Freight
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
formerly a charge paid to the owner of a ship for the carriage of goods, but this term now extends to transportation by land, especially by railroads. In maritime freight the person chartering a ship pays freight for goods sent by it, and dead freight for any deficiency of cargo; the terms of the agreement are fixed by the charter party. A person sending goods by a general ship pays freight for them; and the contract of lading. So takes the form of a bill far as the rights of parties are not made in the the subject of positive stipulation contract of affreightment, they are ascertained with reference to the usage of trade. The carrier's duty is to have the ship ready to start at the time appointed (wind and weather permitting), and to receive the goods and carry them to their destination; having performed these duties, he has a lien on the goods and a right of action in case of non-payment of freight. The shipper's duty is to have his goods forwarded in time. Freight is not usually payable unless the voyage is completed; but it is sometimes prepaid, in whole or in part, at the risk of the shipper. It was for formerly held that the on the earnwages of the crew depended ing of freight by the ships. This rule was set aside by the British Merchant Shipping Act of 1854. Even in case of recover his shipwreck a seaman may wages; but his claim will be barred if that he evidence can be given to show to the utmost to failed to exert himself save the ship and cargo. The old rule is adhered to in the United States; but it does not apply to the master, nor does it apply to seamen if freight has been lost by the fault of the master or owners. Freight is the subject of insurance. See CARRIER.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
Collier's in 1921 still treated freight primarily as a maritime charge fixed by charter party and bill of lading, with land carriage by railroad a newer extension of the word. The physical business has since been remade by the shipping container: Malcom McLean's converted tanker Ideal-X sailed from Newark to Houston in April 1956, and standardised boxes now carry the great bulk of manufactured goods, while air freight and long-haul trucking took traffic the railroads once monopolised. The legal frame Collier's described was overhauled too, first by the Hague Rules on bills of lading agreed at Brussels in 1924 and carried into United States law by the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act of 1936, later by the Hague-Visby amendments; American rail and road rates, still tightly regulated in 1921, were largely deregulated in 1980. The carrier's lien on the goods for unpaid freight, however, is one part of the old account that a shipping lawyer would still recognise.
Written for this edition, 2026.