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other third part thereof to and for the person or persons who shall inform and sue for the same.

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Eremption of certain cases.-Nothing in this act shall extend to any agreement made with any seaman, &c. hired in the West Indies, who shall, at the time of such hiring, deliver to the master of such merchant-vessel a certificate, under the hand of the master of the vessel on board of which such seaman, &c. had then last served, signed in the presence of one witness or more, stating their usual place of abode, and thereby certifying that such seaman, &c. had been duly discharged from the vessel on board which he had so last served; and which cer tificate the said master shall grant within three days next after application made to him by such seaman, &c. before a witness: or, in default thereof, shall forfeit £20. Nor shall this act extend to any agreement to be made with any person hired or engaged to serve on board any merchant-vessel which, through necessity, or on account of any hazardous service or extraordinary duty, require such agreement to be made, and more wages given, and of which proof shall be made on oath before the chief magistrate or principal officer of any port or place, or before any justice of the peace of the said colonies or plantations; and provided also, that such person so hired shall not have deserted from the vessel on board of which he had then last served; and provided also, that no greater wages shall be given or received except in case of such necessity, very hazardous service, or extraordinary duty as aforesaid, then after the rate of double the monthly wages, or the wages to be settled by any governor, chief magistrate, collector, or comptroller, as hereinbefore directed. § 10.

Articles to be entered into.-From the 1st July, 1797, the articles to: be entered into by and between the masters, seamen, and mariners of such merchant-ships, shall be agreeably to the following purport and effect. § 11.

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IT is hereby agreed between the master, seamen, and mariners of the ship now bound for the port of the master or commander of the said ship, That, in consideration of the monthly or other wages against each respective seaman or mariner's name hereunto set, they severally shall and will perform the above-mentioned voyage: and the said master doth hereby agree with and hire the seamen and mariners for the said voyage at such monthly wages, to be paid pursuant to the laws of Great Britain; and they, the said seamen and mariners, do hereby pro mise and oblige themselves to do their duty, and obey the lawful commands of their officers on board the said ship or boats thereunto belonging, as become good and faithful seamen and mariners, and at all places where the said ship shall put in or anchor during the said ship's voyage, to do their best endeavours for the preservation of the said ship and cargo, and not to neglect or refuse doing their duty by day or night; nor shall go out of the said ship on board any other vessel, or be on shore under any pre tence whatsoever till the voyage is ended, and the ship discharged of her cargo, without leave first obtained of the master, captain, or commanding officer on board; and, in default thereof, they freely agree to be liable to the penalties mentioned in the act of parliament, made in the second year of the reign of king George the Second, intituled, An act for the better regulation and government of seamen in the merchants' service;" and the act made in the thirty-seventh year of the reign of king George the Third, intituled, " An act for preventing the desertion of seamen from British merchant-ships trading to his Majesty's colonies and plantations in the West Indies." And it is further agreed by the parties to these presents, that twenty-four hours' absence without leave shall be deemed a total desertion, and render such seamen and mariners; } liable to the forfeiture and penalties contained in the acts above recited; and each and✅ every lawful command which the said master shall think necessary to issue for the effectual government of the said vessel, suppressing immorality and vice of all kinds, be strictly complied with under the penalty of the person or persons disobeying, forfeiting his or their whole wages or hire, together with every other thing belonging to him or them on board the said vessel: and it is further agreed, that no officer or seaman, or person

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belonging to the said ship, shall demand or be entitled to his wages, or any part thereof, until the arrival of the said ship at the above-mentioned port of discharge, and her cargo delivered, nor less than twenty days, in case the seamen are not employed in the delivery and it is hereby farther agreed between the master and officers of the said ship, that whatever apparel, furniture, and stores, each of them may receive into their charge, belonging to the said ship, shall be accounted for at her return; and in case any thing shall be lost or damaged through their carelessness or insufficiency, it shall be made good by such officer or seaman, by whose means it may happen, to the master and owner of the said ship: and whereas it is customary for the officers and seamen, on the ship's return home in the river, and during the time their cargoes are delivering, to go on shore each night to sleep, greatly to the prejudice of such ship and freighters; be it farther agreed by the said parties, that neither officer nor seaman shall, on any pretence whatsoever, be entitled to such indulgence, but shall do their duty by day in discharge of the cargo, and keep such watch by night as the master or commander of the said ship shall think necessary, in order for the preservation of the above: and whereas it often happens that part of the cargo is embezzled after being delivered into lighters; and, as such losses are made good by the owners of the ships, be it therefore agreed, by these presents, that whatever officer or seaman the master shall think proper to appoint, shall take charge of the cargo in the lighters, and go with the same to the lawful quay, and there deliver his charge to the ship's husband, or his representative, or see the same safely weighed at the King's beam; and, in consequence of their true fidelity, such seamen shall be entitled to 2s. 6d. each lighter, exclusive of their monthly pay; and should it so happen that lighters are detained any considerable time at the quay before they can be unloaded, such officer and seaman so appointed shall in that case be entitled to 2s. 6d. for every twenty-four hours, exclusive of their monthly pay: that each seaman and mariner, who shall well and truly perform the above-mentioned voyage, (provided always, that there be no plunderage, embezzlement, or other unlawful acts, committed on the vessel's cargo or stores,) shall be entitled to their wages or hire that may become due to him, pursuant to this agreement; that, for the due performance of each and every the above-mentioned articles and agreements, and acknowledgment of their being voluntary and without compulsion, or any other clandestine means being used, the said parties have hereunto subscribed their names, the day and month set opposite to their respective names.

