Discipline. duties. 100. The Consul's duties under this head are extremely General important; but as the mode in which he must act must depend, in a great measure, upon the country in which he is, and the position and powers there given to him, it is impossible to lay down general rules which will meet every case, and he must be guided by his own discretion, and by such particular instructions as may be given him from time to time. Section 243 contains a list of the principal offences Rules in committed on board ships, and their respective punishments; but throughout the whole of the Third part of the Act will be found provisions bearing more or less on the subject of discipline; and upon the various questions which arise be tween a master and his crew. In grave cases, however, which the Consul feels. involve great responsibility, he will do well when practicable to avail himself of the assistance of a Naval Court in the mode pointed out below. (Paragraphs 109 to 123.) Desertion. S. 243. descrters. 101. In cases of desertion, when the Foreign Authorities Recovery of are required by treaty to give assistance, or where without such treaty they are willing to do so, the Consul will, if desired so to do by the Master, and if satisfied of the justice of the case, apply to the Local Authorities to have the deserter arrested, and placed on board; any expenses, however, attending this proceeding, must in all cases be paid by the Master. of desertion. Form (C. 10) 102. Whenever a seaman is left behind on account of Further desertion, an entry of the desertion must be made in the steps in case Official Log-book, and must be signed by the Master and by S. 241. the Mate, or one of the crew. This entry in the Log-book in Appendix. must be shewn to the Consul, and he will then examine into the allegation of the desertion so made; and if after full inquiry he is satisfied that it is correct, but not otherwise, he will indorse upon the agreement a certificate, s. 207, in the s. 207. form (C. 10) in the Appendix. The Consul will then make copies of the entry in the Official Log-book, and of the Certificates so indorsed by him upon the agreement, and will certify the same to be true copies, and seal them with his official seal, and will transmit them by the first opportunity to the Registrar-General of Interference of foreign courts. Local police laws and regulations. Offences punishable both by the British law. Seamen, Custom House, London, in order that they may be produced in evidence, if required. Interference of Foreign Courts of Justice. 103. In considering how far the interference of Foreign Courts should be allowed or invoked, the first question to be looked at is whether there are any treaties on the subject existing between this country and the country in which the Consul is acting. To the express stipulations of such treaties, all general rules of international law are subject; and the Consul will therefore be guided by them in the exercise of his own functions, and will call upon the Local Authorities to act in accordance therewith. 104. Subject to any such treaties as aforesaid, the Consul will remember that every country has the right of enforcing its own criminal law and police regulations in its own ports and harbours, and that if any offence against such laws or regulations is committed in such ports or harbours, on board a British ship, the offender is liable to be dealt with accordingly. In such cases the Consul's duty will be confined to seeing that the offender is fairly tried, and that justice is properly administered. If the laws or regulations of the place are in fault, it will be a matter for representation to the British Minister in the country, or to Her Majesty's Secretary of State. 105. In cases where the offence is one which is punishable both by the law of the place as above-mentioned, and also by local and by British law as mentioned in paragraph 125, and where the Local Authorities are willing to interfere if required by the Consul to do so, but not otherwise, he will consider whether the ends of justice will be best met by calling for such interference, or by sending the offender to trial in some British Court of Justice. The questions he will have to consider are, Which is the speediest and most certain mode of obtaining justice, which course is the best for the convenience of the ship and the witnesses,-and above all, whether the principles and practice of the Foreign Court can be relied on, and whether its proceedings and modes of punishment are such as would be considered proper and humane in this country. Imprison ment in fo 106. In any case in which, from whatever cause, any reign ports. British seaman is committed to prison or otherwise punished in any Foreign country, the Consul will see that the place of confinement and mode of treatment is such as would, in this country, be considered proper and humane; if it is not, he will report the case to the British Minister in the country, or to Her Majesty's Secretary of State. above-mentioned, a carries Bri her. 107. Subject to the exceptions mentioned above, the Consul Except as will remember that, according to well-established rules of t national law, a British ship carries British law with her, and British ship that all offences committed on board such ship on the high tish law with seas, and all mere breaches of discipline in Foreign ports, as well as all matters arising out of the contract with the crew, are to be judged of by British law. In some Foreign countries the Local Courts of Justice will take notice of, and adjudicate upon, such contracts; but in these cases it is usual for such Foreign Courts to act, in the case of a British ship, not according to their own law, but according to British law, so far as the construction of the contract is concerned. Except in cases where the Consul cannot settle the matter otherwise, it is extremely undesirable that disputes between the Masters and crews of British ships should be taken into Foreign Courts; but whenever this is done, the principles above mentioned should be adhered to. The Consul should explain the British law; and if this is not followed, he should report the case to the