the seaports of the United Kingdom as had in ships ordinarily employed as foreign-going ships (that is to say, ships employed in trading or going beyond the limits of the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, or the Isle of Man, and the continent of Europe between the rivers Elbe and Brest, both inclusive), a registered tonnage of 30,000 tons or upwards; and at such other places as it might appoint for that purpose.

These Acts have been repealed, but the system thus established is continued by the 17 & 18 Vict. c. 104 (m). The marine boards are to be constituted partly of certain local officers who are members ex-officio, partly of members appointed by the Board of Trade, and partly of members elected by the owners of foreign-going ships and home-trade passenger ships at such seaports.

An important part of their duties, relating to the qualifications of masters and mariners, will be discussed in the next chapter.

They were required, also, in every seaport in which there is a local marine board, to establish shipping offices and superintendents of them, to be called shipping masters, over whom they were to have complete control, subject to the general superintendence of the Board of Trade (n), These offices are, under the Merchant Shipping Act Amendment Act, 1862, 25 & 26 Vict. c. 63, s. 15, to be termed "Mercantile Marine Offices," and the shipping masters, "Superintendents and Deputy Superintendents" of such offices.

3. Duties of Shipping Offices established under its Authority.

The general business of the shipping masters so appointed is to afford facilities for engaging seamen, by keeping registries of their names and characters; to superintend and facilitate their engagement and discharge; provide means for securing their presence on board at the proper time; to facilitate the making of apprenticeships (0) to the sea service, and perform such other duties relating to merchant seamen and merchant ships as will appear in other parts of this Treatise to be committed to them by the Act of Parliament (p).

Persons appointed by the board are to be deemed clerks or servants within 25 Vict. c. 96, and may be guilty of embezzlement, and punished accordingly.

(m) Sect. 110. (n) Sect. 122.

(0) Sects. 141 to 145.
(p) Sect. 124.

PART THE THIRD.

OF THE PERSONS EMPLOYED IN THE NAVIGATION OF MERCHANT SHIPS.

CHAPTER I.

SECT. 1. Of the Qualifications of the Master and Mariners, p. 93.

2. Of Engineers, p. 97.

3. Of Mariners, p. 98.

1. Of the Qualifications of the Master and Mariners.

THE master of a ship is the person entrusted with the care and management of it. His power and authority are so great, and the trust reposed in him is of so important a nature, that the greatest care and circumspection ought to be used by the owners in the choice and appointment of him. It appears, by the language of the ancient sea-laws and ordinances, that the master was formerly in almost every instance a part-owner of the ship, and consequently interested in a twofold character in the faithful discharge of his duty. At present, it frequently happens that he has no property in the ship. The law of most countries requires a previous examination of the person to be appointed to this important office, in order to ascertain his nautical experience and skill; in some, he is liable to be punished as a criminal if, having undertaken the charge, he is found incompetent to the performance of it (q). In this country the owners were, until

sortes de démissoires.” Cleirac, in his

“Jugemens d'Oleron," ch. i., says, that the title of the master of a ship implies honour, experience, and morals, "reverendum honorem sumit quisquis magistri nomen

ac

(2) By the French Ordinance, liv. 2, tit. 1, art. 1," Aucun ne pourra ci-après être réçu capitaine maitre ou patron de navire, qu'il n'ait navigué pendant cinq ans, et n'ait été examiné publiquement sur le fait de la navigation, et trouvé capable par deux an- ceperit." The ordinances of the Hanse ciens maitres en présence des officiers de Towns, of Bilboa, of Prussia, and Sweden, l'Amirauté, et du professeur d'hydrographie, have all required the master to be previously s'il y'en a dans le lieu;" upon which Valin examined, and certified, to be fit by experemarks, "L'inconvénient est néanmoins que rience, competence and character. des sujets très capables et à qui il ne manque establishment of similar regulations in this que la formalité de la reception, perdent quel country would seem to be an object of urgent quefois l'avantage de commander des navires necessity, for the preservation of life and à l'orension, par la misérable avarice ou par property. See Macculloch, Dict. of Comle caprice, de certains officiers de l' Amirauté merce (Supp., Ships). qui ne sont pas d'humeur d'accorder ces

The

lately, left to their own discretion as to the skill and honesty of the master and his officers; and although he is bound to make good any damage that may happen to the ship or cargo, by his negligence or unskilfulness, if he is of ability to do so, yet he cannot be punished as a criminal for mere incompetence.

By the Merchant Shipping Act, 1854, the Local Marine Boards are required to provide for the examination at their respective ports of persons who intend to become masters or mates of foreigngoing or home-trade passenger ships, or who wish to procure certificates of their competency, and may appoint, remove, and re-appoint examiners to conduct such examinations and otherwise regulate them (b).

Rules may be laid down, as to the conduct of such examinations and the qualification of the applicants, by the Board of Trade, and no examiner is to be appointed unless he possesses a certificate of qualification, granted by it (c).

The Board of Trade may depute any of its officers to assist at such examinations, and when they have been passed satisfactorily, and the applicant has given evidence of his sobriety, experience, ability, and general good conduct on ship-board, the Board of Trade may, upon a report from the local examiners, deliver to him a certificate of competency, to act as first, second, or only mate of a foreign-going ship, or master or mate of a home-trade passenger ship (d).

If the Board of Trade has reason to believe such report to have been unduly made, it may remit the case either to the same or to any other examiners, and require a re-examination of the applicant, or a further inquiry into his testimonials and character, before granting him a certificate (e).

Certificates of service, differing in form from certificates of competency, are to be granted by the Board of Trade to persons who prove themselves entitled thereto, under the following regulations (f).

