3276
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.
[No. 85

the boat. External buoyancy apparatus may be of cork or of any other equally efficient approved material; the use of rushes, cork shavings, loose granulated cork, or any other loose granulated substance and the use of apparatus dependent upon inflation by air is prohibited.

(5) Open lifeboats of Class 1 shall have a mean sheer at least equal to 4 per cent. of their length.

(6) Pontoon lifeboats may be built of wood or metal. If constructed of wood, they shall have the bottom and deck made of two thicknesses with textile material between; if of metal, they shall be divided into watertight compartments with means of access to each compartment, and shall be provided with at least two bilge-pumps.

(7) All pontoon lifeboats shall be fitted with efficient means for quickly clearing the deck of water. The orifices for this purpose shall be such that the water cannot enter the boat through them when they are intermittently submerged. The number and size of the orifices shall be determined by the Department for each type of boat by a special test.

For the purpose of this test:—

(a) The pontoon boat shall be loaded with a weight of iron equal to that of its complement of persons and equipment.

(b) In the case of a boat 28 ft. in length, 2 tons of water shall be cleared from the boat in a time not exceeding the following.

Class 1c .. .. .. 60 seconds.
Class 2B .. .. .. 60 seconds.
Class 2c .. .. .. 20 seconds.

In the case of a boat having a length greater or less than 28 ft. the weight of water to be cleared in the same time shall be for each type directly proportional to the length of the boat.

(8) No boat shall be accepted as a lifeboat the buoyancy of which depends upon the previous adjustment of one of the principal parts of the hull.

(9) All boats shall be fitted for the use of a steering-oar.

(10) All boats shall be permanently marked to the satisfaction of the Department in such a way as to indicate plainly their dimensions and the number of persons for which they are approved. Boats that have been properly marked, and boats that have been properly measured under the 1914 Life-saving Appliances Rules, need not be remeasured, unless there is reason to believe that the marks have been tampered with or are otherwise defective or improper.

(11) Surf-boats constructed after the coming into operation of these rules for use as life-saving appliances shall be constructed in accordance with specifications approved by the Chief Surveyor of Ships.

6. Number of Persons.

(1) The number of persons which a lifeboat shall be deemed fit to carry shall be equal to the greatest whole number obtained by dividing the capacity of the boat in cubic feet, or the surface of the boat in square feet, as the case may be (calculated as provided by General Rules 7 and 8), by the standard unit of capacity, or unit of surface, defined below.

(2) The cubic capacity in feet of a boat in which the number of persons is determined by the surface shall be assumed to be ten times the number of persons which the boat is authorized to carry.

(3) The standard units of capacity and surface are as follows:—

Unit of Capacity.

Class 1A .. .. .. 10 cub. ft.
Class 1B .. .. .. 9 cub. ft.
Class 3 .. .. .. 10 cub. ft.

Unit of Surface.

Class 2A .. .. .. } 3½ sq. ft.
Class 2c .. .. .. }
Class 1c .. .. .. } 3¼ sq. ft.
Class 2B .. .. .. }

(4) The Department may accept a smaller divisor for pontoon boats of Class 1c and Class 2B, if they are satisfied after trial that