AMERICAN PASSENGERS' ACT.
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cannot legally import goods, wares, or merchandise from foreign ports, and are subjected in the coasting trade, to disabilities and exactions from which documented vessels of the United States are exempted.
Art. 79.-On arrival from a foreign port, such undocumented vessels, if laden with goods, wares, and merchandise will, with their cargoes be subject to forfeiture. If in ballast only, or with passengers without cargo, they will be subject to tonnage duty of one dollar per ton.
CONSULAR INSTRUCTIONS. [No. 9.]
To Collectors and other Officers of the Customs.
TREASURY DEPARTMENT, June 6th, 1861.
The particular attention of Collectors and other Officers of the Customs is called to the annexed Act of Congress, entitled "An Act to provide for the ventilation of Passenger Vessels, and for other purposes," approved 17th May, 1858, with instructions for the strict enforcement of its provisions.
It is to be observed, the number of passengers that a vessel may be entitled to carry, is not, as under former laws, by her tonnage, but by her capacity according to the dimensions of the apartments occupied by the passengers, allowing for each passenger, as provided by the act of twenty-second February, 1846, a space of fourteen clear superficial feet of deck, if such vessel is not to pass within the Tropics twenty clear superficial feet of deck for each passenger; and on the orlop deck (if any) thirty clear superficial feet for each pas- senger: PROVIDED, as required by the 8th section of the Act now under consideration, "that when the height or distance between the decks of the vessels referred to in the 1st section of the Act to regulate the carriages of passengers in merchant vessels," approved 22nd February, 1847, "shall be less than six feet, and not less then five feet, there shall be allowed to each passenger sixteen clear superficial feet on the deck, instead of fourteen as prescribed in said section; and if the height or distance between the deeks shall be less than five feet, there shall be allowed to each passenger twenty-two clear superficial feet on the deck." Each passenger's berth is to be included and embraced within the respective spaces before indicated, but as enjoined by law, said spaces must be "unoccupied by stores or other goods not being the personal luggage of such passengers." The number of tiers of berths is limited to two, with an interval between the floor and the deck or platform of at least six inches, and each berth to be "at least six feet in leught, and at least eighteen inches in width for each passenger.' Dae regard must be had to the foregoing provisions of law in estimating the number of passengers the vessel is entitled to carry. In comput- ing the number of passengers "all children under the age of one year, at the time of embarkation," are excluded from such computation, consequently all children over one year are in contemplation of law to be deemed and treated as separate passengers.
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The language of the Act regulating the apparatus for ventilation, cooking, &c., and prescribing the allowance of water and provisions to be provided by each vessel according to her legal passenger capacity, is conceived to be so precise and explicit as to call for no elucidation on these points by the Department at this time.
The requirements of the 5th section of the act regulating the duties of the captian, the cleansing of the vessel, &c., must be rigidly observed and enforced.
In pursuance of the 17th section, the Collector will appoint and direct one of the Inspectors of the Customs at his port, to examine and report upon the subjects therein indicated. In the selection of this officer, care must be taken to devolve the duty upon one fully competent for its faithful discharge.
It will be seen that the regulations and restrictions imposed by this Act do not apply to cabin passengers in the case of vessels transporting such passengers between the United States and Europe.
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