After some desultory talking, the son carefully broached the following subject: "There is the "Augusta" ready in port to sail for Baltimore, to bring a cargo of tobacco. Pity, that the heavy Kentucky barrels fill only half the freight room and leave so much space empty. I think, father, we ought to fill it up with light goods, principally with cotton." "Cotton, my dear boy! I fancy, you must be dreaming of the old firm of B. & F. You remember, F. told his agent, in the West Indies, to add to the cargo of Asphalt and cocoanuts, 200 bales of cotton. His bad handwriting led to the mistake that 2000 bales were shipped, the moment they were afloat, the Southern Ports were blockaded, which caused an unprecedented rise in the price of cotton, so that the last of the 2000 bales were sold at "one Thaler" per pound (equal then to three marks)." "I do not think, father, that such luck is likely to repeat itself, but the fact remains, that we have room empty, which easily might carry freight, besides, I hear, that there is an increasing demand for cotton, as several new cotton mills are being started in Germany." "Yes, that is all very well, but think of the enormous risk of the cotton trade. The fluctuations in prices are fabulous, recently, they have been going down and down. My friend W. has been holding cotton for 3 years and has never seen his price back yet. A loss he will not take, he declares 'that he will hold that cotton till he is black in the face.'" "That is a wrong policy, W. ought to have sold the cotton long ago, replaced the same by a lower priced purchase, this would have saved him charges and loss of interest, and would have cheapened his original purchase." "This is a new method of doing business, we--old Bremen people--stick firmly to an enterprise, until the success is secured. That is the old Hanseatic spirit." "One might almost call it stubbornness, the present time requires quick thinking and turning." "All right, but from whom will you take the money which is required by this modern way of doing business? The local money-broker has no spare cash for it." "No, father, but I can assure you, that in London people are not adverse to assist the legitimate trade, and besides, several of the great London Bankers come from this neighbourhood and are very well disposed towards Bremen." * * * * * The "Augusta" brought, besides her cargo of tobacco, 1038 bales of cotton, quite a big quantity for that time. QUESTIONS OF LAW IN THE PAST. According to the Universal German Commercial Law, and later, according to the Civil Code of Law, the buyer has the right to cancel the contract, or to demand a reduction in price, if the goods delivered do not equal the quality guaranteed.