United States v. Holland-America Line

• Citation: 212 F. 116
• Decision Date: 10 February 1914
• Docket Number: 121.
• Parties: UNITED STATES v. HOLLAND-AMERICA LINE.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Second Circuit

212 F. 116

UNITED STATES v. HOLLAND-AMERICA LINE.

No. 121.

United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit.

February 10, 1914

H Snowden Marshall, U.S. Atty., and A. S. Pratt, Asst. U.S Atty., both of New York City.

L. H Beers, of New York City, for defendant.

Before LACOMBE, WARD, and ROGERS, Circuit Judges.

WARD Circuit Judge.

The United States brought this action to recover expenses incurred for maintenance and medical care and treatment of certain alien immigrants afflicted with diseases not warranting deportation, brought to this country by the defendant, while held for examination as to their right to enter. All of them were properly brought here and were subsequently admitted. As at that time there was no hospital for contagious diseases at Ellis Island, such of them as were so afflicted were sent to state hospitals under contracts with the government. The others were sent to the hospital at Ellis Island. The cause was tried before Judge Mayer upon an agreed statement of facts, a jury being waived, and he entered judgment in favor of the defendant, dismissing the complaint. The government takes this writ of error.

The complaint rests the right to recover upon two grounds: First, that these expenses are imposed upon the defendant by the Act of February 20, 1907; second, that the defendant has agreed to pay them. Taking up the latter cause of action first: The immigration authorities, under section 22 of the act authorizing them to make rules 'not inconsistent with law,' adopted a regulation to the effect that these expenses should be paid:

'(4) By steamship companies.-- Aliens not falling within any of the foregoing classes whom it is necessary for any reason to hold or to treat in hospital pending determination of right to land, or awaiting deportation under order of rejection of a board of special inquiry or of the department (sec. 19).

'(d) Covering cases of the character mentioned in class 4 of the preceding paragraph, bills for hospital treatment and maintenance shall be rendered monthly by hospitals against the steamship companies responsible, through the office of the commissioner of immigration or inspector in charge, the latter's approval to be attached to the bills, if found correct, before forwarding them to the companies for settlement. Officers of the immigration service will in all such cases look to the steamship companies for settlement of the hospital bill. If any steamship company refuses to pay such bills rendered with the approval of the immigration officials, it will, of course, be necessary to require thereafter that all aliens brought by the vessels of such company shall be held on board ship until their applications for admission have been finally adjudicated.'

The steamship companies always protested against this rule as not consistent with law and finally refused to pay. Thereupon the immigration commissioner wrote a letter dated July 21, 1894, to the defendant, the last clause of which is:

'It now becomes my duty to execute the departmental instructions above recited, and I hereby give notice that on and after Monday, July 23, 1894, I shall cause all alien immigrants arriving at this port to be inspected on board their respective vessels, or at the docks, as expeditiously as possible, causing as little delay and inconvenience as the proper discharge of my duties will admit of, instead of bringing such alien immigrants to Ellis Island for inspection, as heretofore. But passengers by such lines as have complied with the law and the rules and regulations of the Treasury Department will be received at Ellis Island and there inspected in accordance with the practice heretofore prevailing.

'I should be glad to receive an early reply stating the attitude which you desire to assume with reference to the subject of this letter.'

This was followed by further correspondence, resulting in a letter from the Netherlands-American Steam Navigation Company, the predecessor of the defendant, dated July 25th, as follows: 'In reply to your yesterday's favor I now beg to inform you, that the Netherlands-American Steam Navigation Company will, until the matter is decided differently by proper authority, continue to pay the cost of maintenance, pending examination at Ellis Island, of all immigrants brought by their steamships to the port of New York, and that we are ready to give bond to that effect.

'Please inform me, if this meets your requirements, so as to secure the examination of immigrants arriving by our steamers at Ellis...