Das, J.

1. This second appeal is by the plaintiffs, proprietors o£ a firm of the name of Messrs. Gopal Ram Ram Das of Arrah. The short facts, out of which this appeal has arisen, are the following. Two consignments of mustard oil were booked at a railway station, named Jamuna Bridge, on the railway known as the East Indian Railway Administration now represented by the present respondent. The consignments were booked on 16th November 1943, and two railway receipts were given numbered 751151 and 751152. These railway receipts show that the consignor was the Deputy Regional Food Controller, Agra and the consignee was ft firm of the name of Banshidhar Premsukh Das. The consignee firm endorsed the railway receipts in favour of the Imperial Bank of India. The latter in turn, endorsed an order on the receipts directing delivery of the goods to the plaintiffs firm. The case of the appellants was that the goods arrived at Arrah, another station within the E. I. R. Administration, in a highly damaged condition, and when delivery was taken it was found that 13 maunds 5 seers and 3 chattaks of oil out of one consignment, and 12 maunds and 35 seers of oil in the other consignment were s