Gill (Malaya) CJ (delivering the judgment of the Court):

The appellants, Globus Shipping & Trading Co. (Pte.) Ltd., were defendants in an action against them by the respondents, Taiping Textiles Berhad, as plaintiffs in the Magistrate's Court at Penang. The action was dismissed on the ground that the Court had no jurisdiction to adjudicate on the plaintiffs' claim. The plaintiffs appealed to the High Court. Arulanandom J allowed the appeal, setting aside the Magistrate's decision and remitting the case for trial. The defendants then appealed to this Court. We dismissed the appeal and now state our reasons.

The plaintiffs' claim in the action was for a sum of $1,076.58 as damages for breach of contract by the defendants as carriers for reward of a cargo of cotton from Karachi to Penang by their vessel known as 'Cherry Venture'. The contract was contained in a bill of lading dated 20 November 1972 whereby the defendants acknowledged the shipment on board their vessel in apparent good order and condition 508 bales of Pakistan Raw Cotton for carriage to and delivery at Penang to the plaintiffs for an agreed freight. When the cargo was duly delivered to them as indorsees