Of bills of lading also there are printed forms issued in the usually adopted wording, and bearing the special conditions imposed upon shippers by the shipowner (x) or the Navigation Company (2)-
   Three copies, and more if necessary, of said bills are to be filled up in writing by the shipper (3) and signed by the ship's master (4), one of which is to remain at the shipper's hands, another goes along with the goods, and the third is sent to the consignee (5) at port of destination, to enable him to have the goods delivered to him.
   A bill of lading is the representative of the goods shipped; the property whereof may thus be transferred, to another person by transfer of the document, and money may be obtained on the pledge of it from a bank. /
   CREDIT Credit is the life of trade  If a merchant were always obliged to pay .cash for the goods he buys, to sell them at a future time, a large
   (1) Shipowner 0 Ship Owner  proprietario della nave, o, come dicesi comunemente, a armatore».
   (2) Vedi esempio di Polizza di carico (Bill of Lading) pag, 21.
   (3) Shipper  Il « caricatore » cioè colui che spedisce la merce da essere trasportata.
   (4) Ship's master equivale a «capitano » per indicare la qualità di comandante della nave, mentre «captai«» è il titolo usuale di chi è legalmente abilitato al comando di una nave.
   (5) Consignee  il Consegnatario, cioè colui cui è diretta la merce.
   y
   capital would be required and kept fruitless to carry on even a limited concern, and trade would then be in the hands of a few privileged persons only, while the consumer would have to pay the additional cost represented by interest on the sums laid out. Hence the necessity of a respite being granted by the seller to the buyer for the payment of ^oods purchased, in order to give the latter sufficient time to realize the whole or part at least of the sum due  Such requirements of commerce were long ago provided for through the institution of two instruments of credit, vested with special privileges by the law, one of which is called a bill of exchange (1) and the other a promissory note (2).
   A bill of exchange (also called draft) is a document drawn up in a special wording, as prescribed by the law, whereby a creditor orders the man in his due to pay to him or to some other person therein mentioned, a certain sum, either on demand (3) or at a future time-
   Three are therefore the parties interested in a bill of exchange, namely:
   (1) Bill of exchange  La « lettera di cambio » o * cambiale tratta-».
   (2) Promissory note  Il « vaglia cambiario » detto comunemente « Pagherò ».
   (3) On demand  A richiesta, cioè all'atto della presentazione della tratta.