Nathan Clifford

“ Absence of lights in a case failling within the acts of Congress renders the owners of the vessel liable for the consequences resulting from the omission, but it does not confer any right upon the other vessel to disregard or violate any rule of navigation or to neglect any reasonable or practicable precauton to avoid a collision which the circumstances afford the means and opportunity to adopt. ”

“ Signal lights are required by the acts of Congress in order that they may be seen by an approaching vessel in season to enable those in charge of the vessel to adopt the necessary precautions to prevent a collision with the vessel whose lights are so displayed, and when it appears that they were burning so dimly as not to fulfil the purpose and object for which they are required, they cannot be regarded as constituting a compliance with the prescribed requirement. ”

“ Ships and vessels are held liable for damage occasioned by collision, either on account of the culpable neglect or complicity, direct or indirect, of their owners, or on account of the negligence, unskilfulness, or carelessness of those employed in their control and navigation. ”

“ Much uncertainty often attends the inquiry by which of those rules a given controversy should be determined, and where the evidence is conflicting the issue presented is frequently one of doubt and difficulty.
Full damages are claimed by the libellants in this case, upon the ground that the steamboat of the respondents was alone in fault, or if that theory cannot be sustained, then they contend that both steamers were in fault and that the damages should be divided. ”

“ Where two steamers are approaching each other in an open sea on a night when the lights of a vessel may be seen five miles, the defence that one of the steamers mistook the other for a sail-vessel cannot be admitted as valid, unless it is established by full proof ”

“ Steamers displaying proper signal lights are in that respect without fault, but they have other duties to perform to prevent collision besides complying with that requirement, and if they neglect to perform such other duties they will not be held blameless because they displayed proper lights as required by the act of Congress upon that subject. ”

“ Controversies growing out of collisions are cognizable in the admiralty, and when prosecuted in that jurisdiction, the rules of decision are different in several respects from those which prevail even in similar controversies when prosecuted in the courts of common law. ”

“ Such a disaster could not have occurred without fault on the part of one or both vessels, as they had an open sea and good weather, and the night, though cloudy, was not very dark, as fully appears from the fact that those on board the propeller saw the lights of the Continental when she was at least four miles distant. ”