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An Act for regulating the Number of APPRENTICES to be taken on board British Merchant Vessels; and for preventing the DESERTION OF SEAMEN therefrom.

Whereas by an act passed in the thirty-seventh year of the reign of his late Majesty King George III., intituled, "An Act for preventing the Desertion of Seamen from British Merchant Ships trading to his Majesty's Colonies and Plantations in the West Indies," it is enacted, that every master of any merchant ship trading to his Majesty's colonies and plantations in the West Indies, shall have on board his ship, at the time of such ship clearing out from Great Britain, one apprentice who

shall be under the age of seventeen years, duly indented for three years, for every 100 tons admeasurement of such ship, and so in proportion for every 100 tons which such ship shall admeasure, according to the certificate of registry: and whereas it is expedient to repeal the said provisions; and so much of the said act is repealed accordingly. § 1. Number of apprentices to be proportioned to the tonnage.After the 1st day of January, 1824, every master of any merchant ship, exceeding the burthen of eighty tons, shall have on board his ship, at the time of such ship clearing out from any port of the United Kingdom called Great Britain, one apprentice or apprentices, in the following proportion to the number of tons of her admeasurement, according to the certificate of registry; that is to say, for every ship or vessel Exceeding 80 tons and under 200

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Who shall, at the period of being indentured, respectively be under the age of seventeen years: provided that every apprentice so to be employed on board any ship or vessel, as above described, shall be duly indented for at least four years; and the indenture or indentures of every such apprentice shall be duly enrolled with the collector and comptroller at the custom-house of the port from whence any such ship or vessel shall first clear out after the execution of such indenture or indentures. § 2.

No higher duty than 2s. to be charged upon the indenture of any apprentice bound to serve at sea in the merchant service. 7 and 8 Geo. IV. c. 56, § 17.

Nothing in this act contained shall extend to alter or in anywise affect any act now in force, and not amended or repealed by this act, whereby any ships are required to have on board apprentices, and that such apprentices as shall be on board any ships conformably to the rules and regulations of any such act shall be counted, deemed, and reckoned in the number required by this act. § 3. Apprentices exempted from impressment. Every apprentice so enrolled shall be and is hereby exempted from serving in his Majesty's navy, until he shall have attained the age of twenty-one years, provided he is regularly serving his time either with his first master or shipowner, or some other master or ship-owner to whom his indentures shall have been regularly transferred; and every owner or master neglecting to enrol such indenture or indentures as aforesaid, or who shall suffer any such apprentice to leave his service, except in case of death or desertion, sickness, or other unavoidable cause, to be certified in the logbook, after the vessel shall have cleared outwards on the voyage upon which such ship may be bound, shall for every such offence forfeit and pay the sum of 10., to be paid in manner following, that is to say, one moiety by the owner of such ship, and the other moiety by the master thereof, to be levied, recovered, and applied in manner hereinafter mentioned. § 4.

Apprentice may be employed in any other ship of his master.— Every person to whom such apprentice shall have been bound may employ him at any time in any vessel of which such person may be the master or owner; and may also, with the consent of such apprentice, if above the age of seventeen, and if under that age, with the conseat of his parents or guardians, transfer the indentures of such appren

tice, by endorsement thereon, to any other person who may be the master or owner of any registered ship or vessel. § 5.

No stamp-duty shall be charged on any such transfer by endorsement. § 6.

Mates of ships exempt from impressment.-And be it further enacted, that the first mate of every ship exceeding the burthen of eighty tons, and the first and second mate of every vessel exceeding 300 tons burthen, shall be exempt from being imprest to serve in his Majesty's navy, provided they are regularly entered as such upon the articles entered into by and between the master, seamen, and mariners of such merchant ship or vessel. § 7.

