This Act may be cited for all purposes as “The Shipping and Seamen’s Act, 1877.”

This Act shall come into operation so soon as Her Majesty’s assent thereto shall be notified in the manner provided by the “Constitution Act,” and shall apply to all British ships registered at, trading with, or being at any place within the jurisdiction of New Zealand, and to the owners, masters, and crews thereof, except as hereinafter provided.

This Act shall not apply to ships belonging to Her Majesty or to those belonging to the Government of the colony, except in so far as the several sections of this Act may, by order of the Governor in Council, be made applicable to vessels belonging to the Colonial Government.

In the construction and for the purposes of this Act (if not inconsistent with the context or subject-matter), the following terms shall have the respective meanings hereinafter assigned to them, that is to say,—

Whenever in this Act mention is made of “The Merchant Shipping Act, 1854,” or the Imperial Merchant Shipping Act, or any amendment of that Act bearing a like name, it shall be understood that reference is made to the Acts of the Imperial Parliament of that name, and this Act shall be construed accordingly.

There shall be a department, called the Marine Department, which shall undertake the general superintendence of matters relating to merchant ships and seamen, and shall be authorized to carry into execution the provisions of this Act and of all other Acts relating to merchant ships and seamen in force for the time being within the colony.

The Governor, in the name and on behalf of Her Majesty, may from time to time appoint a Minister of the Crown being a member of the Executive Council of the colony, to have charge of the Marine Department and of the administration of this Act, who shall have the appointment, control, and direction of all officers and persons employed in or about carrying this Act into effect, and who shall perform the duties and have the powers and authorities by this Act imposed and conferred on him.

The Governor may from time to time appoint or remove a Secretary to the Department. The Minister may make and, when made, revoke, alter, and add to rules and regulations, and generally may do all things that may be necessary to carry into effect and enforce the provisions of this Act, and of all other Acts relating to merchant ships and seamen in force for the time being within the colony.

There shall be a seal called “the Seal of the Marine Department,” which shall be in the custody of the Secretary. All documents whatever, purporting to be issued or written by or under the direction of the Minister, and purporting either to be sealed with the seal of the Marine Department, or to have printed, marked, or otherwise impressed thereon a fac simile of such seal, or to be signed by the Secretary, shall be received in evidence, and shall be deemed to be issued or written by or under the direction of the Minister without further proof, unless the contrary be shown; and all documents purporting to be certificates issued by the Marine Department in pursuance of this Act, and to be sealed with the seal of such Department, or marked with a fac simile thereof as aforesaid, or to be signed by one of the officers of such Department, shall be received in evidence, and shall be deemed to be such certificates, without further proof, unless the contrary be shown.

The Minister may from time to time prepare and sanction forms of the various hooks, instruments, and papers required by this Act, and may from time to time make such alterations therein as he deems requisite; and shall, before finally issuing or altering any such form, give such public notice thereof as he deems necessary in order to prevent inconvenience, and shall cause every such form to be sealed with such seal or marked with such fac simile as aforesaid, or marked with some other distinguishing mark, and to be supplied at the Custom-houses and Mercantile Marine Offices of the colony free of charge, or at such moderate prices as he may from time to time fix, or may license any persons to print and sell the same; and every such book, instrument, and paper as aforesaid shall be made in the form issued by the Minister and sanctioned by him as the proper form for the time being; and no such book, instrument, or paper as aforesaid, unless made in such form, shall be admissible in evidence in any civil proceeding on the part of any owner or master of any ship; and every such book, instrument, or paper, if made in a forra purporting to be a proper form, and to be sealed or marked as aforesaid, shall be taken to be made in the form hereby required, unless the contrary is proved.

All instruments which by the Second and Third Parts of this Act are required to be made in forms sanctioned by the Minister, if made in such forms, and all instruments used by or under the direction of the Minister in carrying this Act into effect, shall be exempt from stamp duty.

Every person who forges, assists in forging, or procures to be forged, such seal, fac simile thereof, or other distinguishing mark as aforesaid, or who fraudulently alters, assists in fraudulently altering, or procures to be fraudulently altered, any form issued by the Minister, with the view of evading any of the provisions of this Act or any condition contained in such form, shall for each offence be deemed guilty of a misdemeanour; and every person who, in any case in which a form sanctioned by the Minister is by the Second Part of this Act required to be used, uses without reasonable excuse any form not purporting to be so sanctioned, or who prints, sells, or uses any document purporting to be a form so sanctioned knowing the same not to be so sanctioned for the time being, or not to have been prepared and issued by the Minister, shall for each such offence incur a penalty not exceeding ten pounds.

Every Chief Officer of Customs, and every Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, may, in cases where he has reason to suspect that the provisions of this Act, or the laws for the time being relating to merchant seamen and to navigation, are not complied with, exercise the following powers, that is to say:—

He may require the owner, master, or any of the crew of any ship to produce any official log-books or other documents relating to such crew or any member thereof in their respective possession or control:

He may require any such master to produce a list of all persons on board ’his ship, and take copies of such official log-books or documents, or of any part thereof:

He may muster the crew of any such ship:

He may summon the master to appear and give any explanation concerning such ship or her crew or the said official log hooks or documents:

And if, upon requisition duly made by any person so authorized in that behalf as aforesaid, any person refuses or neglects to produce any such official log-book or document as he is hereinbefore required to produce, or to allow the same to be inspected or copied as aforesaid, or impedes any such muster of a crew as aforesaid, or refuses or neglects to give any explanation which he is hereinbefore required to give, or knowingly misleads or deceives any person hereinbefore authorized to demand any such explanation, he shall for each such offence incur a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds.

The Minister may, from time to time, whenever it seems expedient to him so to do, appoint any person as an Inspector or Surveyor to report to him upon the following matters, that is to say,—

Upon the nature and causes of any accident or damages which any ship has sustained or caused, or is alleged to have sustained or caused:

Whether the provisions of this Act, or any regulations made under or by virtue of this Act, have been complied with:

Whether the hull and machinery of any steamship are sufficient and in good condition:

As to the seaworthiness of any ship:

or to do, execute, or perform any of the powers, duties, and functions by this Act exercisable by an Inspector or Surveyor.

Every such Inspector or Surveyor as aforesaid shall have the following powers, that is to say,—

He may go on hoard any ship, and may inspect the same and every part thereof, and the machinery, boats, equipments, cargo, or articles on board thereof to which the provisions of this Act apply, and may require the unloading or removal of any cargo, ballast, or tackle, not unnecessarily detaining or delaying her from proceeding on any voyage:

He may enter and inspect any premises the entry or inspection of which appears to him to be requisite for the purpose of the report which he is directed to make:

He may, by summons under his hand, require the attendance of all such persons as he thinks fit to call before him and examine for such purpose, and may require answers or returns to any inquiries be thinks fit to make:

He may require and enforce the production of all books, papers, or documents which he considers important for such purpose:

He may administer oaths, or may, in lieu of requiring or administering an oath, require every person examined by him to make and subscribe a declaration of the truth of the statements made by him in his examination.

And every witness so summoned as aforesaid shall be allowed such expenses as would be allowed to any witness attending on subpoena to give evidence before the Supreme Court; and, in case of any dispute as to the amount of such expenses, the same shall be referred by the Inspector or Surveyor to a Registrar or Deputy Registrar of the Supreme Court, who, on a request made to him for that purpose under the hand of the said Inspector or Surveyor, shall ascertain and certify the proper amount of such expenses; and every person who refuses to attend as a witness before any such Inspector or Surveyor after having been required so to do in the manner hereby directed, and after having had a tender made to him of the expenses (if any) to which he is entitled as aforesaid, or who refuses or neglects to make any answer, or to give any return, or to produce any document in his possession, or to make or subscribe any declarations which any such Inspector or Surveyor is hereby empowered to require, shall for each such offence incur a penalty not exceeding ten pounds.

Every person who wilfully impedes any such Inspector or Surveyor appointed by the Minister as aforesaid in the execution of his duty, whether on board any ship or elsewhere, shall incur a penalty not exceeding ten pounds, and may be seized and detained by such Inspector, Surveyor, or other person, or by any person or persons whom he may call to his assistance, until such offender can be conveniently taken before some Justice of the Peace or other officer having proper jurisdiction.

The following ships, that is to say,—

Registered sea-going ships exclusively employed in fishing on the coast of the colony, and

Ships used as pleasure yachts, and missionary ships, not engaged in trading,—

shall be subject to the whole of the Second Part of this Act, except sections twenty-eight, thirty-five, thirty-six, thirty-seven, thirty-nine, forty, forty-one, forty-two, forty-three, forty-four, forty-six, forty-seven, forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty, fifty-four, fifty-eight, fifty-nine, one hundred and nine, one hundred and thirty-eight, one hundred and forty-four, one hundred and forty-five, one hundred and forty-six, one hundred and forty-seven, one hundred and forty-eight, one hundred and forty-nine, one hundred and fifty, one hundred and fifty-one.

In any seaport in the colony, the Minister may establish a Mercantile Marine Office or Offices, and may for that purpose, subject as herein mentioned, procure the requisite premises, and appoint, and from time to time remove and reappoint, Superintendents of such offices, to be called Superintendents of Mercantile Marine, with any necessary deputies, clerks, and servants, and regulate the mode of conducting business at such offices, and shall, subject as herein mentioned, have complete control over the same; and every act done by or before any deputy duly appointed shall have the same effect as if done by or before a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine.

