Captain Ken #16 - A day in a US court

In the late nineteen sixties I sailed several voyages as Chief Officer of the Blue Funnel cargo liner Laomedon. Whereas most of our fleet ran between the UK and the Far East or Australia, Laomedon was engaged in a service named The Blue Sea Line. This was a joint service with The Swedish South East Asia Company and De La Rama Company of the Philippines.

The ship was based in New York and sailed on a service from U.S. ports and was east-bound round the world to the Far East, and back to New York.

We would load and discharge a variety of cargoes in each port at which we called, and to handle all the various cargoes, we employed a great many dockworkers, known in the USA as longshoremen. They would be divided into gangs of up to a dozen men.

On one occasion during my frequent rounds to check the cargo operations, I encountered a serious accident, when one gang member stumbled and fell some 10 feet in to an open hatchway. He appeared to be quite badly injured, so we gave him first aid, lifted him out of the hatch in a special stretcher and arranged for an ambulance to take him to hospital.

The pre-trial hearing which I attended was just like a Hollywood movie. Luckily, the three attorneys involved were kind to me, but horrible to each other. Fortunately, I managed to convince them that the ship’s staff had done their very best to keep the ship safe and had complied with all the required safety measures. When, of course, I pointed out that I was present at the time of the accident and that the unfortunate longshoreman had simply lost his balance and had not tripped on anything negligently present at the time, the case turned financially in our favour. 

Finally, the opposing attorney asked me to name the ports of call on that particular voyage, as I had not produced the Log Book. This of course was easy for me as I was responsible for the entire loading and discharge so I reeled off New York, Port Said, Aden, Penang, Port Kelang, Singapore, Hong Kong, Manila Cebu, Zamboanga, Kure, Bussan, Kobe, Nagoya, Moji, Yokohama, Panama, Cristobel, Kingston, Halifax, Boston, Newark, Baltimore, Norfolk, Wilmington, Charleston, Savannah Jacksonville, Port Everglades, Miami, Galveston, Houston, New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Gulfport, and New York. When I finished, his response was, ‘Sounds like a good trip. Wish I'd been with you.’ 

After the hearing, I flew straight home to continue my leave and my wife Allwyn picked me up at Manchester Airport. Her first words of greeting were suggesting that we call via Stockport market where some good value-pet food was available and we did have three dogs and five cats at the time. (I would add that Ken and Allwyn do live on the most delightful old farm cottage with acres of land and barns and fortunately for Mr Editor, a fridge full of ales. Ed).

As I later struggled in the rain carrying the heavy cases of dog food. I obviously got a bit deep in thought and Allwyn asked me what I was thinking.  I said it was just occurring to me that only a few hours earlier, I had eaten a fine lunch in the famed Manhattan Downtown Athletic Club and had then been transported in a stretch Cadillac to the first-class airport reception lounge and got a first-class flight home. ‘Oh,’ she said, ’Well you have come down in the world, haven't you?’