Before the advent of air travel, sellers would send goods to a distant buyer by sea. Even today, the carriage of goods by sea constitutes a significant portion of all long-distance commercial transactions. In a typical transaction, a shipper delivers goods to a carrier ship. The carrier, the ship's captain, or a clerk then issues a bill of lading. Discuss the Purpose of a Bill of Lading, history and development of the clean bill of lading at common law before 1851, common law after 1851, carrier liability for quantity recitals in the clean bill of lading, disclaimers of liability, detrimental reliance and disclaimers and the lien theory of carrier liability