CO129-168 - Sir Kennedy - 1874 [9-12] — Page 478

Consular Officers are recognized for certain limited purposes and no

others such as the discharge of

seamen ete

Now the Plaintiff is an American citizen and by the laws of

the

United States the Consular Courts.

have authority to hear and adjudicate upon disputes between discharged seamen and their Captains and/

: conferred upon the powers are Consuls by law of March 3rd 1873 to collect 3 months extra wages

es on the

a sailor abroad, and to discharge of a remit a portion in cases of misbehaviour: The United States Consul acting under this authority has disallowed the

conthe

473

2 extra wages due to the Plaintiff-

who.

now, comes to an

English Court to claim these wages and damages

for wrongful dismissal - The case quoted by M. Brereton as having been decided by MW. Hayllar when

sitting

no

as a

bearing.

judge in the court has

on the ease. That was an

attempt to ignore a discharge granted by the Consul, the officer especially empowered to grant discharges) and to treat it as a nullity by arresting the seaman who held the certificate

as a deserter. This was a most outrageous attempt to set aside the -laws of the Colony, and met its-

deserts