NOVEMBER igi3 International Maritime Committee BULLETIN Nt 39 (INcLuDmo BULLETI2iS N3i 'ro 38) COPENHAGEN CONFERENCE MAY 1913 President: M. J. H. KOCH - LONDON DECLARATION OF ]1909 IN REGA1J) TO TIlE LAw OF MARITIME WARFARE; - DR.AFr OF INTERNATIONAL CODE ON AFFREIGHT- MENT; III.SET AT SEA; IV. - MARITIME INSURANCE ON ENEMY GOODS. ANT WERP PRINTED BY 1.-E.Buscir, REkU'ART DR LA PORTE DTI RRIN xgi3 ij Iuteriiational Maritime Committee BULLETIN N 39 (INCLUDING BULLETINS NTS 31 TO 38) COPENHAGEN CONFERENCE MAY 1913 President: M. J. H. KOCH - LONDON DECLARATION OF 1909 IN REGARD TO THE LAW OF MARITIME WARFARE; - DRAFT OF INTERNATIONAL CODE ON AFFREIGHT- MENT; - SAFETY AT SEA; - MARITIME INSURANCE ON ENEMY GOODS. ANT WERP PRINTED BY 1.-E. BUSCHMANN, REMPART DE LA PORTE DU RHIN xgi3 All correspondence & communications to be addressed to: rue des Escrimeurs 3o, Anzver. INTERNATIONAL MARITIME COMMITTEE. BULLETIN Nr 39 (INCLUDING BULLETINS NTS 3i TO 38) COPENHAGEN CONFERENCE. MAY 1913 SUMMARY: PAGES Preface V Resolutions of the Copenhagen Conference xix Statutes of the International Maritime Committeexxix Permanent Bureau of the Committee . xxxi Members of the International Maritime Committeexxxiii National Associations XLII List of Members attending the Conference XLVII Agenda-paper of the Conference LV Preliminary Reports I Synoptical Summaries 461 Circular-letter of July 15th, 1912 463 Report on the proceedings of the Conference . 471 Administ'rative sitting 8o& (Sec Index, page 8o5). PREFACE The Agenda of the Copenhague Conference comprised, besides the consideration of the Freight Code, the exami- nation of some entirely new questions, namely Safety at Sea, the Declaration of London of the 26thi February 1909, and the Marine insurance of Enemy goods. * ** The Titanic disaster at the beginning of 1912 invited in a tragic manner, the attention of the nations to the provi- sions designed to secure safety at sea in the case of vessels carrying large numbers of passengers and seamen. The need for international agreement is apparent to everybody. By establishing at its conferences the legal obligation to render assistance to persons in peril at sea, the Inter- national Maritime Committee had laid the foundations of an international system of law in regard to safety in mari- time transport. It was therefore in the logical, and natural sequence of events that this question was placed upon our agenda. On the 15th July 1912 the Permanent Bureau addressed the following Questionnaire to the Associations Safety in Navigation i. Is it desirable to render uniform by international con- ven/ion Elze jrovisions of law, enacted or proposed, in lue various countries for Elze Jurjose of securing safety in navi- galion? 2.14/ilk what subjects should the convention deal, special regard being liad tothe class of shib (sail or steam), the nature ot the traffic, and the tonnage of the vessels ? a) Measures of Safety. i. Seaworthiness of the ship, watertight combartmnevts. Engines and boilers. Draft and free-board. Deck-cargo, stowage, and ballast. Life-boats and life-saving apparatus. Wireless telegra/hy. Nautical instruments and charts and sailing directions. Number and physical condition of crew. Number and physical condition of passengers. io. Sleeping and other accomodation of crew. ir. Sleeping and other accomodation of passengers. 12. Sleeping and other accomodation of emigrants. i3. Medical attendance. b) Certificates of seaworthiness and other similar docu- ments. c) I,,sbection of ships and legal and administrative action consequent thereon. The preparatory documents of the national associations, entirely favourable, it may be said, to the principle of unifi- cation, and the contents which are set out in the synoptical tables to be found in this report (seep. 462 seq.), supplied valuable material for discussion. The general view which emerged from the discussion seemed to be that, while caution was necessary in order to avoid any cristallisation of technicalprinciples by excessive and prelnature regulation which might restrain the initiative of ship-builders, there were nevertheless points on which international agreementwas both practi- cable and possible. The followingresolutions were consequently unani- mously adopted: « x) In view of the importance for the safety of life at sea of the continuous advance in naval construction, and of the very considerable services which have been rendered in this respect by the great Classification Societies; and in view of the fact that any regulations which would hamper the progress of naval construction would do more harm than good; » The Conference is of opinion that an international agree- ment on the safety of navigation would usefully be directed to the formation of general rules in matters of wireless telegraphy, watertight compartments, life-boats and life- saving apparatus, and deck-loads. » 2) The Conference further recommends