Application of penalties.-The forfeiture given as above by this act shall be paid and applied in manner following; that is to say, onethird part thereof towards the support of Greenwich hospital; onethird part thereof towards the support of the seamen's hospital at the port to which the ship in respect of which the forfeiture shall arise belongs; (but in case there shall be no seamen's hospital at the port to which such ship belongs, then to and for the use and benefit of the old and disabled seamen of the same port and their families, to be distributed at the discretion of the persons having the direction of the merchant seamen's fund at such port, or in case there shall be no such establishment there, by the magistrates or overseers of the poor of such port;) and the other third part thereof to the person who shall inform and sue for the same; and that such forfeiture shall be recovered upon information on the oath of one or more witnesses before any justice of the peace, in any part of the United Kingdom, who shall not reside more than ten miles from the place of abode of the person or persons complained of, which justice is hereby authorized and required to issue out his warrant to bring before him every person charged with any offence under this act; and in case he or they shall refuse or neglect to pay such penalties or forfeitures as aforesaid, to issue his warrant to levy the same by distress and sale of the offender's goods; and in case no distress can be found, to commit the offender or offenders to the common gaol at the city, town, or place within the jurisdiction of such respective justice, there to remain for the space of three calendar months, or until he or they shall pay the same. § 8.

Deserters to forfeit wages. And whereas the laws now in force for the prevention of the DESERTION of persons composing the crews of merchant ships in foreign parts, have been found ineffectual for that object, and further provision is therefore necessary; be it enacted, that from the 1st day of January, 1824, if any person belonging to the crew of any registered ship shall desert from the said ship during the absence of such ship from this kingdom, contrary to the articles of agreement entered into with the master of such ship, every such person so deserting shall not only forfeit whatever wages may be due to him for his services on board of the ship from which he may have so deserted, but shall also forfeit whatever wages shall be due or have been agreed to be paid to him by or from the owner or master of any ship in the service whereof such person may have engaged on the voyage back to this country. § 9.

Application of forfeited wages.-The wages which shall have become forfeited for desertion as aforesaid shall be applied in the following manner; videlicet, to the reimbursement, in the first place, of the expenses thereby occasioned to the owner or master of any ship from which the said seamen shall have so deserted; the re

ainder to be divided in equal proportions between Greenwich hosital, and the hospital for sick and diseased seamen which may have een established at the port at which the vessel belongs from which uch person shall have so deserted; and in case that no such hospital hall have been established at the port, then the whole of the sum forcited, after deducting the expenses of the owner or master of such ship r vessel as aforesaid, shall be paid to and for the use of Greenwich ospital. §10.

Wages to be paid over to Greenwich hospital.-In every case of ertion it shall be lawful for the owner or master of any ship or essel, on board of which any person having so deserted shall have enered for the voyage home, upon receiving notice in writing of the time nd place of such desertion, from the owner or master of the vessel rom which such person shall have so deserted, (and such first-menioned owner or master of such ship or vessel is hereby required,) to leposit with the treasurer of Greenwich hospital the full amount of the wages which had been agreed to be paid to such person or the said home voyage, for the purpose of being applied to the ses before mentioned, and which sum shall be applied to those ses accordingly; provided that such person shall not, within six nonths from the date of such deposit having been made with the treapurer of Greenwich hospital as aforesaid, have established his just laim thereto before two justices of the peace residing in or near the place where such ship shall have ended her voyage, or been cleared at he custom-house, or delivered her cargo, or in the High Court of Admiralty, or in any court of record in which such person may have sued for the same.

Wages unjustly withheld.-In every case in which it shall happen that wages are withheld from any person by any owner or master of any ship upon the plea of desertion as aforesaid, and such person shall within three months from the time when such ship shall have entered and reported at the custom-house, establish by the decision of two justices of the peace as aforesaid, or by the decree of the High Court of Admiralty, or of any court of record in which he shall have sued for the recovery thereof, that the charge of desertion was false or illfounded, such person shall not only be entitled to double the wages due to him, of which the amount deposited in the hands of the treasurer of Greenwich hospital shall form a part, but also treble costs, and which shall be paid to such person or his lawful attorney, by the owner, master, or other person upon whose notice or at whose instance the payment thereof shall have been withheld from him, within seven days after the fact of his not having deserted shall have been so established; to be certified by the said magistrates, or the court in which he decision shall have been pronounced. § 11.

But seamen may enter into the navy.-Provided, that nothing in this act contained shall extend or be construed to extend to debar any seaman or mariner, belonging to any merchant ship or vessel, from entering or being entered into the service of his Majesty, his heirs and successors, on board any of his or their ships or vessels; nor shall such seaman or mariner, for such entry, forfeit the wages due to him during the term of his service in such merchant ship or vessel, nor shall such entry be deemed a desertion. § 12.

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