7. Duties in Disaster.—
In case of shipwreck or disaster a sailor is bound to do all he can for the safety of the ship and cargo. This is in the line of his duty and does not merit extra pay. His lien for wages attaches to the last plank of the ship but he must do his share of the work required to preserve it.
In the Shawnee, 45 Fed. 769, the ship had suffered greatly from a severe storm and went under Mackinac Island for shelter. Much extra work was required by the crew and when the time came to proceed on the voyage they told the master that they would not go on unless an extra allowance of $50 each was guaranteed. Under the stress of circumstances the master was constrained to acquiesce in the demand, but on arrival the owners refused to pay this extra amount although they tendered the regular wages. The sailors thereupon libeled the ship, but the Court, in a very emphatic opinion, declared that their conduct had amounted to mutiny and that their wages should be entirely forfeited.
Numerous decisions illustrate these rules.
In the Troop, 118 Fed. 769, a sailor fell from a yardarm and fractured his thigh shortly after the ship sailed; the captain might have put him in the port hospital but instead applied splints himself and sent the man to his bunk; he did nothing more for him until the vessel arrived at her destination, thirty-six days after, and even then neglected him for an additional five days before supplying proper medical care. The sailor suffered greatly during the voyage and became permanently injured. The Court held that the ship was liable for the master's failure to observe the rule of care to an injured sailor and awarded him $4,000 with 6 per cent interest.
In the Margharita, 140 Fed. 820, the ship sailed from a port in Chili for Savannah. While off the west coast of South America and about to round Cape Horn a sailor lost his footing aloft and was precipitated into the sea. As he struck the water a shark, or some other marine monster, bit off his leg at the knee, but he was rescued by another of the crew who jumped after him. The ship was then about 7,000 miles from her destination. The master gave the sailor all the attention which the ship afforded and controlled the hemorrhage and inflammation by placing the stump in tar; he continued to give him regular attention during the voyage, detailed a man to supply his wants and provided him with a suitable diet; on arrival at Savannah he was immediately sent to the hospital. The Court held that there could be no further recovery inasmuch as the master had fully discharged all the obligations of the rule.