the establish- ment of an international permanent body of a technical and advisory character, with a view :a) to centralise all documentary information regarding the safety of life at sea, and secure its communication and interchange; b) to facilitate the development of reciprocity between the nations as to the laws and regulations relating to such objects, and c) to prepare all necessary reforms and amend- ments to the International Regulations, and secure unifor- mity of application ». * ** The conference also had beforeit the International Freight-Code, of which a draft had been prepared in London in 1911. The Conference held at Paris in Octo- ber of the same year gave a first reading to articles i to 5 and the article iof this draft. The discussions at Copenhagen were consequently directed to a first reading of the remaining articles. The German Association, which had examined this sub- ject through a Commission which met in Hamburg from time to time in the years igii and 1912, had proposed a series of amendments. The FrenchAssociation on the other hand put forward an entirely fresh counter-draft from the pen of M. Denisse. A discussion ensued on the following lines. Certain governing principles had found favour on the first reading at Paris. Article i abolished the principle of distance freight. If the goods dnot arrive at their destination no freight is due. Article 2 established some exceptions to this rule. By article 3 in the case of a lumj5 sum affreightment freight is due whether the goods have reached their des- tination or not. By article 4 freight paid in advance is not recoverable at law. Article 5 compels the shipowner to supply the charterer with a seaworthy ship. Article 17 regulates the liability of the shipowner and also that of the charterer in regard to the shippers. To these rules evolved at Paris, the Copenhagen Confe- rence added, for the purposes of a first reading, the following: By article 6 the identity of the carrying vessel is an essential factor and another ship cannot be substituted except in cases of distress which occur after the commen- cement of the voyage. This article went through without difficulty. This was not the case with Article 7 which allows of the substitution of one cargo for another at the port of loading, providing such substitution did not prejudice the shipowner. Articles 8 and 9 permitted the withdrawal by the shipper from the contract before the commencement of the voyage, on payment of half the freight. This provision axiomatic to continental jurists met with opposition fromour English friends, but on consideration they nevertheless agreed to it. A very happy and very important result was thereby obtained. The Conference also achieved unanimity on Article Io, which runs as follows (CThe voyage will be considered as broken and the ship will be at liberty to leave the port if during the lay days no cargo has been put on board. » In case a fixed number of days on demurrage have » been provided for in the charter, the owner will not l)e at liberty to sail on the voyage unless he has given » notice to the charterer, and provided the latter did not notify his intention to make use of the said days on » demurrage. » If part of the cargo only has been loaded, the value of » which does not offer sufficient guarantee for the charte- rer's obligations, the owner is entitled to ask for further » guarantees. Should these supplementary guarantees not be given, the owner will be at liberty either to proceed » on the voyage or unload the cargo. In either case he » will be entitled to full freight ». Article i3 which regulates the beginning and end of lay-days and days on demurrage, which abolishes the formal protest, and which decides that lay-days and days on demurrage shall be running days, was also adopted in principle. Amendments however were suggested with the object of getting lay-days considered as working days. Finally the conference embarked on the new and impor- tant question of the thi-ough Bill of Lading, and a very interesting exchange of views tóok place. It is clear on a general review of the discussions on freight that since the London and Paris Conferences, which were concerned with the examination of certain -X- questions in connection with freight with the object of enlarging little by little the foundations of their edifice, the need of a systematic treatment of the various juridical aspects of maritime transport makes itself felt more and more. The Hamburg Commission and aboveall the report of Mr. Denisse are in this regard significant. As the result of the Copenhagen Conference a new Commission was established.It had for its object the examination both of the questions considered at London, Paris and Copenhagen and also an examination of those to which the various forms of modern commerce give rise, such as berth notes, Bills of Lading, general ships, time- charters, through Bills of Lading etc.