Bozanich

Plaintiff, a seaman, brought suit against defendant, shipowner, under the Jones Act ( 46 U.S.C.A. § 688 ) and general maritime law for damages for injuries alleged to have been sustained while performing duties on defendant’s vessel, Jo Ann. Counsel stipulated that the issue of liability would be tried first. The court instructed the jury on the issues of negligence and contributory negligence but refused plaintiff’s request to instruct on the issue of . unseaworthiness. The jury returned a verdict for the defendant. Plaintiff has appealed from, the judgment, entered for the. defendant, contending that the court erred in refusing to instruct on the issue of unseaw'orthiness. ,

Facts

The Jo Ann was an 86-foot purse seiner, engaged in com *182 mereial fishing off Magdalena Bay, Mexico. Her home port was San Pedro, California. She carried a two-ton skiff, 22 feet long, on her afterdeck, resting on the net. Plaintiff and a Mr. Mardesich were assigned as “skiffmen.” In the center of the skiff there was a 150-horsepower gasoline engine, covered by a protective housing. Two benches, fore and aft of the housing and attached thereto, ran athwartships. There were also four longitudinal…