82 The law of agency.

The transit continues until the goods come into the actual

possession of the buyer himself, or into his constructive

possession, by some person, as his agent, taking possession

of them in his behalf

The Common Law rules that regulate stoppage in

transitu will be found laid down in the following cases : —

Lickbarroiu v. Mason (1793), 2 T. R. 63, Bolitlingk x.

InglU (1803), 3 East. 381, Whitehead v. Anderson (1842),

9 M. & W. 518, Kemp v. Falk (1882), 7 App. Cas. 573,

Kendall v. Marshall (1883), 11 Q. B. D. 356, and Bethel

V. Clark (1887), 19 Q. B. D. 553. In the last case. Cave, J.,

in defining transit, said ; " The moment the goods are

delivered by the vendor to a carrier to be carried to the

purchaser, the transitus begins. When the goods have

arrived at their destination, and have been delivered to

the purchaser or his agent, or where the carrier holds them

as warehouseman for the purchaser, and no longer as

carrier only, the transitus is at an end."

But though stoppage in transitu is, strictly speaking,,

confined to sellers, it lias been extended by the Courts to

such persons as are in the position of sellers ; thus, Ben-

jamin, in his book on Sales (4th ed. p. 841), says : " Stoppage

In transitu is so highly favoured on account of its intrinsic

justice, that it has been extended by the Courts to quasi-

Vendors ; to persons in a position similar to that of

Vendors."

Fehe v. Wray (1802), 3 East. 93; here it was laid

down that a f(n-eign commission agent, who has bought

goods in his own name, and upon his own credit, and has

consigned them to his correspondent in this country, may

stop such goods in transit upon the insolvency of his

principal, who has not paid for them.

GaKs(i,ho()lou V. Oihbs (18S3), 11 Q. B. D. 797; here,

lirctt, M.R., adopting and explaining the words of Black-

burn, J., in Ireland v. Livingstone (1872), L. R. 5 H. L. 395,.

BIGHTS OF AN AGENT AGAINST HIS PRINCIPAL. 83'

said ; " Lord Blackburn has said, if the commission agent

abroad is bound to pay for the goods to the foreign seller

of whom he bought them, and if, after he has shipped

them to his principal, such agent has not been paid, and

his principal is insolvent, so that the foreign seller could

only have the agent to look to for payment, the Courts

have held that such agent may stop the goods in transitu,

as if he were a vendor, or in the position of a vendor."

It seems that, if at the time of the consignment, a con-

signor of goods is indebted to the consignee on a general

balance of account, and consigns the goods to the con-

signee by way of a pledge to meet such balance, such

consignor would have no right of stoppage in transitu —

Vide Vertue V. Jewell (1814), 4 Camp. 31.

An agent who is a quasi-vendor of goods, is, by section

88, sub-section 2, of the Sale of Goods Act, 1893, given the

same right of stoppage in transitu as a person who is a

seller in the strict sense of the word.

For the provisions of this Act regarding a seller's right

of stoppage in transitu, see sections 39, 44, 45, 46, 47, and