Every person who, before the 1st of January, 1851, served as master in the British merchant service, or who has or shall hereafter attain the rank of lieutenant, master, passed mate, or second master, or any higher rank, in the service of Her Majesty or of the East India Company, shall be entitled to a certificate of service as master for foreign-going ships.

Every person who before the same date served as mate in the British merchant service shall be entitled to a certificate of service as mate for foreign-going ships.

Every person who, before the 1st of January, 1854, has served as

(b) 17 & 18 Vict. c. 104, s. 131.

(c) Sect. 132.

(d) Sect. 134. By the Merchant Shipping Act Amendment Act, 1862, 25 & 26 Vict. c. 63, provision is made for the examination by examiners of the Local Marine Board of the district, at any port of which inconvenience arises in consequence of the distance which

applicants for certificates have to travel for
their examination at such port, by examiners
of the local marine board of the district in
which it is situate, in the presence of persons
(if any) appointed for that purpose by the
Board of Trade. 25 & 26 Vict. c. 63, s. 17.
(e) Sect. 134.
(f) Sect. 135.

master of a home-trade passenger ship shall be entitled to a certificate of service as master of home-trade passenger ships.

Every person who before that date has served as mate of a hometrade passenger ship shall be entitled to a certificate of service as mate for home-trade passenger ships.

No foreign-going ship or home-trade passenger ship shall go to sea from any port of the United Kingdom unless her master, and in the case of a foreign-going ship, the first and second mates, or only mate, have obtained and possess certificates either of competency or service, appropriate to their several stations in such ship, or of a higher grade (g).

No ship of 100 tons burden or upwards shall go to sea unless at least one officer besides the master has obtained and possesses a certificate appropriate to the grade of only mate therein, or to a higher grade (h).

Every person who having been engaged to serve as master, or as first or only mate of a home-trade passenger ship, goes to sea as such master or mate, without being at the time entitled to and possessed of such certificate, or who employs any person in any of these capacities without first ascertaining that the person so employed is at the time entitled to such certificate as above required, is liable to a penalty of 50l. (i).

Certificates of competency for foreign-going ships are to be deemed of a higher grade than the corresponding grades for home-trade passenger ships, and entitle the holder of them to go to sea in the corresponding grade in such last-mentioned ships (k). But no certificate for a home-trade passenger ship will entitle the holder to go to sea as master or mate of a foreign-going ship (7).

Certificates of competency and of service are to be made in duplicate; one part to be delivered to the person entitled to it, the other kept and recorded by the registrar-general of seamen, or by such other person as the Board of Trade may appoint (m). Immediate notice is to be given to such registrar or other person of all orders made by it for cancelling, suspending, altering or affecting these certificates; and such registrar or other person is to make a corresponding entry in the record of certificates (n). A copy of a certificate, purporting to be certified by such registrar, or his assistant, or such other person, is to be prima facie evidence of such certificate, and a copy purporting to be so certified of any entry made as aforesaid in respect of any certificate, is to be prima facie evidence of the truth of the matters in such entry (0).

The Board of Trade, in case of loss without fault by any master or mate of his certificate, may direct a copy of the certificate, to which he appears by the record to be entitled, to be made out, certified, and delivered to him; and such copy is to have all the effect of the original (p).

On signing the agreement with his crew, the master of every foreign-going vessel shall produce to the shipping master, before whom the same is signed, the certificate of competency or service which such master and his first and second mate, or only mate, are required to possess; and shall receive from the shipping master a certificate of his having done so, and having signed the agreement. The master of every foreign-going ship shall, before proceeding to sea, produce the certificate, so to be given to him by the shipping master, to the collector or comptroller of customs; and no officer of customs shall clear any foreign-going ship outwards, or permit her to proceed to sea, without such production (q).

The master or owner of home-trade passenger ships of more than eighty tons burden shall, twice in every year, produce to the shipping master the certificates of competency or service, which he and his first or only mate, as the case may be, are required to possess (r).

The shipping master shall thereupon give to the master a certificate of such delivery and production; and no officer of customs shall grant a clearance or transire for any such ship, without the production of such certificate. And if any such ship attempts to ply, or go to sea without such clearance or transire, any such officer may detain her until such certificate is produced (s).

Every person implicated in obtaining by false representation, or in forging, altering, using or lending, any such certificate, or copy of certificate, is for every such offence to be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor (t).

The Board of Trade may suspend or cancel the certificates of competency or service of any master or mate, if he be shown to have been convicted of any offence; and the like power may be exercised by the Local Marine Board, Magistrates, Naval Court, Admiralty Court, or other court or tribunal by which the case is investigated or tried, if the master or mate be reported to be incompetent, or guilty of any gross act of misconduct, drunkenness, or tyranny; or if, under the provisions of the 8th part of the principal Act, or by a naval court, it is reported that the loss or abandonment of or serious damage to any ship or loss of life has been caused by his wrongful act or default; or if he is superseded by any Admiralty or Naval Court; or if upon investigation authorized by the legislative authority in any British possession he is reported to have been guilty of such misconduct, or to have caused by his wrongful act or default such loss. or damage as are above stated (u).

By the Merchant Shipping Act Amendment Act, 25 & 26 Vict. c. 63, s. 5, further provisions are made respecting the cancellation, suspension, and re-issue of certificates, for which the reader is referred to the section (v).

(q) Sect. 161. (r). Sect. 162. (s) Sect. 162. (t) Sect. 140.

(u) 17 & 18 Vict. c. 104, s. 242; 25 & 26 Vict. c. 63, s. 23.

(v) Sect. 23.