Interpretation cannot be regarded as a mechanical exercise of drawing meanings from words in a text. In most instances interpretation involves the giving to a particular text a meaning which, in the circumstances of the particular case, appears to be logical, reasonable and most likely to agree with the purpose of the law.

Interpreting an act, a contract or a document is obviously of great importance. In Shipping Law, interpretation gives rise to certain difficulties because the shipping documents are usually in a printed form and some of the municipal acts simply give the force of law to matters agreed at an international convention. Some of these acts do not reproduce all the provisions of the convention while others may not reproduce exactly what was agreed at the convention. The whole question is whether the Court is entitled to look at the convention in order to interpret an English statute.

This article attempts to answer this question in respect of the Hague Rules relating to bills of lading as approved in the Brussels Convention (here called the Rules) and incorporated into the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act, 1924. It would be also useful to examine other international rules incorporated into municipal acts and to see whether these rules were to be construed in the light of English common law or to be given an interpretation free from the constraints of any particular national law. However, before dealing with these points, it would be necessary to consider the methods by which the Rules are given the force of law.

Thus, this paper is divided into four sections: