Where salvors are negligent in the performance of the serv ice, or in care of the property after deliverance from the peril, the owner of the salved property may urge the fact against them in reduction of salvage award or as a complete defence to the claim (The Henry Steers, Jr.,II o Fed. 578; The Bremen, Fed.
Salvage awards, in the view of the United States maritime law, while having as their purpose the encouragement of salvage serv ice, must be fixed in such amounts as not to deprive the owner of the property saved of all benefit of the service.
Amount of Award.—This depends, in each case, on the facts. The courts frequently advert to awards made in similar cases, but precedents serve only as a guide. They have no controlling force (The Buckhannon, 284 Fed. 917). The appellate courts will not disturb the award made by the trial judge unless there appears to be such a clear abuse of discretion as to amount to an error of law (The Bay of Naples, 48 Fed. 737; The Kia Ora, 352 Fed. 507; The Naiwa, 3 F. [2d] 381; The Santa Rosa, 5 F. [2c1] 478; The Zaca, 7 F. [2d] 69). A classic definition of the ele ments to be considered by a court in fixing salvage award was given by the U.S. Supreme Court in The Blackwall, io Wall. I, 14 :— "(i.) The labour expended by the salvors in rendering the salvage service. (2.) The promptitude, skill, and energy displayed in render ing the service and saving the property_. (3.) The value of the property employed by the salvors in rendering the service, and the danger to which such property was exposed. (4.) The risk incurred by the salvors in securing the property from the impending peril. (5.) The value of the property saved. (6.) The degree of danger from which the property was rescued." It is, therefore, apparent that the amount of award in the various classes of salvage can not be readily classified because of the highly variable factors which enter into them. The fol lowing cases, grouped according to the nature of the service, will give some idea of the amounts of salvage awards. Towage on high seas : The Varzin, i8o•Fed. 892 ; The Melderskin, 249 Fed.
Extinguishing fire on vessels : The F. Q. Barstow, 257 Fed. 793; The Huttonwood, 262 Fed. 452; The Zaca, 7 F. (2d) 69; The Florence Luckenbach, 9 F. (2d) 1,008. Towing vessels away from burning vessels or pier: The Geo. W. Elzey, 25o Fed. 6o2; The West Mount, 277 Fed. 168; The Thorwald Halvorsen, 281 Fed. 5o6; The Magnetic, 293 Fed. 94; The Santa Barbara, 299 Fed. 152.
Where the salved vessel has been abandoned by her master and crew and is therefore derelict, the salvage awards run much higher than otherwise. The ancient rule was that the salvage award
amounted to a moiety of the salved value. While this rule is no longer regarded as controlling, there are a few cases of derelict salvage awards which even exceed 5o% (The Edwards, 12 Fed. 5o8 ; The Flower City, 16 Fed. 866 ; The Bay of Naples, 48 Fed. 737; The Myrtle Tunnel, 146 Fed. 324; The Flora Rodgers, 152 Fed. 286).
Division of Award.—The division of salvage award between the owner of the salving vessel and the master, officers and crew is subject to the circumstances of each case. Where a vessel is towed from her position of distress at sea to a port of refuge, or where a stranded vessel is released, the salvage award is often divided four-fifths to the shipowner and one-fifth to the crew. In cases of towage on the high seas, where the salving crew has in curred considerable peril, the crew's share may run higher. An exceptional case arose when the "Katrina Luckenbach," steaming in convoy from Gibraltar to Hampton Roads in Aug. 1918, broke down at sea. The "Gaelic Prince," of the same convoy, took the "Katrina Luckenbach". in tow and brought her 1,356 m. to Hampton Roads, through an area in which German submarines were operating. Great risk was incurred by the master and crew of the "Gaelic Prince," because by taking the "Katrina Lucken bach" in tow their vessel became vulnerable to attack by a submarine. The court, in rendering a salvage award to the "Gaelic Prince" of $93,000 in addition to the salvor's expenses, allowed two-thirds of it to the master, officers and crew (Prince Line Ltd. v. The United States, 61 Ct. Cls. 632). In cases of salvage services rendered to burning vessels, whether at sea or in port, the crew's share is usually from about one-quarter to one third, because of the personal risk involved. It may be more in cases of specific heroism. It should be borne in mind, however, that the facts of each case control the amount of salvage award and the share of it to be given to the officers and crew of the salving vessel. The services rendered by the personnel are con sidered by the court in fixing their share of the salvage award. Following this principle, if the facts show that the crew did nothing more than attend to their ordinary routine duties at sea, as in the case of towage of a vessel on a calm sea, the court may exclude the crew entirely from the award, particularly where both vessels are owned by the same interests (The Lewis Bros., 287 Fed. r43; The Lake Elmont, 1924 A.M.C. 711). The crew's fund is usually pro-rated according to the monthly wages, the master's share figured on double his monthly wages.