It shall be the general business of Superintendents of Mercantile Marine appointed as aforesaid—

Such fees, not exceeding the sums specified in the Second Schedule hereto, as are from time to time fixed by the Minister, shall be payable upon all engagements and discharges effected before Superintendents of Mercantile Marine as hereinafter mentioned, and the Minister shall cause scales of the fees payable for the time being to be prepared, and to be conspicuously placed in the Mercantile Marine Offices; and all Superintendents of Mercantile Marine, their deputies, clerks, and servants, may refuse to proceed with any engagement or discharge unless the fees payable thereon are first paid.

Every owner, master, or agent of a ship engaging or discharging any seamen or seaman in a Mercantile Marine Office, or before a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, shall pay to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine the whole of the fees hereby made payable in respect of such engagement or discharge, and may, for the purpose of in part reimbursing himself, deduct, in respect of each such engagement or discharge, from the wages of all persons (except apprentices) so engaged or discharged, and retain any sums not exceeding the sums specified in that behalf in the Third Schedule hereto: Provided that, if in any case the sums which the owner is so entitled to deduct exceed the amount of the fee payable by him, such excess shall be paid by him to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine in addition to such fee.

Any Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, Deputy Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, or any clerk or servant in any Mercantile Marine Office, who demands or receives any remuneration whatever, either directly or indirectly, for hiring or supplying any seaman for any merchant ship, excepting the lawful fees payable under this Act, shall, for every such offence, incur a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds, and shall also be liable to be dismissed from his office by the Minister.

The Minister may direct that, at any place in which no separate Mercantile Marine Office is established, the whole or any part of the business of the Mercantile Marine Office shall be conducted at the Custom-house in such place, and thereupon the same shall be there conducted accordingly; and in respect of such business such Custom-house shall, for all purposes, be deemed to be a Mercantile Marine Office, and the officer of Customs there to whom such business is committed shall, for all purposes, be deemed to be a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine within the meaning of this Act.

The Minister may from time to time dispense with the transaction before a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, or in a Mercantile Marine Office, of any matters required by this Act to be so transacted; and thereupon such matters shall, if otherwise duly transacted as required by law, be as valid as if transacted before a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, or in a Mercantile Marine Office.

Examinations shall be instituted for persons who intend to become masters, mates, or engineers of foreign-going ships, or of home-trade ships, or of steamships plying within restricted limits, or who wish to procure certificates of competency hereinafter mentioned. Such examination shall be held at such places as the Minister shall direct. He may appoint times for such examinations, and may appoint, remove, and reappoint Examiners to conduct the same, and may from time to time make, and when made revoke, alter, and add to, rules for the conduct of such examinations, and as to the qualifications of the applicants.

All applicants for examination shall pay such fees, not exceeding the sums specified in the Fourth Schedule hereto, as the Minister directs; and such fees shall be paid to such persons as the Minister appoints for that purpose; provided that if an applicant fail in his examination, he shall be entitled to have returned to him one-half of the fee be has paid.

The Examiners shall report the result of every such examination to the Secretary, who shall thereupon sign and deliver to every applicant who is duly reported to have passed the examination satisfactorily, and to have given satisfactory evidence of his sobriety, experience, ability, and general good conduct, such a certificate (hereinafter called a “certificate of competency”) as the case requires.

Certificates of service differing in form from certificates of competency shall be granted as follows, that is to say,—

Every person who, before the first day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, served as master of a foreign-going ship, and had his usual place of residence in New Zealand for a period of not less than three years then next preceding, or who has attained or attains a rank in the service of Her Majesty not lower than that of navigating sub-lieutenant, shall be entitled to a certificate of service as Master for foreign-going ships.

Every person who, before the first day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, served as a mate of a foreign-going ship, and had his usual place of residence in New Zealand for a period of not less than three years then next preceding, shall be entitled to a certificate of service as Mate for foreign-going ships.

Every person who, before the first day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, has served as master of a home-trade ship, and had his usual place of residence in New Zealand for a period of not less than three years then next preceding, shall be entitled to a certificate of service as Master for home-trade passenger ships.

Every person who, before the first day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, has served as mate of a home-trade ship, and had his usual place of residence in New Zealand for a period of not less than three years then next preceding, shall be entitled to a certificate of service as Mate for home-trade passenger ships.

Every person who, before the first day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, has served as master of a steamship having a “River Certificate,” shall be entitled to a certificate of service as Master for steamships having certificates to ply within restricted limits.

Every person who, before the first day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, has served as first engineer in any foreign-going steamship of one hundred nominal horse-power or upwards, or who has attained or attains the rank of engineer in the service of Her Majesty, shall be entitled to a “First Class Engineer’s Certificate” of service.

Every person who, before the first day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, has served as second engineer in any foreign-going steamship of one hundred nominal horse-power or upwards, or as first or only engineer in any sea-going steamship, or who has attained or attains the rank of first class assistant engineer in the service of Her Majesty, shall be entitled to a “Second Class Engineer’s Certificate” of service.

And each of such certificates of service shall contain particulars of the name, place, and time of birth, and of the length and nature of the previous service, of the person to whom the same is delivered; and it shall be lawful for the Secretary to sign and deliver such certificates of service to the various persons so respectively entitled thereto upon their proving themselves to have attained such rank or to have served as aforesaid, and upon their giving a full and satisfactory account of the particulars aforesaid.

No foreign-going ship or home-trade passenger ship shall go to sea from any port in the colony unless the master thereof, and in the case of a foreign-going ship the first and second mates, or only mate (as the case may be), and in the case of a home-trade passenger ship the first or only mate (as the case may he), have obtained and possess valid certificates, either of competency or service, appropriate to their several stations in such ship or of a higher grade; and no such ship, if of one hundred tons register or upwards, shall go to sea as aforesaid unless at least one officer besides the master has obtained and possesses a valid certificate appropriate to the grade of only mate therein or to a higher grade.

Every foreign-going steamship of one hundred nominal horsepower or upwards shall have as its first and second engineers two certificated engineers, the first possessing a “First Class Engineer’s Certificate,” and the second possessing a “Second Class Engineer’s Certificate,” or a certificate of the higher grade. Every foreign-going steamship of less than one hundred nominal horse-power shall have as its only or first engineer an engineer possessing a “Second Class Engineer’s Certificate,” or a certificate of the higher grade.

Every sea-going home-trade steamship shall have as its only or first engineer an engineer possessing a “Second Class Engineer’s Certificate,” or a certificate of the higher grade, and no such ship shall go to sea as aforesaid unless the master has obtained and possesses a valid certificate appropriate to the grade of master.

If any ship proceeds to sea from any place in the colony without being so provided, the owner of the ship shall incur a penalty not exceeding one hundred pounds.

In each of the following cases,—

If any person, not possessed of a valid certificate appropriate to his grade, suffers himself to be engaged or acts as master, mate, or engineer in contravention of this section;

If any person employs or suffers any person to serve as master, mate, or engineer in contravention of this section, without using all reasonable means (proof whereof shall lie on him) to ascertain that the person so serving is duly certificated;

If any person fraudulently engages or employs, or suffers to be engaged or employed, any duly-certificated master, mate, or engineer to serve for the purpose only of enabling any ship to clear and not for the purpose of the whole voyage, or if any master, mate, or engineer so fraudulently engages himself,—

Then and in every such case the person so offending shall for every such offence incur a penalty not exceeding fifty pounds; and if any certificated master, mate, or engineer is engaged to serve on board any ship, and quits such ship before or upon the commencement of her voyage, he shall be deemed, unless the contrary is shown, to have been fraudulently engaged or employed as aforesaid.

Every certificate of competency for a foreign-going ship shall be deemed to be of a higher grade than the corresponding certificate for a home-trade passenger ship, and shall entitle the lawful holder thereof to go to sea in the corresponding grade in such last-mentioned ship; but no certificate for a home-trade passenger ship shall entitle the holder to go to sea as master, mate, or engineer of a foreign-going ship.

All certificates of competency or service shall be made in. such form and subject to such regulations as the Minister directs, and a record of such certificates shall be kept by such person and in such manner as the Minister directs.

Whenever any master, mate, or engineer proves to the satisfaction of the Minister that he has, without fault on his part, lost or been deprived of any certificate already granted to him, the Minister shall, upon payment of such fee (if any) as he directs, cause a copy of the certificate to which, by the record so kept as aforesaid, be appears to be entitled, to be made out and certified as aforesaid, and to be delivered to him; and any copy which purports to be so made and certified as aforesaid shall have all the effect of the original.

Every person who makes, or procures to be made, or assists in making, any false representation for the purpose of obtaining for himself or for any other person a certificate either of competency or service, or who forges, assists in forging, or procures to be forged, or fraudulently alters, assists in fraudulently altering, or procures to be fraudulently altered, any such certificate or any official copy of any such certificate, or who fraudulently makes use of any such certificate or any copy of any such certificate which is forged, altered, cancelled, suspended, or to which he is not justly entitled, or who fraudulently lends his certificate to or allows the same to be used by any other person, shall for each offence be deemed guilty of a misdemeanour.

