12. CONVEYING DISTRESSED SEAMEN.

A Governor of any of Her Majesty's colonial possessions, or a British Consular officer, or two British merchants (where there is no such officer) have power by law to order the conveyance to any British port to which a vessel is about to proceed, of distressed British seamen; provided that the number so ordered to be conveyed does not exceed one to every fifty tons of the vessel's burden.

A master is bound, under a penalty not exceeding one hundred pounds, to receive such seamen on board his vessel, and to afford them subsistence and a passage to the port to which their conveyance has been ordered. While on board, he must supply them with proper berths or sleeping places, effectually protected against sea and weather.*

In cases of danger and of absolute necessity, seamen so sent on board may be required to assist the crew, as is the case with ordinary passengers; but, as a general rule, the master has no right to require of them the performance of duties for which he is supposed to have provided the necessary number of seamen.

When passengers of this class are required to labour with the crew, they will have the right to claim a fair amount of remuneration for the work performed.

Upon landing such passengers at the British port to which their conveyance has been ordered, and upon satisfying the Board of Trade of the justice of his claim, the master will be entitled to receive remuneration at the rate of one shilling per day for seamen and two shillings per day for masters who have been so conveyed and landed.†

13. CHARTER-PARTY.-LAY-DAYS.-DEMURRAGE.

A charter-party is generally the act of an owner under his own hand; but a master may not only be em*Merchant Shipping Act, 1854, Section 212. † Ibid. Section 212.

powered to enter into one and bind the former, but when abroad, the right to execute such an instrument is inherent in the office of master. When the goods of several merchants unconnected with each other are laden on board without any particular contract of affreightment with any individual for the entire ship, the vessel is called a general ship, because open to all merchants; but where one or more merchants contract for the vessel exclusively, it is said to be a chartered ship.

In the case of a general ship, the owner rarely interferes to regulate engagements with the foreign merchants who furnish the cargo; while he will undoubtedly be bound by every engagement made by the master relative to the usual employment of such a vessel.

By a charter-party a ship is let for a voyage to one or more places; the freight is expressed to be a sum of money for the entire ship, or for each ton or other portion of its capacity; and this sum is again either a gross sum for the whole voyage or voyages, or a particular sum for every month or week of the ship's employment. Sometimes, also, the freight is expressed to be a certain sum for every ton, cask, or bale of goods put on board, in which case the merchant usually covenants not to put on board less than a specified number of tons, casks, or bales; and where the payment is to be by the ton of goods, it is usual and proper to add, and so in proportion for a less quantity than a ton.' The merchant who has so hired a ship may lade it either with his own goods, or, if he has not sufficient, may take in goods of other persons, or he may wholly underlet the ship to another.*

6

There are some important points which a master should attend to, if he takes upon himself to fill up a charterparty. Thus, in stating the capacity of the vessel, he should be careful of doing so according to the actual number of tons burden, or to the number in the certificate

* Abbott on Shipping, 216.

of registry. And a master should so far look ahead as to be very certain before he specifies a particular day on which he will take in cargo; indeed he had better, as far as possible, avoid setting down an exact day, and try to make use of the term without delay, or within days from date; for, should his vessel not be ready at the appointed time, the charterer may engage another ship, or refuse to provide the cargo, and hold the owner liable in damages. Again, with regard to the lay-days allowed in receiving or discharging cargo, it is proper to express whether the days stipulated for this purpose are working or running days; for if running days are stated, and no usage proved to the contrary, Sundays will be included in the calculation of the lay-days.

*

A master will find it difficult to obtain printed blank forms of charter-party in some of the ports of the United States. It is true that he may choose to employ a competent mercantile notary to draw up what he wants; but in cases where he determines to do his own law work, the following general form may aid him by way of a precedent:

New York, United States of America,

the

day of

It is this day mutually agreed between (owner) of the good ship or vessel called the of the measurement of in the port of New York, by his agent of the said vessel, and

Merchant.

tons or thereabouts, now lying

(the freighter), of

First. That the said ship, being tight, staunch, and strong, and every way fitted, shall, with all convenient speed, in consideration of the freight hereafter specified, receive on board, load and stow, in a regular and proper manner, all such merchandise as shall be sent by the said freighter alongside the said vessel, in the said port of New York, not exceeding what she can conveniently and safely carry over sea, besides her provisions, tackle, and furni

* Abbott on Shipping, 249.

ture (the cabin and the usual and necessary room for crew excepted); and being so loaded, without delay, proceed to the port of and deliver the same according to the bills of

lading, on being paid

sterling in full for the freight of the said merchandise. (Restraints of princes and rulers, the act of God, the Queen's enemies, fire, and all and every other dangers and accidents of the seas, rivers, and navigation of whatever nature and kind soever during the said voyage only excepted). The freight to be paid on unloading and right delivery of the cargo. The merchant shall be allowed lay or running-days in the whole for loading and unloading the said cargo, to commence and to be computed from and exclusive of the days after the said master shall be ready to take in and discharge it, and notice given thereof to the freighter, his agents, correspondents or assigns. Also that he or they may keep the vessel on demurrage for working days over the beforementioned running or lay-days, upon paying the master at the sterling per day for each of said demurrage-days. (Here insert anything special which may have been agreed upon.) And for the due performance of all matters herein, the parties hereto do bind themselves in the sum of sterling by

rate of

way of liquidated damages. As witness the hands of the parties, the day and year first above written.

Witness,

There should be, at least, two copies of the instrument– one for the master, and the other for the shipper; and it might not sometimes be unwise to have a third, which the master could send forward to his owner. In case there are three, the words Executed in Triplicate had better be placed at the top or in the margin.

Each copy, executed in any part of the United States, and any renewal thereof, would have to bear a stamp as follows:

Where the tonnage of the vessel does not exceed Dols. Cents.

It will be observed that the above is not made as under seal, but merely under hand; and the master had better never execute for his owner under seal, as it might give a freighter or third party a stronger form of remedy.* The master, in signing, should write the owner's name, and then add the words: by (his own name), agent and master. Any person may witness the signatures; but it might be as well, if at all convenient, to get a notary to attest it.

Where the vessel is under charter-party, and a number of lay-days is stipulated (by the charter-party) for unloading the cargo, the consignee cannot be compelled to receive the goods as soon as the master is ready to deliver them; but he may take the whole period; and it has been decided in New York, that if loss occurs in the intermediate time after his refusal to receive the goods on the application of the master, the freight is not earned.†

And when, by the terms of a charter-party, a number of days is appointed for the lading of cargo, the master must wait until the expiration of that time before he sails.

After the full time of laying and of demurrage have elapsed, the master is not bound to wait for a cargo, because the owner is not entitled to additional demurrage therefor, unless it should be stipulated for in his contract.

The master should make an extended protest for demurrage, and any continued detention, and neglect, and delay in providing cargo, and despatching vessel. § It is not an uncommon practice-indeed it is one which might as well be generally pursued-for a master to go, at the end of each demurrage-day, and demand its amount from

* Pickering v. Holt, 6 Greenleaf's (U.S.) Reports, 160.

+ Robertson v. Bethune, 3 Johnson's (New York) Reports, 342. Ibid.

§ See form of Protest, Brooke's Notary, 1st edition, 263; Montefiori's Commercial Laws, 312.