ABSTRACT
The law maritime has always recognised the obligation of co-adventurers to furnish funds in the event of an emergency. Lowndes tells us, on the authority of the Consolado del Mare, that "if the merchants have money, and if they are in a place where the master has need of supply or things necessary for the ship, the merchant must lend it to him", subject to the agreement of the co-adventurers. The Rule XX was put together at the time of the 1924 revision of the York-Antwerp Rules in order to bring uniformity into the matter of the commission allowable to shipowners, or other parties to the adventure, for advancing money, and at the same time to make provision for the exceptional methods of obtaining funds abroad. The allowance is made at a flat rate of 2 per cent on the moneys actually disbursed by the parties to the adventure for general average purposes.
