169
of
"one of their principal functions,shipping crews for the merchant ships of their countries; and in
order not to interfere with thatprivilege the following practice "obtains. The Master of a foreign ship desirous of shipping enters the names of a crew the men on a "Permit" this with the seamen's
discharges or permission to ship,is presented at the Colonial Shipping office; the papers are examined, and if found correct, the sanction "of the Harbour Master is given for the men to be shipped at the proper Consulate; the fee of one dollar per man is paid, and the master can then ship his men. It will thus be seen that while the law of the Colony is observed, the Consul's duties are not interfered with. The Officer in charge at the Shipping Office keeps a record of all men legally discharged in the Colony, and the Permit system enables him to keep a record as to when they ship and where they go. The system complained of by the United States Consul