The Fern Holme

On the eighteenth of December, 1883, W. H. Cole & Co. shipped on board the steamer Fern Holme, at the port of Liverpool, England, 514 bags of canary-seed for the port of New York. The merchandise reached its destination, and the libelants in this case, who were the consignees, received notice of its arrival on the seventh of January, 1884. The freight was duly paid and the delivery of the cargo demanded. It was landed from the steamer onto the dock at pier No. 43, North river, when it was discovered that a number of the bags containing the seed were soiled by coming into contact with a…