All Superintendents of Mercantile Marine appointed under this Act shall, if applied to for the purpose, give to any parents or other persons desirous of apprenticing boys to the sea service, and to masters and owners of ships requiring apprentices, such assistance as is in their power for facilitating the making of such apprenticeships, and may receive from persons availing themselves of such assistance such fees as may be determined in that behalf by the Minister.

In the case of every boy bound apprentice to the sea service by his parent, the indenture shall be executed by the boy and the person to whom be is bound in the presence of, and shall be attested by, a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine; but, if the boy be bound by any other person, then the indenture shall be attested by a Resident Magistrate or two Justices of the Peace, who shall ascertain that the boy has consented to be bound, and has attained the age of twelve years, and is of sufficient health and strength, and that the master to whom the boy is to be bound is a proper person for the purpose.

All indentures of apprenticeship to the sea service shall be exempt from stamp duty, and all such indentures shall be in duplicate; and every person to whom any boy whatever is bound as an apprentice to the sea service in the colony shall, within seven days after the execution of the indenture, take or transmit the same to the nearest Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, who shall retain and record one copy, and shall indorse on the other that the same has been recorded, and shall re-deliver the same to the master of the apprentice; and whenever any such indenture is assigned or cancelled, and whenever any such apprentice dies or deserts, the master of the apprentice shall, within seven days after such assignment, cancellation, death, or desertion, if the same happens within the colony, or, if the same happens elsewhere, so soon afterwards as circumstances permit, notify the same to the said Superintendent of Mercantile Marine to be recorded; and every person who fails to comply with the provisions of this section shall incur a penalty not exceeding ten pounds.

The master of every foreign-going ship shall, before carrying any apprentice to sea from any place in the colony, cause such apprentice to appear before the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine before whom the crew is engaged, and shall produce to him the indenture by which such apprentice is bound, and the assignment or assignments thereof (if any); and the name of such apprentice, with the date of the indenture and of the assignment or assignments thereof (if any), and the name of the port or ports at which the same have been registered, shall be entered on the agreement; and for any default in obeying the provisions of this section the master shall, for each offence, incur a penalty not exceeding five pounds.

The Minister may from time to time authorize any Superintendent of Mercantile Marine to employ persons, duly licensed in that behalf by the Minister, to supply seamen or apprentices for merchant ships in the colony. Any such authority or license may be granted and revoked on such terms and conditions as the Minister thinks proper.

If any unauthorized person, that is to say, any person not so licensed, or not being the owner or master or mate of the ship, or a servant in constant employment of the owner, or a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, engages or supplies any seaman or apprentice to be entered on board any ship, or offers by advertisement or otherwise to procure employment as apprentice or seaman on any ship; or,

If any person employs any such unauthorized person for the purpose of engaging or supplying any seaman or apprentice for any ship,

every such person shall, for each such offence, incur a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds.

If any person receives or accepts to be entered on hoard any ship any seaman or apprentice who has been engaged or supplied in contravention of the provisions of this section, be shall, for every seaman or apprentice so received or accepted, incur a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds, unless be shows, to the satisfaction of the Court before which he is charged, that he did not know that such seaman or apprentice had been engaged or supplied in contravention as aforesaid, and that he could not, with reasonable diligence, have obtained such knowledge.

If any person demands or receives, directly or indirectly, from any seaman or apprentice to the sea service, or from any person seeking employment as a seaman or apprentice to the sea service, or from any person on his behalf, any remuneration whatever other than the prescribed fees for providing him with employment, be shall, for every such offence, be liable to a penalty not exceeding ten pounds; hut nothing in this Act shall preclude any owner or master of a ship from receiving a premium with an apprentice, provided the amount of such premium is inserted in the indenture of apprenticeship.

The master of every ship, except ships of less than eighty tons registered tonnage exclusively employed in trading between different ports on the coast of the colony, shall enter into an agreement with every seaman whom be carries to sea from any port in the colony as one of his crew in the manner hereinafter mentioned; and every such agreement shall be in a form sanctioned by the Minister, and shall be dated at the time of the first signature thereof, and shall be signed by the master before any seaman signs the same, and shall contain the following particulars as terms thereof, that is to say,—

The nature, and, as far as practicable, the duration of the intended voyage or engagement, or the maximum period of the voyage or engagement, and the places or parts of the world (if any) to which the voyage or engagement is not to extend:

The number and description of the crew, specifying how many are engaged as sailors:

The time at which each seaman is to be on board to begin work:

The capacity in which each seaman is to serve:

The amount of wages which each seaman is to receive:

A scale of the provisions which are to be furnished to each seaman:

Any regulations as to conduct on board, and as to fines, short allowance of provisions, or other lawful punishments for misconduct, which have been specified by the Minister as regulations proper to be adopted, by which the parties agree to adopt.

And every such agreement shall be so frame s. to admit of stipulations, to be adopted at the will of the master and seamen in each case, as to advance and allotment of wages, and may contain any other stipulations which are not contrary to law: Provided that if the master of any ship belonging to the United Kingdom or any British Possession has an agreement with his crew made in due form according to the law of the United Kingdom or British Possession to which such ship belongs or in which her crew were engaged, and engages single seamen in the colony, such seamen may sign the agreement so made, and it shall not be necessary for them to sign an agreement in the form sanctioned by the Minister.

In the case of all foreign-going ships, the following rules shall be observed with respect to agreements, that is to say,—

Every agreement made in the colony (except in such cases of agreements with substitutes as are hereinafter specially provided for) shall be signed by each seaman in the presence of a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine.

Such Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall cause the agreement to be read over and explained to each seaman, or otherwise ascertain that each seaman understands the same, before be signs it, and shall attest each signature.

When the crew is first engaged the agreement shall be signed in duplicate, and one part shall be retained by the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, and the other part shall contain a special place or form for the descriptions and signatures of substitutes or persons engaged subsequently to the first departure of the ship, and shall be delivered to the master.

In the case of substitutes engaged in the place of seamen who have duly signed the agreement, and whose services are lost, within twenty-four hours of the ship’s putting to sea, by death, desertion, or other unforeseen cause, the engagement shall, when practicable, be made before some Superintendent of Mercantile Marine duly appointed in the manner hereinafter specified; and, whenever such last-mentioned engagement cannot be so made, the master shall, before the ship puts to sea, if practicable, and, if not, as soon afterwards as possible, cause the agreement to be read over and explained to the seamen; and the seamen shall thereupon sign the same in the presence of a witness, who shall attest their signatures.

Where the agreement is signed at any place other than a Mercantile Marine Office, the extra expense, if any, caused by the attendance of the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine or of his deputy at such place shall be borne by the ship.

In the case of foreign-going ships making voyages averaging less than three months in duration, running agreements with the crew may be made to extend over two or more voyages, or for a specified time, so that no such agreement shall extend beyond six months from the date thereof, or the first arrival of the ship at her port of destination in the colony after the termination of such agreement, or the discharge of cargo consequent upon such arrival; and every person entering into such agreement, whether engaged upon the first commencement thereof or otherwise, shall enter into and sign the same in the manner hereby required for other foreign-going ships; and every person engaged thereunder, if discharged in the colony, shall be discharged in the manner hereby required for the discharge of seamen belonging to other foreign-going ships.

The master of every foreign-going ship for which such a running agreement as aforesaid is made shall, upon every return to any port in the colony before the final termination of the agreement, discharge or engage before the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine at such port any seaman whom be is required by law so to discharge or engage, and shall, upon every such return, indorse on the agreement a statement (as the case may he) either that no such discharges or engagements have been made or are intended to be made before the ship again leaves port, or that all such discharges or engagements have been duly made as hereinbefore required, and shall deliver the agreement so indorsed to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine; and any master who wilfully makes a false statement in such indorsement shall incur a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds; and the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall also sign an indorsement on the agreement to the effect that the provisions of this Act relating to such agreement have been complied with, and shall re-deliver the agreement so indorsed to the master.

For the purpose of determining the fees to be paid upon the engagement and discharge of seamen belonging to foreign-going ships which have running agreements as aforesaid, the crew shall be considered to be engaged when the agreement is first signed, and to be discharged when the agreement finally terminates, and all intermediate engagements and discharges shall be considered to be engagements and discharges of single seamen.

In the case of home-trade ships, crews or single seamen may, if the master thinks fit, be engaged before a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine in the manner hereinbefore directed with respect to foreign-going ships; and, in every case in which the engagement is not so made, the master shall, before the ship puts to sea, if practicable, and, if not, as soon afterwards as possible, cause the agreement to be read over and explained to each seaman, and the seaman shall thereupon sign the same in the presence of a witness, who shall attest his signature.

In cases where several home-trade ships belong to the same owner, the agreement with the seamen may, notwithstanding anything herein contained, be made by the owner instead of by the master, and the seamen may be engaged to serve in any two or more of such ships, provided that the names of the ships and the nature of the service are specified in the agreement; hut, with the foregoing exception, all provisions herein contained which relate to ordinary agreements for home-trade ships shall be applicable to agreements made in pursuance of this section.

If in any case a master carries any seaman to sea without entering into an agreement with him in the form and manner and at the place and time hereby in such case required, the master, in the case of a foreign-going ship, and the master or owner, in the case of a home-trade ship, shall for each such offence incur a penalty not exceeding five pounds.

