SHIPS AND SHIPPING, together with other related matters such as SEAMEN, form the subject of the Merchant Shipping Acts. That of 1894 and 1906 are the principal.
Qualification for owning British ships.—A ship is not a British ship unless owned wholly by persons of the following description, namely : (a) Natural born British subjects ; (b) persons naturalised ; (c) persons made &skew,. (d) bodies corporate established under and subject to the laws of some pa 'o his Majesty's dominions and having their principal place of business there. But a natural born British subject who has taken the oath of allegiance to a foreign sovereign or State or has otherwise become a citizen or subject of a foreign State, or a person who has been naturalised or made a denizen as aforesaid, is not qualified to be owner of a British ship unless, after taking such oath or becoming a citizen or subject of a foreign State, or on being naturalised or made denizen, he has taken the oath of allegiance to his Majesty the King, and during his ownership of the ship he continues resident in his Majesty's dominions, or partner in a firm actually carrying on business therein. Obligation to register.—Every British ship (unless exempted from registry) must be registered. If not registered she is not recognised as a British ship. A ship required to be registered may be detained until her master produces the certificate of registry. Exemptions from registry.—There are exemptions in the following cases only : (a) Ships not exceeding fifteen tons burden employed on the rivers or coasts of the United Kingdom, or on those of some British possession within which the managing owners are resident ; (b) ships not exceeding thirty tons burden, and not having a whole or fixed deck, and employed solely in fishing or trading coastwise on the shores of Newfoundland or parts adjacent thereto; or in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, or the portions of the coasts of Canada bordering on that gulf. Procedure for registration.—The following persons are registrars of British ships : (a) At any port in the United Kingdom or Isle of Man approved by the commissioners of customs for the registry .of ships, the chief officer of customs ; (b) in Guernsey and Jersey, the chief officers of customs, together with the Governor ; (c) in Malta and Gibraltar, the Governor ; (d) at Calcutta., Madras, and Bombay, the port officer ; (e) at any other port in any British possession approved by the Governor, the chief officer of customs, or if there be no such officer there resident, the Governor of the possession in which the port is situate, or any officer appointed for the purpose by him ; (f ) at a port of registry established by order in council, persons of the description declared in the order. Register book.—Every registrar keeps a register book, the entries in which are made in accordance with the following provisions ;—(1) The property in a ship must be divided into sixty-four shares : (2) except in the case of joint-owners or owners by transmission, not more than sixty-four individuals are entitled to be registered at the same time as owners of any one ship ; but this rule does not affect the beneficial title of any number of persons or of any company represented by or claiming under or through any registered owner or joint-owner : (3) a person is not entitled to be registered as owner of a fractional share in a ship ; but any number of persons not exceeding five may be registered as joint-owners of a ship or of any share or shares therein : (4) joint-owners are considered as constituting one person only as regards the persons entitled to be registered, and are not entitled to dispose in severalty of any interest in a ship, or in any share therein, in respect of which they are registered : (5) a corporation may be registered as owner by its corporate name. Survey
and measurement of ship.—Every British ship must before registry be sur veyed by a surveyor of ships and her tonnage ascertained, and the surveyor grants his certificate specifying her tonnage and build and other particulars, and delivers such certificate to the registrar before registry. Marking of ship.—Every British ship must before registry be marked permanent] I, conspicuously, to the satisfaction of the Board of Trade, as folle is : (a) Her name must be marked on each of her bows, and her name and the name of her port of registry must be marked on her stern, on a dark ground in white or yellow letters, or on a light ground in black letters, such letters to be of a length not less than four inches, and of proportionate breadth ; (b) her official number and the number denoting her registered tonnage must be cut in on her main beam ; (c) a scale of feet denoting 'ner draught of water must be marked on each side of her stern and of her stern-post in Roman capital letters or in figures, not less than six inches in length, the lower line of such letters or figures to coincide with the draught line denoted thereby, and those letters or figures must be marked by being cut in and painted white or yellow on a dark ground, or as the Board of Trade approve. The Board of Trade may exempt any class of ships from all or any of these requirements, and a fishing boat entered, lettered, and numbered as required by law need not have her name and port of registry so marked. If the scale of feet is in-: accurate, so as to be likely to mislead, the owner of the ship is liable to a fine of .E100. The marks must be permanently continued, and no alteration can be made therein, except in the event of any of the particulars thereby denoted being altered in the manner provided by law. If an owner or master of a British ship neglects to cause his ship to be so marked, or to keep her SO marked, or if any person conceals, removes, alters, defaces, or obliterates, or suffers any person under his control to conceal, remove, alter, deface, or obliterate any of the said marks, except in the event aforesaid, or except for the purpose of escaping capture by an enemy, that owner, master, or person is for each offence liable to a fine of 1'100, and the ship may be detained until the insufficiency or inaccuracy is remedied.