Page:Federal Reporter, 1st Series, Volume 7.djvu/50

 38 FEDBBAL BEPOBIEB. �or practice for such a course in this case. The question was brought properly before this master, He has decided it apon such grounds that the court cannot, without the exer- cise of unusual or extraordinary powers, disturb his decision. The responsibility of it was, by consent of the parties, cast uponhim, and must rest with him, and they must abide the resuit. Harding v. Handy, 11 Wheat. 103. �The questions in respect to interest relate to the rate at which interest is to be reckoned in favor of the defendants, and to whether they are to be charged with interest, and, if 80, from what time. These questions have been somewhat nnder consideration before, but without the aid of mucb argument of counsel, and without attention being drawn to important facts bearing upon the subject stated in other parts of the report than that devoted expressly to it. By the terms of the contraet between the orator and defendants they were to advance money, and furnish marble slabs and blocks, to enable him to fulfil his contracts with the government, and were to draw the money on the contracts by powers of attor- ney from him, and were to be allowed and to retain out of the money so received sufficient to repay themselves for their cash advances, and to pay for the slabs and blocks with com- missions, and for their services 9 per cent, interest on ad- vances, and on the priee of slabs and blocks, after 60 days. The orator insists that this is, on ils face, usurious, and that only 6 per cent, should be allowed. The defendants claim that the effect of this contraet is such that there was no debt from the orator to the defendants which could be enforced, and that therefore there was no forbearance of money, and nothing that could properly be called interest ; and that the stipulation for 9 per cent, was a mere mode of fixing their share in the adventure, or that it was a provision for com- pensation to some extent for what they were to do; and that if its character was doubtful its allowance by the master is, in effect, a finding as a matter of fact that it was not unlaw- ful interest, but a compensation for something else. �The contraet makes no provision for payment to the de- fendants but by the money drawn from the government ; but, ��� �