BREAKING BULK. In Criminal Law. The doctrine of breaking bulk proceeds upon the ground of a determination of the privity of the bailment by the wrongful act of the bailee. Thus, where a carrier had agreed to carry certain bales of goods, which were delivered to him, to Southampton, but carried them to another place, broke open the bales, and took the goods contained in them feloni ously and converted them to his own use, the majority of the judges held that if the party had sad the entire bales it would not hale been felony ; " but as he broke them, and took what was in them, he did it without warrant," and so was guilty of felony. 13 Edw. IV. fol. 9. If a miller steals part of the meal, ‘: although the corn was delivered to him to grind, nevertheless if he steal it it is felony, being taken from the rest." 1 Rolle, Abr. 73, pl. 16 ; 1 Pick: Mass. 375.
2. In an early case in Massachusetts, it was decided that if a wagon-load of goods, consisting of several packages, is delivered to a common carrier to be transported in a body to a certain place, and he, with a feloni ous intent, separates one entire package, whether before or after the delivery of the other packages, this is a sufficient breaking of bulk to constitute larceny, without any breaking of the package so separated. 4
Mass. 580. But this debision is in direct conflict with the English cases. Thus, where the master and own of a ship steals a pack age out of several delivered him to carry, without removing any thing from the particular package, 1 Russ. & R. Cr. Cas. 92; or where a letter-carrier is intrusted with two directed envelopes, each containing a 5/. note, and delivers the envelopes, having previously taken out the two notes, 1 Den. Cr. Cas. 215; or where a drover separates one sheep' from a flock intrusted to him to drive a cer tain distance, 1 Jebb, Cr. Cas. 51; this is not a breaking of bulk sufficient to terminate the bailment and to constitute larceny.