The master of every foreign-going ship of which the crew has been engaged before a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall, before finally leaving the colony, sign and send to the nearest Superintendent of Mercantile Marine a full and accurate statement, in a form sanctioned by the Minister, of every change which takes place in his crew before finally leaving the colony, and in default shall for each offence incur a penalty not exceeding five pounds; and such statement shall be admissible in evidence, subject to all just exceptions.

The following rules shall be observed with respect to the production of agreements and certificates of competency or service for foreign-going ships, that is to say,—

The master of every foreign-going ship shall, on signing the agreement with his crew, produce to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine before whom the same is signed the certificates of competency or service which the said master and his first and second mate, or only mate (as the case may be), and, in the case of steamships, the first class and second class engineers, are hereby required to possess; and upon such production being duly made, and the agreement being duly executed as hereby required, the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall sign and give to the master a certificate to that effect.

In the case of running agreements for foreign-going ships, the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall, before the second and every subsequent voyage made after the first commencement of the agreement, sign and give to the master, on his complying with the provisions herein contained with respect to such agreements, and producing to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine the certificate of competency or service of any first, second, or only mate, and, in the case of steamships, of the first class and second class engineers then first engaged by him, a certificate to that effect.

The master of every foreign-going ship shall, before proceeding to sea, produce the certificate so to be given to him by the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine as aforesaid to the Collector of Customs, and no Officer of Customs shall clear any such ship outwards without such production; and if any such ship attempts to go to sea without a clearance, any such officer may detain her until such certificate as aforesaid is produced.

The master of every foreign-going ship shall, within forty-eight hours after the ship’s arrival at her final port of destination in the colony, or upon the discharge of the crew, whichever first happens, deliver such agreement to a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine at the place; and such Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall thereupon give to the master a certificate of such delivery; and no Officer of Customs shall clear any foreign-going ship inwards without the production of such certificate.

And if the master of any foreign-going ship fails to deliver the agreement to a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine at the time and in the manner hereby directed, he shall for every default incur a penalty not exceeding five pounds.

The following rules shall be observed with respect to the production of agreements and certificates of competency or service for home-trade ships, that is to say,—

In the case of home-trade ships of more than eighty tons registered tonnage, no agreement, except as hereinafter provided, shall extend beyond six months from the date thereof, or the first arrival of the ship at her final port of destination in the colony after such date, or the discharge of cargo consequent upon such arrival.

The master or owner of every such ship shall, within twenty-one days after the termination of every agreement, transmit or deliver the same to some Superintendent of Mercantile Marine in the colony, and shall also, in the case of home-trade passenger ships, produce to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine the certificates of competency or service which the said master and his first or only mate, as the case may be, and, in the case of steamships, the first class and second class engineers, are hereby required to possess.

The Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall thereupon give to the master or owner a certificate of such delivery and production; and no officer of Customs shall grant a clearance or transire for any such ship as last aforesaid 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 the said certificate is produced.

And if the agreement for any home-trade ship is not delivered or transmitted by the master or owner to a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine at the time and in the manner hereby directed, such master or owner shall for every default incur a penalty not exceeding five pounds.

The owner of home-trade ships or his agent may enter into time agreements, in forms to be sanctioned by the Minister, with individual seamen to serve in any one or more ships belonging to him for any period not exceeding six months: Provided always that a duplicate of each agreement entered into under the provisions of this section be forwarded to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine of the port at which the ship is registered within forty-eight hours after it has been entered into; and if such duplicate of agreement is not forwarded at the time and in the manner hereby directed, such owner or agent shall for every default incur a penalty not exceeding five pounds.

Every erasure, interlineation, or alteration in any such agreement with seamen as is required by the Second Part of this Act (except additions so made as hereinbefore directed, for shipping substitutes or persons engaged subsequently to the first departure of the ship) shall be wholly inoperative, unless proved to have been made with the consent of all the persons interested in such erasure, interlineation, or alteration, by the written attestation of some Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, Justice, officer of Customs, or other public functionary.

Every person who fraudulently alters, assists in fraudulently altering, or procures to be fraudulently altered, or makes, or assists in making, or procures to be made, any false entry in, or delivers, assists in delivering, or procures to be delivered, a false copy of any agreement, shall for each such offence be deemed guilty of a misdemeanour.

Any seaman may bring forward evidence to prove the contents of any agreement or otherwise to support his case, without producing or giving notice to produce the agreement or any copy thereof.

The master shall, at the commencement of every voyage or engagement, cause a legible copy of the agreement (omitting the signatures) to be placed or posted up in such part of the ship as to be accessible to the crew, and in default shall for each offence incur a penalty not exceeding five pounds.

Any seaman who has signed an agreement, and is afterwards discharged before the commencement of the voyage, or before one month’s wages are earned, without fault on his part justifying such discharge, and without his consent, shall be entitled to receive from the master or owner, in addition to any wages he may have earned, due compensation for the damage thereby caused to him, not exceeding one month’s wages, and may, on adducing such evidence as the Court hearing the case deems satisfactory of his having been so improperly discharged as aforesaid, recover such compensation as if it were wages duly earned.

All stipulations for the allotment of any part of the wages of a seaman during his absence which are made at the commencement of the voyage shall be inserted in the agreement, and shall state the amounts and times of the payments to be made; and all allotment-notes shall be in forms sanctioned by the Minister.

The wife, or the father or mother, or the grandfather or grandmother, or any child or grandchild, or any brother or sister of any seaman in whose favour an allotment-note of part of the wages of such seaman is made, may, unless the seaman is shown in manner hereinafter mentioned to have forfeited or ceased to be entitled to the wages out of which the allotment is to be paid, and subject, as to the wife, to the provision hereinafter contained, sue for and recover the sums allotted by the note when and as the same are made payable, with costs, from the owner or any agent who has authorized the drawing of the note, in the same manner in which seamen are by this Act enabled to sue for and recover wages not exceeding fifty pounds; and in any such proceeding it shall be sufficient for the claimant to prove that he or she is the person mentioned in the note, and that the note was given by the owner or by the master or some other authorized agent; and the seaman shall be presumed to be duly earning his wages, unless the contrary is shown to the satisfaction of the Court either by the official statement of the change in the crew caused by his absence made and signed by the master, as by this Act is required, or by a duly-certified copy of some entry in the official logbook to the effect that he has left the ship, or by a credible letter from the master of the ship to the same effect, or by such other evidence, of whatever description, as the Court, in its absolute discretion, considers sufficient to show satisfactorily that the seaman has ceased to be entitled to the wages out of which the allotment is to be paid: Provided that the wife of any seaman who deserts her children, or so misconducts herself as to be undeserving of support from her husband, shall thereupon forfeit all right to further payments of any allotment of his wages which has been made in her favour.

In the case of all foreign-going ships all seamen shall be discharged and receive their wages in the presence of a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine duly appointed under this Act, except in cases where some competent Court otherwise directs; and any master or owner of any such ship who discharges any seaman belonging thereto or, except as aforesaid, pays his wages within the colony in any other manner, shall incur a penalty not exceeding ten pounds; and, in the case of home-trade ships, seamen may, if the owner or master so desires, be discharged and receive their wages in like manner.

Every master shall, not less than twenty-four hours before paying off or discharging any seaman, deliver to him, or, if he is to be discharged before a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, to such Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, a full and true account, in a form sanctioned by the Minister, of his wages and of all deductions to be made therefrom on any account whatever, and in default shall, for each offence, incur a penalty not exceeding five pounds; and no deduction from the wages of any seaman (except in respect of any matter happening after such delivery) shall be allowed unless it is included in the account so delivered; and the master shall, during the voyage, enter the various matters in respect of which such deductions are made, with the amounts of the respective deductions, as they occur, in a book to be kept for that purpose, and shall, if required, produce such book at the time of the payment of wages, and also upon the hearing before any competent authority of any complaint or question relating to such payments.

Upon the discharge of any seaman, or upon payment of his wages, the master shall sign and give him a certificate of his discharge, in a form sanctioned by the Minister, specifying the period of his service and the time and place of his discharge; and if any master fails to sign and give to any such seaman such certificate of discharge he shall for each such offence incur a penalty not exceeding ten pounds; and the master shall also, upon the discharge of every certificated mate or engineer whose certificate of competency or service has been delivered to and retained by him, return such certificate, and shall in default incur a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds.

Every Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall hear and decide any question whatever between a master or owner and any of his crew which both parties agree in writing to submit to him; and every award so made by him shall be binding on both parties, and shall, in any legal proceeding which may be taken in the matter before any Court of justice, be deemed to be conclusive as to the rights of the parties, and no such submission or award shall require a stamp; and any document purporting to be such submission or award shall be prima facie evidence thereof.

In any proceeding relating to the wages, claims, or discharge of any seaman carried on before any Superintendent of Mercantile Marine under the provisions of this Act, such Superintendent of Mercantile Marine may call upon the owner or his agent, or upon the master, or any mate, engineer, or other member of the crew, to produce any log-books, papers, or other documents in their respective possession or power relating to any matter in question in such proceeding, and may call before him and examine any of such persons being then at or near the place on any such matter; and every owner, agent, master, mate, engineer, or other member of the crew who, when called upon by the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, does not produce any such paper or document as aforesaid, if in his possession or power, or does not appear and give evidence, shall, unless be shows some reasonable excuse for such default, for each such offence incur a penalty not exceeding five pounds.

