68
Agreements with
fishermen.
THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 14TH FEBRUARY, 1874.
Compensation to seamen for unnecessary detention on charge of desertion.
Power for Board of Trade to establish
8. The owner or master of any British vessel engaged in fishing off the coast of the United Kingdom may enter into an agreement with any person employed on such vessel that such person shall be remuner- ated wholly by a share in the profit of the fishing adventure.
Every such agreement shall be in writing or in print, or partly in writing and partly in print, and shall be signed by the contracting parties in the presence of a superintendent or deputy superintendent of a mercantile marine office.
The superintendent or deputy superintendent shall, before such agreement is signed, read and (if necessary) explain the same to the contracting parties, and shall attest the signature of the agreement, and certify that it has been read to and agreed to by the contracting parties.
Any such agreement, if made in the manner by this section required, shall be valid and binding on all the contracting parties, notwithstanding anything contained in section one hundrod and eighty-two of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1854.
9. If a seaman or apprentice belonging to any ship is detained on a charge of desertion or any kindred offence, and if upon a survey of the ship being made under section seven of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1871, it is proved that she is not in a fit condition to proceed to sea, or that her accommodation is insuffi- cient, the owner or master of the ship shall be liable to pay to such seaman or apprentice such compensation for his detention as the court having cognizance of the proceedings may award.
10. In any case where the business of a mercantile marine office is conducted otherwise than under a local marine board, the Board of Trade may, if they think fit, instead of conducting such business at a custom house or otherwise, establish a mercantile marine office, and for that purpose procure the requisite examinations at certain buildings and property, and from time to time appoint and remove all the requisite superintendents, depu-
mereantile marine
offices and to hold
ports.
Power for Her Majesty, by Order in Council,
to
apply certain provisions of Merchant Shipping Acts to foreign ships.
Survey of ships suspected of being unseaworthy,
Costs of survey,
ties, clerks, and servants. They may also in the like case make all such provisions and exercise all such powers with respect to the holding of examinations for the purpose of granting certificates of competency as masters, mates, or engineers, to persons desirous of obtaining the same, as might have been made or exercised by a local marine board.
11. Whenever it has been made to appear to Her Majesty that the government of any foreign state is desirous that any of the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Acts, 1854 to 1873, relating to the engage- ment and discharge of seamen, shall apply to the ships of such state, Her Majesty may by Order in Council declare that such of the said provisions as are in such order specified, shall, subject to the limitations, if any, contained in the order, apply, and thereupon, so long as the order remains in force, such provisions shall apply, subject to the said limitations, to the ships of such state, and to the owners, masters, officers, and crews of such ships, when not within the jurisdiction of such state, in the same manner in all respects as if such ships were British ships.
It shall be lawful for Her Majesty from time to time by Order in Council to add to, alter, or repeal any order made under this section.
Safety and Prevention of Accidents (Part IV. of Merchant Shipping Act, 1854).
12. Where the Board of Trade have received a complaint or have reason to believe that any British ship is by reason of the defective condition of her hull, equipments, or machinery, or by reason of over- loading or improper loading, unfit to proceed to sea without serious danger to human life, they may, if they think fit, appoint some competent person or persons to survey such ship, and the equipments, machinery, and cargo thereof, and to report thereon to the Board.
Any person so appointed may, for the purposes of such survey, require the unloading or removal of any cargo, ballast, or tackle, and shall have all the powers of an inspector appointed under the Merchant Shipping Act, 1854.
Any person who (having notice of the intention to hold such survey) wilfully does or causes to be done any act by which the person appointed to make such survey is prevented from or obstructed in ascertaining the condition of the ship, her equipments, machinery, and cargo, shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding fifty pounds.
Tho Board of Trade may, if they think fit, order that any ship be detained for the purpose of being surveyed under this section, and thereupon any officer of customs may detain such ship until her release be ordered either by the Board of Trade or by any court to which an appeal is given under this Act.
Upon the receipt of the report of the person making any such survey, the Board may, if in their opinion the ship cannot proceed to sea without serious danger to human life, make such further order as they may think requisite as to the detention of the ship or as to her release, either absolutely or upon the performance of such conditions with respect to the execution of repairs or alterations, or the unloading or reloading of cargo, as the Board may impose. They may also from time to time vary or add to such order.
A copy of any such order and of the report upon which it was founded, and also of any variation of or addition to such order, shall be delivered as soon as possible to the owner or master of the ship to which it relates.
When a ship has been detained under this section she shall not be released by reason of her British register having been closed,
13. If upon the survey of a ship under this Act she is reported to have been at the time of the survey, having regard to the nature of the service for which she was then intended, unfit to proceed to sea without serious danger to human life, the expenses incurred by the Board of Trade in respect of the survey shall be paid by the owner of the ship to the Board of Trade, and shall, without prejudice to any other remedy, be recoverable by them in the same manner as salvage is recoverable.
If upon such survey the ship is not reported to have been unfit to proceed to sea, having regard to the nature of the service for which she was intended, the Board of Trade shall be liable to pay compensation to any person for any loss or
damage which he may have sustained by reason of the detention of the ship for the purpose of survey, or otherwise in respect of such survey.
Where a complaint has been made to the Board of Trade that a ship is not fit to proceed to sea, they may, if they think fit, before ordering a survey of the ship, require the complainant to give or provide such security as they may think sufficient for the payment of the costs and expenses which they may incur in respect of the survey of the ship and of the compensation which they may be rendered liable to pay for loss or damage caused by her detention for the purpose of such survey, or otherwise in respect of such survey.
Where a ship has been surveyed under this Act in consequence of a complaint made to the Board of Trade, if upon such survey being made it appear that such complaint was made without reasonable cause, the expenses incurred by the Board in respect of the survey of the ship and the amount, if any, which the Board may have been rendered liable to pay in respect of any loss or damage caused by her detention shall be recoverable by the Board from such complainant.
All moneys payable by the Board of Trade in respect or by reason of the survey or detention of a ship under this Act shall, subject to the right by this section provided of recovering such moneys from the com- plainant, be paid out of moneys to be provided by Parliament.
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