; that they were only entitled to be paid as pilots, and consequently that 700l. was more than a sufficient remuneration.

Doctor Lawrence and Dr. Swabey, on the other side, insisted that the service performed was of the most meritorious nature, and deserved to be repaid by the same rate of salvage as was usually given for saving a ship of such immense value. The Salvors, however, under all the circumstances, were contented to take much less; but they trusted that an allowance of five per cent. would be the least the Court would award them.

JUDGMENT.

Sir William Scott delivered his judgment between the parties to the following effect:

"In this case a distinction has been made between Salvage and Pilotage-they certainly are subjects extremely different in their nature, though they are frequently combined. Pilotage consists in

an act of labour performed at the helm by persons peculiarly bred to that way of life. Such a service as this may be attended with danger, or it may not, according to circumstances; but it is a clear position, that a service of this kind, even though it should be accompanied with hazard, does not become salvage. It is true that, in the common acceptation and popular sense of the word, it may be so considered; but in a legal and technical point of view, it certainly cannot. So Salvage, under certain circumstances, may be considered as an act of Pilotage, according to the accidental connection and coincidence of events, but, generally speaking, it is an act perfectly distinguishable from it. In the present instance, the persons who claim salvage for having saved a valuable ship, are confessedly not Pilots-they are Proprietors of Boats, who, possessing a considerable share of skill and intrepidity, contribute by their exertions to the security of the navigation in a very dangerous part of our coast. In the most tempestuous weather they run out to sea, at the peril of their lives, for the purpose of offering their services to vessels in danger of suffering shipwreck, and thus are frequently instrumental in preserving the lives and properties of those who seek our shores. A service of this kind is in itself so important, that the Court carmot but he extremely unwilling to discourage the efforts of those engaged in it. It rather wishes that they should be liberally rewarded.—The Commerce of the Country is concerned, and intimately depends upon holding forth rewards to those who voluntarily hazard their lives in hopes of obtaining them. It may be proper, in the first place, to consider what was the situation of this ship. It appears she was an East Indiaman, in the course of navigation from the East Indies, under the care of a Captain who was no stranger to the general business of conducting a vessel to our coasts. He had brought her in safety through a tedious voyage, with the nature of which, from his long services, he was perfectly acquainted.

"On the 30th of January it appears he moored his ship in the Downs, soon after which a violent storm, by some of the witnesses' described as a hurricane, arose: the ship parted from her anchors, and was drifting in a manner truly alarming to the individuals on board; the night was dark; The Captain was not precisely acquainted with that particular part of the coast, and besides, there was no anchorage ground by which his only remaining anchor could secure him.-While the ship was in this hopeless situation, it appears in the depositions, though the fact has not been alluded to, that the crew were on the point of making an experiment, by clearing away the foresails, in order to steer for the Gull Streams-what the success of this experiment, might have been, I know not; it certainly was hazardous, and might in all probability have failed. While comtemplating this experiment,

which certainly could not have been made without considerable peril, he naturally looked out for a Pilot.-These persons came up, and offered their assistance; I feel it my duty to take up their merit at a much earlier stage than it has been considered by the Learned Counsel I conceive the merit attributable to them attaches from their first leaving the shore, and braving the dangers of a stormy sea in a dark and boisterous night; not acting as Pilots, a capacity which would have imposed such a duty upon them, but as volunteers, taking the chance of what assistance they might have been enabled to offer, and committing themselves in an open boat, at the risk of their lives. It is this that constitutes their principal merit; for after they got on board, it does not appear any very great exertions were used, nor indeed were any very great exertions necessary. It is important to the country, and the preservation of its commerce, that men acting in this manner should be animated by the certain hope of being amply rewarded when their services are required, for they often venture out in stormy weather, without meeting with any vessel in a situation that renders their assistance necessary. They were asked whether they were Pilots? and answered truly that they were not. No ill conduct can be impu ted to them, though it has been attempted, for the part they acted: they said they would not take charge of the vessel to the North Seas -they were inadequate to the task of carrying her there with safety, and they accordingly stated in express terms, that if the Captain would not allow them to navigate her into Ramsgate Harbour, he was not to expect any assistance from them. Surely this was language by no means improper for them to hold. It appears that the other boat hav ing come up, an altercation took place ;—some were for cutting away the mast, and running the ship on shore. Such an altercation taking place, without any opposition on the part of the crew, shews pretty strongly what must have been the situation of the ship; for had it not been in a state of the greatest danger, no Captain entrusted with so important a charge would have heard of such a proposition without pro testing against it. It was a proposal that must have shocked the ears. of any one; and therefore it appears from that circumstance, the ship, after the boats crews were on board, was in no mean hazard. They then joined in conducting the ship to Ramsgate Harbour, which they accomplished with very little exertion, As to the act of veering the ship by lowering the sails, it has not been proved to have been the act of these men; the ship's crew must have been competent to such an act of navigation, and the Captain must have known such a manœuvre would have produced such an effect. I therefore cannot attribute this as any great merit to the people of the boats. The vessel was carried into Harbour with as little exertion as I have ever known. In some cases we hear of ships beating about two or three days; but here the