The following rules shall be observed with respect to the settlement of wages, that is to say,—

Upon the completion before a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine of any discharge and settlement, the master or owner and each seaman shall respectively, in the presence of the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, sign, in a form sanctioned by the Minister, a mutual release of all claims in respect of the past voyage or engagement, and the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall also sign, attest, and retain it.

Such release, so signed and attested, shall operate as a mutual discharge and settlement of all demands between the parties thereto in respect of the past voyage or engagement.

A copy of such release, certified under the hand of such Superintendent of Mercantile Marine to be a true copy, shall be given by him to any party thereto requiring the same; and such copy shall be receivable in evidence upon any future question touching such claims as aforesaid, and shall have all the effect of the original of which it purports to be a copy.

In cases in which discharge and settlement before a Super-intendent of Mercantile Marine are hereby required, no payment, receipt, settlement, or discharge otherwise made shall operate or be admitted as evidence of the release or satisfaction of any claim.

Upon any payment being made by a master before a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall, if required, sign and give to such master a statement of the whole amount so paid; and such statement shall, as between the master and his employer, be received as evidence that he has made the payments therein mentioned.

Upon every discharge effected before a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine the master shall make and sign, in a form sanctioned by the Minister, a report of the conduct, character, and qualifications of the persons discharged, or may state, in a column to be left for that purpose in the said form, that he declines to give any opinion upon such particulars, or upon any of them; and the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall, if desired so to do by any seaman, give to him, or indorse on his certificate of discharge, a copy of so much of such report as concerns him; and every person who makes, assists in making, or procures to be made, any false certificate or report of the service, qualifications, conduct, or character of any seaman, knowing the same to be false, or who forges, assists in forging, or procures to be forged, or fraudulently alters, assists in fraudulently altering, or procures to be fraudulently altered, any such certificate or report, or who fraudulently makes use of any certificate or report, or of any copy of any certificate or report which is forged or altered, or does not belong to him, shall, for each such offence, be deemed guilty of a misdemeanour.

A seaman’s right to wages and provisions shall be taken to commence either at the time at which he commences work or at the time specified in the agreement for his commencement of work or presence on board, whichever first happens.

No seaman shall by any agreement, except as by this Act provided, forfeit his lien upon the ship, or be deprived of any remedy for the recovery of his wages to which he would otherwise have been entitled; and every stipulation in any agreement inconsistent with any provision of this Act, and every stipulation by which any seaman consents to abandon his right to wages in the case of the loss of the ship, or to abandon any right which he may have or obtain in the nature of salvage, shall be wholly inoperative; but nothing in this section shall apply to the case of any stipulation made by the seamen belonging to any ship which, according to the terms of the agreement, is to be employed on salvage service, with respect to the remuneration to be paid to them for salvage services to be rendered by such ship to any other ship or ships.

The right to wages shall not be dependent on the earning of freight; and every seaman and apprentice who would be entitled to demand and recover any wages if the ship in which he has served had earned freight, shall, subject to all other rules of law and conditions applicable to the case, be entitled to claim and recover the same notwithstanding that freight has not been earned; but in all cases of wreck or loss of the ship, proof that he has not exerted himself to the utmost to save the ship, cargo, and stores shall bar his claim.

If any seaman or apprentice to whom wages are due under the last preceding enactment dies. before the same are paid, they shall be paid and applied in the manner hereinafter specified with regard to the wages of seamen who die during a voyage.

Where the service of a seaman terminates before the period contemplated in the agreement, by reason of the wreck or loss of the ship, or of his death, or of his being left on shore at any place abroad under a certificate, granted as provided by this Act, of his unfitness or inability to proceed on the voyage, be or (in case of his death) his representatives shall be entitled to wages, subject to all just deductions, up to the time of such termination of his service, but not for any longer time.

Where a seaman, whose service terminates by reason of any of the matters in this section specified, has been engaged by the run, he shall be entitled to a proportionate part of the wages to which he would have been entitled on the termination of the run, subject to all just deductions, and such proportion shall be calculated up to the said termination of his service.

No seaman or apprentice shall be entitled to wages for any period during which he unlawfully refuses or neglects to work when required, whether before or after the time fixed by the agreement for his beginning work, nor, unless the Court hearing the case otherwise directs, for any period during which he is lawfully imprisoned for any offence committed by him.

The master or owner of every ship shall pay to every seaman his wages within the respective periods following, that is to say, in the case of a home-trade ship, within two days after the termination of the agreement, or at the time when such seaman is discharged, whichever first happens; and, in the case of all other ships (except ships employed in whale fishery or on other voyages for which seamen, by the terms of their agreement, are wholly compensated by shares in the profits of the adventure), within three days after the cargo has been delivered, or within five days after the seaman’s discharge, whichever first happens; and in all cases the seaman shall at the time of his discharge, be entitled to be paid on account a sum equal to one-fourth part of the balance due to him; and every master or owner who neglects or refuses to make payment in manner aforesaid, without sufficient cause, shall pay to the seaman a sum not exceeding the amount of two days’ pay for each of the days, not exceeding ten days, during which payment is delayed beyond the respective periods aforesaid, and such sum shall be recoverable as wages.

Any seaman or apprentice, or any person duly authorized on his behalf, may sue in a summary manner before a Resident Magistrate or two Justices of the Peace acting in or near to the place at which the service has terminated, or at which the seaman or apprentice has been discharged, or at which any person upon whom the claim is made is or resides, for any amount of wages due to such seaman or apprentice not exceeding fifty pounds over and above the costs of any proceeding for the recovery thereof, so soon as the same becomes payable; and every order made by such Magistrate or Justices in the matter shall be final.

No suit or proceeding for the recovery of wages under the sum of fifty pounds shall be instituted by or on behalf of any seaman or apprentice in the Supreme Court, or in any Court having Admiralty jurisdiction, unless the owner of the ship is adjudged bankrupt or declared insolvent, or unless the ship is under arrest, or is sold by the authority of any such Court as aforesaid, or unless any Resident Magistrate or Justices, acting under the authority of this Act, refer the case to be adjudged by such Court, or unless neither the owner nor master is or resides within twenty miles of the place where the seaman or apprentice is discharged or put ashore.

Any Court having Admiralty jurisdiction shall have jurisdiction, and all powers and authorities relating thereto, to try and determine, subject and according to the provisions of this Act, the following causes:—

As to any claim exceeding fifty pounds by a seaman of any ship for wages earned by him on board the ship, whether the same be due under a special contract or otherwise:

As to any claim exceeding fifty pounds by the master of any ship for wages earned by him on board the ship, and for disbursements made by him on account of the ship:

Provided always that if in any such cause the plaintiff do not recover fifty pounds he shall not be entitled to any costs, charges, or expenses incurred by him therein, unless the Judge shall certify that the cause was a fit one to be tried in the said Court.

No seaman who is engaged for a voyage or engagement which is to terminate in the colony shall be entitled to sue in any Court abroad for wages, unless be is discharged with such sanction as herein required and with the written consent of the master, or proves such ill-usage on the part of the master or by his authority as to warrant reasonable apprehension of danger to the life of such seaman if he were to remain on hoard; but if any seaman on his return to the colony proves that the master or owner has been guilty of any conduct or default which but for this enactment would have entitled the seaman to sue for wages before the termination of the voyage or engagement, he shall be entitled to recover, in addition to his wages, such compensation, not exceeding twenty pounds, as the Court hearing the case thinks reasonable.

Every master of a ship shall, so far as the case permits, have the same rights, liens, and remedies for the recovery of his wages which by this Act or by any law or custom any seaman, not being a master, has for the recovery of his wages; and if in any proceeding in any Court having Admiralty jurisdiction touching the claim of a master to wages any right of set-off or counter-claim is set up, it shall be lawful for such Court to enter into and adjudicate upon all questions and to settle all accounts then arising or outstanding and unsettled between the parties to the proceeding, and to direct payment of any balance which is found to be due.

Whenever during the absence of any seaman on a voyage his wife, children, or step-children, or any of them, become or becomes chargeable to any county or borough in the colony, such county or borough shall be entitled to be reimbursed out of the wages of such seaman earned during such voyage any sums properly expended during his absence in the maintenance of his said relations, or any of them, so that such sums do not exceed the following proportions of his said wages, that is to say,—

If only one of such relations is chargeable, one-half of such wages;

If two or more of such relations are chargeable, two-thirds of such wages:

But if during the absence of the seaman any sums have been paid by the owner to or on behalf of any such relation as aforesaid under an allotment-note given by the seaman in his, her, or their favour, any such claim for reimbursement as aforesaid shall be limited to the excess (if any) of the proportion of the wages hereinbefore mentioned over the sums so paid.

For the purpose of obtaining such reimbursement as aforesaid, the proper officer of the county or borough may give to the owner of the ship in which the seaman is serving a notice in writing stating the proportion of the seaman’s wages upon which it is intended to make the claim, and requiring the owner to retain such proportion in his hands for a period to be therein mentioned, not exceeding twenty-one days from the time of the seaman’s return to his port of discharge, and also requiring such owner, immediately on such return, to give to such officer notice in writing of such return; and such owner, after receiving such notice as aforesaid, shall be bound to retain the said proportion of wages, and to give notice of the seaman’s return accordingly, and shall likewise give to the seaman notice of the intended claim; and the said officer may, upon the seaman’s return, apply in a summary way to a Resident Magistrate or two Justices for an order for such reimbursement as aforesaid, and such Magistrate or Justices may hear the case, and may make an order for such reimbursement to the whole extent aforesaid, or to such lesser amount as he or they may under the circumstances think fit; and the owner shall pay to such officer, out of the seaman’s wages, the amount so ordered to be paid by way of reimbursement, and shall pay the remainder of the said wages to the seaman; and if no such order as aforesaid is obtained within the period mentioned in the notice so to be given to the owner as aforesaid, the proportion of wages so to be retained by him as aforesaid shall immediately on the expiration of such period, and without deduction, be payable to the seaman.

