The Railway Company is entitled to reclassify goods and levy charges as per the correct description, as provided under Rules 15 and 20 of the South Indian Railway Company, Ltd., Goods Tariff, Part I.

Horace Owen Compton Beasley, Kt., C.J.

1. This is really a comparatively simple case although a great deal has been made of it here, and certainly one part of the case, although it does not affect the matter, give rise to a considerable amount of discussion. With that I will deal later.

2. The suit was filed by the petitioner against the South Indian Railway Company claiming a refund of an excess charge levied by the company at Podanur on a consignment of 200 bags of cocoanut oil-cakes and also a charge made for demurrage as well. There was also a claim for interest. The bags were consigned at Rajahmundry on 20th September, 1932, the destination of the consignment being Podanur. The bags arrived at Podanur and on 27th September, 1932, a sum of Rs. 159-14-0 was tendered as freight for the bags by the petitioner to the Railway Company. The company refused to deliver the consignment to the petitioner, unless an excess charge of Rs. 90-8-0 was paid and also a smaller sum of Rs. 7-15-0 for demurrage. On 29th September, 1932, the amount of excess charge and demurrage was paid by the petitioner under protest and delivery of the bags taken. The goods when they were put on the railway for carriage at Rajahmundry were certified by the consignor in the risk-note as being "intended for manurial purposes and for inland use only, not intended for shipment." A declaration (Ex. III) was also given by the consignor to the following effect:

This is to certify that the consignment of 200 bags oil-cake booked under invoice No. 3 of 20th September, 1932, Rajamundry to Podanur and loaded in E.I.R.C.G. No. 27300 is for manurial purposes and for inland only and not intended shipment.

3. As before stated, the consignment arrived at Podanur and the Railway Company, having reason to suppose that these oilcakes were not going to be used for the purpose set out in the certificate but as cattle-fodder, under Rules 15 and 20 of the South Indian Railway Company, Ltd., Goods Tariff, Part I, reclassified the consignment and called upon the consignee to pay the excess charge which the Railway Company are entitled under Rule 20 to levy. The question in the lower Court was whether in fact there had been an incorrect description of the consignment given by the consignor at Rajahmundry. The question of description is one of considerable importance because if the oil-cakes were intended for the purposes of manure as was stated, the consignment would have applied to it a lower rate, namely, the C-FF rates, whereas, if the oilcakes were for other purposes, a higher rate, namely, that ultimately levied by the Railway Company, would have to be applied. The learned District Munsif after hearing the evidence of the petitioners witnesses which he describes as not being very convincing, held that the petitioner had not established his case, namely, that these goods were correctly described in the certificate and the declaration to which I have already referred. He accordingly dismissed the suit. Then a further point was taken, namely, that the Railway Company was not entitled after the acceptance of the declaration at the forwarding station to reclassify the goods consigned. Upon this point he was in favour of the Railway Company and obviously quite rightly, having regard to Rules 15 and 20 to which I have already referred and I imagine every common sense principle. Here it has been contended that there was no evidence before the District Munsif upon which he could hold that there had been a misdescription of these goods at Rajahmundry; in other words, the learned District Munsif was bound to accept the plaintiffs oral evidence and that of his own witnesses upon this point, there being no evidence at all to the contrary called on behalf of the Railway Company. It is here that the matter to which I first referred at the beginning of my judgment arises. At the trial the following documents were put in and marked as Exhibits on behalf of the Railway Company, namely, a repo