656
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.

1. When a Seaman is discharged or left behind, without
   compliance by the Master with all the provisions
   of the Act.

The provisions of "The Merchant Shipping Act,
1854," with which a Master should comply when
leaving men in H.M. Dominions abroad, are contained
in the 206th, the 207th, and the 209th sections.
Under these sections, and the 213th section,
Owners are liable to repay expenses of a Seaman—

1. When forced on shore and wilfully left
   behind;

2. When discharged without official sanction,
   or left behind without an official cer-
   tificate;

3. When left behind on the ground of inability
   to proceed, but without payment of wages.
   It is to be specially noted, however, that the Board
   of Trade have no power to recover medical expenses
   (unless such expenses may properly be described as
   expenses for subsistence,) incurred in respect of a
   Seaman left behind, without due compliance with the
   law, but not injured in the service of the ship; and
   therefore the medical expenses of a Seaman who is
   left behind illegally should be deducted from his
   wages, unless he has also been injured in the service
   of the ship, and should not be included in the Form
   CC. 9.

4. When the expenses result from injury sustained by
   a Seaman in the service of the ship.

In such cases the owners are liable to repay all
expenses except those for clothing.
Therefore expenses for clothing supplied to a Sea-
man injured in the service of the ship should be
deducted from his wages, and should not be included
in Form CC. 9.

DISTRESSED SEAMEN SENT TO THE OFFICER'S PORT.

If a vessel arrives at the Officer's port with dis-
tressed Seamen on board who have been sent there
under order by a Consul or a Colonial Officer, the
Officer will require the Master to attend with the
Seamen, and to make the declaration on the second
page of the Form CC. 14 or C. 16, as the case may be.
The Officer will examine the claim, and pay it if
correct, and will also pay to the Seamen any balances
which may be described as remaining to their credit
at the port where they were put on board the vessel
for conveyance to the Officer's port, after deducting
the sum paid to the Master for their conveyance in
cases where the cause of the men's distress was
neither shipwreck, leaving behind illegally, nor injury
in the service of the ship.

The form should be properly filled up, the receipts
of the Master and men taken, and the payments
charged in the Officer's next Quarterly Account with
the Board of Trade, with which the Form CC. 14
should be sent as a voucher.

If any serious dispute arises either with the Master
or the Seamen as to facts, or as to the amount to be
paid, or if the Officer is not satisfied with the correct-
ness of the claim, the Officer should refuse to pay, and
refer the matter to the Board of Trade.

THOMAS GRAY.

[CIRCULAR.]

Downing Street, 19th August, 1870.

SIR,—I transmit to you herewith, by direction of the
Secretary of State, copies of instructions issued by
the Board of Trade to Officers in the British Posses-
sions abroad, relating to the cases of Seamen dis-
charged or left abroad, and their wages and relief.
I have, &c.,
FREDERIC ROGERS.

The Officer Administering
the Government of New Zealand.

INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFICERS IN BRITISH
POSSESSIONS ABROAD.

SEAMEN DISCHARGED OR LEFT ABROAD, AND THEIR
WAGES AND RELIEF.

Instances occur in which Masters render incorrect
accounts of wages of Seamen left behind at ports in
the British Possessions abroad, and the errors are
not corrected by discharging Officers, but are dis-
covered when the Forms CC. 6 are examined at the
Board of Trade. The consequent loss sometimes
falls upon the Seamen; but when the wages of a
Seaman are chargeable with his expenses, it falls on
Her Majesty's Government.

There is little excuse for these errors.
The attention of the Officers is particularly called
to the point in paragraph 21, and they have to certify
in precise terms to the correctness of each Form
CC. 6.

It is necessary, therefore, that they should satisfy
themselves, by a comparison of the Form CC. 6 with
the list of crews and the official logbook, that the
dates, rate of pay, deductions, and balances are in
each case correct.

A Form CC. 6 should be sent with regard to every
Seaman in respect of whom expenses are incurred,
whether any balance of wages is due to the Seaman
or not.

In future, whenever any loss results to the Govern-
ment through an error in an account of wages certi-
fied as correct by an Officer, the Officer will be
debited with the amount of such loss.

No deductions should be allowed from a Seaman's
wages for time during which a Seaman is off duty
from illness, unless it is proved that such illness has
been caused by his own wilful act and default. (See
Merchant Shipping Act, 1867.) Reasonable medical
expenses, however, may be deducted.

The Board of Trade are advised that a Seaman left
behind at a port abroad has a right to wages down
to and inclusive of the date of the certificate of the
Officer as to his being left behind.

Officers should therefore refuse to give such certi-
ficate until wages down to and inclusive of such date
have been paid.

Thus, when a Seaman has been sent to Hospital but
not discharged, wages should be calculated to the
date of the official certificate, not to the date of
entry into the Hospital.

In such a case as the foregoing, the Officer should
ascertain that the Master has paid all expenses,
medical or other, for the Seaman down to the date
of the Official Certificate, and should refuse to give it
until they are paid or provided for.

As long as there is a reasonable prospect of such a
Seaman recovering in time to continue the voyage,
the Officer should refuse to discharge him.

HOSPITALS.

In order that there may be no misunderstanding
as to whether Seamen in Hospital are or are not at
the charge of the Government, the Officer should
request the Hospital Authorities to inform him of
all British Seamen admitted into the Hospital within
twenty-four hours of their admittance.