Whenever any seaman or apprentice belonging to or sent home in any ship, whether a foreign-going ship employed on a voyage which is to terminate in the colony, or a home-trade ship, dies during a voyage, the master shall take charge of all money, clothes, and effects which he leaves on board, and shall, if he thinks fit, cause all or any of the said clothes and effects to be sold by auction at the mast or other public auction, and shall thereupon sign an entry in the official log-book containing the following particulars, that is to say,—

A statement of the amount of the money and a description of the effects so left by the deceased;

In case of a sale, a description of each article sold, and the sum received for each;

A statement of the sum due to the deceased as wages, and the total amount of the deductions (if any) to be made therefrom:

And shall cause such entry to be attested by a mate and by one of the crew.

In the cases provided for by the last preceding section, the following rules shall be observed, that is to say,—

The master shall within forty-eight hours after his arrival deliver any such effects as aforesaid remaining unsold, and pay any money which he has taken charge of or received from such sale as aforesaid, and also the balance of wages due to the deceased, to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine at the port of destination in the colony.

The master shall, in all cases in which any seaman or apprentice dies during the progress of a voyage or engagement, give to such Superintendent of Mercantile Marine as aforesaid an account, in such form as the Minister requires, of the effects, money, and wages so to be delivered and paid; and no deductions claimed in such account shall be allowed unless verified, if there is any official log-book, by such entry therein as hereinbefore required, and also by such other vouchers (if any) as may be reasonably required by the Minister or by the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine to whom the account is rendered.

Upon due compliance with the provisions of this section, the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine shall grant to the master a certificate to that effect, and no officer of Customs shall clear inwards any foreign-going ship without the production of such certificate.

The wages of seamen or apprentices who are lost with the ship to which they belong shall be dealt with as follows, that is to say,—

The Minister may recover the same from the owner of the ship in the same manner in which seamen’s wages are recoverable.

In any proceedings for the recovery of such wages, if it is shown by some official return, or by other evidence, that the ship has, twelve months or upwards before the institution of the proceeding, left a port of departure, and if it is not shown that she has been heard of within twelve months after such departure, she shall be deemed to have been lost, with all hands on board, either immediately after the time she was last heard of or at such later time as the Court hearing the case may think probable.

The production out of the custody of a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine of any duplicate agreement or list of the crew made out at the time of the last departure of the ship from the colony, or of a certificate purporting to be a certificate from a Superintendent of Mercantile Marine or from a consular or other public officer at any port abroad, stating that certain seamen or apprentices were shipped in the ship from the said port, shall, in the absence of proof to the contrary, be sufficient proof that the seamen or apprentices therein named were on board at the time of the loss.

The Minister shall deal with such wages in the manner in which he deals with the wages of other deceased seamen and apprentices under this Act.

If any master fails to take such charge of the money or other effects of a seaman or apprentice dying during a voyage, or to make such entries in respect thereof, or to procure such attestation to such entries, or to make such payment or delivery of any money, wages, or effects of any seaman or apprentice dying during a voyage, or to give such account in respect thereof as hereinbefore respectively directed, he shall be accountable for the money, wages, and effects of the seaman or apprentice to the Minister, and shall pay and deliver the same accordingly; and such master shall, in addition, for every such offence incur a penalty not exceeding treble the value of the money or effects not accounted for, or, if such value is not ascertained, not exceeding fifty pounds; and if such money, wages, or effects are not duly paid, delivered, or accounted for by the master, the owner of the ship shall pay, deliver, and account for the same, and such money and wages and the value of such effects shall be recoverable from him accordingly; and, if he fails to account for and pay the same, be shall, in addition to his liability for the said money and value, incur the same penalty which is hereinbefore mentioned as incurred by the master for the like offence; and all money, wages, and effects of any seaman or apprentice dying during a voyage shall be recoverable in the same Courts and by the same modes of proceeding by which seamen are hereby enabled to recover wages due to them.

Whenever any seaman or apprentice dies in the colony, and is at the time of his death entitled to claim from the master or owner of any ship in which he has served any unpaid wages or effects, such master or owner shall pay and deliver or account for the same to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine at the port where the seaman or apprentice was discharged or was to have been discharged, or to the Minister, or as he directs.

If the money and effects of any deceased seaman or apprentice paid, delivered, or remitted to the Minister or his officers, including the moneys received for any part of the said effects which have been sold either before delivery to the Minister, or by his direction, do not exceed in value the sum of fifty pounds, then, subject to the provisions hereinafter contained, and to all such deductions for expenses incurred in respect of the seaman or apprentice or of his said money and effects as the said Minister thinks proper to allow, the said Minister may, if he thinks fit so to do, pay and deliver the said money and effects either to any claimants who can prove themselves, to the satisfaction of the said Minister, either to be his widow or children, or to be entitled to the effects of the deceased under his will (if any), or under the Statutes for the distribution of the effects of intestates, or under any other Statute, or at common law, or to be entitled to procure probate or take out letters of administration or confirmation, although no probate or letters of administration or confirmation have been taken out, and there upon pay and deliver the said money and effects to the legal personal representatives of the deceased; and all claimants to whom such money or effects are so paid or delivered shall apply the same in due course of administration; and if such money and effects exceed in value the sum of fifty pounds, then, subject to the provisions hereinafter contained, and to deduction for expenses, the Minister shall pay and deliver the same to the legal personal representatives of the deceased.

In cases where the deceased seaman or apprentice has left a will, the Minister shall have the following powers, that is to say,—

He may, in his discretion, refuse to pay or deliver any such wages or effects as aforesaid to any person claiming to be entitled thereto under a will made on board ship, unless such will is in writing, and is signed or acknowledged by the testator in the presence of the master, or first or only mate, or engineer of the ship, and is attested by such master, mate, or engineer.

He may, in his discretion, refuse to pay or deliver any such wages or effects as aforesaid to any person, not being related to the testator by blood or marriage, who claims to be entitled thereto under a will made elsewhere than on board ship, unless such will is in writing, and is signed or acknowledged by the testator in the presence of two witnesses, one of whom is some Superintendent of Mercantile Marine appointed under this Act, or some minister or officiating minister or curate of the place in which the same is made, or, in a place where there are no such persons, some Justice of the Peace, or some British Consular Officer, or some officer of Customs, and is attested by such witnesses.

Whenever any claim made under a will is rejected by the Minister on account of the said will not being made and attested as hereinbefore required, the wages and effects of the deceased shall be dealt with as if no will had been made.

The following rules shall be observed with respect to creditors of deceased seamen and apprentices, that is to say,—

No such creditor shall be entitled to claim from the Minister the wages or effects of any such seaman or apprentice or any part thereof by virtue of letters of administration taken out by him.

No such creditor shall be entitled, by any means whatever, to payment of his debt out of such wages and effects if the debt accrued more than three years before the death of the deceased, or if the demand is not made within two years after such death.

Subject as aforesaid, the steps to be taken for procuring payment of such debt shall be as follows, that is to say: Every person making a demand as creditor shall deliver to the Minister an account in writing, in such form as he requires, subscribed with such creditor’s name, stating the particulars of his demand and the place of his abode, and verified by his declaration made before a Justice:

If before such demand is made any claim to the wages and effects of the deceased made by any person interested therein as his widow or child, or under a will, or under the Statutes for the distribution of the effects of intestates, or under any other Statute, or at common law, has been allowed, the Minister shall give notice to the creditor of the allowance of such person’s claim, and the creditor shall thereupon have the same rights and remedies against such person as if he or she had received the said wages and effects as the legal personal representative of the deceased:

If no claim by any such person has been allowed, the Minister shall proceed to investigate the creditor’s account, and may for that purpose require him to prove the same, and to produce all books, accounts, vouchers, and papers relating thereto; and if by such means the creditor duly satisfies the Minister of the justice of the demand, either in the whole or in part, the same shall be allowed and paid accordingly, so far as the assets in the hands of the Minister will extend for that purpose, and such payment shall discharge the Minister from all further liability in respect of the money so paid; but if the Minister is not so satisfied, or if such hooks, accounts, vouchers, or papers as aforesaid are not produced, and no sufficient reason is assigned for not producing them, the demand shall be disallowed:

In any case whatever the Minister may delay the investigation of any demand made by a creditor for the payment of his debt for one year from the time of the first delivery of the demand; and if in the course of that time a claim to the wages and effects of the deceased is made and substantiated as hereinbefore required by any person interested therein as a widow or child, or under a will, or under the Statutes for the distribution of the effects of intestates, or under any other Statute, or at common law, the Minister may pay and deliver the same to such person; and thereupon the creditor shall have the same rights and remedies against such person as if he or she had received the same as the legal personal representative of the deceased.

