In view of the foreign jurisdiction clause contained in a bill of lading, the petitioner, a Russian Steamship concern, objected to the jurisdiction of the Court of Small Causes at Madras to try the suit brought by the respondent for damages for short delivery. That Court, however, in the first instance by one of its Judges overruled the preliminary objection and with this conclusion, the New trial Judges, functioning under the procedure provided under the provisions of the Presidency Small Cause Courts Act, concurred. The defendant canvasses the correctness of the view.

I have no doubt that, on the facts of this case, the only conclusion the Courts below could rightly arrive at, in the circumstances, is the one which they did. The contract to carry a considerable number of electrolytic zinc ingots from Odessa to Madras Port was entered into in Russia in June, 1965. When the goods arrived at this end by Mozdock in July, they were found to be short of their number shipped, with the result the respondent instituted the suit on the small cause side for recovery of Rs. 358.13 inclusive of the loss of the proportionate transit and customs charges. The bill of lading was a printe