British Minister, or Her Majesty's Secretary of State. men serving 108. In cases where British seamen are employed in British seaForeign ships, the Consul will remember that, in accordance on board fowith the principles mentioned above, they are, whilst so reign ships. employed, subject to the law of the country to which the ship belongs, and not to British law. If, therefore, the Consul is called upon to interfere in their behalf, he should, either in applying to the local authorities, or in taking any other steps that may be necessary, endeavour to obtain the assistance of the Consul of the country to which the ship belongs. Naval Courts. mode of Naval 109. The power of summoning these Courts is given to Cases and Consuls in the absence of any officer commanding one of summoning Her Majesty's Ships, and in cases where such an officer is at Courts. hand, the Consul should, if he considers there is a case for a S. 260. Naval Court, apply to such officer, or refer the parties to him. The cases in which a Naval Court may be summoned are the following: (a). If the Master or any of the crew of any British ship In cases of dispute and breach of duty, &c. In cases of wreck and loss. Persons to constitute court. S. 261. make a complaint to the Consul, which appears to him to require immediate investigation: (b). Whenever he thinks that the interests of the owner of the ship or cargo require it: (c). Whenever a British ship is wrecked, lost, or abandoned within or near his Consulate, or whenever the crew or part of the crew of a ship which has been wrecked, lost, or abandoned abroad arrives at any place in his Consulate. 110. In judging whether the case is one which requires a Naval Court or not, the Consul must use his discretion. In cases of quarrels between the master and crew, he will not incur the trouble and expense of such a Court, when he thinks that the matter is a trifling one, or that it can be settled satisfactorily by his own arbitration. But if the general state of discipline in the ship is very bad, or if the charges made involve important nautical questions, or if powers are necessary which the Consul alone cannot exercise, he will do well to summon a Naval Court; and he will remember that the acts of such a Court, if in accordance with the Act of Parliament, will be recognized by British Courts of Law, whilst the powers of Consuls are extremely undefined, and their acts will frequently have no validity or effect in case of any subsequent legal proceedings. In cases where the removal of a Master or the compulsory discharge of any of the crew appears to be necessary, the Consul will almost always find it desirable to have recourse to a Naval Court. 111. In cases of wreck, loss, or abandonment, the object of summoning a Court will be to ascertain what the causes of the wreck, loss, or abandonment may have been, and therefore if it is clear that it has been caused by unavoidable accident, it will be unnecessary to institute a formal inquiry; but if there is any suspicion that it has been caused by the misconduct or neglect of the Master, or any of the crew, or by reason of the ship being insufficiently manned, or if it has arisen from any causes the investigation of which would be attended with benefit, such as the deviation of compasses, want of proper lights, or sea marks, or errors in charts, it will be desirable to have the case investigated by competent men at the earliest possible period after the occurrences. See further on this subject (paragraphs 137 to 154) below. 112. The Court is to consist of three, four, or five members, and the question of which of these it should consist must depend upon circumstances. Whenever it is possible one of these must be an officer in the navy of the rank of a Lieutenant, or some higher rank, one a Consul, and one a Master of a British merchant ship. If the Court consists of more than three, the remainder may be either Naval Officers, Masters of Merchant ships, or British merchants. If there is either no Naval Officer or no Consul at the place where the Court is held able to attend, his place may be filled up by a Master of a British merchant ship, or British Merchant. The officer who summons the Court may be a member of it, but the master or consignee of the ship in respect of which or of the crew of which the investigation is made, must not; and care should be taken to exclude any person who is in any way interested in the matter of the complaint; care should also be taken, where there is a power of selection, to select those persons who are most fit to investigate the particular subject matter before the Court. S. 262. 113. The proceedings of the Court should be conducted as Mode of far as possible upon the same principles as those of ordinary proceeding. British Courts of Justice, so, however, as not to fetter it by technicalities or forms which do not conduce to justice. Due notice must be given to the parties, and to witnesses, to attend, and should they refuse to do so, the Court may use such powers to compel their attendance as may be at their disposal. Witnesses may be examined upon oath, if it is thought desirable, and the production of any documents important to the case may be directed. If the investigation involves a charge against any person, great care must be taken to give him full notice of the charge, and of the time and place at which the Court is to sit; he should also be allowed to be present whilst the evidence is taken, and to bring any evidence or make any statement in his defence. Unless there is some special reason for the contrary, the Court should be open to the public. supersede a 114. In cases where, from the incompetency or misconduct Power to of the Master of a ship, or for any other reason, it is neces- Master. sary for the safety of the ship or crew, or for the interests S. 263. of the owner, to remove the master, and appoint another person to act in his place, the Court may do so. This power involves great responsibility, and must be exercised with great discretion. The Court must be unanimous upon the point, and if there is a consignee of the ship at the place, the new appointment must not be made without his consent. The L |