In cases of wages or effects of deceased seamen or apprentices received by the Minister to which no claim is substantiated within six years after the receipt thereof by such Minister, it shall be in the absolute discretion of such Minister, if any subsequent claim is made, either to allow or refuse the same; and, subject to the provisions hereinafter contained, the Minister shall from time to time pay any moneys arising from the unclaimed wages and effects of deceased seamen, which, in the opinion of such Minister, it is not necessary to retain for the purpose of satisfying claims, into the Public Account, and such moneys shall be carried to and form part of the consolidated revenue of the colony.

Every person who, for the purpose of obtaining, either for himself or for another, any money or effects of any deceased seaman or apprentice, forges, assists in forging, or procures to be forged, or fraudulently alters, assists in fraudulently altering, or procures to be fraudulently altered, any document purporting to show or assist in showing a right to such wages or effects, and every person who, for the purpose aforesaid, makes use of any such forged or altered document as aforesaid, or who, for the purpose aforesaid, gives or makes or procures to be given or made, or assists in giving or making or procuring to be given or made, any false evidence or representation, knowing the same to be false, shall be punishable with penal servitude for a term not exceeding four years, or with imprisonment with or without hard labour for any period not exceeding two years, or, if summarily prosecuted and convicted, by imprisonment, with or without hard labour, for any period not exceeding six months.

Whenever any ship is transferred or disposed of at any place out of Her Majesty’s dominions, and any seaman or apprentice belonging thereto does not, in the presence of some British Consular Officer, or, if there is no such Consular Officer there, in the presence of one or more respectable British merchants residing at the place and not interested in the said ship, signify his consent in writing to complete the voyage if continued, and whenever the service of any seaman or apprentice belonging to any such ship terminates at any place out of Her Majesty’s dominions, the master shall give to each such seaman or apprentice a certificate of discharge, and, in the case of any certificated mate or engineer whose certificate be has retained, shall return such certificate to him, and shall also, besides paying the wages to which such seaman or apprentice is entitled, either provide him with adequate employment on board some other British ship bound to the port in Her Majesty’s dominions at which he was originally shipped or to a port in the colony, as is agreed upon by him, or furnish the means of sending him back to such port, or provide him with a passage home, or deposit with such Consular Officer or such merchant or merchants as aforesaid such a sum of money as is by such officer or merchants deemed sufficient to defray the expenses of his subsistence and passage home; and, if the master refuses or neglects to comply with the requirements of this section, then such expenses as last aforesaid, if defrayed by such Consular Officer or by any other person, and the particulars of such payment, provision, or deposit indorsed by him or them upon the agreement of the ship which the seaman or apprentice is leaving, shall, unless such seaman or apprentice has been guilty of barratry, be a charge upon the ship to which such seaman or apprentice belonged and upon the owner for the time being thereof, and may be recovered against such owners, with costs, at the suit of the Consular Officer or other person defraying such expenses, or, in ease the same has been allowed to the Consular Officer out of the public moneys, as a debt due to Her Majesty, either by ordinary process of law or in the manner in which seamen are hereby enabled to recover wages; and such expenses, if defrayed by the seaman or apprentice, shall be recoverable as wages due to him.

If the master or any other person belonging to any ship wrongfully forces on shore and leaves behind, or otherwise wilfully and wrongfully leaves behind, in any place, on shore or at sea, in or out of Her Majesty’s dominions, any seaman or apprentice belonging to such ship before the completion of the voyage for which such person was engaged, or the return of the ship to the colony, he shall for each such offence be deemed guilty of a misdemeanour.

If the master of any ship does any of the following things, that is to say,—

Discharges any seaman or apprentice in any place situate in the United Kingdom, or in any British Possession other than New Zealand, without previously obtaining the sanction in writing, indorsed on the agreement, of some Superintendent of Mercantile Marine or other officer duly appointed by the Government in that behalf, or (in the absence of any such functionary) of the Chief Officer of Customs resident at or near the place where the discharge takes place;

Discharges any seaman or apprentice at any place out of Her Majesty’s dominions without previously obtaining the sanction, so indorsed as aforesaid, of the British. Consular Officer there, or (in his absence) of two respectable merchants resident there;

Leaves behind any seaman or apprentice at any place situate in the United Kingdom, or in any British Possession other than New Zealand, on any ground whatever, without previously obtaining a certificate in writing, so indorsed as aforesaid, from such officer or person as aforesaid, stating the fact and the cause thereof, whether such cause be unfitness or inability to proceed to sea, or desertion or disappearance;

Leaves behind any seaman or apprentice at any place out of Her Majesty’s dominions, on shore or at sea, on any ground whatever, without previously obtaining the certificate, indorsed in manner and to the effect last aforesaid, of the British Consular Officer there, or (in his absence) of two respectable merchants, if there are any such at or near the place where the ship then is,—

he shall for each such default be deemed guilty of a misdemeanour.

Upon the trial of any information, indictment, or other proceeding against any person for discharging or leaving behind any seaman or apprentice contrary to the provisions of this Act, it shall lie upon such person either to produce the sanction or certificate hereby required or to prove that he had obtained the same previously to having discharged or left behind such seaman or apprentice, or that it was impracticable for him to obtain such sanction or certificate.

Every master of any ship who leaves any seaman or apprentice on shore at any place out of New Zealand under a certificate of his unfitness or inability to proceed on the voyage, shall deliver to one of the functionaries aforesaid, or (in the absence of such functionaries) to the merchants by whom such certifìcate is signed, or, if there be but one respectable merchant resident at such place, to him, a full and true account of the wages due to such seaman or apprentice, such account, when delivered to a Consular Officer, to be in duplicate, and shall pay the same either in money or by a bill drawn upon the owner, and by money whenever it is practicable so to do, and not by bill; and in cases where payment is made by hill drawn by the master, the owner of the ship shall be liable to pay the amount for which the same is drawn to the holder or indorsee thereof, and it shall not be necessary, in any proceeding against the owner upon such hill, to prove that the master had authority to draw the same; and any hill purporting to be drawn in pursuance of this section, and to be indorsed as herein required, if produced out of the custody of the Minister, or of any Superintendent of Mercantile Marine, shall be received in evidence; and any indorsement on any such hill purporting to be made in pursuance of this section and to be signed by one of the functionaries herein mentioned shall also be received in evidence, and shall be deemed to be primâ facie evidence of the facts stated in such indorsement; and every such master as aforesaid who refuses or neglects to deliver a full account of such wages, and, pay the amount thereof in money or by bill, as hereinbefore required, shall for every such offence or default be liable, in addition to the payment of the wages, to a penalty not exceeding ten pounds; and every such master who delivers a false account of such wages shall for every such offence, in addition to the payment of the wages, incur a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds.

Every such payment as last aforesaid, whether by bill or in money, shall, if made in any British Possession, be made to the seaman or apprentice himself, and, if made out of her Majesty’s dominions, to the Consular Officer, from whom the master shall obtain an indorsement on one of the duplicates thereof of a receipt for the amount paid or bill delivered; and the master shall, within forty-eight hours after his return to his port of destination in the colony, deliver the same to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine there.

The Governor in Council may pay any reasonable expenses incurred by the Board of Trade of the United Kingdom, or by any officers of Her Majesty in any -British Possession other than New Zealand, or in any foreign country, on account of subsistence or transport back to the colony of any seamen or apprentices belonging to the colony, and who have been found in distress, either on account of shipwreck or otherwise, in any place out of the colony, out of any moneys applicable to the relief of distressed seamen, and granted by the General Assembly for the purpose, on the production of the bills of the disbursements, with the proper vouchers, and such other evidence as the Governor in Council may require.

If any seaman or apprentice belonging to any ship is discharged or left behind at any place out of the colony, without full compliance on the part of the master with all the provisions in that behalf in this Act contained, and becomes distressed, and is relieved under the provisions of this Act or of any other Act in force for the time being for the relief of distressed seamen, the wages (if any) due to such seaman or apprentice, and all expenses incurred for his subsistence, necessary clothing, conveyance home, and burial in case be should die abroad before reaching home, shall be a charge upon the ship to which he so belonged as aforesaid; and the Minister may, in the name of Her Majesty (besides suing for any penalties which may have been incurred), sue for and recover the said wages and expenses, with costs, either from the master of such ship as aforesaid, or from the person who is owner thereof for the time being, and such sums shall be recoverable either in the same manner as other debts due to Her Majesty, or in the same manner and by the same form and process in which wages due to the seaman would be recoverable by him; and in any proceedings for that purpose production of the account (if any), to be furnished as hereinbefore is provided in such cases, together with proof of payment by the Board of Trade of the United Kingdom or by the Government of New Zealand of the charges incurred on account of any such seaman, apprentice, or other person, shall be sufficient evidence that he was relieved, conveyed home, or buried (as the case may be) at Her Majesty’s expense.

Any three or more of the crew of any ship may complain to any Superintendent of Mercantile Marine or any Chief Officer of Customs that the provisions or water for the use of the crew are at any time of bad quality, unfit for use, or deficient in quantity; and such officer may thereupon examine the said provisions or water, or cause them to be examined; and if, on examination, such provisions or water are found to be of bad quality and unfit for use, or to be deficient in quantity, the person making such examination shall signify the same in writing to the master of the ship; and, if such master does not thereupon provide other proper provisions or water in lieu of any so signified to be of a bad quality and unfit for use, or does not procure the requisite quantity of any so signified to be insufficient in quantity, or uses any provisions or water which had been so signified as aforesaid to be of a bad quality and unfit for use, he shall in every such case incur a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds; and upon every such examination as aforesaid the officers making or directing the same shall enter a statement of the result of the examination in the official log, and shall send a report thereof to the Minister; and such report, if produced out of his custody, or of any officer acting under his direction, shall be received in evidence in any legal proceeding.

