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offender might be brought, it is provided, in Section 15, that the declaration of the British Consul or of the Commander of one of Her Majesty's Ships shall be received in evidence, if, when produced in the United Kingdom it has been transmitted officially to a Secretary of State, or when produced in a Colony to the Governor of that Colony.
In the case of offences against the present Act two modes of proceeding are open to the government. First - Against the Sureties, in case Bond given by the Master himself.
As Naval Officers have no power to detain any Master of a ship who has made himself amenable to punishment it may often happen that he will manage to leave the ship, and remain out of reach.
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Her