The administration of this important office has, for a considerable time past, been intrusted to six lords com missioners of the admiralty, who, by a statute of Wil liam and Mary, (\V. and M. stat. ii. c. 2.) are vested with the same authority, jurisdiction, and privileges, which the lord high admiral formerly enjoyed. The first lord is always a member of the cabinet, and en grosses the whole prerogatives ; as his colleagues have few or none. Petitions or applications to the king in council, arc only so in fiction, as no discussion of them ever takes place ; and they are immediately transmitted to the admiralty, where the lords commissioners, or more properly the first lord, decides upon the nature and subject of the application.
Though Scotland never possessed any thing which could merit the appellation of a navy, there was former ly a lord high admiral in this country. It is difficult to collect much of his early history ; but extensive powers were conferred upon him by an act which was passed the year 1651, and in which he is styled '.the king a lieutenant and justice-general upon the seas." llis of
fice is now absorbed in that of the lords commissioners of the admiralty fur Great Britain. A vice-admiral, however, is still appointed by the crown, and exercises a civil and criminal jurisdiction in Scotland, nearly of the same kind with that which belonged to the high-ad miral of England. It is not many years since a person accused of robbery on the seas was tried belore the vice-admiral, and a jury in the former country, and sen tenced to be hanged at Leith within high water mark. But the duty of the office is now generally done by a deputy, who is called the judge-admiral, and presides in a court for the discussion of maritime questions.* Admiral is also the title given to the highest rank of officers in the British navy. There are admirals of the red, white, and blue : and there are also vice-admirals and rear-admirals of each of these flags. An admiral carries his flag at the main-topmast head ; a vice-admi ral at the fore-topmast-head, and a rear-admiral at the mizen-topmast-head. (c)