If the officer to whom any such complaint as last aforesaid is made certifies in such statement as aforesaid that there was no reasonable ground for such complaint, each of the parties so complaining shall be liable to forfeit to the owner out of his wages a sum not exceeding one week’s wages.

In the following cases, that is to say,—

If during a voyage the allowance of any of the provisions which any seaman has by his agreement stipulated for is reduced (except in accordance with any regulations for reduction by way of punishment contained in the agreement, and also except for any time during which such seaman wilfully and without sufficient cause refuses or neglects to perform his duty, or is lawfully under confinement for misconduct either on board or on shore);

If it is shown that any of such provisions are or have during the voyage been bad in quality and unfit for use,—

the seaman shall receive, by way of compensation for such reduction or had quality, according to the time of its continuance, the following sums, to be paid to him in addition to and to be recoverable as wages, that is to say,—

If his allowance is reduced by any quantity not exceeding one-third of the quantity specified in the agreement, a sum not exceeding fourpence a day:

If his allowance is reduced by more than one-third of such quantity, eightpence a day:

In respect of such bad quality as aforesaid, a sum not exceeding one shilling a day.

But if it is shown to the satisfaction of the Court before which the case is tried that any provisions the allowance of which has been reduced could not be procured or supplied in proper quantities, and that proper and equivalent substitutes were supplied in lieu thereof, the Court shall take such circumstances into consideration, and shall modify or refuse compensation, as the justice of the case may require.

The Governor in Council may make, and when made revoke, alter, or add to, rules to be observed with respect to medicines, medical stores, and anti-scorbutics to be provided for use on board of ships. Until such rules are made, the rules with respect to medicines, medical stores, and anti-scorbutics in force for the time being under the English Act called “The Merchant Shipping Act, 1854,” and Acts amending the same, shall, so far as the same are applicable, be deemed to be in force in the colony.

Every master shall keep on board proper weights and measures for the purpose of determining the quantities of the several provisions and articles served out, and shall allow the same to be used at the time of serving out such provisions and articles in the presence of a witness, whenever any dispute arises about such quantities; and in default shall for every offence incur a penalty not exceeding ten pounds.

Any person who manufactures, sells, or keeps or offers for sale, any such medicines, medical stores, or anti-scorbutics as aforesaid which are of bad quality, shall for each such offence incur a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds.

The following rules shall be observed with respect to expenses attendant on illness and death, that is to say,—

If the master or any seaman or apprentice receives any hurt or injury in the service of the ship to which he belongs, the expense of providing the necessary surgical and medical advice, with attendance and medicines, and of his subsistence until be is cured, or dies, or is brought back to some port in the colony, if shipped in the colony, or, if shipped in some British Possession, to some port in such Possession, and of his conveyance to such port, and the expense (if any) of his burial, shall be defrayed by the owner of such ship, without any deduction on that account from the wages of such master, seaman, or apprentice.

If the master or any seaman or apprentice is on account of any illness temporarily removed from his ship for the purpose of preventing infection, or otherwise for the convenience of the ship, and subsequently returns to his duty, the expense of such removal, and of providing the necessary advice, with attendance and medicines, and of his subsistence whilst away from the ship, shall be defrayed in like manner.

The expense of all medicines and surgical or medical advice and attendance given to any master, seaman, or apprentice whilst on board his ship shall be defrayed in like manner.

In all other cases any reasonable expenses duly incurred by the owner for any seaman in respect of illness, and also any reasonable expenses duly incurred by the owner in respect of the burial of any seaman or apprentice who dies whilst on service, shall, if duly proved, be deducted from the wages of such seaman or apprentice.

Whenever it is shown that any seaman or apprentice who is ill has, through the neglect of the master or owner, not been provided with proper food and water according to his agreement, or with such accommodation, medicines, medical stores, or anti-scorbutics as are required by the English Act called “The Merchant Shipping Act, 1854,” or any Act amending the same, or by this Act, then, unless it can be shown that the illness has been produced by other causes, the owner or master shall be liable to pay all expenses properly and necessarily incurred by reason of such illness (not exceeding in the whole three months’ wages) either by such seaman himself, or by the Government of New Zealand, or by any local authority on his behalf; and such expenses may be recovered in the same way as if they were wages duly earned: Provided that this enactment shall not operate so as to affect any further liability of any such owner or master for such neglect, or any remedy which any seaman already possesses.

Where a seaman is, by reason of illness, incapable of performing his duty, and it is proved that such illness has been caused by his own wilful act or default, he shall not be entitled to wages for the time during which he is, by reason of such illness, incapable of performing his duty.

The following rules shall be observed with respect to the medical inspection of seamen, that is to say,—

The Minister may appoint a Medical Inspector of Seamen at any port.

Such Medical Inspector of Seamen shall, on application by the owner or master of any ship, examine any seaman applying for employment on such ship, and shall give to the Superintendent of Mercantile Marine a report under his hand, stating whether such seaman is in a fit state for duty at sea; and a copy of such report shall be given to the master or owner of the ship.

The master or owner applying for such inspection shall pay to the Superintendent such fees as the Minister directs; and such fees shall be paid into the Public Account and form part of the consolidated revenue of the colony.

The said Medical Inspectors shall be remunerated for their services as the Minister may direct.

If any such expenses in respect of the illness, injury, or hurt of any seaman or apprentice as are to be borne by the owner are paid by any Consular Officer or other person on behalf of her Majesty, or if any other expenses in respect of the illness, injury, or hurt of any seaman or apprentice whose wages are not accounted for to such officer under the provisions hereinbefore contained in that behalf are so paid, such expenses shall be repaid to such officer or other person by the master of the ship, and, if not so repaid, the amount thereof, with costs, shall be a charge upon the ship, and be recoverable from the said master, or from the owner of the ship for the time being, as a debt due to Her Majesty, and shall be recoverable either by ordinary process of law or in the manner in which seamen are hereby enabled to recover wages; and in any proceeding for the recovery thereof the production of a certificate of the facts signed by such officer or other person, together with such vouchers (if any) as the case requires, shall be sufficient proof that the said expenses were duly paid by such Consular Officer or other person as aforesaid.

Every foreign-going ship having one hundred persons or upwards on hoard shall carry on board, as part of her complement, some person duly authorized by law to practise as physician, surgeon, or apothecary; and, in default, the owner shall, for every voyage of any such ship made without such medical practitioner, incur a penalty not exceeding one hundred pounds: Provided that nothing herein contained shall in anywise affect any provision contained in the English Act called “The Passengers Act, 1855,” or any Act amending the same, concerning the carriage of medical practitioners by the class of ships therein named passenger ships, nor shall any such passenger ship, if not thereby required to carry a medical practitioner, be hereby required to do so.

The following rules shall be observed with respect to accommodation on hoard ships, that is to say,—

Every place in any ship occupied by seamen or apprentices, and appropriated to their use, shall have, for every such seaman or apprentice, a space of not less than seventy-two cubic feet, and of not less than twelve superficial feet, measured on the deck or floor of such place.

Every such place shall be such as to make the space aforesaid available for the proper accommodation of the men who are to occupy it, shall be securely constructed, properly lighted and ventilated, properly protected from weather and sea, and, as far as practicable, properly shut off and protected from effluvium which may be caused by cargo or bilge-water.

No such place as aforesaid shall be deemed to be such as to authorize a deduction from registered tonnage under the provisions hereinafter contained, unless there is or are in the ship one or more properly-constructed privy or privies for the use of the crew; such privy or privies to be of such number and of such construction as may be approved by the Surveyor hereinafter mentioned.

Every such place shall, whenever the ship is registered or re-registered, be inspected by one of the Surveyors appointed by the Minister under this Act, who shall, if satisfied that the same is in all respects such as is required by this Act, give to the Collector of Customs a certificate to that effect, and thereupon such space shall be deducted from the registered tonnage.

No such deduction from tonnage as aforesaid shall be authorized unless there is permanently cut in a beam, and cut in or painted on or over the door-way or hatch-way of every such place, the number of men which it is constructed to accommodate, with the words “Certified to accommodate seamen.”

Every such place shall be kept free from stores or goods of any kind not being the personal property of the crew in use during the voyage.

Upon any complaint concerning any such place as aforesaid, one of the Surveyors appointed by the Minister may inspect such place, and, if he finds that any of the provisions of this Act with respect to the same are not complied with, he shall report the same to the Collector of Customs at the port where the ship is registered, and thereupon the registered tonnage shall be altered, and the deduction aforesaid in respect to space disallowed, unless and until it shall be certified by such Surveyor, or by some other Surveyor appointed by the Minister, that the provisions of the Act in respect of such place are fully complied with.

If any such place in any ship is not kept free from goods and stores as aforesaid, the master shall be deemed to be in fault, and shall, for every such failure to comply with the provisions of this section, forfeit and pay to each seaman lodged in such place the sum of one shilling a day for each day, after complaint made to him by any two or more of such seamen, during which any goods or stores, not being the personal property of the crew, are stored or kept therein.